#in my defense i have tried many times it just never stuck until it did

[vicioustoker]

they're so stupid i would die for them

[strawbeerossi]

Cherry

Pairing: Fem!Reader x Spencer Reid

Description: You decide to wear a little tank top to your lecture and you catch the attention of Dr. Reid.

Content/Warnings: Power imbalance, professor/student, age gap (r 20s, s 40s), reader is a bit of a tease, tit worship, oral (m rec), tit fucking, cum on tits.

Word Count: 1.7K

Kinktober Day Twenty Seven: Tit Fucking

Navigation || Kinktober Masterlist || AO3

In your defense you had to do laundry and you just didn’t have the time before your lecture. You were lucky enough to find a pair of shorts, however you were stuck with a tank top that barely covered much of anything. You made sure to get your sweater before heading out, draping it over your shoulders as you were running out of your apartment. Campus was only about a ten minute walk, so you didn’t mind too much taking the brief walk.

As you’d made it to the old building where the criminal justice classes were held, you were pushing open the doors as you headed inside. Taking the same path as usual, it wasn’t long until you were making it to the lecture hall that Dr. Reid used Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays. His class was always an interesting one, your love of criminal justice being newfound. At first, you’d audited a separate criminal justice class and ended up being genuinely interested.

As you walked into the heavy doors, you were blushing as all the eyes were on you. You were late, however it wasn’t too bad. Dr. Reid wasn’t on a long tangent yet so you knew you were safe. “Please take a seat.” His voice spoke up while he offered a smile, turning his attention back to the board as he was writing his layout of the lecture. “Make sure you sign the sheet as well, I need to keep track of attendance.”

As you made your way to an empty desk towards the front of the class, you were placing your backpack by your side as you kept your gaze on the board after pulling out your laptop to take notes. You’d spent a good chunk of class asking a majority of questions or being called on. Maybe you were delusional but you felt like he was putting extra focus on you today. You had hardly spoken to your professor, so you weren’t sure why the sudden interest.

It didn’t occur to you that your attire was what had his full attention. The way the white tank top showed off a tasteful view of your cleavage was enough to make Spencer want to drool. He’d always been a fan of tits, having an affinity with them. They were just.. So perfect. Soft, warm, begging to be touched. However, he tried composing himself. You were his student. This was inappropriate.

As the class was coming to an end, you were staying after to apologize for your tardiness. Not many professors accepted such apologies but Dr. Reid was understanding. He knew what it was like to be a student who was all over the place. Today though, he wished you would’ve left. “Dr. Reid, I just wanted to apologize. I know I wasn’t too desperately late but I still feel like it’s my responsibility to let you know that I’m sorry. I didn’t respect your time,”

Spencer was turning to look at you while putting his hands up. “Nonsense. I’d never hold it against you. Things happen.” His face was red as his eyes were struggling to say locked with yours. You were a bit confused by the look on his face but you had brushed it off. “I just feel horrible,” You spoke while you let your arms cross slowly over your chest.

Whenever you did, Spencer couldn’t help but let his eyes cast downwards, your arms under your breasts enough to push them up and give him quite the sight. His hand was slowly moving to straighten out his tie as he couldn’t seem to tear his eyes from your smooth skin. That was hard to ignore so you let your eyes glance down before noticing just what captivated your professor’s attention. Instead of moving to cover your partially exposed chest, you were sticking it out more. You liked the attention, if you were honest. You weren’t used to getting too much of it.

Spencer was licking over his bottom lip while letting his eyes drag up from your chest to your neck, then stopping on your face. “I know what you’re trying to do and it’s inappropriate.” He stated in a simple tone while you raised an eyebrow. “I don’t know what you mean, Dr. Reid. I was just minding my own business and you were staring at my chest. I think you’re the one acting inappropriately, not to mention highly unprofessional.” You stated. There were no hard feelings actually, you just found it incredibly hot to find your professor staring at your body, a hungry look in his eyes.

“Wearing what you are wearing right now is equally inappropriate. Do you know how distracting it is whenever an attractive woman has her tits in your face for the whole lecture and after the fact?” He asked, continuing on with this little game. “You think I’m attractive? I’m flattered, sir.” You didn’t know where the rush of confidence came from, however you enjoyed this. Wearing a tank top and going braless to class wasn't a choice you’d made on purpose, however the reaction it pulled out of your professor was too good to pass up.

“I can always take it off instead?” You suggested. The mere idea being mentioned had your professor groaning lowly as he glanced at the door of the lecture hall. He didn’t have another class for thirty minutes, plus his fellow coworkers weren’t going to barge in because of their own plans. “Come here.” He grunted, waiting for you to get close enough before grabbing your tank top and tugging it down. Your tits spilled over the thin material as he did so, the male letting out a whine of sorts as he brought his hands to your chest. His hands cupped your breasts, giving them a squeeze and eliciting a whine from you. “Can’t believe you wore this to class of all places. I bet you wanted my attention.”

Your cheeks were heating up at the accusation, his hands kneading at your soft flesh as he was dipping his head down to flick his tongue against your right nipple. As he sucked and flicked at the hardened nub, your fingers tangled in his soft curls. “Fuck.” You cursed, watching as your professor was having a field day licking and sucking at your tits. He looked like a boob guy so it made sense on why he’d spend so much time in them. His warm tongue was dragging over every ounce of your skin as he alternated between nipples. While one was in his mouth, the other was being pinched and rolling through his long fingers.

By the time he’d had enough, he was pulling away with a satisfied hum as he assessed the damage he had made. There were purple marks all over your skin, nipples standing at full attention and the shine of his saliva shining under the bright lights of the lecture hall. “Get on your knees.” The man commanded. Who were you to argue? You watched as he was tugging down his pants and boxers just enough to let his hardened cock spring to life, smacking against his abdomen. You were definitely staring, mouth watering as you took in the beauty of the dick in front of you. With a slight curve and bulging veins along with a leaking head, it was a beautiful sight.

“Gonna have to have you get it wet enough so I can fuck those pretty tits of yours.” He murmured, watchinf as you were quick to take the tip of his cock in your mouth. You massaged his slit with your tongue before hearing him tell you to hurry up due to the time getting shorter and shorter until another group of students were coming in. Swallowing down his cock the best of your ability, you were letting your head move slowly along the shaft as your cheeks hollowed. Once he felt like he was lubed up enough to avoid rubbing your skin raw, his hand was roughly gripping your hair before tugging you off of him.

Your hands were coming up to your chest to push your breasts together, watching the male standing above you stroke his cock a few times before getting in a good position. His cock was sliding between them, a low groan leaving his lips. “You look so good on your knees for me.” He commented, voice low as he was starting by slowly slotting his dick through the valley of your tits. “Gonna make a mess of your chest. Gonna show you why you shouldn’t wear shit like that in my class.” He huffed, his thrusts getting a bit more intense by the minute.

As his cock slotted effortlessly through the valley of your breasts, you were dipping your head down to attempt at licking any part of him that you could with each thrust. Even with your spit lubing him up, you knew that you were going to feel the after effects later but you honestly didn’t care. His thrusts continued, eventually growing sloppy as the whines, whimpers and moans were falling from his lips. Even with some dominance, he whined and whimpered with each thrust, relishing in the feeling of your soft flesh enclosing his cock. “I’m gonna cum.” His voice slurred, thrusts still a bit sloppy but it wasn’t long until the warmth of his sticky cum was on your chest, some even on your chin from the line of fire. With his spent decorating your chest, Spencer had to grab his phone to snap a quick picture of you. “You look so sexy, I can’t help myself.” He chuckled.

As he was tucking his cock back into his bottoms and tugging them up, he was grabbing a tissue from his desk before offering it out to you, letting you get cleaned up. Once the tank top was covering your most valuable assets, he was chuckling. “You should get out of here.” He commented, making you nod as you tried to make yourself look presentable. On your way out, you stopped when you heard his voice. “Oh, by the way.” He began, making you turn.

“Never wear a tank top to my class again.”

[mischiefmaker615]

Take Two

Summary: Somehow you find yourself facing 2 Loki's! but don't worry.. you're in safe hands..

Loki from the Thor films will be be Loki(OG) and Loki will be from Ragnarok/Infinity Wars era. bare with me *sweats*

Rated: R

Note: *sweats more* my first threesome one shot of some sorts..

Front row seats: @asgards-princess-of-mischief @eleniblue @itgirl-cad @firelightinferno @liminalpebble @izka8520 @huntedmusicgardenn @loki-laufeyson223 @skittslackoffilter

‘’you will not harm her.’’

‘’I have no intentions on harming her, I assure you. just those who are in my way..’’

You lost track of how many times your eyes have gone back and forth until they gave up once you began getting circled. You had no memory of what had happened a few hours ago, just how you went to bed and.. that’s it. was this a dream? A nightmare? No.. it couldn’t be.. Loki was here, you knew you wouldn’t be harmed.. yet you still tried wrapping your head around the fact that somehow your wrists were strapped to a chair. The cold temperature in the room reminded you just how short your nightgown was as it stopped mid-thigh, hugging your body tighter then the oxygen that struggled to leave your lungs as you took in the scene before you.

Loki(OG) passed your right side once more, chest out and strutting elegantly in his royal attire of leather and armor. His eyes weren’t on you, thankfully.. his dagger clutched in his hand as he held his attention on his opponent that came before you once more in a completely circle and they both kept going. This Loki was dressed similarly just.. less armor, a more casual form but still held the vibe that he was royal and could strike you down in half a second- thus clutching his own dagger with his eyes on the.. other Loki.

‘’where am i?’’ you manage to get your mouth to form words as you realized you were shaking. ‘’how did I get here?-‘’ it looked like you were almost in an interrogation room, with you three being the only ones in the light, surrounded by darkness. If anyone would take a few steps back anywhere, they would surly not be seen. However your voice was enough to have them both pause a few steps away from either side of you, their stance still in defense towards the other but their eyes at least never showed you anything with bad intentions..

‘’you are safe darling, we are.. unsure of our whereabouts as well-‘’ Loki(OG) started, his voice gentle as if it were to calm you as his eyes traveled your body as you shook.

‘’we both know you, it is quite difficult to know who exactly you belong too- but I am most certainly not going to give you up if there is a slight chance you are mistakenly placed’’ Loki snapped as he held his dagger defensively towards the other Loki(OG), fully intending to protect you as your body tensed.

‘’what are you talking about?’’

‘’the multiverse.’’ They both said in unison.

That’s right.. now you remember.. Dr Strange must have accidently hit you instead of.. whoever you were fighting and must have sent you.. here? whatever universe you were stuck in now,.. you supposed this one had multiple Loki’s.

‘’not multiple love, but the same, in each stage of life brought together. Or at least… the two of us. The other’s in the other branches must not have been affected.’’ Loki(OG) explained, smirking as your eyes widened at the fact that he had read your mind.

‘’in our branch, there is a version of you, exactly how you are now. You disappeared.. I am here to take you back with me where you belong.’’ Loki said gently, as if his tone alone would convince you but the other Loki(OG) stepped closer.

‘’she belongs on my timeline- I will not lose her again’’ Loki(OG) snapped and they both starred each other down.

‘’I remember-‘’ you started, making them both look back at you. ‘’I was attacked in my apartment, some Hydra agents that Strange was tracking- something happened and I was accidently sent here to these.. to a different branch as you say..’’ you explained, getting why you were in your nightgown now. ‘’but that still doesn’t explain why I’m tied up-‘’

Loki(OG) chuckled, turning your attention over to him. ‘’you have a tendency to be a bit.. feisty when you awaken suddenly or are in foreign surroundings. it was a way to have you find yourself calmly.’’

‘’well in any case..’’ you said slowly, still trying to wake up from whatever dream.. nightmare- you still weren’t sure- this was. ‘’you both aren’t the Loki I know.. the one on my branch is quite different.. he and I didn’t become a thing until he was a bit older than.. I suppose how you are right now..’’ you explain slowly as you look towards the more.. casual dressed Loki. You felt your cheeks reddening at the subject, but you both didn’t become a thing until he was a part of the TVA. Before he dropped you to your branch..

They both looked at each other and tensed, but you knew they could tell you weren’t lying, and their expressions turned to disappointment.

‘’well, I suppose we should both begin our search then for the other version of yourself, you are clearly apart of a different branch.’’ Loki said quietly and slowly vanished his dagger, his body relaxing as the other did the same.

‘’or.. perhaps we could have a little fun with this..’’ Loki(OG) said in a quieter tone as his eyes dragged back to you, making your hands clench as you tried to unnoticeably pull your wrists against your restraints.

The other Loki was silent, having an unreadable expression like all the others as he looked to you as well. Somehow the room seemed to feel smaller, darker, or perhaps it felt that was when Loki(OG) found himself at your side, his thigh barely ghosting against yours as your eyes rose to meet his hungry gaze.

‘’take me home..’’ you said quietly, fear and nervousness of the unknown dripping off your voice as your thighs pressed together.

‘’we will my darling, we will..’’ he seemed to coo, dragging light finger tips against your cleavage, his eyes drinking any skin you had exposed before his slender digits ghosted upward, trailing a finger to trace your collarbone. ‘’we promise, we love you.. in all our branches, and you love us. You cant tell me you haven’t thought of the possibilities..’’ he dared as his hand trailed up your neck and grasped your jaw now so you were looking at him. ‘’magic has its ways, duplicates though can be it’s own.. erotic adventure..’’

Although you couldn’t move your head, you strained your eyes to look down as you felt a pair of hands gently rest at your bare knees, caressing the skin with long, cold digits and you knew it was the other Loki. He sank down to his knees before you, having no trouble prying your legs apart as your fingers gripped the arms of the chair.

‘’please…’’ you begged, barely a whisper as your heart rate picked up. You loved Loki, the one you were with back home.. you knew these two were also Loki.. but not? It all felt so strange, so much to wrap your head around and you felt Loki(OG) tilt your head up to look up at him again.

‘’calm that beautiful mind of yours love. We will take great care of you and will not force you into anything you wouldn’t enjoy’’ he whispered, sinking down on one kneel to your side and you felt the tip of his nose ghost against your neck as he inhaled. ‘’mm practically perfect in any universe..’’ he whispered..

‘’she feels perfectly the same as she did when I had her.. gods I’ve missed you..’’ Loki’s lips murmured as he began kissing the inside of your thigh by your knee and he slowly dragged his lips towards your center with open mouth kisses.

The other (OG)Loki’s hand left your jaw as you moved to look away from him, only to feel his fingers slowly glide up into your hair and pulled just enough to tilt your head back, making you whimper just slightly. Your breaths were short, eyes wide, and mind doing it’s best to think rather than to feel. Although, they were making it extremely difficult as you felt (OG)Loki’s tongue drag itself against your neck, sucking at your skin while his other hand ghosted over your breast.

You shamefully felt yourself arch every so slightly, catching yourself as you retreated but he was already smirking against your skin. ‘’do not deny the pleasures of this world darling, we do not know how long we have in its universe after all’’ he whispered and gently began massaging your breast.

Yoi felt yourself shiver, trying to strain your back from arching until the soreness made you give up and pushed more against his wicked hand. You felt the other Loki between your legs, having switched to your other thigh as he caressed it with his mouth. He had switched just before he had got to your center and you hated yourself for feeling disappointed.

‘’do not fret darling, I promise we will get there’’ he smirked up at you as his hands caressed your knees as his lips continued.

‘’s-stay out of my head..’’ you whimper, feeling (OG)Loki’s hand now raise and move itself under your nightgown to grope you properly, playing with our nipples as he alternated between your globes.

‘’as you wish darling, your body tells us just enough..’’ he whispered before spreading your legs wider and raised your nightgown ever so slightly to reveal black, lace panties.

‘’my my it was almost as if you were expecting something tonight’’ he smirked and his eyes flashed dangerously up at yours. ‘’I do hope that particular Dr didn’t see anything that didn’t belong to him..’’

You felt the other (OG)Loki’s grip in your hair tighten ever so slightly as he pinched your nipple, making a gasp leave your lips as you arch.

‘’even if he has, it would just be another reason to claim you. over.. and over.. and over again..’’ he whispered and began nibbling on your ear lobe, causing goosebumps to spring up upon your skin as he squeezed at your breast.

Another gasp left your mouth as you felt the flat of Loki’s tongue play against your center against the panties while his fingers slid up against your hips and gripped your underwear.

‘’as beautiful as they are, they have no use anymore’’ he smirked and pulled them down and they were history behind him as he spread you wide again.

Your heart pounded as you felt his breath against your center, teasing you at first as your legs shook. The other Loki(OG) pulled your shirt down, using the stretchy fabric to his advantage so he could place his mouth on your breast now. A moan left your mouth before you could think to silence yourself and you already knew they both were smirking as your cheeks reddened.

‘’that’s more like it darling...’’ Loki murmured before he gave you a long lick against your cunt.

A gasp left your lips as you head fell back, your arms straining against the binds as your pleasure already began to build. The tip of his tongue began teasing your clit, flicking and lapping against it while he took turns sucking as well.

Your body shook and your breaths were almost none existent until you forced yourself to breath periodically while he massaged your clit. Both had wicked tongues, giving you an overwhelming state of pleasure, there was too much to keep track of what was going on. Your eyes squeezed shut, allowing yourself to just feel and your lips parted with no words.

Loki(OG) flicked his tongue against your nipple, nibbling and sucking while making sure to give the other equal attention.

Your eyes fluttered open as you moaned, feeling his tongue plunge inside you, feeling how his moan vibrated your inside which only built more to your pleasure. Your arms strained, wanting so desperately to grasp his hair, to touch.. someone.. and feeling him smirk against your cunt, you didn’t even care if he read your mind or not.

Your eyes opened once more to find that Loki(OC) was now nose to nose with you, his lips ghosting yours as a hand remained playing with your chest while the other now returned to your jaw, his thumb brushing against your lip before opening your mouth slightly.

‘’you’re going to cum for us darling, right now’’ he murmured, pressing his lips to yours as he caressed your tongue with his, almost feeling like the same movement as the wicked tongue attacking your center.

You moaned in his mouth, leaning forward as much as possible as he grasped your hair and got tongue fucked by both your mouth and your cunt. It was to much and your center squeezed and fluttered just as he added his fingers to play with your cunt. Moaning shamelessly into (OG)Loki’s mouth as Loki drove his tongue into you, helping you ride it out as you spasmed and shook before having calmed down once their movements slowed down.

Panting, Loki(OG) smirked as he leaned up and brushed his lips to your forehead, the other wiping his face and licking his fingers, making your cheeks redden.

‘’we won’t stop until we find you love, I’m sure you’ll have a lot of new ideas once you return. Magic nearly makes anything possible. Perhaps your Loki could conjure up a few more’’ Loki(OG) smirked, winking as he stroked your cheek while you looked dick drunk even though they’ve used everything except cock. Just the idea made your eyes wonder and Loki gave a dangerous look while he leaned down to be nose to nose with you.

‘’I think we still have some time left before this Dr of yours finds you..’’

[wholewheatcatloaf]

ESPRIT DE CORPS [Legendary: Success]

Kim stands outside the back door of Precinct 41, smoking. Jean walks up next to him and lights a cigarette. He takes a deep drag and hesitates for a long, tense moment before opening his mouth.

"We need to talk."

"Yes we do," Kim replies. The lieutenant's words are quick and ready like a loaded pistol. "Your actions earlier were highly unprofessional. I understand that you still don't believe Harry has changed, but you can't speak to him like that in front of the other officers. Give him a chance to prove himself -- or at least, keep your feelings to yourself so the rest of the precinct can."

