#i’m going to pretend he would simply feel scandalized

[pisces-swirlix]

Okay DBD fandom. Bear with me, this is stupid as hell, but I’m laughing uncontrollably on the floor of my room and I have to share.

For context, there was this show I used to watch: Galavant. It only ran for like two seasons back in 2015, but it was awesome. It was like this fantasy/comedy/musical type thing. I was recently reminded of its existence when I randomly heard one of the songs.

It was a song that they did in the show sang by this evil witch. When the main character meets her, you find out she owns this tavern, and it’s full of all these muscly dudes, so you’re like “oh he’s about to get the shit beaten out of him.” Long story short, no. The witch owns a gay bar, and instead of beating him up, they proceed to do a musical number titled “Off with His Shirt.”

I don’t even know if I have to elaborate more on this, but I’m cracking up at Charles and Edwin meeting Desire and it being exactly like this.

[queen-haq]

Fic: Never You - (Penelope/Colin) Part 1

Rating: R

Fandom: Bridgerton (TV show)

Spoilers: S3 scene released yesterday.

Summary: They may have been friends once but his callous words decimated their relationship. Determined not to have anything to do with him, Penelope is ready to move on. But Colin isn't giving up, not at all. Friends or not, they are connected for life - and he intends to remind her of that.

Excerpt:

“You would hate me for not wanting to court you. You would be that selfish?”

“Of course you would think that.”

“What else is this if not punishment?”

Part 1

Penelope stared out at the pond, her last conversation with Colin still running through her mind. I miss you. Few months ago his words would have sparked incredible joy in her but hearing his smug confession last night had elicited nothing but rage. Even now an explosive anger threatened to burn her from the inside out - but she reminded herself to stay composed. Losing her calm over Colin Bridgerton was simply not worth it, not when she had far more important things to worry about.

“Penelope. How are you?”

Hearing Lady Violet’s voice from behind, she turned around to greet the older woman. Except she wasn’t alone. Of course not. Behind her stood most of her family, Colin and Eloise on one side, Gregory and Hyacinth on the other. Penelope quickly shifted her gaze back to Lady Violet. “I’m quite well. How are you?”

“You haven’t paid us a visit in a long time.”

Penelope sensed the scorn vibrating off of Eloise in waves, but she ignored her former friend. Even though her soul ached at the loss of their friendship, a part of her had already grown resigned to their new reality. “I’m afraid country life has kept me busy all these months.”

“Well, you’re back now. I hope to see you at the house more often.”

There was no mention of the falling out with Eloise, nor did Penelope expect there to be. Especially with Eloise pretending she no longer existed. Her eyes roamed over to her friend, only to be ignored. Inevitably her gaze slid over to Colin, and she suddenly found herself the recipient of his intent focus. Somber blue eyes penetrating her through to her very core, making her rattled and anxious and breaking down the very calm façade she worked so hard to build.  

Throughout their entire friendship he’d always been sweet and funny, filling her dull world with hope and color, but the night of her mother’s ball she’d seen the kind of cruelty he was capable of. It was a side of him that she never wished to see again. And feeling his piercing gaze right into her soul, in a way he’d never looked at her before, reminded her of how much of a stranger he really was. “Forgive me, Lady Violet, but I must take my leave. Mama shall be waiting for me.”

She quickly walked past the group, breathing a sigh of relief at no longer being under Colin’s scrutiny. Her relief, however, lasted only a few seconds. Because almost immediately Colin was striding alongside her.

“Pen, we need to speak.”

“I have nothing to say to you.”

“Then I’ll do the talking.”

“And I’m not interested in listening.”

“Too bad. Because I’m not going anywhere.”

She cursed his long legs, because while she struggled to keep up the fast pace he seemed to glide along the path without much effort. Short of running away from him, which would surely cause a scandal amongst the crowd promenading, she had no choice but to keep walking.

“I’m sorry. Truly.” His voice was soft, velvety like butter, like he’d practiced the words many, many times in preparation for the performance of a lifetime. “My words that night-”

“Do you know that I read your letters over the summer? Despite my anger, I still read them.”

An unexpected rawness laced his voice. “Why?”

“Because I needed to know. Would I recognize that insincerity in your words now that I knew the truth about your disdain towards me. And do you know what I discovered?”

She finally turned to look at him, and just for a moment the world stopped. Like it always did. His eyes were bluer than the sea itself, a symphony of agony and need, beckoning her towards him. She suddenly found it difficult to breathe, her heart caught in a whirlwind of chaos.

“Tell me.”

It wasn’t a request, nor a plea. It was a demand. As if he was entitled to her thoughts, her heart. Her very soul.  Well, damn him. Damn him for playing her for a fool. And damn herself for ever loving him. “You are an extraordinarily talented writer, Mr. Bridgerton. So good in fact that I woulld never have guessed your true thoughts if I didn’t hear you utter them myself.”

“That’s not fair. It was one night, Pen! One night! When I was drunk out of my mind and said something foolish. Are you really willing to give up on me after years of friendship because of something so small?”

“Yes.” Her response was quick and resolute, surprising even herself.

Stunned, Colin stared back at her. “Yes?” The tremor in his voice was unmistakable. “You don’t mean that.”

“Don’t I?”

The change in him was sudden and abrupt, taking her by surprise when he moved swiftly to block her path.

The blues of his eyes were so dark they bordered on brown, a storm brewing in them. Staring back at her was a man she didn’t recognize, different from the boy she grew up with,and the man who humiliated her without a thought. This was a stranger in front of her, anger etched on his face, jaw clenched with tension.

“You would hate me for not wanting to court you. You would be that selfish?”

“Of course you would think that.”

“What else is this if not punishment?”

She didn’t think he could hurt her more, but he managed to do it nonetheless. “I never expected you to court me, Colin. You don’t love me. I’m quite aware of that. But you could have told them there was nothing between us. You could’ve even said I meant nothing to you. Instead you mocked me, derided me so you could look good in front of your peers, and that makes you someone I never want to associate with.”

 “I made a mistake, Pen.”

“Miss Featherington,” she bit out through gritted teeth. “That is who I am to you from now on. Nothing more.”

“So that’s it? I make a mistake and you erase me from your life just like that?” He snapped his finger angrily. “Are you so fucking perfect that you’ve never wronged anyone?

They’d been standing still for far too long, their conversation growing more potent every second. All of a sudden she was acutely aware of glances in her direction, people’s eyes sliding over her and Colin, and she realized how dangerous this was. Risking her carefully crafted plans for a few heated moments with him was idiotic. “People are staring at us, Colin.”

“I don’t care.”

“Obviously.” She offered a small smile at the couple who walked past her, trying to appear amiable. “You may not be concerned about my reputation but I am. And I would appreciate it if you stayed out of my way.”

“I’m not willing to give up on our friendship like you.”

His snarky words drew her gaze back to him. “Walk away, Mr. Bridgerton. Let me be.”

“And if I don’t?”

The hint of menace sent an unexpected shiver down her spine. “You would not be the gentleman you claim to be.”

“Perhaps I’m not. Perhaps everything you’ve accused me of is true.” He took a step closer, eyes shining brightly. “Maybe I am cunning and cruel. What then?”

Her heart pounded in her chest. “What is it that you want from me?”

“Forgiveness.”

“Fine. You’re forgiven.”

“You’re lying.”

“And you’re being rude.”

Eyes locked, they regarded each other intently. She didn’t understand what he was doing, why he was behaving this way. Why his stare seemed to be all consuming, studying her, trailing down to her mouth when she licked her bottom lip before drifting back up again. He’d never behaved this way before, A complete stranger in every way. “If you ever valued me as a friend, you would do as I ask.”

“I could say the same. If you valued me, you wouldn’t cast me aside.”

“You can not force me to continue this.”

“Would that be such a hardship? To move past one mistake and leave it behind us?” Desperation brimmed from him, he swallowed audibly. “I may not wish to court you but you are important to me. You’re my dearest friend. I can not envision a life without you.”

She exhaled a long, drawn-out breath. “You must.”

His lips twisted into a cruel plea. “Why?”

“Because I am to be married, Colin!” Instantly she regretted her words, hating herself for letting him provoke her. Yes, it was the truth, a plan that had taken months to carefully develop and plot – and now she’d ruined it by announcing it too early, and to him of all people!

“What?” He faltered back, stunned by her words. “You’re engaged? To whom? Why-”

“All you need to know is that my future husband and I have already discussed the matter and he wishes for me to have nothing to do with you. So goodbye, Mr. Bridgerton, because this the last time you and I will speak alone.” She stormed away, before he could stop her.

To be continued...

A/N - Um, thoughts? Feedback is always appreciated. I'm liking the idea of Colin and Penelope going head to head over the destruction of their friendship :)

[hamiltonconfessions-but-better]

TW!!

I know it’s not how it happened in real life, but exclusive to the canon of Hamilton and pretending nothing else happened and that it’s not biased. Say No To This is an SA song.

NOW HEAR ME OUT

I do NOT care that Maria was younger than him, first of all perpetrators come in all ages.

Second of all I don’t care that Maria was put up to it by James!

In the musical, Alexander does not actually ever say yes to Maria until the LAST FEW LINES. I’m aware that it’s referenced that they continue to do this, so my point is more about the first time. Alex does not say yes ONCE. He does not want to cheat on Eliza at first and he simply just does not know how he’s supposed to say no in that situation. (Personally, that hit me hard as a victim.)

I do believe that the rest of the times were consensual but the point begins that their relationship starts and is therefore built off of Maria assaulting him. So therefore I don’t think Alexander (in the musical) should be held entirely at fault for this. He was outright forced the first time and I’m sure there was pressure to say yes the rest of the time. Granted he did keep going back and admits to becoming a past time.

My final point of evidence? Guilt. The way they generally portray his mood at the end of the sentence. Cheaters do not feel that kind of guilt. He is generally depicted as numb or seconds away from tears and that is NOT the reaction that would be provoked from cheating. Maybe you feel guilty, yes, but it’s more of an “oh my gosh I messed up” not an in tears just at the thought of those interactions. Also at the end, when he’s talking to Eliza is It’s Quiet Uptown, he says he would literally trade his life for Phillips because Eliza would be happier. He is very aware of how he’s hurt Eliza in a way that most cheaters I’ve heard of just can’t seem to comprehend, leading me to believe that his self awareness is due to some guilt he feels that because of this he doesn’t deserve to be alive for hurting Eliza, not realizing that he is a victim in this situation and desperately trying to get that point across to her.

Again, IRL? Alexander is at fault. He agreed to cheat on Eliza and continued to do so. But it’s different in the musical. Mostly due to the way Lin wrote Alex to be more of a self insert and possibly due to the musical being from Eliza’s perspective. Still my point stands that this is the way the scandal is portrayed and therefore I believe that Alexander Hamilton (FROM THE MUSICAL) is male SA representation.

(My god that got long, my bad guys 🤷‍♂️)

.

[arliedraws]

Okay, I’m feeling the pull of James Potter and Slytherin!Sirius Black again. Verrryyyy short drabble below. It’s just sexual tension.

—

a good little errand boy

James was twenty-six when he became an Auror. He avoided it for years, ignoring the whisper in the back of his head that the only way he would put Sirius Black in Azkaban was to put the chains on Black himself.

He denied it. He promised himself that he could be satisfied hiding with Lily and Harry until Harry turned eleven, but the damned stories in The Daily Prophet and magazine covers that lauded the most eligible bachelor in the country persisted in mocking him until he finally gave up and told Lily he was getting a job.

By that time, Lily was already working from home as a freelance enchanter, fixing and strengthening charms on magical objects for a repair shop in Diagon Alley. She told him with a cheeky grin to get his lazy bum out of the house.

It took several brutal years of training to become an Auror, and he quickly understood why so few people were admitted to the program. But James was clever and his experience with the Order of the Phoenix propelled him to success; he was satisfied that each agonizing trial and stage of his education brought him closer to bringing Sirius Black to justice. The obsession drove him to wake up early and study before Lily stirred; it compelled him to stay late in Frank Longbottom’s cubicle, rifling through old files and cases, memorizing the history of the department until he knew better than anyone how dark wizards came to power. He traced Black’s long history from his great grandparents to his involvement with two Ministers for Magic and a little-known scandal with a witch from The Daily Prophet who claimed Black tried to pay her off when she dug too deep into his business. She eventually retracted her accusation and left her career as a journalist and refused to talk to James about it when he found her.

Before he was an apprentice, he thought he would have to hunt for Sirius Black once he became a fully qualified Auror. He imagined chasing him through seedy clubs or breaking into old country houses, but it became very clear that Black would eventually come to him.

Black was a frequent visitor to the Ministry. He slithered into the offices of department heads, spilling Galleons from his palms into the hands of tired bureaucrats who simply wished for the whole war to end so they could go back to delegating instead of handling one disaster after another. Black eased their troubles. He was so generous and helpful with his robust understanding of wizarding politics and clever insight.

James recalled seeing Black in action for the first time when he stumbled upon a very pleased Sirius Black shaking Wilmot Blevins’ hand the day after Blevins was made head of the Department of Magical Transportation. Black had turned to James, his smile broadening with delight.

“James Potter,” said Black. There was a feral look to him that made James too furious to consider its implications.

“What are you doing here?” James demanded, looking between Black and Blevins.

“Mr. Black is very kindly congratulating me on my new position,” said Blevins. His long, face appeared dizzy with admiration and he was perspiring slightly beneath his shining fringe of blond hair. “I was telling Mr. Black that I look forward to working with our most prominent families to ensure I serve our community to the best of my ability. Input from exceptional wizards like Mr. Black keeps our fine institution functioning.”

“It was a well-deserved promotion,” added Black. “Don’t you think, Potter? Mr. Blevins has proven to be an incredibly valuable and cooperative component of this governing body. Wouldn’t you agree?”

James wanted the pale, colorless eyes to turn elsewhere but they were observing him with keen interest.

“Yes. Congratulations, Mr. Blevins,” said James, gritting his teeth. Of course, he did not think so at all. Blevins was a half-blood who desperately pretended his mother’s pure blood made up for his father’s muggle heritage. No doubt Black was falsely promising a place for the greedy Blevins among the notable families.

At this, Black smiled again, but somehow, his teeth appeared sharper and whiter.

“Was there something you needed, Potter?” said Black.

