#in a few days i get to submerge my ankle in a bath because the injury will have closed enough and i am very much looking forward to it

[halexxsam]

After Heat Ritual

working on posting my writings from a03 to tumblr as well. Read on a03 here. Divider from @wrathofrats.

summary: A closer look into Dewdrop's post-heat ritual and some new obstacles Aether faces being newly mated.

words: 2,456

Aether woke up to the soft sound of Dew purring, the smaller ghoul’s head in the crook of his neck, his hair spread all around him. His mate had finally fallen asleep around 2am, his heat had hit him hard the past five days, and he had finally cooled down. Being a fire ghoul, Aether was easily able to tell when his mates' heat started and ended. 

Aether ran his hands through the long silver hair, brushing through the knots. Dew kicked up his purr, leaning into his mate’s touch. Aether chuckled, his mate could be so adorable sometimes, when he wanted to. 

“C’mon hun, I know you’re awake.” Aether poked him in the cheek, earning himself a soft growl. “I’ll get you into a nice bath, wash your hair, even make you a nice breakfast.”

Eventually, the fire ghoul crawled out of his nest and followed his mate into their bathroom. The tub was filled, steam filling the air. Dew could smell the sandalwood essence, it crept into his bones and drew him to submerge himself in the boiling water. 

Aether turned to his mate, grinning, setting the towel down on the toilet seat. “Didn’t wanna wait for me, huh?” 

Dew moved his tail from the warm bath, the spade flicking Aether in the ankle. “Alright then, enjoy your boiling bath, honey. I’ll put some fresh sheets on the nest.” 

Dew grumbled out a response, before sinking farther back into the bath. Once a water ghoul, always a water ghoul. 

Eventually Dew padded out of the bathroom, his hair in two dutch braids, almost reaching his lower back. “Hi,” he muttered out, fiddling with the towel hanging around his waist. 

Aether smiled, gathering his mate in his arms. “I cleaned the nest, and I set some soft clothes out for you.” He grabbed his hand and sat him on the bed, helping his mate get dressed. Dew started to purr again, his tail wrapping around Aether’s waist, a silent thank you. 

“Pack,” Dew mumbled, pulling a shirt over his head, it was Mountain’s, he knew that because he was swimming in it. 

Aether laughed, grabbing Dew’s hand, twirling him around and picking him up. His small mate fit perfectly in his arms, his legs wrapping around his waist and arms around his neck, head lying on his shoulder. 

He left the ghoul dormitories and headed to their den, a big blanket draped over him, almost entirely covering Dew from anyone’s view. Which was good, because his stubborn mate refused to put on his mask after his heat. 

Opening the door to the den, Aether could see almost his entire pack. It was Sunday, the one day a week where the ghoul’s weren't expected to do anything for the Ministry. Even the siblings were told to avoid the dormitory, along with the lake and the greenhouse. However, that never stopped few from straying, trying to catch a glimpse of the ghouls in their devilish state.

Swiss was lying on the couch, his feet on Rain’s lap, both of which were watching some documentary on the TV. Mountain was sitting in the love seat, a book in his hands. Phantom was sitting on the floor, his head right up against Swiss’ side, a controller in his hands as he played Mario Kart. Aether could hear the girls in the kitchen, probably making them some food. 

“There he is!” Swiss exclaimed, his hand running through Phantom’s hair. Dew gave a small chirp in response. 

“Hi Dewy,” Rain said, shifting slightly to try and get a peak at the fire ghoul from under his blanket. He watched him shift in Aether’s arm, murmuring something he could quite pick up. 

“He wants you, Rain. That alright?” He asked, stepping closer to the water ghoul. Rain nodded, shoving Swiss’ feet off his lap, earning himself a soft growl from the multi-ghoul. Rain smacked him on the leg with the tip of his tail. 

Aether all but dropped his mate on the water ghoul, Dew quickly straddling him and burying his face into their neck. Rain cooed, his hand coming up to grasp the scruff of his neck. Dew melted a bit more, a soft trill coming from him as he settled. 

Aether made his way over to Mountain, claiming the spot next to him. The earth ghoul smiled softly, settling his book down and pulling the other ghouls feet into his lap. Aether let out a pleased sigh. He loved helping his mate with his heat, but being surrounded by his whole pack again was nice. He didn’t have to be the only one on guard anymore, knowing he could trust his pack to watch over his mate. 

Almost like Mountain knew what he was thinking, he patted his leg to grab his attention. Aether gave a soft sound in reply, his eyes already feeling heavy. 

“We’ve got him, Aeth. We’re all here, nothin’s gonna happen to him.” Aether growled softly, his instincts still driving him to protect his mate, but he was so tired, and being surrounded by his pack, in their den, it was hard to keep his eyes open. Mountain tsked, pulling on his element and letting a bit of lavender permeate through the air. 

Aether was out like a light after that. 

The girls came out of the kitchen with handfuls of food, settling them down on the table. A closer look revealed it was all of Dew’s favorites after his heat. Cumulus pulled Dew off Rain and held him in her lap, all the girls hand-feeding him food. 

A knock from the den door stopped them, everyone’s hackles raised, Mountain letting out a low growl. With Aether asleep, it was up to him to protect their den. Reaching the door, he recognized the scent of the person on the other side, letting out a soft trill to alert his pack that everything was okay. 

“My Ghoul, is now a bad time?” Copia asked, standing still at the entryway, dressed in casual clothes, no paint on his face. 

“Um,” Mountain said, turning his head to his pack, watching how they reacted, “Yeah, yeah, come on in. Aeth is asleep, Dew is with the girls.” 

Swiss had come up behind Mountain, he was unglamored, and reached out to grab his Papa by the waist, his tail wrapping around him. 

“Hi Papa,” Swiss said, pulling him closer, leaning in to him, a pleased chirp coming from the ghoul. He went and sat back down next to Rain.

“I showered and put on a fresh set of clothes, dear. I learned from last time.” He laughed, gaining happy trills from the rest of the pack. 

“How’s my Dewdrop doing?” Copia asked, coming over to him, putting a hand on his back, rubbing slightly. 

Dew chirped, removing his head from Cirrus’ neck. “Papa.” 

“I’m here, love. You know I’d always come and check on you,” He murmured. “Can I do anything for you?” 

Aether started to stir, the scent of a human, even his Papa, was able to pull him out of his sleep, his instincts still high. 

“Um, Papa, I need you to come over here to me, quickly.” Mountain said, not taking his eyes off Aether. “Now.” 

Copia stepped away from Dew, making his way over to Mountain, watching Aether open his eyes, his fingers already sparking some of his quintessence. Copia’s eyes widened when he heard a low, dominant growl come from behind him. 

He froze, knowing all too well that it was Aether. He watched as Swiss came over to him, grabbing his wrists and rubbing them against his cheeks, and even nuzzling his neck. He realized that it was Swiss’ way of covering him in his scent as to ease Aether. 

“Aether, it's just Papa, here to see you and Dew,” Rain said, looking at Aether from the other couch. It didn’t make his growl stop, but it did get quieter, Rain being the most soothing of the ghouls. 

“Dew,” Aether growled, trying to get away from Mountain. 

Upon hearing his mate’s voice, the fire ghoul jumped away from Circus and crawled into his mate’s arms, purring just enough for his mate to hear. Breathing in his mate’s scent, Aether saw that he was fine and they were surrounded by their pack in their den. It took him a minute, arms wrapped tightly around the fire ghoul before his eyes cleared, returning to their normal state. 

“I-I’m sorry, Papa. I didn’t mean to–” Aether started, embarrassed that he let himself act like that towards his leader, and ashamed he didn’t have more trust in his pack. 

“Sh, it’s alright. I might not know all about how you all interact and such, but I do know Dew just went through a vulnerable week, your behavior is understandable.” He said, staying next to Mountain. “I can come back if that would be better for you.” 

Dew made an unhappy noise, cutting his purring short. Aether couldn’t have that. Dew didn’t purr often, not even with just the two of them. He would do anything to keep hearing it. 

“No, stay. You’re also pack, I’m sorry about my response.” He said, rubbing his hands up and down Dew’s back. Settling down again, Dew started a soft purr. 

Copia came to sit on the couch, Swiss having moved down to the floor to join Phantom in his video game. Rain grinned at his Papa before throwing his legs over his lap. Copia put his hands on the ghoul’s leg, a calming, grounding touch. Rain started to let out a happy trill. 

“What is that noise that you guys can make?” Copia asked, pointing to Aether and Dew, both purring softly. 

“We actually can make a bunch of different noises, all meaning different things.” Mountain said, pointing towards the mated pair next to him. “The sound they're making right now? That’s a purring sound.” 

“What does it mean?” He posed. “I want to learn about it, all of them.”

“Um, it's usually a sign of content, happiness. It kind of varies, not all of us do it, or do it often. It depends a lot on the situation and emotions.” 

“Interesting. So, those two. What does it mean now?” Mountain smiled at his Papa, excited to talk about this with someone who actually wanted to know about them. 

Rain laughed softly, giving Swiss a soft nudge to bring his attention to Mountain and their Papa. 

“Well, Dew just finished his heat, and he gets very cuddly afterwards with all of us. He doesn’t purr often, we rarely get to hear it. He is happy right now, still feeling euphoric from the end of his heat.” He smiled, running a hand down Dew’s back, his purr kicking up a bit. 

“Dew also goes a bit non-verbal after his heat. We all rely on the different sounds he makes to judge how he is doing.” Mountain flicked an unglamored ear towards Dew, listening for a minute. 

“He is happy right now, relaxed. Having Aether with him and being able to smell all of us, also being content, makes him feel better, safer. Lets him know that we are here to protect him if anything happens.” 

Copia nodded, smiling at the fact his ghoul was so happy at the moment. “And what about Aether? He’s purring too?” 

“Yeah he is. Aether only purrs for Dew. For mates, it’s a sign of trust, of love. It’s Dew’s way of telling Aether he appreciates him for helping him with his heat, telling him that he loves him and is thankful for him.” 

Dew made a soft noise, moving himself closer into Aether’s side. Almost showing off to Copia, Rain thought. 

Mountain stretched, leaving the couch to grab one of the sandwiches the girls made. He shoved the place towards Copia, letting him know they were there for him, too. 

“Thank you, Mountain.” Copia said, grabbing something off the plate. 

Mountain hummed, finishing his sandwich before continuing. “Aether purrs in response to Dew. Typically, it’s seen as a submissive gesture, and Aether responds in tune because he is happy that his mate is so…” Mountain stopped, not quite knowing what to say next. 

“Come on, Mounty, you can say it.” Swiss laughed, knowing what he was planning to say. 

Mountain growled out in response, causing Swiss to laugh again. “He wants to say submissive, Papa. Aether is happy that Dew is submitting to him, openly, in-front of all of us.” 

Copia blushed, looking anywhere but Mountain and the mated ghoul’s. “Oh.” 

“Yeah. It also is a calming gesture. Aether’s purr makes Dew feel safe and happy. Knowing that everything is okay.” 

“That’s actually really sweet. My sweet little ghouls.” Copia said, looking over all of them. “Do you all purr, then?”

“We actually all can, it's just a matter of choice.” Cumulus starts, “The only one out of us who doesn’t like to purr is Cirrus, actually.” 

Copia turned his head to her, a questioning look on his face. She just shrugged back in response, a smile on her lips. 

Copia laughed a bit, relaxing into the couch. Phantom and Swiss stopped their video games, Aether’s quintessence having slipped into the air making them tired, wanting the touch of their packmates. 

Copia watched as Dew eventually began to stir, making new noises he was sure would be explained to him. He watched as all the ghouls sat up a bit straighter, Mountain’s eyes tracked to the door of the den. Copia watched silently. 

He watched Dew pull away from Aether and scan the den, smiling when he noticed everyone was here. He watched as the pack, one by one, made their way over to Dew. He watched as everyone of them trailed their hands over Dew, marking their scent on him, as well as marking his on them. He heard them chirp and trill, relishing in the touch of every other. 

He thinks back to when he became Papa, remembering the speech Sister Imperator gave him about commanding the ghouls, and having to do so with an iron fist. 

“These are hellish demons, never to be mistaken for anything else. They can glamor themselves and act human, yes, but they are demons, never forget that. They will be loyal to you, not because they want to, but because they must.” 

But sitting with his ghouls, watching them as they checked over one of their own, the ways in which they all took care of each other…Copia knew that Sister had the ghouls all wrong. They were demons from hell, yes, but they were also sweet beings. Copia knew then and there that he would do anything to keep his ghouls from being sent back to the pit.

[ghoulangerlee]

If you have disability headcanons for any or all ghouls and/or the papas I would love to hear them 🫂💖

I don't necessarily have disability headcanons for all of the ghouls, but there's a few that I do have some for!

Cumulus in particular, she's got pretty bad knees; they ache most of the time, though she tries to keep on top of her exercises, sometimes she's just not able to. Along with that comes just, exhaustion from being in pain all the time. Any good day she's out doing all the things she can, but on her bad days, she's got her legs elevated on a wedge pillow, a cold compress over her knees where they hurt the most. Being on the surface is hard when your bones are not made to really deal with carrying more of your weight than normal. Her knees click and pop and crackle anytime she walks.

Mountain's got just chronic pain in general, he hurts a lot, probably from his height; he's just so darn tall that his elbows and knees and hips and ankles always ache; he likes to take warm baths to alleviate the aches, just submerge himself in water as hot as he can stand. Again, this whole pain thing comes from the gravity of the surface versus the pits, with a ghoul like Mountain, he takes up space differently up here, so everything is just off whenever he focuses too hard on it. Those days are the bad ones, I think. The days where he feels like a fish out of water.

Rain, I think, once he came up to the surface, suffers from stomach aches a lot. He's just not used to the food up there and everything seems to set him off. He'll eat something and within a few minutes, he can feel the cramps coming, his body just absolutely refusing to digest the food on the surface properly. He's able to sorta...stick to what he'd eat if he were still in the pits, but it's kinda hard to find uh fresh meat on the road during tours and such.

Copia, cause I can't forget about my favorite guy, he's got similar knee problems as Cumulus, though where hers is just because she's not used to being on the surface (there's a gravity explanation here somewhere. her joints are very similar to a bird's and the surface gravity is just not good for human sized birds etc etc etc) his comes from years of just, being on his feet. degenerative joint disease. aging. he does try to keep himself spry and limber, he and Cumulus will do stretches together, exercise together of course. But sometimes, if it's too cold, if he stands in one place for way too long, if he's got shoes on that he probably shouldn't be wearing, his knees and legs just hurt. He has to change positions in bed a lot (sleeping and otherwise), he can't stay seated for too long or he starts feeling an ache. It sucks, getting older, but he's content and happy with it most days. Even on his worst days, he (thankfully) has a pack of ghouls willing to help him ease that pain.

[daydream-cement]

The Cedars Have Eyes Ch. 11

Characters: Larissa Weems x OC (Fern Rogers)

Synopsis: Our main characters decide to be honest with themselves and one another.

Authors Note: Huge thank you to @agirlwithtwodogs for talking this chapter out with me! Definitely gave me some direction! This chapter is shorter and MAYBE ITS CORNY BUT ITS BEAUTIFUL TO ME!

You sat in the hot bath water, a shiver running down your back as your body tried to regain homeostasis. Larissa was on her knees on the bathroom floor, scooping cups of hot water over your head, covering your forehead with a hand so it didn’t run all over your face. She was such a good caretaker. You wondered if there ever would have been a day where you could have truly returned the favor.

“You could get sick from getting this cold. The lake isn’t warm enough for swimming.” Larissa scolded, her hand dropping the cup into the water and her fingers dipping down into the water, checking to see if the tub was still warm.

“We didn’t go to swim. Well maybe Rowan did. She pulled me in and… it just reminded me of when we were young. We began racing to the crypt like when we were students here… It was stupid.” You brought your knees up to your chest, wrapping your arms around them as you spoke.

Larissa paused a moment, rethinking her approach to the situation, “That’s not stupid. That probably was fun…”

“It was… Something grabbed my ankle. It pulled me down into a cave, Larissa. There is an underwater cave and it leads to the crypt. Rowan tried saving me.” You began explaining the rest of the story, “We found the last name and behind the vault door, Crackstone was there. Him and Alias, I think.”

“Alias Mason? The one who killed the council?”

“Yes! I think he is still under Crackstone’s control. He is the one who tried killing us. Well, Crackstone told him to kill Rowan, they wanted me alive.” You took a deep breath and released your knees, submerging them back into the water.

Larissa thought for a moment, remembering the discussion they all had after she visited the Council of 12 Cedars, “So do you think he is looking to control you in the same way?”

“It’s possible, but I don’t know how he controls him…” You were still stumped by that. You were hoping it wouldn’t be another run in with poisonous plants, “Then when they realized we were outside the vault, Crackstone sent Alias after us. We ran up a flight of stairs that led into the coffin.”

“And that’s where I found you…” Larissa finished the story herself.

You both sat in silence a little bit longer. Larissa fidgeted with the bath, draining some water out and replacing it with hotter water, even adding soap so there would be some bubbles.

There had been a lot on your mind after today. Knowing how close you were to your final day, you knew that you had to share everything, “It was so scary. I was crying in the coffin. I couldn’t help it. How am I supposed to save everyone like the trees say when I couldn’t even handle that? Rowan and you were the ones to truly save me.”

Larissa thought for a moment. She thought about the portions of the past few weeks that she hadn’t shared with you. She didn’t have time to speak however because you kept going.

“And I keep trying to protect everyone, but none of it is working. I think I’m hurting everyone more than I protect them….” You thought for a long hard moment and began sharing details that you should have long ago, “I know I’m down to 5 days until the next full moon, but I don’t die in 5 days. I die in 8 days. I’ll be trapped down there for 3 days… I don’t know what’s going to happen to me.”

Larissa felt her breath catch at the revelation. How she desperately wished you would have told her sooner. Your vulnerability and openness made Larissa question herself, “I’ve been trying to protect you too. Now, I’m beginning to question if I haven’t been honest enough with you.”

You look up at her. Deep down you could feel Larissa guarding you from the truth of some sort, “What is it?”

“When I visited the cedars… They told me that you were going to save everyone, but I am supposed to save you. I don’t know how, but I plan on fulfilling my destiny.” Larissa’s determination was admirable. You were still reeling from the cedars providing her with a specific role in all of this.

“We are ridiculous,” You looked into Larissa’s eyes, shaking your head, “All this time, we should have been working as a team, but we were too busy trying to protect one another.”

“Better late than never.”

———

You sat on the kitchen counter, wearing an old sweater of Larissa’s. She was heating up food for the both of you. You both continued admitting a variety of withheld secrets from one another.

“Those dreams about the vines: I was having then since the meeting house and for a week or so before the sleepwalking. The dreams about being buried alive started as soon as I went into the crypt that first time. I remember going out into the woods to scream just to feel something. I lied to you and told you I just went for a walk.” You admitted, staring down at the kitchen floor, “I found out about where the Council of 12 Cedars was from a dream too.”

“I made Mr. Ottinger tell me where I could find the Council. I didn’t go out there thinking I would speak to them, I just wanted to look around. I was horrifying watching those outcasts consumed by trees.” Larissa shivered at the mere thought of the horrors from that day. This triggered a new thought for you however, “I know Lesil said that Alias didn’t mean to hurt the outcasts but it was-”

“What if I hurt students? What if he takes control of me and I hurt students or other teachers? Larissa, what if I hurt you?” The what-ifs came pouring in and the anxiety began to blossom in your chest. Larissa left the stove unattended so she could pull you into a hug. She loved when you sat on the counter when she cooked, it made you that much taller and that much easier to love on.

“That’s what I’m here for. We will make sure that the students are somewhere safe. I plan on being at your side or helping you however you need.” Knowing that you were less alone in this whole situation by having Larissa and Rowan there for you made the whole thing feel that much easier.

“I’m not ready to die…”

———

You and Larissa laid in bed together, her head resting on your chest. This evening had brought you even closer together, making you wish that you had been more open and communicative during your entire relationship. Like Larissa said, better late than never.

You had her fingers interwoven with yours. You brought them to your lips, pressing kisses to each individual digit. You had so much love for this woman and the fact that you couldn’t spend more time with her was torture. With how honest you had both been tonight, you knew you had to share one final thing.

“Larissa… I wasn’t going to talk to you about this. I actually was just going to wait for you to find it after I was gone, but it wouldn’t be right.” You pull your fingers away from hers and reach into your bedside table, pulling out a black box.

Larissa’s breath hitched, already assuming what was to come next.

“It’s too soon. I know that, but under the circumstances I wanted you to know that I was so happy I could spend the rest of my life with you. There is no one I would rather die loving than you.” With that you opened the box revealing a simple ring with a few small diamonds laid into it. You heart beat so loudly in your chest, you wondered if she could hear it.

“Oh, Fern…” Larissa shifted, propping herself up on an elbow so she could look at you.

“I know it’s fast. If we had more time, I wouldn’t have done this so-” She shut you up with a kiss, fully understanding why you had done what you did.

“Yes. I’m yours.” She pulled the ring from the box and slipped it on her finger. You couldn’t help but cry from how happy you were. In any other timeline, this would’ve been extremely out of the ordinary for you. In this moment, however, you knew you could rest easy knowing that she would be yours until the day you died.

Link to Chapter 12

[physicalturian]

[18+] The thrill of the chase - Nanami Kento X Reader

[She/Her pronouns used for the reader; No physical description. Everyone is 18+] [No spoilers from the anime nor the manga]

Words : 8951

Archive of our own

Inspired by this art on Twitter and this one on TikTok

Tags : Fluff / Smut / Roleplay / Hair-Pulling / Soft degradation / Prey/Predator / Chase / Powerplay / Power dynamics / Punching / Impact play / Marking / Unprotected Sex / Spit kink / Choking / Play fighting / Cockwarming / Overstimulation / Begging / Submission / Blood kink / Edgeplay

Summary: Nanami comes home all bloody after taking care of some curses. You confess finding it hot to see him in such state and things take a twisted turn...

-“If you’re so feisty, show me some of that energy little mouse. I don’t think you realize you’re trapped yet,”

Taking a bath was supposed to be relaxing. And most of the time it was but knowing that Nanami was late and still not home made it harder to unwind.

While I was submerged by burning water, music playing in the background, I kept my arms out of the bath to avoid withering like a prune. My eyes were closed as I tried to think of anything but the possibility of my partner being wounded, I trusted him, he knew what he was doing… But I also regretted his change of career. He was a lot safer in the confine of corporate bureaus. But who was I to say anything? He seemed a lot happier being a sorcerer than doing stock market.

I drummed my fingers nervously on the side of the bath, humming to drown my thoughts, taking in the nice fragrance of the bath bomb I had threw in the water. I could still hear the fizzy sound it made as it dissolved, amidst the popping sounds of the bubbles on the surface of the water. Taking a handful of bubbles, I huffed to myself, “I’ll clock out before 6pm, he says” I grumbled, letting them fall back in the water “I don’t do overtime, he says” I said, imitating his gruffy tone. He could at least text if he were on his way home, I thought as I leaned back, eyes closed.

“There was a small set back, I am here now.” I was startled by the voice by the door, I quickly leaned against the tub to cover myself and sighed when I saw it was Nanami. “You scared me-“ I stopped mid-sentence and looked at him in a mix of shock seeing how bloody he was but also slightly pleased by the sight. I did not want to tell him that seeing him all bloody like that had an effect on me, and it was not justworry. I hid a smile behind my palm.

I gulped when I saw him unwrap his tie from around his fist, it was covered in blood like his suit. He had a habit of doing that when he fought, I never really knew why since he would still end up with bruised knuckles. While his face was speckless, his hair wasn’t, and his suit was ruined. I was about to get up and check on him when he stepped closer and told me to stay in the bath. “I need to make sure you’re okay, Kento,” Huffing, he gave me a half-smile and let his jacket fall to the ground as he gazed down at me.

No matter how long I had known him, I would never get enough of the sight of him in his white dress shirt with his harness. It had a charm I couldn’t quite describe, perhaps it was the way it defined his muscles even more or the contrast of the black on the white. It looked exquisite on him. Sitting on the edge of the bath, he grabbed his weapon from the harness behind his back and put in on the ground before looking at me. “I’m ok,” he reassured me as he placed one of his hand on my thigh.

It was a huge contrast of temperature with his freezing hand and my burning skin, but the worse was the intense look he was giving me as his hand slid further in. Deeper in the water, higher on my thigh. I brought my knees together to stop his hand from going any further and whispered his name in a warning tone. His reply was to tighten his grip, he had rolled up his sleeves and looked even better than moments ago. “Tell me to stop,” He breathed. I don’t want to, I thought. Instead, I played it off.

“You keep ruining your suits, we should buy black ones, it’ll be easier to remove the stain,”

I heard him hum as he moved his hands to his harness, letting go of me. I was disappointed but did not say anything, we could take a bath, relax and just enjoy one another’s company. “Perhaps should I change my entire outfit?” “No, no, the shirt and the harness stay,” I reacted too quickly, only realizing after that he had a small smirk on his face, that he was baiting me.

“Is that so?”

Chuckling, I sunk deeper in the water, “I mean, the harness holds the weird bat you got, right? So…” I trailed off. Nanami replied, deep in thought, “A polo shirt would be very comfortable-“ “Ken! Polos are ugly, you’re already on thin ice with the blue shirt and leopard printed tie,” I heard his laugh, then the muffled sound of something hitting the rug on the floor. I glanced his way and saw he was very slowly unbuttoning his shirt, his harness was on the ground. The slowness was not to make me yearn for him, no, he was in pain.

I quickly got out of the bathtub almost tripping as I did so, I ignored the cold hitting my skin and moved his hands from the buttons, “I can do it, dear,” He whispered. “Just because you cando it, doesn’t mean I can’t help you.” I replied, moving his hands once again when he tried to do it himself, instead I settled them on my hips and heard a low satisfied groan from his throat. I took a deep breath to stay composed, but I couldn’t help but feel something lighting up in me.

When I had finished unbuttoning his shirt, I shrugged it off his shoulders and took in the sight. It was once again with mixed feelings that I enjoyed it. He was gorgeously sculpted, but also covered in bruises. “You grow reckless when you do overtime, you shouldn’t rush things Ken…” I mumbled, checking if there was anything more than bruises. “The bruises will be gone in a few days,” He brought me closer against him as he said so, I wrapped my hands around his neck and saw the red that tainted my hand when I caressed the back of his head.