Jean frowns as the two make eye contact. Kim's voice is calm and professionally cold, but the fire in his eyes betrays him. They're full of anger, defensiveness, overshadowed by a tender protectiveness.

It's a look that's painfully familiar.

Jean maintains eye contact. "How long has Harry been sober this time?"

"Three months. You already know this, he stopped cold turkey the day after he lost his memory."

"I was just wondering if he'd slipped up yet." Jean looks down at his cigarette and ashes it. "Figured if anyone knew, it'd be you. I've known him for almost five years now, and I've lost track of how many times he's tried to go sober. He usually falls off the wagon by now, but the longest he's gone without a drink is six months."

Jean looks up again. "You haven't seen the full cycle yet, you've only seen him on the upswing. The longer he's sober, the harder he'll relapse. He won't realize how much his tolerance has gone down, and he'll be furious at himself, and the world, and at you for trying to help him. Look."

Jean leans over and parts the hair on the side of his head to reveal a scar. It's still pink, hasn't yet faded to silver against his pale skin.

"That last time, he was doing okay until a particularly difficult case. He was placed on leave for a week. I was worried about him -- what he might do without work to keep him busy. I stopped by his apartment to check on him."

Jean hesitates. "He was naked, covered in vomit. Too drunk to talk. Just kept mumbling "fuck you" and "lemme die" as I cleaned him up. After half an hour of trying to get him out of the tub I finally snapped at him, knowing he wouldn't remember anything I said anyway. I think I told him he's an asshole for always making his feelings everyone else's problem. He punched me, and I fell back and hit my head on the corner of the sink."

He takes a deep breath, glaring at nothing on the ground in front of him, then continues. "Of course he didn't remember anything the next day. He said sorry a million times but it was clear he couldn't quite wrap his head around the idea that it had actually happened."

"It was like that every time he went too hard on the drink. He'd scream, make threats, sometimes hurt people. You've heard about the case with the two drunks, right? Then once it's over, the monster who did all those things is just gone. Harry is back, with nothing but tearful apologies and heartfelt promises that he'll never do any of it again."

Jean finally looks up again. Kim's shoulders are still tense but his expression has gone from angry to unreadable. He was ready for a fight, not this.

"I stuck by that asshole's side for years. I told myself that he would get better someday. That those times he saved my life somehow made up for the way he treated me during his benders, and that the apologies really meant something even though I knew he was just going to get drunk and do it again. And every time he would hate himself a little more. And then he'd drown that hatred with even more alcohol."

Jean takes one last drag of his cigarette before stubbing it out on his shoe. "The thing with alcoholics is... Once they've given up on themselves, you have no choice. You have to give up on them too. For your own sake. If you try to run their lives for them, to pick up the slack whenever their addiction makes them drop the ball on something, you'll only end up enabling them. I did that for too long. And now you're trying to tell me that after I finally accepted the truth and let go, this is the time he finally got his shit together? I don't believe it."

Kim is silent for a while. He looks down at his cigarette, burnt down to the filter. He stubs it out and tosses it into a nearby trashcan, then he looks up at Jean. "I'm very sorry you had to go through that," he says carefully. The anger in his voice is gone. "It must have been incredibly difficult. I don't blame you for hitting your limit. But... I think this time really is different."

"I hope you're right, but unless-" Jean's voice cracks suddenly, surprising himself. "I can't trust him unless I know he's finally changed."

"Only time will tell," Kim says quietly.

[watermelons-dont-grow-on-trees]

Back Home

for now this is where the story ends chronologically

did i manage to mention 2 characters ive never even spoken of before? yes! that is to say, the story's far from finished, this is just the latest current event in the timeline as i think of it (edit: they're introduced in the honeymoon chapters so they aren't that random anymore)

masterlist

previous

TW: ptsd, whumpee visiting whumper, lots of dehumanisation, very fucked up dynamic changes

Emery had stared at the shiny surface of Luke's business card for what seemed like hours. She should have ripped it in half and thrown it at him before heading back to the courtroom, instead she pocketed it and only remembered she had it at home.

She was too anxious to sit down, and placed her phone on the kitchen counter staring at the numbers she copied from the card.

Was she really about to flush all the progress she made down the drain and call him? The man who kept her as a pet for years, Luke Fletcher, who made her life a living hell even after she escaped, a small piece of him still stuck in her brain like years old gum stuck to a bench in the park.

It was true that she needed the money, but was it really worth it becoming indebted to that monster?

She pressed on the call button without thinking further. It rang loud and clear each beep sending shivers down her spine. She prayed he wouldn't pick it up. Then she could've had a peace of mind, and when he inevitably called back, revenge would taste sweet as she would disconnect the line.

"Fletcher-Richards, how can I help?" she shuddered, the familiar phrase had been burnt into her mind, of course he gave her his private number. She lost all sense of what she was about to say. No words came to mind she just stared at the phone.

"Em?" he asked, figuring it out quickly. She swallowed hard.

"Yes" she confirmed.

"Great, I was wondering when you'd call. Listen, I looked into your lawyer better, and I severely overestimated him, he doesn't stand a chance. I was thinking-"

"I'm sorry, S-" she stopped herself just in time not to say it "sorry, but I don't want to talk. I just want to know if you meant it? About the money?" Emery hoped the correction was smooth enough that he didn't notice.

"I wouldn't have offered if I didn't" he scoffed "Just hear me out okay?"

"Sure" she sighed. No matter how hard she tried to convince herself she was allowed to say no, she didn't actually know how.

"I can give you the number of another lawyer, who'll help you out and maybe even get you a good deal. He's the second best in the city"

"The best one wasn't available, huh?" she half whispered it, but Luke still replied.

"I don't think the same person can represent both the defense and prosecution in the same trial" Emery knew that he was laughing. As if the whole situation was a joke between old friends "I'll arrange it for you, just come by tomorrow"

"To-tomorrow?" Way too soon.

"Would you prefer to drag it out a few more days?" Of course not. She knew she wouldn't sleep at night anyway.

"No. Sorry"

"I'm home all day, the gate will open for your car"

...

She took a deep breath and knocked on the door. There still was some hope they'd miss the sound and she could just leave. Tell Luke noone opened the door when he inevitably calls.

"Good morning, come on in" he greeted her with a bright smile and stepped aside to let her in. The familiar scent of the house filled up her lungs and for a moment she thought she'd burst into tears.

"Make yourself comfortable" he gestured towards the living room to her left "The papers are in my office, I'll be right back"

She stayed frozen in place until she lost sight of him as he disappeared in the stairwell.

Nothing had changed. The floor was still covered by the long red running carpet she cleaned so many times before. The walls were the same eggshell white colour, warm and comforting to anyone, who hadn't been confined to this hell of a place.

She made her way to the dining table and pulled a chair out for herself. She took a second before she sat down on it and tried to calm herself. It was just like any chair at home. She didn't have to kneel next to it ever again.

"Damn, look what the cat dragged in" A chill ran through her so deep she felt it in her bones. She made eye-contact with Cole, who casually made his way over to the table and sat down across from her.

Emery couldn't do anything, just stare at him like a deer in the headlights of a truck that definitely won't slow down or swerve to avoid it.

Everything was wrong. The phone she had in her pocket burnt as it was something she's not supposed to have, the air around her neck felt freezing without the collar around, and she was sitting by the dining table, eye to eye with her ma-.

"Is the prodigal daughter finally returning?" he teased with a grin. As if he didn't know why she was there.

"No" she forced out and looked away. She was on the verge of tears again.

"I'm kidding" he laughed and laid back in his seat, his gaze burnt holes in the side of her face "Luke will be right back"

She nodded and risked a glance over to Cole again. He barely changed if he did at all. His skin was dark brown and rich as ever, from travelling all around the globe, vacationing together with Luke in the most luxurious sunny beaches, where even the sun shines differently, whenever they could. His hair short and dark, immaculate. He shot her an award winning smile.

"I had to ask, just to make sure, now that you're here you cold stay a while" There it was again, words that pierced her skin and twisted like a blade.

"Everything okay here?" Luke entered and Emery could breathe again. She hated how relieving his presence was, as if he already started lulling her into a sense of safety that he would rip away for his own entertainment, amending it later with comfort only he provided, just to take that away too, in a vicious cycle over and over again.

"Perfectly, were just catching up" Cole smiled innocently at his husband.

"Here's the check," he placed a stack of papers on the table and picked them apart to show her. Emery was glad there was something to focus on "this is the private number of the lawyer I told you about, I talked to him earlier and he's willing to take over your case. Call him. These are some statements you might need, copies of our pet licenses," he flipped through the pages and pulled the last document from the bottom of the stack.

"And this one, is your intake form, signed by you and two others who were present as witnesses. Don't let it get into wrong hands" she stared at her own handwriting.

"Why are you giving this to me?" she looked up at the man confused.

"Well, owner's keep these of pets usually, given the circumstances I think it's for you to have"

In a twisted way that was the most reassuring sentence she has heard since her escape. No amount of progress she made with her therapist had brought this amount of relief. She hated that it was Luke granting it.

"Emery!" she jumped from her seat and turned around.

The pet stood dead in her tracks, just before they collided and looked over to her owner for permission. He just nodded with a fond smile.

Emery buried her face in the other woman's wild, blonde curls. She took in the familiar scent and finally let her tears roll.

Alyssa sobbed into the crook of her neck, she caressed the locks of hair that barely reached her shoulder, and let herself be lost in the familiar embrace of Emery's bony hands.

"I never thought I'd see you again"

"I'm so sorry. I should've brought you with"

"Okay, that's a step too far" Luke placed a hand on Aly's back, who immediately unfolded herself from the embrace and dropped to her knees. The man's hand slid up her spine while she did so and found it's way through her hair, gently massaging at her scalp.

Emery took an instinctive, horrified step back.

"I respect you, Em, but Alyssa's my property still. She never was and never will be going anywhere, right love?" Aly nodded.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean it like that" she muttered, suddenly far too aware of the space she was taking up standing.

"Hm, sure you didn't" She would take Alyssa as far away from this place as possible if she could.

"Come on, Darling" Cole interrupted, still sitting at the table, clearly enjoying the scenario that unfolded "They haven't seen each other in so long, let them catch up"

Luke sighed, frustrated, he let go of Aly's hair.

"Fine, but the puppy stays on her knees, where she belongs"

"No, I can't-" I can't become one of you. I can't do that to her "I have to go" she needed to get out.

"Please!" Emery's protest was cut short and she made eye contact with Alyssa, pleading for her to stay just a little longer.

"I'm sorry, I can't-" she tried, but her determination crumbled as fast as it built up.

"I'd hate to keep you here against your will, but you don't look alright, stay for a coffee?" Emery scoffed, absolutely bewildered by the words that left the man's mouth. I'd hate to keep you here against your will. No you wouldn't, you'd enjoy it the most you monster.

"Sure" she locked eyes with Aly again, and attempted to smile at her. She sat down and the pet was quick to snuggle up to the side of her leg, resting her head against her knee.

They both flinched as Luke walked past them to the kitchen.

Her hand hovered over Aly's head tentatively. She never imagined to be put in that position, it was almost too much to handle.

The pet looked up at her, pleading, as if to say it's okay. Emery remembered far too well how much comfort it brought for her hair to be played with, to be given an ounce of comfort.

Alyssa's hair was thick and soft, she tried to avoid getting her hand pull at the tangles that formed no matter how many times she brushed them out.

"How do you take it? Milk and sugar right?" Luke asked from behind. She used to. Now she couldn't bare to look at any sweet beverage's.

"Black, please" she corrected and Luke hummed in acknowledgment.

"So, Em" Cole leaned forward in his seat, commanding her attention back to him "What have you been up to these past few years?"

"Therapy, mostly" she answered bitterly, no idea where the sudden courage possessed her from. Maybe it was soothing to have Alyssa curled up next to her. No, she couldn't think like that.

He laughed "And how's that working out for you?"

"Cole" Luke frowned, entering Emery's line of sight again, balancing three cups of coffee on a tray.

"Sorry" he replied, still smirking. Of course he wasn't sorry. Luke placed the cup in front of her.

"Thank you, S-" There it was again. Old habits die hard "Thanks"

They sipped their coffees in awkward silence, that only the soft clinks of the saucers broke.

"Can I ask Alyssa something?"

"You're welcome to" Luke shrugged.

"How have things been here? Since I- since..." she struggled to finish. Aly still looked up at Luke for approval before answering.

"Good" came the well-trained reply "I- it's just... I miss you. And I miss Lucky"

"Why, what happened to her?"

"Let's not bring Lucky up, it upsets Aly" Luke moderated. Alyssa nodded miserably "Tell her about your little playdates, puppy"

"Beau is here a lot" she took a deep breath to try and steady her voice. What the fuck happened to Lucky? "I'm really happy that Sir allows it"

"Beau is... hers?" Alyssa tensed up. Luke just nodded "I really have to go now" she stood up abruptly, pushing Alyssa away. She grabbed the papers and crumpled them into her bag as fast as it was possible.

None of them made a move to stop her, as she hurried towards the front door.

Luke stood up and followed her outside.

"Will you be alright driving home like this?" he asked cautiously. She couldn't speak, but nodded and sat in the driver's seat. "I'm sorry, about Aly bringing all that up..."

"It's not... It's fine. Not her fault" she shook her head. Bile rising up her throat as she thought about how the day would end for Alyssa for the infraction, unfortunately she had a solid idea.

She slammed the door in and started the car.

[predacon-carrion]

The sudden intimidation from Carrion’s move put her off a little. Only enough to have her near subconsciously sink deeper into the blankets and back toward the wall just a smidge.

“I think it’s the ‘getting eaten’ part that scares me the most. There’s so much that can go wrong… you have really sharp teeth. And I can hardly move on my own because of your tongue. It’s just instinctually scary.” She avoids eye contact, sheepishly looking to the side. “Your stomach… it can be nice. It’s warm, I don’t have to worry about anything in the outside world, the only sounds are from you, and sometimes it feels like a massage. At times it feels like a sensory break from everything else. But still, it’s terrifying to know I can’t do anything to defend myself in there. I mean, I generally don’t have many defenses against you, but in there I’m completely up to you or your body’s whims. I could be crushed, or drowned, or stuck in there forever if you ever decide to not let me out.”

She fidgets with the blankets a little while going over her fears. Really, she never expected to be telling him any of this. She didn’t think he cared for the longest time. It’s hard to look him in the eyes while saying it, especially because they’re so… much right now.

“I guess I’m still grappling with the fact that I, um, taste good. I don’t know how I feel about actually being food. Never really saw myself that way.” She tries to force a laugh, then takes a deep breath and continues. “I know I’m always in danger here, and when we first met I was… I was scared. Really scared. Now this is the only safe place. So it’s a choice between leaving the room and then dying to the rest of the cons, or staying and being a… a…” she mumble-whispers the next part, “a glorified pet.”

Any semblance of a hesitant smile Carrion previously had vanishes the more you go on. Your words strike him deep— feeling completely hopeless, powerless against a force infinitely more powerful than you.

He knew that feeling. It was countless, countless vorns ago. But he knew it. It was what made him promise to himself to never be helpless again, made him into the ruthless mech he was today.

“Ruthless”. And yet, he watched over a handful of humans. Cared for them. Loved them.

He didn’t know he was capable of feeling love again until you all broke through to his cold spark, once consumed by nothing but apathy.

Yet, what was his way to repay these creatures who changed the very fiber of his being? Making them feel like nothing but “glorified pets”.

Helpless.

I am… sincerely sorry I have made you feel that way. He leans as far back from the desk as he can, straightening up his posture. I will not lie to you. Once, I saw you that way. All of you. If not as vermin, then obnoxious pets. But…

He pauses, looking to his lap. You all have… changed me. In ways I did not believe possible. And… to know that you still feel so helpless, not even around just me, but as long as you are aboard this very ship… I don’t wish for you to feel this way. Any of you.

He musters up the strength to look at you. Your demeanor pains him. That fact alone is proof of what you’ve done for him. I have said this before, and I shall offer it again. You do not have to stay. I can take all of you back down to earth, where you can return to your normal lives. You do not have to worry about if anyone will notice. I will handle everything.

He goes a little quieter, turning his helm back away. It is… something I have honestly been considering, especially after Knockout’s deal. But I know the doctor will look for you. So… I would leave you with the Autobots. They could take much better care of you than I. They will make absolutely sure that you are safe, they care very deeply for this planet and its humans. They will not make you feel like... like food, or pets.

Everything considered, I feel as though this may be the safest option you have. And now, taking what you have told me into consideration… I feel more convinced now than ever. So, if it is your wish, I can assure your safety immediately by taking you all to the Autobots. And the next time we see each other, if it all, it will be as enemies. If… if you consider me a friend now, that is.

[ciaossu-imagines]

Day Twooo: what is one of the stupidest things they ever did in their life. (Nothing super drastic like curring your fucking limbs off, more like accidentally microwaved metal and blew up the kitchen) I will let you deciee the fandom!

Okay, just because this ask was super interesting and because you gave me some fandom freedom, of course I had to find ways to work in each of my fandoms, so take this jumble of headcanons and hopefully you’ll enjoy them!

Tsuna, when he was a really young child, no more than four or five, ate a piece of the pink, fluffy insultation because he thought it was cotton candy. Nana almost had a heart attack when she figured out what was in his mouth and rushed him pretty quickly to a doctor.

Ren Gotou, as a child, really wanted to see if the whole ‘electrical appliance in the bathtub’ thing really worked the same way it did on television. So, he ran a bath, stuck a few of his action figures in there along with his second-favourite stuffed animal, plugged in a hair dryer, and tossed it into that bathtub, expecting to see bright flashes of electricity and smoking toys in the water. It was really anticlimactic though, thanks to the GFI switch attached to the hairdryer.

Uno says her name was Catherine…getting caught and arrested so many times is a close second though.

It’s not incredibly stupid like some of the other things, but Momonoki can get really absorbed in her thoughts and has a really bad habit of running into doors, far more often than she should…it’s kind of made a little worse by the fact that she instinctually apologizes for running into them every single time before she figures out that it was just a door.

Kenji tried to ride a pig once. There was another farmer in the village who was bragging about how big his prize hog had gotten and Kenji heard him say that it was almost as big as a horse. So, of course, Kenji figured that meant that the pig was rideable. Turns out, they are most definitely not and Kenji ended up with a lot of scrapes, a bad bite on his arm, and a broken leg.

Tsubaki has bought a snack from the convenience store and because he always takes the receipt but never actually has any use for them, he’s gone to throw out the receipt on the way past the front doors, where the garbage cans normally are, only to throw out his snack and keep the receipt in hand. It’s happened more than once is the really sad part.

Goku has tried to put out a candle by smothering it…with a tissue. Sanzo yelled at him for hours about how he was trying to burn the whole building down and kill them all and Goku isn’t allowed to light candles without supervision, even though that was a long time ago, in his defense.

Jumin, when he was younger and a little more vengeful about his father’s girlfriends, ended up cutting up some of his father’s new girlfriend’s clothes…and blaming it on a pet. A pet they did not have. A pet that could not have gotten into their penthouse without being caught. He’s always been a very, very bad liar, guys.

