#i've been having very strange muscle jerks

[powerfulkicks]

i love having a chronic illness bc occasionally it'll just be like New Symptom Unlocked and you get a few days of wondering if this is something new or maybe something completely unrelated or maybe nothing at all? who knows!

[cripplecharacters]

I searched your blog and didn't find this, so if it's already been answered I'm sorry!

I'm writing a character who has photosensitive epileptic seizures and I was wondering if you have any tips on describing the experience of having a seizure?

My sister has them so I know what hers look like, but I've never had an epileptic seizure myself. Is it a painful experience? Is it more like fainting? What does the post-ictal phase feel like?

I know seizures can look different for everyone so rest assured this will not be my only source :)

Hello!

You're right that seizures are different for everyone, especially considering how many different types of seizures there are.

My last (Confirmed) seizure was several years ago. I have had some... "episodes" (For lack of a better term) that we're unsure if they were seizures or something else more recently but I'll be answering this with my confirmed seizures in mind.

I has epilepsy as a child and mostly had grand-mal/tonic-clonic seizures from what I've been told. For me, I experienced an aura anywhere from 5-10 minutes before the "main" seizure itself. This aura was usually a strange feeling in my head (Almost a tightness or pressure but feeling very loose as well? It's difficult to explain) with a rubbery taste in my mouth.

I can't say much about when the "main" seizure was actually happening as, for me, I wasn't really aware during it.

As somebody who faints... embarrassingly often, however, I can say confidently that it doesn't feel like fainting (At least for me). With fainting, I can feel myself starting to 'go' (My ears begin to ring and I feel almost like I'm fading out) and then I faint and it feels like I wake up almost instantly, even when it's been several minutes. For my seizures, it felt more like a blurred passage of time. I was an aware to an extent, I think, but not in the way it's usually defined (As being aware of your surroundings), it just wasn't like I was unconscious/asleep.

For me, I hated the postictal period the most. My seizures were usually accompanied by a loss of control over my bladder and would occasionally make me... not throw up, really, but almost spit up a bit. I'd usually wake up feeling incredibly tired and grumpy and usually ended up crying. The crying wasn't tied to any particular feeling, it was more of a physical response. And though I can now acknowledge that it's nothing to be embarrassed about, as a kid it was all pretty humiliating for me.

Just as a side note, my boyfriend also has seizures currently but not from epilepsy. I've been with him during his periods after the seizure before and he usually ends up acting like a kid, for lack of a better term. He cries a lot and is very disoriented but he's also very easily distracted. There have been several occasions where he's played with my keys for a few minutes before he comes back to it. He doesn't experience the same grumpiness and deep exhaustion that I did, though he has said that they make him feel very sleepy.

Although I didn't find the seizures themselves to be painful at all, there were several occasions where I ended up hurting myself during one. Usually this was hitting my head when I fell or during the actual jerking of the seizure but there have been other times when I had bruises or sore muscles afterwards. Given how young I was when I was having these kinds of seizures, I don't fully recall how the sore muscles/injuries felt as they didn't have as much of an impact on me as the seizures themselves.

After a seizure, I'd end up sleeping for anywhere from a couple hours to the rest of the day. I think part of it was the emotional exhaustion of a seizure while another part was the physical.

Now, I did speak a lot about the grand-mal seizures I experienced but I did also (And actually may still) have absence seizures as well.

A few years ago my seizures came back briefly and, despite my neurologist's best efforts, we couldn't figure out why. I'm not entirely sure how to classify them now but I was mostly aware during them and, from what's been described to me, my head was nodding up and down (To the point where it was all the way back), my eyes were rolled up into my head, and my eyelids were fluttering. I didn't experience any of the side-effects of my grand-mal seizures (Ex: Peeing myself, spitting up, crying, etc.) during these and I also don't know if I fell or not because when I had them, I was generally sitting down somewhere.

During these, my vision was flashes of colour/shapes and just generally what you'd expect from having your eyes rolled up and your eyelids fluttering. I was still aware that things were happening around me but I couldn't really process it the same way. I could hear people speaking but couldn't understand what they were saying.

You did mention looking into other sources for this and I'd definitely recommend doing that. These are just my (And, briefly, my boyfriend's) experiences and there are so many different experiences of seizures and epilepsy in general.

Cheers,

~ Mod Icarus

Hi lovely asker!

I have absence seizures and myoclonic ones so I'll add on my two cents as well (Cover more of the seizure spectrum here 😁).

For absence seizures for me its mostly just a complete blank space of time. There's one moment where I'm walking, talking, doing whatever and then the next thing I know I look around and usually like 30-ish seconds has past. If I was having a conversation and the person I'm talking to kept talking, I'm not aware of any of what they said when I was having the seizure. It's kinda like someone turns my brain off for a quick restart and then turns it back on again.

If there is nothing physical around me indicating of a passage of time. (Ex. Someone talking, I looked at the clock right before it happened, any living object that moves around) then I most likely won't know I had the seizure. Sometimes I have a little feeling because I often get headaches leading up to my absence seizures but other than that they're painless and more so there is that panic feeling of losing track of time. I'm usually just disoriented because of that sudden missing frame of time. I'll kinda look around, try to get my bearings, see what happened, if anything's changed etc.

Myoclonic ones really depend on how aggressive they are. They can be big (a whole side of my body will twitch) or itty bitty baby ones (my fingers twitch or I can feel certain muscles twitching). Kinda like with Tonic-Clonic seizures, all the muscles involved will contract on me and it's painful. Often times they're more annoying and frustrating than painful (trying to eat breakfast one time and let's just say my eggs ended up across the room).

They can cause my legs to jerk too which if I'm walking will make me just suddenly fall as my legs give out. Sometimes they can just happen as one, or they can cluster and that means that multiple happen in a row. When they cluster, they're often more painful because my muscles are contracting so many times. If I fall like I mention I often hurt myself because I just completely fall to the ground (not like fainting, I'm conscious and alert and I can move my arms and torso, it's usually just my legs that are the problem.)

Leading up to my myoclonic seizures sometimes I get really really really bad tremors that worsen with movement to the point where If it's my legs then I can't stand or walk (trusty old wheelchair). And if it's my upper body than my hands have very little use to me so things like eating, changing (buttons my enemy), writing, and pressing buttons is very hard to do (also I will add that I just have very clumsy dexterity in general so the tremors certainly don't help but yeah XD)

For all my seizures in general I get very light sensitive afterwards and my lovely doctors and nurses have told me it's because my pupils get completely blown and then constrict and they do this rapidly and it's often paired with nystagmus. So my Post-ictal is usually more just being sore, my head hurts, my eyes are very sensitive and usually the nystagmus is what lingers on the longest.

For tonic-clonic seizures (which I won't go into much because Icarus already did) they're the most painful for me and it usually hurts to move afterwards. I usually start to mumble and can't talk when they're about to happen it's just a lot of "um's" and "uh" and I can't form any words. I start to rub my hands over my body because my skin gets this tingly feeling, and I start to kinda look around frantically because again my anxiety does no help. During the seizure I'm usually in and out of consciousness so it's black and then I'll hear or see something for a split moment and then black again and yeah so on and so forth but I can remember bits and pieces (that I'm conscious for that is). Everything usually sounds really far away like I'm under water and my vision of what I can see is very blurry and there is usually like ten of the same person.

Very rarely i've stopped breathing during my Tonic-Clonic and with those they're usually not as painful (don't ask me why) but they are. Granted that initial struggle to breath again is a bit jarring but in my opinion these are a lot more traumatizing for the people around me than me myself.

Alrighty, hopefully this is of some help lovely person! As Icarus said this varies very wildly person to person and seizure to seizure so yeah. Have fun writing!

~ Mod Virus 🌸

[lewkwoodnco]

Hey hello, can I get a fanfic of the reader (either female or gender neutral,) of Lockwood having a nightmare and sort of freaking out, and the reader is passing his door to get something from the kitchen, so she wakes him up and comforts him.

I love fanfiction where you take care of them but they are so hard to find. Base it on 'Safe and Sound's, please.

Take your time and feel free to ignore, I hope you a happy time

Safe and Sound - Lockwood x Reader

A/N: 'I hope you a happy time' is genuinely the cutest thing I've read in a while!!! hope you enjoy the fic!!!!! <3 Side note: might I recommend this author on ao3? I randomly stumbled across her fics a few days ago and I think she does hurt/comfort amazingly!!! wc: 2k

She woke with her throat feeling like sandpaper and groaned miserably. She was so delightfully cosy in her bed that the only thing that could relax her even more was a refreshing glass of water. A refreshing glass of water that was all the way in the kitchen. After groaning about it for a while, she slipped on her dressing grown and padded downstairs.

She stumbled down the corridor half-asleep until something caught her attention. She paused, blinking blearily, straining her ears. She heard it again. A faint rustling, a gentle thump, and more rustling, coming from Lockwood's room.

She knocked. No response. She knocked more insistently. Still no response. She placed her hand on the doorknob and hesitated. She had not seen much of his room, given how little time he spent there. Entering his room would be crossing over an imaginary threshold in their relationship. Another thump came, louder this time, and she screwed her eyes shut, twisting the doorknob.

Lockwood was tossing in his sleep, his back muscles spasming in the harsh fluorescent light of the hallway. His head occasionally bumped into his headboard, and he seemed locked in an intense internal battle. She looked around, carelessly and noisily switching his bedside lamp on, shaking him awake. She felt as though she would never forget the haunted look in those brown eyes as he was jerked awake.

"Hey, hey, it's me. Deep breaths."

He choked, shielding his eyes from the light. Some strange urge to protect this gaunt, nervous boy swelled up inside of her, and her fingers reached out to brush back the lank hair plastered to his forehead. His face was clammy and throbbing under her fingertips, but her touch seemed to soothe the emotional turbulence building up and crashing down inside of him.

It made her stomach turn to see Lockwood shaken to his very core. Even as his breaths began to even out, his fingers would twitch as he nervously smoothed the sheets while his eyes maintained a dull yet ever-present panic. Lockwood, who was forever self-assured and charismatic, reduced to a trembling, anxious mess. In the quiet of the night, surrounded by long, grotesque metaphorical and literal shadows that hovered at the corner of her eye...it was easy to feel scared.

A similar kind of twisting and writhing had possessed him earlier that night. They were at an old house, tackling two suspected Type Twos. She had noticed the funny look that had crossed Lockwood's face as soon as they stepped in, and she could tell why: the house was an almost exact replica of 35 Portland Row (minus the newspaper clippings gushing over Lockwood littering the walls).

The case proceeded like any other, with Lucy, George and Lockwood all in different rooms while she went around checking in on them. As the clock ticked its way to midnight, Lockwood had grown steadily increasingly pale.

"You all right, Lockwood?" The last time she had seen him, he had been restlessly pacing the room, but she had just put that down to a surplus of nervous energy. Now, he still had that uneasy air about him, but seemed particularly fascinated, or haunted, by the stack of boxes in the far corner of the room. There was an unhealthy pallour on his face as he spun around as if struck from behind at her voice, taking a few moments to scrounge up a coherent response.

"I'm fine." The stress on his face briefly abated, and his usual charming smile flickered, but she was not wholly convinced. Still, Lockwood seemed sufficiently adamant that nothing was wrong, and she was too paranoid to leave George and Lucy alone for too long. So it was against her better judgement that she warily leaned back, weight shifting on her feet as she turned to leave.

"Wait!" The fear that had been knitted into every crease of his face re-emerged, breaking through his cool facade. She turned back and closed the door in a heartbeat, resolutely deciding to stay with him. "Don't leave me here...alone. Please."

And so she had sat next to Lockwood, cross-legged, both of them leaning against a wall. She didn't feel pressured to make conversation because he was clearly dealing with some sort of suppressed emotions or memories that this room pulled out in him. Some muscle would tense, or his breath would suddenly draw up short, and he would be suspended in that tension for a few moments, until the tension eased and the cycle repeated itself. It was an exhausting sight to see, even without the threat of the Type Two looming over their heads.

Suddenly, they had heard a high-pitched whizzing and then the sound of a small explosion. She reached the window first, terror settling in her heart as she watched George dodge the Type Two by the skin of his teeth all over the salt bomb as he hazardously tossed salt bombs at it. She heard Lucy yell from somewhere and then there was a bigger explosion, and she felt rather than saw the flames leaping into the night sky. Lockwood was still struggling to peer out the low, tiny window with that same nervous energy coursing through his veins. She pulled him away by his coat.

"No- don't. It's not worth it." She had to say something, do something, give him something to obsess over instead of the very real fear that was beginning to take hold of her. "We need to find the Source, they can manage the visitor. Whatever you do, don't look outside." He looked like he wanted to argue but she shushed him before he could. "I mean it, don't. Just listen to me for once, please?" Lockwood certainly didn't look happy about it, but George had just let off yet another salt bomb in the span of a minute. They didn't have much time.

The anxiety had returned, if it ever truly left, if the way he was fumbling with the drawers was any indication. Her heart panged distantly. "Lockwood." He jerked his head in some sort of flimsy acknowledgement. "You'll be alright." He didn't look like he believed her, but it was enough for him to gather himself.

Now, that same tension seemed to resurface, pulling him under. As his disorientation (and claims of being fine when he was so obviously not) subsided, his panic remained. Yet, she watched the telltale signs form of him putting on a front of strength or normalcy: the way his spine stiffened, the forced blankness of his features, the locking of his limbs. It was so irritatingly familiar that she hated herself for ever falling for it before.

"You didn't look quite right, today. At the house."

"Oh, yes. It looked a bit like -?"

"Yeah, I noticed."

"The room we were in. It...it looked like Jessica's." He inhaled and his eyes fluttered shut, as if the next words were being ripped from his mouth. "And I was having terrible, awful thoughts, that that was all that would be left of this...of us...some day."

In the dim light of his ancient lamp, Lockwood never looked like a misshapen, out-of-place limb of the house more than he did right now. Forever tied to the place he yearned to escape yet couldn't bear leave, it was as though the walls had consumed him and he was now part of the silent shadows. They sat quietly for a while, both of their minds racing each other, struggling to keep up, let alone get ahead. He shifted, and he looked up. She saw him trying to force something out, but most of his words were swallowed up by his panicked gasps and delirium.

"If...if you-" he wheezed brokenly, and she felt her heart stop. "I mean, you don't have to, but if you, um -"

"Spit it out."

"I wouldn't mind if you...stayed."

It took her a second to wade through her confusion. When she thought about it, she realised how normal it would have been for her to briefly console Lockwood before returning to bed herself. He probably expected it, and rightfully so. But sitting next to him, his body shivering from some invisible fever...leaving was the last thing she wanted. She hated that that wasn't something immediately obvious, and the need to let him know in some way, any way, rubbed something raw into her liver. She slipped her tentative hand into his limp one, registering the roughness of his palm for a split second, before her fingers curled and rested on the back of his hand, wrapping themselves around his hand the way she wished she could cocoon him.

"In my head...you..." he scratched at his pillow with an expression that left a hollow ache inside of her. "You were gone. I drove you away. I tried, I tried..." His voice reeked of some desperation that made her feel physically ill. "I tried to get you to stay but, for some reason, it just...wasn't that simple."

"Oh, please. It's so like you to think you're the one thing that could get me to leave. You think you can get rid of me that easy? You're stuck with me." But her attempt at lightening the situation was too weak against the oppressive silence in the room. She swallowed the lump growing in her throat, willing her spirits to stay buoyant enough for the both of them. "I'll never let you go."

"Promise?"

His eyes were uncharacteristically dull, heavy with tears unshed, and she didn't dare breathe too hard lest they fall and the hole inside him gaped and became devastatingly real. She nodded, not trusting herself to speak. As someone who was always so smooth, so confident, larger than life, it was easy to forget how young he truly was, and how alone he had been for so long. Suddenly, her hand in his was no longer enough; it could never be enough for her to express how much he meant to her. How much she needed him, breathing, thrumming and living next to her.

She slipped an arm around his waist and cautiously placed her head in the crook of his neck, but then he shifted and wrapped his arms around her, artificially casual, while he gripped her shoulders desperately. His cotton shirt smelled of starch but the curls at the nape of his neck, tickling her nose, smelt distinctly of him. It was now os much more intimate, so much easier to share and ease emotional burdens they were both weary from carrying. That weird detachment she had been wrestling with over seeing her employer being so fragile and come undone finally dissolved, and all that she was holding in her arms was Lockwood; Lockwood with his sharp edges and soft spots and gloriously sensitive heart.

"I used to have horrible insomnia when I was younger."

"Mhm?"

"Yeah. My parents tried everything, but it was never an issue of me being tired. Oh, my eyes could be gritty with sleep and I would still not go to bed. I couldn't. It was the night that was just so...awful."

"I'm sorry."

"Oh, it's fine, I grew out of it. My mum- " She stopped short, suddenly painfully aware of how little she knew about her mother now. "My mum...she used to tell me that all the hours of misery of the nighttime were washed away by the first rays of the sunrise. It made the night feel less...repulsive. Just a promise of a better time. Of sunlight."

She lifted her hand from Lockwood's clavicle, tracing a scar that dipped to his chest, feeling his heart vibrate against her.

"We've been through so many long, difficult nights. We have even more to live through. But..." She placed her hand where his neck met his shoulder, and he leaned his cheek against the top of her head. "We'll get through it all. Morning's waiting for us just at the edge of our fears."

[bluemooncove]

She had been taken into the plains by the Graf's men. The further they got from the town the more confused she became. Until suddenly she found him standing there waiting for her. It was the first time in a month she'd ever spotted him out of bed.

"My dear beauty, you've finally arrived. How good of you to join us, I'm in need of your services."

The sight in front of her. There was so much to take in. At his side stood Sir Nikolayevich looking uncomfortable but still serving as the hand of his lord. Opposite of the knight stood a hulking blue and grey monstrosity. Ten feet in height with enormous gorging muscles. Its head was that of a boar while it's body resembled a man. The tail at it's back ended in the head of a ram. Though she did not know it, this was a Daemon. At their feet was so much blood. Enough to have belonged to dozens of beasts and yet there were no animals nor bodies.

"Master Basil? What is this?"

Her voice carried so much fear. Sir Nikolayevich's face twitched as if he were attempting to force his own emotions away. The graf laughed wickedly.

"Darling Beauty! You've done excellent work trying to find a cure for my condition but I'm afraid it's been to no avail. Thankfully, I've found a new way that you can help me! This fine companion of mine, xyliliwif, is happy enough to cure the sicknesses that plague me. All I must do is hand over the town to their forces and offer up a meal to him. He wanted the townsfolk, yes, but he was more than willing to negotiate for my slaves. As the lord of this town I, of course, have a duty to my people. Which is why I have very nobly chosen to give up my property. You were the most useful as all so I tried to negotiate for you but my lord was quite insistent but I know you'll be glad enough to help. You always are!"

It took a moment for her to process what he was claiming. To understand where all of this blood had come from. She began struggling against the men who held her. The full force of her body desperately jerking in one direction and then another but the guard to her left simply responded with a punch to her stomach. She gasped for air as pain shot up her body.

Then suddenly, something else. An incredibly strange sensation. Like something was calling out to her. Pulling to her. A strange bright light in the distance emanating from the ground. Nobody else seemed to notice it but ... it! Was! There! Whatever it was wanted to help her. She had to get to it.

