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parkerslatte · 5 months ago

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Beauty

For @erisweekofficial Day 6: AU

Eris Vanserra x Fem!Reader (Regency AU)

Word Count: 5k

Warnings: sexism. mentions of illness.

Summary: Throughout their whole childhood, Y/N and Eris grew up with one another, always seeing one another from across the park that separated their houses. However as time goes on, Eris begins to distance himself and Y/N cannot work out why. After an unfortunate incident at a ball, Eris goes to check on Y/N and some truths come to light.

A Court of Thorns and Roses Masterlist

•••

Nineteen Years Ago

Two eight year olds lay in a shadowed part of a garden, their parents involved in boring adult chatter inside the house. The sun was beginning to set and while the children should be getting ready for a bath and bed, they were giggling happily, clothes stained with mun and pond water.

“You liar!” Little eight year old Y/N exclaimed.

“I’m not lying!” Eris Vanserra replied, nudging Y/N’s arm.

“Yes you are!” Y/N said, crossing her arms over her chest. “And for that I’m telling your mother. My mother told me to never lie.”

“But I’m not lying, Y/N,” Eris pleaded.

Y/N giggled. “But you said you wanted to marry me?”

“I do,” Eris said. “You are my best friend.”

“Do people marry their best friend?” Y/N asked.

Eris shrugged. “I don’t know.”

“If that is how it works then I will marry you,” Y/N said with a wide smile on her face, one of her front teeth missing. “People will be jealous because we will have the most fun at our wedding.”

Eris smiled. “It will be better than anyone elses. My dogs can be a part of it!”

Y/N gasped. “I wish we could get married now and make everyone jealous! It will be so much fun.”

Rain began to fall down upon the pair and Y/N giggled as the cold water hit her face. Eris stood to his feet and looked in the direction of the house.

“I think our parents forgot about us,” Eris said.

“Should we go and tell them about our wedding?” Y/N asked. “Or do you want to play out here more?”

Eris smiled and quickly nudged Y/N and ran away, laughing loudly. Y/N giggled and stood from the wet grass and chased after him, rain falling down around her.

Present Day.

The mirror before her presented an image she was used to. A plain girl with all hope and wonder gone from her eyes. At twenty seven years, Y/N is what many others would consider a spinster. She was not married, nor did she have any prospects. Being a spinster wasn’t what Y/N originally wanted for herself, she would always dream of her very own romance story from a very young age. A whole stack of paper was buried deep within her wardrobe detailing her dream life and wedding day. Y/N couldn’t bear to look at it any longer.

“Are you ready to go?” her mother asked, coming into the room.

Y/N let out a small sigh. “Do I really need to go to this ball? I already know it is going to turn out like any other.”

Her mother fiddled with the ends of her hair already falling out of its updo. “Y/N, we have spoken about this. You need to find a husband soon–”

“Mother, the men at these balls are not any different from the men last season. I know I am not on anyone’s mind in terms of marriage. I am ancient in their eyes,” said Y/N, straightening out her gown.

“Perhaps this time will be different,” her mother suggested.

“We both know it won’t be,” Y/N said sadly. “You should just marry me off to Lord Ashington. I overheard him talking about me at the last ball.”

“Lord Ashington is ancient,” her mother said. “Y/N, I know I push you to marry but I don’t wish for you to end up in a marriage you are unhappy in. I want you to have a whirlwind romance I had with your father.”

“As much as I wanted that too mother, I think it is now time to look at the reality of my situation,” Y/N said. “I am no longer desirable in any man’s eye as I am not new and fresh to the marriage mart. I must settle for the first man with money to look my way. Lord Ashington is the route to go if I want to secure money to provide for you.”

Y/N fought the sting of tears, she turned her face away from her mother so she wouldn’t see but her attempts were futile.

“Oh, my baby,” her mother said, wrapping her arms around Y/N. “This isn’t the life I wished for you.”

Y/N continued to cry against her mothers shoulder. If only Y/N could stay home then everything would be better.

“I have a gift for you,” her mother said as she wiped Y/N’s tears away. “It was meant to be for your birthday but I can give it to you now.”

Her mother disappeared from the room for a minute before returning with a dress draped in white fabric. The moment the dress was unveiled, Y/N gasped at its sheer beauty.

“I have been putting aside money to get it made for you,” her mother said. “I hope you like it.”

Y/N gently touched the fabric. “I love it.”

“If you wish to wear it tonight, I suppose I will allow it,” her mother said.

Y/N wrapped her arms around her mother. “Thank you.”

***

By the time Y/N made it to the drinks table, her feet were aching and she was read to sleep, but even that couldn’t keep the smile from her face. The moment she had stepped into the ballroom, she had gathered more attention than she had in years. Y/N was sure she hadn’t danced this much since her first year in society. She forgot how much she enjoyed it.

“I see you have made a few heads turn tonight,” a voice Y/N never thought she would hear again spoke.

As she turned to face the source of the voice, Y/N felt a tightness in her chest. “What do you want?”

“A dance,” Eris answered. “With you.”

Y/N fought the urge to scoff. It had been years since she had exchanged words with Eris, and even longer since they had had a full conversation. As much as she hated to admit it, she missed the silky smooth tone of his voice.

“My dance card is full,” Y/N answered.

“I can see one space available,” Eris pointed out. “Y/N, please. Just one dance.”

Y/N sighed. “What do you want, Eris?”

“I am only asking for a dance,” Eris answered.

“No. What I meant was, why are you speaking to me? You’re the one who has gone out of your way to avoid me.”

Before Eris had the chance to even open his mouth, a handsome gentleman offered Y/N his hand. “May I have this dance?”

Y/N sent one final look towards Eris before placing her hand in the man’s. “You may.”

As Y/N made her way into the centre of the ballroom, she watched as Eris’s grip on his glass tightened and he looked away. Y/N turned her attention back to the man in front of her and plastered a bright smile on her face. Although for the whole duration of the dance, she couldn’t get the image of Eris out of her mind.

***

“Y/N, it seems like you haven’t had a moment to yourself all night,” Iris, a woman a few years younger than Y/N, said. “All that dancing with so many suitors must have tired you out?”

Y/N nodded. “I suppose it did. I am quite sure I haven’t danced this much in years.”

“I wonder why,” another woman, Evangeline, said thoughtfully and shared a look with Iris.

“Tonight you seemed to catch the eye of every single available suitor here,” Iris continued. “You could have left some for the rest of us.”

Y/N chuckled, although she was beginning to feel quite uncomfortable. “I have seen all of you on the dance floor. All of you are no shot of suitors yourself.”

“But none of us have caught the eye of Eris Vanserra,” Evangeline commented. “And you turned him down.”

Y/N shook her head. “I didn’t turn him down–”

“But I overheard you,” Evangeline siad, a wicked smirk appearing on her face. “He was so eager to dance and you turned him down only to run into the arms of the next man who spoke to you.”

“Eris and I have a…complicated past, I didn’t want to bring up past memories that are best left forgotten,” Y/N explained.

Evangeline took a sip from her drink. “It must have been your dress.”

“My dress?” Y/N asked, confusion evident on her face.

“I mean, how else would you capture Eris’s attention?” Evangeline said and Iris tried to hide her laugh. “Your hair is clearly not doing you any favours, it has already come away from its hairstyle. And you could have done something about those dark circles under your eyes.”

“What are you doing?” Y/N asked.

“I am just confused as to how a spinster has captured the attention of half of the ton. Your dress might be beautiful from far away but anyone with eyes can see how it is cheaply made,” Evangeline said. “Oh look, there is even a loose thread right here…”

Before Y/N could stop her, Evangeline pulled on the single loose thread and the lace decorating the edge of her bust fell away. Y/N gasped and dropped her drink, causing the class to shatter onto the floor. Everyone around the group looked her way.

As Evangeline and Iris laughed, all Y/N could do was stand there. The burning from each and every eye on her was insufferable. Y/N held her hand to where the lace was falling away and fled the ballroom, quickly finding a small sitting room not too far away. The instruments from the ballroom were dull and barely audible as Y/N slumped down on the ornate settee and wiped the tears that had begun to fall.

She wasn’t crying because of the embarrassment caused by Evangeline and Iris. Y/N was crying because of the runed dress. She hadn’t asked what her mother had paid for it and now it was ruined. Her mother rarely ever bought anything for herself for these past few months and now Y/N knew the reason why. Now that reason was ruined.

The door to the sitting room opened and Y/N hastily stood up.

“I am sorry for being in here, I can leave–Eris?” Eris stood in the doorway of the room, looking at Y/N with concern in his eyes. “What are you doing here?”

“I came to see if you are alright,” Eris said. “Clearly you are not.”

“It’s nothing,” Y/N said. “Something silly.”

Eris’s eyes softened. “I guarantee it is not silly to garner this reaction from you. I know the girl I grew up with would rarely cry at anything.”

“I suppose I have quite a lot to cry about these days,” Y/N said. “I am no longer the girl you once knew Eris. You would have known that if you cared for me anymore.”

“Of course I care,” Eris said, stepping further into the room.

Y/N scoffed. “You have a funny way of showing it.”

Slowly, Eris closed the door behind him. Y/N’s eyes widened.

“What are you doing? If I am seen alone with you, do you know how it will ruin me?” Y/N exclaimed.

“Then I will say that you were quite ill and I found you passed out in the hallway on my way out and found you somewhere to rest your head and then I will swiftly take my leave when I know that you are in safe hands,” Eris said.

“Why did you follow me, Eris? We haven’t spoken in years,” Y/N said, completely defeated as she sat down on the settee.

“I know,” Eris said, sadness lacing his tone. “And that will be one of the biggest regrets of my life.”

Y/N watched out of the corner of her eye and Eris walked over to her and sat next to her. The settee was small enough that Y/N could feel the heat of Eris through his jacket. If she had still been Seventeen and so desperately in love, she would have inched closer. Alas, she was no longer Seventeen and she had larger things on her mind than a simple touch that still sent her senses into overdrive.

The two sat in silence for a while, the sounds of the ballroom muffled. The tears Y/N had shed were now dried up and she was sure her eyes were now bloodshot and pink. She fiddled with the lace in her hands, more of it had come away from the bodice and the more it came away the more her heart sank.

“You look beautiful tonight,” Eris said quietly. “I haven’t told you that yet.”

“I am sure you mean ‘looked’,” Y/N said. “I don’t feel beautiful right now.”

“You are,” Eris said with such a tenderness in his tone that it caused Y/N’s heart to skip a beat. “You always are.”

Y/N finally met Eris’s gaze and she felt herself melting. His gaze always had the power to do that. “What is bringing this on?”

“Does there need to be a reason?” Eris said.

“Yes, because you have avoided me for years. You cannot simply talk to me out of nowhere and call me beautiful when the last time I tried to speak to you, you walked away from me and left me alone in the middle of the ballroom,” Y/N said.

Eris looked at his lap almost shamefully. “I regret that, Y/N. I truly do. I wanted– want– nothing more than to speak with you, dance around ballrooms with you, talk with you until the dead of night.”

“What changed?” Y/N dared to ask. “Everything was going well, Eris. Even my mother thought we would end up engaged before I made my debut.”

Eris sighed. “Do you remember when your father passed away?”

Y/N nodded. She remembered that day vividly. Her mother was distraught and could barely keep herself together. Y/N depended on the maids to help her with her studies and making sure that her mother was okay. When Eris learned of the news, he moved into Y/N’s house for nearly three months. His father never gave his permission but Eris would defy any order his father gave him to help Y/N.

“Well after he passed, my father noticed your mother taking money from your dowry to pay the maids and staff. He only noticed this change as your mother came to him for help once as your father always did all the finances. Once he noticed the low sum in your dowry, he didn’t want me anywhere near you incase your mother thought of the idea to marry you off to me to claim money from the Vanserra’s,” Eris explained.

Y/N shuffled away. “The reason you avoided me was all because I was a burden to you.”

“Not at all,” Eris said quickly, inching his hand closer to her. “Please let me finish.”

There was no deceit on his face, he seemed truthful. Slowly, Y/N nodded.

“When he told me to stay away, I told him to stay out of my business, although not as kind as that.”

Y/N couldn't help herself but let out a quiet laugh. A small smile appeared on Eris’s face.

“Anyway, after that I continued to see you and came by your house almost every single day after that,” Eris said. “You were my best friend, someone who I love dearly. I could not simply stay away from you. It was torture.”

“Then why did you avoid me after that night you came to me?” Y/N said.

Thinking back to the night of her seventeenth birthday, Y/N always looked back on it with fondness but as time went on it became more and more painful. Did she do something wrong? Was she not what Eris wanted? Was she undesirable?

“You knew how my life could have been ruined if anyone found out what we did, Eris,” Y/N said. “I allowed you to kiss me. I allowed you to take me to bed.”

“I know and I wish I could go back in time and propose to you right there and then,” Eris admitted. “I was ready to as well. My mother gave me her engagement ring.”

Her heart sank to her feet. “What?”

“That night I was going to propose to you, Y/N,” Eris said. “I didn’t care that you hadn’t made your debut yet. I didn’t care that my father was so obsessed with even more money. I didn’t care about any of that because all I could care about was how much I loved you.”

“Then why didn’t you propose?” Y/N asked.

“The weekend of your birthday, my father was out of town on business and it was only my mother and brothers in the house. All of my brothers were all too young to really care about what I was doing and my mother was glad to be rid of my father for a while and she went to visit an old friend. But that night I brought you into my bed, my father came home early. Since it was just my mother and brothers, we didn’t close the door properly, he saw the both of us,” Eris said, his hand anxiously twitching in his lap.

Y/N’s eyes widened. “He saw us? Why did you never tell me?”

Eris shrugged. “I couldn’t. He made me promise that if I didn’t propose to you and abandoned my entire friendship with you then he would keep what he saw to himself. If I didn’t then he would tell the ton and you and your mother would have been ruined.”

“I fought of course,” Eris said. “I said that if he released that information, I would marry you on the spot and tell everyone that we had been engaged since before your birthday. I would have needed to make up a date but the plan would have worked. But my father made another threat. If I followed through with that plan then he would cut me off. I would be penniless and kicked out onto the streets. I couldn’t let that happen. I couldn’t drag you down with me.”

“Eris,” Y/N said. “Why did you never tell me any of this?”

“I was afraid of my father finding out,” Eris said. “I never wanted you at the centre of any negative gossip.”

“We might have been only seventeen, Eris, but I would have happily lived on the streets with you than live the nightmare of trying to find a husband,” Y/N said.

“But I wouldn’t have wanted that life for you, Y/N,” Eris said. “I wanted to be able to provide for you and make sure you have all the luxuries you deserved.”’

Y/N gently placed her hand on top of Eris’s. “All I wanted was you. I didn’t care about wealth or social status, not when I was around you.”

Eris squeezed her hand. “I always knew you would say that. But I could not let that happen. When I imagined my life with you, I always imagined living in a large house in the countryside. I imagined being able to provide for you, treating you to extravagant dresses that I knew you would ruin when you gardened. I imagined children running around that would look exactly like you. They would grow up in a loving home, safe and secure.”

Eris paused. “I still imagine all of that to this day. There are some days that I ponder the life I would be having right now if my father never saw us that night and I went through with my proposal. I think of the children we might have. I think of the home we would be living in. I think of how much happier I would be with you by my side.”

“You still think about us?” Y/N asked.

Eris nodded. “Constantly. Lately I have avoided going to balls because I know I would see you and my restraint lately is wearing quite thin.”

“Why are you telling me this now?” Y/N asked. “If your father finds out that you are alone with me, won’t he follow through on his promise?”

“I am here alone tonight,” Eris said. “My mother has kept this gossip from spreading all around the ton, but my father is quite ill. Doctors say that he might not make it to the end of the season.”

There was no emotion on Eris’s face as he spoke. She couldn’t decipher how he felt about the matter.

“And how do you…feel about this news?” Y/N asked carefully.

“Honestly?” Eris asked. Y/N nodded. “Honestly I feel relieved. I know I shouldn’t because he is my father but he has always felt like a stranger to me. Even when I was a child he never took any interest in me and the only time he did was to make sure I was fit to run the household in the future. Is that an awful thing to say?”

Y/N shook her head. “I don’t think so. I remember how your father was, he was never kind nor welcoming.”

Eris sighed. “I am sorry, Y/N. I came in here to comfort you and instead I have turned this whole ordeal about me.”

Y/N offered him a small smile. “Well, it was relevant information.”

Eris chuckled. “Yes, I suppose it was. Now, if you wish to be left alone, I perfectly understand and I shall leave you alone in peace.”

There was one question still swirling around Y/N’s head. One question she had wanted answered for many years.

“Did you still love me?” Y/N asked.

Eris looked confused for a moment. There was a long pause before he answered.

“Of course I do,” Eris said. “Were you even listening to my confession that I still think of the life we would have had together?”

Y/N laughed and nudged Eris. “Of course I was. I wanted to hear you say it.”

“Do you wish to hear it again?” Eris asked. “Because I will happily comply.”

Y/N nodded and Eris stood from his seat and bent down on one knee. “Y/N L/N. I love you.”

“Eris, what are you doing?” Y/N asked.

“Something I should have done a long time ago,” Eris answered. “I know that we still have a lot to talk about. I know that there are still things to work through. But I love you Y/N and I cannot live without you in my life any longer. Tonight has been torture, watching other men dance with you and make you smile and laugh, I wished I was in their place. But unlike those men, I know how to make you really smile and laugh. I know your deepest fears and greatest ambitions. I know how you like your tea. I know how you got that small scar on your bicep. I know exactly how you like to be kissed.”

Y/N felt a blush creep up her cheeks.

“I know more about you than those suitors ever will. What I am asking you Y/N L/N, is if you will marry me?”

On the surface, Y/N knew she shouldn’t accept this proposal. For years, Y/N had been left believing that she wasn’t good enough for Eris, that she wasn’t good enough for anyone. But something deep within her only wanted him, she always had ever since she knew what love really was. Even in the times when Eris avoided her, she sometimes thought back to their friendship and stolen kisses. She thought about how much she missed him.

“You don’t need to accept. I can leave this room and we can pretend like I never proposed,” Eris reassured.

Y/N wasn’t sure what to say but the words that came out of her mouth were not what she was expecting.

“Technically we are already engaged,” Y/N blurted out.

“What?” Eris said, looking confused.

“You proposed to me when we were eight,” Y/N said. “We were going to have a wedding everyone would be jealous of.”

Eris’s eyes brighten in recognition. “I remember that. I was only a child but I didn’t even fully understand the concept of marriage. But I knew that I always wanted you to be with me.”

Y/N smiled. “I have a stack of paper hidden in my wardrobe detailing every part of the wedding I would have had with you.”

Eris laughed. “Perhaps we can put those plans to use after all.”

Something within Y/N knew that the next words to come out of her mouth were the right words and the words that would change her life for the better.

“I think we need to rework some of the plans but overall, I think they could work,” Y/N answered.

A small look of uncertainty flashed across Eris’s face. “Are you accepting my proposal, Y/N?”

“Yes I am,” Y/N said. “I will marry you Eris. We still have things to discuss but we can do that another night. Tonight, let us celebrate.”

A long sigh of relief left Eris as the weight of the world seemed to be lifted. “I believe that is a good idea.”

Y/N stood to her feet while Eris remained kneeled before her. Y/N gently touched his chin, tilting his head. He was so beautiful.

“I don’t have a ring,” he muttered.

“You don’t need to worry about that now,” Y/N said. “I doubt you thought you would be proposing tonight.”

“No, I didn’t,” Eris replied.

He slowly stood to his feet and Y/N now tilted her head to look at him. They stood nearly chest to chest and Y/N felt her breathing get heavier.

“Here,” Eris said, pulling off his silver signet ring. “Wear this until I can get you your engagement ring.”

As Eris slipped it onto her finger, everything suddenly became real. Eris was really her fiance. She was an engaged woman. The man standing before her would soon be her husband. When she stood in front of her mirror earlier that evening, Y/N felt like she was scraping the bottom of the barrel, not she felt as if she were on the top of the world. It was a feeling she could get used to.

The ring on her finger was slightly loose but it still felt right. Y/N looked up at Eris who was looking down at her with so much love in his eyes. Y/N couldn’t help but lean forward to rest her forehead on his.

“I love you, Y/N,” Eris whispered, his breath fanning her face.

Y/N wrapped her arms around him and hugged him tightly, breathing in his familiar scent. It immediately put her at ease.

“Shall we announce to everyone that we are engaged?” Eris asked.

“Would we be able to stay here just a moment longer?” Y/N asked. “As much as I would love to wipe the smirks from Evangeline and Iris’s faces, I still haven’t processed everything properly.”

Eris nodded and leaned forward. Y/N was expecting his lips to fall upon her own, when they didn’t she found herself to be quite disappointed. Although his lips were soon pressed against her cheek.

“We can stay here for as long as you like,” Eris replied.

Y/N smiled and held out her hand. The music from the ballroom was dull and faint but it was still audible. “Then how about a dance with your future wife.”

Eris smirked and took her hand in his. “I like the sound of that.”

As Eris danced with her in the sitting room, Y/N smiled and laughed genuinely for what felt like the first time in a long time. She let go and had fun. The weight that she had been pulling around with her for years had finally been lifted.

Despite her and Eris still needing to work things out, she finally relaxed in his arms and allowed herself to feel that childlike glee she had when her and Eris would dance around the day room when they were younger. The steps were messy yet everything was more than perfect.

“Future husband,” Y/N mused. “I quite like the sound of that.”

When Eris quickly pecked her lips, Y/N was not able to process it until he was pulling away and heading to the door.

“Let us go so I can tell the world that you are to be my wife,” Eris said impatiently.

Y/N smiled and allowed him to take her hand in his. When she followed him to the ballroom, everything else became a blur as she was swept up in a dance with Eris. Despite the lace hanging off her dress and the redness around her eyes. She had never felt so beautiful before. Not because of the man spinning her around the ballroom floor but because of the way the man made her feel. He made her feel like herself again. She made her feel whole.

“Future husband,” Y/N muttered.

“Future wife,” Eris replied as the dance came to an end.

There was no one else in the room as Eris took a step forward and pulled Y/N into a kiss. Gasps echoed around them but Y/N didn’t care about being proper. She didn’t care that this gossip would spread around the ton. After all, they were already engaged, there wasn’t much that could run either of them now.

As Eris pulled away he uttered three simple words against her lips.

“You are beautiful.”

For the first time in a long time Y/N truly felt it.

#eris vanserra #erisweek2024 #eris acotar #eris vanserra x reader #eris x reader #eris #acotar #acotar x reader #a court of thorns and roses

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pumazoey · 3 months ago

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"Family Dinner"

Zoey agrees to take Estelle to meet her parents for supper. Trouble ensues, and Zoey realizes a few things too <3

Reblogs n feedback. encouraged.

“This is it.”

Estelle had walked by it hundreds of times, probably. It was an old, gray house with white trim, a perfect green lawn dotted with flowers, quite a feat considering how late into November it was. Its windows seemed to watch her, big and clean with heavy curtains hanging from the rods above them. It was a normal house, but part of it seemed almost unfriendly to people like Estelle.

“So…this is where you grew up, huh?” She clutched Zoey’s hand as they approached the home. Zoey seemed nervous. She let go of Estelle’s hand about halfway through the yard.

“Yes. Estelle, listen to me. As far as my folks are concerned, you’re just a friend from theatre who didn’t have anywhere to go for Thanksgiving, understood? No funny business, no hand holding, and if you refer to me as babe, it’s on sight.” Zoey patted her partner’s back gently, turning her body around to face her. “You got all that? If all goes well we can be in and out in a few hours.”

Estelle nodded, just for proof she understood the assignment. “Got it. But, hypothetically, if we snuck off to the bathroom…?”