Fenrir’s parents have a pond in the back of their property. By their pond rests a little boathouse, low enough that, with the help of the tree nearby, it’s pretty easy to get on top of. It’s pretty easy to see where this is going. He and Ray climbed up to the top of the boathouse one day when they were barely teenagers and they seriously misjudged both the depth and distance into the water. There were some pretty serious injuries and both of them have interesting scars to prove just how stupid they used to be.

Unsui and Agon always tried to pull the twin switch when they were really, really young, probably until about second or third grade and always on Agon’s insistence. It would have worked well, except that Unsui always forgot that he was supposed to answer to Agon and would end up only answering to his own name, which got them busted pretty easily every time.

Darry and Soda, back before Pony was even born, used to have a lot of fun playing on a small hill a little way away from the house. They played all the usual games, and it became their spot. Anyway, they decided to highjack some junked tires one day so that they could try rolling down the hill in them, like they’d seen some other kids do. Anyway, long story short, the hill ended at the road and when Darry rolled down in the tire, it ended on the road. Wouldn’t have been so bad…if a car hadn’t been coming…and if Darry hadn’t ended up getting stuck in the tire so badly that he couldn’t wiggle out. If it wasn’t for Soda running and screaming into the road and the driver’s quick reflexes, the situation could have ended very badly. As it was, Soda struggled to get Darry and the tire off the road and had to end up running home to get his mother to come and get Darry out of the tire.

Kento once ate fake fruit thinking it was real. The worst thing – he finished it and just chalked the weird taste up to it being underripe.

Makio, as a kid, on a bet, stuck his hand into a fresh-of-the-stove bowl of soup just to prove that he could. He got a cool scar and ten dollars out of it…almost made the second degree burns worth it.

Ginji once not only blew the breaker in the Honky Tonk (the cost for a new one was added to their tab) but caused a blackout in the entire neighbourhood trying to convince Paul that he could generate enough power to cut drastically back on Paul’s electric bill – drastically enough that Paul should really cut their tab in half. Instead, it increased by about half.

Someone once asked Dmitri for the time. He was holding a hot cup of coffee. When he turned his wrist to check his watch (a watch he was not wearing because he doesn’t actually own a watch since he relies on his cell phone to tell him the time), he ended up dumping the hot coffee on the person who had stopped him.

Atlanta once, when she was about eight or nine, tried to bungee jump from a tree by tying one end of a bungee cord around a tree branch and one end around her ankles. She made sure to tie them really tight, of course, just to be safe. It just didn’t quite work out like she figured it would…that one hurt a lot.

Norman had a friend that Harry didn’t much like, but who would come to stay every couple weekends. She’d pinch Harry’s cheeks and make stupid comments and little Harry really, really didn’t want her over. So, one night, when she had taken her hearing aid out to clean it and then had to use the washroom, he seized his chance. He not only stole this poor woman’s hearing aid but stuck it in the toaster and turned the toaster on. Not only was the hearing aid destroyed, but the toaster ended up on fire. Needless to say, Norman was really, really angry with Harry and he found himself very grounded.

[alovelyburn]

Was Guts actually in love with Casca? I can’t recall him having any moment thinking of what he feels towards her in the golden age, just like he did so many times with Griffith. Do you think it could have been better if they never were a thing and just being friends by seeing how similar they are?

I watched the 1997 anime and read until the Lost Children arc, and hated everything surrounding Casca’s sa during the eclipse. Because she isn’t actually a character during a long time, her rape isn’t brought up in a way that isn’t because she was Guts’ “woman”. Guts doesn’t make any conciousness about how horrible it was for her, and even though he chose to stay with Gambino and Griffith when they were disabled, he didn’t wanted to when it was her and that’s sad

Oho!

Guts' feelings for Casca are an interesting topic to me - I feel like the mainstream english speaking fandom really heavily romanticizes the relationship whereas the GxG corner doesn't usually put much weight in it at all. As in most things I tend to fall in the middle somewhere.

Anyway I can only really give my opinion/perception of things, so here it is:

My read on Gutsca is and has always been.... that they were both fixated on Griffith but felt they couldn't really get as close to him as they wanted to and their pain and frustration over that led to them finally finding a way to relate to each other, which turned into friendship, which turned into attraction.

The thing is, though, even while that was going on they were still both primarily focused on their feelings for Griffith. In Casca's case this entailed just kind of aggressively ignoring it because she was deeply uncomfortable with the idea that she could have feelings for anyone but Griffith. In Guts' case, you may remember at the time he was actively trying to matchmaker Casca and Griffith into becoming a couple so I imagine he was trying to stay out of their way regardless of his feelings about either of them.

That said....

...I do think the feelings are definitely there. It's evident because when Judeau starts asking about them, Guts gets super awkward and sweat droppy...

And in the defensive way he reacts/the way he tries to deflect when asked why he doesn't try to get with her.

If you watch his reactions as Judeau is going over things, his demeanor on the subject of her changes completely as he starts tor realize that the future he was envisioning for her and Griffith - the one where they get together and live happily ever after - isn't ever going to happen.He kind of goes from being aggressively defensive to quietly reflective.

Plus the way he tries to dodge when asked if he's ever thought about being with her IMO indicates that he has, but probably only in a sort of half-formed way that he never thought that deeply into due to his assumptions about her and Griffith.

And of course in the end, even though he tried to deny it, he did ultimately admit it, and arrived at something more like "I'm not ready for that kind of thing" than "I don't want that kind of thing."

Casca's got her own issues which you didn't ask about so I'm not getting that far into it, rofl, but I will say I think this:

is the precise moment when she realized she can't do anything for Griffith. Because she tries to reach out to him and he doesn't even respond to her, like he doesn't even acknowledge that she’s there. And she pulls back like something burned her fingers before she starts wildly vacillating and then ultimately calls Guts' name.

And of course...

Whatever Guts was feeling about her, it was enough to make him hesitate when she called his name. It wasn’t enough to override his desire to chase Griffith’s friendship and respect, but it was enough to make him pause.

Now all that said, do I think Guts was actually full-chested in love with Casca?

No. I mean for one thing, Miura said they were forever stuck at the stage before falling in love, which implies they aren't actually actively in love - more that they perhaps could have been if the relationship had continued.

But even if you ignore the authorial intent aspect, their one "good" moment as a couple - the meadow scene - doesn't really showcase what I would call full-on in-loveness. Casca has to decide that her feelings are real and only decides to commit to it once Guts turns out to be needier than Griffith where she's concerned. and Guts' decision to ask her to go with him is kind of...

...random and spontaneous? What I mean is, he wasn't proposing to her - there was no “let’s start a new life together because I love you and we’re going to be together 5ever,” not even in his head. In fact, he said he wasn't sure if it would work out or if she'd end up getting in the way. But he was feeling it in the moment and he was willing to give it a shot. It reminds me a bit of Casca's line - I'll believe it, that my feelings for this man are real. It's an active decision on their parts to believe in that connection and its potential to grow and take root even though it's still just beginning at that moment.

And of course, if they were truly madly deeply in love then they wouldn't have started fracturing the second Griffith's shadow returned to their lives. In the end, I do think they were only able to develop the feelings they had for each other because they felt like Griffith was untouchable, and when he wasn't anymore, Casca started backpedaling and complaining to Guts about how jealous she was of Charlotte, and Guts was like, WELL I GUESS I'LL JUST LET HER GO BACK TO GRIFFITH IDEK WHO AM I TO JUDGE IM JUST AS BAD, and ultimately they both independently decided to stay with Griffith without bothering to ask how the other felt about it, or about giving up their plans. Guts wasn’t even upset about changing his mind, really.

...plus obviously when the Eclipse went down, Guts literally just ignored whatever was going on with her and the other Hawks so he could stand on the alter and try to chip Griffith out of the incubation egg. Even when he realized Griffith really did accept that deal...

He could barely make himself pull away.

After the Eclipse, every time he decides to go after her or protect her, it's catalyzed by remembering that he abandoned Griffith and feels like shit about it and/or pondering how his mistakes lost him everyone he loves, which frames it as being as much his regret and guilt as anything else (and Miura did say guilt is one of the primary things she makes him feel).  It also seems to be more about her representing the last of the Hawks than about his romantic feelings about her - to this day he barely thinks about the relationship itself. When he misses her he usually imagines her in her glory as the Band of the Hawks' unit commander. And in the more recent chapters, he infamously hasn't thought about her even once since [a thing] happened.

Err, so long ramble less long:

In the end, more than a romance in full bloom it is presented, I think, as the seed of a relationship that never had a chance to grow. I do think Guts loved her - as a friend, as a person, as a fellow Hawk - and I do think they had "feelings” for each other, but I do not think they were literally at the point of being in love. I also think it never would have come up if they didn't feel so separated from Griffith - it was his absence that created the space where their connection developed, and ultimately neither one's feelings for the other could really stand up in the face of their feelings for Griffith.

All that being the case, I would say the reason he doesn't go on about his feelings about her during the Golden Age (...or at any other point if we're being honest) the way he does about his feelings for Griffith kind of split down two paths.

First, his feelings for Griffith are just more intense and demanding - both the love and, eventually, the complicated stew of love and hate. Miura once said that Griffith is the one who gives Guts the sustenance he needs to live, and that's the way it's always been.

The other thing is, from a Doylist perspective, Miura himself did not appear to have much of a connection to the romance. He based Guts and Griffith's intense bond on his relationship with Koji Mori, his lifelong best friend. In a memorial manga by Mori's wife, she said that they were so close that it seemed that there was no room in their lives for anyone but each other. And he always said Berserk was about Guts and Griffith and their relationship at its core.

By contrast, Guts and Casca's relationship was a late-stage decision intended to up the stakes and increase the drama... and everything that's been done with her since has been consistent with that. Casca became something of a plot enabler - a McGuffin. She survived just as a means to motivate Guts, and lost her mind so that she wouldn’t take up too much room in the narrative, and while the friendship was pretty well-done, the romance itself has very little substance because it (and Casca herself once she becomes relegated to Love Interest) exists to catalyze whatever is going on between Guts and Griffith - to motivate them, to make them anxious and jealous, to make them angry at each other, to give them something to focus on besides each other, to use to hurt each other.

Also Miura did say that if he could, he wouldn’t have women in the series at all. So there you go.

As for whether it would have been better if they stayed friends... that's kind of a tough question because I have no idea what that would have looked like. I want to say I'm not sure how much it would have really changed - he's more motivated by his regrets over the Hawks than he is by the romance anyway, so I guess if she survived as his friend the story could have remained more or less the same. But... while that's theoretically true, I don’t think it would have remained the same. Because I think even though the romance isn't GUTS' primary motivation, it was probably MIURA'S primary reason for keeping her alive. And if she weren't alive then I have no idea what the past 20 volumes would even be about. So while I don't really have any interest in Gutsca, I'd be reluctant to say the romance shouldn't have happened, because there's not much about Berserk I'd change - some things, sure, but not enough for me to feel comfortable saying the past 20 volumes should be something else entirely. I do think Casca herself should have been better handled.

As for Guts leaving Casca, I mean that comes back to the Watsonian approach and the Doylist approach again.

From the Watsonian perspective it does strike me as internally consistent with the way Guts acts and how he would manage those specific situations. Gambino losing a leg or Griffith becoming mute and seriously disabled is kind of a different situation vs Casca losing her mind, because even if Gambino and Griffith weren't the same physically they were still the people he loved. Their bodies changed, but they themselves did not. Casca's entire personality - her memories, their connection - it's all just gone. I don't think he could handle that emotionally, nor did he have any idea what to do with it. When he finally did go back for her he ended up dragging her around on a rope; he was absolutely not equipped to manage her situation at all. I also think it makes sense because despite how he felt about Casca, he’s never prioritized her the way he did Griffith or Gambino. Those two are on a completely different level in his life vs. anyone else, even her.

From the Doylist perspective, though? I mean, Miura didn't even know she existed when he had Guts solo adventuring in the Black Swordsman arc, so I guess he had to retroactively explain why she never came up or appeared. There were a couple of ways he could have handled that - he could have had Guts drop into the cave like, yeah ITS BEEN A FEW WEEKS SINCE I SAW YOU GUYS, HOWS LIFE?

...but I think he decided to have Guts abandon her because it kind of fits into the larger theme of Guts treating the people he cares about the most sort of carelessly/letting them fall through his fingers and losing them as a result. The fact that she's the last thing he has - the only thing he hasn't lost yet - lends narrative weight to his decision to stand with her and advances his personal arc, while making his inability to truly commit to doing that - the way he vacillates and still thinks about ditching to go find Griffith - stand out, because even in the face of all those lessons and his own decisions he still can't quite let it go.

[originemesis]

@cast-you-dxwn xxx

It was no fault of his own that he'd been made into an image he would always fall short of. Mic could thunder on and on about the importance of trying to be better- as if the man hadn't already tried a timeless amount that only ever amounted to being told to do better next time. Once the threshold of effort had been cut off as far as his capabilities could stretch only for him to be expected to push even further, it was simply too easy to backslide into lower states that at least allowed him to climb upwards again. These of course were simple improvements he could attain such as one eighty-ing from calling his boss a petty bitch in the middle of a council meeting to begrudgingly babysitting a cherub charity bake sale booth outside the embassy ( until he eats most of the wares that is...not that Sera didn't take it out of his paycheck.) Now that he was lying all the way at the bottom of some hell pit? The possibility in rising even an inch would seem endless to those not currently half melted on the floor with one wing and plenty of missing pieces for finishing a common decency puzzle; unfortunately, he wasn't them.

"Yeah, don't I dare bring up a fucking point to the dude with the smite stick- solid advice, even for you." A softer hiss escapes him, both from the pain of divine sunburn and from having to hear Michael carry on like a woman scorned about what a treasure he was to humanity. In comparison to what? Adam knows. But whether Mic knows that he knows is debatable. "Not your duty, huh? Then what WAS it, Mic? The fact that it was your face tied to the spectacle your bro put on? Now that's what I call 'saving face'." Petty still, even prostrate. It didn't sit well with him to be accused of war crimes he hadn't actually committed (aside from the ones he had-) that simply stuck to him like he had because the reflection of them remained in a gaze of one who'd had them committed against him. That Epraim guy that Mic had gone turbo-termination on for the hushed rumor circulating in court over soldier abuse? Adam wonders if the bottom of his boots felt like Michael's now.

The word 'love' out of Michael's mouth draws a similar scowl from the man, if only because the other doubted his own validity in understanding the concept. Perhaps love changed forms when it was lost too many times...but it still had the same fucking name. He was still Adam, despite what a far cry the flawless form he once inhabited like a cocoon that was yet to know it could be shed. Shred apart, and leaving, as Michael so lovingly put it with a dash of disgust- 'this'.

"So much for those love is unconditional sermons, huh? Guess it stopped being so convenient for you." Formed fangs flash with rebuttal, his axe the only defense he could muster to his defense and even that he could not lift without the dire straights of his soul being threatened upon. Michael was a force to cower from- to plead with and hope the shape one took of something non threatening and stoic without its own free will might convince him to use the undesirable canvas for a purpose deemed necessary. But Adam never was quite good at dick riding past a lowered gaze and a muffled 'sorry', despite the title of Exorcist he shared with the others.

"You're freakin' impossible, you know that?! I'm not you, Mic- I can't just love out of some hard wired code sequence in my infrastructure! Not after Lucifer-" Did he even need to elaborate? They're all part of the petty origin club here, and the fact that Mic wouldn't understand that he didn't blindly trust without reason to makes him wonder the validity of the other's membership. "I have to look for it to know it's legit. Have to find it. And I found her. Not the mannequin of a soldier they saddled me with just because they needed a mansitter. Just her."

He listens wordlessly to the seraphim's description of a person he simply couldn't recognize by his purported memories of her alone. For him, she had never existed in the same sense were any pieces of that part of her still a part of her own glass puzzle pieces to arrange in ways that suited him and the council. Much like the version of him that Michael knew from the garden didn't really exist for her. In a way, he felt like he knew what they were regardless, having lost similar shards of his own he'd long since discarded knowing they didn't fit into the grand design of his ascension past where humanity had landed out of their tumble from creation's good graces.

"Mic-" He finally croaks, licking his lips to help soothe the seared skin there as if the putrid components of hell's influence over his own spit could serve as a balm against the scars of a smiting's pre-amble. It's not a chance he wants to take- being burned by that vicious gaze, so he keeps his rolled back and trained on a ceiling fan that had somehow survived the angelic assault, but had stopped spinning.

A minute passes. Several do before he musters, "You remember the time when-...you went looking for me- back in the garden, I mean. Probably 'cause you had some weirdly specific anecdote you thought would even make sense at the time. And I waited for you to walk by so I could smack you with that branch I' pulled back when you passed through, but it just snapped back and knocked me over?" A snort and a shake of the head at the muddled memory has him clapping a talon across his cheek as if he could still feel the sting of the branch's parting swat of leaves after the bark of its strong arm had bowled him over.

"And after your made sure I didn't know myself out- so I could hear it, you fucking laughed at me...and when I got the breath knocked out of me back, I-"

Shifting, he cuts his eyes to the side to chance a look at the seraphim, cautious...weary. Amused.

"-laughed harder? You remember that, right? You remember...me ?" Before he'd fallen out of that tree and had his being split into Eve. Before he'd watched his closest buddy run off with his wife and then return to harm the other half of him that still naively believed that everyone had good intentions. Before he was forced through the eye of the needle that was the gate of heaven for a sullied human soul, every bone broken and piece of him smuggled through one at a time for him to be discreetly arranged later and found lacking something, even if no one could tell him what it was without drawing suspicion.

"When I look at her, I see- something cracked. So cracked, it's impossible to tell what it even fully was before." Talons digging into the axe's handle, he struggles a moment to sit up and edge his back against the desk next to the seraphim, grimacing and using his wing as an extra appendage to push against the floor on the other side of him. "We got a lot of busted out pieces between the two of us, but...we fill in each other's blanks. Call me a glazer, but I can't remember the last time I felt so-" The faintest hint of a smile gathered beneath furrowed brows as the gnarled ends of his talons pinch at the diamond shard suspended within his chest portal.

They shared a piece of each other now.

"...whole."

[thelegendofhino]

While i do enjoy zelda games and zelda lore and whatnot i have only played 6 zelda games... i know there are a lot more than 6.

Obviously ive played breath of the wild and tears of the kingdom. I dont really know what made me want to play breath of the wild. It was very unlike other games id usually play. Especially since i tend to just play the same few games over and over again... but im glad i did, because i enjoyed it immensely, to the point where i played it twice, my first time being on the wiiu.

I think one of my earliest attempts of playing a zelda game that i can remember was wind waker on the gamecube. I never managed to beat it partly since the console was at my grandmothers house and partly because i got stuck at dragon roost island because something odd had happened with the collapsing stairs that i was unable to progress. I dont know if i had gotten actually softlocked or if it was just a skill issue on my part. I was kinda young at the time. I did end up playing and beating wind waker hd later on. Then i tried to play it again on the gamecube but for some reason i lost interest at the part where i had to find the iron boots to progress.

Ive played four swords adventure way too many times. More times than id care to admit. More times than i can count. For no reason other than it was the only zelda game we had for a while and i just loved playing the gamecube and it was not a very difficult game (there was one time when i was younger i did get stuck on one level for. Possibly hours, driving my parents insane because i just kept going back and forth trying to figure it out) and it was just a fun game. As much as ive played it i absolutely would not consider it my favorite zelda game. Its a fun game but its also boring at the same time. Probably just because ive already played it so many times.