“A signature,” said James, locking eyes with Blevins. “It’s about—well, Auror Moody should have sent a request this morning about the matter. I’ve come to confirm your approval.”

Blevins looked uncomfortable as Black’s expression slipped into something neutral.

“Er—well, I’m afraid, Potter, I won’t be signing that just yet.’

“Oh,” said James. “Er—why not? I mean—er—is there a reason? I apologize, sir, I mean, what should I tell Auror Moody? He was expecting this to be signed—”

“Tell him I have not had adequate time to investigate whether or not an entire Knight Bus is necessary for this sort of thing,” said Blevins. His eyes shifted from Black back to James. Assured by a flickered look from Black, he straightened and looked down his nose at James. “Assure Auror Moody I am taking the matter very seriously. The trouble is, as much as I would like to help, I’m afraid my hands are tied. I will do my best, but I can’t make any promises.”

James heard the dismissal in his voice. “Thank you, Mr. Blevins. I’ll let him know.”

He left, avoiding the smirk on Black’s aristocratic face, hoping the humiliation wasn’t evident on his own. He left quickly, hearing Blevins apologize to Black for the interruption. Had he heard the clink of gold exchanged? Maybe he’d imagined it: Black wasn’t that brazen.

Moody would be livid—he’d warned everyone that Blevins was trouble, but James insisted he could get Blevins to approve their request, and now he was returning to his department with his tail between his legs. It was Black’s fault.

He waited for the lift, breathing deeply. Lily told him to count to ten whenever he had a run-in with Sirius Black. Now that they were no longer in school and James was an Auror, the consequence of James attacking Black would not be detention and points from Gryffindor. It would be foolish to blow all that he had done to become an Auror.

“What a good little errand boy. So polite and obedient.”

James went rigid.

“Three years of training, a year of apprenticeship, months of excruciating exams…” said Black. “All that so you can obey the petty commands of an old codger who should have died twenty years ago. I’d be disappointed if I were you.”

James gripped the unsigned, rolled-up parchment as Black made a pitying sound beside him. Don’t look—don’t dignify that with a response. Just do your duty. Ignore him, Potter.

Black sighed. “I suppose you must regret rejecting all of those recruiters for Quidditch teams while we were at school, don’t you? Imagine—you nearly played for Puddlemere United. I don’t doubt you would have been made Captain, and I reckon you might’ve even played for England in the World Cup this summer. Personally, I find it rather disappointing that you didn’t. I would have liked to buy kit with your name on it.”

“What were you doing in Blevins’ office?”

“Welcoming him to his new position.”

“I’m surprised you weren’t on your knees.”

To his surprise, Black laughed. “No need for that with Blevins. He was practically foaming at the mouth when I came in. I suppose we’re lucky you didn’t catch him on his knees.”

“Blevins would suck off anyone with pure blood.”

“Yeah, reckon he might.” Black bent forward, trying to catch James’s gaze. “He’s not propositioned you, has he, Potter?”

James nearly responded with a quip he knew would make Black laugh again, but he bit the inside of his cheek instead. It made him furious. Although they hadn’t spoken in years, there was an ease between them that was almost irresistible.

“Of course,” Black went on when James was silent, “I wouldn’t expect you to take him up on the offer. Ugly bloke, isn’t he? Bit of a downgrade from what you’ve already got at home.”

“What?” James snapped his gaze to him.

Black grinned. “Oh, I meant, I am sure you would much prefer to watch Evans and her pretty little mouth suck you off than Blevins’ ugly mug.”

The lift doors opened suddenly and Black slipped inside, disappearing amongst the throng of passengers.

It was full of people, so much so that James had to squeeze his arms to his sides to wedge himself between them. Like everyone in the lift, he turned and faced the doors, gripping the handle overhead as he quelled the waves of rage that were slamming down on him. Black loved to taunt James about Lily—he’d always done that, long before Lily admitted she had feelings for James.

The lift took off, and James, distracted by his fury, lost his grip and stumbled backward. A strong pair of hands squeezed his hips, steadying him.

“Easy, Potter.”

The shock of Black’s hands on him, carefully keeping him from falling over, dispelled rationality. His mind scrambling, James lurched with the lift, still unable to find his footing; he felt Black curl fingers over his wrist to guide James’s hand back to grip the handle above him.

“Don’t touch me,” James hissed.

The damned lift jerked to a halt, and he staggered again into Black’s hard body. There was a low rumble of laughter in his ear as the doors opened, and people streamed in and out, all of them oblivious to the way his heart palpitated so loudly, the sound of it lost to the shuffle of feet and murmured greetings. He felt like a complete idiot. He was not some bumbling fool, but Black was directly behind him, breathing down his neck, the smell of tobacco leaves and bergamot suffocating and intoxicating all at once, and when the lift doors closed and more people pressed inside, James was shoved firmly against Black.

Heat pooled in his face as he stared at the back of a witch’s coarse, silvery head, pretending he did not notice or care that he could feel Black’s body flush with his. Around them, memos fluttered aloft, and people gazed dully at the lift doors, waiting for their turn to get out. Everything was so ordinary. This was simply another day at work. James pretended to feel the same even though Black’s heart was thudding against his spine.

It felt like provocation even though Black said nothing at all. Hatred and excitement were welling inside of James as he felt Black’s chest expand and release. Something about the soft, warm breath skimming the damp sweat above his collar made James tighten his fingers on the handle overhead. The body behind him was a comforting threat. It electrified him.

When at last the doors opened to the Department of Magical Law Enforcement, James wriggled out between people, eager to leave the stifling lift behind. As he cleared the throng of people, he chanced a surreptitious glance at Black.

Black slid his gaze to him from beneath eyelids that seemed a heavy burden to raise as if looking upon James was an arduous chore. His clear, pale eyes swept over him with disinterest. Then the lift doors closed, and James hurried to find Moody and tell him the bad news, desperately trying to forget the brush of Black’s breath against his neck.

[yxstxrdrxxm-a]

SYNOPSIS: To Lyney, secrets must be kept hidden. Maybe it's why, in the end, this 'love' feels like a sense of betrayal.

TW/s: Yandere behavior, Lyney becomes a bit of a ‘detective’ lol, toxic sibling dynamic (not inc/st god fucking no, just twisted morals on siblings + family), Lyney is fucked up and deranged. NSFW warnings include mentions of graphic description of violence, puppet moment™, implied trafficking (might not be here but be warned), arson, the whole nine yards.

NOTE FROM HR: A matchup with ties to the background of MixMatch… How curious. Now, this may be tame from some of these entries, but be warned, there may be things that can trigger someone.

Lyney is one of those that people underestimate a lot more than they’d like to admit. And for one thing, they wouldn’t be blamed… Much.

After all, he looked quite innocent, and wouldn’t seem to be the type to have any malicious intent for those he’s with. Which, if they knew him well, they would see that it’d be the biggest lie they’ve ever been told in all of history.

Including himself, ironically enough.

To Lyney and his siblings, he's a dead man walking. His intentions are not as pure, but his ambitions make up for it. All he wanted was to provide answers and insights for their Father, Arlecchino, and if it meant they had to work in the establishment… So be it.

This led to him speaking to Eros and Cupid—both matchmakers who, in his eyes, never signed up for the changes they were presented in front of them. In Cupid’s case, they were simply hired for the sake of alluding the crowd with the potential of MixMatch, and with who they can be with. Sure, the selection is tight and there’s been shady scandals in the past with Celestia Inc., but it was all fine, right?

As for Eros, he gathered from Freminet when he was speaking to her that he’s in charge of what goes truly with the ‘transactions’ from both client and rented ‘boyfriend’. She even mentioned how Cupid is also tied into it as the messenger, which was an irony, considering the Boss had his days numbered due to such an exploit before both came to work.

Speaking of, he was seeing them both now to see who his match is, and it looks like he got a catfish— courtesy of Cupid telling him and was now apologizing rapidly because the person he was matched it never really existed. It looked like they were groveling on his feet for forgiveness.

What a sorry sight.

…

How odd, mused Lyney, as he noticed the bandage on Cupid’s left cheek. It looked like something happened there, but he knew he couldn’t bring it up, lest it’d spark up suspicion that he was ‘looking into things he shouldn’t be’.

“No need to apologize,” he told them, watching them frown and shake their head once more. “Please, I must apologize for this mix-up. Eros and I were working overtime to set up these matches for you and everyone, and I feel as though it's my responsibility for what happened. Please forgive me, Lyney. You were meant to be with someone else.”

Someone else?

“Well, what’s done is done, little Cupid,” he says, patting their head. “You’re still getting used to things, so I’m sure I’ll be able to manage who you assigned me to. Now, you were saying that it’s ████████, right?”

“Yes, ████████. We don’t know their full name, but maybe you’d know them better than I do—you did tell us that you knew them.”

“Oh, that I do,” he added, his eyes twinkling as he reached to tilt his hat. “In fact, I met them long, long ago. It’s such an irony that now I’m matched with them. I thought that man would keep them locked shut in his little ‘team’.”

“I’m… Sorry?”

“Haha, nothing! Anyway, where are they? Did they tell you where they’d go?”

When Lyney managed to reach the venue, he had a few things in mind. Catfishing is never taken lightly in the corporation, and they were taught how to deal with those who pretended to be certain people and ditched when they had to meet their match.

The one thing, though, is that he had additional help. 

"So, you're sure that the catfish used a fake profile to try and get into the bigwigs of MixMatch?" asked Lynette, raising an eyebrow as she watched him prepare for the surprise he had. "And here I thought that Father warned us to not be too rash. We still have a few things we needed to keep an eye on while you're working for them."

"I know that, Lynette, but I can't help myself! Having to impersonate someone and even getting my hopes up... Only to strike it down is a crime," he said, but the twins knew that he was merely pretending. With a sigh, he placed his hand on his heart, the other one holding some wire cutters.

"Oh well. It's not like it'll be such a bother, not with the bag of tricks we carried. Isn't that right, Lynette?"

"... You brought me with you, though."

"Ahaha! Nonsense! Besides, it's not just you. Freminet is with us, but he's working on the distraction as we three discussed," Lyney tutted, sauntering to the house and preparing the surprise. "Now, Lynette, would you be a dear and help your big brother cause some mayhem?"

The latter sighed. She knew her brother wouldn't back down for his need of doing something 'fun', and especially when his 'fun' involved committing enough crimes and getting suspicious people back to their... Hideout.

"... Fine," she muttered, donning a mask as she went to the back door. "Don't mess this up, brother. We need to be swift before people catch sight of us 'cleaning' this house up."

"Oh, I know."

When she was in position, he was quick to cut the wires, letting the lights go out inside the house. The voices coming from within were muffled, but he could already hear the anticipation from them. Tossing the wire cutters back to the bag, he grabbed a few things and heard a few thumps— that must mean that Lynette has done her part.

A sound of breaking glass, panicked voices, and he managed to get to the door. It was already unlocked, courtesy of their carelessness to locking the damn door, and he had simply tossed bombs that looked like mice. He could simply relish the screams as they went off, magenta smoke, sparkles, and splatters coming out when its timer reached zero.

He could hear them panic as she done quick work from the inside, the fumes travelling upwards and to the second floor, causing the house to be fogged up. Counting down a few seconds, he grabbed a few more and sent the next batch in.

Their plan was to cause a bit of mayhem as they 'cleaned' up the place. After all, their tricks only served to have cause the illusion, and it was nothing more than that. Although, the crime of impersonation and fooling him, an illusionist, is far bigger than those that the judge would state in the entire expanse of Teyvat.

After a few bombs, some things exploding and the fire starting from the inside and glass smashing, he saw Lynette come out with a body. Seems like she was unconscious too. With a nod, the twins left the house as swiftly as they came, but not without the illusionist tossing one more surprise.

A plush.

Upon making contact with the flames leaking from inside the house, it seem to blow up from the seams, wrecking it even more and urging the flames to consume more than the house as they escaped.

Running down to the streets below, Lynette caught whiff of soot and the special (flammable) smoke they made and scowled.

"Did you really have to use that?" she asked, scoffing. "You smell rancid in that."

"Hah! Like you're one to talk, my dear sister," he taunted back, lugging the bag up as they both saw Freminet coming out from the phone booth. He was carrying a receiver and his mechanical penguin, though his face looked rather grim.

"Lynette, Lyney... ██████ is calling us."

Their faces became serious.

"What is it?"

"I'm... Not sure. She said that we need to come back... Urgently. It's about the suitors and their involvement."

Lynette remained stone-faced. Sparing a glance to Lyney, she adjusted her grip on the body.

"I see. I'll be returning post-haste. Brother, can you make it there in 3 days?"

Lyney seems hesitant, but he nodded. If ██████ needed them, then he had to settle a few issues in the corporation. Turning his gaze to the watch, his brows furrowed at the time they had left.

"I need to return to Celestia Inc. Lynette, Freminet, please inform him that I need to file a leave before I can get there. After all, I am still apart of the corporation, and it'd be bad if the boss caught on."

The two nodded.

"Of course. I'm sure ██████ will understand."

If not, they have their methods to do such a thing.

It was 3 days too late when the meeting was set, but ██████ didn't mind when the oldest was late. After all, the company he was tied with willingly wouldn't allow any sort of leave unless there was definite proof of such a thing.

"Lyney, do you have any updates for the clients matched with you and the other 'suitors'?"

Lyney bowed, his expression remaining serious as he looked up towards her.

"██████, some of the clients have been killed by them. The others wound up missing, and no one knows where they are. Asking the two 'matchmakers' yielded no results either, as they are uninvolved of the process."

"I see. Lynette, how are the others that we've 'rescued'?"

"They are safe, ██████," she replied, lowering her head as she bowed alongside Lyney. "Some are a bit shaken as they didn't expect it to happen, but the suitors who saved them are cagey. A few have threatened me and Freminet from getting too close to them because of the danger that we 'possess' to them."

How interesting.

"And for those who were killed?"

"Buried 6 to 12 feet under. Some are left in docks and inside wells," Lyney was the next to respond. "There are others who's faces were mutilated. It was troublesome to confirm their faces. And the rest..."

"... I see."

██████ placed down the folder full of evidence she had. Most of it had been from the clients, and it came from one of the two sources itself.

"██████, what should we do? Freminet and I have our matches, but we can't be sure that the boss wouldn't try and assign them with someone else if he catches on."