Zoey rolled her eyes and risked a kiss, just a quick little peck on the lips. “Shut the fuck up. You’re trying to out me at this point.”

The foyer was decorated exactly the way Estelle had expected it to be. The walls were a sort of sandy beige, each one lined with framed photos of what appeared to be a young Zoey and Zach. Estelle was a little bit unsettled by the unfamiliarity of it all, but was overjoyed to have access to her girlfriend’s childhood photos: there was Zoey in some play as an elementary schooler, there she was as a toddler in a tiny princess costume, and there she was as prom queen, which Estelle remembered very well.

The sign above the door into the kitchen read “Bless This Nest”, and blessed it seemed to be. Estelle, having not been raised religious, wondered if it was some sort of requirement to have a crucified Jesus statue in every room. She shoved this thought out of her head as a pair of hazel eyes met hers.

“Zach!” She beamed. Zoey’s brother, while not getting along with his sister a good chunk of the time (which, frankly, was quite fair, considering Zoey was a bitch to pretty much everyone), had always been nice to Estelle. Today, though, he looked nervous, somber. Estelle reminded herself that Zach was in a similar situation to herself. Zoey had nearly outed him numerous times; if anyone found out, both twins were screwed.

“Hey, Estelle.” He shot her a knowing glance. “Zo, uh, mom and dad are in the dining room. They’re excited to meet your friend.”

Zoey looked so much like her mother. That was the thought at the forefront of Estelle’s mind as she followed the twins into the dining room. She was greeted by the smiling face of a brunette woman in a pullover cardigan and a pair of yoga pants.

“Zoey!” She chirped. She wrapped her daughter in an embrace. “You’re late! I was so scared you’d been taken from me on your way here, and-” Finally, the attention landed on Estelle.

“You must be that friend of hers!” Mrs. Chambers laughed heartily. “Oh, Zoey was telling me all about you! My name is Michelle, this is my husband, Carl…” She gestured behind her.

Carl Chambers was a tall, yet rather rotund man. He didn’t share many similarities with his children, save for the eyes, which were unmistakably Zoey’s: greenish-brown, yet just as cold as ice blue ones would be (until you got used to them, at least). He gave a grumble in Estelle’s general direction then went back to watching Joe Rogan videos on the phone held awkwardly out in front of him.

“And you’ve met my son, Zachary.” Mrs. Chambers added. “I was blessed with two lovely children, that’s right! I’m always telling Zoey, having kids early was the best decision I ever made!”

Zoey looked about ready to A) bolt up the stairs, and B) throw herself out a window.

“Ah, but she’s all wrapped up in her silly little theater and…auditions and…rehearsals…all of those things.” She clicked her tongue impatiently. “Grandkids can wait, I guess.” Suddenly, an idea seemed to come upon her.

“Speaking of grandkids, ah, your Mima should be here any moment! Her…her nurse is driving her in, you know, the live-in one she hired…shame she wouldn’t let us move her into the retirement home, but to each their own! Turkey’s in the oven, stuffing’s on the stove, and, Zoey, dear, fix your shirt, you look like a…like a…like an improper lady.”

From across the room, Zach mouthed “whore”. Zoey waited for their mother to turn her back and then stuck up her middle finger. Maybe this wouldn’t be too terrible?

After a minor fuss over Zoey’s…slut shirt…Mrs Chambers locked eyes with Estelle. “And what about you, dear? No boyfriend to stay with? No husband?”

Estelle resisted the urge to roll her eyes and instead stayed calm enough to respond with: “No…I’m not looking for anything at the moment.”

Nice save.

Mrs. Chambers gave a little tsk tsk noise. “Well, when you do, my Zach is always single, he’s-”

“Mom, we’ve been through this.” Zach groaned.

“Poor dear’s never had a date in his life!”

“Fuckin’ pussy…” Mr. Chambers added helpfully from his armchair. “Coulda done what I did and just taken, a real man wouldn’t-”

Estelle looked over at Zoey, a surefire way to drown out any unwanted noise. Her girlfriend cast her a gentle smile, and Estelle felt like she was going to melt. No matter who was around, somehow Zoey still had eyes for her. It inflated her ego quite a bit, actually.

“Well, why don’t you kids take your seats?” Mrs. Chambers suggested. “Estelle, dear, I’m sure you’ve had a dinner like this before, of course?”

“She’s not a hobo, mom.” Zoey plopped down on a chair and gestured for Estelle to sit beside her.

“I’m only asking if she knows how we say grace, and pray before we eat, my wonderful daughter. Come help me dish everything up before your Mima arrives.”

And thus began 20 minutes of awkwardly following Zoey and her mother around. Estelle trailed behind, actively afraid of getting too close. She was well aware that she was a clingy bastard, but if she let that side show, it may have equaled…well, nothing positive.

“Now, tell me a bit about yourself, dear.” Mrs. Chambers handed Estelle a dish of some sort of foul-smelling casserole. “I haven’t seen you around, you must be quite the homebody!”

“Yeah, uh, I guess so. I own a thrift shop.” She wished with all her might that someone would come relieve her of her casserole-holding burden. No one came.

“Really!” Zoey’s mum looked pleased. “That’s…very interesting! Now that you mention that, I think Zoey may have said that when she told us you were coming for dinner. Now, dear, you two met at…theatre?”

“Yeah!” That was a total lie. Estelle’s face went red as she scrambled to think of a way to make it more believable. “I do tech stuff. Makeup and costumes.”

“Oh…You don’t know the Woodwards’ girl, do you?” Mrs Chambers’ voice became soft. “Zoey mentioned she ran makeup.”

“I’m right here, mom.” Zoey emerged from beside the kitchen island. “And yeah, of course she knows Alice. She’s doing a damn great job.”

“I know, I know, but…oh, Zoey, you know what I tell you about the, ah, choices…that Alice has made…I don’t want that for you. It’s disobeying God’s word!” She pursed her lips, pausing for a moment before gently touching her daughter’s shoulder. “I’m just glad you’re not one of them. You know…L…L…”

“Lesbian?” Estelle put in, only trying to be helpful. Zoey made a slicing motion over her neck.

Shit.

“Is that what she’s calling herself? When I was young they just said gay, none of this fancy…fancy stuff. You know, the other day, I met someone who called herself pansexual! People are attracted to frying pans, Zoey!”

They ambled back to the dining room, placing dishes upon dishes onto the flat mahogany tabletop. Mr Chambers and Zach were standing at opposite sides of the room, eying each other; Zach with anxiety, and his father with disdain.

“I was just telling our guest about Bill Woodward’s poor daughter.” Mrs Chambers sat down solemnly. “What a shame she ended up the way she did.”

“A miracle the Woodwards’re even botherin’ to show their mugs at church.” Her husband replied gruffly. Estelle wanted nothing more, in that moment, than to throw herself at Zoey and kiss her right on the lips in front of the whole Chambers clan, but nevertheless, she remained in her seat.

Within minutes, the door opened again, and in walked a withered, almost emaciated old woman. She was dressed in a long yellow dress and a bonnet, looking straight out of church on Easter Sunday. Estelle wondered if she’d maybe gotten the holiday wrong. Behind her, a young man with a dark complexion and very short, buzz-cut hair and a faceful of carefully groomed stubble, carried what appeared to be her purse. Zach’s face went bright red when he saw him.

“Ah! Miranda!” Mrs. Chambers flew to her feet, taking the bag from the young man. “And Josh, so good to see you. This is Zoey’s new little friend, Estelle. Estelle, well…I’ll let Zoey do the introducing, hm?”

Zoey jerked a finger toward the old woman. “This is my grandmother, we call her Mima. That’s Josh, her assistant and Zach’s roommate.”

“Nice to meet you both.” Estelle smiled at the young man, and he returned it. When she looked at Mima, she merely got a disgusted grimace.

As the family took their seats, hands came together and eyes began to shut. Estelle had been raised pretty much agnostic, and was more confused than anything, but she politely followed the instruction Zach gave from her left side. Zoey looked bored out of her mind, but everyone else seemed rather peaceful. It was quite nice, if not for the immediate threat of her girlfriend being disowned.

“We thank the Lord for this meal.” Mima’s weak old voice seemed to scratch the air when she talked. “And for our family.”

“And that none o’ my children are fuckin- homos!” Mr Chambers interrupted. “And for, uh, Heaven above, o’course.”

“Amen.”

After the initial meal was over (and it was surprisingly good, especially to Estelle, a notoriously horrible cook), the younger members of the family managed to excuse themselves from the table and go back into the kitchen for drinks and snacks. Almost as soon as Mima, Mr and Mrs Chambers were out of sight, Zoey’s arm snaked around her girlfriend’s waist.

“Thanks for putting up with them.” She tilted Estelle’s head up toward her own, eyes narrowing the same way they did in the bedroom. “You look so fucking hot like this by the way. You should dress up more often, babe.” She let her hands dance over Estelle’s body, feeling every fiber of her dress shirt and long skirt. “So hot.”

Meanwhile, Zach had reunited with his boyfriend, and that’s definitely what Josh was to him, Estelle knew it immediately, and the two were concocting some sort of suicide juice, like what you made when you mixed all the soft drinks together at a fountain.

Well, this one was alcoholic and far more likely to kill you, anyway.

“Only way to deal with the old hag is to get a little tipsy.” Josh leaned against the counter and downed a shot of the stuff, handing a glass to Zach as well.

“I’m in.” Zoey shrugged. She glanced over at Estelle. “I assume you’re not, miss shirley-temple-at-the-bar?”

Estelle puffed out her chest. “I drink on Holidays only, don’t want a repeat of my 21st.” She examined the selection of liquor before pouring a glass of brandy.

“Of course it’s brandy.” Zoey remarked slyly. “You’re an old soul, aren’t you?”

Estelle took a sip. Then another, then another. It was probably a bad sign that she was tipsy without even half of the glass down the hatch, but she took another swig. In her mind if she passed out drunk she could go home earlier.

“Jesus fucking Christ baby,” Zoey put a hand on her shoulder. “Any more of that and you’ll be throwing up in my car on the ride home. So, uh, don’t fucking drink more.”

Zoey recognized that this was a bad idea, but part of her (perhaps the part that hadn’t had sex in two whole weeks) really liked the idea of Drunk Estelle. That version of her lover tended to be clingy, affectionate, and above all, really fucking hot. Was this the time or place, though? No.

Before long, her parents and grandmother had emerged from the dining room. “I see you’re all hitting it off in here! Oh, goodness, are you drinking? Zoey! A proper woman doesn’t-“

“Relax, mom, it’s ginger ale.” Zoey lied. This satisfied her mother on that front, before her eyes reached the redhead.

“What’s she having?” Her mother replied hastily. “After living with your father for so long I can tell when someone’s drunk.”

“Let her have fun, mom. It’s Thanksgiving. Give. Thanks.” Zach’s normal, not-pretending-to-be-straight-for-parents voice was shining through now.

“Hey, so, it’s…probably a good idea for us to get going.” Zoey turned to Estelle, filled with a new sense of urgency and not just because she wanted to get home and make out. Estelle put on her pouty face.

“Noooo~” She whined. “Wanted…pie.”

“She knows what’s good for her!” Mr Chambers hollered. “Get the girl some pie, Michelle! It’s about damn time we had dessert!”

Estelle clapped gleefully like a child on Christmas morning. “Babe! Pie!”

Zoey felt her heart leap into her chest. “I told you not to call me that! Friends, uh, don’t call friends that!”

It was like Estelle had forgotten everything they’d talked about. Her eyes were watering. “Are…are you breakin’ up with me?”

There was really only one way to save this. Mima and her parents were staring at her, appalled. “We were never dating! Liquor’s getting to your head, uh, Estelle-”

Zoey glanced back at her mother, who looked about ready to faint. “Dear…is she one of those…is she a…”

“No! No, mom!” Zoey backed away from Estelle, who was reaching for her. “Don’t worry, she’s, uh, pure and…of God or whatever. I’m gonna drive her home now, okay? Yeah, come on Estelle, we’re-”

“Out.” Her father said sternly. “I want her outta my house, Zoey! Go!”

Zoey grabbed Estelle by the wrist. “I’ll…I’ll call you later, mom! Happy Thanksgiving!”

There was no response.

“Did I ruin it all?” Estelle whispered. She was laying on her side, across from Zoey in bed. Zoey had been pretty quiet all night, almost nervous. Now, as she curled up in an old t-shirt and sweatpants, she shook her head no with a smile.

“Just go to sleep, baby. You’re gonna have one hell of a hangover tomorrow.” She pulled Estelle into her chest, letting her press her face against the tender flesh. Estelle’s legs wrapped around her hips, arms around her shoulders. Zoey sighed wistfully. Six months ago, she never would have even considered dating a girl. She actually wouldn’t have really wanted to date anyway: no date she’d ever been on felt fulfilling. Now, here she was, pressed so tightly against Estelle it was hard to tell where one girl ended and another began.

And to be honest? Zoey liked that. For once in her life, she liked someone else a hell of a lot.

#latte catte #my writing #ocs: estelle #not maintagging :)

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krikeymate · 2 years ago

Note

I hold by the idea of Tara and Sam having a off childhood from the jump like the idea that their father would dip completely and not stay in contact with Tara, who as far as we know, is his biological kid, just reeks of “I’ve been searching for a valid way out that wouldn’t make me a complete deadbeat and you just gave me one.” He probably married Christina out of obligation since they were together in high school and fell out of love (if he was ever in) years ago. And I like the idea that Christina was always unstable and Sam was the solid foundation for Tara growing up. Sam leaving knocked Tara off balance and made it easier for someone like Amber to insert herself in Tara’s life (shout out to the tamber crowd tho no shade)

Anon I'm in love with you.

I've mentioned before that I had some really dark thoughts on how their childhood could have been, and I have decided I am going to explore some of them. I've kind of held off on them because they seem to focus more on Tara than Sam, and I don't want people to think I love Tara/Jenna more than Sam/Melissa, because that's just not true, I love them equally. I'm just very cautious of the Sam v Tara attitude that I've seen a lot of. My theories hurt both of them, just in very different ways.

I think you're spot on that Mr Carpenter married Christina out of obligation. Neither of them were in love with each other, they were just having fun, but well shit they're in this situation now. Maybe they were even prom king and queen, jock and cheerleader, a real stereotype. Maybe there was an expectation they would end up together anyway. Christina didn't want a fucking baby at 18 but she really did love Billy and now he's dead.

They make the best of it.

She puts her career aspects on hold, he works in sales and sometimes travels for work. Sam is an easy baby, all things considered. She's a deep sleeper and she rarely cries and it means Christina can continue living her life with barely any interruption. He doesn't care for children, but Sam is his and he can admit she's cute in the recesses of his mind. It works for them, they even settle into the role.

Then one day, Christina learns she's pregnant again.

Despite being relatively content with the life she's found herself in, she's not looking to add to it. She makes the mistake of talking about it with a girl friend over lunch, about how she doesn't want another baby. Sam, who should have been napping, is awake and hears and gets excited. It's all over from there. Her husband finds out and he's weirdly excited about it. He didn't pay attention the first time, content to let Christina do the parenting, but he's ready now. He loves Sam, and he can't wait for the baby.

The enthusiasm doesn't last long.

Tara is a difficult baby.

Born 10 weeks early, it takes a month in the ICU before they can bring her home. Sam nags her to see the baby daily, as if staring at the little thing in the basket sucking on a ventilator is worth wasting her time for. She has problems with her lungs from the get-go. And that's only the start of it. She cries, she doesn't want to feed, she won't sleep. There's constant hospital visits and check-ups with specialists. Her husband decides to go back to work early, escaping across the country, previous sentiments forgotten.

One day she just won't stop crying. She was crying when she left to pick up Sam from school, and she was still crying when she returned. The only thing that stops her from taking a pillow to its face is the sight of her daughter on her tiptoes, reaching through the bars to press chubby fingers to its cheek, cooing at the baby. The thing actually shuts up for once.

Christina offloads most of the parenting onto Sam.

Baby Tara is receptive to Sam because she's gentle and touches her and doesn't yell. Babies are sensitive to emotional cues.

By the time Sam is 10, Christina is gone most of the time, working, or not working, it's hard to tell.

They're both cheating on each other. He gets so mad about the Sam lie because of all the years he wasted stuck with her.

Tara starts pre-school a year late because neither of her parents remembered to enroll her. The school tried to put her in the grade she should be in, but quickly realised that wasn't going to work. Tara was smaller than the other kids, and with her health problems, they decided it was better to downgrade her a year.

Sam does her best to help Tara with school, but she doesn't know about learning disabilities or how to help her.

By the time their father left, Christina did nothing except drop off an envelope of money on the counter monthly and pay the bills. Sam learns to forge her mother's signature to sign off on Tara's medical needs.

#/mp #ask box #Scream #Tara Carpenter #Sam Carpenter #Christina Carpenter #my writing tag #topic: neurodivergence #topic: childhood #topic: medical #scream headcanon tag #fuck christina carpenter club #the tags tag #gonna make the parents the WORST #Guess who just learnt about Bronchopulmonary Dysplasia which can lead to asthma 👀#Sam loves her darling little sister right from the beginning #her big brown eyes. her dainty little hands. the way she smiles at her like she's her whole world (she is)#she never gets irritated with her like her parents do. she doesn't understand why they're so mad all the time.#it's not Tara's fault that she's sick. she doesn't try to cause trouble. she tries so hard to be good #Sam knows. Sam sees. Sam makes sure her little sister feels loved. The way that Tara makes Sam feel extra special and loved too.#Sam was parentified

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siriannatan · 2 years ago

Text

Surprise WitherHusbands snippet

I had no idea where I was going with this o I cut it where I felt it fit nicely to end and here it is :}

AO3

May I have this dance (snippet) - Wither Husbands

Being a vampire and well over five hundred years old fWhip saw many rulers come and go. Some he was friends with. Some were his enemies and maybe he had something to do with their demise. Even if he was no ruler himself his brother and his children were and fWhip was not above helping the family. Or his family's friends in the Wither Alliance. When his grand something nephew - he was honestly not counting the generations passing by him - died fWhip was shocked to be named the new count of Grimlands. There was his maybe favourite ever niece Gem, yes, but her magical talent was a bit of a problem so she was now the ruler of Crystal Cliffs Academy.

Currently, he was reconsidering calling her his favourite niece as she called him early midday to nag him about not being late to a Mythland party celebrating their close ally's king's twenty-sixth birthday. As if fWhip would forget. "Gem, dear, my staff has my appearance handled, I'll be on time do not worry," he assured her and cut the call before she could protest.

And just in time as his staff was knocking on the door to inform him it was time to get ready for the party. They remembered to bring him a bit of a snack in form of a tall wineglass of blood so he'd be a bit more awake for the party.

Being a vampire and having no reflection made getting ready for parties a bit difficult but fWhip's house staff was used to it so when he got into the carriage that would get him to Mythland's royal castle just in time to not be ready he was more than appropriately dressed for the occasion. Usually, neither fWhip nor they cared that much how he looked as long as he didn't look too casual but an important ally's birthday required him at his best.

It was actually fourteen years ago, at Sausage's twelfth birthday that fWhip met him for the first time. Just a few days after taking over and a bit a day before Gem was shipped off to the Academy. He'd probably never forget it to be honest. One of the better parties of his long life.

Sausage grew up to be a picture-perfect prince, now king, and a reliable ally and friend even if he had to be reigned in from time to time and reminded that fWhip was the one in charge of the Alliance. Tall, handsome and drawing in the attention of the whole room no matter how big the room was. Or who was there. It was a bit of a shame, fWhip thought, that his childhood was spent mostly on training to be a king and a knight.

For the most part, the party went well. fWhip dropped his gift with some courtiers responsible for accepting gifts and spend most of the time to the side. Politely conversing with any noble interested in him which wasn't that many. And maybe looking for a chance to pass good birthday wishes whenever Sausage had fewer nobles clustered around him. It did not look to be possible at the moment. It was okay though. Sausage was a popular guy and fWhip was... well, fWhip. The unpopular everywhere but in Grimlands vampire count most people would rather avoid him and would prefer if he just quit ruling and locked himself in his house.

At least Mythland's party organisers did not mind including some blood here and there. Blood Sheep cult helped here too, and more zealous members really liked fWhip. His vampirism was some sort of a blessing from the enigmatic sheep goddess since his mother was a devout believer. fWhip himself wasn't much for religion but the creepy shadow that turned him had no other, more logical explanation so he went along with the religious narrative.

It was three hours in, and fWhip just started considering how rude it'd be if he left without talking to Sausage when the king actually approached him. No nobles trailing but fWhip did catch a few jealous glances.

"Happy birthday, Sausage," fWhip wished his friend with a small bow. It was not required of him but it was a kind thing to do in his position. "I still remember when we were first introduced."

"Please don't remind me of that day, I made a complete fool of myself," Sausage groaned.

"Why? The dance was lovely," fWhip chuckled. He might have enjoyed teasing the young king from time to time.

"I was meant to ask Gem but it'd felt wrong all things considered and so I panicked and asked you instead..." Sausage sighed, shuddering at the mere memory of it. "And I barely knew how to dance then..."

"I think the twelve years old you was very charming and an excellent dance partner," fWhip chuckled, he closed his eyes just for a second to think back to small Sausage. No signs of the upcoming facial hair. Too heavy cape slowing him down. Looking far too calm, collected and organised. Far too well-behaved for a boy his age. And to think just six years later he'd kill a dragon. Truly impressive.

"I don't know, my mother gave me an hour-long lecture about bothering important people the next day and she mentioned you specifically," Sausage sighed, glancing back at all the nobles who instantly pretended they were not staring and hoping their glares would work like the sun on fWhip. "I'm sorry about them..."

"It's okay, I'm used to it," the count waved it off with a polite smile. He had many years to get used to weird stares.

"You shouldn't be... Back when we first met I thought you were the only person cooler than our elven chef and his pancakes. I still think you're amazing..." Sausage confessed sheepishly.

"Flattery is not..." fWhip tried stopping him.

"No. It's not flattery, I really mean it... Ugh, more boring people want to talk to me..." he grimaced spotting his chief advisor looking for him. "Tonight's so..."

"May I have this dance then?" fWhip asked, just to maybe steal some more of the young king's time.

fWhip instantly set Sausage as the one leading from the very approach to the dance floor. "It's only correct if the host leads this one. And we already had one the other way," the count explained as they stopped. All the eyes were on them and honestly, if he was with anyone else Sausage would say no but this was fWhip. His first proper dance partner ever, and maybe his idol.

#my stories #my stuff #empires smp #empiresshipping #wither husbands #empires fwhip #empires sausage

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rubysunnday · 4 years ago

Text

bridgerton

Anthony Bridgerton

Aching Soul- There is a difference between Viscount Bridgerton and Anthony Bridgerton. One is a Rake. The other is a man, broken by his father’s death, who has never really been able to be just Anthony. Y/N knows the feeling all too well

A Long, Long Time - Y/N has waited a long, long time for Anthony Bridgerton to finally decide to get married. But by the time he finally decides to find a wife, Y/N has run out of time and Anthony is suddenly faced with losing her to someone else.

Free Falling - sometimes the only solution is to swoon into the arms of your childhood best friend

It's a Bad Idea, Me and You - Y/N was ready to give her entire heart to Anthony Bridgerton. Only for him to shove her aside in favour for Sienna Russo. But, now, Sienna is gone and despite what Y/N keeps telling herself - Anthony truly does own her heart.

Lover - To love a viscount is to be at the mercy of the ton at every ball and gathering - especially one Cressida Cowper. Sometimes, it really does feel like you're going to your execution.

Take My Hand - As much as Y/N appreciates Anthony's matchmaking efforts, it's hard to accept them when he's the only man she wants. Luckily for her, a fall in the lake allows her to voice her feelings in more ways than one

Benedict Bridgerton

City of Stars- Eloise Bridgerton does not know when to keep her nose out of her friends business. Especially when that business involves pining over her brother - one that Eloise knows for a fact loves her back. If only they weren't completely oblivious idiots.