Ive attempted minish cap twice and beat it once. My first attempt i couldnt figure out how to beat vaati, but in my defense, everything else in the game with singular eyes youre supposed to shoot them with arrows. So naturally i never once thought to swing my sword at vaati because he is just eyes. And eyes = arrows. And it just never occured to me to try and hit him normally until i replayed it earlier this year. Other than that, its a fun game, and i love how it looks.

I played links awakening dx. I dont remember much about that game actually. I enjoyed it. It looked cute. I had no means of playing the original. Thats all i have to say about it.

Now. Those are games that ive finished a playthrough of. Ive also attempted twilight princess. Unfortunately i attempted it right after having played botw for a while, so i had to get unused to being able to climb things. And... embarrassingly enough, i got stuck at the very first temple of the game where you get the boomerang. I just couldnt figure out where to go. And being very aware that this was so early in the game and i already got stuck did make me feel discouraged. Not that i thought the game was too hard, but that i shouldnt be struggling as much as i did... nobody was watching me play but i was still embarrassed anyway. So, perhaps in the future ill give it another shot.

Now i am playing ocarina of time and will hopefully play through majoras mask. I have a feeling i may not end up ever beating majoras mask, but... i will at least try.

[elizainjapan]

May 31st- Tokyo National Museum and Akihabara

Today was a bit stressful at first, but then it turned out to be one of my favorite days yet! Our first stop was in Ueno Park, which Sam and I had been to yesterday. We had a quiz this morning, but I didn’t know until I was out of the shower, so I had to skip breakfast to take it. Skipping breakfast automatically gets me stressed. At Ueno Park, we went to a shrine and the Tokyo National Museum. While the shrine was very interesting, I could tell I was getting burned out towards the end of the museum. In my defense, I started out very strong. I read all the paragraphs under each item, and I spent like 7 minutes per room. Once I was at room 6 or 7 though, I was tired. I walked most of the rest of the museum, and only read about the things that caught my eye. I promise I like museums usually, but I was still upset about not eating. After this, we walked over to a food market with a bunch of resturants to break for lunch. One hour was definitely not enough time to find a place to eat that everyone could agree on and eat. I was with a group of 7, and we just barely made it back to the meeting spot on time. One of the girls in my group didn’t calculate the price of her meal correctly, so we also had to take time figuring out. The restaurant we chose also gave us super small portion sizes, so what I thought would be a full meal was really only 4 gyozas. I was hangry and very anxious. On our way to the train station, I was walking with Brian towards the back of the group when his train ticket malfunctioned and he couldn’t go through. The rest of the group didn’t notice and boarded the train, so we were stranded. Thankfully Leina had noticed we were stuck so she stayed back to help us. My day got tremendously better when we got to Akihabara (excluding the time we looked at the basement doujinshi, that was disgusting). Since our planned day was over, a small group of us just decided to get lost in the city. We went through side alleys and maid cafes before finally finding the perfect place to spend the evening - an arcade. The one we picked was 9 floors, and it had so many reaction games. It was super cool watching the hardcore Japanese gamers play, especially the ones playing DDR. I had never played before, so Aulora and I tried a game on the basic level. We failed miserably. Our last stop in Akihabara was Mandarake. Here I got the 37th HxH volume (which hasn’t come out the the US yet) and a Doremon manga to practice my Japanese with. I had some enrichment time at the hotel before heading back out to get boba and dinner with Sam and Aulora. We sat in McDonalds for over an hour just talking. Today had a rough start, but everything ended up working out.

The art exhibit that I chose to explore today was the under wear warrior attire. Warriors wore many different outfits throughout the 17th century. For example: formal hitatare, semi-formal suo, and the newer kamishimo. Clothing for battle was made to be worn underneath armor or as an outer surcoat. Fire resistant suits or dig images in Tokyo because of how prominent and popular fires were in the area.

Academic Reflection:

While today’s readings on the psychopathy of otaku culture were super interesting, I also don’t really agree with them. While I was reading them, I was totally on board with most everything that the authors were saying. I thought it was super interesting to recognize the moe database in so many of my favorite showes and I liked how the comparison of Baudrillard’s definition of utopias worked with the anime simulacrum. All of these works of theory were very developed and educated, and I truly felt that the authors covered as much of the bases as they could. What I did not like was the doujinshi we were exposed to.

When talking about otaku culture, it is imperative to speak to the sexual side of it. To ignore the anime pornographic aspect would be moronic. Yet no reading could have prepared me for that basement. That was simply pedophilia. After seeing that store, I cannot bring myself to agree with any of the justifications of pornographic doujinshi in anime minors. Neither authors talked nearly enough about the true side of otaku culture - commercialized porn. It does not matter that it is a fictional character, because I guarantee that many otakus do not see them as fake. They can distinguish between reality and fiction, they just chose not to. It was crazy to see people casually shopping in the store, as if any of of the walls and walls of naked girls was the same as going to 7/11. The nonchalantness of the patrons was very disturbing. While I know that this is not the case for all otakus, I still feel justified to believe that my view of Japanese media changed drastically in minutes, and I do not believe that these simulacrums should be as normalized as they are. The stereotype that otakus are nerdy and creepy shut-ins are stereotypes for a reason.

[constablewafflebottom]

Dream A Little Dream of Me

Chapter 6

Mostly fluff and smut here, with some self deprecating thoughts going on until Loki puts an end to that nonsense in the best way he knows how. What a cinnamon roll--a spicy, spicy cinnamon roll.

I'd been sitting in front of my laptop for half an hour, staring at the empty document while the cursor mocked me with every silent blink, and still I continued to put nothing on the page. It wasn't as if this was difficult, as if I didn't know how to do it, as if I didn't take courses specifically for this very thing in college. This wasn't difficult, but it was hard. I hadn't held a job for over five years, let alone applied for one, reliant completely on Michael's income to support us. Despite all of the other terrible things about my husband, and there were many, the one thing he'd always been good at was providing. What would it say about me that I'd been sitting on my ass for so long? Who would hire someone like me? 

 

     For multiple reasons, I tried my best not to pay attention to Loki, watching me curiously and very obviously wondering what the Hell I was doing staring blankly at the screen. I would absolutely let him distract me from my mission; even knowing that I *had to do this, my mind and my eyes would wander all over him–even though we'd had sex more times than we'd eaten today–that reminds me, I need to eat something–no, Moira, focus. See? He was distracting me without even trying. In addition to my various appetites, I was also feeling something between shame and insecurity. For whatever reason, he thought the world of me, but I still didn't think I had anything to offer anybody, let alone in a professional context.

 

     I was trying to ignore him, sitting across the table from me, drinking a beer in a way that was far too unjustifiably sexy to be real, but the moment he spoke up and his voice reached me, I immediately gave that up and let him hold my undivided attention.

 

     "What are you doing, my darling?" He finally asked, his green eyes bouncing between my face and the computer in front of me.

 

     "Um, I'm trying to build a résumé, but…" I sighed in frustration, scrubbing my hands over my face. "I'm not doing a very good job of it."

 

     "And what is that," he asked curiously. I had to remember that things like job applications, CVs, and cover letters weren't a thing where he came from.

 

     "It's sort of a, uh, very specifically formatted list of things I have to offer a potential employer. Reasons for them to hire me," I explained.

"Do you know how to make one?" From anyone else, I would have been annoyed by the question, and I almost was. Years of Michael's condescension had me primed to see criticism in even the most innocent of questions, but Loki wouldn't do that. He didn't even know what the damn thing was, or the fact that I took career development courses, or how many of these documents I'd compiled over my educational career. So, I took a breath before responding, to ensure there was so defensiveness in my tone when I answered him.

 

      "I do, I just," I hesitated for a beat, staring at the screen again as I decided whether to be bare my fears to him. There was no reason not to–he'd seen parts of me that even I'd never laid eyes on, I could be honest about this with him. Even still, I couldn't look at him while I said it. "I haven't done this in such a long time. I'm afraid that nobody will even give me a second look, Loki. And then I'm gonna be stuck here with Michael for the rest of my life–" No, I had to stop, I was spiralling. I sat forward with a shuddering breath, leaning with my forehead in my hands to make an attempt at collecting myself.

 

     The chair creaked quietly as he stood and made his way around the table to my side. I still wasn't looking at him, but I was aware of him with every other sense. The smell of my own soap from where he'd hastily washed up while I sat here staring fruitlessly at my computer (he very adamantly did not want to use Michael's, he said he 'would rather smell like an ergi than an asshole,' whatever that meant), the heat of his body now so close to me, the soft groan of his leather pants as he folded up to crouch beside me and the sigh when I refused to look at him. 

 

     "Moira, darling, do you remember the conversation we had before we got out of bed this morning," Loki asked me. My brows scrunched behind my hands as I thought about it and what it could possibly have to do with what we were talking about just now. I nodded anyway. "You are accustomed to being treated as if you have no use or worth, as if you have nothing to offer, and nobody could possibly want you, right?" I closed my eyes to stop them from burning and swallowed with an involuntary cringe. Even though I knew he didn't think those things about me, it still hurt to hear him say it. "You know that isn't true, don't you," he asked in a whisper. Did I know that, or did I just hope it was the case? It was hard to combat years of psychological conditioning to the contrary. But, like I'd told myself the night that Michael fed the wall an entire pan of eggplant parmesan, Loki wanted me, and if my husband had been wrong about that part, it was entirely likely he could be wrong about everything else. My responding nod was hesitant but firm when I eventually gave it to him, and I could see the relieved smile on his face from the corner of my eye. "You have to believe that you won't be treated that way. You have to trust, if not me when I say it, then yourself and everything you've done and learned before he started chipping away at your confidence. You know what you know, and you are the one to decide where you go from here." My head jerked toward him and I stared at him in disbelief.

 

     "Did you–did you just quote Dr. Seuss to me?" 

  "Who is Dr. Seuss," he asked with a confused shake of his head.

 

     "The book, Oh, the Places You'll Go… by Dr. Seuss," I supplied, but Loki shook his head again."'You have brains in your head. You have feet in your shoes. You can steer yourself any direction you choose. You're on your own. And you know what you know. And you are the one who'll decide where you go.'" He shrugged with a thoughtful grimace.

 

     "Well, whoever this skáld doctor is, they're right. Only, you're not on your own because you have me," he told me, taking my hand and holding it in both of his, while his gaze held me captive with its blazing sincerity. "But you don't need me, you don't need anyone, you can make a way for yourself, by yourself. I'm not going anywhere, so don't even think about it," he hastened to clarify with a lighthearted feigned severity that made me huff an amused breath. He grinned then, pleased to have brought me out of the funk I'd been trying to sink into, and squeezed my hand again. "I know you can do this, all of this," he insisted. It was so hard not to believe him when he talked like that. I knew he'd been called a brilliant liar before, but he'd also spoken hard truths just as often. The burning returned to my eyes and I blinked to clear them just as he reached to sweep an escaped curl from my face and leaned into his touch. "Why don't you show me how you do… whatever it is you're trying to do," he suggested with a dubious glance at the computer.

     "Um, o–," I croaked and cleared my throat. "Okay." I shifted in my seat and returned my fingers to the keys, but before I could go any further, Loki stood and picked me up from the chair, planting himself in my spot. He settled me on his lap, effectively replacing my chair with himself, wrapped his arms around my waist, and tucked his chin in the curve between my neck and my shoulder. It was like being wrapped in a warm blanket made of muscles and reassurance, and I couldn't help but to relax into him. 

 

     The next half hour was spent detailing the sections and content for a résumé, my contact information, education, credentials, and relevant skills, but it was as I reached the work history portion that it started to get a little shaky. While I did have consistent and respectable employment starting from highschool and going straight through college, I had nothing in recent years and despite the assurances from my paramour, that still caused a lot of anxiety and discouragement. Even so, I finished the document and sent it to the printer in the office, hoping that I wouldn't end up needing all fifteen copies I'd requested, and started to look up establishments in the vicinity of my apartment that might be looking to hire when my stomach started growling. With a chuckle and soft kiss on my neck, Loki lifted me and stood, replacing me back in the chair.

   "Why don't I bring you something to eat while you work on this," he offered.

 

     "Oh, no, it's fine, I can–" I tried to decline, but he hit me with his now predictable line.

 

     "It was a rhetorical question, little dove," he told me with a wink, and I knew I had no choice but to shut up and get fed. I knew also that there was a good chance he was hungry himself, but was too polite to eat without me, so I had even less to argue about. After he filled two bowls from the pot on the stove, I directed him to the fridge to get the sour cream and cheese, and then the pantry for crackers. He brought drinks and utensils and sat down in the adjacent seat.

 

     "Why would you not simply mix those things in while it's cooking," he asked me curiously as he watched me prepare my helping with a handful of shredded cheddar cheese and a big dollop of sour cream.

 

     "Some people like to have more or less of it in theirs," I shrugged and stirred the contents of my bowl into a creamy glop. "I like more, the functional idiot likes less. Besides, it's best to taste it first before you doctor it up, anyway. Little bites," I advised with an innocent smile. He glanced down at his own bowl, suddenly very skeptical of what was in front of him, and then back at me with narrowed eyes, not believing my disarming grin for a moment. 

 

     Slowly, and not taking his eyes off of mine, he scooped an ambitiously large spoonful and brought it to his lips, daring me to stop him. I didn't, only watched with an arched brow and little smirk as he put it in his mouth. He tried not to react, I could see the effort and concentration on his face, as well as the spice induced flush blooming on his cheeks and the sheen of sweat building on his forehead and upper lip. It was wrong of me to be amused, I knew that, but come on. 

 

     "You okay," I asked innocently. He only clenched his jaw and swallowed hard to get it out of his mouth, and reached for the beer to quell the burning. "Oh, no, don't do that," I cautioned. "Alcohol will make it worse, here," I scooped a spoon full of sour cream and held it up for him. He hesitated for a beat before parting his lips and letting me place it inside. The relief on his face was immediate, and he sighed with it. "I did try to warn you," I reminded him, stifling the giggle that wanted to bubble up, but he still gave me a half-hearted glare at being amused by his suffering.

 

   "Why does it hurt? Is it supposed to hurt?"

   "Some of us like it," I shrugged and returned to my own food.

 

     "You people are mad," he muttered. I almost made a jab at him for the you people remark, but I figured he'd been through enough discomfort already. Poor guy.

 

     "Put this in, it makes it a lot better," I suggested, pushing the fixins toward him. "You can just about neutralize the spice with it." This time I didn't even try to suppress the grin when he put almost half the container of sour cream into his bowl. He was reluctant to try another bite, but he couldn't exactly allow me to be braver than him, so he took it. Apparently, my suggestion worked, because he continued to eat after that with no complaints.

 

     We didn't talk much while we ate, but Loki did mention that he would have to go home later that evening. He could excuse a single day away by saying he'd been hunting for some creature or another, but it would look suspicious if he was gone for too long. Also, there was some sort of agreement with Oðinn about drinking together that Loki had to be present for and the old man would be annoyed with him for not keeping up his end of that. I did remember reading something about that once, and had to stifle the fascination and curiosity begging me to ask which parts of the myths were real and which parts were pure fantasy. He didn't seem especially keen on discussing that subject at length, so I tried not to press. Of course, I was disappointed not to have an entire week of uninterrupted time with him, but I reminded myself that I hadn't expected it in the first place, and it wasn't his fault in any event. The fact that he also seemed extremely disappointed and, dare I say, pouty about the idea of being apart, was a sort of balm in the wound.

 

     After our late lunch, I spent a couple of hours searching for prospective employers and mapped out a route to take the following day when I dropped off my résumés. I had thought to do some of that today, but Michael's unexpected arrival and the subsequent issues it caused had eaten up the time I'd set aside for it, and I didn't want to waste any more of the limited time I had with Loki. Once I had all of the paperwork and logistical nonsense handled, it was getting into the evening, and I knew we only had a few hours left together.

 

     When I got up to put my computer away and took it to the office, I got a whiff of myself as I bent to store it in the drawer it was usually housed in. Work, fear, and sex had definitely left their mark on my body odor, and I felt the distinct urge to wash it all away. I straightened up and glanced at the door with my own salacious little grin.

     "Oh, Loki," I called sweetly.

 

     "Yes?" I could hear the hesitancy and mistrust in his voice and I couldn't help but giggle as I popped out of the doorway, and gave my most innocent, albeit unconvincing, pout. 

----

     Not that it had required any amount of convincing to get him there, but a scant few moments later, we were in my bathroom getting undressed. The shower in here was bigger than that of the guest bathroom, so it was the obvious choice. I watched him through the mirror as he climbed into it while I combed the tangles out of my hair, wondering if there would ever be a time that his body didn't take my breath away. The mirror had a perfect view of the large shower stall, but I turned to get a first person view. He was so mouth-wateringly gorgeous, all the way from the top of his silky red curls to his ridiculously long feet, and *everything in between was just as long. His lean, but muscular arms, his rippling pectorals and cut abdomen, his legs just about reached my waist and his… well, anyway. It was so easy to get lost staring at him, that it wasn't until he cleared his throat that I realized I'd been gawking. I guess I was taking too long, but he just stood there, waiting for me to look my fill with an indulgent, cocky grin and stared back at me, an amused and expectant expression in his eyes as he held his hand out for me to join him. His big, elegant hand, with its long, tapered fingers–there I went, drifting again. I blinked and shook my head to clear the lustful cobwebs, and took his outstretched hand to let him draw me into the muggy warmth of the shower, unable to ignore the heat in his gaze as he looked back at me.

 

     To be fair, our bathing did start innocently enough. Of course he didn't let me wash myself, he took the liberty of washing and conditioning my hair, as gently and thoroughly as he had the last time, and washing my body far more thoroughly than he had the last time. Those big hands felt like heaven on my skin, smoothing over every inch of my body as he cleaned me. Then it was my turn to wash him, which was admittedly a little more challenging. He bent his head with a laugh so I could massage my shampoo into and then out of his curls under the water, and when I started combing the conditioner through them, he wrapped his arms around my waist and hummed with pleasure as he buried his face into my breasts. I nearly bowed backwards before I pushed him away with a breathless giggle so I could rinse the product out of his hair and off of his skin. 

 

     Though I kept telling myself to stop comparing Loki to Michael, I couldn't quite help it. Despite the playfulness, there was something so incredibly intimate about bathing one another like this, and the fact that Michael and I had never done it was still present in my mind no matter how much I'd tried to silence it. We'd shared this shower once, but it had been an entirely utilitarian endeavor; there were no hands smoothing soap into each other's skin, no heated eye contact or deliberate, sensual touches, no caring for one another. He was my husband for five years, and I'd shared more intimacy with Loki in less than a week than I had with Michael in our entire relationship. I'd thought it had something to do with me, that there was something about me that repelled him to the idea, that there was something inherently wrong about me. But, then I'd thought the same thing about every aspect of our relationship over the years, because it was what he'd led me to believe and I just… did.

     "You're thinking about him again, aren't you?" Loki's voice shook me from my musings and I glanced up to see concern furrowing his brow and coloring his eyes. 

     "I'm sorry, I'm not trying to–"

 

     "Don't apologize, my darling," he interrupted. "I'm only worried about where your thoughts will take you once I'm gone again." With that he laid his head against mine and my hands slipped from his freshly cleaned hair to hold the back of his neck as he carefully watched me.

 

     "I was just thinking, I've been so much happier with you the last few days than I ever have been with him," I told him with a sigh. "I… I thought there was something wrong with me. My husband doesn't love me, he doesn't even like me," the confession stung, but it was true. He didn't like me, he didn't appreciate me, and he damn sure didn't respect me, "Not like you do." 

