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#in my defence i was on the night train and
grievenotthespirit · 5 months
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happy birthday luffy …. thank u for saving my life
strong world outfit / fave outfit for the big day :)
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roguerambles · 4 months
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A Moment of Respite
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Blood of Zeus - Heron x Hera's!Daughter Reader
Warnings - 18+Only.
I've had this sitting in my drafts for ages and I want to get it out before I try any Season 2 stuff. Plus I just like the idea of these two, okay--
Kind of a Part 4 to Trouble.
Enjoy the Rambles!
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Training was not going well.
You cringed as Heron flew across the arena, crashing into the sands with a pained groan. The automaton returned to its standing position dispassionately, and beside you Zeus sighed heavily.
It had been days since Mother had left Olympus, taking some of the other Gods of Olympus with her to the Underworld. Hades had apparently allowed them sanctuary, although he declared he would be taking no further involvement than that.
...your wrist ached as the memory of Mother’s hand grasping you, Hera and Zeus’s raised voices, Mother’s betrayed expression melting into a fury you had never had directed at you before flashed across your mind.
You had chosen to stay on Olympus, and Mother and Ares had left, others at their heels.
“Zeus.” Hephaestus spoke from behind you, his voice low and gruff. “This isn’t working.”
Zeus’s jaw clenched as Heron went hurtling across the arena once more, kicking up a dust cloud of sand as he crashed into the ground with a loud, painful sounding thump. “He needs to unlock his potential.” His large hands gripped the stonework of the balcony in front of him. “Soon.”
You were not much of a warrior, but you were fairly certain that if Hephaestus’s contraptions broke every bone in Heron’s body, that would be rather counterproductive to improving Heron’s combat efficiency.
As Zeus and Hephaestus continued to bicker in hushed voices, you felt a warm presence appear at your side. Apollo sighed as he leaned against the balcony, peering down into the training ground where Heron stumbled to his feet once more.
“He doesn’t give up, at least.”
“Is this really the best approach?” You nervously played with your hands as you watched Heron get up and be knocked down, over and over.
Apollo shrugged. “Athena is too busy preparing the defences, and Ares is with Hera. We don’t have a lot of options, training wise.”
You both continued to watch for a while, and you could feel your stomach sinking the longer it went on. Heron barely glanced your way.
You had not spoken since the night Mother had left, but the memory of Heron shocked expression as he looked at you – really looked at you – and the blind panic it had created in you made your stomach churn. You had fled to your room and would probably still be there if Hermes hadn’t forced you out.
“You should say hello.”
Your head snapped around to stare at Apollo, you was still looking out over the balcony. “I should what?”
“You should go over and talk to him.” Apollo replied casually, as though he were suggesting something completely normal. “The staring is getting a little old.”
“I am not—I am not staring.”
“Heron!” Apollo called out abruptly, loudly, and to your horror Heron actually looked up towards you. “Would you like some water? We have plenty over here—”
You turned to flee somewhere far, far away, only for Hermes – where in Tartarus did he come from – to appear, blocking your way with a small, but noticeable smile.
Traitor!
Zeus sounded displeased. “Interruptions are not—”
Apollo grabbed his father’s arm and began tugging him towards the stairs, so suddenly Zeus stumbled. “You are correct, Father, we should check the equipment on the other side of the arena—”
Zeus looked confused as Hermes joined Apollo in practically dragging the King down the stairs. Hephaestus rolled his eyes and stalked towards the automaton, muttering something about “those bloody sons of Zeus”. You were rooted to the stop as Heron slowly approached, his head low, as though he were struggling to meet your eye.
Your heart clenched as Heron busied himself gathering water, taking somewhat longer than was required for the task. The silence was so dense you felt it were almost choking you. You scrambled for something, anything, to say, but your mind was a void of disjointed words. I’m sorry. I wanted to tell you. I couldn’t tell you. Please don’t be angry. I’m sorry for Electra, I’m so—
“…you’re short.”
You were yanked from your frazzled thoughts when Heron finally said something. You looked at him in confusion, while Heron cringed, looking frustrated with himself. “I…pardon?”
“I just mean….” Heron rubbed the back of his neck, looking anywhere but directly at you. “You…the others are….you look different. Not bad, you’re beautiful, I just mean—”
“Oh. Oh! Right, yes, well, I wasn’t born like the rest of them. Mother—she made me out of clay.” Heron lifted his head to stare at you blankly. You felt your cheeks burn. “It is…unusual, I know.”
“…I’m sorry, was that rude—”
“No, no, not at all, you should hear how Apollo and Artemis were born—”
Silence fell over you again as you both fumbled over your words. You were torn between fleeing the arena altogether and staying exactly where you were because awkward or not you and Heron were talking. Over his shoulder you could see Zeus and Hephaestus by the automaton, and knew Heron would be pulled away soon. You inhaled deeply, steeling your nerves. I am the Queen of the Heavens daughter, by the Fates, act like it. “Heron….I am so sorry. About…about your mother.”
Heron looked pained, his fingers clenching around the waterskin in his hand. “…it was Hera, wasn’t it?”
It wasn’t a question, and you both knew it. You bowed your head, yours eyes beginning to sting. Do not cry. This isn’t about you.
“…yes.” You forced out, your throat feeling thick. “Heron…Heron, I know it’s not enough, but I’m sorry—”
“Why?” Heron cleared his throat, tossing the waterskin down. “It’s not your fault. You weren’t even there.”
“But….” You bit your lip. “Mother…I mean… Hera is—”
“Your mother, I know.” Heron wasn’t quite looking at you again, but he didn’t sound angry. Grief clung to his voice, and you fought the impulse to reach for his hand. “And Zeus is my…father. That alone made mother and I targets for Hera’s wrath. You had nothing to do with it.”
“Heron—”
Heron started to laugh.
You faltered, and watched as Heron hurriedly clamped a hand over his mouth, eyes wide as though startled by his own reaction. “I…I am sorry.” He choked out, eyes wide even as you caught glimpse of a mirthful smile behind his fingers. “Please…please continue…”
Your anxiety was briefly overpowered by confusion. “What…what is so amusing…?”
Heron’s shoulders began to shake. “I…I assumed your parents would disapprove of me.” He said, and the words seemed to break something in him. He doubled over, grasping his knees, eyes squeezing shut as he began to laugh even harder. “Now…now it turns out your mother is Hera. And…and I am the bastard son of her philandering husband….!”
You stared owlishly at him as his laugh grew louder – you could see Zeus and Hephaestus watching from the side-lines, their expressions suggesting concern that the automaton had hit Heron harder than they had feared.
“That’s…well yes, that is….Heron….Heron, it’s not funny!”
Heron tried to reply, but it came out as a wheeze. “I…gods…I had no idea…!”
You could feel a smile beginning to creep onto your face and tried to squash it, but Heron’s laughter was infectious, and was the most happy you’d seen him in…well, a while. “Well…no, I suppose…I suppose you are not what my mother would consider an ideal suitor…”
That brought on another wave of near hysterical laughter, and you found yourself giggling along with Heron, until you were both cackling like lunatics in the middle of the arena. You slumped against Heron’s shoulder, clamping a hand over your mouth as you saw Zeus heading towards you both.
“…if you are both finished?” He asked dryly, his eyebrows raised. Heron’s laughter stuttered to a stop, but he didn’t move away from you, the feeling of his body against yours leaving warmth against your skin.
You reluctantly straightened up, brushing away non-existent creases in your dress. “I suppose….” You gestured wordless at the arena. Zeus eyed you cautiously, before clearing his throat and turning back towards the automaton, as though he were examining it. Heron rolled his eyes slightly as you bit down a chuckle – you supposed he was trying to give you both a moment.
“Wish me luck.” Heron gripped his sword, his free hand rising to sheepishly rub his neck. “I think I’ll need a fair share of it…”
You laughed slightly, reaching out to gently pat his arm. He smiled in response, before sighing and trudging after Zeus.
“I think that went well.” Hermes said cheerfully from behind you. You nearly jumped out of your skin. “Don’t you think that went well, Apollo?”
“Indeed!” The Sun God chirped, appearing at your side. “See? All is well that ends well.”
“You two do remember…” Artemis sighed from somewhere behind you – when did she get here? – “…the approaching civil war, yes?”
“Small victories, dearest sister.”
You flushed and turned to stride back towards the stands, while Hermes and Apollo snickered to themselves. Artemis rolled her eyes as you sat beside her, although a small, teasing smile began to tug at her mouth. “Although….I did notice he didn’t deny it when you described him as a suitor.”
“Artemis!”
You blushed furiously as the Goddess of the Hunt laughed, and your stubbornly kept your gaze ahead, focusing on Heron on the sands below, feeling just a little bit lighter than before.
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heavenlyvision · 9 months
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Bare II
Word count: 12.8k
Pairing: Liu Kang x F!Reader
Read part one ˗ˏˋhereˎˊ˗ first !
A/N: Part 2 is finally here !! I am sorry it took so long. I lost power at home due to bad storms that came through on Christmas night and have been staying elsewhere, it’s really messed with my writing schedule :((( hopefully the power will be back on at home soon <33 Anywhos, enjoy this creation of my insanity !!!
Summary: Liu Kang pushes you on his want to train you in self-defence and you get to the bottom of why it’s so important to him. Later that night, he wakes you up from his heat… he seems to be having a really good dream.
Warnings: 18+ only, smut, angst but like not really, grinding, cockwarming, p in v sex, light edging, overstimulation, multiple orgasms, squirting, creampie, dirty talk, light burns, menace!Liu Kang, minor mention of creepy stranger
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When you wake up you’re still in Liu Kang’s bed, it’s warm and comfortable but he isn’t in it. Dragging yourself up, you sit in his bed and look around the room, which is also devoid of his presence. Your limbs feel heavy as you move, the ground is cold on your feet as you get out of his bed.
The sound of your bare feet hitting the floorboards is filling the quiet house and once you’ve reached the kitchen you can smell something good. There’s a plate of food and a cup of tea sitting on the counter, left for you, Liu Kang is nowhere to be seen but he seems to have made you breakfast and left you a note.
Looking at the note you can see that he’s… stupid. Big fire God is stupid. You skim it but essentially it has the vibes of “I have to go… we will talk about last night later.” Why are men dumb? You sigh and shake your head at the note, already exasperated with him, you wish he’d have woken you up to talk, how long would the conversation have taken.
All this note does is bring you unease, how hard would it have been to write something that doesn’t induce the fight or flight response in you? Seriously? All he had to write instead was, “Stellar sex, I am a busy fire God and have fire God shit to do but I am looking forward to seeing you later”…just something less ominous would have done wonders for you and your anxiety.
Now, you are grumpy, resulting in you eating your breakfast and drinking your tea, stewing in your annoyance. He is allowed to have doubts or whatever his note is meant to get across but leaving a weird note is, well… stupid. Briefly, you wonder what would happen if he came back and you were still here, his note said he intends on speaking with you later but that also feels like an aversion tactic.
To be fair, last night was more of a heat of the moment thing, you haven’t even considered what you would want from him. If he has no feelings for you then maybe it would be better to chalk it up to a mistake, you aren’t stupid, you like him… a lot and being a casual hook up is something you wouldn’t survive. Not from him, it would hurt too much but he doesn’t come across as having no feelings for you. He also doesn’t seem the type to do casual hook-ups.
Leaving without communicating with you properly is irritating, now you’re having to sit here and think of all the what ifs. It’s a waste of time and energy, especially since only one outcome is going to occur anyways. Still, you can’t help but sit here and wonder about what might happen, what he might want, if he would even honestly tell you what he wants.
The note is too vague and mostly conveys doubt in himself and his actions, it’s not explicitly stated but you know him well enough now to read between the lines. If he had felt completely guilt free, he would have stayed or woken you up to say goodbye. He had time to make breakfast, which means he had time to talk to you about this and chose not to.
Sighing again, you get up and clean the dishes he used for you, this day is going to be exhausting, you can already tell. You put your pants from last night back on and grab the rest of your things, ready to head back to your quarters. At the last second you remember the book he gifted you and run back to the room to grab it, it’s still on the nightstand where you left it.
Picking it up, you look it over and take notice of the copy he got. It’s the same published copy you had, which must have taken a bit to find because you got your copy some years ago now. He used some sticky notes for thoughts that wouldn’t fit in the spaces between the words, you did the same thing with yours. He’s properly read it; you can tell by the way his annotations are well thought out and eloquent. It’s such a kind gesture and it displays care for you in a way you’ve never experienced before.
A memory you have with your ex is when you’d asked him if he’d ever read your favourite book and he all but laughed in your face. You just wanted to be able to talk with him about it but obviously he never cared all that much for you. Relationships are hard and messy and now you are wondering what exactly you want. Grabbing the book and everything else you came with, you leave. Ready to walk back.
With the daylight, the trip through the Fire Temple is significantly easier to make. Nothing is obscured and you know exactly where you are, though you know you had poor visibility last night, you still can’t help but feel silly over getting lost and showing up at Liu Kang’s door the way you did.
You also can’t help but feel a little miffed by his blatant avoidance of you this morning, he gave you great sex, great orgasms, and the best gift you’ve ever received only for him to duck you in the morning. What the hell is that? You think the note wouldn’t even be that bad if he had said something less vague.
The walk back is filled with you angry mumbling to yourself, trying to understand his motivation, trying to understand how you’re feeling. Reading yourself and how you feel at any one point is hard, it’s why it took you so long to realise that you weren’t happy in the relationship with your ex. You knew something was wrong, you just took a bit to pinpoint it and by the time you had, it didn’t matter anymore.
Leaving was too difficult and you were comfortable, well, maybe not comfortable but it was familiar. The effort of moving out or asking him to move out was a hard thought and it left you feeling trapped. Clearly, he did not feel the same, having no trouble kicking you out when he was done with you.  
When you get back, the house is quiet and dark, the curtains are open but it’s still cloudy out after all the rain last night. It actually looks like you might get more. You decide to change out of the clothes you’re wearing into some fresh ones, finally wearing a pair of your own clean, dry underwear.
For a good chunk of the morning, you read the book gifted to you, reading over Liu Kang’s thoughts as you go. He has given well thought out insight into how the book has made him feel and why he thinks certain choices were made by the characters. A lot of the thoughts he had align with your own, he even picked up on a couple small things you hadn’t considered in all your read throughs.
It’s still one of the most thoughtful things someone has ever done for you and as you sit here reading how much thought he has put into his notes, you realise that being just his friend isn’t what you want, everything about him has captivated you. You aren’t sure what it is exactly you want from him but you don’t want things to go back to how they were before.
Before you lose your courage, you get up and leave to go looking for him. Waiting on him could take no time at all or too much time and you aren’t willing to wait right now. You aren’t exactly certain on what you’re going to say when you find him but if you don’t find him now, you might not ever tell him how you really feel.
Honesty is hard because it leaves you feeling exposed and open, honesty regarding how you feel is something you struggle with but you aren’t going to let your own hang ups get in the way. Not with him.  
The first drops of rain start to spit onto the ground below you and you consider going back to get an umbrella before ultimately deciding against it. Right now, finding Liu Kang is urgent, you only hope you find him fairly quickly. Especially if it’s about to rain now like it did last night.
The first stops you make are all his usual hang outs but he isn’t at any of them and you’re starting to get wet, the rain isn’t harsh like last night but you certainly aren’t dry. The last place you check is where you usually meet for tea but he isn’t here either, how is it that you seem to have the worst luck when it comes to finding him.
By the time you decide to give up your search and go home, you’re thoroughly soaked, your stomping footsteps have the water flicking back up at you. It’s chilly, not freezing, due to the fact it’s about midday or early afternoon, you can’t be certain on the exact time but either way the water has a cool bite to it without freezing you to the bone.
When you stomp your way into your house, Liu Kang is already there, seemingly about to leave after not finding you. He’s the tiniest bit damp but nowhere near as wet as you, looking to his right hand you see he’s holding an umbrella. The thought of a Fire God using an umbrella is funny to you.
He speaks first, “You need to stop going out in the rain.”
“In my defence… it hadn’t been raining like this when I left,” you shrug at him with your hands slightly raised.  
He retorts, “Was that not your last defence too?”
“Maybe,” you mumble, eyes averting his.
His tone is amused but also exasperated by you when he asks, “Why were you out there?”
“I was looking for you,” your eyes meet his again, “I wanted to talk with you.”
“I said I would talk with you later,” he seems confused.
You argue back, “No, you wrote a weird note that said you would talk with me later, which thanks for that by the way. Totally didn’t fill me with dread reading that first thing in the morning.”
“It was not my intention to worry you,” he steps closer as he speaks.
“Well… you did.” Your arms cross over your chest, still a bit cold. “How hard would it have been to wake me up and talk with me then.”
“I did not want to wake you.” He considers you for a moment, “You were sleeping so peacefully.”
You only scowl at him, it’s meant to be a kindness on his behalf but it felt cruel waking up to a weird letter from the man you slept with the night before. One that you have feelings for at that.
There’s quiet in the room for a moment, a quiet he breaks, “You should change out of your wet clothes.”
You hum at him and move across the room, slipping your shoes off first and leaving them at the front door. You’re only gone from the room for a minute, quickly changing out of your wet clothes into some dry ones, too many outfit changes for today.
Back in the living area, he’s moved to rest against the dining table, not sitting at it but waiting by it, for you. You stand in front of him and awkwardly shuffle your weight back and forth on both feet.
“What exactly about my note upset you?” He’s careful as he speaks, not wanting to upset you further.
“For starters, you left a note.” You look at him, brows raised a touch, “And secondly, your note displayed nothing but guilt or regret, it’s not a nice thing to read after a night that… after a night like that.” Your gaze avoids his again.
He takes in a breath, “My intention was not to make you feel bad…but I am not sure last night–”
“–I am gonna have to stop you right there, big guy.” You cut him off and talk before you’ve fully thought through exactly what you want to say, “I don’t want to hear about how you’ve talked yourself into thinking it was a bad idea. I liked it… I like you.” You’re internally screaming, you just admitted you liked him without thinking it through properly.
“You are making this difficult,” he sighs.
Your brows pinch at his statement, “I’m making what difficult?”
He gestures between the two of you, “Putting distance between us, this is not the most conventional situation, and I am not certain I am good for you.”
Of course, that is where his concerns lie, you tell him clearly, “I don’t want there to be distance between us.”
Initially, his voice is firm, eyes intense, “I do not have the luxury of being selfish…” And then he softens for you all at once, “…But you make me want to be.”
Your skin feels warm at his words, “You have a bad habit of saying things that make me incredibly happy.”
The beginnings of a smile are forming on his face, “Should I stop?”
“…No.”
He smiles full at your response; it’s tinged with a kind of smugness you would normally find unappealing but can’t help but enjoy on him.
You’re not going to let him know that though, “Don’t smile at me, I am still upset about your stupid note. Your pretty words haven’t changed that.”
“My note was… not well thought out. I apologise,” he seems sheepish, his apology genuine.
Keeping a straight face, you reply, “You’re lucky I like you.”
“I think so too,” his smile is so tender as he looks at you.
The way he’s looking at you makes you break, your mostly faux annoyance dropping from your face. You step closer and wrap your arms around him, hugging him. The action confuses him a bit, or at the very least catches him off guard. It takes him a second, but he hugs you back, pulling you closer to him and holding you firmly.
He’s warm and he smells nice, and you could stay here indefinitely, “Just to be clear, you like me too, right?” You feel embarrassed asking him, but you want clarity.
He pulls you back to look at you, both his hands reach up and hold either side of your face, his hands are gentle with you, “So much.”
The smile that breaks out across your face is large, beaming up at him. His eyes are bright, dazzled by your happiness. He leans down and kisses your cheek; you turn your face to the side slightly so you can kiss him on his lips. It’s quick, a small peck but he uses his hands on your face to adjust you, he leans down and takes your lips in his properly.
His kiss is full, heady. He moves his hands from your face to your waist, pulling you closer to him. Your arms move up to loop around his neck. The hands on your hips wander slightly, moving to your back, the back of your head before moving back down to your hips. He’s overwhelming you completely, his touch is everywhere, his lips are soft but firm, demanding in the way he kisses you.
Suddenly, you’re being lifted, he’s pulled you up and he sits you on your dining table, your legs open for him to stand between. His lips go from yours to the side of your face, pressing kisses to your cheek. He trails them down to your neck; his mouth is hot, and his kisses are wet. He lightly sucks at your neck, nipping you every now and again. He’s being careful not to leave any marks behind, but he very clearly wants to.
The gasps and small noises that he pulls from you can’t be helped, you’re sensitive, especially to his touch. He trails his kisses back up the length of your neck, ending right beside your ear. His breath against you makes you shiver and hold back a whine.
“You are such a reactive little thing,” he mumbles against your ear and he’s right; you are but you could’ve sworn you weren’t. It’s just him.
Fighting back another shiver, you go to reply to him, but he breathes on your ear and what would have been the beginnings of your sentence cut off into a small whimper. When he pulls back, he has a very pleased look on his face. You’re scowling back at him, but he doesn’t seem to mind.
One of his hands reach up and grasp the side of your face, he angles you up slightly before leaning down and planting a full kiss on your lips. One you accept and return, despite your annoyance with him.
He moves back and hums, “As much as I would love to stay here and play with you, I have to go.”
“Cruel.” You comment, pouting at him.
He has a light smile on his lips, the rest of his features easy as he looks at you, “I will see you tomorrow, I’ll come get you.”
You can’t help but be sceptical of him, his tone is hiding something, “For what?”
“I am going to begin teaching you self-defence,” his expression holds steady, he’s not asking anymore. He’s being polite but his tone has an underlying dominance to it, not willing to argue with you on this.
So, you sigh at him, displaying that you’re still not completely on board, “Fine.”
“You will do great,” his hand holds onto yours, gripping it once in encouragement.
The concerns you have don’t have anything to do with how you might do performance wise, it’s more that you don’t really see it necessary and would rather avoid a fight it you could. Like you’ve told him previously, he keeps you separate from everything for the most part, so you don’t really understand why he wants this of you so badly.