Pushing him away, I huffed and was about and went to grab my bathrobe, “You should get cleaned, take a bath and relax,“ “Then get back in the bath, I’ll join you,” He told me while unbuckling his belt. I paused in my steps and turned around to look at him with an inquisitive look, “Ken, I don’t think it’d be practical if we are going to do that…” When he finished undressing he stared at me with a certain hunger in his eyes. My eyes traveled from his eyes to his lips before looking at his blood-covered hair and knuckles.

Nanami held my hands in his, effectively bringing my attention back to him. A smirk was painted on his lips. “That being? A bath, with my lover, hm?” I rolled my eyes and nodded, slightly disappointed but lead us to the bath. Before I could step inside, Nanami said he’d get in first, that I should sit between his legs. “It should be the other way around, I’m not missing the chance of washing your hair, okay?” He chuckled lowly in response and told me to ‘get in then’. When I did, he stood in front of the bath a moment. I believe he was taking in the sight, and the longer he stood there, the more self-conscious I was becoming.

I made a beckoning motion with my arm and told him to join me. “Careful it’s hot,” I said hurriedly, with his hands on either side of the bath, he lowered himself into the water, I heard him hiss a bit. It could have been because of the burning water, or maybe the pain, whichever it was he did not complain. He gave me a sight I enjoyed greatly, but I held back from squeezing his ass and let him make himself comfortable. With his back now against my chest, I asked him to lean forward, which he did without a word. Like that, I let my hand roam on his back a moment. I noticed the marks around his back, it traveled to his front, I could see it on the side of his chest.

I let my fingers travel the redness, thinking of how it could have happened then it struck me, “Ken, your harness is too tight around your chest,” I whispered, as I wrapped my arms around his torso and kissed different spots on his back. I heard him sigh in content, the tension in his body visibly going away as he relaxed his form and let his hands fall in the water to hold onto my thighs. “It’s the point, that way it doesn’t move. The marks never stay long,” He stated. He had started rubbing my legs slowly. At first it was his hands wrapped around my legs, then he only trailed a few fingers along my skin.

I jerked my leg away to stop him, laughing when I told him to not do that. There was some playfulness in my voice, he knew I was not mad. “I’m not missing the chance of having you fully naked, so, unless you tell me to stop…” With a bit of a struggle, he turned around in the bath. He was still between my legs, but this time he brought me closer to him by pulling my ankles and wrapping them behind his back. My breath hitched when I felt him against me, more than just the skin. Keep it cool, there is no way I’m fucking in a bathtub, I thought.

Ignoring the closeness, I leaned back to grab the shampoo and bumped it against Nanami’s chest. “If you still have some energy to be like that, then wash your hair first,” I huffed. There was a funny feeling in my stomach when he smiled at me and bent over enough for me to see the top of his head, “Do it,”

“It would have been more practical if you hadn’t turned around,” I grumbled as I poured water over his hair before spurting some shampoo in my hand and started lathering his hair, “Don’t complain if the shampoo gets in your eyes- nor if your neck hurts because it’s entirely your fault,” I huffed, earning a low chuckle from the blond man. I rolled my eyes and suddenly gripped his hair tight when I felt his hands wander on my lower stomach before adventuring higher and brushing his thumbs over my nipples. “Ken! Don’t start,”

“Oh angel, you started this long before I did,” He said smugly. I couldn’t see his face, but I quickly rinsed off the shampoo and combed his hair back with my hands before lifting his face. “That’s entirely false, you did,” I said, falsely offended. Reaching behind me once more, I grabbed the washcloth and dipped it in the water, only to have big hands take it from mine and lead them to his higher thighs. My breath hitched once more as I looked up at him with a warning look, but I did not say anything.

A smirk was displayed on his lips as he guided my hand to his cock, then let go when I wrapped my hand around it but did not move. “I never realized until now,” he started, tucking a strand of hair that stuck to my skin behind my ear. “That seeing me in such a pitiful state turned you on,”

My eyes widened and I heard him chuckle breathlessly as he told me to go easy with the grip on his cock, I let go not having realized I had tightened my hand. “I never said that; Did I?” And here I thought I had been subtle, but it wasn’t that at all. He had feigned ignorance since he had saw me look at him too intensely. “I’d say the needy look in your eyes, and excuses to touch me, speak for themselves. Wouldn’t you agree?” I did not reply.

Instead, I shrugged and grabbed the washcloth once more, then poured some body wash on it before handing it to my partner. He pushed it back towards me, and leaned back in the bath, arms resting on either side of the bath, “I’m too sore to do it myself, would you mind?” He was good at keeping his emotions in check, he wasn’t smiling smugly, or anything as such. No, he kept his face neutral, but I knew he was being a little shit in his own way.

I smirked, “Of course,” he smiled back gently, but we both knew it wasn’t a real smile, no. He would be looking at each of my movements, ready to have me at any moment. He ran his hand through his hair and rested it back on the rim of the bath.

Scooting closer, I moved to sit on his lap, making him stretch his legs in the length with the space I had freed. “Tell me if it hurts,” I said before gripping his chin roughly, making him look at me as I cleaned his face. I felt him clench his jaw and had to hold back a smile. I avoided his gaze the entire time, focusing on cleaning before throwing him a side glance followed by a mischievous smile. “Careful,” He just said, not moving, simply letting his gaze follow me. I quirked a brow in reply, humming in a questioning manner before continuing cleaning up.

I started by his shoulders and sliding to his neck where I let my fingers wrap around his throat a bit longer than it was necessary. I felt his hand caress my back before settling on my lower back, “I said, careful,” Nanami said as he let his head fall back on the back of the tub, his eyelids almost closed as he looked at me from that angle. “Am I hurting you?” I asked innocently. I moved to clean his chest, knowing full well the moment I’d dip my hand inside the water, I’d have an advantage.

“You’re awfully daring tonight, does the sight of me drenched in blood turn you on that much, my love?”

“If anything, it annoyed me to see your suit ruined, Ken,” I huffed. When I went to wash him lower, Nanami took hold of my wrist and stopped me. I looked up at him confused and was met with a look at told me he was clearly not having it. Dropping the washcloth on his chest I sighed, “Alright, maybe, yes. Can you blame me?” I admitted. It made him chuckle as he brought me closer to him, his hands on my ass as he pressed me right against him. “Tell me more about it,” He whispered as he kissed my neck gently, leaving a trail down my collarbone before going up again.

I let out a breathless laugh at the feeling of his breath brushing over my skin along the lightness of his kisses. Both my hands were now resting on his shoulders as I leaned the side of my head against his, “I never get to see you fight,” I started, my fingers sliding over his collarbone to caress the base of his neck. “It’s for the better. If you did, that’d mean you’d be in danger,” He explained.

I sucked in my teeth, “That’s not what I meant, you’re right but I meant like…” I could feel my cheeks heat up as time went by, no matter how I worded it in my head, it was bound to sound strange the moment it’d leave my mouth.

“You’re strong, it’s hot, you’re good at being a sorcerer… And I know you enjoy the fighting, so I can’t help but think of the faces you’re making when you’re enjoying a good fight. A fight that’d leave you breathless, sore, aching all over,” I looked down at him and cradled his face in my hands as I tried to roll my hips only to be kept on the spot by Nanami’s hands. “The adrenaline pumping in your veins, your heart beating faster and faster as it tries to keep up with your ecstatic state. The rush of seeing them taken down, of knowing you were stronger than them,”

I ghosted my lips barely above his and held back a smile when he parted his lips, “Maybe you didn’t break a sweat, maybe you did, but in the end, it left you drenched in blood that isn’t yours, you’re the one left standing. You’re good at this and you could keep going until exhaustion takes over, I know it” I kissed him tenderly, smirking when I felt him trying to deepen the kiss, but I pulled back and grinned wider. “But you never do, you never let it take over, because you have to come home to me,”

“I’m starting to think there’s an underlying meaning to this speech,” Nanami hummed as he started rubbing my back gently, pouring more water over my freezing skin. A smile grew on my face as I let a hand wander down his torso very slowly, letting my fingers brush over his happy trail. “I’m just saying… that maybe you still have some energy left for some fun,” I grabbed his cock underwater and suddenly found myself with my ass on the bottom of the bath as Nanami got up and wrapped a towel around his waist. “Get out,” he said while handing out his hand for me to grab.

As he helped me out of the bath, he handed me a towel. I knew there was a huge grin on my face when I wrapped the towel around my form and pulled Nanami closer by his towel. He slapped my hand away, I could only chuckle in response. “Bed, now,” he stated. It sent electricity coursing through my body. I stood in front of him a bit longer, trying to gauge the mindset he was in. I wanted him on edge, I wanted him to go all in, “Don’t you worry, I got the message,” he started, sauntering closer. He lifted my chin roughly, just as I did earlier.

“You’re enjoying this a lot, when I’ve barely done anything,” He let his hand fall to his side and tugged off my towel, leaving me stark naked in front of him. “Stay like this, get on the bed, kneeling,”

The smile on my lips was portraying the same emotion as my laugh, nervous. “I don’t think you got the message,” I whispered, earning a loud sigh from my partner. “Looks like I need to get you there myself,” I did not have time to complain that I was lifted off the ground before being thrown onto the bed.

By the time I sat up, Nanami had his back turned on me and was in front of the wardrobe, already halfway dressed. “Ken, I’m confused,” I was about to get out of bed when I heard him tell me to stay there.

As he was buttoning up his shirt, he looked at me with a smile. “Tell me, my dove,” I perked up at the sweet name and moved to the center of the bed, kneeling. “Does it turn you on because you know I had to go full force?” He asked as he moved to the drawers and pulled out a leather harness that he shrugged on, buckling it on the front before looking at me with the same small smile.

“Or maybe is that whole speech more of a way to hide that your dirty little secret…” He finished by slipping on a pair of black leather gloves. He had not put on his tie, but he was now fully dressed, while I was completely nude. “Is that you want to feel the thrill of being chased…” He walked around the bed slowly, leaning over slightly to grab the paddle that was resting next to it, against the wall. He was now on my right, I did not want to look too needy, but I was starting to feel excited, yet I didn’t move when he went to grip my jaw and made me look at him.

“…Of being preyed on.”

I hated myself for the sound that escaped my throat, it made Nanami’s smile widen. “Is that it? You want to be dominated in the most carnal way, to be rendered defenseless,” I did not reply.

“Tell me your safe word, now” And I did, making him smile proudly. “So, you can speak,” he breathed in fake surprise, a few seconds after, Nanami was pulling my legs towards him and had me on my back as he kept my legs spread by settling himself between them. “I almost thought I had already scared you from so little, it would have been disappointing since you’re not yet as vulnerable as I’d like you to be,”

With both of his hands on my knees, he spread my legs wider and looked between my legs with hunger before letting his eyes trail back to my eyes. “And not nearly as afraid, from the look on your eyes you’re still too confident. I’ll wipe that smile off your face,” My breath hitched, I regretted the excited smile on my lips when it made Nanami frown as he gripped my knees tighter before dragging me off the bed.

His hold on the paddle handle changed as he rested it on his shoulder. He looked down at me with a half-smile. “I like this better; the floor is less comfortable than the bed, isn’t it?” I nodded and leaned back when the blond leaned forward, dropping his arm holding the paddle so that the tip hit the ground. It startled me. “Good, I don’t want you comfortable, fear comes when you’re out of your comfort zone,” He looked me up and down, a few strands of wet hair falling over his face.

I could feel my heart beat faster, it only increased when he suddenly crouched in front of me, the paddle now being used as a place to rest his chin as he looked at me intently. “I think you need an incentive, so here,” He held out his hand for me to grab and helped me up my feet. I looked at him confused. I was slowly growing uneasy from his actions; they did not make one drop of sense.

Once I got to my feet, he pulled me towards him and wrapped a hand around my throat when he got closer to me before whispering right next to my ear, his teeth grazing my lobe. “You have two minutes to hide, if I find you…” His fingers dig into the side of my throat, elating a muffled sound from me. With the strength of his arm, he got me to my tiptoes by lifting me even a little bit, his hand still around my throat. I held onto his arm to try to stay balanced and get him to let me go, which he did, almost making me fall to the ground. But I caught myself.

Nanami sat down on the end of the bed, setting the paddle on his lap. He leaned back on his hands; I couldn’t help but ogle how good he looked like that. He made sure to wear exactly all the things I told him I liked once, and the paddle on his thighs was the best accessory I could hope for. “Don’t let me find you, little dove,” He emphasized his word by running his fingers over the handle. “Don’t get me mad either,” I heard him well, I understood what he meant, and it sent thrills running down my spine.

When he looked up, Nanami quirked a brow. He then looked at the watch on his wrist then back at me, “You have one minute and a half left, I suggest you get going little dove, unless…” His gloved hand tightened around the handle once more. Leather against leather made a sound all the more appealing to my ear, I went to take the towel left on the floor but thought against it when Nanami tutted me, “You stay like this, go,” He shooed me.

I scurried off.

I felt self-conscious, running around the apartment naked, trying to find a hiding place but I also felt overwhelmed. This was Nanami’s choice of furniture, his choice of decoration, and all of this was one thing: minimalist. Nothing was made to hide in or behind. Part of me wanted him to find me, just to see what he’d do, to see his powerful look as he looked down at me before dragging me from my hiding spot. But then, I wanted to see him get frustrated as he’d try to find me.

I needed to see him lose his composure, get frustrated. I had to think fast, to know what I really wanted out of him. The thud of my feet on the cold floor was all I could hear at first, though it did not drown the louder sound no one could hear, my heartbeat.

I quickly grabbed the blanket from the couch and opened the closet door. That’s when I heard a voice call from the bedroom when I entered the living-room and peeked under the sofa. “Thirty seconds left,” Fuck fuck fuck, I thought in panic as I crawled inside the closet. I made sure to close it silently behind me, before sitting in the deep corner and throwing the blanket over my form. Now this was not the type of hide-and-seek I did as a child, it was… better.

Now hidden, I let the remaining seconds pass, and soon enough I could hear the sound of Nanami’s steps around the apartment. “You better be hidden little dove, I do love a good chase,” He was walking slowly, scaringly so. Quiet enough that I really had to pay close attention if I wanted to hear anything. Along his footsteps was the repetitive sound of something hitting the palm of his hand. It wasn’t the paddle, if it had been, the sound would have been blunter. But it sounded more like a sharp, cutting sound.

I was buzzing with excitement, my blood pumping more and more with how eager I was. We had done a few rougher sessions before, but I wanted to see how it’d turn this one around, and I was more than willing to let his creativity run free. His steps seemed further away, so did his voice when he spoke loud enough so that I could hear him no matter where I was in the apartment. “I’ll applaud the effort you put in your hiding spot, and while I do love the chase,” I heard him groan as he slammed something shut, startling me in the process.

“I do grow tired of hide-and-seek pretty easily,” he continued like this for a few more minutes, his tone growing more and more impatient, more unnerved as he spoke. His steps were heavier on the ground, faster too, he was pacing, he was doing comes and go around the place and suddenly, it all stopped when he stepped inside the living room.

No more talking. No more taunting. Nothing.

It was eerie. For a moment I thought he was done, then I heard what I believe was the TV. Is he for real? I thought in astonishment. I peeked out from under the blanket that covered my form and silently crawled to the door, placing my ear against it. He had indeed turn it on. I sighed in disappointment and opened the door slowly to surprise him and gasped loudly when I was met with a smug smile. Nanami was crouching in front of the closet. I looked him over, noticing the paddle was resting in the holster where his weapon would usually be, and instead in his hand was a riding crop.

He was holding it in his delicate fingers, as his forearms rested crossed on his knees, “What better way to bait the mouse than to make it believe the threat is gone?” My stomach dropped, I could either back away inside the closet or try for a run. The latter seemed like a better option, one that avoided me ending up cornered. Smirking, I threw him the blanket and push him and went for it.

I don’t know what I was thinking. That wouldn’t stop him. I hadn’t even made him fall back, he simple sighed angrily. I had barely stepped out of the closet that I found myself gripping the back of the couch when Nanami grabbed my shin and made me lose my balance. “A stupid move,” he grunted. I tried to get back up, but he stood up and forced me to let go of the couch, effectively making me fall to the ground.

A groan escaped my lips when I met the floor with force. When I tried to sit up, I was pushed down once more by Nanami’s shoe. It wasn’t too strong, as long as I complied.

And I did.

“Tell me, what’s your color little dove?” He asked in a low tone. The tip of the riding crop was being grazed along my form as I tried to get him to move his foot away, my hands wrapped tight around his ankle. “Green- let me get up-“ “I’m not ‘letting you’ do anything,” He spat as he pressed a bit more on my torso before removing his foot and crouching next to me, a hand resting still on my chest to keep me down. “Fight for it.” He said it in a way that made it as the most obvious solution.

I stuttered, raising a brow in confusion. He smiled. It wasn’t heartwarming, it was reassuring, it was mocking. It made my blood boil. When I was about to reply, he gripped my jaws strongly making me clench my teeth in annoyance. “Maybe I should be clearer, after all you are a bit… slow tonight,” I frowned. “When I say don’t take the towel, it does not mean take the blanket,” he stated as his eyes wandered from my lips to my throat.

If I listened to him any longer, I’d start feeling bad for not obeying him, which was not correct in this situation. So, I clawed at his hand that was now tightening around my throat, “Let- go- of- me!” I gasped through heavy breaths; he wasn’t budging. “Do you need a hint?” He asked with a condescending smile, I did not reply. “Hit me.” My eyes widened, I let go of his hand and instead held his wrist. Not knowing if he was joking. After gauging a bit longer, I came to the conclusion that he was dead serious.

I was starting to feel dizzy, from lack of oxygen… and from arousal. It was strange, but I couldn’t ignore how great it felt, “Ken-“ “Fucking do it, fight for it- or beg, I’d be pleased by both outcomes,” he paused and moved to straddle my lap, his knees supporting most of his weight.

With hesitance, I raised my hand and pushed his face away. He only laughed in response, he did let go of my throat, both of his hands sliding to the nape of my neck. His fingers threaded through my hair as he lifted my head a bit from the ground to make me look at him, “A rougher incentive seems necessary, you’re still too comfortable,” He leaned in and ghosted his lips over mine, whispering to not forget my safe word as he pressed a short kiss on my lips before leaning back.

He took hold of the riding crop once more, not yet taking the paddled out and let it trail over my nipples very slowly. I arched my back for more, my eyes closed then yelped at the burning sensation on my skin when he struck me. I gave him a scowl, he grinned lazily. “If you’re so feisty, show me some of that energy little mouse. I don’t think you realize you’re trapped yet,” I did not have time to reply, he struck me again. I yelped in pain/pleasure.

“It feels like you’ve surrendered already my dove, was it that easy to get you to submit?” When he did not get a reply and rose his arm to strike me once more, I pulled him by the front of his shirt and tried to roll him over, only to be laughed at when held my wrists in one hand and pushed me back, hands over my head. “You’re not trying, you’re humoring me, it’s pitiful,” He said with a scoff.

The thought of hitting him was becoming stronger and stronger, I wanted to see what he’d do in response. But I couldn’t do this anymore, he had me pinned. He either read my mind or had something in his, but for some reason he let go and started unbuttoning his shirt.

I took this opportunity to use my knee to hit his back, before punching his jaw with all my force. A shaky breath escaped his lips, not one of fear, but of excitement.

That attempt had not changed anything of the situation I was in, if anything it only angered him more. With his face still half turned to the side, I could see the growing smile on his lips. He slowly turned around; His lower lip slightly redder than before. “You’re getting the hang of it, but you’re still bad at it. Here, try again,” He faced the other way, giving me his other cheek.

“Ken I’m sorry-“ He interrupted me by guiding my hand into a fist to his cheek, “Right here,” he hissed. “Make it worth it, it’s your last opportunity to get the upper hand, then it’s my turn,” I wasn’t going to do it until he took out the paddle and struck my thighs with force, smirking, “Next is your stomach, stop me,” Two thoughts clashed inside my head, the first was, let him do it, the second was, no way. I acted on instinct and punched his jaw with force before gripping the back of his hair and pulling it.

He winced, I took the chance to slide from under him and escape quickly. I barely missed the hand that reached out for my ankle, an exhilarated sigh left my lips. I made a run for it, but instead of cornering myself to the bedroom, I stopped on the other side of the couch. I would mirror Nanami’s opposite steps, making him more and more frustrated. I noticed the wiped blood on the back of his glove along the one that seemed to be tainting his teeth when he smiled in the most threatening and primal way.

Seeing him away from me, seeing how I was in a safe position, seeing that I was not losing just yet… it all pushed me to taunt him, “You can’t reach me, it’s funny isn’t-“ I stopped mid-sentence and felt my heart dropped when Nanami simply jumped over the couch and sauntered over me, his eyes darkened with arousal. He seemed more than thrilled by this whole thing, I knew it the moment he opened his mouth, I kept mine shut tight. “Hilarious. But I don’t see you laughing much, little dove…” He said slowly.

His hand rose oh so gently to cradle my face in his, “Submit,” his whispered. I shook my head. His hand slid to the back of my head once more, except this time he took a handful of my hair and started walking away, pulling me by my hair. It wasn’t too painful, as long as I kept up with his pace, which I did. He threw me on the couch and struck my back hard with the paddle. “The hard way it is,”

My partner crouched next to me, I did not move from laying on my stomach, before he could speak, I spat on him and grinned. He closed his eyes a moment, wiping the saliva off while getting up once more. “I was going to give you one last chance, but it seems your spirit isn’t broken yet. Sheer force seems to be the solution, don’t you think little dove?” He brushed my hair gently, then struck my back hard. I let out a moan and buried my face in the pillow to try to muffle it before speaking up.

“I have a high- pain tolerance sir- fuck,” I swore under my breath. I heard him laugh genuinely, breaking character for a second at my mistake. I was so used to our power dynamics that it rolled off in times of… pleasure. “Let’s see how high, remember,” I thought he was going to remind me of my safe word, instead he said, “The words are: I submit,”

I huffed. “Am I hearing them from you?” I asked playfully.

It earned me another strong hit, this time with the riding crop.

I felt Nanami’s gloved hand brush over my sore back, taking in the damage. The feeling of the leather on my skin felt so good against the burn I was feeling. “You’re getting off on this too much, let’s make it more fun,” He whispered as his hand slid between my legs, “Pain won’t get you begging, but pleasure will,” His fingers slid between my lower lips to finally meet my clit as he started stimulating it tentatively at first.

It wasn’t the right spot at first, so I turned around and grinned proudly, “I think you’re better off hitting me if you’re not going to hit the spot-“ I swore under my breath when he put just the right amount of pressure, making me feel a shiver all over my body. Nanami laughed mockingly but did not stop, he skillfully played with my clit. He lifted my ass up to get a better angle but gripped my hair forcefully to keep my head in the pillow and not lift myself up on my arms. “This spot, right?” He breathed, satisfaction dripping from his voice.

I only whined in response. When I tried to move my ass back to get more friction, Nanami placed a knee on the couch and stopped me from moving with his hip. He kept me in place, his fist gripping my hair even tighter. “You’re a fucking handful, should I let you cum to appease that silly little greed of yours?” He grunted against my ear, I could feel my eyes roll back as I was getting closer and closer. “Yes, please, yes, yes,”

He pulled his hand back, and slapped my ass hard, probably leaving a mark. He let go of my hair and let his hands trail back to my waist where they stayed as he bent over my back and spoke, “I thought we agreed I wouldn’t let you do anything,” I breathed shakily as I turned my head to look at him the best I could. “Frustration suits your face well, little mouse,” He said softly, his eyes darting to my lips. I caught a glimpse of the real him there, until he got closer to my face and licked from my neck to my cheek, “Let’s see how long it’ll take you to beg for release,”

When he said that, his fingers went back to my clit, nothing else. I did not get any friction; he did not even deign giving me any sort of pleasure from his cock. Through moans and gasps, I looked over my shoulder to catch of glimpse of him as he pressed once more onto my back while his other hand was between my legs. “At least fucking remove the gloves, Ken-“ My voice went a higher pitch when I talked, forcing me to hide my face in the pillows to muffle my moans.

“Tell me if I’m wrong,” I heard Nanami’s gruffy tone as the speed of his fingers increased on my clit. “But it looked like you thought you had any say in what I was doing,” His breath was getting heavier just as I felt my legs shake the closer I got. Nanami saw it and slid his fingers away. I groaned out his name in frustration before moving my hand between my legs, only to have it slapped away. “My, my, already taking matters in your own hands?”

I was startled when I felt the cold texture of the riding crop brushing from my shoulders to my back, to slowly slide between my legs. I gasp when he pressed it just slightly at my entrance before slithering to my clit and striking it, earning a high-pitched moan from me. “I wonder how much you can take before it’s too painful to even touch it, shall we see?” Hearing him so cocky ticked me off, and while I could feel the pulsing of my clit, desperate for more, desperate to get off, I felt a spike of fighting spirit before all.

When Nanami went to touch me once again, I tried to kick him, all while moving my arm to push his from my back. He did lose his balance but caught himself by gripping both of my legs as he pulled them so that my pelvis was finally touching the couch. I had barely time to realize what happened that my legs were in a deadlock between his as he straddled the back of my thighs. One of his hand wrapped around my throat, bringing my head back enough that my throat was perfectly exposed. He rose on his knees, still behind me, and lowered his face to mine in that same angle.

I was seeing him upside down, but I could also smell the blood I had drawn when I hit him. It was intoxicating, in the strangest way. My back hurt from being arched like that, mixed with the pressure on my neck… it felt delightful. “What a pretty sight, twisted like a useless fucking ragdoll,” I gasped at his name calling, not ready to admit it sent a jolt of pleasure through my body. Brushing a finger over my chin, Nanami kissed me roughly, smiling along the kiss as his tongue delved into my mouth but it was as passionate as it was quick. “Beg me to fuck you,” he growled against my lips. I only whimpered in response, forcing myself to keep my mouth shut.

He did not like it.

Nanami pressed against my ass, rolling his covered hips against me. He then brought a gloved hand to my lips and said, “Take it off,” talking about the glove. I opened my mouth and gently nipped the tip as he pulled his hand back. The glove was snatched out of my mouth and thrown on the low table before his fingers returned to my mouth and forced my mouth open. “I haven’t been playing fair, have I?” He asked rhetorically. I knew there was something behind this question. And yet, I shook my head, making him grin wide. “It’s only fair I return what you gave me,” I quirked a brow at his word then the pressure on my throat was gone.

His hands were unbuckling his belt, “You stay like this, I have you right where I want you,” When I heard him groan upon freeing his cock from his pants, his remaining gloved hand returned to my throat and tilted my head backwards once more, “You’ve been a fucking pain,” He grunted as his free fingers brushed against my hole, I bite my lip to hold back the smile I felt upon winning. “How are you feeling right now, little mouse?”