     "There is nothing wrong with you–"

 

     "I know," I cut him off this time. "Or, at least I'm starting to," I qualified. This was going to be a long road, learning to love myself again. It certainly helped having someone like Loki there to love me until I could. 

 

     Loki's hands slipped around my waist and held me to his chest as he pressed an ardent kiss to my lips. I tightened my arms around his neck and as I rubbed my slick, naked body against his, I felt that other long thing hardening between us as a soft growl rumbled from his throat. It was a difficult task, but I pulled away from his mouth, turning my head when he tried to chase me for another kiss, and grabbed the bottle of men's body wash I found in the cabinet. I didn't know what an ergi was, but it sounded bad and had everything to do with smelling like a girl, and I didn't want him to have to go home and wash all over again. He started to protest until I assured him that it was a product Michael had never used. I'd picked it out for him because I liked it, but he said it smelled like something from a dumpster. Loki gave it a tentative test sniff before letting me pour it into my hands to begin washing him, keeping his eyes firmly locked on me all the while. 

 

Naturally, I started with his neck and shoulders, rubbing in gentle circles to clean his skin and then using more pressure to massage the hard muscles underneath. His eyes slipped closed for a moment and he sighed, relaxing under my touch and it gave me the idea to do this again more thoroughly later, when we had more time. After I'd worked the tension out of his neck and shoulders, I used washing his back as an excuse to keep my front pressed against his, not that he was fooled by the ruse, but he let me run my hands across the expanse of his muscled back with a smirk on his face. I smoothed more circles over his shoulder blades and ran my fingers down his spine while my chest made an attempt at doing the same to his stomach. His lower back got the same treatment and I pressed fluttering kisses to his chest, catching water drops before they had the chance to beat me to my prize, and slid my hands further down, using washing as an excuse to grope his beautifully firm, round backside and pull him hard against me in the process. Every inch of him was utterly perfect, and his ass was no exception. He laughed, even as I felt the hard length of him twitch between us, and I knew he was enjoying this as much as I was. 

 

     But, I'd used up all of the soap in my hands, and had to pull myself away to get more before picking up where I'd left off. I smoothed over his trim hips, running my fingers along the Adonis belt cutting under his firm stomach, up his sides and down his arms, squeezing the muscles there before working my way back to his chest. Oh, his glorious chest, so lean but so strong. I watched as my hands moved across it, my fingers raised over every plane and danced over his hard pebbled nipples. I pinched them cheekily and he warned me to watch it, but the tremor in his voice said he was either amused or aroused by it, but I was so ensnared by what I was doing that I didn't quite care either way. The ridges of his stomach clenched under my hands and I felt the first real surge of arousal hit my core, but delayed gratification was the name of the game I was playing. I dipped into his belly button and slid lower, using my nails to scrub at the hairs dusting his stomach toward his groin, reveling in the deep intake of breath that expanded that delicious chest of his. When my hands moved even lower still, he knocked my chin up and surely my emotions must have been displayed on my face, because that grin was back in full force as he brought our lips together in an open mouthed kiss that would have left me weak in the knees had I not been so focused on my task.

 

     Further down my hands slid, until I had his hard cock in my soapy hands. He groaned into my mouth and deepened the kiss, tangling his fingers into my wet hair, trying to wrest control from me. But, I imagine it must have been difficult to do that when I was stroking and squeezing him just the way he liked. I let him thrust his tongue into my mouth to match the thrusting of his hips against my hand and used my other to gently fondle, or rather wash his balls. This was a dangerous game to be playing with him, because if he wasn't in the mood to be teased, he would just lift me up, pin me to the wall and fuck me silly. While that would be gratifying, I hoped he didn't, because I had plans, and a previously prematurely terminated shower to make up for. The groan turned into a growl when I pulled my hands away from pleasuring him, but stopped when I began to sink to my knees, dropping kisses and kitten licks all the way down his stomach. I could feel every heavy breath under my lips as I inched my way along, and the fall of water from the shower head beating against my back, then my neck and head, then his stomach, effectively rinsing the soap away from all of my hard work.

     When I finally knelt before him, I glanced up to find his intense green eyes watching me. His jaw was clenched, his nostrils flared as he waited for me to do what we both wanted me to, but, delayed gratification. Rather than resume my manual manipulation of his manhood, I instead began washing his thighs. They were another, lesser noticed but equally delectable part of his body. Thicker than one would expect for someone so tall but just as hard as the rest of him, with light hair dusting the length of them. After smoothing up from his knees, I clawed my fingers and gently scratched down the front of his thigh, enjoying the huff he let out above me. The cock bouncing with every heartbeat in my face was enough to tell me he enjoyed the sensation of my nails on his skin. I looked back up at him as I slid up the back of legs, using the motion to pull myself just a little closer, nuzzling into his naked groin. My lips brushed against the sensitive skin and I darted my tongue out to lick along the seam. Loki moaned breathlessly above me, in pleasure and relief that my teasing had come to an end. It was time, I supposed, because even I was getting impatient to feel him in my mouth again. 

 

     I started slowly, licking his balls, gently, carefully running my tongue across the skin like I was savoring a contractionary treat, catching the water droplets on my tongue before taking one of the best orbs between my lips. Still yet to touch him with anything but my face, I kept my hands planted high on his legs, just under that perfect ass and I could feel the muscles clenching under them. Since I wasn't touching it, Loki gripped his shaft in one hand, stroking and holding it out of my way as I worked him from below. I alternated from right to left, then right again over and over, sucking and suckling, until he was practically squirming, panting and, I was pretty sure, close to begging. Only then did I lift my gaze to his and drag my tongue flat up the length of him, over his straining fingers, savoring every vein and every velvety inch from the base to the livid, luscious head of his cock. I took it into my mouth with my eyes locked on his face, unsure if he was flushed from the heat in the bathroom or from my oral activity, but his parted lips, furrowed brow, labored breathing, and the beseeching look in his own eyes could only be from me. There went another rush of arousal, and I knew without touching myself that I was wet from more than just water as I clenched my thighs to relieve the ache that had formed between them. 

 

     Panting and squeezing himself in an iron grip, Loki slowly stroked while I sucked on just the tip of his cock, as if he were feeding it to me while I swirled my tongue over the head, tasting the skin and essence leaking from the slit. I couldn't help the hum of satisfaction that escaped me as it spread over my taste buds. It made him gasp and drop his head back, overwhelmed for a heartbeat before he grit his teeth and drew a deep breath through his nose. He looked back down at me, begging, daring me to take more. A little at a time, I did, sealing my lips around him and tracing the ridge where the helm met the shaft with my tongue before drawing back to the tip, and then down again. Steadily, he stroked himself as I took just a little more with each pass, taking him deeper until his hand had to stop moving and, eventually, release his grip entirely as my mouth took up the space his hand had been occupying.

 

     Gone were the gasps and breathless little noises, now he was fully groaning as he threaded his fingers into my hair again while I took him into my throat, the sounds bouncing back from the tile to echo around the bathroom. I moaned around him, sliding my hands up to grip the globes of his backside, squeezing and pulling him into me, wordlessly asking for more. Curses came out gritty and muttered when he obliged me, slowly and deliberately pushing deeper into my throat, the wet sounds of his cock sliding in and out mixed with his voice, filling the room with lewd noises that would otherwise make me blush. As it was, I only soaked my thighs even more and slid my hand between my legs to ease the pressure. He really liked seeing that. His hold on my hair got tighter as his thrusts got harder. I would definitely be feeling this tomorrow, but I knew it would be worth it. 

     "Do you have any idea how beautiful you look like this," he groaned, his voice raspy and breathless. I hummed on him, drawing away just enough to suck and stroke him with my hands, staring into his eyes and torn between wanting him to fuck me against the wall and wanting him to come in my mouth so I could finally taste it. 

 

     Evidently, he was through being teased and ready to make that decision for me, because he used his grip on my head to carefully pull me off of him. His cock slipped out of my mouth with a soft pop, and the sight of him, throbbing, livid, leaping with every thunderous beat of his heart was almost as gratifying as the orgasm I wanted to induce. He lifted me to my feet and dropped himself to one knee, trading places with me. My legs were over his shoulders and my back was pressed to the frigid tile before I could object. I scrambled for something to hold on to as he pressed his face between my thighs. 

 

     "You're so wet for me already," his growl of delight vibrated through me. "Do you truly enjoy the taste of my cock this much?" He licked a stripe up my center and closed his eyes with a moan of satisfaction. "Oh, but you must." 

 

     With that he latched his mouth on to me, even as he pinned me with a scorching stare. On the outside, it didn't look like he was doing much, but inside. I gasped with a sharp moan, still trying to find something to hold as his tongue flicked up and down over my clit, drawing on my lips with gentle suction before sliding his tongue down in between them. He wouldn't let me fall, so I took hold of the only thing within reach; while he held me up with his big hands under my bottom and my knees over his shoulders, I locked my legs in place and grabbed the back of his head. My hips rolled as I rode his mouth, instinctively seeking more–more contact, more movement, more pressure. I was already so close from arousal alone, but he wouldn't let me come that easily, not after what I'd done to him just now. As I sought more, he drew back, just enough to not let me have it, and went from using that dexterous tongue to slurping on my cunt like he was trying to suck the filling out. Only when I stopped arching into him did he resume his licking, furiously rubbing the rough part of his tongue up between my inner lips, over my clit and back, sucking and licking until I was panting and mindlessly begging. 

He let my knees slide down to his elbows as he stood up, sliding me up the wall and planting his hands on either side of me and grinding his rigid cock against my soaked and trembling slit. There was no move to enter yet, only hard thrusts against me, trailing his lips along my neck. I arched into him again, desperately needy, and pulled his face back to me with a whine.

 

     "You want it so badly, don't you, little dove," he panted. "You would do anything for it, wouldn't you." All I could manage was a helpless, frantic nod that made him chuckle darkly against my mouth. "Tell me, my love, were you ever this eager for him?" I shook my head then, the very thought was laughable, if I could feel anything close to amusement when I was so filled with lust, which wasn't helped by the deep, rough quality of Loki's voice. "Did you ever take his cock into your throat like that?" I shook my head, ready to be done with that vein of discourse. Though I had been thinking of him earlier, I really didn't want to be thinking about Michael at that moment, because I was afraid it would bring the mood down. It appeared as though it was having a different effect–that, or it was the idea that Loki had gotten something my husband never did. "Why not," he demanded.

 

     "B-because, he couldn't reach," I answered breathlessly. It seemed to take Loki's lust muddled brain a second to process what I'd said, and then he laughed.

 

     "Oh, no, that poor man," his voice strained with a mix of mirth and arousal. He shook his head and nuzzled his face against mine, teasing a kiss just out of reach. "The smartest thing he ever did was marry you. What a shame it was the last," he lamented with a smirk.

 

     "Yeah, poor Michael," I huffed impatiently, but my frustration only amused him more. He continued to rock his hips into me and then finally relented, pushing past my lips, filling me to the hilt in one thrust and my body jerked up with a cry. My fingers clenched around the back of his neck and briefly worried I'd hurt him when he hissed, but the concern was lost as I throbbed around him. He felt so much bigger like this, gravity and my compressed position had him deeper than he'd been yet. It almost hurt, but I relished the fullness, the stretch and burn of him so far inside of me. While I took a moment to adjust, he nipped at my mouth, sucking on my bottom lip and gently tugging on it with his teeth before sealing lips together in a messy kiss. I pulled on his hair, canting my hips to him and urging him without words to move. And move he did. He fucked up into me, slowly at first, just to make sure I was really ready, and then faster until the only sounds were our grunts of pained pleasure, the rush of the water, the slap of wet skin, and the occasional squeak of my back on the slick tile.

Over his shoulder, I could just see the mirror, and us, reflected in its partially fogged surface. His muscular back and shoulders flexed and rippled under pale skin as he held me up, his full, taut backside clenching as his hips rolled and swiveled. The sight of him fucking me from that angle, with my legs spread over his arms, was possibly the most erotic thing I'd ever seen. 

 

     "Look at us," he rasped suddenly, hoarse and breathless, and I tore my gaze off of our reflection with the hysterical thought that he was in my mind just as deeply as he was in my body. But he wasn't looking at me–at least, not my face. His eyes were cast down, where our bodies joined, and I followed his gaze to watch almost distantly as the thick column of his cock disappeared, thrusting in until it was entirely gone and drawing back coated with an opaque mixture of our fluids. In and out, over and again. I whimpered at the sight. "Look at how you take me," he urged, and I felt his stare on me as he watched me watch us, but I was fixated. 

 

     Forget the mirror, this was the most erotic thing I'd ever seen, and it was pushing me past that tipping point. My whole body was tingling and vibrating, I could feel the climax like an oncoming storm, tightening until I was ready to snap. The pace picked up until we were in a frenzy, he rutted into me, grunting and groaning as he fucked me with abandon and my hips rolled to meet every stroke, desperate to come and feel him come inside of me. It was that thought, the one of him filling my sopping cunt with his come and fucking it deep into my womb, that sent me soaring. With a keening cry, I exploded, my pussy clenching, milking, gushing as I came, vaguely aware of his stuttering hips and knew he had to be coming, too. My body convulsed violently, clinging to him and riding the orgasmic wave until it ebbed and I was left a gasping heap in his arms. He slumped against my chest, panting raggedly as he pressed kisses along my shoulder. After a moment of catching his breath, he carefully slipped out of me and lowered my legs to the tiled floor and held me there as the feeling slowly began to come back to them. Steam and exertion had me overheated and struggling to breathe, and when he did begin to pull away I nearly collapsed. 

 

     Unable to stand on my own, I held onto him for dear life. I could practically feel the smugness radiating off of him, but I was too satisfied to be annoyed and I supposed he had every right to be smug, because he'd absolutely wrecked me. If teasing was a game, he was an infinitely better player than I was, but with what I ultimately got out of it, it was a win-win no matter which way it went. However, ever observant and attentive to me, after catching his breath, he gently cleaned us both and turned off the taps before wrapping me up in one of the thick, fluffy towels and seeing to himself. He picked me up, set me on the counter and used a smaller towel to wring water from my hair, watching me with a small smile when I returned the favor. When we were dry enough, he carried me to the bed and set me in the middle, tossing both of our towels away before climbing in and wrapping himself around me instead. I'd worry about wet towels on the floor later, for now I was just happy to be held by him.

It didn't take long to warm up the bed, and once that was done, Loki propped his head up on one hand while the other trailed gentle caresses over my cheek, along my arm and back, staring at me with an expression I couldn't name.

 

     "You okay?" I whispered, and he looked into my eyes with another of those pleased little smiles and hummed in affirmation.

 

     "I make you happy," he replied softly, averting his gaze almost bashfully. 

 

     "You do," I told him quietly, and he brought his eyes back to mine. It seemed like he was almost afraid to believe me. "You're not used to that, are you?" 

 

     He tried for a dismissive shrug, but I knew him too well now to take that at face value. Whether he confirmed my suspicion or not, it tracked with what I knew already, both of his behavior from being with him and what stories had survived into the modern record. Even if only some of them were true, the character "Loki" was not known as someone to bring happiness; the ancient pagans would do things to ward against him, lest he bring mischief and misery to their lives. I couldn't even imagine him doing that, and my heart broke at the thought that all the other gods received prayers and offerings, while he was seen as something to need protection from. 

 

     "To be honest, a few days ago I didn't think we'd ever be… here," he said softly, shaking me from my thoughts and gesturing to our bodies, entwined in my bed. I cocked my head and looked at him.

 

     "Really? Why not? I thought this was what you wanted."

 

     "It was, it is," he replied. "But… I only came that first night to–I don't know–just be here? To be in the same place, even if it was only for a moment, to breathe the same air, and see where you made your home," he sighed. "I'd convinced myself that I must have misunderstood, or exaggerated your unhappiness, maybe even fabricated it to make me feel less…"

 

     "Alone?" I supplied, and he nodded as he looked at me.

 

     "I only meant to be here for a moment, I was going to leave before you woke up."

 

     "Then… why didn't you?"

 

"The photographs," he answered, staring off over my shoulder as he recalled that first night. "I saw the portrait from your wedding first, and that actually hurt. You were so devastatingly beautiful, like a princess in that fluffy white gown, and you looked so incandescent with him. In the next one, you looked less so, but that was to be expected–I assumed, every day can't be your wedding day, can it–but you still seemed happy. Then, with every picture after that, it was as if I could actually see the light fading from your eyes. In the most recent one, you weren't even trying to smile. That was when I let you find me." He looked back to me then, his eyes roving over my face as he stroked a finger along my cheek again. "You looked just like I'd dreamed you would. A doe-eyed fantasy. And when I kissed you," he paused to take a deep breath, savoring the memory. "I knew you needed me as badly as I needed you, and no husband was going to stand in the way of loving you and bringing that happiness back to your eyes. And, in the process, you gave me mine. I will be grateful for that for the rest of my life." 

 

     With that, he pressed his head against mine and closed his eyes. I felt my heart clench in my chest as I swallowed the emotions threatening to spill out of me. Something about this gesture, though I did very much enjoy his kisses, seemed so much more intimate and affectionate, and the clenching in my chest turned into a swelling. I held his face in my hands, my fingers winding into the curls along his neck and sharp jaw as he brought his arms back around me. I thought about our first night together, about how intense the feelings were, and about how we'd been in almost this same position when we expressed them. This time I spoke first.

 

     "I love you, Loki," I whispered as I stroked his cheekbones with my thumbs, and it was his turn to swallow hard before answering me.

 

     "I love you, too, Moira." He kissed me then, not a madly passionate clashing of lips and tongues and teeth, but the gentle press of his mouth against mine, and though we moved against each other, it wasn't charged or intentional. It simply was. We parted with a brief nuzzle, then he kissed my nose and my forehead before tucking me under his chin and holding me tight against his chest.

 

     Something had shifted in our relationship today, and I wasn't entirely sure exactly when it happened, or if it had been a gradual change and this was just the final piece falling into place. While sex was still very much an interest (not to mention immensely satisfying) fulfilling physical needs wasn't what our relationship was about anymore. Had it ever really been about just that, or had we been edging closer all the while, and it wasn't until he'd opened up that I realized it? 

 

In any event, I felt a renewed sense of confidence and purpose. I could tackle finding a job tomorrow, I would because Loki loved me and believed in me enough that it made me finally start to believe in myself. With his warmth surrounding me and his hands smoothing over my skin, I felt the drowsiness start to sink in. Just as I was beginning to get suspicious that he had something to do with how quickly I fell asleep with him, I dropped off into the world of dreams and never felt him leave.

----

skáld: Old Norse, noun, a poet (skáldic poetry is a very specific style of poetry, but I'm chalking this up to a confusion in the translation. While Loki does have a pretty good grasp of modern language and vernacular, language is a funny thing and there are bound to be similar but different concepts that just aren't important enough in context for him to think that hard about)

ergi: Old Norse, noun, one who does not behave in a manner befitting their gender, or complying with certain gender roles (apparently, that was a pretty big deal to the ancient pagans, and by extension their gods. Sort of the Old Norse equivalent of "them's fightin' words," being accused of argr [the adjective form of the word] behavior was something you had every right to avenge with your accuser's death.)