Send It Soaring - A hot air balloon was something quite majestic... but so was Benedict Bridgerton.

She's a Lady - Y/N isn't considered a proper 'lady' by members of the ton yet one Benedict Bridgerton would disagree with them all. Even if she did swoon into his arms.

Show Me Love - Every time Benedict is alone, Y/N appears. Every time Benedict looks away, Y/N disappears. All Benedict wants to do is draw her in person and not from memory.

Sleeping Beauty - Painting the woman of his dreams feels like a fairytale

Colin Bridgerton

Alone Together - He set eyes upon her in the year of 1814 but it wasn't until 1819 that Colin Bridgerton finally got the chance to win over Y/N Y/L/N

But Who Could Stay? - Every time Colin Bridgerton returned from travelling the world, there was always an urge inside him to run away again as soon as he could. There was only one woman who could make him stay.

It's a Love Story- Y/N has loved Colin since they were children but it was one-sided. She was content to stand aside and watch Colin move on without her. Until Marina.

Its My Life - Colin Bridgerton has watched from afar at every ball and soiree as Y/N danced with many a suitor, never having the confidence to make a move himself. But when Y/N ends up in an arranged marriage at the hands of her father, Colin decides to finally make his feelings known. And whilst many marriages in London high society were business deals between husbands and fathers, Y/N is determined hers will not follow the same route. It’s her life, after all.

Oh God, it's You - Y/N has been in love with Colin Bridgerton for years. The year she makes her debut, however, Marina Thompson appears and Y/N has to watch as her one true love is stolen away.

Orion and Pleiades- Colin paused and turned to look at her. “If you turned into a star, dear Y/N/N, I would follow you no matter where you went."

She Could Be the One - Dancing, alone, at night unchaperoned? How scandalous!

So This Is Love - Eloise was not the best matchmaker. Yet, there's just something about Y/N and Colin that means she just has to try.

The One That Got Away - Colin loved her. Yet, she was destined to be the one that got away... until the night of the Dartford ball.

When the Bell Tolls - Grief hits at the most unexpected times in the most unexpected ways. It's all about learning to ride the wave to the other side.

Your Song, part 2 - Being in love with Colin Bridgerton is hard when the man keeps running off to different continents for months at a time. But the letters he writes and the songs he sends keep the romance alive.

Bridgerton!sis

All the Stars - alive for 19 years, without a father for 11. Sometimes it's hard growing older and not knowing what they'd think of you.

Artemis and Apollo - There are days when her brothers drive her absolutely mad. But then there are days where Y/N is incredibly grateful for them.

Artists Sister - Drawing is, apparently, a sibling thing.

Blue Complexion - Anthony's brooding and Y/N demands to know why. The why just happens to involve her and an unwanted marriage proposal.

Brother Knows Best - Anthony has, finally, put lord berbrooke in his place and allowed his sister to control her own life. except, lord Berbrooke is determined to marry a Bridgerton… even if it isn’t Daphne

Defying Death (Apparently) - When it comes to his siblings being ill, Anthony is the worst mother hen of them all.

Did She Have a Cookie?- Don’t drink the tea unless you want to have a trip of a lifetime

Driver's Licence- It's hard to be in love only to be tossed to the side in a instant. Thank God for older brothers and mothers.

Evil in Silver - When Cressida Cowper knocks Y/N down, Benedict is right there to pick his sister back up

Favourite Brother, Part 2 - When one brother knocks you down, another is always there to pick you back up.

Geode - Colin versus Y/N.

Hey, Sister - Y/N’s heart is broken in two but the only person she wants is her eldest brother

I’ll Look After You (But I Won’t Stop Complaining About It)- summary: four times Anthony protected his sister and the one time she protected him (albeit it was from the ton)

It’s a Bugs Life - Gregory and bugs and the antics his older sister somehow manages to get into to support his weird hobby.

Just Keep Breathing, Darling - panic attacks are a bitch but are ever so slightly easier with two older brothers around

Ope There Goes Gravity - Y/N Bridgerton was not in the gardens at the Trowbridge Ball. She had no idea of what transpired. Yet, somehow, she ends up in the middle of a duel, in an empty park, at dawn. And it's all Daphne's fault

Reluctant Caretaker - having three younger siblings often meant Y/N was put in charge of looking after them. But sometimes her older siblings need some help too. Eight times Y/N did Anthony's job for him and one time he became her father

Slipping Through My Fingers - One more child makes their debut into the world and suddenly, all Y/N wants to do is freeze time.

Spinster - Love isn't for everyone. Sometimes, borrowing your brother's children and being content with becoming a spinster is all anyone needs.

Summer of '16 - the summer of 1816 was one of the best and worst of Y/N Bridgerton’s life

Would I Run Off the World Someday? - the urge to run away sometimes becomes utterly unavoidable

You Owe Me - Three times Eloise owed Y/N and one time she owed her

#bridgerton #bridgerton imagines #bridgerton imagine #masterlist #anthony bridgerton imagine #benedict bridgerton imagine #colin bridgerton imagine #bridgerton!sis #bridgerton sis

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navalcriminalimagines · 3 years ago

Text

Daughter's friend - I

AN: here it is! the story is slowly settling, i hope you'll enjoy it! and please, don't be mad at me for the end... haha

Pairing : Joel Miller x Reader

Warning: kinda smut towards the end

Prologue

You took a shower before leaving too. You’ve been aroused from the moment you stepped into the Miller’s house and realized who Sarah’s father was. The hot man you fooled around in June. And you regretted running away the way you did that night. You never imagined seeing him again and yet, here you were. Meeting him again in the most unexpected way possible.

You really liked Sarah and you were starting to consider her as your best friend. You couldn’t change what happened before you ever met her, but now that you knew Joel was her father, there was no way you could take things where you left them. That thought annoyed you, but it was probably for the best. On Sunday, you’d be gone, back to your life and would try to avoid coming back to Austin, to the Millers.

But god, he was making this really complicated. When you got downstairs, finally ready to go to the bowling alley with them, you stopped a second to stare at Joel behind the glass door, as he was smoking in the backyard. He was wearing dark jeans, a flannel slightly opened on a white shirt, and his boots. And a freaking beanie. How could one man be this hot, just because he was wearing a beanie? This was totally unfair. You felt like you needed another shower.

“You ready, Y/N?” You heard from behind. Sarah. You needed to be careful and stopped drooling over her dad like this.

“Yup. Are your uncle and his wife coming?” You asked, taking your eyes off Joel.

“Yeah, they’ll meet us there. You’re going to love them. Just don’t be surprised when you’ll see dad and uncle Tommy act like children.” You waited for a laugh or something, but you realized how serious she was. “I invited Ellie, too. That way we can do three against three.”

Ah, Ellie. You heard about this girl. Sarah’s ‘BFF’ since they were kids. Part of you couldn’t wait to meet her, but you knew you also felt jealous. Not because it meant you couldn’t be Sarah’s best friend, but because you thought about your own best friend from childhood and what she’s done to you. One of the reasons you left Connecticut.

“You ready, girls?” Joel asked, readjusting his beanie.

Yes, you were.

Joel and Tommy were indeed like kids. And they took bowling very seriously. They both were team captains, Joel took Sarah and you - you noticed the disappointment on Ellie’s face when he said your name and you couldn’t blame her - you were new to the Millers’ clan - and Tommy had Maria and Ellie.

“Are we going to get in trouble if we lose?” You joked with Sarah.

“Oh, sweetheart. You have no idea.” Joel answered. Sweetheart. That word immediately sent shivers to your core, and Joel realized his mistake. He had never been this familiar with one of Sarah’s friends. He needed to be careful.

While everyone was getting ready, you and Maria went to the bar and got drinks for everybody. Joel and Tommy asked for beers, Ellie and Sarah had to go for a soft drink, Maria ordered a glass of wine, and she was surprised when you asked for one too. “I’m twenty, and somehow, I’m never asked for my ID,” you whispered.

“Lucky you. I think we have two girls who are going to be jealous.” She chuckled.

“Does Joel let Sarah drink?”

“A drink or two, he doesn’t mind. And he knows what college life is. And my husband has been sneaking her beer since she was fifteen, thinking Joel was oblivious.”

“I don’t know Tommy yet, but I’m not even surprised.” You laughed.

“I married a manchild.” She shook her head with a chuckle. It was clear how much she loved Tommy.

“I bet it runs in the family.” You said, hoping she would say something about Joel, something you didn’t know. Like if he really was single like Sarah thought, and if he had a life that his daughter didn’t know about. Like going to sex parties.

“It does. Although, having Sarah this young forced Joel to grow up. Her mother wasn’t around much, but I guess she told you all that.”

“She did, but I can tell her mother is a sensitive subject.”

“Yeah, for Joel too. I think he’s never been able to completely forget her.”

Not something you wanted to hear, but you weren’t surprised either. If everything Sarah told you was accurate, Joel has never been in a serious relationship since his daughter was born. Which meant that Sarah’s mother hurt him so badly, he couldn’t be let anyone in.

Why did you care anyway? You only had a sexual encounter with the man, and yes, he made it obvious that he hadn’t forget about it either, but it didn’t mean it could be repeated. Or it could lead to something else. He was Sarah’s father after all. This limit spoke for itself.

You and Maria brought the drinks to everyone. “I hate you.” Sarah said when she saw you taking a sip of your white wine. You laughed, while handing her the glass. You felt Joel glancing at you, but you only smirked.

“Can I, too?” Ellie asked and you nodded.

The game finally started. The Millers were experts at bowling. They were the ones who scored the highest, and you felt ashamed every time you threw a gutterball. Being an overachiever, you hated not being good at something. As you were concentrating, holding the ball, you felt a body behind yours. You didn’t need a second to know it was Joel and your heart missed a beat. He placed his hands above yours, and made you move a little to your left. His crotch was perfectly pressed against your butt, and all you wanted to do was grind. “You can’t miss this one, sweetheart.” He whispered in your ear. “Or there will be consequences.” He nipped your ear lobe and you fought the moan that tried to escape your lips. “But if you score enough, you may get rewarded.”

You weren’t sure if you wanted to be punished or rewarded. But you love to win, so you did your best. You did better than your previous throws, but still not enough. Tommy and Maria happily jumped and high five with Ellie. You looked at Joel and Sarah and apologized. They looked slightly disappointed, but it’s just a game after all. “What should we do to them?” Tommy asked the girls, stroking his beard to show he was thinking. This couldn’t be good.

You looked towards Sarah again, asking a ton of questions with your eyes. “Losers get a dare.” She said. “Either the same for the three of us, or different ones.”

“That’s why I wanted to win. I’m supposed to meet an awful client on Monday, I wanted to send Tommy.” Joel explained.

“Tough luck, big brother.” Tommy teased, patting his brother’s back. “Maria has a dare for you.”

“Next Friday night, you’re coming over for dinner to meet my friend Ashley.”

You watched Joel’s reaction and the man didn’t hide his eye roll at all. “Maria, come on.” He growled in frustration.

“Who is she?” Sarah asked. “What does she look like? What does she do? Why is she single?”

“Easy, honey. You won’t be there anyway.” Maria winked at her. “But she’s a gorgeous woman, smart and independent. She’s divorced, no kids.”

“I didn’t know you opened a matchmaking company.” Sarah joked, but you could tell she didn’t like the idea very much and she made it clear on the ride home.

“I love Maria, but why does she keep trying to set you up with someone? We don’t know anything about this woman.” Joel just laughed while you saw Ellie rolling her eyes. “Seriously, I want you to be happy but–”

“You want to be the one who decides who your dad’s dating.” Ellie finished for her. “You’re being overprotective.”

“I’m not! I don’t want him to be hurt!” Sarah exclaimed and you could see that Joel wasn’t enjoying this conversation anymore.

“I’m a grown man, babygirl. I don’t need you to protect me, that’s my job.”

“Still, I have a word! I’ll be there on Friday.”

Sarah is a stubborn girl and it was clear that she was indeed going to be there on Friday night. A part of you felt a slight relief and you weren’t sure why. Joel wasn’t yours in any way.

That was Joel’s dare. You and Sarah had to do a prank call each - because Tommy thought it was funny. Sarah chose one of her teammates and you chose your former best friend - without giving them details of who she was exactly.

Joel dropped Ellie at her parents’ place, and you all got home. You settled for the guest room. You share your room with Sarah every day, it’d be nice to have a room for yourself even if it’s just for one night. You changed into your PJs; shorts and a tank top and did your night routine before joining Sarah in her room, but she wasn’t there. You found her and Joel on the couch, having a drink.

“If you want a beer, just take one in the fridge.” She told you, focusing on the TV.

“What are you guys watching?” you asked, sitting on the couch with a beer in hand. “Soccer, of course.” You said, before either of them could react.

“Do you know soccer, Y/N?” Joel asked. He was laying down, an arm behind his head and his beer resting on his stomach. He wasn’t doing anything special, but he looked like the hottest man you’ve ever seen. It would be so easy to jump on him and ride his cock.

“A–A little now that I know Sarah,” you answered, trying to focus on the game.

“Yeah, I was never interested in this sport, before this one–” he gently punched Sarah’s leg, “told me she wanted to play.”

“And now you love it.” She proudly grinned at her father.

“Do I have a choice?”

You watched their banter, adoration and envy in your eyes. You never knew this kind of relationship with anyone in your family. To be honest, your family are cold people. They don’t joke around, do family activities, or just spend time together. At this very moment, you felt extremely lucky to have met Sarah and become close enough with her that she took you to her family. You can’t take a risk to lose this.

You three watched the game together. Joel and Sarah yelled at the TV quite a few times, making you laugh every time.

It was around 1am when the game ended. You and Sarah spent another hour up in her room before sleep got the best of you. You joined your room and tried to sleep without thinking about the man across the hall. Lost cause.

5am.

You growled and turned around in bed, trying to fall back to sleep. But you were thirsty so you got downstairs. As you closed the fridge’s door, you spotted him. He was in the backyard again, smoking and staring. He probably heard you coming down. He was wearing a dark t-shirt under a sweater and some shorts. Without being able to stop yourself, you walked up to him and opened the glass door. “Can’t sleep?” he whispered.

“Like you, apparently.”

“Yeah, things are keeping me awake.” he finished his cigarette, throwing it in the ashtray. “Can I?” he asked, showing your water bottle.

You nodded, handing him the bottle. He made sure his fingers brushed yours. While he drank, his eyes didn’t leave yours and you felt weak in the knees. How can just a look have that much power?

“Why did you leave that night?” he asked.

“I–it’s stupid, you don’t want to know.”

“Was it something I did? Said?”

“Something you did. But it’s okay–”

“No it’s not, Y/N. I’m sorry if I–”

“You did something my ex used to do. And I guess it triggered me.” You didn’t want to confess that to him, but you couldn’t let him think he did something wrong or that he hurt you in any way because he didn’t.

“What was it?” you looked at him, unsure of why he was asking. “I don’t want to trigger you again.” he added, like he could hear your thoughts.

You looked at your feet for a moment and took a deep breath. “You stroked my ear.” you admitted. “I know it’s nothing, you probably did it as an act of tenderness and–”

You didn’t have time to finish. Joel had grabbed your chin to make you face him and crashed his lips on yours. He was indeed tender but with a certain power, enough power to make you back down against the window. He did his best to keep the kiss as innocent as possible, but you were the one who intensified it. You opened your mouth so your tongues could meet, and you wrapped your arms around his neck, bringing him even closer than he already was.

“I’ll never do it again, sweetheart.” he said, placing gentle kisses on your neck. “But god, how I want to hurt the bastard.”

“I don’t want to talk about him right now.” you breathed out as Joel found your sensitive spot. Your hands found their way under his t-shirt, and you enjoyed feeling his skin and body hair under your fingers. He did the same, and one of his hands settled on your breasts. He kissed you again while playing with your nipples. “Joel–” you moaned.

He stopped his movements, just pressed his hardening cock against your stomach and held your head in his hands. “Let’s take this upstairs.”

You nodded and started to walk but Joel had other plans; he carried you to his bedroom and gently lay you down on his bed. He locked the door before joining you. Your clothes and his were quick to rest on the carpet. The feeling from June was coming back. It was like you were back there. It was just the two of you. You didn’t run away after giving the blowjob. You were going to finish what you started.

Joel felt your wetness with his hands, and sucked his fingers clean. “Delicious,” he groaned. “I want to eat your pussy, but right now, I need to be inside of you.”

“Yes, please. I want you,” you moaned as he stroked your clit with his thumb. You reached for his hard and thick cock and stroked him for a moment. You looked at each other. “I’m on birth control.” you told him.

You needed him bare and so did he. Like you told him exactly what he needed you to say, Joel smirked and lined himself with your center. You kissed again before he pushed his cock inside you.

You cried his name and opened your eyes to look at him.

But all you saw was someone’s shadow at the door.

A shadow that walked away as soon as you saw it.

You were sweating and panting, but alone and empty. You had a wet dream about Joel and that shadow looked a lot like him.

#joel miller x y/n #joel miller imagine #joel miller x you #joel miller smut #joel miller x reader #joel miller #joel miller fanfiction #the last of us fanfic #sarah miller #ellie williams #tommy miller

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translations-by-aiimee · 4 years ago

Text

The Husky and His White Cat Shizun - Chapter 20

Original Title: 二哈��他的白猫师尊

Genres: Drama, Romance, Tragedy, Xianxia, Yaoi

This translation is based on multiple MTLs and my own limited knowledge of Chinese characters. If I have made any egregious mistakes, please let me know.

Chapter Index

Chapter 20 - This Venerable One Will Tell You a Story (Part 2)

Early the next morning, the members of the Chen family walked back from their relatives and saw that the orange tree in their courtyard had fallen down and the oranges were spread all over the ground. There weren't many other residents around here. They were only close with the Luo family. When they thought of how Luo Xianxian drooled over those oranges every day, the Chen family were sure——

The oranges must have been stolen by that bastard child, Luo Xianxian!

Not only did she steal them but she got jealous and chopped down their orange tree!

The Chen family immediately went to Luo Shusheng to complain. Luo Shusheng couldn't bear such humiliation. He immediately called his daughter over and asked her angrily if she stole the oranges.

Luo Xianxian cried and said no.

He asked if she had cut the tree down.

Again, Luo Xianxian said no.

He asked her if she had eaten the oranges.

Luo Xianxian couldn't lie so she had to admit that she did.

Before she could explain, her furious father ordered her to kneel down. She was beaten with a ruler in front of the Chen family. While he beat her, he said: "Raising a daughter is much worse than raising a sun! At such a young age, how could you do such a thing? Shame on you! You disgraced your father! As punishment, you won't have anything to eat today and you'll face the wall for three days. Think about your mistakes and repent--"

"Dad, it wasn't me! It really wasn't me!"

"How dare you talk back to me!"

No one believed her. Although the Lower Cultivation World was in chaos Caidie Town was an exception. The town had always been simple and honest, no one locked their door. What was she supposed to say; that a bloody lunatic ran in in the middle of the night? Who would believe it?

Luo Xianxian's small hands were split open from the beating.

The members of the Chen family looked at her coldly. Only the oldest boy among them, pulling at the corner of his mother's clothes, hesitated to speak.

His mother ignored him and there was nothing he could do about it. The boy's small face scrunched up. He couldn't bear it, and he stood off to the side, unwilling to look anymore.

At night, Luo Xianxian didn't dare go back to her room, squatting under the eaves of her house, standing pitifully.

Her father was a scholar and couldn't tolerate stealing. Moreover, he had a rotten and sour aura, and he was stubborn, unwilling to listen to explanations.

Luo Xianxian's head was dizzy after a day with no food. Suddenly someone whispered to her: "Miss Luo."

Luo Xianxian turned his head and saw a well-groomed head protruding from the edge of the dirt wall. It was Chen Bohuan, the eldest son of the Chen family who tried to help her plead her case earlier.

Chen Bohuan did a couple checks over the dirt wall to make sure no one was watching. He was carrying a hot steamed bun in his arms, and without saying a word, he shoved it into her hand.

"I know you've been standing by the wall all day and haven't eaten anything. Here's a steamed bun. Hurry up and eat it."

"I..." Luo Xianxian had always been shy. She had lived here for several months and had never spoken to her neighbour's son. Now, they were so close together that she inadvertently took a few steps back and banged her head against the wall. Still, she stammered out: "I couldn't. . . Dad won't let me. . . He said. . ."

She was incoherent and couldn't even form a complete sentence.

Chen Bohuan said: "Oh, your father's watching you at all times? What do you care what he's doing? If you're hungry, don't starve yourself. Eat it. If you don't, it'll get cold."

The steamed bun was soft and white, looking so enticing, steam rising from it.

Luo Xianxian looked down and stared for a while, taking a large gulp.

She was so hungry, too. Regardless of whether she was supposed to be a gentleman or not, she grabbed the steamed bun and inhaled it, gobbling it up in no time.

After eating it, she raised her round eyes and rushed to explain to Chen Bohuan: "I didn't cut down the orange tree, and I try to steal any."

Chen Bohuan was taken aback, and slowly smiled: "Okay."

"But they don't believe me. . ." With such an emotional gaze, Luo Xianxian's heart slowly opened, her anger melting away like snow. She wailed, her mouth wide open. She wiped her tears and wept loudly: "None of them believe me. . . I didn't steal. . . I didn't. . ."

Chen Bohuan patted her back: "I know you didn't steal it. Like come on, you stand under the tree and stare at it every day yet you never took an orange. You would've stolen some a long time ago. . ."

"I didn't do it! I didn't do it!" Her crying became more fierce, tears and snot rolling on her face.

Chen Bohuan consoled her: "You didn't do it, you didn't do it."

The two children got to know each other very well.

Later, there was a murder in a neighbouring village. A few nights ago, a bandit covered in blood entered a family's home and wanted to borrow the family's bedroom to sleep. When the man did not agree, the bandit stabbed the family to death. Then, in the room full of corpses, he slept peacefully and leisurely left the next day during the daylight. He left and even left a message written in blood on the wall. He wrote out a large message, detailing everything he had done to make sure the world knew that an evil individual like him existed.

This tragedy immediately spread like wildfire, and soon reached Caidie Town. That was the night Luo Xianxian admitted she had met "Mr. Madman".

Luo Shusheng and the Chen family were speechless.

After the misunderstanding was cleared up, the two families were in much closer contact. The Chen family saw that Luo Xianxian was cute hardworking little beauty. They thought that, based on their current situation, it would be difficult to find a daughter-in-law, so they quickly arranged the marriage of Chen Bohuan and Luo Xianxian. Once they reached adulthood, they would officially be wed.

When Luo Shusheng saw his daughter and Chen Bohuan were good childhood friends, so he readily agreed.

As the days passed, if it weren't for Luo Shusheng's love of elegance and fragrance, then the Chen and Luo families would live lives of poverty and tranquillity as they had originally expected.

Unfortunately, Luo Shusheng accidentally made the "Hundred Butterfly Fragrance Powder".

Although the scent of the powder was nothing special and it wasn't much different from the typical powders in town, it had a benefit that ordinary powders didn't——

It could last for a hundred days with a neverending afterglow.

Hundred Butterfly Fragrance Powder lasted for a long time and it didn't wear off easily. It was exactly what everyday people were looking for in terms of good quality and low price.

Luo Shusheng, Mr. "Everything is inferior; the only excellence is in academia." Even though he made the powder, he didn't want to sell it, thinking that he "would lose his identity."

If he didn't sell it, naturally others will worry about it.

Madam Chen repeatedly tried to get the recipe out of him and urged Luo Shusheng to open a shop, but she was always rejected. After going back and forth, Madam Chen got embarrassed, so she stopped bringing it up, but she silently always kept it in mind.