"No need to worry, Lyney."

Grabbing one of the papers, the three could see ██████ smile.

"After today, that company will be in ruins. All I need is to tip off a few investigators and act as an 'unknown' source, and everything will fall into place."

It was a wonder for the three, Lyney included, for how devious ██████ can be. But they all nodded and bowed once again, concluding the meeting.

If there was one thing that Celestia Inc. didn't took account for, it would be the growing restlessness of their workers and those who managed to 'get in' without suspicion.

Just like in chess, the King is in position. Every other unit is now in place.

All it needs is a scapegoat to start the domino effect.

@.throw-letter-away | do not republish or repost my works anywhere | 2024

[rikuami]

pieces — haruka isumi cw: no pronouns mentioned, angst, some comfort if you squint. secret relationship a/n: back again writing some angst. i was listening to pieces by andrew belle while writing this and got some inspiration. not proof read, so there might be some mistakes

Haruka Isumi was many things. He was an idol of a successful group who valued his work and pushed to be the best, but he was also someone who believed he didn’t need anyone by his side—until he met you.

He’d always thought making friends or getting close to others was troublesome. So, why is it that he can’t seem to get his mind off of you? In everything he did, be it writing ideas for a song or simply singing, he wanted to know what you thought.

It’s almost been two years since the two of you started dating. To say it was easy would be a lie, but you were okay with being patient with him. He was trying to change, at least for you anyway.

Sure, it was hard to keep your relationship a secret. Sometimes you wish you two could go out normally without having to worry about his fans or the press following your every move, but you love Haruka and want him to feel comfortable and not have to worry.

Haruka, on the other hand, didn't want to hide your relationship. He didn’t want to hide you, as if he were ashamed to be with you.

Different people, including his groupmates, have warned him to be careful whenever the two of you were out.

“Make sure you cover yourself so you don’t start a scandal.” “If someone notices the two of you together, just brush them off and pretend to be strangers.”

Things like that truly made him fume with rage.

Haruka knew he chose this profession, but you didn’t.

Later that week, you two decided to go on a date. He waited for you outside your bedroom while you were finishing getting ready.

While waiting, he started to fidget with his hands. The same thought ran through his head.

“If someone notices the two of you together, just brush them off and pretend to be strangers.”

Pretend to be strangers?

Thinking about that, other thoughts started pouring in.

He knew you deserved better. He knew you could find someone different—someone who wasn’t him.

But he didn’t want to let you go.

Not noticing you were finished and leaving your room, you gently tapped his shoulder.

“Haruka, are you okay?”

Snapping out of it, he looked up and tried to cover his worries with a small smile.

“Yeah, I’m fine. Are you ready to go?”

Looking at the way he smiled at you, you realized that this wasn’t like him. You wanted to ask if everything was truly okay, but you didn’t want to press into it any further. You knew that he would tell you what was wrong when he was comfortable.

Walking towards the door, you quickly went back to the dining room to grab his mask.

“You, um, forgot this. I don’t want anything to happen because you were seen without it.”

Were you really okay with this? That’s the only thought that played through Haruka’s mind.

He thanked you, and the two of you set off to the park.

Holding hands, both of you enjoyed the silence. It was a nice day; it was a bit cold but comfortable.

Looking over, you noticed a couple sitting on the bench talking about their day. You noticed how they smiled, laughed, and enjoyed being with one another.

You were a little sad; you wished you could do things like that with Haruka. But you told him when he first confessed to you that you were okay with keeping your relationship a secret; after all, his profession was his dream. You were happy if he was happy.

Noticing you looking at the couple, he feels as if his heart has shattered.

He notices the way you smile—a smile that feels forced.

Looking back at him, you give him that same smile. That’s when he realized he needed to do something.

Haruka glances around and then guides you to an alleyway close by.

Worried that something had happened, you asked. “Is everything okay? Did someone see us?”

He sighs and starts removing his mask to look at you. You start panicking, noticing others walking by.

“H-Haruka? Why are you taking your mask off? Should I leave?”

Sighing, he tries not to get frustrated with himself.

Were you always on guard whenever the two of you were out together?

Not sure what to do, you waited for him to say something. You didn’t want to ask any more questions.

You’re so patient with him, but he feels like he doesn't deserve it.

Leaning toward you, Haruka presses a soft kiss on your lips.

“Why did you kiss me?”

He leaned forward and rested his head on your shoulder.

“Because I’m sick of people telling me I can’t.”

That’s when it hit you that this is what’s been worrying him.

Smiling softly, you put your hand on his head.

“I know,” you continued, trying to put your words together. “But we have to be careful. Your career is important to you, and I want you to feel happy.”

Looking up at you, he sighs. “My career may be important to me, but you’re more important. I don’t want to live a life without you; I don’t want to lose you.”

Haruka Isumi was many things. He was once someone who despised love, never caring about forming relationships with others. But the day he met you, he realized that maybe, just maybe, being with someone who cared about him was okay.

Pressing a soft kiss on his head, you smiled at him. “You’re never going to lose me. I’ll be by your side for as long as you’ll let me.”

Haruka still thinks he doesn’t deserve you. He thinks he doesn’t deserve the way you’re always so patient with him, always letting him feel comfortable with you. He thinks he doesn't deserve your love when he knows you could find someone better than him, but right now, he just wants to be with you for as long as possible.

©2023 rikuami do not re-upload, translate, copy, modify, or claim as your own

[faithhearted]

@retrograderesemblance asked: “I’m very glad we can laugh about how much tonight has been monumentally screwed up.” you pick!

VALENTINE VARIETY STARTERS

Running into her intended amid a debauched gathering of bohemians was the last thing she'd expected, and yet somehow Cecily was certain she was far more amused by the happenstance than he was.

"I would never have pegged you for the partying sort, Mr. Bridge.rton. Though I feel I should hardly be surprised by it. Perhaps there's more to you than meets the eye, yes?"

To be catching each other in such compromising circumstances on the eve of their arranged wedding was quite the scandal indeed, though she had no intention of breeding the word, particularly for her own sake.

"Evidently, we had the same idea -- to lose our senses and seek a thrill or two before we are inevitably and forever bound to one another in holy matrimony." Her voice was melodramatic as she feigned a swoon, her hand pressed to her chest.

"Are you going to hypocritically scold me, husband-to-be? Or shall we simply pretend we never saw each other here?"

[lucienarcheron]

Tales of the Fox & the Fawn - XXVI

Season II - A series of snippets to fill my Elucien heart.

Masterlist

The Games We Play

Elain glanced at herself in the mirror, curling a strand of hair behind her ear and turning slightly to examine her figure in her new outfit. She smiled as her lovely cream-colored midi skirt swished with her movement. It was paired with a mint green puff-sleeve top and heels of the same color. 

She was feeling very beautiful.

Patting gently at her lipstick, she smiled once more then grabbed her purse and made her way to the door only to be stopped by a curious Feyre. 

“And where are you running off to?” her sister asked with a grin.

“Um…to meet someone.” Elain replied, a pink tint blooming on her cheeks. 

“Who?” Feyre asked with a snort. “Some dashing captain? A prince in disguise?”

Elain huffed, walking around Feyre only to bump into Nesta next in the hall. “Just someone! I’m meeting someone!”

Nesta rolled her eyes as Feyre started laughing. “Are you two pretending not to know each other again? You scandalized half the families at the Sindra River the one time you pretended to have a mysterious hot romance on the beach.”

Elain flushed and turned to glare at her two sisters. “I don’t know what you’re talking about but I’d really appreciate it if the both of you pretended that this conversation didn’t happen and let me go meet the person waiting for me.” 

Nesta snorted as Feyre wiggled her eyebrows at Elain. “Just like you two pretended everyone didn’t know what you were doing in the back row of the theater the other night?”

“Hey!” Elain exclaimed as both of her sisters started laughing. “You two — mind your own business and stick to your own love lives!”

“How can we when the two of you are so fun to tease?” Nesta asked with a chuckle. 

Elain narrowed her eyes at her sister’s identical smirks then humphed. “You both are just jealous we’re more fun than either one of you.”

With that, Elain dashed out, leaving her outraged sisters behind with a giggle. 

The bounce returned in her step as she made her way towards the spot she was supposed to be meeting her special someone and Elain found him easily as she drew closer. Gently patting down her hair, she cleared her throat and walked over, her excitement building. Her special someone sat on the Sindra’s river wall, ankle crossed at the knee, a newspaper in hand and Elain felt her body heat up at the sight of him. 

“Excuse me, sir? Do you mind if I sit over here?” she asked politely, pointing to the open space next to him.

“Not at all, miss. Please do.” he replied, his eyes locked on the newspaper. 

Elain took the spot next to him and tossed her hair over her shoulder, pretending to look anywhere but at him then scooched closer. “Excuse me sir? I have another question.” 

“Yes, miss?” his eyes flickering to her for a brief second then back to the newspaper. He then did a double-take. “Oh wow.” he breathed and Elain bit back a smile. “I’m sorry miss, but I have a question for you.”

“Yes, sir?”

“Forgive me for being so forward,” he began and folded the newspaper down. “But, are you aware, exactly, of how beautiful you are?”

“Oh sir, you’re being much too kind.” Elain replied, roses blooming on her cheeks and her someone special turned to face her, taking one of her hands in his.  

“Oh no, miss, please. I’m only being honest.” he said and brought the hand he was holding up to his lips for a gentle kiss. “It’s just, I’ve never quite seen anyone with your grace and beauty. You’ve simply taken my heart away. Will you be mine?”

Elain playfully gasped, a hand gracefully on her cheek. “Oh but sir, I have a husband. He’ll be simply crushed if he knew you were flirting with me like this.” 

“Oh but miss, I also have a wife. She would be devastated. They both can never know.” he whispered to her. “We must keep our love a secret.”

“Oh yes, we must. I shall be yours if you shall be mine?” she asked, tilting her head with a smile and a fox-like grin graced his face. Elain leaned forward, their lips a breath away when a voice broke their little love spell. 

“You two really are disgusting.”

Elain and Lucien turned to scowl in the direction of the voice and looked over the river wall to find Cassian resting there, wings spread out, tanning. 

“How long have you been there?” Elain said, her voice a high-pitched squeak as Cassian grinned, looking back at them.

“Long enough, unfortunately.” he replied. “Manners, huh? Super kinky.” 

“Fuck off, Cassian or I’ll set your ass on fire.” Lucien snapped with a glare.

“But sir! I just complimented your manners.” he said in mock outrage.

“You better leave or I’m going to throw rocks at you!” Elain threatened, her face flushed as she too, glared at him.

“Oh but miss, I didn’t expect you to be so mean!” Cassian said, bringing a hand to his forehead in mock offense. “Woe is me!”

“I will set your wings on fire, Cassian, I swear to all the Gods.” Lucien threatened again and Cassian laughed, immediately flying up. 

“Don’t worry, kind sir and miss, your husband and wife will never know.” he promised, saluting. “Everyone else? Most definitely will find out. Can’t wait to make fun of you at dinner!” 

Lucien flipped him off as Cassian flew off with a laugh then turned to a scowling Elain. 

“They always do that! How do they find us?!” she asked, crossing her arms, her scowl intensifying.

“They interestingly, somehow, are always near us when you insist on playing games like this, love.” he said and laughed at her outraged expression.

“When I insist?” 

“To be fair, this is all inspired by the intense build-up found in your bodice-ripping novels. I usually just like to skip to the bodice-ripping itself.” he replied with a smirk and she shoved him.

“Well, fine then! We don’t have to play games.” she replied and immediately stood up. Lucien chuckled, pulling her back down next to him. 

“But miss, I’ve only just begun staring at your beauty. I’ll need a few more hours before we can part.” he said, taking her hand and bringing it to his lips for a kiss. “Though we need not part at all.”

Elain narrowed her eyes at him, her scowl still present. She only humphed and Lucien grinned.

“Oh miss, please don’t be upset with me. I couldn’t live with myself if I upset you.” he said again, taking her other hand and kissing it also. “You had a question from earlier, beautiful miss. Please ask it so I can answer and have your forgiveness.” 

Elain pursed her lips at his cheeky expression, as he held both of her hands in his. “I was going to ask you, sir,“ she began curtly, pulling her hands from his and gesturing to his lap. “If you minded if I sat over here instead but it’s pointless now.”

Lucien’s grin widened. “Oh but miss, you are wrong to assume that. Please ask me.”

Elain sighed and in the blandest of tones while gesturing to his lap said, “Excuse me sir, can I sit here?”

“So bold of you, pretty miss.” he said with a laugh and immediately pulled her to sit in his lap then leaning in to kiss her cheek. “You’re always welcome to sit here. My lap is your throne.”

“I thought your face was my throne?” she asked with a quirked brow, her lips twitched and Lucien smirked. 

“A husband with only one throne for you to sit on is no husband at all. I beg of you, sit wherever you want, pretty miss.” he replied, unfolding the newspaper and opening it so that it hid the two of them from view. 

Elain giggled and leaned in to place feather-like kisses on his jawline. “How indecent do you think we can get without getting caught in public?”

“If you learned anything from all of the lessons I’ve taught you, the answer is very, we can get very indecent before we’re noticed.” 

“I did learn from the best.” she whispered and he quirked his brow.

“Oh? Well then, show me how the student surpasses the master.”

[cartoonfangirl1218]

More hcs!