You can find Chapter 7 here: https://at.tumblr.com/constablewafflebottom/dream-a-little-dream-of-me/cyhgo8s4522m

And Chapter 5 here:

https://at.tumblr.com/constablewafflebottom/dream-a-little-dream-of-me/vxql24comkc3

And the Master List here: https://at.tumblr.com/constablewafflebottom/master-list/wmmq0h7adu6s

[thymeheals]

Stories in the Sunshine

Summary: Friendships form with Sam and Dean

POV: first person reader insert and Sam Winchester

Warnings: implied past abuse; past abusive spouse; injuries briefly mentioned;

Royal AU with the characters of Supernatural

Word Count: 1208

Part 3/? (7 so far) in process

The next several days went by filled with shared meals in Sams bed chamber where jokes and stories of their childhood made me laugh. Actually laugh. Out loud. I can’t remember the last time I genuinely found something this funny. Probably before I began trying to impress people at court. I got to know the two princes well. These men were wonderful company, and their brotherhood was beyond beautiful. I began to feel comfortable with them quickly as if I’d known them for years.

We spent many afternoons walking through the gardens and mingling with others at court or riding through the forest to the hills and field just beyond it on horseback. We’d dismount and lay around each other on a blanket drinking celebration wine. They seemed to take much joy in doing things their father would frown upon. I couldn’t help but smile. I’ve never felt so free, with my head leaned back against Deans chest as he propped himself with his elbow on some pillows, we listed to Sam read stories from a book of dragons and demons versus the kingdom with three lone knights at its defense. It was a sunny afternoon and the aroma of grass and tree sap wafted around us. I could just picture the battle, as a matter of fact I began imagining it happening right before me.

I had almost dozed off when I heard Sam quietly ask, “So what happened earlier with father? You’ve hardly said a word since we got here.”

“Same old argument Sammy, only this time he gave me a time limit and ultimatum. And invited every unwed noble girl he knows of.”

“How long did he give you?”

“Six months. And get this, I have to schedule a date every Saturday from next week until the times up. Basically choose six of the women he’s invited tomorrow night to court.”

“Why is he in such hurry? You’re only thirty-five and its not like we’re at war or that he’s sick with one foot in the grave.”

“I don’t know Sam, I just know that there’s no chance of me enjoying the ball anymore. Even if I tried drinking my way through it. He always manages to ruin my birthday. Somehow he finds a way.”

“Maybe they won’t be so bad, Donna seemed really sweet at Christmas and Meg was a lot of fun a few years ago. Oh and that Ruby, man was she unforgettable. Maybe she’ll wear that slinky red dress again”

“Heh yeah. But I just can’t picture living with any of them forever - and when I try to think of who’s the best queen material, who could actually help me rule - I definitely draw a blank. I’m going to be stuck with whoever he chooses for me because sure a dance, hell a night with any of them sure I’m there, but more than that? I mean marriage? No thanks.”

“What about y/n? You could dance the night away with her. Forget about it all. Just to spite him.” I could hear the smirk on Sams face in his voice.

“Sam.”

“What? The two of you have obviously gotten cozy over the last few weeks.”

“Father has ordered her death for next Saturday. I’m sure he’d love to find out we’ve released and been housing his fugitive thief.”

Sam sighed, “what if he didn’t recognize her? I mean under all that mud she turned out to be absolutely beautiful.”

“Sam,“ he sighed, "just forget it. Maybe you should dance with her, make sure she enjoys her last few days with you.” Dean shifted out from under me to stand.

They both smiled when I groaned at the loss of contact.

When I stirred from my dozing Dean and his horse were nowhere to be seen. I stretched, and looked around until I found Sam.

“How long did I sleep?” I yawned.

“Haha long enough for Dean to give up on you and go to the armory.” Sam grinned at my sleepy state. “No really maybe half an hour,” he extended his hand to help me to my feet, “here, let’s head back to the castle. We’ve gotta formulate a plan for tomorrow night.”

“A plan? Why do we need a plan for a grand birthday ball?” I asked as he whisked me up behind him on his horse. Clinging to Sam as we rode back to the castle, I began to worry about the next day’s circumstances to come. My mind and dreams were fitful and interrupted by anxiety and fear.

[gffa]

Last time I went about five months between doing a set of STAR WARS fic recs, this time it’s only been three months! Hurrah! It helps that, as always, this fandom puts out an incredible amount of excellent fic, so I feel like I’m never hurting for fics I want to yell about and shove at people, which is something I continue to appreciate as it often feels like so much of the world is such a huge tire fire. It helps to be able to find fics to retreat into, to have fun with, to express joy and creativity with, and so many of the authors in this fandom are just so good at this! To the point that these sets sometimes take awhile because there are always more fics I want to add, until the post starts threatening to be overly long instead of a decent length–in my defense, no seriously, you guys are just too good! Also, I forced myself to stop at 69 fic recs, because yes I do think it’s funny. (Nice.) STAR WARS FIC RECS: PREQUELS RECS: ✦ a comedy in four acts by jesuisdeux, obi-wan & dooku & yoda & qui-gon & cast, time travel, 4k    This was what time-travel is: staring at the dark sockets of skulls everywhere your gaze lands on. Being haunted by ghosts long gone. The apprehension of the slow yet sure approach of the inevitable which is sending chills down your spine. ✦ No Rest for the Weary by Peach_Bitters (peachybitters), obi-wan & anakin & jedi & ocs, 61k    Needing a break from life at the Jedi Temple, Obi-Wan Kenobi and his apprentice, Anakin Skywalker, visit a Jedi AgriCorps settlement on the Midrim planet of Helia. There they encounter new friends, new enemies and have new adventures, all while attempting to navigate their sometimes turbulent relationship as Master and Padawan. ✦ Stars of Tatooine by Be_Right_Back, ahsoka & kanan & mace & rex & obi-wan & cast, 10.5k    After the end of the world, Ahsoka more or less kidnaps a child, has to air some old grievances, and tries to find whatever peace the universe can still offer. All paths in the Force lead home, eventually. ✦ Festival of Light by dendral, obi-wan & anakin & ahsoka & rex & cast, 8.7k    During his first year at the Jedi Temple, Anakin learns that even the Jedi celebrate holidays. ✦ the master, the padawan, the Force by skatzaa, depa & caleb, 1.4k    Caleb expects things to be different after Master Depa takes him as her padawan, but really, it feels like nothing really changes. ✦ desecrate my lungs by loosingletters, obi-wan & anakin & ahsoka & padme & cast, 16k wip    Time-travel fix-it in which Mustafar haunts Anakin decades after it happened and years before it would. ✦ Grace by dismantlingsummer, obi-wan & anakin, 2.3k    Shortly after Mustafar, Anakin realizes what he has done. He finds Obi-Wan to beg for death. ✦ Fifth Migration by wrennette, yoda & mace & obi-wan & ki-adi & yarael & coleman & plo & palpatine & cast, 2k    How about an AU where the Sith’s Grand Plan accounted for everything -everything that is, except the fact that the Jedi temple is actually an very ancient spacecraft and the second word got to the Jedi about there being clones on Kamino, all Jedi are called back inside and they take off immediately? Just imagine the dear chancellor’s face… ✦ fill pages with scribbled ink by magneticwave, obi-wan/padme & sabe & mace & quinlan & cast, 9.8k    A year after the Invasion of Naboo, Jedi Knight Obi-Wan Kenobi is invited by Queen Amidala to return to Naboo and participate in a rite known as the Night of Fireflies. Things kind of snowball from there. ✦ Mind Your Words by Peach_Bitters (peachybitters), obi-wan & anakin, spanking, 7k    Obi-Wan reminds Anakin that there are consequences for careless behavior for young Jedi on missions. ✦ (you taught me) the courage of stars by grumpyhedgehogs, obi-wan & anakin & ahsoka & cast, 5.1k wip    Ahsoka Tano flees after a warrant for her arrest is issued, but not before receiving aid from an unexpected ally. (Ahsoka proceeds to go on a road trip filled with a bunch of strangers who all say the same thing: Obi-Wan Kenobi is much more than he has ever appeared to be.) ✦ they faked it (guess everything’s complicated) by katierosefun, obi-wan & anakin & ahsoka, 4.5k    Ahsoka temporarily loses memories of the events of Obi-Wan’s fake death. To help with the healing process, Anakin and Obi-Wan have to pretend that they’re okay. ✦ programed to dream by ghostwriterofthemachine, obi-wan & anakin & ahsoka, body horror, 1.3k    The spaceship Comet-rider is the fastest, most efficient vessel in the galaxy, and is crewed by Separatist-funded pirates. Anakin Skywalker is missing. Unfortunately, these two things are connected. ✦ Unpleasant Truths by hellowkatey, obi-wan & anakin, 2.1k    Obi-Wan and Anakin are stuck in a room with one another while waiting for truth serum to wear off. ✦ moment’s silence by skatzaa, obi-wan & owen & beru & luke & leia (pre-obi-wan/beru-owen), 2k    Owen had long since resigned himself to trouble, whenever Beru got that particularly stubborn set to her jaw. ✦ hold gently and let go by shatou, obi-wan & anakin (pre-slash?), 1.7k    A troubled Anakin comes to Obi-Wan to discuss attachments. ✦ sun child by Ro29, obi-wan & anakin, 2.1k    (or; sometimes being so tied to the Force causes problems, Obi-Wan helps his Padawan as best he can) ✦ A Dinner Out by Peach_Bitters (peachybitters), obi-wan & anakin & cast, 1.6k    Obi-Wan can’t get his young Padawan to eat much, so he tries something new. But trying something different has unintended consequences. ✦ Shades in the Desert by loosingletters, obi-wan & anakin & luke & owen/beru, 10.8k    Not even from a certain point of view did Darth Vader kill Anakin Skywalker. He wished he did, but the specter of the Jedi’s light escaped before he could finalize his fall to the dark. Meanwhile, Anakin is raising his son on Tatooine. ✦ somewhere along in the bitterness by CallToMuster, obi-wan & anakin, major character death, 3.8k    It was probably the twelfth day floating alone in space that Obi-Wan and Anakin realized no one was coming for them. ✦ Songs for Little Jedi by soft_but_gremlin, mace & younglings, ~1k    The initiates are having nightmares, so Mace sings a lullaby to comfort them. ✦ atmosphere level by softredscrunchie, obi-wan/satine & qui-gon, 1k    As a joke, Satine tells Obi-Wan she thinks Mandalore is flat. He doesn’t take it well. ✦ on sith holocrons and misunderstandings by billowypants, obi-wan & anakin & mace & yoda & cast, de-aged!obi-wan, 7.2k    or, de-aged!Obi-Wan has the same Force bonds as adult Obi-Wan, and he does not react well. ✦ Perseverance & Resilience by loosingletters, obi-wan & anakin, 1.1k    In the aftermath of Naboo, Obi-Wan realizes he needs strength to protect his new Padawan. Growing up, Anakin needs peace. ✦ A Delicate Balance by Peach_Bitters (peachybitters), obi-wan & anakin & yoda & jedi, spanking, 9.6k    As Anakin’s skills grow, so too does his penchant for getting into trouble. After a training mishap, Obi-Wan struggles with his role as Anakin’s master. ✦ mirror, mirror by CallToMuster, obi-wan & anakin, 5.4k    Obi-Wan has been rescued by Anakin after being rather embarrassingly kidnapped on the remote planet of Ilnuria during his investigation of rumored kyber crystals deep beneath the planet’s surface. …But is all as it seems? ✦ Mace Windu Appreciation Week by Redminibike1, mace & obi-wan & anakin & ponds & cody & jedi & cast, 12.5k    Set of unconnected ficlets for Mace Windu Appreciation Week, because he deserves it :) ✦ begin again as a quiet thought by skatzaa, obi-wan/quinlan, d/s, ~1k    Cool, smooth leather touched his jaw—gloves. Because of course Obi-Wan had thought of that as well. ✦ Drunken Lullabies by Siri_Kenobi12, obi-wan & anakin & siri & quinlan & aayla & garen & bant & ferus, 6.5k    “Do I really have to go to this thing?” Fourteen year old Anakin Skywalker dramatically sighed. “It’s sooo boring!” ✦ heaven knows how I love you by the_13th_battalion, obi-wan & anakin & ahsoka, 1.2k    Anakin, Obi-Wan, and Ahsoka are stranded on an unfamiliar planet overnight. They spend their time exploring the community- and maybe they get a little closer to each other along the way. ✦ A Reckless Padawan by Peach_Bitters (peachybitters), obi-wan & anakin & ahsoka, spanking, 3.9k    When Ahsoka upsets Anakin with an act of reckless disobedience, it falls to her grandmaster to help her see the error of her ways. OBI-WAN/ANAKIN RECS: ✦ Too Hot by secretsolarsystem, obi-wan/anakin, NSFW, 4.8k    Too Hot: A game where two players kiss without stopping and without touching each other. If one player touches the other, that player loses. The winner gets to do whatever they want to the loser. ✦ Nostos by intermundia, obi-wan/anakin & padme, NSFW, 17k    Or, how Obi-Wan and Anakin discover that there are many ways to come home. ✦ to touch the light, darkest by treescape, obi-wan/anakin, NSFW, 1.9k    Obi-Wan begins to fuck Vader back to the light ✦ encode by loosingletters, obi-wan/anakin & padme & handmaidens & cast, 26.3k wip    Instead of being accepted into the Jedi Order at the age of 9, Anakin Skywalker became a ward of Naboo. ✦ Hunting the Homeward Light by GreenQueenofClubs, obi-wan/anakin & mace & ahsoka & shmi & padme & cast, 31.9k wip    When Anakin Skywalker was nine, he left his whole life and mother behind to follow Qui-Gon Jinn to Coruscant and the Jedi Temple. When Anakin Skywalker was twelve, he left his whole life and Master behind to follow Mace Windu to the Outer Rim and away from the Jedi Order. When Anakin Skywalker was twenty… ✦ use my body to break your fall by tennessoui, obi-wan/anakin & cast, NSFW, sith!obi-wan, 44.7k wip    Obi-Wan Kenobi is too good at being a Sith Lord general of the Separatist army. The Jedi Council approaches Anakin with an offer he can’t refuse. These things are, actually, related. ✦ Over and Over by obiwanobi, obi-wan/anakin, 1.4k    “I love you,” he blurts out, loud and impossible to miss. Obi-Wan blinks once, twice. And freezes. The first time Anakin tells him is a mortifying experience. ✦ Exceptions by rinverse, obi-wan/anakin & ahsoka & mace & quinlan & cast, NSFW, modern au, 23.4k    Young and brilliant, Anakin is the mind behind JEDI Tech’s latest innovation. Obi-Wan is the company’s perfectly composed Director of PR & Marketing. And last night, they were just two strangers at a bar, looking for something quick and easy. But life had other plans when it crossed their paths again the very next day. ✦ Here There Be Dragons by Ghost_Owl, obi-wan/anakin & ahsoka, 10.1k    Anakin knows why he can’t shift into his animal form like every other Jedi. It’s because he doesn’t want to, it’s because he’s had a vision of what he would become, and he doesn’t want it. ✦ Waiting in a Sea of Stars by Peach_Bitters (peachybitters), obi-wan/anakin, ~1k    Stranded in deep space, Obi-Wan and Anakin wait for rescue. ✦ Tristitia by JSwander, obi-wan/anakin & cast, NSFW, sith!obi-wan, 5k    An alternate timeline where Palpatine focuses his attentions on Obi-Wan Kenobi instead of Anakin Skywalker after the attack on Naboo. ✦ Prompted - Chapter 11: Communication, What Communication? by intermundia, obi-wan/anakin, NSFW, modern au, mobster au, 7k    a 7k obikin PWP that is somehow a prompt mashup of a mobster au, an accidental sugar daddy au, with a soupçon of an anakin never left tatooine au, and a pinch of qui-gon was anakin’s dad au ✦ who a person truly is cannot be seen with the eye by RexIsMyCopilot, obi-wan/anakin, NSFW, d/s, spanking, 3.6k    Anakin purposely avoids doing what Obi-Wan tells him to do. ✦ Prompted - Chapter 12: Potidaea, 432BC, obi-wan/anakin, NSFW, historical au, 4.3k    Here is a short smutty scene inspired by all those classics asks, Alcibiades praising Socrates in Plato’s Symposium, and this vase c.490-480 B.C. depicting standing, face-to-face intercrural intercourse between a bearded man and a youth, which as far as we can tell was the most common and accepted position for it in Ancient Greece. ✦ Prompted - Chapter 13: Minikin and Tiny-Wan by intermundia, obi-wan/anakin, NSFW, 5.4k    Happy May the Fourth! In honor of this happy day, I have written the fluffiest, crackiest, vanilla-flavored smut imaginable. Based on long discussions on discord with tomicaleto about her adorable Tiny AU. ✦ to hold until brightness by treescape, obi-wan/anakin, NSFW, 1.4k    Obi-Wan feared that it drew out the darkest in him, to bring Vader to these flashes of light, but it was a trade he would make again and again without hesitation. ✦ May Be Found, If Sought by ghostwriterofthemachine, obi-wan/anakin & mace & quinlan, magical academy au, 2.3k    In which Quinlan, Mace, and Obi-Wan teach Non-Traditional Magical Philosophy in an institution rampant with academic snobbery and discrimination, something dark is stirring in the nearby forest, and no one is ever prepared for Anakin Skywalker. A small story about first meetings in magical academia. ✦ infinitely varied by loosingletters, obi-wan/anakin & ahsoka, modern au, 2.2k    Also known as Obi-Wan and Anakin teach a tiny program called A.H.S.O.K.A. how to be something more than lines of code via the power of linguistics. ✦ recipe for disaster by tennessoui, obi-wan/anakin & ahsoka, modern au, 9.8k    When Ahsoka tells Anakin she doesn’t want to learn piano anymore, Anakin is heartbroken. He doesn’t care about the instrument, obviously, but he’s practically in love with her teacher. Obi-Wan offers up a solution to their impending separation, and it’s not dating like any normal person would suggest. Instead, he’s gonna teach Anakin how to cook. Except Anakin’s a pretty well-known chef, and Obi-Wan is absolutely awful in the kitchen. ✦ Pretty Kitty by GayCheerios, obi-wan/anakin, NSFW, 2.2k    “Master, you always take such good care of me,” Anakin says, a little chirp coming after his sentence, as his thumb rests on Anakin’s plump bottom lip. ✦ As One, Into Eternity by Pseudonymoose, obi-wan/anakin, force ghosts, 3.1k    Death comes, but the man who was, and is, and will be Anakin Skywalker is not gone. And in the Force, he will never be alone again. ✦ does he make you laugh? by y0u_idjits, obi-wan/anakin & ahsoka & cast, fusion fic, 3.6k    “Tell me it’s not about screwing the guy who’s screwing your husband.” ✦ Rotten Work by secretsolarsystem, obi-wan/anakin, 2.8k    Obi-Wan: I’ll take care of you. Anakin, with bloodshot eyes and a broken back from hours of terrible posture: It’s rotten work. Obi-Wan, who needs to bathe this man for his own sanity and health: Not to me. Not if it’s you. ✦ afterimages by shatou, obi-wan/anakin, 1.3k    Mustafar is nothing but a bad dream. ✦ understanding is honoring the truth beneath the surface by RexIsMyCopilot, obi-wan/anakin, NSFW, d/s, 7.3k    Anakin asks Obi-Wan to take control. ✦ The strongest stars… by Tomicaleto, obi-wan/anakin & beru & cast, NSFW, 7.4k    The war’s end seems to be close, with everyone looking forward to it. And when Anakin is doubting himself the most, an unexpected visit arrives at the Temple. ✦ home has a heartbeat by izazov, obi-wan/anakin, 5.6k    Or: Anakin and Obi-Wan are together, but there are still some things left unsaid between them. ✦ turn back now (i’m haunted) by tennessoui, obi-wan/anakin & padme & quinlan & ahsoka & cast, modern au, ghosts au, 25k wip    Anakin Skywalker’s house is haunted. Luckily for him, Padmé knows a ghost hunter. Unluckily for him, it’s the hottest, most english-professor ghost hunter he’s ever seen. And extremely unluckily for him, he’s starting to get the feeling he understands maybe ten percent of what’s actually going on here, not to mention what’s at stake. ✦ game plan by treescape, obi-wan/anakin, NSFW, 11.2k    Or, Vader keeps capturing Obi-Wan during the Wars. Obi-Wan keeps escaping. It’s kind of a thing. ✦ Provocation by ToolMusicLover, obi-wan/anakin, NSFW, 4.9k    Or: Obi-Wan and Anakin attempt to navigate their complicated relationship with barbed words and wilful ignorance. It wasn’t going well. ✦ Languages by Crowgirl, obi-wan/anakin, NSFW, 6.5k    So Anakin pulls out a map and makes a list. REBELS RECS: ✦ The Scent of You by ambiguously, kanan/hera & cast, a smidge of nsfw, 2.9k    Everything changes after Malachor, and Kanan has trouble finding his balance. ✦ Heard It in a Love Song (Can’t Be Wrong) by ambiguously, zeb/kallus, 2.7k    Kallus can’t quite figure out what makes Zeb tick, but he keeps trying. ORIGINAL TRILOGY/MANDALORIAN RECS: ✦ A Discussion of Choices by Peppermint_Shamrock, luke & mace, 2k    Mace Windu has traveled the galaxy since the fall of the Republic, keeping out of the Empire’s sight and teaching where he can. Upon the request of a ghost of an old friend, Mace finds himself instructing Luke Skywalker, who is still reeling from the truth of Vader’s identity. ✦ staring down the barrel of the hot sun by magneticwave, luke/din & obi-wan & grogu & mace & cast, 25.7k    “Gone to a Child of the Watch, the Darksaber has,” Grand Master Yoda announces in his creaky little voice. “Peace, there is not, and yet peace, there must be.” ✦ Released by Peppermint_Shamrock, cody & rex & luke & cast, 6k    Nearly two and a half decades late, Cody’s chip is finally removed. Adjusting to having his mind returned to him after so long takes time, and Cody struggles with questions of his purpose of the past, present, and future. Fortunately, he does not have to struggle alone. ✦ A Tatooine Rainstorm by skatzaa, leia & luke & shmi, 1.7k    Leia meets a ghost. ✦ Dealing with the Darksaber by Peppermint_Shamrock, din & bo-katan & cara, 1.3k    After her recovery, Bo-Katan contacts Din to challenge him for the darksaber. Din is still very much not interested in the whole affair. FULL DETAILS + RECS HERE