With a strained voice, raspy even, I said, “Green, and proud to see you succumb first,” I said with a wicked smile. Nanami mirrored it, but it did not hold the same pride. No, it was disturbing, it did not match his following actions when he stopped touching me. “Is that what you think is happening? Let me tell you one thing,” he paused, and I heard him groan as I felt his movements behind me, he was stroking his cock a few times. I suddenly felt it press against my entrance and let out throaty moans when he slowly slid it in.

“I love tests. Testing how long you can hold before begging to come,” He started as he sheathed himself inside, he wrapped his arm around my waist and started playing with my clit, elating loud moans from me, “It feels good, doesn’t it?” I nodded; My eyes closed as I focused on the pleasure. Another gasp left my lips when I felt him fully in. When I was about to move to get the friction, the hand around my throat tightened. “I’ll be testing how fucking desperate you are for my cock, you’re not allowed to move unless you submit, understood?”

I threw him a deadly glare and smirked mischievously, “Try me,” then I gripped a handful of his hair and pulled him back. Nanami hissed, with the arm that was around my waist he brought mine down and tilted my head back once more, his face hovering over mine. “I pulled your hair, you pull mine, it’s fair,” He stated, his voice dripping with ire, his eyes then darkened, “You spit…” He started, opening my mouth with a gloved finger, I heard the sound before realizing it. He closed my mouth afterwards and covered it with the palm of his hand. “I spit, now fucking swallow,”

I tried to get his hand off my mouth, but he kept it there until he was sure I had swallowed, that’s when he added, “I can feel you walls clenching around my cock, it looks like you’re enjoying being treated like filth,” He leaned back, and pushed my head into the pillow, his form unmoving inside me. I wanted more than just that, I wanted to feel his hands gripping my waist tight as he’d fuck me from behind. I leaned back, to try to get something from it, only to be struck down.

The snap of the riding crop meeting my skin echoed in the silent room and was soon joined by my painful moan. “Two words, say them. Or do you not understand what’s going on here?” Without moving, his hand met my clit once more while the free one held my hips in place, he resumed his earlier work and my moans were now full whines, my poor clit felt like it was burning from the overstimulation it was getting. Nanami continued, until he felt my walls clench around his cock, that’s when he stopped and laughed breathlessly. “That’s three times, I can go on, but can you?”

I tried to reply, but my response was muffled by the pillow. Perhaps it was for the best, but Nanami wasn’t having it. He gripped a handful of my hair once more and pulled my head up, “Stop mumbling, articulate,” He ordered. I looked away, pressing my lips tight. “Alright, let’s see how well you fence after the fourth time, shall we?” He never let go of my hair and used his free hand to touch my clit once again, I couldn’t muffle my panting this time. My mouth wide open, loud moans, I couldn’t bear another deception.

“Please,” I uttered.

“I didn’t quite catch that,” He said with a bit too much pride in his voice, “Need I remind you the words?” He asked as he pressed his lips delicately against my temple and gritted through his teeth, “Go ahead little mouse, say it,” I wasn’t saying it. I felt his lips turn into a smile, his fingers hadn’t left my nub, and it had gotten unbearable, each of his graze against it felt like it burnt so when he bucked his hips into me one time: it was enough to make me succumb.

“I submit- Ken, please, no more, I can’t-“ I panted, tears of frustration streaming down my face. A satisfied growled escaped Nanami’s lips, “Atta girl, let’s get you fucked properly,” He let go of my hair, effectively making me fall back on the pillow. His hands brushed over my back a few times, as if he was assessing before going forth with what he had planned. He paused, then settled his hands on my hips and started ramming inside me animalistically.

Each of his thrusts were met with a whimper, that very angle made him reach the right spot easily, but it wasn’t enough yet. I felt like he was holding back, “Ken- my back-“ Confused, Nanami slowed down his movements and leaned in, keeping himself in role, “Speak up little mouse, I can’t hear you over how fucking loud you’re whining,”

I swore in pleasure under my breath among the tears, he knew what he was doing, and I could feel my face heat up more than it already was. I quickly got hold of myself and sobbed, “Mark me, let it out,“ Nanami had now stopped everything and seemed to be gauging how I was doing, a flicker of the real him showed on his face before he returned to his role once more. “Look at you, crying for more. Desperate to be ruined, to be dominated,” He delicately tucked a strand of hair behind my ear, it did not do much with how messy my hair was, but it was soft, nonetheless.

“I’ll oblige,” With a kiss pressed on the back of my head, Nanami then did exactly what he promised. His thrusts were more carnal, his hands, now both gloveless, were painting my back with claw marks as he used my back as his canvas. I was not aware of much of what I was doing, but it felt so fucking good. I was moaning and crying at the same time and seeing how Nanami seemed to get even more turned on from the sight, I was led to believe he enjoyed it as well.

He kept that pace up, but soon enough we both reached our peak. Through heavy pants, I begged Nanami to cum inside me, which he happily complied to. The mix of pain and pleasure made everything stronger, I felt my eyes roll back and my legs shake, as best as they could from being held down, then nothing. Pure bliss.

I kept my eyes closed a while longer, letting Nanami pull out and do as he pleased. He probably got changed and went to get what he thought was necessary to take care of me.

Then I believe I fell asleep a few moments after that, I don’t know how long but when I woke up, I was wrapped in a comfortable bathrobe. A blanket was draped over my form, and something was resting on my stomach. Looking down, I saw Nanami’s hand lazily draped over it.

I then looked up and saw my head was resting on a pillow on his lap. He was sitting on the couch, watching the TV. When I met his gaze, he smiled in the most charming way, “You’re awake, it seemed it tired you more than I thought it would. We’ll be more careful next time,” He said softly as he kept his eyes on mine.

We stared at one another a while. Not saying anything, not needing to, or maybe wanting to. But it wasn’t awkward, it was comfortable.

Nanami broke the silence first, “Did it meet your expectations? I find myself believing you’ve been thinking about this for a while, maybe a fantasy?” He asked, his hand absentmindedly brushing over my stomach.

I smiled tiredly, “Oh it did, it’s hard to get into it at first… And I wouldn’t be against being thrown around more. Safely… ish, of course…” I paused, not believing I was feeling embarrassed after what we had done. “But you were definitely great, thank you for engaging in this… I guess it could be defined as a fantasy,” It felt too serious to thank him like this, but I did not know how other way to do it.

“I did not think it would have been necessary to say it, but clearly you seem to be thinking I only did it for you,” He looked at me with a loving smile, “Which I partially did, but I do enjoy seeing you struggling under me. And I definitely enjoyed this, more than you think,” I quirked my brows in surprise at his word, the small smile on my lips betraying the shock and showing the excitement that returned. “However, I must apologize for the soreness you’ll be feeling, I treated everything, but you’ll definitely be sore for a few days… Maybe a week, you tell me,”

I moved on the couch to see in how much pain I was and hissed when my whole body screamed for me to stop. “Yeah, okay, I feel you. A week, more like a month. I say next time we try something tamer, what’s your fantasy?” I asked tiredly, snuggling closer to him as I wrapped my arms around his waist.

Nanami chuckled softly and caressed my cheek gently, “Let’s talk about that tomorrow, we might need to buy new things,” He said half-jokingly.

“Is it a uniform?” I asked as I fell asleep.

“It might be, I am a simple man after all…”

I think I laughed, but I was too tired to remember. Maybe I’ll let him ruin a few more suits if it led to this…

[harpyloon]

i’ll catch you

Pairing: Charlie Weasley x fem!Reader

Summary: "Up close, Y/N could see the familiar freckles splattered all over his nose and cheeks. He was towering over her like he always did. She used to be the little second year Hufflepuff always idling by the entrance to the Great Hall hoping to bump into the famous Charlie Weasley. Studying on the Quidditch pitch, watching him behind her textbook, captaining the Gryffindor team. Climbing the beech tree by the lake again and again, hoping Charlie Weasley would somehow walk by once more to offer her a hand..."

☞ Curse Breaker reader x Dragon-tamer Charlie Weasley

Warnings: Fluff, sprinkles of angst, dragons (duh), mentions of a dead animal, mentions of dragon eating dead animal (lol), post-war timeline (although not that important)

WC: 4.5k+ , Part 2 coming soon!

Read on AO3

Beautiful rays of golden sunlight were peaking through the blinders of Y/N's cabin. It was going to be a lovely day with the perfect weather to seek out a bit of adventure, and although she was sure she had countless other affairs to address before kicking off with her assignment the next day, a blathering Bill Weasley was not one of them.

"Are you even listening?" his tone was way beyond impatient. "You know what? Don't answer that. I know for a fact that you never pick up anything I say. Ever."

Y/N rolled her eyes as she busied herself with stuffing her socked feet inside a pair of brown chunky hiking boots. She didn't plan on going very far. Her colleagues were currently lounging in the dining hall about five cabins down, sipping piping hot ciorbă, munching on breakfast toast, and relishing their only foreseeable off day before the start of the big dig tomorrow. Some were even dozing off still, earning as much sleep as they could to compensate for the long nights to come.

It's true what they say about grumpy Curse Breakers. But nobody realized that they just spent too much time with their eyes wide open.

"You know, Bill," Y/N mused, "you always call me the drama queen. What does that make you then?"

The floating head over the fire scoffed, "A concerned superior."

"Well, there's nothing to be concerned about."

"Where are you headed?"

"I'm going for a walk."

"No walks," ordered Bill, his face stern.

"Everyone's out and about today!"

"No walks for you."

Y/N laughed. "Oh yeah?"

Bill sighed. He knew trying to be hard-nosed was futile. "No walks alone at least."

"Are you sure there's no bun in Fleur's oven yet?" Y/N teased. "You're sounding more like a papa bear with each passing day."

She heard a soft melodic laugh within the fire where Bill's head was when suddenly, another floating head appeared right beside his. This time, all blonde and very French

"There iz no bun yet, mon cher. But I think he az been practicing fatherhood with you." Fleur gave Y/N a wink. "I 'eard zer are many 'andsome men in Romania. With a leetle beet of exzploring yo—"

"There will be no exploring," barked Bill, sending his wife a warning glance, which she ignored.

"—you might find someone az adventurous az you are," Fleur beamed, "And very macho."

"Darling," Bill sighed, "is this necessary?"

With a flying kiss to Y/N, Fleur was gone.

Shrugging on a light parka, Y/N gave Bill a knowing look, "You see? Your wife said I could use a macho man."

"Oh please. You're in a Curse Breaker camp."

"Hey, there are loads of macho men here."

"Macho enough for you?"

Y/N wrinkled her nose but ignored the question.

"Well, William," she said, emphasizing Bill's full name, "I, am a Curse Breaker in the middle of the Southern Carpathians." Stuffing her wand through her belt loop, she looked at him with finality. "And I am not passing up this opportunity."

"Remember when they assigned you to Egypt with me and you went on exploring? Your exploring is bad luck, Y/N, and I did not assign you to Romania to bring bad luck."

"Excuse you, the Egypt Goblins loved me."

"Goblins don't love wizards," retorted Bill.

"I think they were particularly fond of me."

"You Reductored an entire bloody Pyramid!"

Y/N was losing her patience. She wanted to sift through the mountains in the morning sunlight. Discover hidden caves and wade through cold springs. She had her breakfast way earlier than everyone else for this sole purpose.

"I promise I'll be good."

"Take Weiss with you."

Y/N glared. "Absolutely not."

"Take someone."

"I'm walking out on you right now. Don't forget to put out my fire."

"Y/N."

"I'll see you later!"

"I have to tell you—"

Without looking back, she waved at Bill and stepped out into the crisp Romanian morning.

The skies were bright and cloudless, the sun slowly rising up east. The Curse Breaker camp in the middle of the Transylvanian Alps was in for a late morning. It was quiet, apart from the whispers of the forest beside them; chirping birds, singing crickets, and the distant sound of a nearby stream.

Trudging up the rough pavement towards the foot of the nearest hill, Y/N felt an ounce of guilt seep through as she marveled at the scenery before her. Bill was the reason she got the Romania assignment. She wasn't half bad a Curse Breaker. From an outsider's perspective, some would even call her brilliant. She's aced all her missions in her first year on the job—way ahead of all the others in her year, and was even able to crackdown a dark magic-infested tomb in an assignment she co-lead in Egypt. She was quick, smart, and as brave as the career entailed.

Only one thing stood between her and a good reputation in Gringotts. Her impulsiveness.

She couldn't help it. Y/N's successes partnered with tragedies—accidents; her brilliance came with sheer will and almost violent haste. The problem is you can't think twice Bill would always say. Not everything is done in a snap, Y/N.

Bill Weasley was the only senior Curse Breaker with enough patience to supervise her. It must have been fate or a miracle that had him in temporary assignment at the London Gringotts when she graduated Hogwarts. If she were received by anyone else, or if he were back in Egypt instead, she didn't think she'd ever make it out into the field. Or worse, last a few months.

"I'll be good," she mumbled to no one in particular. Or maybe she hoped that Bill would hear. She'd floo him again later.

Trekking up the slope with hands snuggled warm inside her faux-fur-lined pockets, Y/N inhaled the fresh earth surrounding her. This was her calling. Nature. Adventure. The unknown. She was fantastic with spells and jinxes and once thought of becoming an Auror—but Aurors spent too much time indoors, on desks, drowning in paperwork and tailing dark wizards. She knew in her heart she wasn't born to enforce the law.

On the opposite side of the hill was a deep gorge between two towering mountains and a long serpentine stream. Elated at the sight, she followed the gentle flow of water over the rocks. Without thinking (because when does she ever), she slipped off her boots and socks, and despite the chilly morning, prepared to wade the ice-cold water. She dipped one toe in for good measure—a pause.

That couldn't be right.

Submerging one whole foot into the water confirmed her confusion. Strange. Almost all waterways in Romania led to the Black Sea, if not the Adriatic. Why was it warm?

This isn't the bathing stream she thought. The senior Curse Breakers back at camp had instructed them of assigned fresher areas where warming charms would be cast. She didn't remember this gorge being part of last night's tour.

Ankles deep in the water, Y/N trailed the soft currents. It was deliciously warm. A deliberate contrast to the icy breeze left by the trail ends of winter. It was supposedly mid-spring, but the winds still gave her the chills.

She took no notice of how far she was going, the water neither rising nor falling. If she were to guess it must've almost been half an hour given by the direction of the sun. The warm water and small pebbles were therapeutic beneath her feet. The walk didn't tire her at all.

Finally, the chasm's end came to view. Heart beating with excitement, she hastened her pace, dampening the legs of her trousers that she attempted to roll up. But just as her feet crossed the lip between the two mountains flanking her, she felt the oddest sensation: it began at the top of her head, traveling down her arms to her toes—as if a big fat raindrop landed on her scalp and entered her body.

She glanced at the clear blue sky. There was no cloud in sight for miles.

And then, it was suddenly very humid.

"What the..." she glanced back through the gorge. Nothing was out of order and nobody was in sight. Looking down at her feet, her surroundings were now as warm as the water she stood on. Her parka felt too thick.

Again, strange.

Trying to shake away her curiousness, Y/N trudged on.

All is well she chanted inside her head. All is well and the wind just blows differently on this side of the alps.

But no matter what she told herself, ripples of unease still disturbed Y/N. She was beginning to sweat and it wasn't just her nerves. The wind didn't blow differently on this side of the mountains because there was no wind. It was dry, dank, and very very warm.

To rattle her nerves even further, the water she was wading on was getting hotter as she went on that she had to leap on land once again. But as soon as her bare soles made contact with the grass, she yelped in pain.

"Merlin—OW."

The earth was burning. As if it bathed in the sun for too long. As if she were in the middle of a dry desert. She knew the feeling, she's been to Egypt. But why the bloody hell would Romanian soil feel this hot? Moreso in the heart of the Southern Carpathians?

Locating a jutted-out slab of rock, Y/N hopped over to sit and gather her bearings, drying her damp feet and staring at her boots and socks. She didn't want to slip them back on. The heat was intense. But it was either the boots or the sizzling soil.

She shrugged off her parka after lacing up her boots and was grateful for her reckless choice of wardrobe this morning. She opted for a ribbed shirt under her jacket—instead of a sweater—in urgent intention to get away from a nagging Bill. Now it served her well. It wasn't as thin as she would have deemed appropriate for the current temperature, but at least her neck and arms could breathe.

Gazing over the expanse of the clearing she emerged in, she suddenly became aware of the lack of green in the area. The grass was almost a withering brown—crunchy and dry. Trees weren't scattered about like the thick oaks all over the Curse Breaker camp; instead, they were clumped, almost systematically, in relatively rectangular patch formations. As if deliberately rooted as such.

Muggles Y/N thought. It was only them who had the peculiar habit of reorganizing nature.

Tying her parka around her waist, she treaded the clearing, the grass crisp beneath her boots, and approached the nearest cluster of trees. She wondered if this were one of the areas they'd be digging up. Senior Curse Breaker Digby Youssif oriented them of specific crackdown areas to look forward to in the next few months. Although almost all wizarding families were well-accounted for in Romania, there were still trifling amounts of intel on hidden vaults under protective spells cast by untraceable ancient tribes.

Y/N loved digging assignments. She was particularly fond of discovery. And if Ancient Runes was Hogwarts' least-loved lesson, she rather enjoyed Professor Babbling's classes. Well, most of the time. It was her pride and joy to have snagged an 'Outstanding' for her O.W.Ls—

Crack!

A sudden gust of wind whipped through the trees ahead of her. On instinct, Y/N drew her wand from her belt loop. Nothing was so dangerous about the wind. But it felt so...

The sound came out of nowhere, she thought it was imagining it. A steady drumming beat. Powerful and humming. An engine? she thought. But that was impossible. They were told that the area was blocked off from muggles for the duration of their stay. She paused in front of a towering ashtree. The sound was growing louder and louder. Nearer. She didn't know why but she was compelled with the need to hide.

Climb.

She felt ridiculous, clambering up an ashtree and settling on its thickest branch. Her superiors back at camp were clear that the mountains were safe, its perimeters were secured for their dig. Curse Breakers always made sure missions wouldn't come across outside interference.

Then why was her heart beating so fast?

The drumming sound was growing nearer. Behind her—above.

Peering at the sky through the leaves, a massive dark figure swooped overhead and landed with an earth-shaking thud on the clearing right in front of her tree.

Y/N felt like she was going to choke on her own spit when a deafening, earsplitting roar echoed through the mountains.

Dragon.

Fully grown, enormous, and vicious-looking, the beast had emerald scales that glinted in the morning sun. Its body was bulky, way stockier compared to the common dragons in textbooks. It had a massive head that seemed even larger than its body, and on it sprouted two long glittering golden horns. Its claws had the same golden color, and it was rearing onto its hind legs, hunching over a figure... chewing...

All the breakfast Y/N had only hours before felt like rising up her throat. An enormous dragon only meters in front of her was chewing on a dead animal, clearly having his own meal. And there she was, perched on an ashtree, ready for dessert.

Don't panic she told herself, but feeling green. She's never faced a dragon on a mission before. They tackled them in her first year on the job—Curse Breakers didn't really need training, the task calling for hands-on work—but never in her life did she ever think she'd have to face a real dragon.

I don't have to face it Y/N thought, I just have to stay here until it flies away, and run back to camp.

Wiggling up to a squat, she eyed the neighboring branch a few feet to her right which was higher up and positioned behind a thicker cluster of leaves. It didn't require a jump, but more of a really careful split; hugging the trunk tightly, she stretched her right foot across, shifting her weight to her right leg, her arms choking the tree trunk in a death grip, legs spread wide midair—

"Scuzati-ma?"

Y/N didn't fall. Thank Merlin she didn't fall. But she lost her momentum in surprise and panic, her left foot sliding from the previous branch, making her push off the trunk in haste, throwing her weight across completely. She grabs a dangling thin branch above her at the last minute, her body tilted towards the forest floor.

A forest floor where a man now stood, peering up at her curiously.

She was breathing hard, her heart thumping erratically, both from the fear of falling and being heard by the dragon so close by.

"Er—esti bine?" the man asked. Y/N saw that he had his arms out as if braced to catch her if she fell. When she didn't answer, the man spoke again, "Ai nevoie de ajutor?"

She blinked down at him. "What?"

He chuckled. She hated it. It hurt her pride. "I said, do you need any help?"

He was loud. Too loud. She righted herself on the branch, pulling to lean back on the trunk behind her. Then risking a peek, she checked on the dragon who was still munching on the dead cow with gusto.

She looked back down to find the man with his eyebrows raised at her, his face painting amusement. It was impossible not to take note of his red mane pulled into a low bun. He looked awfully familiar... and he was going to get them killed.

"Could you," she whispered as loudly as she could, "keep your voice down?"

The man snickered once more, showing no effort of lowering his tone. "Why?"

"Are you blind?" she wanted to strangle him. "There's a bloody dragon!"

The redhead glanced at the scaly beast and heaved out a sigh. "Okay. Yeah, you're right. It's way past breakfast. He's missing nap time."

Y/N looked at him incredulously. He shrugged, "But what can I do? He slept in this morning. Lazy beast." Looking back up, he asked, "Want to meet him?"

He's mental she thought. That had to be it.

But the redhead only laughed. He keeps laughing. He must've noticed the stupefied expression on her face because he simmered. "Give him a minute and you can come down. It's already his fifth haul so he's bound to get dozy and fly back to the nest." He started walking towards the clearing when he paused and turned back, "Although, you can come down now. I promise he won't eat you."

Y/N watched as the man walked up to the feasting dragon—she was peering behind the thick tree trunk, using it as a shield. He's insane. Drawing a wand from a sheath attached to his calf, the man aimed a stunning spell right by the beast's tail.

"Alright, Darius, I think you've had enough," he called. He kept his distance, a good few meters away, but his gait was calm, almost lazy.

The dragon glanced at the man, its fangs bloody. Y/N wanted to grab the redhead and run. But it was a crazy thought, and she was rooted on her spot on the tree branch, frozen in fear.

The man gave a sharp whistle and the dragon grunted, smoke coming out of its nostrils. It ignored him and continued to munch on the cow.

Another stunning spell was aimed right by its claws and the dragon emitted a low growl. Y/N didn't know if she was imagining it but the creature seemed sluggish on its feet, swaying... almost drowsy.

"Off you go," said the man, "up." He sent one more stunning spell right in front of its snout. It was a clear miss, purely intentional.

The dragon heaved a loud angry roar. But instead of diving for the man like she expected, it started flapping its wings, gaining momentum. Y/N held onto the tree trunk tighter so as not to be swayed by the sudden rush of winds the creature was yielding. And then with a strong push off the ground, up it soared, growling low in its throat, and was out of sight.

Y/N's legs felt like jelly slugs, but her arms refused to let go of the tree trunk. What in Merlin's name just happened?

"Y/N."

She gave a short yelp, coughing on her next breath. "Excuse me?"

The man was back, now by the foot of the tree once again. "Come down."

"How do you know my name?" she demanded.

He had a really handsome smile. A really familiar, handsome smile...

"I should be offended," said the man. "Come down." There it was again, that smile. "I'll catch you."

I'll catch you.

I'll catch you....

 "Come on, Y/N, I'll catch you!"

"No you won't!" said Y/N. Her cheeks were wet with tears.

She was perched on the beech tree by the Black lake, her legs dangling above the shallow water. She had attempted to retrieve her Spellman's Syllabry textbook that Cassian Loxias chucked up the branches for fun.

"Yes I will, I promise," consoled Charlie. "I'm a prefect, remember?" he gestured to his badge, "I'll make sure you're safe."

Sniffing up snot that was escaping her nose, she hiccuped softly against the back of her hand. "Our prefect doesn't do that very much."

Charlie chuckled. "I'll make sure to have a word with Professor Sprout about her Hufflepuff prefects."

When he saw the horror on her face, he held up his hands, "It didn't come from you of course. Will you come down now? I swear I'll catch you."

Y/N looked into Charlie Weasley's eyes and saw nothing but pure candor. Biting her lip, she said, "Do cross your heart, or hope to die?"

He traced a cross right above his chest. "Cross my heart, or hope to die."

 "Y/N. Y/N?"

Y/N blinked.

Charlie Weasley. Charlie dragon-tamer Weasley. Charlie the hot brother Weasley—

"Are you still breathing? Do you need me up there?"

Trying to gather her bearings, Y/N extracted herself from her hold on the tree trunk, went down onto a squat, and leaped off, landing on the crunchy grass with a thump.

Charlie raised an eyebrow at her as she dusted her trousers, "I see you don't need catching anymore."

She took in the man before her. "Charlie Weasley."

His grin was dazzling."Caught on, have you?

From up close, Y/N could now see the familiar freckles splattered all over his nose and cheeks. He was towering over her like he always did. She used to be the little second year Hufflepuff always idling by the entrance to the Great Hall hoping to bump into the famous Charlie Weasley. Studying on the Quidditch pitch, watching him behind her textbook, captaining the Gryffindor team. Climbing the beech tree by the lake again and again, hoping Charlie Weasley would somehow walk by once more to offer her a hand...

There were so many things she could've done, seeing him again for the first time after all these years. He was gone as soon as he graduated Hogwarts, flying to Romania to study dragons. Everyone always thought Charlie would be going Quidditch pro, being captain and seeker. He had the build, the skills, and the charm. Hogwarts alone had fan clubs in his name and rumor had it that the Falmouth Falcons were just waiting for him to finish seventh year.

But others didn't see Charlie as Y/N did. They didn't see him hoarding books on care of magical creatures in the library. They didn't notice him sneaking off to Hagrid's on the weekends, taking Fang for walks or feeding the Blast Ended Skrewts in the garden. Nobody paid attention to the copy of Fantastic Beasts And Where to Find Them that Charlie practically glued to his side. Only Y/N did. And now that she thought about it, she didn't like that she knew so much. It made her feel like a creep.

So instead of hugging him in delight like she actually wanted, she took a swipe at his shoulder.

"You git," she hissed. "You scared me to death! How did you do that? I thought taming dragons was impossible."

"It is. Most of the time," Charlie shrugged. "Darius is a Romanian Longhorn. Mostly harmless compared to the others especially when he's full. Not that difficult to send him back to the nest when he can barely stand on his feet."

"Harmless? I could've been dessert!"

Charlie laughed. He was still always laughing. "You look delicious, yes, but I'm not letting Darius have you."