The year Luo Xianxian reached adulthood, the opportunity came. Luo Shusheng's sickly body had contracted tuberculosis. He suffered for a few days then died. As Luo Xianxian's in-laws, even though she wasn't officially their daughter-in-law yet, they were still close friends, so they got busy helping her arrange the funeral.

Luo Xianxian burst into tears of gratitude. What she didn't know was that Madam Chen had a plan to quietly walk away with the secret powder recipe while she packed up Luo Shusheng's things.

That night, Madam Chen, under the light of a soybean oil lamp, was full of excitement, ready to read the recipe. After only one glance, she was at a loss.

Luo Shusheng's words danced across the page, calligraphy that typically would be considered elegant and unrestrained. She stared at it for a long time, but she couldn't understand half of the words.

She had no choice but to return the recipe quietly.

A few months later, after Luo Xianxian had a chance to grieve, she invited the girl over to their house for dinner and "inadvertently" mentioned the Hundred Butterfly Fragrance Powder in a passing conversation.

Luo Xianxian thought to herself there was no point in keeping the recipe at home. Her mother-in-law treated herself so well. If she wanted it, she'd give it to her.

So she found it her father's things and helped Madam Chen to distinguish the individual characters and sort out the precise recipe.

Madam Chen was ecstatic. When she got the recipe, she and her husband opened a perfume shop together.

Of course, she was still very fond of her gentle and sensible prospective daughter-in-law. The more Luo Xianxian grew, the more beautiful she became. Although her family was unfortunate, her looks were some of the best in town and many young people in the town began to pay attention to her.

A long night is filled with dreams*, Madam Chen thought to herself. They'd need to hurry and secure the marriage.

*(T/N: 夜长梦多 - means that the longer something is put off, the more likely something will happen before you're able to do it)

However, Luo Xianxian just lost his father. According to the custom of Caidie Town, she couldn't get married for three years after the death of her parent.

How could Madam Chen wait for three years? She deliberated and thought of a way--

One day, Luo Xianxian was braiding the hair of the Chen's family young daughter. She had a very good relationship with the youngest Chen daughter. Luo Xianxian pulled the hair over and under and the braid trailed down her back.

Madam Chen walked into the courtyard and called Luo Xianxian to the inner hall. She said to her: "Xianxian, you and Bohuan were childhood sweethearts and had a marriage arranged. Now that your father is gone, you must be lonely. It can't be easy living by yourself. You should be getting married this year. But we have the three-year mourning period, so you can't get married, so I got thinking: if you wait for three years, how old are you going to be?

Luo Xianxian lowered her head. She didn't say anything but she was clever and could guess what Madam Chen was insinuating. Her cheeks grew slightly red.

Sure enough, Madam Chen went on to say:

"Living alone must be so difficult and tiring. How about this - you two get married behind closed doors. No one needs to know. If anyone asks, just say that you're living with your auntie to help care for her and preparing to be her daughter-in-law. This will not only complete the wedding rituals without the worry of being criticized, but also give your father some peace in the underworld. After the three-year period is up, we'll have a beautiful proper wedding for you two, alright?"

Her remarks sounded like she cared about Luo Xianxian. Luo Xianxian was a person who always saw the best in others and would never think badly about someone else so she agreed.

Later, the Chen family made a fortune by selling the Hundred Butterfly Fragrance Powder. They moved out of their old house, bought a large piece of land in the town, built a mansion on it, and became a powerful family.

Luo Xianxian had become a shadow among the many figures of the large household, an infrequent presence.

People in the town thought that Luo Xianxian had been taken in by Madam Chen, so she lived in the Chen house. They didn't know that she was actually married to Chen Bohuan.

Although it wasn't perfect, Luo Xianxian thought that her mother-in-law was doing this for her own good so that people didn't gossip, so she didn't complain. In addition, Chen Bohuan was dear to her, the couple living a sweet and fulfilling life. They only need to wait for the three-year period to pass then everything would return to normal.

But Luo Xianxian didn't wait for the day of the official wedding.

The Chen family business was growing larger and larger. In addition, Chen Bohuan was handsome. Not just in Caidie Town but even the daughters of the big families in the surrounding towns had begun to play with the idea of marrying Young Master Chen. With this development, Madam Chen's mind was racing.

Back then, she decided to secure Luo Xianxian because she thought she wouldn't be able to find a good daughter-in-law when they were nothing but a farming family.

Who would have thought that the heavens would bless the Chen family and allow them to soar into high society? Now, when she looked back at Luo Xianxian, she felt that the girl was not good-looking enough and she wasn't intelligent enough. Like her dead father, she was unpleasant to look at.

She regretted it a bit.

The appearance of Yao Qianjin turned her "a bit" into "a lot".

Yao Qianjin is the daughter of the county magistrate. She loved men in positions. One day she returned from hunting on a horse. She passed by an incense shop and picked out a few fragrance powders. It didn't matter what fragrances she picked out, but she caught a glimpse of the busy handsome young man in the hall.

The gentleman was no other than Luo Xianxian's husband, Chen Bohuan.

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#2ha novel #2ha translation #2ha #the husky and his white cat shizun translation #the husky and his white cat shizun #english translation #chinese bl #chinese novel #bl novel #danmei novel #danmei #yaoi novel #yaoi #mo ran #chu wanning #ranwan

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kisakitwister · 3 years ago

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🖤 Just a Thought 💛

Kaminari x GN! Reader

Best Friends to Lovers

Readers gender is not specified I don’t believe anything shall be used either just know it’s not to indicate a set gender!

💛🖤💛🖤💛🖤💛🖤💛🖤💛🖤💛🖤💛🖤

Since childhood you and Kaminari have always had the best friendship. Sleepovers and play dates. Kaminari was the best friend you could ask for!

When you both were 5 and got your quirks it was a funny little moment. Kaminari was playing in the pool with you and a little bug, well he felt the need to sneeze and you a bit of a germaphobe ran out of the water. When he sneezed he electrocuted the water killing the poor little bug.

You watched in awe as he looked shocked but just as happy! “Did you see that! (y/n)!! I got my quirk!!!”Kaminari jumped in happiness as he ran to tell his parents.

When it came to your time to receive your quirk it was quite painful but you didn’t mind, Kaminari was by you the whole time. Telling you how cool your quirk was and how you both would be amazing hero’s in the future.

You always believed him, always followed his plan, even if his plan usually ended with you in the hospital (reader x hospital bed 😉)

Each time Kaminari apologized and you only only smacking him up side the head. Which he would say was well deserved. This was your life.

Constantly fixing up mistakes his mistakes sometimes taking the blame. Kaminari should’ve always apologize but you didn’t really mind.

Now years later sitting on your shared bed you were reading a book. Looking up you saw your husband his attention focused on his game. You and him always were an odd couple.

In U.A you both were considered the odd couple. His constant flirting with other girls was odd but you didn’t mind, as long as he didn’t attempt anything of course.

💛🖤💛🖤💛🖤💛🖤💛🖤💛🖤💛🖤💛🖤💛🖤

“(Y/n) aren’t you gonna do anything about Kami? He keeps flirting with the girls from 2A.” A voice snapped you from your thoughts. “Hm?”

“Oh- I don’t really care-“ The voice gasped and grabbed your head facing them. “what.do.you.mean!!?” Mina glared at you her face close to yours.

“Well- Kaminari and I are just friends I don’t see the harm?” Mina’s eyes widened and she backed up. “Just friends? YOU GUYS AREN’T dating???”

Looking up you looked at her confused. “Who said we were dating?” Mina chuckled nervously. “Well everyone just assumed you know cause- your so close- plus the constant praise Kaminari gives you. . .

He never stops talking about you ya know!”

“Mina-“ Kaminari growled behind her. “SORRY!!!”

🖤💛🖤💛🖤💛🖤💛🖤💛🖤💛🖤💛🖤💛🖤💛

Kaminari’s little secret had been spilled because of Mina’s mistake but you didn’t mind. It only made your life better.

“Kami, my dear husband can you bring me a glass of apple juice?” You voice sweet and caring made Kaminari’s attention turn directly towards you. “Of course I’ll be right back!”

Jumping off the bed he went to the kitchen. Such an obedient boy~

Walking back in her handed you the glass kissing you cheek and jumping back on the bed. “Love?” You hummed while taking a drink of your juice.

“Do you remember our first date?” You put the glass down and looked at him. “Yeah I do. Why?”

He shrugged and shoved his face into your side. “Do you remember the day you proposed?”

“Yes- now what’s up?” Kaminari couldn’t hide what he wanted. “Since we are married. . . Have you ever thought of having a kid?”

Your eyes widened. The thought had crossed your mind once or twice but you never really put much thought. You didn’t really want children but it wouldn’t be to bad to have atleast 1.

“Maybe. . . But are you sure we are ready? I mean we both are 26 and we are Pro-Heros. . .”

Kaminari nodded and closed his eyes. “Just a thought” he mumbled and fell asleep.

“Just a thought huh. . .”

#kaminari x reader #mha x reader #mha fanfiction #writing #anime #reader insert #long reads #writers on tumblr #denki kaminari #kaminari fluff

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ladymercysletters · 4 years ago

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The Moment I Knew// Anthony Bridgerton - Chapter 6

Word Count : 1239

Warnings: Angst B*tches!!

A/N: based on this request from @albeeox. Part 1 - Part 2 - Part 3 - Part 4 - Part 5 - Part 7

Violet Bridgerton watched with delight as her second son strolled arm in arm with a young lady. And not only any young lady, but a very suitable lady who he had known since childhood. All Violet Bridgerton had hoped for her children was that they were fortunate enough to marry for love: and by the looks of it, Benedict had secured just that in the form of a childhood friend.

Not that Violet Bridgerton was the only one to get the wrong end of the stick; the entire ton was practically buzzing with news of the ‘match’ having seen Benedict and Y/N together on many an occasion, smile and laughing together as they walked. In truth, neither Y/N or Benedict had noticed anyone paying them any mind: in each other they had found kindred spirits in heartbreak and secrecy. Benedict was glad he had someone older than Eloise to talk to about his dasires from life, and Y/N was happy to have a confidante to talk to about Anthony; especially one so close to him.

It was the day after the duel that Y/N awoke to her maid entering her room, followed briskly by the clattering of her mother, brandishing the latest Whistledown as she burst in behind her.

“Oh Y/N! Look, Lady Whistledown has written of you” she said, dramatically thrusting the now crumpled paper at her second-born. “We had hoped to tell you ourselves but to have it printed in Whistledown, where all the ton may see it. Ooh” she wailed in excitement.

Across the Square Benedict ambled lazily downstairs, cravat barely tied into position as he entered the breakfast room. The usual buzz of the Bridgerton breakfast room came to an abrupt halt as Benedict opened the door. He looked up innocently to see every one of his siblings staring at him. Eloise appeared to be somewhere in between elation and annoyance, Francesca was just elation. Colin looked as pleased with himself as ever as he chewed on a piece of toast whilst Gregory and Hyacinth showed matching grins on their faces. Anthony however, was staring daggers at him over his morning paper, the only one to not look directly at him. Bewilderment would probably best describe Benedict’s expression. His mother beamed at him as she approached him gently.

“Now don’t fuss Benedict.” She began, circling the table, towards him. “But Lady Astley and I were talking, and we had noticed that you and Miss Y/N have seemed to form an attachment. So being the wonderful, caring mother I am, and knowing my son has always been a little shy of his feelings, I asked for you.” She finished, straightening his collar that had stuck into his cravat.

“Asked what? What have you asked?” Benedict searched, confused. He strode into the room, taking the paper from Eloise’s hands to see the extent of his mother’s damage. And that was the day that, to equal surprise, Y/N and Benedict found out that they were engaged to be married.

The following weekend The Bridgerton’s played host to a celebratory ball in honour of your engagement. You had barely had a chance to see Benedict, or any Bridgerton for that matter: having spent most of your time being pushed and pulled by your mother, into various gowns and having several colour swatches and flowers thrust in your face for approval. You had managed to sneak a note out to Benedict, via your maid, asking him if he had known of this plan, or consented to it at all. You had only managed to receive a reply before the night of the ball, and so as your already anxious hands helped to pin the last of the pearls into your hair, your mind couldn’t help but drift to seeing Anthony again.

Your mind had been swimming so much with thoughts of yours and Benedict’s engagement that you had almost completely forgotten about your argument with Anthony – and his subsequent visit to your home the night of the next ball. Your mind reeled with thoughts of that night: with every word of love he whispered into your skin you had hoped that, should he survive, he would make you his. However, both he and the Duke had appeared to survive their stupid egos but Anthony has not so much as written to you. And after making a fool of yourself once, he was certainly not going to do so again.

. You gathered yourself as your maid returned, holding out your evening gown and laying it on the bed as you stood, ready to dress for the Ball. The evening was practically in full swing by the time you arrived. You had hoped, however much in vain, to slip in quietly and perhaps even get a chance to speak to Anthony, or even Benedict, before you were caught up in the whirlwind of Mama’s and jealous ladies all vying to know how you snagged a Bridgerton. Unfortunately, that was not to be. No sooner had you stepped into the hall than you were surrounded by congratulations and well wishes … no doubt all angling for a front row seat to your wedding.

By the time you made it to the other side of the ballroom, and to Benedict, you were exhausted. He handed you a glass of champagne and you both stood in melancholy silence as you observed all of the happy guests. “I’m sorry Y/N” Benedict said mournfully as he finished off his wine and popped the empty glass on a nearby side table.

“It’s not your fault. It’s not anyone’s fault.” You sighed, looking around the room “I suppose this is it then”

“Yup. By the end of the season we’ll be married.” the words left his mouth thick and uncomfortable and the following silence hung in the air. You felt sweaty and a little bit sick at the thought of marrying someone you did not love, and at such short notice.

“It won’t be that bad will it?” you smiled nervously, looking up at him for some sort of comfort.

“No. It’ll be fine.” He tried to comfort you, although by his short words you could tell he felt the same as you. “It’s not like we’re not friends I suppose.” He raised his brows as he sipped on another glass of wine – where had that come from?! “I consider you a great friend Y/N” he looked back down at you with a genuine smile, which in all fairness did manage to bring you some comfort. It was true, Benedict was a true friend to you, and confidante, and you supposed it was some comfort to know that despite the circumstances, you would be marrying a friend. He handed you another glass when he noticed yours had emptied, you supposed that was a useful trait in a husband, and you both continued to stare into the middle distance, coming to terms with your fates.

Across the room Anthony was practically boiling over. He had started the night with a stern talk from his mother. You will not ruin Benedict’s night with your moping! I don’t know what this is about but it stops tonight. The words went round in his head constantly through the evening. When the ladies started circling. When the congratulating began. And when you entered the room; his heart practically stopped. Jumping up into his throat as if it were to throw itself at you.

#Bridgerton #Bridgerton Imagine #Bridgerton x Reader #Anthony Bridgerton #Bridgerton Fanfiction #Anthony Bridgerton Imagine #Anthony Bridgerton x Reader #My Writing

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ad1thi · 4 years ago

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underrated stevetony fics rec list (P1)

i feel like a lot of really good stevetony fics get swept under the rug because this is such a big fandom and sometimes people miss out on quality content?? so this is a rec list of some of the stevetony fics i feel like everybody should have read/ be reading

Edit (31.12.2020): this got very long (i had almost 50 fics on my list, so ive decided to split this list into two parts. part 2 will be out soon!!)

Edit (20.02.2021): part 2 is out now!!

picture me in the trees: @ifmywishescametrue

Tony and Steve were childhood friends that almost became more, but Tony moved and they lost their chance. Thirteen years later, a chance meeting brings Tony back into Steve's life.

Free: @iwanttopizzamanyou

"Steve reads, and the words dance in front of his eyes, because while this used to be his dream, what he wanted, all he can think about is how this Hell will soon become his full time life."

Steve discovers fame, with fans waiting for him in the lobby and girls passing him their numbers after the shows. It used to be what he wanted, he supposes. Except his future managers keep asking more and more from him, and he's not sure his old life will survive. Tony is ready to help, and compromise, but Steve maybe isn't anymore.

making it work: @/ironarm

“Just tell him you don’t want to see him anymore,” Clint replies, finishing the end of his burger and starting to crumple up the wrapper, “It’s not like you love him or anything.”

“Clint, if I thought I could get rid of him about a week ago, I would have. But for some fucked up reason, I can’t lie to him. It’s like, I see those baby blue eyes, and bam. Whatever barrier that I built up from childhood trauma is gone.”

Clint chokes on the last piece of his burger, almost resisting the urge to smack Tony on the side of his head.

Tony was a fucking idiot.

Boys Like Us: @naferty

The video had been a mistake. One of the biggest mistakes he had ever done in his life, and considering Tony Stark had done a bunch of shit in his younger years, and even older years, that was saying something.

It was just that none of those things were as embarrassing as that video.

He blamed Clint for everything

Stained Fingertips: @thesoundofnat

“I don’t really believe in magic,” he said, clearing his throat. “But I’m almost certain you’re a goddamn wizard, Steve Rogers.”

Steve would remember those words for the rest of his life.

(Or, Steve is maybe slightly obsessed with drawing Tony. Not that Tony minds.)

Inhale, Ex-Sail: @summerpipedream

"Rich pirates decked out in top-of-the-line black market gear,” grumbled Tony, ”why don’t I have the budget to make those again?’

Rhodey inched back so that he and Tony were back-to-back. “We’re apparently law abiding citizens now, which means having to pay taxes.”

Tony scowled. “Urg, right. Remind me why I wanted to do that again?”

Rhodey rolled his eyes. “What was it you called him last time? Your sweet tart? Your apple pie in the sky? The wind beneath your wings? Hopefully he’ll fly here fast enough so we don’t get killed. Or worse, mugged.”

Tony Stark Bingo K1 - AU: Steampunk

As Constant As A Star: @atsadi

The Swan Princess AU

As young children, Prince Anthony and Princess Natasha of neighboring Midgardian kingdoms are betrothed, and spend their summers together every year until they are wed. Tony adores his headstrong friend Nat: it’s her scowly little companion Steve he’s not thrilled about at first. But soon Steve goes from being a thorn in Tony’s side to being his dearest friend – and much, much more than that. Despite Steve feeling the same way about Tony, the pair still dance around each other for years as Steve struggles to accept his feelings for another man: especially one already betrothed to another. Not to mention that Tony is a prince, and Steve is nothing but a squire.

But before they can make peace, Tony is kidnapped and dragged into the beginnings of another conflict in the nearby magical kingdom of Asgard – he really hates magic. With his potential usefulness diminishing by the day, Tony races to escape even as Steve, Natasha, and their friends race to find him and bring him home.

And—just to make matters worse—Tony has been trapped by a powerful spell and turned into a swan, of all creatures. He really, really hates magic.

Always Yours: @hollyjollyhope

Getting kidnapped is normal for them, at this point. But there's nothing normal about this.

And suddenly, Tony has a choice to make.

Oxeye Daisy (patience): @s-horne

“You make me want things I can’t have.”

Steve startled at the voice from behind him and turned around to see Tony standing in the kitchen doorway. He stared straight at Tony for a long moment. The room was quiet, time stretching out in a thick and uncomfortable silence as neither man dare to move nor opened his mouth to speak first.

White Clover (a promise): @s-horne

“Hey, sweetheart.”

Tony lifted his head as he tried to focus on Steve’s voice. When he managed to open his eyes and blink a bit of the blurriness away, he was rewarded with a gentle smile being shone down at him.

“There you are,” Steve said. “Was worried I was going to have to talk to myself.”

Though his tone was light, Tony knew what he meant. It was no secret that Tony was physically weaker and a hell of a lot more human than Steve was and was therefore struggling more with the lack of regular nourishment that came with being held hostage.

“Course not,” Tony said back, voice hoarse but plastering a smile on his face all the same. His head was pounding and his eyes couldn't stay open. “Would I ever do that to you? You’d never get a sensible answer.”

Acta non verba: @firebrands

unapologetic fluff about two idiots who can barely keep it together with how hard they're crushing on each other

or:

tony has to help steve with math + a halloween party = a good time for everyone, eventually

you take me higher than the rest (everybody else is second best): @firebrands

tumblr fill for adi & anthonydarling, who asked for "'Prank' war, but the kind to see who can make the other blush the most in public" from this prompt list

Adjacent, Against, Upon: @firebrands

A political AU!

Steve Rogers is running as the Mayor of somewhere, America. Tony Stark, his campaign manager, deals with a candidate who isn’t interested in lying, and just wants to do good by these citizens, god damn it.

song of unrest: @omg-just-peachy

How was Steve supposed to reconcile all of this? The way he looked so different but still felt so much the same? It made Steve’s head spin. He knows he shouldn’t care so much, that he is what he is, but he just wants to know.

Paint The Town Blue: @omg-just-peachy

Ten years since he’d seen or spoken to Tony Stark, ten years since they’d broken up to go away to school. And now this email. It could be his only chance to see Tony again.

Camelot: @weethreequarter

For one shining moment, there was Camelot.

In 2019, Karen Page meets Captain Steve Rogers to conduct an exclusive interview on his late husband, President Tony Stark.

In 2007, Steve meets Senator Tony Stark and falls in love.

he thinks he’s lancelot (but he’s more of a sir lamorak): @theotherwasdeath

Tony knows firsthand that violence isn’t funny. So why oh why does he think that the scene playing out in front of him, Steve and Victor Von Doom in a knock-out, drag-down fist fight, is absolutely hilarious?

wildflowers: @tinytonysnark

“So,” Steve begins, clapping his hands together, “the city of SHIELD is in debt. The big ups have sent for financial advisors, all the way from DC! They’re gonna take a look at the city’s spending and make some cuts.”

He squints at the camera against the morning sun shining through the courtyard, “I’m not that worried. Everyone here in the parks department is an important member of the team and absolutely needed.”

The camera swings towards the office where from the large glass window, Natasha can be seen picking up the ringing phone before immediately slamming it back down onto the receiver.

[A Parks and Rec AU]

trinkets of your affection: @starklysteve

Kissed him once for every year I loved him, Steve had written.

By that count, Steve owes him five more kisses now.

Tony traces the words, hands trembling, and tips back a shot of Howard's ancient whiskey. None of it burns anymore.

One day, he'll have lived more days without Steve than there are words in the diary.

For the first time since he'd woken with shrapnel in his chest, Tony fears the future.

----------

Or, five things Tony keeps to remember Steve by, and one thing Steve gives him to remember.

#adi's rec list #stevetony #superhusbands #steve rogers x tony stark #steve rogers/tony stark #steve x tony #steve/tony #underrated stevetony fics #this is part 1 of this rec list #part two will be out soon!!#im planning on doing this for other ships!!#so let me know if there's any ships you wanna see this for

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collecting-stories · 4 years ago

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Forevermore - c. 06 - JJ Maybank

Summary: With your parents away, JJ spends some quality time at your house.

A/N: Sorry there was a longer gap between these chapters.

You Are Ok Masterlist | Outer Banks Masterlist

✞ I never really ever, ever felt so at home before ✞

Your parents had a long list of rules that dictated every waking moment of your house. Rules that told you what to wear, what to eat, what to read, what to watch, who to spend time with. But one rule that had never even been added to the list was “no boys in the house”. It had never been necessary before, no boys at all was the general and, always upheld, rule for you and your sisters. Telling you not to allow them in the house didn’t even seem like a possibility to your parents and probably never would’ve seemed like a possibility to you if you hadn’t met JJ.

Timothy left on the weekend, promising to be back for your birthday in a month, and your parents left the day after, headed to South Carolina for a couples’ church retreat that your father was guest lecturing at. You had convinced your father, before you had even met JJ, that you could stay alone for the short week that they would be gone. Though technically, now, you weren’t alone.

