#its my birthday today and the best gift you could ever give me is your tears :>

[sanddusted-wisteria]

How to Send Letters to a Star [Oneshot]

GN!Builder/Qi; heavy angst

Warnings: Major character death, grief/mourning over a spouse

Edit 11/23/23: Now with a playlist, for extra sad

Summary: An extension to Empty Skies, Hazy Skyboxes, set after Chapter 4.

The builder is gone, and so is their virtual double. Left without his guiding starlight, Qi sets out to navigate the treacherous waters of recovery with nothing but pen and paper. But this time, he isn't alone.

Also on AO3

A/N: I've had the idea of extending ES, HS for several months now. I originally planned it as a fairly long multichapter fic, but I couldn't really find a way to make it click. But just recently, I came up with this! It reuses some of the ideas I had in that original outline, but it brings them together in a way I feel is much more cohesive.

Just like ES, HS, this fic won't take into account any of the canon main story after The Goat, nor any of the implications of what's happening in Sandrock in the background at this point of the story. Pretend that these two fics exist in a "main story stasis" of sorts. Enjoy!

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

Qi sat at his usual seat outside the saloon, waiting for his order to arrive. He idly sipped at a cup of tea as he watched the golden light of the evening fall over Main Street. He wished the frycook would hurry up a little. He wanted to be back before dark.

“Evenin’, Director.”

From the street below came Hugo’s voice. He leaned over in his chair to see him coming up the road, returning home for the night.

“Oh. Hello. Productive day for you, I assume?” Qi said.

“Yeah, not bad,” Hugo replied as he stretched his shoulder out. “Got a couple nice swords finished. Best ones this week. How ‘bout you, holdin’ up?”

“Nothing of particular note today. Though that’s not necessarily a bad thing, I suppose.”

Hugo hummed. “Sometimes a borin’ day’s better than a bad one.”

Qi nodded. It was silent. He took another sip of tea. Hugo scratched his head.

After a minute, Hugo started walking again. Qi thought that he would head back to his house, but to his surprise, he walked over and took the seat opposite Qi.

“Um…?” Qi looked over, confused.

Hugo let out a light sigh. “I know that look.”

Qi frowned. “What look?”

“You’re thinkin’ about ‘em again, ain’t ya?”

“N…no. I was just thinking about how I wanted to return to the Research Center before nightfall—”

“—So you don’t get reminded of ‘em again.”

Qi looked away. “…Yes.”

Just then, the door to the saloon opened, and Grace appeared. “Hey, sorry. Had a bit of a fire to deal with… Um. Not with your stuff, though.” She set the tray down on the table next to Qi.

“Mm. Thank you,” Qi said, mind elsewhere.

Grace suddenly noticed Hugo. “Hey, anything for you?”

Hugo shook his head. “Naw. Jus’ talkin’ with the director here.”

Grace’s eyes flickered between the two of them. “Gotcha. More tea?” she asked Qi.

“Oh…no. That’s fine.” He handed Grace the money for the meal. She had no snarky comment this time. Not even a smirk.

“Cool. Enjoy, then.” She turned to head back into the saloon. Halfway into the door, she paused and looked back at Qi. “And take care, okay?” Then she disappeared.

Qi took the spoon from the tray and began drinking his tea porridge. Hugo stared out across the street, lost in thought.

“How you feelin’?” Hugo suddenly said. His voice was quiet, but it was the loudest thing on the silent street.

“I…” Qi set the spoon down. “I…don’t know. I don’t know to describe it, at least.”

Hugo nodded sagely. “Somehow…I know. There really ain’t a word in any language to describe it.”

Qi let out a quiet hum. “How…else did you deal with it?”

“Hrrrmm…” Hugo brought a hand to his chin, frowning at the ground. “Well…I remember soon after it happened, we all wrote letters to Rhonda. Me, Heidi, and Mama.”

Qi frowned. “Letters? To a…nonexistent recipient?”

“Well, we never put ‘em in the mailbox or anythin’. We’d jus’ slip ‘em into envelopes and seal ‘em up, and we’d put ‘em away with the rest of the mail, like she really got ‘em.”

“And this…helped?”

“A lil bit, yeah. Anythin’ we ever wanted to say to her…but never could… We could put it in a letter. Get it out of our system, y’know?”

“That does seem logically cathartic,” Qi muttered, mulling it over. “Do you…still do it?”

“Not as much anymore. Started with one every few days, but as we all got a bit better, we did it less and less. Nowadays I only do it about once every year or so. Jus’ to remind her I still love her. And that we’re doin’ alright.”

Qi slowly nodded. “I see. I suppose there’s no harm in trying it.”

“Yeah, give it a shot. You’re still young. You must have plenty left you wanna say.” He shrugged with a sad look in his eye. “It’s the best we got. Least until the Light reunites us.”

Normally, Qi would have scoffed at that last comment about the Light. But the emotions of it bled through the unscientific idea. He let it slide.

Hugo stood up. “Let me know how it goes…if you want. I understand if that’s somethin’ you wanna keep to yourself.”

“I’ll see,” Qi said. “Regardless…thank you. For all of your guidance.”

Hugo let out a low chuckle. “Don’ mention it. You know where to find us if you need any more help.”

“Of course. Good night, then.”

“Good night. You take care, now.”

Qi watched as Hugo left the saloon’s deck and disappeared into the warm light of his house.

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

Dear Starlight,

Hello??? I’m…not sure what to write here. Hugo has suggested that I try writing letters as if you could receive them. Apparently this has some emotional benefits to it. I could see it from the way he explained it, but actually doing it myself feels so strange. I know for a fact that you will never read these words, yet I write like I can. I think I will experiment with this further…but perhaps when I think of more topics to write about.

Qi

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

Qi ripped the last piece of duct tape and slapped it onto the box. He heaved a sigh as he looked it over. Hopefully the relic wouldn’t get damaged in transit. Not that it made any difference if it did. He just needed this thing out of his Research Center. Out of his sight.

He grabbed a marker and wrote down the address on the top of the box.

Old World Computing Technologies Lab

University of Vega 5

Vega 5

Alliance of Free Cities

No return address.

He felt his stomach churn as he shoved it out onto his doorstep.

That wasn’t them, he silently told himself.

They weren’t in there.

They weren’t anywhere.

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

Dear Starlight,

I got rid of the virtual reality relic. I had it shipped off to a lab in Vega 5. Maybe they can get some use out of it. Maybe they won’t make the same mistake I made. Or maybe they will. It’s not really my problem anymore. I just couldn’t stand knowing it was in my Research Center. I reset everything, of course. No traces of the virtual Sandrock project remain. With luck, no one will even know that I was the one who sent it.

I’ll try not to write about this again, since I really do want to move past it, but…it still sits very clearly in my mind. Sometimes my mind still conflates you and your virtual double as being one in the same. Is that an indicator of the quality of my work? Or a sign of my own mental weakness?

The last thing I want to do is to delude myself again into believing that clone was really you, but even so…I felt like I did the right thing by you. I really, truly felt that you would have wanted me to erase all the progress I had made.

In that moment…it seemed like you were really talking to me again.

There I go again. High quality work, or my emotions taking advantage of me?

Now. Let’s put this all behind me. For good. I still don’t know exactly what to do without you, but anything is better than this.

Qi

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

Qi was busy running the statistical analysis for his last experiment when someone suddenly grabbed his shoulders. He yelped and angrily whirled around to find Mint standing there, snickering.

“Sleepyhead! Why?!”

“Come on, Spacecase. When was the last time you saw the sun? ANOVA can wait.”

“Well, it can wait, but you just made me lose track of my calculations. Now I have to start over,” Qi grumbled.

“Exactly. So put it down for a bit and take a break, Spacecase. That’s why I’m here.”

“And I don’t suppose you’ll leave unless I comply?”

“Nope!”

Qi groaned, but set his notebook down. “Fine. What do you suggest we do, then?”

“What else?” Mint shrugged. “I haven’t seen you in ages. We catch up.”

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

Dear Starlight,

Mint decided to visit recently. Apparently he had some time off and thought to come here. Despite all the letters and telegrams he’s been sending, he wanted to come talk to me in person. I assume it’s to reduce the chance of me obscuring the truth when I answer any questions he asks.

I admit…he was right. When I started working on recreating you virtually, he was concerned about how the project would affect my well-being. That I would grow too attached to this artificial version of you.

When I told him this, he just shook his head and told me that he was just glad I managed to survive it and admit my mistakes. Even when he had left, he was still worried. He told some of the other townsfolk to keep supplying me with food and water and other necessities, since he knew I wouldn’t bring myself to do it without coercion. Once again, he was right. I never really paid attention to all the food being left outside my door while I was in the depths of that project. I only had one objective in mind. It hardly mattered if my body wasted away while pursuing it.

All the letters and telegrams were also a form of…insurance, if we want to call it that. Not only did Mint want to know about my well-being, but they acted as a sort of indicator. If I didn’t respond to a telegram, he’d send one the next day. If that happened three times in a row, he would telegraph Mayor Trudy instead and have someone check on me. Same thing for letters, though with a week in between each one instead.

I was surprised to hear this. Mint is far from stupid, but this amount of planning…it’s unusual for him. I asked him why he would go this far.

All he said was, “Why wouldn’t I?”

Now I worry if I’ve taken him for granted all these years.

Qi

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

Qi was staring a hole into his lab’s front door. He’d stood there for what felt like an hour, half of him urging him to walk out, and the other half begging to fall back. Neither could persuade his feet to move.

He made sure to work a little later than usual today, so he’d still be at the research center after dark. Today, he thought, was the day that he would summon the courage to stargaze again. At least, that’s what he thought this morning. He figured that if he could force himself to stay out later, the probability of him cowering away again would be lower, since he would have no excuse to not just go up the stairs to the roof and do it.

…He could always just sleep here tonight…

Qi grit his teeth and furiously shook his head. With both arms, he shoved the doors open as hard as he could, the resulting BANG rattling across the empty street and through his skull. The chilly air and the dark of night greeted him. He stared out a little longer. Then his impulses took hold, propelling him forward into the darkness before he could shrink away. He stiffly walked up the stairs, stumbling and almost tripping in some places.

And finally, he was on the roof. The cold, hard, metal, empty roof. The telescope stood still in the center, keeping its watchful eye on the stars like always. Qi plodded over to his old spot, his legs no longer familiar with the roof’s incline. He sat down with his knees hugged to his chest, trying to let the cool air push the nausea back down.

The familiarity of the scene in front of him made his heart ache. The rock formations blocking the sky in all those particular spots, the moon peeking out from behind the mesa, the side street far below, and of course, the sky, that grand span of darkness dappled with boundless amounts of magnificent, luminous…

“…Starlight…”

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

Starlight…

It’s still strange, isn’t it? Someone like me calling you that. I never thought I would be one for such saccharine…nonsense. But with you, it all just seemed to happen of its own accord. You made me feel and act in ways I’d scoff at several years ago. I’d get excited at the prospect of a distraction from my work, if only to spend some time with you. I’d never get tired of talking to you. I’d be glad to explain even the most basic scientific concepts to you. You awoke so many new emotions in me.

Even after you’re gone…you’re still doing it.

I always thought

You never

You were always

When I think of the stars

I still

You still

I can’t

Why do I

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

Starlight,

Yesterday was the Day of Memories. I had to run out to refill my water tank, and I opened the door to find some lanterns left outside. I have no idea who left them there. But they at least had the foresight to just leave them there without a word.

For the first time…I participated in a town festival. Of my own accord. I wonder what you’d say to that. Actually, strictly speaking…I participated in my own way. Separate from everyone else. Your judgment call on whether that counts or not.

I released the lanterns from the rooftop, of course. I waited until I saw the crowd release theirs…hopefully no one noticed mine separate from the rest.

Did you see them

It’s strange. I’ve never felt compelled to do something like this before. But as I watched the lanterns and the stars…the sensation that I felt… I think I have a new yearly routine.

Qi

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

Qi sighed as he started his next diagram. Some ho-hum cattle feeding device for the ranch man. Nothing engaging. Just like the last one. And the one before that. And the last 11 of them.

The pencil fell out of his loose hand, only halfway done with the first line. He stared at the point where the line wobbled and stopped.

…

Suddenly, there was a knock at the door. Qi jolted back up. What was it with people insisting on knocking on his unlocked door? Can’t they just come in? He huffed another sigh and went to answer it.

He opened the door, letting the hot noontime air in. He found himself looking down at the concerned face of…

“Mayor Trudy?”

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

Qi stepped off the boat, legs still a bit unsteady from riding on the ocean. It smelled like salt and fish and seaweed. He glanced up at the familiar metallic walls, and around at the other boats in the harbor.

A familiar fishing vessel was docked at port 6.

Looks like they were home already. Qi moved on, handing his paperwork to the immigration officer, a tired-looking woman who probably wasn’t paid very much. She took a brief look and gave his forms a stamp.

“Welcome to Vega 5,” she droned.

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

It wasn’t far to his parents’ house. They lived close to the harbor. He stood frozen in front of the door, unable to bring himself to knock. He pressed his ear up to the door, faintly hearing some murmurs of conversation. They were probably having dinner now.

He raised his hand up to the door. It didn’t move. As he stared at his knuckles, he felt a sudden urge to run back to the harbor and get the next boat back to the mainland. But he pressed it down and knocked.

Inside, something was shuffled around. Qi felt his stomach churn. After a moment of silence, the knob finally turned.

“Hello, can I help—” It was his mother. As their eyes met, she froze. “Heng?!”

Qi tried to say something. An explanation. An apology. Even just a greeting. But nothing came out.

His mother gave him a once over. “Come in, come in!” She opened the door all the way. “We can talk later,” she murmured, a sad smile on her face.

Qi slowly stepped through the doorway and took off his shoes. He looked around at the familiar wallpaper and all the same pictures on the walls, the simple but homely furniture, all the books that he and his grandpa filled countless shelves with.

“Heng? When did you get here?” His father and his grandpa had suddenly appeared in the doorway leading to the kitchen, staring with just as much shock as his mother did.

“First things first,” his mother said, putting a gentle hand on his back. “Let’s get him dinner.”

“...I…already ate,” Qi lied. “I’d just like to rest now, if you don’t mind.”

“Oh, that’s nonsense,” his grandpa piped up. “It’s only 6. You told us you always have your dinner at 6:30 on Thursdays,” he chuckled.

Qi sighed. “Alright. Fine.”

Everyone sat back down at the table, and a bowl and chopsticks appeared in front of Qi. He blankly took them up and served himself a meager portion. His family, meanwhile, started up their conversation again. Simple, light talk about their days. He could tell they were trying to pique his interest, but still wanted to give him some room to breathe. Never did they ask him anything, or try to rope him in. They let him just listen. He felt a pang in his chest. They knew what he was feeling. And he was grateful.

After slowly making his way through his food, he set his chopsticks down and stood up.

“Finished?” His mother gave him a soft smile.

Qi nodded. “I think I’ll turn in early tonight.”

“Alright. Sleep well.”

“Take it easy, Heng,” his father said.

“Don’t strain yourself,” his grandpa added. “Sleep tight!”

Qi nodded mutely and left the table, hearing the others start talking again, only quieter this time.

He walked upstairs to the bathroom and splashed some water on his face. That was all he had energy for.

Right across the hall was his old room. He carefully opened the door. The last time he saw this place was before he left for Sandrock. Everything was still in its place. All his old notes and journals, all his Gungam relic figures, all the books he couldn’t carry with him, all the stains from past experiments. Everything. Coated in a thick layer of dust, but the same nonetheless.

He flopped onto his old bed, which barely fit him now, staring up at the off-white ceiling, dotted with star mappings he drew himself. His eyes grew heavy.

It still smelled like fish.

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

Starlight,

I’m writing this from Vega 5, believe it or not. The mayor insisted that I “take a vacation” for a week or two. When I refused, she informed me that she told the rest of the townsfolk to not submit any research requests for two weeks. When I continued to refuse, she threatened to suspend my budget allocation unless I used it for paid time off.

I didn’t exactly know where to go, so I went to the only place I could think of. Back to my parents’ house. How did I think of it? I still don’t know. Some irrational instinct, I suppose. Regardless, here I am.

I didn’t tell my family that I was coming. It was so spur of the moment that I didn’t have the time. They haven’t seen me in person for years. And yet…when I showed up and interrupted their dinner…they didn’t ask any questions. They just sat me down at the table and let me rest right afterwards.

After that first night was when they really started talking. Both my parents took a day off from work. Which never happens. With the exception of weekends, they’re always up early in the morning to head out on the water to fish, or to prepare their stand at the market. But that day, they just wanted to stay with me. It almost felt like them staying home to care for me whenever I was ill in elementary school.

We talked for a long time. Meandered around the neighborhood. Visited some familiar places from the past. Not all of our conversation was about me or you or the…circumstances. But when it was, they had nothing but kind words to say. They recalled all the times I had written about you in my correspondence. They knew how much you enriched my life. They would have loved to meet you. And…they’ll always keep my room free whenever spontaneous visits like these would ever occur. Despite not returning to Vega 5 for nearly a decade…they still kept it the same way as it always was. Just in case I would ever show up the same way I did a few days ago.

It felt…a bit overwhelming.

Qi

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

Heng, my little astronaut,

Care to meet me at 10 tonight? You know the place.

Grandpa

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

Qi finally climbed the last step, stopping to catch his breath with his hands on his knees. He looked up at the vast night sky above his head. A rare sight to see in Vega 5. He was lucky to grow up so close to the harbor, pretty much the only other place in the city that was completely out in the open. But even so, the smell and the spray and the massive hull of the rest of the city covering one half of the sky didn’t make it anywhere as good as this.

Peach Park. The highest point in the city.

He looked down around the barren terrace. Near the railing overlooking the city below, sitting patiently on a bench and looking out at the sky, was his grandpa.

“Are you sure it’s a good idea to be making this trek all by yourself?” Qi asked as he approached the bench.

His grandpa chuckled. “I’m still fit as ever. The real question is, why is someone as young as you having trouble with it?”

“Not acclimated with it,” Qi grumbled. “I only have to climb one flight of stairs at a time on a daily basis, not fifteen with steep slopes in between.”

His grandpa just laughed, echoing off the metal panels of the terrace. Qi just let out a huff.

Eventually his grandpa fell quiet again, gazing serenely once more at the stars. “Good view of Mars tonight.”

“Indeed.”

Silence.

Qi felt his hand twitch. What was he here for?

“So…” Qi muttered. “Did you…have anything in particular to discuss?”

His grandpa closed his eyes, a soft smile just barely visible in the fading moonlight.

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

Starlight,

I never met my paternal grandmother. She died shortly before I was born. For as long as I’ve known him, my grandpa has always been a widower. Yet somehow, it never crossed my mind to think of him in that kind of capacity. He was always my mentor more than anything else. My very first research advisor.

He called me up to the highest point in the city, just like all those years ago when he brought me up there and ignited my passion for the sciences. This time, though, there was nothing scientific about what we discussed.

He told me more about my grandmother. I had heard some things about her before, from stories that both my grandpa and my father told me, but hearing about her like this was completely different.

They met in university. Studying different fields, but their mutual hatred of their calculus professor brought them together. They spent so much time together studying at the library, then in cafes and restaurants, then in each other’s dorms and labs, then in the home they shared.

One day, she caught a cold. Then it got worse. Then she developed pneumonia. Then she was gone. And my grandpa was left alone.

And now, his own grandson is going through the same. If either of us were any less scientifically-minded, perhaps we’d call it a curse. An omen, maybe. But it’s neither. Just identical tragedies that happened to two people that happen to be genetically related. That’s all.

That’s…all.

He told me not to let myself get consumed by work as my only way to cope. And this was the part that really got me thinking: he told me that successes from work and the happiness that comes with them are a different kind of happiness than I can get from other people. People like you and Mint and my family. No matter how much work I do, it can never fill the void your passing left behind.

All of a sudden, the stint with the virtual reality relic makes a lot more sense.

At first I misunderstood him. I thought he was trying to get me to completely stop my work. But he quickly corrected me. I can and should work whenever possible. It’s just that it cannot be my only way of responding to the situation.

When you died, I had nothing else I could do. There was no longer anyone in Sandrock I was obligated to. Nothing left…but my work. And work I did.

My grandpa…he made the same mistake, it seems. He would hole himself up in his laboratory for days on end, never returning home unless my father came and dragged him there. The first time that happened, he was infuriated with my father. He had never truly lost his temper with him before, but he exploded, trying to shame him for not caring enough about his own mother. My father was terrified and ran off. But almost the second after he disappeared, my grandpa felt terribly ashamed.

My father returned an hour later, long after his anger had cooled, and my grandpa went along willingly this time. They were silent on the way back, except when my father spoke up to remind him about his future grandchild. I was due in several months.

From then on, whenever my father appeared at his laboratory, he would let himself be dragged away from work, no matter how begrudgingly.

Whenever my parents were away at work, my grandpa took care of me. Even if it meant having to leave me partially unsupervised in a lab full of hazardous tools and chemicals. He shared all of his books with me, no matter how advanced, and would always tell me the definitions of any words I didn’t know. He showed me a relic spacesuit in his lab that was found in Sandrock. When I moved to Sandrock, he gave it to me.

His little astronaut.

He is arguably the reason we met.

And the reason I find myself here.

…I don’t know how I should feel about this.

Qi

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

“You’re sure you’ll be okay?”

Qi looked up from the surf hitting the dock to the worried look on his mother’s face.

“Y—” He froze. “I…I don’t know.”

His grandpa nodded. “It’s normal to feel like that.”

“And it’s okay to never know,” his father chimed in with a warm smile. “You’ll feel okay eventually, whether you know it or not.”

The ferry tooted its horn.

Before Qi could even think, his mother wrapped her arms around his shoulders. His grandpa did the same on his other side, and finally his father pulled all four of them in close together.

“You can always come home, Heng. Don’t forget,” murmured his mother.

Qi could only let out a hum. Anything more and he’d risk the itchy feeling in his nose spilling over.

They all let go eventually. He gave them one last look as he stepped onto the gangway. They were waving with a smile on their faces. Not making too big of a fuss. He gave them one last wave before stepping onto the boat.

He couldn’t bring himself to look back.

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

Starlight,

Recently, I’ve been wondering about the sociological concept of “home”. I know. Me, thinking about sociology. Utterly daft. But given the circumstances, I hope you’ll forgive some non-scientific studies for just a little bit.

Why do we differentiate a “home” from a “house”? What does a home have that a house does not? To me, both are simply buildings or other dwellings of permanent residence. It seems that a home is a subjective descriptor, one that holds the invoker’s sentiments towards their place of living.

To make matters even more confusing, I see in a lot of literature that people describe other people as their “home”. Most often in their romantic partners, but also their family members (independent of the place they live in) and friends. So is a home a person or place? Or just some nebulous sentiment?

I ask because…I’m trying to figure out what it means in relation to me. Before I left, my parents told me that I could always return “home”. But Vega 5…was it ever my home? Of course, I was born and raised there. My family has always lived there. But I never had any qualms leaving it. Forever, if I had to. When I stepped foot into the city limits for the first time in ages…there was no sense of nostalgia. No urge to move back.

It’d be inaccurate to say that my home was in Sandrock, either. My Research Center was my workplace. The epicenter of all my efforts and achievements. I just happened to reside in the same building. And your workshop was never mine. That was your land. You designed the house yourself. You built all the machines in the yard. I only was fortunate enough to share that space with you, to have my designs be put to use there.

Were you…my home?

Whatever we did, wherever we were…I always felt at ease with you. Safe. Invigorated. Comfortable.

…Where is my home now that you’re gone?

Qi

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

Qi sat back down at his desk. Several townsfolk had already written up some requests for him now that his…sabbatical had ended. He skimmed through them, finding the most interesting one to tackle first. His eyes glazed over as he realized all of them were equally simple and dull.

He sighed and picked one at random. The ranch man demanded another, more powerful cattle feeder. He tossed it aside and grabbed another one. Heidi needed some crane lifts. He shrugged. It would have to do.

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

Starlight,

Unfortunately, there’s nothing I can really write about this time. I’ve just been catching up with diagram requests ever since I returned from Vega 5. None of them are interesting in the slightest. Maybe next time.

Qi

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

Starlight,

My work is…droll. I’d never thought I’d be saying that about science, but it’s just not the same. My hypothesis: lack of engagement. No one here appreciates the sciences as much as I do. The only people who come close are Fang and Zeke, and I can’t engage either of them for obvious reasons. Everyday I toil away in the Research Center, experiment after experiment, hypothesis to conclusion and all over again. And then I send my results back to someone I can’t see, to a committee of people I’ve never met, and then maybe, just maybe, someone can engage with my work. Over letters and telegrams. It’s like

It’s just like before I met you. You were the only one who I could speak truly to. The only one who ever seemed to see value in my work without hesitation, even if you didn’t fully understand everything. And now you’re not here. Everything’s the same as it once was, all that time ago.

So why does it feel so much more…meaningless? And why does everything from before you came feel so meaningless in retrospect?

Qi

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

Starlight,

Sometimes I see this whole letter-writing exercise as completely useless. A feeble appeal to sentiment, that’s all this is. I talk like a madman to someone who no longer exists. And yet this is considered an acceptable way of dealing with the situation.

You are dead. Your body has long decayed by now and the sands have likely buried your bones already. Everything that consists of you, physically and conceptually, no longer exists. There is no scientific evidence of souls or afterlives or spirits or any of the ridiculous things that humans have made up for the sake of appealing to their emotions and shielding themselves from the truth.

There is nothing after death. Nothing that could be empirically shown, anyway. That is a scientific truth.

So why do I feel so disillusioned by it…? Why do I feel this cloying desire to deny it? Why isn’t there a scientifically plausible way for me to just pretend you’re still here

Why

Why d

I am the most ignorant person to ever exist.

I’m sorry.

Everything that I’ve done ever since you passed away was just to do that. To pretend like you’re still here. With me. Happy.

I suppose articulating my thoughts seems much more unimpressive when compared to trying to recreate you using an artificial intelligence. Easier to write it off as mawkish sentiment. But…it’s all one in the same. Self-indulgence.

…Is that necessarily bad?

I don’t have the answer. I don’t believe I’ll ever have the answer. I don’t have any answers. You aren’t here to help me find them.

…I suppose the only thing I can do now is what I’ve always done: be a scientist. To face the unknown and attempt to illuminate even a fraction of that darkness. To ask questions about everything and to constantly seek answers, no longer how long it takes.

Perhaps one day, I will be able to find the answers I seek. Perhaps not. But no matter what the outcome will be or how arduous the process is, I know that you will be in my thoughts the whole way. You always have been, ever since we met.

And who knows? Perhaps one day, I will be able to write to you and tell you all about my journey. I’ll be sure to brew plenty of tea to last the whole story.

Qi

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

Qi sat on the roof of the research center. He kept his eye out towards the station, seeing the crowd gathering and milling about. The first lights started appearing as they lit their lanterns. He turned back to the lantern in his lap, checking one more time that the envelope on top was secure.