[xpeachesncream]

lowkey (jjk) | 02.

⦿ boo’d up in the daytime

⦿ mackin’ & hangin’ in the nighttime

↳ series masterlist

summary: in order to pass organic chemistry and pay off your car damages from an accident, all you have to do is help the nerd, jeon jungkook, with a few things: pretend to be his girlfriend and teach him the ways of dating.

pairing: popular!reader x nerd!jjk

genre: college au, fake dating au, friends (with benefits?) to lovers au | fluff, angst, smut

words: 3.2k

warnings: cussing, implied sexual content/mature language, kissy-kissy koo, mentions of a boner, mention of sex and cum, seokjin’s still toxic

note: posting this chapter a little early since it’s butter weekend, plus the last part of liquid courage should be up sat/sun. still sticking to my schedule in my faq though, srry loves! i’ll do my best to update as soon as i can. 💗

tags: @taegularities​ @jimidol​ @miinoongi​ @bluesharksandfish​ @ggukkieland​ @unicornbabylover​ @thebeebi​ @preciouschimine​ @ladyartemesia​ @moonchild1​ @jikookiekosmos​ @marcoazz2​ @kootaes​ @wearenot7withu​ @codeinebelle​ @bigbootyjoonie​ @thisartemisnevermisses​ @maichiverse​ @ppeachyttae​ @fairysunooo​ @secretlycrazyhummingbird​ @yukiehyukie​

"I heard you were in an accident last night, babe. Are you okay? I'm so sorry I got mad at you yesterday." Seokjin comes towards you, cupping your face to look at every inch, every detail. You move away from his hold, backing up to give yourself some space.

"Seokjin, I told you to stop calling me that. Jesus. I'm fine. Don't need you to check up on me."

"Are you really gonna keep that up? I said I was sorry."

"Okay, and? I heard you."

"Really, that's it? Y/N, why are you being like this? What's the real reason?" He follows after you as you make your way to the library. To say Seokjin was persistent is an understatement— he was persistent for the wrong reasons. Like, keeping you close so he had you to fall on when things went wrong with another chick, his safety net.

"Because this is done, I don't know how many times I have to tell you. I'm tired of you doing this so, please. Just go." You slightly turn towards him as you climb up the stairs.

"I wanna work this out with you. Don't push me away. Let me help." You don't respond. He watches as you adjust your bag strap and wave at Jungkook. Seokjin chuckles and grabs your wrist gently, making Jungkook suddenly hop on defense as he balls his fists. Like he could do shit. Seokjin would probably wreck his ass with those broad shoulders.

Still. He hated how much of an asshole he was to you.

"Wait, what the fuck?" Seokjin laughs his rare, deep laugh that he uses when he's caught off guard. "You're hanging out with nerds, now?"

"And if I was, that would be none of your business." You snatch your arm away while glaring at him. You shake your head and continue walking towards Jungkook, relieved Seokjin finally left you alone today. Probably off to tell Namjoon, Yoongi and his friends how much of a bitch you've been and that you actually left him to hang out with a nerd.

Sunmi knows you're being tutored. However if that wasn't the case, she would question you, but she never take their side on shit. She remained loyal to you, and always supported you through whatever. That's why she's remained your bestfriend until this day. The senior chicks Seokjin and them hung around with though? Questionable. As long as Sunmi was by your side and you by hers, you both didn't care much for getting close to them.

"Hey, sorry you had to see that." You say as you sigh and set your bag down alongside of you on the long table.

"It's alright." Jungkook replies softly. "Are you okay?"

"Yes. Thanks." You give him a tiny, tightlipped smile. "So, should we get right into tutoring, or should we talk about the details of our deal? I have all afternoon." Luckily, it was quite loud in the loud section of the library. No one cared much to listen in to your secret deal with Jungkook, nor did anyone care because it was Jungkook.

"I do too. I guess, whatever works for you?"

"Let's get this tutoring over with first then iron out the rest." He nods.

"Sure." He pulls out his notebook. "Tell me, what are you struggling with?"

"Everything." He does a small head tilt.

"I doubt that. I'm sure you understand some things."

"No, you don't understand Jungkook. I'm legit drowning. I don't know what I'm doing wrong or where I'm lacking." Jungkook simply looks at you, lips pressed together before he nods. You're not lacking anywhere, he thinks. You're really not. The subject is just shitty and the spawn of the devil.

"That's okay. Well, can I go over some basics? Throw in some tips?"

"Yes, please. Lead the way. I need you." You chuckled, but it makes the heat rush to his cheeks. He hopes you don't catch the rosy tint creeping up on them, so he instantly grabs at the whiteboard near your table and starts to go over the very beginning, the very basics of this semester's OChem class. Maybe a bit from last semester, but last semester wasn't entirely that bad compared to this one.

He didn't expect you to be all that engaged for some reason, but he should have known you'd ask questions left and right, taking the black whiteboard marker from his hand to practice what you've learned with him watching and guiding you from your side. You were always focused, always so determined. You were incredibly smart. Incredibly beautiful.

Honestly, Jungkook go on for days.

The both of you hadn't realized it was nearing close to 5PM and neither of you had really eaten much since lunch. You sit, feeling pretty good about your first session with Jungkook. You feel a little bad having kept him for so long over OChem, realizing you still had things to iron out with him.

[sunmi] 4:34pm: hey babe, not gonna be leaving for a bit. i forgot i had to work on this psych project with jennie. you okay with leaving around 6/7?

"Crap."

"What's the matter?" Jungkook glances at you as you continue to stare at your phone and scroll away.

"Sunmi isn't leaving until later. I'll probably be stuck here for a little longer after you leave." You put your phone down, now resting your chin against your palm, nails slightly digging into your cheek.

"I-I can give you a ride, if you'd like? Plus, we still need to talk.. about stuff." He shyly says.

"Jungkook, that's too much to ask for."

"It's really not a big deal. How far do you live from campus?"

"Maybe a 10 minute drive, the next exit off the freeway." He shrugs.

"I'm going in that direction too."

"Are you sure?"

"Positive. We can just talk on the way home."

"Would you be willing to stop by for dinner? We can talk then. Maybe it can be considered our 'first date.'" You joke with a small giggle.

"Oh, sure. Yeah." He gives off a tiny, nervous laugh. "Where did you have in mind?"

"Can we get.. hm—" You hum. "Fire Wings? Down the street?" He almost feels intoxicated watching how your eyes gleam under the light, how they brighten and widen when you mention food. You were cute, and you didn't even know it.

"Only if you tell me what flavors you get." He tries to get smart, which makes you laugh. He made you laugh.

"Is this judgment day? Gonna see if you should call quits on our deal before it even starts?"

"Maybe." He goes along with it.

"Okay. Garlic Parmesan and Dragon." You pack up your things before shooting him a look.

"Okay, solid flavors." He nods. "I guess we can continue on."

"You're funny." You giggle as you both throw your bags onto your backs. You stay in your position until Jungkook comes to your side so you can walk by him. You don't know much about him, but he has a soft demeanor and he makes you feel comfortable. You had only seen him a couple of times across campus, not really noticing him much in class either. You feel a little bad knowing you didn't even try being that he sat behind you, but better late than never I guess? Maybe there was a reason for all of this happening. The way he tutored you today was insane, too— he was super smart, but broke it down perfectly, was patient. He was patient.

No wonder Dr. K loved his ass.

"What about you?" You picked up the conversation.

"I usually go for a dry rub and Garlic Parmesan."

"I haven't tried any dry rubs."

"You can try one of mine later."

"Okay." You suddenly remember to shoot Sunmi a text before she comes looking for you everywhere on campus. Jungkook stays silent beside you, allowing you to do your thing without being too overbearing or nosy.

But, he honestly can't help but glance a few times.

[y/n] 5:11pm: sorry just saw this, hitching a ride with my tutor. don't worry about me! ty ily, have fun working on your project.

[sunmi] 5:13pm: tutor, as in jeon jungkook?

[y/n] 5:15pm: yeah, he offered.

[sunmi] 5:16pm: okay, that was nice of him. if he tries anything tho i'll beat his ass. text me when u get home?

[y/n] 5:17pm: don't worry about him, he won't lol i will.

[sunmi] 5:18pm: kk love u b

"Sorry." You say, tucking your phone into your pocket. "Had to text Sunmi."

"That's okay. You two are really close, right?"

"Yeah, since high school."

"Cool." At this point, Jimin, Taehyung and Hoseok are coming out of the café at the same you two are passing.

"What about you, where are your friends?"

"Um." He sighs, trying to avoid his friends obnoxiously waving and calling him from the distance. You glance over from behind his figure, chuckling a little bit. "That's them."

"Cute. You all are really close, too?"

"Ya, I've known Jimin the longest though." You smile and wave at them, causing them to gasp and whisper amongst each other with huge smiles on their faces.

"I'll need to meet them if we're gonna do this thing for real. Do they know?"

"Yeah kinda."

"That's okay. We should probably work on keeping it between us though." He nods.

"Okay, but. Can we save meeting them for later? They're a bit.. much." You smile.

"Sure."

"D-do I have to meet Sunmi?" You nod.

"If you wanna make this believable, yeah."

"She's kinda scary."

"Jungkook, she's not gonna bite your head off. She just has that look, but I promise she's sweet." That look, that resting bitch face. Really, you could be biased because it's Sunmi. She really only had issues if she felt disrespected. Other than that, she meant well. Same with you— you've been accused of being intimidating and having the same look but you don't mean any harm by it.

"Okay." Jungkook unlocks his black 2016 Honda Civic and pops his bag in the trunk. You do the same, while Jungkook goes to open the passenger door for you.

"Thanks." You smile sweetly at him. He climbs into his seat, hitting the button to start the car and sighs. The music in the background starts to play, and it sounds mellow, soothing— like it came straight out of a fairytale. His eyes widen as he rushes to lower the volume before shyly looking at you.

"Sorry."

"What, no. Don't be. What is this?"

"A Final Fantasy lofi mix." He begins to drive off as you turn the volume back up.

"It's nice. Pretty relaxing."

"Ya, it's nice to listen to after a long day." He pushes his glasses up at the light.

"Do you have family here?" He nods.

"I do. My mom and dad live about an hour away. I'm the only child. What about you?"

"Same. They're probably 30 minutes up north."

"Do you live alone?"

"Yeah, I live in a studio. It's actually my coworker's. She bought the space to rent it out. She lets me rent it for pretty cheap though."

"That's nice."

"You?"

"I live with Jimin. Our parents are close."

"What about your other friends?"

"Hoseok is dorming, and Taehyung would rather live back home with his family and commute. He's close to them. He'll crash at ours or Hoseok's from time to time."

"Are you close to your family?" He nods as he turns into the plaza lot.

"I suppose, yes. I'm just really quiet overall, so they think it's hard to read me sometimes." He parks and you watch as he shuts the car off with the same button. "You?"

"Yeah, I'm really close to my mom. Dad, a little questionable."

"Why, if I may ask?" He comes to open your door again, causing you to give him a small smile.

"He, um. Just got into some stuff." He watches as your body tenses while you fiddle with your fingers waiting in line.

"It's okay, don't think about it. I won't ask again."

"It's okay, Jungkook. Really. Maybe another time?" You look up at him and he nods. He stands way taller than you, almost at Seokjin's height, if not the same. He likes to wear baggy, dark clothing and doesn't do much to fix or style his hair.

He's simple, but in a good way.

You both order your food with Jungkook going first so he can grab a table afterwards. Before he could pay though, you offer to cover him for dinner as your way of thanking him for driving you home. You make your way over to the table he snags, Jungkook silently sitting at the high table with his legs pressed together and his hands clasped tightly on his lap.

"You okay?"

"Ya, why?"

"You look tense."

"Sorry. It's not everyday I have dinner with Y/N." You smile.

"Stop, relax." You watch as he slightly eases up. "So, this deal." He nods. "A month?"

"Yeah, I suppose."

"We have to convince people it's real or else people will know something weird is going on." You look at his hand, now resting on the table. "You're gonna have to hold my hand and kiss me, you know?" He swallows the lump in his throat. Shit, he thinks. Don't know if I can actually pull this off?

A kiss?! Fuck.

"Y-yeah."

"When was your last relationship, Jungkook?"

"8th grade." Your eyes widen.

"O-oh, now I see."

"What's that supposed to mean? It's terrible, I know but I—"

"No, no, no. You're good. It's totally okay, it doesn't matter. I'll just have to teach you to make it look realistic and not.. awkward." You perk up again. "Not saying that you are though, okay."

"I know."

"So, are you.."

"Am I..?" He cocks hid head to the side in confusion.

"Like.."

"Just ask Y/N."

"Are you a virgin?"

"I don't know." You furrow your brows.

"Huh?"

"Look, this is gonna sound really embarrassing and I don't know if I'm even ready to tell my fake girlfriend about it."

"Just say it. We have to know things about each other." He sighs.

"I— ugh." He groans. "I did it with my girlfriend at the time. Or I guess my ex because we had broken up and this was sometime during freshmen year in high school and she came onto me out of nowhere at a mutual friend's pool party. But it was weird because we were just hormonal kids and I was just curious so I slipped myself into her only to slip back out right after because—" He's rambling, but you're doing your best to keep up.

"Because?"

"I-I, ugh. Y/N." He shuts his eyes and pinches the bridge of his nose. "Are you really gonna make me say it?"

"Jungkook." You lean a bit to try and catch eye contact.

"I came right away." He says just as the worker puts down your food and takes the number from your table.

"Ohhhhhhh." You say as you nod slowly. "Okay."

"You can just run now." His head hangs low as he slowly slides his chicken over in front of him, causing you to chuckle.

"I'm not going anywhere. It's okay. Stop that."

"It's pathetic."

"No. Besides, I know you'll get better overall, and you'll find someone who will rock with you till the end. We'll work on this."

"Thanks." He says, feeling comfortable around you. You were quick to reassure him and smile at him, he felt himself melting in his seat. Yeah, you were too good for Seokjin.

"You'll have to come to parties with me. Club events. Events in general. It won't look right if I'm always going without you."

"Okay. Can I bring my friends?"

"Sure." He nods. "What do you do in your free time?"

"Play video games and listen to music. Read comics, manga. Build lego sets with the guys."

"Cute." You smile.

"You?"

"Hang out with Sunmi, or just watch movies on my own at my place. Read. Eat by myself. Explore by myself. I value my alone time."

"It's nice." Jungkook's familiar with it. Even if he had his friends around, he truly liked being in his own peace when allowed. "What about outside of the public eye?"

"Hm?" You hum.

"Do we hang out?"

"Yeah we can." You nod.

"Cool." He smiles.

"Is my car gonna be a lot of work for you?"

"Don't worry about it, it'll be good soon. Just might take a bit cause I need some parts to make it look brand new again."

"I really can't thank you enough." He shrugs.

"Only trying to help my girlfriend out." He boldly says, causing you to laugh.

"Confidence is peeking through already, are you sure you need me?" You joke. The rest of the evening, you continue to talk to Jungkook about pretty surface level shit— what you like, dislike, overall experience in high school and college so far. It was a nice, harmless conversation, one where you were starting to see how warmhearted Jungkook really was. How real and laid back.

None of the shit in Seokjin's group. It was refreshing, a breath of fresh air.

Once dinner had finally finished, Jungkook was on his way to drop you off. He had parked in an empty guest spot, offering to walk you up just to be sure. At the door, he took a peek at how clean your studio was, mainly soft colors of white and cream taking over, with plants scattered around your living room area. The hallway in was sandwiched between your kitchen area and another wall, Jungkook assuming your bed was on the opposite side of it. He awkwardly stands at the door, afraid of overstepping.

"Well, goodnight Y/N. I'll see you tomorrow."

"Hey, wait." You smile and come close to him. He swallows, his mouth suddenly feeling dry when he feels your breasts press against his chest. "First lesson— give me a kiss."

"Right now?"

"Jeon Jungkook, we're doing this tomorrow. People are gonna have to see this at least once while we're together." He nods and presses a quick kiss against your cheek. "Not bad, but a little longer?" He complies and presses another kiss, leaving his pillowy lips against your cheek for a little longer before pulling away. "Perfect. Now here." You point at your lips before crossing your arms.

"Y/N, I—"

"Don't be afraid, just do it. I won't kick you in the balls or anything."

"It's not that. I just don't think I'm a great at this stuff."

"Okay." You tippytoe and gently grab his jaw while you lean towards his face. "Just relax, okay? Don't think too much of it." He stays silent, doe eyes constantly on you as you continue to inch forward.

