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beskarhearts · 4 years ago

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Mourn (Din Djarin x reader)

Connection series Pt. 9

Pairing: Din Djarin x f!reader (no use of Y/N)

Warnings: cursing, mention of family members passing away, drinking, smallest mention of prostitution, death/killing, angst (let me know if I missed any)

Word count: over 12.0K

Summary: Din mourns his newest loss and you learn that you might not be able to run away this time.

Notes: Woof! This was a big one but it’s one of my favorite chapters so far. I have a few more chapters planned before we start getting into the events from season 2!

Previous Part ____ Next Part

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Din sat in the seat of his Crest, his hand tightly clutching onto the necklace in his hand. He couldn’t bear to look at it, just the feeling of the cool metal against his bare skin serving as a reminder of his lost.

He knew where she would of gone. He had mentioned the bounty had a ship that was not too far from where the Crest had landed, probably only a matter of a few hundred feet away. He had realized relatively quickly what had happened and he could probably get to her before she left, and that was assuming the ship the bounty stole even worked anymore. If she had to fix something really quick, he could definitely get to her.

Din listened as the kid let out a little mewl, sat in the passenger seat beside him. In the seat she usually sat in. The child looked over at Din with big eyes and he knew the kid understood she had left. Probably had watched her do it.

She left him. Din let in a deep breath, trying his best not to let tears fall. Because even though he would have the helmet on to cover them, he couldn’t allow himself to do it. If he did, he didn’t know how he would stop.

Din had two options. He could either find her and try to find out what happened or he could turn in his bounty and let her leave. Let her leave him like she wanted to. Like she chose to.

The Mandalorian had always been a loner. He never had anyone beside him. No friends, no family, certainly never a woman he loved. He had been accustomed to that lifestyle for many years. She had changed that though. She made him feel whole, filling in a hole in his life he hadn’t even truly understood he had. She made him feel worthy of more and made him feel like he mattered to someone. Was more than a piece of metal that took down bounties for men richer than him. She made him realize he didn’t want to be alone anymore and he wanted to spend life with someone who made his days far happier than they ever had before.

And he fell in love with her because of it. He fell in love with her personality, her warmth, and the way she opened his eyes to what life could be like, even for a man like him. She expanded his clan, his family, by one and had made life so much sweeter.

But now she was gone. Not because she had to leave or he had wanted her to. Out of her own volition. She chose to. And while Din loved her and his heart was aching, he wasn’t going to force himself on her. She didn’t want him.

Din had lost before. He would just endure another one and move on. Like he always did.

He took the necklace in his hands and placed it on the dashboard of the Crest. Din would try to ignore the pain, try to move on and find a Jedi for the kid, but he could keep this little token. Just as a small reminder of what maybe could of been.

Din cleared his throat and punched in his next location, preparing the ship for a jump into hyperspace. “Let’s turn this bounty in, kid.”

The child let out another small noise but Din didn’t bother to look. He’d just see the confusion and pain in his eyes, the same he had in his but were hidden away. He simply shook his head and heard the ship hum as it prepared to leave. Leave the planet where she could still possibly be.

“She’s gone. We’ve got to move on.”

___________________

You felt sick to your stomach.

The ship was easy to find. Din was right, it had only been a few hundred feet away, easy to run to. It was a small x-wing, probably stolen, but it wasn’t too old or damaged. Certainly in better shape than the Crest had been when you first saw it. You just had to fix the control panel, which you did with hands that shook and your heart slamming in your chest. You had worried Din might of tried to find you, knowing you were going to the bounty’s aircraft, but he must of not realized what was happening because he never came.

Once the ship was finally in order, you hauled your body into it, placing your bag at your feet, and closing the hatch of it. The x-wing smelled, probably from the Klantooinian who had stolen it. You were surprised he could even fly it and hadn’t crashed into the planet, but was thankful it was there. It was your ticket out.

But once you were in the pilot’s seat, hands ready to punch in your next location into the navigation system, you were suddenly lost. Where would you go? You couldn’t go back to Yungbrii. You had been there for so long and hated it. You couldn’t bring yourself to go back, even though your small mechanic shop may still be there. You also couldn’t risk going back there. If Din did decide to try to find you, that would probably be one of the first places he would think to stop at.

Where else would you go? You thought of the planet you had stopped at with Din that had the marketplace. There were lots of people there, meaning there would be work. You could blend in, hide away. Probably wouldn’t garner a lot of attention from anybody. But you weren’t even exactly sure where that was and that would hurt. Going to a place you had gone with Din, your family, would be pouring salt into a fresh wound. And you weren’t sure you could go there and relive those memories and not try to find your way back to Din.

You could technically go anywhere. You could punch in any location and try to start anew. You could hide away everything that had happened, like you always did, and become a new person.

But instead of just going to a random planet, you went to the one place you had ever find yourself yearning to go to. The one place, besides the Crest with Din, that had been your home. Where you had grown up and loved. It was risky and it might be the worst decision, but you punched in the coordinates.

And then you were off. To Jakku.

___________________

“He’s dead.”

Din stood across from the client who ordered the bounty. The man’s arms were crossed, his face twisted into a firm grimace. “I did the job.”

The man let out a snarl, his jaw jutting out as he tried to temper the rage consuming him. “I wanted him alive. I wanted him to suffer under my hand, not yours.”

“There were... complications.” Din tried his best to not think of her, of the sobs she had let out with the body laid out on the floor in front of her. He couldn’t let himself crack right now.

“I thought you were supposed to be best.”

“It couldn’t be avoided.”

“What? Did he try to kill that pet of yours?” The man snarled as one of his crooked fingers pointed to the carrier on his hip. Din turned to look down at his side. The kid looked right up at him, his face covered by the fabric of the bag but his big eyes and ears popping out. Din couldn’t help but to think of what her reaction would be right now. She’d probably make some sarcastic comment to the client and then given Din a look that said something along the lines of ‘what a joke’. Din shook his head, trying to shake away the thought from his mind.

“I did what I had to do. I did the job.”

“Well, I’m not paying you the full price. I’ll give you half.”

Din huffed. Half of this bounty was supposed to go to fuel alone. He needed the other half. The whole reason he did this job was because he needed the credits. If he hadn’t, then he wouldn’t have landed on that damn planet and maybe, just maybe, she’d still be around. “That wasn’t the agreement.”

“The agreement was to bring him to me.”

“I did.” Din could probably be described as an abnormally calm man. Part of it was being a Mandalorian. You get used to dealing with shady people. You get used to the looks, to being swindled, to being treated like a droid who was just meant to work away for the rest of his days. Eventually, it just became part of the scenery for Din and he never got bothered by it. But today was a bad day and Din was feeling all the emotions he was bottling up turn into annoyance with this man.

“I wanted him alive!” The man yelled, his fists clenching tightly.

Din let out a loud sigh, his hands grazing the blaster on his side which the man took notice of. “Give me my credits.” He said plainly, but he knew there was a danger to his words. He saw the way the mans hand shook slightly and his anger expression dropped for a split second. Din was aware of the effect he could have on people, the fear he could instill in them even when he had no plans of actually doing anything.

“Fine. But you are never getting hired by me ever again.”

Thank the Maker for that. Din wanted to call him a damn asshole (something she probably would of done with that dangerous mouth of hers) but instead he nodded his head and reached a hand out. The client dropped the credits in his hand with a dramatic huff, turning around without another word and storming off.

Din turned around, heading back in the direction of his ship. The town he had landed on could best be described as grimy. It was dark and dingy: a stale smell filled the air and every wall was covered in what looked like grease. There were a few buildings, including a hotel and cantina, both of which looked run down and run by folk who probably weren’t the most pleasant. Din continued strolling away until he heard a loud laugh fill the air. It was bubbly and feminine, and Din couldn’t help the pit that filled his stomach at the sound of it. It came from the cantina and it didn’t even sound like her that much but he couldn’t help it. He knew she wasn’t here. She had no reason to stop on a planet this horrid but his feel still turned in the direction of the cantina. He froze before entering. He needed to see if it was her, even though he knew deep down it wasn’t. He let out a huff before he entered the building. His eyes scanned the dimly lit cantina. It wasn’t too busy, just a few people at the bar and a couple in the corner who were practically attached to each other. The smell of liquor was overwhelmingly strong in the room and the air in it was stale. The establishment felt like a bad hangover that left you sick.

The couple in the corner finally detached themselves from each other and the woman let out another laugh. Din nodded his head. It wasn’t her. Of course not. Din went to turn towards the exit when the bartender spoke, “You want a drink or you just come to stare?”

Din was going to walk off, ignore the man like he did with most people. Din wasn’t a drinker, never really had been. He didn’t like the feeling it gave him. The numbness and the fogginess. But right now, that didn’t sound like the worst feeling. In fact, it sounded like it would be better to forget and drown his sorrows tonight rather than sit in the Crest and wallow in his pain. Din turned his head and walked towards the bar, dropping a couple credits onto the counter. “A bottle of whatever you have.”

The man nodded, his slimy fingers reaching out for the credits as he gave The Mandalorian a crazed look. He grabbed a bottle from behind the counter, one Din wasn’t too familiar with, and placed it down for him to grab. Din reached out for it, ready to leave, when the man spoke again. “You want any company, pal?”

The man leaned his head to the right and Din looked to find a woman sat at the bar, scantily clad and giving him a sickening smile. Her fingers waved at him slowly.

“No.” Din turned without another word, storming out of the cantina with the bottle grasped tightly in his hand.

___________________

Even though it was nighttime by the time you landed on Jakku, the air was still warm. The sky was dark but filled with what appeared to be a million little stars, a scene that was so juxtaposed to the environment it was in. You looked up to the sky and felt a peace in your heart, looking at the very stars you had stared into during your childhood here. You recognized certain constellations, ones your mother had taught you.

You were fatigued but your body was also cramping from being inside such a tiny ship for so long. By now, the x-wing was done for. They were meant for fighting and battle, not traveling through hyperspace for extended amounts of time, and you had sufficiently pushed the ship to its breaking point. You stepped onto the sand, feeling it give under the boots you wore. You looked around, trying to see if there was anyone nearby, but you found it was just you. You had parked not too far from Niima Trading Post, a place where you had worked and knew like the back of your hand. Part of you wanted to venture to it now, maybe find some food and a place to stay. But you had left most of your credits with Din, only a small handful in your pocket. Certainly not enough for a bed for the night. You also weren’t sure what would greet you once you traveled into the post. You had changed plenty since you lived here last and weren’t worried a lot about people recognizing you. Most people on Jakku came and went. There weren’t a lot of people who lived there permanently besides the scavengers and criminals, who didn’t bother to get to know people, and people who ran the few booths that were there. But you still felt a bit of fear in your heart at the prospect of entering the post and decided it would be better to save that for the morning, when you were more alert.

You were absolutely exhausted. You were still worn out from what had happened the day before and the long day of traveling hadn’t done you any favors. You sat down on the sand, your back leaning against a part of the x-wing. You closed your eyes, bring your hands to rub at your face. Today had been so long and you had spent most of it trying not to think of Din or the child. You couldn’t bear to do so. It would only lead to heartache. But even despite your desperate attempts to keep thoughts of your Mandalorian at bay, your chest still felt heavy and you had felt like you were on the verge of tears all day.

All you wished right now was that Din was with you. That you were in the Crest, laying in bed with him again. You could show him your home, the town where you had grown up. You knew it wasn’t much but you still think Din would of appreciated seeing it. Getting to learn more about your origin, how you had become the person you were now.

You opened your eyes, shaking your head. You had to stop thinking like that. Din was gone. You had left him and the child behind. You had left that clan. And even though that left a gaping hole in your chest, it was for the right reasons. You weren’t the type of person who could have a family. It just wasn’t part of you. That was for normal people with normal lives.

You rested your head against the hot metal of the ship and let your eyes slip close.

___________________

Din brought the bottle to his lips again. The Crest was back in hyperspace, heading to some planet on the Outer Rim. The child was asleep, in his hammock with the door closed so he couldn’t see Dins face. The ship was completely silent, except for the soft whirl of it traveling. This was normally when Din would sit in the cockpit for a while before going to bed, staring off into the galaxy. That was what he did before she came along and joined him. But now he couldn’t bring himself to sit in that seat, with the passenger one empty and without her sweet voice filling the small confines of the space. Instead he sat on the cot on the floor, the one she had slept on. His helmet had been taken off and he had rested it on her pillow. His legs were splayed out, reaching past the small cot and laying heavily on the cool floor below him. He was still adorned in all his armor, the only helmet being the only piece of metal he was bare of.

Din brought the bottle up to his lips, letting the warm liquor run over his tongue and down his throat. It was a large bottle but was now half empty at this point. It tasted like shit, definitely not worth what he paid, but he hadn’t expected much from a place like that. And in the end, it was partially doing its job. Din felt his eyes droop, his senses dull. His body fell limp against the bed that still smelled of her, like honey and fresh laundry. At this point, Din was sufficiently drunk, teetering on the edge of hammered.

He probably should stop, but he couldn’t refrain from guzzling down the drink. He had hoped it would ease his pain, make the tear in his heart mend a little. He wanted to stop thinking, to let all his emotions slip away. But all it seemed to do was make it even worse. Everything felt rawer and drinking was just pouring salt in the wound. Din’s only hope now was that he could get black out drunk and forget. At least forget tonight and the weakness he felt in this moment. The way his hands shook and his eyes glossed over. Forget the pit in his stomach and the necklace that he had put in his pocket before he left earlier.

But the problem was that he’d never forget her. Din felt something wet against his cheeks, bringing a hand up to his skin and wiping at it. He looked down at his fingers and saw that he had started crying without even realizing it. The warm tears continued to slip down his cheeks. traveling down to his chin so small drops landed on the metal of his chest plate.

“Why... why did you leave me?” Din knew she wasn’t there and he was alone, but he still spoke the words that rung through his head over and over. He would of done anything for her. Didn’t she know that? He didn’t care what was wrong or what was happening. Nothing would change the way he cared for her and loved her.

He couldn’t stop imagining the night before. The way he had held her and how her skin had felt. It had been so soft and sweet. She had filled every single one of his senses. All he could think of was her and how he wanted her, no, needed her. He should of tried to find her. He should of followed her to the ship, begged her not to go. Told her he loved her and she was his anchor.

Din wiped away the tears, putting down the bottle. He needed to sober up.

He needed to find her.

___________________

Walking into Niima Trading Post was like walking into the past. Not much had changed. The same booths were there, full of scavengers selling their parts and towns people selling their goods to the people who came and went. It was different faces but the same place and same environment. The sand still covered almost everything, almost like a blanket of snow. The post was relatively quiet this early in the morning, just the usual bustle of scavengers heading out for the day. So far you hadn’t seen anyone who you recognized, which didn’t particularly surprise you.

You continued your stroll through town, not even really considering where you were heading until you were face to face with it. You stopped completely, staring at the small garage-like building in front of you, and felt your chest squeeze. It was what had used to be your father’s mechanic shop and it looked exactly the same as it used to. Run down, but obviously well taken care of. It was pretty empty, only one small carrier in the corner that was being worked on. You stepped closer to it, letting your hand reach out and touch one of the walls. You had spent so much of your life here. This is where your father had taught you to be a mechanic and to work hard. This is the place you spent the most time with your dad.

“Do you need some help, ma’am?” You turned to the right, looking over to see a man ducking out from under the carrier that was being worked on. He was an extremely tall, large man with a long, wispy red beard and no other hair. Several grease stains were on his overalls, which were tied around his waist, a white tank top covering his upper half that was just as dirty. A sheen of sweat covered his skin and he held a tool in his right hand. He wasn’t a particularly attractive man but he had a big smile on his face that was welcoming.

“Oh... umm... no. I just,” You paused and bit your lip. “I knew the person who used to run this shop.”

The man’s smile dropped slightly and his broad shoulders sagged. “Oh, he... no longer works here. He passed away right before I started working here.”

You gave him a sad smile. “Oh. Do you run this now?”

He let out a small chuckle at your question. “Oh Maker, no. Just a mechanic. The lady runs it here.”

Your eyebrows lift up. “Who is she?”

“She was a friend of the family. Knew them before they were all killed.” He must of noticed the way you winced at the casual mention of your parents murder. “Oh, you must not know. I wasn’t at Jakku yet but I heard the rumors. Horrible, horrible thing. Whole family was killed. The only one who may of survived was the killer.”

Your eyebrows shot up at his words and you stared at him incredulously. Did the Empire make it look like you had died and left behind a killer to take the blame for the attack? “Who was the killer?”

“Believe it or not, their daughter. Rumor has it she went nuts.” The man gestured to his head, indicating the ‘killer’ had lost their mind. “No one knows for sure but she was the only one who wasn’t found so people just made their assumptions.”

You clenched your fists tightly. The Empire must of covered their tracks and gotten rid of any evidence they had come and slaughtered your family, letting the towns people of Niima gossip about what could of happened. You felt shame and anger pour into you. The very people you had known your whole life had pointed the finger at you. Jakku wasn’t the kindest place but it had been your home and you couldn’t believe that they’d label you as a killer.

“Zeke, are you bothering a potential customer with useless rumors?” You turn around at the sound of the voice you knew all too well. Your heart stopped at the sight of the woman behind you, who immediately made eye contact with you and froze.

“Oh, no ma’am. She used to know the family.” He looked back and forth between you and the woman, lowering his voice and whispering to her, “I don’t think she knew what happened.”

“Mai.” You calmly said and the woman gave you a small smile. Mai had been a long-time family friend, extraordinarily close to your grandmother. People had said they were practically sisters and you couldn’t help but to see so many similarities in her. They were both loud-mouthed and bossy, but also exceptionally kind. When your grandmother had first landed on Jakku with a daughter and no father for the child, Mai had been a helping hand, allowing your grandmother to settle down and learning about her past. She had been there at your birth and had watched you grow up. If there was one person at Jakku you ever truly wanted to see again, it would be Mai.

“Zeke, I am going to take my friend over here. You continue working on that carrier.” The man nodded and turned around, getting one last look at you before crawling back under the carrier to resume his work. Mai strode towards you, her arms immediately reaching out and hugging you tightly. “Maker. I thought you were dead.”

You clutched onto Mai and felt a wave of relief wash over you for the first time in days. She let go of you, placing her hands on your shoulders and giving you a good once-over before grabbing an arm and dragging you over to the small office attached to the garage. She pushed you into the room, locking the door behind you before once again looking you up and down like she was surveying you. “You look older.”

You let out a small chuckle. “That’s what happens when six years passes by.”

Mai rolled her eyes playfully and grinned, her arms crossing over her chest as she leaned against the door. “Still a smart ass like your grandmother?”

You nodded. “Yeah. That part didn’t go away.”

She pushed her body off the door, strolling over to the desk in the room and sitting on it, gesturing for you to sit in the chair in front of her. You dropped your bag next to it before plopping down, looking up at her as she continued to study you intently. “As happy as I am to see you, kid, what the kriff are you doing here?”

Your smile dropped and you rested your elbow against the arm of the chair, bringing your hand up to your face. “I... don’t know.”

“You can’t be here. They think-”

“That I am a killer.” You interrupted and Mai gave you a pitiful look.

“You know how people are here. Nothing else to do but scavenge and gossip.”

“So they just label me as a murderer?”

“Nobody knew anything. All they found was your house burnt down and your parents and grandmother laid out on the ground.” Mai paused as she watched your expression shift from anger to sadness. Realization washed over her features. “Fuck. You were there?”

“Of course.”

“I was hoping you had escaped before whatever happened... well happened. I thought that or you had died.” She let out a small sigh, brushing one of her gray hairs behind her ears. “What happened?”

You could sense the sadness in her voice. She had loved your family, pretty much been a member of it. Your family was a tight circle with a lot of secrets and Mai had accepted the responsibility that came with that. She knew everything about your grandmother and mother. The Force and how they had fled where they had lived in order to escape the threat of death. You had often wondered what she was thinking in the days following your family’s death, wishing you could console her and explain everything, but feared returning to Jakku. “The Empire happened.”

Mais face went slack, her dark skin seeming to pale at what you said. “Shit. How did they find out where you were?”

You had often wondered the same thing. How did they know you were Jedis and how the hell did they know where you were? Jakku was low-profile, not the kind of place people worried about. Once people came here, they usually never went back to where they were from. It was just the way it went. So why had the Empire searched Jakku for your family, just to wipe you all out even though you posed no direct threat? You shrugged and let out a sigh. “No clue. But they knew about my grandmother being a Jedi, as well as my mom having a connection with the Force. Didn’t know she wasn’t trained though.”

“So they just... killed them?”

“Yep. Mom and Dad first. Gram wasn’t there so they... umm... used some tactics to try to get me to talk.” You pulled the jacket you were wearing against your body even more, not wanting her to see what exactly they had done exactly. It would send her into a frenzy, because much like yourself, she was overly protective.

“Gram showed up and they killed her...” You voice drifts off. You were leaving out some details, things you couldn’t bear to talk about, but Mai nodded understandingly.

“I’m so sorry, kid.” She leaned over and reached a wrinkled hand out to your knee, patting it. She sat back up and shook her head, allowing herself a minute to process everything. “What did you do?”

“Took one of their ships and got the hell out of dodge.”

“Where did you go?”

“Yungbrii for a long time. Haven’t been there in months though. I was with-” You almost feel yourself say his name and stop yourself short. You didn’t want to cover that.

“Why did you go to Yungbrii?” Mai’s eyebrows wrinkled together.

“I just landed anywhere small. Lived somewhere that makes Niima look like a bustling city.” Mai frowned at your description. She knew you when you were the type of person who liked to be around others. You used to thrive off human contact. But that had changed very quickly.

“What are you doing now?”

You let out a huff. “I don’t know.”

Mai shook her head and stood from the spot on her desk. “I love you, kid, and you can stay at my place for a few days. But you can’t stay here.”

“People won’t be fond of the murderer hanging around?” You said, feeling your face pinch up into a scowl.

Mai uncomfortably nodded. “You know the people here aren’t the kindest, especially if they sense any potential threat.”

“Great.” You closed your eyes and leaned your head back. You didn’t know where to go next. You had no ship, no family or friends, almost no credits.

“I have a ship at my house. A complete piece of garbage but if anyone can fix it, it’s you. You can have it and work on it there.”

You give her a grateful smile. “Thank you.”

“But you need to find out where to go.”

“Yeah. That’s the problem.”

Mai frowned and crossed her arms over her chest. “Where were you after Yungbrii?”

“What?”