Shakespeare Au 

Eleteo: Midsummer's Night Dream or Anthony and Cleopatra. They would be the perfect Lysander and Hermia with their sweetness to scan other and such a tight bond between them despite the magical hijinks. If they did an Elena version, Mateo would defiantly have to help. Anthony and Cleopatra because even though it's a bit of political scandal and such I think it fits their older life together because they would be each other's closets allies in a world of intrigue and people trying to bring them down. I guess it's similar to your own story Magic Transcends. Gabenaomi: Much ado about nothing or Othello- Much ado about Nothing simply starts with the stubbornness they both have and that I feel there would be a stasis between them questioning what their feelings are. Also that scene where Beatrice tells Benedick to kill for her, I feel Gabe would do a similar thing for Naomi. Manly honor for the lady and all. Othello would be when they have a good relationship and are mutually in love even though Gabe might feel sometimes jealous of how others find Naomi charming. I imagine he would not go into mudererous rage though as Othello did. Gababel: Romeo and Juliet or As you like it First off they would not kill themselves in the end because c'mon! They are much too smart for that! I feel like their relationship once it gets going would be very sweet and just full of firsts and bliss like Romeo and Juliet. As you like it fits more because Rosalind is similar to Isabel. She analyzes her feelings, her suitor and slowly comes to realize what she is feeling is love. A scientific lady as you can see. I think what fist the most would be Rosalind's monologue of how love is merely madness. Also no one dies for love so that helps. Luisa and Francisco: McBeth- No no no I'm not saying they would be muderous overthrowers but I'm more focused on the spirit of the Mcbeths relationship. The essence that they both have been married for so long and that they are a true team. They may doubt each other but they carry on through as they have all the years before. Also the dynamic is a bit similar with the women being "rah rah let's get em" and bit more pacifist male. Estoma: Taming of the Shrew or Much Ado about Nothing- Esteban and Doña Paloma. Yes, the bickering couples and the use of the whole cast and play to get them together fits their stubborn, arrogant personalities. What scene reminds me the most of them is the scene of the Much Ado about Nothing movie with Emma Thompson.

Taylor Swift song that reminds me of them.  Eleteo- Sparks fly "Drop everything now Meet me in the pouring rain Kiss me on the sidewalk Take away the pain 'Cause I see sparks fly whenever you smile" Enchanted (maybe it might have been the magic pun that made me chose this okay) "Your eyes whispered, "Have we met?" Across the room your silhouette Starts to make its way to me. The playful conversation starts Counter all your quick remarks. Like passing notes in secrecy And it was enchanting to meet you All I can say is I was enchanted to meet you This night is sparkling, don't you let it go. I'm wonderstruck, blushing all the way home. I'll spend forever wondering if you knew I was enchanted to meet you. Long Live (this is the song I thought of when reading Magic Within) Long live the walls we crashed through. How the kingdom lights shined just for me and you I was screaming long live all the magic we made And bring on all the pretenders. I'm not afraid Long live all the mountains we moved. I had the time of my life fighting dragons with you. I was screaming long live that look on your face And bring on all the pretenders One day, we will be remembered. " Ours (I thought of this for the first and second chapter of the Magic Trascends) "Seems like there's always someone who disapproves They'll judge it like they know about me and you And the verdict comes from those with nothing else to do The jury's out, but my choice is you So don't you worry your pretty little mindPeople throw rocks at things that shine And life makes love look hard The stakes are high, the water's rough But this love is ours." Esteban/Doña Paloma- The Story of us "Oh, a simple complication, Miscommunications lead to fall-out. So many things that I wish you knew, So many walls up I can't break through. Now I'm standing alone in a crowded room and we're not speaking, And I'm dying to know is it killing you like it's killing me, yeah? I don't know what to say, since the twist of fate when it all broke down, And the story of us looks a lot like a tragedy now." Wildest Dreams "Say you'll remember me Standing in a nice dress, Staring at the sunset, babe. Red lips and rosy cheeks. Say you'll see me again Even if it's just pretend Say you'll remember me Standing in a nice dress, Staring at the sunset, babe. Red lips and rosy cheeks Say you'll see me again Even if it's just in your Wildest dreams." Miscallenous  Roberto insisted that Blanca go to olaball tournaments since he thought it would to inspire the baby in the future.

Raul and Esteban's father had a guys night once. It was pretty awkward. Lots of silence. They didn't have a lot in common as the Flores sisters thought they would.

Elena was pretty frustrated about her guitar playing at first but then she got the hang of it so Lucia, Francisco and her would make sing-alongs.

Isabel's first "invention" was switching her baby rattle handle with a stick.

Elena's middle name is Valencia meaning brave.

Isabel's Grizelda which is patience. But she doesn't really like it.

Esteban's Alberto which roughly means one with the crown. Yes, I feel so clever with that one.

Scarlet and Daniel met when Scarlet's boat was set adrift during a storm, and Daniel's crew was sent to rescue it. Daniel demanded to see the captain that was foolish enough to steer the ship, then Scarlet yelled at him, saying he shouldn't judge since she had never seen such slow sailing in her life. They got better.

Esteban is actually pretty talented at writing haikus after spending that time in Satu.

Mateo used to have a stuffed straw doll of a magic wand that his father made. Rafa thinks that combined with his grandfather's skills made him take the path to wizardry.

Elena's years in the amulet made her a little claustrophobic. If she is in the dark and alone for too long, she starts freaking out that she is trapped in the amulet again.

Luisa was the one with the sports skills in the family,ollaball, fencing, running and such while Francisco had more artistic pursuits like guitar.

Guitar was actually how he proposed to her. He told her to fetch it, and she found the ring in it's strings. He then proceeded to do a song proposal.

Isabel's first word was "jaquin"

When Lucia fenced, Raul was that guy with a huge sign cheering her on. Yes, with a trumpet fanfare every time she won a round.

Elena had a strong dislike of bananas for a time until Lucia sprinkled them with sugar.

[talesfromawannabejournalist]

Lucifer, Charlie, Vaggie, and Angel are in the living room watching tv and relaxing when Lucifer receives a text from Adam

‘Oh Luci! I have a surprise for you! Meet me inside the greenhouse, and hurry it’s getting hot in here’

Lucifer raises an eyebrow at that but shrugs and poofs to the place he heard his husband’s destination. What he sees when he enters the greenhouse leaves him blushing like a tomato and feeling as hot as the sun. There Adam was lying on the floor on a bed of dirt completely naked as he was when he was first created looking up at him with eyes full of lust.

Lucifer: Adam, sweetheart, holder of my heart…WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING?! What would happen if our daughter was the one to

Adam: shhh Luci, come over and take me!

Lucifer: what?

Adam: you heard me, pretend that this is Eden and you’re making love to me for the first time! Please my angel? Don’t you want me?

Lucifer gulped but made his way over to his husband taking a good long look at the position Adam was in and the look he had that reminded him of when Adam was younger, and thought the world of him. It was enough to make him to take off all his clothes in a matter of below ten seconds and get right on top of Adam before grasping both his hands and whispering in his ear,

Lucifer: I’m going to make you see Heaven tonight

—

back downstairs the group were suddenly jumping up at the sound of loud banging coming from the roof…where the greenhouse was. Moaning then started up soon after, followed by a loud,

Adam: PLEASE MY ANGEL PLEASE TAKE ME!!! MAKE ME YOURS FOREVER!!!

Lucifer: FOREVER AND EVER MY HUMAN MY LITTLE LAMB MY QUEEN!!!

Charlie simply sighed and put her head in her hands before full on sobbing. Vaggie immediately tried to comfort her but it was no use. For her dad and step mom truly had broken her with their long sex scandals and shenanigans

Charlie: One day! For just one day can they not be crazy about the other?!?! FOR ONE DAY!!!!

Charlie got her answer when more screaming came through

Adam: FILL ME WITH YOUR SEED, GIVE ME A CHILD!!!

Lucifer: LETS GIVE CHARLIE A FUCKING BABY BROTHER OR SISTER!!!! IM SURE SHED LIKE THAT!!!

Angel who always enjoys the show the king and queen put on simply crossed his legs and said.

Angel: not gonna lie, pretty loud, but still hot as fuck though

I was inspired by a Family Guy episode

Adam: *Points to unconscious Alastor* What are we gonna do with him?

Lucifer: Hey, you wanna make him really mad, Adam?

Lucifer: Let's have sex on his back like we used to.

[Groaning]

Alastor: What the hell's going on?

[Screaming with disgust]

HAHAHAHA

They would too. Though did you mean back or bed because Adam and Lucifer fucking on Al's bed would be such a power move lol

Those sheets might as well see some action 😂

[kageyamatobiyogurt]

haikyuu boys’ being unsubtle (suggestive)

a/n: today i present horndog boyfriends being just barely controlled because you’re so damn hot and they don’t know what to do. also kuroo’s is probably where i needed more restraint lmao 

includes: ushijima, tendou, kuroo 

ushijima: 

there was something in the air that day and he couldn’t quite figure it out 

you weren’t even doing anything particularly... scandalous? 

or at least, to you 

to you, you were just simply wearing one of those tee shirts for staying at home and shorts 

but to wakatoshi those shorts hugged but barely covered your ass and he could not stop looking 

throughout the day you become increasingly aware of heavy hands on you 

maybe you were in the kitchen preparing something and you’d feel his large hands suddenly rest on your waist and linger there as he stood behind you 

“hi toshi” you’d giggle as he rested his chin on your shoulder

“hi darling” and those hands on your hips would just give the slightest squeeze to remind you where they were 

or one of these other moments it’s a hand resting on the nape of your neck, giving you a slight massage 

or hands trailing up your arms 

or maybe you’re both aimlessly watching tv and his large hand is on your exposed thigh

he had already pulled your legs so that they’d be resting over his lap instead of -- anywhere else 

as you glance over to look at him, you see that his gaze is fixed on your legs, the one hand on your thigh casually trailing up to dangerous teasing territory 

“are you trying to hint at something, toshi?” you casually ask 

his eyes snap to you and you see his cheeks starting to tint pink 

he tries his best to deadpan a solid “no” but something hard resting against your calf says otherwise 

tendou: 

here i present someone who’s significantly less ashamed 

you can genuinely feel the weight of his gaze on you 

he won’t even say anything 

but here you are at home in pajama pants and a tank top that hugs you so damn perfectly

your hair was tied up too (or if it’s short, it was simply pushed back away from your face) so really, everything was kind of on display (to him) 

he could barely contain himself 

but you’re his anyway, so who’s going to deny him the pleasure of looking

you were working on something in the kitchen and you accidentally dropped your pencil

you could still feel his gaze as you bend down to reach for it 

when you looked back at him he was unabashedly staring with his jaw clenched 

he even makes his way to the table where you’re actually trying to get work done and he pretends to scroll on his phone 

he’s just sneaking more glances  i can’t with him 

this one time you catch him, “eyes up here satori” you chuckle 

even when you get up to get a glass of water you see his eyes scan you up and down without a single ounce of shame 

just this devious smirk plastered on his face

kuroo: 

this man just speaks pure unadulterated filth 

he’s completely fine if you don’t want to actually do anything - in the event that you aren’t in the mood 

but he’ll damn well let you know about it, just so you’re aware 

so you were watching a movie

perhaps your were wearing nothing but one of his large shirts because they’re basically a dress on you anyway 

you were feeling particularly touchy and so you were sat between his legs, mainly wanting to be close to him 

you didn’t realize that this position would leave you so vulnerable to his antics 

“kitten,” he says into your ear, “you look so hot right now” 

at first you thought he was joking, after all, what you were wearing wasn’t that flattering - to you 

you chuckled in return, jokingly batting his head away, not really giving his words much thought 

“i’m serious,” he says, voice much lower in your ear, “i want to bend you over this couch” 

suddenly, you’re feeling much warmer even though you aren’t wearing much 

“tetsu-” 

but he continues, arms wrapping around your middle and pressing your torso against his 

“you know i love it when your cute ass is up for me” 

“love it even more when your cunt takes me in so easily” 

he’s brushing your hair behind your ear and usually, this is such an innocent gesture 

“so what do you say, kitten?” 

[everlasting-rainfall]

I’ve decided to call this idea, the Pages AU as I honestly think that it sounds cool and it’s shorter than Pages Keep Turning AU but anyways time to get on with what I wanted to talk about

MINORS DNI: DO NOT INTERACT

!-Trigger Warnings-!

Yandere, Stalking, Breaking and Entering, Corrupt Police Officers, General Creepy Behavior, Destruction of Property, Lying, Being Scandalous in Public

!-Trigger Warnings-!

Imagine that before he initially showed himself to you, the stalker kept breaking into your house every other day either while you weren’t home or when you were fast asleep in your bed looking like you had not a care in the world

They would do things around your house like I can imagine that a character like Sanji or Akainu tries to check the progress on the pregnancy that they think you have with Akainu rubbing at the skin with his warm hands wanting so badly to feel the babies feet press up against him (but he never will because there's nothing there and there won’t be until Akainu actually knocks you up)

Akainu also definitely used his status as a Marine to delete most records of the stalking as “It’s not stalking if they’re my wife” and now I’m honestly just imagining him crouched by a filing cabinet with magma dripping from his hands onto the floor as he burns yet another file on your stalking then just pretending that he has no clue what anyone’s talking about when they mention the semi poorly covered up scorch marks on the floor

I’m not gonna lie though as when it comes to Akainu, there is no way that you are keeping him out of your house as the first time that he broke in, he melted the lock to where the door opened without trouble. It didn’t take him long to find the extra house key and make a copy of it so he can come inside whenever he wants to do so

He may have also taken a look at the new drafts for your story and if it is about a pirate romance then you can bet that he is going to burn that shit exactly like how he burnt the records of your police reports, Akainu only wants you to write about Marine romance as he refuses to let you be tainted by Pirates

Even though he himself has watched you sleep more times than he can count and would love nothing more than to crawl into bed with you and hold you close but for some reason that is beyond his understanding, your bed is simply just too small for this big man and it upsets him. He’ll just have to get you both a bigger one later

Man probably looks at you like this while he watches you sleep in all honestly

Sanji definitely brought things with him to either leave for you and apply to you like some cream to help with your non-existent stretch marks which usually makes you wake up the next morning with a strange feeling on your stomach that goes away after a good shower or bath

He might also leave you some nice foods to eat in your cabinets like nice treats that a pregnant person might like and also replacing any expired foods while throwing out the stuff that you shouldn’t be eating like all of your coffee has been thrown into the trash leaving you to wake up grumpy and ordering from a local coffee place only to find that your phone was mysteriously unplugged during the night. How odd!

Sanji has also definitely approached you while you’re grocery shopping acting like a kind but oddly creepy stranger as he makes conversation with you when he’s actually noting what kind of things that his wife likes to eat and also making comments on the kinds of things that you get like telling you certain things are unhealthy or were recalled much to your confusion as why would coffee grounds be recalled

You’ve tried to avoid him but god if he doesn’t have a tendency to just pop out of nowhere acting like he hasn’t seen you in years when it’s actually probably been just a day because he snuck in and tossed out the “dangerous” foods again so now he just comes out of nowhere looking like this

Also is your underwear going missing mysteriously? Well don’t check the washing machine or the laundry baskets because it’s actually in Sanji’s back pocket tucked away because he could not help himself when he saw it just lying there in the dryer on top of the rest of your clothes like it was begging him to take it with him! You really have to see where the guy is coming from

Sometimes it’s in his back pocket slightly sticking out while he’s talking to you in the grocery store because he’s secretly excited at the thought of you seeing it and getting all flirty with him when you realize that it’s there promising that he’s going to be punished like a bad boy when you both get home

Regardless your stalker fanboy has been in your house more times than you can count and it’s only been recently that you’ve managed to realize that something is going on and your stalker has been doing this

Maybe moving really is a good idea after all...