What the fu—Y/N inhaled slowly, cautiously. Then exhaled through her nose. She didn't know how to respond. Seeing him again after so long, without warning or preparation, was messing with her senses

"It's good to see you, Y/N," he said and walked closer. Close enough to tugged at her braid. She didn't know why he did it, but he looked like he just had to. "You look good."

Y/N's heart was beating rapidly once more, but this time, for all the wrong reasons. "It's been a while, hasn't it?"

Charlie gazed back into her eyes as if seeing her for the first time.

"Too long."

Again, she didn't know how long it took her to reply, but she cleared her throat, "How—did you know it was me? The first time?"

Charlie's eyes were still roaming all over her face. "No. Not until you spoke."

Y/N must've held a questioning look because he added, "I'll never forget that voice."

He was saying such strange things. Were they strange? Or was it just because he affected her so?

"Then why didn't you say anything?"

"Well, you wouldn't come down, would you? I see you still have a thing for trees."

Y/N rolled her eyes.

"I didn't know the dragon reservation was in the alps," she said. "Do you know we're camping nearby?"

"'Course I do. You lot are beside dragon territory for a reason."

Excitement and fear raised Y/N's nerves. "What are you talking about?"

Charlie bit his lip. "You'll see."

"Are we digging in the reservation?"

He was walking out into the clearing now, beelining back towards the opening of the gorge.

"Charlie!" Y/N jogged to keep up. "Are we?"

He only smiled, "Patience, darling."

Darling. He used to call her that all the time even when they were back in Hogwarts. She always tried to ignore the fluttering feeling her chest made when he used the endearment, reminding herself that he must've used it on everyone else, not just her.

"Why did no one back at camp tell us anything?"

"I probably should've kept my mouth shut," was his only reply. They were crossing the two mountains flanking the stream, and as soon as they cut through the border, Y/N felt the same sensation she did when she went through the clearing. But this time in reverse, it was as if the raindrop was sucked back up.

She glanced up at the mountains. "Did you feel that?"

"Shield spells," explained Charlie. "To keep the muggles out. Temperature charms as well to regulate the reservation climate. Although the dragons do enough of their warming on their own, it's for precaution."

They walked up the stream, tracing back Y/N's previous path.

"Are you bringing me back to camp?" she asked.

"That, and I have to see Digby. Iron out tomorrow's schedule."

"So we are digging inside the reservation," Y/N didn't know if she was more thrilled or afraid.

Charlie glanced at her, "You heard nothing from me."

Studying his features as they strolled, Y/N couldn't help but admire how much Charlie Weasley grew up to be. He's always been lean and strong, especially with being an athlete back at Hogwarts, but now he seemed so much larger than life. Red tendrils were escaping his low bun and framing his chiseled face, there were a few scars on his nose and one under his lip. She shouldn't have been able to see it but she couldn't stop staring. He was big. Stockier than she'd ever seen him; hands wrapped in gauze and rope slung over a hook on his hip.

Charlie Weasley, dragon-tamer.

And he was staring right back at her.

"You have to take me to see more dragons," Y/N breathed. She didn't know where her voice went. It was all airy and she didn't like it. She hoped he would assume it was because of their walk.

Charlie stopped, deep brown eyes boring into her own. He was panting slightly too. Maybe it was the walk.

"Okay," he exhaled. "Promise."

"Cross your heart?" she almost whispered. Almost.

Two fingers traced a cross over Charlie's chest, his gaze not leaving hers, "Cross my heart."

[blitzturtles]

Title: Two-Player

Rating: Teen and Up

Fandom: JoJo's Bizarre Adventure: Stardust Crusaders

Pairing(s): JotaKak, JoKa, Minor (and Platonic) Kakyoin & kid!Jolyne

Summary: There are days when Jotaro’s body remembers every single injury that it's ever received. Days when he aches from his toes to the top of his skull, and days when his nerves light themselves on fire. Medication won’t touch it, and the pain is either too grating or too unpredictable for him to ignore for any length of time.

He tries to break it down into pieces. To compartmentalize it all away the way he does with the memories.

Notes: I was having a chronic pain flare, asked my wife who I should inflict it on, and her answer was, "Jotaro and/or Dick Grayson". So here's the Jotaro version. Btw, I'm doing a writing / fic giveaway! Check out this post to see how to enter. Goes until 8.25.21!

-

There are days when Jotaro’s body remembers every single injury that it's ever received. Days when he aches from his toes to the top of his skull, and days when his nerves light themselves on fire. Medication won’t touch it, and the pain is either too grating or too unpredictable for him to ignore for any length of time.

He tries to break it down into pieces. To compartmentalize it all away the way he does with the memories. It’s all he can do in moments like these, when he’s hunched forward and breathing too heavy. Biting at his lip in a desperate attempt to keep from making a sound, lest Kakyoin or Jolyne choose that exact moment to barge in.

There’s the throbbing in his ankles and knees; both of which twinge with an excruciatingly sharp agony whenever he tries to stand from his desk. If he falters in the slightest, he’ll have his hips to contend with, and they’ll bring him to his knees for daring to exist. Best to stay put until he can no longer take the stillness that builds in the damaged joints, not that walking seems to alleviate the radiating pounding that blossoms in each joint and spreads endlessly outward. The more he thinks about it, the wider the radius grows, the harder it is to control his breathing.

Speaking of, his ribs burn from inflammation, and every breath is like inhaling fire, deeper and deeper until he’s choking on the exhale. The coughing that follows makes his guts twist up. Knotting around an invisible blade and splitting apart until he smells more than tastes the scent of blood and bile rising in the back of his throat.

The pain running through his nerves is a mixture of fire blight and an intense, piercing sensation that he’s yet to fully find the words for. There’s a reverberating ache to each stab. A constant and endless reminder that makes it impossible for him to sooth with the fingers he digs into the meat of his arms and legs. He can only stand to do that for so long, anyway. His wrists cramp after a few seconds. Already fatigued from writing. Working always makes the tendons tighten until they feel like they’re going to snap.

For whatever reason, his head feels the need to join in on the fun. Possibly because he’s already tense everywhere else. Possibly because it’s just that kind of day. Either way, he can’t ignore the ache there anymore than he can anywhere else, and it’s significantly slowed down his progress for the day. He’s done little more than stare at the papers on his desk with a blank expression for what must be hours now. The words blur together so badly that the ink almost disappears from his vision, which is a welcomed relief to the burning of his eyes.

He’s so overwhelmed by it all that he doesn’t hear Kakyoin. Kakyoin who he doesn’t ever tell, because Jotaro would rather grit his teeth and force his way through the day than tell his husband, of all people, that he hurts. As if Kakyoin doesn’t know a truer, more hellish agony in his every waking moment.

“Jotaro?”

His own name being called is what finally breaks him out of his pity party, and the look on Kakyoin’s face tells Jotaro that it’s been said more than once. There’s worry etched in the crease of Kakyoin’s forehead and in the way his lips are turned downward. Kakyoin would be crouched at eye level with him if he could, but his own body is hardly partial to that sort of movement.

“Sorry, what did you say?” Jotaro grits the words out and resists the urge to wince at the sound of his own voice. He doesn’t think he’s spoken at all today, but it still somehow sounds like he’s been chewing on glass.

Kakyoin’s frown deepens, “Jolyne was asking about- actually, it’s not that important. Are you alright?” He knows the answer already, but Kakyoin is nothing if not calculating. He wants to hear Jotaro speak. Wants to hear his reply. He’s trying to gauge how bad the situation is without expecting a proper, direct answer. He knows Jotaro too well for the man to be able to lie.

“Been better,” Jotaro admits, and he knows it’s an admission of just how poorly he feels. For him to fail to write Kakyoin off means that he’s struggling beyond what he can handle.

“I see,” Kakyoin says the words tightly. He seems to roll a thought over in his mind before sighing. “I think that you should lie down for a bit. I’ll get some painkillers. When’s the last time you had any?”

“I-” Jotaro mirrors the frown on Kakyoin’s face as he glances at the clock. Too long, he doesn’t say, but he doesn’t have to.

“Chasing pain won’t get you anywhere,” Kakyoin says, but his tone is far from patronizing. He speaks from experience. It’s better to try to stay in front of the brunt of their agony. They don’t stand much of a chance otherwise, not that Jotaro thought he’d had one since the moment he woke up that morning.

“Jolyne-” He starts, as a last ditch effort to get out of being mothered by his own husband, but he’s not surprised when Kakyoin shrugs him off.

“I’ll take care of Jolyne.” Kakyoin pauses, “And I can draw you a bath, if you’d like. The heat might help.” He would know, given his own chronic pain. He can’t take hot baths, given the sensitive nature of the reconstructed bits that make up his midsection, but he regularly soaks individual limbs when nothing else is working.

“I- yeah, okay,” Jotaro has to admit that the idea sounds nice. Maybe submerging the deep aches will help sooth them away, if only a little bit. Perhaps enough to make lying down more bearable, because that’s his problem with the idea of getting into bed: it’s going to hurt. He’ll hurt here or there, which is why he continues to insist on sitting at his desk on days like this. What’s the point in wasting time if he’s going to be miserable no matter where he is, or what he does? He might as well at least try to be productive.

“Good,” Kakyoin smiles gently, “Give me about five minutes before you come up? I’ll get that started and take care of Jolyne.”

“Sounds like a deal,” it doesn’t, actually. Kakyoin’s getting the short end of the stick all the way around. What with having to take care of Jotaro and Jolyne while dealing with his own pain.

“And quit that,” Kakyoin grumbles. He pokes Jotaro between the eyes, right on the bridge of his nose. “I married you, Jotaro. I don’t mind taking care of you or Jolyne, and I'm not inept for being a borderline cyborg.”

“I know,” Jotaro says with a sigh, “I don’t- I didn’t mean-” He hadn’t said anything, but that’s the problem with Kakyoin: he’s intuitive in a way that no one else Jotaro knows has ever been, and he can practically read Jotaro’s mind when he chooses.

“I know,” Kakyoin echoes, cutting Jotaro off before he can dig himself any deeper. His smile returns, and he leans down enough to press a kiss to the top of Jotaro’s forehead, only a short distance above where he had touched Jotaro a moment before. “Sometimes I just think you need a reminder. We’re equal, and you can have chronic pain, too.”

“Sounds fake,” Jotaro mumbles, but there’s a faint, upward pull of his lips that has Kakyoin barking out a laugh.

“Sure it does. Five minutes, JoJo.”

“Five minutes,” Jotaro repeats, already planning on it taking about that long just to get himself to the door to his study. His joints are already threatening to drop him if he so much as thinks about moving too quickly.

He watches Kakyoin go with fond eyes, and it takes approximately sixty seconds before he realizes that there had been a moment of relief. Where his brain had been too busy to be solely wrapped in his own suffering. Perhaps he’ll suggest that they all turn in early. There’s a new Disney movie that Jolyne’s been dying to see, and he knows she won’t mind being still too terribly if she gets to have the two of them in one room, sans work.

[amaya-chwan]

Takeaways from Therapy Game: Restart Chapter 11

Oh gosh, hello everyone! Thank you for being so patient with this chapter’s takeaways! I was really busy at work since I took on a new position, and then I was so engrossed in reading a super long novel (read: TGCF and that amazingness that is HuaLian) that it just took up a lot of my time the past couple of weeks! 😭❤️💛

I hope you are all well! This chapter was actually a nice little break from the drama themes we’d been used to reading, so let’s get to it!

Our takeaways for this chapter include:

Late night date at the communal bathhouse!! ✅😏😍

Honestly, Shizuma and Minato’s communication with each other is really goals! Such a healthy relationship! 🥰

Minato has really grown more and more over the course of TGR so far, I am living for it! Proud of you, bb! 😭❤️💛 

Almost NFSW scene 🔞 at the bathhouse has got me CACKLING! 🤣 Ngl, I love the tender moments they have before the NSFW begins, and this, my dear readers, is a lot of tender, wholesome, loving moments!

Ngl, Shizuma with slicked back hair is divine! 😍

GOOD GAWD THEIR REACTION when ^*^ 🤣

The ending of this chapter just 👀

I SWEAR, EVERY DANG TIME, THESE DORKS ARE TOO ADORABLE FOR THEIR OWN GOOD! 🤣😍🥰❤️💛

And that’s it for this chapter’s takeaways! For a more detailed breakdown/summary of this chapter--and if you want to know what the ^*^ is--please continue after the cut! As always, I promise there are a few surprises in this summary!  😉✨

The cover page for this chapter has Minato crouching down with an umbrella in hand, with the caption: You came to see me. Just that act alone, warms me up from the heart (outwards).

The opening panel brings us to a public bathhouse, where some elderly gentlemen are blushingly staring at Minato who is currently rinsing himself off before he heads to the communal bath and says “This feels great...”

The gentlemen make commentary in the background, saying “It’s rare to see the youth here~”, “Does that youth have white* hair? (*in this case, probably platinum blond)”, “It’s bleached, BLEACHED!”, “My grandchild bleaches their hair too!”

Shizuma can obviously hear them, and he awkwardly thinks to himself that he and MInato are being stared at. Shizuma then thinks that Minato doesn’t really have an impression of what being at a public bathhouse is like since he is really carefree while rinsing. Minato takes a peek at Shizuma, and Shizuma smirks back. Minato grabs the back of this neck in an almost “I’m feeling a little awkward/shy” fashion.

Flashback: We return on the scene from last chapter (so probably timeline-wise, less than an hour or two beforehand), where Minato and Shizuma are together under the umbrella in the rain. Minato sneezes and is starting to feel the coldness in the air. Shizuma worriedly asks if he is okay and suggests taking Minato home first. Looking slightly dejected, Minato asks if they’re really going home now, to which Shizuma responds by saying “Of course we are. Your clothes are drenched. If you stay like this any longer, you really will catch a cold.”

Minato has a lightbulb moment and suggests going to the public bathhouse. The condition of entry for the bath house is that those who have a tattoo might be asked to present some form of ID and that the bathhouse owners have the right to refuse entry. Minato asks the elderly reception lady if she needs to see his ID, showing her his snake tattoo on his ankle. She laughs, saying that there’s nothing to worry about if his tattoo is just that “earthworm” (she doesn’t see it as a snake). She’s more concerned that he is drenched and tells him to take his wet clothes off and use the dryer, and to warm himself up in the bath by submerging his whole body up to his shoulders! Shizuma looks on lovingly on the side.

Back to the present time. Minato sits down next to Shizuma in the bath, getting used to the temperature of the water and starts to relax. Shizuma looks over and seems to think Minato won’t catch that cold anymore. He recalls what Minato said to him and how he wasn’t able to hear it due to the rain, and wonders what Minato could be hiding from him. Minato picks up on Shizuma’s staring and proceeds to tell him that he’d also feel uncomfortable with being constantly stared at by Shizuma. Shizuma then apologises to him, thinking that they haven’t been able to look at each other face-on since arriving at the bathhouse. He deduces that it’s because he failed to make it for their house tour appointment, so of course Minato should be angry.

Minato, without knowing what’s going on in Shizuma’s mind, blurts aloud that his body has grown stiff from sitting around all day and didn’t know whether to go home or not due to Shizuma’s lack of messages. Looking upset, Shizuma tells Minato that there was an emergency situation that occured right before he was leaving, and while he was able to help with the situation, he could not make the time to message Minato. He apologises again since Minato was looking forward to it.

Minato says it’s fine already, that Shizuma has been doing nothing but apologise lately. Shizuma agrees, saying that that’s all he’s being doing lately and he’s no good as a boyfriend. Minato, crouching over the side of the bath railing, says to Shizuma that that’s not what he wanted him to say, and that Shizuma hasn’t done anything wrong at all.

Flashback again: Minato is hastily walking towards Shizuma’s car, angry that Shizuma hasn’t messaged him at all and that since that dream he had at the cafe, he hasn’t been able to stop worrying about him. When he sees Shizuma’s car, he realises he must still be at the hospital and thinks he might be doing random odd-jobs again, or worse, he might be getting all friendly with the nurses. And if so, Minato won’t speak to him for a couple of days.

Minato then notices the two women walking out of the clinic in tears so he hides behind the car. While they talk about Hana-chan and how professional and personable Shizuma is as a resident vet, Minato eavesdrops and blames them for Shizuma staying back late. But the more he listens to the women being thankful everything went okay and Shizuma assuaged their fears, he is reminded how great of a vet Shizuma is.

Back to the present. Minato tells Shizuma he saw the two women and understands why he missed the appointment. He once told Shizuma to be a great vet (re: see side story in TG) while he himself realised he wasn’t ready for what that meant for Shizuma’s personal life. Minato then tells Shizuma that he’s helping all these people without him (Minato) knowing about it, that he’s falling in love with Shizuma all over again even though he’s been stood up on a date, and that he is (jokingly, I assume) annoyed by this feeling. Blushing, Minato looks over at a stunned Shizuma.

Having said all that, Minato pats Shizuma on the head, telling him he’s done well! Shizuma is still silent and stunned, and Minato gets a little flustered with the lack of response, almost as if Shizuma was coaxing those words from Minato. Shizuma says that while he’s happy that the puppies are okay and he was able to reassure the owners, Minato’s words just then made him feel the happiest all day, and flashes a really darling smile! Shizuma thanks him.

The elderly gentlemen begin to walk out, noticing Shizuma is grinning from ear to ear. They make small talk, and the gentlemen tell Shizuma to warm up!

Minato is also taken aback with the happiness overflowing from Shizuma’s expression. Shizuma notices Minato in a little bit of a daze and comes up close to him. When asked if he is having a hot flash, Minato pushes Shizuma away, saying he’s too close. Seeing the lack of people, Shizuma says they’re the only ones in the baths right now. Blushing again, Minato asks Shizuma if he’d like to be rewarded for working hard, to which Shizuma happily responds with “I wanna do it!” Minato agrees, reminding Shizuma to mind his manners since it’s a communal bath.

Things get a bit steamy between Shizuma and Minato, with Minato thinking he’s seen more of the adorable side of Shizuma today. They exchange words of arousal while Shizuma kisses and touches Minato all over.

Minato then teases Shizuma by calling him a “bad” vet. Just as they get more and more into it, one more guy comes out of the bath next to them, rinses his body and leaves, just like that. Both stunned at the thought that someone was there, they laugh! (^*^ moment)

Shizuma and Minato are now walking along the street, looking at the star-filled night sky. Shizuma says he was really looking forward to the house tour, but Minato says it’s okay since their house tour date became a bathhouse date. Being all pouty and cute, Minato asks Shizuma: “Well, either one of these dates would’ve been fine as long as we’re together, right?”

Shizuma grabs his heart, asking what’s up with Minato for him to be so adorable today. Minato says he’s assumed the role of an adorable person so that they can have a heated and passionate round of lovemaking when they get home, which Shizuma finds quite sly.

Shizuma once again asks Minato about what he said in the car park, reminding him that he doesn’t have to talk about it if he doesn’t want to. Minato says it’s nothing for Shizuma to worry about, that he’s not enduring it out of pride or anything. Remembering Shizuma’s joyful face when he told him those words of encouragement, Minato says: “(Inner monologue) Putting my feelings into words, those nightmares that I’ve grown tired of, and my anxieties, (aloud) with just your stupidly adorable smiling face, you blow away all the unpleasantness and dislikes I have. So Shizuma-kun, smile.” Shizuma shoots him a smile and understands what he’s saying, and Minato responds with “Hn, good boy.”

Still walking to Shizuma’s car, Minato reminds Shizuma not to show his adorable smiling face to anyone else. Shizuma awkwardly smiles and says he doesn’t, wondering where Minato got this idea from. They continue to talk about the bathhouse and how nice it was that the receptionist let Minato use the dryer. Shizuma then remembers he left his boxers to dry in the staff room at the hospital!

He stops by the hospital with Minato, who has no idea why he’s had to go back to the hospital right now. He assures Minato that it isn’t anything big, but is actually freaking out on the inside, afraid another staff member might see it (and yes, Onodera did see it in a previous panel). He leaves Minato in the car and runs over to collect his boxers. Minato smirks while seeing Shizuma knocking on the door to gain entry, but is slightly taken aback when he sees that the person who opens the door is Shizuma’s director, a woman.

And that’s it for this chapter! Everything was going so smoothly in this chapter, with all the tender moments, then BAM! Hinohara-sensei just had to end the chapter like that! Stay strong, Minato! It isn’t what you might think it is! 😭

Also, I shall check for typos and grammar tomorrow since Tumblr has failed me more than half a dozen times and I lost my post each time. RIP to me and my sleeping pattern haha! 😭

Again, THANK YOU FOR READING THIS FAR! 💜 📢  As always, please support Hinohara-sensei by purchasing her books and CDs! 📢

The next chapter will be in the next issue of Dear+ that will be coming out on the 13th of February (later this week)! Hopefully I’ll be back to regular scheduling and post at a reasonable time (and fix my editing skills LMFAO)! Thank you again for being so patient! Ngl, I am still drowning in all my TGCF feels, so I highly recommend this novel. It’s a long read, but well worth it! ❤️ HuaLian 4 life, period.

So yeah, I’ll see you guys again for our next set of takeaways! 😍

As always, stay safe during these turbulent times and look out for each other and for your loved ones! 💜    

[nekokoaa]

Wolves Among Us - Bakugo x Reader (XVI)

Wolves Among Us – Bakugo x Reader

Series Warning: Fantasy AU, Fluff, NSFW

(Chapter XVI/??) All chapters in AO3 and masterlist

Phew, glad I got this out! Enjoy!

Taglist:

@freedom-for-bum@reallyfuckingangrylatina@risarisarisaa@ashherssss@mels-heart@xa-dia@shanty-lol@amkxh@chims-kookies@fantasticapple@thalia-luna-hawthorn​@skzero-99@marvelobsessedteen@thenezuko@icythotsenpai

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XVI: Bonded

Your clothes dropped to the floor with a soft thump, rimming around your ankles as your eyes briefly looked over your nude body in front of the mirror. You could hardly see yourself since the fog around the edges of the surface crawled until it completely engulfed it. Even a brief wipe on the mirror did nothing to deter the fogginess. As long as you were near the hot springs, you figured it would be like this. You gathered your clothes, folded them, and left them on top of a table.

In your peripherals, you spotted Ochako approaching you, cautiously and light on her feet. Like she was hunting you or something, but she was really nervous to speak to you. She pulled you aside earlier today to talk to you about what you stumbled upon. You were with Katsuki at the time, so you told her later before the bathing ceremony. It was another one of the wolves’ traditions before the wedding day, which was tomorrow. You found it was similar to bachelor and bachelorette parties instead the bride and her friends and the groom and his friends would hang out in the hot springs the night before. Their last night before becoming bonded.

“Are you mad at me…?” Ochako’s wolf ears were pulled back and her tail hung low and limp behind her. Even her natural curls in her hair seemed dull. Although it could be the surrounding humidity being the cause.

“I’m not mad,” the image of Ochako on top of Izuku resurfaced in your head, “just surprised.”

“Izuku and I wanted to keep it a secret especially with what’s been going on in the pack. We just thought it would cause trouble.”

“It’s okay. It’s none of my business anyway.”

“Then why does your tone sound short with me?” A whimper left Ochako. She was biting her bottom lip.

“It was awkward seeing you guys like that, but I’m not mad, really, I’m not.” It was true. There wasn’t a hint of anger within you. You kind of just wanted to forget what you saw.

“Hmm,” another whimper, “okay then…”

Ochako then left you alone, turning around and disappearing in the heavy steam coming from the outside. You followed after her shortly, exiting the cave and walking through the steam. The deeper you went the less opaque your surroundings became until it revealed large pools of water with stones and large rock formations curbing the edge. The surrounding trees were slanted forward while it’s branches and leaves enclosed like a curtain sufficing the perfect privacy.

Mitsuki, Mina, Kyoka, Momo, and Tsuyu were already relaxing in one of the pools, deep in conversation. Ochako was climbing in, toes first, her worries melting from her expression, at least temporary. When the rest of the girls spotted you standing by the pool they beckoned for you to come and you listened. Mimicking Ochako, your toes touched the water first and already you felt its hotness that you yelped and pulled your feet out.

Mitsuki laughed.

“Just throw your whole body in! You’ll adjust!” Mina said with a grin.

You doubted her words but followed it anyway. You couldn’t hold back the painful groan that left you. Through gritted teeth, you submerged your legs in the water and walked through with until you sat between Mina and Mitsuki. It was only a couple of seconds until your body adjusted to the heat and you returned a smile towards Mina.

“This is nice…” you sighed, already feeling the heat penetrate your strained muscles.

“I knooooow. I needed this. Especially after dealing with all that set up for tomorrow,” Mitsuki moaned and sunk deeper into the water. Her skin was flushed pink from the heat. It was amazing how good her skin looked for her age, not a single wrinkle in it.

“I’m excited! It’s been a while since we had a wedding. Last one was…”

“Mine!” Mina interjected Momo, raising her hand in the air.

“Oh, that was a blast. Remember when Eijirou started crying as soon as he saw you?” Kyoka laughed.

“Oh, Eijirou cried his eyes out! But that was very sweet of him.”

“You were beautiful that day. I don’t blame him.” Momo smiled softly.

Mina giggled, “If I wasn’t pink already! Well, now it’s ____’s turn tomorrow. Nervous?” She turned to you, leaning until her shoulder briefly bumped yours. Tsuyu already pulled herself from the water and sat on the rocks with her legs still half in. She fanned her hot cheeks, thin tongue flat on her bottom lip as you could swear you heard a small “ribbit” from her.

“Um, is it obvious?” You chuckled to hide the nerves that resurfaced whenever you thought about the wedding.

“There’s nothing to be nervous about. You’re just marrying my loud-mouth son.”

“I understand why you would feel that way.” Momo also pulled herself from the water. “Being bonded is not easy. You can’t just think about yourself anymore.”

“Yeah and wait until children come in the picture,” Mina sighed.

“You and Katsuki were waiting until the wedding night, right?” You didn’t think your cheeks could get any warmer until you heard Ochako’s question.

“Ooooh yeah, are you ready?” Mitsuki nudged your shoulder with her elbow.

“I—yeah I am… Actually, I was wondering… do you guys have any advice for that night? I never had sex before—like I know what to expect but I don’t want to seem inexperience.”

“You shouldn’t worry about that. Just have fun,” Kyoka shrugged.

“Well, one advice I can think of is if you like it, don’t hesitate to give him a scratch or two,” Mitsuki smirked.

“Maybe even a bite! You won’t regret it,” said Mina.

“It’s a huge compliment. We love scratching and biting during sex. It’s how we show if we’re enjoying it or not,” Momo added.

“I’m sure Katsuki will take good care of you. Maybe be honest about how you’re feeling at the moment too.” Tsuyu dipped back into the water.