The guard that had struck her attempted to grab the back of her head. In doing so he let her arm slip free. Must have thought the punch was enough. Maybe it would been if she hadn't found something to drive her. Her hand met with the loop of her belt and tore a bottle off of it.

Crash!

It struck the ground and suddenly burst into a ball of magical lightning. A part of it struck Beauty, she could feel the burning jolt run up her leg, but she wasn't the ones standing around in metal armor. The guards screamed in a mixture of horror and pain as Beauty took off running in a full sprint.

Her left leg felt as if it were on fire and with every step she took it burned worse but she couldn't give up now. Basil let out a screaming order to his knight and Sir Nikolayevich took off after her. With her injured leg it was easy to chase her but there was still some distance between them. He was gaining on her more and more. Suddenly she reached a hand out towards the stone as it emitted a bright flash of light!

[sorry-i-ship-drarry]

Feelings without a name

I think I couldn't provide too much Angst or any if that but I'd compensate it in prompt 20, hope you still like it anyways.

I'm gonna do both of them btw-

Dialogue Prompt - 22. Look he/she wants you, just make him/her happy | MILD ANGST | FLUFF | DOMESTIC|

" could you scooch a little ?" Draco asked harry with two wine glasses in his hands.

Harry took his legs off the couch, shifting over and making some space for draco.

" thanks " draco murmured as he collapsed down next to harry and handed one wine glass to harry.

" white ?" Harry asked and draco nodded.

" what did I miss ?" Draco asked he he shifted to bring his back supported against the arm rest and his feets tucked beneath Harry's thighs.

" they're trying to set me up on a date with someone and apparently making a deal of how long I would be single for " harry rolled his eyes with a little playful grin over his face.

" oh, count me in on the bet " draco announced to the room full of their friends raising his wine glass.

" you're supposed to support me " harry playfully hit draco before he raised his right arm and adjusted himself to lay his head over draco's chest. Draco very casually circled his arms around Harry's available torso and gave him more space so harry was cuddled into him.

" I mean it only makes sense, you've been single for more longer than my parents are married for " draco joked. Harry nudged draco by his elbows before laughing it off.

" how about the guy from the flower shop ?" Blaise asked cuddling Ron into him.

" eh, he gives straight vibes " harry mumbled

" okay how about the guy you met in IKEA, he gave you his number didn't he ?" Ginny asked eating from her bowl of popcorn

" nah, he's too lanky " harry shook his head pouting.

" what about " Hermione paused thinking of someone " oh right, the guy from your quidditch practices "

"mione I saw him making out with Megan" harry raised an eyebrow at her to validate his point

" date a rabbit, you won't find flaws in it " Seamus suggested

" as good as it sounds, I wouldn't make a nice humping toy " harry joked.

" harrrry, eww" everyone cringed throwing some popcorn at him before the room dissolved into laughter giving up the idea of setting harry up with someone.

Almost 2 hours later, harry was wandering about the house trying to find draco and ultimately realising he wasn't on the floor and decided to check upon their sneak up spot, the terrace.

Harry almost smiled when he caught glimpse of draco standing against the railings before harry stepped on another stair and caught full glance of draco and theo kissing.

Until that moment harry had never realised how much draco kissing someone might've effected him until he saw the very look of it and couldn't bring himself to look away and only broke his trance when he heard his name being yelled and in all abruptness harry went downstairs a strange feeling constraining his heart.

" where were you ?" Hermione asked but harry only shook his head not trusting his voice. Hermione frowned at him before she tried asking if everything was fine and harry responded with a nod.

But everything was far from fine.

Harry always knew he somewhat felt differently about draco but until now he never knew how differently or what kind of different and now when he saw him kissing theo, he knew it was a strange combination of sadness and jealousy forming a strange chemical reaction inside of him.

But he tried not be effected by it everytime after that he saw draco. The more he saw him, the more he was faced with harsh reality that draco liked theo because if he didn't, he'd had never kissed him. And in all sanity harry maintained his distance until he figured what he felt for draco. Of course it wasn't love, but it wasn't nothing either, it was something, it just didn't had a name.

Although it was very vividly clear to everyone that harry was partially ignoring draco. It was clear in the ways that harry sat now on the floor rather than on the couch with draco even when it has space, or even when draco offered but nobody dared to ask because everyone knew better that if harry wanted to talk about something, he'd be clear about it and if he didn't, he's just waiting for the right moment but draco played the only exception in his life. He didn't take Harry's shit and more often called him right out which created a lot fights between them in past and present and perhaps this was also the reason why harry always felt draco was one of a kind.

" you're ignoring me " draco said one day when he dropped by Harry's office before they went home.

Harry was stuffing back his bag when he heard draco but didn't stop and continued keeping his things in the bag " I'm not "

" yes you are " Draco snapped as he slammed the door shut and dropping his bags on the floor.

" I'm not " harry replied zipping his bag and wearing his coat.

" don't lie to me. You've been keeping distance. I want to know if there's something I did wrong ?" Draco asked following after harry as he walked in the room, locking things away.

" you didn't do anything draco and I am not ignoring you " harry replied more sternly as he casted the curtains shut.

" don't fucking lie to me " draco snapped as he whirled harry around to face him

" you think I don't know you're ignoring me, I can see it. You won't even look at me as if I've done something wrong " draco scrunched his face as if he was disgusted.

" yes,fine, you have. I thought we're best friends and supposed to tell each other everything but somehow I think it may have slipped your mind to mention that you're snogging theo now " harry Snapped jerking away from draco's hold and collected his bags of the table.

" oh " draco only replied as he too slowly turned around " I " he breathed " I didn't know you knew that "

" I saw you two kissing " harry sternly replied facing draco properly now.

" it was nothing act-"

" then why didn't you tell me ?" Harry crossed his arms over his front.

" because it meant nothing- or- I don't know- it doesn't matter. You don't like theo and I would never date someone I know you hate " draco hastily replied decreasing the distance between them.

" do you like him though ?" Harry sucked in his cheeks waiting for an answer.

" do you ?" He asked again when met with silence.

" I- I don't know " draco replied shrugging. Harry exhaled heavily before he picked up his bag and almost left the room when Draco stopped him.

" wait- I- I really mean it, I don't know. If it were something I'd had told you before "

" do me a favour draco then, if you know then tell me " harry replied and Marched out of his office.

The next time they saw each other was 2 weeks later at Luna's birthday and harry was sitting at the bar talking with the bartender, when his eyes fell upon the door of the bar and people outside who seemed to be fighting. Harry frowned trying to get a clearer image when he finally saw the other man walking away, theo and in an instant harry realised it was draco standing abandoned. It ached harry to even find the sight of a draco looking hurt. And Before he could even process anything, he was making his way Outside to draco.

" hi " harry titled his head for emphasis.

" hey " draco sighed as he turned around to face harry.

" saw you two fighting " harry reduced some distance between them.

"yeah- we- well we haven't started dating yet and everything and he already have issues " draco sighed leaning against the wall before sitting down over the ground, his knees pressed against his chest.

All of Harry's anger, jealousy evaporated when he saw draco. Didn't he Always swore to be the best friend he could ever be?!

Without much thinking harry went and sat down next to him.

" I mean I am no one to say but if he's already fighting do you think he's the one for you ?" Harry asked as he side glanced draco.

Draco inhaled sharply leaning his head over Harry's shoulder before speaking up " I don't know. I like him harry but I - I can't date knowing I'm dating Someone you absolutely loathe and it's not because of how he's an asshole or anything but because he treats you like shit-"

" draco- wait- stop, you can't not date him because of me. If you like him date him " harry egged him on

" but-"

" no. If you like him don't let me be a reason to stop you from dating him. I'll deal with it. So what If I'll only meet you guys twice a month or call his name wrong every single time, I'll deal with it " harry Chuckled. Draco gave a small laugh before he raised his head from Harry's shoulder and looked at him.

" you'll be fine with it ?" Draco asked

Harry wanted to say no, how could he be fine with everything, how could he be fine knowing that he doesn't have draco to call his own even if he didn't know what he felt for him. No, he wasn't fine with seeing him being someone else's boyfriend. He wanted draco to be his boyfriend but he wasn't selfish enough to stop him, he'd never be.

" does he like you ?" Harry only asked

" yeah, I think so " draco raised his eyebrows for emphasis.

" does he want you ?" Harry asked again

" yeah " draco nodded.

" then be with him " harry replied

" harry -"

" look he wants you, just make him happy alright " harry cut him off.

" and what about you ? Does that make you happy?" Draco asked looking into harry's eyes.

Harry heart skipped a beat, his eyes travelling from his eyes to his lips and then again to his eyes and he whispered " yes. I'll be happy if he makes you happy "

Draco brushed a strand behind Harry's ear before he rested his head against his shoulder again, draco arm encircling around Harry's muscles in comfort.

" what kind of a boyfriend do you think he is ?" Draco asked after a while.

" a shit one compared to me" harry gave a small laugh

" really? And you'd be a good boyfriend ?" Draco asked amused.

" oh yeah for sure " harry nodded before he laughed it out with draco.

It took them moments to calm down and draco snuggled closer to harry and looked at him through his shoulder.

" if you were my boyfriend, how would you be ?" Draco whispered.

Harry swallowed not Daring to look at draco, his thoughts running wild with everything he had thought of until now, how he'd treat him, how he'd like to be treated, how he'd want to wake him up with breakfast in bed and several other things that he had in Denial thought of, but really did.

" I'd be like a friend, only better.. I'd take you on a fancy date every Friday, spend the Saturday at the animal shop because you love animals and have a lazy Sunday because we work too hard all week, and feed you cooked dinner on Sunday nights. We'd do the staying at each other's place for a while, one weekend at yours, one weekend at mine until we move in together and I'll snap at you for leaving your towels over the floor "

They laughed.

" then what ?" Draco bit his lip still watching harry from his neck..

" then " harry breathed roughly as his heart raced Faster and he fumbled with his fingers " then I'll cage you away in a den and make you my prisoner" harry joked away to hide away his feelings but draco didn't laugh and only Stared at him until harry gazed back at draco. It might've been the moment harry had been waiting for, the one where they stared at each other Long and the dissolved in a small kiss but harry remained in his senses even if draco wasn't and cleared his throat looking away.

Draco gulped, shifting away from harry and soon standing up, clearing his throat too " I- I'm go-"

" yeah, you go ahead. They must be looking for you " harry hastily replied as he stood up shrugging his back of his clothes to dust it off.

" yeah. You're joining right ?" Draco awkwardly asked.

" oh yeah- ofcourse I am. I'll be inside in a second " harry nodded his head vigorously .

"great-i- I'll see you then " and with stumbling over his feets draco walked back inside.

Harry released the breath he had been holding on for far too long and finally walked back inside too, wishing the night didn't happen.

Things remained strangely awkward between harry and Draco for a while which included awkward head bobs, nodding at each other randomly, weird hand shakes, and stolen glances which left everybody else confused. Meanwhile draco had began dating theo and harry had tuned into little isolation for his feelings to go away.

And perhaps everything was working fine until the common Saturday night when Harry had friend's over and was getting out of the washroom when he met with draco standing just at the door.

" hi"

" hey" harry replied.

Draco bit his lip while Harry clicked his tongue, waiting for Someone to say at least something first.

" you want to use the washroom ?" Harry finally asked pointing inside.

Draco nodded Before he shook his head " no I'm good " and practically ran away..

Harry shut his eyes for a moment, sighing to himself knowing the Time had come to talk to draco and dreading it all the way too.

Nearly an hour later harry finally decided to talk to draco and made his way to the terrace because he knew he'd be there and so he was, alone this time.

" draco " harry called him before he went and stood next to him..

" am I needed downstairs or-"

" no, I Just" harry breathed turning to draco " I came here to talk to you actually "

" oh " draco awkwardly breathed in before he urged harry to go on.

" nothing happened that night between us right. And it's just- it's getting weird and I was wondering if we could just work on it "

" of course, yeah, I was gonna do the same thing" draco rambled.

" right so " and they both stopped talking waiting for the other one to speak up until they both did simultaneously

" whatever happened-"

" nothing happened-"

" let me, maybe it'd better ?" Harry asked after the dead silence and draco nodded.

" nothing really happened that night.. we were just caught up in the moment and there's obviously no feelings involved so it shouldn't be this awkward right. Besides you're with theo now so " harry pressed his lips in thin losing his vocabulary to further go on.

Sensing harry had come to a stop draco nodded vigorously " of couse, yeah, totally agreed "

" then we're sorted, that's cool " harry raised his shoulders

" definitely " draco nodded.

" good. I'll be going then. I- well I have nothing to do but I should wind up downstairs " harry pressed his lips in thin line, earning no response and finally turning to walk away.

" harry- wait "

" what ?" Harry asked as he turned around to see a restless draco.

" there's" he breathed " there's at least something involved. I don't know what or how or when but it's just there. It's something which only comes sometimes or maybe it was always there but I never really realised but Its there, like I can feel, not with theo of course if you're worried about that, it's you, like that night when nothing happened, on technicality of course nothing happened but something did and i don't know what-"

" I like you too " harry chuckled, interjecting draco's ramble holding his arm.

Draco released a heavy breath before he rested his head against harry's shoulder and waited for his breathing to get back to normal.

" merlin thank you do or I would've flipped out "

" you were already flipping out draco " harry chuckled holding draco by his waist now..

" well, I mean-"

" shush " harry whispered cupping draco's face and pressing their foreheads together.

" all the questions and answer can wait till after this "

"may I ? harry whispered and draco nodded and Harry cupped draco's face and kissed him softly, letting his consciousness subdue in the pleasure and pulling draco closer to him.

It doesn't matter for how Long they kissed or for how less they kissed, they focused on the breathlessness and the need to keep kissing but they did break it away only to kiss again as of their life depended on it, maybe it did, they didn't know but the answers Could've waited for after this and the questions Could've waited for after the answers. It was their moment and the holocaust could've happened, they still wouldn't had broken away from their blissful moment.

300 followers appreciation dialogue Prompt requests open

notice : MASTER LIST 2 IS IN PROGRESS ( out in a few days

I honestly don't like this one. Thank you for bearing with me

Angst prompt requests open

[robininthelabyrinth]

I've got a HC that could be a prompt if you're interested? Due to grinding his teeth & holding all his stress in his jaw JC's jaw just totally locks up for from a few hours to a day or so. Obvs he tries to hide it from everyone, but it always happens at inconvenient (ie stressful) times. (Cultivation conferences, every time he makes up his mind to go to Gusu and finally hash things out with WWX, when he really wants to shout at JL for something stupid & can suddenly only mumble, etc. Whatever)

Living with Lan Wangji had taught Wei Wuxian the many different flavors of silence.

After all, his husband was not an especially emotive man – it was all in the microexpressions, the curve of his eyes or the tilt of his brow – and yet he conveyed his meaning clearly, even without saying a word. Wei Wuxian learned to cherish the comfortable silences, to interrupt incipient brooding, to entice during the times when his husband was most definitely not thinking about his work…

Perhaps it was that experience that makes him realize – possibly for the first time in his new life – that there was something wrong with Jiang Cheng.

Wei Wuxian had been extremely self-absorbed as a young man, in his first life, but he’d still known to keep his eye on his too-quiet, too-intense shidi, who usually locked his feelings away deep inside but not deep enough that Wei Wuxian couldn’t see. Even after their estrangement, he had been able to read him as easily as any book – every flinch and every start, every swallow, every shift of weight, a hundred stories of discomfort and confusion that he hated himself for not being able to assuage. For not being willing to assuage, because he, in his arrogance, had thought that through his silence he could keep Jiang Cheng from suffering even more pain.

In his new life –

Well. Wei Wuxian had long ago lost the right to hold the key to unlock the secrets of Jiang Cheng’s heart.

And yet, he was certain something was wrong. Jiang Cheng was glaring and scowling as always – possibly worse than always, because he didn’t have a choice about coming to the discussion conference even if it was in Gusu, even if that meant Wei Wuxian would be there – and he looked as immaculately put together as he always did in this strange future where the kid Wei Wuxian remembered dunking into ponds just the other day had turned into a cold-faced man who was feared instead of loved, but still. Something was wrong.

Something was very wrong.

It was his silence, Wei Wuxian decided. Jiang Cheng was staying quiet even when there was something that Wei Wuxian knew he cared about, not even greeting Jin Ling with more than a huff – though Jin Ling didn’t seem to mind – and it wasn’t a calm quiet, a content quiet, the contained and controlled quiet that Lan Wangji was.

It was wrong.

So maybe Wei Wuxian just happened to meander by the guest quarters for the Jiang sect on his nightly walk. It was totally accidental, even if it had never before happened while Jiang Cheng was in residence as a visiting sect leader. After all, Wei Wuxian had only lived at the Cloud Recesses a few years – anyone could get turned around.

“– should have said that it was getting this bad!”

That was Jin Ling’s voice, Wei Wuxian observed, and he “meandered” closer while keeping his tread as light as possible. It was late for Jin Ling to be here instead of back in the rooms reserved for the Jin sect; he should be getting some sleep in preparation for a busy day the next day.

Jiang Cheng should be telling him to get some sleep.

He wasn’t.

He wasn’t saying anything.

Wei Wuxian peeked through the window.

Jiang Cheng was sitting on the bed, Jin Ling crouched beside him, chattering angrily like an angry monkey as he applied a cold compress to the side of Jiang Cheng’s face.

“Don’t know what you were thinking,” he said mutinously, even though Jiang Cheng glared at him. “No, stop that – no glaring, no yelling, you heard what the doctor said. Did you take your medicine?”

Jiang Cheng nodded.

“And it’s still this bad? That’s not good, jiujiu.”

Jiang Cheng turned his head, a sudden jerk. He looked frustrated. He looked like he wanted to say something – but like he couldn’t.

Wei Wuxian felt something drop in his stomach.

“I know you already know that,” Jin Ling said, interpreting the silence as easily as Wei Wuxian used to, and then hesitated. “And I know you said you didn’t want to consider…you know the doctor says that the surgery would help a lot.”

Jiang Cheng shook his head furiously.

(Wei Wuxian’s gut churned. Surgery? Some necessary type of surgery, something was wrong, and Jiang Cheng refusing to fix it - was it because of him, what he’d done, back in that past life? Would Jiang Cheng recoil from all surgeries because of that one time when he didn’t have a choice about it, and in so doing cost himself his life - no, that Wei Wuxian’s actions would cost him his life, that Wei Wuxian would at long belated last drag him into the grave the way he had everyone else?)

“Listen, you might not have a choice. This is getting really, really close to another serious flare up, okay? And we don’t want one of those,” Jin Ling argued. “Do you remember when you couldn’t eat anything? For weeks? Because I do. It was awful. Everyone thought you were dying –”

“He’s not, is he?” Wei Wuxian asked, finding himself inside the door before he even realized he was moving. “He’s not dying?”

“Senior Wei!” Jin Ling exclaimed, surprised, and – yeah, maybe it hurt a bit that Jiang Cheng was jiujiu and he was Senior Wei instead of shishu even after all the night-hunts they’d gone on together, but Jiang Cheng wasn’t the one who’d played a part in robbing Jin Ling of his parents so he was going to just shut up and not complain about it – but that wasn’t important right now.