The only reason you’ve continued to be so difficult about this is because it feels like he’s keeping something important from you and you’ve been trying to push it out of him. But as you’ve just witnessed, he is not entertaining conversation regarding this anymore. Not like that will stop you though, you just have to find a better opening.
“I am not worried about that,” your own hand grasps his once in response.
He knows what you mean, he’s been aware of the way you’ve been feeling him out every time the topic of ‘training’ comes up. He isn’t going to divulge anything though, instead he smiles politely at you and kisses you again. For the final time before he departs, his absence already felt the minute he’s out the door.
˚₊‧꒰ა ☆ ໒꒱ ‧₊˚
In the morning, Liu Kang keeps his promise. Which is unfortunate for you, it’s early morning and quite frankly, it’s too early for you when he’s knocking on your door. You don’t even want to get up and let him in, but you do. Which is quite the effort for you, but you manage and potter over to the front door, pulling it open to reveal him in all his glory. He looks good, he looks ready for the day… you do not.
His eyes are alight with mirth when he sees the state you’re in, still in your pyjamas, completely unkempt and unready for the day, “You look lovely,” he comments.
You groan at him, “It’s too early.”
“It is early, I can make some tea for you?” He’s trying to butter you up, since you’ve finally caved into what he wants.
You step to the side so he can enter, “I would like that.”
He moves closer to you, leaning down to kiss your cheek before brushing past your frame. He’s familiar with your kitchen and puts the kettle on, “You can get changed, it will probably be done then.”
“I will be back,” you smile at him, having him in your kitchen making tea for you makes your chest bloom with happiness.
Your footsteps can be heard shuffling back down the hall towards your room, Liu Kang can be heard opening cupboards in the kitchen. The clinking of mugs can also be heard as he grabs a couple of them for the pair of you.
In your room, you move over to your set of drawers, considering what would be most comfortable for today. You assume he’s going to have you moving around quite a bit, so you’ll have to wear something light and easy to move in. The safest bet is a pair of pants and a simple shirt, basic but should get the job done.
Once you’ve changed, you walk back to the kitchen where Liu Kang is, he’s sat at your dining table waiting for you. A cup of tea sitting across from him, for you.
You sit down in front of him, “Thank you for the tea.”
“You are more than welcome,” he answers, watching you as you take your first sip.
It’s warm and made exactly how you like it; he always makes it perfectly for you. A man of many talents. The tea soothes you, making you feel better about starting the day so early.
Your words are mostly spoken into your cup, “You better not make this a habit, I am not a morning person.”
He hums at you, “I make no promises.”
Your eyes squint at him over the rim of your mug, annoyed at the possibility of him waking you up this early regularly. He just smiles graciously back at you.
After tea, he washes up your mugs, even though you protest. Then he’s leading you out of your house and to a quiet area of the temple you have never been. It’s secluded but open, the perfect area to have tea. Not to Liu Kang though, to him it’s the perfect area to teach you self-defence.
You haven’t told him, but you actually know self-defence to a certain extent. You were single and living by yourself in the city for some time, so you had taken up some classes on it. It went fine, you aren’t skilled or anything, it’s just the basics in case you get assaulted or mugged. You know enough for if you need to get someone off you long enough to get away.
Your experience in the classes is part of the reason why you didn’t want to do this in the first place, the teacher was sketchy. He never did anything to you, but he enjoyed teaching that class a little too much and his hands lingered for just a little too long sometimes. You don’t know if it was malicious or not, but you were uncomfortable enough to never go back and not enrol in any new classes.
The idea of doing this with a stranger was a hard no but having it be Liu Kang makes it easier, you’d still rather not do it but that’s more because he’s keeping something from you. Something you will find out today, he will be answering your questions because you aren’t going to keep doing this for no reason. And you know he has a reason; he isn’t doing this just for kicks.
“Are you listening?” He asks you suddenly.
Was he talking? “Yes?”
“What did I just say?” He looks at you pointedly, waiting for your wrong answer.
You look off to the side, trying to think hard about what he may have been saying, “…Something about how… this is important, and you want me to take it seriously?” you try, your face cringing as you finish your sentence.
He looks to you and sighs, “Essentially, yes.”
A proud smile breaks out across your face, “See? I was paying attention,” you tell him, nodding your head.
One of his brows raise at you slightly, he knows you didn’t hear a thing he was saying before. He comes up to you, both his hands reach up and hold your face between his hands, his eyes looking into your own intensely. “This is important, focus. Please?”
“I will… sorry,” you feel bad, his eyes are pleading with you to take this seriously, so you will.
He leans down and kisses your lips softly, “Thank you.”
You hum at him in acknowledgement, momentarily distracted by his kiss, wanting more of him.
“I just want you to know some self-defence, it will be basic, and I will help you,” he assures you.
You aren’t worried though, “Sounds good.”
He moves behind you, “Okay, I am going to grab you from behind, do what you think you should do and then I will show you the correct way to free yourself.”
“I am ready, just go for it,” you tell him, he’s obviously a bit nervous, he doesn’t want to upset you or make you uncomfortable.
His arms wrap around you, under your arms, normally you would try and slide down between his arms to get away but his hold under yours means you won’t get very far. Instead, you lean all the way down and pull his ankle forward, using your weight and his loss of balance to push him back. He goes down and you go with him. His hold on you lessens and you use the opportunity to get yourself free and stand back up, you’re looking down at him now.
He’s on the floor looking up to you, his eyes examining your own, “You have done this before.”
“I never said I hadn’t,” You reply, he squints at you, and you give him your hand to help him up, which he takes.
When he’s on his feet again he asks you, “Why didn’t you tell me?”
“Why haven’t you told me why it’s so important I know self-defence?” You counter.
He sighs at you, “I want to know you can take care of yourself.”
“Yes but it’s one thing to be able to care of yourself and another to learn self-defence in case of bodily harm,” you emphasise, “This came out of left field, Liu and you know it. Something changed for you, and I want to know what it was.”
“My feelings for you changed, I want you near me, always. I want to be with you, to care for you, always… but I can’t be.” He’s frowning slightly.
You look at him dubiously, “And so your solution was teaching me how to defend myself in an attack?”
“No.” He answers quickly, “My solution is bringing you with me.”
“What?”
“The champions, will be gathered soon and I will be spending a lot of time at the academy… it’s selfish of me but I would like you to come with me, I would like to have you beside me and I would feel better about that if you could defend yourself.” He’s still frowning, clearly unimpressed with his own wants.
“I will go with you anywhere,” you tell him because you would, you would go anywhere, as long as he is beside you.
He reaches for you, both his hands resting on either of your shoulders, his expression charmed by you and your words, “I would like that.”
You smile tenderly at him, “You realise you’ve been kind of silly, keeping this from me?”
“Maybe but how long did you keep your feelings for me to yourself?” He retorts.
“Not the same,” you huff at him, “And you did the same thing,” you point out.
He hums at you, a hand lifting off your shoulder to hold the side of your face, gently cradling it, “I will fix it now then, I like you and would like you to stay by my side.”
“I suppose I will come with you,” you’re pretending to be apathetic, but his words make you so happy.
His eyes lift with his smile, “I need to know the extent of your self-defence training.”
“I know only the basics; I know how to evade an attacker and get myself free of a hold. I don’t know much else.”
“It is more than I thought,” he’s smiling brightly at you.
“What?” You are confused as to why he is so happy right now.
“It means I can teach you offensive attacks,” he informs.
You frown at him, “If I am going to be with you, do I really need to know how to attack someone?”
“It would make me feel better,” he replies, his thumb strokes your cheek.
Your tone is serious as you address him, “Liu, I don’t want to have to attack someone, I hope you know that.”
“I know and hopefully, you won’t but I’d like to know you could.” His expression is serious and so is his tone.
“You’re pushy,” you complain.
The side of his lips quirk up in a smile, “Only because I care.”
“You will not be teaching me any attacks today.” He opens his mouth to protest but you hold a finger up, “No, I have to think about it, attacking someone is different from defending yourself.” You’re looking at him firmly.
You aren’t one of his champions, you are not a fighter. You learnt self-defence out of concern for your own safety and well-being, learning to attack someone is something else entirely and you will have to think on whether or not you want to learn something like that.
“I would like you to consider it, but I understand,” he says before pulling you to him, holding you firmly. You can’t tell if he wants to comfort you or himself.
You sigh against him, “I will show you all I do know today, though.”
“I would like that,” he speaks into the top of your head.
So, you show him all you know. You spend a good amount of time showing him the different kinds of self-defence moves you know, and he helps you, teaching you better ways to do things or correcting your form. It is informative and you’re comfortable with him, his hands are warm, and they guide you.
His touch is innocent, his only intent is helping you show him what you know. He has no ulterior motives, and you realise that the teacher you had was definitely just creepy because this man you’ve slept with is holding you with the innocence of a man who has never seen you naked and has no desire to, his only desire is teaching you and seeing what you’re capable of.
“What is wrong?” Liu Kang asks.
Your face has betrayed your silent moment of realisation, a deep frown set in your eyebrows that you hadn’t noticed, “It’s nothing.” You smile at him, dropping the frown from your face.
He takes you in for a moment, determining if he should push you on this but lets it go, the both of you picking up where you left off. It isn’t until late morning, almost midday that you both stop.
“You know significantly more than I thought you would,” he says.
Looking to him, you reply, “I told you; I only know the basics.”
He makes a sound of amusement, “You know a bit more than the basics.”
You’re a tad shocked, “I do?”
“You do.” He confirms.
“How odd,” you comment.
“Come on, let’s walk back,” he grabs your hand and leads you back. The walk is quiet, and you enjoy the warmth of his large hand for most of it.
Beside you, he squeezes the hand he’s holding to get your attention, “Are you okay, with everything?”
“Yeah, I am okay.” You assure him.
He isn’t sure and tries to offer you an out, “I am being selfish by wanting you with me, you do not have to come.”
“I meant what I said, I would go anywhere with you,” you smile at him and lean into his side.
He hums from beside you, “Good.”
₊‧꒰ა ☆ ໒꒱ ‧₊˚
He doesn’t stay long with you; he has to leave for the rest of the afternoon into the evening, but he said he would visit you later in the night if it isn’t too late. You had told him to come by even if it is late, but you don’t know if he will.
The tail end of the day is spent doing whatever you can, mostly though, you read the book Liu Kang gifted you. The notes he left are like reading his mind, they’re extensive and you’re wondering what you could do in return. Something kind that he’d like, something he can appreciate as much as you appreciate the book, but you don’t know what exactly that would be.
Looking to the clock on the wall, you can see the time has slipped by quickly, closer to midnight now. You peel yourself from your spot on the couch and move to lock the door before deciding against it, hoping Liu will stop by and let himself in.
Instead, you potter down the hall and slip into your bed, reflecting on things, head full of thoughts. The day had taken more out of you than you expected it to, you’re still a little stunned that you know self-defence well enough to impress Liu, though he didn’t think you knew any sort of defence, so his surprise is warranted.
You suppose you took those classes fairly regularly for a while and you enjoyed learning, so it shouldn’t shock you completely that you know it well. It’s a damn shame about that teacher though, you really hope he isn’t still teaching.
Thinking about that city fills you with a sense of melancholy, so many bad memories you left behind but also some good things too. You think, you’ll want to go back soon, to see the few friends you had there, maybe go back to that café with Liu.
The plushness of your bed is calling you, and you find yourself sinking back further into it, adjusting yourself so you’re completely content. The comfort of the bed has your eyes drooping, dozing off and drifting into a quiet slumber. Your dreams are empty, thoughts clear for once and you feel warm, comforted. It’s peaceful and you don’t remember the last time you’ve had such a tranquil sleep.
But then the warmth has you getting hot, body temperature rising uncomfortably. You can’t move and eventually your body wakes you up, startling yourself slightly. When you open your eyes, everything is dark and your mind is hazy from the sleep but with what little consciousness you do have, you realise what the cause of the heat was. Liu has crawled into bed behind you and pulled your body to his, his arms keeping you close but whatever he’s dreaming about has his powers a bit out of whack. You wonder how much time has passed and how long he’s been in bed next to you.
His skin is burning up and it’s unfortunately what woke you up, he was unintentionally overheating you while you both slept. Shuffling, you turn around in his hold and put a hand on his face, he’s very hot. He unconsciously pulls you closer to him, a hand wanders down to your hip and pulls you to him. Your front collides with his and, oh? You can see now why he’s burning up; his cock is solid against you.
A sigh leaves his mouth from slightly above you, his cock grinding into you lazily. The hand you have on his cheek quickly taps at his face to wake him; you’re surprised by his unconscious desperation, and you briefly wonder what he is dreaming about.
He wakes up at your touch on his face, his eyes bleary as he looks down to you, he hums in question at you; wordlessly asking why you woke him up.
“Uhm, you…” The words trail off, you can’t seem to find out how to phrase what you want to tell him and now your sleepy brain is needy for him.
Liu grunts at you, fully aware of his own situation now that he’s awake, “Did I wake you?” His words are mumbled, still half asleep.
Your brain is a few steps behind your mouth and your response is to mutter out, “You are hot.”
His eyes close again but his mouth rises into a lazy smile, “You think so?”
You take a second to think of your words first this time, “I mean, yes but you were literally hot, your heat woke me up.”
“You think I am hot,” he teases you, voice deep with sleep.
Sighing you ask him bluntly, “What were you dreaming of?”
One of his eyes open to look down at you, eyebrow raised, “Guess.”
You fight the urge to roll your eyes, you don’t like guessing games, “You sure you can’t just tell me?”
He doesn’t reply, his smile is sly.
He’s the one who was so worked up he almost burnt you in your sleep, “Are you sure you’re in a position to tease?” You enquire.
“And what do you mean by that?” You’ve caught his attention now.
“I mean, you are the needy one right now,” you observe.
“Hmmm, I may be needy,” He mocks your usage of the word, “but I will make you desperate,” his hand pulls your thigh over his hip, his hard cock pressing directly into your core; it makes you gasp. “Want me to show you what I was dreaming of?”
You fight the urge to grind yourself against his dick, not wanting to prove him right. You want to show that he is needier than you, at least tonight but with the way he holds your cunt firmly to his cock without so much as moving an inch, you think you might lose this battle. He’s so hard against you and you’re itching for him to move, to give you a fraction of relief but he’s only holding you, nothing more.
His gaze is unbothered, clearly, awake Liu Kang has far more control than asleep Liu Kang, “Answer me.”
You can feel yourself growing wetter the longer he holds you to him, you’re fighting against yourself. The urge to take what you need growing, but you doubt you would even get close to succeeding.
“Love your facial expression, do you know how desperate you already look for me?”
You look away and pout, “It’s not intentional…”
A finger hooks under your chin and makes your gaze meet his again, “It never is,” his tone is amused, “You wear all your thoughts on your face,” he comments.
“I want to know,” you answer his question from before, his brow raises and you clarify, “I want to know what you were dreaming about.”
“Are you sure?” He’s straight faced as he asks.
“Always.”
Suddenly, he rolls over and takes you with him, he sits you on his lap. You’re sitting on his cock and you’re trying so hard not to grind down into him, though you really would love nothing more than making him cum in his pants for you. He rips your underwear and sleep shorts off, the display of strength astounding to you. Instead of dropping them to the floor like a normal person though, he burns them, he burns your underwear and shorts to a crisp in front of you.
You’re shocked, “Wh– What the hell?”
“Next time, keep your bottom half bare,” he shrugs.
“Liu,” you’re still shocked, he might be a little bit more needier than he’s letting on.
“Yes?”
Your expression is stunned, “You could’ve just put them on the floor.”
“I could have, yes.” He confirms. “Can I stuff you full now? Or do you need another moment to scold me?”
You’re at a loss for words, torn between scolding him and wanting to be full of him. His face is unbothered, but his eyes are knowing, he knows what you will pick, and you really wish you were more spiteful, to teach him a lesson, but you want him inside you.
“Hmmm, I think…” his fingers slip to your pussy, sliding through your folds and spreading your slick all over yourself, “…You need me to fill you up right now,” his fingers are coated in your wetness when he removes them, he shows them to you before pushing them into your mouth.
Your lips wrap around his fingers and suck, cleaning them of yourself. Liu grunts at the feeling of your tongue licking at them, his eyes carefully watching the way your lips are engulfing his large fingers. His gaze is far away as he watches the way he pulls them out of your mouth, obsessing over your mouth, over your lips.
His focus comes back, and he frowns, his hands pull your shirt up and off you quickly; the action surprises you. Gathering yourself, you say, “Do not burn it!”
The expression he wears is amused and for a moment he looks like he’s considering burning it in front of you, just to see your reaction. He ultimately decides against it and chucks it on the floor, something he could have done to your shorts and underwear.
“Pleased?” He asks, raising a brow at you.
“As much as I can be after you’ve…” your retort trails off because he has completely ignored you, pulling his cock out of his pants as you were speaking.
And as you look at his big dick, you’re struck, completely wordless and salivating as you look at it and the way his hand grips himself. His thumb rubs over the tip of his cock, he must’ve been having one hell of a dream because he is incredibly hard and slick. His own precum dribbling from the head of his cock in thick globs, his thumb spreads it all over himself, hand dragging it down over his length.
His cock is shiny and coated in his own mess, you’re practically drooling, your cunt throbbing with your overwhelming need for him, “Liu,” your voice is breathy as you call out his name and it makes his cock jump in his hand.
Your hand reaches out to replace his own, holding him firmly but gently, you stroke up and down his length. Your movements spread more of his precum over his large cock, your thumb rubs at his tip, smearing it all over. His breaths are picking up, his hips twitching, holding back from fucking into your hand. His eyes are shut, savouring the feeling of your softer and smaller hand on him.
“Put. It. In,” he hisses out between clenched teeth, “Or I will.”
You hesitate, finding it an opportune time to tease him, “Why? Are you getting needy?” Your voice singsongs to him, full of mirth.
His eyes flick back open to look at you, his gaze dark and hungry and you feel like maybe, you did not have the upper hand you thought you had. Now, you think, he was maybe indulging you. His finger moves to your core, spreading your slick all over yourself again.
He avoids your clit and lightly pushes the tip of a finger into your pussy hole, only to drag it out and play with your cunt by smearing your arousal all over yourself. The action has your hand pulling back from his cock, grabbing at his wrist, holding onto him. He is working you up purposefully, not giving you any real pleasure. And it really does feel like a punishment because you already wanted him.
You go to ask him for more, “Can you–”
“–Shhh,” he cuts you off, not giving you the chance to request more from him, “You think I am needier than you?”
You don’t answer but your lack of a response is still a response.
“Hmmm, I will remind you of how fun you are to play with, how desperate you get for me,” his fingers still slide through your slick cunt. “How easy it is to have you cumming for me.”
Your pussy clenches down on emptiness, wanting so bad to be full of him. Wanting him to stop teasing you and force his cock inside your very wet cunt but you made a miss step, mistaking his directions for a moment of weakness. And while you were right about his need, he’s certainly not going to give up the control that easily.
God, you just need him to stop being so cruel, his cock is thick and heavy and slick, oozing precum still, but he’s not willing to give you the satisfaction, not now, not after your taunt.
“Liu, please– I… want you,” his fingers still avoid your clit, only really making a mess and not giving you any satisfactory pleasure, you feel like you might shed a tear.
He hums in thought at you, his gaze on your cunt and his fingers, “You want me?”
As you go to answer, his fingers slip over your clit, rubbing tight circles into it very suddenly. Your body collapses forward, hands coming out and landing on his chest to hold yourself up. He chuckles at your reaction, at the way you’re already borderline shaking on top of him. His fingers are relentless, and he was right because you’re already right on the edge and just as you think he might push you off it, he pulls his hand back. It lands on your hip, fingers wet and sticky from your cunt.
They drum against your skin, “You were saying?”
You glare at him, your voice shakes, “That was mean.”
He only smiles politely at you, his expression easy, unbothered by seemingly, everything. He’s waiting for you to speak, and you know exactly what he wants to hear but you only purse your lips and stare at him.
He tuts in response to your defiance, “Got to ask for the things you want, love.”
You pout, “I want you.”
“I am right here,” he retorts, the hand on your hip slides up the side of your body, landing on your tit.
His free hand comes up and grabs at your other tit, he fondles your chest, his hold firm. The way he’s groping you is driving you up a wall and his cock jumps against his abdomen at the way you whine for him. His index and middle fingers pinch your nipples between them as he grabs at you and another pitiful whine comes from you. He releases a mix between a sigh and groan at the sound, obviously struggling with his desire for you.
Your eyes are big and pitiful when you look to his, “Liu, please, I want you inside–”
“–Not what I want to hear,” he cuts you off, eyes stern as he looks at you.
Leaning forward, he presses his lips to your neck, your hands move from his chest to hold onto his shoulders, and you’re surprised at how hot he has gotten again. His body temperature increasing with the way he’s restraining himself; his mouth sucks a mark into your neck and his tongue is hot as it licks at your skin.
His hands grip your hips and pull you closer to him again, his mouth sucking marks into your neck, your chest. He’s working his way down, leaving hot and wet marks against your skin everywhere his lips go. Once he’s reached your breasts, he takes a nipple into his mouth, tongue flicking at it, the warmth of his mouth makes you twitch on top of him, a gasped whine exiting your lungs at his ministrations.
He pulls back but bites at your nipple lightly as he does, it makes you jump and gasp, “Liu, please…” He makes a noncommittal noise, still not hearing what he wants from you.
The grip he has on your hips moves to your thighs, he’s grabbing at your skin, enjoying the softness of your thighs, his hands are hot on your delicate skin, and you squirm in his lap. His gaze locks onto your thighs, and you think you know what he wants, probably wants to leave marks on them.
After he gets an eyeful, his eyes look to your cunt, your slick dripping down your thighs with how little he’s given you. So horny for him and he’s done nothing but edge you once and fondle you. One of his hands slips from your thigh to your pussy, fingers immediately massaging your clit, you’re so worked up that you moan at the slight touch. His other hand grips harshly at your thigh, grounding himself.
“You are so wet,” he observes, his fingers still rubbing your clit, “Why don’t you end your suffering and tell me what I want to hear?”