“If anything, the only thing you should worry about is becoming pregnant.” Pregnancy? It was something you didn’t consider a possibility. “Katsuki was conceived on our first night being bonded. I’ll never forget the look on Masaru’s face when I told him I was pregnant weeks after. He was so happy but so terrified at the same time.”

“On your first night?!”

“Yeah, now you and Katsuki will be living away from us for a few weeks so plenty of time for me to finally become a grandma!” Mitsuki looked genuinely excited but her words had worried you. It was a tradition after the ceremony for newlyweds to live away from the pack for a few weeks to enjoy their time alone—an equivalent to a honeymoon. You had no doubt you and Katsuki would be sexually active during those few weeks, but pregnancy and children was something you didn’t even think of. You weren’t even sure if Katsuki wanted children so soon.

“But it’s not like I’ll get pregnant during that time, right…?”

The women looked to one another, their expressions unreadable. It worried you to no end until Mina spoke up.

“Um—Well, things happen, you know? You don’t really know when it happens but the more you do it, the more chances you’ll have.”

Tsuyu nodded, “but it’s nothing to really worry about. You have Katsuki and us to help you if that happens.”

“Okay…” you gulped. Fuck. You really didn’t think that far, but now you seriously had to. It wasn’t just marrying Katsuki because you love him but creating a partnership that’ll help you grow as a person and possibly a family. You never thought of yourself as a mother and wasn’t sure if you could even handle it. It was a conversation worth talking about with Katsuki.

After the hot springs, you said your good nights to the girls and retreated to your cave. Katsuki wasn’t there so you assumed he was still at the springs with his friends. You decided to go to bed before him and crawl under the sheep wool covers.

But you couldn’t fall asleep. You were anxious, of course. Tomorrow, you were to become a bride, a wife to a wolf. But it wasn’t just any wolf but one who was a descendant from Fenrir and the future leader of the largest wolf pack on this side of the planet, and you would also be considered a future leader once you marry him. It was why some wolves were still against it. They didn’t want to take orders from a human. You understood that.

Most of the pack decided to tolerate it. They were more loyal to Katsuki and the Fenrir bloodline and if that’s what he decided, they would go along with it. Some even used the argument that Fenrir’s wife was human, so it was permissible for Katsuki to marry you. The few who were against the wedding were given permission to leave the pack until they were ready to return. Mitsuki would accept them with open arms.

“You awake?” You jumped slightly as you felt Katsuki climb into bed. He expected to find you asleep, but you were lying in bed with the covers over your body and you were staring at the burning candles on the table. You felt his heavy arm hook around your waist and turn you around to face him. You felt your cheeks warm up. Gosh, there was just something about seeing a shirtless Katsuki in dim lighting with the shadows hitting his face and muscles just right.

“Yeah I am. How was the spring?”

You soon felt his fingers in your hair and his face moved close, then you felt his lips touch yours, kissing you lightly but with a sort of aggression that only seem to fit Katsuki. He even let out a growl when he pulled away like he was reluctant to do so but had to. He didn’t move far but stayed close enough for you to feel his breath. You also felt his tail wagging as it would smack against your thigh sporadically—the only indication that he was happy right now.

“Good. Were you waiting up for me?” You realized Katsuki’s skin was still moist from the springs when you stroke the side of his arm.

“Not really, couldn’t sleep,” you started drawing circles in his skin with your finger.

“Thinking about tomorrow?”

Your eyes flickered up to find Katsuki’s glowing red ones with a hint of gold reflecting in them from the candle flames.

“Yeah… Can’t believe it. Kind of feels like it was yesterday when I met you.”

“Yeah…” his fingers lightly brushed your arm. He looked tired. “You’re scared?”

You laughed.

“More nervous actually—Don’t worry, I’m not going to leave you at the altar or something—I’m just a bit worried about becoming a wife and a leader. You know—me being human and all.”

“You’re worried about that shit again? I told you—”

“I know what you told me. But you know I can’t help but think about it. I’m not insensitive like you,” you sighed. You didn’t mean to sound so harsh. Although, Katsuki was unaffected by your tone.

“You don’t have to think about being a wife or leader. Everything will be the same only that we’re bonded forever. Don’t let all these duties and those old jerks cloud that.” The ‘old jerks’ that Katsuki mentioned were the Elders. The Elders were advisors to the pack leaders. They usually like to give their opinions on what goes on in the pack, but the leaders have the final say. You met them a couple of days after the party and it was a group that consisted of four men and four women, all elderly, hence the name ‘The Elders’, and you remembered that they didn’t stop pestering you about your studies about the wolves’ culture and surprisingly, baby plans. They even questioned whether or not you were pregnant now. The nerve of them!

“I can’t believe they asked if I was pregnant.”

“I don’t blame them. We don’t wait until marriage to mate. You probably would’ve been a mother already.”

You looked at Katsuki through wide eyes. He was just telling the truth but something about it unsettled you. You weren’t ready to be a mother and won’t be for a couple of years.

“I can’t imagine myself… pregnant,” you mumbled. “Do you even want children, Katsuki?”

You thought you should have this conversation with him since there was a good chance of you conceiving on the wedding night.

Katsuki shifted slightly to where his head was on the pillow and the arm around you started to squeeze your waist and his hand began to roam around your back. Whenever he did this, he was preparing to sleep.

“I wouldn’t mind having a few brats running around, you know…” he yawned, his large fangs on display for you.

“I don’t think I’ll be ready until—maybe, after a few years?”

“Take all the time you need… Don’t let those old jerks pressure you… I’ll wait…”

Before you knew it, he was snoring lightly, his eyes closed, and body limp. Katsuki was tired from everything he had to do today. Before he hung out with his friends in the springs, he helped the pack with the final preparations for tomorrow, setting up the stage, the sitting area, making sure everything was in order for you two to wed. So, it did not come as a surprise that Katsuki nearly knocked out the moment he climbed into bed.

You sighed softly, and you still couldn’t fall asleep.

You brought a hand to Katsuki’s cheek and softly caressed it. Your fingers touched his nose and parts of his lips. You then moved to buried them in his hair and as soon as you touched his wolf ears, they began to twitch. You smiled because you thought it was so cute. That wasn’t a word you normally used to describe Katsuki, but it definitely fit the situation.

You continued playing with Katsuki’s hair, waiting for sleep to claim you.

The echo sound of drums being beaten was what woke you out of your slumber. It was early in the morning, perhaps a few hours since the sun had risen. You heard your name being called and you opened your eyes and saw several wolf women surrounding you. You let out a gasp, bringing your covers over your chest when you noticed it had fallen when you sat up. You quickly looked to your right and noticed the space next to you was empty. Where was Katsuki?

“Sorry for scaring you,” one of them said, smiling lightly, wolf ears fluttering. “But you have to get ready for the ceremony.”

“Congratulations!” Each of them said immediately after, already pulling you up by your arms. Your covers dropped. You couldn’t shield yourself because they were still holding your arms. Even though they were women, you still felt self-conscious.

“Ah—wait, where’s Katsuki?”

“Future leader is already getting ready. You won’t see him until it’s time for the bond.”

The women then gathered some of your clean clothes, helping you dress before they pulled you towards the bathhouse. You were practically pushed into the baths, and they scrubbed and scrubbed on your arms and legs until you felt yourself turn raw.

“Humans have such soft skin,” one of them commented, seeing parts of your skin start to bruise before they dumped a large bucket of warm water on the top of your head. “Don’t worry, we have some cream that’ll make those go away.”

“You’re so lucky, miss, to be getting married to our future leader!” One of them gushed and the rest giggled.

“L-Lucky, really?” They brought you to your feet and helped you step out of the bath. They immediately began drying you with towels. You haven’t been this pampered since… never.

“Of course! Future leader is the descendant of Fenrir, the first wolf. There’s magic in his blood, you know.”

“And not only that, but he’s hot.”

“And I heard he’s good in bed.”

The women could not stop yammering about Katsuki even after they dressed you up in simple clothes and guided you back towards the mountain. Once they had you in a cave, they undressed you and moisturized your skin with that cream they spoke of and they sprayed an excessive amount of perfume all around your body including your inner thighs. They mentioned something about smelling delightful for the wedding night. You found yourself at their mercy as they sat you down in front of a mirror and began doing your makeup and hair. Slowly, you watched yourself transform. By the time they were done, you looked like a completely different person.

And then it was time for your dress that was custom fit to your size. The women mentioned that it was a dress designed specifically for Katsuki’s betrothed. As you looked in the mirror, you couldn’t believe the woman staring back was you. Not that you ever thought you were unattractive, but you have never seen yourself look this beautiful. Even the women who helped you dress were in awe of your beauty, soon telling you that it was Katsuki who was the lucky one.

The drums were louder outside. They echoed into the blue sky, absent with clouds as the sun shimmered brightly upon the mountain. There was no longer any snow except for the mountain tops and the temperature was the warmest it’s been since winter diminished.  It was a glorious day to marry. Many of the wolves believed it was Fenrir himself, giving them his blessings.

Crowds of wolves had already gathered in the courtyard. It was a mixture of different packs from nearby lands that traveled far to see the descendant of Fenrir marry. The energetic Kaminari Clan, the strong Toshinari Clan, the mellow Aizawa Clan, the caring Ashido Clan, and more well-known packs were all here. And even though there were wolves who disagreed with who Katsuki was marrying in attendance, they respected his family line enough to be cordial. A wolf marrying a human hasn’t happened recently in modern times. In fact, in some packs, the hatred of humans was so severe that if caught having a relationship with one would lead to exile, hence becoming a lone wolf.

Regardless of their opinions, Katsuki was relieved that all seats were full. He was sitting cross-legged on a cushion on the stage, arms folded at his chest, while he waited for you to come out. He could see everyone’s faces from this height. His mother was sitting in the front row along with all the pack leaders and the Elders. The second row was family and friends—those who were close to him and you. He had to hold back his snarls when he saw Izuku next to Ochako. He hated that he came but it was what you wanted, and he wasn’t going to deny what you wanted on your wedding day. Surprisingly, the pack wasn’t so against having him here so at least his presence didn’t cause any problems.

Katsuki’s traditional garments were his usual but he was lathered in jewelry from necklaces to bangles. Black lines of paint from his forehead, over his eyes, to his chin and under. His left shoulder was red and swollen from the tattoo he received before dawn, an intricate silhouette design of Fenrir’s head surrounded by a border with rounded edges—a symbol that he’s a bonded member of his bloodline. And on top of his shoulders was the fur top of his red cape that draped the stage behind him dramatically.

To everyone, Katsuki looked like a powerful, stoic leader ready to be wed. But internally, Katsuki was nervous as any man on his wedding day. It was the feeling of butterflies in his stomach which he wouldn’t have been able to describe until this day. Katsuki of the Bakugo Clan, descendant of Fenrir, next in line for pack leader, had never been nervous before and he never thought he would ever be bombarded with these feelings because of a woman. Katsuki used to walk this earth untamed—no strong bonds that tethered him. He always expected to wed a random woman, probably forced to by the Elders because he was getting older and he needed to birth an heir. He never would’ve predicted that he would marry for love, nor did he desire to at that time.

But ever since he first saw you, there was a force that pulled him to you and he hasn’t been able to shake it off—not that he wanted to, of course—but it was a tether that connected you two, an unbreakable bond that would never sever even after death.

Katsuki looked up the moment he heard the drums slow to a steady beat. It could only mean one thing. You were coming out.

As if on cue, all the wolves turned their heads to look down the aisle.

Katsuki was quick on his feet, steady red eyes glued on you when he saw you standing at the end of the aisle. Oh, his heart fluttered wildly at the sight of you, palms clammy like fire had come from his fingertips. You were the moon to him, beautiful with a glow that had him staring for ages. Apparent, even in the darkest of surroundings. Full, in the shape of your hips in your mostly white dress where the hue changed to a fiery orange-red at the bottom—like fire lilies, like his eyes, his cape. At that moment, he questioned if you were real because he couldn’t believe such a woman like you would be by his side willingly.

When you started to slowly walk towards the stage, Katsuki made his way down the stage, almost slipping on the first step, and recovering ungraciously that it had you giggling—A warm tune that made his ears twitch in joy, heart palpitating, hands shaking. He didn’t care how clumsy he looked walking down those stairs. He wanted you in his arms already. Katsuki’s strides were wide and covered more ground than you. He ignored the hissed words of his mother telling him to slow down.

And when he met with you at the center of the aisle, he grabbed your arms and saw through the veil covering your face that you were smiling—widely, giggles leaving you like you were mad.

“What are you laughing about?” He growled, a playful smirk on his face. He saw that you were decorated with jewelry similar to his own on your ears, arms and wrists but your neck laid bare for his golden necklace to be put on.

“Hehe… you tripped.”

Katsuki sucked his teeth, pulled you closer, and pressed his forehead against yours. He breathed in your scent deeply and you hummed at the feeling of his warmth.

He grabbed you by your hand and together, the two of you walked back to the stage. He helped you sit on your cushion and as soon as Katsuki sat on his, the drums creased and Mitsuki stood up, turning to face the guests.

“Thank you everyone for being here. Today, we witness another bonding ceremony for a member of the Fenrir family line. I’m sure those of you who were old enough to remember my ceremony could recall the looks on Masaru’s and I’s face when we walked out of here bonded and how much blessings and love we received from everyone. I ask that you show that same love and respect to my son and his beloved on this day. Regardless of how we feel about humans, we will treat her like she’s one of us and after this day, she will be.” Mitsuki spoke loud to where all the wolves in the vicinity heard her, some of them sneered at her words but stayed quiet, others nodded, agreeing with her.

It was a divided crowd, but it was the least of Katsuki’s worries.

“Now we will begin the ceremony, once again, thank you everyone for being here.” Mitsuki sat back down and another person rose up, this time an older wolf wearing long robes and holding a large book in his hands that he flipped open when he kneeled in front of the stage, facing you and Bakugo. Around his wrists and hands were tiny bells that jingled the moment he slapped his hands together and in a loud voice he said, “O’Fenrir! Let us call upon you to bless this joyous day!” And he began to recite what was on the pages. He was the head priest of the pack. First, he would pray to Fenrir to accept and bless the marriage and then he would read from the scriptures in an old language long forgotten in the pack—only those training to be priest learn to read them.

But Katsuki didn’t care about any of that. Since he sat down, he’s been glancing at you—sometimes even staring at you. He was so used to seeing you in your regular clothes, bare faced or sometimes with light make up that you honestly looked like a different person in that dress. It was a different from when he saw you at the party last week. He wanted you in his bed because of how sexy you looked but this time, you looked like a pure beauty, delicate but not fragile. You held your head high and although the veil covered your face, he saw those strong eyes behind them—steady like a leader overseeing her people.

And when you finally caught him staring, the brightest smile he ever saw from you hit him like a branch in the forest. The flutters in his stomach grew at an all-time high, his cheeks turned a red hue, and his tail began to wag furiously. He couldn’t believe it. A single smile had reduced him to a teenage wolf again.

You didn’t expect Katsuki to reach out and hold your hand on your lap. It was strange to see him so happy (by the sight of how fast his tail was moving) but you were enjoying it. Your smile grew larger and with your other hand, you clasped it over his and caressed his fingers. This only made him happier as there were moments when his tail would thump against the stage and the sound echoed throughout the courtyard with the priest’s voice. You glanced at Mitsuki. You could tell she already wanted to tell him to calm down.

“Now I call upon the carriers to bring the necklaces to the descendant of Fenrir.” The priest kept his head low as he called for Minato and Mie who were already walking down the aisle with their short legs and hands heavy with the necklaces on top of cushions. Mina and Eijirou were smiling proudly as they watched them climb the stairs and kneel down on one knee to present them.

“Thanks, brats.” Katsuki ruffled both of their heads before setting down the cushions in front of him.

“With the necklaces arrival, we may begin the bond.”

The moment the loud booms of the drums returned, the faster your heart seemed to beat. Katsuki turned to completely face you and you did the same. He slowly reached for your veil and flipped it over your head like he’s been waiting to do that since he saw you. You heard some wolves gasped when your face was revealed, and you felt your cheeks warmed because you knew it had to do with how beautiful you looked. You even felt the light touch of Katsuki’s knuckles brush against your cheek because he couldn’t help but marvel at how perfect you looked. He needed to touch you to confirm your existence.

“Please repeat after me, Future leader. I, Katsuki of the Bakugo clan, will take this human to be my wife. With Fenrir’s blessing, I will do my duties as a husband, protect my wife and my family from anyone who might threaten them. Honor this bond through sickness and health and care for my bond whenever she may need me.”

Katsuki looked straight into your eyes, grabbed your hands and repeated the vows. You felt tears welling in your eyes as you listened to him.

“Now please repeat after me, ____. I, ____ of the human race, will take this wolf to be my husband. With Fenrir’s blessings, I will do my duties as a wife, protect my husband and my family from anyone who might threaten them. Honor this bond through sickness and health and care for my bond whenever he may need me.”

It was hard to repeat the vows because you were trying to hold back your hiccups. A single tear rolled down your cheeks and was quickly captured by Katsuki’s thumb. He smiled so softly—it was a look you rarely saw; his eyes glossy and he couldn’t hide those flushed cheeks, nor could he blame it on the warm weather.

Katsuki then picked up your golden necklace from the cushion, he felt the weight of his ancestry in his hands as he dressed it around your neck. With a click, he secured it on your neck and looked you over like a completed masterpiece.

Next was your turn as you reached for the other necklace that looked similar to yours but less decorative—still, it held the meaning of someone who was bonded. You hooked it around his neck and it stood out among all the necklaces there. He looked so handsome, like you finally found a piece to complete a puzzle.

The priest had raised both his hands in the air, praising Fenrir once again, before he closed his fists and then the drums creased with a final boom. His body dropped into a prostrate, both his forehead and nose touched the ground as his cloak drape around his body. You thought it was dramatic how he was acting but you knew the priests practically worshipped the Fenrir bloodline. They weren’t upset at Katsuki marrying a human because Fenrir did the same thing and as long as Fenrir did it, it was permissible to them.

“With Fenrir’s blessing and vows exchanged, I announce the ceremonial bond complete.” He spoke into the ground and then the wolves immediately broke into howls, noses high in the air, lips pursed as they celebrated your joining. Even Mie and Minato joined the howling with their tiny voices and jumped in place excitedly. Izuku joined in by applause, clapping awkwardly as he was startled by the sudden howls.

You were grinning at Katsuki, sight blurry with endless tears springing from your eyes. It was happy tears nonetheless, and you gazed upon your now husband that returned your grin with one of his own. You could tell he wanted to kiss you, but it was tradition that the bride and groom must not engage in anything intimate until the wedding night. You and Katsuki let go of each other and turned to face the crowd, smiling brightly as the wolves howled and cheered for your bond.

If you had told yourself months ago that you would meet a wolf, fall in love with him, and marry him, you wouldn’t have believed it. Becoming a wife and the second leader of a wolf pack, abandoning your own people to live with the wolf you love. You wondered if you made your parents roll in their graves with the decisions you’ve made. But at this point, you didn’t care. You were living life the way you wanted.

Katsuki’s such a brash, arrogant, and cocky wolf, all qualities that’s unlikable at first but after getting to know him—all that hardness, that coldness, was his exterior. Inside, he cared, loved, and helped in his own way, a Katsuki’s way, that you wouldn’t truly understand if you didn’t bother getting to know his true self. Yes, he wasn’t perfect. And yes, there were times when he was unbearable, and he would get on your nerves with his snide comments, but you learned that your love for him had overwhelmed the negatives. You gave up your life for him just as he risked his life for yours. You wanted to be with him, start a family with him, and live out your days with him. Today was only just the beginning.

With sacrifices and all, finally, you and Katsuki were bonded forever.

The ceremony after was one you would never forget. The wolves partied for hours. When evening reached, lanterns around the courtyard lit up around you as well as the ones behind you on stage. The wolves were continuously handing you and Katsuki wedding gifts on the stage that you accepted with a smile. Most of it was meat and handmade trinkets or jewelry. Mina gave you these beautiful beads that you thought was supposed to go around your neck, but she told you with a laugh that it was for your waist. And with a whisper in your ear, she told you to wear it for tonight. The heat rose to your cheeks and you gave a glance at Katsuki who was distracted by what Eijirou was telling him. Mina left you a wink before dragging Eijirou away. Next came Ochako and Izuku who earned a snarl from Katsuki.

“Ignore him,” you simply said but Izuku couldn’t help but cower under his glare. Ochako smiled uneasily probably because she was still thinking about what happened at the hot springs yesterday. But you moved to hold her hand and that gentle smile on your face had relieved her. It was too joyous of a day to keep the awkwardness between you and her.

Ochako then gave you a bottle of perfume made from flowers while Izuku pulled out a bouquet with a letter attached to it. He told you the letter was from Inko who he informed about your situation. You were grateful he did because out of everyone, you at least wanted Inko to know that you were alive and happy.

Many other wolves came to give you gifts as well, many that you didn’t know yet. Some of them were important clan leaders that congratulated you and Katsuki, neither friendly or rude, just acted in curtesy. Denki and Kyoka gave their gifts with Denki mentioning he couldn’t believe Katsuki found someone willing to be around him. Katsuki, of course, didn’t take that lightly. He banged his fist on the stage and told him to stop talking, growling through gritted teeth.

In between everyone visiting the stage, you and Katsuki took the time to look at each other. Unfortunately, you couldn’t show any intimacy yet, but you can tell from the look in Katsuki’s eyes that he couldn’t wait to have you all to himself. You could even hear his low growls from his chest the longer he stared at you. Love embedded in those red eyes, and of course, you didn’t miss the lust in them—a look you recognized since he kissed you on that tree many months ago.

Soon, Mitsuki came after Denki and Kyoka, interrupting the silent moment between you. She gave you a hug and expressed how happy she was for you. She then gave Katsuki one and as reluctant as he was to wrap his arms around her, he still awkwardly held her with his frown deepening. Their relationship was still sour, but you knew Mitsuki was proud of her son and supported him in everything he wanted to do. She was the first one to trust you because she trusted her son. In her eyes, he was still the young wolf that she raised to be the man he is now—stronger than all in the pack. She only wished Masaru lived long enough to see it.

“Your father would’ve been proud…” She whispered when she released him, her shaky hands still on his shoulders. Katsuki didn’t expect to see Mitsuki’s glossy eyes, but not a single tear fell because he knew she was holding it in. He couldn’t deny that his mother was strong. It was where he got his strength from.

The gifting went on, even after food was brought to you and Katsuki. Honestly, it was a little annoying because you wanted some alone time with Katsuki already. You couldn’t get a word in without someone coming to interrupt you. Weddings in the wolves’ culture was definitely different than human weddings. Majority of the time, you and Katsuki were sitting on the stage overlooking everyone while they converse and ate with each other. There was no dance between the wedded couple nor a cake to cut and smash the piece in Katsuki’s face. No father and daughter dance nor a mother and son one. Although, there was a dance performance that impressed you with their rhythm and ended with fire being blown from their lips. You gasped and grabbed Katsuki’s arm when the flames blew into the air. All Katsuki did was laugh at you and watched on.

Next, Kyoka sang a song for you two. You never knew she had such a beautiful voice. Even Denki looked mesmerized by his wife. Katsuki told you that Kyoka often sings to Denki before bed (Denki loves to brag about it which is why Katsuki knew).

After Kyoka was the belly dancers which was something you weren’t fond of. The men started howling and licking their lips as soon as the dancers rock their hips to front of the stage in revealing, flashy clothes. Their eyes on no one else but Katsuki. Of course. You huffed and crossed your arms. You really wanted to tell them off and show them Katsuki was your man. The dancers shook their hips side to side, creating a perfect arch that had most men wagging their tails. Honestly, you couldn’t move that way even if you tried and it was quite obvious that these women were trying to make you jealous on your wedding day.

You were taken by surprise when Katsuki’s hand moved over yours. Your angry eyes broke away from the dancing women and softened once they met with Katsuki’s. He leaned towards your ear and whispered something about one of the girls on the left being off sync and laughing about it. He wasn’t enticed by the women at all. His eyes only saw you.

The celebration stretched through the evening and the party would continue on without the newlyweds.

As you and Katsuki get ready to end the night, you’ll have a party of your own—privately, away from everyone, whisked away by pleasure. At least you hoped. You didn’t exactly know what to expect. You knew what went on between humans but how exactly did wolves have sex? You had to admit you were a little startled when Mitsuki and Momo told you about biting and scratching being an important part when you’re feeling good. Surprisingly, you weren’t afraid at all—definitely nervous, but not afraid. You knew Katsuki would treat you well and would go at your pace. You looked forward to spending some time alone with him, talking and cuddling by the fire in bed. Maybe sharing a kiss or two and feeling his palms massage your thigh and other places.

You held your hot cheeks, wanting to slap them to calm yourself down from your heated imagination. Gosh, it was really going to happen.

As Katsuki helped you down the stage, most wolves gathered near you two to say farewell and to wish you luck on your night. Katsuki ended up telling you that the women who helped dressed you for the wedding would help you get ready for the night and as if they were summoned, they surrounded the two of you, bowing before their bright smiles shone on their faces.

“I’ll see you soon,” Katsuki gave your hand a squeeze before you were dragged off.

The women acted fast in preparing you. They dressed you in a bra and underwear and a sheer garment-like dress draped around your figure in layers. Through the sheer, Mina’s beads were loosely hugging your hips and bangles dangling on your wrists matched the golden necklace on your neck. Natural perfume was sprayed on your inner thighs again just in case the smell worn off and soon they started giving you some tips and advice. Not that you asked but they taught you things about what wolf men normally did and liked done to them. You didn’t think scratching and biting would be such a big deal to them, but the women advocated that it was the best thing to do.

Once they were finished, they threw a heavy fur cloak over your body. They helped you travel off the mountain and into the forest. They led you another way that made you reach another part of the mountain you haven’t been to. At the base, there was a fairly large cave cavity with a heavy cloth hanging over the opening. You could tell the cave was already brightly lit by the glow that emulated through the fabric. This was probably the cave that you and Katsuki would stay in for the next couple of weeks.

The women bid you farewell far from the entrance. They said it was to not have their scent linger in the area any longer. You didn’t have the chance to ask them why it was a problem before they scattered away and left you alone.

You eyed the cave before you approached it, light on your feet and cautious. Although you didn’t know why, but you felt your anxiety rising. It was possible that Katsuki already arrived and was waiting for you inside. You shifted your cloak by the lapels nervously, feeling the night chill run through your spine. You were basically in your underwear under there and that urged you even more to go inside, especially as you felt the heat sneaking through the small cracks of the cloth, beckoning you to slip inside.