“He’s not dying,” Wei Wuxian insisted, his voice a little shrill. “Whatever’s wrong with him that’s bad enough that he needs surgery – why can’t he talk? What’s keeping him from talking?”

Jiang Cheng had half-risen to his feet, but Jin Ling pulled him down again with a glare of his own. “Don’t you dare move yet,” he hissed, pressing the compress into his uncle’s face even harder. He glanced back at Wei Wuxian. “Maybe you can talk some sense into him – it’s his jaw.”

“His jaw?”

“It locks up,” Jin Ling explained, and – yes. That was the missing piece, the thing he hadn’t known; that was the problem. “Really badly, to the point where he can’t move it at all. He can’t talk except through mumbling, and in the really bad times he can’t even open it enough to eat – he can only drink soup.”

That sounded awful.

“What causes it?” Wei Wuxian asked, deciding to be as bold and careless as everyone always claimed he was and to come over and help hold the compress in place.

Jiang Cheng didn’t strike him dead for it, as he’d almost expected him to.

“The muscle at the top of jaw, right under the ear, gets all swollen and fixed in place. Teeth grinding and stress aggravate it, and it aggravates them, and it’s all a horrible cycle…I’m applying cold right now, but next it’ll be heat. In really bad times, like now, we might even use acupuncture and Zidian to try to shock the muscle loose –”

That sounded painful. Wei Wuxian didn’t like to think about Jiang Cheng being in pain.

Especially not from stress.

Stress that Wei Wuxian had always aggravated, rather than eased; the stress of being a sect leader all alone, the stress of being abandoned, left behind, the stress of chasing after Wei Wuxian who held himself far away –

“Can I help?” he asked.

“Yes,” Jin Ling said, even though Jiang Cheng tried to shake his head no. “Anything you can think of we’d welcome.”

“I’ll look through all the libraries,” Wei Wuxian promised. The focus of his research – even in his new life – had tended to focus on demonic cultivation, simply because it was new and interesting, but he was a genius; if he put his mind to it, he was sure he could come up with something better to help fix Jiang Cheng’s jaw before it needed to be cut open with a knife just to let him eat something. “I’ll help.”

Jiang Cheng caught his hand and tugged, unable to speak – but his silence said Why so plaintively that Wei Wuxian’s heart lurched in his chest.

“Because you’re Jiang Cheng,” he told him, unable to explain it other than that. He couldn’t say that he wouldn’t leave him to suffer – he had – couldn’t say he wouldn’t do anything to hurt him – he had – could barely even say he put Jiang Cheng’s well-being as one of his highest priorities, even though it was. There was no reason for Jiang Cheng to believe him about any of that. “Let me help. Please.”

Jiang Cheng stared at him for a long moment.

After a while, he put down his hand and looked away, pretending the moment had never happened, and that was as good as agreement when it came to Jiang Cheng.

Wei Wuxian smiled in relief, and started planning out his first attack on the healing arts section of the Lan sect’s library.

[pinepickled]

Hey!! So I just stumbled onto your fics today! I really like what I've read so far and look forward to reading more of your fics!!

You were saying "Let me know if you have a fic idea." So, here's my prompt to you, for writing a drabble or ficlet (I love your ficlets!!!)

Ship: Kakshi/Zabuza

Prompt: Touch

Drabble or ficlet? You choose! I look forward to seeing what you create! And please, don't hesitate to stop by my inbox with any requeats of your own!

Hi! I saw your comments on my fics and I really appreciate them! I'm glad you took the time to request a fic from me <3. I hope this one is to your liking, and I'm sorry it took so long! Under the cut!

Zabuza suspected that this was what it felt like to smoke pure ice. White, gray, and blue filled his vision as the rogue nin glanced around, the freezing cold winter field stretching out for miles every direction. He didn't know how he'd gotten there.

One moment he'd been battling it out with Kiri ANBU, the next he was standing under the moonlight, watching the glittering icicles and light snow fall with rapt attention. It was clear that he was no where near where he'd began. The cold was harsh, unforgiving. Zabuza felt as though his lungs were beginning to freeze, breathing becoming labored. This place was so frighteningly cold that Zabuza was sure that if he stayed out much longer, his blood would freeze and never thaw. He wasn't dressed for cold weather at all, having forgone his shirt due to the tropical climate of wave country.

His breath puffed out in front of him. One thing Zabuza was greatful for was that the moon was able to sufficiently light this snow field, the snow glittering under the silver light. The moon also seemed abnormally large, wherever he was. He figured he was on a mountain top, but deep down he knew that something wasn't natural around here.

Just as Zabuza made to move forward, walking just for the sake of keeping his blood flowing, a voice called out behind him.

"Dressed like that, you're begging for a wolf to pass on by." A man drawled lazily. Zabuza whirled around, or he tried to. The cold had affected him more than he'd thought, and his movement was slow.

The man who had spoken was wearing a traditional blue and gray hakama, two swords nestled into his waistband almost flippantly, and a black wolf mask obscuring his face all lined with long, straight white hair. Zabuza knew he could never wear Kubikiribocho- or any sword, for that matter- in such a relaxed manner, it was just strange. Not even to mention that this man was dressed awfully lightly for the weather and seemed completely unbothered. On a closer look, Zabuza could see that the man's hakama was slightly open, and what looked like a black turtleneck did nothing to hide the muscle that the man carried. The only actual skin Zabuza could see was that of the hand resting on the man's two swords, a sliver of a pale palm and long fingers.

For some reason, Zabuza couldn't bring himself to be threatened by the swords. The cold must have been getting to him.

"What makes you say that? Can't you see I'm enjoying freezing mys ass off?" Zabuza finally replied. He was well aware of how exposed he was, the cold air wrapping around his naked chest and arms, the slight breeze sending shivers up the nin's spine. The man chuckled, and shook his head.

"You misunderstand me. I am, too, very pleased to see you taking full advantage of the cold weather." The man said. Zabuza pondered those words for a moment, and then his face grew hot. He muttered something under his breath and began walking again, the man trailing after him. Zabuza watched as the man came into step beside him. Whereas Zabuza's shoes sunk into the snow, ice slipping into his sandals, the man lightly stepped on top of the snow, light as a feather. That step stood in juxtaposition to the man's lazy walk, a meander of a man who had nowhere to be.

"So why are you following me?" Zabuza asked. The man turned his head, the unseeing eyes of the wolf mask seeming to rake over Zabuza's body. The rogue nin tried to ignore it.

"Well, you're technically trespassing on my territory." He said. Zabuza made an 'ah' noise, suddenly feeling ashamed. He shook the feeling off.

"Hmph, well the sooner I can get out of your hair the better for the both of us then. I didn't exactly come here willingly." Zabuza retorted. The man ignored his confrontational tone and nodded thoughtfully.

"Yes, I did see you appear out of nowhere, so it's no problem. The real problem is that it's nothing but snowfields for miles, so long it would take you a month's trip to be rid of them. I don't think you'll last a month, and it would be such a shame...." The man trailed off toward the last sentence, and Zabuza found himself wondering just what the man meant by that.

"So what? I don't have much of a choice." He said. Assuming he could find some wolves or deer to skin for a good coat and firewood, then he would be fine... maybe. The man laughed lightly.

"Well, of course you do. If you give me a hug, I'll take care of it."

Zabuza stopped just to stare at the man. A part of him wanted to tell this white haired man that he should go fuck himself. The larger part of him was cold.

"At least tell me your name." He said. The man responded without hesitation.

"Kakashi."

Zabuza only nodded. It fit him, somehow. He rolled his eyes and awkwardly put his arms around the man's shoulders. The man moved quickly, surprisingly strong arms wrapping around Zabuza's torso. He was pulled flush to the man's chest, forced into the kind of hug he'd give his mother or an old friend. Kakashi chuckled, and Zabuza could feel the vibrations of that sound through the man's chest. Warm, almost scalding hot fingers traced a line down his back, another wrapping firmly around Zabuza's waist. He gasped, a high pitch noise despite himself, and he felt the cold wood of the wolf mask press to his cheek as Kakashi leaned impossibly closer.

"Are you ready?" He whispered. Zabuza could only choke out an affirmative, those accursed fingers sapping away all rational thought from the man's mind.

The world turned upside down and Zabuza fell asleep.

When he awoke, it was still night time, however much darker. Zabuza was beginning to suspect that this strange place had no day time at all, shrouded in eternal frost and endless night. That thought was quickly washed away, though.

Zabuza was warm. He was warm and he was being held close to someone's body, someone's very naked body against his own very naked body. All of his bones had melted into putty, Kakashi's skin on his own making him hypersensitive. It felt like he could feel every contour of the other man's body, could feel the blood thrumming under his skin, the heartbeat pounding strongly away. He couldn't even bring himself to jerk away, the man had him in such a grip without even trying. One arm over his chest, the other being used as Zabuza's pillow. He'd been captured like a reluctantly cuddly cat.

"What..." He tried, but his throat and mouth were dry from a long period without use. He didn't know how long he'd been sleeping but evidently it had been a while.

"Shh, just rest. Skin to skin is the best for being warm. Promise I won't do anything inappropriate~" Kakashi purred in his ear. Zabuza felt his body grow hot for entirely different reasons. This was going to be a long night.

[lovelywingsart]

First Impressions

-- Karl Heisenberg X OC (AFAB, She/They)--

Ah, my first attempt at a story on here! I've got an entire storyline for them, but let's see how this first one goes...! QuQ I'm definitely more of an artist than I am a writer, but I hope everyone likes it...! I'll definitely post the rest at some point but for now I'm leading with this one aldfjghjk-

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

*Warnings?: Slight angst? Potentially life-threatening 'testing', mention of memory loss, injury

Summary: Emelia was a worker for Umbrella Corporation Europe, an Engineer and technician, before having been kidnapped by Miranda during a 'trip' to Romania. All of a sudden, she woke up in a large area... Where was she? Who was this man that had appeared out of the darkness? And why couldn't she remember anything?

Darkness.

Darkness and pain...

Emelia woke with a pained gasp, almost choking in loose dirt as it was kicked up by her movements. She scrambled to a kneeling position, coughing and wheezing. There was pain with each breath, she found, and she tried harder to contain her hacking. Once the coughs died down, she managed to look up and around. There was... nothing. Maybe a few parts of machinery along the walls here and there... She looked around frantically. Where the hell was she?? It almost looked like a strange chamber of sorts...

"H... Hello...?" She called, her voice gravely from the strain on her throat.

She couldn't see a thing, though something about her body felt... odd. She couldn't remember a thing about getting here... Hell, she could barely remember anything except her name... DID she remember her name?? She looked down at herself, seeing dark clothing and feeling a small patch on her shoulder as she reached up to rub it. She tugged the patch closer to get a look at it, but still couldn't remember the odd-looking octagon shaped symbol. Another once-over led her to a patch on her chest, and she sighed. Great, a nametag... At least that was taken care of.

"Hello...?" Emelia tried again, this time met with a chuckle.

"Ah, you're awake!" A man's voice called out with a surprised glee. Startled, she looked up to see a dark figure stand along what was very quickly becoming seen as a steel pathway along the wall that lead into stairs. He stood in front of an open door that let in a dim light, his silhouette showing that he wore a large jacket and a hat, but she could barely see much else. Beside the man was a large object... A hammer?? But her attention stayed on the figure, watching as a glowing orange spot moved, indicating smoking of some sort. The man seemed to lean over a railing as he looked down at her.

"Where... Where am I...?" She asked, panic growing in her chest as her eyes became adjusted to the darkness once she tore her eyes away from him. It was definitely a large room of some sort, but... underground...? Her surroundings were stone... Stone and metal scraps, with piping along the walls themselves. The walls and ceiling had been chipped away, the marks of axes or hammers still evident in the rough rock texture, and a massive industrial fan was imbedded into the wall at her far left. The piece of equipment was still, but she had a feeling she wouldn't have been alive if it were active.

She suddenly flinched with a breath, causing her to cough once more and press a hand to the middle of her chest. This wasn't normal... she could feel... SOMETHING inside her chest. WAS it inside...? Maybe it was her imagination... She looked up as she heard another chuckle, before jumping as there was a small explosion above her. She looked up in time to see a small mass of falling stone, managing to jump and roll out of the way with a scream to avoid them as they landed with a *CRUNCH* . She looked back up at him, her eyes wide with fear.

"What the bloody hell is going on...?!" She finally yelled, managing to push herself up to a stand with a pained grunt. "Who... Who are you...?!"

"This, Sweetheart, is a test." The man said. "I want to see why she sent you here. Just play along, and you'll be fine!" She watched him flick his wrist towards the ceiling, and another explosion was heard.

Emelia looked up to see yet another cluster of rocks falling, and this time she ran. She heard laughter from the man as soon as the rocks landed, along with two other explosions. She stopped along the wall for a single moment before pushing off again as the stones fell, nearly catching her under them. A third went off, and she was nearly blown back by the force of them landing too close for comfort. She gave small grunts of pain as small bits of rock flew and hit her from breaking on impact, holding her arm and feeling a warm, wet sensation. There was a snicker from the railing.

"Well, you're not that fast..." The man commented, seemingly unimpressed. "But you're not a Lycan."

She glared up at him with tears threatening to fall from frustration and dust.

"You're crazy...!!!" She yelled. He drew back slightly, only to laugh once more.

"What makes you say that?" He asked, nodding his head slightly. More small explosions went off, and he watched as the falling rocks seemed to trail her as she ran.

She stopped as she came face to face with another heap of fallen rubble, turning to run, only to find metal scraps being torn from the ground to block her path. The same happened on her other side, and suddenly she was trapped. Breathing was difficult... It was as if something was blocking her lungs... She was nearly hyperventilating from panic. She looked around frantically, bleeding from small cuts due to smaller rocks. It wasn't until she looked at her forearm that she noticed, the cuts were... healing? She watched as her skin sealed itself slowly, leaving little to no mark save for a small, white scar and the blood that had previously been pouring from it. She froze as she watched more cuts seal and bruises form, now more terrified than she was. What... What WAS she...?? She clearly wasn't human... In fact, she barely remembered BEING human... But she felt as if she was, or at least used to be...

With tears now streaming down her dirt covered face, she looked up with fury.

"WHO ARE YOU??!!" She screamed, not noticing as her own voice seemed to distort itself. She did notice, however, as a large spasm shot through her right arm. The man chuckled as she moved quickly to hold onto it as it jerked away from her body slightly.

"Now things are getting interesting..." he said, leaning over the railing once more. "If you survive, I'll tell you everything. Think of it as a prize."

"If I... WHAT?!" She stared up at him, her face that of disbelief. But she couldn't hold the stare, instead returning her focus on her spasming arm and nearly screaming in horror at the feeling of... SOMETHING erupting from the skin of her chest. The spasms shot up her right jaw shortly after, and she swore she felt her teeth elongate... She only looked up as she heard a rumbling, followed by another large explosion directly above her. Time seemed to slow down as she realized she had nowhere to run... The falling rubble would have crushed her entirely. She felt fear and anger course through her body as she watched the stones fall, instinctively holding up her arms in defense.

In a split second, everything stopped. The dust settled and there was no sound, even from the man watching over her. In fact, he looked... disappointed. As if a new toy of his had been broken. And yet, as he began to push himself away from the railing, there was a low growl from the rubble. He froze, watching intently as the largest stone began to move, in which he noticed it hadn't fallen completely onto the ground. Actually, it was a good distance AWAY from the ground... He watched as it was lifted with a struggling, growling roar, before suddenly shattering.

Underneath the falling pieces was Emelia, standing and shaking with panting, growling breaths. But it wasn't HER... Her right half had transformed... Mutated into a muscular-like creature that threatened to rip out of the shirt she wore as she held a clawed hand over her head, gripping small rocks and dust. The same arm, the man noticed, which had shattered the stone that had fallen on it. The mutated woman stood in the middle of the rubble for a moment with heavy breaths before shakily looking at her arm. More fear entered her mind, but it was replaced quickly with rage. The only thing she now had on her mind was to escape... And kill. She punched through more of the rock with an enraged yell, climbing and ripping the stones open to get out. The stones and rubble ripped like weak fabric from the force. She only stopped as she heard joyful laughter, turning to see the man hold his arms open.

"Great show!!!" He cheered, grabbing a hammer-like object and slinging it over his shoulder. "I see why that heinous bitch sent you here! You're perfect."

Emelia stared at him, her vision going red with much more anger than she thought possible. She suddenly shot forward with a snarling yell, jumping over the rubble with relative ease despite fumbling over loose rocks. She had tunnel vision as she slammed her mutated shoulder against the wall near the stairs before darting up them. She gave a guttural yell and reared her mutated arm back, claws posed to strike the man down; but she didn't. Each breath was a growl as she noticed she had stopped moving entirely, close enough to see the sly smirk on his face, his eyes hidden behind dark, rounded shades. It wasn't until she looked at her arm that she realized she was stopped by metal pieces, only to give a surprised yell as she was flung and pinned against the wall with the metal itself. She struggled for a moment, only stopping as he stepped in front of her with a chuckle.

"You'll fit right in." He smiled, taking a drag on the cigar he held. Emelia curled her lip in a snarl.

"Who the hell are you?!" She snarled with a low, warped voice, baring her teeth as her muscles shook from rage and exertion. The man chuckled.

"Well, you DID survive, so I guess you get to know." He smiled.

With a step back, the metal was flung away, and Emelia was dropped to her knees. She coughed once more as more dust was kicked up. With a shudder and a few cracks of muscle and bone, she watched with near horror as whatever mutation retreated back under her skin as near black tendrils.

"What the fuck..." she muttered, carefully reaching back and rubbing her neck having felt something along her spine. She then looked up to see the man had taken off the glasses in near astonishment. There was a moment of silence before the man broke into a sinister grin.

"That crazy bitch." He said, holding out his hand for her. She eyed it for a moment before hesitantly holding onto it, wobbling and leaning against the wall as he helped her up. "Karl Heisenberg." He grinned. "You?"

"... why am I trusting you?" Emelia mumbled, taking a step back. "You just attempted to KILL me."

"Kill, schmill, it was a test!"

"Trying to crush me was a TEST?!"

"I had to see what Miranda meant in sending you here, but turns out you're a bit more than she knew." He returned his glasses to his face, adjusting the hammer-like object on his shoulder. "She would have kept you had she known about that. Now, your name."

She stared at him for a moment before giving an annoyed huff her gaze falling back to her arm.

"Walsh. Emelia Walsh."

[whattodowithkpop]

Blind Senses (Ravn)

Title: Blind Senses

Pairing: Reader x Ravn (Oneus)

Genre: Fluff, Spice, Superhero AU, Enemies to lovers, Soulmate AU

Word count: 2,543

Writer: Kpopmadness (Ju)

*****

There is a lie that every parent tells their child, we hear it when we get scared at night. We are reminded of it over and over again. 'Monsters don't exist' Monsters aren't under your bed, they aren't in the closet, they aren't trying to get in your window. The doors are locked, the window is sealed shut, everything is fine.

The only thing I was worried about when I was little was who my match was; Every child is born with a soul mark, it's the tell of where your soulmate will touch you for the very first time. But when you are touched by your soulmate, the birthmark will turn a bright shade of pink and purple before withering away. Your soulmate having been found.