One by one, warm glowing lights rose up into the sky just outside the city. Qi stared at the hypnotic cloud of light as it expanded and twisted up towards the highest heavens.

He grabbed the matchbox and carefully lit the lantern in his hands. The glow from the fire warmed him ever so slightly. He took one last look at the letter, and carefully let the lantern go.

Up and up it rose, a little unsteady with the extra weight, but it never stopped rising.

Qi’s eyes followed it for as long as he could keep track of it, before it became another light in the cloud.

Another star in the sky.

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

Starlight,

Hello.

Good morning.

Have a productive day.

Be safe.

Does the furnace need servicing?

Do you want some tea?

Read anything interesting?

How was work?

I’m sorry.

I forgive you.

Thank you.

You’re welcome.

Don’t mention it.

Of course.

Don’t touch that sample, please.

Remember to keep hydrated.

Let me show you my latest experiment.

Fascinating.

Wonderful.

Excellent work.

Tell me.

Show me.

You should rest.

Don’t overwork yourself.

You’re very warm.

Are you comfortable?

Good night.

Goodbye.

I love you.

Qi

[i-like-writing-stuff]

never changing [ five hargreeves x reader ]

a/n: hi y’all! it’s been a hot minute since i’ve been on here, but after the absolute shit show that season 4 was, some sparks ignited in me to write up anything to take my mind off it 🙌

its not anything crazy, just fluff and banter since i haven’t written anything in years so it may be as poorly redacted as this season lmao

summary: five and y/n attend their niece birthday party together, yet separate

“Happy birthday, little Gracie!” You smiled widely, trying not to drop the wrapped present box as the six year old girl jumped into your arms, “Oh my gosh, look at you! You’re just getting prettier by day, aren’t you?”

You had just got off work in a hurry to make your appearance at the little girl’s birthday party at a decent time, in spite of the amount of paperwork you managed to bury yourself in lately. You knew how much it would have meant for the celebrated one to show up and you couldn’t bear to let her down, especially on her birthday.

After spending most of your life working for the Commission, and then a decent amount of time exhausting yourself in trying to stop multiple Apocalypses, your last six years have been pretty quiet as a lawyer. You really wanted to get out of the whole assassin thing, but at the same time couldn’t exactly move on from the thrill of the work field. Your career as a lawyer took off really well these past years, but inevitably it came along with the cost of always being stuck at work, so whenever your niece got the chance to see you, she was truly enthusiastic.

“Auntie Y/N!” She wrapped her tiny arms around your neck, engulfing you into a tight hug, “You are here!”

Nonetheless, these six years have been truly and undeniably the most peaceful time of your life for as long as you could remember.

“You literally saw each other the other day,” Five raised a brow, watching you and the celebrated one act as if you hadn’t seen each other in years.

You and the little girl shared a look, before rolling your eyes and turning to glare at the man next to you. Ever since Grace learned how to talk, you and her would gang up on her uncle for your amusement, especially since he was so keen on entertaining the banter.

These past six year have gone by in the blink of an eye, yet at the same time at a slow and steady pace. You spent most of your time working anyway, but still kept in touch with the seven siblings you’d grown to love.

Some in different ways than others.

“Uncle Five, you’re always more excited than me to see Aunt Y/N,” Gracie waved him off, making you burst out laughing, “Jealousy isn’t a good look on you anyway.”

“What is a good look on him anyway?” You smirked, making the little girl laugh, as Five swept her into his arms;

“Okay, munchkin, it’s your birthday today, but tomorrow I’m going back to bullying you,” He joked, causing you both to laugh, before the two shared a hug before you, “You’re lucky your gift has no return policy.”

The party had already started by the time you made it there. The playground was huddled by other kids around Grace’s age, along with their parents. The music was playing loudly over the laughter of children and you were pretty sure that most of the family had already arrived. It was not the most ideal gathering, but you tried your best to keep in touch with most of the family to your best capabilities.

“Y/N, I’m so glad you could make it!” Luther smiled, appearing from the crowd of guests, immediately giving you a big hug as his niece was still wrapped around Five, “Haven’t seen you since Thanksgiving!”

“Big shot lawyer doesn’t always have the time to stay in touch with family, huh?” Diego teased you, following suit, as you rolled your eyes, dropping off his daughter’s gift in his hands.

“Big shot delivery driver doesn’t know the phone works both ways, huh?” You smirked, putting your hands on your hips.

Diego laughed out loud as he gave you a hug, always in the mood for a back and forth short banter with you. After all, you truly were family, even if you didn’t always have the time to be present in the Hargreeves’ day to day lives. You may have met them in the original timeline in 2019, when you accidentally time traveled with your former partner at the Commission, Five, but after all you’ve been through, you didn’t need to have grown up together or be blood related to be considered that. And you truly were grateful for each and every single one of them, in spite of the many differences over the years.

After everything that’s happened six years ago at Hotel Oblivion, everyone went their separate ways. Allison was back with her daughter while trying to further her acting career and also help Klaus stay on the sober line, Viktor had moved to Canada where he opened a bar, Diego and Lila had three kids, Luther was “professionally dancing”, Ben had some run-ins with the law and Five, ironically enough, was working for the CIA.

“Well, you two are as annoying as always,” Ben told you and his brother, making Diego roll his eyes as he walked towards the gift table to set down your present.

“Please try to stay out of prison at least for the remainder of the year,” You joked with the man, making him roll his eyes as he hugged you loosely, “There’s only so much favors I could owe the DA.”

“Shut the fuck up,” Ben groaned, “I don’t even know why they let you work at the law firm since you still look like a prepubescent with no boobs. Even Five got a growth spurt.”

“I sized up to B recently, thank you very much,” You nudged his shoulder, before placing your hands on your chest in an offended manner.

“Okay, Gracie, not a conversation you’d wanna hear,” Five spoke up, putting his niece down, “Your aunt needs to learn some etiquette on how to act around children.”

“Funny coming from you,” You couldn’t help but wave him off.

You didn’t come in with Five at the party, but as fate had it, you did run into him as you were parking your car. He had just gone out to his brother’s dusty van to bring inside some more cookies for the guests. You kept in touch with him as well, but not as often as you would have liked. It’s not all that serious, but given the fact that you were a lawyer still climbing your way to the top and him being a top notch CIA agent, you didn’t exactly have the time to hang out.

At least, not as much as you’d have liked.

Five was watching you with a small smile tugging at the corner of his lips, and his hands in his pockets. He had the same look on his face as always when watching you. He had the same smile when he saw you in combat for the first time during your first mission for the Commission together, the same look in his eyes when you appeared for the first time in 2019 alongside him in your teen bodies. The same posture he had when he met you again in 1963 after months of not seeing each other.

He wore the same love on his face while looking at you when you and the siblings split up after the events at Oblivion.

And never once did you notice that.

Not once in these past six years you let your feelings surface.

“You know Grace is my niece too, right?” He couldn’t drop the small smile even if he wanted to.

“Since when are you such a family man?” You raised a brow, trying to keep a confident composure.

“Oh, something changed in me between the first and third time I traded the world for my siblings,” He lightly shrugged his shoulders, making you roll your eyes at the sarcastic remark.

You two never changed.

“Please, I was there for the twins birth,” You waved him off.

You rarely see Five, and even when you do you always try to act normal, as you do around the rest of the Hargreeves. Everyone tried to get you two together at first, since the apocalypse was over and there was no reason for you to not get together, right?

You really wished it was that easy. In hindsight, maybe it was. But you couldn’t take any chances in losing Five forever if something were to go wrong. Maybe some would see it as something stupid, or as if you wasted so many years, but to you- mentally, you were almost seventy, while physically nineteen. You had so much time ahead of you now, all that mattered was to get a stable career first.

Five let a chuckle escape, shaking his head in disbelief, as he looked at the floor for a couple of seconds. When he looked back at you, you tried to keep your composure. You couldn’t help but feel pathetic that after all these years, your heart still skipped a beat whenever he’d look at you.

“You’re doing that thing again where you forget that some other people are still around, guys,” Luther raised his hand, grabbing your attention once again.

“I got bored of watching seventy year old virgins,” Ben shrugged his shoulders, “I’m gonna go get shitfaced.”

“Always a delight seeing you, Benjamin,” Five said, as Luther followed the ex-tentacle boy suit to make re he was not about to actually get drunk;

“This is a six year old’s birthday party!”

You giggled, watching the two brothers speed away while arguing amongst the kids in the crowd. When your eyes laid back on Five, who was intently watching you, you couldn’t help but feel a small blush creep its way in your cheeks.

“What?”

“Nothing.”

“Spit it out, Hargreeves.”

“I said it’s nothing!”

“Fuck you.”

“Why?”

You watched him dumbfounded for a couple of seconds because of the only answer he could come up with, before walking away, hoping he would follow you.

When he did try to keep up with you, you looked away to hide the proud smile. Even after all these years, things were still the same with him. He was still so eager to spend time with you, he was still smiling at you and entertaining your conversation.

“Aunt Y/N, Uncle Five, come play in the ball pit!” Gracie ushered you from afar, already tucked in the plastic colorful balls.

“You heard the birthday girl!” You smiled, grabbing his hand to drag Five after you.

Even after all these years he would instantly lock his fingers with yours.

[shuafiles]

lie to girls [l.jn] preview

SUMMARY | it was hard watching jeno struggle with his relationship, but it was even harder when he ran to you for comfort every time. especially when you, his long-time best friend, have been in love with him for the longest time. but when jeno starts lying about where he’s going and who he’s with, you realize the biggest lie might be the one you’re telling yourself—that he’ll ever choose you. or girls will cry, and girls will lie, and girls will lose their goddamn minds for you.

PAIRING | nonidol!jeno x afab!reader

CONTENT | university au, angst, best friends to ?, aespa members included, cheating, swearing, drinking, smut (not everything is included in the teaser yet but just so you know whats in store)

WORDS | 855 (just this teaser)

A/N | sneak peek of what im working on! im planning on making this a looong one but i was too excited so i decided to share without spoiling too much. let me know if you like it! total wc is still unknown and the release date will hopefully be before november ends. also its my birthday today so heres my gift to you :D

“hey.” jeno greeted you, standing at your front door, which only meant one thing. they fought again.

you pushed the door wider, letting him inside. he looked like a mess, his shoulders slumped, dark bags around his eyes, hair disheveled. even from afar, you could tell he was going through something. his phone was in his hand, checking for notifications, but he let out a huge sigh when the home screen was empty.

“do i even want to know?” you prodded, eyes watching him as he plopped down on the couch. his head tilting back on the headrest, head filled with thoughts.

“you know how she is.” jeno mumbled, rubbing his face with his hands. “said she needed some space.”

unfortunately, i do know how she is. jeno’s girlfriend, karina. they’ve been together since first year of college when jeno met her at some random party. they were the kind of couple on campus that, at first glance, seemed perfect, but you knew all too well what kind of chaos haunted them in private. you were too familiar with how she behaved with jeno; most of the time, you couldn’t help but feel sorry for him.

jeno didn’t even have to say anything when you saw him at your front door. you have grown accustomed to this pattern: the same heartache, apologies, and cycle of hope and disappointment. and every time it occurred, jeno ended up here—at your door, at your couch, sulking.

you wanted nothing more than to scold jeno for letting himself get run over by her, but you kept your lips sealed. deciding that giving him comfort and support was probably what he needed right now.

“again, huh?” you sat down on the opposite side of him, tucking your legs beneath you.

“i don’t even know what that means, y/n.” jeno sighed, running his hand through his hair. he lifted his head to face you, gaze soft as he held eye contact with you. “one minute, everything’s perfect, and we’re fine, but suddenly, i’ve apparently done something wrong, and she won't even tell me.” his voice cracked, hopelessness evident in his tone. it pained you to see him like this. how many times is he going to let her do this to him?

“well, did you do something wrong?” you asked, but you knew jeno too well, he wouldn’t do anything to sabotage his relationship. sure, he has made mistakes in the past, but he was a good person, a good friend, and a good lover, you suppose.

jeno stayed silent for a moment, recalling if he had done something to make his girlfriend upset. “i–no, at least i don’t think so.” he shook his head, “i’ve just been busy with classes, but i always make time for her. and everything we’re together, i always try to make it special. you know?”

you nodded along to his words, resisting the urge to roll your eyes. you have heard this story countless times, so you could probably recite it to him. it wasn’t unusual for karina to act like this; she’d get upset over something vague, and then jeno would beat himself up for it, but he’d still bend over backward to get her back.

“maybe she’s just going through something?” you said, trying to think of what to say to ease his mind.

you and karina were acquaintances at best. it’s not like you didn’t try to be her friend, but something about her attitude just seems so off-putting to you. you weren’t entirely sure if karina was fond of you either. of course, you never told jeno any of these. you knew he wouldn’t listen, not when it comes to her. he loves her. he’d return to her every time, like a moth to a flame. and you’d be there, picking up the pieces when he got burned.

“i wish she’d just tell me what’s on her mind instead of leaving me wondering what i did wrong.” his face twisted into frustration with a mix of confusion.

“jen, you know i can’t help you if you don’t tell her what you’re feeling.” this time, you couldn’t hold back. “you’re supposed to tell her these, not me.”

jeno flinched at your words, somehow unsatisfied with your advice. “yeah… you’re right.”

you watched his expression, his eyebrows furrowed while he was deep in thought. “i’m sorry if it’s not what you wanted to hear.” you hesitated, knowing you were treading dangerous waters. “i just think… you deserve someone who actually appreciates you.”

jeno stayed silent, processing your words as if he hadn’t told himself that a million times. but for some stupid reason, he couldn’t keep it in his head. he looked down at his phone, tapping the screen once more, but to his disappointment, there was still nothing. “i know you’re just looking out for me, y/n. but… i just can’t give up on her. not yet.”

and just like that, you could feel him slipping away, back into her orbit, leaving you alone with all the things you couldn’t say, wondering when he would run back to you again.

[dorotheataylor]

You are in Love

Pairing- Gojo Satoru x fem!Reader

Summary- The three times he realised he loved you, and the one time he said it. Inspired by You are in Love (Taylor’s Version) by Taylor Swift.

Warnings- Its just fluff, a little angst if you squint? SATORU IS WHIPPED (hes so cute😭), best friends to lovers romance, Shoko and Suguru playing cupids, whipped satoru (yes this warning again), swearing (its only one word but still), no curses!au, modern!au, my poor english :p

Word Count- 3.5k words

A/N- Whenever I listen to Taylor, either this guy or his best friend pop up in my head. Like the amount of times I think about them is so insane and I can’t help it anymore. Anyways, here’s another songfic (is this even a surprise atp?) based on another Taylor’s song coz i love that woman so much. Alsoooo it’s my birthday today! And what is better than writing a fic abt your man on your birthday? So I hope y’all enjoy this little birthday gift from me!

The first time Satoru realised he loved you was when you were in college together. It was the last day of the semester before everyone bid farewell to each other and went home for the holiday season. You and him were walking along one pathway coming back from your Christmas shopping, snow falling softly around everyone’s body, and a chill in the air that made everyone want to snuggle up beside the fireplace in their houses.

Suguru and Shoko had joined you both too but then excused themselves to leave you two alone, hoping that the romantic ambiance of the holiday season would finally give Satoru the confidence to tell you how he felt.

To say he was a nervous wreck was an understanding. He had spent the whole afternoon talking to himself in the mirror, practicing what he would say so that he won't stumble on his words and ruin the moment.

He didn't have a problem talking to you as he normally does; you were his best friend after all, like Suguru and Shoko, but once he tries to tell you that you make his heart beat faster, make butterflies flood his stomach, it makes him lose all his senses. Suguru had to drag him out of his room, complaining about waiting for 'thirty fucking minutes' already.

Eventually, he met you and Shoko at the front gate of his house and walked with you towards the mall. The entire day, he felt so jittery, like he couldn’t stay still. You remained oblivious to the fact that Satoru was about ready to burst from the inside from how nervous he was.

Suguru and Shoko, on the other hand, couldn’t contain their laughter. By the time the sky began to fade into the night sky, Suguru and Shoko decided that now was as good of a time than ever and made up an excuse to leave the two of you alone. 

Now here you were, walking beside Satoru, bundled up in your white scarf, and the cutest red blush on the tip of your nose. You readjusted your beanie, looking up at him to start conversation. Satoru felt his words get stuck in his throat, unable to remember how to speak with you staring up at him with the twinkle of oblivion in your eye.

"Toru?" you asked bumping your shoulder with him, noticing his uneasy expressions as you wrapped an arm around yourself to get some warmth as the snow had started to fall little more harshly, "am I that boring that your mind had to drift somewhere else?"

"God no." He blushed, finally able to say something without stumbling. Without thought, he wrapped one of his arm around you, bringing you closer to him. You sighed in content, melting into him and Satoru swore his heart swelled three times its size.

The snow crunched under your boots as you walked up the path. The lights lining the cobblestone street gave a yellow tint to the sight. He walked with you in silence but in his head, he was going over exactly what he wanted to say. This was the perfect time.

The snow falling from the sky, little snowflakes tangled in the strands of your hair. You were pressed up against his chest, so close to him that he could smell your perfume, sweet and addicting. There were no other people around, all too eager to find sanctuary in warmth that their houses brought. It was the perfect time.

He stopped walking, halting you with him. He let you go for a moment, taking a deep breath in and slowly let it out. You watched as the cloud of fog escaped his lips and dispersed into the air. His white hair poked out from under his hoodie, matted on his forehead. Satoru looked down at his wet boots, kicking around snow that pooled around the soles.

Finally, he looked up, taking your two hands into his palms in the process. 

You smiled at the gesture, your heart fluttering in your chest. You looked at him, offering a comforting look as you raised your eyebrows up in suspicion, “What’s up, Toru?”

And just like that, all of the words he worked so hard to conjure up, slipped right out of his mind. When he saw you looking up at him, eyebrows raised, cheeks and nose tinted with a light shade of pink, and your lips plump and red, he realized that there were no words to describe what it was he felt about you.

You watched him in silence, studying the way he gave you a lopsided smile when you tucked a piece of his hair behind his ear. He leaned into your touch, letting out another sigh of relief. 

“Nothing,” he finally spoke, letting go of your hands. He wrapped his arm around you again, hoping you won’t hear the marching of his heart in his chest. “You’re my best friend.”

-

The second time he realised he loved you was when he found you crying on your couch. He had came to check on you when you didn’t come over for the routine movie night. Every Saturday, you, him, Suguru and Shoko got together at each other’s places for movie nights. Laughter, jokes, entertainment, talks, drinks and what not went on full night and the next day all of you were passed out on either couch or the floor.

Today everyone was coming over at Satoru’s place. Suguru and Shoko were already there but when it kept getting late, Satoru became worried about you. Shoko tried assuring him you were okay, just stuck in some work but he wouldn’t believe it. Because you were time punctual and never missed the movie nights.

So he came over to yours and opened your door with the spare key you’d given him only to find you curled up in your couch, crying.

He immediately rushed over to you and wrapped his arms around you tightly as you held onto him. He didn’t say anything but stayed there, holding you, feeling his heart break as you sobbed into his chest.

A few moments later, when he felt you relaxing a little, he took your face in his hands as he asked, “better?”

You just nodded as you snuggled into him. Neither of you two said anything, a comfortable silence, just sitting there on your couch, engulfing each other, enjoying each other’s company.

“Now tell me what happened?” he asked softly when your crying had quieted down, afraid you might break again.

“It’s nothing. I just- its too much. Work, studies, family, everything. I just got too overwhelmed and just couldn’t keep it in anymore. And I had nobody present here for me to tell me that its okay or listen about what I felt.” You said now realising what mess you had made and quite embarrassed that Satoru had to see you this vulnerable. “God this is embarrassing! I’m so sorry.”

“Hey look at me.” He said, cupping your cheeks to make you look at him when you didn’t. “Everyone in this world has a vulnerable side. Everyone on this planet has things which is maybe too much overwhelming for them that they might just break at any point. Just like you did. But don’t ever apologise for this. Because none of it is your fault. Okay? And I’m always here for you. Even if you’re far away, I’ll always be there. You’re not alone, okay?”

You just nodded and gave him the smile he adored so much. And without saying anything else, he wrapped both of his arms around you once again, letting you rest your head on his chest. He kissed your forehead and hummed in content as you snuggled even closer to him if possible.

And as he looked down at the girl in his arms, he realised this is what he wanted for the rest of his life. He loved you. 

-

The third time he realised he loved you was after summer. He hadn’t talked or heard from you since 4 months.

You left without a goodbye or a message to god knows where. He'd tried searching for you but always ended up getting disappointed. Suguru and Shoko missed you too. They had helped him to find you too but to no avail. It was like you’d disappeared into thin air.

Satoru often wondered if you ever thought about him like he did, if you missed him like he did. He knew you were probably out there pursuing your dream career, which you'd always talked about and wanted to do, but a part of him wanted to be there with you. To support and cheer for you at every step you take, to give you advices, to have late night celebration for your achievements. Call him selfish and everything. Everyday that passed, he cursed himself for not telling you how he felt before you left. Would it have made any difference? He’d like to think so. Even if it didn’t, he, at least, wouldn’t have to live every single day thinking: “What if?”

He kept a picture of you in his office. He often looked at it whenever he was free, always wondering how you were doing, if you were okay or not. Suguru and Shoko always found this sight pitful. They had tried to get him to move on, but all of them knew that Satoru was so in love with you and you were special to all three of them and that nobody could ever take your place.

It wasn’t until six months later when you stumbled into the building, chewing nervously on your bottom lip. A part of you knew you didn’t have the right to be there because you left them with no warning. You wouldn’t blame them if they asked you to leave the premises the minute their eyes landed on you. You knew you deserved the cold shoulder. Because if they were the ones who did that to you, you knew you wouldn’t be so forgiving.

The receptionist had told you to wait while she checked if the three of them were free or not. As you waited, you smiled sadly at the memories of last six months. You had gone for higher studies, as your dad had promised, for your dream career. You knew you should’ve at least informed someone before you left but everything happened just so fast that one moment your dad had agreed on your consent and the next moment you were on the plane.

Surely you enjoyed the studies and training period there, Paris being busy in days and nights, but having really nice places to visit. You would always go to the Eiffel tower, watching the sunset, half expecting for Satoru to wrap his arm around your waist but whenever you turned your head you’d always met with empty space. Whenever you came home exhausted, you always expected Satoru to be there with dinner ready and him greeting you with a welcome home kiss.

That’s why you came back. To be in his arms. To be able to kiss him. To be able to call him yours. Because you’d realise that your life was nothing if Gojo Satoru wasn’t in it.

The receptionist told you to go upstairs at floor 5 but as you were about to click the lift button, you heard someone running on the stairs. You turned to look who it was and your eyes locked with a pair of blue ones which were close to home. He just looked at you and slowly stepped towards you as you did the same.

When you were both closer to each other, he brought his hand up, touching your cheeks delicately as if making sure you were real.

Satoru couldn’t believe it. When the receptionist called him and said that someone named Y/N L/N was here to meet him, he left all his works and ran downstairs. And now that he’d seen you, he was mesmerised and shocked. Shocked because you were really here and mesmerised because you looked even more beautiful than before. He touched your cheeks delicately, making sure you were really here and not another one of his hallucinations. And then without another thought he took you into his arms and held you tight and closer to him, now promising himself to never let you go. All the feelings he still had for you, tripled. His heart rumbled in his chest, adrenaline pumping through his veins. Even after all this time, he was still so in love with you.

“No need to tell me where you were. Because I already know.” You were tearing up as you finally felt complete in his arms and realised how much you loved him.

“Don’t ever leave me like that again.” He said as he was starting to tear up too. He loved you so much and the thought of being apart once again was killing him.

“I won’t. Ever again. I promise.”

-

It didn’t take long for Satoru to tell you how he felt after you came back. He couldn’t hold it in any longer. Every moment that he didn’t get to call you his, chipped his heart. Both Shoko and Suguru were growing tired of it, encouraging him to just say it because they were sure you felt the same. He tried to ignore them, not wanting to get his hopes up, but he couldn’t help but think about how amazing it would feel if you told him you loved him back.

You came over to Satoru’s for dinner that night, Suguru insisted that they all missed you too much to go out to a restaurant. After dinner and catching up with everyone, you and Satoru excused yourselves and walked out in the garden. His hands were in his pockets, unable to look at you for more than a few seconds at a time. He’s been practicing what to say to you since years and yet, he still felt unprepared.

You were walking silently beside him, taking in the silence and calmness of the life you’re living now. You no longer had to worry about anything, just the day to day necessities, and your feelings for Satoru. Subconsciously, you intertwined your fingers with his snuggling up to his side for some warmth.

He froze for a moment. This is it, he thought, this is the perfect moment. So before he lost his confidence, he spoke, “Y/N, I have something to tell you.”

“Yes, Toru?” you asked, rubbing your thumb over the top of his hand. “What is it?”

There it was. He missed it. He missed the way you called him ‘Toru’. And now finally hearing it from you made his heart skip many beats.

He held you in your place, stopping in the middle of a field of flowers. The moon illuminated one side of your face, showing off your perfect features. Satoru smiled, reaching over to caress your cheekbone. With tears in his eyes, he said, “I love you.”

You gasped softly, looking up at him, “What?”

“I’m in love with you, Y/N,” Satoru sighed, connecting his forehead with yours. He closed his eyes for a moment, letting out a breathy laugh, “I’ve been in love with you for so long.”

You slowly brought your hand to his face and cupped his cheek as he melted in your touch. "Why didn't you tell me sooner?"

"I was afraid of what you'd say. I didn't want to ruin our friendship and lose you. I just thought that maybe if you didn't love me like that, I'd still have you. Even if it's just as your best friend."

"Then why now?" you asked, you voice getting even quieter. He kissed the palm of your hand as he met your eyes.

"Because after all those years of crushing on you, all those months of not being able to see you or be in your arms, made me realise how much in love I was with you. All those six months, you consumed all of my thoughts, your laughter was all I could hear in my silent nights, your smile was all I could see everywhere I went. And not being able to tell you how much I loved you was killing me." He finished, tears flowing uncontrollably from his eyes.

You didn't know when your eyes started tearing up. All you knew was how much you loved him at this moment. Him confessing all his feelings for you, so vulnerably. It made you realise how much you just wanted to hold him and never let him go.

So you said, "I'm in love with you too, Satoru."

At first he thought his ears were playing tricks on him. You loved him back? His eyes shot open, pulling away from you as he stared at you in disbelief. “Y-you love me?”

"Yes, you idiot." You chuckled through your tears, pulling him closer. Your lips ghosted over his, causing him to shiver. "I've been in love with you for a really long time as well."

"I'm really an idiot, aren't I?" he said, laughing a little.

"Yes, you are. But you're my idiot."

And with that, he kissed you. All those years where he hid his feelings came pouring out in this one kiss. His hands cupped your cheeks, pulling your face closer to his like there was any more space between the two of you to close. Your arms looped around his neck, his one hand snaked down to your waist to steady you while one still remained on your cheek. He kissed you, pouring in all his regrets, mistakes, apprehensions, into his love, no longer wanting to pass up an opportunity to love you for the rest of his life.

