#my beautiful baby boy... stupid lizard. he's not stupid. he's so smart.

[crimsontroupe]

[apothecarinomicon]

Spring week 4 part 3

After my hectic experience with the marshbloom, I decided to take a day for myself. Greenmoor isn’t anywhere near the ocean, but Meltwater Loch is big enough that I figured a day spent there could be considered a beach day. And after the couple of weeks I’d had, boy did I need a beach day.

But anyone who’s read this far ought to be familiar with my luck by now. There’s a lot to record, but I’ll try to get it down in order.

 ────��⁜⊰──── 

It was a beautiful day—clear blue sky, warm air, and (at least when I first arrived) no one around at Meltwater Loch. I spread out a towel on the beach and laid down for a good session of sunbathing. I’ve never been one for tanning, but  simply laying doing nothing while being warmed by the sun and cooled by the breeze felt absolutely decadent.

After a while of simply existing, I became aware of the sound of a bird calling above me. I cracked my eyes open and recognized the large forms of a pair of gull-drakes flying overhead. Gull-drakes are a strange hybrid, both reptilian and avian. Their torsos and wings are feathered, while their heads, tails, and talons are scaled. They do have beaks like gulls, but their tails are prehensile like their alleged draconic ancestors’. I say ‘alleged’ because no one knows how the hybrid gull-drake came into being. The sheer anatomy and scale discrepancy between the average seagull and the average dragon fossil (they were much larger in ancient times than the pocket-sized lizards we have today) seems to rule out any cross-breeding. Additionally, the typical combination of traits displayed by gull-drakes is too awkward and ungainly to be the result of natural selection. And yet, there have been records of the gull-drake’s existence for just about as long as there have been records—the third-oldest surviving written document, in fact, is a bestiary which includes them along dozens of other species, most of which are now extinct.

Nature is a strange thing.

Digressions aside, there was a reason this caught my attention. Gull-drakes are scavengers, and have been known to leave catches uneaten while they go out to hunt for more. It’s just an evolutionary quirk—they prefer to feast only once per day. This means that, as they leave their nests unattended, some other opportunistic creature could come by and steal their catch. 

It’s easy to identify a gull-drake nest, too—they tend to be very large, and are often positioned balanced atop large, pointy rocks. If a gull-drake catches you stealing, though, it’ll chase you and squawk at you and try to peck you until you drop the stolen goods and flee. They’re not too smart, though, so hiding in nearby foliage (say, a patch of large ferns) will fool them easily.

All of this to say, I managed to get myself a shock fish without a rod, all while only getting chased a little ways by a jealous, stupid bird.

 ────⊱⁜⊰──── 

As I returned to my towel, I heard an unusual sound—the put-put-put of a motor. Machinery of that kind is a fairly new invention, and unless you know how to make it, very expensive.

The woman driving the boat certainly looked like she knew how to make a motor. She was dwarven, with russet hair and a long beard, both held in thick braids. She was (as dwarves are) rather short—I'd estimate maybe one-and-a-fifth meters tall, and nearly as wide—with large hands and feet, and limbs thickly corded with muscle. She wore dark green coveralls and had a fairly heavy-duty fishing rod held in one hand so that it rested on her shoulder.

She shut the motor off as she neared and called out to me, asking if I was the village witch. I said that I was, and she told me that she was friends with my crocodilian patient. She thanked me for helping him, and said he would have been a goner without my potion-making skills. I demurred just a bit, saying I wasn't the only healer who helped him that day. She scoffed and dismissed my humility outright, saying that I might as well have been the only one—that without my care the village doctor wouldn't have been able to do anything.

She introduced herself as Janneth Hillhorn, and I told her my name in turn. She asked what I was doing out by Meltwater Loch and I told her I was taking a day off. She let me know that her cottage was just around the other side of the lake, near Glimmerwood Grove and right on the border of Blastfire Bog, and that I should feel free to stop in any time. I thanked her.

At this point, there was a tremor in the water. It couldn't have been an earthquake because the land wasn't shaking, but the water abruptly became much more active. Ocean-like waves crashed into the shore and Janneth held tight onto the sides of her boat, doing her best not to capsize. I would have been quite alarmed in her situation, but Janneth barely seemed preturbed. I asked something along the lines of "what the blight is going on?!" As the water settled, Janneth told me that this was a common occurence on Meltwater Loch, a quirk that—many said—was due to the emotions of its guardian sea-dragon, Bàs Bàta. I found this explanation rather silly, reminiscent of an old wives' tale. I'd never heard of a sea-dragon before, and given that the name ‘Bàs Bàta’ directly translated to "boat death," I figured it was just a local story told to frighten children and dismissed it out of hand.

Astute readers should be growing worried for me right about now.

Janneth offered to give me one of the fish she'd caught as a thanks for helping her friend. I initially refused, but she insisted. She looked through her basket and pulled out a dentist crab. The gel their claws produce is good for the mouth and plenty else besides, so I accepted and thanked her. She thanked me right back and said (perhaps jokingly?) not to run afoul of Bàs Bàta while I was out by the loch. I forced a laugh as she sped away.

Once she was out of sight, I collected some claw gel from the dentist crab and released it back into the water.

 ────⊱⁜⊰──── 

There was another rumbling as I made my way back to the beach, and as it abated I saw something bob up to the surface of the water close to the shore. It presented itself, et cetera et cetera, I waded in to see what it was.

I scooped it out of the water and found myself holding a glass bottle, like the kind that rum or sweet wine would come in, sealed with a cork and containing a rolled-up sheet of paper. Of course, I opened it immediately. I found that the sheet inside wasn’t quite *paper,* but something more slippery—maybe made of seaweed? It did have writing on it, though. As I unfurled it, a few things that looked like pebbles fell out. I barely managed to catch them before they hit the surface of the water. I put them in my pocket for safe keeping.