“You said you haven’t been there in months. So where were you?”

Your shoulders sag and you try to not let your emotions overwhelm you. You give yourself a moment, letting out a deep breath. “Doesn’t matter. It’s not an option.”

The woman gave you a knowing look. “What happened?”

You stand from your seat, grabbing your bag. “You know, I am absolutely exhausted and should start working on the ship.” You change the topic to which Mai huffs. “You still live in the same place?”

“Of course.”

“I am going to head over there then. If it’s okay.”

Mai gave you a soft look, understanding there was something more under the surface, something you weren’t telling her. “It’s fine. But we are talking later.”

You give her a quick nod before opening the door to the office. You give her one last smile before you begin to walk towards your next destination.

___________________

Din’s head was absolutely pounding. It felt like a drill was slamming through it with every step he took and every movement. The kid had woken up with bustles of energy but every-time he made a noise, Din winced. He swore to himself he would never, ever drink again.

Luckily the kid seemed to take notice of Din’s change in behavior, calming himself and keeping his attention occupied on the metal sphere in his hand. Normally Din would take it from him, explaining it wasn’t a toy, but he didn’t have the energy to do so today and anything that kept the kid quiet was fine by him. He also had too much to think about already.

Din was sat in the pilots seat with the child buckled in beside him. His hands lightly grasped the navigator but he was frozen. Where would she have gone?

Certainly not Yungbrii. She hated that place with a passion, never haven spoken one good word about the place. Also, if she was trying to make it so Din couldn’t find her, she wouldn’t return. She would know he would think of that. Din considered the planet with the marketplace they had stopped at. It had been busy, somewhere she could blend it. But she usually didn’t run to people - she ran away from them. That would be too much for her and Din wasn’t even sure if she knew the coordinates for it. Din considered the planet they had stayed at with the flowers. But there was absolutely nothing there - no place to get food or anywhere to even live. If she took the x-wing, she probably only had one long-distance trip she could get out of it. She wouldn’t waste it on a place she couldn’t even stay.

Din felt hopeless. She could of stopped anywhere. Hell, she could of punched in some random coordinates and ran off. But that didn’t seem likely to Din. She wasn’t the type to not think before she acted. She had purpose behind every decision she made. This would certainly be no different. So Din just had to think of one planet, out of the millions out there, that she would of stopped at.

Nowhere cold. She hated the cold, having told Din once how much she detested the snow. It would be somewhere warm, where she could work in the sun. It would also not be somewhere with a lot of people but enough that she could work. She was an incredibly talented mechanic and Din knew she loved the work. It would have to be a place where maybe a lot of people didn’t live but stopped by on their way somewhere else. Somewhere where they quickly got their ship freshened up and then were on their way. She would have to find somewhere where she could either get hired or start her own place. Din then considered how she had left most of her minimal credits behind, meaning she only had a little on her, if any. She wouldn’t go to anywhere too expensive. She didn’t have the money for that. It would have to be somewhere with a mechanic shop already established, so she could get a job and make some money. Maybe somewhere where she could also sell parts from the x-wing, put some credits in her pocket before she was on her way.

But, Din also thought she would want to go somewhere familiar. She had spent so long on Yungbrii, which was the polar opposite of everything she had once known. And once she was with Din, she had gotten used to the environment. It had become a sort of home where she knew her surroundings. Knew the dynamics of the place she was at. Din imagined she wouldn’t want to throw herself into a place that had no sense of familiarity.

Then it hit him. She had nothing: no ship, barely any credits, and no family now. She was a lone wolf once again but she no longer enjoyed being on her own. She needed a sense of belonging or home or something of that nature . She also had nothing left to risk. “Dank farrik!”

Din punched in the coordinates and clasped his hands onto the ships steering controls. He had to get out of here and go, now. The kid cooed behind him and Din turned to see him eagerly looking up at him.

“We need to go get your mom, kid.” Din didn’t even consider how he had referred to her as the kid’s mom, his body and mind too busy in hyperdrive and worrying. She could be in danger. “We’re going to Jakku.”

___________________

“Well, you really went to work.”

You turned at the sound of Mai’s voice, seeing her walking towards you with two mugs in her hands. You hopped down from your spot on the ship and she handed a cup of caf to you, which you welcomed happily. It was now nearing sunset and you had spent most of the day in the sun, working on the ship. “You weren’t kidding about this being a piece of junk.”

Mai let out a hearty chuckle. “It is in bad shape. One of the worst I’ve seen.”

“Eh, I’ve seen worse.” You smiled slightly at the thought of the Crest and how you constantly teased Din about his shop being a flying death trap. The ship you were working on now was small and not even operable, but at least it wasn’t pre-empire. Just abused and in need of a little love.

“What’s with that smile?”

You dropped the grin from your face and feel your stomach twist. You had to stop thinking about Din or the kid or the Crest. It would only hurt more and more. “Nothing.”

Mai scoffed at that, taking a sip of her caff and then giving you a sly smile. “You are a bad liar.”

“Shut up.”

“Does that smile have anything to do with where you’ve been the past few months?”

You hated how much Mai knew you, how she could piece things together like this. Your grandmother was the same way, always able to know what you were thinking. You were never able to keep a secret from the two of them. “It doesn’t matter.”

Mai rolled her eyes. “I thought you were supposed to leave your angsty, secretive phase in your teens.”

“Guess I am just special.”

“Or holding too much in. You need to talk to me, kid.”

“I’m fine.” You insisted.

Mai shook her head. She looked over at your box of tools you had laid out next to your bag. “Still have your dad’s tools?”

“Oh, yeah.”

The woman bent down at the knees, reaching out to touch the box when something caught her eyes. She tugged at the wool pooling out of your bag and pulled out the blanket you had gotten at the marketplace. “This looks just like the blanket your grandmother gave you.”

You smiled as you saw her eyes brighten up. “Yeah. Found it at this booth on some random planet.” She gave you a quizzical look. “I was, umm... traveling for a while.”

“With who?”

Your smile dropped and you put down your cup, grabbing a tool and turning back to the ship. “Like I said: doesn’t matter.”

“Kid-”

“It doesn’t matter. I shouldn’t have been there.”

“Well, surely that’s not the case.”

Mai was persistent, just like you. Now you were realizing how annoying it was for Din when you wouldn’t stop bothering him. “He... they are better without me.”

You cleared your throat, trying to seem unbothered but the older woman saw right through you. The corner of her lip quirked into a smile and she let out a chuckle. You huffed at her and frowned. “What in the Maker is so funny?”

“I just thought I’d never live to see the day.” she said teasingly.

“What?”

“This man you traveled with... why did you leave?”

You shook your head. “Stop.”

“I just never thought I’d see the day you were in love.”

The tool in your hand dropped, causing you to jump and you looked at her with bewilderment. You had forgotten how she could read you like a book. It was flustering you. You were trying to move away from everything, not talk about it and dwell on it. “I’m not.” you defiantly said, but even you could hear your voice waiver.

“I’ve seen that look before. Your heart is hurting.” Mai’s gaze on you softened and you felt your head drop as you realized you weren’t going to get away with not telling her what had happened. “So tell me what happened with this man you love.”

“I’m just not the kind of person who can be with someone. He deserves better.” You plainly said, even though your heart was pounding and your vision was blurring with the tears that threatened to spill.

“Bullshit.” Mai rolled her eyes and put her cup of caf down on the ground, grabbing both of your shoulders after and looking you dead in the eye. “You are incredible and deserve the best.”

You rolled your eyes and pulled away. “I am a mess. A dangerous mess.”

“What in the kriff are you talking about?”

You crossed your arms over your chest. “I can’t control... it anymore.”

Mia nodded knowingly. She wasn’t a Jedi herself, but she was the only person outside of your family who knew of your family and their secret. Your grandmother had explained the Force to her extensively and she knew how you struggled and trained with her. “What happened?”

“There was a man and he was trying to hurt the kid-”

“The kid?!”

You shook your head, waving away her dramatic response. “Not my kid.” You clarified. “He was a foundling. Anyways, this man attacked me when the kid and I were alone and I... killed him. Without even thinking about it. It’s like my body went into auto-pilot and I couldn’t stop it.”

“So that is why you left.”

“Yes. What if I hurt the kid or-” You found his name almost slip from your lips and you pause.

Mai nodded knowingly. “You stopped using the Force?”

“Yes. After everybody died, I couldn’t anymore. That night they attacked... I used it to kill for the first time and I never, ever wanted to do it again.”

“Can I ask you a question?” You nod slowly and Mai let’s out a long sigh. “To clarify, every time you’ve used the Force in this way, it has been to protect people you care about?”

“Yes. I supposed that is true but-”

“And never have you ever hurt anybody who was innocent or you loved?”

“No. But-”

“And you’ve never wanted to hurt anybody who wasn’t posing a direct threat to you or your family?”

You let out a grunt as she continues interrupting. “Yes. But it doesn’t matter. Gram taught me not to use the Force to harm people. And I have multiple times now.”

Mai paused for a moment before letting out an exasperated, tired laugh. “You are so much like her.”

“What are you talking about?”

“Your grandmother. You are just like her. She let unnecessary guilt eat away at her.”

“What?”

“You know how your grandmother came here, escaping?”

You sighed, feeling annoyance bubble with your chest. You had heard this story so many times and didn’t know why it mattered. “Yes, but-”

“Your grandmother had done everything she could to protect your mother. Including kill a man.”

Your jaw slacked and you raised your eyebrows at her. “No. She said she never used the Force to hurt anyone.”

“That’s true. Except for once.” Mai grabbed her mug and leaned against the ship you had been working on, taking a long sip of caf as you stood there dumbfounded. “Your grandmother was attacked by her husband - your grandfather - before she left. He hadn’t know your grandmother was a Jedi and once he did, and he realized his daughter was probably one as well, he wanted your grandmother to abandon your mother and told her to never use the Force.

She wasn’t willing to do that. But he was a violent man with a bad temper. And he brutally attacked her. She didn’t lift a finger - until he started approaching your mother. Then, she did what any mother in that situation should do: she protected her child, even if it meant killing someone.”

You let out the deep breath you were holding in, bringing your hands up to rub at your temples. Your system felt like it was in overdrive. The last couple days had just been too much and this was so much information. You didn’t know whether you wanted to cry or yell. “Why didn’t she tell me?”

“She was ashamed of it. Let the guilt get to her too much. Never told you or your mother.” Mai shook her head solemnly. “I am not going to say what you did felt great because it didn’t. But what I will say is that what you did was what you had to do.”

“It doesn’t feel like that.”

“That’s okay. But the very fact that you feel guilty shows you are a good person. And you only ever used the Force to protect your family when they were being threatened. There is no reason to assume you are just going to hurt people.”

You stood in silence, allowing your brain to process everything. You had spent so much time hating yourself and laying yourself in blankets of guilt that you hadn’t even considered anything else. You knew deep down you would never hurt Din or the kid. Never lay a finger on them. And there was no reason to think you would, but the fear had clouded your brain. And even with hearing Mai’s story, learning about the secret your grandmother had kept, a small part of your brain still tugged at you. If you couldn’t even protect your family, what made you think you could do it with your new family? “I’m still afraid.”

“And that is okay. But you can’t just run from it because it scares you.”

“It’s too late though. I left. I have no clue where he is and he probably hates me now.” You couldn’t even begin to imagine how Din was feeling right now. You were sure he hated you now. How could he not after you just left him like that? You had abandoned him and the kid, even though he told you he didn’t want you to leave. Even if you were somehow able to find him, he could probably never trust you again, nonetheless want you to join him and the kid.

“I’m sure that isn’t true. He is probably confused like you. So is the kid.” That could be true. Din knew something was up yesterday, but you never confided in him what exactly was wrong. You didn’t leave anything behind to indicate what you had left, only the necklace. For all you knew, he could think you left for a myriad reasons. Your heart froze at the thought of him possibly thinking you left because of him. You felt like a damn idiot. “Tell me about them. What’s the kids name?”

You paused and awkwardly chuckled. “The kid doesn’t really have a name...”

“What?” Mai furrowed her eyebrows and stared at you with confusion.

“Well, he isn’t exactly a normal child. He is a creature... I don’t really know how to explain it but we just call him the kid. Or womp rat.” You laughed as you remembered all the times you jokingly called the kid a womp rat and he would smile up at you, having no clue what you were even calling him but just glad you were around.

“Okay... that makes no sense. What is the mans name?”

“I can’t tell you that either...” You murmured quietly.

Mai tilted her head at you. “Are these two even real?”

“Yes. I just can’t tell you his name. It’s kind of against the rules.”

“The rules?”

“Um, yeah. You see, he is a... well, you know,” You stumbled on your words, worried what her reaction would be if you told her what Din was. She knew of your grandmother’s opinions about Mandalorians and weren’t sure if she shared them.

“Is he a creature too?”

You laughed at the edge in her voice. “No, he is a Mandalorian.” You watched as Mai’s jaw dropped slightly and you nervously rushed to his defense. “But he is a good man and kind and smells nice and-”

“Smells nice?”

“I am going to be completely honest: I have no clue what I am saying.” Mai let out a loud laugh at that and her eyes crinkled from the grin on her face.

“You’ve got it rough.”

You let out your own laugh and shook your head. “Yeah, I do.”

“Your grandmother is probably rolling in her grave somewhere.”

“She would of killed me.” You let out a chuckle at the though. You knew she would be livid if she found out but you also couldn’t help to think she would like Din if she got to meet him and actually get to know him. She would of appreciated his strength and admired his dedication and loyalty. She would of had to look at the man behind all the armor, but once she did, you think they would of gotten along pretty well.

“You know you have to use this ship to find him now, right?”

You let out a sigh. “He could be anywhere.”

“Can’t you use some Force voo-doo to find him?”

You rolled your eyes at her statement. “The Force isn’t a GPS.”

“If it’s so great, it should be able to do that.” She jokingly teased, throwing a wink your way before walking off to leave you be.

You sighed and looked at the ship. If you worked all night, you could probably have it fixed and ready by tomorrow afternoon. It wouldn’t be in the greatest shape, but it would be enough to fly it and find Din. You already wasted two days on this and he truly could be anywhere. But you were willing the travel the whole galaxy to find him, so you could at least explain yourself, let him know it wasn’t his fault.

You grabbed one of your tools and walked towards the ship, beginning your work again.

___________________

“How can I help you?”

“I’m looking for a woman.”

“No offense, sir, but that is extremely vague.”

The large man looked back at Din, his red beard covered in grease, along with his clothing. He had his arms crossed over his chest and his eyebrows were furrowed together in confusion, but he still had a small smile on his face.

Din had landed on Jakku this morning, just a little bit of a way out from the Niima Trading Post. She had mentioned her family had lived close by here, which meant her father would of worked as a mechanic here. As soon as he entered town, he and the child asked the first person they saw where there was a mechanic shop. Din couldn’t imagine it wouldn’t be the first place she would stop at, whether it be to ask for a job or to simply see it.

The shop was small, definitely older and a little run down, but it was taken care of. Din couldn’t help but to imagine her as a child or teenager working here with her dad like she had told Din about. Seeing it gave Din a new perspective on her past. “She would of stopped by in the last day or so. She always wears this brown jacket and-”

“Oh, the family friend.” The man gave him a knowing nod and Din felt relief flood all his senses. He had been so worried he would of come here and she would of been nowhere to be found. That he had been wrong and she could’ve been on any planet, anywhere. But hearing him confirm she had been here made Din’s heart feel lighter than it had in hours and hours now.

“Yes. Where is she?”

“I don’t know. She talked to Mai and then left.” The man paused, his smile dropping slightly. “You’re one of those Mandalorians, right? If she is a bounty of yours, I’m afraid I can’t-”

“She isn’t. She is a...,” Din drifted off. Friend felt like a foolish word. She was so much more than a friend to him but that was still what he settled on. “friend.”

“Oh!” The man smiled once again. The child, who was sat in his carrier on Din’s waist let out a little peep and the man looked over at him. He gave the child a huge grin, waving a couple of his fingers at him. Afterwards, he glanced back over at Din with a shrug. “Like I said, she left and hasn’t come back. But Mai should be in soon and she might know something.”

Din nodded and let the man turn away to resume his work. He hoped desperately she was still here. He didn’t think she would of left, but it was possible she came to the shop to get a new ship and leave - though it didn’t appear any ships were for sale here.

He studied the trading post. It was early morning and was rather quiet, not much excitement happening. A few people were starting to open their booths while some headed out into the sand, presumably scavengers. Most of the people kept to themselves, the kindest individual so far being the man who worked at the shop. Din found it hard to imagine his cyar’ika having lived here. She was so exuberant and full of life. A place like this seemed so dull for her sprawling personality - though he supposed it was exponentially more exciting compared to Yungbrii.

Din kept a look out all around, hoping he’d see her. Hoping she’d walk by and he could stop her, tell her to come back. Din knew that if he found out she was gone and no longer here, it would crush him completely. He was already low on hope and he needed some. Even if she didn’t want to come back, Din just wanted to know she was safe and happy. That would be enough for him.

“Oh, Mai, someone is here to see you.” Din turned as he heard the man’s voice bellow out and watched as a woman looked over at him. She was older but still had a youthful aura to her. Her gray hair was pulled into a braid and her hands were wrapped around a mug of what Din assumed to be caf. She gave him a big smile, an action that shocked Din. He wasn’t usually greeted with a smile.

“I’m looking for someone.” Din said as she walked over to him.

She let out a chuckle, shaking her head. “Yeah, yeah. I know you are.” Her gaze drifted over to the bag on his side where the child was held and he watched her eyes widen slightly. “He must be the womp rat?”

Din looked down to the child who looked at the woman with a little frown. He loved when his mother called him a womp rat, but not so much with other people. Din looked back up at the woman who was still smiling, a sly little smirk that reminded him of his sweet one. “Where is she?”

The woman, Mai, looked up at him and nodded her head. “She is still here. Don’t worry. Good thing you came now though. She was planning on leaving this afternoon.”

Din thanked the galaxy she hadn’t left yet and he hadn’t waited to come. “I need to see her.”

“I’ll take you to her. She is at my place.”

“Thank you.”

She smiled again at him and before she turned to lead him, she quirked her head at him. “I’m glad you came.” Din tilted his helmet at her. “She mentioned you and the kid to me.”

Din wondered what he had said about him, wanting to ask but not wanting to seem invasive or waste time. He just gave Mai a small nod and she turned around, starting to walk, and Din followed her.

___________________

“Hey, kid.”

You heard Mai’s voice ring out behind you but you didn’t bother to look away. You were so close to being done on the ship when you found some big issue with the engine. You were now covered in oil, intently working away at it with a tool in each hand. “This ship is a total bitch.”

“Kid-”

“I was so close to being done and it just crapped out on me, spitting oil all over.” You huffed as you brushed a piece of hair behind your ear, knowing you got oil on your face but not really caring. “I take back what I said: this is the worst ship I’ve ever seen. I swear it’s doing it on purpose. I ought to-”

“Kid!”

You let out a grunt as she yelled out, putting your tools down and turning to see her standing in the doorway of the small garage she had. You jumped down from your spot on the ship and strolled towards her, wiping your hands on the overalls she had let you borrow. “Yes, madam?” you sarcastically responded.

“You have a friend here to see you.”

You froze and felt your heart start to pound in your chest. It had to be Din. There was no one else it could be. Who else would be here to see you? You brought your shaky hands together and took a deep breath. “Is it...”

You couldn’t bear to bring yourself to ask the question, afraid your heart would crumble if it wasn’t. “It’s either your Mandalorian or a man with a very odd taste in clothing.”

Your breath hitched in your throat. You wanted to run out, see if it was him, and hold him your arms. But you were so afraid, for reasons unknown to you. Din had come to you. He had found you and that was a good sign, right? He wouldn’t have come all this way if he didn’t want to see you. But you still nervously chewed at your lip. Mai sensed your nerves and gave you a pat on the shoulder. “He is waiting for you outside.”

You nodded your head and slowly walked out of the garage. As soon as you exited, you saw him standing there, with his back to you, and you nearly cried. It was Din, your Din. He stood upright, his arms crossed in front of him, and the child on his side sitting in his carrier. He was the first one to say anything, turning his head and letting out a coo as he saw you. His big ears that hung out of the bag twitched and his eyes brightened.

You gave him a small smile but felt it drop once Din turned around, being alerted of your presence by the child’s noises. His arms dropped but he didn’t step closer to you, his helmet steadily aimed at you. Part of you felt so incredibly happy seeing him. The sight of him standing in front of you was something you were worried would never happen again. And though it had only been a couple days, it felt like a damn year. Seeing him made you realized just how much you had missed him. You open your mouth, not knowing exactly what to say but wanting to say something, anything, just so you could hear him speak. But he was the first one to.

“You left me.”

You felt your heart instantly shatter at his words. You wanted to crawl into yourself and disappear. It wasn’t that you weren’t aware that your leaving would hurt Din, but you didn’t truly consider how much of an impact it would have on him. Maybe you did so selfishly because you know you’d stay if you did, or maybe you truly didn’t understand just how much the man cared for you until you heard the pain in his voice, the way his breath hitched in the modulator when he saw you. Hearing the inflection of his tone was what sent you over the edge. All the emotions of the last few days washed over you and you felt exhausted. “Mando-”

“Why would you leave me?”

Where did you start? There were so many things you wanted to say, but you didn’t know where to start and the pounding of your heart in your chest distracted you. You were scared. Scared to tell Din what was really going on and to watch him walk away. Or scared to find out he didn’t want you back anyways. “It is hard to explain and understand...”

“So you just leave?”

You feel yourself wince at the harsh words. Isn’t that what you always did though? Run away? You supposed it had become a habit of yours, but that wasn’t fair to yourself. Nonetheless to the man in front of you. “I’m sorry.”

Din finally tore his gaze away from you, placing his hand on his hip that the kid wasn’t at, staring into the sky. “I’m not here to force you back.”

You tried to feverishly blink back the tears threatening to spill. He didn’t want you. You had messed up this time. Din allowed one person into his life finally and then they turn around and leave. Of course he doesn’t want you. “Oh, okay.”

“If you don’t want to be with us, you don’t have to be.” You wanted to scream at yourself, tell him all you want is to be with him and the kid.

“Mando-”

“I know there isn’t something your telling me. And I assume it’s why you left.” Din looked back towards you, the sun reflecting off his helmet and making the beskar even brighter than normal. “Or maybe it is me-”

“No!” You interrupted, stepping towards him. “It isn’t you. At all.”