And when he pulled back for air, he had the biggest smile on his face. "I'm the luckiest man on this earth." You pecked him again as you gave him your biggest grin.

On your way back home, you could feel it, you could hear it in the silence, you could see it with the lights out in the garden. It lingered between you two, suffocating you but it was the best feeling ever. Gojo Satoru is in love with you. You are in love.

[daetko]

ᐟᐟ☆ hanta sero: the birthday special . . .

⊱ cw: swearing, pet names, fluff, gn!reader, smau + written (wc: ~1.7k) !

⊱ a/n: HAPPY BIRTHDAY SERO HANTA !!!!!! this was super rushed! + in my head sero’s a sws fan he would love their music trust hiro told me !!

⊱ masterlist

you and your boyfriend agreed beforehand to meetup and get ready at one of your dorms for the concert. you were grateful that the schools management even allowed you two to go to such an event. as you got ready together, he finished before you and waited on the couch while you scurried around the room looking for your shoes. when you were done, he took your hand in his and spun you, making you do a 360. beautiful as ever, you looked.

the car ride to the venue was filled with your nervous fidgeting, as you silently prayed that nothing would go wrong so your lovers’ birthday gift would be perfect. hanta noticed your nervousness, picking up on the subtle hints you were unconsciously dropping. he placed his hand over yours and met your eyes. “c’mon baby, is that adrenaline or anxiety?” he asked, flashing the signature smile that made you fall for him. you couldn’t help but smile back. “hopefully not the latter! i can’t even tell myself” you said with a slight chuckle, his touch comforting you. that’s right, you’re with the boy you love. no matter what happens, it’s always the best when you’re in his company.

the car parked in the VIP parking lot, and hanta quickly sprinted around to open your door. you giggled at the gesture and he took your hand helping you out the car. you gave him a quick kiss him on the cheek “thank you, what a gentleman you are!” you smiled at him. he smiled back proudly, wrapping one arm around your waist and using the other to hold your purse. the two of you walked over to your reserved spot, and not long later; the concert began. now you were sure it was adrenaline making you fidgety, because you were so excited to see your boyfriend having fun.

you finally saw hanta’s figure sprinting toward the car, and you sighed in relief as the drivers patience grew thin, his fingers tapped the steering wheel. “there you are!” you said, rolling down your window and scooting to the side. hanta got in, caught his breath, and quickly turned to you as the driver started the car. your lover smiled at you so brightly you could practically feel your cheeks warming. his hands cupped your face as he pulled you in for a loving kiss. your hands found his on your cheeks, and you placed them over his as you kissed him back. after a moment he pulled away, both of you breathless, but didn’t give you a moment to catch your breath before pecking your forehead. “love you s’much. thank you for today, it was the most fun i had in a while. it wouldn’t have been the same without you” he smiled at you, that smile of his that always made it impossible to hold back yours. “let’s go home and build the lego set you got me, yeah?“ you nodded “id love that!”

you loved him, and he loved you, and that’s all you needed to know to live in eternal happiness.

a/n: the driver dont gaf im crying !!1!2!-! its my first time writing a proper fic other than the one i have in my drafts rn i hope this is not bad!

[ravennaortiz]

August 2nd is Juice with the prompt "There is a reason I don't celebrate my birthday". Requested by a lovely Anon. As always my stories are 18+

I thought she would like this thought Juice to himself as he collapsed onto the floor outside of your bedroom door. He knew it was unlocked but had decided against going in. You had not responded to his knocks or request to enter. He knew from the way your eyes had shown with tears and your lip had trembled when you entered the house that you were upset.

For the life of him he wasn't sure why though. He had surprised you before with trips and gifts. He figured a house full of friends for your birthday would be greeted with joy and happiness. He had spent weeks planning the perfect day for you. Everything from breakfast in bed to a day out on the water surfing to a surprise party once you got home.

Streamers and balloons of your favorite colors decorated the whole of the house. Your favorite foods, drinks and birthday cake had been made to perfection. He had been sure of it. You deserved to have the best day ever but yet somehow he had fucked it up.

"Aye Juicy boy. Ye want us to clear out?" inquired Chibs quietly as he entered the hallway a few minutes later. Juice sighed as he looked up. "I don't know. Probably. I'm not sure anymore. We were having such a good day.....I don't know what happened" admitted Juice as he rubbed his face with his hands.

Before anything else could be said the door opened and he fell in at your feet. "Could we talk" you murmured as you sniffled. Your eyes red and puffy and your makeup running down your face. Juices heart broke as he looked up at you but nodded as he sat up when you crouched down to sit next to him.

"I will give you two a few minutes" stated Chibs before heading back the way he had came.

"Tell me what I did wrong babe" murmured Juice as he grabbed your hands as he watched you closely. "Nothing. It's silly. I'm an adult and should be over it" you started as you shook your head and sighed. "I'm sure its not silly. Talk to me" encouraged Juice. "There is a reason I don't celebrate my birthday. Well lots of reasons honestly. This is my fault for never bringing it up. I usually just get the guy to break up with me before my birthday so it's never been an issue before" you rambled as you looked anywhere but at the man you had grown to love over the last ten months.

Juice frowned but waited patiently for you to speak again. "So you know how I don't speak to my family anymore?" you asked looking down at your hands. Juice nodded. It was something you had mentioned on one of your earlier dates. The two of you had bonded over your unique family situations. You had been no contact with yours since you turned eighteen.

"My parents and sister made it clear I was not wanted. They called me a mistake and I was left more often than not to fend for myself. My birthday was always treated as a day to tease, belittle and physically hurt me on occasion. Some years they would trick me into thinking things would change but they never did. My sister always got to use my birthday as her half birthday. So while I was being hit, starved and locked in a cage in the basement. My sister was getting presents, cakes and pony rides." you explained keeping your eyes down as tears started to fall again.

Juice could feel his temper started to flare at your words but kept it contained. He would do some looking into your family. They would pay. Right now he needed to reassure you that would never happen. "I'm sorry that happened to you. I promise my only intent today was to shower you with love and show you how special you are not only to me but to others" started Juice as he lifted your chin up gently. "I'm sorry that you were reminded of your past. I promise you that will never happen again as long as I breathe" he added as he wiped your tears with his thumb.

"Wait here. I'm going to have everyone head out and then I'll draw you a bath okay?" offered Juice as he started to stand. "Actually.....I...I would like...to try having a birthday party. If that is okay" you stammered as you laughed nervously at the silliness of it all. "Of course. I'll let everyone know you will be back out in a bit" stated Juice with a grin as he helped you up and gave you a kiss before heading down the hall.

Return to Masterlist

[leclerc-s]

seven

series masterlist

september 29, 2019

liked by maejones, maxverstappen33, danielricciardo and other

daphnejones the long awaited song with my little sister is yours now. seven featuring maejones is out tonight at midnight. this song is very special to my little sister and i, not just because it's our first song together but because it's about one very special person in our lives. special thanks to charles_leclerc for helping out with the piano on this one.

tagged: maejones, maxverstappen33, charles_leclerc

alexalbon he’s crying in his room. i can hear him.

charles_leclerc it was an honor to be apart of this. thanks for having me and a happy early birthday to maxverstappen33, see you tomorrow for brunch!

user18 they wrote a song for max, i’m soft, i love the jones sisters

↳ maxverstappen33 i too love the jones sisters

lewishamilton this song is wow, i’m speechless

user18 max verstappen being immortalized in a daphne jones song ft mae jones was not on my bingo card this year

↳ user72 i honestly think this friendship is one of the best ones i’ve seen in hollywood today. a lot of them seem fake and pr-like but not this one. this whole friend group seems genuine.

liked by daphnejones, maxverstappen33, daniel ricciardo and others

maejones about 10 months ago i came up with a small sample of a song that i figured would go nowhere until my sister got ahold of it. together, the two of us, with the help of charles_leclerc on piano, we came up with a beautiful song. seven, written with my older sister daphnejones, is out tonight at midnight. max, this one is for you, i know we don’t talk much anymore, but this is my gift to you. for the last time, i love you to the moon and to saturn.

tagged: daphnejones, maxverstappen33, charles_leclerc

maxverstappen33 best birthday present ever. to the moon and to saturn always ❤️

georgerussell beautiful song, i know max will weep like a baby when he hears it, i sure did and the song isn't even about me

↳ user65 have you all heard it but max?

↳ nataliaruiz its his birthday surprise for a reason. we can't be crying in front of him when the song plays

landonorris i'm still not over it. i expect you two to pay my therapy bill.

user89 so this song is sad and will break me in two, great nothing new from daphne but mae? oh, i'll be forwarding my therapy bills to them

↳ landonorris same

↳ alex_albon same

↳ georgerussell63 same

↳ danielricciardo same

↳ freyavettel same

↳ isabellaperez same

rowantodd i hate you two for making me feel emotions, but its a beautiful song nonetheless

charles_leclerc it was an honor to be featured on this song, especially one about my biggest "rival" 😄

↳ pierregasly when will you help write a song about me charles?

↳ charles_leclerc stop being a dick to your ‘not girlfriend’ and maybe i’ll help her write a song for you

liked by maejones, pierregasly, nataliaruiz and others

charles_leclerc it’s my duty to give some behind the scenes on the making of seven. featuring photos of mae, daphne, and i hard at work, the muse himself, and of daniel bringing snacks while also thinking he’s helping. (find a new place to live daniel, stop mooching off daphne & mae)

tagged: maejones, maxverstappen33, daphnejones, danielricciardo

danielricciardo i did help! i came up with some chords

↳ maejones no, you didn’t. you only brought snacks, that picture was taken so everyone could think you helped.

alex_albon did daphne get a new cat?! and i wasn’t introduced to it?!

↳ daphnejones i would never get a new cat without tell you alex.

↳ danielricciardo it’s my cat actually his name is joey.

↳ charles_leclerc and he’s my godson!

user80 daniel living with the jones sisters is hilarious to me but like why?

↳ danielricciardo because i couldn't find an apartment in monaco, daph and mae had a spare room for me to use, i’m never leaving this place, i love it here.

↳ maejones he got a cat too, there is no getting him out now.

maxverstappen33 where the hell did you get that picture?

↳ charles_leclerc mae.

↳ maejones 😁

max verstappen how likely am i to cry on a scale of 1 to 10?

lando norris i’d say a solid 12

lance stroll yeah i’m going to agree with lando here

mae jones can we talk about how daph and i managed to render sir lewis hamilton speechless? that’s my biggest achievement.

isabella perez what about winning a grammy? mae jones that’ll be a close second freya vettel wouldn't it be hilarious if charles won a grammy before a wdc? charles leclerc sometimes i think you hate me but you're not wrong

12:12 am

max verstappen i hope you 3 are proud of yourselves…

charles leclerc did you cry? max verstappen of course i fucking cried!

daniel ricciardo can you open your door? i kinda forgot my key and we’re all standing outside your apartment in a super awkward formation.

george russell open up super max!

max verstappen well it all started when i was 4 alex albon THE DOOR MAX! HE MEANT THE DOOR! daniel ricciardo you let him finish albon! lewis hamilton geez, that young?

¡leclerc-s speaks! congrats to max on becoming a 3x world champion! seven has always been a song that reminded me of max and i wanted to write a small chapter about this. everyone always says max’s taylor album is reputation but i see him more as folklore. this is one of the few bonus chapters in my series.

¡disclaimer! this is in no way making assumptions about the people involved in this story, this is all fake. it is a fanfiction please don't take any of what is said seriously. this is all for entertainment purposes and as a creative outlet for me. enjoy!

[sunnycanvas]

Hello i really really love your work!

Today is my birthday and since my family already celebrated it and today i didnt get any gifts i was thinking Maybe you could give me one? A one where its readers birthday and what he would do? Thank you bye!❤️

Belated Happy Birthday Dear,

Here is a piece of work I wrote as a gift, No promises if it will be good 😅. Hope you enjoy it

Exhausted from my birthday celebration, I yawned as I entered my room, eager to see my beloved. Baldwin was seated, absorbed in a book, so focused he didn’t notice me at first. Mischievously, like a child, I crept up behind him, hoping to give him a playful scare. But of course, my Baldwin, ever the trained knight, sensed my presence. The moment his eyes met mine, they were filled with love. Embarrassed at being caught, I hugged him from behind, trying to hide my face against his shoulder. He chuckled softly, closing his book and kissing my cheek. "Happy birthday, my queen," he whispered warmly. "I hope the party I arranged in your honor was to your liking." I chose my next words carefully, not wanting to upset him. "It was lovely," I said, smiling as I gently smoothed the dress he had gifted me. "The celebration was grand, and the dress you chose for me is stunning." I paused, caressing the fabric before continuing. "The food was delicious, and I received so many gifts but my voice wavered slightly as I went on, "Still, I could sense that most of the guests weren’t genuine. Their compliments and gifts seemed more about their own gain than celebrating me." I lowered my gaze, sadness creeping in despite the joyous day. Baldwin let out a relieved sigh. "You had me worried for a moment, Y/N," he said, gently taking my hand. "I thought the celebration hadn’t pleased you."

"You left early," I said, my voice still tinged with disappointment. "You know how much it meant to me to have you by my side on my birthday. I've always been understanding of your condition, Baldwin, but you promised you'd stay and celebrate with me, no matter what."Baldwin gave me a sympathetic smile, his eyes soft with regret. "Believe me, I wanted to stay longer," he said gently, "but urgent matters required my attention."Still upset, I pressed him further. "You wouldn’t go back on your promise, would you?" My words carried a weight I couldn't mask. Baldwin's smile faded into something sadder, more resigned. "If there's anything I can do to make it up to you, I’m ready to do it," he said earnestly. Seizing the moment, I asked with a playful smile, "Would you like to go out with me?" Baldwin looked confused. "Go where? A walk in the garden?".I shook my head. "No, I want something more exciting. I’m craving an adventure." His confusion deepened, so I continued, "I was thinking we could disguise ourselves as commoners and wander through the market. We could buy whatever we like, eat street food, and just enjoy ourselves like ordinary people."Baldwin stared at me in shock, as if I’d just grown a second head. "No, absolutely not," he said firmly. "It's far too dangerous. I can’t allow us to put ourselves at such risk." Knowing his weakness, I gave him my best puppy-eyed look, watching as his resolve began to crack. His expression turned anxious as he called my name in warning, "(Y/N)." His tone was serious, but I could tell he was faltering. I refused to back down. "Please, Baldwin," I urged, "this is the same market built by the late of Jerusalem Queen Melisende, your grandmother. I’d feel closer to you by visiting a place she helped create." Baldwin looked visibly moved by my words, his hard stance softening. He chuckled, shaking his head. "Who knew my queen could be so mischievous?" he teased. "Though it’s dangerous, I’ll do this for you." Overjoyed, I threw my arms around him so fiercely I almost knocked him out of his chair. Baldwin laughed, his joy infectious as he wrapped his arms around me in return. "Easy, love," he chuckled. "I’d rather not break my back, or else I won’t be able to fulfill my promise to you."I smiled, nodding, already anticipating the adventure ahead.

That night, Baldwin and I slipped out of the castle, dressed as commoners. Hand in hand, we strolled through the lively market, blending in with the evening crowd. Every now and then, I’d sneak a quick kiss on his cheek, delighting in the way he blushed. Baldwin, ever the modest one, would scold me gently. "You should act more discreetly," he whispered, trying to sound stern.I smirked, unbothered by his reprimand. "Don’t worry," I teased, "no one’s paying attention to us, and it’s too dark for them to see us clearly, anyway."He grumbled under his breath, blushing even more. "You’re getting too bold," he muttered, feigning seriousness. "I might have to take away some of your privileges to teach you a lesson."I laughed, knowing full well it was an empty threat. My laughter was suddenly interrupted by the loud growl of my stomach, betraying my hunger. Baldwin smirked, his eyes twinkling with amusement."Sounds like half the kingdom’s food stalls will be emptied just to feed you," he teased, his grin widening. I groaned in embarrassment, covering my face. He laughed, his joyful sound filling the night air as we continued walking through the market, side by side.

Baldwin soon spotted a bustling food stall with a crowd gathered around it. Intrigued, he gently led me by the hand, and I followed, equally curious. As we approached, it became clear that the stall was quite popular locals were swarming it eagerly. "It's legume stew," I murmured, recognizing the rich aroma that filled the air. The scent was so enchanting, I found myself clutching Baldwin's arm, excitement and nervousness bubbling inside me.Sensing my unease around the crowd, Baldwin gave me a reassuring smile. "I know you don't like crowds," he said softly. "Don't worry, I'll get it for you. Just wait here."Relieved, I smiled gratefully and stepped back, watching from a distance as he made his way toward the stall, my heart warmed by his thoughtfulness.

I didn’t have to wait long before I saw Baldwin sprinting toward me with my food in hand, a man shouting behind him. Startled, I watched as Baldwin grabbed my arm, quickly pulling me along with him.Confused, I asked, "Did you steal that?"Offended, Baldwin scoffed, "Of course not! I would never commit such a dishonorable act." He glanced over his shoulder, his pace quickening. "It’s Raymond, Count of Tripoli. He found us."I didn’t need to ask for more details because, moments later, I heard Raymond’s voice echoing behind us. "Your Majesty, this is dangerous! What were you thinking, putting yourself and the queen in such a risky situation?"Baldwin groaned in exasperation, and I couldn’t help but stifle a laugh at the absurdity of it all.

We sprinted as fast as we could, my heart racing. Spotting a narrow alley, I quickly pulled Baldwin along with me, ducking out of sight. The guards, thinking we had gone in another direction, rushed past us, oblivious to our hiding spot. Baldwin and I exchanged a glance before letting out simultaneous sighs of relief. With a smile, Baldwin handed me the food, and I gratefully accepted, enjoying every bite. Once I had finished, I took his hand again, and together we continued our exploration down the dim alleyway. As we walked, the alley opened up into a vibrant, lively village, full of activity and people. Just as we began to take in the sights, an elderly couple spotted us, their curious eyes fixed on us, as if they could sense something different about us.

"Ah, young love," the old man nearby chuckled. "Remember the days, dear, when we’d sneak out at night just like them?" His wife laughed warmly. "Yes, I remember it well and how my father chased you down for courting me without his permission." The affectionate exchange between the couple made my heart swell. I glanced over at Baldwin, who met my gaze, and I knew he was thinking the same thing. *Will we grow old together like them, still so full of love and happiness?*The old man approached us with a smile, inviting us to join a village feast. We politely declined at first, but he insisted with a playful grin. "You can’t let your lady go hungry, can you?" he teased Baldwin. Reluctantly, we agreed and sat down to eat. I quietly enjoyed my meal while Baldwin easily mingled with the villagers, engaging them in conversation and left leaving me alone with few people who distracted me with their conversation. After a while, he returned to me with a mischievous smirk, taking my hand and gently pulling me away from the table, ready for the next part of our adventure.

He led me to a beautiful garden illuminated by the soft glow of fireflies. The serene atmosphere felt almost magical. Suddenly, Baldwin dropped to one knee, looking up at me with warmth in his eyes. "Would you honor me with a dance, my lady?" he asked.I nodded eagerly, unable to contain my excitement, and we began to dance under the twinkling lights. Soon, a few villagers joined us, playing instruments to accompany our gentle rhythm. The melody blended perfectly with the peaceful night. As we danced, Baldwin leaned in close to my ear, his voice soft and sincere. "I’m sorry for not being there for you on your birthday," he whispered. "I know how muchl you wanted to dance with me, but I left early."I shook my head, smiling. "It doesn't matter anymore," I replied. "Being here with you now is all I need."Baldwin smiled, his eyes filled with affection. "I love you, Y/N," he said quietly. "I love you too," I whispered back.

Just then I heard a voice

"Kiss, Kiss"

*Smack*

"Quite you two".It sounded like two toddlers and a mother. Alarmed, I turned to Baldwin, who burst into laughter. "I knew some of the villagers who helped me would be spying on us," he said with a grin. "The old man assisted me with the preparations, and dare I say, the idea for this lovely garden was his as well."My heart swelled with joy at such a thoughtful display of affection from both Baldwin and the villagers. Baldwin's expression turned serious, and he added confidently, "I may not be able to kiss your lips because of my condition, but I can do this."With that, he leaned forward, planting gentle kisses all over my face, each one filled with warmth and love.

"Do it on her lips!"

"Wah, my eyes!"

"Come children let's give them some privacy"

Both Baldwin and I erupted into laughter, the joy of the moment wrapping around us like a warm embrace. "Happy Birthday, Y/N!" he exclaimed, his eyes shining with affection.As if on cue, fireworks burst into the night sky, their vibrant colors illuminating the darkness and further lifting my spirits. I gazed up in awe, feeling a surge of happiness. "Thank you so much, Baldwin," I said, turning to him with a beaming smile. "This is the best birthday gift I could ever ask for."

[dragon-creates]

Sorry Bowser, But Your Fiancé Is In Another Castle

Read on AO3

Hello!!! Its been a while since I published anything, things in life have just been hectic like college and family, and I'm also working on some multichapter fics that I'm planning on publishing soon. But I wanted to write this for my birthday as my gift to all of you. Today I officially turn 20 years old and I wanted to give this fic to you guys as a thank you for this year. 

@angelxd-3303 @baggedbees @heythereyoucutie @angelfangs-666 @bowserslittleprincess @tapetmal @omgmax221 @vampireopossum @liabloodx @chrissymorgan9700 @rottmnt23lover @beetlegoose01 @rivthescetch @rosiethedragongeek @spazzitazz @cool-taya @pumkinqueen @kettlepotmadness @oh-my-gosh-its-j0sh @tuna-jsgross @tanookileaves @starvingcritter @sirdeath41412 @trianna-phoenix @that-one-fangirl123 @hiimyourmom @1st-lil-poet @randompostsyayy @pikagirl18 @madeofmanyfandoms @timberwolfofthelostforest @theluckycollectorcolorposts @moonetta-art @mysweetloveismyjohn @i1lyidkstupid @roze-realm @danger-ghost @meep-13 @daisysrose @mefiman @zomboi-intel @thegayjokester @hyperfixatingonbowuigisohard @wogwoman

Whether you started following me for mario bros/bowuigi content or for another fandom entirely, I wanted to dedicate this birthday fic to all of you. (I’m so sorry if I didn’t mention you I couldn’t get you all in). If it wasn't for you I wouldn't have had this surge of creativity for the past year, I've got a few fics still in progress but after some time I hope ya'll will stick around for what I have in store. So that being said, even though its my birthday, this if a gift that I personally want to give from me to you. I hope ya'll like it and please stay safe xx.

.

.

.

Congratulations! If you have received this invitation, that means that you have been invited to the wedding of King Bowser and King Consort Luigi! The wedding will take place at the Darklands castle 11th of June at 12:00PM sharp. Wear your best formal attire, a gift for the happy new couple and a smile. Hope to see you there!

King Boo let out an inhuman screech as he ripped up the letter. One of his boos had been scavenging secretly across the lands, finding a scattered invitation to the royal wedding and rushing back to give it to their king.

The poltergeist was fuming! Not only did his former associate double cross him and partner up with the Mushroom Kingdom to defend the rest of the lands from the ghost’s terror, but King Bowser was marrying his arch nemesis of all people, Luigi!

It didn’t seem that long ago when Bowser was chasing after the poofy pink Princess Peach, going so far to steal the superstar in order to do so. If it weren’t for the arrival of those pesky colourful humans did things start going haywire. Ever since Bowser was defeated by the red plumber and his younger brother, the koopa couldn’t stop thinking about the latter. Whenever King Boo visited Bowser’s realm, he would drone on and on about that stupid green man. First, he complained about how a low-life prisoner managed to defeat him and stop the star-crossed love between him and his ‘Peaches’, then it turned into begrudging admiration for the human (“I never thought someone so small could pack such a punch,” he remembered Bowser saying), and then the sickening realisation of Bowser realising his feelings for the green plumber had King Boo about to lose his final straw.

He was going to make Bowser realise how pathetic that human was and make him go back to his scheming ways! And so, he devised a plan, he was going to lead Luigi hear with the false pretence of him winning a mansion, trap his brother in a painting to lure Luigi to his doom, have his minions scare the living daylights out of him and trap him as well! Once that would happen, he was going to show Bowser the painting, make him realise how pathetic the human was and the two would return to world domination! (He had even arranged for a large model of the koopa king to frighten the little plumber).

However, his plans were foiled by a pesky little scientist, going by the name of Doctor E. Gadd. Apparently, he saved Luigi with the help of some type of vacuum that was able to suck up his boos and ghosts, leading to the two humans partnering up and the plumber taking down the ghostly king himself.

King Boo had never been so humiliated in all his life! And worst of all, after he managed to escape, it only caused Bowser to fawn over the human even more. Soon, Bowser would ease up on his plans to take over the Mushroom Kingdom and woo Princess Peach, instead, focusing on creating a steady friendship with the little green man. Of course, it didn’t go so well at first – the first meeting was Bowser imprisoning Luigi over lava after all – but over time, they started meeting in secret, going to meadows that the plumber had found due to his love of gardening, Luigi sending little treats to the koopa king, spending time with Bowser Jr and the koopalings, even going as far to pretending to be ‘kidnapped’ by Bowser so that he would be able to derail Mario from finding out about the two.

Eventually, King Boo tried his mansion plan again, twice actually! The first time was during the Dark Moon eclipse, forcing the ghosts E. Gadd had befriended to do King Boo’s bidding, the other was when he had joined forces with Helen Gravely and her haunted hotel. Yet again though, Luigi managed to foil both plans, each one of them ending up with King Boo captured.

When King Boo managed to escape again, he expected Bowser to at least be nonchalant about his intentions with capturing Luigi. However, when he arrived at the Darklands and saw Luigi there with the koopa king, all the poltergeist could see was red at this pesky plumber. He was going to attack the human and finish him once and for all, until he was met face first with a scaly fist and plummeted against one of Bowser’s stone statues of himself. When he gathered himself, he saw that the large koopa was on all fours, fangs bared and growling with smoke coming out of his nostrils and a protective arm around Luigi – who was trembling on the ground while clutching the king’s arm in fright.

King Boo had seen Bowser angry plenty of times before, but this, this was something he had never seen before. It was almost primal, animalistic and was never this reactive when it came to Peach. With a snarl, Bowser only said two words so quietly yet held nothing but danger. “Get out.”

That was all King Boo needed to hear to immediately flee the scene. Eventually, he learnt that during his imprisonment in E. Gadd’s lab, Bowser had been working on forming an alliance with the Mushroom Kingdom, going so far as to signing a peace treaty. Both he and Luigi had even revealed their relationship to the Princess and Mario, though while sceptical, were still accepting to the two as a couple.