Your response isn’t much of a response at all, only a small broken whimper passing your lips. The pathetic sound has Liu’s abs tightening, his cock twitching, the heat he’s radiating increasing, obviously he’s torturing himself at the moment. He looks delicious and as much as you’d love to see how much it’d take to break him; you don’t think you would survive it.
“I need you, please,” you break for him, eyes pleading, wet and almost crying, so close to finishing and wanting him to let you. He doesn’t reply though, and it worries you, so you beg, “please, Liu –nngh– need you to– I–” You’re incoherent and your voice is whiney but when you look into his eyes, fuck. He looks… feral.
His hand speeds up for you, his grip on your thigh loosens just the smallest amount, enough so you can grind down onto him a bit. You’re leaking down his hand, down his wrist, your nails dig into his shoulders and right as you’re about to cum again, he pulls his hand away… again.
The sound you release is a borderline sob, your pussy is throbbing with need, and you’re so confused as to why he didn’t let you cum. Your eyes fill with unshed tears as you look at him, your voice is small when you ask, “Why?”
He wears a large smile on his face, eyes still feral but he seems to have found a new kind of resolve, “Something wrong?”
You’re speechless, are you still being punished? Why didn’t he let you cum, did you not give in to him? “What did I do wrong?” Your brows are pulled up, worried.
“Nothing, you have been perfect,” he smiles assuredly at you, but his expression has an underlying wicked hunger. He taps your thigh, so you hold yourself up, “I’m going to stuff you full now,” he informs you and at his words you hold yourself up for him.
You don’t want to get your hopes up, now feeling like his show of mercy will come with conditions but you are really hoping he will fill your cunt. He grips his cock in his hand, pulling you closer to him, when you’re in reach, he rubs the messy tip of himself through your folds. The pair of you already a mess in your own rights, the action mixing the two together.
“Take the tip,” he directs, voice firm, warning you to only take the tip of him.
“Yessir,” you murmur in response as a joke, but his dick twitches the smallest bit in his hold.
For your own sanity, you don’t tease him for it, fearing you may not survive anymore edging. You do as you’re told, lowering yourself onto his cock and taking only the tip of him, with how wet you both are, it’s an easy fit. You take his tip well, but you are slightly concerned with taking the rest of him; right now, you think, if he slammed up into you all at once, you’d cum on his dick alone.
Your thighs are burning slightly at how you’re having to hold yourself up, trying not to take anymore of him. He’s breathing heavily, his skin getting hotter again, his hands move to your thighs and grip them, pulling at the supple flesh. Your pussy is pulsing around the tip of him and he’s doing everything he can to hold back, having a specific plan for how he wants to fuck you tonight and doesn’t want to ruin it by losing control here.
His thumb slips to your clit and rubs into it, flicking at it, it makes you moan and has you itching to sit down on him. Wanting to feel completely stuffed full, “Liu, I want –nghh– I want all of you.”
“That’s too bad because I want you to do as I say,” he replies harshly, voice hissed between his clenched teeth. His commanding voice and the attention he’s giving your clit makes you clench down on him, he continues talking, “I want you to cum, that’s what I want.”
Something about him tonight is driving you crazy and you were already so close to cumming before he spoke but now, after hearing him tell you what he wants, you’re a split second away from cumming. The final straw is when you look down to where you’re taking just the tip of him, your own arousal sliding down the sides of his cock, the mess is obscene, and it makes you cry out.
Your nails dig into the skin of his shoulders again, needing the leverage as you cum on him. The feeling of your walls fluttering on the head of his cock makes him groan, loudly. His head falls back on the headboard and his eyes close, needing a moment to recover before making his next move.
The breaths you release are huffed; he’s finally let you cum and it makes your previously unshed tears slip down your cheeks. The relief you feel is euphoric, your head dizzy with how good it felt. He only edged you twice and you just about lost your mind, if he ever tries to do that properly, he might kill you. Or drive you actually insane.
He opens his eyes to look at you, “Crying over the tip of my cock?” His tone is cocky, knowing he’s pulling you apart so well.
“No,” you lie, a hand moving off him to wipe at your cheeks but one of his own hands stop you, grabbing your wrist.
“Leave it, you look cute, crying over my dick,” he muses aloud to you.
You look at him sceptically but don’t wipe your face all the same, letting him have his way. When he’s sure you won’t wipe your face, he drops your hand.
“Sit down,” he says, “Take it all, for me.”
You feel yourself flutter with excitement, looking forward to finally being full of him. You slide down his length, taking more of him, slowly as you do. The stretch of him is delicious and you think, even if it hurt, you wouldn’t stop, your need for him outweighing any pain. You want him in you, want his pelvis grinding into your clit, need, you need his pelvis grinding into your clit.
The both of you are so slick and sticky the sounds can already be heard in the room, a soft squelching as your cunt sinks down on him. His hands hold your hips, helping guide you down onto him fully, you’re taking your time, wanting to be careful. Your hands move to his pecs, open palms splayed on his chest, there’s heat radiating from him, hotter now than when he almost overheated you in your sleep.
“You’re –nngh– really h–hot, Liu,” you tell him, concerned by it.
He smiles at you suggestively, and if you weren’t still trying to take all of his cock, you would roll your eyes at him. “It’s fine, don’t worry about it,” he reassures you, knowing you are worrying for him and his wellbeing, even with his cock a few inches in you.
He’s getting impatient at how long it’s taking you to get all of him inside you, his frustration reaching a head. Instead, he takes control and shoves you down on him, filling you all at once, the shock of it, of being so full suddenly, the slap of his pelvis against your clit, it makes you cum on him very suddenly. Small whimpers falling from your lips, your hips unconsciously keep grinding into him, riding out the high. Your cunt clenching down on him, hard, with your orgasm.
A guttural groan comes from Liu, you can feel it rumble in his chest under your hands, “That’s it– mmph– love how easy you cum for me–” he sighs out, relishing in the way you’re gripping his fat cock.
Your hips come to halt, done grinding down into him but his hands on you keep moving you against him. Encouraging you to keep grinding, it makes your stomach do flips, barely even coming down from your high before he’s trying to get you to cum again.
“It’s too much–”
“–I thought you needed it,” he counters.
You shudder against him, already on the edge so quickly after your last orgasm. You try to tell him how it feels, how it’s so overwhelming. Having his cock grinding so deeply inside you, having your clit drag against his pelvis, it’s so much. But nothing leaves you, nothing but a few more tears and small whimpers.
His expression as he watches you is sure; he knows what he’s doing, and he knows what he wants from you. You play right into his hand, and nothing brings him more joy than that, “You want to know what I need?” He asks you.
You shake your head at him, not really paying attention.
“I need you to cum again,” he tells you and he’s serious, his hands grip you harder and drag you against him firmer.
The added pressure has you cumming on him again, your cunt squeezing him tightly as you cream around him, again. He moans pleasurably, overjoyed at you doing as he says and at the way your cunt cums messily around him. He twitches inside you, sensitive and needy for you but having too much fun playing with you to stop.
Even as your body jolts from overstimulation, he doesn’t stop dragging you against him, still forcing your hips to grind down, “Liu, I need a moment–”
“–No, you don’t.”
With the way he’s filling you completely and the stimulation on your clit, he’s going to kill you, or have you passing out on his cock. Your arms struggle to keep yourself up, shaking against his chest. One of his hands leave your hips to pull you to him, your bare chest pressed to his own. He’s so hot.
How he’s holding you now, he leans back slightly, feet planting on the bed. Using his leverage to grind up into you as he forces you down on him, it has you moaning into his skin. The hand on your back slides up and grabs at the back of your neck, holding you to him.
“I know you’re already close again,” his voice is breaking, holding back his own sounds of pleasure until they only come out as whiney breaths.
You whinge against him, “I can’t–”
“–You can, and you will.”
His skin is so warm, so firm, all his muscles moving against you. His large cock fills you so well and you want him to actually fuck you, but you’re concerned you might not be able to take it. You’re drooling on his skin now, just from his incessant grinding, the thought of him actually fucking you has your cunt clenching and brain short circuiting.
“Come on, love–” his words are cut off by his own gasp, you’ve cum at the sound of his voice. It’s low but pitched with need and he sounds so fucking good that you cum on the spot, your pussy choking his dick harshly.
He groans at the way you grip him; his hands stop dragging you down onto him, but his hips chase yours, his own desperation showing in the way he’s rutting against you. His arms wrap around you, holding you to him tightly. He keeps grinding up into you and it makes you whine into his neck.
He’s breathing heavily next to your ear, borderline whimpering at the way you wrap so tightly around him, at the way you came so nicely for him.
“Liu, you –hah– feel too good –mmph– too much,” you mumble against his skin, his shoulder wet from where you’ve been drooling against him.
“–Hah– I am not even close to done with you yet,” he huffs in response, his hips still grinding up into you. With how he’s holding you, you have no choice but to take what he gives and what he’s giving right now is desperate grinding, still not fucking into you properly.
He moves his face into your neck and licks at the length of it, it makes you shudder against him, "Last one, and then –mmm– I’ll fuck you.”
You’re dazed as you check with him, “Promise?”
He hums at you, “Promise.”
His hips keep grinding up into you, his hand on your hip encouraging you to do the same, wanting you to finish for him. Your body is tired, but you rut down against him, it makes him hiss and then he bites your neck. The sounds he would have made muffled by his teeth in your skin, the feeling has your cunt spasming on him.
He pulls his mouth back from you just to lick and suck at your skin and then he’s biting your shoulder. The small pain driving you up a wall, it makes your pussy leak for him, your breaths are stuttered and you’re going to cum again.
He mumbles against your skin before pulling back a bit so you can hear him, “The way you’re gripping me, fuck–” He’s about to moan but instead bites your neck again, harder this time. The shock of the pain goes straight to your cunt and you cum on him, again.
You’re lucky he’s already pressed you completely to him because you would’ve collapsed onto him. Whines and whimpers are pulled from your chest, more tears slip down your cheeks and you feel so far away from your body, you don’t even feel like you’re on Earth anymore.
Liu is groaning into your skin, he pulls back and lathes over his bite mark with his tongue and when he looks at it, he hums in contentment. Pleased with the impression of his teeth in your soft skin. His hips have stopped grinding up into you, giving you a needed break, you’re slumped against him, breathing heavily.
“Been doing so good for me,” he compliments. You can only hum in response to him, you’re out of it.
He lets you catch your breath; his hands stroke up and down your back, his lips press kisses into your skin, over the bite marks he’s left. He’s giving you a quiet moment to gather yourself and you really appreciate it because at this point, you don’t even know how many orgasms he’s given you, but your body does and you’re feeling fucked out.
Once your breathing is normal, you tell him, “You’re going to kill me.”
He chuckles at you lightly, amused, “No, I’m not.” He pulls your head back so he can press his lips to yours, taking away any chance of you disputing him.
The kiss is kind and tender and a stark difference to how he’s just pulled multiple orgasms from you. He kisses you softly, his tongue slips into your mouth, and you melt against him. Your thighs spreading open further on him unconsciously, it has his cock inching just the tiniest bit more inside you and it makes you moan into the kiss.
He grunts against you; his hands grip at your hips. His body heat is still hot, he’s itching to fuck you but being as patient as he can be. When he pulls back from the kiss, he nips your lip lightly and it makes you gasp. He only smiles easily at you when you glare at him for it.
“Need you to move, want you on your hands and knees for me,” he taps your thigh, and you start pulling up, it has you releasing gasped whines. Just as you’re at the tip of him, his hands hold you on him, “Look at the mess you’ve made on me,” he practically growls out the words.
When you look down, the mess is obscene, so much of your cum coats his cock. Creamy ring at the base of him, you look to Liu but he’s looking at his cock and how messy it is. His dick jerks at the image, his hands hot on your hips.
“You are such a messy little thing, love the way you cum for me, so fucking easy to have you creaming on me, fuck–” he closes his eyes for a moment, he’s working himself up. He takes a breath and looks at you, eyes dark, “Hands and knees.”
Taking the hint, you pull yourself off him completely and shuffle around on the bed. You face the headboard and sit back on your knees, feeling a bit embarrassed at arching your back for him and hesitating to do so. He gets off the bed and stands up, removing his pants properly. He moves to the foot of the bed and points in front of himself, giving you wordless instructions.
You do as he indicates and move in front of him, he tells you, “Hands, knees,” and makes a spinning motion with his hand, instructing you to turn your back to him.
Turning around, you lean onto your hands, you feel sheepish as you do. Liu’s hand pushes your upper back down until your chest is on the bed, his other hand pushes your thighs open for him. You arch your back for him, your ass and cunt on full display. When he pulls away to look at you, he groans.
His hands play with the globes of your ass, pulling them apart and staring at your pussy, “Perfect, stay like this.”
Faintly, you can hear shuffling from behind you, you aren’t sure what he’s doing. But it shocks you when Liu drives his cock into you all at once, your body jolts forward and you moan. Liu curses lowly at the feel of you around him again. His curses are hissed and breathy, and he holds his hips to your ass for a moment, collecting himself.
Once he’s taken a second, he pulls out of you and forces himself back in. His initial choice in pace is already so devastating, his thrusts are harsh, stuffing his cock into you with each one. All you can do is take it though, so you do, because as overstimulated as you are, the way he’s finally fucking you has you feeling so blissed out, you wouldn’t rather be doing anything else.
He fucks into you so deep the tip of his cock kisses your cervix, your moans are pitiful, almost whimpers from how well he fills you, from how well he fucks you. He has you seeing stars and you would be embarrassed at how close you are to cumming on him again, but it feels so good, and you’ve been far gone ever since he stuck his dick in you completely the first time.
Liu’s moans flow more freely from him like this, letting himself indulge after robbing himself of the pleasure he desperately wanted from you. He was torturing you before sure, but he was also balls deep in your tight cunt, not doing anything but grind into you, his self-restraint is godly, and he thanks all that is good for it because he really does love making you coat his dick in your cum. He loved having you cry for him, overstimulated and needy, he’s going to cum at just the thought of it if he’s not careful.
Your moans hit a higher pitch and his thrusts pick up pace, knowing you’re close and still wanting another couple orgasms from you before he finally fills you with his cum. His hands on your hips fuck you back onto him as he thrusts forwards and you’re clenching down on him, a small pathetic whimper exiting you as you cum on him.
If you hadn’t already been arched the way you are, your arms would have given out and had you face planting into the bed below. Instead, you whimper at your unknown numbered orgasm and drool into the sheets. Mind swimming with thoughts of him, of his large hands, how hot they are against your skin, about the thick drag of his heavy cock against your walls, how easily he pushes you off the edge, so sure in his actions, so sure you’ll cum for him when he wants it.
Your pussy throbs around him, he grunts but doesn’t stop fucking you, he own need overwhelming him, his spoken thoughts not all that coherent anymore, “G –hah– you feel so fucki– feel so divine –nngh– mm going t– hah– to fuck all my cum inside you, fill up your –nngh– tight little –fuck– cunt,” his breaths are whiney, and his head is lost in the feel of you.
His hand reaches around your front to rub at your clit, the stimulation has you shrieking and trying to crawl away from him, “Liu– I –hah– can’t please–”
You keep trying to crawl up the bed away from him, but he pulls you right back with no effort, “Yes you can– I need you to –hah– fuck–”
He holds you back easily, you have no chance to escape his punishing thrusts and relentless fingers. He’s still mumbling nonsense but not only is he barely coherent, but your thoughts are barely coherent, all the blood rushing to your head. You can’t understand what he’s saying but it’s a mix between praises and curses.  
His fingers don’t stop and you cum on him, he’s effortlessly pulled another orgasm from you, and it makes your moan border on a yelp. Tears flow down your cheeks onto the bed sheets, you’re so sensitive now, your mind so far gone. He’s growling behind you at the way you pulse around him, the noises he makes barely human.
His hands are so hot on you, his skin burning up, he grabs both of your hands and pulls them back. Using you as leverage to fuck into you, he’s also making sure you can’t try and crawl away from him. His thrusts are wild, the wet noises in the room are so obscene, you think you’d die of shame if you had even half your wits about you.
You’ve heard the phrase fucked dumb and you thought you had been fucked dumb, last time Liu fucked you, but this is insane. He’s going to send you to an early grave, and you don’t even care, not with how delicious he sounds, the moans and grunts he’s letting out have you ascending to a higher plane.
His grip on your wrists are firm but he drops them and grabs your hips again, just to pull you back, your legs drop to the floor in front of him. Lucky he’s holding you up because you are not capable of it at the moment. Your front half is still pressed completely into the bed, Liu holds your lower half up, your tippy toes just barely grazing the floor. His dick is hitting everything inside you that has you folding in on yourself and insides twisting, he might make you cum again, you’re going to need some kind of higher being to take mercy on you because you are fucked.
He's animalistic behind you, focusing on his own high, at least you thought he was, but his hand reaches for your clit again and you try to squirm away from him. You are unsuccessful, you’re so weak and he’s got you in the palm of his hand and he knows it. You can’t even verbally protest, only wiggle and whine below him.
“Want you to –hah– fuck– I need you to squirt for me,” his voice is deep, laced with so much hunger.
You try to tell him, “I don –ah– ’t th –mmph– ink I–”
“You can.” He’s steadfast, certain you can and that he will make you.
His fingers slip over your clit, everything is so slick, both your lower halves slippery from all your orgasms. He’s not gentle, his thrusts are harsh, and his fingers are determined, his cock is bullying its way into your cunt, hitting so deeply inside you, you go cross eyed.
The build-up is making you crazy, everything he does is pulling you apart by the very fibre of your being. Your cunt is clenching down on him like a vice, the pleasure feels like too much and you squirm against him, trying to get away again. Nonsensical words fall from your lips trying to warn him, but he only laughs deeply at your attempts at evasion; he’s happy he’s getting what he wants. A particularly deep thrust sends you over the edge, you cum… everywhere.
Liu groans at the sight of you squirting for him, on him, his thrusts don’t slow, if anything, they speed up. Chasing his own high now, so ready to fill you to the brim with his cum. He’s trying very hard to keep his powers under control, not wanting to burn you but his hands are hot against you and the closer he gets to his high, the less control he has over himself.
You’re crying from the pleasure, it’s been so intense, you don’t even feel like a person anymore. You can’t even moan, the noises you make are small whines and cries. Liu is obsessing over how your cunt swallows his cock, how well you take him. He’s also enjoying the small sounds you’re making, his ego inflated hugely tonight.
Everything about you right now has Liu just about losing his mind, the sounds he lets out are wild and unrestrained. All you can do is take it and wait for him to finish, and you really want him to finish. You want to hear him cum, want to feel him twitch inside you as he finishes.
You clamp down on him harshly, the sudden tightness of your cunt has Liu keeling over slightly, moans breaking off into whimpers as he fucks his cum into you. His hands burn you and he fucks your hips down against the bed so it holds you up, wanting to remove his hands as quick as he can.
He grabs at the footboard of the bed, the wood smouldering under his hands, he’s burning his handprints into the wood. He humps into you for a while, riding out his high, rutting into you to keep his cum inside your pussy. You’re pressed to the bed, completely absent.
When he’s gathered some control back, he leans down over you, “Are you okay?”
“I– I think so,” you slur out, mouth mostly pressed into the mattress.
He hums and slowly pulls his cock from you, he takes a moment to watch his cum leak from you, wanting so badly to stuff it back in but knowing you’re already so sensitive and he doesn’t want to push you.
“Did I go too far?” He asks, scared he’s broken you.
“Mm good,” you singsong out, shakily giving him a thumbs up, “Worth it.”
He scoffs at you in amusement, eyes tracing over your fucked out body, landing on the light burns he’s left on your hips. Red handprints left behind; the sight has his ego inflating but he also feels guilty.
“Need to give you a cold shower,” he comments.
You murmur out to him, “Bit late for that.”
“For the burns,” he clarifies.
“Hmm?” You didn’t think they were that bad, you remember him being hot, not burning you. Getting up slowly and with Liu’s help, you twist to look at your hips, “Well, I’ll be.” You smile stupid at the burns, “I like ‘em.” You say before flopping back onto the bed.
“Need to run them under cool water,” he presses you.
You only groan at him, “Can’t move.”
He sighs at you and picks you up, carrying you to your bathroom. He has to hold you up in the shower but he’s happy to. Your legs are like jelly and you’re barely conscious.
You remember why this happened and ask him, “As good as your dream?”
“So much better,” he kisses your cheek, “In my dream, you only came a couple times, this was way better.”
You gape at him, “What?”
He just smiles happily at you, pleased with himself.
₊‧꒰ა ☆ ໒꒱ ‧₊˚
A/N: THANK YOU FOR READING!!! I know it took me way longer than usual and I really appreciate all of you <33 As always, if you have any thoughts, questions, requests, my inbox is open ! P.S. the discord server got snippets of this way more and were updated more frequently, if you’d like to join send me a dm :))))
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jflemings · 1 month
Note
For blurb night:
Grace Clinton x shy!reader - maybe R easily blushes and Grace loves taking advantage of it but only Grace can and she goes into protective guard dog if anyone else teases you
— red in the face
grace clinton x shy!reader
blurb
“grace” you say as firmly as you can “stop it”
your girlfriend merely snickers and pokes your warm cheek in response “you’re goin’ a bit red there. was it somethin’ i said?”
your face heats up more and you begin to push her hand away so you don’t draw the attention of the girls around you.
you loved having grace back with you at united, but you had somehow forgotten how much she didn’t mind embarrassing you with her over the top flirting in public.
she continues to snicker and whisper things in your ear as the two of you do your workouts. she’s subtle enough that she won’t get told off for it, but not subtle enough that you don’t go bright red.
you’re on the bike when grace hooks her chin over your shoulder and places her hand over yours on the handle. you can feel her smirk against your ear as she talks.
“have i ever told you how good your bum looks in these shorts?” she whispers to you, playing with the hem of your training shorts “gonna look a lot better on my floor”
your face goes beet red just as ella passes. she cocks her head and smirks “a bit red there, y/l/n”
before you can even think of a rebuttal, grace jumps to your defence.