My birthmark encases my right wrist, a common place for people to have their soul mark. I often forgot about my mark until I looked down and saw my one marked wrist. But every now and again a flutter would slice through my stomach at the thought that one day, that mark would be gone. And I would have found my other half.

When I was 15, my childish dreams changed forever. A science plant exploded suddenly. An experiment gone wrong. There was an orange smoke that rose from the ashes of the building, its angry smoke rushing toward our city. I still remember seeing it outside my bedroom window a second before my mother rushed in with my father and hurried us down to our basement. My father boarding up the windows and doors to block the smoke out. Screaming could be heard outside, ones of fear and agony for those who didn't get inside in time.

In the wake of that science experiment, we were left with mutants. People caught in the smoke developed supernatural powers. Some of these people developed a spiked aggression, using their powers for the worst. That is how my father died. He and a group of scientists were working on a cure for the genetic mutations. But some didn't like that. A group of mutants set up a bomb in the basement of the plant, angry that someone wanted to take their power away. Take away their sense of control.

I still remember being home with my mother when we saw the black cloud with angry flames fill the sky. The earth shaking slightly in its wake. Dread and grief filling us, knowing exactly where the explosion came from. On that day, my life, my goals, and how I viewed people with these special powers, changed.

`````

Alarms ring through the large building, the sound jarring and disorienting. I stand my ground at my station and continue working quickly. I enter a series of commands into my laptop. My fingers shaking violently.

Red lights flash and the sound of people running down the halls fills the small room. I take my lab coat off, the room sweltering. The screen on my laptop shows a loading bar, making me tap my foot impatiently. I was so close to finishing this, it would change how we see mutants. It reversed their DNA to go back to normal, their powers vanishing. The work my father started would finally be complete and I would have a sense of closure.

The lights and alarm cut out, leaving me in blackness except for the screen of my laptop. I suck in a deep breath, letting it out slowly. I was putting my life at risk for the sake of this experiment, but I had come too far to stop now. Eventually, blue lights come on, slightly illuminating the room. When they do, the loading bar on the screen is almost done, my muscles tense. Then the laptop suddenly gets slammed shut, making me jump back.

"Did I interrupt something?" A deep voice asks coldly, his palm firmly on the laptop to keep it shut.

"That's government property." I say firmly, but my voice cracks.

The man smirks at me, seeming amused by my weak attempt at a threat. Like me saying it was something the government owned would make him remove his hand from it and leave in fear.

"Yes, well, you and your government should really stop trying to cure something that doesn't need a cure." He glowers.

"And maybe we wouldn't have to look for a cure if you people weren't destroying families and killing the innocent." I shoot back, anger rising in my chest and filling my veins. My thoughts going to my father.

The man hesitates, his eyes showing a sort of concern and sympathy for my words. I take my chance and make a dive for the laptop, trying to jerk it out from under his strong hand. The man grabs my right wrist, stopping me.

"Do not try it." He snarls, his grip on my wrist horribly tight.

He slowly removes his hand from my wrist, my eyes widening and a gasp escaping my lips when I see my wrist. My soulmate mark shined a bright purple, matching the mark on his hand, then both marks slowly began to fade. Our soulmate marks disappearing. We had found our soulmates.

I stare at the man in front of me, both our eyes wide in disbelief. We were on opposite sides of a war, yet we were meant to be together. Suddenly, everything goes black. At first, I think the lights in the room have gone out. But it's my vision that disappears. I fall to the floor, my legs unable to support me. Panic grips me. I've gone blind.

"Don't worry." The man says soothingly. "I only took your sight away temporarily. Your vision will return in 10 minutes, that's just long enough time for me and my team to escape."

I take several deep breaths, trying to soothe my heart that pounded in my ribs. I spread my fingers out along the cold tile floor, trying to feel for something, anything. That's why I jump when I feel warm hands incase both my hands, making me cower away from the touch. But the grip holds firm.

"I hope we meet again." The man says. His tone sounding like he really meant that. "Maybe then it will be under better circumstances, soulmate."

He squeezes my hands before letting me go, his footsteps fading into the distance. Leaving me to recover my sight slowly, with a swirling heart and mind. I thought he had left, then I hear his voice again.

"By the way, just because I think we should know this for the future, my name is Ravn."

````

3 Years Later;

"No, we have to finish this." I demand as I follow my co-worker around the lab. The earth shaking beneath us, making everyone scurry around the room. Anxiety levels high.

"Well then you finish it then." My co-worker snaps irritably. "We don't want to die here. Unlike you and your obsession with finding this dream cure."

"It's more than that." I plead. Pushing my way through people pushing passed me in panic. The earth giving off another tremble while bright flashes of red light flash outside. Heavy rain pounding against the building like fists.

"You say that and he always comes for you." My co-worker says, whirling around to face me. His eyes raging.

I pause, my brain looking for an excuse. Any excuse. Ravn had come for me and the sought after cure for three years. No matter what I did, no matter how much I tried to hide, he always found me. His devilish smirk always reappearing.

"We're so close though." I say quietly. More of a reminder to myself than to anyone else in the room. Not that they ever listened to me. The population had given up on trying to find a cure a long time ago.

My co-worker sighs, rubbing his temples. "I know this experiment is the only thing of your father you have of him." He says, his tone softened. "But they won't stop chasing you and trying to tear you down. And they are outside as we speak."

I look over my shoulder to the large glass window behind me. Flashes of light and tremors in the earth reminding us that these weren't from natural sources. But from people. People who could control the weather and even create earthquakes to topple a building in seconds. And their leader, my soulmate, just waiting for them to break through our defenses.

"We're evacuating." My co-worker says, pulling my attention back towards him. "Come with us if you want. Otherwise, you can stay and talk to your boyfriend."

I feel a surge of heat course through me, flushing my cheeks a scarlet color. I couldn't find my voice in time to deny that he wasn't my boyfriend before my co-worker hurries off with the rest of my, supposed to be, teammates. At this point in my journey, I was used to working alone and everyone thinking I was crazy for trying to fix something that everyone else had just adjusted to and given up trying to control.

I set my jaw in determination and whirl back to my station, opening my laptop and entering the code. I watched the clock carefully as I worked. The world around me seemed to fall away as I worked, being used to Ravn coming for me to stop me from developing a cure. Our relationship having grown in a strange way. We were soulmates, but we were also enemies.

The lights in the building flicker off, just like they had three years prior when I first met Ravn. My heartbeat picks up but I keep working, knowing I still had a few valuable minutes before he showed up. My laptop gives out a series of beeps, making me step back in surprise. I stare at the screen in shock.

"I did it." I whisper under my breath, a smile spreading across my face. I found the cure to return the mutants back to their normal DNA.

"We really have to stop meeting like this." A familiar deep voice says behind me.

I whirl around and press my back against the counter's edge, trying to hide my laptop screen from his sharp eyes. Ravn stood a few feet away from me, his dark hair dripping wet from the rain. His black trench coat leaving pools of water around his boots.

"You say that, but you seem to enjoy chasing me." I reply, trying to keep my tone even. I slowly reach my hands behind my back to find the USB with the cure downloaded on it, pressing it firmly against my palm for safety.

Ravn's eyes flicker to my hands that were behind my back, his eyes taking on a cautious look. "You just can't give up on that cure, can you?"

"Someone has to keep trying."

Ravn chuckles, stepping closer to me. Making my muscles tense. "Give me the USB, sweetheart." He says dryly, extending his palm towards me.

I stare at him, how could he know?

"I'm not stupid." Ravn says, as if reading my thoughts. "I know you found the cure. Please, give it to me."

"Why is it so bad that you could all go back to your normal lives?" I ask, my voice pleading as I slide my way down the counter as Ravn comes closer.

"Because some of us have nothing to return to." Ravn answers calmly. "You would be taking away the one thing people feel they can control since they inherited their powers."

"You don't use your powers for anything good though." I argue.

"That's not true and you know it." Ravn replies. "We aren't all like that. Even if you gave the cure to some of us there would be others who would refuse to take it and would continue to wreak havoc. You take away the good people with powers you're left with the bad and you won't be able to defeat them."

I pause, that thought never having occurred to me since I took over my fathers work. The population of people with special powers had grown. 40% of the worlds population had citizens with some kind of power these past three years.

"The cure." Ravn says again, extending his hand out to me once again.

I stare at his hand, the hand that once held his soulmate mark, just like my wrist once did. Despite all he said, I still held onto the USB tighter and turned and ran from him. I knew how stupid of a move it was, it was pointless when Ravn could strip away human senses. But I still ran, and I almost got to the door when my vision disappeared, immersing me in blackness. Making me fall to my knees, the USB still clutched in my hand.

I feel Ravn's hands encase my waist, picking me up off the tile floor and taking me to the closest counter to let me lean against it. My vision a milky white.

"You know running from me does no good." His voice sounding as if he were a bit hurt by my actions.

"This cure is all I have." I choke out, still clutching the USB in my palm. My hands trembling.

Ravn seems to freeze, his breath fanning across my cheeks that were starting to streak with tears. "This cure is all I've known since my fathers death." I gush, unable to stop the words from tumbling out. My mother having completely shut down since my fathers death. Her attitude cold and isolated from me.

"It's all I have."

Ravn touches my eyes, wiping the tears away but also giving me my vision back. I'm alarmed by how close he stands to me, our eyes locked. His brown eyes hold a sadness to them I had never seen before. A sort of sympathy that had faded from people's eyes long ago when it came to me.

"It's not all you have." He whispers. "It never has been."

I stare up at him, words freezing in my throat. Before I can form a response, his lips press against mine. His hands cupping my face. I suck in a breath in shock, but soon my eyes close and my arms snake around his neck, pulling him closer to me. A sense of completeness washing over me.

Ravn slides his hands down to my ribs, picking my up and setting me on the counter. His body between my legs, his hands going to my thighs as he grips them firmly. I feel my fingers uncurl their grip on the USB, it clatters to the floor. My fingers weaving through Ravn's hair instead. His lips tugging at mine in a sort of desperation, both of us craving each other after being deprived for years.

The cure fades into an obsession that melts into my past, something I had chased thinking it was all I had. When my life had the chance to start over with Ravn and actually do something to help others. He had known something all this time that I never had. We were on the same side, I just wasn't willing to accept it. My senses blinded. And it took him to uncover them.

[imagines-by-a-typical-fangirl]

The Perfect Bad Boy (Pt. 06 of 18)

Pairing: Billy Hargrove X Reader

Word count: 2.4K

Summary: Working as a lifeguard in the Hawkins Community Pool, you try to fit in after moving from New York. Things were going pretty well when you notice you've been under someone's stare. Billy Hargrove, Hawkins' bad boy, has been staring at you since day one. You never intended to have anything to do with him, judging by the reputation he has. But Billy won't leave you alone, determined to show you his feelings are different this time...

As if your heart flooding you with confusing feelings wasn't enough, there are weird, strange animals lurking in the woods... But those have to be just part of the wild live of the woods surrounding Hawkins... Right?

<- Previous part (05)

Next part (07) ->

{Stranger Things Masterlist}

×

Point of No Return

“(Y/N)! Go get the door!” Your aunt yells from the kitchen. “I'm busy here!”

“Ok!” You turn off the blow dryer, quickly fixing your hair before rushing downstairs. “What are you doing?”

“Grandma's cake.” She answers as you move to open the door. “Who's this?”

“Monica, probably.” You're still speaking when you unlock and pull it open. Your heart skips a beat when you see it isn't Monica. You raise an eyebrow to see him leaning against the door frame, a smile spreading through his lips.

“Honey?”

“It's just Billy, aunt,” you say, raising your voice a little. Pushing him backwards, you close the door behind your back. “What are you doing here, Hargrove?”

“It's our day off. You promised to go to my place to meet Maxine, remember?”

Oh, you completely forgot about that. “I made no such promise.” Crossing your arms, you jump a little when the door is opened again. Turning around, you see your aunt with bright eyes.

“(Y/N), won't you invite your friend in?” Her tone makes you blush.

“Goor morning, Miss Florence. Actually, I'm just here to pick her up.”

“I can't go today, Billy. Diane is baking something nice and–”

“No, no, no. She's going.” Diane cuts you off, grabbing your arm and pulling you inside. “Go change out of your pajamas, honey.”

“But–” She gives you a meaningful look.

“(Y/N), go change.”

Rolling your eyes, you sigh. “I'll be right back,” you tell Billy, ignoring how embarrassed you are, and the smirk on his lips.

You run upstairs, trying not to think too much about where you're going. You were kinda hoping he'd forget about that, but you'll try to keep in mind what Monica said. There's no reason to overthink. When the moment comes to make big decisions, you'll make them. You do enjoy being around Billy, and you do have fun together. The whole feeling you have when you're around him is unlike anything you ever felt before, and some part of you is starting to get addicted to it. On the pool, you have found yourself excited for the lunch break because you'll get to talk to him... It scares you, but as you change into a lilac blouse and jeans, you make up your mind for the day. You'll be with him today, so you'll make the best of it.

After taking one last look in the mirror, you take some money because you remember saying something about pizza. You take a deep breath before leaving the bedroom. But you move backwards abruptly when you see Billy standing outside. “What the hell!” You exclaim, pushing him and closing the door.

“Can't I see your bedroom?”

“No.” You wouldn't mind actually, but you decide to tease him since he came all the way up here without asking.

“Then you won't get to see mine.”

“That's fine by me.” Shrugging your shoulders, you bump into him as you move back downstairs. “I'm going, aunt. See you.”

“Have fun with your boyfriend, honey.”

You freeze by the door, feeling as if Diane just betrayed you. You feel Billy's eyes, burning, and you bet he has that stupid smirk on his face. “He's not my boyfriend,” you shout at her, grabbing Billy's arm and pulling him out.

You're impressed by the fact that he opens the passenger door for you, but since you're still blushing, you avoid his gaze. The short trip to his house is silent as you hope what your aunt said fades away... And you're also memorizing the way there.

Soon enough you're at his front door, and you watch as he unlocks it. “The place used to suck, but I've been trying to fix it, so... Don't mind it. It's not as cool as your house.”

“Uhm...” You mumble, stepping inside and looking around, taking in the place. It's not bad as he described it, it's cozy...

It's Billy's place. You feel weird to be here, as if you're giving a whole new step closer to him. “How many girls have you brought here?” You suddenly need to know if you can allow yourself to feel special.

“One.” He moves to stand before you, holding his index finger up, then slowly pointing it at you.

Taking a deep breath, you step back, smiling. “You brought me here to meet your sister. Where is she?”

“Max!” He yells suddenly, at the top of his lungs and you jump, heart racing.

“What the hell.” You breathe out, slapping his arm playfully. His bare arm. You haven't noticed the sleeveless tattered dark gray shirt that leaves his arms exposed. You have to force yourself to look away, meeting his blue eyes. “Why did you do that?”

“Did I scared you?” He smiles, towering over you.

“Yeah, you did.” You step back again, eager to put some distance between you and him. “Jerk. Go get your sister before I change my mind and go home.”

“She's probably listening to music.” Billy walks away, disappearing in the hall. You're left alone so you walk around, noticing the bench press he has in the middle of the living room. Walking around it, a piece of paper above the TV gets your attention. Taking it, you sigh to read Max's handwriting. “She's not in her room.” Billy says as he comes back, gesturing at the hall.

“Be back in fifteen minutes, shithead.” You read the words out loud to him, showing the paper.

Billy takes it from your hand, rolling his eyes. “I'm gonna kill her.”

“Sorry that you have to stay alone here with me. It must be a true nightmare, Billy Hargrove.” Raising an eyebrow, you smile at his expression. “What about that?” You walk around the bench press, standing behind it and trying to pull the barbell up. The thing doesn't even move, so you try again, using more strength, but nothing happens. “Whoa, this thing is heavy.”

“I work out almost every night, so I just leave it here.”

“That you work out is pretty obvious.” You gesture at his arms and chest.

“Yeah. I'm glad you noticed.” He comes to stand behind you. “Let me just–” He picks the weight up, both his arms around you, keeping you caged between his body and the bar.

“What are you doing?” You ask in a low voice as he starts moving the damn thing, up and down, up and down. “Ok, I'm just a tiny little bit impressed to see you lifting this thing up, but put it down, please.” He knows the effect he has on girls, and he also knows you're not immune to it.

He doesn't say anything, pulling the bar up once again, forcing it a little against your shoulders, pushing you backwards until your back hits his chest. His solid, strong chest. “You're such a jerk, Billy.” Why is your voice so weak? You look at his left arm, how tensed his muscles are. “These things are heavy. Put it down before you drop it and hurt me.” You need to get away from him. Being this close is dangerous, because you feel something coming from the back of your mind, an idea that had never crossed your thoughts before.

“I'd never let anything hurt you.”

You turn your head to the side, just enough to look at him. He's already looking, those blue eyes threatening to drown you. Your eyes fall on his lips, of how close they are. You could easily tiptoe now and find out how his lips would feel on yours. It feels like he knows exactly what you're felling because when he moves the bar to give you more space, you turn around, almost as if you're being pulled towards him, like a magnet.

But you know you shouldn't kiss Billy. It would be a point of no return. That's it, a big decision... But right now, the last thing you want to do is think. You just want to feel, and let these feelings flow out.

When you're face to face with him, you feel the bar on your back, pushing you against his chest, making it impossible to run away. As if you would even if you had the chance. “You know I hate you, right? For doing this.” You whisper, as your arms involuntary move to lay on his chest.

“I'm not–”

“Hey, shitface. I'm back.” A girl's voice drags you out of your numbness, and Billy puts the bar down on the bench.

“That's disgusting.” Someone else says and you step away from Billy, catching your breath and clearing your throat. Max isn't alone. She brought a small army with her, five people, and everyone looks the same age.

“Perfect timing as always, Max,” Billy complains. “(Y/N), this is Maxine, my dipshit sister. And the rest of her gang.”

“The gang that saved your ass, you mean.” One of them says, his voice a little muffled, which makes you giggle a little. “Dustin, nice to meet you.” He steps forward and shakes your hand. “So. Are you Billy's girlfriend?”

“No, I–”

“Ok. These are Lucas, my boyfriend.” Max starts, and you feel Billy sighing when she names the boy. “Will, Mike, Eleven, and Dustin you already met.”

“So these are your saviors,” you say, turning to look at Billy.

“Every single one of them.” He answers.

“If you two aren't dating, why did you bring her here, Billy? Wasn't there a rule about not bringing your flings to the house?” Max mutters, walking past you and to the TV. The others move to seat on the couch and some on the floor.

“(Y/N) is not a fling.” He says, rolling his eyes. You try hard not to smile at what you just heard.

You're a little uncomfortable since Max's friends keep staring as if you're a ghost. Their eyes fly from Billy and back at you, and they even gossip, whispering on each other's ears. “Max, you look like a very smart kid.”

“I am.” She says with a smirk. “Unlike my brother.”

“So, if I make you a question, would you be able to answer real quick?” You smile at her curious face, as you slowly step backwards, closer to the hall and further away from Billy.

“Yes.”

“Billy's room?” You burst out, speaking a fast as you can.

“First door to the right.” She yells, just as fast as you spoke, and you're off, like a lightning bolt because you see Billy moving.