And now here he was, with a ripped-up letter and a wedding on the horizon. How could Bowser do this to him?! He was King Bowser, lord of all things evil and set anyone ablaze if they ever tried to tell him what to do! And he was King Boo, the tyrannical ghost king ready to frighten the literal life out of anyone! Together, they could’ve taken over the remaining puny kingdoms and strike terror into anyone who opposed them. Now, Bowser was kissing the boots of a stupid plumber and about to marry him as well! This would not do at all.

“Ready my airships!” he screamed at one of his subjects, jumping at the sudden noise, “I want my armies to be ready by the date of the royal wedding!”

“But sire,” the smaller boo spoke up quietly, “You ripped up the letter, it had the date on it.”

“Does that look like my problem?!” he seethed at the minion, who quickly shook his head, “Then go find it out for yourself, and don’t come back until my armies and ships are ready to leave!”

“Yes, my king,” the boo bowed and fazed through one of the walls.

King Boo grumbled under his breath, an evil sneer creeping onto his face. If Bowser wanted to pretend to be the good guy, fine, he’ll treat him like the good guy alright. And he had just the plan to do so.

.

.

.

“Are you feeling okay Babbo?” Junior asked, letting out a small purr as he uncurled himself from Luigi’s lap to look at his soon-to-be stepdad.

“Huh?” Luigi broke out of his trance, meeting Junior’s worried look, “Oh, I’m fine baby, just pre-wedding nerves.”

“Don’t worry, Papa loves you so much to the point its grossing everyone out!” The smallest koopaling buried his face into Luigi’s neck, “Trust me, nothing is gonna stop him from marrying you today! He’d even marry you while dressed like that!”

“Junior, I’m not even ready yet,” Luigi chuckled. The human was wearing a fluffy baby blue robe as he waited for Peach, Daisy, Rosalina and his brother to get back with make-up, his wedding dress and food, to make sure he had something to eat before the banquet later.

“Exactly!” Junior chortled, “Papa was never this way with Peach, he looks at you like you’re a million superstars! Everything will be fine Dad, I promise!”

“Aw, thanks ragazzino,” Luigi cooed, hugging his stepson tightly before Luigi’s bedroom door opened and in came Mario, Polterpup and the princesses, “Junior here was making sure that I wasn’t feeling nervous before the wedding.”

“Aw, buddy!” Mario grinned and ruffled his nephew’s hair, who giggled at his uncle’s antics.

“Junior, could you go check on your father please?” Peach suggested, “I have the feeling he might also need one of your pep talks, you’ll also need to get ready as well. Take Polterpup as well, Kamek told me that he wanted to practice walking down the aisle with the rings one last time.”

“Okay Aunt Peach, come on Polterpup,” Junior jumped off Luigi’s lap and make his way out with the pooch by his side, shutting the door behind him.

Mario turned to his younger brother, “You doing okay Lu?”

“Yeah,” Luigi nodded, “Just a little nervous, you know?”

“Do you think you’re able to eat something?” Mario asked.

“Yeah, I think I’m able to,” Luigi gave his big brother a small smile.

“I hope so,” Daisy spoke up, “Cause your mom just gave us a buttload of pizza and man does it smell good!”

As soon as she placed the bags down, Luigi caught a whiff of the familiar homemade smell of his mother’s pizza and his stomach began to growl.

“Your mother is very kind Luigi,” Rosalina said, taking a slice for herself, “Though, I will admit, she did seem quite perplexed when Daisy and I had to correct her when she assumed we were…” her hand covered her mouth as she tried to hold back a laugh, “friends.”

“Oh no!” Luigi started to laugh as well as Peach, Daisy and Mario, clutching their stomachs at the thought of his poor mother’s confused face, “Poor ma!”

“I know!” Daisy cackled, “And the moment she realised she started apologizing for assuming and I was trying so hard not to burst, the poor woman!”

“Now, now Daisy darling,” Rosalina put her hand on her partner’s shoulder, “This is not the time to lose our composure over a silly mistake.”

Daisy let out another breathy giggle and placed her hand over Rosalina’s, “You’re right Rosa, though you have to admit, I was doing a much better job at controlling myself than you.”

The tall blonde raised an eyebrow at the shorter brunette, “Oh is that so?”

“Uh, yeah!” Daisy smirked, placing her hands on her hips, “You couldn’t stop trembling from trying to keep yourself together until you let out the loudest snort I ever heard!”

Rosalina rolled her eyes fondly, tucking a lock of Daisy’s hair behind her ear and cupped her cheek. “If that’s what makes you feel better, beloved,” she nuzzled her nose against her girlfriend’s, secretly relishing the way her cheeks flamed.

Daisy pouted and crossed her arms over her chest, “That’s cheating.”

“Alright lovebirds,” Peach made her way over to the other two princesses, “How about we focus on our groom here and making sure he’s prepared for his wedding.”

Daisy lit up at that, “Hell yeah!”

“I agree, we should keep our priorities in order,” Rosalina nodded.

Mario gripped his younger brother’s shoulders, “What do you say Lu? Food first then the make-up and dress?”

“Yeah,” Luigi leaned into Mario’s touch, “That sounds great.”

“Alright!” Peach cheered, “Strap yourselves in ladies and gentlemen, we’re gonna make a magical wedding!”

Everyone seemed to light up at Peach’s words. Once they pizzas were devoured, Mario had gone behind a divider to put on his tuxedo while the princesses focused on Luigi’s make-up, each of them having a turn before letting the other take over so they could put their own make-up on. It was a simple look they went for, white eyeshadow that held a little bit of sparkle, a soft pink blush and a peach coloured and flavoured lip gloss (it had belonged to the princess of that same name).

Once Mario was changed, the girls went behind the divider to change into their bridesmaids’ dresses while the older brother assisted Luigi with his gown.

The princesses emerged a while later wearing similar yet different dresses. Each dress had the same glittering tulle fabric, sweetheart neckline and full-length pleated skirt, the only different being the colours and sleeves. They all had the princesses’ respective royal colours, pink, yellow and blue, while Peach had short puff sleeves, Rosalina had off -the-shoulder ones that ended at the start of her wrists and Daisy wore no sleeves at all.

The girls gasped when they saw Luigi in his white wedding dress for the first time. It had a sheer blouse with little buttons leading from the collar to the bodice on top, which had a straight neckline and was embroidered with glittering vines, starting from the top of the neckline and ending at the top of a puffy, shimmering ballgown skirt. It was all topped off with a silver, sparkly tiara rested on the top of his head.

“Oh Luigi!” Peach brought her hands to her mouth, holding back tears, “You look-”

“-You look smoking baby!” Daisy grinned, bumping her hips against his as Luigi smiled bashfully.

“I agree with Daisy,” Rosalina nodded, taking her girlfriend’s hand into her own, “You look wonderful Luigi.”

Luigi rubbed his hands nervously, “Thank you everyone,” Luigi sniffed, Mario gently wiped the tear away so it wouldn’t ruin his make-up. Luigi let out a heavy sigh, “I think my nerves are acting up again.”

“Everything is gonna be fine Lu,” Mario reassured him, wrapping an arm around his younger brother and rubbed his back, “The moment Bowser sees you, he’s probably propose a thousand more times!”

That made Luigi laugh a little bit, some of his tension starting to relieve.

“Your brother is right Luigi,” Rosalina took a step towards him, “I’ve seen how Bowser looks at you and trust me when I say that I know how he feels about you since…I feel the same way with someone else.” Rosalina turned her head towards her girlfriend, Daisy squeezing the blonde’s hand as her smile widened.

“Also,” Peach started, “The big fella hasn’t been able to keep his hands off you ever since the two of you met, you’ve got him wrapped around your finger and I’m dying to see the look on his face when he sees you in that dress.”

“Hey, maybe I should wear a dress when we get married?” Mario suggested.

Peach squealed at her fiancé, “Yes! You would look so adorable in a dress! We would match and-!”

“-Okay heteroes, slow down,” Daisy interjected, shaking her head fondly at the pink princess and her plumber, “This day isn’t about you, let’s put our focus back on our groom here.”

“Well, what about you Daisy,” Luigi smirked at his friend, “You and Rosalina have been together for quite a while, when are you two getting hitched?”

Daisy spluttered and gasped while Rosalina’s face went as red as a tomato and hide her face in her hands at Luigi’s cheeky question. “H-hey! We haven’t- well we have talked but- It’s none of your business Luigi!” Daisy pouted, stomping over to her girlfriend, and burying her head in the blonde’s chest as Rosalina wrapped her arms around the shorter princess and hid her face in Daisy’s brown hair.

Peach and Mario absolutely lost it at what Luigi said, the latter slapping his knee as he and Peach howled with laughter. “Dang bro!” Mario wiped a tear from his eye, “You really have been spending quite some time with Bowser, haven’t you?!”

Luigi smiled softly, his mind drifting to the koopa, “Yeah…and today marks the start of a new life with him.”

Mario took his brother’s hand, “It’s almost time to go out soon, you ready?”

“Yeah,” Luigi nodded, “I really am.”

Peach wrapped her arms around her soon to be brother-in-law, “We’re so happy for you Luigi. And if you’re still feeling nervous, something tells me that Bowser also just as nervous as you are.”

“What? No way,” Luigi retorted with a snort, “I’ll bet you that Bowser isn’t freaking out right now.”

.

.

.

“I am totally freaking out right now!” Bowser hissed through clenched teeth. The wedding was taking place at the top of the volcano inhabiting Bowser’s floating castle. The seats were flooded with members of each kingdom – including his own subjects, the Mushroom Kingdom’s, Sarasaland’s, the Luma’s, the Jungle Kingdom, The Penguin Kingdom and Luigi’s family as well (Luigi’s mother, while sweet, still scared the life out of Bowser).

The king of the koopa’s was praying to whatever god was out there that he wasn’t sweating through his three-piece-suit. He wore a black blazer and trousers with accents on the cuffs of both that were shaped and coloured like fire. Underneath the blazer was a red blouse and covering his feet were a pair of shiny coal boots. His hair was swooped to the side and had decorated his eyes with eyeliner to make them pop out more. Now he really hoped he wasn’t sweating right now as he thought about that make-up.

“You’re gonna be fine Papa,” Junior piped up, his little ‘best man’ standing by his side, “Babbo was worrying about the same thing earlier, he wants to marry you as much as you want to marry him.”

“But he’s not here yet!” He whispered to his son, “Why’s he not here yet? Is he hurt? Did he change his mind and realise that I’m not good enough for him?!”

“If I may sire?” Kamek said, standing next to his surrogate son to officiate the wedding, “The reason he’s not here yet is because its not time for him to walk down the aisle, we still have five minutes before the ceremony starts. Also, that young man is one of the sweetest humans that I have ever met in my entire life, his dedication to the love that you to share is the strongest that I’ve ever seen. I find it impossible that he has changed his mind about his decision to marry you.”

Bowser sighed, “You’re right Kamek, you’re right. I know Luigi would never do that. Its just…I love him so much; I don’t ever want to lose him or have anything happen to him.”

Kamek smiled, “I’m aware sire and I think what you two have is wonderful. Now straighten your back, wipe that sweat off your brow and pull yourself together.”

“I can’t help that I’m sweating!” Bowser retorted, wiping the back of his head against his forehead, “Why is it so damn hot!”

“Dad, we literally live inside a volcano, of course its hot,” Junior deadpanned, “Also, you’ve been in heat hotter than this and literally never said a word!”

Bowser’s eyes widened, “Oh.”

It was when the strings from the wedding band’s instruments began to pluck did Bowser take Kamek’s advice, fixing himself up as he looked towards the doors that Luigi would be walking out of soon. The subjects from each kingdom and Luigi’s family turned as to the doors as well (Luigi’s niece had also began recording everything on their phone). The princesses walked out first in a triangle formation, making their way to the end of the aisle as they stood to the side where Luigi would be soon. Peach nodded respectfully to Bowser, the latter nodding back knowing that the pink princess was happy that this wedding would have her or anyone else be forced into marrying the koopa king. Then it was Polterpup’s turn, the ghostly dog prancing down with a red bow around his neck as he carried a pillow with the rings to the end of the aisle.

Once she made her way to her spot, the strings of the band softened. Bowser’s stomach churned, looking to the ground as he shuffled his feet nervously. It was only when he heard gasps from the crowd, did he finally look up. His jaw dropped. With his arm linked with his older brother’s to give him away, Luigi started walking down the aisle. He was so beautiful, to the way his eyes sparkled with the skirt of his dress, his blush blossoming against his cheeks and the smile he gave Bowser as he got closer and closer to him.

All of Bowser’s doubts went away as he returned the smile to his soon-to-be-husband. Everything was going to be fine; he was going to get married to the most amazing man he ever met and be the happiest he had ever been in his life.

He held his hands out to Luigi, who shared one more look with his older brother. Mario nodded, taking Luigi’s small hands into Bowser’s as he went over to join Peach. Bowser tightened his grip on his fiancé’s hands ever so gently as Luigi’s smile turned watery, joy talking over the tiny human. It seemed to be infecting Bowser as well, for the same look started to appear on his face as well.

It was perfect.

Kamek cleared his throat, “Dearly belove-haackkkk!!!!!”

Everyone gasped as a rock collided to the magikoopa’s back, sending him to the ground unconscious. Bowser wanted to go check on him, but the roaring of an airship had him whipping his head round to find the culprit who did this. A growl left his throat as he found out who’s airship this was once he saw the emblem on the front.

“King Boo,” Luigi whimpered.

Bowser could feel his fiancé trembling, stepping in front of him to protect him from the boos and ghosts starting to pour out of the ship and spooking some of the guests in their seats. Polterpup growled at the invaders who had frightened his master plenty of times before.

A wicked cackle echoed throughout the air, making everyone jump as King Boo appeared in front of Bowser and Luigi. “Well, well, well, if it isn’t the happy couple!” he grinned maliciously, “I sure hope I didn’t ruin anything!”

“You weren’t wanted here Boo!” Bowser snarled at the poltergeist, “Leave while you can before you find out if you’re able to die twice!”

King Boo let out a fake, melodramatic gasp, placing his hand to his mouth as though he were offended, “Now Bowser, is that really any way to greet an old friend? I’m simply here to offer my congratulations, or rather, my condolences. After all, since your ‘Peaches’ was already snatched up by Mario over here, you’d have to go for leftovers instead.”

The disrespectful words that King Boo had for Bowser’s soon-to-be-husband was enough to infuriate Bowser. He swiped his claws at the ghost, sending King Boo back a few feet before crouching onto all fours in front of his fiancé in a protective stance, breath heaving with soft but threatening growls and a dangerous glint in his eyes and King Boo dared to come closer. “If you say one more word about my fiancé, I will make you regret every single time you’ve lured him to your mansions!”

“My, my!” King Boo drawled, a smirk on satisfaction creeping onto his pale – lack of – complexion, “Aren’t we defensive today?! I was merely stating the truth!”

“Then its clear that you have no idea what the truth is actually!” Bowser spat at him, “I love Luigi more than you can even comprehend, because of him I was able to be inspired to become better koopa and leader! Something that no one can say about you!”

King Boo grit his teeth and growled at that latest remark, when he saw that a few of his own subjects were giggling at Bowser’s words he sent them a cold glare, reminding them of their place. “At least I haven’t become soft enough to not expect an attack,” he turned to his boos, “GET THEM!”

In a flash, the boo’s and the koopa were immediately at each other’s throats. The toads were trying to lead the guests and Junior back into the castle to avoid them getting hurt, Rosalina had pulled out her hidden wand from her sleeve and casting spells to avoid the boo’s attacks, Daisy wasn’t hesitating to punch and kick as hard as she could and had some colourful language each time a boo tried to land a hit on her before she retaliated – if the boo’s didn’t know not to mess with her before then they did now -, Mario and Peach were working together, each of them using and ice and fire flower respectively to try and form a wall of heat and cold to guard Luigi from King Boo. As for the couple, Bowser remained on all fours, blasting fire from his throat every time King Boo tried to take even an inch towards Luigi.

Luigi’s eyes darted around the place in panic, from his fiancé to his brother, to the princesses and King Boo as well. Polterpup was beside him as a source of comfort to prevent him from further spiralling. Is this why E. Gadd hadn’t shown up to the wedding? After all the old scientist expressed nothing but joy at his surrogate son getting married, did King Boo do something to make sure he didn’t intervene with his plans?! If only he had his Poltergust with him, instead of standing around doing nothing. He did want to help but his dress would prevent him from landing any attacks and he had the feeling that everyone was a bit more protective over him due to the sudden turn of events.

When things seemed like it couldn’t get any worse, the boom of a canon made Luigi’s blood run cold. Along the side of King Boo’s ship were cannons firing towards the alter, hitting close to everyone and sending them flying a few feet and landing on their sides.

Luigi got up from his spot after getting hit, the bottom hem of his skirt singed, his ears were ringing and his head was pounding. Looking up and seeing that Bowser was on the ground and good length away from him, the koopa king was trying to get up but put too much weight on an injured arm and collapsed to the ground again.

Forgetting the screaming headache, Luigi tried to rush to Bowser, but was snatched up by two boos. He felt himself being lifted from the ground, letting out a panicked cry as he was led away to King Boo’s ship.

The poltergeist grinned maliciously; everything was going according to plan. With a whistle, the rest of his boos stopped attacking and trailed back onto the ship.

After standing up and regaining his bearing, Bowser’s immediate instinct was to look for Luigi. His eyes widened when he couldn’t see his fiancé anywhere, only for his heart to plummet to the pit of his stomach when he finally saw Luigi being hauled away onto the ship.

“BOWSER!” Luigi cried out for him.

Injured arm be damned, Bowser was on all fours again, trying to chase after the ship and boos, “LUIGI!”

But it was too late, Luigi was gone and in King Boo’s grasp.

Everyone else was starting to come to, Mario rubbing his chest where he got hit before rushing to Peach and helping her to her feet. Rosalina had sat up from where she was sitting, cradling a barely lucid Daisy in her lap as the brunette tried to keep her eyes open. Even Kamek, who had remained from where he was hit, was finally waking up.

“Why does this always happen to me at weddings?” the magikoopa grumbled. However, his ceased with his mumbling when he saw his son pacing around on all fours, limping on his front left arm. “Bowser! What happened?! Here now let me see that arm!”

When Kamek when to touch his arm, the king whirled round and snarled at the new unknown threat, only to whimper with guilt when he saw that it was only his father figure trying to help. “Don’t worry, I know you’re not in the right headspace at the moment,” Kamek soothed the panicked koopa, “Just let me heal that arm of yours before it gets any worse. While I do that could somebody please tell me what on earth happened here!”

“It was King Boo,” Rosalina spoke up, still cradling Daisy in her arms as she stood up, “It seems as though he decided to invite himself last minute and left quite a…mess, to say the least.” The space princess grimaced as she looked around at the exploded seats, splattered wedding cake and singes in the walls as well.

“Wait a minute,” Mario looked around, realisation seeping in, “Did he take Luigi?!”

“I should’ve stopped him,” Bowser murmured as Kamek finished his healing spell, “I’m supposed to be stronger than this.”

“Now that is just nonsense!” Kamek spluttered, “King Boo is nothing but an unhappy overgrown marshmallow who thrives upon the misery of others who earn their happiness through kindness and courage. None of this is your fault.”

“You don’t understand,” Bowser shook his head, “When I proposed to Luigi I made a promise to him, his family and Mario that no matter what I would always protect him and love him as selflessly as possible, and I failed him before we could even exchange vows,” he turned to Mario, “I’m so sorry I broke my promise.”

“Hey!” Mario frowned, “I might not have understood you and Luigi at first, but the more I saw you too together, the more I realised who you truly are underneath that shell of yours. Luigi might not have changed you, but he did inspire you to become the version of yourself that you wanted to be. You loving Luigi made me see just how far you’ve come, Kamek’s right, its not your fault that King Boo is a selfish prick!”

“Mario!” Peach gasped.

Mario chuckled before turning back to the koopa, “You promised to keep Luigi safe and to love him selflessly, not for King Boo to kidnap him. If you really wanna keep your promise, we’re gonna get our shit together, storm King Boo’s castle and get my brother back!”

“Now that is something I can definitely agree on,” Kamek smiled, who had used his healing spell on everyone and was moving onto Daisy. The second he waved his wand, Daisy jumped out of her girlfriend’s arms, picked up a dropped sword from the ground and raised it above her head.

“LET’S KICK SOME BLOODY BOO ARSE” She screeched.

“Daisy,” Rosalina shook her head fondly at the brunette.

Bowser smiled softly, he took in his new family, the family he would be marrying into. He never thought he could be this happy, or that he was allowed to be this happy. But ever since meeting Luigi, he found himself confronting the worst parts of himself that he had avoiding for so long, denying that he was in the wrong. But the more he learned about the brothers’ adventures, about the evils that were worse than him, including Luigi’s trips to King Boo’s mansions, he knew that he wanted to be better than that. It took a lot of trial and error, but it was worth. He became a better ruler, a kinder soul, a gentle lover. All of that was thanks to Luigi.

Bowser finally stood to his full height, rolling his shoulders back and letting a few bones crack. “Let’s make King Boo pay.”

Everyone grinned at one another, plans already formulating in their heads on how to get Luigi back. “We can’t just waltz right in there with nothing, especially without a change of clothes,” she glanced down at her ruined dress, pouting at the state.

“We’ll also need someone who’s dealt with boos before,” Mario agreed.

“Then its decided,” Kamek spoke up, “After a change of clothes, we’ll head straight to E. Gadd and get his help. If King Boo has done something to him, we’ll have to act fast.”

.

.

.

Luigi sighed as he tried to unlock the door again. Once they arrived at King Boo’s castle, the mad ruler shoved him into an empty bedroom and locked the door behind him. He had to admit, the room was hauntingly beautiful, from the grey and black walls to the luxurious queen-sized canopy bed to the sparkling chandelier, it was a sceptical to look at. The cons however were the locked door and the lack of windows, reminding Luigi that he was still a prisoner.

He wasn’t sure how much time had passed, only that it was after the hundredth time of trying to unlock the door did, he give his tired hands a break. He kicked off his heels and collapsed onto the bed, he just wanted to go home. He wanted to hear his brother’s awful jokes, his family nagging at his to eat, to have tea with the princesses, play video games with Junior and snuggle up in Bowser’s arms as the koopa played the piano for him. Why was King Boo always trying to ruin things for him?! Could he not have one day where the ghostly king would leave him be?

Suddenly, a boo was floating through the wall, making Luigi let out a strangled gasp as he backed up on the bed, pressing his bed against the pillows. “Now, now dear boy there’s no need to panic,” the boo reassured him, “My name is Bingley, I’m only here to help with your fitting.”

“My what?”

“Your fitting, by King Boo’s orders,” Bingley informed him.

Luigi shook his head in disbelief, “Wait, wait, wait, why would King Boo-?”

“Please young sir, the master is already upset and anymore delays would only increase his anger,” Bingley pleaded with him and was over to Luigi in an instant, pulling him off the bed and in front of a mirror. In a flash, the boo had managed to pull out a roll of measuring tape, measure out each length of Luigi’s limbs and floated out the room again. Luigi only had a moment to pull himself together before Bingley floated back into the room with a black gown in his arms. “For you good sir. Now if you’ll excuse me, I need to continue with preparations, I’ll leave you to get changed.”

“Wait I-!” Luigi called out, but to no avail, the boo was gone again. With a sigh, he held up the gown. It seemed nice enough, plus he was in enemy territory so refusing the garment could make things worse.

He carefully stripped off his white dress, laying it gently on the bed before pulling on the black one. Once he was complete, he looked at himself in the mirror. The new dress he wore consisted of a tight-laced over-bust corset with a poofy bertha across his collarbones and shoulders, lace bell sleeves that drooped over his wrists, a ruffled high-low skirt that trailed at the back and exposed his legs, lacey black tights that hugged his curved thighs generously and a pair of black heels were left by the side of his bed for him to complete his look.

Luigi flushed at the new look, while he loved wearing dresses and gowns along with his regular shirts and slacks, this was a style that he had never thought about trying before so he certainly wasn’t used to how this new outfit looked on him. It was nice but it left him blushing at the thought of walking out of this room wearing it.

Just as he was slipping on his heels, Bingley floated through the walls again, marvelling his work, “Oh marvellous, you look simply marvellous! I must say this is my best work yet. Now all we need is the veil and the look will be complete.”

“Veil!” Luigi spluttered, “Why do I need a veil?!”

“Isn’t it obvious Luigi,” The mocking voice of King Boo made Luigi freeze in his spot as he slowly turned to face the monarch, “We’re gonna get married!”

“…WHAT?!” Luigi screamed; fear started to settle in again.

“Well it makes sense, doesn’t it?” King Boo sneered, “Your beloved Bowser always kidnapped Peach back when he was a bad guy and you and your brother would always go meddling with his plans to get her back. But now since Bowser wants to be a goody-two-shoes, he thinks that he can get away with leaving our friendship behind! Well tough shit! If he wants to play the good guy, then he’s gonna get treated the way good guys should!”

“So let me get this straight, the only reason you’re marrying me is just to get back at Bowser for wanting to be a better person, or in his case koopa?” Luigi deadpanned.

“Well duh, you honestly think I’m doing this because I like you?!” King Boo gagged, Luigi didn’t know whether to feel flattered or offended that the thought of marrying him made the ghost feel sick. “I’m letting that dragon wannabe get a taste of his own medicine, the only difference is that when he’s getting here, he ain’t walking out with a victory or a bride in his arms.”

The monarch cackled, frightening Luigi all over again. Even before he and Bowser got together, he always believed that King Boo was the worse out of the two. Even though Bowser was great when they first met – to put it mildly- in a way, he still cared for his subjects and believed that his wrong actions were good in a way. There were even times as foes when the koopa would help him and his brother on missions, showing some light in the koopa that proved he was worth redemption. But with King Boo, he wasn’t in denial about being awful, he loved being horrible and committed each terrible actions with glee, and the way he spoke to and about his subjects make Luigi gawk at how someone could say such unkind things with a grin of his face.

The king took that as his sign to leave. Bingley followed behind, a sad look on his face. “I’m sorry,” was the last thing he said before disappearing.

Luigi sunk to his knees, the reality of the situation becoming much clearer than before, he could only hope that this would end how his and Mario’s adventures would and Bowser will be able to save him. “Oh Bowser,” he whimpered, “Please hurry,”

.

.

.

“This is where the old man stays?” the koopa king inquired, as he, the princesses, Mario and Kamek came up to the Evershade Valley Mansions, koopa and toad soldiers following behind. They had changed out of their formal attire before arriving, with Mario wearing his normal overalls, the princesses changed into their biker suits, Bowser had dawned his normal spiked neck and arm bracers while Kamek continued to war his blue cloak. Polterpup was currently trailing by Bowser’s feet, offering as much comfort as he could to his master’s fiancé.

“From what Luigi told me, E. Gadd continued his research here along with a few ghost that didn’t want to be acquainted with King Boo,” Mario informed the group, scanning his surroundings at the same time.

“I don’t know whether to a grateful or wary about the lack of ghosts here,” said Peach, clutching her axe “Keep your eyes open in case it’s a trap.”