The writing on the note was as follows, with no spelling changes by me:

Let it be known that I fink this whole exercise is stupid. And pointless. And probly meant as some kind of sick, twisted punishment. No one but little kids believe in terrafolk, so I don’t know why the instructress is making us do this.

Even if anyfing could live above the water, there’s no way its advanced enough to read. How would it get all the minerals it needs wivout processing the water?

But anyway. I guess I ave to fulfill the prompt. 

Me name is Genoveva, I live in the I.S.A.C.S. (that's short for 'Isolated Sovereign Aquatic City-State, but we all just pronounce it like 'Isax") and I’m in the fifth year of me education. I hate me name. I wish I could ave somefing exotic like a John or a Steve or a Sarah, but I’m stuck wiv boring old Genoveva. If you’re somehow able to read this, that must mean you ave schools on the surface, too. Wat ar they like? Ar they as boring up there? We all ave to sit in a circle and listen to the instructress drone on and on and on.

I live wiv me merma and me perpa and me two baby brothers. Do you ave family? I've got loads of cousins too.

On the rubric it says I ave to include a small gift, so I'm putting some fossil fish scales in wiv this letter. I found em on me way to school this morning and there not of use to me, but I figure you probly don't ave fish on land so maybe scales ar valuable up there.

If you're inclined to write back (no pressure), you can just pop your note in the bottle and put it back into the water. It'll find its way to me—there's magic all around, don't you know.

Signed,

Genoveva Galbrait, 5th year

[An accessible version of this letter can be found here.]

The letter obviously has some pretty complex implications. An entire society under the surface of Meltwater Loch, entirely unaware of the world above the surface beyond fairy stories? What must life be like down there? What kind of society must they have? How do they supply food? Get rid of waste?

What resources might be available there that can't be found on the surface?

I decided that somehow I was going to find a way to visit ISACS, and learn everything I could about it. I bet that would impress the University of Arcbridge. I wasn't sure how I would breathe under the water for long enough, but I was determined to find a way.

Take your final guesses now what happened next.

That water-quaking started up again, this time stronger than before. Waves crashed against the beach where I stood, and I felt a great vibration in my chest and in my head. 

And then, it broke the surface of the water.

Giant and blue-green and serpentine, Bàs Bàta rose up before me. A blighting sea-dragon, it stood straight up in the air at least twice as tall as my cottage—and that was just the part of its body I could see. Its head was shaped like the tip of an arrow, with three great spikes sprouting out of the back (the outer two longer than the middle one). It let loose another deep roar, dousing me in spittle. It thrashed about, causing great waves to crash onto the shore, and through my shock I realized its movements might be less characteristic of anger than of pain.

My suspicions were confirmed when it roared again: one of the fangs right near the front of its mouth was missing a chip, and had a great crack running nearly all the way up to the root. That had to hurt. I'd never treated a non-humanoid  before—or, for that matter, a cracked tooth—but I realized even past the moral obligation to help, there was no way I could access the underwater city-state without calming Bàs Bàta down.

I found out later, after I'd scrambled away from the lake and sprinted back to the cottage, after wiping the saliva off of me and getting at least some of it in a bottle for potion use, that the saliva was actually a really useful ingredient in treating shattered teeth. As it turns out, it's a pretty strong painkiller. Unfortunately, I knew I'd need more than just that to make a cure, and with the sheer size of Bàs Bàta, I suspected I'd need to make more than one potion.

That will have to be a longer term project, then, because the events of my relaxation day have worn me out. I've got to get to bed. We'll see what tomorrow brings.

⇦●〇●⇨

[zahra-kha]

Slights

When Zahra turned ten, she stopped calling herself a Kouris. It had been a sudden declaration for her parents, watching their daughter burst into their home - bruises all over and with a slowly swelling right eye as she snapped out that she wanted to be known as a Kha from here on in. Trotting slowly behind her was Cahil, her tiny brother with his head down and trying to hide his sniffling.

While Zahra wouldn’t open up about what had occurred, even to her father, it didn’t take much to figure out what had transpired after speaking with Cahil. After Zahra had been mended and Cahil cleaned up, Cetin sat down with the lad in his bedroom that night, hoping some time to cool down would let the child open up.

Cetin pulled the boy awkwardly in his arms. Even at six, Cahil was smaller than most children his age, looking more around the age of four. While the miqo’te man was by no means large, he oft felt as if he were going to break the poor child due to how thin and frail he felt.

Thankfully, there’d been no injuries on Cahil, so whatever had happened, it hadn’t affected the boy physically. Cetin ran his hands through his son’s fluffy dark blue hair, his gruff features melting into a smile as he got a giggle out of the boy.

“You wanna tell your old man what happened?” Cahil’s smile evaporated at his father’s question and he looked down, squirming uncomfortably in his father’s arms. With a low hum, Cetin leaned in and gave Cahil a small nudge, lightly bumping their foreheads affectionately. “Hey. I only bite the bad guys, remember?” he let out a mock growl and playfully snapped his teeth, earning him another giggle from his child.

His playful demeanor appeared to soothe Cahil as he lightly pushed his father’s face away with a laugh. “The other kids...said things about us today.” the boy shifted, snuggling close to his father as he began to recount the events of the day.

----

“Why do we have to have the babies on our team though?” a young hyur boy demanded. He picked up the red kickball they were going to play with and tucked it under his arm. “If you dummies wanna pull them in so bad have them on your team then! Me and Cyrus can play on our own team!”

“Eh~ I don’t really care either way...” Cyrus commented, putting his hands behind his head and turning away. Another young hyur a little over Zahra’s age, he looked completely disinterested in the argument breaking out. “I just wanna play, Amir.”

“We have enough to keep it even, Amir!” a young girl who looked almost identical to Amir crossed her arms, scowling heavily at him. “There’s no reason not to let them play. We all wanna have fun.”