“Then what is going on? Because I’m lost.” You bring a hand to rub at your face, no longer caring about the grease and oil on them. You needed to just tell him, because you couldn’t handle the thought of him blaming himself for anything. “I don’t know why you can’t tell me.”

You pause and take a breath in, looking away. “Din.” You whispered.

“Please.” You heard the slight crack in his voice, the way his words wavered, and looked at him to find him stepping closer, his helmet tilted down to look right at you.

“I lied to you.”

Din tilted his helmet slightly. “What?”

“When you asked about my family. If there were Jedis... I lied.” You froze, looking up to him to try to gage his reaction but he remained frozen, still just looking down at you. You wished desperately he didn’t have the helmet, so you could see his expression and try to know what he was thinking, because right now it was like looking at a blank wall. “You need to say something.”

“I don’t... understand.”

“My grandmother was one. My mother was one. And I’m one, kind of.” You waited for his to step away from you or tell you he couldn’t do this but he stayed in the same position so you continued. “I was always taught not to tell anyone and my grandmother told me Mandalorians hate Jedis. I didn’t want to tell you and have you leave me.”

Din finally turned away from you, looking into the distance, as the child on his hip still looked up at you while cooing softly, one little hand reaching out. “I wouldn’t leave you. I told you that.”

“That was before you knew this.”

“I don’t care.”

“But-”

“I don’t care.” He repeated softly. You couldn’t see the truth in his face, but you could hear it. But you still felt your mind eating away at you.

“I’m not a good one. I didn’t even really finish training and haven’t used it regularly in years. I can’t train the kid. He will need another Jedi.”

“I don’t care.”

“I killed that man with the Force. I killed a man.”

“I don’t care.”

You let out an exasperated laugh and huffed at him, throwing a hand up. “How do you not care?”

“You do realize what my job is?”

You guess you had never really considered Din’s job. He hadn’t had to do any bounty hunting with you, the first body he had brought in being the bounty you had killed. You knew what he did, knew he had probably killed plenty of people, if not hundreds. But it never really crossed your mind or made you hesitant. He was a good man and he was only doing his job, one he had been saddled with at a young age. “Yes, but that’s different.”

“You’re right. You did it to protect the kid. ”

“But what if I can’t control it? That’s not the first time I’ve killed someone with the Force.”

“Was the last time to protect your family?”

“I mean, I tried to... yes.”

“Then I don’t care.”

“Din-”

“I don’t care about you being a Jedi or whatever you are exactly. You’re my cyar’ika, okay? This... magic stuff you have doesn’t change how I think of you.”

You almost chuckled at the way Din spoke about ‘magic stuff’, knowing he was completely clueless, but you settled on a soft smile, still tainted with sadness and regret. “I don’t want to hurt you.”

“You won’t hurt me. Or the kid. You are a good person. The best person I’ve ever met.”

You felt a weight lift off your chest at his words, that little part of your mind that had been gnawing away at you fading away. You suddenly felt stupid for not telling him all this time. How had even the smallest part of you thought he had cared? You always took what you family taught you seriously, but maybe you had taken it too far. Din was different than everyone else and you should of known that he would be okay with it. And maybe you did know. Deep down, a little part of yourself always knew that in the end, Din wouldn’t care or really understand it. Maybe it was you who couldn’t accept what you were, what you had done. But you had to move on from that.

You looked up at Din and rested a hand on his chest plate, watching how it rose and fell with each breath he took. It was warm on your hand, but a welcome sensation. “I’m sorry.” you whispered out, your voice trembling.

“It’s okay.” He insisted, bringing a hand to rest over the one on his chest.

“No, it’s not. I left you and the kid.”

“And I found you.” One of his hands reached out to grab onto your wrist, the warm leather of his glove rubbing circles into the skin. “You can’t do that again though. I need you.”

You nodded up at him. “I need you, too.”

Din let out a sigh of relief and leaned his helmet against your forehead quickly. The metal of his helmet was warm, but it was a welcome feeling against your skin. You felt your heart stop racing, your hand begin to calm and shake less. You hadn’t realized just quite how much you needed Din, but you did. He was your home now. You pulled away and felt a small smile creep on your face. “You’ve got oil on your helmet now.”

You grabbed a rag out of your back pocket, handing it to him so he could wipe it away. Din did so, and handed it back to you. “Thank you.”

“No problem.” You stepped back from him, with a small smile.

“Sweet one?”

“Yeah?”

You watched as Din froze up, looking down at the ground and back up at you. His fist tightened a little and you swore you saw his hand shake for the first time. “I want you to know that I...” He trailed off and you felt your breath hitch in your throat. Please say it. “I’m glad you are back.”

You felt silly for a second at his response but just nodded in response, giving him a grin. “Me too.”

“You want to clean up and we can go?”

“Can we actually do one thing before we go?”

“Of course.”

___________________

Din watched as she stepped forwards, her gaze stuck on the sight before them. The child looked up at Din, seeming to understand the significance of the moment. He had a sad little expression on his face and stayed completely silent, sitting in the carrier solemnly. Din stood back, standing upright as he watched her kneel down on the sand and reach a hand out to graze the three stones in front of her.

It was completely silent. They had traveled a bit outside of town, to a spot where only three gravestones stood and nothing else. No names were marked on them but they stood on their own, nothing around them except for sand. Din assumed a place like Jakku didn’t have a graveyard, making this a rare sight to see.

She took a minute before standing back up and stepping back. She stood next to Din again, her gaze drifting into the distance. “Our house was somewhere right there.”

It was the first thing she had said since she told him what she wanted to do before they left. Din looked over to where she was looking. There was nothing to see, the parts of the house that had remained probably having been taken by scavengers and the rest had been ash. Din looked over at her. She was standing upright, her shoulders stood back, and her stare was intense. She looked strong. Din was shocked to see a small smile on her face. “My father once tried to plant a fruit tree here. Said somebody at the Post had given him seeds to plant. He waited months and months to see if anything would grow and when it didn’t, he dug up the seeds only for my grandmother to tell him they were teeth from some animal.” A laugh escaped her lips and Din found himself smiling. He had grown accustomed to that laugh and it had become one of his favorite sounds. He had missed it desperately.

“My mother couldn’t cook. It was actually rather pathetic how bad she was at it. But one time, for my birthday, she tried to make a cake. She got all the ingredients for it - even though they were almost impossible to find here - and worked on it for hours. And when we cut into it, it was just goo inside. I don’t even know how she did it.” She let out a louder laugh, a bigger grin on her face as she relived the memories. Din was relieved to see her like this. So often when she spoke of her family, her words always held a tint of sadness. Like she was always mourning and couldn’t accept what had been taken from her. This was the first time Din had ever heard her tell stories of her family without that sadness. She wasn’t mourning anymore. She was celebrating their lives.

“Oooh!” He heard her voice rise, clapping her hands together as she excitedly recalled another story. “One time, my grandmother tried to set me on a blind date which confused me because she always told me relationships were a waste of time. But, I went because she wouldn’t stop nagging me about it and the damn woman had me go on a date with a Crolute! He didn’t wear shoes and had flipper feet. It was awful and she thought it was the funniest prank she had ever pulled.”

Din let out a chuckle at that one, watching as she threw her head back in laughter. Even the child joined in, letting out a small noise that could be discerned as a giggle. She looked over at Din with a bright smile, the sun blazing behind her, and it took his breath away. Without thinking, he reached a hand out and grabs hers.

She looked down at their hands and intertwined her fingers. “Thank you for coming with me.”

“I’m glad you wanted me to come.”

“You can’t meet them but I don’t know.” She shrugged with a sheepish smile. “I think maybe they are somewhere. Seeing this.” Din didn’t say anything but she looked over at him. “They would of liked you.”

Din felt a warmth fill his chest. He imagined he would of liked them as well, especially if they were anything like the woman he loved. “Thank you.”

She smiled at him and leaned closer to him, their shoulders now brushing together. “Din?”

“Yeah?”

“Let’s go home.”

She began to tug his arm away from the gravestones, her hand still intertwined with him, and started marching towards the Crest that she now called home. Din couldn’t help to think though that his home was being held in his hand in this very moment.

Tag List: @ilikethoseodds @dindaddy @poguesvixen @starspangledwidow @fangirlalexia @the-scandalorian @ka-x-in @keepcalmandblogstuff @the-lady-of-stars @orneryscandalousevil @spaghetti-666 @afootnoteinyourhappiness

#din djarin #the mandalorian #din djarin fanfiction #din djarin imagine #din djarin x reader #din djarin x female reader #the mandalorian fanfiction #the mandalorian imagine #din djarin x you #mandalorian fanfiction #mandalorian imagine #mandalorian x reader #star wars fanfiction #star wars imagine #star wars fanfic #din djarin fanfic #connection series

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thebountyfucker · 4 years ago

Text

The Royal Affair - Cad

Don't read this without reading the first part!!

Part 1

18+ ONLY - NSFW

Cad Bane x AFAB!Reader (gender-neutral, though reader does wear a skirt.) Tags/CW: power imbalance, claiming, dirty talk, sex as payment, collaring, everything is consensual but Cad is a bit forceful

Here's a link to my masterpost Want to be tagged in upcoming fics like this? Here's the link to my taglist application!

Your gaze followed Prince Cad for most of the rest of the night. He wandered around the venue, making small talk with Lady Sing or Lord Jango. He seemed less inclined to stay with his family unit than some, you noted, and appeared to be most comfortable when conversing with others. He nursed a few glasses of whiskey, but never pushed too far into drunkenness. Though you were sure he’d deny it, he was a royal, and as such, he had appearances to maintain.

Your gazes met many times during the night; at first, his gaze was strictly chaste, but as the night continued on, his gaze became more and more licentious, as if he couldn’t wait to get you alone. A chill ran down your spine, and you couldn’t quite tell if you were nervous or aroused by the prospect.

Toward the end of your shift, you made your way toward him; Cad was leaned against the wall, joking with Lord Jango about something. His gaze met yours and a wide, fanged grin spread across his face.

“Well, well, well… look who it is.” He pushed off the wall to stand straight. “Made up yer mind?”

“Yeah… I want to come with you.” You answered, and he hooked his thumbs into the pockets on his suit coat.

“Good choice. Ya would’ve regretted goin’ wit’ Em.” He replied, glancing up toward the departing Kyuzan clan. Prince Embo offered you a small nod, as if honoring the decision you made. You turned back toward Cad, who had fished around in his coat pocket for a cig. “Come wit’ me.”

There were no other pleasantries as he led you out of the meeting hall toward the adjacent Azvergin Hotel; the hotel, which catered exclusively to billionaires and royalty, was largely a mystery to you. You either had to be staff to said clientele, or a member of these groups in order to be let inside. Rumor had it that one could rent an entire floor, long term, for fifty million credits! You’d never see that kind of money in your life, but you supposed that it was like spare change to the Prince at your side.

He led you inside, through the rigorous security detail which awaited you. The guards hardly regarded you, and you figured that this may be a common occurrence with the Prince. They took your fingerprints and ran a background check - when it came up clean, they allowed you through. Then, Cad led you into the lift and up 15 floors to what you assumed was his family’s floor.

The entire ride was silent, but he kept looking at you, as if he couldn’t figure out what he was going to do with you. This made you a bit nervous, only because you weren’t entirely sure if he was to be trusted. Some girls from your work told you that the Prince would lay claim to his favorite servants and mark them with collars. You briefly wondered if this would be your future too.

Cad offered you a smirk as the doors parted and he led you out into the hallway. The walls were white, with intricate gold crown mouldings; doors lined the hallway, each with carved tags denoting who stayed where. Two guards stood at attention at each door, and servants - mostly women, of varying species - bustled about. Each and every person you passed bowed for their prince, and Cad ate it up. He gripped the chin of one of the servant girls, and leaned down to kiss her straight on the lips. She swooned.

Cad turned back toward you, and gestured toward a nearby door with his head. “Dis is my room. You can stay wit’ me. Dat is, unless you want to sleep in de servants’ quarters.”

“I suppose I can stay with you… if that’s alright.”

“Sure, sure.” He nodded, and the guards pushed open the door for you both; Cad stepped in first, and you followed closely behind.

The room was cavernous - larger than your entire apartment, you wagered - and designed with royalty in mind. The walls were pristine white with gold filigree, and spanned higher than you thought possible. He had chairs gathered in one corner, near a small bookcase. Not far from that was a fireplace, which had seemed to burn real wood, which was hard to find on Coruscant.

On the other side of the door was a wardrobe - it was a modest size for a prince, which was about twice as large as your own closet. And near that was his bed. It was massive, with bedposts at each corner and silver silk sheets. His comforter was pulled back, and you swore you could see restraints bolted to the frame.

Perhaps the rumors about him weren’t exaggerated…

“Should I… leave and get my stuff?” You inquired, standing in the middle of the room awkwardly. Cad glanced over at you as he pulled his suit coat off.

“Whaddya need?”

“Clothes, toiletries.. You know, the basics.” You watched as he tossed the coat on the floor haphazardly, before he went about unbuttoning his black shirt.

“I’ll call de servants fer ya. Dey’ll fetch your things.” He replied, nonchalant. He tossed his shirt atop his suit coat, and sat on the edge of his bed to pull off his shoes. He glanced over at you. “You got a starin’ problem?”

“N-no!” You replied, casting your glance to the floor. He chuckled and sauntered over to where you stood. He took a step toward you, pushing up against you; you took a step back, not sure if this was intentional. He took another step toward you, and then another, until you were trapped up against the wall. He reached out, cupping your chin and tilting it up so you could look him in the eyes.

“Dere ain’t no need to be shy, doll. I ain’t gonna hurt ya.”

“How can I be so sure?” You replied, your voice shaking. Heat pooled in your core, and his ravenous gaze only intensified the sensation.

“If I wanted t’ hurt ya… I would have done it already.” He brushed his thumb over your bottom lip, and it trembled in response. His gaze trailed toward your tantalizing tits. “I think I found yer ‘price’.”

“Oh?” You squeaked, surprised by how easily he could sway you.

“Why don’ we getchu out of dese clothes, and you can show me why it was worth it t’ take ya in?”

“I-.” Your body screamed ‘yes’, but your sensibilities told you that this all seemed to be happening so quickly. But you weren’t sure he’d care if you told him this. He was a Prince, after all. You were sure he was used to getting what he wanted, when he wanted. “S-something tells me you really weren’t trying to save me from the King.”

“Yer a smart one.” He drawled, a dark, hungry look in his eyes. You could smell the whiskey and tabac on his breath as he pressed closer to you. “How else would I get you to come with me?”

That tracked, you noted with a frown. Your life was ostensibly in danger, and this spoiled, entitled Prince used that to get you in his bed. You pushed him off and walked away, but he was not so easily deterred.

“Yer safe, ain’tcha?” He wasn’t wrong. Being with him meant you were safe from the King… but were you safe with Prince Cad? You crossed your arms over your chest and sat down in one of the chairs in the room. Cad followed you over to the chair, but he did not sit beside you. “Don’t be a brat.”

“I’ll be what I want.” You replied, your pussy pulsing to remind you that you were still aroused. You cursed under your breath, but figured that maybe you could make a game of this. You were scorned, sure, but you wouldn’t pass up a chance to sleep with the Prince.

“Is dat so? Do ya need to be tamed? Is dat it?” He crossed his arms over his chest and quirked a browridge. “I’ve dealth wit’ many brats. Ya ain’t special.”

“I don’t like being lied to.” You explained to him, and his expression soured. “If you just wanted to fuck me, you could have told me that.”

“Yeah. Like dat would’ve worked.” He rolled his eyes.

“It would have! I was having a shit day and I would have loved to let off some steam!” You told him, and Cad sat on the arm of the chair next to yours. A small smirk grew on your face as you held his gaze. “You want to fuck me? Hm? You can start by telling me you’re sorry.”

He pursed his lips and turned his head. “Ain’t happenin’.”

“That’s a shame. I guess this cunt of mine is off-limits.” You pointedly closed your legs, and anger flashed in his eyes. You could practically see him trying to work his way out of this and still get what he wanted. But you wouldn’t budge and you could tell that he knew this. It took him twenty minutes before he was able to form the words.

“I… I’m sorry.” He growled through gritted teeth.

“Good. You should be.”

There was silence for a moment, and you figured Cad was sulking because of the apology. Before you could react, he got up and thrust his knee between your legs. You gasped softly as he pressed his thigh to your aching cunt.

“Now listen here… I don’ like dat attitude of yers. Yer in my home - ya don’t get to order me around. Got it?” He leaned forward, boxing you in against the chair. You tried to fight it, but you found yourself grinding your cunt against his leg. He hissed in response. “No sass now? Nexxu got yer tongue?”

“I got… I got what I wanted already.” You told him.

“Words are cheap, doll. You know I didn’t mean it.” He grabbed your chin and tipped your head back, before leaning down to press a kiss to your lips. It was forceful and needy, and you had to fight against pushing him away and digging in deeper. Your cunt throbbed again, and wetness seeped into your panties. You whimpered, and Cad chuckled. “Yer a little whore, ain’t ya? Despite all yer whining, ya still want me.”

He eased away, moving to finish undressing. “Get up and get naked. I wanna see dis cunt of yers.”

“M-make me.” You replied, your voice wavering with lust. He cocked a browridge and pulled you up to stand; he ripped your shirt off, and rucked the skirt down over your ass. You were nearly bare in front of him, and his ravenous gaze on your body made warmth well in your belly. He pulled down your panties, watching with interest as webs of slick stretched between your cunt and the cloth.

“Yer droolin’ fer me, doll. Filthy whore. Do ya want my cock?” He inquired, and you slowly nodded at this. He dragged you to his bed and tossed you onto it. “Show me yer cunt, doll.”

He took a step back, watching as you casually spread your legs open and then parted your labia with your fingers; Cad watched, his hungry gaze scouring over your soaked cunt. He drew in close, his knobby finger slipping inside of you. “Yer wet fer me, ain’tcha? Mmm… so wet and tight.”

You moaned, your head lolling back onto his impossibly soft comforter; your legs spread wider of their own accord, as if anticipating that he would insert his body between them sooner rather than later. You rocked your hips, aiming to drive his finger deeper within. He chuckled.

“Yer just beggin’ fer my cock at dis point… all I need is t’ hear it. Beg fer me.” “Oh Prince…. Oh Prince!” You whined, gripping his sheets tightly. He retracted his finger and drew aimlessly on your stomach with your slick. “Please, I need your cock! Please!”

“I wanna hear my name on yer lips. You know it, don’tcha?”

“Cad… Please….” You begged, lifting your hips to present your cunt to him, trying to tell him that you so desperately needed him to fill the void. He smirked at this presentation, and drew two fingers between your folds.

“Yer cute… I’ll give ya dat.” His fingers danced up and down the slit of your cunt teasingly. You whimpered, wriggling your hips closer. First, he was bitching at you about not giving in, and now he was the one dragging his feet? Entitled prick! “Most of my lays would offer t’ sell me deir families at dis point… just to get my cock.”

“Stupid.” You muttered, and he pressed a thumb to your clit.

“My favorites get special treatment. T’ dem, it’s a good trade.” He smirked as he slowly rubbed circles on your clit. Your body tensed, and your vision went spotty. “Besides, what use is a family t’ dem if dey’re here with me?”

Your toes curled as he dipped his finger into your cunt, only going in to the first knuckle. He rubbed around the entrance as he played with your clit. Stupid, entitled Prince! Fuck, you wanted him so bad...

“Now… what would you offer t’ me t’ get my cock? Hm?” He inquired as he eased his finger in a little further. “Do ya even have anythin’ of worth? You peasants usually don’t.”

“Hey!” You squeaked as he shoved the rest of his finger into you. Another slipped in soon after, and your whole body began to shake.

“Tell me, doll… what would you give to have my cock?”

“Nothing.” You replied as he thrust his fingers in and out of you. You whimpered, grinding your hips against his hand. The heat in your belly threatened to spill over, and your cunt tightened around his fingers. He was quick to remove his fingers from you.

“Ya don’t get t’ cum until ya tell me what you’d give me.”

You panicked, trying to find something, anything, of worth to give him. He wasn’t wrong about you not having much of worth; you worked a mediocre job making decent pay. You didn’t have much in the way of family, and even if you did, you would never offer them to him. This was ridiculous but you were also desperate. In the moment, all you could say was:

“Me! You can have me!”

Cad paused, quirking a browridge at this; a slow, devious smirk spread across his face and he leaned down.

“Is dat so?” He was mere inches away as his slick-covered hand slid down your stomach. “You want to be mine?”

“If - if that means you’ll fuck me… yes!” You cried out, aching and yearning. Satisfied with your answer, he angled his hips and pressed his cock into your cunt. His cock was searingly hot inside you, and filled you up sufficiently; every inch he plunged into you drove you closer and closer to an orgasm. The moment he bottomed out, you came, your body shaking as sparks of electric pleasure shot through you. Your back arched toward him, and Cad wrapped an arm around you, holding you to his chest.

He slowly rocked into your spasming pussy, moaning at the way you desperately milked him for his cum. He would not give so easily, however. He picked up his pace, a high-pitched whine escaping your lips; the ridges of his cock massaged all the sensitive parts of your cunt, and you had to stop yourself from begging for more.

“Ya feel good, doll.” Cad grunted as he thrusted harder into you. You could only whimper in response, your hands gripping your breasts tightly. “My cock feels good, don’t it?”

“Yessss.” You cried out, your toes curling as your orgasm loomed once more. You laid your head back on his bed, closing your eyes to bask in the sensations. He raked his fingers up and down your thighs, which quivered at the touch. There was only so much more you could take before the building tension snapped and you came again.

“Say my name.”

“Cad!”

“Say it louder! Let de whole place know who ya belong t’!” He roared, digging his fingers into the meat of your thighs to the point where you were certain they would bruise. A wail rose from deep in your chest.

“CAD!” You yelled out, arching your back and thrashing about as the sensations became unbearable. You were so close! So close! Your cunt tightened around Cad’s cock and he let out a groan at the sensation.

“Ya gonna cum fer me again? Ya gonna cum, lil’ slut?”

“Yes, yes, yes!” You cried, bucking your hips up against his, grasping at any additional pleasure you could get. Cad’s pace was growing erratic, and you knew that he wouldn’t be too far behind you.

“Cum fer me! Cum!” Cad commanded, pressing his thumb to your clit. Your vision went dark as your body when stiff; fluids shot out of you, soaking Cad, as waves of euphoria washed over your body. Through the haze of pleasure, you could feel Cad biting down on your shoulder, puncturing your skin, as he shot his cum deep inside you. Your cunt milked him for all he was worth.