“Whether the ghosts assisted King Boo with stabilising the doctor or they had no choice in the matter,” Kamek spoke up, “It is important to wait until we find E. Gadd before jumping to any conclusions.”

The group nodded in agreement when suddenly, Polterpup sniffed the air as a familiar scent was caught in the air. With an excited yip, he tore down the path down to the main mansion ahead.

“Polterpup, wait!” Bowser called out.

“We need to go after him,” said Mario, “He probably knows where E. Gadd is!”

Bowser turned to the guards outside, “You all stay there and keep watch, inform us immediately if you see anything suspicious!”

The soldiers nodded as the group chased down the little blur of white as the pup faded through the walls of the mansion. They opened the doors as carefully as they could, making sure not to alert any ghosts that could still be wandering by.

They spotted the little dog sniffing the floor, turning his head to the group as though he were telling them to follow him. Bowser was the first to move, desperate to find the doctor as soon as possible so that Luigi was back and safe with him. After a few twists and turns, Polterpup soon led them down a basement. Lo and behold, frozen in a painting was E. Gadd, his face frozen with terror. Polterpup whined at the state the old man was in, looking up to Bowser pleadingly.

Bowser patted the little dog’s head, “Don’t worry boy, we’ll get him out.” He turned to the others, “What was the device that Luigi used that helped get you out of the portrait?”

“He said something about a dark-light device,” said Mario, “I’ll go look for it, I’m quite familiar with place.”

“I’ll come with you,” Peach placed a hand on his shoulder, “I don’t want you doing this alone.”

“Are you sure?” Mario asked, “You’ve never been here before, I don’t want you getting hurt.”

“I know, but I have been caught by King Boo before, so I know how it feels,” Peach reassured him, “Besides, Luigi means a lot to me as well and I want to help get him back.”

Mario smiled warmly, taking Peach’s hand off his shoulder and pressed a gentle kiss to the back of it, “Okay.”

“We’ll stay here with Bowser,” said Rosalina, gesturing to herself, Daisy and Kamek, “In case anything happens.”

Mario and Peach nodded, making their way back up the stairs as they searched the empty mansion.

“Be careful, the last thing we needed is someone sneaking up on us,” Mario told her.

“Don’t worry dear, I can handle myself,” Peach answered. When arriving at the second floor, the due came across a room that seem to be more lived in than the others. The sheets of the bed were clean, the wardrobe was half open and filled with clothing, and a chest with E. Gadd’s crest on the front of it. Peach turned to Mario with a proud smirk on her face, “I believe we have a lead.”

Mario grinned at the Princess as the two made there way over, “There seems to be a lock on this.”

“Stand back,” Peach gently pushed him away as the lifted the axe before her head, but before it could make contact with anything, a ghost burst its head out of the chest, startling her and making her fall back.

“Peach!” Mario cried out, rushing over to her and helping her up.

“Leave!” the ghost screeched, though not as angry as it tried to make itself out to be, it was more worried and fearful is anything, “Leave while you can!”

“Sorry,” Mario shook his head, “But I’ve got a brother to save.”

The sound of bars slamming the ground made the due whip their heads round, the door was blocked by some sort of ectoplasm bars and more ghosts teleporting into the room. With quick thinking, Peach slammed her axe down onto the chest, breaking it and revealing a poltergust and a dark light. Mario quickly grabbed the two items, slinging the poltergust onto his side and clipping the dark light to his belt, “Peach, cover me!”

The princess nodded, swinging her axe at any ghost that tried to come close to her or Mario. Quickly switching the poltergust on, he aimed it towards the first ghost that tried to attack them, as the poltergust began sucking the ghost in, Mario slammed him to the ground a few times before the ghost was fully stored inside. This continued on, with Peach guarding his back with her axe while Mario sucked in the ghosts. During this he couldn’t help but feel proud of his baby brother, this is what he did every time Mario was captured and managed to do it each time without fail. He was definitely going to pay for Luigi and Bowser’s honeymoon the second they find him.

Once the last ghost was sucked up, the duo raced out of the room and back down to the basement before they were stopped again. Bowser perked up the minute he saw the dark light.

“You got it!” Bowser exclaimed.

“Yeah, not without a little trail and error first,” Mario chuckled, “Stand aside, I’m getting the doctor out.”

As Bowser did that, Mario attached the dark light to the poltergust and aimed it to the painting. With the flick of the switch and the soft glow of the dark light doing its work, E. Gadd stumbled out on the painting and fell onto his bottom. Polterpup barked happily and went over to lick the old man’s face.

“Oh my, Polterpup please give me some space!” E. Gadd spluttered.

Bowser suppressed a laugh as he lifted the pup up with one hand, “It’s good to see you again doctor.”

“I express the same sentiments, although I do wish it was under different circumstances,” the old man muttered.

“Would you mind explaining what happened here?” Kamek asked.

“Well its simple really, I was preparing myself for Luigi’s wedding until that blasted King Boo barged in and grabbed my dark light before I had any time to react. When I tried to call out to my ghost friends, King Boo had forced them to assist him and threated that they face dire consequences if they didn’t do as he commanded. In the blink of an eye I was suddenly in the painting and was forced to listen to his plans with Luigi,” E. Gadd recounted his story.

“Plans with Luigi?” Bowser frowned, dread returning once again, “What plans does he have with my fiancé?”

“For some reason, that mad King believes that the best way to get back at you is kidnapping and marrying Luigi!” E. Gadd told him.

“He plans to what?” Bowser growled, the thought of his sweet and kind Luigi being forced to marry the one he feared most made his stomach churn.

“Apparently the king was quite upset that you left your friendship behind,” said E. Gadd, “He wants to recreate each time you’ve kidnapped Peach in order for you to get a taste of your own medicine.”

Daisy burst out laughing, “I really don’t mean to react like this but oh my god! Bowser’s finally getting karma I can’t believe it! This is what you get for kidnapping my best friend!”

“Daisy, please,” Rosalina sighed, “Don’t mind her, she means well.”

Bowser groaned and rubbed his face, “She’s kinda right though, I deserve this after putting Peach through all of my ridiculous plans.”

“Which you have shown remorse for and I’ve already forgiven you,” said Peach, “Now I believe you have a fiancé to rescue before he becomes someone else’s bride.”

The image of Luigi and King Boo flashing in his mind was what made his head get back into the game, “Doctor, tell me you have something to help save Luigi.”

“Well lucky for you my friends, I have learned a little titbit over my years of research,” the old man grinned, “Always make sure to pack extra.”

.

.

.

Luigi sighed as he clutched a bouquet of black roses as he waited at the doors that were attached to the castle ballroom. He wished he was back in the koopa kingdom, wearing the dress that he chose, walking down the aisle with Mario, smiling at all his friends and family as he and Bowser exchanged vows. Why did this always happen to him? And why did it have to be today of all days?

“Mister Luigi?” A little voice piped up.

Luigi looked to his left, a soft smile forming on his lips as he saw a little baby boo by his side, “Oh, hello piccolo. Are you alright?”

“I was actually going to ask you that,” the baby boo said, “I know you find our master really scary.”

Luigi’s face fell a little, “He doesn’t really like me that much.”

“Then why does he want to marry you?” the little boo asked, “My mama always said that you should marry for love.”

“And your mama is absolutely right,” Luigi tapped the boo on the nose – or where its nose should be – “But King Boo is doing this for the wrong reasons, that’s why I’m so sad.”

“I’m sorry,” the baby boo nuzzled itself into Luigi’s neck, with Luigi nuzzling right back.

“It’s not your fault bambino,” Luigi patted its head, “Sometimes there are those who do these types of things and we often don’t know why they do it.”

“I hope that you’ll get to marry someone you love soon,” said the little baby boo, “I don’t know if this will make you happy, but you look really pretty!”

Luigi chuckled and nuzzled the boo again, “Thank you, that does make me feel a bit happy.”

The sound of trumpets made him gasp; the wedding was starting.

“I have to go,” the baby boo whimpered, “I don’t want to get in trouble, be careful Mister Luigi!”

The boo disappeared as the doors opened. Luigi gulped as he forced himself to walk down the aisle. The guests consisted of other ghosts and boos, looking extremely guilty about the whole ordeal. At the end of the aisle was King Boo, smugly straightening a bowtie. Luigi dreaded for what would happen once he made it to the end, pleading internally for something – anything – to put an end to this.

He made it to the end of the aisle, King Boo grinning as a ghost officiant began his speech. “We are gathered here to celebrate the union between our King and the green half of the Mushroom Kingdom Heroes,” the ghost began to shake under the fearful stare King Boo was giving him, “Though this couple seems unlikely, it is this ceremony that shows-”

“-Yada, yada, yada!” King Boo interrupted, looking irritated already, “Just skip to the ‘I do’s’ would ya!”

“Um, yes, of course your majesty,” the ghost stammered, “Do you King Boo accept Luigi’s hand in marriage.”

King Boo cackled, “I do,”

“And do you Luigi accept our King as your husband,” the ghost turned to the human.

Luigi trembled, desperately wanting to say no. But he was at the mercy of the king, if he was to say no who knows what would happen? The last thing he wanted was for anyone to get hurt because of him. Someone, please, get me out of here! Help me, please!

Crash!

The windows shattered, glass falling everywhere, Luigi lifted to arms to shield himself but when he lowered them, Bowser was stood in front of him with a poltergust in hand. “Bowser!” he all but cried tears of happiness seeing the love of his life.

“Luigi!” yelled back with the same amount of joy.

The human was about to run to the koopa when he was grabbed by King Boo and the two of them were ascended to the ceiling. “Sorry old friend!” King Boo sneered, “But your little human belongs to me now!”

“Um, actually sire,” the ghost officiant spoke up, cowering when King Boo glared down at him, “The human didn’t repeat his vows, therefore you too aren’t married yet.”

“WHAT?!” King Boo screeched, turning back to Bowser, “It doesn’t matter, whether he likes it or not, Luigi will be my subject.” He turned to the rest of the ghosts and boos “What are you waiting for?! GET HIM!”

Within seconds, every single boo and ghost went to attack Bowser straight away. The koopa was prepared however, taking out the poltergust and aiming it at each one that came his way. When one boo or ghost was being sucked up, Bowser would slam them to the ground, dodge aa hit from another attacker, slam the half sucked-up ghost to the attacker, and repeat again each time after a ghost or boo was stored away into the poltergust.

“That’s it Bowser!” Luigi cheered, earning a proud and flustered grin from the koopa, “That’s my fiancé!”

“Would you shut up!” King Boo screeched into his ear, “Hurry up and say I do before I make you regret it!”

“Never in a million years,” Luigi retorted, feeling a bit bolder, “I have faith that Bowser is going to defeat you, if you’re going to pretend to be like my fiancé, you have to accept that you’re going to lose like he did.”

“I heard that!” Bowser yelled.

“PRETEND?!” King Boo screamed, “I AM TWICE THE KING THAN BOWSER WILL EVER BE! HERE, IF YOU DON’T BELIEVE ME, I’LL SHOW YA! SQUISH HIM FLAT YOU FOOLS!”

The ghosts and boos paled at that order, they only wanted to distract Bowser, even if it wasn’t working. But deep down, they were secretly hoping that the koopa would be able to stop them so they wouldn’t need to deal with King Boo’s cruelty anymore. But an order was an order and there was no other back up plan. One by one, each boo and ghost piled on top of the koopa king, for what they lacked in size, the poltergeists made up in numbers. Soon, Bowser was stuck to the ground, trying desperately to keep a grip on the poltergust, but it slipped from his grasp.

“No!” Luigi tried to scramble out of King Boo’s hold, but it was too tight.

The king laughed maniacally, “Here’s the deal wimp, you other complete your vows, or I end your precious koopa right here right now. The choice is yours.”

Luigi bit his lip, glancing at the winded koopa on the ground, he didn’t want to make this worse than it already was. But just as he was about to agree, a faint chuckling rose from below the boo and human.

“Wow!” Bowser laughed, to the confusion of King Boo and his subjects, “How is your ego worse than mine old pal?”

“Excuse me,” King Boo growled, “You’re nothing but a pathetic waste on my castle floors, I have your little Luigi at my beck and call, yet you still believe that you can win this?!”

“I do, actually,” Bowser smirked, “I just have to wait in three…two…one.”

The roof crumbled, long ropes falling from the empty hole above as the toad and koopa armies swung down, poltergusts in tow. Within seconds, they were sucking up the boos and ghosts off Bowser, with the koopa lifting himself to his feet, rolling his shoulders back and picked his poltergust up from the ground. The princesses, Mario, E. Gadd and Kamek made their way down as well, with Mario and E. Gadd being the only ones with Poltergusts. Kamek and Rosalina had their wands while Daisy wielded a sword and Peach an axe.

Many more boos and ghosts flooded the ballroom, but by the looks on their faces, they were no match for Bowser’s friends and armies.

“COME AT ME YOU OVERGROWN MARSHMALLOWS!” Daisy shrieked at the incoming poltergeists.

“I’d advise surrendering,” Rosalina murmured, “My patience grows thin when my friends are endangered. Either that or you face my darling Daisy, trust me, you’d rather surrender now.”

“You ruin my son’s wedding and kidnapped my future son-in-law,” Kamek grumbled, “I plan to make your consequences extremely severe.”

“King Boo!” E. Gadd screamed, “Your lucky that if it wasn’t for Luigi, I’d burn your portraits by now, research be damned!”

“Luigi is one of my best friends,” Peach spoke calmly, though her eyes darkened, “I don’t take it well when people hurt my friends.”

“You shouldn’t have taken my brother!” Mario shouted, “One thing I always make sure is if anyone messes with Luigi, they regret it deeply!”

“Luigi is the love of my life,” smoke escaped from Bowser’s nostrils, the threat of what was to come being extremely clear, “You hurt him one too many times, and now, I’m going to take great pride with finding out just how to make you suffer for it.”

Luigi felt King Boo tremble, there was no denying how obvious it was, despite the stoic look he tried to maintain. “I-I…JUST SAY ‘I DO’ ALREADY YOU LITTLE!!!---” King Boo didn’t manage to finish his sentence when fire escaped from Bowser’s mouth, making the king drop Luigi.

Luigi screamed, afraid that he was going to meet the hard marble of the ground when he felt himself plopped into something warm and scaly. Taking in his surroundings, he noticed that the hand he was in had bright yellow scaled. Looking up, he met his fiancé’s beautiful red eyes and a tearful smile pulled at his lips, “Bowser, you came for me!”

He lunged himself at the koopa, gripping him tight in a hug. The koopa chuckled as he gripped Luigi back, “I wasn’t gonna let some dumb boo ruin our wedding. Besides, I promised to protect you, that means rescuing you from impromptu kidnappings.” Luigi pulled back, gentling cradling the koopa’s face in his hands before bringing him into a kiss. Bowser returned the kiss with the same amount of softness, before gently pulling back and resting his forehead against Luigi’s. It was then when his eyes trailed over Luigi’s form and noticed the new gown he was in. He blushed at the amount of exposed skin from Luigi’s tight-clad legs.

Once Luigi noticed the koopa’s gaze on him, he buried his face into his hands, squealing, “Oh god, I just realised I had this on! This is so embarrassing!”

“Well I’ll give King Boo this,” Bowser smirked, “He has a good taste in fashion. Though, I think its mostly you, you’re able to pull off everything.”

“Stop,” Luigi’s face was as red as his brother’s overalls, though he secretly loved the complement, “I genuinely don’t know how to feel about this dress, its really not my usual style.”

Bowser took pity on his fiancé’s flustered state, so he tore off a piece of a black curtain and wrapped it around the human. He pressed a kiss to the human’s forehead, “Better?”

“Much,” Luigi rested his head against the koopa’s muzzle “Thank you.”

“NO, NO!” the screams of King Boo tore the happy couple away from their tender moment as they turned to see the poltergeist being sucked into Mario’s poltergust, the rest of the ghosts and boos seemed to have been sucked up as well while the two were being reunited, “THIS ISN’T FAIR, I’M SUPPOSED TO WIN!”

Daisy whacked the flat edge of her sword against the boo’s head, assisting with Mario’s poltergust sucking up the King. “NO!” was the last word King Boo spoke before he too disappeared into the poltergust.

“And that is what happens what you mess with my brother,” Mario scowled. It quickly faded the moment he saw his brother, “Lu, are you okay?! This fantasma che mangia merda didn’t hurt you, did he?”

“No Mario, I’m okay!” Luigi sniffed at the sight of seeing his brother, the red plumber jumping into the koopa’s hand to give his brother a hug, “I’m okay Mario, you don’t need to worry.”

“Good, otherwise I’m getting Daisy to whack him with her sword again,” Mario muffled his words into Luigi’s shoulder, still squeezing him tight.

“I’m up for it!” Daisy put her thumbs up.

“Ah, ah, darling,” Rosalina hooked her thumb under Daisy’s chin, “Behave yourself.”

“Eh-uh-um…Rosa you can’t just pull that on me!” Daisy spluttered, blushing madly.

Luigi giggled, leaning into Bowser’s and Mario hold.

“We’re so glad you’re safe Luigi,” said Peach as she walked up to them, “We’ll make sure that this remains as a one-time thing.”

“After seeing how King Boo reacted to all of you bursting in like that, I’ll have to agree,” Luigi nodded.

“Its good to see you again son,” E. Gadd spoke up, Kamek by his side as the koopa agreed with every word the old man said, “I apologise for not making it to the wedding, as you can tell I was quite…preoccupied.”

“There’s no need to apologise doctor,” Luigi smiled, “I have a feeling we’ll need to push the wedding date back a little bit to clean up the mess King Boo left behind.”

“Well with a little help with my magic, the process should be a bit quicker,” said Kamek, “And I’ll finally have a proper chance to deal with King Boo and his subjects.”

However, at Kamek’s words, Luigi’s eyes flittered over to the full poltergusts in the corner, his smile drooped. Bowser took notice of the human’s change of demeanour immediately, “What’s wrong, love?”

“Its just…” Luigi sighed, turning to Bowser. Mario jumped down to give his brother more room, “I can’t help but feel sorry for the boos and ghosts under King Boo’s rule.”

“What?!” Daisy cried, “Those guys literally helped King Boo kidnap you?! You seriously feel sorry for them?!”

“Its not their fault!” Luigi retorted, “King Boo was forcing them to do that stuff, after all these years with dealing with him I get it. I don’t wait to punish them just because their boss scared them into doing something they didn’t want to do. I’m not saying they shouldn’t face consequences, but I want to give them the benefit of the doubt.” He placed his hand on Bowser’s cheek, “Just like someone else I know.”

Bowser leaned into the human’s touch, “You never cease to amaze me greenie.”

“Kamek,” Luigi turned to the magikoopa, “If you don’t mind, I would like to release these boos and ghosts to make them part of our kingdom, as long as they want to.”

“It would be my pleasure,” Kamek bowed before moving to the poltergusts,” With your permission E. Gadd, I’m going to remove King Boo’s old subjects out off these poltergusts and keep a hold of them, sans the king of course.”

“By all means go ahead,” E. Gadd stepped to the side as Kamek waved his wand, summoning the boos and ghost out of the poltergusts, yet making sure he used his magic to keep them from trying anything.

The poltergeists gazed around the room, confused until their eyes landed on Luigi. The human’s heart twisted when he saw the petrified looks on their faces, “There’s no need to worry, I’m not going to do anything. On behalf of myself and King Bowser, we would like to formally invite you all not only to be guests at our wedding, but to be citizens of our Kingdom as well.”

Each poltergeists’ eyes widened, each of them turning to face another ghost with surprise at the sudden news. “Although we aren’t letting you off the hook just yet,” Bowser spoke up, “We don’t want you to be in fear of King Boo anymore. In our kingdom, you will be safe and treated with the same respect as my own subjects.”

“Only if you wish of course,” Luigi reassured them, but the face splitting excited smiles each of the ghosts and boos had at the news they would finally be free of King Boo informed him what their answer would be. He nodded to Kamek to let them go, the poltergeists swirling and soaring through the air with joy, the baby boo from before rushing over to Luigi to nuzzle him again, with the human cuddling him fondly.

Bowser’s smile widened even more, holding his fiancé closer, wondering how he got so lucky. “Shall we head back home, dearest?”

“I would love that Mio Caro,” Luigi settled into the koopa’s arms, letting his eyes resting as he continued to cuddle the little boo.

Soon all the toads, koopa’s, boos and ghosts had filed up behind the rulers of their kingdoms as they headed back home.

.

.

.

A Few Weeks Later

“Do you Bowser, take Luigi’s hand in marriage as your lawfully wedded husband, to love him unconditionally until the end of time?”

“I do.”

“And do you Luigi, take Bowser’s hand in marriage as your lawfully wedded husband, to love him no matter what comes your way until you reunite in the cosmos?”

“I do.”

“By the power vested in me, I now pronounce you…married!” Kamek cheered.

The moment Bowser and Luigi’s lips met; the crowd rejoiced. The koopa, boos and toads were all hugging sobbing at the happy couple, Luigi’s family cried for their youngest son as they wished him and Bowser nothing but the best, Junior and Polterpup jumped up and down with joy at the sight of his dads finally being together, E. Gadd was sniffling into Kamek’s robe with the magikoopa complaining how dirty the doctor was getting it, Daisy and Rosalina smiled fondly at the happy couple as each princess planned on how they would propose to each other next, Mario and Peach had their arms around each other as they hoped that one day they would have a wedding just as magical as this. As for Bowser and Luigi, nothing else mattered in this moment apart from each other and how amazing the rest of their lives would be as long as the other was in it.

Luigi lifted his piranha plant bouquet into the air, letting the crowd get ready to catch it. He flung it up and let it go, letting it fly through the air until it landed in Daisy’s arms. She and Rosalina shared a look, the two of them blushing before the blonde smiled and brought the brunette into a soft kiss, the shorter of the two sighing happily against her girlfriend’s lips.

Bowser lifted Luigi into his arms, supporting his waist and legs – along with the poofy skirts of his original white dress – with Junior jumping onto Luigi as the human cuddled his son tight and Polterpup draping himself across Bowser’s shoulder while the koopa patted the pooch’s head.

Everything was perfect, there were no messed up plans, no interruptions and definitely no King Boo. While his old subjects did have a lot to make up for after what they did to Luigi, they were welcomed into the koopa kingdom with open arms. King Boo, however, was sealed tight into a portrait and locked up in a safe where he could never touch Luigi again.

His ocean blue eyes met Bowser’s fiery red once again, though neither of them said a word, they knew exactly what the other was silently asked for. They would have to go in for photos and the after party soon, but Luigi wanted to relish this moment as much as he could.

So before anything and everything else, the couple’s lips pressed into one more gentle kiss. And finally, all was right.

.

.

.

Thank you so much for reading, I hope you enjoyed this little birthday gift. Have a great rest of your day xx.

[wavypotatochips]

Hiii could you write on Lionel Messi as boyfriend?

Birthday Gift | A Lionel Messi Short Story

𝘗𝘢𝘪𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘨𝘴: Lionel Messi x Female Reader

Word Count : 852

𝘈𝘶𝘵𝘩𝘰𝘳𝘴 𝘕𝘰𝘵𝘦: Would you believe me if I told you this was the hardest imagine I've ever written? Hopefully you do not think if its bad c': Thank you so much for requesting!! I Hope you like how I represent your idea ˚ʚ♡ɞ˚!!

(っ◔◡◔)っ ♥ REQUESTS ARE OPEN, currently covered in college work so as of now uploads MIGHT mainly be on weekends. Thank you for your patience c’: ♥

It's your birthday today and you're waiting anxiously for your boyfriend, Lionel, to come and pick you up for a surprise celebration. You keep looking out the window, trying to catch a glimpse of his car. You're starting to worry that he might have forgotten about your special day.

Just as you're about to give up hope, you hear a car pull up outside. You rush to the door and swing it open to see Lionel standing there with a big grin on his face.

"Feliz cumpleaños mi amor! (Happy birthday, my love)" he exclaims, handing you a bouquet of your favorite flowers.

You smile and hug him tightly, feeling grateful that he remembered your birthday after all. As you step back to admire the flowers, you suddenly hear a soft whimpering sound coming from a small box that was on the ground in front of him.

"What's that noise?" you ask, curious.

"Oh, just a little surprise I have for you," Lionel replies, bending down to grab the box . As he stands up he opens the box, revealing a small, fluffy puppy inside. It has big brown eyes and a wagging tail, and as soon as it saw you, the puppy practically jumped out of the box and into your arms. Your eyes widen as you realize what it is - a golden retriever puppy! You've always wanted a dog, but you never thought Lionel would get you one.

"Oh my gosh, Lionel! ¿Esto es realmente para mí?(is this really for me?)" you ask, feeling overwhelmed with joy. Lionel quickly takes the flowers from your hand as you reach to grab the puppy.

Lionel nods, his eyes sparkling with excitement. "Yes, he's all yours. I know how much you've always wanted a dog, so I thought this would be the perfect birthday present."

Once the puppy is in your arms you cuddle him close, feeling his soft fur against your cheek. He's so cute and cuddly, you can hardly stand it.

"I can't believe you did this, Babe!! You're the best!" you exclaim, beaming with happiness.

Lionel chuckles and pulls you into a tight hug, making sure not to squish the puppy, as he is feeling happy to see you so overjoyed. "Cualquier cosa por ti mi amor. Solo quiero verte sonreír. (Anything for you, my love. I just want to see you smile.)"

As you hold the puppy close, you feel a surge of love for Lionel. He's always been there for you, through the good times and the bad. And now, with this adorable little puppy in your arms, you know your life will be even better than you ever imagined.

"Es tan lindo omg!!!! (He's so cute omg!!!)" you exclaim, feeling overwhelmed with joy.

"I know how much you love animals, and I thought this little guy would make the perfect addition to our family," Lionel says, his eyes sparkling with excitement. He smiles to himself, feeling pleased that he had given you something that had brought you such joy. He spent the entire day yesterday mentally exhausted trying to figure out what gift you wanted; in fact, just to be sure, he almost purchased you an entire clothing store.

You rub the side of the golden retriever puppy that is now attacking your face with kisses continuing to laugh, “Okay Okay!” The puppy begins to bark playfully, so you set him down on the floor and he instantly runs away to explore your house. You look up at Lionel, feeling overwhelmed by his love and generosity. "Muchas gracias bebe. ¡Este es el mejor regalo que alguien me ha dado! (Thank you so much, baby. This is the best present anyone has ever given me!,)” You squeal happily, giving him a big hug.

Lionel laughs as he hugs you tightly, looking happy and relieved. "I'm glad you like it. I just want you to be happy, and I thought this little guy would bring a lot of joy into our lives."

You feel grateful for this sweet and caring man who was always there for you. In that moment, you realized just how much you loved him, and how lucky you were to have him in your life.

"I love you so so much," you say, kissing his lips.

Lionel kisses you back, holding you close. "I love you too, my love. Are you ready to go out for dinner? I have a cage in my car I just need to get out so we can put him up while we are gone."