The small group of six were arguing out at a local park. There weren’t many, and while this one wasn’t one for children to play in and was more for the locals to enjoy its beauty, it was also large enough for the local authorities to turn a blind eye to a few kids wanting to have a good time. So long as no one complained about them being an eyesore. Most of these children had the privilege of being from well to do families, so it was unlikely anyone would come to scold them anytime soon.

Zahra decided to step in and support the young girl arguing with Amir. “Sura is right. There’s no need to force the little ones to go play something else when we can all just play the game together and have fun. Try to be more reasonable, Amir.”

Amir seemed to have decided he was the leader of their little group, and was displeased that the others wanted to force him to include the younger children in his kickball team (or in the game at all). His attention snapped to Zahra and his expression darkened. 

“Shut up, Zahra. You’re just trying to have a dog in this fight because of Cahil. Otherwise, you wouldn’t even take my sister’s side.” he sneered at her, his irritation rising with how he felt everyone was ganging up on him. Not even Cyrus was backing him up. It wasn’t like he was the bad guy here for not wanting to include the babies. “You know I’ve been wondering, you two even real siblings or does your mom really get around like everyone says?”

“Amir!” his sister all but screeched at him, but the words had been spoken and it was too late to back down now. He shrugged her off when she grabbed at his arm to stop him from saying more. The kickball fell to the ground and he crossed his arms, looking down at the stunned xaela girl.

“What? Everyone’s mom talks about it. Their mom leaves high society to marry their bum of a dad and then suddenly they have a lizard kid? Who’s the dad? At least Cahil makes sense, even if he looks like a-”

WHAM!

In two steps Zahra closed the distance and slammed her fist squarely into Amir’s face with as much force as she could muster. Her face was flushed with rage, fists balled at her sides as she panted. Behind her one of the younger children began to wail.

“I’m adopted, you arse!” Zahra shouted it as loudly as she could. “I’m not their child, I was born in the Steppes from the Kha clan! Both of my parents were xaela! Tell your shitty mothers that!”

---

“...and then Sura slapped Zahra for hitting her brother and calling her mother a bad name and it turned into a big fight until Cyrus pulled them off each other and made Sura take Amir home. We think his nose is broken.”

“Haaah.” Cetin let out a heavy sigh to keep from laughing. “I see. How do you feel, Cahil? We never hid the fact that Zahra isn’t your biological sister, but we never tried to raise you two as if you weren’t siblings. You’re both our children and we love you very much. I’m sorry you had to hear a lot of bad things today. Your friend was repeating things he’d heard from his mother, and unfortunately, your mother and I have a past that isn’t agreeable with some people.”

There was a long pause, and for a moment Cetin had to lean back and look down to see if the boy had fallen asleep. But the little bundle eventually shifted again, peering up at him with wide blue eyes full of confusion and pain. “Papa, do I...is there something weird with me?”

He was referring to his appearance. At first glance, Cahil looked like a normal four year old miqo’te, although he was six. Perhaps he was a bit thin for his age, but that was about it. He had large blue eyes, slitted pupils. Even his little tail was growing out nicely. What made him distinctly different from the others were his ears. Instead of soft furry ears protruding from the top of his head, instead he had small tapered ears that one would find on an elezen child. This was the first time he’d heard anyone actively give his son grief about his mixed heritage, but it was unlikely to be the last.

“You’re a handsome boy, Cahil.” he ran his fingers through his son’s hair, smiling warmly as the child’s eyes began to droop. “And you’re smart. You know that, right? Do you know what Zahra did?”

“Mm.” he let out a tiny yawn. “I don’t like it. Those mean ladies won’t stop saying bad things. They already knew sister was adopted.”

Of course they knew. Zahra had been adopted just before Cahil had been born. There was at least a four year gap between Zahra and Cahil if they had guessed her age correctly. They’d only been married for two years at that point and Theria had lived with her family up until they had eloped. Even they weren’t that stupid to think Zahra was Theria’s bastard child. It was just trash talk to ruin her already damaged reputation in society’s eyes.

“Remember the slights done to you, Cahil. You don’t have to respond to them right away. But remember how people react when it happens. Remember the people who do nothing, and remember those who do. Remember those who protect you, like your sister, and think on how that makes you feel. And when you have the strength and power to do something about it - decide for yourself what you want to do.” he continued to run his hand through his son’s thick hair. “That’ll determine the man you’ll become.”

“What kind of man did you decide to become, papa?”

Cetin chuckled, giving his son’s nose a little boop. “A complicated one. Maybe grow up to be less like your old man, hm?”

[crazedlunatic]

Pregnant

“Are you going to make me volunteer at the humane society every weekend until I die?”

“I mean, you don’t have to go with me.” Zach shrugged.

“Yeah but you stay for eight hours like a crazy person and I live with my aunt now, so that cuts down how much time we have together.”

“I pick you up for school, we get breakfast, we get food after you get out of dance, and I drive you back home.” Zach pointed out.

“Yeah but you know what I mean.” Sarah looked at him.

Zach plopped down on the grass and looked at her expectantly.

“Really? I’m in a dress.”

Zach stood up, put his sweater on the ground, sat back down, and looked at her again.

“You and your eyes.” Sarah sighed and sat next to him, smiling when Zach scooted close enough that their arms and legs were touching.

“This whole not living together is really breaking into our sex opportunities.” Zach sighed.

“Yeah but maybe if we weren’t at the humane society every Saturday…”

“Well Fridays and Sundays we don’t either lately.” Zach shrugged.

Sarah nodded, not saying anything.

“I can’t help that it’s on my mind 80% of the time now. It’s half your fault too.” Zach pointed out. “You’re the one who didn’t want to wait. You have no one to blame but yourself.”

“I love you.” She sighed, shaking her head.

“I love you too.” Zach smiled at her.

Luckily it was late enough that most people had left already—besides, when you lived in New York City you found places that weren’t so tourist-ridden anyway. He and Nick had basically roamed the city by themselves since they turned 14 so they had found plenty of places.