When you came back to your head, Cad was lapping at the blood which leaked from your wound. He pulled out when he realized that you had come to, and went to find a rag so you could clean up. He returned with a towel, and gestured to your throbbing cunt.

“Go on.”

You cleaned up, as you were directed, while Cad strutted around his room. He returned to you with a collar in hand, and you quirked a brow. “For me?”

“Yeah. Ya did give yerself t’ me.” He reminded you.

“I did, didn’t I?” You managed a smile and leaned forward, presenting your neck to him. He clasped the collar around it, and stroked your cheek.

“Dere you are. All pretty.”

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ooops-i-arted · 4 years ago

Note

Din's morning routine: finding Yoditos in various inconvenient places while trying to get ready in AM. OR view frim inside of 'fresher door - dozens of tiny hands and "Dads?!" Happiest if Birthdays to you!

Thank you! Please enjoy this outline of Din's morning. And this was also inspired by your request.

3:38 AM

Din rolled over to check the chrono, or at least as much as he could with a snoring juvenile varactyl using half of him as a pillow. Twenty-two minutes still until his alarm went off. He lay back down and closed his eyes, hoping for a little bit more sleep.

3:57 AM

A wail started growing louder and Din’s dream of searching for his children in the ruins of Aq Vetina melted away as he sat up, struggling out from underneath Boga Jr. He knew that sound. The babies were awake early this morning.

Quickly he stumbled into the children’s room, finding that fortunately only Yod’ika 99 and Yod’ika 94 had woken each other up in the crib. He scooped them up and held them to his collarbone with one hand, humming softly and soothing them with the vibrations in his throat while he used his free hand to fix a bottle of formula for each of them and set it in the rack Kuiil had constructed to suspend over a matching line of customized infant seats, each labeled with the number of Yod’ika it was sized for. Once his two little ones were sufficiently soothed he set them in their seats and tilted the bottles into their reach, allowing them to drink while he started preparing another batch of breakfast for the others still asleep.

The infants were still being bottle-fed, so he fixed up those first and set them in the racks so they were ready for their recipients. Next were the older kids; the three jars of minced salamander had the closest expiration date so he set up bowls of those and stacked them in the fridge for when the older children woke up. A few servings he put through the food processor and mashed first, for the youngest toddlers who still had difficulty chewing as much.

4:25 AM

IG-11 always entered quietly enough not to wake the children but still with some familiar mechanical whirring of gears. He always claimed Kuiil had forgotten to oil them again, but Din had overheard Cara telling IG-11 not to be so quiet to not startle Din a few weeks ago. Din wasn’t quite to the point where he could thank IG-11 for the effort but he did appreciate it in silence.

“You’re early,” Din commented.

“My morning optimizing subroutines finished early,” the droid said in its flat voice. “I have been running some in the evening as well before shutting down, to be as efficient as possible.”

“These two are awake and fed,” Din said, removing the bottles from the racks and scooping up two of his smallest sons.

“I will engage tummy time routines.”

Din set the two in IG-11’s clawlike hands. “Try and stay quiet.”

IG-11 took the babies. Din could already hear a few more starting to stir, but let IG-11 handle them as he returned to his room. He hadn’t found time to shower yesterday so he definitely had to this morning.

Boga Jr. was awake and already rearranged the bedding into a bigger mess, looking proud of her efforts to reconstruct her “nest” as she usually did. Din scratched her head feathers before pulling out his jumpsuit and fresh underwear - dank ferrik, was he due for another load of laundry already? - and heading for the ’fresher.

4:45

He’d taken care of his bladder and brushed his teeth and was halfway into the shower when a bright voice said “Good morning, Buir!”

Din stared. “Yod’ika 18, what are you doing in the sink?”

“I’m cleaning myself,” said the little one as Din glanced at the definitely-locked door.

“Why?”

Yod’ika 18 looked down guiltily. “I had an accident…”

Din got a towel around his waist before going over to check on Yod’ika 18. “Yeah, looks like you did… you know you can get up in the night to go potty, right?”

Yod’ika 18 frowned and looked down. “It’s just so dark at night…”

“We’ll see about getting a night light in there, okay?” Din helped him out of the dirty clothes and threw them in the hamper before pulling out another tunic that passed the sniff test. “Wear this for a little bit and we’ll get you properly dressed after breakfast.”

“No!” said Yod’ika 18, shying away. “It’s stinky, Buir!”

Din sighed, but he was awake enough by now to remember what a neat freak Yod’ika 18 was. “Okay, okay, come here.”

Din scooped the little one up, making sure his towel stayed secure as he went to the closet and pulled out the first outfit he found. “Here you go.”

“It’s not my favorite color…”

“Yod’ika 18,” Din said sternly, and finally Yod’ika 18 submitted to being dressed in the yellow tunic. “Go see IG-11 and he can get you breakfast,” Din said, shooing the little one along.

“But I want to eat with you, Buir.”

“Then wait a little bit and I’ll join you when I get out of the shower.”

The pattering of oversized gangly varactyl feet was his only warning. Boga Jr. loved snatching up clothes and flinging them around and he just managed to get the closet door shut in time to remember that what she really loved was snatching things directly from him, and he only had one article of “clothing” on him right now.

Din barely grabbed the towel in time. “BOGA JR, NO!”

She tugged playfully on it with all her juvenile varactyl strength, encouraged by Yod’ika 18’s giggles. “Stop it!” Din ordered, barring her from getting closer with his leg; he needed both hands to keep his towel. “Sit, girl!” he said desperately, and luckily she followed the command, her tail thrashing proudly.

“Go tell IG-11 that Boga Jr. needs to be fed,” Din told Yod’ika 18.

He hurried off to perform the special chore, loudly saying, “Of course, Buir, I will help you!”

Boga Jr., knowing food was imminent, hurried after Yod’ika 18. But now Din could hear more stirring, more pattering feet and perking ears and chattering little voices.

He barely made it to the bathroom in time. As soon as he shut and locked the door there were already scratching noises and bustling little bodies and loud little voices. “Good morning Daddy!” “Papa I want to come in.” “Stop pushing me!” “Daddyyyyyyyyyy-” “Come eat breakfast with us Buir!” “Dada, food, I hungwy…”

The doorknob started moving all by itself. Din grabbed it and held fast. “Anyone who opens this door with the Force doesn’t get frogs for a week!” he yelled in desperation.

Suddenly the door stopped vibrating slightly and it was quiet on the other side.

“Go and tell IG-11 you’re awake,” Din said. “I’ll be out soon and I’ll eat with you.”

He listened for acknowledgment and to make sure the horde retreated before finally, finally getting into the shower. Just in time to find out IG-11 had used all the hot water on food prep and dishes.

5:10 AM

Din toweled his hair dry just enough to not make the inside of his helmet gross before leaving the bathroom and going to his bedroom to put it on. He didn’t bother with the rest of the armor yet, but even though IG-11 was the only person - thing, droid, whatever - there not a family member, he still didn’t like breaking the spirit of the Creed’s helmet rule anyway. And there was no telling whenever anyone else might come by.

He knew food had to be out and served since no one was swarming him, and he passed through the kids’ room to see how many were still asleep. Not many - once they were up, the horde usually swarmed like flies on a ronto.

“Dad?” asked a sleepy voice just as Din was about to step out, and he turned to see his eldest sitting up and rubbing his eyes.

“Good morning, Yod’ika,” Din said. “You still sleepy or ready for breakfast?”

Yod’ika held out his arms in a plea to be held. “Breakfast.”

Din scooped him up obligingly; every child in his care needed individualized attention but Yod’ika was always extra hungry for it. He snuggled up under Din’s chin and Din smiled, rocking him a little. “Did you sleep well last night?”

“Yeah,” he said. “No bad dreams.”

“Good,” said Din, and he made sure the few remaining Yod’ike were fast asleep before carrying Yod’ika into the kitchen.

Most of the awake Yod’ike were sitting at the table but several were still crawling and toddling on the floor, too restless to eat yet or already finished, and the babies still in their feeding chairs were starting to cry. Din hurried over to get them out first, his helmet’s audio feed automatically adjusting to the volume.

“Buir, come eat with us!”

“Hold on, let me get the babies first,” he said without looking at who had called for him. He felt a stubborn, otherworldly pull on his hands. “No!” he told the babies firmly, and the sensation stopped. Din was glad they were responding better; the last thing he needed was an infant unexpectedly yanking him around. Carefully he extracted the infants from their feeding seats and passed them over into IG-11’s supervision, watching the droid as he carefully put them in the playpen he’d set up for them. Only the very youngest ones could still be counted on to stay where you put them, and Din knew he wasn’t going to have that luxury much longer. Even little Ika’ika was already squirming in protest in the playpen, rolling over repeatedly to try and make himself move.

More Yod’ike toddled in, calling for him, so Din told them good morning and started heating and setting out more bowls of minced salamander.

“I want frog,” whined Yod’ika 27.

“We’re eating the salamander today,” Din said. “We’ll have frog another day.”

“Can we go frog hunting today, Baba?” asked Yod’ika 14, quickly echoed by several of his brothers. “It’s been ages since we got to!” insisted Yod’ika 18.

Din knew “ages” meant “a week” but it was one of the clan’s favorite activities. “I need to look at the schedule and see if there’s a pond that’s been rotated long enough. If we go too soon, there won’t be enough frogs -”

“For us and for the animals,” chimed in multiple Yod’ike.

“Exactly,” said Din. Proudly, “Good job remembering.”

“We hafta take care of the en-vi-en-met,” added Yod’ika 33.

“You’re right,” Din said, finally getting his own bowl of human protein-fortified cereal and sitting down at the table, setting his helmet in his lap where it was safest from sticky hands.

“Can I try some, Buir?” asked Yod’ika 6, reaching out.

“No,” Din said, waving his spoon at his son’s hands. “Eat your own.”

6:00 AM

Everyone was awake - it was rare any of the Yod’ike slept through the din of their brothers - and everyone was fed, so now it was time to get ready for the day.

“You all know the drill,” Din told them. “Old clothes in the laundry, use the potty, IG-11 set out new clothes for you, and then brush your teeth.”

They all chattered agreeably and then the storm of pajamas flying through the air began. At this point Din was used to the commotion, so he pulled off the shirt that landed in his face off and went over to start changing the babies one by one, occasionally pausing to remind the others no laundry fights but otherwise going as fast as he could before -

“Buir, I need help,” said Yod’ika 44’s little voice at his ankle.

“Ask one of your brothers,” Din said, barely remembering to say it instead of automatically helping his son. “Right now I’m changing the babies.”

“But I want you to do it, Buir.”

“Then you need to wait.”

Sometimes it worked, but more often than not Din had a cluster of Yod’ike seeking help (and attention) sitting at his feet. Today Yod’ika 44 sat right on his foot, clutching his new outfit and underwear.

Din felt something wet on his foot and his stomach turned. “Did you wipe?”

“Oops!” Yod’ika 44 ran back to the bathroom.

Din didn’t look down. He just quickly grabbed a wipe and cleaned his foot very thoroughly before anyone else came over.

By the time he was working on Ika’ika - a delicate task, changing the smallest diaper in the galaxy and stuffing the squirming infant into the smallest custom mudhorn-patterned onesie Cara had brought back from her last trip into the Core - a whole cluster of children were at his feet, arguing who was first for help and shouting at Yod’ika for trying to force them to accept his help, Yod’ika the loudest as he yelled back that he was the oldest and his help was just as good as Dad’s.

Din knew if he let go of Ika’ika, even for a second, all his hard work making the wiggly baby get dressed would be undone, so he ignored the fuss until finally he could hand Ika’ika over to IG-11, who deposited him back into the playpen with his littlest brothers. “Okay,” Din said. “Who needs help?”

With at least thirty kids clamoring “Me! Me! Me!” it was impossible to tell who had really been first. Din had found the most success by making it into a game and randomizing it, so he said everyone with a blue outfit had to go see IG-11, everyone with a mythosaur on their clothes had to go ask Yod’ika for assistance, and anyone with a mudhorn should wait for him. They were used to the game so there wasn’t a lot of protest, and now Din had only five children waiting. He pulled on shirts and shorts, gently folded ears through a hat, and tucked Yod’ika 29’s malformed feet into their supportive shoes.

“Are we all ready?” Din asked his brood, all eagerly staring up at him.

“You’re not ready, Dad,” pointed out Yod’ika, and the others all nodded in agreement.

Din looked down. The flightsuit was on, and already stained by food and slobber from when he’d helped his sons eat and from when Boga Jr. had rested her head in his lap, trying to steal scraps. He suppressed a sigh. “No, I guess I’m not.”

7:02 AM

His armor was on, even polished a bit thanks to Yod’ika 3 sneaking into his room for some quiet time in Din’s room. (“But I was being an Armorer,” he’d said so sweetly, and he’d used the right polish, so he got out of any consequences.) He’d remade the bed so it wasn’t currently a varactyl’s nest. The kids were all awake, fed, and dressed, and ready to take on the day. And now, so was he.

“Dad, come on, let’s play!”

“I’m coming.” Din put his helmet on, and stepped outside, ready for anything the galaxy had to throw at him today.

#i did veer off the original request but i had fun #asks #anon #101 yoditos au #requests #fic #the mandalorian #din djarin #ika'ika #boga jr

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m-y-fandoms · 5 years ago

Text

Fuyuhiko x reader - Fuyuhiko’s S/O saves his sister from being killed by Sato

Request: congrats on the blog!! i really like your writing!! could i request fuyuhiko's s/o protecting natsumi from being killed by sato?

Of course! I love Fuyuhiko actually, he just barely missed my top five favorite DR characters list, definitely top 10. Warnings: blood, violence, spoilers for the Danganronpa 3 anime and Super Danganronpa 2, reader’s gender not specified - Mod Kokichi

“See ya, babe. Don’t be late after last period today, I got some shit to handle for my dad as soon as I drop you off at work,” Fuyuhiko spoke lazily, a nudge on your shoulder to get your attention again.

“Yeah, ‘course!” You smiled as he leaned in and pecked you on the cheek, routinely, like he had every morning for the past few years. “See ya, ‘Hiko!” He nodded, sauntering off with books under his arm and his free hand in the pocket of his slacks. “Bye, Peko!” You bowed your head to the swordswoman who followed diligently behind your boyfriend, nodding her acknowledgment to you. You sighed, watching him disappear into the entrance of the main wing of Hope’s Peak Academy. Your eyes glossed over dreamily, lingering on him. Was that a new cologne on him today? Maybe he was wearing his uniform a little neater than usual this morning…

“Let’s go, fuckin’ space cadet!” A shove from behind knocked you forward toward the entrance of the Reserve Course wing, You sighed deeply. “My brother ain’t that cute, damn!”

“Natsumi, you could’ve just said something.” You pushed back the frustration in your voice in favor of a small smile in her direction.

“Whatever, we’re gonna be late, and I’m not dealing with another one of Mr. Nakamura’s lectures on the value of punctuality!” She stuck her tongue out as if gagging, her blonde hair floating through the air as she rushed past you, her shoulder roughly knocking into yours.

“Geez...that girl…” You shook your head, following behind.

You couldn’t really complain about anything or anyone at Hope’s Peak, seeing as you were just lucky to be there in the first place. After dating Fuyuhiko for a little over two years, he got scouted and asked to attend Hope’s Peak’s main course as the Ultimate Yakuza. You were so happy for him, and proud, but he wasn’t as thrilled. He was really attached to you, with your father and his father being childhood friends and clan members, and your own childhood friendship with him had blossomed into this loving and loyal relationship. It was the best kind. After all, people always say the healthiest and longest-lasting marriages came when your spouse was your best friend, and you definitely intended to marry that boy one day. With how close you two were, he’d be damned if he was splitting up with you for some stupid school, but both you and his father weren’t having it. Mr. Kuzuryu only gained more influence and pride once his son started going to the best school in the country, and you just wouldn’t let your boyfriend pass up on the opportunity of a lifetime, and so…

Fuyuhiko had gotten his father to personally pay for your tuition in order to enter the Reserve Course. It wasn’t like your family was poor, but you weren’t Hope’s-Peak-level rich. You protested at first, of course, feeling like a burden, but you could see that Fuyuhiko was quickly getting angry at your refusals and excuses, so you accepted. Plus, he told you that he wanted someone he trusted to look after his little sister, Natsumi, and you let him give you this excuse as a justification to accept his father’s financial support.

The Reserve Course wasn’t that bad, certainly much more high class than your previous school, but sharing most of your classes with Natsumi was a pain in your ass. Her father was the leader of the Kuzuryu clan. Your father was one of his subordinates, below him, and she seemed to like to remind you of that every five minutes. She talked down to you endlessly, and seemed jealous of the attention her brother gave you, but you had absolutely no room to complain to Fuyuhiko about it after what his father had done for you, so you just didn’t. As far as he knew, you and his sister were on good, neutral terms. She was mean and a smart-ass to everyone, so he didn’t expect you two to be having sleepovers and make friendship bracelets, but he figured you liked her, and she didn’t hate you.

You could sense a deep insecurity in Natsumi: a need to be recognized, a want to be in the main course, an inferiority complex that you sometimes saw in other Kuzuryu’s you knew, so you tried to always be nice to her. Everyone has their struggles, and her aggressive personality was how she pushed back hers. She was in your life for good, if you wanted to stay with Fuyuhiko, and besides, you promised him you’d look after her. And so, you kept your chin up and walked to class with a smile...until you opened the classroom door.

“I’m telling you, Kuzuryu, I don’t care who your father is, none of us do! You’re in the Reserve Course just like us because you’re no better than anyone else here!” The green haired girl, Sato, Natsumi’s current and longest-standing arch-enemy, loomed over Natsumi, her face red with anger and hands balled into trembling fists at her side. Really...they’re starting early today...school just started.

“Move your stupid face and smelly breath out of my face before I move it for you!” Natsumi spat back, leaning further into the argument. You quickly ran and stood between them. Every day was like this, with you or your classmate Hajime Hinata - a plain boy with a big heart - breaking it up before it escalated. But it was wearing on you, having been going on for over a month.

“What the fuck did you say, bitch?! Just because your dad is some thug criminal doesn’t mean no one can touch you! You’re testing my patience!” Sato’s hand raised, and your own shot out and grabbed her by the wrist.

“Woah, woah!” Your breath was shaky. “What’s it about, today, guys? What happened?” Sato was mad about you stopping her, of course, but she liked you, certainly more than she did Natsumi, and she respected you and Hajime for always looking out for your classmates, even if she didn’t want to admit it. After all, you’d stuck up for her and others just as much as Natsumi over the course of the semester - not taking Natsumi’s side so much as simply diffusing the situation - so she paused her attack, huffing. You couldn’t actually believe Sato raised her hand to Natsumi. They always bickered, every single day, but it hadn’t gotten physical, yet.

“She’s talking shit about Mahiru again! I told this bitch to stay away from Mahiru and keep her name out of her mouth, but of course her jealousy knows no limits!” Sato spat, and you looked to Natsumi as if for confirmation. Just then, Hajime Hinata, as well as your professor, waltzed into the room together, just a little late after the bell. Upon seeing the scene before them, Mr. Nakamura spoke out:

“What’s going on here? I’m a few minutes late and you guys think class should turn into a free-for-all? Get to your seats!” You looked to Natsumi, then Sato.

“Guys, this isn’t worth it, please…” Your eyes pleaded softly. Sato scowled, turning away and returning to her seat. Natsumi pushed past you, her lips close to your ear.

“I’ve told you before and I’m telling you again, I don’t need you fighting my fuckin’ battles for me…” she whispered, her tone flat and menacing, “I don’t care if you’re dating my brother, if you get in my way again, I’ll handle you and Sato.” You knew she didn’t mean it. She was hotheaded like her brother, and at this moment she felt bested by Sato, not having gotten to say her piece and have the final word in the argument. She was embarrassed and angry. So you let her go back to her seat without a response or retort.

When the class period ended, you caught Natsumi walking past Sato as everyone was leaving the room, speaking harshly. “Hey, Sato, raise a hand to me again, and I’ll fucking kill you.”

You were in the back of a sleek limousine, sitting on Fuyuhiko’s lap, your arms around his neck as he attacked your neck with rough kisses. Being alone in the back was nice and all, but it felt so...off. Usually, Natsumi rode along with you, and any friends that were riding back to the Kuzuryu east-side guesthouse after school to hang out. Friends and non-clan members weren’t allowed in the Kuzuryu main manor, it was far too dangerous, but the Kuzuryu’s owned many little extravagant homes, lounges, stores and clubhouses where you’d meet up and pass time with friends.

“ ‘Hiko, why isn’t Natsumi here, again?”

“I told you, some shit about a photography club meeting after school. You know she likes taking pictures and shit.” His brow furrowed at the interruption before going back to your neck. “Geez, just savor it. I rarely have time to be alone with you.” You pushed his shoulders back.

“Y-yeah but, Natsumi isn’t in the photography club for the Reserve Course. I know because I’m in it...we don’t have a meeting this week.” You started to worry.

“Whatever, who cares. Maybe she went off to give some kid a handy behind the school.” You rolled your eyes at his facetious tone and he smirked. “Why do you care? She’s fine.” He took his attack south to your collarbone, and you let him as you continued.

“Well...it’s just…she’s been having issues with this girl in class and I’m worried…”

“Issues?” His head popped up, face screwed up in an annoyed and anxious expression, but then melting into careful suspicion just as fast. “What kind of issues? I’m sure that if it was that bad, you’d have told me a while ago, yes?”

“W-well, of course, but...I mean nothing’s happened, really…they usually just swear and insult each other, but today, things almost got physical…” He paused, thinking.

“...what’s been going on?” Physical for a boy used to being around yakuza could mean anything from a fistfight to a bullet to the head, so he automatically assumed the worst most of the time.

“I don’t know...they just hate each other. Natsumi doesn’t like this girl...Mahiru Koi...something. She’s in your class. She’s jealous of her, I think...and so Sato, the one Natsumi is fighting with, is defending Mahiru to be a good friend, but-“

“Pfft! I thought you were gonna say something serious. This is petty high-school girl shit, s/o! If they wanna throw punches, break their nails and pull hair, let them. Natsumi and I see blood spilled every day. She can handle herself in a fight. Let her pop this Sato chick in the mouth, then. Who cares? Bet it will settle this little spat of theirs. You shouldn’t be so stressed about it.” His eyes softened, rubbing your back with one hand.