You are about to say something, but you hear the sound of liquid hitting the ground. You widen your eyes realizing the sound is coming from the puppy was peeing somewhere. "Lionel, ¡No lo dejaste salir! (Lionel, Did you not let him out!)" you squeal, yelling at him. Lionel follows you as you quickly ran to where the sound was coming from. "¡Se supone que debes hacer que tu Madre me ame más, no gritarme! (You are supposed to make your Mother love me more, not yell at me !) " Lionel whines at the puppy, causing you to laugh.

Overall as the evening continued, you had a wonderful birthday filled with love, surprises, and a new furry friend. You couldn't have asked for a better way to celebrate your special day with the person you loved most.

[goldenlikedayl1ght]

season of the witch - j. miller

a/n: first joel fic! got super into this one, and it's super long. uhhhh hope you enjoy and happy october! also want to give a huge shoutout to @luveline for her au writing and her luna lovegood!reader which was a huge inspiration to this fic. love you jade!! warnings: spooky themes, kissing, mentions of yearning, don't think too deeply about the dialogue sometimes i kind of hate this ok, ellie and reader being best friends, dana struggling, like kind of horror stuff, some angst, burns, mentions of murder word count: 5.1k summary: you've lived in the small town of everbrook for a while now, and you thought nothing could shock you anymore. you're wrong. paring: monsterhunter!joel x witch!reader now playing: season of the witch - donavan "you've got to pick up every stich/oh no, must be the season of the witch"

Ever since you moved to Everbrook, you could tell everyone around you thought of you as odd. You were twenty-two, what were you doing living in a small old cabin outside of town? Didn’t you want to go to parties, do drugs, whatever it was that kids did these days?

Maybe that’s why you loved Everbrook, it felt like time had stood still even now, years after you had visited as a small child. There was something charming about it, as if you had stepped into a fairytale. Only fairytales had less gossip than Everbrook did.

You had frequented Everbrook every Halloween as a kid. Your grandmother had lived in your cabin once, and much like you, she had a house and a mind full of secrets and spells. Your grandfather died before you were born, and that was when your grandmother hauled all her things to buy this cozy nook of Everbrook.

And every Halloween, she would whisk you and your siblings away to celebrate. The town loved Halloween and was known for its fairs and parades. And it’s dark corners.

To tourists, just like you were as a kid, whispers of vampires, ghosts and witches were just silly ways to get them to buy merchandise.

But your grandmother swore by these stories, telling you to be careful of how you spoke ill of the supernatural. And it was only on your fourteenth birthday did you truly find out why.

You could never describe it, why your grandmother showed up on the dark and stormy night that was the eve of your birthday. It was like she knew something was going on, something bigger than just turning fourteen.

When you woke up the next morning, you couldn’t control anything. Things flew off your shelves before you could fully grab them, candles lit with nothing but a gentle blow of wind from your mouth, and when you went to school that day, an infamous bully had decided to pick on you the wrong day. You just glared at her, telling her to “eat frogs.”

As the first frog hopped out of her mouth, you stood horrified. Then the next one came. And the next one.

You didn’t stop running until you got home, where your grandmother sat, swirling her spoon in her cup of tea. Her hand didn’t touch the spoon. She told you that day of the truth. That every other generation, a child is chosen to become a witch in your family. Your father missed it. And she told you the story of your grandfather, a monster hunter sent to kill her. But something had happened on that mission, something no one could explain. They had fallen in love.

And for years, your grandfather was able to tell the entire hunting community that she was off limits. When he died, he told her to move to Everbrook.

“Why Everbrook?” You had asked, and she looked at you, with this mischievous smile.

“Surely you understand, my dear.” When you said nothing, she chuckled. “There’s magic there. Magic that keeps hunters from going anywhere near the place. That’s why there are so many monsters there today. Witches, like me and you, we’re harder to find. But vampires, ghosts, demons. They’re all real. And a lot of them live on sacred land like Everbrook.” She explained. “That’s why we must go, and I must teach you how to control your gifts—”

You stood up, seemingly horrified by this idea. You weren’t some kind of freak; you were totally normal. You had no reason to go with her.

“I’m not going with you! I’m nothing like you!” You stormed off to your room, inclining her to drop the topic for now.

Time and time again, your grandmother would encourage you to let her teach you. Instead, you sheltered yourself away from the world, focusing on maintaining the abilities you had. They terrified you. You were just a kid, how could you be a scary witch, something that was made up to scare small children into behaving?

So, you never went to your grandma’s house again. And you didn’t celebrate Halloween, and for a long time, you pretended. Pretended you were normal, when you went to college, in your relationships.

But the past eventually caught up with you when your grandmother passed away. She had left you her house in Everbrook, as well as a small sum of money. She had written you a letter, begging you to move there, to read her old books and to embrace who you were.

It took you almost a year, but you did.

That was a long time ago, and yet, it was also yesterday.

You lived a peaceful life in Everbrook. You learned how to at least properly manage your magic, not yet totally mastering it. You planted a garden and made sure your vegetables and herbs were always taken care of.  

You made friends with various groups of monsters, your favorite being a ghost that haunted your favorite coffee shop in town. You live a good life, one devoid of people chasing you and trying to kill you for what you could do. You were simple the village crazy person, always on the outskirts of town in your own little world.

Sure, Everbrook was a small, quaint town. A little too small at times, but you loved your small crazy time. Nothing went exceptionally wrong here.

That is, until you meet a monster hunter named Joel.

• • •

Okay, you don’t know he’s a monster hunter when you meet him. He doesn’t know you’re a witch, so what did it matter?

He had moved to Everbrook with a kid, Ellie. You wondered why. Why a man in his late forties, early fifties, would adopt a teenager, and why they would move to this strange little town, away from everything.

You meet him in the bookstore. You, in between tending to your garden and learning spells, are determined to learn how to bake. You’re a good cook, but baking doesn’t come nearly as easily to you.

He’s shopping for comic books when you see him. You note everything about him, letting your head tilt to the side as you examine him. He wears this green and black flannel, appropriate for this time of year. His jeans are this dark blue, and his boots have leaves sticking to the bottom of them. The roots of his hair, and small pieces of his beard, are gray.

You bite your tongue.

You’re suddenly seventeen years old, with your first real crush on a guy. He was your older brother’s best friend. You suppose you’ve always had a thing for older guys, then. It was just a habit you’ve picked up on. Not that you weren’t of an appropriate age, but there was still a gap.

“Didn’t your mother ever teach you it was rude to stare?” He asks, not looking up from the comic he’s inspecting. Your head turns, trying to tell if he’s talking to you or someone else. Besides the bored employee at the front counter, you’re the only two people in the store.

“How’d you know I was staring?” He chuckles, looking up to you for the first time, and he’s struck by your appearance. You’re wearing these dangly crystal earrings, with lavender flowers sticking out of your belt. You wear boots too, although they’re much less dirty than his, and sticking out of them are bunched up woolly socks. You’re holding a basket, with a loaf of bread inside, as well as a jar of jam and some chocolates. Your shirt is this deep purple, and the sleeves become nice and flowy after your elbows.

“Just had this feelin’, darling.” Your cheeks flush at the nickname.

“This feeling?” You mutter to yourself, not really asking for clarification. You take a few steps forward, flipping through the comic books. You don’t look at him. “Looking for anything specific?”

“Comics for my... for a friend. Turnin’ fourteen, figured I should get her something.” He tells you. You cringe at the age, remembering your horrible fourteenth birthday.

“You have a friend that’s a fourteen-year-old girl?” You question, a light teasing tone to your voice. He gives you this look, one of sarcasm and disbelief, without a touch of annoyance or anger.

“Will you just give me a suggestion, or are you going to keep asking questions?” He asks.

“Touche.” You say, before pulling out a cool sci-fi one that had been recommended to you. “Here, get her this one.” You hand it to him, and he examines it for a few minutes, seemingly trying to get a grip on what it is and what the plot was. But, he figures his friend will enjoy it, so he glances back at you and smiles.

“Thank you,” He pauses, asking you for your name without asking for it. You tell him, and he still has this small smile on his face. “I’m Joel. Joel Miller. Am I gonna be seein’ you around?” He asks. You shrug.

“I live on the outskirts of town, in this little cottage. I only come into town every so often.”

“The old brick one with the overgrown garden?” You frown. “I live in that area, in the cabin with the blue mailbox.”

“My garden is not overgrown, Mr. Miller, it’s just full!” You defend. But it perplexes you, no one except introverts and people who want to stay hidden live in that area. You wonder what Joel Miller could possibly be hiding but convince yourself for the moment that Joel Miller is just an introvert. After all, that’s what you tell people when they ask about you. He chuckles, shaking his head.

“Then I’ll see you around, Darlin’.” He hums, and nods to you, “Thanks for the help.” Then he goes to the counter to pay for the gift, and then he’s gone. You must have this perplexed look on your face, because the woman at the counter, Angela, just smirks as she rings you up.

“He’s handsome, huh?”

“What?”

“The guy you were talking to.”

“Well, I can’t say he’s not handsome.” Your face flushes. She laughs, although not maliciously. \

“Even fairies who live on the outskirts of town like you deserve love.”

“’m not a fairy...” You mumble as you make your way out of the shop, head turning down the sidewalks to see if you can spot Joel. When you can’t, you begin your long walk home, disappointment stabbing at you the whole time.

• • •

The next time you see Joel, you go to his house.

You don’t go to see Joel, but you made these homemade chocolate chip cookies, and they turned out a lot better than you expected. You want to share your creation with someone, so you head to the cabin with the blue mailbox in hopes of finding the young girl he lives with and giving her them as a birthday present.

You decide, on the off chance that you do see Joel, to wear this cute dark green jumper, with a black layered skirt, as well as your standard black boots. You put your hair up with a bandana and head over to your destination. It’s colder than it was the other day when you met him, but it’s nice.

In your basket, you keep the cookies, as well as a bundle of flowers from your garden. You knock on the door, and a young girl answers, her hair pulled back. She wears ripped jeans, an Adventure Time tee shirt and a long-sleeved black shirt under it.

“Uh... Can I help you?” She asks.

“Hi! Does Joel live here?” You’re sure he does, but you want to make sure just in case. The girl gets this smirk on her face, and you feel your ears go red.

“You’re the one from the bookstore.”

“…He told you about me?”

“Won’t shut up about you. I’m Ellie.” She smiles, and opens the door further, inviting you to come in. “He’s upstairs, I can grab him for you—”

“Uh, I’m actually here to see you.” She stops and looks at you. “He told me it was your birthday, and I decided to give you these.” You pull out the cookies and the flowers and hand them to her. She gasps at the sight of the cookies, delicately putting the flowers down before grabbing a cookie. She hums, looking to you.

“These are amazing! I haven’t had good cookies in so long, Joel isn’t much of a baker,”

“Neither am I, honestly. I’m still learning, but I figured it was your birthday and you deserve some.”

“Could’ve fooled me.” She hums, finishing her cookie.

From the top of the stairs, you hear a familiar voice yell out, “Ellie, who was at the door?”

“Come down here and find out, old man!” You laugh, but quickly stop laughing when he comes down the stairs. His hair is wet from the shower. You want to scream at how good he looks. He just stares at you, and neither of you says anything until you decide to go first.

“Uhm, I brought cookies.” You say, “I’m sorry for the intrusion.”

“No, no, you didn’t intrude... I just, wasn’t expecting you is all.” He says honestly. You begin to look around a bit at your surroundings and realize that Joel and Ellie have been living the bachelor life, and there aren’t many boxes. You wonder if they had any boxes to begin with, since it seems they’re close but there’s something off about the whole dynamic. You can’t put your finger on it, but you see that Ellie clearly isn’t here against her will.

But who are you to judge? You live a witch’s life, and that isn’t something you share on a first date.

“Well, help yourself to a cookie,”

“Hey! You said these were my birthday cookies!”

“Ellie!” Joel scolds, looking back at you. “Would you like a cup of coffee?”

“Sure, that would be nice.”  You smile, and he gets you one. “Would you like to go outside to talk?” You ask softly, and he just smiles and nods, grabbing a cookie before going out with you and your coffee. You lean against the porch railing, sipping your coffee. You wait for him to begin the conversation, suddenly quite nervous.

“So…How long have you lived in Everbrook?”

“A while. Are you gonna be here for a while?” You ask.

“I think so. I like it here, nice, and quiet.”

“Yeah, it’s nice.” You hum. “How’d you wind up with Ellie?”

“I uhm… I adopted her. Knew her folks.”

“Oh, I’m sorry...”

“’s alright...” He smiles gently and sips his coffee. “She liked that comic book you recommended, so thanks...”

“No problem. She’s a nice kid.” You smile.

“So, what’s your deal, Darlin’?”

“My deal?”

“You’re always dressed in these crazy outfits, and you have this dazed look about you. Like a little bunny.” Your face flushes, and you laugh.

“I just like living the simple life. So, what if I dress a little eccentrically? You dress like a lumberjack all the time, am I gonna see you chopping trees?” You tease, smiling gently. He laughs and it makes you all warm inside. Maybe he really likes you.

“No, no chopping trees for me.” he said gently, leaning against the banister.

“Well, what do you do for work?” He pauses and stares out into the forest ahead of him.

“I used to be a hunter.”

A chill runs down your spine, and you begin to think. It would make sense, his sudden showing up in Everbrook, his interest in you. But how does that connect back to Ellie? Why would he adopt a teenager in his line of work?

Why hasn’t he killed you, then?

“Yeah. My grandfather was a hunter. Until he met my grandmother, then he couldn’t do it anymore.”

Joel stays silent, sipping his coffee.

• • •

About a week goes by, and Joel shows up at your door. The top part of your door is swung open and you’re cooking dinner when he walks up the path through your garden. He calls your name into the open door, and you quickly appear. You grin at him, and then you notice the bouquet of wildflowers he holds in his hands.

“These are for you.” he says softly, and you take them, a large grin on your face.

“Thank you. They’re gorgeous.” You tell him.

“Pretty girl like you deserves pretty flowers.” He says, and your cheeks flush.

“Please, come in.” You tell him, opening the bottom of the Dutch door. He steps inside, and notices how warm it is. Not temperature wise, but there’s this feeling to it. Warm yellow lights, plants everywhere, the smell of dinner cooking on the stove. Somewhere from deeper in the house, music plays.

“What’re you cookin’?”

“Oh, I’m making chicken parm…Do you want to stay for dinner?” You’ve never asked anyone to stay for dinner, it’s a bizarre feeling.

“I’d like that.”

“Alright, good. Then set the table, and then we can eat.” You tell him. He hums and goes to do as he is told. Eventually, you manage to plate and serve dinner, sitting across from him. You watch him for his reaction to the food, and after a few bites he just hums lowly, and looks at you, pointing to the dish with his fork, not saying anything. You grin. “I’m glad you like it.”

“Thank you for having me for dinner. I came over to apologize, really.”

“Apologize?”

“I didn’t mean to tell you I was a hunter. I know how off putting that could be for someone, to hear I hunted animals.”

You can’t confirm your suspicions that he was hunting more than just animals. So you let it go, in favor for him not pushing you and finding out that you were a witch.

“It’s alright, Joel. Everyone has to make a living somehow, right?” You hum. He smiles and nods. “So, where’s Ellie tonight?”

“Eh, I wanted to give her some time to herself.”

“Good man.” You smile, continuing to eat your food.

“Where’d you happen to come upon this little cottage?” He asks you, tilting his head.

“I inherited it from my grandmother.” You told him, a soft smile on your face, as there always was when you thought of her. “She was a good woman. She passed away when I was twenty-one.”

“I’m sorry to hear that.” He tells you, and you can tell by this look in his eyes that there’s something more to his sentiment. That this is a man who has known grief well and is haunted by it. You wonder if he toured the country killing people like you before or after he became good friends with grief.

“It’s okay. I got to move here and live a good life.” You confess, and this makes him smile again. Then, you can’t help but ask. “Why’d you move to Everbrook, Joel?” He tenses at your questions. You can tell he’s contemplating what to tell you. You know whatever he tells you will only be a half truth no matter what.

“Ellie got into some trouble where I used to live. Figured a place like this would be good for her. Safe.” You can tell it’s not a lie, but you aren’t satisfied with it. That’s when you realize you have to know. You do know that all hunters have the same tattoo, right above their inner elbow on their biceps. It’s always a bow and arrow, with the hunter’s initials incorporated into the arrow. You also know the tattoo is protected by some sort of seal that burns most creatures to the touch. You have to know. So, with a wave of your hand, subtly, the glass of wine Joel drinks from spills all over his flannel, and he huffs.

“Oh my god, here,” You start handing him napkins as he attempts to clean up the mess. He glances up at you, and his eyes have this look about them. Like he knows you were the reason it spilt. Then, he starts to unbutton and pull off his flannel before he suddenly remembers that you would see his Hunter’s mark. You realize he knows your plan and stand, going over to him and dabbing his flannel with your napkin.

“C’mon Joel, take the flannel off.” You sigh, and he says nothing. He slowly begins to pull off the flannel, but before you can really look for a tattoo, his hands are on your waist, pulling you between his legs.

He leans up and kisses you before you can see the tattoo. You put your hands on his cheeks and kiss back, bringing yourself closer to him. He hums into the kiss, standing up and walking, so that you’re up against your counter tops.

His hands are roaming your sides, and you groan softly into the kiss. The desperation you’ve had since you met him, it all comes to a head. Your hands first go to his hair, where they play with his hair, including the grays that threaten to push you over the edge.

Despite your suspicions that he wants to kill you, you want him desperately. You groan as he bites your lip, tugging it a bit, and you just moan. Your hand runs down his arm, because just for a moment, you forget the context of the kiss.

You pull away when your hand starts to burn, letting out a yell.

He looks terrified that you’ve found him out. Tears prick your eyes.

“I knew it..” You whisper softly, turning to run your hand under cold water. Joel’s tattoo glows, as it always did when anything supernatural touched it. “I think you should go.”

“Darlin’, I—”

“Go, Joel! I don’t want you here, just fucking kill me when I’m walking home from the market! Don’t kiss me like you want me when you’re here to kill me!” You snap, tears running down your face. He doesn’t say anything after that. He steps forward and kisses your shoulder gently.

He turns and leaves, and even though you tell him to leave, you turn back hoping to see him.

The worst part is that nothing makes sense anymore. He’s stronger than you. If he wanted to kill you, he could have. And how does Ellie fit into the situation, why would he move to a magical town with a teenage girl?

You’re frustrated, and your hand is burning. You cry some more as you attempt to clean the spilt wine, frustrated that it stains the rug that the table stands on. You were such an idiot, why would you let him kiss you? Why would you kick him out after?

You decide a cup of tea will help clear your mind, but you don’t stop crying all night.

• • •

The full moon looks beautiful tonight. You’ve charged your crystals and have done your monthly rituals to enable a prosperous month ahead. So, at around midnight, you go for a walk through the woods. Even though you know how dangerous it is. The woods, on nights like tonight, are full of werewolves. But most of them live in their own woods across town, so you don’t expect to have any problems.

As you’re walking, you’re thinking about Joel. You can’t help it, your kiss has you yearning for more, and you’re just desperate for him. You’re too deep in your thoughts to hear footsteps behind you, until someone grabs your arm and you’re pulled behind a tree.

And when you see Joel, you’re even more mad at him.

“What’re you doin’ here?!” He whisper-yells, and you glare.

“What are you doing here?! I’m allowed to go for walks whenever I want, you aren’t the boss of me!”

“Always so damn in your own mind, could you consider for a moment that I’m just trying to make sure you’re okay?!”

“You’re here to kill me!”

“I’m here to make sure Ellie doesn’t kill anyone or get herself killed!”

You stop.

“What...?” That’s when you hear it, a howl. It sends a shiver down your spine. And that’s when it all clicks. Joel isn’t hunting you; he isn’t here to kill you. Ellie isn’t a kid he adopted from a friend, she’s someone he’s assigned to protect. He used to hunt, but not anymore. “She’s a werewolf.” You look at him.

“And you’re a witch, are we all caught up now?”

“How’d you know?’

“Before the mark burnt you and you spilled my wine? I just knew. I hunted people for years, but you witches, you always have these cabins in the woods, and you’re always baking, and you always have flowers. It’s like y’all are one big stereotype—” He’s cut off by your lips on his, and his hands are on your hips again, pushing you against a nearby tree. You hum before he pulls away, starting to kiss down your neck.

“Joel...” You say softly, your hands in his hair.

“I’ve got you, sweet thing...” He mutters, biting down on your neck, leaving a mark.

Ellie howls again, closer now. It snaps you both out of your trance and you look to each other. He grabs your hand, and you make your way through the woods, back to your cabin. He’ll make sure you get home safe, and then he’ll continue to look after Ellie. But he hears it before you—Panting, pattering steps behind you.

“Run!” He tells you and you both take off. Twigs scrape the bottoms of your legs and your arms as you run, never letting go of Joel’s hand. Your skirt catches on one of these branches and you topple over, letting go of Joel’s hand. Before he can reach you, Ellie is on top of you—She’s smaller than other werewolves you’ve encountered but the weight of her fur is too much. She has you caged in, and she has this snarl on her face.

Then, the strangest thing happens. She starts to sniff your skin, as if trying to figure out who you are.

“It’s me, Ellie. It’s just me, ‘m not gonna hurt you, honey.” You tell her. And it’s as if a lightbulb switches inside of her head, and suddenly she’s licking your face, happy you’re here. You groan at the slober, and gently push her head away from you.

She backs off, letting you get up. You kneel back down to scratch her head.

“Why were we running if we knew she wouldn’t kill me?” You ask.

“Didn’t know that. She doesn’t attack me, but she’s attacked others.” He tells you. You hum, picking up a stick and waving it in front of her face, before throwing it as far as you can. She runs off to get the stick. It makes you laugh.

You stand fully now, glancing back to Joel.

“So…”

“I gotta finish looking after her. She’s my mission now.” You nod, stepping closer to him.

“Well..” You start, your hands on his shoulders. “You could at least kiss me again.” He grins and leans down, kissing you softly before pulling away.

 “Like that?”

“Hmm, I was thinking something with a little more passion...” You shrug. “It was okay, I guess.” You tease, and he smiles, then brings you in for a longer, deeper kiss.

You spend all night with Joel, looking after Ellie and kissing until dawn. When the morning comes, you go out in search of Ellie on your own, a blanket and some pajamas in hand. Joel’s searching the other way. You find her, cold and alone, huddled up by herself. You frown.

You crouch beside her and wrap the blanket around her, frowning softly.

“Sorry I licked you.” She says softly. You recognize the tone of her voice. Her shame in who she is. You empathize with it, remembering how horrible it was to be fourteen. You smile and hand her the clothes.

“Don’t worry about it.” You turn so she can get dressed, but the blanket remains wrapped around her shoulders. You realize she doesn’t have shoes on. You frown and pull off your boots, kneeling in front of her. You gently put your socks on her feet, and then your boots. You lace them up, and make sure they’re nice and tight. “There. Nice and warm.”

You glance back up to her, and you see tears running down her face. You frown and bring a hand to cup her cheek. She doesn’t have to say anything, you know she feels ashamed and embarrassed of her newfound abilities.

“Oh, honey… You don’t have to apologize. I was bitter and angry when I became a witch, and it destroyed me. You come from a very long line of werewolves, and—”

“I’m the first one. I got bit six months ago.” You frown. That’s why this wasn’t Joel’s first time watching over her on a full moon. And you’ve heard of werewolves biting kids before they’re fourteen and starting a new line of the creature.

“Then I’ll teach you. How to live this life, how to be happy in your own skin. It won’t be easier, but embracing who you are is so much easier than ignoring it. I’ll be here every step of the way, and so will Joel. We’re not gonna leave you to deal with this on your own.” You tell her, and when you stand up finally, she hugs you tightly. You smile to yourself and hug back.

“You two okay?” Joel asks when he finally finds you two. Ellie wipes her tears and smiles at him.

“Yeah, let’s go home. I’m sick of these woods, and I want breakfast!” she declares. You laugh, rubbing her back and beginning your walk to their cabin.

This is it, you decide. This man and this girl, they’re it for you. They are your happy ending, your family. Sure, it’s not the most conventional family, what, with a werewolf, a witch, and a monster hunter. But it’s yours, and you’d be lying if you said you weren’t thrilled to have them.

You have spent so many years longing for someone to see who you are and love you despite your freakish abilities. But all along, you were meant to be around freaks who are just like you. You are designed to be each other’s family, and you were always destined for the fate of your grandmother—To fall in love with a monster hunter and live a quiet life in Everbrook as you perfect your spells.

Joel looks back at you for a moment with this perplexed look on his face.

“Darlin’, where the hell are your shoes?”

[scarletttries]

Posed Perfection (Eddie Munson Request)

Pairing: Eddie Munson (Stranger Things) x F! Reader

Rating: Explicit 

Word Count: 2.7k

Author's Note: Happy almost Valentine's Day lovelies! To celebrate here is my first Eddie fic since I finished my YAIL series! Thank you so much to the anon that sent this exceptionally fun request in, I hope you enjoy it 😄 Thank you for all the support on all my Eddie posts, and feel free to send in new requests any time! 💕

Posed Perfection (Eddie Munson Smut)

"Just one more Eddie, then I'm sure I'll have enough." You asked, tone pleading, hoping your passion for fashion wasn't stretching your best friend's patience too thin. Ever since you'd been gifted a little polaroid camera for your birthday, you'd enlisted Eddie's help in putting a look-book together of your favourite outfits, something he'd been all too happy to help with. 

"Are you sure? It's a really pretty outfit, I wouldn't want you to miss out on any angles." He replied hopefully, his disappointment not as well hidden as he hoped when you shook your head. 

"I'm sure, I don't want to take up any more of our afternoon with my stuff, but I really appreciate your help Eddie." You let your fingertips trail down his arm as you took the photos from his hand, watching his eyes dart involuntarily to place your skin met his. You observed him as he gulped and forced himself to fight back a smile at the slight touch, trying not to get his hopes up that there was anything more than your usual friendly affection behind it. 

Eddie had been your best friend for long enough that you could read his every expression like his inner monologue had subtitles, and you loved every part of the hopeless dork more than you'd been willing to admit to anyone but yourself, but sometimes you couldn't help but what to grip him by the shoulders and shake him for being such an oblivious idiot when it came to girls. More specifically the feelings of one particular girl: you. 

When you'd first started this little photography project, you'd thought it would be the perfect way to test out if your own growing feelings were matched by Eddie's. You started subtly, wearing a slightly lower cut top, then a shorter skirt, noticing the way Eddie's face would flush with colour when you'd bend over slightly for the photos, giving him a glimpse of something that would have him shifting his arms to cover his lap for the rest of the afternoon spent in the trailer together. It wasn't more than a month of photo shoots together that you were sure Eddie's crush on you was more than your own wishful thinking, but no matter how flirty your poses got, or the compliments you paid him, or the little touches you let shower down on his nervous shape, he never once made a move, refusing to step over the invisible line between friend and lover. And so as you pulled together an outfit to take over for your shoot that fateful Saturday, you decided to go with something you were sure he wouldn't be able to resist. 