“Okay, we’re starting with the basics.” JJ announced, carrying a bowl of popcorn and two sodas into the living room, setting them down on the coffee table. You were sitting on the couch, blanket wrapped around your body, a baggy t-shirt serving as clothing because you didn’t want to wear a dress but didn’t have any pajama pants or shorts to wear.

“What qualifies as ‘the basics’?” you asked, opening your blanket enough that JJ could get underneath with you, pulling your legs over his lap. He’d borrowed Pope’s laptop to watch movies with you, since your parents didn’t own any sort of technology, television included. Your parents had phones and there was a landline but that was about as far as it went.

“Disney movies, even I’ve seen disney movies.” JJ replied, though admittedly it had been later in his childhood that he’d seen them. “We’ll start with my personal favorite...actually, not a disney movie just an animated movie, whatever...it’s called Balto.”

“Is that a dog?” You stared at the screen as JJ clicked on the icon for the movie.

“Yeah, it’s a movie about a sled dog.”

“A sled dog?” You laughed, brushing his hair back so that you could kiss him before the movie started and he shushed you to listen. Your hand went to the back of his head, your eyes on the TV as you ran your fingers through the hair at the nap of his neck, absentmindedly leaning into him more.

JJ had brought a whole backpack to your house, stuffed with clothes for the long weekend that both of you fully intended for him to spend at your house. Ever since you had mentioned the trip to JJ, and the possibility of him staying, you had been thinking of the implications of that. What expectations did he have for the week? You thought about asking him directly, or even asking Kiara or Pope, surely they would be able to tell you something about the girls that JJ dated before you.

It wasn’t like you had any illusions about them. You weren’t jealous or insecure about any of his past girlfriends, or hook-ups. John B had indicated that JJ had never really done the ‘dating thing’ before you, which had you wondering what exactly he might expect out of you before you realized that he really didn’t expect anything. But whether he’d dated anyone seriously in the past or not, and whether that should have intimidated you or not, you were fairly neutral about it. JJ was your boyfriend and he loved you, he’d said so, and you weren’t worried about anyone else.

“You know I’ve never watched a cartoon before?” You chanced mentioning, whispering the words to him as the dog on screen talked. There were a lot of things you hadn’t done before meeting JJ.

Some things you weren’t interested in. The smoking didn’t bother you but you had no desire to try it, you’d given beer one go at a party that JJ snuck you out to but it tasted disgusting and you had nearly spit it back out. You’d tried soda and coffee and fast food and a slurpee from the 7-11 near the pawn shop. You wore jeans and a dress that was far more revealing that you’d ever considered a dress could be, and a bathing suit. You had let Kiara do your makeup and you liked it but weren’t terribly interested in doing it again. There were physical things too, just sitting next to JJ was something you had never done before, let alone kissing him.

You thought about sex but hadn’t mentioned it to JJ, unsure if you should. The only sex talk you’d ever gotten from your mom had been when she told you that premarital sex was the ultimate sin and women who engaged in it ended up with unwanted babies. The basic understanding you’d come away with was that sex was intended simply to produce children for your family and to keep your husband happy and that he would, inevitably, guide you through it. You had trouble imagining Timothy guiding you through anything even remotely intimate.

It wasn’t that you didn’t feel comfortable bringing up the subject to JJ it was just that you weren’t sure you were supposed to. You’d thought about asking Kiara but then felt kind of embarrassed about it, would she understand or think it was lame that you were asking about sex with her best friend. You weren’t even sure you were ready to have sex with him, whatever ready meant.

“You okay?” JJ asked, tucking a piece of hair behind your ear, “you kinda zoned out.” He’d answered you about the cartoon thing but when you said nothing else he’d looked over, only to find you staring at the TV almost trance like.

“Just thinking.” You replied. He had put the movie on cause it was his favorite and you wanted to watch it with him but you couldn’t help your mind from going haywire the longer you sat there.

“Anything you wanna share with the class?” JJ asked, tucking the blanket around you more when you leaned into him.

“I don’t know,” you really weren’t sure. You assumed, figured, he must know that you’d never had sex. It had to have crossed his mind at least once. Was he waiting for you to mention it to him? Was he just waiting to mention it or was he uninterested?

JJ nodded slowly, tilting his head down to press a kiss against your collar where the large shirt had slipped to one side. You look at the TV screen, absentmindedly worrying your bottom lip between your teeth. JJ’s hand on your thigh returned some sense of gravity to you, drawing your attention away from Balto’s quest and back toward your boyfriend who was watching you with the sweetest blue eyes you’d ever seen.

“What do you think about us having sex?” You asked suddenly, the overwhelming urge to confront the elephant in your head making you blurt out the first thing that came to mind.

To his benefit, JJ looked somewhat startled by the question. It wasn’t one anyone had ever asked him before. He’d dated before and definitely had sex before, but he’d never had an actual conversation about it, not like that. “I uh, did you want to?” JJ asked, clearing his throat a little uncomfortably. He wasn’t completely sure what to say. He had definitely thought about having sex with you, he spent a lot of time thinking about you.

“I don’t know...” you repeated, shrugging. “My mom told me having sex before marriage was evil. But she says that about kissing too.” You replied, pressing a kiss to his lips as an example.

“I don’t know about evil,” he laughed, “John B’s a little more sentimental than me when it comes to sex but...I mean, you shouldn’t do anything you don’t want to.”

“I’m not really sure if I want to or not, I don’t have any experience...” you admitted, “it’s easy, with small stuff like soda and pants but, it’s harder to separate what I believe with what my parents believe when it’s stuff like that. I spent so many years being told that sex is something sacred for a husband and wife but...I don’t know if that’s something I truly believe.”

JJ leaned his forehead against yours, kissing your cheek. “I would never, ever do anything you didn’t want to.”

“I know that.” You replied. “Sorry for ruining Balto.”

“That’s okay, now whenever I watch it, I’ll just think of you wanting to have sex with me.” JJ teased, squeezing your leg just above your knee and making you laugh. You pressed a kiss to JJ’s neck, hiding your face so he couldn’t see you.

“I love you.” You mumbled, lips brushing against his skin as you spoke.

He tightened his grip on your waist, pulling you as close to him as he could, practically onto his lap as he kissed your forehead, “I love you too.” He replied.

You practically jumped off his lap when a knock sounded on the kitchen door, “shoot,” you huffed, closing the laptop as JJ stood up.

“Who is it?” He asked, already grabbing the soda bottles and popcorn.

“It’s Josiah. He promised my dad he would stop over and check on me.” You explained, keeping your voice down as you grabbed a skirt from the laundry off the kitchen, pulling it up, “go in my room.”

“They sent your brother over? I can’t believe your parents’ don’t trust you.”

“I literally have a boy in the house!” You whispered, shoving him down the hall toward your room.

The minute you heard your bedroom door shut you went to the kitchen, letting Josiah in, “sorry, I had the door locked,” you said, hugging your brother as he stepped through the door.

“That’s alright, I forgot my key anyway. What’re you up to?” He asked, walking further into the house.

“Laundry, mostly, I finished some homework for mom.” You shrugged, crossing your arms under your chest and glancing down the hall. “So yeah, just hanging out.”

“Man, it’s so quiet here without anyone else.” Josiah commented, “used to be loud no matter what.”

“Oh yeah, but that was all Eli and Robert.” You replied, “I was always an angel.”

He laughed, “yeah sure.”

Josiah hung around for close to an hour, helping himself to left-over dinner in the fridge and talking about his kids with you, before he finally decided that it was getting late and that you were okay to spend the rest of the night by yourself. By that point you were almost 100% positive that JJ had probably skipped out. You would’ve definitely skipped out if you had to spend an hour sitting in someone’s bedroom while they talked about kids with their older brother. Once you’d locked the door behind your brother you headed to your room, expecting to find it empty. Instead, JJ was sitting there on the top bunk of the beds, reading your KJV bible.

“You really love that top bunk huh?” You laughed, closing your bedroom door behind you.

“Absolutely.” He replied, “this stuff is crazy, by the way.”

“King James is...difficult to understand.” You said, pulling off the skirt you’d put on when Josiah got there and climbing up the ladder to the bunk bed. “I’m not sleeping up here with you, by the way. I have a perfectly good bed down there.”

He smiled, leaning over to kiss you, “I’m staying over?”

“You told me you were staying over, don’t act like it’s a surprise.” You laughed, nudging his side.

JJ held the book on his lap, wrapping his arm around your waist and pulling you against him. He set his chin on your shoulder, pushing the book over so that you could see it to. “Here, explain this shit to me.”

“I don’t think you’re supposed to call the bible shit.” You said, turning your head so you could kiss him. “I like this.”

“Sitting on the top bunk?” JJ asked.

You rolled your eyes, “I mean, getting to spend time with you like this. Not having to worry about my parents or anything.”

“We should keep doing this.” he replied, “my dad’s got a boat, the Phantom...I’m gonna take it after graduation and head down the coast. You should come with me.”

“Leave? Everything?” You asked. There were only two options and you had known that since you started to develop feelings for JJ. You could break ties with your family and hope that this thing with JJ was real enough to survive or you could walk away from him and marry Timothy and move to Nashville.

“I know it’s a...a lot.” JJ said, “but I just want you to be happy.”

“I am, right now.”

“Think about it. We could figure things out, find work somewhere.” He suggested, kissing your shoulder.

You smiled, leaning into him more but not replying. Your gut reaction was to agree immediately, say that you wanted to go with him anywhere but you didn’t want to rush into anything. This week would be enough for right now.

Taglist: @heavenlymama @vindictive-hearts @alexa-playafricabytoto @dontjinx-it @randomficsandshit @niamhobrien @strangerthanfanfiction713 @tovvaa @freckled-and-daydreaming @harleylynn @bibliophilewednesday @dpaccione @bolaurel @poguestyleskye @beautyandthebleh @under-a-canyon-moon @stevie-buck @bijleegiregi @vitaminekabc @minigranger @teamnick @just-smile-darling @obxsummer @damonsalvawhore27 @isqbella @tomzfrog @fangirlvoice @phantompogues @98starkeys @ilovejjmaybank @lemur46 @khiaraaa-in-spacee @babygal-babygal @niya-savage @divvrx @princess-of-the-fandoms @thecaptainsgingersnap @jenjie @yourprincess-maybe @wowmaybankk @outrbanks @mendesmaybank @thehomeiknow @minnie-bby @katiaw2 @2kayla64

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shoutaaizawas · 4 years ago

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Hi! I saw requests where open and I had a small idea. How about The fake dating AU with Izuku and the prompt “I think I’m in love with you.” If it’s okay, please and thank you!

thank you for the request i hope you enjoy!!

↳ izuku midoriya x reader → ❝wedding date❞

event: au prompts summary: you and midoriya are childhood friends and you’ve been in love since high school, before you can stop yourself you offer to be his date to his mother’s wedding to make his mom happy. word count: 2,663 tags/warnings: fake dating, fluff, weddings a/n: okay i think toshinori/inko is super cute so don’t mind me fitting them into this

In hindsight, this was a bad idea but they say hindsight is 20/20. You probably should have seen this coming in the first place.

Izuku Midoriya had been your best friend since you were both kids The first day of Kindergarten you were riding or die. You had been through everything together and were always there for each other. You had both been quirkless at the time and bonded over it. You would always stick up for him and he would do the same for you.

Things had changed when you went to high school. You had both planned on going to UA and you did but you had expected Midoriya to be in the general ed classes with you not in the hero course. It was hard being away from your closest friend but it didn’t stop your friendship. You were so happy for him that he had a chance to follow his dreams.

That wasn’t the only thing that changed, as you got older your platonic feelings had turned into romantic ones. It was hard being so close to someone you cared about so much but your friendship came first and you wouldn’t risk it to be selfish. It was easier to tell yourself he could never like you like that, how could he when he had so many amazing girls that he could date in the hero course? Izuku never looked down on anyone in general education but why would anyone from the hero course date someone who wasn’t a hero?

Once you graduated you pursued your career in the behind the scenes of pro hero work. Izuku was quick to establish himself as an amazing hero and quickly opened an agency himself. You were the first person he told and the first person he hired.

It was a usual Friday night eating takeout in his office trying to finish up all the paperwork from the week. You laugh at a story he tells you from patrol. It’s nice, it’s familiar. Izuku is tall and manly now but it still feels like when you were kids hanging out at his house playing with his All Might figures.

“My mom won’t say it but I know she really wants me to bring a girlfriend to the wedding.” He sighed. You smile but feel a sting of pain at the thought of a girl on his arm.

“I’m sure you can find one, I’m sure there’s a line around the block already.” You tease.

“She doesn’t want just some random girl, she wants me to be dating someone seriously.” He explained. “I know she just wants to see me happy but I would rather go alone. It’s her day though, I don’t want to ruin it.”

“Why don’t you take Uraraka?” You offer, it makes you sick to say it but your his friend and it’d be wrong to withhold advice. You knew she always had a crush on Izuku, honestly, you thought they would have dated by now.

“No, I don’t like her like that.” He said.

Looking back you wish you had used your brain for once and thought it through before opening your mouth.

“Why don’t we go together?” Your blood turns to ice as the words come out before you can stop it. Stupid! What if he catches on that you like him? What if he’s upset that you offered? What if he laughs it off?

“Really?” He asks, one eyebrow raised.

“Uh, yeah. You know I’d do anything for your mom.” You say. While that’s true what you wanted to say you would do anything for him.

“I mean if you don’t mind. I think that would make her really happy.” He said with a shy smile.

“It’s a date.” You say with a smile but you mentally slapping yourself.

That’s how you ended up here, getting dressed for Izuku’s mother’s wedding. It was an event you had already planned to attend considering you were practically part of the family. You had even helped her pick out the decorations and her dress. You loved Inko.

You were excited for her, she deserved a husband that would love her and take care of her. Izuku’s father was never there for either of them, they both deserved more and they finally had it.

Who would have ever thought that Izuku’s step-father would be All Might? Well, Toshinori Yagi as you knew him now.

It made you laugh, you could imagine telling a young Izuku where he would be down the line. You could practically see the excited boy in front of you if you thought hard enough. When Izuku was having a hard time getting through things you always told him everything would be alright. You were happy that you were more than right about that.

“Bunny!” Izuku called out as he entered your apartment. You rolled your eyes at the nickname. You had loved bunnies as a kid, they were your favorite animal. You even had one as a pet. What Izuku didn’t know was that the reason you loved them so much was that they reminded you of him. “Are you ready?”

“Almost, just putting my earrings on!” You said as you put on the jewelry. You looked yourself over in the mirror admiring the dress Inko helped you pick out. It was Izuku’s favorite color, something you hadn’t consciously done. It was flowing and beautiful, perfect for the beach-side wedding.

Straightening the dress you walked out into the living room. You stopped as you caught sight of Izuku. He wore a classic black tuxedo with his hair loosely gelled back, stray hairs framing his face. Your heart nearly stopped at the sight. At the same time, Izuku stared at you.

“I-”

“You loo-”

Both of you spoke at the same time, stopping as you realized that you were talking over each other.

“Sorry, go ahead.” He said rubbing the back of his neck.

“Zuzu you look so handsome.” You teased him with the nickname you had given him as a child.

“You look stunning.” His words were so genuine that you nearly froze.

“Thank you.” You said with a smile. “We should get there soon, so we can help out with the last minute stuff.” You said looking at the door.

“You’re right, let’s go.” He said turning to leave.

The location they picked was beyond beautiful. A green cliffside overlooking the waves. As you walked in with Izuku it looked like things were nearly done. You were able to help with setting up some small details but before you knew it guest were arriving.

You took your seat next to Izuku in the front row. Toshinori stood at the arch waiting for his bride to be. You smiled at the retired hero. It was nice to see two people who deserved a respite from the lives they lead to find each other. They made each other happy and it warmed your heart. You could see Toshinori’s smile from your seat.

The sun was setting behind the arch leaving the sky looking almost fake with its beauty.

The music started and everyone stood to watch Inko enter. She looked beautiful in her white dress, tears already welling up in her eyes as she walked down the aisle.

Looking over at Izuku you saw the tears welling up in his eyes as he watched his mother. Without thinking you reached over taking his hand in yours, threading your fingers between his. His calloused hand was so much larger than yours, a big contrast from when you used to drag him along to the playground as children. You pressed your shoulder against his, even though his tears were happy you couldn’t stop the urge to soothe him.

As Inko approached Toshinori taking her place beside him, Izuku looked over at you. His eyes moved down to your connected hands before glancing back up at your eyes. There was a look on his face you couldn’t place.

Everyone sat down and you were shocked when you let go of his hand only for him to keep your hand close to his. You glanced at him but didn’t question it. He probably was just trying to stay in character.

The wedding was a moment you were so happy to be a part of. Their vows made you tear up not that you would admit it even if Izuku did see it happen. After everyone made their way to the reception area. The sun that was setting now was gone leaving the last lights of the day.

Everyone made their way to the new couple giving their well wishes to them. You and Izuku decided to wait a bit before going over, grabbing some champagne to ease your nerves.

“I told her already.” He said. “That we were going as a couple.” He clarified.

“Oh, good. It’d probably be pretty awkward to drop that on them now.” You said.

“Yeah.” He said. “She was really excited.”

That made your heart drop. What would you guys do after today? Pretend to date whenever you were around his mother? Or did you let her down quickly and say things just felt better as friends? This was a bad idea how could you have been so stupid to do this.

Before you could consider the repercussions of your actions Izuku was pulling you along to his mother and new step-father.

“Aww, honey!” Inko cooed as you both approached. She pulled him into a big hug nearly crushing him despite the height difference. As he did so you gave Toshinori a side hug, congratulating him as well.

“Congratulations, mom.” He said as pulled back smiling at his mom with tears in his eyes.

“Thank you, sweetie.” She said. “I should be saying the same to you too. I’m so happy for you both, I never said it but I always knew you two would end up together. I’m so happy you finally realized it.”

“Heh, yeah. I thought they would have figured it out a lot sooner.” Toshinori joked. Inko smacked his arm gently giving him an endearing look.

“It doesn’t matter I’m just so happy,” Inko said.

The wave of emotions that hit you was too much. You could feel yourself disassociate, it felt like everything around you was a blur. You could barely hear them talking in front of you. This was bad, you shouldn’t have done this. They were so happy. They had always thought you two should be together. How could you ever tell them, how could you ever move on to anyone else?

“Bunny?” You could hear Izuku’s voice muffled. It snapped you back to reality. “Are you okay?”

“I just need some water.” You lied, giving a smile to Toshinori and Inko before walking away as fast as you could without looking more suspicious.

The crowd around you felt so loud. You needed to get away. You made your way away from the reception back towards the cliffs the ceremony had taken place. You found a secluded spot in the darkness, the only light from the full moon glinting off of the ocean waves as they crashed down.

Taking a deep breath of salty air you felt better now that you had some distance but it didn’t remove the feelings in your chest that felt like they were suffocating you.

“Bunny,” You heard Izuku’s concerned voice from behind you. “Are you okay, why’d you run off?”

“Izuku this was a bad idea.” You said looking at him. “How are we supposed to tell your mom? We tell her that we lied? We tell her that it didn’t work out? I didn’t think this through.”

“Bunny, calm down.” He said, placing his hands on your shoulders. The weight of them brought immediate comfort.

“I feel so bad, Izu.” You said, your eyes filling with tears.

“What if we didn’t do any of those things?” He said looking down at you.

“What?” You questioned confused.

“We don’t tell her, we don’t break up.” He said.

“I don’t understand. If we keep pretending we’ll just dig ourselves in a bigger hole. Once the media finds out-”

“That’s not what I’m saying.” He interrupted. “What if we dated for real?”

“Y-You,” You stuttered out. Was he saying what you thought he was saying or were you just hearing what you wanted to hear so badly?

“Bunny, I-” He paused to take a deep breath, his right hand moved from your shoulder to the side of your neck. “I’ve had feelings for you for a long time, feelings that you don’t have for someone who’s just your friend.”

“Izuku-” You breathed, trying to wrap your head around it.

“I-I love you, I have for a long time.” He admitted. “The only reason I said yes to this was because I thought that maybe if we pretended for a night it would give me enough courage to tell you how I really feel.”

“Izuku-”

“If you don’t feel the same, please don’t feel obligated. I’ll tell my mom the truth about all of this and we can try and pretend it didn’t happen-” He said, his tone turning from sure to his usual rambling.

“Izuku!” You finally stopped him. “I feel the same way, that’s one of the reasons this was so hard. I couldn’t stand the thought of being so close to a relationship with you but so far away.”

“Oh.” He said.

“I’ve loved you since high school, I just never thought you’d feel the same. I mean your a pro hero, one of the best now. Why would you want to be with someone like me?” You admitted the insecurities that had plagued you for so long.

“How could you think that? You’re my best friend, you’ve been with me through everything. You were with me before I had a quirk before I was a hero and you’re still here being the most caring person in my life. How could anyone ever compare to you? No one comes close.” He said.

You didn’t consider yourself a crier but you couldn’t stop the tears that ran down your face. For so long you thought you weren’t good enough but here the love of your life was telling you no one could ever come close to you.

“Bunny, please don’t cry.” He said looking down at you were tears in his own eyes. He wiped away the tears that ran down your face. “I love you so much.”

He pulled you close, fingertips brushing the side of your face he looked down at you intensely with the green eyes you loved so much. It felt like the world stopped around you like all the breath had left your lungs.

“Can I kiss you?” He murmured softly as he leaned down towards you.

“Please.” You said, he didn’t hesitate meeting your lips with his own. Your arms wrapped around his neck pulling him in closer. One of his hands stayed at your neck while the other held your waist.

It was hard to let go of him, you had gotten everything you ever wanted in just a few minutes. But this wasn’t your night and you didn’t want to take Izuku away from his mother’s wedding.

Walking back hand in hand you felt like you were walking on air. Music played and people were on the dance floor, twirling in their partner’s arms to the melody.

Izuku looked down at you with a big smile, pulling you forward onto the dance floor. He wrapped his arms around your waist and your hands moved to his shoulders. He couldn’t resist leaning in for another brief kiss.

Dancing the night away, enjoying drinks and food in honor of the newly wedded couple felt like a perfect way to begin a relationship and would always stick in your mind as the best night of your life. That is until it was your time to walk down the aisle.

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#izuku x reader #midoriya x reader #deku x reader #izuku midoriya x reader #midoriya izuku x reader #bnha x reader #mha x reader #bnha #midoriya izuku #my writing #splatjulie

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elizabeth-mitchells · 3 years ago

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Journeys end in lovers meeting - Sam/Deena - Bly Manor AU

Chapters: 4/? Fandom: Fear Street Trilogy (TV) Rating: Explicit Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply Relationships: Samantha "Sam" Fraser/Deena Johnson, Sarah Fier/Hannah Miller (Fear Street), Christine "Ziggy" Berman/Nick Goode, Samantha "Sam" Fraser & Deena Johnson Characters: Samantha "Sam" Fraser (Fear Street), Deena Johnson, Kate Schmidt (Fear Street), Simon Kalivoda, Josh Johnson (Fear Street), Constance (Fear Street Part 3: 1666), Christine "Ziggy" Berman, Nick Goode (Fear Street), Alice (Fear Street Part 2: 1978), Sarah Fier (Fear Street), Hannah Miller (Fear Street), Solomon Goode (Fear Street) Additional Tags: Alternate Universe, The Haunting of Bly Manor AU, Not Canon Compliant, Haunted Houses, Ghosts, Character Death, Minor Character Death, Canon Lesbian Relationship, First Meetings, Fluff and Angst, Eventual Smut, Happy Ending, Au Pair Sam, Gardener Deena, Housekeeper Kate, Cook Simon, Josh and Constance as troubled kids, Ziggy and Nick in an unhealthy relationship, minor Cindy/Alice, Martin cameos, special appearances of all the Shadyside killers as ghosts, Somebody Lives/Not Everyone Dies, The Rest Is Confetti Summary: The year is 1994. Samantha Fraser recently moved to Shadyside, and she desperately needs a job that will help her leave her troubled past behind. She starts working as au pair at Shadyside Manor, where she is not the only one tortured by ghosts. Grief, regrets, guilt, innocent victims, and an ancient curse. At the center of all of it... love.