“I know, it’s just...I mean you told me to look out for her, and it’s not like I don’t care about your sister, she’s like family to me…”

“It’s not your job to babysit and bodyguard her. I just said that so you’d take the damn tuition money and I think you know that,” he snorted, shifting your position on his lap to kiss you on the forehead. “If she really needs someone like Peko, we’ll get her someone, but we both wanted to go to school without the clan’s influence. You know that…” he trailed off.

“I know, but-“ the driver stopped abruptly.

“I’ll see you after work. Don’t stress about this, seriously.” Fuyuhiko pushed your folded up work clothes into your hands, and you gave him a look of warning, as if to say ‘you aren’t taking this seriously’ before he gestured toward the limousine door, giving you a playful slap on the ass as you exited with the driver patiently holding the door open for you. “I love you.”

“I love you, too, ‘Hiko,” you smiled before pushing through the large crystal doors on the upscale, Kuzuryu-owned men’s clothing boutique for your shift.

The next day was like any other school day: dropped off at the gates, Fuyuhiko’s peck on your cheek, Natsumi walking with you to first period...but, what was that grin on her face…? She hated waking up early, she hated first period...she was always sluggish or irritable and waiting for her morning caffeine to kick in. You decided you were being paranoid, and shook it off.

When you entered the classroom, the students were all huddled in the corner, surrounding Sato, who was screaming at Hajime about something.

“-and I am not just gonna let this slide, Hinata! You better fuck of-“ Hajime saw you two enter, and Sato’s eyes followed his own, her rant cutting off. Locking eyes with Natsumi, who smirked back wickedly, she flew out of her seat, launching herself at your future sister-in-law. Natsumi fought back, her hands around Sato’s neck as Sato pulled her down to the ground.

“Oh my-stop!” You pulled at Natsumi’s arms, everything seeming to happen so fast. She threw an elbow back toward you for interfering, and it hit your side roughly. You grimaced, the pain working hard but your adrenaline working harder. You thrust yourself between the girls, pulling Natsumi back with all of your might. Hajime rushed over, pulling Sato off the ground and holding her back as she kicked and swung.

“I told you-! You-let go of me!!!” Natsumi resisted as well, and you and Hajime locked eyes, barely keeping hold of the two combatants.

“What could possibly be worth all this!” You wheezed, Natsumi quickly overpowering you.

“That cunt! Let me go, Hinata or I’ll fuck you up, too!” Sato roared, catching the attention of Mr. Nakamura, who rushed in and quickly pressed his authority, threatening both girls with suspension or worse if they spoke another word or touched each other. They were both sent to the headmaster’s office, with Hajime being asked to escort them since they ‘obviously needed to be monitored like children’.

You sat in your desk seat, uniform askew, armpits wet with perspiration. Another student filled you in after class. Apparently, Natsumi had gone over to the photo development room in the main course’s wing after school, and ripped up each and every photo Mahiru was going to present at the upcoming photography competition on campus. Twenty photos for a gallery opening up tomorrow for student work. Twenty priceless, stunning photographs by the Ultimate Photographer, all gone. Oh...so that’s why Sato was so pissed. You had to admit, it was hard to defend Natsumi at this point. You released a breath you’d been holding in, putting your head down on your desk to just calm your thoughts before texting Fuyuhiko. You filled him in about what happened, every detail, and your thoughts on it, taking Sato’s side as gently as possible. You had hoped to get his counsel, simply wanting validation and reassurance that there was nothing to worry about, but you ended up only making it worse.

Natsumi texted you about fifteen minutes later, calling you a fucking snitch and many other expletives, saying with malice that now her brother was on her case. Fuyuhiko then texted you saying he told Natsumi she better go straight to the limo after the last bell rang like a fire was lit under her ass, and that he wanted you to stand outside her last class and wait for her to make sure she did just that. You swallowed your spit down hard, throat going dry all of a sudden. You didn’t intend for this to happen. Now Natsumi was going to hate you, and Fuyuhiko is going to be in a bad mood. Why did you have to be so stupid? Why did Natsumi have to cause so much trouble? Maybe you should just let her suffer on her own, and stop stressing about it like Fuyuhiko said. This wasn’t fair, for you to feel like this because of her behavior.

You left your last class a few minutes early, rushing to Natsumi’s classroom with an exhausted and anxious air about you. You found the class, and leaned on the wall beside the door, preparing for her to march out and scream at you and who knows maybe even strangle you because that’s what she was into now apparently and-

Your ears perked up at a loud sound, like muffled yelling and a crash of glass. It sounded nearby, but far away at the same time. The yelling picked up, a bit louder now, and you felt yourself get nervous for no reason. It had to be on this floor, and close. You looked around, and held your bag close, sprinting down the hall. The sound got louder, confirming your suspicions until you were in front of the music room, with yelling and then a strangled cry coming from the other side. You panicked, fumbling with the door handle, but it wouldn’t budge. You pounded on the door, your breathing getting harder and faster. Backing up, you braced yourself, and ran at the door with the strength of fight-or-flight adrenaline in your veins, throwing your shoulder into the hard door and it flew open, slamming into the wall on the other side.

“NATSUMI!” You didn’t have time to baby your injured shoulder, as the scene before you needed immediate action, obviously. A broken glass fish tank was scattered on the ground, gravel and quickly dying freshwater fish littering the floor. The room was a mess, with sheet music and desks knocked over and spilled out everywhere. Sato stood near the window, her hands around Natsumi’s neck in a vice-like grip, and Natsumi gasping and flailing, her eyes slowly rolling to the back of her head. “Sato, what the fuck are you thinking?!!!” You ran at her, and Sato didn’t even look in your direction, her mind clouded with hatred and blood lust. Knocking into Sato with all you had, she fell forward into the window, releasing Natsumi as the window splintered and cracked around her.

Natsumi hit the the wall beside the window and fell to the floor, gasping and choking, her lungs clawing desperately for air. Sato leapt at her again, and you tackled her to the ground, looking up at Natsumi.

“Go! GO! Fuyuhiko will be at the gates! Get him!” Natsumi looked shocked, traumatized, and simply stared at you, while Sato spat and growled and tried to buck you off, reaching for Natsumi’s skirt. “Get someone! Please!”

“I-I told you I don’t need y-your help, s/o!” She tried to keep up her gangster’s-daughter persona even in her shaken-up state, but her voice betrayed her and tears sprung from her eyes. Sato threw you off and started to stand.

“Run! Natsumi, RUN!!” She heard the seriousness in your voice, the fear, and she had never heard you sound like that before. You were her brother’s sensitive, pacifist, kind-hearted s/o, and here you were, in danger because of her. She shook off her pride, and ran toward the door as you grabbed Sato’s ankle and she tripped to the ground again. Natsumi disappeared down the hall, screaming for help the entire way.

“Fuck you! Fuck you!! She deserved this! You ruined everything!” Sato sounded like an animal more than a high-school girl. She reached to her right, twisting her body around violently until she could reach a long shard of glass from the fish tank, and she brought it down hard on your thigh, the glass tearing into your flesh.

You screamed out in pain, your vision blurring quickly at the shock of it, sobs coming immediately from your mouth. Blood gushed out of the inches-deep wound, and your heads involuntarily released Sato. When you steadied yourself, steeling your nerves, and reached out to try and neutralize her again, she pulled the glass out of your leg, slamming it down again, hitting a vein deeply before pulling it out. You yelped and forced yourself to stand as she did, blood spurting freely from your leg. You fell more than threw yourself onto her, your head beginning to spin and feeling consciousness leaving you slowly. Leaning on her, you wrapped your arms around her waist with all of your remaining energy, and gripped tightly, hoping you could at least burden her enough to make leaving to room slower and making it impossible for her to catch up to Natsumi or flee the scene before help came.

Now with a great strength advantage over you, she arched her back, threw her head back, and slammed you behind her into the wall. Your head hit the wall with a crack, and immediately you slumped to the ground, your world going dark.

“...hear me? S-.....” fuzziness. Emptiness. Darkness. “-lose you, please! You h-“ A voice faded in and out, then finally out for good. Hours later, you felt yourself stir.

When your eyelids flew open, the ceiling above you was white, clean, calming.

“S/o?!” Fuyuhiko? You sat up quickly, a pounding in your head making you gasp and whimper. “No, no! You need to stay down.” A hand on your chest softly guided you back onto the pillow below you. You turned your head to the side. You took in your surroundings slowly. A hospital. You were in a hospital bed, and Fuyuhiko had been in a chair beside you, now standing at your side. His hands flew to your face, cradling your cheeks. “You’re an idiot, you know that? Are you fucking crazy?” His words were harsh, but there was no anger behind them, only worry and pain. You felt the wrap of linen around your head wound, and adjusting your leg at all resulted in a sharp spike of pain shooting up your body.

“Where’s Natsumi? Is she okay? Did Sato-“

“I don’t wanna hear that bitch’s name. And why are you worried about Natsumi right now?!” Now there was anger. “You almost fucking died, s/o! I almost lost you!” His voice cracked on that last word, and your eyes widened at the tears that threatened to fall from his eyes before he angrily rubbed them away with his sleeve. “Natsumi’s fucking fine. She didn’t have anything more than a few bruises on her neck. Nothing’s broken or injured except her pride. And she will be coming to thank and apologize to you at length later.” You didn’t comment on that last bit, deciding instead to ask about what happened after you passed out.

Natsumi found a security guard at the entrance, he explained, and he saw her screaming from his position at the school gates. He rushed over to yell at her and figure out what the hell was going on, before having her grab him by the wrist and force him into the school with stuttering gibberish about you and that you were in trouble or something like that with the security guard running close behind. When they got to the music room, the door was open and Sato was nowhere to be found.

Fuyuhiko had screamed your name, his throat ripping apart as he swore and cried and snot ran down his face like a fool. He ran to what he thought was your corpse, blood splattered everywhere, pooling under you, a little patch of blood on the wall behind you head. He took in your closed eyes and thigh oozing slowly-drying blood, and picked you up into his arms, his clothes getting covered in the liquid. He screamed at Natsumi to call for the police, an ambulance, anything, while the security guard called for backup and went off to find Sato. You were brought immediately to the hospital along with Natsumi, and he’d been waiting by your bed ever since, just pleading, begging you to wake up. Sato was apprehended by police a few blocks from the school, obviously off her rocker and in a manic state.

“You...you were almost gone. You lost...just so much blood,” he sniffled.

“But, I’m here,” you reached up and grabbed his hand, a comforting smile on your lips, “aren’t I?” He scoffed at you.

“You fucking idiot,” he shook his head, leaning down and kissing you roughly on the lips, tears from his eyes falling onto your cheeks. “I fucking love you. Don’t make me worry like this.” He pulled back, face inches from yours.

“I love you, too, so much.” You looked back at him with some indeterminable emotion washing over you. You were just overwhelmed.

“I will always love you. Please, don’t leave me.”

328 notes · View notes

lovelyirony · 5 years ago

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Oh Geamanee Christmas Trees! That mob au with the love/hate thing was flipping fantastic. If you're still taking prompts, I would love to see more in that 'verse- especially things like how the two sides continue to work together and/or antagonize each other. You developed those relationships and tensions so well, I would love to know what else you come up with! Thanks again for all of the amazing talent you share with us!!

i’m so happy you loved it! i wasn’t originally planning on continuing, but with a comment like this how could you not?

Working together still isn’t all daisies and roses, no matter how much Bucky likes Tony’s slouchy cardigans and snarky responses early in the morning.

For one thing, Steve and Tony clash. A lot. They actually work pretty well together, if both of them could collectively stop shoving their heads up their ass and calling it “being in the right.”

“Can you maybe stop?” Natasha asks, rolling her eyes at another rant that Steve’s on about “responsibility” and Tony has been thoroughly ignoring. “Bucky, fix this. I’m annoyed.”

“Ooh, you got Nat annoyed,” Bucky says, not even looking up from his physics homework. “Steve, you’re gonna have to get to Tony through another way, he doesn’t like listening to you. Tony, you were playing with fire with your motorcycle idea and risking getting caught.”

“If we don’t take risks, then what are we doing?” Tony snaps.

“Staying safe and not getting caught!” Steve responds back. “God, Tony--”

“Nope,” Bucky says, dragging Steve by the arm. “Not doing this. I need to do physics and none of you are helping. Tony, you actually need to teach me this shit because I fell asleep in class.”

“Told you not to stay up at the stakeout,” Tony mumbles. He turns to Steve.

“Look, I get it. I won’t pull the motorcycle stunt again so long as you don’t nag me like you’re secretly an old man. Got it?”

“...got it,” Steve says.

Bucky’s already turned around. Natasha’s grinning at Steve and mouthing “lovesick” at him in reference to the two at the kitchen table.

“I’m only doing this because your mom would kill you if you failed your next test and I still need you to shoot Rumlow later,” Tony warns.

“Sure, okay,” Bucky says easily. “You want me to brew coffee before all this?”

“Obviously,” Tony says with a snort.

They get each other a hell of a lot more than they mean to. Tony knows that Bucky secretly hates any type of meat besides pepperoni on pizza and makes sure to save him some slices when everyone else is an animal.

Bucky knows that Tony’s consistently cold, hates wearing contacts, and if he’s listening to Black Sabbath, it’s about to be the best mood he’ll ever be in.

He also likes flowers. He gets a wistful look in his eye when he sees daffodils on a window sill, or dandelions edging onto the sidewalk.

So when Bucky messes up one of Tony’s favorite cars--a scratch on the side, but still damage--he buys him a bouquet of flowers. Custom.

“How did you...?”

“You moon over flowers too much,” Bucky grunts. “Not meanin’ anything by it. Just know I messed up.”

Rhodey laughs when Tony comes home with them.

“You guys a couple now or something?”

“An apology for scratching Hepburn up,” Tony says. “He said it doesn’t mean anything, and it doesn’t. Now drop it, or I’m making sure that I’m not making any ramen for you.”

“We’ll table it,” Pepper adds, whirling into the room. “Right now, I want to talk strategy for the charity auction.”

“No,” Tony says flatly. “I am not going, you’re not going to make me.”

“An auction piece has to go,” Pepper says smugly.

“You fucking didn’t.”

“One date with Tony Carbonell on a Friday, with three options for destination,” Pepper says.

“That’s a stupid idea,” Tony snarls. “I could be killed!”

"Not as much as you think,” Rhodey says. “Hydra could bet on it. We kill them. Or it’s a good show of faith when a member of the Barnes clan wagers. Hell, you and Bucky practically have a mandated date night.”

“Like he’d do that,” Tony says, rolling his eyes. “Does this mean I have to wear a fancy suit?”

“Or something,” Rhodey says. “I think you’d look nice in a button-down and slacks.”

Tony huffs.

“And contacts!” Pepper says.

“Absolutely not!” Tony says. “Give me glasses or give me death!”

Bucky did not want to go to the auction. It made absolutely no sense for him to be there. Everyone else could go, Natasha could probably rack up tons of donations with a smile, and dress shoes are not his favorite.

“You’re going,” Sam says. “Because your boy is being auctioned off for a date night and there’s no way in fuck you’re going to let him suffer through someone horrible.”

“Who is ‘my boy’?” Bucky asks. Sam rolls his eyes.

“How you’ve survived this long, I’ll never know. You’re as dense as a fruitcake. Tony, Bucky. Tony volunteered to auction off a date night.”

“Pepper probably did it, he would hate that. Absolutely hate it.”

“See? Your guy,” Sam says. “Maria got you an outfit.”

It’s better than a tux, he’ll give them that much. Black shirt, white piping making it seem a bit more formal than it is. It’s a bit big, resting gracefully over his shoulders.

Tony notices when he enters the room.

“Like what you see?” Bucky asks, smile tilting.

“Obviously not, I just can’t find any trash cans to vomit into,” Tony responds, no real heat to it. “Thought you weren’t coming.”

“Thought you hated these kinds of events.”

“Not my idea,” Tony says. “Pepper signed me up for a date. Which is just fantastic.”

“Told Sam you’d hate it,” Bucky says, shrugging. “You know what kind of appetizers they’re serving?”

“Nothing you’d like.”

“Shit.”

Tony readjusts his glasses, looking around the room.

“Anyone here we’re not a fan of?”

“Besides some old money families, not many,” Bucky says. “Anyone here you’re dreading?”

“Hammer,” Tony says, jerking a thumb over to a guy in a white suit.

That’s all kinds of bad decisions, in Bucky’s opinion. And in common sense.

“He’s an asshole who thinks we’re on the same level. We’re not. He also wears way too much cologne. At least you’re tasteful about it.”

“You noticed my cologne?” Bucky asks.

Tony turns red.

“We work together. Of course I did.”

Bucky’s pulled away by someone, dragged into a different conversation. Tony’s left to go socialize, choosing to stick close to his own group and avoid anyone who talks to him.

Tony Carbonell is the talk of the town. He’s notoriously drawn away, sharp, and gorgeous.

Bucky knows this entirely too well.

He huffs as he sees two more people take appreciative glances at Tony, and well. He knows he’s about to bet more money than ever before.

“You sure your finances can take it?” Steve asks.

“They absolutely cannot, but I’m not about to let Tony go on the worst date of his life.”

“Then don’t worry about it,” Sharon says, cutting in smoothly. She looks good in her dress, and that’s saying a lot considering she doesn’t like dresses all that much. “Maria Carbonell has finances that she’s willing to use to ensure her son stays happy. It’ll cover it.”

“Are you sure?”

“Unless you bet two million, yes.”

Bucky’s eyes widen.

“I’ll...not do that.”

“Of course you won’t,” Sharon says. “Now, I’m going to borrow Steve here so I can have someone taste-test appetizers with me.”

Steve waves a hand back as Bucky faces the stage, where a woman with a graceful smile gathers attention.

Tony’s nowhere to be seen, most likely backstage.

“Don’t we have a surprise on the table for you tonight!” The woman says. “Tony Carbonell has very generously offered up a date night with him to anyone interested...within reason.”

Bucky nods at that. Smart. Didn’t want some creepy old person bidding.

He can see Justin Hammer from here, looking too visibly excited. His spray tan looks stupid.

Armed with financial courage and perhaps two or three glasses of strong liquor, Bucky starts the bidding war.

Obviously, no one is happy when Bucky keeps climbing the bets higher.

It surpasses seven thousand in five minutes.

Bucky chimes in for twelve.

Justin counters with fifteen.

Bucky goes twenty.

There’s silence.

Twenty-one.

Thirty thousand.

Justin does not deign to go that high, throwing his number down in frustration.

Tony’s eyes narrow in on Bucky, and he raises an eyebrow.

Bucky shrugs in a “what can you do” motion and goes to the steps of the stage, holding out an arm to Tony.

“Any plans for that date?” The woman says cheerily.

“Something special,” Bucky responds glibly, barely able to hold back a laugh.

Tony huffs as he grips tightly onto Bucky’s arm, pinching it.

“I hope you know you’ve caused a right scene,” Tony says. “But thank you.”

“I wouldn’t want spray tan all over my clothes, I doubted you wanted them on yours,” Bucky says. “Besides. I’m not planning an actual date night because you still owe me a stakeout night and pizza.”

“How did this turn into me providing you with dinner?”

“I paid so much money.”

“None of it’s yours,” Tony sniffs. “Sharon told me.”

“Of course she did,” Bucky scowls.

“I’ll still get pizza, but I am wrangling a date night out of you. Have to see what you offer up to people,” Tony says. “And you better not do the whole ‘put my arm around you at the movies’ thing.”

“I don’t,” Bucky says defensively, knowing damn well That’s Exactly What He Does.

“Good,” Tony says. “If you’ll excuse me, I need to find Rhodey. I owe him a couple bucks, he guessed the wager right.”

“How...?”

“He’s smart like that,” Tony says. “See you later, Bucky.”

Hate to see him leave, love to watch him go.

That’s cheesy, but now Bucky understands.

He is also faced with Pepper, who makes him promise that the date night will be good, go uninterrupted, and it isn’t a “work date.”

“We’re not actually together,” Bucky grumbles.

“The way you look at his ass says you want otherwise,” she sing-songs. “Go, talk with him. I’m pretty sure that if Reed notices he’s alone he’ll try to bore him to tears with string theory.”

“I thought Tony liked that.”

“Reed has a...special talent. He loves to make people fall asleep standing up.”

Snorting, Bucky moves to walk closer.

He’s doing a favor. (Not doing this because Tony’s genuinely interesting to talk to.)

#lovelyirony writes #i hope this is okay #not as mob-centric but i wanted some more build-up #mob au #bucky barnes #winteriron #tony stark #YES they're in love YES everyone else knows it #pepper potts #rhodey #sharon carter #steve rogers #of course i wrote in a bit of stevesharon when would i not

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nightgirl250 · 6 years ago

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Follow your orders

fic where the reader is the very first vampire like the mother of all vampires and she visits the volturi and scolds them for their bad behavior like their 1 year olds and this is around the time the cullens are there because edward was gonna expose himself. Maybe she’s actually like a vampire (like fangs, blood red eyes, dark cloak: the stereotype vampire)

Request by @fandomnationwhore

——————————————————————————————————————————————

Sighing, I look towards my children. As of late each of their actions have been displeasing. Exposure of our kind. Controlling other covens. The only one who gets to control is me.

I am the mother of the night. Giver of a second life. Regeant for all new beginnings. Creator of a superior species. Queen of the vampires. A blessing upon strong and curse upon the weak.

Standing from my throne, I toss the letter of recents reports my spies have gathered and clicked my tongue.

My children have displeased me, acting like worms and leeches to each other. Snapping my fingers once, my servant and son James walks through the door.

“You called Mother,” he says getting down on one knee, bowing to me.

I gesture for him to rise and continue “ I have a situation. You James are one the best trackers, locate the Volturi and Olympic covens, and find when the are meeting. You have 35 minutes to do so. That is more than enough time, so go,” I say staring down at the feral blonde.

“Yes mother,” he says and turns to complete his tasks. Heading to my chambers, I pay no mind to the hundreds of servants and pets, who bow down as I pass.

“Novia,” I call. Within seconds the short Cameroonian girl appears behind me, already bowing. I don’t turn to look at her

“Yes Queen Mother?” She says sweetly, making me smirk. I’ve always loved how her voice sounds, especially right after she has eaten.

“Prepare a warning to the Cullens and Volturi. They both need to taught a lesson about order,” I says calmy.

Novia stands and smirks. “Yes mother. Who shall I have complete the task?”