Like that would change anything

[wonwoonlight]

my daisy / chapter 8 | kim mingyu

➝ CEO!Mingyu x Secretary!Reader

➝ strangers to lovers // single dad!Mingyu // fluff // lighthearted // non idol!au // like pls dont expect any dramas here lol // tiny bit of angst ig

➝ series warning: mentions of sex, no smut but there’s implied sexual activities, insecurity (as always jshbdjhsfshbf am sorry), curses, food, let me know if theres more ^^

➝ word count: 2.4k

➝ A/N: I. AM. BUZZING. WITH. EXCITEMENTTTT. i love this album so much specially Rock With You and I Can't Runaway 😭😭 anywayyy, this chapter is a bit short but I promise the next one is gonna be longer heheh enjoy!! idk how you'll like this one tbh :/ but, as always, your thought would be welcome❤

when your cousin asks you to be her substitute at SVT Inc. as she takes her maternity leave, you’re pretty sure this wasn’t what you signed up for.

series masterlist

“Daisy!!!” Gyuri squeals once she sees you, running out of her father’s embrace the moment Mingyu kneels down and lets her go.

“Hi Lili,” you grin and accept her hug, your arms trapping her in. You look up at her father standing in front of you, and you greet him with a shy smile before you stand up with Gyuri in your arms. “Hi Gyu.”

“Hi,” he’s adorably holding back a grin at the name, and instead settles for a tight smile and a squeeze on your arm. “Why are you outside?”

“I’ve just arrived actually,” you chuckle, telling him Jisoo and the others are waiting. You turn around and tell the waiter that you have a table under Kim Jisoo, so he nods in return before telling you to follow him inside. Gyuri can’t stay still in your arms, constantly moving around as if she’s trying to dance. “You’re super excited, aren’t you?”

Gyuri nods fervently, her small fingers playing with your hair as she tells you about how much she’s been looking forward to the lunch meeting. You grin at this, and Mingyu scolds her so she won’t move too much because she’s already heavy as it is.

“Lili not heavy!” she gasps in horror. “Papa heavy.”

You look at Mingyu in amusement as he pretends to clutch his heart and tells her how hurt he is. But Gyuri doesn’t seem to care, simply sticks out her tongue as she clutches herself closer to you.

“Oh, did you come together?” Jisoo asks when the waiter leaves the private room after guiding you and Mingyu, and then takes Gyuri from your arms as the girl giggles when Jisoo tickles her belly.

“No, I was just about to go in when they arrived,” you explain, thanking Mingyu for pulling out your seat before he settles on the seat beside you, Gyuri’s baby chair on his other side. Jisoo and Jennie share a knowing look at the interaction, but they don’t say anything about it just yet and Jisoo instead asks you about the trip to Japan as if she didn’t practically call you everyday then.

“You,” you narrow your eyes at Jennie. “…have a way of putting on schedules that I don’t feel tired until I get on top of the hotel bed.”

“I’m amazing, aren’t I?” Jennie grins, taking note of the way Mingyu’s arm is limply hanging down with his elbow resting on the edge of your seat. “I know I have to keep you moving so you won’t get exhausted in the middle.”

It’s Mingyu who replies, shaking his head as he remembers how tired you looked by the end of the trip. “You know her feet almost gave up because of the heels?”

“Don’t tell me you got through all that schedule with heels?” she turns to you with a scandalized look.

Again, it’s Mingyu who answers while you pout at her. “No, I told her to change into a plain pair of sneakers by day two.”

“Didn’t you only pack your heels and a streaking red Converse?” Jisoo frowns, remembering how you tell her you would not need three pairs of shoes even though she insists you should bring one more pair so you could ‘color code your fashion’.

You bite your lip and glance downwards when Mingyu helpfully supplies for you. “Yes. I told her to buy a pair of white shoes with my card but she wouldn’t budge, so I bought one myself and forced her to use it.”

Your face burns at the memory, the picture of Mingyu appearing in front of your hotel room with an Alexander McQueen paper bag still clear in your mind. You have initially refused, too flustered at the sudden, overpriced gift, but Mingyu insists you take the shoes and wear them instead of the heels during meetings, or he’ll just throw them away somewhere outside the hotel. Naturally, you have no choice but to comply and accept.

You still have no idea how he got your size right.

“Wait, is that why you asked me about my size?” Jisoo cuts, something clicking in her mind.

“Yeah. I remember you said you have the same size as her.” Mingyu is looking at your friend, but the grin on his face makes you jittery inside. Did he need to do that just to make sure you wear comfortable shoes? “You thought I was buying you shoes, huh?”

Their bickers fade out in the background when you catch Jennie’s knowing glance, her eyebrows shoot up as if to ask if you’re still in denial when Mingyu does all that for you without anyone asking him to. You don’t know how to react to her, so you simply shrug before you turn away from her prying eyes.

It’s been roughly two weeks since you’ve come back from the trip and, despite your ongoing denial about Mingyu’s interest towards you, you’re just downright lying if you say the relationship between the two of you hasn’t rapidly progressed since.

After that night in the festival, something shifts between you and Mingyu more than it did before. He gets bolder with his touch; brushing his fingers against yours every chance he has, eyes boring into yours like you’re always in interrogation, and even offers to take you home everytime he catches you working overtime (Seungkwan notices all of this, and the first thing he did was to ask if you took his advice and actually shoot your shot). There are also the sudden phone calls when you’re off work, ones that he blames Gyuri for even though you usually end up talking to him more than you do Gyuri.

You’re far from complaining, but you still don’t know what to do with the whole situation. And while you’re no longer in denial about your feelings for the guy, your brain still refuses to accept that Mingyu might even be remotely interested in you. There’s just… no way.

It doesn’t make sense.

You can’t explain why, but it just doesn’t.

“You’re spacing out again,” Mingyu mutters from beside you. “Are you sure you’re okay?”

“Yeah, yeah,” you smile hesitantly. “Just… some stuff on my mind.”

“You’ve been doing that a lot, you know?” he frowns, worry painted clear on his face. “Are you overworked? Should I ask Seungkwan to take some of your workloads?”

You immediately wave your hands at that, telling him it’s not about work and your workload is fine as it is. Mingyu doesn’t seem like he buys it, but he knows he’s not in a place where he can push it, so he settles for an ‘are you really sure?’ and lets it go when you give him a nod with a small smile that doesn’t quite reach your eyes.

It isn’t long until your smile turns genuine though, and when he follows your line of sight, he finds Gyuri bursting into giggles on Seungcheol’s lap. He says something that Mingyu can’t hear, but her eyes turn big and she gasps lightly at whatever he’s whispering and then happily squeals when Seungcheol drops a big kiss on her cheek.

“Lili eats with Uncle Cherry!” she declares to the table. Mingyu just chuckles and nods, well aware that Seungcheol has always had ways with children and he’s easily Gyuri’s favorite uncle out of all his friends.

“Used to heartbreak, huh?” you jokingly say to Mingyu.

“As long as it’s not because of you,” he boldly says with a wink, his voice so low that it’s only you who heard him.

You look at him with mock disguise, gently punching his arm to cover up the fact that you’re flustered beyond measure. It doesn’t work though, because his grin doesn’t falter and you’re certain Mingyu knows you enough by now to be able to tell when you’re embarrassed.

“Anyway, where’s your husband?” you turn to Jennie instead, eyes dropping to her huge belly. You’re truly unsure if Jennie is in an okay condition to have a lunch meeting outside, she’s probably on that stage where she can be in labour just about anytime and you feel like you’re more nervous than she is about the whole thing.

“He wanted to join us, but Hansol suddenly called, said he needs help in the garage or something,” Jennie shrugs nonchalantly, taking a sip of the iced tea in front of her. “It’s okay, I see him enough already. He’ll join later if he can or he’ll just pick me up.”

“Auntie Nini, baby here?” Gyuri softly pokes her belly, having moved from Seungcheol’s lap to Jisoo’s.

“Yes. A little more and you can meet the baby,” she beams at the little girl who’s still so fascinated with the fact that there’s a baby inside her auntie.

Just then, the door opens and the waiter comes in with the food you’ve all ordered, prompting everyone to stop conversing and almost immediately starts digging in the moment the door closes back. True to her words, Gyuri is back on Seungcheol’s lap while the guy patiently feeds her before he takes a bite himself. Next to him, Jisoo is busy helping Jennie who sits beside her, putting food on her plate and helping her move her seat so she can eat comfortably.

And then there’s Mingyu who is doing the same; his chopsticks are busy placing food on your plate with food that he declares ‘to die for’ and ‘you haven’t lived if you haven’t tried’. If your friends notice this strangely intimate gesture, they don’t say anything about it.

The lunch goes pleasantly like always, and when the meal is done, Jennie decides she wants dessert which Gyuri delightfully agrees to. Mingyu tells her she’s only allowed to have dessert if she goes back to his lap after being with Seungcheol the whole time. Gyuri whines, but eventually says she wants to sit with you because ‘Lili can sit with Papa tomorrow’.

“I’m sad, Flower. I really am,” he dramatically says, earning a snicker from Jennie and Seungcheol while Gyuri simply giggles at her father’s forced pout. She waves her hand though, signaling him to get closer so she can kiss him on the cheek. Your breath hitches when he leans down to Gyuri on your lap, his hair faintly grazes your arm as he does so.

“Love you, Papa,” she whispers between giggles, the soft words warming your heart beyond control. And as if that’s not enough blow to your heart already, Mingyu whispers the words back to her with the happiest smile you’ve ever seen across his face.

“You guys are so mushy,” you scrunch your nose, feeling a little weird to be witnessing the interaction in such close proximity. It’s a good weird, though, one that makes your heart buzz in content and the butterflies in your stomach fly just enough to make your inside flutter without being too overwhelming.

You don’t know if it’s good that a part of you longs to continue witnessing this in the long run.

Mingyu always makes sure not to check his phone first thing in the morning when it's the weekend. Weekends are usually reserved for his family and, most importantly, Gyuri, and he knows himself enough to know that he’d be replying to emails and reading updates despite it being weekends if he checks his work phone because that’s just how dedicated he is to his job.

That said, Mingyu frowns when he wakes up to an empty bed, his daughter nowhere in sight. Did his mom take her? He gets up from the bed, stretching his arms up as he walks out of his old room in his parents’ house without even bothering to bring his phone with him.

It’s been sometimes since his parents come back to Seoul and, everytime they do, they’d have Mingyu stay over in their house along with his child. They’ve called him a few days ago, telling him they’re flying back to Seoul over the weekend and he should bring Gyuri with him to sleep over.

“Morning,” he sleepily groans as he makes his way to his mom’s garden, Gyuri comfortably sits on his mom’s lap as she nibbles on her bread. He drops a kiss on top of her head and then his mom’s, taking the empty seat beside them. “Did she wake up early?”

“It’s you who woke up late, son,” his mom scolds playfully. She's a little tense despite her smile, Mingyu notices, a telltale that she has something to say but isn’t sure how to bring up. So Mingyu kindly throws the bait and asks if something’s up.

His mom would usually spill right away once he asks, but she seems almost hesitant this time, taking her time to answer. An alarm quickly rings in his mind; Mingyu has never been this nervous in front of his mom since the time he had to tell his parents he got someone pregnant. He looks at his daughter for comfort, her presence has always been able to calm him down no matter what and he’s glad he insists on keeping her even if he has to do it alone.

“Why didn’t you tell me you were dating—uh, what was her name… Daisy?”

Mingyu violently coughs at the mention of you, wondering how on earth his mom came up with this question at 8 in a Saturday morning. Gyuri lights up at the name, but the two adults don’t really answer when she asks if you’re coming.

“You mean [Y/N]?” he makes sure, stalling time. “How did you know her?”

“Lili calls her Daisy,” she shrugs, her calm face scaring him more than it should. “Lili called you with my phone when you were in Japan, remember?”

“Oh, right. And… no,” he answers hesitantly, something that his mom catches but doesn't comment on just yet. “She’s Jennie’s temporary substitute. Gyuri just likes her a lot. Where did that even come from?”

His mom doesn’t answer immediately, simply hums before she fumbles with her phone and pushes it in front of his face. He recognizes the place immediately, as it was just last week that he was there with you and the others. There’s a picture of you, Gyuri, and him there, with Gyuri safely in your arms. Both of your faces are blurred in contrast to Mingyu's, his wide grin clearly caught on camera.

Is The Most Sought Out Bachelor in South Korea Actually Taken? SVT Inc. CEO Kim Mingyu Seen with His Hidden Family

©wonwoonlight – all rights reserved.

taglist: @yslshua@penny-quinn@nollixtrml@dnylwoo@itsveronicaxxx@john-and-paul@wheeinz@rjsmochii@w0nuuu@boowanie@n6body@imtotallydef@wwssi@bythe8@cheolright@coupsiekkuma@hoe4wonwoo@kyeomjjigae@jh-fn@clairdelunesstuff@yoongischeeksluv@onlywonforhui@janandbeyond@treasure-hwa@teddy-cheol@tito-jun @projectjuvia @notscoupy@jeonshuawreads @cheoriemoawa @wtfkidult @itsdnguyenxoxo @nothingbutadeadesceane @juli-ssi@soonchanshua @wonunuu @cottonsthings @fr0gluver

[melis-writes]

(1/2) Can you do a moth to a flame AU where victoria came into michael’s life too late, after he’d already married kay, and is the “other woman?” something angsty with a lot of sexual tension please, like maybe vic’s conflicted feelings while hooking up with him of “i hope you pretend she’s me and not the other way around” / “i know you f*ck me, michael, but god sometimes i just want you to hold my hand when the lights are on” / “i know im not her but im someone to you…”

This is actually one of my new/upcoming multi-chapter fics I’ll be writing in the near future!! Don’t know as of now if I want it to definitely be like an AU with the Victoria we love and know or with a new lady altogether but I’ll let my readers decide that when the time comes! Keeping it a bit short and sweet not to spoil too much, hehe.