“piss off tooney” she says lightly enough that it’s not offensive, but with enough bite that ella knows she isn’t really joking.
ella waves grace off and goes back to what she was doing, leaving the two of you to it.
“smooth clinton” you say as she lifts her chin off your shoulder
she shrugs and smiles cheekily at you “no one makes a joke out of my girl’s red face”
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woso-dreamzzz · 9 months
Text
Academy
Hardersson x Preteen!Reader
Part of The Big Adventures Universe
Summary: Your first academy session
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Your first official day of academy training comes after Momma and Morsa have retired.
You've moved back to Sweden properly now with constant trips to Denmark as well. But, mainly, you're based in Sweden. Momma and Morsa have gone into coaching and sometimes commentating while you're left going to school and practicing.
You'd done a trial in the summer for Linköping FC and got in and now you're sitting in the car with Momma and Morsa psyching yourself up to go in.
You're eleven now - nearly twelve - and you open and close your hands into fists as you look over at the training centre. There's a group of similarly aged girls to you waiting outside, getting ticked in on the register as they stand in a clump.
"Do you need us to come up with you?" Morsa asks, also looking at the girls.
You shake your head. "No. No one else's parents are there." It's a lie, of course. You desperately want them to walk you up there but it'd be embarrassing so you're leaning away from the option.
Momma turns back in her seat and reaches her hand back to hold yours. "Hey," She says," It's only for a few hours. You go in. You listen. You do what they say and then we'll go and get takeout for dinner. Sound good?"
You nod, wiping your sweaty palms on your shorts. "Yeah."
"We love you," Morsa says," And if you hate it, you don't have to go back."
You slip out of the car and approach, rocking back and forth on the balls of your feet as you sign in. It doesn't take long for everybody else to arrive and soon you're all being brought inside and handed trainings shirts and stuff.
Then, names are being read out.
You're still young so roles like defence, midfield and forward are still fairly flexible but some people (like you) are already firmly in little boxes so you're easy to separate out.
But, most of your peers end up in a group in the middle because they either haven't chosen their roles or don't yet know what they'd be good at.
There's a fairly large group of forwards which Momma told you last night would happen. At your age, everyone wants to score a goal and most of these girls will end up as attacking midfielders before the year is up. Speaking of the midfield, they're a much smaller group than the self-proclaimed forwards and the defenders are even smaller.
You're the only goalkeeper, feeling a little awkward as you sit at a table all by yourself until the trainer comes.
He smiles at you. He's kind of got one of those old people smiles that Momma's dad has, all warmth and happiness.
You smile back.
"You know," He says, his voice barely above a whisper," I wasn't actually expecting any keepers today. Usually, everyone wants to score a goal."
"That's what my Momma says."
"Your Momma sounds very smart," He replies," Now..." He pulls out some sheets of paper. "I'm meant to explain all the ins and outs of everything. It's meant to take a while because we leave time for questions but, if you let me get through this all then I'm sure we'd have time to play a few rounds of noughts and crosses while everyone else finishes up. Sound good?"
You nod.
He's right, of course. Everyone else takes ages to explain everything but keeping is fairly straight forward and you're the only keeper here so there's not other people around to ask questions.
"Whoa there!" Morsa says as you crash into her at the end of training," You're all sweaty!"
She's right.
You are sweaty. Hair sticks to your forehead and your shirt to your skin. You're sure that you're all gross feeling but Morsa doesn't care as she hugs you back before ushering you into the car.
"How did it go?" Momma asks as she pulls out of the car park," Good? Bad?"
"Good!" You say, a grin splitting your face wide open.
"What did you do?" Morsa asks, turning in her seat to look at you.
"We played a little game," You answer, practically bouncing in excitement," So they could all see where we were at and the individual trainers laid out the plans for each week."
"Were there a lot of forwards?" Momma teases as she turns onto a road.
"Uh-huh. I was the only keeper though."
"That'll change," Morsa assures you," Those kids that haven't decided yet will end up cycling through everything. I'm sure one or two of them will be keepers."
"It's fine," You say," I'm not upset. I don't need other keepers."
Your mothers laugh softly.
"You still need to make friends," Momma says.
"I just want to train," You insist stubbornly.
"You can train and have friends too," Morsa puts in," In fact, I'd go so far as to say you need friends to train well. Promise me, princesse, that you'll make some friends."
You huff. "Fine," You say," I'll make friends."
"Good. Now, what did you want for dinner?"
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hellodropbear · 2 months
Text
like she used to (bonus)
alexia putellas x sister
part I, II, III, IV, V, VI, VII
it's been well over a month since I finished the last part of like she used to and started this chapter, i'm so sorry for the delay!
a week after i posted the last part i was on a run in the national park near my house and it is between two beaches (literally my favourite run ever) so very sandy and uneven and i was running alone and tore my acl/mcl lol so I have been preoccupied with that stuff.
i'm super fucking pissed as well because i was supposed to have state cross country in a couple weeks (first season in the open group) AND my reconstruction is scheduled for like two weeks before peak surf life saving season so i'll probably miss the whole summer and into autumn AS WELL as the competitions we do throughout the summer.
anyway i had to quit football and dance because of a back injury so if this means i have to quit xc and/or sls i'll be super sad.
rant over and here is a new part of like she used to, a popular request of when elena meets olga
:)
~~~~~~
I was a lot littler when I met Jenni. She was tall and had heaps of tattoos littered around her body. Her arm's weren't dissimilar to Mapi's, but they were better at picking me up - either to restrain me or comfort me.  
The first time I met her was on the pitch, on Mapi's shoulders at the end of a game for Spain. I think I was about 6, too big to be carried around like that, but my resistance was ignored and Mapi had pulled me up anyway. 
She was shouting and chanting as she walked around the pitch, making me squeal in laughter as she tugged on my leg and made joke after joke. She only quietened as we approached a bunch of chatting footballers. I had met most of them before, but Jenni was there, the only one I didn't recognise. 
I distinctly remember Mapi tugging me down and holding me up on her hip, pointing at Jenni. She knew I didn't know her, she knew how anxious I became when I was introduced to new people so she made sure I was secure in her arms, my head pressed against her neck.
"Ah! The baby Putellas!" She smiled at me - that friendly, toothy grin that quickly became so familiar. 
I leant back into the familiarity of Mapi, mumbling my response quietly. 
"Not a baby." 
Mapi had laughed, ruffling my hair and planting a kiss on my head. 
"She is six now. You're so big, mi pequena!"
My gaze never left Jenni, still curious about the unfamiliar woman standing in front of me. Mapi must have noticed, because she continued to speak when nobody else did. 
"Elena, this is Jenni Hermoso. She plays here with Spain and also Barcelona with Ale!"
I nodded, smiling shyly at Jenni. 
"I have seen you at home, Elena, but your sister likes to keep you safe and away from all of us players."
I looked up at Mapi, uncertainty written all over my face. She leaned down to me, whispering in my ear. 
"Jenni is a striker for Barcelona, she plays very well."
"Not as well as you, Mapi!" 
She had chuckled softly, kissing my head again. 
"Tell Jenni that."
I looked back up at the dark haired woman, a shy smile on my face. 
"Mapi plays too! She is a defender. I want to be a defender when I grow up and become just like Mapi."
Jenni chuckled as Mapi adjusted her hold on me, allowing her to pull me closer as she wrapped her arms around me. 
"Who knows. Maybe if you get to know me better you'll grow up to become one of the greatest strikers of all time."
I don't remember what happened next, but both Mapi and Jenni laugh when they retell the story of me scrunching up my nose and shaking my head, confident that defence was the only area I would consider going into. 
From then on, Jenni became a familiar face. One that I would recognise at Alexia's games and approach shyly, blushing as she pulled me up onto her hip and walked me around the pitch. 
It was a welcome surprise when Alexia arrived home from training one night, Jenni right behind her with a bashful smile on her rosy face. She sat beside me at the dinner table, sneaking the food I didn't want to eat and making me laugh by kicking Alexia's leg. 
She quickly established her role in our family, and I quickly realised how much I liked having her around. 
She started to pick me up from school, driving me to my own trainings, kicking the ball with me in the back yard when she got home from her training. She was like another sister and as I grew older I began to confide in her like she was related by blood. 
So when Mami told me they had broken up, I was distraught. It was bad enough that she had moved to Mexico, but when she came back to Spain and didn't visit our house, it felt like I had lost a sister. 
Because that's what she was; a sister. 
Mami or Alba must have told her how upset I was though, because she sent me a text not long after, apologising. 
I'm sorry I couldn't say goodbye, pequena. I love you so much and I will miss seeing you all the time. I can't wait to watch you grow into a brilliant defender and I have no doubt you will be just like Mapi like you said you wanted to be all those years ago. I am so proud of you and I am always rooting for you and always here for you if you ever need me. 
I had cried over that message, I hate to admit. But it was when everything started to fall apart; when I was beginning to question everything I knew about myself and my family. My emotions were high and I think Jenni disappearing from my life tipped me over the edge, sending me into a raging ocean, swallowing me and spitting me right back out again. 
It's ok. Spain will miss you. I'll miss you a lot as well. Sorry you couldn't convince me to become a striker like you.
~~~~~~
Meeting Olga is different. 
There's no Mapi holding me, right there to carry me away if I want to leave, to comfort me if something goes wrong or to kiss the top of my head to remind me of her presence. 
There's not much comfort left in Alexia either, she is still trying so hard to build back our relationship but for some reason I am struggling to let her. 
I can't confide in Alba, because she met Olga months ago, when they first got together. Mami thinks she is brilliant. 
Of course I have stalked her instagram, my heart racing as I struggled to understand how my sister went from Jenni Hermoso to this girl. Mapi told me it was bad to compare the two, and bad to judge Olga before meeting her. 
They are friends, Mapi and Olga. She became defensive when I said that I don't care who Alexia is dating anymore, that it won't make any difference to my life anymore. 
She told me that I should give it a try.
I told her I'd do it. I told her I'd do it for her. 
~~~~~~
Ingrid dropped me off at my home, sensing my reluctance to head in and reassuring me it would all be ok, that Olga is great. She told me that if I need, I can just send her a text and she will get me to take me back home. 
They didn't want me to leave their apartment, Mapi and Ingrid. Mapi worries a lot, I have found, and had many lengthy discussions with Mami about my wellbeing, how it had declined so quickly and the crash had slipped right through Mami's eyes. 
"She needs to stay somewhere that she can receive the love and care that she hasn't had, Eli! It's not your fault you are busy, but I am not. I can take care of her while she is still vulnerable and then in a couple months, we can rethink."
I wasn't supposed to be listening to their conversation, but Mapi's temper had been rising and her voice became louder as a result. I closed my door again when she finished, not wanting to hear what Mami had to say. 
I held bagheera hostage and wept into her fur, and she stayed with me all night, still asleep by my side when I woke up the next morning, Mapi knocking on my door with breakfast, ready to confirm that I would be living with her indefinitely. 
She said that she was going to help me and look after me. She said she was always there if I wanted to talk, if I wanted to cry, yell, laugh. She said I was going to be ok with such confidence, like there wasn't a doubt in the world. 
"This will just be a blip, pequena. Everything will be ok soon, and I will be right here making sure that time comes."
But, despite my reluctance, she wouldn't take no for an answer when she found out about this dinner tonight, about meeting Olga. 
They are all already sat around the table when I enter the kitchen, slipping my shoes off and walking over to where Mami is sitting, dutifully planting a kiss on her cheek before moving back to my spot beside Alba. 
"Hola."
Alexia looks at me. Alba looks at me. Mami looks at me. But I am focussed on the new brunette sitting across from Alba, waiting for her to make eye contact. 
"It's nice to meet you. I'm Elena."
She looks up at me hesitantly. 
"I know. I'm Olga. It's nice to meet you too, Elena."
I can almost hear the collective sigh of relief around my dinner table as I sit down, still focussed on Olga. I have nothing left to say though, so I am grateful when Alba picks up a new conversation. 
I provide input when necessary, but I am more focussed on Olga than I would like to admit, my eyes straying over to her a bit too frequently. 
She seems, nervous? Maybe. It could be that she doesn't like the food, the way she is picking away at it. But Mami cooks the greatest paella I've ever eaten, and I've heard from Alba that Olga loves any types of food. 
The other and more likely option is that she's nervous because of my presence, which is an idea I am entirely uncomfortable with. But it is almost confirmed in the way she avoids eye contact through the whole dinner, and I feel deflated as I traipse up the stairs and into my room, sitting on my piano stall for the first time in months. 
It's been almost two months since that day. Two months since I left this house, running as far as I possibly could from the darkness it trapped me in. 
I don't like to think about that day, about how I felt in the days leading up to it and the days after it because how am I supposed think about how I felt when I didn't feel anything?
Things have changed so much since then. I made my debut for Barcelona. My sister apologised. I have started living with Mapi and Ingrid, closer to training. I have stopped going to school after my therapist told me it was too much. Everybody knew that quitting football wasn't an option. 
I haven't touched a piano since that day, so the keys feel cold and unfamiliar underneath my fingers. My chords are dissonant and my rhythms are erratic and unsteady. 
It feels like I have lost my touch, and I can feel that connection I had with my father drift further and further away from me as my fingers continue to improvise. I resort back to the first song he ever taught me, a little nursery rhyme but the familiar notes destroy me in an entirely different way, memories flooding through my head, Papi sat beside me on the stall helping me, my sisters and Mami squished on the tiny office couch behind us, cheering me on and singing along. 
My hands retreat from the piano before I get too frustrated and instead, I let my eyes drift up to the picture that has hung above it since it was moved into my room. 
Shaking hands reach forward to pluck it from my wall, and it sits in my lap, my head dipped as I stare at it, memorising every tiny detail. 
I was so small, wrapped up in my sisters' arms. She looked so excited to have a new baby sister, the smile on her face is unfamiliar to me now. 
Alba is beside her, staring down at my tiny body, as if she was printing the image of me into my memory. Mami is gazing at the camera, smiling with her hand wrapped up in Papi's, her head resting on his shoulder as he stares lovingly at his three daughters, his eyes full of tears. 
I quickly wipe away the tear that drops onto the glass, inhaling softly and letting the air leave me once more. My eyes close and I try not to picture how different my life would be if he hadn't of died, if we were still a happy family of five. 
I wonder sometimes, if he would have let the family divide, form a big crack that could be glued together so many times but never completely fixed. Never back to how it once was, always more sensitive than it should be. 
I don't think he would have. 
At least that's what I tell myself. 
I am still staring down at the picture when there is a soft knock on my door, it creaking quietly as Mami pushes it open. 
"She is very happy to have met you, Elena."
I frown, my eyebrows crinkling. It didn't feel like that. Mami speaks again before I have time to come up with a response. 
"But she doesn't know how to bond with you, because she thinks it is her fault that you and Alexia fell out. She thinks she is the reason that you are so sad."
I shake my head. 
"It was long before she came along."
"I know. I know it was."
She sounds guilty, and I know her well enough to know it is because she wishes she did something early on. She wishes she did something at all, that much she has told me. She regrets leaving Mapi to pick up the pieces and try and glue me back together. 
She knows that Mapi has struggled though, because she does not have enough hands to hold the million pieces that I was shattered into together. She can not do it alone, but is reluctant to let me go somewhere else. 
"This is the best place for you at the moment, pequena. Your Mami and sisters are a phone call away, but I have so much time to make sure you are ok."
I heard her talking to Ingrid that night, telling her how worried she was that if I did go back home, if I went to stay with Alexia or Alba, everything would go back to how it was. 
They had agreed that night that they could provide me with the love and care they think I need, that wasn't given to me at home. 
"Can you tell her that she doesn't need to think that? I don't want her to treat me different to Alba or you."
I turn around to face her and notice the single tear that threatens to fall from her eye. 
She has been emotional recently, ever since she came to Mapi's to see me. She cried a lot then, apologising, telling me she was a terrible mother. Telling me that Papi would be ashamed of her. 
Something tells me she cries a lot when I'm not here, the silence that echoed through the house where loud laughs or cries once sang out swallowing her as she eats, sleeps and sits alone. 
"I think you should talk to her, Elena. It would mean a lot to her and to Alexia. It would make things better for the both of you."
~~~~~~
Mami's words follow me for the next few days. 
When Ingrid picks me up, I force a smile and tell her everything went well. Mapi is harder to convince, but I tell her I am tired and head straight up to bed. 
I think about Olga, what I could say to her. How I would even meet up with her. 
She seems nice, and I do want to get to know her, to get along with her. And I think this is the only way to get past the initial awkwardness. It's not like she would come to me. 
It takes me two weeks to build up the courage to go see her, and the only person who knows is Mami because I had to ask for her address. She was happy, I could tell over the phone, encouraging me that it was the right decision, that I was good for doing this. 
I tell Mapi that I'm going to hang out with an old friend from school, but catch the bus out to Olga's apartment instead. 
She lives in a small Barcelona house, a few steps leading up to the large front door. 
I ignore the nerves that flare up inside me as I walk up the stairs, my hand barely hesitating over the doorbell. 
I resist the urge to run and the door creaking opening is the final confirmation that this conversation is happening now. 
She seems surprised to see me, but her initial shock is quickly masked by an awkward smile as she invites me inside, offering me snacks, drinks, a meal. I decline, perching myself on the edge of her sofa after she sits down. 
She looks at me intently, waiting for me to initiate some sort of conversation, but the words aren't coming out. The words I have been brainstorming for the past two weeks seem to have flown out the window as soon as I entered the apartment, leaving me with nothing to say. 
The length of the silence is verging on the edge of being awkward, and Olga clears her throat and speaks instead. 
"It was nice to meet you the other night, Elena. I had heard so much about you and I have been looking forward to meeting you for so long." 
She beamed at me, and I smiled back sheepishly, still unsure what to say. 
I hesitate for an embarrassingly long time, before words finally come to me. 
"Sorry."
Confusion flashes over her face and her mouth opens to speak, but I beat her to it, elaborating. 
"You were probably looking forward to meeting me and I left as soon as dinner finished."
"It's ok." 
She answered too quickly, and I flickered my eyes towards her. A small smile sat on her face, and she had relaxed into the cushions of the sofa. 
"I have thought about what I wanted to say so many times, but I have forgotten how I wanted to start."
I chuckle sheepishly and she shakes her head. 
"You don't need to worry, Elena. I don't want you to be scared of me, or what I think. I just want to know you, and I want you to know me."
"I- It's just- I don't know. You know about everything that's happened... with me and Alexia?"
She nods hesitantly and opens her mouth to speak but again, I beat her to it. 
"It's not your fault. Like, not at all. Mami said you think that and it's not true. It is a lot older than that, all the way back to when Ale and Jenni first broke up."
I didn't really know what reaction I expected from her, but I did not think she would relax so visibly. Her entire body loses any remaining tension, and she releases a loud, long breath. 
"Thank you, Elena. For saying that. She's told me how much you mean to her and how badly she screwed up. I didn't want to be the reason for that. Mapi has mentioned vaguely how it hurt you, and I didn't want to be the reason for that either."
I shake my head.
"You don't need to worry about it. It's not because of you, and it's getting better now. Slowly. I'll be ok."
"I know you'll be ok." 
Her words come out in a whisper and she continues when I look at her in confusion. 
"I have heard a lot about you, Elena, but most of the time, it is about your strength. Everyone says how strong you are, how resilient. Everyone is so proud of you, of who you've become and it is so hard for them because you are the only one who can't see it. You are the only person who doubts yourself. Alexia blames herself and I blame her too."
Her words hit a chord that hasn't been hit in a long time. People have said that to me so many times, in so many different ways. They tell me I am strong, resilient. That I am a hard worker and that I persevere. Usually, it means nothing to me, just more words that are said out of obligation, to try and please me. 
But Olga's words are full of emotion that I can practically feel radiating off her. She means it, I realise. She isn't saying this to make me feel good, or because Alexia told her to. 
She is telling me this because she wants to, because she wants me to hear it, to understand it. 
"I don't blame Alexia for anything any more."
She shakes her head. 
"You should. Because everyone else knows it is true, that her neglect impacted you in ways that cannot be reversed. Things she did that left marks that will never go away and it will haunt her. It already does. She loves you so much. So much. But sometimes she will start crying and I just know it's because she is thinking about you."
There are tears in her eyes, and there are tears in mine. 
And then the tears slip down my face and she is quick to pull me into a hug. 
"You didn't deserve any of this and I am sorry that I didn't do more to stop this. You tell me it is not my fault, but I did nothing. Absolutely nothing. And for that, I will blame myself."
I shake my head again.
"It was not your responsibility."
But I know she knows that, I know what she is trying to say. 
And maybe if she had done something, said something, things would be different. 
But the cracks were already there and they would have remained no matter when Alexia came to apologise. 
I am in a good place. 
Alexia and I will be in a good place soon.
There is nothing anyone can do to change what happened. 
"Thank you for being there for Ale. I know she's had a hard time too."
~~~~~~
lol hope you enjoyed (this has barely been edited so will probably go through it in the morning again)
i'm not kidding this chapter has taken me so so long and I really don't like it but i have written, edited, deleted and rewritten for so long so this is the best we're getting for now
if anyone has any other requests for this fic or an entirely new one let me know!
i have ideas for a new fic coming though so we'll see when I get round to finishing one of those chapters :)
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cheynovak · 4 months
Text
Echoes and Shadows
Soldier Boy x F/Reader Y/N           
Warnings:  Fights, gunshots, mentioning of child abuse, ... 
Side note: English isn’t my first language    
Words:  3800 
Cursive are memories
*Does not follow the boys storyline * 
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--    
Autumn of 1950, Soldier Boy, the embodiment of rugged heroism and Vought-American's premier supe, was summoned to a high-rise office overlooking New York City. The meeting was brief, direct, and left a bitter taste in his mouth.  
His new assignment: train a young girl named Y/N, a fresh supe with a "girl next door" persona. To Soldier Boy, it felt like a waste of time. Why did he had to train her, there had to be other tasks for the world’s greatest hero!  
When they first met, Y/N stood in stark contrast to the grizzled Soldier Boy. She had an optimistic gleam in her eyes and a smile that seemed permanently etched on her face. She was eager to learn, but Soldier Boy couldn’t stand her naivety.  