And so, with a deep breath, you listened.

The cloth fell behind you gently, and immediately you were drawn to glowing crimsons across the room. The hue so prominent behind the orange flames of the candles that your heart rattled as it so often did when in front of them. The heat from the makeshift fireplace was not the only thing making you warm, but the presence of your now husband, standing by it topless. Without a doubt, the shadows had contoured his muscles making them seem more profound and elevated that you wanted to feel them under your fingertips. There it was—that curiosity that sprang from you the moment his tongue had touch your leg many months ago. Finally, you will be able to indulge it.

[the-blind-assassin-12]

Core Drive - Clean: 1.04

A/N: Having conquered the tip of the iceberg, Zeke gets Logan to take a deeper dive beneath the surface, forcing him to face the things that he hadn’t even realize were stunting his progress. This one honestly took a lot out of me to write, but it’s nothing compared to the next- and last- two pieces in this first section. Yikes. Hang in there, folks. 

Warning: mention of suicide, drug use and addiction, alcohol, depression and language. 

Word Count: 7,000 

“Did you want to end things that night, Logan?” 

Ezekiel’s question cut through the static filling Logan’s ears, and drew his focus away from the wide leaves of the potted plant hanging behind the man’s desk. It’s called a nerve plant, Zeke had told him during one of their first one on one meetings. It had caught Logan’s eye then and had become a default focal point for him anytime he found himself occupying the purple armchair opposite his counselor. For him, it was easier to open up and answer difficult questions if half of his brain was busy following the weblike patterns branching off of the leaves’ sturdy midrib in thin wisps curling and reaching for the edges. It’s got some pretentious scientific name, Zeke had gone on, gesturing behind himself at the plant with the arm of his glasses pinched between thumb and forefinger. But I like “nerve plant”. You know, if I watered it with black water those veins would turn black. Interesting, isn’t it?  

Logan blinked, the intricate network of spidery white veins winding through the dark green foliage vanishing with the memory of Zeke’s explanation of the plant. He glanced down at his left forearm where his own web of veins used to be much more visible; purplish blue threads unraveling under the skin. He thought about them turning black like Zeke’s plant and it made him cringe. With a shake of his head he looked back up to answer the question. “No.” 

They’d been discussing the events that had sent Logan down his current path, specifically the night of his first overdose- the night of Juliet and William’s wedding. There were things that had proved easier to share in group meetings; the dynamics of his relationship with his father, the debaucherous things he’d gotten up to in the park, the fact that he’d first experimented with painkillers after the death of his mother had left a jagged hole in his heart that grew larger each day until the Vicodin he had leftover from having his wisdom teeth removed showed him a way to close it. Daddy issues. Promiscuity. Addiction via dentistry. All things that he had in common with many of the men and women he sat in group sessions with, and therefore safe and simple to share. But just as he suspected that he’d never know everything about Dawn or Brian or any of them- Not even Miguel- there were parts of his past and his recovery that belonged only to him, that he could share only when he sat where he was sitting now. Especially the parts that included you. He blinked again, the residual phantom wisps of the nerve plant’s veins disappearing behind his closed lids, your tear streaked face filling his memory instead. 

I’ve never been that scared, Logan. Never. 

Your voice filled his mind and reached down into his chest, just like it did when you spoke those words to him that night, and the corners of his eyes started to sting. I never meant to do that to you. I never meant for you to be hurt by this.

 “I never meant to…”

He hadn’t realized that words were coming out of his mouth, and he trailed off as he lifted his face to lock eyes with Zeke. With a sigh he continued. “No, I didn’t want to die that night, I just…” He returned his gaze to the plant with a shake of his head as everything he felt that night surged to the surface. Fuck. 

Across from Logan, Zeke uncrossed his long legs and leaned forward to brace his elbows on the desk. There was a near constant covering of handwritten notes, printed pages and drawings that littered Zeke’s workspace. At first Logan turned his nose up to see such clutter in an office- a space that was slated for productivity. In the beginning of his time here, he felt himself judging the man for his disorganized piles and non alphabetized book shelves bursting with more books than they were built to hold, but he quickly realized that he hadn’t a leg to stand on. My office at Delos is...was fucking pristine and it didn’t keep me in line. The pages beneath Zeke’s elbows rustled as he adjusted their position, removing his glasses and folding his arms. “Logan. You know I’m not gonna force you to talk about it. This isn’t some eat your peas or you can’t leave the table bullshit, you know that.” 

That got a strangled chuckle from Logan. “Good. I always fuckin’ hated peas.” 

Zeke blew air through his nostrils in a laugh and nodded. “Yeah, me too. My old man would always force me to eat every goddamn pea. Only made me hate them more.” 

“There a point coming soon here, Zeke?” I know there is, so let’s get to it. Logan shifted his weight, leaning back in his chair and tilting his head to the side. “I know I’m not here to talk about vegetables.” 

“Not unless vegetables were what tipped the scales that night, no.” Zeke was a professional at walking the thin line between sarcastic and asshole, directly down the narrow avenue to the capital T truth. “Look, Logan.” He pressed his hands together, lacing the fingers of his left with those of his right, pointers steepled and thumbs tucked into his palms. “You’ve been here four and a half months now. And you’re really doing great. I see it, and I know you see it too.” 

Logan had to agree. Aside from the fact that he was in the best shape of his life, he was starting to allow himself the time and space and mess it took to heal. He was learning that asking for help wasn’t a weakness, and that feeling things- even the painful things- was part of what it meant to be alive. He learned that burying those things in bullshit only allowed the hurt to fester and spread into every other part of him. It was a short term solution, the relief as fleeting and dangerous as any other poison that he pumped himself full of. “Thanks, Zeke. I-” 

Ezekiel pulled his palms apart and held one hand up, cutting Logan off. “You’re doing really great, but…” One eyebrow arched as he tilted his head, and Logan knew what was coming next. “But unless you get into the thick of it? The real thick of it?” He placed both hands back on his desktop, his piercing hazel-green eyes sharply focused on Logan’s. “You’re just spinnin’ your wheels. And I know that’s not you.” 

Zeke was right again. Logan had also learned that Ezekiel and Miguel knew him better than almost anyone else in the world. Better than anyone who worked for him, better than his father- even better than Jules. Ache sliced through his chest as he added his sister to the list of strangers in his life. It wasn’t always like that. We used to… we were close once. He knew that there had been more than a few things that had driven wedges into the cracks in his relationship with Juliet, but he also knew that none of them were nearly as detrimental to it as William had been. The familiar stinging in the corner of his eyes and the tight clenching in his chest that always came along with thoughts of the seemingly innocuous blonde haired, blue-eyed shit bag that had destroyed what was left of his happiness threatened to take hold. 

But just as quickly as the pain swept through his heart, your name floated through his mind and he closed his eyes. She knows me. He let that thought wash over him like a wave, quelling the smoldering embers that never seemed to cool completely. It had been almost five months since he’d seen or spoken to you. 136 days. He’d kept track of more than his progress since arriving in North Carolina’s Outer Banks, counting the days since the last time he’d felt your palm pressed to his chest or your lips brushing the skin behind his ear as you tried to keep him anchored in the moment with you. 

That’s it, that’s what she...why she was… she was my anchor. It wasn’t clear to him in the beginning, because he wasn’t looking for something so solid, so grounding and stable. He wasn’t looking for understanding or acceptance when he met you, but he’d found all of those things just the same. I just didn’t know it then… not like… not like I do now. Not even when he added a photo of you to his pocket before venturing into the park. He closed his eyes, letting out a breath. I just couldn’t see it then.

..  ..  ..  ..  ..  ..  ..

  Logan ran the edge of his front teeth over his bottom lip as he stepped closer to where you sat, thumb and forefinger of his left hand slipping beneath the thin gold chain around your right ankle. Goddamn, she’s… He heard you suck in a breath as the rest of his digits bent to wrap around the base of your foot. Watching as the glow of the underwater lights shimmied over the skin of your submerged shins, he felt himself give into the trancelike pull you had on him whenever he touched you. His right palm emerged from the water to slide up your other leg, fingertips pressing lightly into the muscle of your calf before climbing over your knee. Can’t keep my hands off her. Your sigh turned into a hum as he gently squeezed your thigh. And she doesn’t want me to.

“What are you doing, Delos?” From your tone he could tell that you were smirking, and before he even looked back up at you, he could see the way you were looking at him. 

Logan groaned quietly when he glanced up to find the exact expression on your face that he’d imagined. Eyes lingering on your lips as you pressed them together before letting them slowly part again, he eased his right hand up to your hip, thumb dragging along the elastic of your bathing suit bottoms. “You sure you don’t wanna join me for a swim?” He tightened the grip he had on your ankle and curled his fingers into the crease where your thigh met your hip. 

Your lips fell open and one eyebrow arched high as you tilted your head. A breathy sigh slipped out and for a second you were speechless, completely at the mercy of his hands on your body. Fuck, she...when she… It was one of his favorite sounds, and knowing how to pull it from you was one of his favorite skills. He groaned again as you reached forward to sweep the damp hair from his face, and suddenly it was you who had the upper hand, mischief twinkling like stars in your eyes.  “Wasn’t planning on getting wet tonight Logan.”  

“That so?” You shook your head, biting your bottom lip. Goddamn. “And,” He moved the hand that was at your hip around to the small of your back. “What makes you think staying out of the pool means you’re not gonna get wet, hmm?” He still had your ankle wrapped in his left hand, and he used it to open your legs wider, stepping as far between them as he could as he pushed you closer to the edge of the pool. “You tellin’ me you came here tonight just to sit there’n-” He leaned in, brushing his nose along your throat before dragging his teeth along the sensitive skin there, your hand dropping from the back of his head to squeeze the top of his shoulder. “Tease me?” 

You shrugged. “You tellin’ me you had something else in mind?” 

Plenty. His answer came in the form of a tug on your ankle, the hand at your back sliding under you as he pulled you into the water and against his chest. Your surprised shout of his name only spurred him on more, and he knew that you actually weren’t surprised at all even as the splash soaked your hair. You laughed, eyes wide as you wound your legs around his waist and draped your arms around his neck, and he pushed away from the side of the pool and out into the middle. He adjusted his hold on you with one hand, bringing the other up to your face. Thumb trailing over your lips, he stared straight at them, speaking your name. “I was thinkin’ we start here and…” Without fully removing his thumb, he brought his lips to yours, stopping just shy of kissing you. He could feel the warmth of your sudden exhale and it caused his smile to grow devilish. “See what happens.” He didn’t wait then, resuming motion and crashing his lips to yours. 

You responded immediately, kissing him hard as you gripped a fistful of his hair, twisting the strands around your knuckles. The hand he had on your cheek slid down to your throat, and he felt your moan vibrate against his palm. Jesus, I… Your thighs tightened around his body as you locked your ankles behind him, the water rippling as you rolled your hips into his. Fuck, she’s… this is… Your free hand pressed to the center of his chest, the tip of your middle finger tracing the dip of his clavicle, and he couldn’t hold back a groan. No one makes me feel like this. 

In the three and a half months since he’d met you, Logan hadn’t stopped seeing other people. He’d even taken someone to a gallery opening earlier that same night. Being seen out with a different date all over town was what everyone expected of Logan Delos, L.A.s most famous bachelor, and it was what he’d come to expect of himself, so he’d chosen a reliable date for the evening. But he’s not here with me right now, he’s not… He hadn’t stopped seeing other people, but he had stopped sleeping with them, stopped inviting them back to the pool or the guest house. Because they don’t… none of them are… He pulled away then, looking into your eyes as you stared back. What is it about her that I… 

“Hey.” You dropped your legs from his waist but kept your body flush to his. Logan kept both hands on you, keeping you close. 

He grinned, dipping his chin down to catch your lips in another quick kiss. You gasped against his lips as he answered. “Hey.” 

“So,” You reached behind yourself to untie the neck strap of your halter top, the dark material falling forward to expose your chest. Fuck me. He watched as you moved to the second strap, completely removing your bathing suit top and handing it to him. “What else did you have in mind?” 

Logan had shown you exactly what else crossed his mind then, tossing your top aside and reaching under the water to remove your bottoms while never breaking eye contact. Within seconds of asking your question he’d given you his answer, covering your mouth with his to devour the sighs that his fingers coaxed out of you. 

The two of you had stayed in the pool even after you’d collapsed into his shoulder, neither of you wanting to give up the way that the warm water felt as it lapped against your skin. The conversation had drifted through several topics before landing on his upcoming business trip. He mentioned that he would be taking some investors to the park for their first time. Wish I was takin’ her though...showin’ her around instead of…

“Does it ever scare you?” You straddled his waist, your arms draped over his shoulders as the two of you floated together. The bright silver light of the nearly full moon was muted behind a filmy cluster of clouds, but it reflected off of the cool water, shining on your wet skin and illuminating your eyes. 

Logan tilted his head to the side, regripping your thigh and adjusting the arm that he had wrapped around your back to hold you more securely. “Does what scare me?” 

You brought one hand up from his shoulder to the back of his head, water dripping from your fingertips as they threaded through his thick hair. He closed his eyes for half a second as your nails scratched lightly over his scalp, a breath escaping his slack smile as he blinked them back open again. Goddamn that’s fucking... “The park. How real it all is I mean.” What? He frowned and drew his eyebrows together questioningly, prompting you to continue. “That’s…” You sighed. “I mean, I know that’s the point, right? That it feels like you’re really…” you twirled your fingers absently in the hair at the base of his neck, your eyes focused somewhere in the sprawling darkness over his shoulder, teeth biting into your plump bottom lip. “That you’re really doing whatever it is you’re…” 

Logan leaned back so that he could intercept your eye-line, taking his hand from your back to gently turn your face towards his own. “With the Hosts you mean?” He shook his head, his wet touch trailing down your throat to dip back under the water and find a home on your body. “They’re just dolls, they can’t hurt anyone so there’s nothin’ to be-” 

“No, that’s not,” you let one hand slide down to the center of his chest, dropping your eyes down to follow your fingers as they spread out over his skin. “That’s not what I meant, Logan.” You brought your eyes back up and when you did he thought he saw a splash of concern coloring their depths. He squeezed your thigh, grip biting into your flesh with light pressure. “I mean… is it really good for it to feel that real? Does it scare you to think that it might be too realistic? That someone could get lost in it?”

Logan thought back to his first trip to the park; the way that the completely immersive experience blew his mind even knowing everything that he did about the Hosts and the synthetic world that they populated. He could still taste the adrenaline on his tongue, potent and pure like a shot of undiluted absinthe, put there by the click of a pistol hammer locking into place, the barrel aimed point blank at his chest. It felt like the bullet was swimming a slow backstroke through the hot, dusty desert air, and Logan felt his pupils double in size, felt himself tense up and brace for the impact. He swallowed that shot of adrenaline, and it set his teeth buzzing, sped up the tempo of his heartbeat. He knew it wasn’t real, but everything in his body was telling him that he was about to die. In that moment he froze, unable to even flinch as the smirking outlaw delivered some scripted line and pulled the trigger. A loud pop and a small cloud of gunpowder smoke registered with him just milliseconds before a blunt blow to his breastbone made him stumble backwards. 

“It’s designed to make you think,” he squeezed the bottoms of your thighs, “make you feel like it’s all... real. But it only works if everyone accepts that it isn’t. It’s,” he licked his lips and squinted his eyes. “Sure, it’s probably not good for everyone. But when the stakes feel… when they seem like they really matter? That’s when people find out who they really are.” 

..  ..  ..  ..  ..  ..  ..  

He didn’t tell you then that he safeguarded himself every time he set foot in the park by smuggling in a photo of someone close to him, someone that he could focus on to remind himself of what was actually real. Usually, it was a photo of his sister, the person that Logan felt closest to for most of his life. He didn’t tell you that he planned to bring a second picture on his next trip- one you’d sent him just a week prior, smiling at him from in front of the Golden Gate Bridge. 

It was the same photo he continued to take with him on every subsequent trip. It was the photo that he needed out in the desert, the realization that it was still in the pocket of his coat causing hysterical, tearless sobs to rip from his chest. It was the photo that he kept on his bedside table now. She was my… 

Hey, asshole, she’s not what we’re here to talk about, is she? 

Logan blinked, looking past Zeke’s potted plants to the slender figure leaning against the window sill, jacket unbuttoned, cut crystal tumbler of amber liquid in hand. Shit. 

He asked if you wanted to kill yourself that night. The figure pushed away from the window, gesturing with his glass, thumb and three fingers wrapped around it as he pointed at Logan. You know, the night of Juliet’s wedding? The night she fished you outta your damn pool ‘cause you- he took his pointed finger and jabbed it into the crook of his opposite elbow, droplets of dark brown liquor splashing onto his sleeve. And I’m lookin’ forward to this answer, cause I- 

“I didn’t want to fucking die, I just… I wanted to forget how I… how everything felt. I wanted to erase it but I couldn’t. I-” Logan didn’t realize he’d gotten to his feet, didn’t realize that the abrupt action cleared the room of his personal phantom, but he was left speaking only to Ezekiel, and speaking only what he knew to be true. Shaking his head, he pushed his hair back and paced around to stand behind the chair he’d been occupying during the session. “That night was… it was one of the worst nights of my life, Zeke.” He gripped the backrest and leaned forward. “My own sister’s fucking wedding night. Do you know, can you… do you know how that made me feel? That the entire time I was there, I wished I was anywhere fucking else, because my skin was crawling at the idea of that...that piece of shit crawling into my family, but I fucked up my chances at getting Jules to listen to me so… Fuck, Zeke, I… it felt how it did after my mom died, like I was alone, like no one would...and I wanted to feel anything other than the… the fucking pain.” 

He spat the last word with disdain as his voice wavered. Ezekiel sat quietly, eyes trained on Logan as he went on. “So I found what I needed and I fuckin… I got high, and I got drunk, and I would have died that night, whether it was what I wanted or not. I know that. I know that she…” Fuck. He swallowed a hard lump so he wouldn’t choke when he spoke your name, wanting it to come out clear. “I know she saved my life that night.” 

He shuddered as the most vivid moments from that night flashed in his memory- stumbling into a car with you, stripping off his jacket and shoving it over your shoulders as he cycled from deep chills to fiery sweats. He’d forgotten that his pocket held the empty vial, the nearly empty pill bottle. Somehow, you’d gotten him home, into his place, and he recalled tears- yours and his own. He refused to stay inside, that he remembered, too. I wanted to hear the ocean, I think. You had gone inside to get him a glass of water and… an aspirin, maybe?...apparently happy enough that you’d gotten him to lay down on one of the lounge chairs to leave him out of your sight. Dizzy...and slow...everything was slower than it should have been. He recalled the way his heart beat grew lazier. Then he heard a crash from inside, the sound of glass shattering ringing in his ear to jolt him from the nearly hypnotic state he was falling into. You, there you were, in the doorway, but when he tried to get to you his legs gave out and he fell. Your panicked shout of his name, and then the bright lights of the hospital. 

There was more, of course, more that he’d been told because there were giant gaps in his memory. A fight with Jim, William’s smug face as his arm wrapped around Juliet’s shoulder to pull her away from the scene her brother and father were causing, Juliet’s disappointed glance as you talked Logan into leaving. He was told, because he didn’t remember, that when he had stood from the lounge chair and fallen, he’d hit his head on the concrete and plunged into the pool, unconscious and bleeding. If you hadn’t been there, he would have drowned and the poison swimming through his bloodstream wouldn’t have mattered. 

But the rest of the night was burned into his brain, the details coming to him in cascades. Logan sat back down in the chair he’d paced around, head falling into his hands. “Logan?” Zeke was trying to prompt him to continue, but he didn’t need it, the rest playing out in high definition- you, sitting in a chair beside his bed, the same terrified look on your face that he first saw when you’d flown to the medical facility at the Mesa to be there for him after he’d been extracted from the desert. Jesus, she fuckin’...she...    

..  ..  ..  ..  ..  ..  ..  ..

“I…” your breath hitched as your eyes fell closed, and you brought your free hand up to swipe away the tears you could no longer hold back. When you blinked them open again, Logan saw everything he never wanted to put there- fear and hurt, uncertainty, and a sadness that didn’t belong where he was used to seeing such warmth. “I felt something in the pocket so I pulled it out and-” You closed your eyes and sucked in a breath, opening them as you released the air through your nose. “As soon as I realized what it was...and then that it was empty?” You shook your head and winced. “I didn’t think, Logan, I just… I knew I had to get to you. Fast, and…” 

That’s when I heard the glass break… She must have dropped it when... He tried to force his focus and recall the rest of the details so you wouldn’t have to go through it again. 

“God, Logan, I was sc-“ your voice broke, splintering into a ragged breath and you shook your head swallowing hard. Without unlacing your fingers from his, you brought your linked hands up to wipe at your exhausted, puffy pinkish eyes, dampening his skin with your stray tears. “I was terrified. I thought... I thought I was too late. I thought that you were-“ you took a breath and he saw your chest shake as you let it back out. I know. I know what you thought. At first he didn’t think you were going to finish your sentence, but then your eyes locked on to his and you continued. “I thought you were d-“ you took another brief pause while you shuffled through your vocabulary, looking for a word that presented less of a choking hazard. “Gone, Logan. I’ve never…” You dissolved into tears again, head going back and forth as though you could banish the emotions. When you spoke again your voice was barely a whisper, but the pain in it echoed in his heart. “I’ve never been that scared, Logan. Never.” 

Though you’d returned your hand and his to the bed, he felt more of your tears falling fat and wet on his knuckles, rolling over and between his fingers. “Hey.” His throat was raw and dry, the single word burning on its way out. But I have to… she needs to hear this. He rubbed his thumb lightly against the underside of your wrist and as he did, everything you’d been holding together came undone. “Hey,” he said again, this time adding your name. “I know… I know. But you weren’t, okay? You weren’t too late and I’m-“ He glanced at his free hand, the back of it stuck with needles for IVs, a pulse oximeter clamped over one finger, wires and tubes attaching to machines and bags. The nurse had warned him that moving too much would cause the needle to shift under the skin of his bony hand. Fuck it, I don’t care if it hurts. He lifted it and brought that hand up to wipe beneath your eyes so he could keep the other one wrapped in yours. The sharp prick and uncomfortable tug of the tubing attached to the needle vanished as he felt your breath hit his fingertips. He said your name again, fighting to keep his tone as even as possible. “Hey, come here.” I need to… need her to… He rallied against the thick, heavy feeling in his limbs and slid over making room in the small bed. 

“What are you… are you sure, Logan? I-“ your forehead creased with worry as he moved but he nodded and squeezed the hand he still held, and it was all you needed. You stood and carefully climbed into the bed with him, both of you turned on your hips and faces only inches apart. 

Logan rested the side of his nose against yours as you closed your eyes, his palm laying to the side of your head. A small whine left your throat and he felt a fresh stream of tears starting up. He wanted to tell you that it was alright; that you weren’t too late, that everything was okay and that he would be fine. But it’s not. She never should have had to… He felt his eyes sting as his tears ran to mix with yours, and in lieu of the words he wanted to say, he pressed his lips over your wet cheeks, whispering your name and stroking your hair until you fell asleep. 

Once he felt your chest stop shuddering and the strained, painful, torn sound of each exhale had faded into a more rhythmic pattern, Logan looked down at your hand over his heart. She deserves better than this. But even as he had the thought he could hear you telling him that he did too. You had been his lifeline in the weeks since his last trip, and while he knew that you deserved more of him than the broken down version that came back from the desert, he knew that no one deserved the torture he’d been dealt, the lies that had been spun, the damage that had taken a sledgehammer to the things he worked so hard for so long to keep in check. And he knew that you understood. He knew that you seemed to be the only one that did. Could she…

His door opened then, a nurse entering the room to change the bag of fluids attached to his I.V. and he quickly changed his thoughts, shutting them down before they had a chance to cause any more trouble. No. 

..  ..  ..  ..  ..  ..  ..  

But he knew now that you did. You loved him. There was no other conceivable reason for you to have been there for as much as you had been if you didn’t love him, unconditionally and without expectation. “She… Jesus, Zeke, she loved me and I was too blind to see it, I...I made myself too blind to see it, I…” Fuck. “I missed it and now…” Logan looked back up at the man sitting on the opposite side of the cluttered desk, the long green tendrils of his plant collection hanging behind him like a thin curtain as late afternoon sunlight filtered in. Say something, tell me how to-

“You don’t talk about her much, Logan. Almost five months in, and this is maybe the,” Ezekiel shrugged, scrunching his nose to make his glasses ride up. “Third?” He looked up to the ceiling then back down at Logan nodding. “Yeah, this is only the third time I’ve heard you talk about her. See,” he leaned on the points of his elbows, palms bladed and directed at Logan. “I’ve heard you talk about your father. And I’ve heard you talk about your sister and her husband.” Logan felt his top lip curl and he knew Zeke picked up on it. “You do a real good job, Logan, at talkin about the people who hurt you. And I think that’s part of why you’ve been able to come so far, I really do.” Alright, but what do they have to do with- “But talkin about the people that mean something to you? That seems harder for you. His eyes narrowed and he folded his arms on top of his desk. “I don’t think you missed it, Logan. I think you knew that she...and if you ever gave her just a fraction of what I see when you do talk about her, there’s no way she missed it either.” 

Logan’s breath came out in a strangled sigh as he nodded. It was still uncomfortable for him to have to rehash all of the things he’d kept buried for so long, uncomfortable to have someone so able to read and anticipate and guide him through it, but Zeke was right about this just as he was right about most things. “That’s why I didn’t...I wasn’t trying to kill myself, Zeke. I knew I wasn’t alone. I knew I had her even if I wasn’t… even if I didn’t…” he shook his head slowly. “I didn’t let myself think that I deserved her. I didn’t let myself have her, not like she… not like I should have, because I was fucking scared of what would happen when I...when I lost her.” Shit, that’s...I never fucking said that before but it’s… 

“It's easier for you to believe what everyone else says about you than it is for you to believe that you can prove them wrong.” What? Logan gripped the arms of the chair he sat in, sweaty palms slipping over the smooth wood. “At least, that’s what I think.” Ezekiel tilted his head and sat back. “What do you think about that?” 

Initially Logan wanted to argue, to deny the unflattering truth that Ezekiel had uncovered. But he’s right I… Surprising himself, a hollow laugh slipped from his lips, his shaking hand swiping downward over his bearded chin. “No that’s...that’s right. I… when its a fight I know I can win, I’m fucking relentless. I fight like hell on business deals and shit that ultimately means fuckall. But when it’s something I can lose I just…” He trailed off, thoughts drifting to the point in time when he decided that Juliet had become a losing battle. 