‘I’m the ‘other woman’ in Michael Corleone’s life. I’ve always been and I always will be. I can’t see a real, tangible future with Michael, but I can see myself at his side as his mistress for as long as he’ll want me. I know I’ll always want him more than he can know, and Michael will never just be ‘someone else’ to me, but I can’t change my fate. I’d rather have him than not have him at all…’

The secrecy needed to veil your sexual relationship with Michael Corleone may have been ten times easier if you were someone else instead of the daughter of a Don.

There’d be less of a scandal if it somehow leaked out that Michael Corleone, ruthless mob boss and multi-millionaire businessman had a mistress just as almost every other man in the same or similar position as him did, but if it leaked that Don Ferrari’s daughter was seeing him…you didn’t want to think of what could possibly happen next.

When you let your mind wander to the possible consequences, it’d constantly bring you to tears, but it wasn’t the fact that your reputation would be ruined, your family would be ashamed of you, Michael’s wife and children would find out, and that the media would swarm all over you and Michael for weeks to come, but that you’d never see Michael again. That would be the great punishment of them all.

‘As Michael Corleone’s mistress, the one thing I’ve learned to do well—better than anything I can ever do—is keep everything private, secret, act like nothing’s going on, never be seen, and never put myself in a situation where my identity can be jeopardized.’ Such is the life of most mistresses when it comes to powerful men in the underworld, but with Michael handling how and when he sees you 100% of the time, you have little to worry about in that regard in reality.

Michael knows your family well, sees your father from time to time in New York on business trips which provides him more of an excuse and an easier method of seeing you as well.

Michael’s acquainted with your brothers and does business with them just as he does with your father who is a long time friend of Vito’s since the two men grew up together in Sicily.

Unfortunately time and chance have never been on your side. You met Michael when he was engaged to his college sweetheart, an American woman named Kay Adams who you saw in a few photographs but never in person.

You could tell Michael loved Kay and cared for her very much, even though he didn’t speak of her very often. Michael made it clear he was interested in no other woman—Sicilian or otherwise—and that it would be Kay Adams he would continue his future with inevitably.

‘There was no changing his mind… Nobody could do it.’ You would never dream of being a homewrecker either, but all you could do was miserably watch as the man you were falling more and more in love with was loving another woman right before your eyes.

The only reason you spoke with Michael and saw him for prolonged periods of time was because of your career; as a criminal prosecutor, you were very helpful and useful to Michael when it came to prosecuting his enemies and having them charged no matter how corrupt or bought off the court was.

Simply putting the judges in New York and Nevada in Michael’s payroll wasn’t enough. He would need a lawyer in between, and you matched his needs perfectly.

First it would become a solely professional relationship based on business and legal matters, but knowing one another’s family meant also seeing each other outside of the office or law courts which helped you and Michael get more acquainted with one another on a personal scale.

You didn’t know that it would lead to matching Michael’s needs in a different way, but you would have gladly said “yes” if someone asked you about the possibility of that way back then too.

That was just the thing. You had always been in love with Michael—absolutely head over heels with that man up to the point where your love, adoration and infatuation with him could suffocate you because you had to keep it to yourself and could tell nobody.

Your family had nothing but love, praise and respect for Michael—let alone the Corleone family in general.

Teases and whispers of “if only Victoria married Michael” or “if Victoria had a husband like Michael” were said once word got out that Michael was engaged to somebody, but all of it came down to silence when the wedding invitations were handed out.

You believed in love at first sight, Michael did not. Michael believed in sexual attraction at first sight, and that’s what he thought of when he saw you, but just how he would approach you, what he would want and do didn’t come until after he married Kay.

Naturally, you attended even though you felt there was a hole torn in your heart. What you didn’t know was that Michael had his eye on you from time to time during his wedding and when he left for his honeymoon to Rome with Kay, you hadn’t seen him again for another month.

You thought you kept it inside well and didn’t show a sliver of romantic emotion towards Michael, but Michael could tell from the way your body language responded to his presence alone and the look in your eyes that you were in love with that man and would do just about anything for him and with him.

You wanted Michael in every romantic way possible, daydreamed of being his wife, imagined spending as much time with him as you wanted just to hear his velvety voice, feel the touch of his hand against your cheek like you had been dreaming night after night.

Michael’s absence during his honeymoon and after when he had returned to Long Island and settled in his first home with Kay only made your heart yearn for him more.

Your feelings always intensified and doubled no matter how much time had passed or whatever happened, and your eyes saw the world in black and white with only Michael in colour.

When you heard the news Kay was pregnant with Michael’s first child, you were devastated.

This had only been revealed a week after they returned from their honeymoon and although you knew Michael was sexually involved with his wife, your heart was broken because you wished you could be the one to bear his children and start a family with him instead.

But little did you know throughout your heartache that it was with the birth of Michael’s first child and son Anthony that would change your life forever.

After a month of absence, Michael had continued to see you again for business matters.

He no longer just made appointments to see you at the courthouse but came in whenever he pleased. He wrote to you, he called you both at home and at your office more like he was a friend than anything else.

You couldn’t have even known then that Michael had his own desire and yearning for you either because you could never tell how Michael felt through any means. You could not hide your emotions from Michael, but he could hide them very well from you.

In a way, Michael had made it clear to you how he felt, how he wanted you and how he would show his desire and passion for you accidentally the same year Anthony was born in—1951.

Michael came to the courthouse to see you regarding a legal matter—strictly business purposes, however he did not call ahead or even notify your secretary.

It was past office hours for you but the courthouse remained open until the evening for other legal affairs with lawyers seeing clients and judges continuing to file paperwork just like any other day.

Your secretary had went home, leaving you alone in your office and exhausted after a very long trial that had finally concluded in your favour.

Your office door was shut and you only had a dim desk lamp on to illuminate the spacious room when you had just thrown off your blazer and unbuttoned your dress shirt to finally change out of your work clothes before heading out for the day.

Michael walked straight into the courthouse and towards your office knowing that he could still catch you available at this hour, but he didn’t expect to walk into your office and see you half naked.

Without even knocking, Michael put his hand over the doorknob and you only had a split second to react to the sound of someone opening the door.

The door to your office opened and Michael had almost fully stepped in with the utmost confidence he would find you inside only to gaze upon you stumbled back into the corner of your office in a pair of panties and nothing else.

“Oh!” You gasped out, but your hands froze and all they could do was clutch onto your dress shirt loosely.

Neither your mind nor your body wanted to cover yourself up in front of Michael even though the look on your face spelled shock.

Michael didn’t blink back, turn his head away or step right out and close the door. Instead, Michael stood and stared at you in a way that confirmed his arousal and sexual attraction to you.

Your expression softened as the two of you stared at each other in silence for a few moments right up until Michael closed and locked your office door behind him without taking his gaze off of you.

For the first time in years, you saw Michael’s expression clearly reading out that he liked what he was seeing and it was that coupled with the immense sexual frustration and excitement bursting through you that you wanted to approach him naked and let him keep looking.

The silence between the two of you said more than any words you had exchanged with Michael since you met.

When Michael continued to take steps towards you, you not only felt more aroused but increasingly drawn to him and could only ask yourself repeatedly in your head if you were dreaming.

“Mr. Corleone, I didn’t—” You began, about to almost apologize for being seen in this state in your office but you hadn’t expected him to visit now and at this hour without prior notice.

“Michael,” he corrected you to use his first name and it was the first time in a few days since you’d heard his voice again—now low and husky to keep quiet.

“Michael,” you swallowed hard, finding your grip growing looser over your dress shirt until it fell out of your hand and onto the pile of clothes pooling by your feet. “I…”

Michael was now directly facing you, only a few inches away from your lips with his eyes darting up and down your body like art, letting his own arousal take control of him. “Come here.”

You obeyed him instantly. You took a final step towards Michael and completely closed off the space between the two of you.

Your nipples had hardened from arousal and was just a mere distance from brushing up against Michael’s chest which is exactly what you did when Michael began to take off his suit jacket.

You didn’t question why Michael had come or why he was doing any of this because you wanted it. You craved him, desired him, fantasized about similar scenarios like this for hours on end—how could you stop and question the morals you knew you lost when you moaned against your pillow and fingered yourself imagining it was Michael weekly all those years ago?

“Can I touch you?” Michael asked—his voice soft and breathy as he loosened his tie.

“Please,” you almost begged but you couldn’t take the sexual frustration gnawing inside of you anymore.

When Michael placed his hands over your breasts and gave them a squeeze while looking you in the eye, that was it for you. You gave in completely to him and didn’t hold back on showing Michael how good he made you feel either.

In that moment alone, his hands were all over your body and you had wrapped your arms around him for the first time thinking it would be the last time the two of you would ever do anything like this.

Michael had thrown off his belt, inched down his dress trousers and briefs and before you knew it, you let him pull your panties to the side, and wrapped your thighs around his waist.

Michael pinned you against your office wall next to the bookshelf and despite his erect cock throbbing and twitching to be inside of you, he didn’t penetrate you just yet.

Although even doing this, then stopping and leaving would be more than a dream come true to you, the only thing that had disappointed and embarrassed you was that Michael didn’t lean in closer to kiss your lips when you thought he would.

Instead, Michael kissed up and down your neck while he let his thumbs toy with your nipples. His kisses grew more demanding and wet around your jawline and collarbones but Michael absolutely refused to kiss your lips.

You became distracted almost instantly with the teasing and foreplay, and once Michael had you squirming against his body when his forefingers rubbed against your wet clit, it was then that he knew you were turned on and ready for him.

You locked eyes with Michael when he penetrated you for the first time. Shaky, loud moans escaped your lips feeling every inch of his thick, hard cock continue to go deeper inside of you.

Even up against the cold wall, Michael gave you the best sex of your life and never stopped continuing to stimulate your clit and nipples while he fucked you.

Michael wasn’t very tender but not rough either; instead, Michael and you were fucking the pent up frustration out of each other for the first time, still testing the waters.

You thought to yourself when you came over Michael’s cock for the first time that Michael surely must know he could possibly get you pregnant now but when you looked down to see how his cock was slicking in and out of your pussy, you also knew he must not have cared.

Michael didn’t cum in you, however, but pulled out and left his hot, sticky seed spew over your stomach and breasts.

Perhaps the silence that followed both of your orgasms marking the end of the sexual encounter was much worse than the first when Michael walked in on you naked.

As vivid as the memory is to you, you could only remember Michael breathing against your neck and saying, “I want to see you again and again”. You knew what that meant just as anyone else would.

‘He wanted me to be his mistress and how could I ever say no? There wasn’t a fibre of my being that wanted to say no and I wouldn’t have said no if he asked me before he had sex with me either…’

Without conducting business like he originally planned to that day, Michael left after the two of you dressed and he told you to expect a phone call “soon”.

Anxiety and overthinking were your best friend from the moment Michael finished saying the word “soon” and didn’t end until you got a phone call to your office three days later at work.

Michael laid the ground rules then for what he wanted, how he wanted, and when he wanted you.

“I’ll be the one making the rules and deciding where we go from here—understood?”

Michael made it clear to you that he was first a father to Anthony and a husband to Kay. This would never change. Not for you, not for anyone.

“Kay just gave birth to our first child, Anthony. I’m a father now, as you know and that affects what I do and where I can go. Time spent with my son and my wife comes first. This will not change.”

Michael would be the one who would plan to see you and you’d known forty-eight hours in advance whether it was at your office, at one of his penthouses in New York, a hotel or a resort. Michael would get you accommodation to get there secretly with a fake name and seen by nobody to the best of his ability.

“I’ll get you to where you need to be but you won’t see me until you arrive at our meeting spot. No eyes will follow you and nobody else will know where you’re going for how long and with who. Nobody will see us together side by side, even if they’re strangers.”

The only thing Michael told you next that made you cry after you hung up was that this was solely sexual. Michael had no romantic feelings for you and he wasn’t planning on ever fostering such either.

“I’m in love with my wife, Victoria. I love Kay very much and she’s the only woman I can love and be with. What you and I have will only be sexual. It can never get romantic and it won’t, so don’t expect anything further than what we agreed to…”

Maybe Michael would never see you in a romantic light but you would and always had. You’d still be madly in love with him no matter what and you were also convinced you did love Michael more than Kay ever could.

There was also no timeframe to how long this sexual relationship would last, but Michael made your heart skip a beat when he clarified why he wanted you that had little to do with your first surprise encounter at your office.

“When I say what we have is over, then it ends immediately. I’m not limiting myself to a timeframe… I want to have you until I possibly can’t anymore, and I presume you’re thinking the same. Victoria… I love Kay but she isn’t you and she can’t be. I want nothing from her in bed but to bear my children. I pleasure her but I don’t gain much pleasure for myself. I have no fire and excitement in my sex life with her, but I do for you—that’s why I want you.”

Even when Kay became pregnant again with her and Michael’s second child and Michael made the move to Nevada, he had you relocate with him and secured you the same position at the Reno courthouse.

Michael bought an estate for you under his name. He brought in your vehicle from New York and because a talent like yours did not excuse within law and the crime families, there was zero suspicion from either Michael or your family as to why you relocated.

Everyone saw it as strictly business with plenty of opportunity and prosperity for both the Corleone and Ferrari families alike.

Only when you made the move to Reno did you meet Kay and Anthony, and although Michael’s wife was sweet and welcoming to you and utterly clueless her husband was fucking the life out of you three to five times a week, you still didn’t regret what you were doing nor did you pity Kay.

“I hope you pretend Kay’s me and not the other way around.” You whispered as Michael hovered over top of your naked body.

“I do,” Michael murmured against your skin and kissed between your breasts. “I think of fucking you whenever I bed her…”

You could say “if only she knew” to yourself through laughter, not on a serious note because you disregarded Kay’s marriage with Michael entirely.

You weren’t even aware of it, but the fire and heated intimacy Michael brought to his and your sex life gave you confidence like that.

The only conflict you felt in you conscience and heart was that you could not have Michael in the romantic and family sense that Kay did, which would slowly began to eat you alive as the years went on.

In the very beginning when you first felt your heart aching and beating for Michael only, you knew the only remedy to this kind of forbidden, one-sided love would be to stay far away from Michael and forget him.