“Listen up, kid,” he grumbled during their first training session. “Being a supe isn’t about smiles and handshakes. It’s about getting the job done. And sometimes, it gets messy. I don’t think you can handle that."  
Y/N shook her head, determination shining in her eyes. “I can handle it. I want to help people, no matter what it takes.” Soldier Boy sneered. “We’ll see about that.” He was relentless in his training.  
Every day, he pushed her to her limits, both physically and mentally. Gruelling obstacle courses, intense combat drills, and brutal sparring sessions became her new routine. Whenever she stumbled, he was there with a cutting remark.  
“Come on, sweetheart, is that the best you’ve got?” he’d taunt. “Real heroes don’t get tired. Real heroes don’t complain.” Despite his harshness, Y/N refused to give up. She endured his gruelling regimen with a quiet resilience that began to chip away at Soldier Boy’s disdain. 
She didn’t just want to be a hero; she wanted to prove herself, and her perseverance was impossible to ignore. One day, during a particularly brutal training exercise, Soldier Boy pushed her to the edge.  
She was exhausted, her body bruised and battered, but she stood her ground. “Why do you keep doing this?” he demanded, his voice a mix of frustration and curiosity. “Why don’t you just quit? You’re too soft for this job.”  
Y/N met his gaze, her eyes unwavering. “Because I believe in doing the right thing. Because I believe in helping people, no matter how hard it gets. And because I know I can be a hero, even if you don’t believe it.” He rolled his eyes "Sure sweetheart."  
Months passed, and Y/N grew stronger, more skilled, and more confident, and as her confidence grew so did her abilities. Y/N seemed to be able to put up a defence barrier, holding back bullets, if she concentrated good enough, she could even use it as an extra force to her punches. Besides that, she healed quick and what time would tell, didn’t age. 
She always kept that kindness in her eyes, but it was now tempered with a steely resolve. She had become everything Soldier Boy had initially doubted she could be. One evening, after a particularly grueling session, Soldier Boy handed Y/N a cold beer.  
It was a small gesture, but it spoke volumes. She stared at it for a moment, hesitating. "I'm only 18," she said softly, a flicker of doubt crossing her face. Soldier Boy scoffed, rolling his eyes.  
"Stop being such an uptight bitch all the time. It's just a beer." Y/N took the bottle reluctantly, the cool glass against her palm feeling unfamiliar and slightly intimidating. She hesitated, then took a small sip.  
The bitterness of the beer mirrored the bitter moments she had faced during training, the relentless drills, and Soldier Boy’s cutting remarks. They sat in silence for a while, the city’s night sounds filtering in through the open window.  
Y/N glanced at Soldier Boy, trying to decipher the man behind the harsh exterior. “Why did you agree to train me?” she asked quietly. Soldier Boy took a long swig from his own bottle before answering.  
“Didn’t have much of a choice. Vought’s orders.” He paused, his gaze distant. “But you’re not as hopeless as I thought." Y/N felt a small swell of pride at his words. Coming from Soldier Boy, it was high praise indeed.  
She took another sip, the beer tasting a little less bitter now. “Thanks,” she said with a little smile, proud of the first compliment her childhood hero gave her. Soldier Boy grunted in response. 
Present day 
Y/N had left the noise and chaos of the city far behind, finding solace in the peaceful rhythm of farm life. The fields stretched out in a patchwork of greens and browns, and the farmhouse, with its weathered wood and creaking floors, stood as a testament to a simpler, quieter existence.  
She was tending to her garden when she saw them approaching: a group of men, rough around the edges and clearly out of place in the tranquil countryside. Her guard went up immediately.  
Butcher, with his perpetual scowl, led the way, his intense gaze locking onto her. Hughie followed, looking slightly out of his element but determined. Frenchie and Kimiko were close behind, each with their own brand of intensity.  
But it was M.M., standing a bit apart from the rest, who caught her attention. There was a steadiness in his eyes, a calm that seemed at odds with the chaos that surrounded the group.  
Y/N straightened up, wiping her hands on her apron as they came to a stop in front of her. "What do you want?" she asked, her voice cold and wary. Butcher stepped forward, but M.M. gently placed a hand on his shoulder, signalling him to let M.M. handle it.  
Butcher hesitated, then nodded, stepping back with a reluctant grunt. “Miss Y/N, my name is MM, I, no we, need your help. Taking down Homelander.” Y/N crossed her arms, her eyes narrowing. "And why would I help you? I retired to the countryside for peace. "  
M.M. nodded, as if he understood. "I get it. Believe me, I do. But this isn’t just about revenge or taking down supes for the sake of it. We found out about a weapon, something that could kill Soldier Boy. If it can kill him, it can kill Homelander. And... it could probably kill you too. I presume you want to keep living?" 
She flinched at that, the reality of her vulnerability striking a chord she didn’t want to acknowledge. "Why should I trust you?" she asked, her voice softer but still laced with suspicion. "Because we’re trying to do the right thing," M.M. said simply.  
"We’re trying to protect people. And I think, deep down, that’s what you’ve always wanted to do too. You’ve got no reason to trust us, but we don’t have any reason to lie to you either. We need your help to find this weapon. If it exists, it’s our best shot at stopping Homelander. And if we don’t, a lot of innocent people are going to die."  
There was a long silence as Y/N weighed his words. She glanced at the other members of The Boys, reading the desperation and determination etched into their faces. Finally, she looked back at M.M., seeing in him a glimmer of the same hope and resolve that had once driven her.  
"Alright," she said at last, her voice steady. "I’ll help you. But only because I believe someone needs to stop Homelander. And if you’re lying to me, I’ll make sure you regret it." M.M. smiled, a genuine warmth in his expression.  
"Fair enough. We’re grateful for your help, Y/N." As they began to discuss their plan, Y/N couldn’t help but feel a pang of nostalgia. She had tried to leave her past behind, but it seemed the fight for justice had found her once again. And this time, she was determined to see it through to the end. 
As the sun dipped below the horizon, casting long shadows over the farm, Y/N found herself alone for a moment, she agreed they could stay at her place for the night. She leaned against the porch railing, enjoying the cool breeze.  
Her mind wandered back to her time as a supe, a life that seemed so distant now. Hughie approached hesitantly, his hands stuffed in his pockets. He had a look of curiosity mixed with apprehension.  
"Hey," he started, a bit awkwardly. "Mind if I ask you something?" Y/N glanced at him, her guard momentarily lowered. "Sure, go ahead." Hughie shifted his weight from one foot to the other, looking around the porch.  
"I noticed there aren’t many pictures of you. Almost none, actually. W-why is that?" She laughed, a sound tinged with both amusement and bitterness. "Vought made sure the world would forget about me," she explained.  
"When I left, they erased almost every trace of my existence. Photos, records, everything. They didn’t want anyone to remember a supe who walked away from it all." Hughie nodded, taking in her words. "That's... harsh. But I guess I shouldn't be surprised, considering Vought."  
Y/N sighed, her eyes distant. "Yeah, that's Vought. Controlling the narrative, always." There was a pause, then Hughie asked another question that had been on his mind. "What was Soldier Boy like?" Y/N's expression softened, a mix of nostalgia and sadness crossing her face.  
"He was... complicated. A real hard-ass, tough as nails, and absolutely relentless. He could be a real jerk, too, always pushing people to their limits, addict... you name it.” A little pause, she added more a reminder to herself than to him, “But underneath all that, he was just... human."  
Hughie listened intently, sensing there was more to the story. "Did you ever get along with him?" She smiled faintly. "Eventually, yes. It took a while." Hughie looked thoughtful. "Do you think he would have been able to help us with Homelander, if he was still around?"  
Y/N shrugged, a hint of sadness in her eyes. "It's hard to say. Soldier Boy was powerful, but he had his own flaws and demons. He might have helped, or he might have made things worse. We'll never know." 
The next day they left for Russia 
The private plane hummed steadily as it cut through the night sky, its cabin dimly lit. The Boys were scattered around, each lost in their thoughts or quietly discussing their plan. Y/N sat by a window, staring out into the inky blackness. 
Butcher had a lead on the weapon that supposedly killed Soldier Boy, and they were heading to Russia to find it. As the drone of the engines filled her ears, Y/N felt herself slipping into a memory, a flashback to a mission that had happened decades ago in Russia, during her time with Soldier Boy.  
-- 
The mission was critical, a high-stakes operation deep in enemy territory. Y/N and Soldier Boy were tasked with infiltrating a heavily fortified facility to retrieve vital intelligence. The plan was simple: she would create a distraction as he got the job done.  
They had worked out the details meticulously, but plans rarely survived first contact with the enemy. Y/N had managed to draw the guards’ attention, using her powers to create enough chaos to give Soldier Boy the opening he needed. It worked, until she got shot multiple times.  
She found herself cornered in a narrow hallway, the walls lined with steel and concrete. There was no way out. Gunfire echoed around her, the sharp sound of bullets ricocheting off the walls. She took cover behind a weak force shield, her heart pounding.  
She could hear the guards closing in, their footsteps growing louder. As one hand shield her the other pushed down on her leg to stop the bleeding. "I’m trapped!" she shouted into her comm.  
"There’s no way out!" For a few agonizing moments, there was only static in response. Then, his voice crackled through. "Hold on, kid." The minutes stretched into what felt like hours as she waited, the sound of gunfire and shouting closing in.  
She fought off the guards as best she could, using her powers as offence instead to keep them at bay, but she knew she couldn't hold out much longer. Just when she thought it was over, an explosion rocked the hallway. The steel door at the end of the corridor burst open, and there he was. 
Soldier Boy, a look of fierce determination on his face. He tore through the guards with brutal efficiency, clearing a path to her. "Let’s go!" he shouted, grabbing her arm and pulling her to her feet. Together, they fought their way out of the facility, Soldier Boy covering her as they made their escape.  
When they finally reached the extraction point, she collapsed onto the ground, breathing heavily grabbing her leg. "You okay?" he asked, kneeling beside her, his voice uncharacteristically gentle as he tied on of his belts around her leg. She nodded, looking up at him with a mix of gratitude and exhaustion. "Thanks for coming back for me."  
He shrugged, but there was a softness in his eyes.  
--  
The memory faded, and Y/N found herself back on the plane, the steady hum of the engines replacing the echoes of the past. She glanced around at the faces of The Boys, each one focused on the mission ahead. She felt a renewed sense of purpose, a reminder of why she had joined them.  
M.M. caught her eye from across the cabin, giving her a reassuring nod. She returned it with a small smile. The private plane landed in a secluded airstrip in Russia under the cover of night.  
The Boys, along with Y/N, moved swiftly through the dense forest surrounding the remote facility where they believed the weapon that killed Soldier Boy was hidden. The facility loomed ahead, a monolithic structure guarded by heavily armed soldiers and state-of-the-art security systems.  
Butcher led the way, his eyes sharp and focused. "Alright, stay close and keep it quiet. We don’t want to alert the whole damn place." They approached the facility’s perimeter, M.M. disabling the security cameras and motion sensors with expert precision.  
They slipped inside, navigating the labyrinthine corridors with a mix of stealth and speed. But their luck didn’t hold for long. As they rounded a corner, they came face-to-face with a squad of Russian soldiers. For a moment, time seemed to freeze.  
Then, chaos erupted. Butcher was the first to react, launching himself at the nearest soldier with a fierce battle cry. His fists connected with brutal efficiency, taking the soldier down before he could raise his weapon.  
The sound of gunfire exploded around them as the rest of the squad sprang into action. Y/N used her powers to create a force field, deflecting bullets and giving The Boys a chance to take cover. She felt the familiar rush of adrenaline, her senses sharpening as the fight intensified.  
Frenchie and Kimiko moved as a deadly pair, Frenchie’s precise gunfire complemented by Kimiko’s lethal hand-to-hand combat skills. Hughie, still relatively new to the chaos of battle, ducked behind a crate, his heart pounding.  
He peeked out, firing his weapon at the soldiers, hitting one in the leg and causing him to drop his gun. M.M. took advantage of the opening, charging forward and disarming the soldier with a swift, practiced move. He turned, his eyes scanning the room for the next threat.  
"Y/N, cover us!" Butcher shouted, taking down another soldier with a vicious uppercut. Y/N nodded, focusing her energy to create a larger shield, pushing back the advancing soldiers. She could feel the strain, but she held her ground, giving The Boys the chance to regroup and counterattack.  
As the fight raged on, they moved deeper into the facility. The corridors echoed with the sounds of battle, gunfire, shouts, and the clash of metal. They fought their way through waves of soldiers, each skirmish bringing them closer to their goal.  
Finally, they reached a heavily reinforced door at the heart of the facility. Butcher and M.M. worked quickly to breach the door, using a combination of explosives and brute force. The door blew open with a deafening blast, revealing a dark, cold chamber beyond.  
They stepped inside, weapons raised, ready for anything. The room was dimly lit, the walls lined with strange, high-tech equipment. In the centre a large, metal cryogenic chamber, Butcher ripped the door off.  
"Bloody hell," Butcher muttered, lowering his weapon slightly.  
Y/N stepped forward, her eyes wide with a mix of shock and recognition. She froze for a second, unable to believe her eyes. There he was...Soldier Boy encased in the cryogenic chamber.  
The gas began to dissipate, and the machinery hissed as he torn the bands that had its grip on him. Ben’s eyes fluttered open, and he tumbled out of the container, gasping for air. "Ben!" Y/N shouted, rushing forward to catch him before he hit the ground.  
She knelt beside him, her arms around his shoulders, steadying him as he struggled to regain his balance. For a brief moment, their eyes met. She saw confusion and recognition flicker in his eyes, but it quickly turned to something darker rage.  
His expression twisted with fury, and his body began to glow. "Ben, it’s me, Y/N," she pleaded, her voice filled with desperation. But her words didn’t seem to reach him. The radiation started to build, the air around him crackling with energy.  
Before Y/N could react, Kimiko lunged forward, pushing her aside just as a blast of radiation erupted from Ben’s body. The force of the blast sent through the wall. The smoke and debris settled slightly, revealing Ben staggering through the chaos, his steps heavy and disoriented.  
His chest still glowed with residual energy, and he seemed to be in a daze, not fully aware of his surroundings. Ben, stop!" Y/N cried, her voice breaking with emotion. She took a step forward, her heart aching at the sight of him in such a state. but he walked away.  
As they returned to America, Y/N's mind was filled with a tumult of emotions. They had narrowly escaped Russia, but Kimiko's injuries weighed heavily on her. She watched as Butcher spoke to the team, his tone gruff and dismissive.  
"Soldier Boy isn't our problem," he said, his words cutting through the air. Y/N felt a surge of anger and frustration rise, she wanted to stay and find him. But she understood Kimiko needed help. “Why would he do that?” Hughie asked.  
Y/N’s mind drifted away.  
-- 
It was a late night, the night before the announcement of Payback as Soldier Boy's new team. Y/N had returned home after a long day of training, only to find Ben sitting on her couch, a bottle of whiskey in hand and a weary expression on his face.  
She couldn’t help but be annoyed at the sight of him. "What on earth are you doing here?" she asked, her voice mingled with concern. Ben shrugged, taking a swig from the bottle. "Figured you owed me one since I saved that pretty little ass of yours."  
Y/N rolled her eyes, "Fine. What's wrong?" As she settled onto the couch beside him, she couldn’t help but notice the sadness in his eyes, the weight of the world on his shoulders. "What’s eating you, Ben?" she asked, her tone gentle.  
Ben sighed, running a hand through his hair. "I'm a fucking disappointment" he said, his voice tinged with bitterness. “What?” Y/N asked before she listened as he opened up about his father’s abuse, the years of torment and neglect.  
Ben's father was a formidable presence in his life, but not in the way a father should be. He was a hard man, cold and unyielding, his words like knives cutting into Ben's fragile sense of self-worth.  
From a young age, Ben was subjected to his father's wrath, enduring physical and emotional abuse that left scars both seen and unseen. His father's beatings were brutal and frequent, leaving Ben battered and bruised, his spirit broken.  
But it was the words that cut the deepest, the constant reminders of his perceived failures, the insults hurled at him like daggers. He was called weak, a disappointment, a disgrace to the family name.  
For years, Ben internalized his father's harsh judgments, believing himself to be unworthy of love or respect. He built walls around his heart, his rough exterior a shield against the pain and rejection he had endured for so long.  
He learned to bury his emotions deep, to keep people at arm's length, lest they see the vulnerability he tried so desperately to hide.  
Y/N had seen glimpses of Ben's pain before, but it wasn't until that night, when he had opened up to her about his father, that she truly understood the depth of his suffering. She saw the scars, both physical and emotional, that his father had left behind. 
She saw the pain etched into his features, the vulnerability he rarely showed to anyone else. And in that moment, she understood him in a way she hadn’t before. "Why did you put up with it?" she asked, her voice soft. 
Ben shook his head, a bitter laugh escaping him. "It’s not that simple, Y/N. You don’t just walk away from family, no matter how screwed up they are." Y/N reached out, placing a hand on his shoulder.  
"You’ve got people who care about you, you know that right?" As their eyes met, and Y/N saw something flicker in Ben's gaze, a mix of emotions surged within her.  
But before she could fully process them, Ben leaned in, his intention clear. His lips moved towards hers, seeking solace in the warmth of the moment. Y/N's heart raced, her instincts conflicting with her emotions. As his lips hovered inches from hers, her fingers landed gently on his lips, halting his advance.  
"Ben," she murmured softly, her voice tinged with regret. "This isn't a good idea." She had thought about this moment before, wondered what it would be like to be with him. But now, with him drunk and high on who knows what, she couldn't bring herself to take advantage of him in this vulnerable state.  
It wouldn't be fair to either of them. Ben's expression shifted from longing to confusion, then to frustration. He pulled away abruptly, his eyes clouded with anger and hurt. "Fine," he muttered, his voice thick with emotion. "Your loss."  
Y/N watched him go, her heart heavy with regret. She knew she had made the right choice, but that didn't make it any easier to see him walk away. She never wanted to hurt him. 
-- 
As she heard MM talking to Frenchie and Kimiko she looked over. Seeing how badly Kimiko was hurt.  
Knowing she needed to find Ben ASAP before he hurts anymore people. 
To be continued...
------
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songsofadelaide · 4 months
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"Oh, so the one percenter Officer Hibino and Captain Ashiro were childhood friends?"
You knew better than to partake in office gossip, but it was difficult not to hear things when everyone had been talking about the Third Division's new recruits. They say this year's crop is one of the best, and there was a prodigy in your midst, too, in the form of Director General Shinomiya's daughter, Kikoru. There was no doubt that the girl looked up to her as well.
It wasn't new hearing how many young bloods decided to join the Defense Force because of the cool and level-headed Captain Mina Ashiro, but her astronomical rise in rankings did not come as a surprise to many of the top brass. She had raw yet rough talent— the kind that had to be honed and sharpened like a blade meant to kill.
Ashiro was a genius. A diamond in the rough at first, but now a polished centrepiece of the crown that is the Japan Anti-Kaiju Defense Force.
It's hard to believe now she once looked up to you as her senpai. She still does, but you just don't let it get to your head. While you were glad she overcame her exhaustion ever since Director General Shinomiya took a special interest in her and her abilities, there was no denying that something inside her snapped. She would still rest her head on your shoulder every once in a while when you occupied the baths, and you could find the semblance of her tender, younger self, her lips curved to a small smile at times before she eventually shook it off.
"Does it get tiring?" You once asked her as you sank into the warm baths yourself before the fatigue from today's training further settled in your bones. You could tell that a sigh wanted to leave her lips, but she shook her head instead. "It does, but... knowing everyone gets a night of restful sleep is worth it."
What frustrated you wasn't the fact that she overtook you. It was the fact that she had to be at the top all alone.
They called you a burning star. You reached your prime way too early and burned out fast— and eventually condemned yourself to a fate of mediocrity, never overcoming the wall that both saved you from crashing even deeper and slugged your growth.
UNLEASHED COMBAT POWER: 47%
It was always the same result for the last few years. You try not to look crestfallen when you hear Okonogi encouraging you through your comms. It was no wonder you hit a dead end as a platoon leader. They say people your age should be more accomplished— perhaps a vice-captain... But you didn't dare aspire. Aspiring was for dreamers, and more ideally and realistically, for those just starting out in the force. Old-timers like you don't get to dream anymore.
"I'm not fooling anyone... It's been years since I had my shot at a promotion. I'm not getting any better, either..."
You didn't understand why you were so hung up on the whole thing, either. Ebina was content with how things were, or at least he tried to be... But you would both be lying to yourselves if you said outright that you didn't feel the least bit threatened by the rising stars of the Third Division.
On a particularly warm night, while everyone else was already at rest, you reflected on the events of the day on the base rooftop, your can of black coffee nearly drained as a sigh that gradually turned into a grumble escaped your lips.
"Hmm. Maybe I should consider that fox-faced Vice-Captain's joke and retire early. Even though I know he doesn't mean it... But 30 is way too late to get married, no matter how I look a—"
You were so deep into your self-loathing that you didn't notice the new recruit approach you with his own canned drink in hand. "What? Are you planning on getting married, Platoon Leader?"
"Gah! O-Officer Hibino! Where did you—"
"S-Sorry! I didn't mean to eavesdrop. I just wanted to ponder a bit but I heard you, uh, talking," Kafka said with a crooked smile and hands raised in defence. "What're you saying, though? Don't you know how much skill it takes to raise your combat power to that level? Let alone maintain it..."
"Maintaining combat power is one thing, but not being able to grow any stronger is another. Every single one of the new recruits is eager to skyrocket to great heights. I'm sure you're no different, seeing as you want to... to stand next to the Captain if I heard you right the last time," you stated with a clenched fist, the coffee can only slightly crumpling in your hand. "Personally, I feel like I've... stopped growing a long time ago. Platoon Leader is all I'll ever achieve and I..."
I feel so pathetic.