Sarah put her hand on his thigh and squeezed it.

“I was kidding. You know that, right?” Zach asked, giving her a worried look.

“Of course I know that.” She smiled and leaned against him, resting her head on his shoulder.

“I’m so excited we both got into Cornell… and you got a full scholarship for dance!” Zach said, his arm going around her waist. “I’m so proud of you.”

“Well you got into every one of the top ten schools for pre-vet in the country, so I’m proud of you.” Sarah sat up straight. “How did I get the smart twin?”

Zach laughed and shook his head. “Nick’s really smart too. He just uses it elsewhere.”

“I know.” Sarah smiled at him.

“On the subject of Cornell…” Zach took a deep breath.

Sarah sat up straight, looking anxious. Zach taking breaths like that was usually concerning something stressful.

“Yes?”

“I don’t really want to live in the dorms next year when we go to school so I’m going to get into my money and buy a house. I plan to get the vet degree at Cornell too.”

“What?” Sarah looked at him.

“And I was hoping that maybe you’d want to, you know, live in the same house with me again?” He gave her an almost shy smile—because even though they had been together more than a year, he still had nervous and shy moments. Which Sarah adored.

“Of course I would but… will your dads be okay with that? You buying a house? And me living with you?”

“Dad moved in with Daddy and his family when Daddy was eighteen and they only lived apart when Dad was in law school. I don’t think they wouldn’t be okay with it.” Zach shrugged.

“Okay. We have to talk.” Sarah said turning so they were facing each other instead of side by side.

“What? Is it too much? Or too soon? Because that’s okay. I just know your aunt and uncle don’t have a lot of extra money and I really want to make sure you’re taken care of… I’ve got the money and I want to take care of you… and if you would feel more comfortable with your own room, that would be okay too.”

“Zach… are you saying this because you figured out I’m pregnant?”

“Wha—” Zach’s hazel eyes widened and he stared at her, expression blank.

“Okay… I guess not…” Sarah looked embarrassed. “Surprise?”

“Wait. What?” Zach asked. “You’re pregnant?”

“And terrified. I don’t know if I should even go to school or if I should just stay with my aunt and get a job waitressing or—”

“What? Did you not just hear my whole conversation about wanting to buy a house and you move in with me?” Zach asked.

“You’re so smart. I don’t want to come between you and school. Plus, we’re seventeen and I don’t want you to be trapped.”

“Trapped? I don’t feel trapped. I’m literally asking you to move in with me, Sar.” Zach stared at her. “Are you saying you don’t want to keep it? I… How far along are you? How long have you known? Is that why you’ve been so quiet?”

“I’m scared you’re going to regret us because we’re so young and… and you’ll have all of these opportunities and having a baby means you’ll have to turn some down.”

“That’s not your decision to make. That’s mine. Do you want to keep it?”

“Yes, I want to keep it… but that doesn’t mean you have to—"

Zach cut her off before she could finish. “Then we go to Ithaca, we get a house, we go to school, and we raise our baby.”

“I might lose my scholarship.”

“Then we’ll take care of your tuition. If you don’t want me to get into my money, we’ll take out loans and we’ll pay it off over time together.” Zach stared at her. “Do you really think that I would just be like ‘Oops, bye?’”

“No. I thought you would do this but I just want you to be happy and to not hold you back.” Sarah wiped her eyes and took a deep breath. “You’re so special.”

“I think you’re special and I don’t want a day in my life where I don’t see your smile or hear your voice. I’m happy with you and I already told you I was going to marry you.”

“You were drunk.” She half laughed, half cried.

“I was serious. You are the most important person in my life and I’m not going to lose you because you’re pregnant. Are you serious? You know I love you.”

Sarah nodded, wiping her eyes.

“How long have you known?”

“Four days. But I missed my period two weeks ago… I finally got up the nerve to take the test four days ago. I took ten tests—two of each of the five best brands. I went to Planned Parenthood this morning and they confirmed it.” Sarah wiped her eye and let out a deep breath. “I’m sorry. I just…”

“I’m not your mom. I’m not going to just throw you aside for some asshole drunk boyfriend… well, you know what I mean.” Zach said very seriously, making eye contact. “We’re in this. I’m in this.”

“I just… you’re so special and I want you to have all of the opportunities in life that you deserve.”

“They won’t mean anything without you in my life anyway.”

Sarah sniffled and nodded.

“Do you know how far…?”

“No but I’m assuming that one night where you were out of condoms and I said it would be fine.” Sarah wiped her eyes again.

Zach let out a loud laugh. “The one time in ten months that we don’t use protection. Do we have the worst luck in the world or what?”

“I guess.” She laughed too.

“So now we at least need a two bedroom… but if we have three I could probably keep all of my reptiles in the third one and you won’t have to hear crickets chirping all the time. I know you have a hard time falling asleep because they’re kind of loud.”

Sarah started to cry again, burying her face in the crook between his shoulder and neck. Because who else besides Zach would even think about that?

“It’s okay, Sar. It’s okay.” Zach ran his hand up and down her back. “For being two eighteen year old’s when the baby is born, we really couldn’t be in a better financial situation… and you know I’ll take care of you… and the baby.”

Sarah nodded into his shoulder, some of his shirt balled in her fist.

“We’ll be okay. We’ll be better than okay, alright? We will be perfect and you’re going to be even more beautiful when you’ve got a belly and even more beautiful when you’re a mom.”

Sarah cried harder into his shoulder.

“We’ve got this. We really do. It’ll be okay.” Zach pulled back to look at her. “I promise.”

Sarah nodded, trying to catch her breath.

“Am I still your favorite twin even though I got you pregnant?” He gave her a dopey smile.

“Of course, you are.” She hit his shoulder and wiped her eyes. “I just really… don’t want you to hate me and the baby if we hold you back.”