You run through the hall and literally throw yourself on the door, opening it and almost stumbling in. You're laughing when he grabs your wrist, giving up when he notices you're already in. “You got me there, I'll admit.”

It's your time to smirk at him, teasingly, stepping further into his bedroom. “What did you say before? That I wouldn't get to see your room?” As you speak, you start pacing around. His room is more organized then you expected. His bed has a dark red blanket over it, and it looks very comfortable. There are movie posters on the walls and a sound system on his dresser. You move to stand before the mirror he has on the nightstand beside his bed, looking through the colognes he has. “Which one you use?”

“All of them.”

“No, there's one you use more often.” You have the scent vivid in your memory, so you quickly go through the small bottles, bringing them close to my nose. “This one.” You look up, meeting his eyes through the mirror.

“It's my favorite.” He says, moving a little closer.

“Mine too.” Thanks to the proximity, you can smell it, irradiating from his body. It's fresh and strong, very masculine. “I mean... I like it.”

Billy takes the bottle from your hands, opening it. “Here.” He pour some on his index and middle finger, bringing them to your neck, on the soft spot below your left ear, pulling the hair away, and does the same on the other side. You feel the cold liquid spreading through your skin, and the scent surrounds you completely. “Now you smell like me.”

What should you say? Or do? You're frozen, inebriated by the closeness, by the low sound of his breathing. “I...”

“Hey, lovebirds. We're watching a movie.” Max says, and her voice brings you back to Earth. She has such perfect timing to save your ass. “You can either come and watch or stay here and make out. You pick.” And she leaves.

“Movie...” You tell him, catching your breath.

“Did I make you nervous?”

“I just want to watch the movie, Billy.” Grabbing his hand, you pull him towards the living room. “We're watching the movie,” you tell the kids.

“You and you. Move.” Billy gestures at Dustin and Will, who immediately stand up from the cough, giving you and Billy enough space to sit down.

The movie is already starting, and you roll your eyes to feel Billy's arm around your shoulders. You're aware the kids are staring, but you guess they're not used to see Billy like this with a girl. But you try to really focus on the movie, as you slowly relax.

You feel as you move closer to Billy, your legs touching. The movie isn't very good, and you laugh when Billy sigh's out of frustration. The kids seem to like it though.

“Not a very good one, right?” You whisper to him.

“You picked the wrong option, princess.” He snaps back, and you immediately remember what the other option was.

“What makes you think I want to make out with you?” You turn your head to look at him, using all the sassiness you have to cover up the truth. That you want to kiss him so bad, a fact that you just realized today. You've been wanting to kiss him for a while now, but you know how dangerous it would be.

“You think I don't notice when you blush? Or when you start breathing fast? Or when–”

“Shhh.” Someone mutters, and your eyes move back to the TV, abruptly. You feel Billy's chest moving when he laughs.

“I need to know something...” He whispers, and you feel as his arms slide down, encircling your waist and pulling you closer. You can feel his breath on your hair, and whatever is on the TV right now is just a distant blur. “I need to know if you want to kiss me as much as I want to kiss you.”

×

@chloe-skywalker @dpaccione @tilesandtokens @dreamin-of-dacre

[wann-der-lusst]

Cliché Drawing Sesh

By: Margareth Angelique Asico

"How do you decide on which reference you're going to draw next?"

"No one has ever asked me that before, well... I guess I just draw what I like. Why ask such a

question?"

"Nothing really. Just curious"

The sound of the pencil lead brushing through the paper, the sheer sunset filling the classroom, the sound of the birds chirping and the boy sitting in front of you was enough for you to get lost in your own world. It made your heart flutter on how much you're enjoying the scenery that your orbs are witnessing as you continue to draw- it was perfect you thought. You asked Joaquin to be your reference for your art project which took you by surprise that he actually agreed on such a sudden request. A chance like this doesn't happen every day so grabbing the opportunity of you not having to give excuses why your sketchbook was filled with his face would be great.

"Oi Santiago, someone's calling"

Instantly snapping off of your peaceful paradise, an immediate rush of adrenaline was released as the thought of him seeing your wallpaper made you quickly grab your phone in Joaquin's hand like your life depended on it.

"Ah yes, Hello?"

You answered the phone while glaring at Joaquin who was absolutely confused on your previous action since it was out of character of your usual self who is calm and composed. Nevertheless, you just saw him shrug it off which made you relax a bit.

"In front of the water fountain? The vending machine there? Why?"

"No, it’s okay, we'll be heading there anyways. I had some work to do so..."

“Right I'll see you"

Closing your sketchbook, you gave him an awkward smile as you began packing your things. He stood up from his seat- getting the idea that your drawing session has ended. You slid the door open exiting the classroom while Joaquin walked beside you.

"You're acting a little strange today" You chuckled with the sudden question.

"Am I?"

"Yeah"

Not being very expressive towards people, observing surroundings is much more preferable- to you at least. You figured that people tend to approach you less since they find you a bit intimidating. But given the circumstances, Joaquin never failed to surprise you on how well he can see through your reserved expressions which made you feel warm- important somehow. It made you feel as if someone's actually interested not only for your physical attributes, but for what's actually going on inside your mind and how you feel despite not being able to express it much.

The walk was quiet but relaxing, you were taken away from your thoughts as you felt a hand tap on your shoulder.

"Oh right, that's my friend... She was the one who called a while ago"

You walked towards your friend who seemed to have a companion whom you are not much familiar with. She leaned into the guy whispering something, giving you a smirk while raising her eyebrows before sneakily leaving. The boy looked incredibly nervous giving you the idea on what his intentions would be.

"Right, I'll get going for practice for the swimming club. Good luck to you two"

An intense, yet awkward atmosphere filled the place as the both of you stood there waiting for something to happen which actually took quite some time.

"Uhm, Santiago. I-I've been wanting to tell you this but I never had the courage to do so. I was... I was wondering if you would like to go out with me-"

Your attention dividing as a familiar scent went past through your direction observing him with your peripheral vision as he slowly disappeared from your sight.

"Hey uhm, as much as I want to... I'm sorry but I'm actually interested in somebody else..."

His expression immediately turns into a frown as soon as he hears you speak...obviously hurting from your response. You tried to comfort him as much as you could just so that it can lift a bit of the weight you've caused him which was not much of a help. He started walking away from you as soon as the conversation ended with sadness radiating his aura. You couldn't help but feel sorry but you were sure you already have someone to lend your heart to.

"Well, you seemed to be pretty popular around the boys." Joaquin exclaimed, coming out of nowhere.

"Aren't you supposed to be practicing for the swimming club?”

"I thought so too, but we were just called for a meeting."

"Is that so? Well, to be clear I am not in any way popular with the boys"

"You are Santiago, you are."

"How are you so sure?"

"Santiago, how many guys have confessed to you? How many of our classmates tried to take you on a date? If anyone's blind here, it would be you. I don't get it why you wouldn't date any of them though."

"Well, it looks like I'm not the only one who's acting strange today. Also, I have to finish the sketches so I wouldn't have to bother you from your next practice."

"Right, we can stay at the gym if you like since it'll be cold here."

You started sketching as soon as you've pulled out your art materials from your bag and once again, lost in your own little world. You were focusing on Joaquin's eyes - those brown eyes that looked as if they were shining, you wondered how he would look at someone he admires. His

proportions are outstanding, his build may be slim but the muscles which are gradually developing from his swimming practices are showing.. It would probably feel great to cuddle with him. His hands are perfect, his fingers are slender and you wondered how it'll feel like if you were to intertwine your hands with his. You thought to yourself how fortunate you are to have this chance to observe how beautiful this man is built, it is more than enough. Every imperfection seemed perfect when it’s him, it's unfair how incredibly handsome this man is and how he swiftly catches your attention. You drew every angle of his face as if you're drawing the final piece, you didn't want to mess up anything. You wanted to capture his amazing features; he surely is one of a kind. How can someone be so salty towards others be so considerate when it comes to you? Someone who doesn't give full attention to something he's not involved with will be so attentive when listening to your stories. How he notices everything that unease you despite your almost-emotionless face… Maybe he cares for me? You thought. Maybe I have a chance? Should I tell him how I feel?

You were once again, brought to reality with your phone ringing. A hand swiftly taking the phone

away from you making your heart jump from nervousness that you didn't even have the chance to see who's calling you.

"GIVE IT BACK"

A smirk forming on his face while holding the phone above his head

"Fine, reach it then"

"That's too high!"

He began to tease you by giving you your phone but immediately pulling it away once you're close.

"I didn't even get to see who was calling!"

"Really? I'll answer it then"

"This is so unlike you.."

Fear takes over your body as you watch his fingers tap on the answer button, knowing that you'll

lose him the moment the call ends. You were trembling as if you've never been this scared all your life. You tried to desperately snatch the phone while he was talking but it was no use.

The call has been going on for a while and you had no interest on what and who he was talking to. You were about to snatch the phone but failed when he wrapped you into a tight hug with his arm.

He is way stronger than you leaving you no choice but to give up on not being caught. You were

contemplating on how you should react when he finally saw what you've been hiding. Every second that passed was like hell for you that you couldn't even enjoy how close you are to him…

"Okay, bye"

You didn't even bother looking at him despite knowing the call had ended. You wouldn't want to remember how he looked when he finally saw your wallpaper of him candidly eating his strawberry shortcake in a café which you secretly took the first and only time you hung out together outside of school.

Eyes looking down, you took a deep breath accepting what he'll eventually do. His grip lessened, releasing you from the hug. It felt like you were drifting kilometers away from each other. He placed his hand over your shoulders, putting your hair at your back as you feel his fingers trace your jawline lifting your chin up. You look at him teary eyed, wondering if this will be the last time you'll see him this close.

His eyes deemed, he never looked this serious before making your heart leap from the sudden change of expression. His other hand finding its way to your back forcing you to come closer to him making you jolt. He was leaning in front of your face, he was so close that you could feel his breath tickle your lips as you felt your heart racing.

"So is this what you meant when you said you draw what you like?" He said as his lips curled for a smirk.

"uh uhm uh”

Cutting you off, he pressed his lips against your forehead enabling you to process the situation. He pulled away so slowly that you felt every part of his lips losing contact with yours. Your body not being able to move, you tried to at least calm yourself just enough to be able to process the

situation.

"Joaquin...."

Your ears are tingling from the permission granted to you. Face now tinted red from everything that has happened, he pulled you into a back hug digging his face onto your neck sending shivers down your spine.

"What the hell came into your mind to do that?"

"Nothing really. I was just curious"

"Si-since when did you know?"

"I didn't, I was the one who called you on your phone. Turned out better than I expected. Couldn't ask for a better outcome."

"You jerk"

"I love you too"

[animeyanderelover]

You added more prompts?! Wow! I'd like prompt 90 with Ronald please. If that's alright? I've never requested him before(if you don't count my request with all the Reapers) so I'm interested how it would turn out?!

I always wanted to write more about Ronald so I’m all up for this.

Warnings: Yandere themes, unhealthy mindset, unhealthy relationship, possessiveness, obsessiveness, manipulation, killing, blood, violence

Prompt 90: “Babe...! Shit! I’m sorry you had to see this, but please believe me! He deserved it! No,no,no, don’t be scared of me. You know I would never harm you.”

You had to have a bad nightmare. Yeah, that must be it. In reality you were right now laying in your bed and just had a bad dream. You just needed to wake up. That was all. You quickly pinched yourself in your arm, hoping to wake up like this. But you didn’t. The only thing you gained from it was a burning pain from where you had pinched yourself, staring almost hypnotized at the red mark that was slowly starting to rose on your skin. A mark that showed you that this wasn’t a dream. No. This was reality. The harsh and painful reality. Something that you didn’t want to accept. He had lied to you. He had lied all this time to you. You should have known that someone like him couldn’t be a human. He had been too nice, too friendly, too charming. Too good to be true. And you had fallen for that. Who wouldn’t have when a young and handsome man had been wooing someone like he had done with you? Ronald had always been there for you, even after you had suddenly somewhat became lonely. You didn’t know why suddenly all contact you used to have had been died out, but you had at least Ronald with you. Ronald had been always there for you. He had been your shoulder to cry on, had always given you enjoyable times and had always tried his hardest to make you laugh. You had sometimes felt like you didn’t deserve him. You had always thought of him as an angel who had appeared in your life to keep you safe.

But with blood soaking his clothes, hair and spectacles you had to overthink this because right now he looked everything, but angelic. He had killed that guy...He had killed that guy! Why? Why had he killed this man?! What had he ever done wrong?! You could only stand there, watch the scene in front of you displaying. How had you even gotten in this position? Why had you been here in the first place? You knew you had a reason and motivation for why you had decided to go that late that night out. But in that moment your mind was too messed up to think of that reason, being busy with sorting the thoughts that were whirling around in your head. You didn’t know what to do, not wanting to watch this anymore, but also not being able to move. You were rooted on the ground, watching Ronald and the still flowing out blood from the man. Ronald didn’t look like he had noticed you so far, just sighing annoyed and letting one of his hands run through his, now blood covered, blond strands of hair. “You’re honestly just a nuisance. Because of you I have to do more paperwork now. But you know what? I’m fine with that. If it means that you won’t be able to put your plan into action I’m willing to endure the pile of paperwork. Everything to protect my sweet (y/n) from scum like you.”

Your breath hitched slightly in your throat, feeling your heart picking it’s pace overwhelmingly fast up. He had killed for you?! No! You didn’t want this! You had never asked him to go that far for you! He could be sent into prison because of this! But then you remembered what you had just seen. You doubted that the police would be able to overpower him and this...tool of his. How could he look so perfectly fine whilst standing above a corpse which he had killed in the first place? He acted so cheerful. No signs of regret or guilt, giving you the terrifying thought that he might have done it a lot of times before. And he looked indeed like he had done it a lot of times before, making you flinch when he suddenly started whistling. How could he?! How could he be like this?! Your emotions were out of your control, you felt like they were bullets which hit you over and over again, making you somewhat dizzy and leading you to having a harder time to breathe. Everything in front of you started to become blurry, but only when you felt something wet trailing down your skin did you realize that it was due to your own tears. The many emotions inside of you caused your head to hurt and your heart to clench. You were angry, confused, heartbroken and sad, felt betrayed and disappointed at the man you had thought to be able to trust the most from all people. But that had been a lie. He was just like everyone else. But that didn’t mean that the knowledge of it still stung. You didn’t even notice when a guttural sound escaped your lips, not being able to hold it back.

It sounded strange, your whine echoing through the dark night, building a contrast to the silence that was crawling in it, making it stand out even more. And Ronald must have heard it as well because he suddenly tensed up, his whole body being alarmed by the sudden noise before quickly snapping his head around, eyes narrowed in suspicions. But the moment he layed eyes on you they widened in shock and surprise. “Babe...! Shit!” You flinched visibly when he called you by the nickname, one of the many he called you, you had used to always love. But now it didn’t cause the butterflies to erupt in your stomach like it used to always have. Instead it caused a sickening tingling somewhere deep down in your core, giving you the feeling of being able to throw up at any minute. The fact that you got a, oh so nice, look on the dead body didn’t make it better, watching all the blood still flowing out of his already dead body and noticing how his eyes had so far rolled back in his eyes that you only saw the white in his eyes. You had never taken Ronald for someone messy, but in this case it looked like he had lost himself a bit. You desperately tried to tear your gaze away from the corpse, but for some reason it stayed frozen on it, not being able to look away. You started trembling, suddenly feeling very cold. But not because of the chilly night air.

“I’m sorry you had to see this, but please believe me! He deserved it!” You didn’t even fully registered his panicked words nor did you register when he quickly stepped towards you. The only thing your brain was able to focus on was the dead man, your thoughts seemingly drowning in the dark red liquid surrounding his body. Your mind repeating the same sentence over and over again, seemingly the only thing you were able to think of right now. “Ronald killed him! Ronald killed him! Ronald killed him! Ronald killed him! Ronald kil-“ You were thrown out of your loop of anxious and shocked thoughts as well as your paralyzed state when you felt Ronald laying one of his hands on your shoulder. And your body responded the only way it would respond in every situation when a killer would touch you. Instantly jerking back and getting into a run-or-fight state. Every muscle in your body was strained, ready to be used to it’s full potential. You felt adrenaline starting to get pumped through your system, giving you a sudden boost of energy. But it also caused a boost in your emotions, letting you feel the fear inside of you even greater. You bit your bottom lip to prevent it from wobbling, but the way you always took a step back when he stepped forwards or just the look with was almost screaming I’m scared” told him only too clearly how you felt. And you instantly noticed the frown on his face upon seeing you being afraid of him.

“No,no,no, don’t be scared of me. You know I would never harm you.” There was a switch in his tone. Before it had been panicked and shocked. But now it had changed. It sounded almost like he was cooing at you, his voice sounding so sweet and charming that it made you feel even more ill than you felt already. It was the same tone he had always used when you had cried over something and he had tried to comfort you. And this tone had normally always been something that had made you fell better, but now it had the complete opposite effect. The scene of him looking all too much like his usual happy self appearing in your head when he had talked to the dead. He was two-faced. Who could tell if he wouldn’t kill you at any moment too? Ronald seemed to read your thoughts from your facial expression, trying his hardest to keep his composure. “(y/n), do you seriously think I would ever hurt you? Haven’t I proved my love to you countless times?” He sounded somewhat disappointed and hurt, making you stop in your tracks and look at him. His friend visibly deepened, twisting in a somewhat painful mask. And to your huge surprise you felt guilt sparking up inside of you, his actions pulling on your heart strings like he had intended too. He wasn’t completely wrong. For as long as you could remember Ronald had only been sweet and doting to you, always helping you with whatever you had needed. You really didn’t want to believe that he would hurt, or even worse, kill you.

But that didn’t help erasing that you had just seen him killing someone in a way no human could, raising two questions inside of you. Why had he killed that man? And what was he? You were still shaking like a leaf, but now you stood frozen on your place, not moving an inch. Not even as Ronald took slow and more cautious steps towards you, not wanting to risk you losing it and sprinting away from him. This situation had been already complicated enough as it was from the moment you had seen everything with your eyes. And if you should run away it would get even more difficult. And in all honesty, he would prefer it if he could have it the more easy way. Ronald wasn’t a person who liked making things more harder to deal with than they could be. So he silently hoped with every step he took closer to you that you wouldn’t have a change of mind in the last second. He only allowed himself to be a bit more relaxed when he stood right in front of you, placing both of his hands on your shoulder and letting a small sigh of relief out. You hadn’t done everything. That meant he hadn’t have to terrify you even more of him than he had already done.

You still didn’t have enough courage to look him into his face, letting your head hang low in an attempt to avoid his eyes. His face was still smeared with blood and having him so close to you caused the smell of blood to invade your sense of sense, making everything spin in your head for a few moments. That was until Ronald moved one of his hands under your chin and forced you to look up, right into his face. Your eyes instantly started darting around, refusing to see the sticky liquid splattered on his face and soaking his hair. That was until you heard him saying in a charming, yet also somewhat strict voice:”Look at me.” And you listened, the sweet tone he was using drawing you in, like it had always done. You knew that face he was giving you too well. The face filled with adoration for you, ready to charm you in whatever way possible to make you just as infatuated with him as he was with you. Back then you had found that cute, but now you realized how dangerous this was. The way he was able to make someone fall so hardly for him was a problem. The way he was gazing over you and causing a mix made of fear, but also warmth bubble up inside of you was dangerous. He was dangerous for you because he had the ability to make you addicted to him. And you knew if you wouldn’t do something now the already tight grip he had on you would only keep getting stronger until you wouldn’t be able to escape. But how could you run away from someone without leaving a part of yourself behind?