Chapter 4:

Sam really didn’t want to eavesdrop, but it was a hectic day for everyone but here. It was an accident, really. She just wanted a glass of water, but when she heard Deena and Kate arguing in the kitchen, she stopped before reaching the doorway, and couldn’t help but listen.

“Are you seriously not going?” Deena was saying.

“No, Deena,” Kate replied, in a tone that made it obvious it wasn’t the first time she said so. “I’ll only go to a funeral when I’m dead, thank you very much.”

“Maybe I should kill you then,” Deena grumbled. In the hallway, Sam fought back a smile at the grumpiness of the gardener. “He’s your platonic husband and you’re letting him down in the most fucking tragic day of his life, Kate.”

“He understands,” Kate snapped back at her. “Besides, we’ve let each other down before.”

Eavesdropping on teenagers feels even worse. But Sam can’t help herself, again. She just seems to be at the right place at the right time, and nobody hears her coming. She was just looking for Constance and Josh when she found them talking in the classroom in whispers. She worried they might have been planning something unwise, so she listened in for a moment.

“Do you think they can follow us?” Constance asked in a whisper.

“No, I don’t think it works like that,” Josh replied.

The girl hummed thoughtfully and then added, in a considerably more distressed tone, “Do you think they’ll try to stop us?”

“Shh! Constance!” Josh stopped her. “Let’s just… see what happens, okay? We’re in this together, right? All of us.”

Sam considered intervening, but for the life of her she couldn’t figure out what they were talking about. She could barely keep track of their changing moods or Constance’s name. In the end, she walked away, deciding to keep an eye out and studying them more closely when she had the chance.

Sam had tried her best, but she really had nothing else to do at the moment. It was strange, having a day mostly free from her responsibilities as au pair. Deena would be taking Josh and Constance with her to Simon’s mom’s funeral. A little lost in her thoughts without anything else to do while they all got ready, Sam took a seat near the bottom of the stairs, looking out at the gardens she could see through the open door. It started out as a particularly sunny day, not at all something you’d expect for a funeral.

The au pair was leaning against the railing of the stairs. A little behind her, under the safety and familiarity of the manor’s shadows, Harry Rooker stood perfectly still. His clothes hadn’t changed at all in all the decades he had been wandering those halls, even his bowtie was in still place. The same couldn’t be said about his face though. The passing of the years, one after another, had slowly washed away his features. His eyes were no longer there, his mouth was barely noticeable and his nose wouldn’t likely last long. The burn on the side of his face, which had hurt him so much during the war and cost him so much even after his return, was still there, stubbornly, almost mocking him. As well as his knife, always in his hand, always sharp. Never being useful anymore.

The sound of a heavy pair of boots coming down the stairs, as often, disturbed the peace of the foyer. Sam tried not to look too excited as she turned her head to look at Deena descend the stairs, but when she saw the gardener’s outfit she probably failed to hide her pleased reaction.

“Hi,” Sam gasped a little and stood up, “You look…”

“Like I remembered how to take a shower?” Deena smirked. She reached the bottom of the stairs and showed off her clothes, consisting of all black pants, shirt, and blazer that fit her perfectly, made her look a little too good for a funeral, if Sam had to give her honest opinion.

“Like a waiter,” Sam said, biting her lip to keep that honest opinion from spilling out.

“Hey! Didn’t know that side of you, Sunnyvale. Rude,” Deena replied, smiling the entire time. When her expression softened a little, she asked, “Are you sure you’re okay staying here by yourself?”

“Yes, t’s okay. Besides, Kate’s here too.”

Deena made an unamused sound. “Sometimes it feels like she isn’t,” she murmured.

“Yeah,” Sam agreed quietly. Before the silence could stretch for too long, she spoke up again. “Anyway, I, um, had to… be present in a funeral, not too long ago. It’s… I can’t, again. Not yet.”

As she spoke, Sam couldn’t look Deena in the eyes. Not when the only thing in her mind was Sunnyvale. Peter. Her mother. Peter. Twentyfive entitled children in a classroom. Peter. A heavy engagement ring and suffocating wedding dress. Peter.

But it didn’t start like that. It started with her father getting sick, her mother being cruel enough to divorce him on the spot to save herself from taking care of him, and Sam being already in Sunnyvale, thirty minutes away, when he finally died. It started with her mother wrapping her in her best dress, too old for her already, and dragging her to the neighbors house, because they were rich, and look at that handsome young boy, he already has his eyes on you! They were only eight. But then they were twelve, and Peter got in a fight for her and felt entitled to her attention ever since, and nobody ever told her she didn’t have to give him anything she didn’t want to. So when he demanded it, she gave him a kiss, a second date, the color of her prom dress so he could get a matching tie. She gave and she gave until she didn’t know what else he could take from her, but everyone made her feel like she still owed him. So she gave hiim a second chance when he first hit her, and she gave him her bags when he told her to move in with him, she gave him a third and fourth chance, and she gave him the answer he wanted when he offered her a wedding ring.

“Sam? Are you okay?”

In the blink of an eye, Sam was back in Shadyside Manor, with Deena’s gentle hands on her elbows, anchoring her to reality, and those warm brown eyes worriedly searching her face, not knowing what horrors they could find behind the walls Sam spent a lifetime building.

“Yes,” Sam blurted out. “Yes, I’m okay. I’m okay.”

“Right,” Deena nodded and slowly stepped away from the au pair. “Well, I’m leaving now. Try to come up with something real to tell me when I return, okay?”

Sam suddenly couldn’t come up with any words so she nodded, smiled, and watched holding her breath as Deena walked away from her, not without glancing over her shoulder by the door.

Sam stood awkwardly in the middle of the chapel. She had made it too far to turn around now, but she didn’t dare move closer and interrupt Kate who appeared to be praying. Except, before Sam made up her mind about her next move, Kate spoke up without turning around.

“Are you just going to stand there like a ghost?”

“Sorry,” Sam blushed. “Uh, how did you know I was-”

“I have eyes on the back of my head, darling,” Kate replied with a smile and finally turned around.

“Am I interrupting you?”

“No, it’s okay,” Kate softened. “I’m not a funeral type of person. I deal with loss in my own way.”

“I get it,” Sam nodded. She found the courage to continue walking closer to the other woman.

“If you ask me,” Kate continued, somewhat unprompted, “This is more for our own comfort.” She nodded her head to the side, indicating the five red little candles burning. “You have to be there for people while they’re still alive. Simon gave his entire life for his mother. I’ve been there with him for most of the journey, in ways that I know count so much more than missing out on one tragic goodbye party.”

Again, Sam nodded. She took a seat down on one of the pews close to Kate. She really didn’t want to think about the funerals in her own life. Her mother made sure they arrived late and left early for Sam's father’s funeral. And then a few months ago…

“You two are very close,” she blurted out. It was a statement, a question, and mostly just a way to get Kate to keep talking.

“Best friends since childhood,” Kate said and she wore one of the most genuine smiles Sam had seen on her. “We kissed once, and afterward I punched him in the face. We’ve been inseparable ever since. Which might be the best and worst part about our friendship.”

“What do you mean?”

This time Kate took her time before replying. Her smile was gone.

“Ever since I can remember, I’ve wanted to leave Shadyside and see the world. But there was nothing that could have convinced Simon to leave his mom. He missed a chance to work at a restaurant in Paris, I missed my chance to see the world, but we have each other. We have each other and ninety-nine percent of the time it feels like the right choice.”

The remaining one percent of the time hung in the air of the chapel so heavily it was almost palpable.

“What about now?” Sam asked, not without a good amount of hesitation.

The meaning of her question was obvious. Simon wasn’t tethered to Shadyside anymore. However, there was no answer from the housekeeper. Kate chuckled sadly, completely dismissing the idea of grabbing a bag of her best clothes and her best friend’s hand and moving away to Paris any day now. Instead, she stood up and threw the little box of matches for Sam to catch.

“What?” Why?” The au pair looked back and forth between the matches and Kate.

“Light a candle,” Kate replied. She noticed the confusion in Sam’s face, but the au pair, unknowingly, carried her heart, broken and hopeful at once, on her sleeve. “Dead people, regrets, protection, good luck,” Kate said while methodically fixing the wrinkles on her red skirt, checking her ponytail, and mindlessly passing her hand over the back of her neck. “Everything counts.”

Sam stayed silent. She watched Kate walk out of the chapel and then she moved toward the candles. She moved almost automatically, lighting up the first match, but then she couldn’t bring herself to actually light the candle. The small flame burned bright for a second, highlighting the sadness in Sam’s blue eyes, but she let it die before reaching for a candle. }

Eventually, Sam decided to light up a new match and light up a single candle at random. Not for dead people, and not for her attempts at forgetting about them, but for the time she had wasted trying to please people that did nothing but hurt her for so long.

On the way out of the chapel, Sam made the mistake of glancing at the windows. Of course he was still there. He would never leave her, would he? She had seen him angry at her more times than she could count, but never like that. That expression of outstanding disgust and fury was forever etched in Sam’s memory of him. He was just a shadow, he was pure darkness in the shape of a man she once knew. But Sam had to look away and walk as fast as she could away from him, fearing that any day now his image would definitely leave the restrained space of reflective surfaces and finally kill her, like she had killed him.

“Dinner… is served!” Simon announced with a flourish.

Simon and Deena dropped several bags on the kitchen table and they chuckled when everyone else eagerly jumped forward to look at the contents spilling on the table.

“There’s nothing like an absurd amount of junk food to fix all your problems,” he smiled proudly at the scene in front of him. All the people closest to him with smiles on their faces, exchanging a warm meal and easy conversation. His smile turned just nostalgic enough, thinking about his mother, the woman who taught him that lesson. She used to fix all problems with food. She had special meals for every sickness, mended broken hearts with each person’s favorite food, and she celebrated every occasion with big feasts. So far, Simon couldn’t say she had ever failed.

Simon, Deena, Kate, Sam, Josh, and Constance, sat down at the table. They got started with their junk food feast. Everything was still hot, smelled amazing, and tasted even better. Behind Simon and the teenagers, stood Ruby Lane. She tilted her head one side and the other, observing the scene in front of her. Her slightly blurred expression showed confusion, then a hint of sadness, and finally settled in something surprisingly close to affection. Eating. Food. Good company. Friends. She distantly could remember the feeling of it all. The details had left her a while ago. But if she focused hard enough on the smiles of these strangers, she almost felt right at home, almost felt like she belonged with them, almost let herself believe that if she wanted to she could reach out, take a seat, enjoy a meal with them… Almost, almost but not quite.

At the table, conversation flowed easily. Everyone was enjoying the food, and the adults all had one or two beers with the meals, perhaps a little more. Despite the emotionally heavy day, the group was in a surprisingly good mood. A consequence of growing up in Shadyside, maybe. They were either the best or the worst at coping with loss. The trick was not knowing how to tell the difference between both extremes.

Sam was a little concerned about the fact that the pair of teenagers looked so refreshed and so much like themselves after attending a funeral. Maybe they just needed the time away from the manor. She just hoped it would last.

While all of them discussed favorite meals and comfort food, Simon finally explained his choice of food for the day. “This is actually from the first place where I worked,” he confessed.

“Really?” Sam asked, leaning forward with a kind smile.

“Yeah. My mom got me the job,” he added. “She was the sweetest woman, but she could be scary as shit if she wanted to. She convinced them to give a part-time job to little old me. I was barely fifteen.”

“Tell her why you got fired,” Kate said, raising a playful eyebrow in his direction.

Simon rolled his eyes and picked up a couple of fries to throw in her direction. “For giving you free food you asshole!”

While all the others laughed, Kate gasped loudly and wore a nearly comically offended expression for a moment. It was her turn to roll her eyes and lean across Deena to look at Sam and explain, “This bitch throwing me food like a toddler? He got fired for being too talented for a food truck, basically.”

“Ah, whatever,” Simon laughed. He ran a hand through his messy blonde hair and pushed through his unexpected shyness to explain. “The food was good, but it was also too slow and expensive. Got me fired but got me noticed.” He stopped then, and tried to make it seem natural and not at all like he was holding back information. Which made Sam think about the missed opportunity across the ocean that Kate had mentioned earlier that day. “But!” Simon went on, with extra cheerfulness on his voice to hide who knows how many things anymore, “now I get to happily cook for all of you, ungrateful little shits that you are.”

“Hey!” Deena protested, stopped a second to swallow her food and continued. “I am grateful. Dude, I love your food. I survived eating this cheap shit almost exclusively for like a decade. I’m in heaven when you cook actual food.”

“Do you just love me for my food?” Simon pouted dramatically.

Sam watched them banter with a smile. Before she could stop herself, she was joining the conversation. “This actually reminds me of my childhood in Shadyside,” she said, holding up a burger in her hand.

“What?” Kate smirked, “You don’t have these bad boys in Sunnyvale?”

Sam laughed along with everyone else, she was starting to feel just the slightest bit tipsy, and this time decided not to mention the fact that Kate hadn’t even taken a bite of her burger yet. However, she hadn’t managed to shake herself from the weird, nostalgic mood that had had a hold of her the entire day. One moment she was there, seated at the kitchen table in Shadyside Manor, and with the blink of an eye, she was back at an expensive Sunnyvale restaurant.

She had been more than a little tipsy back then, she had needed the courage in any way she could find it. During the meal, a hundred different memories of her mother’s cruel comments on her weight and eating habits passed through her mind. She didn’t push them away though, she focused on them, because it hadn’t been just her mother, and she needed to focus on that pain and resentment. Because seated across from her was Peter. Peter, who had joined her mother in criticizing her. Peter, who never once defended her from his own mother. Peter, who had hurt her emotionally and physically more than anybody else.

Peter, who refused to lose an argument, who didn’t know when to let it go, and would never let her go. They didn’t get to the altar, but since their first kiss, he had assumed only death would take her away from him. He didn’t consider he’d go first, he might have even dreamed of a second or third wife, and one or two times he had been close to being responsible for that sudden end. Instead, it was their anniversary, they were both drunk, Sam admitted more than she had meant to, he was yelling at her in the middle of the street, threatening to kill her, taking a step backward when she reached for him, and then there were the truck’s headlights…

“Oh, yeah,” Sam blurted out, and hoped they wouldn’t notice the way her voice was trembling. “But in Sunnyvale, we add a little caviar on top of the burgers.”

Sam was surprised to see everyone laugh at what she had considered a pretty lame joke. It was a beautiful sound. She didn’t think she’d ever been surrounded by the incredible number of five people that genuinely liked her for who she really was. Josh even choked a little on the food he had been chewing, and Simon slapped his back, maybe a little harder than necessary. It made Kate and Constance laugh even harder. Those were things that Sam noticed, but her focus was actually on the woman beside her. Deena had laughed with all of them, of course. But the soft smile she was directing at Sam was something completely different, something she couldn’t even compare to anything else she had ever experienced.

When the conversation hit an inevitable lull, Constance was the first one to notice the way Simon’s mood dimmed, his shoulders slumped and he stopped eating, just fumbling with the papers on the table. There was a lot a person could say to a friend that just lost their mother, then there was what a moody teenager with an exceptionally tragic life could offer.

“My aunt was a shit cook,” Constance blurted out. “These burgers were all she got for me when my parents died. But I couldn’t eat it… I thought I would never eat again, which would be okay because that would kill me and I’d be reunited with…” She shrugged, and everyone else at the table listened to her intently, rendered speechless not just by the unexpected confession, but because of her expression, neutral without being insensitive, sincere without being very emotional. “But then,” Constance continued, adding the smallest smiles here and there. “It was like I could hear my mom yelling at me for not eating. Cindy Berman could be a pain in the ass in case you didn’t know. But that feeling… it was like she was right there with me, beautiful and annoying and never gone entirely.”

For a moment, nobody knew what to say. Simon, although his eyes were glassy, smiled brightly at her. “You do not act as if you’re listening to your mom,” he said.

“Hey! I ignored her when she was alive too, she gets it,” Constance rolled her eyes playfully. “But the point is I know that we have to keep eating, and keep living… for them. Don’t we?”

“Yeah, we do,” Simon agreed.

He took a deep breath to get a hold of his emotions and raised his beer bottle to the center of the table, where Kate, Deena, and Sam joined him in a toast for the living. Constance joined in enthusiastically with a can of soda, but Josh didn’t move a muscle.

“Hey, do we have some more beer?” Josh asked a moment later. “I could really use one.”

“Uh, no. Not at fifteen you can’t,” Deena replied immediately. She tensed on her seat.

The teenage boy rolled his eyes and focused on the au pair across the table from him. “Miss Fraser, do you think I could have a beer?” He asked with a sharp, charming smile that looked just a little off on the edges.

“I… agree with your sister, Josh,” Sam replied carefully. She didn’t want to cross any boundaries, but she was also responsible for the teenagers.

“Do you have any idea how long I’ve gone without a real drink?!”

“I remember my first beer,” Kate interrupted him, reminiscing with an easy smile on her face. “It was my first time babysitting Constance, and then Christine thought it would be a good idea to give me a beer.”

“My mom hated beer,” Sam said. “She used to say one sip could mean I’ll end up in hell.” Then she took a hearty sip, thinking of her mother and the thousand suffocating rules she’d pressed upon Sam’s shoulders her entire life.

“Well,” Deena smirked, “You did end up in Shadyside so…”

While most of them laughed, Josh’s face contorted into an expression of deep frustration and rage until he didn’t look like himself anymore. “Why the hell am I being controlled by a bunch of dykes?!” He slammed his hand on the table furiously.

But just as soon as the words left his mouth, Sam and Deena jumped out of their chairs. Deena was his sister, and maybe Sam was just the au pair, but while Deena was so angry that she couldn’t even get any words out, Sam got ahead of her.

“That language, and that attitude, and beyond unacceptable, Josh. You are going to your room right now. No discussion. Did you hear me?” Sam said, her voice firm, unwavering, and her stance perfectly commanding.

All eyes were on her, but she was staring straight at Josh. He didn’t budge, he was stronger than most teenagers Sam had ever worked with, but she was even stronger. She didn’t hesitate at all. She glanced quickly at Constance, and the girl, despite intensely rolling her eyes, stood up and walked toward Josh. She not-so-gently grabbed his arm and pulled him out of the chair. Slowly, and with Josh throwing threatening looks at Sam over his shoulder, they walked out of the kitchen. After excusing herself, Sam followed them. She didn’t look back to see the impressed looks her friends were exchanging, pleasantly surprised by that side of her.

“Hey, Sunnyvale,” Deena said as soon as she caught sight of Sam walking down the stairs of the manor to the foyer where she was waiting for her.

Sam reached the end of the stairs and noticed that Deena was wearing a jacket, and holding Sam’s own jacket in her hands. But when the au pair reached out to grab it, Deena pulled back.

“Ah, ah. Not yet,” Deena said. She was smiling, but there was a hint of worry in her eyes. “You only get warmth in exchange for information.” Her words made the au pair chuckle, and Deena instantly felt herself relax a little. “How did it go with my asshole brother?” She finally asked.

“Um, it was fine, I think,” Sam replied. “He… Well, I think he’s embarrassed. He probably regrets it a lot. He’s acting almost as if he doesn’t even remember what he said.”

“That doesn’t make it better,” Deena frowned. She felt pretty embarrassed about the entire incident, and she was so not looking forward to having that conversation with Josh, who apparently had turned into some kind of monster in the place of her sweet younger brother. “I’m sorry about it.”

Sam shrugged and attempted a smile. “If it helps, I think he really listened when I explained that we all just want what’s best for him, and having that makes him luckier than most of us.”

The gardener nodded thoughtfully. “I agree with you there,” she said as she held open Sam’s jacket to help her put it on. Deena was careful, and her hands were confident, but at the same time, she barely touched Sam’s body as she helped her. The only thing she couldn’t help herself from doing was standing perhaps a little closer than necessary. Enough to feel her heart skip a beat when Sam’s blonde hair brushed her cheek, and the smell of some sweet-scented shampoo filled her senses. “But also, how depressing is that for us?” Deena said, stepping back from Sam. The au pair laughed and turned around to stare a Deena, who offered her a hand and said, “Come on, let’s go be depressing outside for a change.”

#helloo please support my attempt at sad spooky fic #fear street #sameena #sam x deena #sam fraser #deena johnson #deena x sam #fear street fanfiction #my fic

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queenof-literature · 4 years ago

Note

Hiiiiiiii! Is it alright to have a fic of th LU boys in a modern setting?

Hi anon! Thank you for the request! I’m so sorry... this turned out SO LONG

Anyway

What’s this? Me doing a request after I have completely dropped the ball on everything? I’m so sorry as I stated if I haven’t directly/publicly announced I am not comfortable doing a request then I HAVE gotten all your requests and I am working on them. There’s just a lot going on right now. I love reading through all of your requests/messages, and I love writing them. Just a reminder: For now requests are closed until I can honor my commitment and catch up, but they’ll open back up eventually.

Thank you for the request anon, I had a blast writing it! I hope it didn’t turn out too crack for your tastes.

Here’s the link for this story on Ao3

TW: Implied child abuse and themes of death. Not very explicit, but the warning is there

When Time laid eyes on his child for the first time, he knew he would do anything to protect him. Bundled in Malon’s arms, huge blue eyes looking up at him curiously, little fingers reached up to grab at him. Truthfully Time was worried that the one eye would scare his son. Malon told him that was ridiculous, he was the boy's father and the boy would know. It turns out she was right, the little boy looked at his father happily and reached up towards the man’s face, not bothered by the scars, marks, or lack of a right eye. Malon would later tease him for crying, but that was okay.

It’s interesting how children don’t always match up with your imagination. His son was shy, to the point where it was becoming worrying for Time and Malon. They took him to see a counselor, after another fight with the boy’s teacher at how he wouldn’t participate in class. Social Anxiety, a severe case according to the counselor. His son would only talk at home, becoming silent anywhere else. After multiple sessions, Time had a plethora of information to help his son through it. This is not what he expected for his son’s childhood, but that didn’t matter. Life was full of surprises and his son was one of the brightest lights Time had ever met, and he would love him no matter what.

“Dad?” The six year old in his lap drawing Time’s attention away from his book.

“Yes?” Time brought his full attention to his son.

“Is your name really Time?”

“Why are you asking, little wolf?” Time asked in amusement.

“Your name sounds weird compared to other names.” His son told him matter of factly, feeling the vibrations of his dad’s laugh against his back.

“No, pup. Time is a nickname that I got and it just kind of stuck.” Time told his son. He hadn’t even considered he would question his father’s name, it was just normal to Time at this point.

“So it’s a nickname? Can I have one? Where’d you get it from?” Twilight bounced on his lap. Time paused. Had he really never shown his son his old game console?

“Well, I was absolutely obsessed with a game: Ocarina of Time.” Time waved his hands with flourish, causing his son to giggle.

“Ocarina? Like the instrument you play?”

“That’s the one.” Time confirmed, mind jumping back to the lullabies he would play to get his son to sleep. “These games helped me…” Time trailed off, not exactly wanting to talk about his not-so-great childhood to his six year old. “They helped me through some tough times.” Time said gently. “I could go on an adventure, be a hero, explore, anything.” Time was brought out of his musings by his son’s large and curious eyes.

“Can I play?” His son asked shyly, and Time couldn’t help but grin at his son wanting to share that with him.