“Never.” Zach shook his head.

Sarah took a deep breath. “When are we doing to tell your dads?”

“Oh boy.” Zach sighed. “I think I’m going to ask my not-grandpa and see what he thinks. Or maybe Nick will do something really stupid before hand and it’ll lessen the blow.”

“It has been a while since he’s gotten in trouble.”

“Yeah… but when he gets in trouble, he really gets in trouble. Yeah. We’ll wait for that.”

Sarah squeezed his thigh.

“It will be okay. I promise. We’ll be okay.”

“Thank you for… being you. Not many people our age would…”

“I would do anything for you…. Within reason. I wouldn’t murder someone, but I might punch someone.” Zach looked thoughtful. “Or I could murder them by death in the form of talking about all of my lizards. Then I technically didn’t do it. The fear of the lizards did it…”

Sarah playfully hit his arm.

“This means when I propose, you have to say yes.” Zach joked.

“Oh, really?” She stood up, picking his sweater up off the ground and putting it on.

“Oh yeah. It’s written in the relationship book of laws.” Zach said seriously, sliding one arm around her waist as they walked to his car. “Do you want ice cream?”

“God, yes.”

[jeontaeh]

THIRTY EIGHT³⁸

✫  ✬  ✭  ✬  ✫

"I mean the last time we had sex, I was like super horny and wet and he fit his fist up my ass. What if I can't do all that this time and he's disappointed?" Jungkook sighed, walking towards the big banquet hall where the dance was held.

"Girl how the fuck you fit an ENTIRE fist up your ass... we got two black holes in this universe it seems..." Lav said, and Jimin started laughing. Jungkook sighed.

"Jimin she speaks all weird now because of you," Jungkook whined, and looked as Lavender giggled. "Anyways I feel bad for Taehyung. He finally finds his mom and turns out she's not real? And plus his dad lied to him!" Jungkook said, and then walked into the banquet hall and gasped.

It was decorated extremely well, and there were at least 200 people there. All with different shades of grey hair and silver skin. Jungkook spotted the Queen wearing a blue ball gown and talking to some of the guests. Suddenly, a drumming sound arose.

"The Half-Prince of Jupiter has arrived!" Hoseok said loudly, and the Queen frowned. She looked at her butler confused, and the butler shrugged, not knowing what was going on.

Jungkook's eyes turned wide when he heard loud bubblegum pop music blaring through the walls of the palace. Everyone looked around in confusion, and then the doors opened and Yoongi and Namjoon walked in, pretending to be bodyguards.

Behind him was Taehyung, and Jungkook let out a gasp. So did everyone else. His grey hair fell on his eyes while he wore a gold crown. He wore a royal blue robe and held a black scepter with a blue jewel on top. He wore a black shirt and blue trousers underneath.

"Why's everyone silent?" Taehyung snarked, and Jungkook saw some of the girls and young boys standing around look at Taehyung with keen interest. "I command you to enjoy yourselves, Junos." Taehyung laughed, and the crowd looked uncertain but laughed, looking intimidated at his presence.

"Oh look," Jin said loudly, walking into the party as well. "I am a VERY RICH man who has LOTS of valuable property and GUNS!!" Jin said, and Jimin put his hand on his face, embarrassed by his stupid skit. "Too bad I'm not going to give any of my lands away!"

Jin looked at Taehyung and gasped comically. "Oh wait! You're the Half Prince Taehyung! You can have all my land AND both my daughters." Jin bowed, and the Queen frowned.

"Wow!" Lavender said very loudly, and Jimin groaned. "Not her too.." He grumbled and saw Lavender walk to the center. "I'm the princess from Nour, and will be willing to be allied with Jupiter ONLY if prince Taehyung becomes the next king!"

"W-what?" River Vorian let out, and the butler frowned as well. Taehyung smirked and gave Lavender a small nod.

Everyone slowly got back into the dancing and talking, and Jungkook rushed up to Taehyung, wearing the pink stuff from earlier. "Taehyungie what was that!! You didn't tell me you guys were going to be pulling that stuff! I would've loved to help-"

"Don't worry, pet," Taehyung whispered, and Jungkook stilled. Taehyung put one hand on his waist, bringing him closer in to whisper into his ear. "You'll be a lot of help later,"

Jungkook's breath hitched, and he looked at Taehyung with his big eyes, biting his bottom lip. Taehyung glanced at him with a smirk and then walked away to talk to the queen. He walked up to her and she gave him a wavering look.

"What is all this?" She asked, and Taehyung hummed.

"I don't know, why don't you tell me, mom." Taehyung gritted his teeth, and the queen looked at him skeptically.

"Don't you have another son?" Taehyung said, and the Queen hesitated. "Isn't he the next heir? And say, technically, if I am your child- I should fight him for the throne, shouldn't I?"

The queen snickered. "You want to fight my son for the throne?"

"I could," Taehyung said.

"Go ahead. He's a pussy anyway." The Queen scoffed, and then Taehyung heard a whine, and looked to his side and saw an 8-year-old boy.

"Wow, mom. Screw you." He mumbled and then ran away.

Taehyung gulped. "Okay, I thought he'd be like 20 or something. Anyways! As the new prince, I have a say in things too. And I say we instantly take the money that was supposed to go into the warships and put them into the health system of this planet." Taehyung said.

"Yeah. What's someone gonna do if they have a cold?? Fuckin' shoot someone??" Jungkook scoffed, standing behind Taehyung with Yoongi and Namjoon.

The Queen glared at Jungkook. "That's not how it works. Know your place, lizard." The Queen snapped, and Jungkook cowered his head. "Okay, look. You don't get to have a say in things. You're not even a-"

"I'm not even a what? A prince? Then why the HELL did you say I was?" Taehyung snapped and then gasped. "Unless, oh my- am I not your son at all? And are you fucking with me to get to war with humans?"