So against your own will, or at least part of your own will, you could slightly feel yourself relax after a minute or two in his grip. This made Ronald smile slightly, starting to feel better due to seeing that he still held some power over you. “I have a lot to explain to you, don’t I? Let’s just leave this place before someone sees us. I promise I’ll tell you everything once we get home. Alright?” You didn’t know whether to feel disgusted or not when hearing his gentle voice, luring you to him like he had done all the many times before. And just like in the past it worked this time as well. “O-okay.”

[noire-pandora]

I’ve joined another writing event but this time on Twitter and this is my take on the first prompt “Campfire”, where Elluin and Varric have a heart-to-heart conversation about the burden of responsibility.  Also on my AO3.

Words: 2002

Warnings: none. 

A shiver rippled over Varric's skin at the sudden gust of cold wind, the dying small campfire failing to keep him warm. He sighed, wondering why he agreed to stay with the Inquisition, the long trips through woods, mountains and plains exhausting him. In moments like this, when the lack of comfort affected his morale, he wished he was back in Kirkwall with Hawke and her friends, enjoying a cold beer at the tavern and making up stories. Instead, he stood on a wood log, his butt still hurting from the long hours of riding, his stiff back begging him for a hot bath and a massage. His clothes weren't fit for the long days of travel, his cotton shirts and pants doing little to protect him against the capricious weather.

He huffed, shoving a stick in the fire, hoping it would bring it back to life, but he only succeeded in putting it off. "Great," he mumbled, crossing his arms before his chest, his warm breath fogging in the air. "I'll freeze until someone wakes up. Why is it so damn cold?"

He raised his eyes to watch the sky in an attempt to forget about the situation he found himself in, only to be greeted by the sight of the Breach, swirling and twisting above them like a silent threat, ready to swallow the whole world. Instead of making him feel better, the hair on the nape of his neck rose, and his muscles spasmed as if readying him to flee from a dangerous enemy before it got the change to attack him.

His lips slightly parted, his fingernails digging into the log as fear slowly crawled into his mind. How were they supposed to close it when none of them had any idea how it happened? When the only one who barely understood it was a suspicious elf who came out of nowhere, offering his help? The fate of the world stood on the shoulders of a few heretics who got dragged into this mess, with little to no support from the ones who should have dealt with it. His breath hitched in his throat at those thoughts, anxiety hovering above him.

The noise of the tent's flap opening startled him, and he almost jumped in place. He swiftly turned in the direction of the sound, curious to see who woke up this early in the morning.

The Herald left the tent yawning and scratching her wild curly hair. He frowned, noticing the unusual dark circles surrounding her eyes and the tiredness written on her face. Exhaustion shrouded her, and it slowly turned her from the laid back, always ready to joke elf to a snappy person, ready to fight at the slightest misunderstanding. This sudden change worried him, for it wasn't the first time he saw this transformation.

"Morning, Sparks," he greeted her with a broad smile on his face.  

She acknowledged his comment with a tilt of her head and continued her morning routine, stretching her arms and legs until her joints stopped popping. After a few more minutes of light exercises, she finally joined him, creasing her nose at the cold, half-burned wood. With a swift flick of her hand, the fire took shape again, dancing lively and consuming the wood in a few seconds.

"You don't need wood to keep it burning?" he asked, leaning forwards and outstretching his arms to warm his palms over the fire.

"No," she shrugged, flicking her wrist again, the fire blazing even brighter. She sat on a log next to him to warm herself. "I don't need any wood to sustain it. As long as I have mana, it will burn."

He hummed, cocking his eyebrow at her explanation. Magical explanations always confused him and brought even more questions to his mind.  In the end, it only mattered that the fire slowly warmed him, and the mage casting the spell was on his side.

"You're up early," he spoke as casually as he could after a few minutes of sitting in total silence.

She shrugged, wiggling her fingers, the campfire slithering in the rhythm of her hand movements. "Yeah. It happens."

"Been happening to you often. Are you getting enough sleep?"

She eyed him, pursing her lips into a thin line. "Are you monitoring my health? I thought Solas was supposed to do that."

He shuffled his legs uneasy, sensing the hint of annoyance in her voice. "Chuckles isn't the only one who's worried for you."

"Worried for me? Why?"

"You've been acting strange lately, randomly snapping at us. Just wondering if you're alright."

Her nostrils flared, and the fire suddenly sizzled, its flames growing bigger. He quickly pulled his arms back, raising an eyebrow at her. "See! This is what I mean."

"I'm sorry!" she apologised, squeezing her fingers into a fist and hiding them in the pockets of her trousers. "Are you all right?"

He waved his hand in dismissal, shaking his head at her. "It's fine. You didn't hurt me. But something's going on with you."

She ran one hand through her curls, a finger getting stuck into a hair knot. She yanked on it, her jaw tensing. With another yank, she released her finger only to clasp her hands in her lap. When she spoke again, he could hear the tension in her voice. "I haven't got enough sleep lately. "

"Nightmares?"

She nodded. "Yes. How did you know?"

He gave her a small, sad smile, stretching his hands again as the flames shrunk to a safe level. He stared at it, his eyes glassy with the memories of the past. "I've seen this look before, Sparks. You're not the only one hunted by nightmares. How bad is it?"

She stared into the fire, her eyebrows furrowed into a deep crease. "Bad. I've had them for almost two weeks. I barely get enough sleep to function at day."

He contemplated her face, noticing how the bags under her eyes turned purple, the whites of her eyes bloodshot and how her usually rose cheeks caught a sickly pallor, a few spider veins showing through the paleness of her cheek.

"I think Chuckles can help you with this since he's the expert in the Fade and the stuff you mages dream at night."

She snorted, glancing at him. "And how do you know that?"

"I've heard a few of your conversations. Can't he do a spell to drive your nightmare away?"

She bit on her lower lip. "I think so, yes. But I'm not going to ask for his help."

He rolled his eyes at her. "Look, I know you two have your differences, but you're not looking that good, Sparks. And he can help you. He won't say no to you."

A few months ago, this suggestion would have gained him a huff from the Herald, but now she nodded solemnly, without commenting on how annoying Solas was. He found it amusing how quickly they became friends, and he had a hunch this friendship might slowly turn into something else.

"We've solved our differences, Varric," she confirmed, staring down at her feet, deep in thought. "I  know he'd help me. I just don't want to burden him with my problems."

He admired Lavellan's stubbornness and eagerness to stick to her moral ideas, but, at this moment, he had to suppress his need to roll his eyes at her comment.

"You won't burden him. It's his duty to take care of you. You hold the key to the safety of this world in your hand. You have to stay healthy, or else we're doomed."

She straightened her back, a frown pulling at the corners of her mouth. "So my health matters only because I'm bearing the Mark. Is that what you're trying to say?"

He sighed deeply and scowled at her knowing very well she tried to change the subject by bringing this up. "No. But your health is affected by this Mark, and we're here to help you."

"Well, I don't need your help," she barked, the fire blazing strongly again but, this time, her outburst did not impress him.

He spread his arms wide, drawing in a long breath, readying himself for the confrontation. "Look, Sparks. I get it. You don't like to talk about your feelings. You've been dealing with stuff alone since you left your Clan. But those things were simple, compared with what you have to do now. You're carrying the weight of the world on your shoulders. You need someone to talk with."

"No. I don't," she fumed, rubbing her temples, her skin turning red under her fingers. "I can deal with this alone."

He threw his hands up in frustration at her words, "No, you can't. Your fears won't let you sleep, and you need to talk about this. Before the bitterness and anger take control of you."

He could hear his blood pumping, her stubbornness giving him a headache. He took a deep breath in again to calm himself, but his heart still banged against his chest.

She jolted to her feet, balling her hands into fists. "Why do you care anyway? Isn't it like my lack of sleep is hurting you."

The question finally brought an end to his patience, and he found himself shouting, all of his worries making themselves heard." "Because one day, your anger will explode, and you will hurt everyone around you!"

She opened her mouth to speak, but no word came. She dropped back on the log, bowing her head. When she spoke again, her voice quivered. "I...would never think of hurting any of you."

His anger immediately dispersed, hearing the pain in her voice. He felt ashamed by his outburst, but the thought of her succumbing to her rage and fears made him realise he was right. He made the mistake of acting gently and carefully with Anders when he noticed the changes in him but never pushed him to seek help. He promised himself he won't make that mistake ever again, even if it meant shouting at the ones he cared about.

He reached for her shoulder, and she jerked under his touch but relaxed as he gave her a squeeze. She kept her head down, avoiding his eyes.

"I know, Sparks, I know," he spoke again, this time his voice softening, and he hoped she understood how much he cared about her and her well-being. And not only because she wore that cursed Mark but because he saw her as a friend. "But if you let your anger and fear build-up, it will happen. I've already seen that once. I don't want you to end up like that."

"You really think I should talk with Solas?” she asked, her voice just a whisper. She fidgeted with the rim of her blouse, wrapping it around her fingers.

"Yes. And if he won't help you, I'm here if you need to talk. I can't take your nightmares away, but I can listen. You're not alone."

When looked at him again, he saw tears forming at the corner of her eyes, but she quickly raised her hand and wiped them away. "I'll speak with Solas later. Thank you."

"It's fine, Sparks. Sometimes it's easy to forget others care about us.”

She rubbed her nose, sniffing loudly. "Kids learn only when you shout at them, right?"

He chuckled softly and released her shoulder. "Right."

They sat in silence for a few seconds, and before he could say anything, she got up again, but this time, her face showed no signs of anger. "I'll go get some wood for the fire."

He nodded at her, relief washing over him. "All right. I'll stay here."

She hummed in acknowledgement and strolled towards the forest. He watched her as she dragged her feet through the dust, head down, shoulders slumped, and he shook his head. He did the right thing by staying with the Inquisition because even heroes need a friendly shoulder to cry on.

[imbackmrstark]

Cemetery Secrets

warnings: huge age difference (because Tony is a vampire, duh.) -> No explicit age mentioned , smut , blood... smut and blood , mention of killing , grammatical shit because I'm an idiot, hi :) (I really hope I have everything)

The ground was soft like clouds, his feet sank slightly in the green of the forest; moist moss, wet from the dawn- and rain of the previous evening. His tender hand clung to one of the tree trunks, he let his eyes wander around, looking for the cemetery, where he often just sat and thought. A tear glittered in the corner of his eye and his mouth went straight. He had failed, lost and screwed up. Just everything. And now he couldn't even find his favorite place again, so confused and lost in his endless thoughts. He couldn't think clearly. He took a deep breath, trembled uncontrollably, and closed his eyes.

Calm down, Peter. Just briefly return to yourself and rethink the situation.

The cool air whipped around his nose and ears, filled his lungs with clear oxygen, showed him how lively he was. He was alive with flesh and blood, but something was bothering him. Peter's eyes opened slowly, looking at the hand he raised at eye level. It was slightly red from the cold; Peter wanted to get away from home so quickly that he didn't even have time to put on a jacket. He felt bad that he had left May alone... alone with the police and the hearse that picked up his uncle, her husband. He could still hear the shot that took his uncle's life... and his too. He couldn't just come back like that, his aunt would blame him. He was guilty, he knew that, he said that. The tear in his eye finally got his freedom and ran down his cheek, but was quickly wiped away by Peter's sleeve. The tear was no longer given time to live, like his uncle. At the thought Peter narrowed his eyes and let the other tears run free. He sobbed, sank to the ground, and pressed his face into his palms; Everything was just too much for him right now - the cold, the wet, the death of his uncle, the sound of steps a few meters behind him.... the sound of steps a few meters behind him?? Peter jerked his head up and stared wide-eyed behind him into the light darkness. He noticed a figure that seems to be watching him. A cold shiver ran down his back as he stood up unsure – keeping his eyes on the person – and walked backwards. The boy bit his lip hard before turning and running away, looking for the cemetery because he knew exactly where the good hiding places were. The steps behind him were muffled by the moss, and yet he could hear everything very clearly; thanks to the echo of the forest. His legs flew over the floor as he ran for his life. Fear crept up in him - he didn't want to die, not like that. His steps echoed through the forest, like the bell of the church through the city, animals raised their heads when they heard the frightened boy from far away, they also ran. Peter's lungs burned like fire, electrified all his muscles, from fingertips to toes, spurred him to run even faster. The place of the dead jumped into the corner of his eye, causing Peter to change course and head in the direction of it. He was already on state property when he lost his balance and fell forward. A soft scream escaped his throat and he put his arms protectively around his head, already preparing for the impact, which however did not take place. Instead, two strong arms closed around his torso, holding him and pressing his back against a unfamiliar body. Peter held his breath and didn't move another inch.

"You again, little boy. Who actually allowed you to disturb my home?" There was something calm about the voice, every word was carefully rolled over the tongue and gave Peter goose bumps that slowly spread in all directions on his body. Peter's mouth opened, but no sound left it, just a shaking breath that rose into the sky as a small cloud. Even if Peter knew what to answer, he couldn't make a sound, the situation was so incredibly unrealistic and confusing. The boy wanted to collapse now and lose consciousness, but he was too afraid for that - fear of what would happen to him. A whimper slipped out of him. "I asked you something."

Peter swallowed hard, clawed himself lightly on the stranger's arms, whom he hadn't been allowed to look at before. "I..- Please.. don't hurt me.."

"Oh, I have no reason for it.. not yet. So what are you doing here, kid?" It didn't seem to bother the man that the boy was tearing apart half of his arm, because he just pressed him closer to him and.. smelled him? "Mhh.."

"It.. I'm sorry. I'll never come back, I swear! Please let me go, please!" He tried to lean forward to escape the man, but he didn't seem to be happy with it, because he growled slightly and held him even more tightly.

"So much fear in such a small body, incredibly fascinating, don't you think so?" Peter nodded quickly, bit his lip painfully, and whimpered loudly, hoping to be heard by someone. "You don't have to be afraid, my little one. I won't do anything to you, do you hear? I'll take care of you, that's for sure. Mhhh... mhh.. hmm.." He started to hum softly. "I've been watching you for a while now, you know? I'm really sorry for your uncle."

"Was that you? Did you shoot him?" Peter didn't care for the tears running down his cheeks again. "Are you after me now? Are you going to shoot me too?"

The man sighed softly. "You really weren't listening, were you? I said, I'll protect you. The two guys? I already- They weren't too tasty, believe me."

"Tasty.. what?" What exactly did he mean? The boy felt the grin on the back of his neck and the beard hairs that tickled him there slightly. This feeling was so strange that Peter wanted to turn around and punch him in the face. Peter pushed himself away from the stranger with full force, turned quickly, stumbled back, when he saw the man for the first time, and fell painfully with his ass on the ground, his eyes were huge.

The man was snow white, his eyes red like the roses in May's garden, lips pale and rough, dark circles at least as dark as the night in summers, and the scariest thing: blood that ran down the corner of his mouth. Peter couldn't believe his eyes. It was almost like there was-

"-a vampire standing in front of you?" His grin widened as he approached the frightened boy, who tried to pull away with all his might without taking his eyes off him. "Give me your name and I'll tell you about me."

"P-Peter.. Peter Parker.."

The man sat down at one of the gravestones and, with a brief gesture, made it clear that Peter should join him, which he did, but only with a safe distance. The boy pulled his legs close, put his arms around them and stared at the stranger, waiting for him to start. His pale hand hesitantly scratched his beard, wondering how to start the best without completely disturbing the little one and chasing him away. Peter swallowed hard, followed every single movement of the adult with his eyes, just didn't want to lose sight of him, for fear that he might hurt him. Of course, he could have tried to run away, but he was too curious and wanted to know who the man was- what he was. So at least he gave him a little chance and sat down, he said himself that he wouldn't kill him, right? And yet he was tense, couldn't sit back and listen intently, he was vigilant all the time, ready to jump up and run away.

"I like your eyes. The shadow makes them as dark as a bear's fur, but the sun.. honey in amber with the soft glitter of life. They are beautiful." Peter jerked out of his thoughts, raised his head and widened his eyes, making the stranger smile gently. "As I said.. beautiful."

"Y-You.. N-No, that's not the point, don't distract from the subject! You said that-" A small cry escaped Peter when the man suddenly knelt a few inches in front of him and touched his cheek with the palm of his hand. Shortly before, he was sitting in front of him with a huge distance and he hadn't let him out of his sight for a single second. How the hell could he be at his site so quickly; Touch him and share his smell. Peter's eyes became wet with fright and he suddenly felt very sick and dizzy. It was absolutely not human. "H-How..?"

"Look me in the eyes.. I want to see the lovely glow in them again." The cold thumb pushed up to his cheekbones, he wiped the wetness off there and then smiled broadly, so that two white fangs flashed out. The brown-haired sniffed softly and followed the request, albeit a little shy and fearful, especially after he noticed the vampire teeth. "My name is Tony. Tony Stark."

"You are a -.. This is impossible.. It doesn't work, biological alone and genetics, how.. how.. how..?" He whispered in panic, broke eye contact, and looked for something else to focus on. It's just a dream.. just a stupid dream.

"So a scientist, mh? You can't explain everything with biology and whatever. Little humans don't understand some things. Everything you don't know is impossible right away, right?" Tony roughly took the boy's chin between his fingers and turned his head back towards him. "So clever and yet so ignorant.. Almost sweet."

The smaller one whimpered pleadingly, tried to remove the fingers, they hurt and just didn't want to leave. "Please stop.. You hurt me, please." The pressure eased and the fingers slid down to his jaw and then on to his neck, where they remained very delicate.

"Sorry darling, I'm just so incredibly distracted by the blood that rushes through your veins.. I'd love to have a bite-"

"NO!" Peter hit the man in the face out of reflex, slid back as far as possible, just wanted to run away, but then he was already grabbed by the ankle and pulled back. "PLEASE, HELP! DOES ANYONE HEAR ME?! HELP! Please.."

"Be quiet. Nobody hears you here anyways, okay? Everything's okay, come here.. Let's calm down first, right?" Peter looked into Tony's with his already reddened eyes, lost himself in the blood moon red. His breath calmed faster than usual and he even let the other touch him again.

"Can you influence feelings in any way? Like Jasper from Twilight..? Are you like a Twilight v-vampire?" He bit his lower lip and fell silent, so as not to say more unsettled stuff.

"So I'm supposed to glitter in the sunlight like a disco ball on LSD? I'm really offended, Peter, seriously." The person addressed giggled softly and cocked his head. So Tony took this with humor, knowing well. "And no, I'm not Jasper. As I said, my name is Tony Stark and the only thing that could calm you down would be my eyes, the voice, the gentle touch and the radiance of immortality."

"How old are you Tony?"

"I stopped counting. We all did."

"We all? Are there more vampires? More of your kind?" Peter sat up straight, looked at the hand that was still on his ankle and reached for it.

"Of course." Tony watched the boy carefully as he grabbed his fingers and took them in his hand and held them. A smile played around the corner of the man's mouth. So in a way, the teenager was looking for closeness.