You’d have to stop seeing him, speaking with him, and even corresponding with his family. You’d have no idea how to go about this or explain it to your family, but it would most definitely come at the cost of many excuses and lies to anyone who’d ask.

Instead, you didn’t. You let yourself get closer to him even though you knew it would amount to nothing, just like a moth to a flame.

Five years of being his mistress did not pass without a toll and many tears of course, and you no longer held back how you felt about Michael—still having not been able to kiss him once

“I only want you,” you hiccupped throughout your tears, “I can’t love another man but you.”

Michael stared at you coldly, shook his head and gave out a little sigh.

He believed it would have been impossible for you to fall in love with him and want more when he had explicitly told you none of it could ever happen, so all Michael could do was disregard your feelings, have sex with you, disregard your feelings again.

Michael may have taken you all around the country, fucked you in the most luxurious hotels, resorts and private yachts treating you like a princess and pampering you without affection and romantic love, it was never truly enough for how you really felt and wanted Michael.

“I know we fuck, Michael, but God… Sometimes I just wish you’d hold my hand when the lights are on. When we’re not in bed.” You had no idea how you managed to tell Michael this without breaking down into tears.

“We talked about this, Victoria.” Michael had told you when he was redressing as you lay naked in bed, holding the bedsheets up to your chest. “There are things I won’t do to you that are only reserved for my wife. That won’t change and I won’t speak of this matter again because I don’t want to hurt you.”

In five years time, Michael never once kissed your lips and the only time he held your hand was when Michael laced both with yours against the bed when he was fucking you—never romantically.

You would never feel or taste real affection from him—that was reserved solely for Kay and although you knew Michael had rough, wild, kinky and intensely amazing sex with you and not Kay, it still tore you to shreds knowing you couldn’t have it all.

“I know.” You swallowed down the lump in your throat, sitting up in bed as Michael faced you almost full dressed. “I’m not Kay… I know that But I’m someone to you, aren’t I?”

“Of course.” Michael answered you. “You’re my mistress. You’re the other woman.”

[father-time-and-baby-new-year]

Would it be to much to ask for a Eren scenario where both he and the reader are both equally toxic, manipulative and possessive over eachother but both just cannot let the other go to the point where even when they reunite when Eren escapes the survey corps he asks her to tell him if anyone else whether it was the army or the jeagerists, if they had touched her even if it was just to escort her which she just nods and refuses to tell him any names cuz she likes to see him riled up by her having been "corrupted" and seeing how with a single act she can have him on edge and he falls for her even more by her devious and selfish wiles to have him get irritated and angry but only to end up wanting more of her charms.

Just some good dark angtsy feels all around🖤

A/N: just a little drabble. i've never done canon-verse stuff for AOT so this was fun to try. thank you sending this ask. i did deviate from your ending a little bit so im sorry <3

Warning: AoT Season 4 Spoilers, extreme possessive behavior, toxic relationship, anger issues, gaslighting/manipulating

Eren can feel himself getting restless. Hange had been getting on his nerves. He was the literally the only reason they had secured their victory against Marley on multiple fronts. She and the rest of the fucking Survey Corps should be bending over backward in gratitude.

He cracks his knuckles although he had no need to, wanting to focus on a physical sensation. His thoughts eventually circle back to you. He misses you sorely.

In Marley, there was this kind child Falco. Eren could say he felt guilty for manipulating the poor boy. But that's not true. He's shed that part of humanity a long time ago. All's fair in war after all.

The fair-haired boy was worried about his friend, didn't want a certain special someone of his to become titanized.

Is this other candidate a girl?

Eren had asked. Because he could relate to the Marelyan child. There was a girl he was trying to protect too, who he'd raise hell over, who he'd destroy the world for.

The dark-haired boy can feel himself grow restless. There are a million things to do. Coups to start. Militia to gather. A brother to manipulate. A world to ruin.

But first, he needs to see you. It's already been so long. He had barked orders to Floch to make sure you were safe and secure. If any hair off your pretty little head was misplaced-well no one wants to witness the rage of the Founding Titan's holder.

CRASH

The ground shakes. Eren closes his eyes and lets the Warhammer titan's power course through his veins. Foolish to think any prison could ever hold him.

He's walking uphill. The sunset bathes the land in vibrant pinks, oranges, and light violets. There is a crowd of people standing tall and at attention, postures rigid, save for one.

You hurl towards him at the speed of light and twice the fury, wrapping your arms around his neck. If Eren wasn't six feet of hard muscle, he would have been knocked off his feet from the vigor of your crushing embrace.

"Eren!" You cry out.

The attack titan vessel is too shocked to respond. He's been anticipating your presence for the longest but to finally feel you in the flesh and to smell your soft pretty scent was sending him into overdrive. He couldn't believe you were tangible and not some hauntingly beautiful apparition.

He wraps his arms around you, enveloping your body in his warmth, and you rest your head in the crook of his neck. He feels your nimble fingers toying with his hair.

"I like this new look. It suits you." You mummer.

"Like me without a shirt too?" Eren teases.

He forgot how easy it was to be himself around you, to joke and laugh like he wasn't planning a global genocide of epic proportions. No, even that's an understatement. His goal was an omnicide, utter annihilation. Only Paradis will be left after the ashes settle. A Paradis with you.

"What are you thinking about?" You ask, eyes wide with an untouched innocence that Eren doesn't know how you still possess. All of that eager wide-eyed optimism had been snuffed out from all of his friends. From him. But you, you don't change like the seasons or winds. You're you.

And that was going to be his ruin.

After the Yeagerists brief him on what happened with Zackley and Zeke Yeager's possible whereabouts, Eren gives into his overwhelming urges to see you.

He approaches your chambers, trying to conceal his impatience with soft knocks. You don't answer which irritates him, so he knocks louder and louder, the sound of his fist banging against the door sounding like thunderclaps.

Where the fuck are you? Were you with someone right now? He knew you were getting a little too friendly with Floch from the way you guys were talking at dinner. It was so obvious. He's been gone, for what, a few months and you're already whor-

The door opens and exposes a sleepy-looking girl whose rubbing one of her eyes. Admittedly, very adorable.

"Eren" Your voice is saccharine, "Do you need anything?"

He lets himself in, and shuts the door behind him, locking it in place.

"I don't usually lock the door," You pout but there's a playfulness in your expression that Eren would have noticed had he not been consumed by rage.

"What? So you let anyone in?" He asks, nearly snarling out the words. as he stares scandalized at your slip of a nightgown. A pale translucent pink that reached the middle of your thighs. He could even make the outline of your nipples poking through.

"No, silly." You giggle, twirling the hem of your dress, "Floch's security measure." You pretended not to notice how Eren's fist clenches.

"Is that so?" Eren said, words spoken between gritted teeth. As long as Eren was here, there need be no concerns over security measures. But he knew Floch. The ginger worshipped the ground Eren walked on and would never make a move on you if he cared about his limbs staying intact.

You sat down on your bed and Eren couldn't help but watch your skimpy dress ride up your creamy thighs.

He stood over you, his form looming over yours as you sat on your bed, feet swinging above the ground.

"I wanted to ask you something."

You look up with those big childlike eyes, "Okay."

"Did. Anyone. Touch. You?" His voice is low and he punctuates each word slowly.

You blink "What do you mean?” But there’s a coy smile tugging at the corner of your lips.

"Quit playing dumb." He growls, anger evident in the crease between his eyebrows.

You're quiet for a still moment, mouth opening and closing. Eren's anxiety increases more each second and it finally boils over when you softly ask, "What kind of touch?"

Like a chess piece topping over, he shoves you down the bed, pinning your wrists with his strong hands.

Usually, Eren was smarter. Quicker to call you on your tricks. But alas, absence makes the heart fonder. You love making him lose his stoic composure, so lost in his lust and desire for you that all he can see crimson. And if the price for that is to play the fragile maiden, it is what it is.

"Ow." You pitifully whine, lightly shaking your right hand. Eren knew he wasn't holding you too hard so he experimentally thumbs over a certain spot on your right wrist, eliciting another small whimper. He brings your wrist closer to him and finds a purple bruise.

"Who touched you? Was is it any of the yeagerists?" His voice is deadly calm but an ice-cold rage simmers in his eyes. You can feel yourself growing excited, heat pooling in the bottom of your stomach. You’re rubbing your legs together for the friction but Eren assumes it a nervous tic to avoid answering any of his questions.

When you avert your gaze and simply look the side, he delicately cradles your cheek: “Was it the scouts?”

The delicate touch turns harsher when you don't respond, forcing your pretty head to look straight at him. He sees your eyes glistening, and when he looks into your dewy irises, he can see himself.

His voice drops a pitch, "Please tell me."

Your breathing is shallower and you can't help but enjoy this so much.

It's been so long since you've seen him-since you begged him not to go but he went anyway, and having him here right now--the pride and joy of the Eldian empire , the holder of the Founding Titan-unravel in your fingertips, well this was the closest to true power you've ever been.

Eren can feel his patience sleeping, anger seeping into his bones at your silence, and the bruise on your delicate wrist only serves to anger him further. He can't even do what he swore to do and that was to keep you safe.

"Are you not telling me who it is because you're protecting them?"

The words are delivered deadly calm with the tension of a brewing storm behind it. You're nervous, exactly aware of what your beau is capable of, but the excited kind of nervous where butterflies are swarming in your stomach.

Maybe you underestimated his anger because within a second, the telltale red lines start to form under his eyes, lightning bright sparks forming between each breath.

Without thinking, you envelop the back of his head with one arm (the other hand rendered useless bu the force of his hold), trying to bring his head into the softness your breasts.

Understanding your gesture, Eren immediately calms down and lets himself be smothered in your chest like a babe being cradled in his mother's warmth.

"There, there" you coo, words soft and melodious on your tongue.

You can feel wet-spots on your nightie, "Eren...are you-" you begin, not sure when to end.

His voice is tightly controlled as if not let his coiled emotions fuse again, "I'm sorry. I'm sorry. I was about to hurt you." He sounds so broken, and all you can do is stroke his hair.

You press a kiss to his head. You know what the right words to say are. You should be comforting him and assuring him he could never hurt you.

Instead you stay silent, softly exhaling. He can't see the pleased smile on your face.

*

"Your wrist feeling any better?"

You whip up your head to see Floch whose peering down at you in slight concern. You must have looked confused because he elaborated, "The one you accidentally banged against the doorway. Looked like it hurt."

"Oh." You pause, looking down at the fresh set of finger shaper marks overtaking the fading violet.

You laugh airily, "Yeah it's alright."

[chimchimsauce]

Fairest

Is beauty a blessing or a curse? All of her life, princess YN was told that her beauty was the greatest gift her late mother ever gave her. But when her looks attract a man cruel and bloodthirsty, YN begins to think that her greatest asset is the beginning of her demise.

“Checkmate.”

YN cannot help the grin that spreads across her face as she utters the word, watching as her older brother groans with disdain.

“You always win!” he complains, acting very much like a child.

“That’s because you always get too caught up in the current move, dear brother. The future decisions are the most important ones.”

YN’s older brother, first in line to the throne of their small country Ameris, huffs and crosses his arms over his chest.

“Chess is like war. You get too focused on winning battles that cause you to lose the war. I certainly hope that won’t be the case for our kingdom . . .”

YN is only jesting. Her elder brother is an excellent leader and will make a wonderful king. He’s just really impatient with games. 

“I’m sure I can beat you next round!” her brother says playfully.

They both know it’s unlikely, but YN clears the board and begins to set up another game. As she’s placing the last pawn, a knock comes at the door. One of her handmaidens opens it, revealing one of their father’s special guards. 

YN’s breath catches ever so slightly before she schools her expression back into one of unbothered royalty. It’s always so hard to ignore her secret lover when other people are around, but she knows she must. A relationship between her and her father’s most trusted guard would cause a scandal that would undoubtedly get Wonho’s position revoked. He’s worked his entire life to get good enough for a spot on the King’s royal guard and there’s no way YN would do anything to sabotage that.

“His majesty has requested your presence,” Wonho says, not even looking YN in the eyes.

He’s much better at keeping his emotions in check.

YN’s brother stands, tapping his finger on the chessboard.

“Lucky thing I’m being summoned, or else I would have absolutely destroyed you in this game.”

YN laughs, maybe a little more politely than she would if Wonho wasn’t standing at the door.

“I’m sure of it,” she says, “Feel free to come back anytime to play again.”

YN’s brother nods and leaves her quarters, following after Wonho. Being the heir to the throne means that YN rarely gets to see her brother. He’ll be gone for weeks, sometimes months at a time as he tours the neighboring countries to learn everything he possibly can, as well as maintain a positive relationship with their allies. Ameris may be a small country, but it is located in the perfect spot for transcontinental trade and filled to the brim with valuable resources. One could dig in a mine for just a few moments and emerge with a diamond the size of a robin’s egg.

Thankfully, Ameris has not had any problems with its neighboring countries in hundreds of years. The last war was ended by YN’s great great great grandfather and peace has blanketed the region since then.

Well, for the most part. In the last several years, the Eastern kingdom of Moonbyss has been steadily expanding and taking over small, unclaimed villages. They have not breached any borders or broken any treaties, however, so there is no cause to worry quite yet.

YN sighs as her thoughts shift back to Wonho. Their secret love affair has been going on since they were teenagers. At first, Wonho was just an attractive boy who was willing to indulge her wanton fantasies, but soon enough an affection bloomed between them. It’s so hard to pretend not to be in love with him, especially when he grows more handsome by the day.

“Thinking about him, my lady?” YN’s lady in waiting, Irene, asks her.

Irene is YN’s closest confidant and friend. She knows almost everything about the princess. Ever since she arrived in the castle from abroad two years ago, they have been inseparable. 

“Of course,” YN says, standing and walking over to the window that overlooks her private gardens. 

She opens the glass door and steps outside, her skin warmed by the sunshine. It’s an absolutely beautiful day, cloudless and blue. Birds chirp sweetly and the scent of flowers wafts on the breeze. The princess stops at the fountain in the middle of the garden, sitting on the bench and looking into the bubbling water. YN often made wishes in this fountain when she was younger, tossing in coins that reflected the sunlight back at her. More recently, though, she’s only wished for one thing - to be with Wonho. Her father, although he loves her, would never allow a union between them. Her older brother, however, has promised to allow YN to marry whoever she desires once he takes the throne on his thirtieth birthday.