"Does it really matter? Where you stand and all... Ranks are good and all, but I think carrying yourself with pride is more important," he answered you without missing a beat. There was a shine in his eyes you hadn't seen in a long time. "I know everyone calls you a burning star, but that's not what I heard from the Vice-Captain and Min— Captain Ashiro."
Hope.
"The Third Division stands because of its pillars, but cornerstones like you are important, too. The Captain referred to you as such," Kafka stated with the same crooked yet comforting smile. You've only had a handful of interactions with him, but you confirmed soon enough that he had a kindness that seemed to melt away your worries. "Besides, a burning star is still a star. It's still a dazzling celestial body, regardless of what people say about it, regardless of how burned out it is."
You had to admit that he was pretty cute, too. Then again, Tae would point out that you've always had a weakness for hard workers, so it was only a matter of time before your stupid crush was discovered— Who the hell does this guy think he is? Giving me hope, of all things.
He was a burning star, too, but he burned so bright that you couldn't look away. Maybe he wasn't a burning star. Maybe he was a beacon. Either way... A burning star is still a star. He said it himself.
"Don't retire just yet, Platoon Leader. You're a cornerstone, after all. The Captain needs you still. Besides, don't you want to see us new recruits storm the floor at missions?"
Hope was the last thing on your mind, but Kafka had an abundance of that shine in his eyes that made it hard to look away.
"Soshiro-kun was right about you," you said with a small smile closely followed by a sigh of defeat. "You're way too upbeat for someone who's only at 1%!"
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— The Raid on Tachikawa Base
"Tell me something good, Konomi-chan. How's everyone else on the field at the moment?"
"Platoon Leader! You—"
You could sense the shock in Okonogi's voice even through your slightly garbled comms.
"Y-Your unleashed combat power is—!"
UNLEASHED COMBAT POWER: 53%
While that wasn't exponential growth, that was still growth. The first of its kind you've had in years.
"A-Are you okay, Platoon Leader? Your heart rate is increasing!"
"I-I'm fine, Konomi-chan!" You stammered right back, an uncharacteristic flush on your face that your subordinates swiftly took notice of. They hardly had the chance to tease you about it when you groaned to yourself as you fiddled with your firearm. "What the hell am I getting all worked up for?..."
Your combat suit made you feel steamy all over, the heat reaching your joints anew. The surplus of power coursed through your every vein and fibre and made you surprisingly tactless. "I'm hardly at her level!"
Right from the start, you knew that you were competing with a monolith. A phantom from the past... and the present. Mina wasn't your competition. You made that clear to each other from the start. But when you remember the unusual smile that graced her face for a single moment when Kafka gatecrashed the Presentation of Enlistment Certificate Ceremony with that stupid declaration of his—
You were competing with the shadow of the Captain of the Third Division in this stupid thing called love, of all things!
The static in your comms cleared up, followed by Kafka's voice filling your ears, his tone both solid and encouraging, filling you with hope once more.
"Platoon Leader! Don't compare yourself to her! Everyone has their own strengths and weaknesses. Just remember that you're Captain Ashiro's cornerstone! You cover for her in places she can't reach, right?!"
Static, again, before Okonogi sends out a command for your platoon.
"We'll need you on the field soon, Platoon Leader! On the Vice-Captain's order!"
UNLEASHED COMBAT POWER: 54%
"Let's get to work, then!" You declared to your subordinates with a smile that did not suit the situation. But seeing your improved numbers filled them with the same hope that theirs will rise, too. "How could I forget that burning star's still a star?"
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dollscircus · 1 month
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Swing first, ask later. Chapter 1.
(In my defence it’s Gotham and you were breaking in)
chapter 2
Arkham Knight Jason Todd x vet!Reader
Words: 2.5k
Tags: Injury detail, fighting and brief reference to animal cruelty plus general fuckery.
Synopsis: when you found someone breaking into your little veterinary clinic, you didn’t expect to find the Arkham Knight and certainly didn’t expect to find out that he reminds you of a wounded puppy. You’re a fixer, I guess…
-
I’ve always been a fixer. It’s always been apart of myself, ever since I was a kid. My mother at a young age learned what streets in Gotham to avoid with me because God forbid I’d see a small stray animal and try to sneak it home in my pocket. The animal shelters knew me so well at age 12, commonly bringing them in whatever injured or sick animal I would and wrangled into my arms. Most of your pocket money was used on animals and people in need.
That’s why I became a veterinarian, it felt good being able to help some of the weakest creatures in Gotham, a place that didn’t show many mercy. I liked being able to show that mercy and care. The night I met him, you stayed late in the clinic which was a normal thing. Your apartment was above the clinic, so it made it easy to come down the stairs to check on my patients during the night. That’s what brought my down into the clinic.
I weren’t sure how late it was, yawning as your body protested even being awake. I walked down the steps leading to the back alley, where the back door to the clinic was found. Rubbing the heel of my hand into my tried eyes as the keys jangled in my hand as my fingers worked through the bundle of keys to find the exact one I were looking for.
I mumbled in irritation while pushing the door open, I didn’t notice the blood drops on the floor of the alley as I stepped over it and into the clinic. I reached my hand over to the light switch but paused when I felt the breeze and whistle of the wind. Scanning around the dark clinic, I spotted it; A window was smashed, the curtains blowing softly in the soft breeze. I paused listening to slight movements coming from one of the back rooms. Oh, fuck that.
Another fun fact about myself, I don’t often think my actions through. The sounds were coming from the back room where the animals needing long term care were housed, in that moment I was to worried about whoever was in there harming the animals I didn’t think about calling the cops when I crept through the dark office, grabbing a baseball bat that was leaning against the desk.
I took slow and soft steps while walking through the office, noticing the back door slightly left open ajar. Some small light streaming in through the door, I couldn’t see much of the figure moving around but that small amount of light made I finally notice the blood smears over the ground. I looked down to the ground and scowled at the sight of blood. What?
I stood by the door, peaking my eyes inside and saw the stack of cages. Most of the patients sleeping aside from one of the cats who was clearly watching whoever was in the room who I heard an annoyed curse come from. The voice sounded weird like it came from a filter. I took a deep breath, adrenaline pumping through my blood as I nudged the door open with the bat then with a quick motion kicking the door open and just- swinging the bat at the figure in the room before even taking a solid look at him.
I missed. I never pretended to be athlete; the bat slammed into the metal of the shelf denting it. I gasped while the figured lashed to the side to avoid the blow, the metal bat made a metallic ringing sound in my ears. Turning your head to the figure, I didn’t register who he was; I could see the frantic shuffling back away from the shelf. The frantic gesture caused me to suddenly think about a scared stray dog. That train of thought kept my mind occupied that I gave the man enough time to pull the gun off his belt.
The next few moments were filled with many feelings and realisations. The first was that the man bleeding all over my floor was the Arkham Knight. Next the next was the gun he was now pointing at me. Honestly? Fair enough. There were a few long moments that stretched out, filling with the sound of your unsteady breathing and his own breathing distorted by the helmet. It was tense. He just stared at me; his grip of the gun trembled. I wasn’t sure what was about to happen, expecting to be killed but then- his hand and gun dropped down to the ground with a thud.
“Huh.” I said, my voice sounded a little weird just standing in the dim office. The Arkham Knight was still now, his breathing coming through the helmet with a distorted sound. I stepped closer, still holding the bat up as you creeped closer. Standing above him, I tilted your head to the side before tapping the bat into his foot. No reaction.
I tilted your head to the other side while looking him over, a wound was seeping out blood from his thigh. Ah, that makes sense why he had broken into the clinic. Ok- nice I didn’t get shot. I turned on your heel to walk out of the office to call the police until the memory of the Arkham Knight crawling back away from you flashed in your mind and it stopped you in your tracks. My common sense screamed to call the cops. That would be the smart thing to do but I was never one for common sense. I turned over my shoulder to look at the man on the ground. “Fuck.”
I wasn’t a doctor; I were a veterinarian but hey, I did my best. All I did was cut away from of the fabric from the wound to tend to it, leaving the clunky helmet in place. After I were done stitching his leg up, I left him on the cold table while you sat in a chair nearby just- staring at him.
He would sleep for a freakishly long time, so much so that the sun was creeping over the horizon when he finally did wake up. I didn’t notice it at first, I can my back to him while you were cleaning up the mess he caused, picking up boxes of medicine and supplies to place them back in their rightful spot. Standing in place, I didn’t realise he had woken up until there was suddenly an arm hooked around my throat with the Arkham knight leaning over me. His weight pushing me into the self as I felt the muzzle of the gun pressing into my ribs.
“Whoa- Whoa.” I started, trying to soften my voice. I didn’t really notice I was using the same voice I used with the more- feral animals that come into the clinic. The gun pressed a little harder into my ribs, but I wasn’t as scared as I should’ve been.
“What did you do?” He asked, voice sounding rough and distorted by the helmet. I let out a little sigh while slowly raising my hands to show they were empty.
“I stitched up your leg.” I said calmly, “I didn’t touch the helmet.”
There was a moment of silence, I could tell he was complicating what to do next. I was quiet, looking ahead to avoid any quick moments startling him. The gun was still firmly pressed into my ribs but his grip around my neck seemed to loosen ever so slightly.
“Why?” He asked, some confusion seeping into that rough voice. I really didn’t an answer that didn’t seem insulting. A few moments stretched on until he pressed the gun into my ribs a little more which sparked some mild pain into my ribs. That tiny bit of pain seemed to break my filter.
“You made me think of a stray dog.” I blurted out and instantly regretted it. Welp, he’s going to kill me and honestly. Fair enough, that was a dumbass thing to say. I help my breath, preparing for the pain of the gunshot but it never came. The weight pressed into my back suddenly pulled away and the gun was so longer jabbed into my side. Looking over my shoulder, I watched the knight slowly backing away from me; The gun still raised up and pointing at me. The helmet made his expression impossible to read, I stared at him as he ever so slowly backed away. Limping on his hurt leg.
“I uh- I’m not a doctor so you should get your leg checked by an actual doctor.” I mumbled while looking him up and down. His helmet flicked over to the door to the back room, and he started limping to the back door, the gun trained on me, but a strange sound came out of the helmet. A huff? Was it a huff? A laugh? The sound was distorted by the helmet so I couldn’t really tell.
As with a very quick moment, he slipped out of the office and disappeared into the still dark clinic. Huh. Well, that went much better than I expected. I listened out for the sound of the knight climbing out the window he broke, leaving me standing so very confused in my clinic.
“You made me think of a stray dog.”
Those words repeated in his head over and over. It had been a very long time since someone had shocked him with just some words. He’d been on edge ever since he climbed through the window of the clinic, the sterile smell and look of the place set his nerves on fire. Those memories of the asylum threatening to spill over, that panic only made worst when that bat swung into the shelf making the echoing metal trill. Oh boy. Now that did cause a wave of panic to rush over him. He moved back trying to create as much distance between him and whoever was swinging for him.
Only to be met face to face with you.
You. The memories of his childhood flashed through his mind in a few quick moments. Memories that often haunted him in his time in Arkham. No- they comforted him. No- Well, it was a bit of both honestly. Memories of a much softer times. Not tainted by the joker and batman. A place where Jason could hide away from the pain even if it was just for a moment.
He almost thought he had finally cracked and gone insane as he stared up at you down the barrel of the gun. You’ve really gone up nice, even with the shocked and slightly fearful expression. Jason felt that blinding panic fade from his body and the mere sight of you, along with all of his strength as he fell unconscious.
Jason wouldn’t actually shoot you. Never. Not you but he needed answers. What you knew. A pit in his stomach formed that he wasn’t used to when threatening most with violence, but he didn’t really have time to unpack that when your words shocked his brain into- a reboot.
“You made me think of a stray dog.”
Huh. Ok. That- huh.
You really haven’t change. Jason found himself strangely comforted by that, but your self preservation skills worried him greatly. Jason had to remind himself to push all of those feelings down. Refocus. Remember whats important.
You seemed to be doing good. That’a good. Good.
I had to put a tarp over the broken window, grumbling in irritation the whole while as I had to stand on a stool to reach the very top of the tall ass window. I grumbled while glancing over to the door as Mary unlocked the front door and stepped inside. “Oh, hello” She said while looking me up and down with a raised eyebrow.
“What happened?” She asked cue a very intense train of thought. Do I admit the truth and get scolded for what was an extremely stupid decision or lie? I’m bad at lying.
“Uh.” I said, just staring at Mary. “You’ll yell at me if I’m honest.” She narrowed her tried eyes at me.
“Did you break it yourself?” She asked and I shook my head in response. Mary let out a deep tried sigh before taking a sip of the coffee cup she was holding in her hand. It was a very long sip. I shuffled a little before climbing down from stool.
“I’ll ask again in an hour.” Mary walked past me into the back room. Honestly- not the worst.
“Why is there blood on the floor in here!?” Maru screeched from the backroom. Ah fuck.
It didn’t take to long to explain what happened. Mary was across the table from me pitching the bridge of her nose, face scrunched up. I tapped my shoes on the ground while just watched the older woman scowl.
“You’re an idiot.”
“Yeah.”
“So. You not only didn’t call the police of the masked man who broke in but stitched up his leg? because the big scary man reminded you of a stray dog?”
“…Yeah. In my defence- he reminded of that grumpy stray pit bull? The one that came to us with his muzzle tapped up?” I tried to defend myself, but I could see Mary’s will to live slowly seeping out of her body.
“You’re going to be the death of me one day.” Mary sighed while standing up, “Just- you don’t have a shift today so just- go home.”
“Really- Mary I don’t mind-” I started to speak before she pointed at me.
“Go home.” She deadpanned.
Like I was told, I made my way up to my apartment. Rubbing a hand over my face while I felt the exhaustion of the night before catching up to me, muscles aching while I came down from the adrenaline rush. Dropping down on the bed, not even bothering to change my clothes as I dropped down on to the bed. Shoving my face into the pillow.
Sleep pretty quickly caught up with me. I wasn’t sure how long I slept for when I finally did wake up, glancing over to my window which had sunlight streaming in through the window. I blinked a few times in the- early afternoon light? Pulling myself up from the bed, rubbing my hands and letting out a tried groan.
After a few moments, I noticed something. My window was left slightly open, there was a small box on the desk by the window that was littered with old pictures and trinkets I collected over the years. I frowned while walking over to the desk before picking up the box. There was a little note on the box, ‘Sorry for the window, thank for the leg.’
The box had a- large amount of cash inside. Did the- Arkham Knight leave money when I was sleeping? A few emotions rushed through me. It was kinda creepy knowing the Arkham Knight was so close and I wasn’t aware that he was so close but- he took the time to leave money for the window? Huh. That’s kinda sweet?
I didn’t know how to feel about this.
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tsunami-of-tears · 6 months
Text
Mission Accomplished
Poly+ ACOTAR Week 2024 - Day 4 (Adventure)
Cazriel x Healer Reader
Summary: Despite the Inner Circle’s best efforts, the throuple continues to fight their affection for each other. To help things along, Rhys sends the group on a fake mission (unbeknownst to them). Of course - everything goes horribly wrong.
Pairing Masterlist
Wordcount: 1.4K
Warnings: angst; violence; injury; animal attack.
✧・゚: *✧・゚:*✧・゚: *✧・゚:*✧・゚: *✧・゚:*✧・゚:
Reader
Weeks had passed since the incident with the love potion, and you’d given up on trying to figure out where it came from.
Despite the night of passion, your relationship with Cassian and Azriel remained mostly unchanged, albeit slightly more awkward. You were grateful to still be able to call them your friends - joking around with Cassian and your quiet chats with Azriel were your favourite parts of the day. 
You felt torn. You loved both males equally and didn’t want to come between their longstanding friendship. You didn’t want to have to choose between them. 
Their visits to your clinic had gotten less frequent, but Cassian insisted you needed some basic training. 
“Let me at least teach you some self-defence,” Cassian pouts at you for about the fiftieth time. 
You sigh, but smile as you roll your eyes. “Okay fine, it can’t hurt. But I’m no warrior, and I have no desire to be.” 
“I know, the only thing you’ve slain is my heart,” Cassian jests. “But,” he says, taking on a more serious tone, “I don’t expect you to fight in battle, I want you to be able to defend yourself if Azriel or I’m not around.”
————
Rhysand 
Mor waltzes into the office and throws herself on the plush couch. “Gods… They are even dumber than we thought,” she exclaims. “I really thought the potion would get things moving.”
Rhys runs his hand through his hair. “I know,” he agrees. “I’m sending them on a training exercise. Hopefully some time away will help them figure things out.”
————
Reader
You’re on your first-ever mission for the Night Court, camped deep in the forest of the Illyrian Steppes. 
You’d been informed that there were some Illyrian camps causing trouble in the area. You weren’t sure how your skills would help, but you were on standby in case anyone got injured. 
After a long day of hiking and scouting with little results, you’re setting up camp for the night. You stand over the small campfire, boiling water to sanitise your equipment. 
The loud crack of a branch breaking sounds behind you, followed by a low growl. 
You turn around slowly and find yourself face-to-face with a giant wolf. It’s enormous, towering over you. And those teeth… The sharp canines are exposed as it snarls at you. Your veins chill with fear and a sharp scream rips from your throat. 
You cautiously take a step back from the wolf, narrowly avoiding the fire. You don’t dare break eye contact. You try to stand tall, holding the only thing within reach - a ladle - brandishing it like a sword, like Azriel and Cassian taught you. 
You send a silent prayer to the Mother that one of your friends can save you before you become dinner.
————
Cassian 
Cassian sprints from the other side of the clearing at the sound of your screams, stopping dead in his tracks when he sees you wielding a ladle against the angry beast. The terror in your eyes strikes something deep within him, stoking the golden embers to life inside his chest.
His soul erupts in fury, and the deep need to protect. 
A battle cry sounds from Cassian’s lips as he charges towards the wolf with his knife out.
————
Azriel 
Azriel hears your scream before his shadows alert him of trouble. 
Adrenaline courses through his veins. The only thought in his mind is of saving you.  
He winnows straight to you. Right in front of the wolf. Within a second of his shadows dispersing, Azriel feels something sharp in his left side. 
He looks down and sees a hunting knife sticking out of his side, and a wide-eyed Cassian stepping back in shock.
————
Reader
You feel completely helpless as you watch the scene unfold in front of you. 
One minute, Cassian was hurling his knife towards the creature. The next, Azriel had winnowed right in the path of the blade. 
The wolf turns to look at the two Illyrians, who freeze under its yellow gaze. It huffs out a breath before turning on its heel and prowling back into the forest. 
Azriel shakes his head, hand going straight to the blade protruding from his side, “I can’t believe you stabbed me.”
“You practically winnowed into my knife,” Cassian exclaims. 
“Why didn’t you go for your sword? That knife would’ve bounced right off its hide,” Azriel bristles, irritation growing under his skin. 
You leap right into action, stepping in as the tension between the males starts to rise. “Looks like you did need me here after all,” you say, trying to diffuse the situation. “Azriel, sit on that log. I’ll just gather what I need.” 
Cassian stands back with his arms folded across his chest as you work on removing the blade and patching up the wound. 
“It’s not too deep, look it’s already clotting. It might just be a bit sore tonight, but you’re going to be fine.” You attempt to give Azriel your best reassuring smile. 
————
The rest of the night was strained. Both males were very quiet, only speaking in one-word responses. The silence was stifling, with the only sounds coming from the crackling fire and the scraping of cutlery on plates.
Unable to handle the creeping tension any longer, you retire to your tent early, leaving the males to work out whatever issues they have.
————
Cassian 
Azriel could hardly look at Cassian, and Cassian couldn’t bear it. 
His brother was staring into the dwindling fire, as he sharpened his blades. The sharp singing of stone on metal cut through the air between them. 
“I’m sorry, I don’t know what happened,” Cassian admits. “I was overcome by this need to protect. I was blinded by fear. I had to protect Y/N.” 
Azriel finally looks up from his work, his expression unreadable before returning to sharpening his daggers.
Cassian runs his hand through his hair. He figured Azriel deserved the truth. “Y/N is my mate. The bond snapped when I saw her standing there, holding that damned ladle like it would’ve done anything.” 
Azriel freezes, a mixture of confusion and shock in his eyes. “That’s not possible,” he says softly. 
“It’s the truth, I felt it.” 
“No… The mating bond snapped for me not long after I brought her to the Night Court,” Azriel states.
“How? We can’t both be her mates, can we?”
Azriels gaze is captured by something behind Cassian. Cassian turns to see what his brother is looking at and sees Y/N standing there.
————
Reader
You couldn’t sleep. 
You tossed and turned, replaying the earlier incident over and over in your head. 
You’re pulled from your thoughts by hushed voices outside your tent. The mention of your name grabs your attention, and you still your movements to glean what the males are discussing. 
“Y/N is my mate,” says an exasperated Cassian. 
Your entire world slows on its axis. 
All thoughts eddy from your mind except one - your mate. 
You quietly exit your tent, walking towards the males around the fire, when Azriel’s words stop you in your tracks. 
“The mating bond snapped for me not long after I brought her to the night court.”
Both of them. 
Both males whom you loved with all your heart were your mates. 
Was this the Cauldron’s idea of a cruel joke? 
You walk towards them, your mates, and the glimmering bond between you starts to appear. You can see the two strands coming from your heart, connecting your soul to each of the males before you. 
As if they can feel your presence, they both look up at you. 
“Y/N” Cassian murmurs, your name a prayer against his lips. 
You touch your heart as you feel the deep longing flow down the twin bonds. 
“Both of you?” you whisper.
“It’s rare, but I’ve read about similar occurrences,” Azriel admits, rising to his feet.
“But, how am I supposed to choose?” You say. Tears well in your eyes and your lip quivers at the thought of rejecting either male. 
Cassian and Azriel exchange glances and a small nod. 
“Who said anything about choosing?” Azriel asks.
“I know it’s a lot, you don’t have to decide anything here and now,” Cassian chimes in, reaching for your hand. “We’d be honoured to share you, if you’ll have us both.” Azriel steps forward, taking your other hand in his. “It won’t always be easy, but I’m willing to try for you. Truthfully, there’s no one else I’d rather be bound with,” Azriel finishes, meeting Cassian’s eye. 