"Are they like you?"

"Not all of them are as open-minded as I am. They stay away from any social action and if a little human comes near them, I am sent out. Some of them hate the human race, are constantly on the hunt. You can be glad that I took you under my wing. If Bucky had caught you.. believe me, you don't want that." Out of nowhere, Tony's head shot up and he looked into the vastness of the cemetery before slowly pressing the boy against his body and putting his arms around him. "Everything's fine. Come here, introduce yourself." The vampire spoke softly into the darkness to which Peter's eyes darted. A broad figure emerged, his gaze fixed on the human being.

"Stark, is this the kid you talk about so often? Human, I smell him all the way over here.. How can you keep control like that?" The new stranger had mutt blonde hair, was also pale, white as snow and his red eyes shone directly into his soul. A cold shiver ran down the boy's shoulder. At first glance, the guy was just muscle and strength, looked like he could just lift him up and tear him to pieces. Trusting Tony wasn't easy, even though he looked like a nice man, but the new one? Oh hell no. He scared Peter. "He's afraid."

"Of course he is, if you arrive here like this and open up like: ,,If I don't like him, I'll just kill him.,, So be nice, sit down and introduce yourself to him, Cap. The way decent guys do that, understand?" The man followed Tony's request a few seconds later and sat a few feet in front of Peter. The moment the stranger touched the ground, Tony released the boy in his arms so that he could sit properly again.

"I am Steve Rogers." He didn't look at him and it looked like he was trying desperately to hold something back, he bit his cheek inside, made only very slow movements and clawed the grass with one hand. "Damn it, Stark, how can you sit so close to him and not press your fangs into him. I can smell him up to here and can hardly control myself."

"Years of self-control, contact with humans and a short previous lunch. I know it's not easy, but if you want it, you can do it, right?" Peter looked from one man to another, completely distraught, and already had a plan for how he could best escape from there. He's so small and skinny, not even a snack.

"Maybe I should go.." It was almost a whisper, but both men raised their heads and curled their eyebrows.

"I don't think so, my dear."

"You know about our existence, you won't get out of here alive. We play with our food here, so to speak."

"Steve, no." Peter widened his eyes, almost choked on his own spit, before quickly looking at Tony, who was just shaking his head. "Peter, calm down.. I won't let them hurt you, I've already told you that."

"As soon as Buck sees him-"

"As soon as I see who?" A man stood out of nowhere next to Steve with long brown hair and a bad-tempered facial expression. He must have used his vampire speed to get here so fast. Peter's eyes widened a lot, because only now he realized who was standing with them. The one in front of him was Bucky, the man Tony had been talking about, the one who detested humans and- "Ohh this who. Hey there." The guy grinned mischievously and kneeled in front of the little boy, his head cocked. "You smell delicious, doll"

The next thing that fell over Peter's lips was rash and quiet, but it was worth it for the man's expression afterwards. "Hello Bucky.."

Tony's flat hand bumped against Bucky's chest as he tried to get closer to the boy. Bucky's eyebrows contracted and a kind of hiss left his throat, his fangs flashed out. "Don't you dare." Tony's eyes took on a darker color and veins appeared under them. For a short while the two just looked into each other's eyes and in the background Steve was ready to intervene at any time while Peter was frozen in shock.

"Let go of me, asshole." One last growl, before Tony let go of the other one and pushed Peter with another movement behind him to protect him. "Oh man, fuck you, seriously, give the boy over and let me look at him, I won't do anything, I promise... okay, maybe nibble a little, but really nothing else, I won't kill him, I swear it." Peter made a quick decision to trust the stranger and crawled out from behind Tony Stark. Steve inhaled sharply, while the brown-haired man next to him almost forgot to breathe, if he even had to do it, because he's a vampire, duh. "Look closely Stark, the boy is cheating on you right now."

"Peter.."

"It's okay.. it's okay. He promised it, I trust his words." The little boy was pulled to the long-haired man by the upper arm and examined like a lunch.

"He's cute but a little bit small. What makes that heavenly smell, Stark, mh? What's the reason?" In the corner of his eye, Peter saw Tony shake his head unknowingly and then look away, while Steve sat down next to Bucky to tear the teen away from him in an emergency.

"I often eat strawberries.. maybe that's why.." Peter carefully raised his hand and took one of the dark strands of hair from the vampire into it, making him chase away in confusion.

"Aren't you afraid?"

"You gave me your word.. And Tony 'n' Steve wouldn't let that happen.."

"I like you. Let's keep him, yes, Steve? Can we?"

"He's mine." Tony spoke up, put his hand around Peter's torso and pressed him to his body.

It quickly became clear that there was much more of their kind, because many red eyes stared at him as he entered the house in the woods, close to Tony's side. Steve and Bucky went ahead to announce the visitor and make sure no one attacked him.

A man with wrinkles on his face was the first to come up to him and stretched out his hand to introduce himself with a big smile. "Hi, Clint Barton my name, but of course you can call me Hawkeye like everyone else here. You're Peter right? Now I know what the metal arm was talking about.. wow your smell is really tempting."

"Metal arm?" Peter looked up questioningly at Tony, who had rolled his eyes and sighed loudly.

"James Barnes aka Bucky." Steve did the talking for Mr. Stark and briefly explained the connection. "My friend lost his arm in the war and it was replaced by a metal arm. The story behind it is a little.. it doesn't matter. Look..-" The blonde man grabbed the other's left arm and pulled his sweater sleeve up a little so that silver metal flashed out. "..-metal." He tapped it with his knuckles.

"Truly tragic, yes.. never mind. I am Natasha Romanoff, Clint's best friend and probably one of the only ones who has never called him Hawkeye." She smiled slightly. "Hi Peter."

"Hello.." The lady had red hair and a really friendly charisma towards him, but Tony seemed to have a lot of respect for her, every blind man could see that. Peter also smiled slightly, bit his tip of the tongue in the meantime, and then pushed himself to the side of the man like a little boy. He had always been shy, but near her, his confidence was much lower and he could barely say a word, she had such an aura.

"This human is very sweet, I can like him." A man with long blond hair, leaning against one of the walls and holding a bottle of beer, looked down at him.

"This is Thor, son of Odin. He is a god. But also a vampire-"

"So a god vampire? That's awesome !" Peter interrupted Tony when he tried to explain who the guy up there was. He quickly closed his mouth and immediately bowed his head, apologetically moving away from Tony's side and peering up at him. "I mean.. I'm sorry. Keep talking."

"Stay quiet, Stark, it's my turn. Hey, I'm Wanda. Nice to meet you." The girl had a Russian accent and red hair too, but it went a little orange and was longer than Natasha's.

The next moment there was a new blond boy next to her, he seemed to be faster than the others. "And I'm her brother. Pietro." A big grin crept onto the Russian's face. "And I'm the fastest of them all."

"Unfortunately, I have to agree." Another person spoke, stepped away from the table, and looked up from his book.

Peter looked exactly into two green eyes, which made his head askew.

"Why are your eyes green?"

"Because he's the Hulk. He's going to be a big green monster."

"He doesn't look like a monster."

"He's the complete opposite of me, kid. I'm more or less happy about that. As long as I have my anger under control, everything is fine." The guy put his book down and leaned against the table next to a dark-skinned man with an eye patch. "By the way, my name is Bruce Banner. I'm the genius here, alongside Tony Stark, of course. And next to me is our boss, so to speak. Nick Fury, but he prefers to be called Fury. And don't ask him about his eye patch, he doesn't like that very much. Above all.. don't make any pirate hints."

"Aii Aii Captain." The vampires around him started laughing, apparently they liked Peter's humor. Even this Fury had a slight grin on his face, though he tried to hide it. "So.. yes.. I'm Peter Parker and-"

"-he belongs to me, so if I see any of you in dangerous proximity to him, I'll kill that person. Have I made myself clear?" Tony stepped next to Peter, put an arm around his shoulder blades and a hand on the shoulder to hold him close. "Everything about him is mine. Do you understand Bucky?"

"Alright, shut up." The long-haired vampire rolled his eyes in exasperation and grabbed the blonde's hand next to him. "Come on Steve, I'm hungry, let's find something tasty."

"Yes Mr. Captain America, take your friend and get out of here." Peter looked up at Tony and curled his forehead in confusion. "Why are you so mean?" In the background Peter could hear Natasha giggling slightly, this performance was probably very funny for her. A kid embarrassed Tony Stark. Yes, it was funny.

"I- What? Bucky is insulting me all the time and I'm supposed to be mean? That's a joke, isn't it?" Tony turned Peter by the shoulders so that he was right in front of him and could look him in the face.

"Bucky can do that. Bucky's cool."

"Hah, awesome. High Five, doll." The guy with the metal arm jumped to Peter's side, raised his arm, and held out his hand for the boy until he hit it. Then he dragged his friend outside and they were suddenly gone.

"You are such a little cheater, remember that... Well, off to the basement, I'll show you my room." The brown-haired man turned the boy around and pushed him towards a door while Thor waved him with his beer in the hand. When the door opened, Peter could see a flight of stairs that he went down without further thought.

"If this is supposed to be a murder, please be painless, thanks." The door behind him was closed and footsteps were audible, as well an airy laugh.

"Don't worry, it will be gentle."

"Oh well, thank you. May I choose the way of death?" When they reached the bottom, the smaller one turned around and looked hopefully up at Tony. A second later he was pressed against the wall behind him, the man's face a few millimeters in front of him, causing his breath to stop.

"I'm sorry, unfortunately not. Don't worry.. very gently.." The vampire bowed his head to Peter's neck and inhaled sharply, before pressing his lips gently against his skin. The brown honey eyes closed and a soft gasp escaped his throat.

A short time later Peter landed on the big bed, which was in the corner of the room and was really comfortable. The boy crawled to the pillows, then leaned on his forearms while staring at the man with his mouth open. He lowered his head and ran one of his hands to the other side of the neck to hold him there, while his lips kissed the skin gently and carefully.

"Don't stop.." Peter's thin fingers slid into Tony's hair, pushing him even closer, before he dropped back and pressed the inside of his legs against the man's waist. "That feels good.."

"Yeah it does, right? Do you want more?" The teenager nodded quickly, put his arm around Tony's neck and pulled him closer to him.

A few seconds later, Peter felt an incredibly beautiful, yet painful feeling on his neck and the movement of suction that made him moan. He dropped his head back and closed his eyes. He quickly understood what Tony was doing there, but he just let him. What should he do anyways? He wasn't even nearly as strong or fast, and it felt so good to be used. He made an unhappy sound when Tony finally had to let go of him. His fingers pressed briefly against the place where the man had bitten before, then lifted up in front of him to see the blood on his fingertips.

"I'm sorry.. you're just so delicious. I wish you could try it.." Peter didn't wait a moment, before he put his fingertips against his lips and licked them with his tongue. He felt the iron taste in his mouth, grinned slightly and looking directly into Tony's eyes, who looked like he was much paler than before. "Oh fuck.."

Mr. Stark grabbed the wrist of the boy beneath him and yanked it away, before pressing his lips to those of Peter, who greedily returned the kiss and lifted his torso up. What was he doing here? This morning the man was a complete stranger to him and now he was fooling around like a little whore. And yet- "Please.. More.. I want more, bite me sir, do it."

"I can't.. I don't want to kill you, I promised.." Instead of giving Peter what he wanted, the man rolled over onto his back to pull the little one onto his chest. "Tell me about the roses."

"What roses?"

"That make your heart bloom for a murderer."

"Idiot, be silent."

"Make me."

The brown-haired boy with the honey brown eyes smiled quietly, put his small hand on Tony's lightly haired cheek and pressed his lips to his. Tony leaned forward, showing affection and all his touches to the human. It was nice to feel some love, it always was.

"Please..", came from him as he detached himself a bit from Stark. "I want more.."

"I can't. I'm sorry. We should go upstairs. I'll give you something to eat and-"

"-you could take me on the counter, right?"

"No. The others are still there.. They are probably listening all the time and.. maybe we really shouldn't go up.. That could prevent a lot of embarrassment." Tony scratched the back of his head with a grin, but Peter just stuck his tongue back into his throat.

"So are you taking me here and now?"

"No, I won't, my little rose."

"I'm your little rose? Naww.." Peter kissed the whole face of the adult, rolled onto his entire body and stayed there for now.

"You're everything."

Some time had passed, in which Peter lived with the vampires and brought them some human things close. They accepted him further and let him in with them in their small group, even if Fury wasn't so convinced of the idea and Bucky tried to bite the boy again and again, but was always stopped by Tony. Peter always found these moments totally funny. But to be honest he also provoked Bucky a little bit, because that was how he got all of Tony's attention and that was exactly his goal. In the end, the man had to come up with something and decided to take the boy on a short walk to the cemetery, where the two went to a small chapel. The brown-haired teenager looked around in surprise. He had been a visitor to this place all these years and yet he didn't know about this abandoned chapel.

"Why are you bringing me here?" His brown eyes looked up at the man, who stood uncertainly in front of him and swallowed.

"I wanted to try something.. Can I?" Peter nodded gently, wanting to know what the vampire was up to. Tony carefully placed his pale hand on Peter's cheek and kissed him tenderly, then a little more demanding, while slowly pushing the boy back until his ass touched the altar. With his vampire speed, he grabbed the boy's butt cheeks with his hands, lifted him up and placed him on the altar, so that Peter quickly wrapped his legs around Tony's waist and pressed him close to himself. The kiss grew wilder and the breath louder, Peter liked his proximity, wanted more, much more. "Are you sure? Do you want that?"

"Shut up and do it." Peter clawed into the man's hair and pushed him towards his neck, because he was supposed to give him that feeling back. The next moment Tony bit him, the beard tickled Peter lightly, but instead of giggling, he groaned loudly and pressed his fingernails into his shoulder. The hand on his thigh slipped slightly to the inside of it and then slowly up. Peter's crotch tingled and his cock slowly tightened, causing his face to flush. He almost wanted to be ashamed of it, but then their bodies touched and he could feel the big bump in Mr. Stark's pants. The hand he had on his shoulder slid to the bulge and squeezed it, so that the vampire groaned loudly against his neck and then moved away.

"Have you ever had sex with a vampire?" Tony's hands pressed into Peter's thighs to hold back.

"I've never had sex." He put his arms around his neck and pulled him back down to kiss him, but he backed away for now.

"How old are you again, little rose?" Peter smiled slightly before opening Tony's belt with one hand and pulling the pants down a little. The older man helped him, unbuttoned the shirt, and slipped it over his shoulders until it fell to the floor. While his pants were being lowered, Peter pulled his sweater over his head and was released from his jeans with the help of the vampire. Peter's body trembled slightly from the sudden cold that enveloped him, and the cold hands on his skin didn't improve it entirely.

"Last chance.. Do you want that?"

"Yes I want it."

Tony nodded briefly before pulling down his boxers and freeing his dick. He held it at the root and looked directly into the boy's eyes, so that he had to swallow with huge eyes. Damn, it was big. Peter leaned forward and greedily licked the tip, causing the man to moan and make himself whimper. Tony pulled the smaller one straight back by the hair with a shaken head, before sliding him off the altar and pressing him with his upper body instead onto it. Peter felt his shorts pulled down and cold hands touched his round ass. He wiggled it briefly, giggling slightly, and then waited patiently for more. Tony's hand went slowly to Peter's hole, but before he inserted a finger, he spat on it. With the biological lubricant, the middle finger could easily be pressed into the boy and a second finger too. Peter groaned loudly and closed his eyes as he clawed his fingers into the altar.

"Yeah.. just like that.." Tony made scissors movements in him, kissing his back and complimenting him because he was so good for him. "Please.. I want you.. please do it.."

The vampire, of course, listened to the little one and removed his fingers before he placed his tip on Peter's hole and carefully and slowly slid into him until he was to the root in him. Peter cried out softly, throwing his head back and pushing himself against the man. That was the okay for Tony to start and he immediately thrusted into the boy and fucking him hard. The teenager was slapped against the altar, while he feeling like he was torned apart, but it just felt amazing. His abdomen tickled so much and his ass sent electric shocks all over his body, which almost got him over the edge. However, what completely wiped him out was when Tony pressed his fangs into his shoulder and gave him that feeling of immortality. He felt his blood start to boil and his head burned like fire. He screamed in pain and satisfaction, when he felt the last hard thrust against himself and finally had one of the best orgasms of his life. He let himself fall limply on the altar, felt how Tony's cock slowly lost hardness in him and how the burning in his body didn't stop.

"Fuck.. I'm so sorry! It just came over me, I wasn't thinking.. Please forgive me." Tony slid out of the boy, his cum ran out of his little hole and the sweat dripped down his forehead.

"What do you mean?.." Peter tiredly turned his head in the direction of the vampire, on which blood ran down the corners of his mouth. "Oh.. So that's the burning.. As a vampire I have at least more endurance, so thank you.."

"You were so innocent and I ruined you, I can't even forgive myself.."

Peter lifted his body up and turned to Tony, looking into his eyes with a smile. "You're the only one I let ruin me."

Tony felt incredibly guilty for what he had done, which is why he finally got the help from his 'family' to prepare Peter for everything important. Bucky had taken care of the boy, which was pretty surprising to everyone, but nobody minded. The soldier, as Peter learned, was completely alone when he changed and was a cold-blooded killer for years that almost revealed the secret of the vampires. Only then Steve found the newborn and take responsibility for him, show him the good side of being a vampire and learn how to keep himself under control. Apparently the two men had quickly fallen in love.

"My head's burning so'much.." Peter had his hands clenched in his hair and his legs pulled up to his body, while he whimpered softly, completely disconcerting Tony so that he paced the room and cursed loudly.

"I know, doll. It'll get better, promise, okay?" The long-haired vampire hugged the small human body tightly, gently rocking him back and forth to look at Tony in silence. He hated him for what he had done to the teenager, he hated him.

Peter gasped in surprise, clutched one hand in the shoulder of the man in whose lap he was sitting, and cried out softly. It was time, it happened. Tony dropped to his knees next to the boy and put the boy's head on his shoulder, causing Bucky to slowly let go and nodded briefly. He had already sensed that the man would take on the difficult task and simply let it happen. At least the kid wasn't alone.

"Shh.. It's okay, my little rose.. Everything will be fine, shh." Tears ran down Tony's cheeks, for the first time in years, which is why Natasha went to him and put her hand caringly on his shoulder.

"Tony.." Peter's honey brown eyes fought for victory against the new color red, which wanted to take over the eyes completely and after a few minutes of senseless struggle, the beautiful brown lost to the rose red. "No matter what happens, don't be angry with yourself, okay? Thank you for the good time here.. For the distraction of my uncle's death.. I love-" He lost consciousness, closed his eyes and slowly let the cold take over his body. His skin turned snow white, so white that even Buck was amazed. He had never seen such a white vampire, even as a newborn.

"I'm here Peter.. I won't go, do you hear? I won't go." Then everything went very quickly. The boy opened his blood red eyes and suddenly stood at the other end of the room, dropped to the floor and looked around in disbelief. He raised his hand and examined it closely, Bucky smiled broadly in the background, he knew exactly why he reacted like that. His eyes were much better now and he perceived everything around him very differently. "Little rose, look at me.."