"So what! What are you going to do about it, huh? Yes, fine, FINE, you're not my son! I lied to you because I needed insight on your planet! And because your real mother is a slave here- but what? Are you going to magically make this planet better? No!" The Queen snapped, and Taehyung paused, taking in what she said.

"Wait, what?" Taehyung asked, he then paused. "W-what?" He asked again, eyes widening.

"I'm not telling you who she is."

"Okay, look woman who is insanely beautiful even for her age- let me tell you two things. One, Humans are spread over tens of planets- there's no way you can start a war with them and think of surviving! Secondly, you think these people at this party would like to know your plan to lead them into a war? No! They'll pull all their money out because they KNOW you'll fail." Taehyung snapped.

"So listen close. You don't start shit. I don't tell them anything. You tell me who my mother is. You give me your skincare routine. You give us resources to get back to our planet- and maybe, maybe I won't tell the humans what you guys are planning. Because if they find out, they will surely make sure all tradelines to you are cut instantly and all your allies leave you." Taehyung snapped. "Got it?"

The Queen hesitated, and the butler put her hand on her shoulder. "Now is not the time, your majesty. Let this one go. He has a point..."

The Queen sighed. "Fine. But I'm not telling you who your mom is nor am I giving you my skincare routine." She snapped, and then turned around and walked away.

Taehyung's shoulders dropped. "Damnnit- I really need to know." Taehyung cursed, and Jungkook put his hand on Taehyung's arm.

"It's okay, Taehyung. I'm sure she just washes her face, uses toner, puts on creams, and then-" Jungkook began, and Yoongi whacked him on the head.

"He doesn't mean that dumbass," Yoongi snapped, and Jungkook looked down. Taehyung rubbed Jungkook's head where Yoongi hit him softly and sighed.

"She's a slave here? That- that's terrible. I must find out someway." Taehyung mumbled, and Jimin walked up to them.

"I know that's bad, Taehyung- but guys. They're going to give us resources. We're going back home!!" Jimin squealed, and the boys started jumping and clapping. Taehyung smiled.

"I guess we are. I guess that is... home." Taehyung said, and Jungkook wrapped his arms around his neck.

"Don't worry Taehyung. I'm not going to leave you once we reach home." Jungkook said reassuringly, and though that wasn't what Taehyung was thinking about, he wrapped his arms around Jungkook's waist and smiled fondly.

"Thank you baby," Taehyung said softly.

Sometime later there were some musical performances happening where some woman was singing in the Jupiter language. Jungkook was sitting on the floor, kneeling beside Taehyung.

"Taehyung they're making me sit on the floor again..." Jungkook squeaked in a small voice, and Taehyung looked down at him.

His red hair looked pink in the moonlight, and his cheeks rosier than usual. His lips were shaped into a pout while he played with his nimble fingers, feeling embarrassed. "L-look Taehyungie they gave me this bunny ear headband." Jungkook voiced cutely, pointing at his head. "W-where did they even get it?..."

Taehyung grabbed him by the back of his head and pressed their lips together. Jungkook was a little surprised by the kiss and gasped into it, fingers coiling into fists on his thighs as he kissed him back. Taehyung pulled away from the kiss, looking at him.

"I love you," Taehyung whispered, and Jungkook looked up at him, eyes twinkling.

"Taehyung-" Jungkook stammered, and then Taehyung pulled away from the kiss. "Come sit on my lap," Taehyung said, and Jungkook wearily stood up from his seat and sat down on Taehyung's lap, hearing the singing.

Taehyung wrapped his arms around Jungkook's waist, placing his chin on his shoulder. "You remember when we first met?"

"Yeah. You bumped into me on campus." Jungkook said, and Taehyung chuckled. "I thought you were so annoying."

"I was! I was trying too hard to be some kind of a fuckboy so people would respect me." Jungkook said, and Taehyung smiled.

"You said you'd never be a bottom, never let anyone dominate you, never be with a boy," Taehyung listed, and Jungkook hummed, kissing Taehyung on the forehead.

"I know but you changed me. I had this warped version of masculinity in my head which was quite toxic. I like who I am now." Jungkook said, and then giggled. "Obviously, dressed in this stupid pink stuff."

Taehyung smiled fondly. "Aw baby, you're so smart," Taehyung said, and Jungkook blushed, eyes going big.

"R-really?" Jungkook asked excitedly, and Taehyung nodded. His hand went to Jungkook's back.

Jungkook leaned into him and then felt Taehyung's hand move inside his pants, fingers meeting with his ass. Jungkook blushed, hiding his face in Taehyung's neck. He felt Taehyung squeeze his butt and whined into his ear. "Taehyungiee can we just go to our room."

The audience area was really dim, quite dark, the only light falling on the musicians through the moonlight. Everyone was watching quietly. Taehyung smirked at Jungkook. "Kinda like it here, Kookie."

"You're getting bold." Jungkook humphed, and Taehyung kissed Jungkook's nose. He leaned in to whisper in Jungkook's ear. "Why don't you go sit back down on the floor, yeah?"

Jungkook looked at Taehyung hesitantly and instantly knew what Taehyung was trying to do. Jungkook got off Taehyung's lap and then got down on his knees in front of his chair. Jungkook turned around, sitting between Taehyung's legs and looking up at him.

"You sure?" Jungkook asked. Taehyung hummed. "Yeah, no one's going to see. Come on." Taehyung said, and then unzipped his trousers. Jungkook giggled.

Jungkook reached under his boxers and took his cock out, looking at it with wide eyes. Everything was quite dark so no one could see them. Now there was some dance performance happening and everyone was watching enthusiastically.

Jungkook wrapped his lips around the head of his cock, moving his mouth up and down the area of his member until he was deepthroating. He got into it quickly, but he didn't really want to waste any time. Taehyung's breath hitched, and put one arm on the arm of the chair, trying to look nonchalant, and put his other hand on the back of Jungkook's hair.