---

"That's another really great look." Eddie said excitedly as he held open the door to his little bedroom, the slight tremble in his hand as he ushered you inside betraying his confident exterior. You could always tell that before you came over Eddie had tidied up his room for you, a neat space cleared against the wall with his guitar, the perfect backdrop to capture your outfits against. 

"Thanks Eddie, you're always so sweet to me." You teased, the smile that lit up his face at your words a sure sign that this 'friendship' was close to its breaking point. "I've got a couple of outfits I want to capture today if you've got time?" You asked nonchalantly, fishing for confirmation that you weren't going to be interrupted. 

"Yeah, of course, no problem, Wayne's out all day and I've got nothing else going on, so i'm all yours." He replied, the sincerity of his final words clear from his tone. 

"Lucky me." You let a sly smile creep across your cheeks as you struck your first pose, trying position after position to capture the short dress you'd decided to kick off your afternoon with. You watched eagerly as Eddie's gaze trailed up your legs as you leant over his desk for one of the shots, confident you were ready for step two of your plan to short circuit his brain. 

"Think that's enough for this dress?......Eddie?" He snapped back to reality, shaking his head to try and clear away the thoughts of what he really wanted to do with you bent over his table, and trying to recover with a nod. 

"Uuhh, yeah, I think we've got some good ones. You're a real natural at this. Want me to leave while you get changed?" You watched his brow furrow as you shook your head, slipping your dress off your shoulders and letting it fall to the floor. 

"That's okay Eds, this is the outfit I want you to take photos of next." Eddie could almost hear his heart pounding in his chest as he let himself drink in the view; you stood confidently leaning against his poster clad wall in nothing but a matching, black, lace lingerie set, looking like a cross between the magazines carefully hidden under his bed, and a dream he'd had a week ago that made him change his sheets. He was sure he'd never been as awestruck as he was in that moment, both excited to see this much of you and struggling to make eye contact for fear of ruining his friendship with his favourite person. Slowly he raised the camera to eye level, snapping the first shot and watching as the blurred image slowly emerged from the side of it. 

"Sorry sweetheart, that's a little blurry, let me try again." His voice seemed to quiver along with his hands as he tried to snap a clearer picture, fighting to get his breathing under control before he gave himself away. 

"Take your time, like you said, we've got all day. You really are the best for doing this for me." You let your hands trail down your body as you spoke, Eddie capturing the moment and desperately hoping enough blood was left in his brain that he wouldn't pass out from excitement. With every deep breath you watched him struggle to take, you could feel your confidence growing, the sheer devotion in his gaze clear with each little picture he watched develop before placing carefully down on his bed. You could see the way he kept uncomfortable shifting in his stance, his legs crossing awkwardly to hide his reaction to you, and decided you were ready to set your trap, and finally get what you wanted. 

"One second Eddie." You stepped towards him until you were within reach, watching his hands instinctively drawn to your exposed skin before they retreated in cowardice. Eddie's eyes were wide with wonder as you took his hand in yours, pausing for a moment with a soft smile that had his heart doing flips before rotating his arm until his watch was in view. "Is that the time already?" You feigned surprise as you stepped away and pulled your dress back over your curves. " I promised I'd give Robin a call to plan our english project,  is it okay if I just call her from here?" Eddie nodded as you made a show of pointing to the phone on the furthest wall of the trailer, moving to close the bedroom behind you before adding, "It'll probably take us a while to talk through everything, just to warn you," leaving Eddie alone in his room with just his thoughts running wild. 

Finally out of your eyeline Eddie allowed himself to gather up the collection of polaroids scattered across his bed and examine each of them one by one. You were perfection. Every line and light and look was incredible, your smile in the first one so happy and confident and full of affection that Eddie let himself believe that it was for him alone. He pulled the next photo out of the pile and had to fight back the moan that threatened to leave his lips. You were draped over his desk again, this time his view of you only obscured by the small strips of black lace, your mouth slightly open in and your dark gaze full of desire. Eddie's mind was full of thoughts of you staring at him that way, sure it would be exactly what you looked like crawling up his chest with nothing between you, or letting him make you feel amazing with his head between your thighs. Eddie was so caught up in the fantasy in his mind, he'd barely noticed his hand shifting over the straining denim of his jeans, sighing with relief at the friction it provided. 

He glanced back over his shoulder, the door still closed and you deep in conversation, and ignored that voice in his head telling him it was wrong to do this with you so close, that you catching him would ruin everything. He made quick work of pulling his jeans down to his knees, freeing his aching length from his boxers and hissing at the overwhelming sensation as the cold air of his room met his sensitive, glistening tip. He'd been hard for what felt like hours of watching you model for him, another glance at your polaroids making him throb against his grip. He knew he needed to be efficient about this, but at the same time you'd be taking these photos with you when you left this afternoon and this was his one chance to use more than just his imagination to get himself off. He stared at every detail as he worked himself slowly and deliberately, trying not to let his eyes flutter shut for even a second.

You could hear the laboured breathing through the door as you leant gently against the wood, Eddie so fixated on the photographs he didn't notice the shifting light behind him. A certain smug excitement rushed through your veins at catching him in the act, your plan coming together in this perfect moment. 

The soft fluttering sound of your dress hitting the ground again was enough to pull his undivided attention to your shape in the doorway, frantically releasing himself from his grip and cursing the desperate whimper that left his lips at the loss of contant. 

"Fuck, I'm sorry (y/n), I just.." He started to apologise, looking the picture of pathetic as he struggled to tuck himself back in his underwear, balls aching with the pressure he'd built up inside of them, as close to cuming as he was to tears in that moment. His desperate eyes watched you step slowly over to where he stayed seated, lowering yourself on to your knees between his warm thighs as licking your lips as you looked up at him.

"Did you like the photos Eddie?" Your question was so clearly loaded, Eddie didn't know how to answer it without making more of a fool of himself, finally nodding his head in defeat. Settling one hand between his thighs, you ran a finger gently over the length of him through his boxers, watching his hips twitch in response, eyes widening at your actions, "Use your words, and i'll touch you again. Did you like the photos?" Eddie drank in your playful smirk like it might do something to quell the flames building inside of him, finally stuttering,

"I love them....Fuck." He cried out as you let your thumb rub circles on his glistening tip, red raw in its desperation for release. 

"I'm so glad you like them, because they're all yours." You said with a knowing smile, Eddie's brain completely lost as you rose up just enough to place your lips carefully on his. Between the shock of finally tasting your kiss, and the soft strokes your thumb was teasing over his throbbing erection, Eddie's brain was all but empty as he finally kissed you back, arms wrapping around your waist and pulling you to straddle his lap, the lace of panties rubbing against him alongside your hand. 

"Oh god (y/n)." He groaned out at the contact, trying to find the words to put to his feelings, but struggling to do anything but moan as you kept up your slow, gentle touches, only making his aching desire for release that much more painful. 

"I know Eddie, you're so good to me, and I promise I'll make you feel good too. So good." You finally wrapped your whole hand around him, feeling his hips shake against yours, but not picking up your pace quite yet. "I could tell you liked being my photographer a little more than you should," as you spoke your free hand interlocked with his, squeezing gently before moving it from your hip to your inner thigh, feeling the electricity flood through your cells as his finger rested inches from where you wanted them most, "why don't you feel just how much I like being your model?" You watched as Eddie turned the words over in his head before finally accepting the invitation and letting his fingers carefully push the thin strip of lace aside, feeling your soaked slit for the first time. The soft moan you let out almost had Eddie spilling in your hand then and there as he ran his fingers through your slick, feeling you shiver with the sensation as he brushed over your clit. His own desperate need for pleasure forgotten, his lips crashed to yours as his fingers strummed over the sensitive bud, the feeling of your thighs shaking against his sending his mind racing, like there was nothing else he ever wanted to do other than make you feel this way. 

"Mm, Eddie." You moaned as dipped his fingers inside you, coating them in your own excitement before bringing them back to your clit with renewed dedication, working to hear his name fall from your lips again, confident he could spend hours doing this unwaveringly, until he had to pin you under him to stop you from squirming away. You could feel the grin spreading across his cheeks at the sound, letting his name fall from your lips again as you felt your hips start to buck against him, the tension inside you building as his fingers kept their unrelenting pace. You finally picked up the pace of the firm strokes of your hand, Eddie's movement faltering for a second as his own aching release seemed to quickly build again. 

"This isn't just a one time thing right?" Eddie stumbled out between moans, pleading eyes looking into yours with desperate longing. 

"It can be an all the time thing if you want Eddie." You reassured, lips meeting his again as his eyes drifted down to your chest, practically bouncing out of your lacey bra as your body shook against his hand, your release coating his hand as the heat inside you reached its pitch. He watched closely as your mouth fell open just like in the polaroid, rubbing you over and over in deliberate strokes, coaxing every drop of pleasure out of you as he fought back his inevitable release. 

"Eddie," you sighed out as you squirmed against his hand, overstimulated but still wanting more as his fingers started to dip inside you, feeling you clench against him as you rode out your high, "you know, once I'm covered in your cum you can take some more pictures." The moment you breathed out those words Eddie was gone, his whole body tensing as he let himself go, spilling himself over your hand and stomach, hips jerking violently at his long overdue release. Thick white lines dripped over your lingerie as you milked out every drop, only letting him go once his eyes blinked open again, still wide in disbelief at the exquisite sight in front of him. 

"Eddie," you whined softly at his still plunging fingers, moving to climb off his lap, but quickly being flipped onto your back, Eddie's hips across your legs ensuring he could keep you right where he wanted. 

"I think we should try that a few more times before I get the camera back out." He said greedily, lips crashing against yours as he brought his thumb to clit, taking your gasp against his kiss as his chance to speak again, "God you really are a model sweetheart." 

[live-laugh-neteyam]

hi its me mimi! Remember me from few weeks ago from the request about that incident that quite scarred me? Well first of all, i still wanna thank you for making the drabble from my request, it means the world to me.

I hope you're having a wonderful day and moving (i saw you were moving out congrats baby!). Could i please ask for you to make a neteyam x omaticaya!fem!reader imagine where he suprises her for her bday ? it's actually my bday today but i won't celebrate it since i again went through another traumatic experience (yes again) i've been crying all week and so this would mean the world to me. (can you make him incredibly in love with reader and touchy as hell i need that right now lmao)

Thnak you again i love u <3

hi mimi!!! Thank you so much lovie!! I hope you had an amazing birthday! Sorry this is a bit late. Moving is stressful as hell but hopefully it’ll calm down soon. Happy birthday my friend!!! I’m sorry you’re going through hard times right now. My dms are always open to you love 💞

Make A Wish ||| neteyam x omatikaya!reader

masterlist

pairings: neteyam × omatikaya!fem!reader

summary: happy birthday to youuuuuu

words: 800

warnings/notes: just some pure tooth rotting fluff, use of y/n, neteyam being a lovesick puppy <3

Birthdays

An incredibly human tradition not typically practiced by the Na’vi. Jake gave up a lot of human traditions, but birthdays would not be one of them. The man insisted that his family celebrated each others birthdays, and so it became a tradition in the Sully household.

Neteyam would never admit it in fear of being teased, but the boy absolutely adored birthdays. He loved everything about them. In fact, he enjoyed celebrating others birthdays just as much as his own. The idea of celebrating the day someone came into the world was so fascinating to him. The humans got one thing right.

Jake was the type of father that went all out for birthdays so naturally Neteyam followed suit. He had been counting down the days to your birthday planning a big surprise for you. After all, you were his whole world. You deserved an entire day devoted to you (though Neteyam felt strongly that you should be celebrated every day).

Neteyam had everything planned down to the T. He tried his best to make you a traditional human cake, he had loads of handmade gifts ready for you, and he even arranged a feast in your honor. To say he was pleased with himself was an understatement.

“Happy Birthday Ma’Y/N!” Neteyam screamed causing you to jolt awake. You surveyed the area for danger, but all you saw was your mate with the cutest half smile ever, looking like a little puppy. Laying back you placed a hand over your chest recovering from what felt like a heart attack.

“Neteyam.” You breathed heavily still trying to calm your heart. “What are you doing?”

“It’s your birthday remember?” He said like it was the most obvious answer ever.

Growing up, you remembered talk of these ‘birthdays’, but you had never celebrated one yourself. It wasn’t a typical Na’vi tradition so you weren’t bothered by them. Neteyam however had different plans.

This was the first birthday you had since you became mates. He was determined to make up for lost time and give you the best birthday ever.

Your mate pulled you into his chest hugging you tightly. Kisses were scattered along your cheeks and your forehead. Softly giggling at the affection you looked up at him.

“What’s gotten into you?” You asked. “Not that I mind.”

Neteyam gave you an unimpressed look. “It is your birthday.” He said again as if that was a crystal clear answer. “We must celebrate you.” He smiled.

Smiling up at him you nodded letting him ramble on about the importance of birthdays. You still weren’t bothered by it, but seeing him so excited melted your heart.

“Oh, I almost forgot!” He said before placing a quick peck to your lips and running out of your shared home.

He quickly returned with a round looking object on a plate. A stick was stabbed into the middle of it, the end of it aflame.

“Neteyam.” You said with wide eyes. “That thing is on fire Neteyam!” You said panicked not sure why he was unfazed.

“Hush, you’re ruining the moment!” He scolded.

You sat there completely lost as to what was going on. Then it got even stranger. Neteyam started singing.

“Happy birthday to you.” He sang. “Happy birthday dear Y/N. Happy birthday to you.” He was practically beaming as he placed the object in front of you.

Staring from the plate then back to him you were dumbfounded. “Are you trying to set something on fire?” You asked concerned pointing back to the stick on fire.

He threw his head back in laughter at your words. “No. You blow it out.” He explained. “But make a wish first. That’s very important.” He smiled.

Raising a brow you looked at him confused. “But I have everything I wish for.” You said as if it was obvious. “Why do I need more?”

Neteyam smiled at you gently placing his hand on your cheek. “It can be anything my love. Even something small. But you have to wish for something, it’s apart of the tradition.”

You nodded at his words. You didn’t fully understand the importance of it, but you knew it was important to him so you’d play along.

“I wish for-“

“No!” He said panicked. “You can’t say it aloud.”

Eyeing him cautiously you continued. “Alright then.” Making a silent wish to yourself you blew out the flame.

You didn’t think it was possible for Neteyam to be smiling anymore than he was. He was thrilled to be celebrating your first official birthday with you. Pulling you into his chest he snuggled his head into your neck.

“Happy birthday Ma’Y/N.” He smiled.

Snuggling in closer to him you sighed in content. You appreciate all the effort he put into this for you.

“Thank you Ma’Teyam.” You blushed.

“I have so much planned for you today.” He happily explained. “Wait until you see all your gifts.” He proudly said.

“Gifts?” You question still unsure of how the whole birthday thing worked.

“Oh just you wait yawne.” He kissed the top of your head. “I have a whole day of celebrating planned.” He grinned ready to give you a day you’d never forget.

taglist:

@ilovejakesullysdick @fanboyluvr @athenalikethegoddess @loverofallthingsfandom @forasgaard @plzfeedmebread @instabull @ms5m1th @avatarappreciationblog @romimiux @ferrtan @tammitammytime @eternallyvenus @dreamyescapesfromreality @dvxsja @jakesullyfatjuicypeen @mightyneteyam @doggyteam2028 @bananafruityawne @mooniequeen @shayligames-blog

[cainluvr69]

"Special Gifts for a Celebratory Night" Cain SSR Story - The Flowerfall Game Hall, With You ~ Invitation for Cain

Akira: (I wonder where Cain is. If he's not in his room or in the lounge, then…ah!)

✦���☾✧✦

Mithra: Are fwe fone yet.

Cain: I just have one more question. You were alone with the Sage inside, right?

Akira: Did I do something?

Cain: Master Sage! How long have you been listening…?

Akira: I only got here a moment ago. I was looking for you, Cain. Are the two of you eating some snacks together?

Cain: Something like that. Did you need me for something?

Akira: Yes. It's almost your birthday, so I wanted to invite you to the Flowerfall Game Hall…

Mithra: Oh, what good timing. Then I will leave the explanation to you.

Akira: Huh?

Cain: !

Mithra: He's been pestering me endlessly about what kind of place it is. He could just ask one of the other--

Cain: Mithra, Mithra! Here, take the rest of my snacks. You can have all of them. Thanks for giving me your time.

Mithra: Mm, thank you.

Cain: …Whew. Sorry to cut that short, Master Sage.

Akira: Oh, no. But if you wanted to talk about the Game Hall, then…

Cain: I heard about it from Arthur, and I've been really curious about it since. It's a miniature garden that one of Shylock's old friends left behind, right?

Akira: That's right. Their magical power is in its decline and it's making it difficult to take care of the hall, so Shylock's been holding onto it and I've been borrowing it. At least, I wanted to ask if you wanted to go to the hall with me to celebrate your birthday?

Cain: Of course. I'd be happy to, Master Sage.

✦✧☾✧✦

And so, the day we agreed to go to the Flowerfall Game Hall together arrived.

Cain: Did you hand-make this invitation? You decorated it with all sorts of my favorite things.

Cain: You really know me well, Sage.

Akira: Ahaha, I'm just happy you like it.

Cain: So by using a little magic, the door to the hall opens, right? Alright… <Gladius Procella>

The invitation began to glow with a gentle light, and slowly, the door to the hall began to open. And we were enveloped in white mist--

✦✧☾✧✦

Cain: --Woah, this place is amazing?! This is the first time I've ever seen that, or this over here! And this outfit… If I heard right, this is an outfit that the Hall itself prepared for each one of us, right?

Akira: That's right! It suits you well, Cain.

Cain: Ahaha, I'm glad to hear it. Since I'm getting the chance to escort you today, anything less than the best wouldn't feel right.

Cain's smile was so bright that I started to smile too, just seeing it. But then I straightened my back, trying to be a bit more serious. I'd practiced how to properly escort someone who knew how many times before today. I took a deep breath, preparing myself for that pose, the standard one for something like this.

Akira: …Cain. Allow me to take you to the Hall proper. Please, give me your hamb!

Cain: …

Akira: (…I messed up…)

Cain: Pfft, ahaha! Thank you for the wonderful invitation, Master Sage.

Akira: I want to dig a hole and bury myself in it…

Cain: You can't do that. Then I'd have no one to escort me. So, once again. I'd be happy to, Master Sage.

As Cain said that, he gently placed his hand on top of the one that I'd reached out to him with. His hand was so warm. Warm enough to melt away all my stress and embarrassment from screwing up.

Akira: …Thank you, Cain. Let me show you this area first! First up, this is sort of like a rollercoaster… Umm, I was wondering if you might want to ride this with me. It's like a…ride that goes really, really, really fast.

Cain: That was one I heard about from Arthur, where you go down a fast-moving current of water with a swim ring? It sounded really fun, so I asked him about it.

Akira: That sounds just like you. But this is a different one, where we'll go round and round around a volcano.

Cain: Top speed around a volcano… That sounds super fun!

We walked while we talked, and before I knew it, we were already at our destination.

Cain: A mountain of little flowers…? No, wait, there's flames coming out of the top. Is this the volcano you were telling me about? Akira: Yep! We're going to ride around it in that cart made of woven vines. There's a lot of rides that go really fast, but I want this to be the one we ride first!

✦✧☾✧✦

Cain: Woah, there's so many hills on this ride! But doesn't that mean it can't go very fast?

Akira: It's probably about to start speeding up! This is actually the first time I'm riding this one too, so I don't know what kind of speed it's going to have.

Well, that's what I said, but I sure do know about this rollercoaster. When Shylock told me that we had one, I thought it'd be fun to take Cain on it, so I didn't really get to do a test drive--

Akira: Gyaaaahhhh!! We're fallingggg!!

Cain: Ahaha, that's one hell of a scream! But yelling from your gut really makes riding this even more fun.

The cart we were riding in hit such a speed that I thought we were going to fall right into the volcano's crater, and we did get close enough that I could've reached out and touched the flames--but then we hit a turn and went back to the mountain's surface. On a normal rollercoaster, you could tell where it was going to go by looking at its rail, but on a magical one that moved freely, it was impossible to tell what was going to happen next.

Akira: Th--that was actually a scream from my heart… But, Cain. You're fine letting go of the vines holding you in place, even at a speed like this?!

Cain: Well, it feels better like this, yeah? Oh, Master Sage. There's a phantom boulder chasing after us now-- Oh, now there's a whole waterfall of magma! A magmafall! Alright, then let me-- Woooooooooooo!!

Akira: Gyaaaaahhhh!!

✦✧☾✧✦

Cain: Ahh! That was super fun.

Akira: You…were able to ride it ten entire times… That's some energy you've got…!

Cain: Ahaha. If you wanna go again, I'm still good for it.

Akira: (He's so powerful… But, it looks like he's completely satisfied.)

As I was staring at his smiling face, Cain suddenly stood up. And then he looked at me, staring deep into my eyes.

Cain: Master Sage. Could I have a moment of your time?

Akira: ? Yes, of course you can…

Cain put one hand to his chest. It was such a sincere and gallant…and knightly pose. He bowed to me, like a proper knight would.

Cain: Master Sage. I thank you kindly for giving me this wonderful present, this wonderful, unforgettable time with you. Thanks to you, I've been truly, genuinely happy. Which is why I wish to offer you the same favor.

Cain held out a single white envelope. I couldn't read whose name was written on it, but still, I had a feeling I knew exactly what it said.

Akira: Is this…for me…?

Cain: Yes. It's an invitation I've addressed to you.

He knelt down on one knee, and respectfully, almost reverently, extended his hand to me.

Cain: I want to make you exactly as happy as you made me today. So next time, allow me to escort you as best as I am able, so that I may be the one to make you smile.

The expression on his face was a straightforward and sincere one. His words and movements didn't have a single trace of hesitation, and I felt the tension drain from my cheeks.

Akira: (I really am no match for you, Cain…) Please, I would be delighted!

As soon as I said that, flower petals began to dance around us. Cain and I glanced at each other, and then up towards the ceiling.

Cain: It's so beautiful… Is this the sign that it's time to go home?

Akira: Yes. The flowers begin to fall once the wizard that's activated the Hall is satisfied…

Even as I spoke, mist began to cloud over my field of vision.

✦✧☾✧✦

And before I realized it, we were back inside the manor.

Akira: Ah…we're back. I'm glad you enjoyed yourself in the hall, Cain!

Cain: Yeah, it was amazing! Thank you, Master Sage. But to tell the truth, I was nervous the whole time. I kept thinking about when our time together was going to end. Even though I talked to Mithra and the others so I could get a surprise ready for you in advance… Like, it'd be really uncool if you were escorting me and the hall up and kicked us out early, right?

Akira: (Oh, I see… So him asking about the hall was so he could surprise me.)

Cain's smile was lighthearted, like he was joking around, but my chest felt warm. That warmth made me want to do something to make him happy, one last time. I gently took his hand and squeezed it, and he made an odd little expression at me.

Akira: (There are so many things I want to tell him, but…) Cain. One more time, happy birthday! I hope that this coming year is a year full of smiles and happiness for you.

I'd never be able to match Cain, but I still did my best to look cool about it. There's no special power in my words, but-- May these seeds one day bloom into flowers. May magic one day turn plain stones into jewels. May my words one day become blessings so powerful they can protect his heart. With these wishes all wrapped up in my words--

Akira: …That's my final surprise gift for you. Was I cooler than when I first tried?

Cain: … Yeah. You were the coolest, Akira!

Gifts Painting the Future

Akira: Cain, what are you reading?

Cain: Oh, Master Sage. Tada! Check it out. This was a birthday gift from the other Central wizards.

Akira: Wah! Does that mean it's handmade?

Cain: Yeah, it's a story about a wizard that becomes a knight. Apparently Riquet was the one who said they should do this. "This is the Cain of the future," is what he said to Arthur, his eyes blazing with passion.

Akira: You must be so happy to hear that…

Cain: None of them really have much experience with writing stories, so they also drew pictures to make sure the flow of the narrative is properly communicated. Here, look.

Akira: Oh, wow! Would this brave little boy be you, Cain? Who drew this… Could it have been Oz?!

Cain: No, Arthur was the one who drew that. He's super intense and cool, right? And these kind of stiff parts are by Riquet, and the backgrounds are by Oz.

Akira: Ahaha, each part is so them.

Cain: I know right--oh, wait. I need to get going soon.

Akira: Do you have plans later today?

Cain: Yeah. Owen told me to come to his room later so he could give me a birthday present. It's…definitely not going to be something very respectable.

Akira: (Yeah, I don't think so… That's beyond suspicious.)

Cain: But I don't want to reject his feelings, so I'm going either way. So, see you later!

Akira: (…Cain's the kind of person who would go if someone asked him to, even if he knew something bad was waiting…)

[selenacosmic]

A sugared birthday.

Birthday special. pt. (2/2).

The special gift - nsfw (minors dni).

Lightly inspired by the story event “dancing queen” from his birthday event. This got longer than I thought it would.

A few days have gone by since the meeting I had with the warlords from Kasugayama, ever since then we were all preparing for Shingen’s birthday in secret. Kenshin and Yukimura would be responsible for organizing the party, Sasuke was in charge of making sure Kenshin wouldn’t go overboard with ordering the sake. He also volunteered to enhance the security of the castle, although I doubt anyone would try harming Shingen, it was better to be sure rather than sorry.

Yoshimoto would be helping me practice for my personal gift to Shingen, since it was mostly his idea. And besides, he is very knowledgeable about art and beauty, specially about Shingen’s preferences. If I really was going to pretend to be a celestial maiden, I would need to know how to act and move, what expressions I should make while talking to him etc. to make everything more immersive.

But learning how to act like a celestial maiden would soon be proven to be a difficult task.

“Not like that, you will knock the cup down if you move your hand like that.” Yoshimoto’s voice carried a sigh, he was being patient as he taught me how to act gracefully. His hands held mine and gently fixed its position, as well as fixing the sleeve from the robe.

“I am sorry, but it’s hard moving gracefully with this. The wings get in the way of my movements.” The robe i would be using for the acting was almost done, missing just a few final touches that would make it look heavenly. But I still needed to learn how to move on it.

“Practice and time will help you, you must stay calm and pay attention to every movement you make. As long as you keep your mind focused, the sleeves and wings won��t get in your way. Besides, I predict you won’t be using the robe for long.” His comment made me blush, sometimes I forget how casually Yoshimoto’s words may sound.

“A-anyway, what else should I do?” Trying to change the topic, I turned to him with that question. I wasn’t confident that the acting would last for very long, eventually i would just fall back into being myself.

“Like I said, it would be good to pour sake for him, as well as feed him the sweets yourself. You won’t have to do much.” He moved away, letting me go back to practice pouring sake elegantly. I focused, like he said, on the position my fingers were around the bottle of sake, how my arms moved as a tilted it over the cup.