“Of course, pup! Although I have to warn you.” His son perked up at Time’s serious expression. “If you find one you like, there may be no going back from the nickname.” Time warned, thinking back to the point in his life where everyone simply called him ‘Time’ instead of his real name. “Are you sure you’re ready?” Time asked seriously, struggling to hold back his laugh when his son nodded back just as serious.

“I’m ready.” Twilight confirmed.

The rest of the day was spent with Time teaching his son how to play his old games, until it eventually came time where his son wanted to pick one. His son stared ahead at his collection, eyes lighting up when he saw one in particular. Oh, Time should have known how this would go.

“Wolf!” His son shouted excitedly as he looked at the cover of the game.

“That’s a good one!” Time smiled at the worn game, the gold letters ‘Twilight Princess’ stood out against the wolf of the cover. His son was obsessed with animals, wolves in particular. They spent some time playing in the basement, his son instantly fell in love with the game, spending most of his time shapeshifting in and out of wolf form and babbling excitedly about how cool it was. Him and Time were so immersed they didn’t even hear Malon come home. Twilight jumped up when he heard footsteps coming down the stairs.

“Mom! Mom!” Twilight yelled, running up to hug his mother’s legs. “I have a nickname just like Dad! Twilight! Look what I can do!” Twilight ran back to the controller and shapeshifted into a wolf, mesmerized as the character howled again. Time looked back with a sheepish look as Malon raised an amused eyebrow. Of course she couldn’t be mad when the now nicknamed Twilight dragged her over and showed her all the things he could do in the game. She hadn’t seen her son this outgoing and happy in a long time. Besides, Twilight certainly wasn’t a bad name to have.

Time sighed in relief as he made it to his son’s school just in time for pickup. His shift had run a little overtime and he had to take a shortcut just to make it. Time beamed as his seven year old ran up to him. He still struggled to talk in the classroom, but he was just as energetic as ever.

“Dad!” Time scooped up Twilight just as the boy launched at him. “Guess what!” Twilight said excitedly. “What?” Time asked. “I made a friend!” Twilight beamed. Now that surprised Time. His boy always had trouble making friends, everyone in class tended to avoid him as much as Time hated to even think about that.

“That’s amazing, Twi! What’s their name?” Time asked, carrying Twilight to his car. Twilight got a little embarrassed, peaking Time’s interest.

“Well… it turns out he likes the same games we do!” Twilight said, surprising Time once again. “So we made up a nickname for him too. I’m sorry, I hope that’s okay.” Twilight looked up sadly at Time’s face.

“Of course that’s fine, bud.” Time reassured, and Twilight lit up once again. “Now, what’s his favorite game? His answer depends on if you can be friends with him or not.” Time joked, making Twilight giggle from the backseat.

“He likes A Tale of Warriors.” Twilight said. “So Warrors.” Time was silent for a moment.

“That game was okay. Ocarina of Time is still the best.” Time smirked as Twilight once again went into his argument about how, no, Twilight Princess was the best.

The first time Warriors was over for dinner, he continued to surprise Time. He was the opposite of their son, not a shy bone in his body, but he was a sweet kid and was obviously raised with manners. Time was even more surprised he was friends with Twilight when he met the kid in person. According to what he heard from Twilight, Warriors was quite popular among his class, and kids tended to not have patience for those very far outside their social circle, and Twilight was as quiet as they came in class. But the two had become as thick as thieves, Warriors apparently didn’t care at all how quiet Twilight was, he tossed everything aside to befriend Time’s son no matter what was said behind their back, and Time couldn’t help but feel grateful that his son had such a loyal friend.

Malon and Time were planning on using the boy’s given name, whatever it was, but Twilight proudly introduced his friend as ‘Warriors’ and said boy seemed very happy to have that nickname. So Warriors it was.

Dinner was louder than usual with their son’s friend, but it didn’t seem to stress their son out at all. It was obvious the two boys were close despite their obvious differences, and both parents were happy their boy was smiling and laughing around another child. By the time Warriors’ mother came to pick him up, the family had grown close with Twilight’s friend. When Time met Warriors’ mother it was obvious where the little boy got his manners from. The woman was sweet and polite, but obviously protective of her son. Time saw her scan the environment and her son’s happiness the way Malon always did with Twilight.

Warriors raced into his mother’s arms and chatted away about his evening, and it was obvious how close their bond was. Time would find out later from the woman part of the reason why. It was only her and Warriors, with her becoming an expert at balancing her career, son, and making sure her ex husband kept away from them. The woman wouldn’t tell them what happened with Warriors’ father and why they split, but by the dark, protective look on her face it became obvious to Time what had happened.

That’s why the night Time and Malon had rushed to the hospital after a panicked call from Warriors, and they saw him sitting alone in the waiting room wrapped in his mother’s blue scarf and sobbing, Malon instantly swept the boy into her warm arms. Time knew from that moment on, he had another son.

The next friend Twilight made was at eight years old. Both he and Warriors had accepted the new student into their circle as soon as they talked to him. It was an instant click, from what Time heard. The little boy was one of the sweetest kids Time had ever met, and also pretty quiet. Twilight knew the struggle of being quiet in a new and scary classroom, and had gone and tried to befriend him. Time couldn’t be more proud of him.

“I’m proud of you.” Time told his son as they were on their way to pick up Warriors from fencing practice. Warriors was still in grief, of course he was, but fencing had really struck a chord with the boy. According to him, feeling the sabre in his hand was one of the best feelings in the world. Time could tell that having something he was passionate about was helping him heal, no matter how slow the process was. Plus, according to his teacher, Warriors was a natural.

“It was just talking to him.” Twilight replied, a little confused.

“But most won’t do that. It’s hard being a new student. I’m proud of you for reaching out, I know how scary that is.” Especially for you. Time didn’t say the thought out loud. Twilight had been getting better at coping with his social anxiety, and Time and Malon did everything they could to give him the tools he needed, but the boy still struggled immensely.

“...do you know about any parents missing a child?” Twilight asked hesitantly. Time almost slammed on the brakes in shock.

“Do I what?” Time asked.

“Well… the new kid said that he lives home to home and he doesn’t know where his parents are. I just thought since you help find people you might know. I want to help him.” Twilight told his dad nervously. Time went cold. That sounded a lot like foster care to him.

“I’m sorry, pup, I don’t know of anything.” Time confirmed sadly, not knowing what else to say. It was painfully obvious the parents weren’t missing, but most likely left their child to the system. Time tried so hard not to be mad, he knew not every parent had the opportunities to provide for a child. He just hoped that child had better experiences than he did.

The boys had been in the basement for a while, Time figured he should go and check on the troublesome trio and make sure they didn’t find any trouble. He walked down the stairs, only to hear the sound of a battle.

“Which one are you boys playing now?” Time asked in amusement, only to be completely ignored. “Twilight, Warriors-” before Time could say the third boy's name, Warriors interrupted him. “It’s Sky now!” Warriors hit the third boy, now deemed Sky, playfully on the shoulder.

“Awe, Skyward Sword. Good choice.” Time laughed at the fact that now both of his sons, and their friend, all had nicknames from the same game series.

Later that night, Sky got his backpack and was prepared to open the door.

“Oh! Is your guardian here dear?” Malon asked, looking out the window.

“No Ms. Malon.” Sky said shyly. “I’m walking home.”

“Just Malon is fine sweetie. It’s getting awfully late to walk…” Malon frowned in concern. “I’ll drive you home.” Malon offered brightly.

“Oh that’s okay Ms- Malon.” Sky stammered nervously. “I don’t want to cause any trouble.

“No trouble at all, dear.” Malon smiled, grabbing her keys.

“Thank you.” Sky smiled at her gratefully, and she could melt just looking at the small boy’s smile. Sky was quiet the entire ride over, only answering small questions when Malon asked. She didn’t put too much pressure on the boy, him and her son seemed very similar in how they handled social situations.

“Is this it?” Malon double checked, approaching a suburban looking house.

“Yes.” Sky chipped. “Thank you again!” Sky said.

“Anytime sweetheart! Here, I’ll walk you up.” Malon turned off her car, glancing at Sky’s nervous expression as they approached the door. She would have to pay close attention to what awaited them at the top of the porch. Sure, Sky could just be a nervous kid, but Malon felt something else was going on, and her instincts were rarely wrong. She knocked politely on the door, noticing how Sky shied away from the door ever so slightly.

“Oh hello.” A tall man answered the door. Everything in the home just seemed normal, perhaps a little too neat. The man who she assumed was the foster father had brown hair and hazel eyes, in the background he saw a woman playing with children that looked exactly like them. Everything seemed to be fine, but Malon knew better than to write off Sky’s behavior. Many awful things could happen behind closed doors. “Oh! There you are.” The man looked at Sky, but didn’t seem particularly happy to see him, nor was he angry. Simply neutral. “I hope he wasn’t too much trouble.” The man said to Malon, making Sky shrink down even more, as he slowly walked past the man and into the house. The woman playing with her children didn’t even acknowledge him, all of her attention on the kids in front of her.

“Not at all, he was a delight.” Malon smiled despite the disturbing implications in front of her. “He’s such a sweetheart, you’re very lucky to have a kid like him.” There, she had dropped the bait, now to see how he responded. “Oh. He’s not ours. We have kids of our own.” The man said casually, and Malon felt her blood boil at the tone of voice the man had. As if blood was everything, as if she didn’t already have a son at home that wasn’t her blood. It changed nothing, she loved both her boys more than anything. “Anyway, it’s been a pleasure, have a good night.” An insincere tone spoke up before there was a door in her face. She understood now what was going on, she understood perfectly.

Malon marched to her car, fuming as she drove home. How dare they! How dare they! There wasn’t a mark on Sky, not physically, but that didn’t mean he wasn’t ignored and neglected in that home. Why would those people even volunteer to foster if that’s how they felt? For the pats on the back? For the praises?

By the time she got home, her husband and the boys were all in bed. She quickly hid her anger enough to wish each of her boys a goodnight and make sure they were settled in their rooms, before gently shutting their doors and marching to her and her husband’s room.

“Hey, love. How we-” Time trailed off as he saw the thunderous look his wife held. Oh no.

“How would you feel about getting a foster license?”

Malon and Time, of course always asked their current children if adopting and fostering was alright with them. Twilight was very eager when he found out Warriors and him were going to be brothers, even if the situation itself was tragic. And both him and Warriors were ecstatic at the implication that Sky might be their brother too.

“Don’t get too excited.” Time chided when he saw the looks on his boys’ faces. “This doesn’t mean we can adopt him. It may not be what he wants, and he’s been in the foster system for some time now so it’s different than it was with Warriors.” Time explained.

“Is it because my mom…” Warriors trailed off. Warriors’ child psychologist told them that Warriors had a hard time saying the word ‘death’, which was not out of the ordinary for children who were grieving.

“We were your mother’s emergency contact, love.” Malon explained gently. “So it was easier for us to adopt you. Sky has been in the foster care system for a while now, and they have a lot of precautions to make sure he’s safe. I know this all is very confusing. Do you understand, at least a little bit?” Malon checked, and Warriors nodded slowly.

“I think so. Well, I hope Sky says yes!” Warriors exclaimed.

“Me too, sweetheart. But don’t push him.” Malon reminded. Overall she was very pleased with how the boys seemed to understand the situation. Then Twilight piped up.

“So… are we going to adopt every friend I make?” Okay maybe Malon would need to explain this one more time.

A week into fostering and Sky was still quiet, but Warriors and Twilight had a habit of making him laugh and bringing him out of his shell. He seemed fascinated whenever Time and Malon gave him even an ounce of attention, and that made their hearts twist painfully. Time, who had similar experiences, had gently explained to Sky that ignoring a child is absolutely not normal, and that he deserved better. The child had not seemed to believe Time completely, but he was slowly getting used to their home life. He enjoyed helping Malon in the garden, asking Time about his job, and playing games with Warriors and Twilight. After two months, Malon and Time thought it was finally the right moment to ask.

“Sky… would you like to be a permanent member of the family? The option is up to you, but we would love to adopt you if you’ll be happy here.” Through many tears, all Sky could do was nod.

Time sighed and cracked his back. A week of desk work made his back make all sorts of fun pops. He wanted to be out in the field again, but life as a detective had been slow so far. Well, he should have been careful what he wished for.

“Detective! I need you to go with Officer Watson.” His captain called out urgently.

“What happened?” Time got up, already grabbing his jacket.

“Two kids. They found them on the streets. They need you to talk to them and calm them down, the EMTs can’t get close without them lashing out.” Well… that wasn’t exactly what Time was expecting.

“Wait what?” Time halted. “Why me? I’m a detective not an officer.”

“We have no available social services to go into the field, they’re refusing to come with the patrol officers, you have three kids, and a background in negotiation. Now go!” His captain ordered. Time resisted rolling his eyes at the captain’s demanding tone and walked briskly with Officer Watson to a patrol car. What did he mean by kids? If this was the streets of around here, that most likely meant late teens who had run away from home.

They were absolutely not in their late teens. By kids, they meant children. They looked younger than his boys, sitting in a dingy alley with torn and dirty clothes. The cops around them were obviously giving them space, but surrounded them loosely to ensure they didn’t run off and get themselves hurt. Well, more hurt.

The one that looked older was curled protectively around the younger, who had an obviously broken leg with a very worrying amount of blood. It looked like the EMTs couldn’t get close with the older ordering them to get away and shoving the younger’s head deeper into his collarbone.

“Hey, give them a little more space.” Time ordered the officers, who complied once they saw who had spoken. Time kneeled down, giving the boys plenty of space. The oldest looked no older than eight, and had stark, icy blue eyes that peered at Time with distrust and harshness. He had bright blonde hair with an odd pink streak, and Time wondered if the boy had gotten a hold of some hair dye. The younger was in the older boy’s lap, and some of the biggest brown eyes Time had ever seen peered out from behind brunette fringe.

“Hi. My name is Time.” Time introduced himself, still kneeling a bit away. “What are your names?”

“Like we’d tell you that.” The older one snapped.

“I understand this is scary, but you two aren’t in trouble. We just want to get you two looked over. That leg looks really bad.” Time reassured, looking at the younger’s mangled leg in concern. Time didn’t have long before the EMTs would have no choice but to rush in and Time really didn’t want to get to that point.

“You don’t understand! You’ll separate us!” The older spoke fiercely, but Time heard the way his voice wavered underneath.

“Are you two brothers?” Time questioned.

“W-we don’t have the same parents.” The younger’s timid and pained voice spoke up.

“That doesn’t matter. Not really.” Time assured. “You two seem close.” The younger nodded shyly from against the older’s chest.

“If we go with you, they’ll separate us.” It seemed the older had knowledge and bad experiences with social workers.

“I have an Emergency Foster License.” Time breathed out, suddenly remembering his decision. After him and Malon were powerless to help Sky until after a multitude of paperwork and negotiations were made, Time and Malon got both a normal license and an EFC, so that if a similar situation happened a child could be placed with them and hopefully stay with them for longer than a few days.

“What does that mean?” The younger asked, apparently having heard Time’s whisper of realization.

“If you come with us, you can stay with me until we figure something out. Both of you.” Time offered. These boys were obviously close, Time assumed they met after they had been exiled to the streets. He didn’t want to see them separated either. The older boy looked like he was about to protest, but in drawing the younger boy closer, he agitated his leg, causing the younger boy to cry out in pain. The older snapped his head to look at him, his face softening as he tried to sooth him.

“I know you want to protect him.” Time addressed the blonde haired one. “I’m sure you’ve done a great job so far. But he needs medical attention. That leg will only get worse, and it’s already not healing properly.” Time didn’t want to scare them, but they needed to know how serious the younger’s leg was. Time could tell it had been a problem for some time, and any longer would mean infection. The older one bit his lip, Time could tell the older was thinking hard about this and he felt his heart squeeze. Someone this young shouldn’t have to make such a huge decision.

“We’ll stay together?” The older asked.

“I’ll make sure of it.” And Time meant that. He wouldn’t let these two be permanently separated.

“Will you come with us?” The older asked. Time agreed instantly, although he was a little surprised that the blonde haired boy trusted him enough to ask that. Although, perhaps he was the only one who had shown any interest in keeping the two together, and both boys seemed determined to make sure that happened.

“I’ll stay with you the entire time if that’s what you want.” Time confirmed, and he kept his promise, even as the younger was loaded into the ambulance.

“Let me go!” The blonde haired boy yelled, thrashing in Time’s hold. The younger boy was being taken away into surgery, and the older boy was not happy. In fact, he was absolutely furious.

“You can’t go into the operating room with him, little one.” Time patiently tried to explain.

“You promised we’d be together!” The older one protested, not ceasing his struggle.

“We’ll see him as soon as he’s awake.” Time reassured. “But you can’t go with him for now.”

“Why?” The child demanded. Time considered how to explain this, Whenever one of his son’s asked a question about the world, Malon or Time tried to explain it in ways that would make sense to a young mind, instead of getting annoyed at all their questions.

“Well… when someone is in surgery, they need to be in a very clean environment. Doctors take a lot of special steps to make sure the room is clean, or else germs can get in during the surgery and hurt the person more. Does that make sense?” Time tried his best to explain. The little boy bit his lip, before nodding slowly and relaxing slightly in Time’s grip.

“How about we sit down, and as soon as it's okay we can see him. Okay?” Time coaxed.

“Okay.” The boy agreed quietly, ceasing his struggle and pulling away from Time. Together they sat, while Time texted Malon to let her know the situation and the promise he had made. He didn’t want to leave the child beside him to make the call, but he needed to let his wife know that he was going to be late… with two extra children along with him. He apologized as many times as he could in his text, but Malon assured him that she knew what she was getting into when they got their licenses.

‘I’ll fill out the paperwork and fax it.’ Malon offered. Bless that woman.

Three hours later, Time sat in a small hospital room as two boys slept in the bed. One with a few bandages here and there, and one with a casted leg. The nurses had tried to scold the blonde boy for crowding the younger, but the icy blue glare could apparently scare off even full grown adults. Just then, a nurse entered the room.

“Are you the one who filled out the EFC paperwork?” The young woman asked.

“My wife did. Please, call me Time. A nickname.” Time got up to shake the brunette woman’s hand.

“Nice to meet you! I’m Lydia. I just wanted to inform you that we’re keeping them overnight for observation, especially for the leg.” She explained, gesturing to the smaller boy’s green casted leg. Since the younger wasn’t conscious for choosing the color, they asked the older child if the younger had a favorite color. Apparently it was grass green. “It’s good that we took care of it when we did, but he should be fine with a few weeks of bedrest and the medicine we prescribed. I’ll make sure he has crutches by tomorrow but I recommend at least a week of very minimal movement. He’ll most likely need physical therapy. The other boy’s injuries were mostly superficial.” Time nodded, bringing out his phone.

“Excuse me, I need to text my wife.” he began telling Malon that he would be here overnight, and what to expect. There was no way he was breaking his promise, He would stay until they both got released.

“Of course, no problem at all. Um… I noticed you left their names blank on the paperwork...” The nurse started.

“They didn’t even give me fake names.” Time replied. “Will that be a problem?”

“It’s certainly not ideal, but it's not the first time that’s happened.” The nurse replied sadly. “Since it’s an EFC, I can submit it and explain the situation. But if you could find out their names eventually, that would be a big help.”

“Thank you so much.” Time was grateful the nurse was being so helpful. This could have gone a lot worse.

“Of course. Please let me know if you need anything.” The young lady smiled and left to give them some privacy. Time settled in and checked the clock, seeing it was only 11 pm, and countless questions raced through his head. If they were put in the foster system, would anyone want them both? Would anyone be willing to keep up with the younger’s physical therapy? There were good people in the world, but everyone had their limitations. This was going to be a long night.

Both boys seemed genuinely surprised Time was still there in the morning.

“How are you boys feeling?” Time asked gently.

“I’m okay.” The older replied, looking down at the small brunette curled up next to him.

“I’m good.” The brunette replied groggily, flinching at the gentle pull of his ear by the older. “I’m tired and I feel numb and dizzy.” The brunette corrected. It seemed the older was used to the younger lying about how he felt.

“That’s normal.” Time assured. “You’re on a lot of medicine, but it will help you, I promise. And you can rest plenty when we get home. Are you boys okay with staying on the couch? It’s plenty big for both of you. I have three sons at home, but they’re all very nice.” There weren't many options in their home, their last guest room had been converted into Sky’s room months ago. But if their guests weren’t comfortable with that, then he and Malon would figure it out. The littlest one gasped and tugged on the older’s shirt.

“I’ve never been on a couch before.” The brunette whispered excitedly. Time’s heart stopped completely. Based on the boy’s level of excitement, it seemed that any comfort at all eluded him. Had he ever even had a family? A bed? A room? Anything at all? Based on what he had heard from their conversations, he guessed that the older had run away from a home he was placed in, and the younger seemed to have been on the streets for as long as he could remember. Time had no idea how he had survived on his own so young, but he wasn’t going to question what he was grateful for.

The oldest seemed to notice the look on Time’s face, and quickly replied, trying to take the attention off of the two boys’ situation.

“That’s fine.” He stopped, before whispering “Thank you.” With so much sincerity that Time didn’t even realize it came from the older boy at first.

“It’s no problem.” Time smiled.

After a lot of paperwork, a few calls home, and one wheelchair ride, Time was on his way home with two very tired boys in his backseat. He couldn’t lie, he was nervous bringing the boys home when he knew almost nothing about them. The doctors had told him they estimated their ages to be 7 and 8, so he hoped they would get along with his 8 and 9 year olds.

“Can I ask for your names?” Time asked, looking in his rearview mirror. The youngest opened his mouth, but the older stopped him.

“No.” The blonde snapped. Time sighed.

“Okay, fair enough. But we need to figure out what to call you boys.” Time hummed thoughtfully, before an idea struck him. “My family has a tradition, we choose our nicknames based on our favorite video game series. Mine is Time, my sons’ are Twilight, Warriors and Sky. If you boys are interested we can do the same for you.” Time offered. The older one looked like he was going to reject the offer, but the younger excitedly tugged on his sleeve.

“Okay.” The older conceded.

Their two guests sat on their upstairs couch, as Time set up the old game console. His sons were doing their best to keep their distance, as Malon had warned them to do, but Time could tell they were excited to see which games the two would pick. After several hours of fascinated playing, the younger had decided he enjoyed ‘Hero of Hyrule’ the most, while the oldest couldn’t decide which one he liked the most.

“Why don’t you just combine them? The ones you seem to like most were part of the Legend of Oracle series. How about Oracle?” Warriors offered. Over the course of playing, his sons had eased their way to sitting in front of the couch, all excitedly calling out moves with their two guests. Time was grateful they all seemed to get along. Warriors and the older child had taken on a rivalry, but it seemed mostly playful as far as Time could tell. The child wrinkled his nose at Warriors’ ‘Oracle’ suggestion. “Okay… Legend?” Warriors offered, and the boy’s eyes seemed to light up, before he quickly tried to hide his excitement. “Legend is fine. Hyrule fine with you, kid?” The older asked the younger, and the brunette beamed and nodded.

“Legend and Hyrule it is.” Time confirmed, At this point he should make a knighting ceremony.

One month later, their foster time was up, and Malon and Time knew they couldn’t give those two up so easily. After talking to their boys, who agreed full heartedly that they didn't want Legend and Hyrule to go, they arranged their bedroom so Twilight and Warriors would share, since Sky thrived on having his own space sometimes, and Hyrule and Legend could share Sky’s old room. Malon and Time felt guilty their children had to share, and they didn’t want them to feel jealous two more boys were moving in. But their boys made it very adamant that they wanted Hyrule and Legend to be a part of their family if that’s what the two boys wanted.

A few days, one question, many joyous tears, and one surprise bedroom later, Time had two more sons.