Jungkook swirled his tongue around his veiny cock, and then accidentally pulled off his mouth. Jungkook looked at his giant cock and hovered his lips over the head, but then Taehyung grabbed him by the back of his hair and shoved his mouth onto it.

Jungkook gagged lightly, and Taehyung hummed, now bobbing Jungkook's head back and forth his cock. Jungkook looked up at him with watery eyes, knowing how obscene he probably looked with his big eyes and a cock so big in his smaller shaped mouth.

"M'not gonna cum anytime soon, baby. Let's just finish this off in the bedroom." Taehyung whispered, and Jungkook nodded- because he knew Taehyung took a generally longer time to cum.

So Jungkook sat back down on Taehyung's lap, and just slowly moved his hand up and down Taehyung's length for the duration of the rest of the performance. Even by the end of it, Taehyung didn't feel close to climax. Jungkook whined, looking at Taehyung.

"Am I not good enough for you to cum?" Jungkook asked, and Taehyung shook his head, wiping a bit of precum off Jungkook's bottom lip.

"No baby, of course, you are," Taehyung replied, stuffing his finger between Jungkook's lips. Jungkook goes off Taehyung's cock and began, sucking on his finger. "Come on, let's go to the bedroom."

Taehyung zipped his trousers back up properly and saw Jungkook pull off from his finger. Jungkook got up, and Taehyung grabbed him by the leash and dragged him out the banquet hall and down the hallways.

They walked towards their room but then found Jimin against the wall and Lav cupping his face, both making out. Both pulled away when they saw Taehyung and Jungkook. Lavender gasped.

"Taehyung you have a baseball bat in your pants-"

"Nope," Jimin said, turning Lavender around and rushing into their room. Jungkook giggled and then grabbed Taehyung and went into their bedroom quickly.

Once they were inside, Jungkook instantly pulled his tight pink jeans down along with his tiny boxers and pushed them off. Jungkook took the bunny ears off and then took his shirt off and then was about to take his collar off, but Taehyung stopped him.

"Wait-" Taehyung said, and then gulped. "Keep the bunny ears and collar on."

Jungkook froze. "Okay." He grinned, and then took the bunny ears and put them back on. Jungkook saw Taehyung open one of the cabinets and take out a bottle of space lube. Jungkook felt himself harden when he saw Taehyung pour them over his fingers already.

Jungkook made grabby hands for Taehyung to come over- and the older boy walked closer to him, grabbing him by the waist, and pressed their lips together. Jungkook kissed him back, and while kissing him, he felt Taehyung's hand go between his legs.

Jungkook whimpered, feeling Taehyung push one finger into his entrance while they were standing. Jungkook rocked his hips gently against Taehyung, and Taehyung just kissed him harder, pressing his second finger in as well.

Jungkook felt himself get pushed onto the bed, and Taehyung crawled over him, fucking his two fingers into the boy at a rapid pace. Jungkook let out a breathy moan and looked up at Taehyung, who was looking down at him with a fond smile.

"You're so pretty," Taehyung whispered, and Jungkook blushed, grabbing onto his shirt and feeling Taehyung's third finger slide inside willfully. "I want to make love to you," Taehyung whispered, and Jungkook cursed- wrapping arms around Taehyung's neck.

Taehyung finally opened him up and then pulled his fingers out. He had to do it for a while because of how big he was, obviously. Jungkook squirmed in anticipation, and Taehyung saw him turn around, wiggling his ass around.

"Fuck me," Jungkook demanded, and then felt a slap to his ass. Jungkook jolted a little and then got onto his hands and knees. Taehyung looked at his kneaded, full ass and licked his lips.

"Fuck you're pretty. Did the parlor guys wax your butt or something?" Taehyung asked, frowning.

Jungkook blushed. "T-they put some kind of cream on my ass. I didn't know what it did. Why, does it look good." Jungkook asked, turning his head to try and get a peek at his own ass.

"Fuck. Yeah, it looks heavenly. And wait- they stripped you and touched your ass?" Taehyung asked, and Jungkook nodded, biting his lip.

"Yeah, some dude did it. They were playing Legally Blonde In Space Part 3 on the tv so I didn't focus much-" Jungkook began, and then got a slap on his ass. Jungkook grinned at that.

"My minx." Taehyung snickered, and then grabbed each cheek of Jungkook's ass by his thumbs and pulled them apart, and then pressed his lips to his entrance. Jungkook whimpered, and then pushed his ass back to Taehyung's face.

He could hear Taehyung muffle some words and just bit his lip, turning his back and seeing Taehyung eating him out generously. Jungkook whimpered, his hard cock pressing against his stomach. "T-Taehyung- come on just- ah- fuck me!"

"You're such a brat. I love it." Taehyung said, and Jungkook giggled. He was still on his hands and knees and then saw Taehyung take his trousers off and drop his robe. Jungkook gulped. "Keep the crown on."

"God, we're fucking gross." Taehyung sighed, and Jungkook was about to laugh- but then felt the head of Taehyung's cock press against his entrance.

Taehyung had his cheeks pulled apart, watching in awe as his cock slowly disappeared into Jungkook's hole, saw as Jungkook clenched around him, trying to take all of him slowly but surely.

"Are you wearing a condom?" Jungkook asked, eyes wide.

"Fuck, no- I forgot- wait, let me-" Taehyung began, about to pull out. Jungkook grabbed his hand and put it back on his ass, pulling him back in.

"No! No- it's fine. I like that." Jungkook said, and Taehyung slapped his ass. He pressed further into his ass, and Jungkook whimpered, already feeling the brush on his prostate.

"This isn't much, is it? After having till my elbow worth in your ass, m'sure-" Taehyung grinned, and Jungkook whimpered, feeling his hands go unsteadily.

Jungkook dropped his hands and just pressed his face onto the bed, raising his ass up higher in the air. Taehyung cursed and pressed into Jungkook until he was fully inside.