“Who you shall deem fit, I trust you are ready for such tasks,” I say turning to the girl.

I can hear the excitement and energy coursing through her veins as she says “right away my queen,” and skips out to complete her task.

Walking to my closet, I walk past the dozens of boring outfits, each covered with diamonds,pearls, and other crystals.

Past the organza, satin, and neoprene. Beyond the blood reds, matte black, and ash gray outfits.

Stopping in front of my velvet cobalt blues. Using my powers, I breeze through the different options till I find the one I want.

“Finally,” I say levitating the dress off the rack. It was a slim long sleeve dress, that tightened around my top half and lightly flowed at the bottom. With the dress ending just below my feet.

Within a snap of my fingers, the dress was pressed, ready and on my body.

The evening sky blue inside of the dress helped complement the ice gray on top of it. The sleeves went down to the back of my hands, ending in points as light blue and gold embordiary lay across the gown.

Putting on the matching shoes. I walk further into my closet for my crown. Walking past several others before I stop infront of the gold sapphire crown.

Placing the fifteen pound, 17th century crown. A gift from the Queen of France for my blessing. It wasn’t a favorite, or most expensive or meaning.

Picking up the trinket, I gently place it on my head. Giving my self one final look. I say “ this will do for now,” and walk out of my closet.

“Oh mother,” says James, waiting out my chamber doors. I walk over to the blonde and frown seeing him struggle to rise.

“You have returned from your task,” I state taking in James injured appearances, “yet you are injured. Step forward to I may heal you, James,” I say putting one hand out.

Clutching his torso and limping, James steps closer to me. I gently place my finger tips on to his forehead, making the cracks in his skin and fractured leg, heal into plus, while cleaning up his hair, and putting fresh clothes on him.

I never understood why he chose those filthy rags of ripped up jeans and a necklace but it made him happy. So, I gave him a fresh pair of jeans with a new belt and a leather jacket. I didn’t bother with a shirt on him.

Removing my fingers from his forehead. James releases a soothing and relaxed sigh that brings a smile onto my face.

“Good as new, my boy,” I say as he is about to bend down, “there is no need for that my child. What kind of mother would I be if I didn’t heal you,” I say cupping my hand around his gentle face.

“Yes mother,” he says prepping his arm out. Even though James is one of my more actively hunting kids. He and his coven always came to see me.

Taking his arm, we walk steadily as we arrive to the doors of the castle. Novia and two guards stood together at the doors.

“Hello Mother,” says the trio bowing to me.

“Hello children,” I say letting go of James’ arm. He moves next to Novia as I say “have you all completed your tasks from earlier?” I ask.

James gives me a curt nod, as the two guards each pulls out a small chest. Novia opens the chest and reveals two shimmering orbs.

I smile at the kids. “Well done, my sweets. Come come it’s time to go,” I say as Novia closes the chests.

“Wait Queen Mother,” says a high pitched voice coming towards us.

I look towards that direction of the child like voice to see Katja running down the hall with a giant cloak above her head.

“Hold on, mommy. I have something,” she says finally reaching us. The young 6 year old vampire smiles and holds up several cloaks.

Wearing a little black sundress, she skids into a halt infront of the group.

“You nearly forgot your cloaks,”she says. I smile at Clara, one of the physically youngest daughters I have.

“Thank you little one,” I say as Novia takes my dark bison hide cloak and drapes it across my shoulders and secures the leather straps and covers my head and crown in the wolf fur hood.

I give her a simple thank you as I drape on her dark navy cloak and fix her hair a bit before standing straight.

One of the guards holds their hand out for me. I gently take it, as the other guard grabs James and Novia.

Within the blink of an eye, we leave my castle and enter the hallways of the Vulturi home. Letting go of the guard, I frown at the stench of old blood and the decapitated human head on the floor.

“Disgusting,how do you kids live like this?” I say, “honestly this place is a mess. Dust,blood, and bones are everywhere. Ugh I must talk to A—,”

Looking to one of the guards chests, I sigh. “Right, I ordered you to handle that issue. Well then come,” I say as the scent of blood hits my nose.

No one else notices the scent, since it was far out of there range. Slowly and quietly we walk to main room of the Vulturi home as Calculate how man humans there were.

There were 12 in total. *Must be tourists* I thought since it there was some festival or celebrations outside.

There were nine females and three males in the group. From the foot steps they were all in good health, under thirty years of age, with steady heart beats.

I turn away from the sweet coppery scent as my children turn and growl at it. “Come now children we must work first then eat,” I say as they continue to look down the path towards the humans.

I frown slightly seeing how James struggles to compose him self. As all of my children struggle to compose themselves.

My heart tingles seeing their hunger,but they must learn to hold their own as Vampires. Clapping my hands, the children send me a glance as I look at them.

“Come my loves,” I say holding out a hand to them. Slowly and fighting their hunger one by one my children hold hands together. And we walk away from the scent of human blood.

With each step they regain their composure until they are no longer holding my hands and standing tall.

I give a smile to them but as soon as my smile came it went away as we stood in front of the doors of the Vulturi main room. I could smell who was behind those doors.

All of the members of both the Vulturi and Cullen clans and one human.

My two guards draw their weapons and open the door. Both of them moving in complete synchronization as light from the room entered on their gold and black armor.

No one could see my face but everyone instantly bowed and got down on their knees. All besides the human.

I opted to ignore the human upon seeing my poor grandson Edward being held in chains by his Vulturi brothers.

I don’t bother to tell any of them to rise as I walk over to the poor boy.

Cracks and fractures cascaded down from around his wrists and neck. Barely able to bring his head up. I run my fingers through Edward’s smooth hair.

Letting the chains turn to rust and ash as his wounds heal. He takes deep breaths as he slowly rises to his feet and open his mouth.

“Hello Queen Mother,” he says meekly. I could tell he was nervous like most of my children meeting me. I wanted to hug him. But I couldn’t not right now.

Not if my children think it’s okay to hurt and harm eachother for some fake personal vendetta.

“Go join your coven and human while I discuss with your Vulturi brothers,” I say. Edward nods and bows and walks off to his coven before I turn to the Vulturi with a scowl on my face.

With their red and clad black cloaks on their backs and still on their knees. I walked up to Aro and Marcus and smacked them.

The boys winced. I could see the small cracks on both of their faces. But I would not heal them.

“Does any one know what that was for?” I say scanning the crowd filled with members of the Vulturi Coven. My children. My babes. “That was for the mistreatment of your siblings.”

I watched as some of them tense and fidget. “Because you lot have seemingly forgotten that family comes before all. That you don’t fight each other. Than you are a family before you are a coven!

“This is unacceptable for you kids to genuinely think it is okay to even raise a hand upon your siblings and believe that I won’t know it. That I your mother, your queen, the first Vampire, Leader of this Race and Species would not know that you are trying to execute your siblings,” I scream making the children since as the ground shook beneath me.

“Stand up all of you,” I say. Synchronized all of the Vulturi children rise and stand.

“You believe that due to your covens power. A power that I have blessed you with and can take away any moment. That you are better than your siblings. Right! Right?” I ask.

Some of the children take a step back as the collectively say yes.

“What was that ? I couldn’t here you,”

“Yes, Queen Mother” they yelled.

“When what is the truth? My dear Jane,” I call making the nervous short blonde take a deep breath. “What is the truth?”

“The truth is that we are all a family, no matter our coven, our belief, or our differences. We are a family. You as our mother and queen. Us as your subjects and children.” She says timidly.

“Say it again for your siblings my dear,” I command. “But this time Aro will say it. Seeing as he is your coven leader that you have chosen. My dear Aro, please educate your younger siblings on the works of family,” I say coldly.

Aro slowly steps forward and calms his nervous facade. And with grace and elegance says “The truth is that we are all a family, no matter our coven, our belief, or our differences. We are a family. You as our mother and queen. Us as your subjects and children.”

Aro says it perfectly and so will his coven. Slowly yet surely. I call each of my children’s name and make them recite of the family values. One by One. Word by Word.

I could hear the humans light giggles as my last son and newest member of the Vulturi Coven Daniel finishes.

“Good Daniel,” I say turn to the Olympic coven. “Now Carlisle I believe this human is Isabella Swan,” I say making the young girl gasp and look at Edward terrified.

“Yes, Mother this is she,” says Carlisle calmly.

“Good. This is she want to be a future Vampire especially of your coven then she is the perfect person to start us off.” I say making Edward and Carlisle open their mouths to objection only to be met with a flick of my wrist.

“Isabella,” I call, making her straighten up. “Recites the values of family. Surely you have been paying attention. Seeing as over 20 of my children have said them.”

“Y-Yes your Highness,” She says timidly and clearing her throat before saying “The truth is that we are all a family, no matter our coven, our belief, or our differences. We are a family. You as our mother and queen. Us as your subjects and children.”

I give the small girl a smile and a curt nod before the rest of the Olympic Coven says the values.

Once every one of the two Covens had said the values I turn back to the Vulturi.

“What have we learned today or for some been reminded off”

“That we are family that goes beyond our covens and should not act in childish manors. And that if we should have a dispute come to you and handle them.” Says Daniel leaving everyone else in the room to nod and agree.

“The next time I come here and see that your have forgotten your values it’ll be more than some words and a flick. Be sure that due to your recent actions, I will checking up on all of you so expect visitors. Clean your homes and prepare for the family,” I say.

All of my children and the human bow their head before saying “Yes, Queen Mother.”

#twilight imagines #twilight imagine #twilightforever #twilight fanfiction #twilight #nightgirl250 #the cullens #emmit cullen #edward cullen #bella swan #vulturi #requested

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emma-nation · 5 years ago

Text

Within You - Bloodbound AU - Chapter 10

Summary: One year after defeating Gaius, the gang has finally found peace… Until a tragic incident awakens the ultimate and most dangerous threat they ever faced.

Genre: Angst/Adventure/Romance

Rating: T - Warning for violence and language

Notes:

- Sequel to the fics For You, In The Daylight and Without You. You can read all of them here.

- This chapter is my baby and I’m really proud of it. I hope you like it too!

- I probably won’t be around for the next few days (for BB finale included), so please forgive me if I take too long to post Chapter 11.

- My fellow writers: stay home writing your awesome fics.

- Dear readers: stay home reading and leaving your lovely reviews. We love you. Stay safe!

Tag List: @supersphynxsworld, @lightning-fury, @spacecarrousel, @tigerbryn11, @gavryllo, @annabellewerecorgi, @whoinvitedalx, @sheyah, @imnotdonewiththeelementalists, @scaryqueenbee, @bigmemesplz, @la-guerra-69, @kamilahsayeed-owns-me, @morvengarde, @tephy24, @iam-the-fuckin-queen, @voltos9, @scorpichoices, @leavemeandmyshipsalone, @jen825, @andreear17, @justejuste727, @aureliaxj, @graceschoices, @mrskamilxh, @msuhailey, @zoe6111, @noodledragon22, @tigerbryn11, @shanuuh, @ilovetaylorswiftforever7, @ilovekamilahsayeed, @allaboutchoices , @fal-carrington , @scarlet-letter-a0114, @trouble-with-the-curve

Kamilah

In her office, Kamilah tried one last time to dial her brother’s number. Voice mail again. She rolled her eyes.

“Until when are you going to ignore me?” She sighed.

She remembered their last conversation, a few days earlier. It was late night, he knocked her penthouse’s door repeatedly. When Kamilah opened it, Lysimachus was pale as a ghost. His heart was racing inside his chest and his breath shallow and quick, indicating he was in great distress.

“It’s her, Kamilah,” he told, when she forced him to sit down and calm himself. “Rheya’s the First.”

“Brother, she just left my place,” she argued. “I invited her for dinner. I tested her through the day. There’s no evidence…”

“She confessed, Kamilah! Right in my face. She’s not who you think she is, okay? She set up that whole situation with Priya. She threatened to kill Katherine… and me!”

Kamilah sat down and looked deeply into his brother eyes. They never lied to each other. And he was scared, truly scared. In truth, she had never seen Lysimachus so frightened before.

“Brother, I…” she grabbed his hand, unsure of what to say to comfort him. Unsure of what to think. “I’m so confused.”

“Why don’t you believe me?” He seemed hurt. Truly hurt. And especially obsessed to find a manner to defeat the First Vampire.

In the next morning, Adrian called her. An emergency. A vial containing a blood sample from the Tree Of Eternal Life had disappeared from the laboratory. They searched all over the city, in every place it could be. They conducted searches at Priya’s mansion and club, Lester’s businesses and even among their own Clan members. There was no sign of the blood.

Until Kamilah found it by accident, inside the secret weapon storage in her brother’s apartment. Lysimachus swore, once again, that it was Rheya’s doing. But all evidence lead to him. His old card was used to access the safest areas in the laboratory. The employees also remembered seeing him there during the night. The footage from the security cameras had been purposely erased. Everything pointed to one direction, he planned to ingest the blood to become more powerful.

An emergency voting decided it would be better if he was temporarily out of The Council.

“I know you’re going through a lot of stress,” Kamilah told him. “I’m not saying I don’t believe you, but I’m also not saying I am. Just, stay in New Orleans for a few days. Clear your mind a bit.”

“Not even you… my fucking twin sister!” Lysimachus punched a hole in the wall. “You’ll all regret what you’re doing, and especially who you’re trusting. She’s manipulating each one of you!”

Coming back to reality, somebody was waiting for her at the door. Rheya. All those days, Kamilah was monitoring her closely. There wasn’t a single part of her that indicated danger.

“Kamilah?” She asked. “Is everything okay?”

“Absolutely,” Kamilah answered. “Personal issues. And you? Anything I can help with?”

“Actually, I’ve seen something that concerned me. I’ve been receiving threats and I believe they’re coming from the Order Of Dawn. I think they could be coming for me.”

She showed Kamilah some strange messages she received and pictures she took of strangers observing her out of the window.

“Don’t worry,” she assured. “We’ll investigate and grant you some protection.”

“Really?” Her eyes filled with tears and she started to cry. “Sometimes I think it’d be better if I returned to Europe. I never wanted to cause you trouble.”

“Rheya, no…”

Kamilah felt extremely bad for her. She quickly called Adrian and some of her Clan members to patrol the city and make sure no Order soldiers were walking around New York.

———-

Lysimachus

Angry, Lysimachus trained alone with a punching bag in his apartment in New Orleans. As soon as he arrived, Garrus checked his mind. Rheya’s presence was beginning to take over the place. With his Fae magic, he was able to remove it. But it was too late, everyone at The Council was convinced he was guilty.

He had to find a manner to stop Rheya by himself. She should have at least one weakness. She wasn’t invincible. Nothing could be. In nature, everything had a balance. An opposite.

“Wow,” a female voice said behind him, “someone’s mad.”

“Katherine,” he turned around, wiping off the sweat from his face with a towel. “Do you know how to kill a bitch?”

“Stake her. Or set her on fire. Assuming you’re talking about the Queen Bitch, Priya Lacroix.”

“Not actually. I’m talking about the First Vampire.”

“Is she truly real?” Her eyes went wide in surprise.

“Why do you think I’m back here?” Lysimachus told. “She caused that situation with Priya and found a manner to put everyone against me, when I discovered her identity.”

“Oh boy, you’re in serious trouble.”

“I know.”

After he showered, they walked around the streets of New Orleans while he informed her about the whole story. Since the Tree Of Eternal Life, the creation of Gaius and Xenocrates to the First Vampire’s return, using of Amy’s death.

“Why Amy?” Katherine wanted to know.

“According to this creepy British cult, she’s her descendant,” Lysimachus told. “And also a Bloodkeeper. What in my opinion, is the major sign of their connection. Their powers seem to be very similar.”

“Have you told all of that to your sister?”

He let out a chuckle.

“Who says she believes me? If Rheya asks her company, she’d probably give her everything in a second. She trusts her with her eyes closed.”

They stopped by the Graveyard Shift for a drink. Nik and Cal joined them and became part of the conversation. None of them had any ideas of what in this world could kill a legendary vampire.

“What do you think her plans are?” Nik asked. “She seems harmless so far.”

“She’s playing cautiously,” Lysimachus told. “Slowly involving and seducing everyone into her game. Soon they will bend to her will or meet a terrible fate. But her main interest… I think she wants Amy. For some purpose.”

“If she’s truly a queen,” Cal commented. “Amy would be her princess. Isn’t it obvious? She wants to share her legacy.”

“A legacy of blood and destruction,” Katherine added. “After that, she’ll probably eradicate the human kind.”

They all stared at each other in silence. None of them had a suggestion that could help.

“Let’s drink while we still can,” Nik suggested.

After he order at the bar, Ivy approached the table bringing their drinks and heard the conversation.

“Well well, a conversation about a legendary bloody creature. My favorite subject.”

“It wouldn’t be, if you met her,” Lysimachus showed them a picture of Rheya on his phone. “Ladies and gentlemen, the real face of evil. Rheya Apostolous.”

“Legendary. Bloody. And hot,” Ivy grinned.

“No wonder why your friends are getting into her so easily,” Cal joked.

“Come on, guys. Yes, she’s gorgeous. But she want all of us dead or kissing her feet. Would you mind helping me to come up with a plan? Something that could end her for good? There must be something. A balance nature created to stop her.”

Ivy was pensive for a moment before speaking:

“Meet me at the library tonight. I think I’ve got something we can do.”

“Does it involve the dead?” Lysimachus rolled his eyes, wondering how many ghosts he’d have to capture. “Or necromancy of any sorts?”

“Yes. I was thinking about… a Ouija board. But better.”

“Here we go again,” Katherine looked at him and sighed.

———-

Amy

As a form to protect Rheya, Kamilah requested Amy to follow her to all places. She was more than glad to help, after all she and the Greek vampire had an immense connection.

“So, Amy. How is it going with your psychic powers?” Rheya asked while they were working out together at the private gym in her building.

“I feel great,” she smiled. “Everyday I gain more and more control over them.”

“You not only can enter people’s minds, but you can make them actually experience the memories, is that correct?”

Rheya’s expression suddenly changed. She stopped with her exercises, looking sad, nostalgic.

“Yes. What’s wrong?” Confused, Amy stopped too. She lead Rheya to the nearest bench.

“Would you mind… showing me my family again? It’s been so long. Time is cruel. It has erased my husband’s voice from my memories or the scent of my little daughter’s hair. I miss them everyday and… I can’t barely remember their faces.”

“Of course.”

Amy grabbed her hands, focusing on the depths of her mind. Suddenly she could see both of them standing in an ancient throne room, where Rheya was in company of a man and a little girl.

“At least now I have the evening free to have dinner with you and Iola,” she smiled. “My two loves.”

“Mama, I want to see your fangs again!” Iola asked.

“They’re nothing special…“

“They are! I want fangs like you, Mama!”

“My darling… No, Iola. These are just for me, do you understand?”

Watching the scene, Amy couldn’t avoid feeling emotional. Tears formed in the corners of her eyes. For some reason she felt attached to those people. Maybe because of the tragedy she knew that would later separate them. Or even because it made her think of her own family.

When they returned, Rheya’s eyes were teary but she had a smile on her face.

“Thank you so much, Amy,” she hugged her tightly. “It was so good to see my Iola again. Actually… you remind me a lot of her.”

“Really?”

“Yeah, since young age she was exactly like you. Adventurous, fierce and she had a great sense of humor.”

At the same time Amy felt sadness hearing those words, it also caused her unexplainable joy.

“I’m sorry she was taken from you,” Amy lamented.

“Don’t be,” Rheya touched her cheek fondly. “Sometimes life takes something away from you… but it grants you something else in return. Sooner or later.”

Amy went home and showered, but the scene she experienced with Rheya wouldn’t leave her thoughts. Especially her daughter. They seemed to be so close, so affectionate to each other.

That vision triggered inside Amy an intense desire of having a family on her own too. She imagined having a daughter with Kamilah. She’d give her little girl everything her mother didn’t provide her while growing up. She not only would be her parent, but her best friend. They’d share good memories and start adventures together.

She texted Kamilah, asking her to go home as soon as possible. After lunch she was impatiently waiting for her wife. As Amy sat down on the couch, their kitten, Beruthiel, quickly jumped on her lap.

In the first days, Kamilah was reluctant about getting attached to their new pet, considering how short their life-span could be compared to theirs. Now, everyday she’d come home with a new gift for Beruthiel. She was literally treating her like a princess.

They could form a beautiful little family. She, Kamilah, their cat and a baby.

“Hey,” her wife entered the penthouse, “is everything okay? You said you needed to see me.”

“Yes,” Amy wrapped her arms around Kamilah’s neck. “I’ve scheduled a visit to Raines Corporation. You know, only to check how his research is progressing.”

“Oh, what research?”

“The one we can have a baby.”

“Only to check, huh?” Kamilah’s raised eyebrow suggested she already knew what Amy had in mind.

“And get informed on how it would work.”

“Amy…” Kamilah sighed. “I’m okay with adopting a cat but… we’re not in a good moment to consider having children.”

“Why?” Amy wanted to know. “We’re married, with a stable life, I’ve got perfect control of my powers. I see no reason to postpone it.”

“She’s out there. The First Vampire.”

“Kamilah, please… I even stopped having those creepy visions. She’s gone for good.”

“She’s not,” Kamilah’s expression was serious and certain. “I sensed her presence the other day. She could be the one who manipulated Priya’s mind and yours. And besides, there’s also the possibility the Order soldiers could be out there, getting ready to strike.”

“So…” Amy threw herself on the couch, biting her lower lip. “Didn’t you have to discuss this Order issues with Adrian? I could come with you.”

Kamilah stared at her in silence again. Her face suggested she wasn’t thrilled about the idea.

“It’s not the right moment, Amy. It’s not like we’re buying a new video game, it’s a life we’re talking about. I’m not bringing a child to this world, knowing they could be in danger.”

“It will never be good moment right? I mean, you said countless times you never wanted to be a mother and that you can’t stand children.”

Amy stood up from the couch, storming to the front door. She knew it was only another excuse. Kamilah would never give her what she wanted the most. She felt extremely upset and frustrated.

“Amy…” Kamilah interrupted her. “Can we talk about this?”

“No,” she responded, coldly and ironic. “It’s not the right moment.”

Alone, she took her car and drove directly to Raines Corporation. If Kamilah didn’t want to be part of this decision, she’d do it by herself. And in the end, if she still couldn’t accept it… maybe she didn’t love her as much as she thought.