Word got around quickly that Time had five children. Twilight and Warriors had turned ten, their birthdays only two months apart. Sky was almost ten, and Legend had just recently turned nine according to his old birth certificate they managed to scrounge up. They had no idea when Hyrule’s birthday was, so they went off of the guess that the boy was seven, and they let Hyrule choose his new birthday. Legally that was very rare, but nop one had any idea what to do with a little boy that hadn’t officially existed in official records until his first trip to the hospital. The little boy had chosen the day he first went home with Time as his birthday, which Time absolutely did not find adorable. Nope, not at all.

But word of his five children quickly got around his job, and he was called in for many cases where interviewing children was involved.

“Time!” His captain yelled across the precinct. Time instantly stood at attention and walked to the captain’s office.

“Yes, sir?” Time replied dutifully. As much as his bossy tone annoyed Time sometimes, the man was a good captain, and he had a good heart.

“I need you in Interrogation Room 2. Four kids were caught stealing from the convenience store on 34th.” The captain passed Time a case folder.

“Children as in…”

“We think they’re about eight, they appear to be quadruplets, all identical.” The captain replied, and Time almost dropped the case file.

“They’re eight?” Time asked incredulously. “Why the hell are they in an interrogation room?” Time’s voice was on the verge of yelling.

“We don’t know what else to do!” His captain snapped. “Quadruplets are rre, and yet we can’t find any recent records of any, so we don’t think they have parents. They won’t even tell us their first names.” The captain sighed, obviously having his fill with the mysterious case.

“Okay. But I’m not interrogating them.” Time said firmly.

“We don’t want you too. They’re not under arrest, they’re children. But we can’t just let them go without a parent or guardian.”

“Okay… I’ll see if I can find out anything from them.” Time stood and began walking out.

“Oh, and Time?” His captain called out, making Time pause in the doorway.

“Yes?” Time asked, not liking his captain’s smirk.

“Try to restrain from adopting these ones.”

“Ha ha.”

When his captain said identical, he really meant identical. The main difference was they each had a different colored shirt on, but each was dirty and torn. And when looking closely, Time could see a few slight differences in their faces. Time sat down in front of them quietly.

“Hi there. My name is Time. Could you tell me your names?” Time asked, and unsurprisingly, he was met with silence. “I know this room looks a little scary,” Time began, and the one in purple scoffed,”but”, Time continued,”You guys aren’t under arrest or anything. We just can’t let you go without a parent or guardian.”

“But… we don’t have one.” The one in red said hesitantly, going quiet again when the one in blue nudged him under the table.

“There’s no one talking care of you?” Time asked gently. “Is that why you needed to steal from the store?”

“We’re just trying to survive.” The one in green spoke up for his brothers. He was obviously protective over them.

“I know it doesn’t seem like it, but I understand.” Time began. “I wasn’t always in the best living situations when I was little-”

“Don’t try that.” The one in blue piped up, his brown eyes identical to his brothers’. “Don’t try to relate to us. No one can, no one can even tell us apart. If we switch clothes right now you wouldn’t know who was who. Just let us leave.” Time raised an eyebrow. These boys were all certainly intelligent.

“The one in red has two freckles to the left of his left eye. The one in green has a sharper jawline. The one in blue has a light freckle on his chin, and the one in purple has a thinner nose.” Time rambled off perfectly, only to be met with stunned silence.

“No one’s ever…” The one one started before trailing off. All four brother’s looked stunned that Time had even bothered to tell them apart.

“I can help you more if you tell me your names?” Time asked once again.

“We don’t have any.” The one in green finally answered in a hushed voice.

“What?” Time asked, surely he hadn’t heard correctly.

“We don’t have any.” The one in violet said again. “Everyone just calls us Four. We’re just one person to them… no one bothered to name us.” Time felt his world shatter. No names… their entire identity reliant on the fact that they were four.

“We don;t have anywhere to go.” The one in red whispered. “Please, just let us go.” Oh no. Not again. He was never going to live this down…

“You could come with me.”

After a sheepish call to his wife, and uproarious laughter from his captain and fellow officers, Time had a car loaded with identical children. Three in back and one in front.

“Um…” Time filled the awkward silence. “Just so you boys know, my wife and five kids are waiting for us, but they won’t bombard you or anything. I just thought you ought to know.” Time warned.

“I’m sorry, did you say five?” The blue one asked, stunned. Honestly all the boys seemed stunned the entire way home, like they couldn’t believe this was happening. Time had similar feelings. Bless his wife for being so understanding and loving, and his sons for being so accepting.

“Yeah.” Time rubbed his neck sheepishly, keeping on hand on the wheel. “They’re around your age actually.”

“Oh! Are they… twins or anything?” The one in violet asked, a slight hope to his voice, and Time felt guilty about shooting that hope down.

“Oh, no I’m sorry. Four of them are technically adopted.” Time corrected. It sometimes took the stunned looks to remind him that having five kids around the same age wasn’t ‘normal’. They were his sons and that was all that mattered.

“Oh… wow.” The one in violet said, not knowing what to say. Time didn’t either.

“Will we… finally get names?” The one in red asked with a quiet hope.

“Hmm. Funny you should mention that. You see, my family has a tradition…”

The newly dubbed Red, Green, Blue and Vio, were all having a blast playing Four Swords. The boys were amazing at working together to solve puzzles, which made sense when Time reviewed the security footage of the theft they pulled off before they were caught. Vio and Blue had a hard time getting along with his sons at first, but they all eventually settled in and got closer. His sons were watching the four work in perfect harmony in awe, while Malon and Time were in the kitchen talking in hushed voices.

“Malon, I’m so sorry. But they were all alone and-” Time panicked, and Malon quietly shushed him.

“Time, they’re wonderful.” Malon assured, that bright and sincere smile he fell in love with on her gentle face. “But they get along with our kids so well. I think you and I both know where this is going.” Time leaned down and buried his head in her shoulder.

“I love them already. So much, and I barely even know them. But Malon… four? We don't have the space. Sure I’m in for a promotion, but we don’t have the room. And what about our sons? What will they think?” Malon stroked his back and shushed him, and Time felt bad she had to comfort him like this.

“I’m worried about our sons too.” Malon sighed. “I think we should talk to them one by one, ask them truthfully and make sure they don’t think we’re replacing them. Twilight especially.” Time nodded into Malon’s shoulder.

“As for moving…” Malon started mischievously. He should have already known she had a plan.

“Well, you’ve always wanted to raise horses, and my father is moving away, he wants to travel and be on the road again. And he really wants that ranch to stay in the family…”

After talking to each of their boys individually, Malon and Time were reassured that no, no one thought they were being replaced, and yes, everyone wanted Red, Blue Green, and Vio in the family. In fact, the more the family grew the more excited each boy got. And when they received the news of the potential move to a ranch that was big, near town, and had the potential to have animals, the boys absolutely lost their minds in excitement, Twilight especially. Now all that was left was to ask the quadruplets if they wanted this.

“Boys…” Malon started. They had sat Red, Green, Blue and Red on their bed within time and Malon’s bedroom, the door sealed shut to give them some privacy. All of the boys looked nervous, fidgeting and holding onto each other.

“I know this is a big decision, and just know that there is no pressure either way.” After three conversations similar to this one, Malon and Time were pros at this.

“We would love for you to be permanent members of the family. We would love to adopt you all if you want.” Time finished to stunned silence. Red promptly burst into tears.

“We thought you were getting rid of us!” Red cried out.

“Oh sweetie, no.” Malon cooed. “I’m so sorry for scaring you all.” She pulled red into a hug and opened her arms for the rest to join in. Time surrounded them all in his arms.

“I think I can speak for us all.” Green joked, ever mature for his age. “We would love that, if you’ll have us.” The rest of his brothers nodded. Time heard a voice outside their door that sounded suspiciously like Warriors calling out ‘yes!’ behind the thick wood, followed by a frantic hush that sounded like Legend. Time put a finger to his lips, before sneaking over to the door. The boys on the bed covered their mouths to hush their laughter. Time yanked the door open quickly, five boys comically tumbling over into the bedroom.

“Boys!” Time scolded over the groaning pile of limbs. Hyrule had thankfully landed on top, his leg was healing but it was still quite weak. Time tried to be mad, he really did, but hearing the giggling of his wife and new sons made it extremely hard to be angry. Five pairs of eyes all peered up at him, and Time simply sighed. “Go on, then.” Time jerked his head towards the bed, and five boys rushed over (Hyrule being helped by Sky), and tackled their new brothers in hugs.

“Four!” Twilight called excitedly. “That’s a new record!”

Hectic months had passed by. It turns out Lon Lon Ranch was the perfect home for their family. Time had never seen Malon so happy, to have all this room to farm once again. Time himself wasn’t half bad, he was finally able to move Epona out of the stables he paid to keep her in and could spend far more time with her, spoiling her with apples and attention. Twilight was certainly happy to spend more time with the sweet horse as well. Each boy had their own job on the ranch, so work was done quickly and often within an hour. Twilight, now eleven, absolutely adored the goats Malon’s father left behind, and took extra good care of them. Warriors, on the cusp of eleven, liked painting making sure everything looked nice. Sky, now ten, took care of the cuccos because, for some reason, he got along with the little devil spawn extremely well. Legend, now 9 on the cusp of 10, would fill in wherever he was needed. He didn’t like or dislike any chores on the farm, but Malon and Time could tell he was happy here. Hyrule, who just turned 8, loved taking care of the animals with Twilight, and his leg had been getting much stronger with months of physical therapy. Red, Green, Blue, and Vio, who had, like Hyrule, chosen their own birthday and believed themselves to be about 9, loved crafting anything they could get their hands on. Malon had to teach them extra safety measures since they were so young, but they made anything from horseshoes, to little inventions around the farm. Overall, even though his life was hectic, Time was happier than he had ever been.

That’s why, on a rainy day, a little boy crashing onto his doorstep was the last thing he expected. But really, Time should expect the unexpected at this point.

“What was that?” Little Warriors called once he was down the stairs.

“Warriors, you’re supposed to be in bed.” Time scolded half heartedly as he too went to see what caused the crash on his porch. Time wandered out, his heart stopping as he realized it was a tiny boy with bleach blonde hair. Warriors gasped and ran over. “Warriors, careful.” Time chided and he went to check the boy. He was absolutely soaked, and had seemed to succumb to exhaustion. Time checked him over, and picked the tiny boy up upon seeing no injuries.

“War, go tell your mom to grab towels and bring them up to the guest room, and grab his bag.” Warriors did as he was told without complaint. Time brought the little boy up to their guest room, waiting to set him down so as to not soak the blankets. With how many children they had, Time was surprised they even had a guest room. But the ranch was much larger than their old home, and the quadruplets refused to even consider not sharing a room. Legend and Hyrule also wanted to share a room, and so did Twilight and Warriors. Sky was the only one who had his own room. Time checked, as usual, with a counselor and she told him it was normal that after what his sons had been through, they would want to share spaces. She did say that as they got older they would most likely want their own spaces, so Time and Malon had been saving up for an extension to the ranch. But for now, they had a spare room.

Malon rushed in with multiple towels, not asking any questions as she began to dry the boy off. Time appreciated that, since he had no answers. They got the boy settled. It was frustrating that all they could do was wait, but the boy wouldn’t wake up. So they waited.

An hour later, the boy finally began to stir. Both Time and Malon had waited so the child wouldn’t panic at waking alone in a strange room. Warriors had also refused to go to bed, and had stayed with them. Something about the smaller boy had struck a chord with him. Deep blue eyes opened, saw the three sitting near him, and panicked.

“Dear, it’s alright.” Malon shushed. “We found you on our porch and we dried you off. We’re not going to hurt you.” The boy calmed slightly, but still curled into himself.

“I’m sorry.” The boy mumbled, looking down in shame.

“Sweetheart it’s alright.” Malon reassured. “It’s no problem.”

“I stole.” The boy whispered, ashamed. “I stole some food and Grandma said never to steal but I was so hungry.” The little boy rambled on, pointing to his bag. Time gently picked up the sea themed bag and peeked inside.

“These don’t look like our crops.” Time showed Malon. It didn’t matter if they were his or not, a hungry little boy had taken some food and Time didn’t care if some of his crops got lost if it meant this boy was fed.

“The scary man at the other house chased me and I ran. I’m sorry I stole, I was just so hungry.” The boy sobbed, and Warriors had apparently deemed that enough. The older boy got up and pulled the younger into a hug, gentle enough that the little boy could escape if he wanted, but he burrowed into Warriors’ chest. The scary man next door… oh, probably Ingo. Time didn’t really interact with the man that much, but he did seem quite rude.

“It’s okay.” Time reassured once the boy’s sobs had calmed down. “How about we make you some stew.” Time offered, and the boy peered up hopefully. “How old are you?” Time asked. He had to know, but he knew the answer would crush him.

“Six.” The boy replied, unknowing of Time’s heart rate increasing. Hell… six years old.

“I’ll go make the stew.” Malon stated gently, but her message was clear. I’ll go make the food, you get information.

“What’s your name, little one?” Time asked. The younger just shook his head, and Time resisted a sigh. What was it with him and running into little boys who didn’t like giving away their names?

“Do you have any parents?” Time asked his next question, but he had already guessed the answer. The little boy shook his head, still clinging onto Warriors, his little hand gripping the older boy’s scarf he always wore.

“I had my grandma but…” The boy's lip quivered. “She got sick. And Aryll and I got taken away.” The boy finished, fresh tears leaking out.

“Aryll?” Warriors questioned.

“My little sister.” Wind answered. “They took us away. I found out she was ‘dopted.” The little boy bit his lip, thinking of the word. “But they said I wouldn’t be. I’m too old and she was young. They told me she was happy. I just want her to be happy, but they told me I wouldn’t be ‘dopted because I was too old.” Wind cried out. “So I ran away.” Wind finished, and Time was stunned. He didn’t even think he could relay that awful story to Malon.

“You can stay with us for as long as you want.” Time offered. “And we can try and find your sister.” The little boy whispered a quiet ‘thank you’, before succumbing to sleep once again in Warriors arms. Time offered to tuck the boy in.

“No… I’m okay here.” Warriors rejected, shuffling to lean against the pillows with the small boy in his arms. Time smiled sadly at how close they seemed already.

“Okay, I’ll be right back kiddo.” Time told Warriors. He really needed to talk to Malon.

“Sweetheart?” Malon prodded gently at the boy sleeping in Warriors’ arms. “We have some stew for you.” Thankfully the little boy woke up this time. As much as Malon wanted to spoil the boy with food, she knew that anything heavier than stew could do more harm than good. The boy’s groggy eyes opened and lit up at the smell of food.

“Really?” The boy asked shyly.

“Really.” Malon handed the boy his bowl while Warriors ensured he didn’t spill any.

“Thank you.” The boy smiled, and Malon felt her heart melt.

“Anytime. Now my husband said you had a little sister.” Malon brought up gently. To her surprise the boy lit up once more. “Mhm! Her name is Aryll. I’m a big brother!” The boy said excitedly, before becoming sad once more. “She got ‘dopted. But she’s happy.” The boy had a bittersweet smile that Malon never wanted to see on such a young face.

“So… you know where she is?” Malon pressed gently. The boy hesitated, then nodded.

“I snuck up and looked in the window. I don’t remember where though.” The boy murmured, voice filled with guilt. “She was giggling and laughing. The mean lady told me that ‘dopted meant she had new parents.” Malon wondered who ‘the mean lady was’, but it sounded like whoever it was had no tact whatsoever.

“Do they know she has a big brother?” Time questioned, watching the child shake his head.

“She got taken away from me.” The little boy teared up again. Time doubted that Aryll simply forgot about her brother, even if she was younger. Perhaps her new family simply didn’t know where to look since the boy had run away.

“If you want, you can stay here and we can help figure it all out.” Time offered after sharing a look with his wife. Warriors’ eyes grew in excitement as he looked at the little boy in his arms.

“...Thank you.” The boy peered up at them shyly.

“Do you want to tell us your name?” Malon prodded, but the boy bit his lip. His name didn’t feel the same without Aryll to call out for him excitedly.

“Family Tradition?” Warriors asked his parents, eyes full of mischief.

“Is there any other way at this point?” Time asked in a dry voice. Warriors laughed and explained the tradition to the little boy still tucked in his arms. After some contemplation, the little boy spoke up.

“Do you have one about pirates?”

Warriors and his new friend played Wind Waker until dawn. The newly named ‘Wind’ was too immersed to sleep, and Warriors claimed he wasn’t tired. Time and Malon decided to let them have their fun for tonight.

In the morning, Time and Malon went into each of their son’s rooms a little early and explained the situation. Most were excited, but they knew not to bombard their guest. It turned out, however, that Wind was an absolute chatterbox once he was comfortable in his environment. He talked Warriors’ ear off about pirates all night, and greeted all of the other boys in the house when they awoke.

Time went to the next door plot of land and paid Ingo back for the crops WInd had taken so the man wouldn’t see the boy and do anything like call the police. The man wasn’t happy, but Time didn’t exactly care.

Soon a month had passed having a happy six year old on the ranch, before they managed to track down Wind’s sister. Time and Malon were planning to go over the next afternoon and explain the situation to the little girl’s new parents. Wind was excited, of course he was, but everyone could tell something was eating at him.

“Wind, honey.” Malon kneeled down in the kitchen as her sons busied themselves elsewhere. “What’s wrong?”

“I… I need to be a good big brother. But…” Wind trailed off. “I really like it here.” The boy sniffled. Malon hadn’t even thought of that…

“Wind, maybe you could stay with us. You and Aryll could see each other whenever possible. I’m sorry honey, I know it's such a big choice to make, but no one will be mad no matter what you want to do. We just want you to be happy.” The little boy’s looked up at Malon with big eyes.

“Can… Can I talk to Wars?” Malon nodded and called Warriors from outside. The boys loved playing flashlight tag all around the ranch, and WInd would usually join them with a beaming smile. Tonight however, he just sat solemnly in the kitchen. Warriors came in from the backdoor, and Malon left to go talk to her husband in their bedroom.

“Wind? What’s wrong?” Warriors took Wind’s small hand and led them to the living room, sitting them both down on the couch.

“What if they don’t want me?” Wind asked with another sniffle, and Wars figured he meant Aryll’s parents.

“Then they’re stupid.” Wars stated.

“What if… what if I don’t want them. Wars, I don’t want to go.” Wind cried out, burying his head in his hands. Warriors pulled him into a hug. “Malon said I could stay, and I could see Aryll, but what if she hates me? What if Grandma would hate me for replacing her? What if-” Warriors shushed Wind gently.

“When I was seven…” Warriors started, taking a big breath. “When I was seven my mom and I got into a really bad crash.” Wind peered up at Warriors. “I was okay, but my mom- my mom didn’t make it out.” Wars whispered, trying to keep his tears at bay. “Malon and Time took me in without a second thought. And at first, I had a hard time being around Malon. She… reminded me too much of my mom. But then I realized that Malon would never replace my mom, just like she won’t replace your grandma. She would never try to, and neither would Time. They’re my mom and my dad, but that doesn’t change the fact that I still love my mom.” Warriors finished, and Wind just looked up at him with big eyes. “I don’t know your sister, but I think we all just want you to be happy, little pirate.” Wind threw himself at Warriors’ chest once again. A few minutes later, Time and Malon emerged from upstairs.

“Can I… Can I really stay?” Wind asked hopefully.

“Of course.” Time confirmed without hesitation.

“And I can still see Aryll?”

“Anytime you want.” Malon promised. “She is always welcome here, and she doesn’t live that far away from what we’ve seen.

Wind spent the rest of the night playing flashlight tag with his brothers, and chattering excitedly about how he would get to see his sister the next day.

Time truly thought he was done adopting children. What a fool he was.

Except this round, it wasn’t even his fault! It was his oldest son’s fault!

Time stared at his sheepish 12 year old from the doorway of his and Warriors’ room. More specifically, he was staring at the small body hiding behind his 12 year old son.

“Son…” Time started, already exasperated by the situation.

“...Yes Dad?” twilight asked with an innocent smile, as if he wasn’t very obviously hiding an entire child behind his back.

“Who’s behind you?” Time raised an eyebrow.

“Uhhh…” Twilight trailed off, looking behind him. “You can come out, cub. He won’t hurt you.” Twilight assured the body behind him.

“Cub?” Time questioned.

“I found him in an abandoned fox den!” Twilight defended. Time pinched the bridge of his nose. This entire situation was ridiculous.

“And why, pray tell, did you hide him in your room?” Time asked his eldest. Did Warriors even know there was a child hidden in his room?

“Well.” Twilight began, as if Time was the one who was being ridiculous. “I was going to hide him in here for a bit until you and Mom got home and sneak him some food. I was going to tell you, but you got home early. Dad…” Time perked up at his son’s serious tone. “He’s terrified of people. From what I can tell he has no one, and I worked for an hour to build up enough trust for him to come with me. He doesn’t talk and he was all alone! I couldn’t just leave him there!” Twilight defended, gently coaxing out the little boy behind him. The first thing Time noticed was the scars. Burn marks all over the boy’s face and exposed torso, down to his legs. The boy was only wearing a pair of shorts, and Time wondered how he hadn’t frozen out there. He had to be only seven or eight. Time sighed once again.

“Twi… I’m not mad, I’m not. But where will he stay?” Twilight perked up with a hope in his eyes.

“He can stay with me!” Twilight gestured to where the little one was practically attached to the older boy’s leg. It seemed once the little boy trusted someone, he absolutely was not going to let go. Time kneeled down to be more level with the little boy, who buried his face further into Twilight’s leg.

“Hello there.” Time said gently. “My name is Time. I’m Twilight’s dad. Do you want some food?” The little one’s eyes lit up in excitement, peering up to look at Twilight, as if asking permission.

“Does food sound good, Cub?” The little boy nodded slightly, and it was the most Time knew he would get out of the little boy.

“I’ll go make some stew and warn the others. You’re telling your mother this time.”

By the time Malon had arrived back to the ranch from her trip to the city, the Cub had been washed and fed, and Twilight had managed to wiggle the boy into some old clothes. The little boy looked quite happy about all of these, and Twilight even heard a little giggle. Malon had managed to introduce herself gently without the little boy panicking, but he was still attached to Twilight. The older boy didn’t seem to mind very much.

Time decided the best approach to introducing the little boy to the family would be to take it one member at a time, except for the quadruplets who would all be introduced at the same time to avoid later confusion at their similar appearances. Twilight took to the normal naming ceremony, the little boy excitedly picked out the cover with a vast field of wildlife, including a fox.

Wild spent the rest of the evening on Twilight’s lap being taught how to work the controller and gasping in delight at all the things he could do. Specifically all the things he could light on fire. Time would worry about that another day.

In between playing, Wild was introduced to the rest of the family. There were some bumps, such as confused sobbing when he saw four identical boys, but other than that it went as well as expected. The introduction with Hyrule probably went the best, since the boys had similar backstories. Time saw those two becoming partners in crime. Twilight promised he would figure out if Wild could talk or not, and if he couldn’t, Twilight promised he would find another way to communicate.

Overall, Wild was the most fast and unexpected acquisition of a child, but Time couldn’t say he was overly upset.

“So, another one then.” Malon teased after all their boys were tucked in.

“It appears so.” Time replied gruffly.

“Hm. Like father, like son.”

Time promptly banged his head on the table.

Idk I might upload an epilogue if y’all are interested.

Is this fic accurate to how the real world works? Nah. But this is an AU based on fiction, I did my best.

I’m going to specify that the video games the boys are named after aren’t the Legend of Zelda, they’re just random old games. This isn’t insanely meta or anything I just thought it would be a funny little easter egg haha.

Have an amazing week everyone!

#linked universe #linkeduniverse #wild #twilight #warriors #time #malon #wind #four #legend #hyrule #sky #queenof-literature story #QoL Story

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