The tears that threatened to spill pool over the edge of your lashes. You nod earnestly as you send all your love down the bonds to your mates. 
You pull them into a tight embrace, your bodies fitting together perfectly, like the final piece to a puzzle, the answer to a question you’d been asking your entire life. 
✧・゚: *✧・゚:*✧・゚: *✧・゚:*✧・゚: *✧・
Tags ♡ @littlestw01f @impossibelle @dream-alittlebiggerdarling @the-wall-willow @xasael @lilah-asteria @saltedcoffeescotch @mybestfriendmademe @therealmoonstone
156 notes · View notes
fieldofdaisiies · 7 months
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Of Wings and Secrecy
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paring: adult!Nyx x Reader | type: angst | words: 3,4k words | warnings: mentions of abuse, violence | based on this request
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“What a weak punch.” 
You throw Nyx a withering glare over your shoulder, hands dropping to your sides. You really have to fight the urge to flip him off, and at the same time want nothing more than to kiss those formidable lips.
“Shall I demonstrate how it should be done?” His wings flare behind his back when he starts to stroll toward you, sauntering with nothing but cocky smugness, a grin on his lips.
Your little sister, Salia, next to you giggles, a mischievous smile on her lips. “I guess I‘ll leave you two alone then.”
She winks and before you can stop her, she is heading towards where Emerie, Gwyn and Nesta, Nyx‘s aunts, train a few young Illyrian females.
Salia is the only one to know about what is actually between the two of you — a bond, a mating bond, always glamoured to keep it hidden. But she knows about the mutual love, how and when the bond snapped, about your secret meetings and the dangers along with it. The dangers that prevent you from—
Your thoughts are cut off when you feel the hard and warm press of a solid chest against your back. 
“A little higher.” His hands support your elbows, his lips brushing your earlobe. You fight against a shudder, and hold your breath. 
“Not here.” Your voice is silent, hushed. “Someone could see us.”
“I’m only helping you train, my star.” A smirk appears on Nyx’s lips, but falters the moment he sees your scared expression after you have turned to him. The Night Court heir steps away, and bows his head. 
You open your mental shields for him, holding his gaze. I’m so sorry, but it‘s too dangerous, Nyx.
Making sure no one is looking, Nyx moves in again, lifting your elbow with one of his warm and gentle hands, acting like he is explaining something. “Let me protect you.” He leans in the slightest bit. “Come to Velaris with me. Let me protect you.”
You turn away and pick up a sword. “You know I can‘t.” Straightening your posture and using one hand to smooth out your leathers you take a few steps back. “I can‘t leave my mother and sister alone.”
Nyx knows this, and yet the truth —the awareness about you not coming with him— sends a pang of hurt right into his heart. Your hearts belong together, so do your souls, and should never be kept apart. You had fallen in love with each other the first moment you lay eyes on each other. But life isn’t too kind to you, doesn’t allow your love to flourish.
Devlon forbids this relationship, threatens to hurt the once you love most. It has to be kept secret. Nyx promised you that with his father’s protection —with the High Lord’s protection — nothing would ever happen to you. And despite that sounding very promising, you couldn’t accept.
This is not solely about you. You have a sister and a mother who live here as well and they will be in danger. Especially if you go with Nyx or if your relationship —if the bond— becomes public.
Nyx moves in closer again, helping you position your legs a little differently. “I want to be alone with you.”
“Nyx.” A corner of your mouth tips up.
He raises a brow, twin flames of desire lighting up his blue eyes. “My late grandmother‘s hut?”
“Now?”
Nyx grins and turns you, so your back is against his front, always careful of your beautiful wings, acting like he is showing you some self-defence techniques. “Always.”
His body vibrates with passion, and it reaches you, fuels the need within your veins. You have been apart for so long. You have missed him. And you need him. Now.
—-
A loud giggle parts your lips and you shove at Nyx‘s bare, and solid chest. “I‘m sure I love you more.”
He kisses your shoulder and shakes his head. “Not possible.” His damp lips coast over your salty skin, tongue poking out. “My love for you is endless.”
“Well,” you breathe, “mine is endless and just a bit more.” 
He tips his head up, gaze meeting yours and laughs. “You are impossible.”
To that you grin and chuckle. Your hand comes up and you stroke your thumb over his cheek, slowly, assessing him with your eyes. “You look tired,” you say with a contemplative look on your face.
“We‘ve been tangled in the sheets for the whole night, my star, I am exhausted.” The beautiful smile on his lips doesn’t reach his eyes and the corners of your mouth turn downwards. 
“It’s because the glamour, isn’t it.”
He doesn’t want to say yes, but you can read him so well, so he silently admits, “I constantly need to use a lot of magic to glamour the both of us, and over a far distance when I am back in Velaris.”
You find yourself nodding, your heart hurting about the knowledge of what it does to him.
“But it’s fine.” He kisses your nose. “As long as the two of us have a chance to be with each other, I would accept everything.” Now, he kisses the corner of your mouth, hands falling to your hips, pulling you closer, the counter below your bare thighs, cool.
“I don’t want you to—”
He shuts you up with a kiss. But it is a kiss you can’t really focus on. You love him, you want to be with him — Cauldron he is your mate! But that doesn’t make this relationship easy. It only makes it hella difficult. 
Nyx is a bit over 100, sooner or later he will have to take over as High Lord, you don’t want to cause him additional issues.
“You are distracted, my star.” His hand slides beneath your —his— shirt and he cups your breast, thumb pressing down on your nipple, rubbing. “Let me help you focus on us.”
Your curl legs around his hips, hoping that the press of his hard length against your core will really centre you in the moment. And it truly does. 
You allow yourself to enjoy this moment with him, knowing it is fleeting and will be over way too soon and Nyx back in Velaris. 
“I love you, Y/N.” 
You cup the nape of his neck with your hand, fingers entangled in his soft silken strands, mouths colliding, teeth clacking.
“I love you—”
“Nyx!” The entrance door bangs against the wall of the hut, so loud even the mice in the smallest nooks can hear it. It feels like time stands still when Nyx steps away and whips his head into…the High Lord’s direction.
There is nothing but confusion and a hunt of shock etched upon Nyx‘s father‘s face, like he can’t really believe what he is seeing.
“I was looking for you.” The High Lord is not stuttering, but something close to it and Nyx, his cheeks a deep red, looks like he is wringing for the right words, all engines in his mind working on high speed.
“This is Y/N,” he finally says and adds, “And she is my mate.”
 ✦   .  .   ˚ .      . ✦     ˚     . ★⋆.
“And the hating each other part…?”
“Fake.” A sheepish grin spreads over Nyx‘s face and he bites down on his lower lip.
His father chuckles lowly and shakes his head at his son. “When did this happen? The bond I mean. When did it snap in place for you?”
Rhysand still looks a little flabbergasted. Even minutes later when the three of you sit together on the couch, now you and Nyx fully dressed.
“Shortly after the Blood Rite. I went to congratulate her on becoming Arktosion, and well…our eyes met and the bond snapped.” Nyx turns to you and takes your hand into his, squeezing softly.
“That was nearly a year ago,” the High Lord expresses and throws his son an incredulous look. “You’ve been keeping your bond a secret for so long!?”
Nyx and you nod.
“You could have told us. At least your mother and—”
“We couldn‘t.” Nyx shakes his head again, then leans into you and kisses the top of your head.
Then he continues, “It would have been too dangerous. Dad, I know you. And I know mum. You would have wanted to get involved. You would have tried to talk to Devlon and we couldn’t risk it. Y/N‘s mother and sister are in his tight grip and—”
“If he finds out about our mating bond he will do unspeakable things to them.” Your gaze drops, voice so vulnerable and silent you hope the High Lord could even hear you.
He did, and his power stretches out, brushing you. “You will have our protection always. And so will your sister and mother. You can come to live in Velaris with us.”
You are grateful for this, really, but you cannot accept just yet. You will first have to talk to your mother and your sister. Explain everything to them. And you will have to catch them when your father is not home. And then you need to arrange everything and—
“Thank you so much,” you finally say and meet the High Lord’s gaze. Sitting here with him feels a bit surreal, considering who he is. But then you remember that you have been rolling around in the sheets with the prince of the night for the whole previous night and it no longer feels so odd.
Many times you have already asked him if you are truly good enough for him, for a prince, and he has always told you yes, then poked you or smacked your arm lightly to make his point clear. And then most of the time he kissed you. Or more.
“Really. Thank you much. For the offer. I will gladly accept but I need a little time.”
“Whenever you are ready,” Nyx whispers, but there is worry in his eyes. “You have time. Talk to your mother and sister and then you let me know how we will go forward.” Lifting your intertwined hands, he kisses your knuckles.
You sit together for a little longer, Rhysand wanting to find out a bit more who is tied to his son‘s soul by the mating bond and who has consequently stolen Nyx’s heart.
You open up easily to him, his kindness and love for his son, visible in every word he says. They are an amazing family and you feel very lucky to somehow be a part of it.
Only a while later, and when Rhys and Nyx truly have to leave for Velaris (the High now finally having found his son who had closed the mental to his father during the night he spent with you) you go back home to your mother and sister, hoping to catch them before you father gets home. But he is already there and so decide to wait a few more days, think about it, clear your mind and really form a plan. You have been hiding this relationship for so long, you can now also wait a bit longer. 
Nothing is rushing you. You and Nyx will one day be together, that is true, and if one more day lies between you and him being ultimately together or not, doesn’t matter to you. Not with the prosperity of being with him and the knowledge that while living a life with him your mother and sister will be safe.
You will fill them in on your plan in a few days, when the time is right.
But you later find out that waiting was a fatal decision.
 ✦   .  .   ˚ .      . ✦     ˚     . ★⋆.
“You want to leave Windhaven?” Your father raises a brow, and you vigorously shake your head. Your cousins leave the shadows behind you, closing in on you until they catch your arms. “You were going to leave us, weren’t you?”
“No, father.” Your voice is so vulnerable, why would I?
The door hasn’t even fallen into the lock when you knew you stepped right into a trap. Your mother and sister are cowered together in the corner of the room, shaking so hard you even see it from the distance.
You wiggle against their hold, but your cousins are just stronger, their nails biting into your skin, their silent laughter ringing in your ears.
“Letting your mother and sister alone to do all the work?” Devlon —your father— takes a step forward and this is the first time you see the tool in his hands. The same tool that was used to clip a female's wings. Your stomach coils, panic, strong and terrible, blazing through you. You feel how your knees start to buckle, but you fight against it.
“I wasn’t going to leave.”
“Bullshit!” Devlon shouts. “Do you think I am stupid. That I couldn’t detect this damn mating bond. The heir‘s powers are strong but not that stronger. The glamour starts to fade.” Disdain laces his features.
“Were you hoping to become a princess one day, huh?” He stalks forward and weighs the tool in his hands.
You want to growl at him but you keep your mouth shut.
“I need to disappoint you. Someone like you will never be a princess, and most definitely not a High Lady. You are a laundry girl and you will stay like that.”
“Father, I—”
The click of his tongue shuts you up. “Too late for silly apologies. It is not time to make sure you stay where you belong.” Darkness falls over his face, and he tips his chin. It is your cousin’s cue to move. They turn you and force your chest down to lie atop the wooden table.
He is going to clip your wings and there is nothing you can do against it. You are strong, but not stronger than the three of them. 
The content of your stomach sours at the helplessness you are feeling, tears burning behind your eyes. But you won’t give him that. You won’t cry. He doesn’t deserve your tears. You won’t be vulnerable. You won’t be weak. And if he clips your wings, you will—
“Devlon don’t!” your mother cries out, but your father shuts her up with a snarl and a pointed, warning look into her direction. He steps closer and presses down on your back, forcing your face to rub against the harsh, wooden surface, some splinters definitely piercing into your skin, drawing blood. Your spine cracks and your shoulders ache from the angle your cousins are still holding your arms and you cry out in pain — it is just too much, you can’t hold it in any longer.
“It is her fault. She didn’t want it any differently. She brought—”
Devlon‘s sneer is cut short.
The main door bursts open with an impact that has the whole hut shaking, power so strong and lethal when it stretches out makes you aware that it can only be the High Lord and your mate who have arrived. You whip your head into their direction and a loud sob parts your lips.
Morrigan is also in tow, the first to move towards you and your father. “Hands off the girl! Now!” she growls, fury swirling in her hazel eyes.
It must be the shock, and definitely fear that makes your cousins step back, letting go off your hands. One of the stupid brutes even has the audacity to speak up and say, “He made us do it.”
But no one pays him any attention. Everything is focused on you, and the tool, the large clipping tool, positioned at the base of your wings and the male holding it. Devlon, despite stepping back, does not seem remorseful about his actions.
“Devlon.” Rhysand’s growl ripples through the hut and Nyx sets out to get to you as quickly as possible. He helps you up and pulls your shivering body to his chest. “I got you. Nothing can happen now,” Nyx whispers against your head, but you can’t quite focus, your attention on your father.
“What is going on here!” Rhysand demands and his lethal power fills the room.
But your father is not afraid. His face displays nothing but purely male smugness when he says, “Do you know about it, Rhysand? What they did?”
“That they are mates,” the High Lord answers matter-of-factly. He slides his hands into the pockets of his pants and pins the camp lord with a look. 
Surprise passes over Devlon’s face – he hasn’t expected Rhysand to know. Thought, or maybe even hope, to catch him off guard and shock him. But quite the opposite is the case.
“I know that.” Rhysand turns to look at you and his son. “And I also know what you were about to do. What would have happened if we had arrived here any moment later.” Lethal calm graces each of his words, and it sends a shiver down your spine. You hold tighter onto your mate. 
In the corner of your eye you can see that Lady Morrigan moves swiftly across the room, crouching down at the opposite side and throwing both her arms around your sister and your mother. She whispers something to them but you can’t make out the words
Your heart is beating so rapidly, nearly jumps out of your chest. Ragged breaths leave you and you feel lucky you’re holding onto your mate for support. You know you would fall to the ground otherwise.
“Your daughter is my son’s mate and that makes her part of my family. She is mine to protect.”
The High Lord’s power lashes out but before you can see what happens to your father, black mist swirl around, blurring your vision until everything is dark and you enter a state of oblivion. 
 ✦   .  .   ˚ .      . ✦     ˚     . ★⋆.
“No-o!” Your throat is too dry, voice hoarse and the shout that leaves your croaky. You re shaking, chest heaving rapidly, but when strong arms wrap around you and you are pulled flush to a solid, warm chest, every seems to ease.
“Nyx—”
“I am right here. With you.” His lips brush your head. “You are safe. We are in Velaris. Far away from your father, my star.”
Now there is no more holding back for the tears. The run freely. The damn breaks and they burst out of your eyes. 
“I-I-my wings. He wanted to—” Your breath catches and you tio back your head, finally opening your eyes despite the stinging burn in them. “Mother. Salia!”
“Here as well.” Nyx appears in your vision and rests his forehead against yours, not giving you a chance to take in the room you are currently in. 
He exhales softly. “They are all here and safe. And your father—” He swallows. “He is taken care of.”
He offers no more of an explanation and you also don’t ask. Because you simply don’t care. He can rot in Hel…
“Thank—”
He kisses you. And then the corner of your mouth. “Never, ever thank me for something like this. You are my mate. My love. My soon-to-be wife. You are mine and also mine to protect. I love you, my star.”
“I love you, my prince.” You smile through your tears and kiss him again.
After holding each other for a bit longer, Nyx helps you rise and you can finally see the room —his room— you are in and marvel at it. It is phenomenal and Nyx explains that it is your room from now on as well.
He helps you bath and get dressed and when all is done you join the rest of his family, of your family, in the kitchen for breakfast, embracing both your mother and sister tightly, holding on so tightly as if you never want to let go again.
“The nightmare is over,” your mother whispers, and the three of you start to cry.
You later learn that Rhysand that you are under full protection of them and your mother and sister were given a small house near the Sidra river to live in from now on. You can barely thank them enough, but High Lady Feyre reaches her hand out to you and says, “We have to thank you. For the reason for our son’s happiness.”
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doudouneverte · 12 days
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a/n: I totally agree with you
Other plans
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*not my GIF*
Pairing: Sarah Zadrazil x NY/NJ Gohtam!reader; FC Bayern frauen x reader
Summary: A date with your wife while her team take care of your daughter....well that was your plan
Type: Fluff
Warning: none
word count: 1849
------------
Loud noises, and people everywhere, some walking faster than others, some who looked stressed or late. It was in this state that you left the plane. It was one of these days when you would come back to Europe after a big season in the US.
It was a hard choice to make at first. I mean, yeah, it is always hard to leave your family and your friends behind, but this time it was for football, so they understood. Well, almost everyone, because at first it was strange for your daughter to leave Germany. For her defence, a kid doesn’t really think about things like that.
“Look, it’s mama!” You’re surprisingly very energetic, yelled after she saw your wife. You look at where she was pointing to see a smiling and very beautiful Sarah waiting for you two. The middle fielder quickly closed the gap between you and hugged the little girl tightly.
“Hallo, meine mausebâr. Were you good for your mom in America?” The Bayern player asked.
“If we ignore that she was very spoilt by all the girls, then yes.” You replied while you gathered all your bags.
“I also missed you.” Your wife said before giving you a light kiss, making your daughter grimace. “Here, Maya, let’s show mama how strong you became and help us to carry the luggage in the car, okay?” 
The four-year-old girl nodded vividly and started to grab her backpack. You and Sarah took the rest of the luggage and followed your little girl to the car.
“I'm pretty surprised that she has so much energy right now.” The middle fielder remarked.
“Actually, she had a nap on the plane because she wanted to ‘not be tired and the first one to hug mama’.” You quoted with a smile. “Totally a mama’s girl.”
“Yeah, but we both know that you love our ‘mama’s girl’.” She mocked you with air quotes. “Now let’s go back home; I think you really need to rest too.” She caressed your cheek and admired your tired face.
It’s not really a surprise for her; you always had been the stressed one in the couple, so she could guess that you overthought the last night or packed and unpacked to be sure that you didn’t miss anything.
Being back in Germany, and especially in Munich, was a little strange feeling for you. Maybe because you’re Austrian, so you’re technically not ‘back home’, but the other thing was that the last time you played in the Bundesliga was when Sarah still played with you for Potsdam. Of course, southern city was a very great place for Maya to grow up, but you couldn’t help but miss the house you shared there.
“Finally back home.” Sarah announced before turning off the engine.
“Mama, can we see Sydney and Klara?” Maya asked very excited.
“It’s a little late today, but I promise that they will come to see you tomorrow after training. Now, what do you think to help me and your mom to unpack everything, and then I will give you your bath? What do you think about that?”
“Really?” The little girl asked.
“Yeah.”
“Yay, and I will show the new toys Esther brought me!”
“I really want to see them, but right now, help me to wake up your mom so she can help us, right? We can’t do everything on our own.”
After a few hours of unpacking things and a mama-daughter time, it was time to eat before sleeping.
“--and then, mommy took the ball, and she ran very, very fast to before she passed the ball to auntie Esther... Oh, auntie Esther played for Spain, and she’s really good, but I still prefer Klara and Syd–”
“Maya, please, babygirl, can you finish your dinner before?” you asked.
“But I was about to tell mama when you scored.” Your daughter pouted.
“You still can tell me before your bed story.” Your wife reassured her.
And it was with this promise on her mind that Maya finished eating and immediately waited for her mama. Being totally exhausted because of the precious hours, Sarah easily convinced you to let her deal with the four-year-old girl. When she came back to your shared bedroom, she found you still awake and waiting for her.
“She has a lot of energy recently.” She commented, making you laugh when you remembered how the team struggled to keep up with Maya’s energy.
“You should’ve seen her with Kelley. I swear this woman never grew up.”
“Well, she’s about to spend all her time with the girls.” Your wife reminded you before laying next to you. You both looked at each other, not exchanging a word, just smiling and appreciating the time together. "Congratulation, by the way. My wife is a NWSL champion.” She gave you a light kiss, which made you smile even more widely.
"Look, who’s talking? You won the Bundesliga last season. And I watched your game; you’re ready to do the same this season too.” You countered.
“I know, but it’s different when it’s come from you.”
“What do you mean by that?” You asked with a falsely offended look.
“I mean that we need to celebrate that properly, and that’s why I think I will take you on a date tomorrow.” She explained.
“Oh, really? Then I’m pretty glad to win this thing then.” You grinned and caught her lips between yours before you decided to finally call it a night. 
~~~~
The next day everything was planned to let you spend a lovely day with Sarah while some Bayern players would take your daughter to a ‘tanten and Maya day’.
“You have everything you need in her bag. I packed some snacks if she got hungry, and she had a bottle of water. If–.”
“Hey, Y/n, it’s okay. We know how to take care of our little girl here.” Jovana cut you off.
“Actually, she’s still legally our little girl, but I’m really glad that you accept to spend the day with her today.” Sarah said coming out of Maya’s bedroom.
“Okay, now where is she?” The striker asked. Just after that, you all heard some footsteps coming in your direction.
“Mommy, look, Syd bought me this.” Maya showed you a Bayern kit that, of course, the younger player brought.
“It’s suit you very well, little mause.” Linda said, making you roll your eyes. “What, isn’t she cute?” She asked you directly this time.
“Okay, now girl, we need to leave before there’s too many people.” Lea announced, and everyone followed outside.
“Lea, you’re in charge!” You told her, and she nodded. "Why do I feel a little stressed?” You asked your wife when everyone left.
“It’s okay; nothing will happen to her. She’s with her favourite aunties; nothing can happen, don’t worry. Now let’s get to change for our date.”
~~~~
Everything was perfect. It was maybe one of the best dates you ever had together. And even if there were still a little doubt about how the Bayern players took care of Maya, you forced yourself to trust them.
You were walking hand in hand with Sarah, talking about how much you missed her, and she was talking about how everything was going so far. And it was when you really started to relax that the middle fielder received a call.
“Uh, hello, Linda. Everything is alright?” When you heard that, you instantly froze.
“Yeah, of course. All is good. I just need to ask you a question. Maya still has all her baby teeth, right?” Sarah’s eyes instantly opened more wide.