———-

Lysimachus

After midnight, Lysimachus and Katherine followed to Ivy’s library. Trusting her was never the smartest or safest idea, but it was the only option he had at the moment.

The library was completely dark, until the very end of the building, where Ivy had prepared a magical seal on the floor, surrounded by candles.

“For heaven’s sake, what is that?” Katherine asked. “Please tell me you’re not planning to take him to the Realm of Death.”

“I considered it,” Ivy said. “But it was too risky, especially because he’s… biologically dead? So I decided to bring the dead to our world instead.”

“Wait,” Lysimachus interrupted. “Who are you planning to summon from the dead?

“The Two Sons. Xenocrates and Gaius.”

Only that name alone brought shivers to Lysimachus body. He hated that man with every fiber of his body being. If one thing he was sure, was that he never wanted to see Gaius again. Not even in spirit.

“Bring Xenocrates. Let Gaius trapped in hell, where it’s his place.”

“Okay, I’ll need to perform a ritual. Mind giving me some privacy?”

“Of course.”

Lysimachus walked to an armchair where he sat down. Katherine followed him. He buried his head in his hands, wondering what could even happen if that ritual went wrong and for some reason Gaius escaped the Realm Of Death and returned to life. By the side of his beloved Goddess, they’d rule the world, exterminating the human kind.

“Hey,” Katherine touched his shoulder, “what’s wrong? You’re shaking.”

“Gaius,” he confessed. “Only the mention of his name it… it drives me crazy. Have you ever hated someone so badly it consumes you, changes you?”

“Yeah, not someone. Something. A monster.”

“He Turned me, against my will. Besides keeping me separated from my sister from centuries. I can help thinking everything he caused in her life was a revenge against me. Even if he’s dead… the part of me he took away is never returning.”

“I can relate. That monster… it took the most precious thing I’ve ever had. And I will never be the same again. Even if I try. Part of me also died that day.”

“Katherine…” Lysimachus looked into her eyes. For the first time she looked open, vulnerable. “You never told me…”

“I usually don’t,” Katherine shrugged, fighting off her emotions. “I think I’m really starting to trust you.”

“Well, that’s a good thing.”

“Not for me.”

They both shared a laugh, when Ivy’s voice called them back. It was time to summon Xenocrates’ spirit. Ivy was voicing some words in an ancient language when the flames from the candles exploded and intensified, almost blinding them with the light.

As Lysimachus opened his eyes again, Xenocrates’ form was standing in the middle of the seal.

“What did you call me here for?” He snarled. "A man can’t even be dead, without being bothered by abominations like you?“

"We need answers,” Lysimachus approached. “About Rheya. You were her First Son, you must know how to end her for good.”

“And why do you think I’d help you? Especially, when you were all responsible for setting her free.”

“They didn’t,” Katherine intervened. “They didn’t set her free. They were only studying the blood, for good purposes.”

“It had nothing to do with the blood. It was… something else.”

“What was it?” Lysimachus asked, intrigued. “We didn’t know. And now, she has started to cause trouble. I need to stop her before the damage spreads.”

“I don’t know what brought Rheya back, otherwise I’d have prevented it,” Xenocrates told. “But if you want to stop her you’ll need to go after her husband, Demetrius. His blood is the only thing that can stop her.”

“Isn’t he dead?”

“Sort of. Rheya attempted to Turn him when he was murdered but it was too late. Her blood transformed him into something dark, without a conscience. A monster.”

“The First Feral,” Katherine concluded.

“His presence brought death to everything around him, including Rheya herself,” Xenocrates continued. “She was weakened by his darkness. So she sent him away.”

“And where is he now?” Lysimachus wanted to know.

“In the Island of Death, somewhere in South Pacific.”

“I’ll find him.”

“You will,” Xenocrates let out a sarcastic laugh. “But you won’t make it back home. The Island will drain all your life before you even get to him.”

“So what do I have to do?”

“My time here is over.”

“No! Wait!”

A strong wind filled the room, lighting off all the candles and the First Son disappeared.

“So what do we do now?” Katherine wondered. “How will we get to the Island?”

“I don’t know,” Lysimachus sighed, frustrated. “He said it drains the life of any living being that approaches it.”

“But he didn’t say anything about a undead being, did he?” Ivy suggested.

———-

Kamilah

In the beginning of the night, Kamilah went to Raines Corporation to meet Adrian and find out if he had any news about a possible invasion of the Order Of Dawn in New York. Amy wasn’t picking up her calls, but she found out she was at the Shadow Den with Lily. Apparently they invited Rheya for a girl’s night.

“Please, tell me she didn’t convince you to impregnate her,” Kamilah took a sip of the whiskey Adrian served her. “I know her, Adrian. She does that puppy dog eyes that make you unable to say no.”

“She didn’t,” Adrian let out a small laugh. “I showed her the research, but explained it’s still a work in progress. And I’d need your DNA too.”

“Good. How would it work anyways?”

“It’s a serum. First, you both must sign a contract. I’ll mix Amy’s DNA to yours and add the blood from the Tree. The three elements together will generate a new life. A new being.”

“Just like that?”

“Not really,” Adrian explained. “After I inject it on Amy’s body or yours, you will have to… conceive the baby, if you know what I mean. Like a regular pregnancy.”

“I see.”

Kamilah swallowed the entire glass of whiskey in one sip, trying to get rid of the stress the thought of being a mother caused her.

“What’s the deal, Kamilah?” Adrian asked, noticing her silence.

“I’m not ready, Adrian,” Kamilah sighed and confessed. “And I don’t think I’ll ever be! I’m 2065 years old. I’ve killed people and burned cities to the ground. How can I become a mother? How am I supposed to raise a child?”

“We’re never ready, but when the moment comes, it’s just magical. You’ll learn to be a mom, Kamilah. Together with Amy.”

She noticed how distant and nostalgic Adrian looked after that talk. It probably reminded him of his son, Charles.

“We’ve adopted a cat recently,” Kamilah changed the subject. “Her name is…”

She couldn’t get used to that name. Something Amy and Lily picked out from one of their geeky obsessions.

“Beruthiel. I heard about her,” a smile returned to Adrian’s face. “I was also told you’ve been using your penthouse security system to observe her when you’re absent. And that you’ve bought her like 10 different collars in a week.”

She only rolled her eyes in response and walked to the window. Kamilah started remembering Amy’s behavior that afternoon. ‘No. It’s not the right moment’. Those words were said with the same coldness and rage as when she was under the First Vampire’s influence, before her Turning. She was about to express her concerns about her dark presence inhabiting Amy’s body, when the emergency alarm of Raines Corporartion started echoing through the entire building.

“What is that?” Kamilah asked, confused.

“I don’t know,” Adrian ran to his computer. “But it doesn’t sound good.”

From the security cameras, they observed as a small group dressed in white marched into the building, inspecting every corner. Searching for something specific. Their clothes and weapons had a military look, like they were soldiers of some kind. Kamilah recognized immediately who they were.

“The Order Of Dawn,” she concluded. “What do we do?”

“I don’t know,” Adrian was completely enraged. “But I won’t be standing here and watch them kill my employees.”

Kamilah followed him outside the office, with her daggers in hand. The Order Of Dawn was known for their skilled and ruthless hunters, who would kill everyone that stood in the way of their mission, humans or vampires.

“They’re at the labs,” Adrian whispered, watching the security cameras from his cell phone. “They’re… torturing them.”

Kamilah glanced at the screen, observing the soldiers holding a blade against one of the scientists’ neck. Adrian hands were shaking in anger. His eyes were dark and distant. She knew it was useless to try to calm him down at this stage.

“Look,” Kamilah pointed. “Two of them are guarding the main hall. We can ambush them and steal their outfits. It’ll make it easier for us to get the rest of them.”

“Good plan.”

They followed to the main hall through the emergency staircase, avoiding to make any noise. Arriving at the company’s entrance, they waited for the right moment to strike. Moving silent and stealth, Kamilah took down one guard while Adrian took the other.

After wearing their uniforms, Adrian checked the cameras one last time. They weren’t in a large group, only 7 soldiers, he counted. He and Kamilah proceeded with their plan, entering the laboratories disguised as members of the Order Of Dawn.

“What are you two doing here?” One of them asked, as he saw them. “You were supposed to guard the door. Raines could be arriving at any minute.”

“He won’t, Kamilah told, approaching the group, ready to draw her daggers.

"How can you be so sure?!”

“Because…” Adrian grabbed the soldier’s neck, breaking it instantly. “He’s right here.”

The remaining soldiers pulled their weapons and circled them.

“There’s six now,” Kamilah looked at Adrian. “Three for each?”

He nodded in agreement.

Kamilah’s soldiers attacked her with their UV flashlights. She looked at them for a second, before rolling her eyes.

“It seems like you haven’t received the latest updates,” she threw one of her daggers right into a soldier’s chest. “UV light doesn’t do a damn thing on me!”

Using her advanced speed, Kamilah dodged their crossbows and retrieved back her dagger. From behind, she stabbed both of them at the same time. She looked at Adrian, holding in his hands the hearts of two of his soldiers, while chasing the last of them. Kamilah streaked in his direction, daggers in hands, going straight for his neck.

“It’s over,” she said as he dropped dead on the floor.

After checking his employees, Adrian offered Kamilah drank some stored blood to recover strength and heal any minor injuries.

Kamilah’s cell phone started ringing. It was Priya.

“I know you hate me. But sending the Order Of Dawn to my club was a slut move, Kamilah!”

“What? Are they in there too?” She shared a concerned look with Adrian.

“Of course…” by the sound, Priya stopped to shoot the soldiers with a gun. “Otherwise, why would I even call you? ”

“I… I’ll send some reinforcement.”

“Those were one of my favorite shoes!” The fashion designer yelled. Panicked screams were heard in the background.

“Priya?!”

“There’s no need, I think I killed all of them. Wait…” she fired the gun again. “Yes, now I did.”

Adrian was also on his phone. The Order also attacked Lester’s business. With the help of his Clan, he managed to get rid of them.

“Leave one of them alive,” Adrian ordered. “Bring him for an interrogation tomorrow.”

He hung up. Both of their phones buzzed at the same time with texts from several vampires of Jax’s clan. The Shadow Den was under attack, by the largest group of soldiers seem in New York so far.

“Oh no.”

“We have to go,” Kamilah rushed, headed to her car. “Amy is in danger.”

———-

Amy

“Another fight?!” Lily questioned, while Amy finished putting on some make-up. Rheya would arrive soon and they’d introduce her to the life in the Shadow Den. “And because you want to have children?!”

“Yes,” Amy answered. “I just feel ready for the next step. I want to start a family with Kamilah.”

“Amy, I’m sorry but it doesn’t sound like you. I mean, you guys have been married for only a year. A lot can change.”

“What are you suggesting? Nothing is changing between us.”

“You’re a vampire now,” Lily told. “There’s so much you may want to experience. You’ll have the eternity to be a mother.”

“Being married to Kamilah, I’ve already experienced a lot,” Amy argued. “We’ve traveled to so many places, she introduced me to a lot of new things, we’ve grown up as couple… it seems like the right moment.”

“Well, that’s your decision to make. But make sure you’re not using it only to mask your past traumas.”

Amy did have a family-related trauma. She always felt abandoned, rejected by her mom. Ofter she’d seek for affection in her friend’s families. The conflicts between them only got worse when she became a teenager. In many occasions, she made her mom cry. Which was enough for her to decided the should follow different paths.

Now she had built her own life away from her hometown. She had a great job, a loving wife and she finally got answers about her mother’s behavior and her origins. In truth, she was starting to understand and even forgive her.

Having a baby with Kamilah had little to do with that. Part of her didn’t want children before because she wasn’t sure she’d be able to be a good mother, based on her own experiences. Now she wanted to break that cycle. She wanted to fix things with her mom, and at the same time, have the motherhood experience herself.

“Hello,” for some reason Rheya was already standing in the living room. “You didn’t hear me knocking, the door was opened so I entered. I hope I didn’t interrupt anything.”

“Not at all!” Amy smiled, dismissing her thoughts. “We were waiting for you. By the way, that’s Lily. My best friend.”

“It’s nice to meet you,” Lily extended her hand. “Very nice.”

“It’s my pleasure, darling. Amy talks about you all the time.”

Amy checked her watch. It was almost time for Liv’s new show to start. Both of her friends had engaged in a conversation. Lily seemed to be nervous around Rheya, panicking and stuttering. She shook her head in denial.

“Hey, you two,” she called. “Let’s go!”

First, they gave Rheya a tour of the Shadow Den. She was impressed by the place, checking all the stores and attractions the community had to offer.

“This place is amazing. A mass of vampires, rejected by The Council, build all of this? Without any support?”

“They did,” Lily told. “We made some improvements and redesigned after we were recognized as a Clan by The Council.”

“And there…” Amy pointed to the male vampire coming in their direction, “is the man behind most of it, Jax Matsuo.”

“Hey,” Jax joined them, briefly nodding at Rheya. “What are you girls up to?”

“We’re headed to Liv’s new show, but before we’re showing Rheya around.”

“Rheya, huh? I remember seeing you at the Tribunal. You saved Priya’s ass.”

“Jax,” Rheya looked deeply into his eyes and grabbed one of his hands. “Your bravery, your strength is like no other. Building this place, protecting your people, fighting for your rights… it’s inspiring. You have my admiration.”

“Whoa,” Jax’s cheeks turned a little pink. “Thank you, but I had help of my Clan members. We were all part of this.”

“I… I…” Lily made some effort to insert herself in the conversation. “I created the Fangbook. A social network for vampires.”

Rheya grinned and grabbed her hand too.

“This is also amazing, darling. An online gathering of all vampires in the world. Your knowledge can serve for greater purposes. You can achieve great things. Never doubt your potential.”

“T-Thank you.”

Amy laughed and patted her best friend’s shoulder.

Together they followed to Liv’s cabaret, finding their reserved seats in the front row. That was the debut of a show she long planned, back when she still a mortal. She looked unusually happy that night.

“This place is crowded,” Amy told Jax, before the lights went out.

“I know, right?” He said. “It’s good to finally see a smile on her face.”

A dancing number started on the stage, Amy was very focused. The music was hypnotizing. She and Lily started to move their bodies in sync to the rhythm.

“Come on, Jax,” Amy shouted. “Join us.”

“In a moment,” he looked serious at his cell phone screen. “There’s something wrong in the tunnels.”

Jax didn’t have any time to leave, as soon as he got up a group of soldiers dressed in white burst through the doors. Amy recognized them from Greece.

“The Order Of Dawn.”

“Everyone take cover!” Jax yelled, as they started to aim and shoot their crossbows at the vampires in the cabaret.

Amy stood frozen in the middle of the commotion, her eyes registering the scene all around her. Vampires attempted to run, or even to protect themselves, only to suffer cruel and painful deaths. There was a lot of screaming and crying, while the Order Of Dawn chanted:

”The Order does not yield. The Order does not sleep. The Order shows no mercy… and leaves no survivors.”

She tried to locate Rheya and Lily but they were nowhere to be seen. A tightness on her chest started to suffocate her.

“Amy!” Jax pulled her out of the way, to prevent an attack with UV light. Considering the desperation of the moment, he probably had forgotten it didn’t affect her.

“Jax,” she returned to her conscience. However, when she looked at the male vampire on the ground he wasn’t moving. His chest had a big burning wound. Tears stated to fill her eyes as she touched it. No vampire would survive an injury of that extent. “Jax, please…”

“Die,” an Order soldier appeared in front of her, with a crossbow aimed to her chest. She fired. Amy stopped the stake midway with her psychic powers.

Looking around, she could see piles of ash all around the club, along with severely hurt vampires, struggling to stay alive. Rage started to consume her. She felt her eyes burning in pure anger.

With a grin on her face, she sent the stake back in the soldier’s direction. Hitting her right in the middle of her eyes.

“What is that?” A group of soldiers came in her direction, as their member’s lifeless body fell on the ground.

Amy could feel their hearts beating. The blood flowing inside their veins. They had no idea what she could do. They had no idea of what she could become. She had the urge to kill them. All of them. She focused, gathering all her power.

“Kill her,” their leader ordered. She jerked her hand, sending all of them flying. The heavy impact against the wall crushed every bone inside their fragile human bodies.

More soldiers came in her direction. She leaped forward. With fangs drawn, she went directly to their throats. Her hands also fought, tearing into some soldiers’ chests and ripping off their hearts.

“Monster! Monster!” They started to retreat and runaway scared.

Amy couldn’t let them get away. Not after what they had done. They deserved no second chances. Only death. By the time they reached the door, she appeared in front of them.

“Leave… no… survivors!” She yelled, mocking their chant. Her hands were engulfed by fire and she send blasts in their direction. She stood and watched while it consumed their bodies.

As they silenced, she closed her eyes. She could sense a couple of human heartbeats coming from behind the bar. Taking Jax’s katana, she slowly walked to them. They barely had any time to scream. The blood spraying from their slit throats soaked her skin and her clothes. She fed herself some of it, before going back to Jax unconscious body.

She kneeled right beside him, placing her hands over the wound. And that’s the last thing she did, before collapsing in exhaustion.

#bloodbound #kamilah sayeed #kamilah x mc #playchoices #choices stories you play #bloodbound fanfiction #within you #hoping it works this time

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annoyinglyjovialbird · 5 years ago

Text

Voltron: Next Generation

Brittle Relations: I

Word Count: 2815

The days on the Coeus stretched into a heavy monotonous cycle. The team would wake up and perform daily duties: Liz and Allie would check on Keith, who was recovering, Cake busied himself with meals, Caleb and Kenny worked together in the engine room, and Shiro and Kova reviewed plans and caught up with Curtis on Earth. When the Coeus was attacked, only one or two Lions were dispatched if the threat was more serious. Otherwise, they stayed on board and let the Coeus do all the hard work. After that was done, they would return to normal duties and only saw each other during meals and briefings.

Liz, Cake, and Allie could see the wear and tear on the Shirogane clan, but they said nothing. Cake and Liz worked with Kova and Caleb long enough to know they weren't the types to back down, even if they were tired. It tugged at Allie's heartstrings to see the pair with the dark circles under their eyes, that intensity in their eyes was just...gone. Upon cleaning the bridge, Allie heard a strange noise coming from a vent. On closer inspection, Allie found the bottle the teens used during their game. It felt like a lifetime ago when the biggest worry was Keith piloting the ship. Allie finished her cleaning and ran out of the bridge to find Liz and Cake with the bottle in hand. Together, they spawned an idea.

A few days later, Kova was found on the bridge, typing away at her console. Maybe she was updating the info board. Maybe she was writing fanfiction about a life that wasn't completely screwed up. Maybe she was writing a poem about peaches to make herself feel better since it is her favorite fruit. Whatever it was, the teens didn't care. They saw Kova standing alone, looking more stressed out than she had been the entire trip, so they struck.

"Hey, Cap," Cake said, slowly approaching the older teen. Kova gave Cake a small glance before returning her attention to the console. "Cap, listen, we-"

"I'm busy, Cake." Kova's voice was cold.

"Okay, okay." Cake backed away with hands raised in fake surrender. Allie, who stood at the doorway, rolled her eyes and all but shoved the bottle into Cake's hands while he tried to give it back. Liz turned the corner, deadpanning at the scene with Kenny and Caleb on her heels. With Liz's help, Cake walked back into the bridge exasperated. With a sigh, he puffed up his chest and marched (like, seriously marched) to Kova's console.

"You wanna play a game?" He asked loudly, thrusting the bottle into Kova's imaginary bubble. Allie inched herself into the room next to Cake so she could be in Kova's line of sight. Kova met Cake's eyes then stared at the bottle in his hands, and back again into his eyes with furrowed eyebrows. With every second Kova continued to stare, Cake's heart continued dropping lower into his stomach until he was sure it couldn't go any further. Then Kova smiled. His heart shot back up into his chest as Kova gestured to the floor with her head. The others followed until they sat in a circle in the middle of the floor. Liz and Cake explained the game to Kenny, who nodded along.

Kova was the last person that spun the bottle when they played last time, therefore, it was still Kova's turn. Allie needed to think about her question, so it was either Kenny or Caleb who had to ask. Caleb went ahead, lazily turning his head.

"What's scarier: a weblum or a nine-month-old who is just starting to crawl?" Kova let out a dry laugh, looking around the room. She was wearing her lavender sweater, so when she started rolling up her sleeves, the others looked on.

"Caleb, the answer is so obvious that I'm shocked you even had to ask." Kova rolled her left sleeve up until it was around her elbow. "The answer is obviously-" Kova held up her now bare arm to show off the pink starburst scar on the back of her hand to the middle of her forearm, where the pink faded into Kova's natural tan. "The baby."

"The baby?" The other members of their team asked incredulously.

"What baby did that to you?"

"Wasn't that caused by burns on the Fire ship?"

"It was a human infant, right?" Kova's tiredness seemed to fade as the questions were being asked, replaced by amusement at their shock.

"Yes, it was a human baby, no, it wasn't caused by burns on the Fire ship, and it was Cy."

"Cyrus did that to you?" It was Kenny's turn to look incredulous. Caleb looked pleased with himself as Kova was the one to answer everyone's questions.

"Crawling humans are scarier than you think."

"You weren't scary when you were crawling."

"Then you don't remember what happened to Stephen the Hawk." Kenny stared at Kova absolutely confused until his eyes widened.

"What happened to Stephen the Hawk?" Liz asked, leaning forward so her elbow was perched on her knee and her hand supported her chin.

"Stephen Hawkling had a beautiful life, staying with Kenny since he was about two years old until his unfortunate demise ten years later."

"What happened to the plush, Kova?" Caleb said, staring at the side of her head. She rolled her eyes and continued.

"I accidentally crawled over a cord, toppling a lamp that was turned on, and it burned Stephen's head and back. Ken never let me forget it." Kova stared at Kenny pointedly. To his credit, Kenny looked shocked hearing about Stephen Hawkling's demise again, but he seemed to remember the vaguest details, like how big the hole was.

Allie wrung her fingers as she looked around the circle of friends. "It's my turn, right?" She asked, much too quiet to barely be heard over the hum of the ship. Even so, Cake heard her and nodded. "What's the most sentimental thing you kept from your youth?"

"Wow, okay Allie," Liz said. Cake gave a low whistle and a smile. Kova smiled, too, and straightened up. Her arm went to her back, pulling something out. Tied to the back of Kova's pants, a matching black sheath held a small blade about the size of Kova's lower back. As Kova brought the blade forward, she pulled down her rolled-up sleeve.