He does not know that someone already has her affections, but no matter. YN is not worried about being married off. While her brother is the only prince in the kingdom, the king was blessed with twelve daughters and YN is the youngest. Every available man of power in the kingdom and the surrounding countries have already been wedded. 

YN has Irene bring her a book to read and she settles in, getting comfortable in her garden. The hours pass by quickly as she is sucked into the tale, but soon enough a shadow blocks her reading light. 

The princess looks up and is shocked to see Wonho standing in front of her. Alarm flares up inside of her. The two of them have agreed to never be seen together in daylight.

“Won-”

“Your Majesty,” Wonho says stiffly, “The King requests an audience. I have been asked to escort you to the throne room.”

YN hesitates a moment. She can tell that something is wrong by the strain in his voice. Something must really be bothering him for the guard to allow it to leak into his words. She wants to ask him what’s wrong, but she never knows who is watching so she simply stands, handing her book off to Irene who stands beside her.

“Very well,” YN says, trailing after him and back into the castle.

He walks three paces in front of her, leaving her to stare at his back. So much about him has changed in the last few years. He’s gained an immense amount of muscle, something that YN has really grown to appreciate during their midnight endeavors. It’s a shame that everything is covered up by his uniform, but she must admit he looks dashing in it.

As they walk, YN notices that Wonho isn’t the only one acting strangely. The various maids and butlers who usually flit around and chatter pleasantly amongst themselves are dead silent, walking with perfectly straight backs and zipped mouths. The princess notices a few pitying looks tossed her way and something cold settles in her stomach.

What’s going on?

Wonho knocks on the throne room’s closed doors. They are ever so carefully opened a few moments later and Wonho leads YN into the grand room.

Her father sits on the throne, a smaller one empty next to him. It always makes YN sad to see her father by himself. The Queen passed away only a year ago and was her father’s closest friend. The late Queen was kind to everyone, even YN’s mother - a poor girl her father discovered in one of his hunting trips. Apparently, YN’s father was so taken with her mother that he simply had to add her to his harem and rarely visited any of his other concubines afterward. But it didn’t last long - YN’s mother died shortly after her birth. Everyone says that she left YN her ethereal beauty, a fact that led YN to being hidden away in the castle for the majority of her life.

“You’re the most valuable diamond in all of Ameris,” her father told her once, “It’s important that few people know of your existence.”

It had saddened YN when she was younger that she could not attend the lavish parties and balls like her elder sisters and brother, but she came not to mind once Wonho came into her life. It mattered not if other people thought she was beautiful - as long as Wonho desired her, that was more than enough.

Standing to her father’s side is YN’s brother. The jolly air that had surrounded him mere hours ago is gone completely now. He looks furious, an expression YN has rarely seen on his face. He’s looking at a man who stands before the throne, a crown placed perfectly on his head.

Visiting nobility? 

The man turns as the click of YN’s heels sounds out against the marble flooring. YN’s step falters as a large, nearly terrifying grin spreads across his face. He is incredibly handsome, but the smile on his face does nothing but creepy the princess out.

“There she is,” he says, quickly extending his hand towards her.

YN, uncertain, looks at her father who gives her a stiff nod. Hesitantly, YN places her hand in the stranger’s grasp, making sure to school her expression as he places a cold kiss that lingers too long against her gloved hand. The princess has never been more glad to be wearing gloves.

“And who do I have the pleasure of meeting?” YN asks, careful to watch her throne. 

“King Seokjin Moonbyss, your highness. I must say, the rumors of your beauty do you no justice. You’re much more radiant in person.”

YN’s blood freezes in her veins. This cannot mean anything good.

“Thank you,” YN says, a slight tremble in her voice.

The man has still not released her hand.

“YN,” her father says, giving her an excuse to look away from this man - no, this monster - beside her, “King Seokjin has asked for your hand.”

YN barely squashes the shout of protest that so desperately wants to escape her throat. There’s no way this can be happening! No way! Her eldest brother is just three years shy of taking the throne, three years more of having to tiptoe around with Wonho. No way she can get married, especially to someone from so far away.

“Excuse me,” Wonho says, speaking up from his place behind YN, “I thought King Seokjin was already married.”

Relief flows through YN. If Seokjin is already married, then surely this is an error.

“She failed to provide me with a male heir, so I had her disposed of,” King Seokjin says simply, glaring at Wonho, “Do not question me again.”

There is not a trace of remorse in his voice at all, nothing but anger.

YN begins to tremble.

“Father -” she begins.

“King Seokjin has made us an offer I cannot refuse,” he says, cutting her off, “And besides, YN, you’ll be able to be Queen. You never would have had that opportunity here.”

YN’s father would normally never make this sort of decision, especially not for the daughter he tried so hard to keep hidden.

“Of course, sweet YN,” King Seokjin says, “You are free to reject my offer if you so desire. I would, however, be forced to declare war on Ameris. After all, this country is the most resource rich of all the lands. It’s a shame. It would have been so much nicer to make a positive connection with this beautiful country. I wonder how much of its splendor will be left once my troops march through it.”

The threat is crystal clear. YN has to marry this King or her country will suffer for it. YN glances at her father and brother, seeing the fear that’s in their eyes. Ameris is much too small to fight Moonbyss and win, especially since the eastern country has been gaining a lot of territory very rapidly. YN swallows. In a matter of hours, her perfect daydream has been shattered.

“I would be honored to marry you, King Seokjin,” YN says, trying her hardest not to cry.

She can release her tears once she’s in the safety of her own chambers. She cannot show any weakness in front of this man.

“Beautiful and smart,” King Seokjin says, “It will be my honor to have you as my bride. After all, the most handsome man in all the world deserves the most beautiful bride of them all.”

YN never really thought much of her beauty. She’s always heard it was a blessing, the only one her mother ever left her, but right now it feels like a curse. 

“I pray that you’ll join me for dinner this evening, my betrothed,” King Seokjin says.

“I would love to,” YN says even though the thought of having to spend even a single moment more in this man’s presence makes her want to hurl.

“You best retire to your quarters, my love. Your father and I have much to discuss before this evening. I’ll send someone for you when I’m ready.”

The dismissal is clear. YN turns swiftly and leaves the room, Wonho following closely behind her. She walks much too fast to be considered ladylike, but she does not give a damn, wanting to be as far away from the throne room as possible. 

“YN, wait!” Wonho calls out to her.

He grasps her wrist, uncaring of who will see, and pulls her to his chest. As soon as the warmth of him touches her, YN loses all composure, breaking down and sobbing into his pristine uniform.

“Wonho,” she cries out, grasping him as close as she can, her fingers creasing the silk he wears, “I don’t want to be Queen! I want to marry you!”

YN feels something wet fall against her head. Based on the way his shoulders shake, Wonho is also crying. She hasn’t seen him shed a tear since one of his best friends was murdered on a mission.

“What are we going to do?” YN asks into his chest, her voice muffled, “I don’t think I can bear being apart from you, especially with someone as cruel as the King!”

“We’ll figure something out, YN, I promise,” Wonho says, pulling away just enough to give YN a salty kiss.

“At least once more,” YN says once their lips part, “I must have you at least once more.”

“Your wish is my command, princess,” Wonho says, pulling her along to her chambers.

The two fall into the sheets, both knowing that this is the last time despite desperately wanting to spend eternity together.

On the other side of the castle, Irene makes her way through the hallways, stopping at a grand door and knocking three times. No one answers, so she swings it open, prepared to wait for as long as it takes. 

Maybe half an hour later, King Seokjin opens the door, looking quite pleased with himself. He doesn’t greet Irene, instead instantly walking over to her and pinning her against the wall, his lips meeting hers passionately. Irene barely has any time to catch her breath, but she doesn’t mind at all, too enamored with this man she knows is only using her.

When he was only a prince, Seokjin was infamous for being a womanizer. All too often, he lured servants and noble girls alike into his chambers, whispering promises and pressing kisses against their skin only to leave them abandoned like trash when he grew bored of them. Irene was one of those servant girls, but Seokjin has kept her around for longer than most. A part of Irene is convinced it’s because she’s special to him, but she knows it’s really not true.

Seokjin has been obsessed with YN, the secret twelfth princess of Ameris for five years now. Ever since he spotted her while visiting Ameris with his late father, he wanted her - needed her. After all, she’s the most beautiful woman he’s ever seen, trying as he might to find another. His late wife was incredibly beautiful as well, but she didn’t compare to YN. No one else was worthy of her but him. It was YN that drove him to murder his own father and take the throne before he was supposed to. After all, Seokjin has never been a patient man.

Seokjin pulls away from Irene, looking unbothered as ever.

“No good,” he says, “Simply imagining that you’re YN does nothing. I’m tired of waiting.”

His words sting Irene’s heart. She tries not to be bitter, but jealousy is a powerful emotion, one that overshadows the genuine affection she feels for princess YN.

“Well,” the King asks her, “Who is it? The one YN claims to be in love with.”

The King rolls his eyes, gripping his fists tightly. How dare YN love another when he’s already claimed her.

“It’s Wonho,” Irene says, pushing down her feelings, “the guard that accompanied her today.”

“A guard huh? How dare he think he deserves someone as beautiful as YN!” he says, furious.

Seokjin is terrifying when he’s angry. Irene tenses, preparing for the worst. Instead of gripping her hair and tossing her to the floor like he usually does, Seokjin grabs a decorative vase and tosses it against the ground, watching as it shatters into a million pieces.

“You didn’t strike me,” Irene says, shocked.

“I have been practicing,” the King says, “After all, it would be a shame to make a single mark on YN’s perfect body.”

Much too soon, Irene is knocking on YN’s private chamber door.

“Your majesty,” she calls out softly, “Your betrothed has requested your presence.”

YN rolls over to Wonho, tears in her eyes. He blinks them away, wanting to remember this moment clearly.

“One moment,” YN calls out, listening as Irene walks away.

“Run away with me,” YN pleads, her voice desperate.

“You know we can’t,” Wonho says, his eyes sad.

“Yes we can!” YN insists, “You know this country better than anyone. We can get up right now and flee and -”

“YN,” Wonho says, “What about the country? You know we’ll be forced to go to war if you disappear.”

YN sniffles.

“I don’t think I can live without you,” YN confessed, “And if I can, I don’t want to find out.”

Wonho is silent for a moment before he sits up, an idea in his mind.

“What? What is it?” YN asks him.

“What if you didn’t?”

“What?”

“What if you didn’t have to live without me? I’ve heard rumors amongst the staff of a poison you can take that will put you in a deep slumber for a fortnight. If some was mixed into your dinner tonight, it can seem that you’ve been poisoned and passed away. Then when you awake, you and I can disappear together.”

YN brightens. Even though being unconscious for a fortnight doesn’t sound pleasant, anything will be better than having to marry KIng Seokjin. Besides, she trusts Wonho with her life.

“Okay,” YN says, agreeing right away.

“Are you sure, YN?” Wonho asks her, “You will end up getting rather sick for a few days before the slumber.”

YN nods eagerly.

“Yes, anything,” she says.

“Very well.”

Wonho hops out of bed, pulling on his clothes as quickly as he possibly can.

“I’ll get everything ready. YN, go to dinner with the king, alright? I won’t be able to see you after this so as not to arouse suspicion. I love you, princess.”

He leans down to kiss her.

“I love you more,” YN says, watching as Wonho slips out of a glass door and into the gardens.

Unbeknownst to the lovers, King Seokjin is outside the door, his ear pressed against it to hear everything. He had come to escort his beloved like a sweet fiance would, only to hear his to be wife scheming to get away from him.

He’s never been so angry, but he suppressed it, not wanting to let YN know that he’s been here. He grabs Irene by the arm roughly and leads her out into the hallway, bending over to whisper in her ear.

“Make sure to add enough of the poison to YN’s food to keep her under for longer than a fortnight. Put as much of it in as you can without bringing her to the brink of death.”

“Are you sure your -”

Irene’s question is cut off when he backhands her, one of his elegant rings drawing blood.

“Do NOT question me!” he says, “Do as I order!”

Irene rushes off to do as the King says, tears brimming in her eyes. She’s never regretted being Seokjin’s spy until now, too blinded by love. She should have warned YN, should have helped her disappear with Wonho - someone Irene knows truly loves the princess. King Seokjin is just obsessed with her beauty and determined to own her like she’s some sort of object to be bought and sold.

Peeking around the corner, Irene sees Wonho pouring a liquid into the soup bowl meant for the princess. When he leaves and when the coast is clear, Irene snatches the vial from the counter and empties the rest of it into other dishes reserved for the princess before refilling the vial with water and placing it back where Wonho left it.

“YN, I’m so sorry,” she whispers to herself before fleeing into the night, never to be heard from again.

At dinner, YN pretends not to notice the odd taste in her food. It’s obviously been tampered with, but YN doesn’t let it show at all, eating properly and conversing with King Seokjin as much as she can bear. YN misses the look of glee in his eye as he drinks from his goblet, still believing that everything is going to plan.

YN starts feeling ill once the final course comes around. She quickly asks to be excused and King Seokjin offers to walk her back to her room. YN accepts, knowing that she wouldn’t be able to make it on her own with the  way the room begins to spin.

For the next three days and nights, YN is in and out of consciousness, the world swirling around her in a nauseating mix of bright colors and fuzzy shapes. When she closes her eyes at midnight of the third day, her thoughts are on Wonho and the fact that the next time she opens them, she’ll be free to be with him.

But YN does not wake up. Not for a fortnight, not ever. Seokjin, furious, intends to find Irene and hang her for murdering his beloved before realizing that she’s nowhere to be found. It’s easy enough to frame Wonho for her murder and a matter of hours after YN dies, Wonho follows her from the gallows.

At his request, YN is preserved and dressed in a wonderful white wedding gown, still looking very much alive. He marries her anyway and has her crowned, determined to have her even in death. She’s too beautiful to be buried underground, so he commissions a glass coffin to display her in, putting her corpse in his bedroom where no one else can see her. King Seokjin finds that he does not mind YN being dead. She’s much less bothersome in passing, much easier to fall to his will.

King Seokjin stands before her, placing his hand flat against the cool glass of her coffin. Even in death, YN is the fairest of them all.