Jungkook moaned out high pitched, and then let out series of stagnant moans as Taehyung began thrusting into him at a steady pace. Jungkook sniffled, biting on his knuckles. He could hear Taehyung grunting as he fucked into him, and it made the red-haired boy let out a little cry.

At that sound, Taehyung pulled out of him. Jungkook sniffled, pouting. "N-no Tae- come back in-"

"Turn around," Taehyung said, and Jungkook gulped and turned around to see Taehyung. Taehyung saw him, saw how his eyeshadow was messed up, his cheeks were bright pink (not the blush this time) and his lipgloss was smeared. His eyes were teary and big, and fuck fuck fuck, he was the prettiest thing ever.

"You're so fucking beautiful," Taehyung growled lowly, and Jungkook felt him grab his hips and pull him until he was right in front of him. Jungkook widened his legs and put his feet on Taehyung's shoulders. Taehyung grabbed the back of his thighs.

Jungkook felt him reenter and let out a loud cry, gripping onto the bedsheets. Taehyung looked at his face and felt his pleasure build up. The tiny bell on Jungkook's collar kept chiming at every thrust, and Jungkook's bunny ears kept flopping about.

Taehyung's eyes went a darker silver, and he leaned over until Jungkook was lying on the bed and began fucking into him harder. The bell began dinging faster and Jungkook's bunny ears flopped forward until they were covering his eyes.

Taehyung leaned forward and pressed their lips together, and Jungkook pushed his bunny ears aside and kissed him back. He whimpered into his mouth as Taehyung thrust into his prostate. Taehyung pulled away from the kiss and smiled.

"You're perfect," Taehyung whispered, and Jungkook sniffled. "I'm so fucking happy I found you."

Jungkook's cock bubbled a few more times, and Taehyung reached forward to touch it, but Jungkook shook his head. "N-no leave it-" Jungkook let out, and then felt another sharp thrust, another sharp thrust, and then finally one hard one into his prostate- let out a cry, and came in spurts.

Jungkook breathed out, looking at Taehyung while panting. Taehyung pulled his stupid crown off and then somehow got into a spooning position with his cock still in Jungkook. Jungkook whimpered at the feeling and then felt kisses on his shoulder blades as Taehyung continued thrusting into him.

Jungkook sniffled, curling into a ball and feeling that make Taehyung's cock angle differently and hit his prostate harder. Jungkook whined out at that. "I-I wanna make you cum too!!" Jungkook babbled.

"You will, cherry. I'm so close, baby." Taehyung whispered into his ear and saw as Jungkook, looking sleepy, began grinding his cute butt onto Taehyung's cock.

He was moving his ass in circles, and Taehyung looked at that little dance and smiled fondly. Jungkook looked over his shoulder. "Cum~" Jungkook squeaked.

"Yeah- yeah just-" Taehyung felt his climax approaching. He began fucking into Jungkook, and the boy whimpered, turning around Taehyung's cock and hiding his face in Taehyung's chest.

Taehyung stopped his movement, stilling inside of him. Jungkook looked up at him with gleaming eyes, feeling Taehyung's cock pulsate inside of him.

"I love you so much," Taehyung whispered, and Jungkook felt him begin fucking him harder. "I love you so fucking much-"

"A-ah-" Jungkook let out timidly, collar bell chiming. "T-Taehyungie~"

Taehyung pushed his cock deep in, and the younger boy began crying on Taehyung's chest. Taehyung frowned, looking down at him. He kissed his forehead. "Hey, hey it's okay-"

"I-I-" Jungkook began, tears rushing down his face. "I love you so much too."

Taehyung smiled, and then slowly pressed their lips together and came inside of him. Jungkook fizzled out at the feeling, feeling the cum fill his hole up, making him feel claimed. Taehyung pulled away from the kiss, continuing to cum inside of him, but biting his lip. He finally stopped, and Jungkook let out a smile.

Taehyung smiled too. He kissed Jungkook's forehead, slowly pulling his cock out. "My cherry."

"Yours," Jungkook whispered and kissed Taehyung's nose. Taehyung saw the way Jungkook put two fingers into his hole as if wanting to keep the cum inside of him. Taehyung bit his lip.

"Wait-" Taehyung said, and then got off the bed and rushed to the desk. He grabbed something out of a gift basket and then rushed back over to Jungkook. "Look."

"What the fuck is that."

"It's a small toy rocket ship."

"So??"

"It can-" Taehyung began, looking at it, and then gulped. "Well, I can put it in your butt-"

"What!" Jungkook let out, eyes wide.

"Okay look it sounded better in my head-"

"I'm not putting a rocket ship up my ass!"

"Toy rocket ship! That doesn't make it any better, fuck. Listen, do you want the cum inside of you or not!"

"I do! But I'm not putting that-" Jungkook began, but Taehyung rushed into bed beside him. Taehyung pulled his hand off his entrance- making Jungkook whimper, but then fit the vintage toy rocket ship into Jungkook's ass.

Jungkook paused for a second, but then felt it fit inside of him, and dropped his shoulders. He looked at Taehyung with big eyes. Taehyung smiled.

Jungkook began squirming, and Taehyung frowned. "What-"

"Put it in a little more," Jungkook whispered, and Taehyung bit his lip and pushed the rocket ship a little further up Jungkook's ass.

"Better?"

Jungkook gulped, biting his lip. Jungkook turned around, hiding his face in Taehyung's neck. "Yes."

Taehyung chuckled, throwing one arm over his waist. "I love you to the moon-" Taehyung said and pushed the rocket ship a teeny bit further up. "-and back."

"Fuck you." Jungkook said, but they both burst into giggles.

✫  ✬  ✭  ✬  ✫

https://jeontaeh.tumblr.com/post/647230211438624768/thirty-nine%C2%B3%E2%81%B9