Peter raised his head and looked directly at him with two fresh red eyes, a fang flashing through his slight smile. "Tony.. that's crazy! I love it !" It only took him one step to the man, he no longer noticed the others, he was that fast. "Look how fast I am!"

"Baby rose, come here." Tony got up from the floor and pulled the boy into his arms, kissing his head full of emotion.

Steve smiled and leaned against the wall behind him, raised his arm and gave Bucky a warm welcome as he huddled against his side and put his arm around him. Now everything's good. And Tony had finally found someone to spend the rest of his vampire life with.

[ratwrites]

Demons

Requests.

Masterlist.

Prompt/s: None

Summary: Dean is having nightmares as a side effect of removing the mark and he needs comfort.

Warnings: Angst, fluff

Pairing: Dean Winchester X Reader

Word Count: 2,011

A/N: Sorry it isn't the best. Dean is probably my least favorite character of TFW and I find it difficult to write him. I tried to write a more vulnerable side of Dean that we don't get to see very often.

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"You're gonna die, and this, this is what you're gonna become!" Hands slid around her throat. They were my hands, but it didn't seem like me. It was an outer body experience as I lifted her by the throat her feet no longer touching the floor. I could see Sam laying in the distance crimson blood dripping from his neck.

Her hands clawed at my wrists and her feet kicked trying to force me to release. "Dean..." She whined, her voice strained and dying.

"Dean this isn't- isn't you!-" I squeezed harder. Tears sprung out onto her cheeks mixing with the blood from multiple cuts on her face. The mark on my arm burned causing my fingers to twitch around her neck. With a growl I threw her sending her onto and over the library table and onto the broken chairs around it. She barely moved as if she was trying to raise herself, but she couldn't. I moved around the table rolling her onto her stomach. Cas? She was gone. Replaced by a bloodied angel.

"Dean... Please.." I was grabbing his shirt by the collar his angel blade suddenly in my hand. His weak grip took hold of my wrist. My mind screamed at me. "KILL HIM! LET HIM LIVE! KILL HIM!" It was a war. My vision turned red pent up rage and anger surging through me.

"This is what you're gonna become! Hell's best torturer. Dad's perfect little soldier." That was it. The blade sank deep into the angel's chest. With a cry he lit up for a moment before the light went out. I stood eyeing the burns on the floor. I turned away from the body only to find her standing there.

"I will not fight you!" She sobbed, dropping the demon knife from her hand. My hand clenched around a gun.

"You're a monster." I raised the gun. The fear in her eyes was clear as day.

"No.." I growled, whiteknucking the gun.

"No..." I repeated, my hand beginning to tremble.

"No no no no NO!" The gun went off.

I shot upright with a loud yell sweat soaking my clothes. A figure was standing by the bed side. In a panicked frenzy I rolled off of the bed taking the gun under my pillow with me. I flipped off the safety and cocked it pointing it at the shape. "Dean it's me!"

.

Sleep. Who needed sleep. You sat in your bed with your back against the headboard. The TV sound was low as you finished your movie. "That was the worst movie I've ever seen," you grumbled, scooping up the remote and clicking it off. You rolled to the side assuming a sitting position on the side of your bed. Your fingers gripped the sheets for a moment before you stood up letting out a sigh. You stretched your arms above your head before walking to your door. You opened it quietly and stepped your socked feet out into the hallway. The lighting was dim due to the night setting that it was currently in. The hallways always stayed lit no matter the time of day. You began to pace down the hallway trying to decide where you wanted to go. You found yourself walking past Sam's room. His door was open. You paused for a moment spotting a second shape in Sam's bed. You recognized the angel who was propped up against the headboard watching over Sam. You smiled softly as Castiel's gaze met yours for a moment. It was common to find Cas watching over you or the boys at night. There had been pleanty of times you'd almost shot him in the middle of the night, but for the most part you didn't mind.

Sam had actually set out another pillow for Cas. Dean was the only one who didn't like Castiel watching over him. You walked away from the room passing a few empty bedrooms before stepping into another section of the hallway. A strange noise caught your attention. Groaning? You carefully made your way toward the sound only to stop outside of Dean's room. The door was cracked open, but not enough to see inside. You stood outside for a moment longer. The groaning came again this time more clearly. It sounded like Dean was in pain.

You knocked gently on the door slowly pushing it open. "Dean?" What met your eyes made your heart shatter. Dean laid asleep his muscles tense. He was jerking in his sleep pained sounds coming from his parted lips. His breathing was heavy and his brows were pulled tight in distress. He was muttering words that you couldn't make out.

You pondered for a moment whether or not to wake him and made your decision. He'd drawn you out of many nightmares and you wanted to return the favor. You slowly got closer as Dean rolled partly onto his side. His left arm was drawn over his waist and the other was lying against the bed. His head jerked up and pushed itself back down into the pillow. His right hand was clenched into a tight fist the knuckles going white with pressure. "Dean," you called, reaching out to him. You weren't sure how to wake him, but you expected there to be a jump when he did. His shoulder tensed more under your touch before relaxing a bit.

You noticed the sweat soaking his shirt against the palm of your hand. "Dean wake up." You shook his shoulder letting go as he rolled flat onto his back. He groaned again this one coming out as more of a growl. His body tensed again leaving him writhering on the bed. You reached over and grabbed both of his shoulders. This time he didn't relax.

"Dean! Dean wake up!" You called, shaking him again.

"No.. No..." He muttered, tossing his head back and forth.

"Dean!" You jumped back as he shot upright with a loud cry. Within a split second he was off the other side of the bed with his gun pointed at you. You raised your hands in surrender.

"Dean it's me!" you said, keeping your hands out in front of you. He slowly lowered the gun and you followed dropping your hands to your sides.

"What- why are you in here?" he growled, setting the gun on his nightstand. He ran a hand over his face in an attempt to clear away the sweat. You turned away from him and walked into his joined bathroom. You snatched a towel from the wrack and walked over to him.

"You were having a nightmare," you stated, as he took the towel. He held it in his hands, eventually wiping his face, hands, and arms.

"I was up and heard you from the hall," you added. You grabbed a fresh short sleeved shirt from his dresser and tossed it at him. You kept your distance. He eyed you for a moment before sitting the towel on the bed. He slid the wet shirt over his head dropping it on the floor. You couldn't help but take his appearance in. He flicked on the lamp on his nightstand adding to the dim hallway light that pooled into the room. The sweat glistened across his body. He picked up the towel and dried himself off before throwing the towel on the floor as well.

"Do you want to talk about it?" You asked, as he slipped on the clean shirt.

"No," he grunted, sitting down on the bed. He placed his elbows on his knees burying his face in his hands. Dean had brought you out of many nightmares. Sometimes you'd tell him about it, but the times you wouldn't he'd embrace you in a hug to comfort you. You paced over and stood in front of him your body almost touching his head. You crouched down a bit and took his chin between your thumb and forefinger. He lifted his head with your movement. You slowly stood bringing him to an upright position.

"Hey, it's okay," you murmured. You could feel the clench in his jaw as you slipped your hand across it resting your hand on his cheek. His expression softened. You looked down at him offering him a gentle smile. Without a word he leaned forward his face pressing against your collar bone. You wrapped your arms across the back of his neck signaling that you were here. With your silent permission his arms snaked around your back pulling you between his now parted legs and against his chest. You rested your chin on his head shifting to plant a kiss into his hair. You stayed there. He was shaking. You hugged a little tighter and he returned it pulling your even closer to him.

This was a rare sight. You'd loved Dean for a long time and you took every chance to show it and be near him, but him returning that was rare. There had been a few times where he showed you how he felt about you, but each time he pushed you away after. You understood why. He was afraid to get close to you or to anyone. This life was filled with death and he'd admitted that it would be easier to keep his distance. No attachments is what he'd told you.

You raised one of your hands to gently stroke his hair hoping to settle his shaking. "Was it about the mark again?" you questioned, calmly. He nodded against your collar bone his fingers lightly gripping the fabric of your shirt. It had only been a few weeks since he'd gotten rid of the mark, but the memories and the feelings still bothered him often. With Amara out there somewhere seemed to make him even more tense.

"Is there anything I can do?" You asked. He lifted his head causing you to shift your arms to his shoulders. Your gaze met his. Amusement flashed in you as you watched his pupils expand the longer he looked at you. One of his hands came up resting on your cheek. You leaned into his touch your eyes staying with his. After a moment his hand moved to the back of your neck gently bringing you down. He captured your lips with his causing your eyes to immediately flutter shut. This wasn't the first kiss you'd shared with him, but it was the first where he started it. He glided against you setting a steady pace between you.

His other hand rested on the back of your thigh giving it a squeeze. You understood. Without parting you carefully placed yourself on his upper thighs. His hands slid around your back again pulling you flush against his chest. Your arms were around his neck helping to secure his hold. You finally broke away breathless.

"I need-" he hesitated.

"I'm scared.." Surprise washed over you. Dean? Scared? That was new.

"Of?" You questioned, staying in your place.

"Losing you.." You ran a hand over his cheek again reassuringly thumbing his skin.

"I'm not going anywhere Dean," you assured.

"I just... This thing with Amara- this bond.. I'm scared, I'm scared it'll-" he hesitated, sucking in a shaky breath.

"Hey, listen to me." You drew his attention to you.

"I'm not leaving you Dean and I'll be damned if Amara thinks she can take you away from us, from me," you explained.

"I love you Dean and nothing is going to change that not even her," you assured. You pressed a kiss to his forehead.

"I- I love you too." That wasn't what you were expecting. Dean drew you in for another kiss. It was short but filled with passion.

"Stay with me?" He asked.

"Of course." You slid off of him and onto the bed. He followed laying down and making himself comfortable on his side. You curled up against his chest tucking your head under his chin. His arms came around you locking you in. He needed to know what was real and that is what you intended to give him.

Forever Taglist:

@morrioghainfae @xaviersmutcnt @raindrops-on-roses142

[ladylike-foxes]

Thank you, Anon!! ❤️❤️ Have some awkward Solavellan hurt+care and a weird Dorian+Solas bromance moment for @dadrunkwriting 👉😉👉

TW: Blood, painful wounds, sutures, first aid.

~~~

She was relieved to see she was the first to wake up. Although they'd stopped arguing after Solas had screamed at her, she had a feeling it was more a pause than actually considering the matter closed. Though the cot proved an added obstacle, she managed to extricate herself from it and his limbs without rousing him. Despite the screaming pain throughout every inch of her body, it had been worth avoiding picking up the argument first thing in the morning. Her Anchor arm felt so weak as to be almost useless, and she realized she wore the tattered remnants of her clothes from the previous night, stinking of stale sweat and dried blood. Wrinkling her nose, she pulled her shirt off with a barely swallowed yelp; remembering the claw marks on her stomach only after she tore the ripped shirt from where it had dried to the gashes. Her left arm throbbed, threatening immobility should she attempt to raise it again. After a few moments to catch her breath, she loosed the laces of her breeches. Once more, she forgot the burn on her hip until she was peeling the leather away from the angry red wound, unable to help but cry out as the material took several layers of skin with it.

"Come here," She'd woken him, and he moved to sit on the edge of the cot.

She shuffled over, wincing, ruined pants still clinging to her upper thighs. He grasped her kindly, hands firm but soft as they framed her waist and situated her before him. He leaned in closely, she could feel his breath across her hip bone as he examined the scratches left by the Shade. When he hummed thoughtfully, she could swear ushe felt it reverberate through her. Breath came a little faster, pulse picked up slightly, skin flushing warm across her chest and face, standing there half naked under his scrutiny. After a second, he turned her slightly to look at the burn: his warm breath scalding against the raw flesh. Lips pursed as he pulled a face, sighing deeply before waving his hand over one wound and then the others. Releasing her, he rested his elbows on his knees, breathing slow and controlled as he squeezed his eyes shut. He hadn't been able to heal either one completely, and they would certainly scar, but at least the lacerations had closed and the burn was a smaller, healther scab.

"Thank you," Muttering quietly, still wary of a fight.

"I would have done more, but I am attempting to conserve my mana, should it be direly necessary later," Still hunched over, eyes shut, "Dorian and I spent the evening helping to heal the Chargers. No doubt he is exhausted as I."

"I'm sure Bull's people greatly appreciate it," Having turned away to quickly don fresh clothes, "I certainly do."

When she faced him again, he was rubbing his face, and she saw his arm was sloppily bandaged. Impulsively, she moved to grab his wrist for a better look, but he snatched out of her grasp with a startled look. His eyes are particularly stormy today, thinking distractedly.

"You didn't bother to heal your own injuries first?"

"My skills were needed elsewhere," Slightly defensive and a touch accusatory, "I was already weaker than usual."

"Okay, but you should at least let me look at it," Reaching again but slow and deliberate, "I know shit-all about healing magic, but you know shit-all about first aid. Let me see."

Scowling, he reluctantly offered his arm. She unwound the bandage carefully, glad to see it hadn't been dried to the injury as her clothes had been. Running the length of his forearm was a long, deep gash. He had packed it with gauze, but she could see clearly it required stitches if there was any hope of keeping it from infection. She straightened up with a sigh, hands on her hips, anticipating his doubtless objection to her magically-lacking treatment.

"I'm gonna need to stitch that up—" Holding a hand up to cut off his refusal," At least until you feel better enough to heal it yourself."

He didn't attempt to speak again, but looked at her with dubious ire. She shrugged, gesturing for him to follow her outside.

"I'm going to need to see it in the light, if you don't want me to butcher it."

After a minute taken, she was sure, to bitch quietly to himself, he emerged from the tent after her. He turned immediately to Dorian, who looked immensely hungover sitting on the nearest side of the fire, but the Magister was already waving his hand in a weak dismissal.

"Sorry, Solas. As I've already told Halie, I'm too weak myself to tend to your arm," One hand remaining a makeshift visor over his squinting eyes, he pointed to his bag with the other.

"The distilled spirits are in that bottle in the side pocket of my bag, Love."

Halesta grabbed the bottle and then a few clean rags and other things from amongst their own supplies before sitting down, indicating Solas sit beside her.

"What are the spirits for?"

Eyeing her with confusion, but she merely grinned, not allowing him a chance to pull away before pouring half the bottle over the gaping wound. He hissed and spat curses in Elvhen, jerking his arm away again. She smiled to herself and took a small pull from the bottle before setting it aside.

"You might have simply warned me!" Pouting like a child.

"Where's the fun in that? Now, c'mon, lemme see it."

He continued his low muttering in Elvhen, so soft and quickly she was only able to catch the occasional word. Hearing her People's tongue spoken so naturally, regardless of his agitation, was strangely calming. Even his largely nonsensical string of curses had a sort of musical quality. Bending one of her smallest needles into a hook, she sterilzed it along with a pair of tweezers in a small flame she'd easily summoned. Deftly threading the needle, and with one last splash of spirits over the length of colored floss (sage green, of course), she turned her gaze back to him.

"This isn't going to be painless...."

"What in life is?" Sarcastically quipped, "I have had worse, I am certain. Go on."

A strange compulsion came over her. She leaned up and pressed a brisk kiss to the corner of his mouth, then quickly sat to focus on her work before it could be acknowledged. She studied the laceration again; it was fairly deep, though there wasn't too much damage to the actual muscle, which was good. There were a few different sutures she had learned from Mamae. Judging by the width of the wound, the "U"-shaped sack stitch would probably be best. She moved to start, but hesitated...it'd been years since she'd done this. A nervous reflex, she glanced up to see Solas watching her with a small—albeit, slightly wistful—smile, slow blink and nod of confidence. Rolling her eyes at his reassurance, and her apparent need for it, she tucked in. Deliberate, fluid motions, like her mother had taught her back when she thought she'd be without magic. Back when it seemed there was no in studying under her mother as a healer, as Aura had. So Halesta and Laleal had stuck with basic field first-aid; learning to set bones, suture, and a cursory study of medicinal benefits of some common plants. Laleal had never been squeamish about sutures, but Halie’s were always neater. The notion that that she had once been squeamish made her laugh aloud.

“What is amusing?” Her glance flickered up briefly to see her patient arching a brow wryly.

She shook her head, smiling as she continued her mending, “Nothing, really. Just a funny old memory.”

“Pray, tell.”

“Oh, yes!” Dorian turned toward them, Bull appearing at his side, “Story time.”

“Ehh, I don’t know,” Ducking her head with a chuckle, “Even if you did believe me, you’d laugh at me.

“C’monnn, Boss,” Bull leaned in with a drowsy grin, “Spill the beans.”

Sighing dramatically, the heat rushing to her face even as she maintained a steady pace with the stitches. She let them wait for a moment as she knotted and cut another suture.

“Mamae was a healer, and people would come from the nearby villages whenever word spread that our Clan was in the area. Even the worst of the humans were careful to watch their tongue, in case they should need Mamae’s help, which they had the courtesy to assume they’d be refused if she heard them calling us ‘Knife-Ears’.... Though, honestly, she’d have helped them anyway. Wellll, so,“ Trying to focus more on her hands than the story, that old embarrassment creeping up in her throat, “I, uh, was actually very squeamish about this sort of thing as a child. Blood and such, I mean.”

Dorian, Bull, and the more familiar Chargers roared with laughter. Even Solas wasn’t attempting to restrain his chuckling, making it difficult for her to see what she was doing.

“You? Squeamish?” Varric had joined them at some point, his voice emerging from somewhere behind her, “Our Little Bit? I don’t believe it.”

Gently stabbing Solas with the needle so he’d sit still, “I know, I know. The irony, right?”

They teased and laughed for awhile; and maybe it was the time that’d passed or how much she’d changed, but it didn’t seem as embarrassing as it once had. She dabbed at the blood that had started from his wound again, her mind drifting slightly from everything but the repetition of her movements. The conversation around her drifted too, though it sounded distant and indistinct to her at first.

“—You and the Chief were actually quieter than those two,” Krem’s comments to Dorian snapping her out of her reverie, “Between the four of you, I’m surprised Maryden and I got any sleep at all!”

“Yeah, he really laid you out last night, huh, Boss?” A teasing undercurrent to Bull’s tone as he set up the punchline for her.

“And not even in the fun way,” Mock disappointment and a sly sidelong glance to her friends.

They were surrounded by laughter, but the easy kind. The kind that indicated that the subject had been dropped. Solas pouted quietly for a moment; she didn’t dare look up at him and risk his glaring daggers at her.

“Dorian,” His voice low and smooth overhead, nearly distracting her from looping a knot, “May I see that bottle? Is this what you were drinking last night?”

“The Massaad?” Passing the bottle to his free hand, “I didn’t take you for a Sommelier, Solas.”

“Hm,” Amused hum as he examined the bottle in his hand, “I am not. I, however, do need a drink if I am to deal with this heckling all day.”

She looked up in surprise to see his head tossed back and bottle bottom-up, finishing it off with a mere three swallows. Bull barked a laugh while Krem looked nervously at Dorian’s appalled expression.

“That was an extremely rare vintage!!”

“Ir abelas, Falon,” Smiling apologetically, “But, I do have...countless resources at my disposal. I swear to procure you another to replace it.”

Dorian seem to consider this, appearing mollified.

“Wait,” The Magister’s tone surprisingly lighthearted, “Before or after you destroy the world?”

Solas actually laughed along with Dorian, while Halie looked between the two men, needle frozen in the air and her mouth slightly agape.