..  ..  ..  ..  ..  ..  ..  

Logan stood staring at his sister, heart dropping as he watched his words of warning about William, about their father,  fall flat on Juliet’s face. Again. 

She scoffed, looking away. “Don’t be ridiculous, Logan.” Raising her left hand, she laid her palm to her forehead and scrubbed it harshly backwards over the crown of her head, fingers curling to grip a fistful of hair. Her head shook from side to side, and the cold, white light of the moon struck the many facets of the emerald cut diamond that she wore. He winced as the light bounced off of her ring and into his eyes, burning her engagement to William and everything that it stood for into them. “Dad wouldn’t…” Dad wouldn’t. There’s nothing that man wouldn’t do, Juliet. She dropped her hand from her head, letting it slap against the alabaster railing, the band of her ring clinking when it hit the stone. She shook her head again and turned to face him, leaning back against the banister. “He’s my father, Logan. I know you two have had your problems, but-” What?

“Had our problems?! Jules, come on you know it-” 

She cut him right back off, stepping away from the banister and towards him. “Don’t call me Jules, Logan. We're not kids anymore.” The anger and frustration that he’d been hiding behind proved thinner than he thought, her words splintering it like cheap plywood, the hurt he’d tried to tuck away seeping through the cracks. He swallowed and took a staggering step backwards.  No. No we’re not. 

Juliet sighed and closed her eyes, looking at least half sorry for the biting tone she’d just used. She opened them and when she did he saw sheer exhaustion in them- exhaustion from dealing with him, with the way that things had been going since he’d last been to the park and the relentless way that he kept poking and pulling at her relationship. Not how anyone should look the week before their wedding. “Look. I know that you think Dad is some,” she blinked slowly, twirling her hand- her right this time, no twelve carat rock to catch the icy light. “Some monster. But he’s...he lo-” 

Tears had started forming in Logan’s eyes but he hadn’t noticed them until they’d fallen on his curled top lip. ”He doesn’t love anything but his company! He doesn’t love me, he didn’t love mom,” she opened her mouth but he didn’t let her get a word out. “And if you think he loves you, after giving you his blessing to marry him, you’re-” 

“What do you mean, he doesn’t love you?” Her voice had quieted, and where she’d been frustrated and frantic before, he watched his sister deflate, the exhaustion spilling from her eyes to wash over her entire face. “Of course he-” 

“He told me to get the fuck out of his house, Juliet. Did you know that? When I… after,” he narrowed his eyes and exhaled through his nose. Just say it. “The first time? After mom?” He saw pain flash through his sister’s eyes and he knew it was just as multifaceted as the rock on her hand. She hadn’t been home when their mother silently slipped away, and while Logan had to carry the weight of telling Juliet, she had to  carry the guilt of not being there in those final moments. And then when she did get home, she had hardly any time to grieve before she’d found her brother slumped over and barely breathing in the pool house. I know it hurts, Jul. But you have to listen. Please. “I tried to ask him for help. And you know what he said?” He didn’t wait for her to answer. He knew she didn’t know because he knew he never told her. “He said he wouldn’t waste his time on a junkie like me.” He shook his head. “That’s not love. That’s not a father thats-”  

The door slid open  behind them and Logan stiffened, his back straightening. Fuck. He looked  to Juliet, begging her with his eyes to tell the other man to go back inside, to give them more time. To fuck off. But he saw it in her face- saw the moment that she decided that it wasn’t worth the fight, that choosing William and Jim here meant choosing the easiest path through rough terrain. It was the moment he gave up that fight, too. 

“Everything okay out here?” Syrupy sweet like condensed milk, the voice that tormented him in the desert hit Logan’s ear and all the fight in him drained out. He chanced one last look at Juliet only to see her staring at her feet as William’s hand curled around her bicep, tugging her to his side. Logan heard the man press a smacking kiss to his sister’s temple and he winced, remembering how maniacally infatuated he had become with a Host in the park, how easily he’d tossed his sister aside then only to use her as a prop now. “Logan, I didn’t know you were here.” He snapped his head up then, eyes locking with the icy blue pair staring back at him. “To what do we owe the-”

“I was just fuckin leaving, Billy.” His eyes moved from William’s to Juliet’s, the slightest bit of satisfaction from the man’s distaste of the nickname not eclipsing the fact that his sister was still choosing the ground instead of him. Ouch, Jules...damn. “You  two have a good fuckin night.” 

..  ..  ..  ..  ..  ..          

“When it’s something I can lose… I don’t even fight.” The words felt heavy and hard as he spoke them, a  buzzing in his brain that wasn’t there when he’d first sat down in Zeke’s office. Shit. “I give up...I...I gave up on, on myself.” I didn’t want to lose everything- my place at Delos, Juliet… your name swirled through his mind then, right up there with the other things that he cared enough about to be wounded by. So I just...quit. That’s...fuck that’s not… “That’s not who I am.” 

The revelation came quietly as he looked down at his forearm. That’s not...that doesn’t define you. A shiver ran down his spine as he felt your fingertips brush over the bruising on the inside of his elbow. That’s not who you are, Logan. When he’d finally told you everything about his ongoing struggle with addiction, all you’d done was try to make him see that he was worth the fight. That he, Logan Delos, was worth saving. 

I didn’t see it then. But I… I see it now. 

“Well then you better start fighting again, Logan.” Ezekiel called him back to the present, the man calmly removing his glasses to clean the lenses. “You better start fighting for what you know you deserve, because if you do? If you fight the way I know you can, the way that she knows you can...the way you know you can?” He inspected his glasses before perching them back on his nose. “If you fight and you keep fighting? There’s no way you can lose, Logan. No damn way.”

.

.

.

@something-tofightfor @its-my-little-dumpster-fire @malionnes @suchatinyinfinity @gollyderek @thesumofmychoices @belladonnarey @ymariejp @obscurilicious @songtoyou @traeumerinwitzhelden @drinix @jigsawlover10 @getlostinyourparadise @nananananananananananabatman @vetseras​ @qhostboyyy @pheedraws​ @alraedesigns​ @valkblue​ @dearmarii​ 

[wolfpawn]

Hiding in Plain Sight, Chapter 2

Story Summary - Imagine coming from a line of nobility or royalty and being in an arranged marriage with Loki in an attempt to strengthen your kingdom / alliance with Asgard. You’re not entirely on board with the idea but figured that the best you could do was to get to know your fiancé. You form an agreement with Frigga for you to pose as Loki’s personal servant for a few months so you can get to know who Loki really is – beyond the veil of his responsibility to the Asgardian throne, behind all the masks he wears when facing the public, to really know who Loki is behind closed doors as you slowly fall for each other. How long will you keep up the ruse with the God of Lies?

Chapter Summary - Raven starts to work for Loki but it is not long before she is tested and is forced to remain calm in fear of revealing herself.

Previous Chapter

Tags - @peppermint-j  @alexakeyloveloki @myblissfulparadise - it won’t let me tag you. 

Request if you wish to be tagged

Raven worked diligently on the room. Growing up, she had to adhere to the very strict upbringing which she had that did not permit her to do very much for herself, which always irked her greatly. There were some things that she knew she would never be good at, cooking being one such example. Somehow, she still had not figured it out for herself, she managed to set a bowl of porridge on fire. She loved sewing and embroidering, she loved working the needle and thread until a design was created, it was something she always adored so much so that her maid used to be forced to endure Raven staring at her as she mended anything that needed fixing through the years but such was seen as beneath a princess so she did not get to do it often herself, though she had convinced the maid to teach her. She also liked to decide for herself where she would place her belongings and how the room should look but such was not allowed and she was often admonished for doing such things. She was the daughter of the king, she was often told, she was not to do such menial things, they were beneath her station. The issue for Raven was that she was the only daughter of the king, born amidst four brothers. Something of an anomaly in Ljósálfar royalty. Very few Light Elf kings had ever sired a daughter. She often felt something of a black sheep of her family, never truly feeling like she fitted in.

 Her brothers always knew what it was they were to do with their lives; the eldest, Dafydd was to be king, trained for the role since childhood, he would be a good king, if not slightly fond of a hunt more than a trade meeting, the second oldest, Johann was a soldier at heart, earning his way legitimately through the ranks of the Ljósálfar army and would by everyone’s predictions, be general someday. With a good relationship with his brother, it would be nothing but a blessing in everyone’s eyes as kings and generals often clashed heads. The third, Richard was to be made Lord of the Lowlands, a title usually bestowed to the second son of the King but Johann renounced his claim to it as high ranking soldiers were not allowed such titles and he rather earn his own, so that left Richard with a good living as well. The last and youngest, Kieran had learnt early that fighting was the exact opposite to what he wanted in life. Instead, he loved tending to its injured and much to his family’s startled pride, he decided as a youth to become a healer and was studying diligently to do so. Amongst them all, Raven’s life seemed somewhat less defined yet incredibly more restricted. She was given no role for so long and now was forced to one she knew she would most likely have but to one she never thought possible. She could not fathom how it came to be that she was to wed someone so notably high born as the second prince of Asgard, the son and brother of the current and future Allfathers. When her father first stated it, she thought him to be having some form of a peculiar joke, but when his face remained stoic and none seemed to see anything funny in what was being said, she realised he was entirely serious. 

She loved the sound of the cloth squeaking against the mirror as she worked. If anything, the experience was fun for her. Most days were dull and boring for her, long hours of reading and writing in areas that were entirely uninteresting. She liked a good book on occasion but she liked them to be on matters that interested her, most commonly, a genre known as thriller, not something befitting a princess. She often hid those books so none would know she read them but then it made finding time to read them difficult. This far surpassed reading about the history of trade between Alfheim and Vanaheim. Most would think her mad had she stated such, but it was true nonetheless. 

She heard Loki’s return before she saw him. A low irate growl rang out around the rooms. “Maid...Norns, what is your name again, Raven...no, Brianna...Norn’s what is it?”

“Breanna, Your Grace.” Raven rushed from the bathroom where she had been shining the glass to see Loki, noting the manner in which he was presently standing in front of her, hair tousled, twigs in it and a mud smear on his face. “Oh, are you alright?”

“Well, at least one person cared to ask me and it had to be a foreign maid, of course, not my supposed friends or indeed my family,” Loki growled to no one. “I am fine. Breanna, of course. Run me a bath.”

“Yes, Your Highness,” she bowed and rushed into the bathroom once more. 

Loki watched her for a moment before walking in after her. “Where did you learn to bow like that?”

Raven, thinking the question to be entirely obscure, turned to look at him. “Sorry, Your Grace?”

“Who taught you to bow? You’re female, females do not bow, you are supposed to curtsey.” There was a hint of amusement in his voice as he spoke. 

“I…” Raven had only done the bow to be swift but seeing his reaction, she was unsure what to say. “I don’t have the balance for that.”

Loki’s brow rose. “The balance?”

“I tried but it ended badly.”

Loki folded his arms and leant against the door frame, a smile forming on his face. “Well now, this sounds interesting.”

“I tried to learn, I was even given a tutor because I was not getting it. I kept crossing my ankles wrong and I ended up….” Her eyes darted to the side embarrassed. 

“Oh, please continue.”

“Falling….into a…” She toyed with her hands slightly. If Loki had not been listening so astutely, he would not have heard the final word that she all but mouthed. “Fountain.”

Loki tried, to his credit, not to laugh at her. He bit his lips together and willed himself not to do so but he failed as her face went an interesting colour of red at the memory. He did not last long before his failure became vocal and he laughed heartily at it. 

 The laugh was not a malicious one, something she could take solace in but it did not stop her feeling embarrassed. The story was a true one, she did indeed struggle to curtsey when she was young. With her brothers, in informal settings, she did bow but had long mastered the curtsey also. Her unique form of training in that her unsuccessful attempt led to a thorough soaking left a lasting impression on her. “So as you can see, bowing suits me better.”

Loki cleared his throat and forced himself to stop laughing but his smile was still blatant. “I would wager that was somewhat hilarious.”

“It would have been, I laughed myself for a time, only my father saw it and was none-too-pleased. He did not think it to be so amusing.”

“He sounds as stoic as my own father.” Loki all but snarled the words, his previous good humour dissipating as he thought of his father. 

“I do think them to be of similar mindsets.”

“At least you are free of your father. I am stuck seeing mine every day.”

“I know him to be strict but if I am honest, I miss him and the rest of my family dearly. Being on an entirely different realm is so difficult, a lot of the time.” Raven did not mean to be so honest but at that moment, it slipped through.

“I wish I could be on a different realm. I am sick of them all.”

“We all think that until we get that wish, then all we wish for is to have what we had before.” Raven felt herself becoming slightly annoyed at Loki, her tone became more clipped as she spoke. “I will get your bath readied, Your Highness. I would suggest that you ready yourself for such without twigs in your hair.” She gave another slight bow before turning to continue her work, not wanting to accidentally reveal her true identity to him. 

Loki, stunned into silence by her demeanour and tone and the manner in which she spoke to him, took a moment to look in a mirror to assess his appearance only to see her words, to be honest. There was indeed debris from his scuffle in his hair. Miffed at everything, he decided to say nothing more, allow his maid to do as she was supposed to and prepare for his bath. 

*

Loki had no idea what it was that was used for his bath, but his aching muscles seemed to soothe as soon as he submerged himself in the water. He groaned from the comfort of it all before enjoying his bath, his tension disappearing as he did so. 

When he came out of his bath a time later and into the front part of his rooms, dressed in only his pants, he noted that his maid was busy trying to organise some books. “Do you find such things taxing?”

Raven looked over her shoulder at him. “When one decides to have no order at all, I find it distressing, not taxing.”

Loki felt insulted by her tone. “I do have an order, excuse you. Just because you cannot see it does not make it so.”

Raven stood back slightly. “It is neither chronological nor alphabetical, it makes little to no sense.”

Loki frowned. “Chrono….how in the realms would you even know the chronological order?”

“So because I am a maid, I cannot know the chronological order, is that what you are saying? Do you think me to be so unintelligent as to not know the order of some books? Do you look down on others so?” she did not snap the words emotionally as others would at being spoken to in such a tone but kept her voice calm yet clearly displaying how insulting his words were. 

“I did not claim that you were unintelligent.” Loki found himself backpedalling very quickly. “Only, those books…”

“Are of Alfheim, as I am, so of all the maids here to have any knowledge of such things, I should know such and do not even dare suggest that you think it’s because I should not know how to read.”

“Do not put words into my mouth.” Loki became angered at what she was implying. Especially ones so demeaning.”

“The words already in there do not seem much better.”

For a moment, both royals stood face to face, glaring at one another. “Before I went for a bath, you seemed to be the only one to care about my wellbeing after the situation today but now you are worse than others.” He turned to leave.

“I should mention, your female companion called by while you were in the bath,” Raven informed him. “She let me know your opinion on us dim, airheaded Light Elves and your opinion on our Princess, the one you are to marry. What can I say, it left a bad taste in my mouth.” Raven walked off leaving Loki startled in her wake. 

[ramblingwritings]

Good On You

Obi wan x Senator!reader

Word count: 883 word

Authors Note: This is for my girl @hellotherekenobi Have some cloak comfort and we (the discord) love you

Tag list: @kellingent @obi-wankenobae

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

It had been a long, and trying week in the senate. Emphasis on long and trying. Every part of you hurt. Your ankles were swollen, back ached, and your head was pounding in your ears. A break was much needed, actually a break was long overdue. Very long overdue. Your parents always said that you would end up working yourself to death.

The current debate of the senate had a lot of pressure on you, and Senator Amidala and Organa. The three of you had worked tirelessly these past few days to prevent the deregulation of the banks, but to no avail. With the attack on Coruscant, all of the progress you had achieved was instantly smashed to bits. Your shoulders were tense and slumped with defeat, and more than anything you just wanted to have a drink. Preferable alcoholic.

The transport back to your apartment was quiet, uneventful, and passed by in a blur. You were so weighed down that your feet dragged on the floor as you went. After tiredly punching in the key code, the door slid open with a soft hiss. Instantly, the smell of delicious food engulfed your senses. You knew instantly that your lover was here, and all of the weight on your shoulders fell away. Tears formed at your eyes from relief as you kicked off your shoes by the door, and made your way to the kitchen.

Obi-wan was humming to himself as he stood by the counter chopping vegetables for dinner. His voice carried in a way that washed away the rest of the tension and stress present in your body. The calm, deep timbre floated through the air and wrapped itself comfortingly around you.

“Well, hello there!” Obi-wan chuckles as you wrap your arms around him and press your forehead into his back. You mumble a response into his robes but refuse to move from its current position.

“Should I take that as the vote did not go as you were hoping it would?” A groan escaped you as you threw your head back.

“No, it didn’t! I just don’t understand how senators can just react out of fear and not think everything through! The republic is already teetering on bankruptcy, and now there’s no hope for us ever paying these loans to the banks back. The interest rates are ridiculous! We will never recover from this war Obi. There is no hope for Republic”

“Dear one, when was the last time you took a break from trying to fight corruption all by yourself?”

“I don’t know, Obi. It’s been such a long week, and all I’ve wanted is you. You remind me to take breaks, I guess I should get better at reminding myself.”

“Yes, you should, but right now I want you to run yourself a bath and relax until dinner is finished.”

“Yes, General!” With a mock salute and a giggle you jogged to the bathroom and ran yourself a bath.

Removing all of your senatorial dress, you climbed into the bubbly, warm bath and submerged all the way to your shoulders. Your eyes drifted closed as all of the stress aches dissipated slowly. This is what you needed; self care, Obi, and maybe a glass of wine.

When the water turned cold, you stood and dried yourself off with a fluffy towel. Wrapping it around yourself, you entered your walk in closet. Throwing on a pair of underwear and one of Obi’s shirts, your arms wrapped around you as you stood in front of the mirror.

You’d always had an issue with knowing your limits. You know it was something you needed to work on, but you suppose you had never let yourself get so worn down before this. The war has been occupying everyone's mind, but corrupt senators continue to use it to their advantage. They accumulate power through their greed, and care nothing for ethics.

Turning to exit the bedroom, a certain brown cloak catches your eye. Reaching out to run a hand over the soft, thick cloth you make a split second decision and throw it over your shoulders. Obi’s scent envelopes you, and Maker it reminds you of home. Obi is your home, your safe-haven to hide away and take a break.

In one fluent motion you toss back the covers on the bed, and climb into their warmth. The cloak wraps tighter around you, and it's a wonderfully calming sensation. It grounds you, bringing your thoughts back to reality. It’s just what you need after this past week, and with that thought you snuggle into it further and your eyes flutter closed in peace.

----------

At some point you must have drifted off to sleep, because you awoke to Obi dropping a kiss to your forehead and gently shaking you awake.

“Dinner is ready, love. Come eat.”

Nodding your head and rubbing at your eyes to wipe away the last remnants of sleep, you pull yourself from the comfort of the bed begrudgingly. You look up to see Obi smirking at you, and heat rises in your face as you realize what you are wearing. Obi wraps you in his arms, and drops his lips to the hollow of your neck.

“My cloak looks good on you, dear one. I will get myself another.”

[orionsart]

Debt pt 1

Summary: after an incident in the woods you find yourself in the debt of an infamous Witcher

Words: 1588 Pairing: Geralt x femme!reader A/N: Hi hello. This is my first Witcher fic and I am in no way an expert in the series so please excuse any inconsistencies with canon. I also use my pen name instead of “Y/N” whenever the reader’s name is used.

***

The forest floor was bountiful that day. Warm sunlight peeks through the treetops as you fill a leather pouch with wild onions and mushrooms, a welcome treat after months of eating potatoes from your garden and near-rancid meat brought home from the tavern. Dirt cakes your fingernails as you dig through the underbrush to retrieve the thickest roots, and wild berries stain your skirts crimson, but you don’t care. When you’re tending bar you let your hair down, unlace your blouse and bat your eyelashes to get coin, but here in the forest your appearance doesn’t matter. 

As the day goes on and the sun grows hot you stray deeper and deeper into the forest, farther from your home than you had ever gone before. Eventually you stumble upon a crystal clear lake, tucked away behind a frame of foliage. The water looks cool and tempting. Wiping sweat from your brow you sit on a fallen tree and unlace your boots, sticking your toes in the soft silt near the edge of the pool. A quick dip, you think, there’s no one around for miles. A quick dip then I’ll head home. You quickly disrobe and remove the pin holding your hair up, leaving your clothes in a pile near the fallen tree and wading into the waist-high lake. The water is cold on your naked legs and your bare nipples harden at the change in temperature. You cup the cool water in your hand and bring your face to it before leaning back, letting the water fall through your hair and down your naked body. As you revel in the freeing and cleansing feeling you close your eyes and begin to sing. It’s a catchy tune, one you heard a pompous bard singing in the tavern a few nights ago.

“Toss a coin to your Witcher, oh valley of plenty...”

With your eyes closed you continue to bathe in the clear water, listening only to the sound of your own voice as you recount the ballad of the snow-haired vagabond you’d heard so much about. When you open your eyes you notice that a thick layer of fog has rolled in all around you, and a singular figure stands stoic at the opposite end of the lake. A pair of amber eyes shine through the mist, staring directly at - or through - you. 

A sharp gasp escapes your lips as you flinch to cover yourself, but the Butcher of Blaviken remains unfazed. Your skin flushes wine red in embarrassment and you turn around quickly to where you left your clothes, but your eyes soon spot what was actually captivating the Witcher. A spindly monster with pointed ears, lengthy talons, and gnarled teeth crouches near the fallen tree. Your knees begin to buckle beneath you and you open your mouth in a silent scream, too terrified to move or make a sound. The waves your sudden turn created ripples across the surface of the water, crashing on the shore at the monster’s feet. It opens its mouth and an unholy screech pierces the heavy silence as it pushes off from its hind legs and lunges into the pool towards you. You stumble backwards in an attempt to get away, but the lakebed is soft and slippery and your feet fall out from beneath you. The last thing you see before your skull makes contact with a submerged rock is the monster being thrown away from you by some invisible force.

***

As you regain consciousness you feel the soft familiarity of your bed beneath you. You sit up, not remembering what happened, and wince at the throbbing behind your forehead. Instinctively your hand reaches up and is met with a cloth bandage hastily wrapped around your head, sticky with blood at the temple. Suddenly the memories come flooding back; the lake, the Witcher, the monster. Looking down you see that you’re no longer naked and instead are dressed in the clothes that you had gone foraging in. Confused and a bit dizzy, you gingerly rise fully from the bed and step out of your bedroom.

You enter the front room of your small cottage to see Geralt of Rivia sitting in front of the fireplace, eyes affixed on the front door. He must have heard or sensed your entrance, because he soon turns to look at you. His golden eyes make you feel small. 

“You’re awake,” he says in a low, gravely voice that sends shivers through your body. 

You nod, too embarrassed to say much, but the words “how long was I...” manage to escape your throat.

“Hours,” is his only response, and you see through the window near the door that the sun is beginning to rise. Hours indeed - it was already the next morning. The two of you sit in a pregnant silence for what seems like minutes before he clears his throat. “I found this cabin just north of the forest. The owners must be out.” 

A sly smile creeps at the corners of your lips, but you decide not to tell him that it’s your house he brought you to. “Thank you,” you say instead, “for saving me. You didn’t have to.” He leans back in his chair, crossing his right ankle over his left knee. “Couldn’t exactly leave you to drown,” he replies, “naked in the woods, left to be found by who knows what.” 

Your cheeks grow rosy and you wrap your arms across yourself, feeling ashamed of your foolishness. “I’m in your debt,” you say, not daring to meet his eyes. His smoldering, piercing eyes.

Geralt rises from his seat and crosses towards you, looking you up and down. “What’s your name, girl.” The question is more of a command, as if to say “Tell me your name. Now.”

“Orion,” you respond meekly.

“And how exactly do you plan to repay your debt, Orion?” His low baritone makes your stomach flutter.

You think for a moment, “I can give you lodging for as long as you need. I know the owner of this cabin.” 

He raises an eyebrow, “and how do you know them?”

“She’s me,” you respond. There’s another silence before a smile cracks across Geralt’s face and he chuckles softly before walking back to his seat. As he turns away from you you notice four long tears in the back of his shirt, with gashes in his skin peeking out from underneath. “You’re wounded,” you say, stepping towards him.

“No shit,” he responds. “It’s part of the job.”

“Let me help,” you insist, heading towards the kitchen to your stash of salves and creams, “just take off what’s left of that shirt. I can mend it for you, too.” When you turn back around, medicine and a rag in one hand and a pitcher of water in the other, you see that he’s obliged. Your breath hitches at the sight of his bare arms and chest. Being a full figured woman, not many men you know are able to lift you, but Geralt is definitely more than capable. He carried you here, anyway. Part of you wishes he would wrap his thick arms around you and carry you wherever he wants.

Shaking away the thoughts, you step towards him and he shifts in his chair, giving you proper access to his back. You dip the rag in water and gently wipe the dirt and dried blood from around the wounds, then dab at the cuts with a bit of clear liquor. He inhales deeply as you do this, feeling the sting, but otherwise does not react. When the wounds are clean you apply a cooling salve, relishing in the opportunity to feel his supple skin. Unfortunately, as all good things do, this comes to an end. “They’re in an awkward spot,” you tell him, wiping your hands on your skirt, “so I can’t bandage them. But you should keep it easy until they fully heal.” Your own wound has begun to itch and you subconsciously raise a hand to the bandage to scratch it, wincing softly at the pain. 

Geralt sees you do this and lets out a low breath, grabbing a footstool from near the fireplace and dragging it in front of him. He pats it softly, beckoning for you to sit. Your heart begins to race as you sit down, the hem of your skirt resting in folds at the floor. His hands, rough and calloused as they are, are gentle as they unwrap the bandage from around your head. He takes a corner of the cloth and dips it in the pitcher of water before dabbing it at your left temple where curly tendrils of hair have fused to your bloody skin. It’s less difficult to look into his eyes when they aren’t peering into yours, and you enjoy every second of it. 

After cleaning your wound he drags his thumb down your cheek before gently cupping your chin in his hand. You hold your breath, not daring to move beneath his gaze, thinking only of the fact that this man has seen all of you. A moment later he releases you and stands, turning towards the door. “I have to tend to my horse,” he says, facing away from you.

“Is there anything else I can do for you, Geralt?” you ask, finally releasing your held breath.

Standing in the doorway, he turns over his shoulder. You see what appears to be a wry smile spread across his face. “Well, you are in my debt, Orion.”