Sparks. Just sparks everywhere for Jungkook.

He feels your soft lips against his and he relaxes, moreso because he feels like he's lost all senses being this close to you. Taking in your scent. Kissing you.

"There." He stands still, still trying to process the kiss. "Not bad. We'll get better over time, but at least that looks believable. Just—" You put his hands down as they were about to fall onto your hips during the kiss, but they fell short. "Let it happen and hold me, okay?" You smile. "Night Jungkook."

"N-night." He stutters as he watches you close the door. "Fuck." He whispers to himself when he realizes he's now sporting a boner. "Jungkook, what the fuck is this?!" He continues to whisper to himself as he waddles down your hallway.

[tumbling-darkling]

The boy who lived and the professor that didn’t (for the most part)

AO3

During Harry's second year at Hogwarts, a strange and unexpected man starts teaching his Defence Against the Dark Arts class.

(A Danny Phantom X Harry Potter crossover)

Chapter 1

Harry took a seat in the Defense Against the Dark Arts classroom, glancing over to Ron who sat beside him and then scanning the classroom for their new DA professor. He already met the man in Diagon Alley, blonde and very much interested in only himself. Harry shivered as he remembered being pushed towards him as people took pictures of the famous wizard and the boy who lived.

At least it wasn’t worse than a head of the dark lord growing out of the back of the professor's neck.

Well- Harry did thumb through some of the textbooks before classes started. He absolutely agreed with Hermione who was very vocal about the books- they didn’t actually seem to teach anything. Just spoke about the ‘many adventures of Gilderoy Lockhart’.

Maybe this will just end up being an easy class.

The door slammed open 15 minutes past the start of class, startling the students as they swiveled their heads to look at the newcomer, expecting Gilderoy Lockhart.

Instead a tall man with a slim frame and hunched posture strode into the room. He had messy black hair pulled in a very horrible and tangled loose bun with the remaining dreads lazily dangling at the man's shoulders, his chin and cheeks covered in unshaven stubble. His robe was creased and torn, his hat loosely hanging from his hand and his sleeves pushed almost all the way up his arms. What really caught people’s attention was those eyes. Unnaturally clear and bright icy blue, so blue that even in the bright light they seemed to slightly glow.

He quickly pulled down his sleeves as he walked past the students towards the front of the room, grumbling slightly under his breath about something Harry couldn’t catch. He tossed the hat aside, muttering more loudly about how ‘wizard hats are so stupid and impractical I’m not wearing that garbage’ before he turned towards the class.

“My name is Fenton- er Professor Fenton I guess. Since I’ll be teaching you about…” he glanced down at the podium he stood in front of, crouching a little as if looking for something before straightening back up. “Defense… Against the… Dark… Arts,” he said slowly and not very confidently. Then he whispered again to himself but just loud enough for some students to pick up, “they see me fight one god damn ghost and suddenly I’m an expert on all dark magic entities? I think I’ll fight Dumbledore after this.” He straightened a little, eyes looking over the classes.

Harry did not like those eyes lingering on him for half a second longer than the others. He didn’t like this professor looking at him at all.

Something just didn’t feel right.

“Alright, any questions?”

A hand immediately went up, and Harry knew exactly who it belonged to.

“Uh- yes miss-?”

“Hermione Granger. Wasn’t our professor supposed to be Gilderoy Lockhart?”

“Yeah- that guy. He’s a phoney.”

The class went silent before someone yelled out, “WHAT?”

“Guy went around, found Wizards and Witches that did cool things, made them forget it then took all the credit. Tried to take my credit and I hit him a little too hard. Now I’m here taking his place. It’s all over the news, you know. You can read the exaggerated details in there. Anything else?”

The same hand went up.

Professor Fenton sighed, “yes?”

“Why were you 15 minutes late? Shouldn’t professors be on time? And why do you look like you crawled out of the forbidden forest.”

“I fought a ghost. Then got lost,” Fenton deadpanned.

The class went silent.

Fenton then turned around, “well if that’s all, let’s get started with something I know a lot about. What do you already know about Ghosts?”

-

-

-

“You’re seriously more afraid of Professor Fenton than Professor Snape?” Hermione asked Ron. “He’s not even mean! Sure he’s grumpy but he doesn’t beat down every question I ask him! He even seems to be glad I’m asking questions! Unlike Professor Snape who just treats us like idiots for not knowing something.”

“Sure- he’s not mean or cruel but… he just freaks me out. Like how he just stares sometimes at empty walls! Or how the room temperature always drops the moment he seems to take a single step into the room! I can’t even hear his footsteps when he walks! He’s bloody freaky is what he is!”

“Well I for one am glad he’s our Professor! Imagine having a phony for a professor! Though he talks a lot about ghosts. Ghosts can’t cause people harm. At most they give a little scare but it’s not like they could cause terrible damage.”

“What about those ectoplasm based ones he was talking about? The solid ones?” Harry asked.

“Rare and unlikely. Ectoplasm doesn’t form in the magical world, Harry! The stuff that leaks through and hangs in the air is only enough to allow ghosts like Nick or Myrtle to hang around in harmless ways.”

“But he said he fought a ghost before he arrived in class! And he looked really beat up!”

“He said he got lost too! Maybe he just stumbled across a guard dog like Fluffy and made up something about ghosts!”

“What if it’s like the last professor though? What if he’s looking for another secret object in Hogwarts walls?” Harry hissed softly, “Ron is right that he just has a sense of oddness about him! I just don’t trust him!”

“Harry, you’re just paranoid from last year. Professor Fenton is normal. Now pick up your pace, we’re going to be late for our next class!”

-

-

-

Professor Fenton glanced down at Harry, then back at Professor McGonagall, “he has what with me?”

“Detention. You see, Mr. Potter and Mr. Weasley caused a bit of a fuss by driving a flying car in plain sight of several muggles, and risked exposing the magical world. As such, his punishment has been detention. I trust you can find some fitting work for him to do as he reflects on his actions?”

Fenton crosses his arms, his mouth tightening slightly into a grimace as his fingers slightly tapped his own arms. “This won’t be every night, will it?” He asked.

“No, we will be switching supervisors for a few weeks but you may also need to supervise Mr. Weasley sometime before then.”

Fenron let out a sigh of defeat, “well- alright. I’ll take care of it then.”

Professor McGonagall gave a curt nod before turning stiffly and walking off. Professor Fenton scratched at the back of his neck as he watched her walk off, then glanced down at Harry, those eyes seeming to search him for… something. Then that stern look relaxed into a lopsided grin, “So you were the one that made that stuck up ministry trip over their hats and scramble around in blind panic! I say, hats off to you young Potter!” He laughed.

Harry blinked in confusion at the shift in mood, then Fenton patted him on the back, “hey, no need to look so freaked out! I’m not gonna bite ya!” He began walking forward, and it took Harry an extra second to realize that the professor was moving and he should follow. “Oh, wait you probably are a little freaked out, huh? I guess my mood could have been a bit better this morning, I was just a little flabbergasted today. I was kinda rushed into this position, you know.” He shrugged, his hands shoved into his cloak’s pockets. He didn’t really walk like any of the other Hogwarts professors. He had this relaxed saunter, like he was more of a visiting relative than a staff member. “Say, let’s say your ‘punishment’ will just be helping me bring some books from the library to my quarters. There’s a lot I need to run through and a single trip would make all the difference.”

Harry nodded, finding it hard to keep up with the man's long strides. “So… you don’t like the ministry of magic?” Harry asked.

Professor Fenton huffed in annoyance, “not one bit. They are almost worse than observants!” Harry had no idea what those were. Another level of magic government? “They try to control every little thing. Don’t expose magic to the normal world. Don’t use magic to make technology without permission. Don’t use magic to save muggle children if people are watching.” His said in a mocking tone, “they have so many rules that are outdated or stupid. Never trust a government, kid! Especially a magical one!”

“What are… observants?”

Fenton glanced down at Harry, “oh those stuck up jerks? They are like the government of the ghost realm. Really annoying. Unlike the Ministry of Magic, they actually know how to find me!” He laughed.

“Ghosts have governments?”

“Oh yeah! They have more of a monarchy, the observants are like hermit wizards that only step in when they believe the world is in peril. Meanwhile the rest falls on the shoulders of the Ghost King.”

Harry frowned, “I’ve never read about that in the textbooks. Hermione says that ghosts are just harmless beings formed from souls that aren’t ready to leave the mortal realm.”

“Well she’s half right. There’s different kinds of ghosts, like Sir Nicolas and the Bloody Baron. They are more like echoes. Souls that cling desperately to this world but didn’t have enough ectoplasm to become a fully solid ectoplasmic being. They won’t leave for the infinite realms until they are ready, though many believe they are trapped here forever. More solid ghosts form in a similar way but are exposed to more ectoplasm, but rarely show up because natural portals to the infinite realms are sparse and in between. Well until about a decade ago.”

“Infinite Realms? Natural Portals?” Harry felt like his head was going to explode.

“Well, there should be some books about that in the muggle section.. Though some wizards would say it’s all garbage because muggles discovered and studied it. Just look up my name under the author and you should find some.”

“Oh… wait- did you write them? Is that why you know so much about ghosts?”

Professor Fenton barked out a loud laugh, doubling over as he clutched his sides, “Ah! No! No, I didn’t write them! My parents did!” He cackled. “Ah, yeah but I did learn from them. And a bit of field work. Tell Miss Granger to check them out too, I’m sure she wouldn’t mind having something to read. She reminds me of my sister in that way.” He stopped in front of the library doors, “Aha! I knew we would find this place eventually!”

Harry looked at Professor Fenton in bewilderment, “you didn’t know where we were going?!”

Fenton shook his head and shot him another grin, “nope! I’ve been constantly getting lost in these dumb halls. This place constantly moves and I absolutely hate it. Even the Infinite Realms make more sense than this castle!”

Harry stuttered, “If the infinite realms is where ghosts go, isn’t that like… the afterlife? You’ve been to the afterlife?”

Professor Fenton lazily shrugged and opened the doors to the library, “yes and no. It’s all complicated. I’ll tell you a different time.”

Harry stood there for a few more seconds as his brain tried to catch up with the information, and once he managed to close his mouth he chased after the Professor.

-

-

-

Harry glanced around the Professors room as he followed after him, arms filled with books that seemed to suspiciously be only about the Dark Arts. He’d never been to a professor's living quarters, at most he had been in some offices. Even so, it was not at all what he imagined a wizard's living quarters would look like.

First off, there seemed to be technology. He recognized a coffee machine on a low table, but it wasn’t plugged into anything. There was an odd box that looked like a slightly smaller television, it’s screen black and wires sticking out of it attached to a rectangular box with a lot of buttons on top of it and a small round device. There was also a radio, and a huge telescope leaning out the largest window. As Harry looked, he began to notice spaceships literally in every corner of the room. Different kinds as well, some would even move and blast off. The most amazing part was the roof of his room. It was almost exactly like the great hall as it rose into dark nothingness, but the stars were MUCH brighter and all the constellations had been traced out, some brighter than others. For someone who knew a lot about ghosts, he seemed to really like space. Then there were also some odd things thrown around, like a very weird looking thermos. Or a metal… boomerang?

“Just place them over here, Harry!” Fenton called as he dropped his pile of books onto a couch in the corner. Harry did as he was told, placing the books down a little more gently than the professor did.

“Professor… how did you get these things to work? Technology usually… explodes around magic,” Harry asked.

“Oh! Well it’s because I power them myself!” Professor Fenton chirped. “They don’t work the same way as regular technology. Again, I recommend checking out some of the notes in the Fentons books, they have a lot of stuff that works in the magical realm.”

“Why would you need it though? Doesn’t magic make up for a lot of technology?” Harry asked.

“Ah, but that’s where you are wrong you see! There is nothing in the magical world that is equivalent to the coffee machine!”

Harry blinked, “... what.”

“It’s a very important machine, Harry. You will depend greatly on it once you need to stay up for an entire week. But! It seems our time together has come to an end. Thanks for your help, Harry, and if McGonagall asks, tell her I made you scrub toilets or something,” he winked.

Harry grinned back, heading towards the doorway to go find Ron and Hermione. He closed the door behind and the moment it clicked shut, he saw a flash appear from under the door.

He paused slightly, but shrugged. Maybe a comet passed by on the enchanted roof of his room. He then headed down the halls to find his friends.

-

-

-

“Not normally invited?” Harry asked.

Hermione nodded, “Ghosts throw death day parties like birthday parties, but rarely do they ever invite living people!”

“I see, so Sir Nick really wanted us to be there,” Harry pondered as the trio entered the party area. He immediately was hit with an awful stench, nearly gagging before he had to swallow it as Sir Nicholas noticed their arrival and approached swiftly with the widest smile they had ever seen on his face.

“Harry! Ron! Hermione! You all made it! Oh this brings such joy to my cold, dead heart!”

“Glad to see you as well, Sir Nick,” Harry struggled not to gag on the smell.

“Say, why do ghosts even celebrate the day they died? Isn’t that… like a very traumatic experience you would rather not remember?” Ron somehow managed to ask.

“Well, ghosts like to celebrate it to commodirate a start to a new chapter of our afterlife!” He paused, glancing across the room for a split second, “most ghosts that is, and the death day isn’t to remind us of our death. It more serves to encourage us to look forward! No one really wants to remember how we died. Never a pretty picture.”

Harry followed Nicholas’s gaze for the split second glance, then noticed a ghost he had never seen before. He ignored the smell (they would have to ask about that later) and nudged Hermione, pointing at the ghost, “hey Hermione, have you ever seen that ghost around the castle before? I don’t remember seeing him from last year…”

The ghost in question seemed so much stranger than the rest, he had a brighter glow, where he should have had legs, merged into what seemed to be a ghostly tail, drifting lazily like caught in a breeze. Long hair whiter than snow itself drifted around like caught underwater, and bits that weren’t drifting were braided neatly and lost in the rest of it as it constantly moved. The ghost had purple skin, pointed ears, green freckles dotting his cheeks and long sharp fangs showing as he laughed at another ghost's joke. He dressed like a medieval lord, wearing a delicately detailed black and white tunic tucked into a braided belt circling his waist, his ghostly tail completely black. Thick white leather gloves covered both his hands as he waved them around while he spoke. A white cape hung off his shoulders, but when the cape occasionally drifted to show the inside, it was like the ghost had taken the night sky and attached it to the garment. Thick fur wrapped around his shoulders and long and sharp horns that looked like ice circled his head like a crown.

Toxic green eyes that had irises that seemed to swirl around the pupil glanced at the trio and Harry suddenly felt very very small.

“I… don’t know. I haven’t even heard of any ghost that looked like him before,” Hermione seemed like she was at a loss, probably scouting through her thoughts and memories for any trace or mention of the unfamiliar ghost.

Sir Nicholas cut in, “oh! That may be because King Phantom doesn’t live in this castle! He’s mainly only here to visit for the year!”

Ron gapped, “... did you say… king? Was he a king before he died?”

Sir Nicholas frowned, “no, of course not! He’s the king of all ghosts! King of the infinite realms! The one who defeated Pariah Dark in single combat barely a year after he died! The youngest and most beloved king we ghosts have had in such a very long time.”

“There’s a king of ghosts? And that’s him?” Harry asked.

“That’s what I just said, my dear boy. Keep up!”

“I don’t want to seem rude, Sir Nicholas but… why is he here?” Hermione gasped, “if he really is such a powerful and imposing figure, doesn’t he have a lot of duties to fulfil?”

“Well, he told us he was technically here on business but that it requires time and an investigation that could take a few months. So he could visit and celebrate with us from time to time! He’s a very relaxed man, I assure you. Here let me introduce you all to him! My Liege! I have some friends you absolutely must meet!”

The King looked over and smiled widely, “friends, you say?” His voice echoed more than the other ghosts, seeming to carry across the room as he spoke. He then blinked in surprise and turned to Nick, “Sir Nicholas… you realize these three are still amongst the living?”

“Why of course! Harry is the Boy Who Lived! The first to survive the death spell!” Sir Nicholas said quite proudly.

The King drifted down towards the three, causing Ron to slightly flinch at his approach, his hands clasped together as worry seemed to etch on his face, “well, most ghosts don’t have a very good sense of smell or taste, right? Which is why we have all the rotting food out?”

“Yes?” Sir Nicholas still didn’t seem to catch on.

King Phantom held out his hand, producing clothing hanger clips made purely of ice, “The living can still very much smell and taste, and I don’t think it’s exactly the smell of roses and lavender.”

Sir Nicholas blinked, “oh. Oh! Oh Harry and friends, I apologize for forgetting such a detail!”

Harry, Ron and Hermione all graciously accept the clips, pinning them on their noses to escape the horrid smell. Then Hermione turned towards the Ghost King with a glint in her eyes, “wait- how did you do that? Ghosts aren’t this solid- and they definitely can’t use magic!”

Phantom chuckled, drifting back into the air as he pointed to the crown of ice horns on his head, “Well first off, I’m the king so I get some bonuses. As well as not all ghosts work the same. You should try listening to that Dark Arts professor of yours when he talks about ghosts. He’s quite knowledgeable about all things not living.”

“But- but years of documentation and research-!” Hermione tried to argue before the King tutted.

“Information is constantly changing and growing, something that seems pretty constant could change in seconds and turn your whole world upside down. Not to mention, many different types of ghosts like myself only became more common recently. Before, most of us were confined to the infinite realms, only ghosts like Sir Nicholas forming for many centuries and the different kinds rarely slipped out.”

“Well-, what changed?” Hermione challenged.

King Phantom sported a playful grin, “I d̶͙͉̓̓i̷̢̩̬̘̟̽ę̴̘̲̹̤͌̊d̸̢̳̞̄.”

He then turned and left the three on that note as he went to join other ghosts at the party.

“What does he mean by that?” Hermione huffed.

“He’s got an odd sense of humour, that’s for sure,” Sir Nicholas laughed.

-

-

-

Harry couldn’t stop his glare that shot towards Professor Snape as he accused Harry of petrifying Mrs. Norris and writing the bloody message that stained the wall. Before he could snap back at him that he did not do any of this, Professor Fenton seemed to almost step out of thin air to his defense.

“Mr. Potter was with me all night, he did not do this,” his voice laced with a chilling venom. Was he… lying for him?

Snape tilted his chin up, attempting to look down on Fenton who was no longer hunched, and instead stood tall at his full height. It was quite difficult to do as it turned out, Fenton towered over every other Professor in the area. “And who, pray tell, are you?” Snape seemed to almost spit.

A sinister grin spread across the tall Professor's features as he stepped in front of Harry, leaning menacingly over the shorter wizard and blocking his view of the student, “Professor Fenton, the professor of the Dark Arts. Accusing a second year of such a powerful spell isn’t a very wise take, now is it Professor Snape?” Fenton basically spat his name.

Snape glared back, “you would be surprised what Potter is capable of, especially the trouble he gets himself in.”

“How about you try not pinning the blame on a 12 year old child?”

“That is enough out of both of you,” Dumbledore stepped in. “We all know Harry was not responsible for this, as Professor Fenton’s defence is true. We have a healthy patch of mandrake roots that will cure Mrs. Norris of her petrification, and students will resume their classes while the professors investigate the issue. Now you three will return to your dorms for the rest of the night.”

Harry hesitated before he headed back towards the dorms, but didn’t fail to notice how Professor Fenton’s eyes flashed toxic green, or the wink sent in his direction.