“Linda, what happened?” She asked very stressed. Not knowing what her teammate was talking about, you started to get anxious. You started to gain her attention, but she was too focused on the call. “Where are you?... Okay, we’re coming right now.”
“What’s happening?” You asked when she hung up.
“Maya fell, and it seems that she lost a tooth, and she’s crying a lot.” Your wife explained before dragging you to the car.
~~~~
The ride to join the girls seemed endless. You couldn’t stop your heart from beating more than usual, your palms were sweaty because of stress, and you couldn’t look away from the road even in the passenger seat.
Once Sarah stopped the car, you immediately unbuckled your belt and rushed out of the car. You called for the girls, but no one replied. A few seconds later, Sarah was by your side, and she told you that Linda texted her precisely where they were. You followed her, a little anxious, even if your hands were attached together.
You walked a few more steps until you heard voices. You tried to decipher what they were saying, but the middlefielder dragged you with her when she started to accelerate. Then you both found Maya sitting on a bench with her favourite plush that you packed earlier. You started to run to her, but you stopped when you suddenly saw the girls coming out of nowhere.
“Surprise!!” They yelled together, making you look at them with a confused expression.
“What the hell?” Was the only thing that came out of your brain.
“We planned this before you came back.” Your wife explained after she joined you.
“Honestly, we didn’t know what to do to bring you there, so we used the help of Maya.” Lea said this time.
“Wait, you’re telling me that you almost gave me a heart attack for a…for a party?” You asked.
“Well, it’s not any party. It’s your party. Sarah thought it would be a good idea to organise that because we couldn’t be there to see your final against OL Reign.” Caro said.
“Yay, it’s mom’s party. Mama, can we eat cake now?” Maya asked, making you laugh.
“Of course, babygirl.” You said very amused.
Honestly, it was not really what you were thinking about two days ago. But you also didn’t think you could win the NWSL this season a few months ago.
And that’s how what should have been a date with your wife transformed into a party thrown to make up for something she didn’t have to.
“So, did you like your surprise?” Sarah asked once you were back at home.
“Yeah, that’s definitely the best surprise someone ever made me.” You replied.
“Well, you already gave me the best surprise I could ever dream off four years ago, and now I just try to match that, but it’s not easy.” You caressed her cheeks and admired her face with an enamoured expression.
“You don’t have to match anything; you already did so much all these years together, and I absolutely love you for that.” You said and pecked her lips gently, which helped a smile appear on her face.
The brunette was about to reply before Maya came into the living room. “Mom, can you read me a story tonight?” The four-year-old asked.
You looked at her and at Sarah before replying, “Okay, but what about, mama’s coming too?” The younger brunette nodded excitedly and ran to her bedroom, followed by you too.
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zedecksiew · 4 months
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TO PUT AWAY A SWORD
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David Blandy + Daniel Locke's post-apocalyptic hopepunk TTRPG ECO MOFOS is back from the printers. Meaning it will soon be in our hands.
Am fairly hyped for it, because I wrote an adventure!
To Put Away A Sword is about the woes of building a home on poisoned earth. The terrible powers that hurtled us to the end of the world continue to bear bitter fruit in your garden.
You are villagers living under the shadow of a fallen giant mecha. Its reactors and warheads leak into your groundwater, poison your goats. What will you do about it? What can you do?
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Mechanically it is a pointcrawl around your local valley. Not super complex, design-wise; but I was pleased with my gimmick solution for mapping both the adventure's dungeons:
Grab a mecha figure, pose it, place it on the game table; each part of the figure corresponds to a location in the dungeon key. Solves for stuff like relative orientation.
Easy!
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To Put Away A Sword is me making a mecha adventure.
Disclaimer: I am not a mecha nerd. I am unfamiliar with most of the genre. Anything I know about Gundam I've absorbed by osmosis.
I was mainly into giant robots in childhood. Receiving a Macross figure for my birthday. Pouring over the manual for The Crescent Hawks' Revenge, which my brother left behind:
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While I was not much a fan of mecha, I was very much a fan of Evangelion. I spent my middle teens obsessed with it. The biomechanical, pseudo-mystical stuff; the teen angst. I wanted to be Shinji. I thought trauma was so cool.
So cringe. Anyway:
One of the inspirations for To Put Away A Sword is the survivors-rebuilding-a-town-and-planting-rice sequence in Thrice Upon A Time; probably my favourite part of the whole franchise, now.
The joy and difficulties of trying to build your paradise in the weird ruins of the old world:
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Yeah, the adventure has a lot of Evangelion in it. There's a Nerv HQ analogue to explore. There's a content warning for child soldiers.
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The other inspiration for To Put Away A Sword is this piece of box art, an accessory set for Macross's iconic Stonewell Bellcom VF-1 Variable Fighter:
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I don't know what this kind of arrange-your-missiles-in-front-of-your-fighter-jet photo is technically called. Hardware porn parade?
You see it often enough. Here's a real-life photo of the Lockheed Martin F35 Joint Strike Fighter:
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Fairly or not, in my head I associate mecha with seeing copies of Jane's Defence in airport magazine racks. The genre feels like such a natural way to riff on the hyper-charged corpo-military-industrial complex.
After the brush war ends, and the natural resources extracted, and the ethnic cleansing concluded, and the profits announced, who gets to clean up after a Raytheon missile?
In To Put Away A Sword---you do.
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Ultimately, as always, I am writing and designing from my lived experiences.
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See that? The gas flare from the Hengyuan Refining Company? It is about 200 metres from my living room.
That gas flare surfaces constantly in the stuff I make. As I write this post I am breathing its acrid chemical smell. My nose itches. I was asthmatic as a child; I seriously worry about cancer, nowadays.
At night it lights up the sky like Barad-dur.
The plant obviously and continuously flaunts regulations. We've tried lodging complaints: with its corporate management; with the Department of Environment. Nothing has worked so far.
"A home on poisoned earth" is a visceral fact of my life.
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To Put Away A Sword is wish-fulfilment, I guess? In the world of the adventure, at least, the forces that are poisoning your home are post-peak oil.
It is nice to imagine a reality where a kind of survival and flourishing is still possible. My partner Sharon and I talk a lot about imagining hope.
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Last month she bought this small mecha-looking thing. A wireless camera! She built a little hut for it on our garden wall. It is trained, 24-7, at the gas flare.
Environmental activists we've met say video evidence of emissions is important. We'll see. We imagine it helping.
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Anyway. David just sent me this photo of my adventure, in print:
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Looking good. I hope folks play it and enjoy it.
Preorder ECO MOFOS and its adventure bundle >>>HERE<<<
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deeppenguinstudent · 13 days
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Raven elodie would be absolutely brutally sad in my imagination I fear.
Like imagine, when Jean gets marked, elodie is brought along tetsuji, and she's made to play under Jean like how jean did to Thea (so the media runs wild since riko and Kevin were considered half brothers and Jean and elodie full siblings are playing on court together in the future.)
She's trained under a senior dealer, but Edgar Allen doesn't let her stay in evermore because of her age. Anyways, once she finally reaches the line up or she essentially just joins Edgar, she resides in evermore. [The age thing does not make sense, but omg, please bear with me]. She's trained to be a dealer.
Feel like she would hate every Raven, Kevin included. Her body hurts, and her legs scream, but she doesn't care. As long as her brother is next to her. But one day, riko makes the backliners hold her down and watch what he does to Jean when she gets extra mouthy. She looks to Kevin at the side and watches him stand there with his eyes to the ground.
Why weren't they helping him? Her brother is gasping for air as the cloth hits his face, her brother is biting his lip as riko carves into his skin over and over. She watches Kevin try to pick up the pieces but she shoves him away and asks him to get the fuck away.
Her brother, the brother that used to hold her close when the children didn't want to play with her and tell her that the only friend she ever needed was him since the rest were all losers for not befriending her. Her brother, who always stood in front of her, once their father's whip struck and shielded her, was once again protecting her from monsters; abnormal people that only wanted to hurt.
She slowly cleans him up, and she retches as he teaches her how to stitch up his open wounds. They sleep together in the same bed that day, Jean crying because he doesn't want this life for her and elodie sobbing because she can't bear to watch people torment her brother any longer.
So she gets better. Zane and Grayson have been eyeing her since she came to evermore, mainly because she is probably going to be the next perfect court member, and they are angry. She allows the nasty scowls and the jibes from Grayson directed to Jean but steps in between when it gets gangrene. It's stupid she knows because both of them are 19 and look much more powerful than her undeveloped 15 year old self but she stares him down.
When kevin leaves, everything goes for worse. Rikos moods are temperamental, and none of the Ravens dare question the king. Elodie works until her body drops from exhaustion each and every night; she doesn't need to try this hard, she knows, but every mistake she makes, Jean will be punished for it and she couldn't afford that.
Riko even compliments her for once in practice as she manages to guard the defence better than grayson and he jokes and says she might be able to play beside her brother in perfect court and be a backliner instead of a dealer. This leaves grayson more furious than ever. Zane also stares at them with a sense of vexation.
She doesn't get it, really. She doesn't get it until Colleen whispers something soft into her ears, telling her to hurry up. She doesn't get it until she's pounding on the door of their shared room begging to be let in when she hears her brothers pained cries and pleas. She finally gets it when she sees Grayson with a blissed out expression and his zipper down as he whispers to her to get her whore brother cleaned up.
She slams the door behind her and places a chair in front of it. There, on the ground, she sees Jean. His eyes are dead, and no light is in them as he stares blankly at the wall. His thighs are dirtied with blood and cum and elodie feels like puking. His neck has numerous bitemarks, and his hips were bruised, and she systematically carries him to the bathroom and runs the water.
The water changes from clear to red as he soaks himself, and he looks her into the eyes, his cheeks stained with tears and mouth bitten red.
"You should have left with Kevin."
Elodie recalls the amount of punishment they both endured and her heart sobs with the implication that he thought she would leave him here to die under the hands of these monsters. She tries to smile but everything has been knocked of her, she can't see a future - she doesn't even know whether she'll be able to keep that last ember of desire to keep going burning until tomorrow.
But she has Jean and Jean has her. Nobody would understand him as well as she and vice versa. She would rebuild her brother piece by piece and give him pieces of her that have been carved out by Riko, snatched by the Ravens and willingly given to Kevin by Jean.
I like to imagine that Elodie is more outspoken, a dangerous piece on the board that's cunningly smart. She works around situations, and she knows how to trip up her teammates to be the best. She knows what it takes, and her determination is her strong point. While Jean was a survivor, elodie would be an analyser. She knows how to get under people's skin, she puts on a mask to be liked by the Ravens, and there's undoubtedly sure she would do anything to protect her brother.
So when she sees Andrew holding Jean's hand in a vice grip, she pushes him hard, under the hoax of oh, I'm sorry I had to get my shoe. When she sees Kevin again, she stares him down cold and doesn't let Jean reply to him opting to speak to him instead.
I have so many ideas for Raven elodie but I think it mainly stemmed from the audio, she's my sister and she's no bitch but I am tbh
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waxingrunes · 10 months
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I understand if you’re too busy to answer this or don’t want to, but i was wondering if you wouldn’t mind telling us some of your non-explicit headcanons or just some traits you think wolfstar have in general? Your explicit ones are sososo hot but today I'm feeling low and need some comforting. Yiur blog is just a safe space for me but I totally understand if not! I love your work <3 all my love x
There are so many nondescript hc’s I have that this has the potential to turn into a formal essay with cited sources, so I’ll go for more of a generalised dump of info I have for each in a hope that it lifts some of your fog Anon. Maybe bullet pointed because it’ll be easier to read than my usual untidy form of communication. Hope you feel lighter soon.
Sirius
• will lick a yoghurt pot if there’s no clean spoons. There’s the option to go for fruit instead, but he wants the yoghurt and by god he will get his yoghurt
• is a fucking terrible driver, gives Remus and any passenger white knuckles due to speed issues and not using a lower gear when taking corners
• is however, in complete control when on a motorcycle; very hot, very controlled and will take his passenger’s safety very seriously
• professionally trained in ballroom and ballet, the latter which he is sometimes mocked in jest for, even by Remus, until he one time caught him stretching elegantly on the floor one morning with his upper body laid flat between long, toned, wide spread legs, ‘morning moony’, a healthy blush on his cheeks
• private crier, doesn’t cry easily
• goes quiet when angry as an initial defence but it doesn’t take long for him to start dropping breadcrumbs of sarcastic comments; can also be snobby and bratty, perhaps sometimes will get nasty and direct (bringing up things he shouldn’t to score points in the heat of the moment)
• suffers immeasurable guilt (helped by the point above) but is always masking a weighted feeling of guilt no matter what he’s doing, so much so it’s manifested into quite a serious anxiety problem in the wrong crowds
• he fidgets a lot, not in a chaotic way, just always has to have his fingers busy with something
• likes the smell of gasoline
• once had to talk himself down from throwing a child in a dustbin
• loves the colour red; blood red and cherry red to be precise but secretly loves dark blue even more because it’s what looks most handsome on Remus despite him not wearing it often
• sighs a lot
• pretended he couldn’t speak English to get away with jumping a queue
• hates the smell and taste of liquorice (unless heavily strawberry/cherry/raspberry flavoured)
• on one particular messy night out he got so impatient waiting at the bar, he reached over and grabbed a discarded bottle of alcohol the server had left open and swigged it
• digs his nails into his skin when anxious and is often reminded to relax the tension in his joints
• stargazes often
• once linked his pinky finger with Remus and asked him to pinky promise not to tell anyone what he was about to tell him, since which a tradition of trust was born where Remus will offer his pinky or the last two fingers for Sirius to hold or squeeze when he’s feeling unsure in public, or in any situation where verbal reassurance isn’t appropriate
• gets a weird thrill at the sound of cork popping from a bottle
Remus
• collects beer mats and keeps them in a drawer, thinks about making them into a display
• got tired of kids playing ball against the wall of his place (after repeat offences and him asking very nicely for them to stop) one day so went out, retrieved the ball and threw it so hard against of the cars it set the alarm off
• owner of said car came running out the house and Remus blamed it on the children. Never had the same issue again
• has a wildly sweet tooth and will always drop one or two packets of sugar into any warm beverage
• stares into space and gets involuntarily caught on someone’s face one too many times which makes them uncomfortable from the ‘Death Stare’ phenomenon when in reality, he’s lost in lala land
• can cook, is actually a proficient cook, but will not cook for anyone but Sirius, James or Lily
• will crack his knuckles, wrists and neck absentmindedly, all of which makes his company squirm because it’s often very loud and ‘pop-py’ but Sirius fucking loves it
• stays very calm during an argument but can shout louder than most and when he does, ears ring from the silence that follows
• prefers tea over coffee
• will eat liquorice any time he wants to piss Sirius off
• cries more than Sirius, but still a private crier
• always has to be the old boot in Monopoly
• loves words that are vowel heavy or double voweled because those are the ones where the scraps of Sirius’ lost French accent surface the most
• has a gentle touch, is aware of his size and nature of his lycanthropy, therefore always somewhat reserved
• loves socks, has a collection of ‘dad socks’
• has the messiest writing out of all the Marauders but loves handwritten things, owns three very different fountain pens for very different purposes
• is polite, but as he’s aged doesn’t tend to ‘fake smile’ a lot, feeling no need to fill uncomfortable silences for the sake of others
• has a chair he favours and often dozes off in it. Most of the time waking up to Sirius on top of him
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esggs · 20 days
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Obeisance to the Arrow - Noritoshi Kamo
#8 : Ice-Cream Date 
[why should you trust Noritoshi Kamo? Why should he trust you?]
[tw: noritoshi kamo x reader, arranged marriage, Danny DeVito, forced marriage, child marriage, small filler chapter a bit to round out the plot, omg they’re getting along, house captivity, fluff]
#7 - Jealousy, Jealousy
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“This is not fun at all.” You huff at Noritoshi Kamo. “I want to throw flying kicks.”
Your husband has got you doing warm-up shit for the past half an hour: running, touching toes, stretching. For someone who spitefully promised to replace Kanato, his half-brother, as your martial arts tutor, he’s not letting you do much of martial arts. Only the promise of letting you shoot arrows from his bow is making you not immediately leave the training room.
“You’ll injure yourself if you do all that without any prior training. We’ll go step-by-step. Now–” Kamo leans over you from behind, lightly pulling your waist to correct your downward dog form (you reckon your blush can be put down to exercise; you’re just 14 after all). “– Distil me, and predict my next movements. That’s useful in combat.” 
Is this a test? Noritoshi knows that you’re strictly forbidden from using your cursed technique, under the threat of heavy punishment. Maybe he’s trying to get me into trouble so I can’t go to Jujutsu High. But… didn’t he sign my school admission papers himself? Did he change his mind?
“I never use Distillation, not since I came here.” You’re not taking any chances. Going to Jujutsu High is literally the only way you can be independent. Or else you live the rest of your life like Miyumi Kamo does: disrespected and discarded once her use was over. So you lie through your teeth: “I don’t even remember how to use it.”
“It’s impossible to forget your cursed technique. It’s engraved onto your brain, body and soul. So go ahead, Distil me.”
What game are you playing, Kamo?
“I can’t.”
“You already did, didn’t you?” Your heart skips a beat. Fuck. “Every night when you think I’m asleep. So go ahead now,” Kamo face is straight, no taste of humour or anger in it. “Read my thoughts.”
There’s no point hiding it now. You’re struck seeing your situations so plainly: Noritoshi Kamo is the heir of the opulent and influential Kamo Clan. You are his wife and nothing more. He has the power to decide whether your cursed technique usage goes punished or praised. He has the power to ruin your life. Right when you were forming buds of friendship, you are starkly reminded of the difference between your stations.
And you can’t not be you. “I don’t take commands.” I’m fucking this up so bad. “You might be angry about the whole Kanato thing, but don’t burden me with your issues. I don’t take commands.” Shit. I’m done for. I’m not going to Jujutsu High, am I?
You don't understand Kamo, not even after all the times you've read his mind through and through, because he simply nods. Nothing more. “A request then?” He makes an effort, you can tell, to soften his voice.
You stand still like a statue. All he was trying was to give some space to practise your cursed technique; he just ended up pushing you back into your shell. Or rather a fortress, where you, a scared little child, hoard other people’s secrets, to be used against them when the time comes... the only defence you have. And to think that he was actually doing so well trying to get you to come out of there. How do I fix this?
“Do you want to go out for ice-cream?” 
Your eyes open wide in shock. You’re usually not allowed to leave the Kamo estate; the last time you did was maybe 2 years ago? You don’t even remember. 
“Out?”
“It’ll be my treat, don’t worry. No one will say anything.”
Can he actually do that? Can he convince the elders? You’re a threat to society, you’ve internalised that by this point. Isn’t it wrong for you to go out?
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“I love going out! This is AMAZING!” You can’t stop taking pictures of everything- everyone! So many people! So many things to see! The smell of roasting dalgona, the lanterns hanging from cables overhead, the latest streetwear-clad bikers smoking, the businessman walking briskly, the mother scolding her children! Aeon Mall, Porta, Kyoto Station Building– you’re going through all of them, making the most out of your day out!
“You’ll be able to go out whenever you want when you’re in Jujutsu High.” Kamo, carrying your many shopping bags, reminds you calmly. You seem to have gotten over prior spat. 
“Take a picture of me here!” “I want to try double-decker donuts!” “Let’s get these Prada shawls, please, Noritoshi-san!” 
She’s so lucky she was born into money. Noritoshi enjoys seeing you this ecstatically happy. It’s just the two of you, Kamo doesn’t need any bodyguards or handlers. As you sit for an Italian dinner, he decides that it’s okay to breach your previous topic.
“yn, I’m very curious–”
“Do you think those shoes that guy’s wearing are ugly? 'Cuz I think they’re Danny DeVito level ugly.”
“– Gossiping isn’t good. As I was saying, I really want to know how your powers work, yn. Would you be okay telling me?”
You laugh at him, cheeks full of penne alfredo. “I don’t know much either, frankly. I wasn’t allowed to look into it, you know. Besides, if you’re looking for a method to block it, give up. Not even Gojo Satoru could do that.”
Kamo’s eyes are keen. “Why not?”
“Because it works on photons of light. Gojo’s Infinity works on matter, not light, because otherwise he’d be invisible. Distillation can speed up light in a very specific way so that I can 'see' glimpses of the past... understand the story, in a way. Anything I perceive with my eyes, I can Distil. Everything I can see, I know.” You say. "I kept getting headaches because it was just too much information at once, so I made a Binding Vow. I have to ask a very specific question so that I get a very specific answer, but in exchange I get to know answers for at least 50 years back in the past."
To think this talent was to be wasted. “You’re incredible.” I’ll protect her. I’ll have to. 
That also reminds him. “So all those times you Distilled me at night, you didn't ask if was sleeping?"
You smile sheepishly, "I was sure that you were."
He returns your smile. A rare moment. "So you know me, then?”
“Thoroughly.”
“Then you know that I am not your enemy.”
“I reckon.”
“And that I am trustworthy.”
You laugh. He might be as trustworthy as the sun, but you don’t know how to trust others. Still- "I'm sorry for Distilling you when you were asleep."
"I'd rather you ask me before you do that the next time. It's more polite." He uses the toasted bread to scoop up some pasta sauce. You copy him. "I see that there's no point keeping secrets from you?"
"Absolutely none."
"Then it's my right that you keep none from me, either."
Eh? He's not wrong but... He's asking you to trust him. Like friends do. Like married couples do. For all that he is, Noritoshi Kamo has no leverage in front of his wife: you alone decide how much you want to reveal to him.
"Alright, then. Whatever you ask me, I'll answer you honestly, as long as it is okay to do so." You promise. Kamo wipes a smidge of sauce from your cheek with a tissue. His way of saying, "Thank you."
“Noritoshi-san, teach me to spar properly. I don’t want to appear so weak among my classmates.”
“Is that a command?” You’re about to excuse yourself when you notice that he’s smiling. Holy fuck, he’s making a joke??
“Yes, Lord Kamo.” You play along.
“As you wish, Lady Kamo.”
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