[lucifers-trash-stash]

Bubble Bath

Summary: Anon requested Palaptine with some bathtime fun ;) Hope you enjoy!

Word Count: 837

Warm water lapped at your skin as your eyes shut, tipping your head back to let your hair soak up the fruity smelling bubbles that threatened to spill over the edge of the tub. A few candles lit on the counter cast a warm glow throughout the dimly lit room, allowing you to fully unwind in the bath. It had been a while since you indulged yourself like this, and it was long overdue. You lay submerged beneath the water, allowing your mind to drift as you steadied your breathing. While you had many quiet moments these days, moments like this were something to cherish.

You were uncertain as to how much time had passed, but when your eyes fluttered open, you were startled out of your serene state. Your Master, Chancellor Palpatine- though you were instructed to refer to him only as Lord or Master- had somehow entered the room without you noticing. He was now sitting beside the tub, an amused smile curling up his face.

“My Lord, I apologize, I didn’t hear you arrive,” you stumbled over your words, sitting up in the tub as the water began to slosh. Lord Sidious always expected you ready for him when he visited, and you were hardly prepared for him.

Your Master merely raised his hand to silence you. “No need for apologies, my dear. You seemed so serene and I didn’t wish to interrupt.” His voice was smooth, soothing your anxieties regarding your mistake. While he didn’t tolerate blatant insubordination, he usually approached your mistakes with a gentle but firm hand.

His sharp gaze travelled down your body to the parts that were visible above the bubbles, tracing down your neck, your collarbone, and the tops of your breasts. You shivered beneath his scrutiny despite the warm water of the tub, but you didn’t dare cover yourself from him no matter how embarrassing it was. You were not allowed to deny your master, after all.

He must have taken his usual regal outer robes off when he came in, because he now wore a simple loose fitted button up shirt tucked into dark pants. With a smugness in his expression, he leaned forward to gently lift your leg out of the water, placing your foot in his lap.

“My Lord, you’ll get your clothes wet,” you tried to protest, unsure of his plans.

He cocked his eyebrow. “Do you assume to tell me what I can and cannot do with you?”

Your face grew hot in embarrassment. “Of course not, My Lord,” you said, your voice tense as his fingers began to knead your foot, massaging the arch with his thumbs. You forced yourself to relax into his touch, settling back into the water. 

“Good girl,” he praised absentmindedly as his touch began to travel further up your leg. You whimpered softly, but otherwise didn’t prevent his hand from doing what you knew he wanted. His pale blue eyes glinted darkly as his fingers slipped beneath the water, trailing along the soft skin of your inner thigh. 

After a moment of lightly teasing the skin, his fingers dipped to your lips, smiling wickedly as your breath hitched in your throat. Slow, methodical circles of his fingers worked around your clit, careful to not give you the direct pleasure you needed right away. He held your ankle firmly with his other hand, leaving your legs open and exposed enough for him to venture as he pleased. Even though he couldn’t see beneath the bubbles, you felt so vulnerable while he revelled in his blissfully torturous treatment of your body. 

His fingers stroked down your slit, circling your entrance only briefly before his fingers slid up, coming to rest on top of your clit. You whined as he began to apply pressure, but he still didn’t move. When your eyes fluttered up to meet his, you were startled to find they had changed, as you had only seen them do once before. Yellow eyes stared down at your prone body beneath him with a wry smile on his lips.

“Beg.”

You didn’t need to be told twice. “Please, My Lord, please let me come, I beg of you,” you pleaded. His fingers began to move then, pressing and rolling them tightly against your bud. You continued to cry and plead out for him, spurring on his efforts so he wouldn’t stop. Now that you were so close, your legs trembling, you only needed a little more…

But the pleasure suddenly stopped as Lord Sidious stood up, letting your leg rest on the edge of the tub as you whined desperately. You watched in horror as he turned and made his way to the doorway. He couldn’t leave you like this!

He glanced back at you over his shoulder for a brief moment, watching your pitiful sobs of need as you begged him to come back. Instead, he smiled briefly before returning to a stern expression. “Dry yourself off and come along. Do not keep me waiting again.”

-----

Tags: @vizhi0n​ @opheliadawnwalker3​

[johaerys-writes]

Fandom: The Song of Achilles, The Iliad- Homer 

Pairing: Achilles/Patroclus

Chapter 2: Thorn & Chapter 3: Watching you

Read here or on AO3!

Vietnamese translation available here, done by the amazing @tenmeooo-thefangirltrash​!

The day was warm and humid, the air sliding down my throat like honey from the comb. The water in the stream by Chiron’s cave was cool, though, and I did not mind much that the sweat on my brow seemed to mingle with the drops of dew that lingered on my skin only minutes after I’d finished bathing. I knew I could jump right back if the heat became stifling.

Achilles was lying beside me, one arm curled under his head, the morning sun playing along the fluid lines of his body, tiny beads reflecting the light where water still pooled; in the corners of his eyes, the dip in his collarbone, the line at the center of his chest, the pink swirl of his bellybutton. Smooth slopes, perfect planes and angles, shadows gathering in the small hollows where the muscles and bones came together or parted under his skin. The water on my body looked like water. On Achilles it looked like pearls, like rough cut diamonds, like stars. It was the shade of his skin, I told myself; rich and vibrant and golden, whereas mine was tan and quite plain. It wasn’t so much a comparison as an observation, as it was always difficult for me to compare myself to him. I was Patroclus, and he was Achilles, and that was that. Who compares themselves to the son of a goddess, after all? If it was a game, I would have lost before it had even begun.

Achilles didn’t seem to have noticed me watching. I was always mindful not to look too long, not to give myself away. There was a fear in me, that if I looked too long my vision would perhaps darken and grow dull, as if I’d stared wide eyed at the bright midsummer sun. Yet I knew that my fear of Achilles noticing that lingering gaze of mine and fleeing, like he had that day at the beach so long ago, was greater, far greater, and it kept my fierce inclination under a tight rein. I could not risk giving myself away and losing him.

It was thoughts such as these that swivelled in my mind when Achilles cracked an eyelid open and looked at me.

The breath that had been slowly gliding down my throat caught, and I hastily looked away. I heard Achilles shifting, sitting up, the grass under his body giving way.

“Think I can reach that in ten?” he asked.

I gazed at him curiously. Only then did I realise he was looking at a low hanging branch over the river, several paces away from us. “Perhaps,” I said.

He gave me his wolfish smile, eyes bright with mischief and the thrill of a challenge, before pushing himself up on his feet. “Keep time.” The slow running waters rippled when they embraced his body.

Sleek and agile and quick, his arms knifed through the silver surface of the water soundlessly, like a fish. It was a marvel, watching him move; the way his body seemed to morph and melt and change. When he swam, he was a dolphin, smooth edges and polished skin that shone in the light. When he ran, he was a wild horse, nimble and swift, his slender limbs carrying him forward like the wind would blow through a ship’s sails. When he played the lyre, his fingers were hummingbirds, plucking at the strings like they were collecting nectar from blossoms heavy with dew. The sounds that came from it were even sweeter.

I watched in quiet fascination, as I always did, tapping my foot on the grassy ground beneath me to keep time. One, two, three. Seven, eight, nine. Before I’d tapped for the last time, his blonde locks, darkened by the water, emerged from beneath the water’s edge. His arm sprung up, his fingers wrapped around the tree’s branch, pulling himself up. “How much?”

“Nine,” I called back to him, and rested back on my elbows. He had won, and he was jubilant, triumph and wild satisfaction shimmering in the golden flecks in his eyes. I fancied I could see them from where I was, but it was my mind that supplied the rest of the image. I knew that look on him. It was the one I loved seeing on him the most. This, and when he closed his eyes, basking in the sun, his features calm and tensionless. This, and when he played the lyre, and his chin lifted as if on its own to expose his face to the sky, and it was like he could touch the heavens with his voice alone. This, and when he teased me, and the edges of his lips curled in his cat’s smile. This, and this and this.

With the contentment of his win giving his body an energetic buoyancy, he swam back to me, sliding on his belly along the wet sand of the river bank. “I’ll race you.”

I smiled. “There’s no need.”

“Why not?”

“Because you’ll win,” I said. “You always do.”

“So?” There was curiosity in his gaze now. “Just because you might lose doesn’t mean you can’t try.”

I settled back on the grass with a small sigh. “Perhaps another day.” I didn’t want to admit that, in the act of competing with him, I lost the advantage of being the spectator. I couldn’t notice his every movement, the way his muscles rose and fell under his skin, the way his feet or hands moved, the concentration in his expression, this and that of him. I didn’t want to say it, so I said nothing.

I yelped instead when Achilles’ fingers closed about my ankle and drew me to the water. It was cool and fresh when it touched my skin, making it prickle. I laughed, because his hands tickled when they moved up my leg, pulling me deeper still, like he was a river nymph come to claim me and draw me into the dark depths.

“Let me go-” I tried to say, reaching for the shore to draw myself away from him, but he was quicker. He pinned me down, his arms closing around me like vices. His chest pressed up against my own felt odd, close, too close. It was as if I had suddenly forgotten to breathe and my skin was growing tight. I slithered from out of his grasp, kicking at the water as I dived in my effort to escape. He caught me again, and we grappled and twisted and writhed in the water, one moment half-submerged, the next shooting towards the surface like jumping fish. We laughed until we were breathless, wrestled until a rosy flush crept up Achilles’ cheeks. I knew then that my face would be as red as a ripe pomegranate. I shoved him playfully away and swam towards the banks, and that was when he pounced on me.

My back was pressed to the soft sand. My wrists were pinned above my head. Achilles was on me, hovering over me, keeping my legs in place with his knees at either side of me. His chest rose and fell with his breaths, and the muscles in his arms stood out where he was holding me. He was grinning, his green eyes flashing, water streaming down his soaked strands, molten gold raining down my cheeks. Wild and beautiful, effervescent, with the sun crowning him in gold. He leaned down and pressed his nose to mine.

First, the hairs on the back of my neck stood on end. Then, a slow roll of warmth, like a thousand tiny prickles, ran up my legs, pooling in my belly. Last, came the pressure. That tightening in my core that had been coming more and more often of late, and that I could do nothing to stop.

Panic gripped me. I turned my head away, struggled to free myself from his hold. “Enough,” I croaked, “that is enough.” Achilles released me immediately and I jumped into the stream, anxious to get away from him, to hide any evidence of my desire for him, the thorn in my side that ached and troubled me. I swam and swam, past the low hanging branch. When I turned back, Achilles was gone.

I carried myself on heavy limbs to the small clearing where I usually went to play the flute, sat under a tree to dry. My heart was still beating frantically in my chest, my head was light, too light. I leaned back on the tree trunk and took a deep breath, gazing up at the shifting canopy of leaves above me, the pockets of sunshine that slithered through the cracks. Could his mother see us there? I wondered. Could she see how his presence made my heart race and my blood warm and fizzle in my veins? I prayed that she did not, though I had little faith in the gods. But I had faith in him. Him.

My hand drifted down, between my legs, escaping my notice. I thought of long limbs and fluid lines, of slender fingers gripping my ankles and my wrists, of a triumphant grin, of drops of water that looked like stars. My hand moved ceaselessly to remove that ache, that thorn, to banish it, as it had done so many times before. “Last time,” I always told myself, “this is the last time. Tomorrow will be different.” Yet, each time, after it was done, I always found the thorn lodged a little deeper.

Chapter 3

Achilles liked watching me.

I hadn't thought much of it at first. To me, he was an extension of myself, the way we were always within breathing distance of each other. I told myself, it is to be expected. Sometimes, during those long, quiet summer afternoons, when boredom would get the better of me, I would bring my hand before my eyes, hold it up against the sun, study the muscles and the bones and the veins that shone through my skin like gossamer wings. That was how he looked at me, I told myself.

But it wasn't.

One day, we climbed up to the mountain to gather herbs for a poultice Chiron needed to make. Wild clover and mallow, nettle and chamomile blossoms. It was a bright day, and warm, and soon I grew weary of our trek. I sat underneath the cool shade of a tree, rested my head against its trunk and closed my eyes. When I opened them again, I saw Achilles watching me. Our gazes met, and he glanced away, bending down to pluck a chamomile flower. Right at that moment, a butterfly flew past me, its white wings fluttering before me. I followed the path of its trembling flight for a few breaths, absently noting that it chose to land on the yellow and not the pink blossom nearby, before pushing myself up. It was a simple observation, one that one’s mind makes automatically, without giving it much thought. That was how he looked at me, I told myself.

But it wasn't.

Spring was almost over. The white berry trees were heavy with fruit, and the cries of the wild cat cubs kept us awake at night. It wasn't quite summer though, yet, and the warm and humid heat of Homoloios had just subsided to the chill winds of Theilouthios, and the water flowing from the peaks of Mount Pelion was as cold as only fresh melted ice could be. Still, it had been months since I'd bathed in the stream near our cave, and I wasn't about to let the chill stop me. Achilles was of the same opinion.

"If we get too cold," he told me, "we can just lie under the sun beside the willow tree and we'll get warm again."

Every hair on my body stood on end when I dipped my toe in the water. Achilles, ever the bolder of the two, took a sharp breath and dove in headfirst. I stood by the water’s edge for a long while, watching as Achilles’s arms swept under the water in lazy arcs, creating ripples on its surface. He flipped on his back, the taut flesh of his stomach shimmering in the morning light. I took a hesitant step forward, and he lifted his head to look at me.

His eyes, rough emeralds wrought in gold, took in my form. They did so slowly, trailing from my eyes, to my neck, to my collarbone. They paused for a moment before resuming their downward journey, gliding past my chest, my stomach, my navel. And there, they stayed. And stayed. And stayed.

Time was caught in a strange, diaphanous bubble. I was instantly within and without it, watching as Achilles watched me, as his gaze focused and darkened. I shivered.

“The water’s too cold,” I said, although I barely heard myself say it. I stepped back, out of the water, and the bubble popped, and time started flowing again. Achilles’s eyes snapped to mine, and then I knew.

Achilles liked watching me, too.

[allthingshetalia]

Would it be ok to request some cuddly Romano with a touch starved s/o, just being sweet and intimate. Headcanons or scenario or anything is fine, I just need some fluff rn :(

💕I feel that💕

“Mmmm.” You moaned as you stepped into the steaming bath. You thanked god that Lovi decided it would be best to get the hotel room with the XL bath, because it was practically a jacuzzi.

You were both currently in Finland for a world meeting. Lovi refuses to go to one without you now because one time the meeting got extended to 3 weeks instead of just 2 and that was hell for the both of you.

But sadly only Countries were allowed in the meeting room (besides maids and stuff) so you were on your own from 9am to 6pm, or sometimes even longer.

Your body was use to hot Italy air, not the chilled air of Finland, so it was almost torture to go outside. But you still managed and wandered around the touristy town. But now your feet were bruised and rubbed raw from you snow boots. You skin and lips were dry and you couldn’t wait to get back to the hotel room and take a nice hot bath to defrost.

So here you were.

Your slightly snow damped hair was tied up into a bun. (Or if you have short hair it just stays the same). Everything from your chin down was submerged in the pink bubbly water. The entire room smelled like roses and vanilla. You had a glass of wine and some leftover pizza Roma insisted on making so you weren’t stuck eating ‘crappy Finish food.’ His words not yours.

“Vita Mia (my life), I’m back!” You heard your boyfriend shout almost slamming the door behind him. “Where the f*ck are you?” You heard him mutter somewhere in the other room. You laughed loudly giving away your hiding space.

“Oh, well this is a slight I want to come home to everyday.” He smirked pushing the cracked door all the way open.

He had already taken off his blazer and was mid unbuttoning his dress shirt exposing more of his tan, slightly hairy chest.

You had to pull the pizza away from you lips in fear of choking. Why did he have to be so attractive?

His olive eyes scanned you up and down in the water making you instinctively cover yourself. Even though he had seen you naked many times it always made you blush. He rolled his eyes at you and mouthed “you’re beautiful” making you blush dark red and chug what was left of your wine.

Once he was done undressing you scooted forward so he can sit behind you.

The calm water turned into a light tsunami as extra weight was added in it. You felt his thighs rub against your hips and you were lifted up making you grip his leg out of fear. He sat you completely on his lap and pressed your back against his chest. He chuckled against your bare neck at your reaction causing you to shiver.

“So what have you been up to?” He asked as you for udjusted. His hand suddenly darted into the water grabbing your sore foot. His thumb skimmed against the ball of your foot, applying light pressure. “Why didn’t you wear some thick socks?” He asked massaging your ankle.

“I didn’t have any. I thought I packed some. I know you asked to make sure I had them and I thought I did.” You mumbled pushing your foot down silently begging him to massage your calves.

“You should’ve just taken some of mine.” He mumbled digging his fingers into the muscles of your calves. His head was bent kissing up and down your neck and shoulder, while his other hand was lightly running up and down the back of your thigh.

“They won’t fit me.”

“If you pull them up and roll them. They may not be completely comfy but it’s better than having a hurt foot, Bella.” He reasoned applying more pressure to his actions.

You were practically liquid in his hands, just completely melted against him.

“How was your day?” You moaned out causing an airy chuckle leave his lips. His hands left your body making you whimper in discontent. He leaned forward grabbing the opened bottle of wine and your empty wine glass refilling it almost to the top.

Taking a large gulp he placed the glass on the rim of the tub bringing one hand down to your hip massaging it. His other hand moved to your inner thigh gripping it whilst tapping his thumb against it, like it was dancing to some song Lovi had trapped in his head.

“It was boring. I almost killed 3 people and wanted to throw myself out the window.” He groaned against the back of your head. You giggled loudly and tilted your head back so you were staring into those beautiful olive eyes.

“I’m happy you didn’t throw yourself out the window.” You laughed bringing your hand up and brushing his slightly curly hair away from his eyes. The steam of the tub caused his normally straight hair to shrink and curl.

He kissed your forehead softly, leaning his head into your hand.

“Well I couldn’t just leave you here, after all who would protect you, make you delicious food, take care of you and give you their socks?” He asked causing both of you to laugh. He reached over grabbing the wine glass again taking a few sips before handing it down to you.

“How about I skip the meeting tomorrow?” He blurted out making you stop drinking.

“Can you do that?” You wondered putting the wine glass down and turning around so you were straddling him.

His eyes scanned down your body before he snapped out of his trance.

“I’m sure, I mean half of them skip one or two days anyway and as long as I get my paperwork it’ll be fine. And Veni will be there.” He explained. Nodding your head you leaned forward so your head was buried in his neck. His hands ran up and down your back, lightly squeezing your bottom.

Smirking lightly you kissed his neck making him tense. You kissed all the way up until you got to a certain spot and bit down making him groan loudly into your ear before attacking you with kisses and nips.

He’ll be to tired to go tomorrow anyway.

[castlevania-afterdark-imagines]

Dracula, Trevor, Alucard stroll into their bedchambers after a very long day to find their female so splayed out on silk bedsheets in nothing but sheer fabric and lace that leave nothing to the imagination. However so has fallen asleep waiting to surprise them. Time to wake her up hehe

(This was so cute to write oh my god. I shuffled up the bedding a little, just to play with the different locations)

Dracula:

He recognized that silk, the lord of the castle thought idly as he gazed upon the figure of his S/O, the image of pure peace as they slept. Their head was propped up among the pillows, one hand draped artfully across their stomach, and their torso just barely hidden by a sheer robe of dark red. Even from the door frame he could tell there was nothing under it.

He almost considered leaving, despite the biting hunger that gnawed in his gut. Everything about her vulnerable figure screamed prey, and knowing that prey was exclusively his wet his palette.

Silently he approached the bed, eyes roaming over her effectively exposed figure. She looked like a painting. Before he could catch himself he was reaching a hand out, trailing his fingertips over their ankle. They shivered and stirred, Dracula’s hand jumping back as they scrubbed a hand over their eyes and peered up at him.

“I’m sorry for disturbing you,” he said softly, a smile creeping over his face as she just smiled back, arms raising to invite him down into her embrace. He willingly went, unclasping his cloak to cascade to the floor as he went. He ran a hand up over the fabric, feeling every ridge and valley he had long since memorized, chucking when he felt her sigh in his ear.

“This is from that dress,” he muttered, running a long slender finger over the collar of the robe, eyeing the stitching that was slightly uneven. “I thought I had ruined it when I’d torn it from your body that night…”

“There was enough to salvage,” she replied, stifling a yawn behind her hand. “At least, enough for this. I made it.”

Vlad hummed, hand reaching up to catch her chin and turn her head to kiss her quick. “Shame I’m going to ruin this as well.”

She jerked up and wiggled away to the other side of the bed, arms crossing over her chest to hold the already parting fabric closer over her chest. She fixed him with a glare, one he could only laugh at, holding a hand up in defeat.

“Very well, I will spare this one article. Given that it does not get in my way,” he purred, eyes narrowing on the gap between the folds where he could see the skin of her thighs, the starting shadows of her sex. She gave a small huff before giving in, this having clearly been her intent anyway.

When she slowly reached up to part the fabric, letting it slide off her shoulders and onto the bed, the vampire growled in approval.

Maybe he could learn to appreciate the wrapping his gifts arrived in afterall.

Trevor:

Trevor was a fucking mess. Understatement of the year

He’d just arrived home to their small lodge after a long day hunting, covered in mud, filth, bits of plants… Even he had to admit he was toeing the line between man and pig sty. He washed up outside first, only coming in once he was mildly certain he wouldn’t leave a trail behind him. He bee lined to the bath, knowing better than to drop into bed without a thorough scrub down. He’d even begun to appreciate the witchcraft known as cleanliness.

Once he was clean did it occur to him he hadn’t heard any sign of life from his partner. He donned a towel and went about checking the house for them. It was pretty late, they should be home…

He opened the door to the bedroom slowly, poised as always for an attack, but was greeted instead by a much more domestic sight. His beautiful wife, splayed out on their bed that was covered in various pelts and furs, in possibly the most ridiculous excuse for ‘clothing’ he’d ever seen. He was pretty sure you would see less skin had they been submerged in pond water, not that he was complaining. What made his heart clench tight in his chest though was how they were positioned. She was sound asleep on her side, his pillow tightly held to her chest, face nuzzled into the fabric while they softly snored away.

He was such a blessed man.

With a small smirk he dropped the towel by the bedroom door, crossing the floor with a keen sense of which boards would not creak under his weight. Once by the bed he slowly climbed onto it, trying to spread out the pressure as to not disturb the sleeping beauty. One he was stretched out behind her he carefully leant over to settle the barest of kisses across her shoulder, peeking through a gap in the gauzy white fabric.

She barely rustled under his touch, hugging the pillow tighter and tucking their knees up towards their chest. Trevor had to strain to not chuckle, choosing instead to fiddle with the lacing on her side that was probably among the ties holding the piece together. Carefully he pulled on the bow, the string coming apart in his grip easily, and tugged it out of the laces until the entire one side of the gown split and cascaded down and around her sleeping form.

This finally got a reaction, as his S/O blearily opened her eyes and yawned, turning her head this way and that to see what woke her. Taking that as a cue Trevor wrapped his arm around her waist, kissing her neck as she squirmed around to try and face him.

“Sorry, should’ve waited to unwrap my gift,” he murmured when she finally finagled her way around to hug him, her form now completely bare under his hands.

“I was waiting for you,” she yawned into his shoulder, flexing up into his body, shivering a bit to feel his skin was still slightly damp from the bath.

“Shouldn’t have,” he replied, kissing her temple. “But, if you’re up for it…” He pressed his hips forward to nudge his already half-hard cock against her thigh. She hummed an affirmation, kissing the corner of his mouth while he grinned. Suddenly, he wasn’t as tired from the hunt as he’d thought.

Alucard:

Alucard had let himself be persuaded to leave the castle for a time. There was something eerie about how his lover had asked him to travel, much like his mother, but at least in this case she had specified she would be traveling with him. Nothing extravagant, just to the next town over to arrange the delivery of materials to help with the numerous repairs the castle and Belmont hold would require.

After acquiring lodging for a few days they had spent a decent amount of the trip apart, Alucard having a better idea of what materials were required and his lovely having fun just exploring the town, looking for things to bring back with them. Alucard couldn’t imagine anything she could find that wasn’t already somewhere in the castle, but at her sweet chirps of laughter and gossiping with local shopkeepers he couldn’t bring himself to spoil it for her.

The last day had been the most complicated, setting about the arrival and payments and the many many reassurances that yes the night hoards in that area were gone and yes IF that wasn’t true there’d be compensation. He arrived back at the inn late, most of the drinking crowd already asleep at their tables and the keeper cleaning away the remnants of dinner. It wasn’t hard to avoid conversation, most locals were intimidated by his presence, so he simply scaled the stairs and went to the room he presumed his partner was already inside.

Perhaps it was in fact even later than he’d realized. She was asleep, half tucked under the blankets on the straw bed, the fireplace barely illuminating the room anymore. Not that it mattered, his vision was clear at it picked up something different about her usual sleepwear. Namely that it was nothing he’d ever seen before.

Crossing the floor he kneeled by the bed, carefully lifting a corner of the cover to eye the rest of the garment. It was pale blue lace, and painfully short, her entire thigh exposed where it rode up to show off the apparent lack of anything underneath it. He felt his cheeks color briefly and he lowered the blanket again, though the fall of the fabric was enough to rouse his partner from her sleep.

“Welcome back,” she sighed, seeming to drift off again before sitting bolt upright, startling the dhampir back on his heels. “Oh! Shoot, I was going to surprise you! But-” she paused, roughly tugging up the blanket to cover herself before pouting. “Pretend you didn’t see anything!”

Alucard pressed his lips to a fine line, willing himself not to laugh outright. “Of course my dear, I have no idea what you’re talking about. See what, exactly?” While it was clearly not true by the smile creasing the corners of his eyes the response seemed to be enough, as she proudly dropped the blanket, leaning back on her hands and letting the thinnest excuse for fabric show off her every curve. Again he held back a laugh, opting instead of place a hand over his heart. “You look stunning, wherever did you find that?”

She gushed about the shop, probably, because he was too focused on studying her, approaching the bedside again where he could reach out a hand to run the back on his knuckles over her stomach. It was soft, but he could still feel the warmth of her skin through nightgown. He hummed appreciatively, smiling when he felt her hand reach out for him to cup his cheek. “I like it, we should buy three more before we leave tomorrow.” When she raised her eyebrows at him he chuckled, turning to press a kiss into her palm. “Well, this one isn’t going to make it home. I’m going to be removing it from you very soon.” He hooked his nail in the hem, tugging only until she batted his hand away. Oh well, he supposed it could survive the night.

(Like father like son)

-Mod Soviet