I suddenly felt his finger touch between my eyebrows, rubbing the area lightly “don’t frown while you concentrate. While it’s cute, a celestial maiden would keep a serene and calm expression.”

“Got it!” Despite agreeing with him, I believe it would take a lot of effort to control my face. If it is for shingen, I should do my best.

“I believe that’s enough for today, you should try practicing in front of a mirror to help you know what expression you should make. Go rest now, otherwise my cousin will be looking for you.” Yoshimoto patted my shoulder, gracefully getting up to leave the room, as a way to give me privacy to change my clothes. I put the bottle of sake down on the table, feeling my muscles relax.

“Thank you for helping me with this, it means a lot to be able to do this for his birthday.” I showed my gratitude to him before he could slide the door open. Yoshimoto stopped for a few seconds before turning to me with a smile.

“If it’s for my cousin, I will gladly help. We will meet again tomorrow.” With that, Yoshimoto left the room. Despite the fact that he told me to rest for now, I kept practicing in that room for another hour or so. While it’s true that I am pushing my limits, I didn’t want to do a sloppy job while acting on his birthday. After I was tired to the point where my muscles were sore from forcing elegant movements, I decided to take a rest, for real this time.

It might not look like at first, but making graceful movements took a lot of effort, my arms hurted a bit. I took off the robe carefully and put my regular kimono back on, leaving the room with the robes carefully wrapped on my arms.

The room in question was in an inn we rented to use as a practice room. Every day we would meet here so that I could train my acting and perfect it. Shingen noticed I am going out frequently, so I had to use the excuse that I was going out to shop for his birthday party. I hope he doesn’t get too suspicious, though I think he knows something is going on.

Sasuke once mentioned that I give things away too easily through my expressions, which was something I was clueless to. Huh, perhaps I should work on that.

—————

The moment I stepped inside the castle, I noticed an abundance of people walking through the halls in a hurry, carrying what i would assume to be the decorations for the party. Wow, Yukimura and Kenshin really went all out on organizing the banquet, though i can only imagine the conflict those two must have had preparing everything together.

It was already close to dusk, the sky was tinged by a mix of purple and yellow. I should be getting back to the bedroom shingen and I share, otherwise he might get find my lateness strange. But before that…

The robe.

The seamstresses aren’t done finishing the robe, they only allowed me to borrow it for the practice. I should return it to them before I go back, i hugged the wrapped robe against my chest, trying to make it less noticeable as I made my way to return it. Even though the others wouldn’t find it suspicious, I wanted to keep the costume as secret as possible.

Once I had returned it, I was finally able to go rest in my bedroom. I let out a sigh of relief as I reached the door, I really miss the covers of the futon right now. As I slide the door open, two strong arms pull me inside, sliding the door shut once I was pulled flush into a sturdy chest.

I felt embarrassed by the little ‘yep!’ I let out, my arms instantly wrapping around the torso of the person who pulled me, since I knew exactly who it was.

“My goddess finally returns to my arms, illuminating my night with her glow.” That honeyed voice was enough to make me melt, I snuggled up at him while looking up.

“You shouldn’t surprise me like this, one of these days I might hit you.” Which could very well happen, what if it was a kidnapper? Or perhaps an intruder? I doubt i would actually hurt him, but i would prefer to avoid such a scenario.

His laugh filled the room, there was a twinkle of mischief in his gray eyes. I could visibly see his shoulders shaking a little. “I suppose I will deserve that. This lowly mortal accepts his goddess’ wrath.”

“You are being awfully theatrical today, did something get you in a good mood?” While it’s true that he is a flirt, he isn’t usually this… honeyed.

“On to me, aren’t you? I have heard from a certain someone that I might get a very special gift.” Oh. Oh no! How could he know? Did one of his ninjas investigate us and figured out what we were planning?

Before I could panic, I felt his warm hand over my cheek, his thumb caressing my skin. “Don’t worry, I don’t know much. I asked Yuki if there was something going on for you to be going out every day to the market. He ended up telling me that you must be preparing something for me.”

Of course it was Yukimura… though, I can’t blame him completely, he probably had to say something to shingen so that he wouldn’t investigate us, which would end up ruining the surprise.

Still, I will kick his knees for this.

“Well… that’s all you will be able to know for now. This is a surprise, you know?” I placed my hands over my hips, shooting a scolding gaze at him.

“Alright, very well. I will content myself with this little knowledge to keep my wife happy.” I smile at that, at least I know he wouldn’t want to ruin his surprise. “But-“

“W-woah!” I wrapped my arms around his neck on impulse as I felt him lifting my up in his strong arms, carrying me towards our futon.

“To distract myself from trying to find out this secret you are keeping, I will be demanding something else.” His face was close to mine, a sweet yet dark smile on his face.

I gulped lightly, knowing I wouldn’t be getting any sleep tonight. Hopefully I will still be able to walk well tomorrow for practice.

—————

On the night of December 1st…

The day had started a bit hectic, everyone had to get up early to prepare the castle for the party. Shingen would be distracted with his work, he insisted that he shouldn’t neglect his duties just because it’s his birthday, specially not when the weather was getting terribly cold. He had his people to look after. Yukimura scolded him, saying he should get more rest during his birthday, but shingen gave him a simple answer.

‘I should prioritize the well-being of those under my protection, my birthday isn’t more important than the life of others’

While I did worry about shingen working to the point of exhaustion, I also understood that he couldn’t just take a break, even if it was for a day. Besides, I believe that both the banquet and my gift to him will be of great enjoyment. With shingen distracted with work, the others and I had time to set everything up for his birthday.

Currently, the others will drag shingen to the main hall so that he can enjoy the feast, talk with his old friends and drink. Meanwhile, I would be getting ready to act. Yoshimoto ordered two maids to help me into the finished costume, the table with sake and sweets was already prepared. All I had to do was wait for them to send shingen here for my part of the gift.

I just hope I can do everything perfectly.

Some time had passed, I was sitting perfectly straight with my hands over my legs. I knew it would take a while, but my knees are starting to ache from staying in this position. And I was getting hungry…

I wish I could have joined the banquet, but the idea was to keep me hidden until it was time for him to come. I heard my stomach grumbling at the thought of all the food that would be present at the party.

Maybe a little bite of the sweets wouldn’t hurt… I reached out to take a chestnut bun, biting a small piece of it. However, I was caught by surprise when the door suddenly opened as I was mid-biting into a sweet bun.

“Selena, i heard you were sick. Are you-!” When shingen fully opened the door and saw me, his eyes widened in surprise. I could feel his intense gaze all over me.

Oh no, I should have waited just a bit more! Is there any way to save this? I thought of something quickly and slowly pulled the bun away from my lips, smiling at shingen with a trained expression.

“My lord, you have finally arrived. I was eagerly waiting your arrival to wish you a happy birthday. I had to wait so much for you that I started to crave the buns.” I carefully set the bitten bun down, trying to keep my poise and posture. “I hope you will accept being served by me as a birthday gift.”

He stood there as I spoke, his gaze turning dark and intense with desire. Shingen made his way towards me, that charming smile finally appeared on his face. “A heavenly maiden comes to wish me a happy birthday? I must truly be blessed.”

He took a seat beside me, his arm wrapping around my waist to pull me closer to him. I had to hold back my desire to throw my arms around him, for the sake of the roleplay! Using the skills Yoshimoto taught me during our acting classes, I gracefully poured sake on a cup for him.

Every movement I made was carefully thought, I gently set the bottle down on the table. Looking up at him with a dazzling smile, I could see the corners of his ears turning red.

Shingen picked up the cup filled with sake and took a sip, letting out a satisfied hum as the sweet liquid ran through his tongue. “A drink poured to me by such a beautiful being tastes like heaven.” His gaze was glued to me, I could feel his hand on my waist slowly going down.

“Not so fast, my lord. You still didn’t let me serve you properly, I had so many sweets prepared for you.” I couldn’t let him rush this so soon, I gently pushed him away as a way to tease him a bit.

Those eyes were showing a hidden feral need, he was getting impatient with waiting. I knew that he wouldn’t be able to handle not touching me, but I had to play this role just a while longer.

“If this celestial maiden wants to serve me properly… allow me to finish eating the bun that you took a bite of.” I was surprised that he wanted that bun specifically, there were many others that were bigger and probably sweeter.

But I wouldn’t argue with his demand, I picked up the chestnut bun I had taken a bite of and offered to him. His lips opened wide to eat the sweet, his tongue sensually caressing my fingers in the process. Another deep hum of satisfaction could be heard. “This must be the sweetest bun I have ever had, perhaps because it was touched by your lips.” He pulled me close yet again, showing his impatience through his greedy touches. “It makes me wonder how sweet your lips must taste.”

At this point his lips were almost touching mine, a growing ache for his warmth couldn’t stay ignored any longer.

I need him.

“If my lord is so curious, you should try them.” That was all It took for us to fall on the floor together, our lips crashed against each other. My back was pressed against the floor while shingen hovered on top of me, his arms and knees keeping his body balanced. His tongue pushed past my lips, making me moan when I felt him exploring my mouth deeper.

My voice was muffled by his kisses, leaving me panting once our lips had to separate from each other. His face was still close, his cheeks flushed red from our kiss. “It feels sinful of me to want more, but I don’t think there is any coming back from this.”

The sweets and drink was soon forgotten, our passion taking place as far more important. His hands tugged at the collar of the costume, showing my collarbone. Those lips were back on my skin, I could feel his teeth gently biting my shoulder, leaving a love mark there. Shingen seemed satisfied with it, the color was very visible. He moved his kisses downwards, leaving a trail of marks until it reach the top of my chest. “It looks like your body is covered by petals.” His voice was sweet and low, enough to make me melt.

His hands open the robe more, revealing my breasts openly to the cold air of the room. “You are far too lovely, maiden. I must cover you in more petals of love.” He resumed his kisses, gently sucking on the skin of my breasts to leave more love bites. My voice, no longer muffled from his kisses, could be heard more clearly now. My fingers bury in his hair, pulling on it gently, I needed to have him closer to me.

His kisses suddenly stopped, making me look at him impatiently. His arms wrapped around my back, lifting me up gently. “I might be in need of your warmth, but I cannot take you on the floor. A goddess deserves only the best.” With his long strides, he moved us quickly to our bed. He carefully laid me down before going back to kissing me, his teeth gently tugging on my lower lip as he pulled back.

He fully took the robes I was wearing off, though his hands lingered on the wings of the costume. “We cannot have this here, otherwise you might fly away before I can properly love you.” He took the wings carefully, putting them away far from our bed. He took off his own clothes, letting them pool around him on the ground

His hands were all over my body, caressing me between my legs as he positioned himself on top of me. My arms pulled him closer so that I could kiss his neck, making him inhale sharply. He marked me so much around the neck and chest area, it’s only right I leave my own mark on him. And because I want him to enjoy himself too. “You are torturing me like this, Selena.” Oh, he was back to calling my name, I guess the acting didn’t last for long.

“You are doing- ahn! the same to me.” His fingers went deep inside me, making me throw my head back as I melted against him. With my neck exposed, he kissed my throat passionately, adding to the pleasure.

This was feeling so good yet it was so torturous to wait, but the torture didn’t last for too long. Perhaps he also became impatient, because he entered me fast. I gasped, feeling his hand stroking my breasts he filled me completely inside.

Our bodies were pressed together as one, his arms were holding me tightly as his hips moved. My lips crashed against his once again, giving myself completely to him. In the end I really just retuned to being myself, but it was fun roleplaying with him.

Shingen pulled away from the kiss, holding me so that our eyes met as we were getting close to melting into each other. “Even if you aren’t dressed as one, you will always be my goddess. Thank you for your gift to me, Selena.”

A smile rose on my lips, I held his face and gave him a deep kiss as we reached our high, our bodies relaxing after that intense activity. “Happy birthday, my love.”

That night didn’t end there, my gift to him lasted for quite a while. I am sure my gift to shingen made him very happy, I know I was happy as well at the end of it.

The end.

[whimsicallyenchantedrose]

The Girls' Trip Fairy Tale Ending--Chapter 3 of 5

Summary:  This is my combined birthday gift for Joni (  @jrob64​  ), Marta ( @snowbellewells ) and Krystal ( @kmomof4 ).  Happy birthday ladies! Four fandom friends are nearing the end of their annual girls’ trip when they’re suddenly visited by Isaac, the author before Henry.  He gives them an each a gift–an opportunity to jump into any scene in the storybook they want and fix it.  Large focus on CS, although other characters and relationships will be explored.  A big shoutout to @hollyethecurious​ and @winterbaby89 for betaing!

Word Count: 2897

Other chapters:  (1) (2) (4)

Can also be found on: (ao3) (ff.net)

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Note: Happiest of birthdays to Marta, @snowbellewells! I hope you enjoy your trip into the book! (You might want to sit down when you read this; there is a decent chance you'll swoon, hehe.)

Chapter 3

The book deposited Marta somewhere in the middle of the Storybrooke cemetery as dusk settled over the town. She grinned, knowing she was exactly where she was meant to be–and because against all odds and logic, she was about to actually meet and interact with Graham. Best. Girls’. Trip. Ever.

She wasn’t going to fulfill her purpose by standing here and thinking about the surrealism of her situation, though. She needed to find Regina’s vault, and she needed to find Emma and Graham before Regina did.

She scanned the cemetery past rows and rows of completely ordinary tombstones, some with loving epitaphs and others rather nondescript.  She even saw one on which was etched three bears standing side by side. The epitaph for this stone read “Jesus saves.”

Finally, in the distance she saw the large mausoleum with its twin pillars and its circular crest, emblazoned with antlers or curved vines. Marta wasn’t entirely clear what they were supposed to represent.

Even more significantly, she saw the three figures of Emma, Graham, and Regina standing before it. They spoke for a few moments, and then Regina threw a punch, which Emma quickly returned, before slamming Regina up against the vault.

Marta’s heart sank; she hoped she wasn’t too late. 

As Emma began walking purposefully toward her cruiser, Graham not far behind, Marta knew she had to make her move.

“Graham was right,” Marta said quickly, catching up to Emma. “Regina is keeping his heart in the vault!”

Emma stopped and stared at her for a long moment. “Is there something in the water today? Have I dropped into some bizzaro world where I’m the only person who hasn’t lost my mind? Do you realize how you crazy you sound, Marta?”

“Yeah, I’m sure I sound insane,” Marta said, “and normally I’d give you the opportunity to figure all of this out on your own, but right now… it’s literally a matter of life and death. We can’t let Regina get to that heart!”

Emma closed her eyes for a moment, growling in frustration. “Okay, say I believed you,” she finally said, encompassing both Marta and Graham in her glance, “we searched the vault. There’s nothing there but a coffin.”

Marta didn't know how much she should or could intervene. It was probably best to be a little cryptic and circumspect.

"It seemed like you were interrupted in your searching," she said. "I'm sure there's more to be discovered there than you realize."

"She's right, Emma,"  Graham insisted. " I can still feel it. It’s there somewhere."

"Look, Graham,"  Emma said gently, taking his face in her hands and looking into his eyes. "It’s been a difficult and emotional day for you. Please just take a breath and trust me. Everything is going to be alright."

Marta saw the moment Graham conceded, and she began to panic. “You have to listen to me!” she tried again. “I know it sounds crazy, but it’s true!”

Emma shook her head. “Look, we already tried searching for it, and that led to an encounter with Regina that I don’t think either of us is ready to repeat anytime soon. If there’s something there, we can always come back and look for it another time, but until then, there’s a first aid kit in the sheriff’s station that’s calling my name.”

“But–” Marta tried one last time, but they were already gone.

Now what?

She considered heading back to the vault and confronting Regina herself, but she wasn’t entirely sure she was ready to go up against the Evil Queen–even in the Land Without Magic. What she needed was an ally.

And then it clicked. Henry. Who better than the truest believer, who had been working so hard on Operation Cobra, to help her stop his mom from doing something irreversible?

She needed to get to Henry now … wherever he was.

She’d no sooner had the thought than she was at the front door of the mayor’s mansion. She could really get used to traveling at the speed of thought like this! Knowing she didn’t have a moment to lose, she rang the doorbell and then waited impatiently until Henry opened the door.

“Marta?” he asked, his brow furrowing. “What is it? What’s wrong?”

“It’s an Operation Cobra emergency!” she said. “We have to get to your mom’s vault A.S.A.P.”

Without a word, Henry grabbed his coat and followed her out the door. As they rushed back to the cemetery, Marta filled Henry in on what was happening–being careful to heavily edit the situation, not entirely sure it was suitable for ten-year-old ears.

“And so,” Marta finished, just as the vault came into view, “I thought you could distract your mom, and then I’ll grab the heart and take it back to Sheriff Humbert.”

To Marta’s profound relief, the plan went off without a hitch. When they got to the mausoleum, Marta hid behind a nearby tree while Henry called out for Regina. She came rushing out, and Marta slipped in behind her just as Henry started in on a tale of how he didn’t know where Regina was and he’d been worried.

Thankfully, Regina hadn’t had time to push her father’s coffin back into place before rushing out to her son, and Marta ran down the cold, stone stairs, heart pounding, fearing to find a pile of dust instead of a heart, but to her relief, she saw it right away, bright red and glowing from inside the small box in which Regina had kept it. Marta took a moment to peer into the box to make sure she truly had her prize before closing the lid and making her way back outside. 

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

The next thing Marta knew, she was standing in the doorway of the sheriff’s station just as Graham leaned in and kissed Emma. No sooner had his lips touched hers than he pulled back with a gasp, his eyes blown wide.

“Emma,” he said in wonder, “I remember!”

“You remember … what?” Emma asked carefully.

“Everything,” Graham answered. 

Marta stepped forward. “Then I’m sure you’ll be pleased to see this again.” She extended the box toward him.

Graham gasped. “You got it? You really found it? How?”

“Let’s just say…” Marta said, “I knew where to look.”

For a moment, Emma merely looked back and forth between the two of them, her confusion and unease plain to see all over her face, and then she threw up her hands and headed for the door.

“Look,” she said, “I don’t know what the hell is going on around here tonight, but it’s just … too much. I forwarded the station phones to my cell; I’m going home. Graham just … take care of yourself, okay?”

He smiled at her gently. “See you tomorrow? Maybe we can talk.”

“Yeah, sounds good. Promise you’ll get some rest?”

“You have my word.”

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

When Marta blinked again, she found herself just inside the door of Granny’s diner.  She glanced around, confused.  She didn’t remember this scene from the show.  Maybe it was something new created because of her changes?

Marta noted that it was dark outside, so it must be evening.  Was it the same evening as her previous scenes had taken place?  What was she meant to do here?  Just as she considered stepping out the door, she spotted Graham sitting alone at a booth near the back of the diner.  He slowly brought a porcelain cup to his lips and took a sip as he looked pensively down at the wooden box in which Regina had kept his heart.

With no idea what she was intended to do, Marta decided she might as well join Graham.  He looked up as she approached the table, and a smile lit up his face at the sight of her.  He gestured to the opposite seat of his bench, and she took the offered seat.

“I owe you a debt of gratitude, Marta,” Graham said.  “If you hadn’t been there, hadn’t believed my wild tale, I shudder to think what might have happened.”

Marta felt a shiver go up her spine, remembering what really HAD happened in the original storyline.  “It was no trouble,” she assured.  “I knew you were right, and I didn’t want anything worse to happen to you.”

He reached over and squeezed her hand with another gentle smile.  “Thank you, nonetheless.  I know the things I’ve said and done over the past day have been–difficult to believe–but you’ve had faith in me even so, and I appreciate it more than you know.”

“Well,” Marta said, “I … know more than you think.  I believe you.  On all of it.”

“Do you?” he asked, surprised.

Marta nodded.  “And I know that you’ve been controlled entirely too long.  You need to get your heart back in your chest.”

Graham sighed, and glanced sightlessly out the window.  “Then you know I need a magic wielder to make that happen.  The only ones currently in this town are Regina and Mr. Gold, neither of which I trust to help me.”

Marta thought for a moment and a specific scene came to mind: Mulan returning Aurora’s heart in Rumplestiltskin’s cell.

“I’m not entirely sure that’s true,” Marta said.  “I’ve, well, I’ve seen a non-magical person return a heart.”

He glanced at her quizzically.  “Just who are you, Marta?”

“Wouldn’t you like to know?” she asked with a small, secret smile.

His returning smile could light up an entire room.  “Perhaps I would.”

For several moments, Marta couldn’t speak, could barely remember her own name or why she was here.  That smile was lethal.

“Anyway, that’s … not important,” she answered, still more than a little flustered.  “The point is, I think it can be done.  I could try, if you’d be willing to let me.”

He was silent for a moment, considering it, and then he nodded.  “It’s worth a try.”

Graham got to his feet, and Marta gave him a questioning look.  “I’d assume you shoving a red glowing object into my chest might attract… attention.  I thought it would be best to go somewhere a bit more secluded.”

Nodding at the wisdom of that, Marta got to her feet and followed Graham to the back hallway of Granny’s, where he gave her his heart. (Marta was sure for the rest of her days she would never forget the warm fuzzy feeling that gave her.)  Holding it carefully, she hesitated for a moment, before quickly plunging her hand into his chest.

Graham gasped, closing his eyes and grimacing in pain for a moment.

“Are you okay?” Marta asked quickly.

After a moment, he opened his eyes, and the smile that came over his face would put the sun to shame.  “I’ve never in my life been better,” he said, “and I have you to thank for it.”

Taking her hand in his, he brought it to his lips, placing a quick, grateful kiss on its back.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Marta was fairly certain she’d swooned after Graham kissed her hand, and this time when she came to, she found herself in Mary Margaret’s flat. Emma sat at the kitchen table, pushing around the cereal in her bowl rather listlessly.

Breakfast time, then–must be the next morning.

“Emma?” Marta asked, taking a seat on the other side of the table, “I just wanted to make sure you’re doing alright. Last night was kind of a lot.”

Emma snorted.  “Yeah, you could say that.  I have a knock-down, drag-out fight with the mayor, who also happens to be my son’s mom. My boss kisses me and then has some sort of … break with reality.  All in a day’s work in Storybrooke, right?  I’ve only been in this town a few weeks, but already I realize things are just … weird … here.”

“Well that is one way to put it,” Marta replied. “But … maybe try to keep a bit of an open mind about Graham.  Obviously he was going through … something … yesterday.”

Emma rolled her eyes.  “Not you too!”

Marta’s brows furrowed.  “Not me … what?””

“Mary Margaret’s already been all over me this morning about closing my heart to love and not giving Graham a chance, and being afraid, and, well, whatever other crap she mentioned.”

“So I take it you told her about your kiss,” Marta prodded.

“Yeah, and she jumped all over it,” Emma said with a frustrated huff.  “Got all excited, talking like I’d just started dating my true love or something.  It was just …way too much for this early in the morning”

Marta chuckled.  “Knowing her, I can imagine.  She means well; just wants you to be happy.”

“I know she does,” Emma sighed.  “I just wish she’d back off a little sometimes.  I’ve been a loner for a long time.  I’m not used to… friends.”

“Well you have them now,” Marta said, “and that’s a good thing, right?”

“Yeah,” Emma said slowly, “except when they're jumping to too many conclusions about my love life.”

“Okay, I could see that,” Marta conceded. “So what are your thoughts about Graham and what happened last night.”

“I don’t know,” Emma said, looking down at her bowl of cereal and continuing to drag her spoon through it.  “I do have, I don’t know, feelings of some sort toward him.  I do care about him, but … well, for one thing, he’s clearly going through something right now.  I don’t know if he’s sick and delirious, or something else, but all that crap he was saying back at the office–”

“Yeah, I know it strains credibility,” Marta said carefully.  This was harder to navigate than she’d anticipated.  If she said too much would she change the future?  Was Emma even ready to hear it?  “Maybe he just needs a little time.  You probably do too.”

Emma barked out a laugh.  “That’s for sure.”

For a few moments, the two were silent, thinking about the conversation and the events of the past day.  Finally, Emma spoke up again.

“It’s not just Graham’s … issues, though, to be honest.”

“What else is bothering you?” Marta asked.

“It’s just … those feelings I feel toward Graham? I don’t think it’s love.  I just don’t think I feel for him what I should feel for the man I’m in love with.  I don’t want to start something and hurt him later.  I know I’m the last person who should have this, I don’t know, romanticized view of love, but I just feel like there should be more to it than this.”

Marta smiled gently, thinking about a certain leather clad pirate Emma was only weeks from meeting for the first time.  She thought about their epic love story that even death itself couldn’t stop.  “Emma,” she said, “I have no doubt that epic, passionate, all-consuming true love is out there for you, and I have a sense that it’ll find you sooner than you think.  Until then, there’s nothing wrong with keeping things with Graham at the friendship level.”

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Emma thanked Marta for the talk and then headed for the station.  Left alone in the loft, Marta wondered what else she was meant to do.

Then she noticed the storybook–the storybook Lucy had at the start of season 7, the one that contained all of the events of canon along with the past fairy tales.

Maybe she was supposed to flip through and see what changed thanks to her ministrations?

She paged through until she found the events of the past day, and then she moved forward.  Regina, angry with being thwarted and concerned with how much of the truth Graham might know, came up with a creative–and particularly cruel–way to solve her problem.  After convincing the town that Graham had suffered a mental break and was no longer fit for duties as sheriff, she had him committed to the Storybrooke mental asylum in the hospital basement.

It appeared the rest of season one continued largely the same as canon.  Curious what would happen following the breaking of the curse, Marta kept reading.

After the curse, Graham was freed from the mental hospital and went on to team up with Ruby to head up the task force to reunite people with their missing loved ones.  Working together brought the two of them closer, and it wasn’t long before they began dating.

Through the seasons, Graham continued to help the heroes as various villains showed up and were subsequently defeated.  Eventually, he and Ruby decided to pull back from the craziness and enjoy their life together, even as the world continued to crash around them.

It was all Marta could have hoped for her favorite first Storybrooke sheriff.

She’d no sooner closed the cover of the book than she felt a tug in her midsection, and the room around her began spinning.  She closed her eyes against the sudden dizziness.  When she opened them again, she was back in the living room of her cabin, looking at the eager faces of her friends.

“I can’t wait to tell you what just happened!” she said excitedly.

“Well, you’re gonna have to,” Isaac said irritably.  “Come on; I don’t have all night.  Who’s next?”“I think it’s my turn,” Krystal said, a blood-thirsty gleam in her eyes, “and I know exactly what I’m going to do.”

Notes:

--I hope you enjoyed your birthday gift, Marta! Your affinity for a certain handsome Storybrooke sheriff who deserved so much better is well known to all of us. Since we got so little of him in canon, I thought I'd give you more one on one interaction with him!

--Up next: A bit of a longer hiatus. The next chapter will be posted on October 15, Krystal (@kmomof4's) birthday. We'll be moving on to the missing year between 3a and 3b, and Krystal will get a chance to give Neal the ending he deserves. (Cue evil laughter)

NEXT CHAPTER-->