"I kept Keith's knife." Kova held the small blade in her open palms. "I never had the courage to get rid of it, and I rarely use it. Besides the family picture and a blanket, I didn't keep much from the Kogane household."

"Does he know you have it?" Liz asked. Kova shook her head, reaching behind her to sheath it. "Kenny's turn." The teens turned their heads to stare at him. Kenny opened his mouth when a beeping went off. Liz and Allie checked their makeshift pagers, seeing an alert for Keith, and excused themselves. Cake stretched his arms out, then stood up to go to the kitchen, since it was almost dinnertime. Caleb asked if he could help, to which Cake nodded his head.

"Well, I need to get back to the engine room," Kenny said, standing up.

"I'll join you." Kova jumped to her feet, dusting herself off. "I don't have anything better to do." Kenny nodded and made his way to the engine room with Kova right behind him. When they got down there, the room felt warmer than before, and the pair got to work on lowering the temperature, not saying a word to each other. Eventually, they figured out the heat was coming from an exhaust vent and it was facing the wrong direction. The two ran diagnostics on the entire ship, and when it came back as clear, they stood facing the other.

Kenny stared at Kova then down to his hands as she redid some cables, organizing them in their compartments. Kova noticed Kenny's mood darkening and finished quickly.

"Hey," She said. "You okay?" Kenny gave a small nod, still staring at his hands. He had turned around to rest his butt on the console panel. Kova found an engine box covering to sit on across from Kenny. "You didn't get to ask me anything while we were in there. What was it?"

"It was nothing," Kenny muttered. He laced his fingers together so they were holding each other.

"Kenny." Kova continued, crossing her arms so they rested comfortably on her thighs.

"Everyone at the Garrison wants to be you." Kenny's voice was firm, making Kova flinch. "It doesn't matter what life. You're the Jax, near-perfect at everything you try, no matter what it is. Engineering, programming, even communications." Kenny looked up at Kova with those blue-gray eyes that sent Kova back. "You're just like him, y' know."

"That's not true."

"Isn't it?" Kenny looked angry. "You're both half-Galra, you're both the perfect soldiers, you're both the best of the best, and-and," Kenny shouted then grew quieter as his sentence trailed off. "And I never saw you guys again. You both left, one way or the other."

"You're just as talented."

"You're just saying that." Kenny looked down. "I've been a Holt my entire life, and I still can't be on your level."

"Just 'cause you think you're not good at tech doesn't mean you're not good at other things!"

"Like what?" Kenny met Kova's eyes. They were flicking back and forth in their socket as Kova searched through her memory for something, anything to make Kenny feel better.

"Remember that spider plant you used to have in your room?"

"It was plastic."

"No, it wasn't." Kova shook her head. "Pidge switched yours out with the one in the living room because yours looked better." Kenny stared at her. "And! And remember that hybrid flower you made?"

"The juniberry hybrids?"

"Yeah! Colleen took them! The Altean soil is the only place they'll grow, so they were grown there."

"You're joking."

"I'm not!" Kova's eyes lit up as she saw Kenny's dark mood disappear. "You can ask Allie about them! She worked in the inner courts!"

"What about me and the inner courts?" Speak of the devil.

"Allie, can you tell Kenny about the juniberry hybrids?" Kova scooted forward so that Allie was in full view. Allie stepped forward, her lips pursed and eyebrows furrowed.

"They're hybrids between Earthen flowers and juniberries. What else can I say?" Kova nodded her head, gesturing to Kenny. "They can only grow on Altea, and because of their rarity, they reside in the Royal Gardens."

"That's only an acre or so, isn't it?" Kenny crossed his arms as Kova looked to a confused Allie and rolled her eyes.

"It was expanded a couple of years ago because the formula was being repeated on so many flowers."

"I love juniholts," Allie remarked. Kenny all but jumped out of his skin at the mention of the playful name he gave one of the hybrid flowers.

"What do they look like?" Kenny demanded, scaring Allie. She looked to Kova for help, to which the older girl put a comforting hand on her back.

"They're about my height, covered in green foliage, and they bloom pretty pink juniberries from bottom to top." Allie described, retreating further into Kova's bubble until she was in between Kova's legs and Kova's hands were messing with the braids on Allie's head.

"That's the hollyhock hybrid." Kenny was astounded. His heart was about to burst out of his chest. "They're seriously called juniholts?" Both girls nodded.

"There's a lot more, but that's my favorite one." Allie and Kenny stood in silence while Kova sat, unbraiding and rebraiding Allie's hair. Kenny had a hand over his mouth as the information sunk in. His hybrids survived. On Altea. He fathered an entirely new species of hybrid flowers because he didn't want to do his programming homework. Like she read his mind, Kova smirked.

"Seems you have Colleen's green thumb." Kova looked up from her work. "Sounds like a pretty good deal to me." She continued to sift through Allie's now curly hair to attempt a new hairstyle on the girl. In the end, Allie wound up with six small braids pinned to the back of her head over the rest of her hair in a modified half-up and half-down. That's when Allie remembered why she went down there, to begin with. Dinner was ready.

The next morning, the teens were bright-eyed and bushy-tailed in their places on the bridge for their daily briefing. Keith was still on bed rest but will be fine. The Coeus is approximately two wormhole jumps away from Pidge's location based on current capabilities. Food was beginning to run low, so they would have to land somewhere to harvest food and water. The filters needed cleaning and the Coeus needed minor repairs, too, so they would need to land anyway. The prisoner had given more information about himself and the place he came from. While he described the area he grew up in as 'the colonies', it was enough for Allie to figure out what he meant.

"Allura, this better not be-" Romelle began to say as her face appeared onscreen.

"Can I have access to the Galtean colonies?" Allie immediately asked.

"Allura, unless you-"

"Romelle, what is the status of the Galtean colonies?" Allie looked annoyed and determined. An odd mix. Romelle sighed with exasperation, typing away at something off-screen. Her violet eyes went wide as she searched for something she clearly was not found.

"There is no status on the colonies," Romelle said, standing from her chair to call for guards. "Go to the last known location of the colonies!"

"Romelle!" Allie shouted to get the woman's attention.

"Right!" Romelle sat down in her chair again and typed something up again. On Kova's console, Romelle sent a full folder of information on the colonies. "Do make good use of it. I will alert you if we find them." While Romelle disappeared, the folder and its contents appeared. Allie hurried up the stairs to Kova's console as Kova stepped back. All the documents were labeled and written in Altean, and unfortunately, the teens don't learn languages at the Garrison.

"What was the name of the prisoner?" Allie asked Shiro, who was standing on the floor.

"He said his name was Darrar," Shiro replied, turning to look at the screen. Allie typed the name into a search engine under a subfolder. Fifteen different individuals popped up on the search, only about half of them with pictures because they were grown. Thankfully, Shiro was able to point out the prisoner. However, Darrar was much younger in the picture. Only a teenager since the pictures were time-stamped.

"I didn't even know Galtean colonies existed!" Cake exclaimed, staring at the folder. "You think that Yorak has been recruiting from the colonies?"

"He's half-Galra," Kova said, crossing her arms. "It makes sense he'd go after other half-Galra."

"Stupid question over here." Liz raised her hand as she spoke. "What's a Galtean colony?"

"Galteans are an uncommon hybrid of Galra, the people of Daibazaal, and Alteans, the people of Altea. The colonies, however, are a consolation gift between Daibazaal and Altea to foster peace between the two," Allie explained, showing a map of the colonies' last location. "There were four colony groups. Alpha, Beta, Gamma, and Sirius. Darrar is from the Gamma colony."

"The colonies are designed to move and interlock if the need arises. They aren't attached to anything, just themselves." Kova explained even further.

"A moving colony?" Liz looked from Kova and Allie to the map on screen again. "How do you even keep track of it?"

"There are supposed to be satellites constantly supervising them, with monthly updates."

"Supposed to?"

"Darrar has to tell us where the colonies are!" Allie ignored Liz's question. "Yorak is pure evil!"

"I'll try my best, but Allie, I doubt he knows." Shiro sighed, meeting the young girl's eyes. "Kova, what's the closest planet so we can make a landing?" Allie stepped away from the console and returned to her chair as Kova closed the Altean folders and opened a map.

"Senfama is the closest to us," Kova reported, and Shiro nodded his head.

"Set a course for Senfama," Shiro said, climbing that stairs. As he approached the door, he paused and turned to stare at the teens, who seemed more upbeat than they had in weeks. "Are you guys okay?" Shiro asked with a half-smile. The teens looked at each other than at him, just as curious.

"Never better."

"I feel fine."

"I think I'm okay. Am I okay?"

"You're fine, Cake."

"Yeah, we're good." Kova arched an eyebrow. "Are you?" Shiro laughed and walked out the door. The teens stayed on the bridge until it was time for lunch, then prepared themselves for a wormhole jump.

#voltron: next generation #voltron #vld #keith kogane #keith x pidge #takashi shirogane #kovalia shirogane #caleb shirogane #colleen holt #liz griffin #allie smythe #romelle #cake garrett #kenny kogane #kenny holt #hybrid #galtean #fire #igf coeus

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ofieugogyshz · 5 years ago

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I only have the one major romantic f/o (lance), so i'm just gonna answer them regardless.

1) who fell for the other first.

Me. It was definitely me. Tho I wasn't aware of it/was very stubborn about it. He says he had always cared for me regardless and saw someone in need, but it was obvious when I had gotten all starry-eyed at him. My blushing gave it away whenever we got too close to each other (damn a light complexion!)

2) who said ily 1st

Him. See above stubbornness + being tsundere + not wanting to assume his niceness meant anything more. Plus, being obvious, he felt confident that it would be reciprocated. Which feels kind of jerky, now that think about it.

3) who is more affectionate

I think we're both kind of reserved about it publicly, but at the same time, definitely me. I like physical contact/am touch starved, so there's a lot of arm linking/clinging and leaning against coming from me, but he's more likely to kiss me in public than i would him. Or other softer, more intimate signs of affection between two people, ie rubbing shoulders, caressing skin, etc. I think we're equal at hand-holding in public

In private, it's still probably equal-ish, but he's more likely to be more comfortable at showing affection without people watching. (The joy of basically being the equivalent of a celebrity) People are always watching him for the various roles he has, and while it's still obvious in public that we're together from his protective body language, he's waaaaaay more comfortable without eyes watching him. He feels like he can be more himself in private and not need to worry about any of his mantles, from the Dragon Clan to Champion/Elite Four member to a g-man to literally any other way people perceive and think of him. So his guard is lowered and he feels more comfortable initiating affection. It also doesn't help that i'm not comfortable with showing certain kinds of affection in public, and he knows where that line is crossed.

4) who initiates cuddle sessions

I think it really depends on who needs it more or who feels like it more at the time? I'm usually more touch-starved, so I'll basically just lay against him and be like "cuddles plz", which elicits a smile and a short laugh from him. But if I'm in a Mood(tm), he's going to initiate if it's necessary for the situation

5) how do we cheer each other up

If something is weighing on him, I'll approach him and ask him what's wrong and listen, usually with a hug from behind or leaning against him in a sort of half hug half cuddle? He doesn't like anyone to see him when he's that upset, because he doesn't want to lash out and would rather be alone and take time to re-compose himself. ESPECIALLY if he's angry about something. He'll go train in private and I'll have to find him and talk to him to find out what's up

When it's me, to cheer me up like, it's hard for me to resist his gentle smile. He'll be a little silly until he's gotten me to laugh. Maybe plop a cute plush or Pokemon in front of me or he'll drape his cape on me and i don't even know how to describe how there's some silliness in it

If it's something more serious or a Mood, he'll make me talk to him. He'll listen to me and validate my feelings, or fight me on it if i'm expressing self-hatred. He absolutely HATES it when I'm harsh on myself and self-hating, and it's sometimes startling how seriously he'll fight me on it. He loves me so much that it's almost offensive to him that I'll hate myself? I don't really know how to describe it, it just melts my heart thinking about it. And he'll hug me after and stroke my hair and tell me how much he loves me and that it hurts to see me in such pain and that he's sorry for getting so aggressive about it

6) who is more likely to plan a surprise date:

Him, because i'm bad at planning things until the very. last. second. Tho i guess that does make things more of a surprise. For both of us.

7) who suggests more creative date ideas

Me! I'm the ideas person, once a topic/theme has been picked

8) who steals the other's clothes

We uh, don't really do that. I'm a much bigger size than him and i don't think there's much in my wardrobe he'd wear? Tho i could be wrong.

....i do "borrow" his capes tho bc they are good blankets. ;>> so i guess me

9) who is more likely to leave cute notes

Both of us! His are more like "remember to do this! ❤" and mine are more like "ily!!! Thanks for [xyz]!"

10) our favorite thing in the summer

Probably flying around and getting to go to lakes and stuff, finding temperally cooler places to go to! I'm used to 110°+ weather, but that still doesn't mean i wouldn't go somewhere cooler. I really like nature and forests and such, so if he sees a place as he's working that he think I might like, he makes a note of it. I love playing in water but it'd be nice to be able to go around while every thing is lush and green!

11) our favorite thing in winter

CUDDLES AND SNUGGLES AND CURLING UP IN BLANKETS AND HOT COCOA!! He'll take me to snowy places since i haven't been to snowy areas except once in my entire life. He'd probably offer to teach me some snow sport but mmnope i'm good, i have the physical calibration of a broken 90s touch screen and a fear of heights. I can barely stand flying. ><;;

But yes, getting an excuse to spend time bundled up together is gr8 imo

#my champion #i've been working on this since earlier when i was mad and irritated and it helped a bit to distract me #or focus elsewhere #selfshipping #pokemon self shipping

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honeybammie · 6 years ago

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every day & always › jeon jungkook › pt.2

↳ part one, part three ↳ when the time comes for jungkook to take over his father’s role in the min gang, he has second thoughts about the man he wants to be, but you’ll do everything in your power to make him stay. ↳ mafia!au jungkook, angst ↳ wc: 4,893 ↳ note: i forgot that i meant to post a new part today until like 10 minutes ago so this isn’t edited and i am posting from my phone so i’ll have to go back and fix some things later i’m srry

Yoongi returned the following afternoon, having spent the previous couple of days checking on some of our assets on the outskirts of the city. I heard him whistling down the hall before he waltzed into my office, brown paper bag in hand. His relaxed shoulders meant he would have no bad news, which I was thankful for. Since Jungkook had left the day before, I couldn’t stop wondering what he was going to do.

“You know that whistling shit creeps me out,” I said to my brother, who came right up to my desk and sat on the ledge, welcoming himself to a cigarette. “What’s in the bag? A severed hand?”

He set it in front of me, covering the paper I had been writing. “Open it and find out.”

I glared at him, but he only jerked his head toward the bag. There was no distinct flesh smell filling the room, so I took my chances and glanced down inside. Takeout. A plastic container with noodles and beef inside.

“You’re not funny,” I told him while removing the contents and throwing the bag in a waste bin. When we were younger he once brought me a finger, shoved it in my face while I cried and screamed for him to take it away, and I constantly reminded him that I had yet to forgive the incident.

“I’ve been gone three days and brought your favorite meal and don’t even get a thank you?” he asked, pressing a hand over his heart and pretending to be hurt.

“It’s a tough life,” I said, shoveling bites into my mouth and hardly chewing. I had been so caught up in work that I’d forgone lunch. “Is everything going well out of town?”

He nodded, taking a drag and exhaling a lazy coil of smoke. “Nothing to report here. Did anyone give you a hard time while I was gone? Need to rough anyone up?”

I chewed the inside of my cheek, obligated to tell him about Jungkook, but I feared what he would say. “Depends on what you define as a hard time.” Yoongi raised his eyebrows, urging me on. “Jungkook came by yesterday, and he’s having…doubts.”

“Doubts?” Yoongi echoed, like it was a dirty word. I was trying to tread lightly, but it was Yoongi’s job to turn every seemingly small detail into a big deal. There was no such thing as being too careful.

“He’s not sure he wants to be involved in the syndicate anymore.” I stretched the truth further than I should’ve. Jungkook would do anything to leave, but I believed he could still be won over, especially when he was stuck between his own life and someone else’s.

“Those are some serious doubts,” Yoongi said. As my stomach sank, I tried to convince myself that it was just because I had eaten too fast. “What did you tell him?”

“His problem is that he doesn’t want to kill anyone.” More or less. “I told him that if he got over it and killed just one man, we’d never ask him to again, and we’d put him on one of our business paths. I told him that if he leaves, the Park Clan won’t hesitate to come after him and his family. He wants to know if there’s a middle ground, one that doesn’t involve blood.”

“Doesn’t involve blood?” Yoongi laughed, a roar coming from deep in his chest that vibrated my chest, instilled me with the knowledge that I had been right to tell Jungkook there was no easy way out. “He can be a meager associate if he wants, but he’d have to find a soldier to work under. Even so, as much as we try within our means to protect our associates, they aren’t members. The Parks could put a bullet between his eyes and there’s nothing we would do. And we’d have to kick his mother and brother out of their current home, since we provided it for them. They wouldn’t be safe, either.”

I nodded along, having been aware of all of those things. “If he’s an associate, he might put off his fate for a while, but he’s valuable to the Parks. He’d end up dead all the same.”

“He could kill his father’s murderer,” Yoongi suggested, as if I hadn’t already.

“I mentioned that to him.”

“And?”

I backed myself into a corner for this one. If I told Yoongi that Jungkook would be willing to kill his father’s murderer, there would be no need for this conversation in the first place, and if I said that Jungkook wasn’t willing, Yoongi would throw him out on the streets in a heartbeat: no man was worth having who wouldn’t avenge his own family’s death. “He…didn’t say much,” I lied. Right through my teeth. “We had a pretty long talk yesterday, and I think he’s going to consider his options.”

“His options are to kill or be killed,” Yoongi said. I had said so, too, but hearing the words out of Yoongi’s mouth made them all the more real, falling into my lap with a gravity heavier than all the deaths that had come before. We had seen my father’s death coming for months, preparing ourselves in every way possible, but Jungkook’s death was coming out of nowhere. I didn’t want him to die hating me.

“What’re his odds of evading the Parks?” I asked. “If he leaves, I mean.”

“There are none. They’re barely human, that clan, and they’d sniff him out in a day. Even if a miracle struck him, his mother and brother wouldn’t make it out, and the Parks would use them as bait to bring Jungkook back.” Yoongi flicked the butt of his cigarette into the trash, and before I attempted to speak, a dark expression fell over his eyes, a black curtain at the end of a tragedy, when the audience sits dead and still.

“What?” I had never seen this face from him, but I knew it from my father. I was trying to place the times I had seen it.

“If he leaves, the Park Clan will find him. And they won’t just kill him. They will break his bones and cut off his hands and carve out his soul. He’ll spill everything he knows about us, eventually. He’d get people killed.

“Or he’ll run to the federal government—that’s his only hope from the Park Clan. The feds would put his family in witness protection in exchange for information. He’d get the two of us arrested, and who knows how many others.”

In Yoongi’s pause, I remembered where I had seen that look on my father before. It was the face he made when he realized he would have to kill a member of his own clan, and I knew Yoongi’s next words before they spilled over his lips.

“If Jungkook leaves…we kill him.”

A scream bubbled in the back of my throat, begging no, no, no while I choked down promises I had made. To protect. I would have to get Jungkook to stay with us, no matter what it took.

Out loud, to Yoongi, I said, “Okay.”

“You can’t tell him. You know that, don’t you?” Yoongi’s voice was low, dark. It was customary to kill members who betrayed the clan or were even suspected of betrayal. This wasn’t new. We had been doing it for centuries, but the thought of Jungkook being on the receiving end had me dizzy, like I was bleeding out of an invisible wound.

“Of course I know that,” I scoffed at my brother, never showing internal conflict on my face. I hadn’t even tugged on my earring— had I? “I’ll call him in tomorrow and try to get an answer.”

“No.” Yoongi waved away my request. “I’ll talk to him. You’re too easy on him, always had a soft spot. I’ve been hoping it’s still in him to be one of us, but I’d like to see for myself if his spark is there.”

I stiffened because Jungkook won’t sugarcoat his thoughts the way I had to Yoongi. My brother would know I lied, and once he knew that Jungkook had no intention of avenging his father, Jungkook would be stripped of the clan. And his life.

“Have it your way.” I forced myself to shrug, hiding my cards from Yoongi. I had never lied to him, not since we were children. My father stressed the importance of trusting each other above all else, and that if our relationship were ever to cave in on itself, our organization would as well.

As soon as Yoongi left, I found myself digging through files of our member’s and associate’s addresses, flicking past H’s and I’s until I landed on J. I had to see Jungkook tonight.

I had never been to Jungkook’s apartment since he moved out of his father’s three years ago, but I quickly found out he was housed adjacent to the streets where he smuggled and sold drugs, or snuck into busy stores to nab something we needed, a permanent borrowing. A lot of our young soldiers lived in the area, but despite the fact that it was claimed Min territory, I left home in disguise. Long trench fluttering around my calves, bobbed wig, and glasses to mask the top half of my face.

Jungkook didn’t recognize me, of course, and hadn’t been expecting anyone in the dead of night. I heard his footsteps approach, a pause as he observed through the peephole, and then nothing.

“It’s me,” I hissed. “Open the door. We have to talk.”

The lock clicked, and Jungkook swung open the door, rubbing an eye with his free hand. “I was trying to go to sleep. This couldn’t wait until morning?”

“No,” I said, walking past without asking to enter. His living room reminded me of him, black couch and gray walls unwelcoming at first glance, but there was something in the smell and the shape of the room that made the quaint space look like home. He was wearing a black t-shirt, gray sweatpants, his usual color palette, and he still looked like home.

“The get-up is a little tacky, don’t you think? Looks like something out of a bad movie,” he commented as I removed my wig and glasses.

“Honestly?” I threw both onto his couch. “Do you take any of this seriously?”

“What? We’re not in your office anymore. This is my apartment, and I still can’t talk to you like you’re a normal fucking person? I can’t joke about a stupid wig?” He stood in the foyer, arms crossed over his chest, letting me into his house but not any further.

“Your life is on the line, and you’re making jokes.” I was raising my voice already, something I hadn’t permitted myself when we were in my office, but I was desperate. I didn’t even have a concrete plan or a script to go off of, just hoped that he would take whatever bone I threw him.

“I have to keep myself sane somehow, don’t I? If I spent all day thinking how I might be dead in a week, I wouldn’t be able to leave my bed.” He pulled at the roots of his hair, already at the end of his rope. “Are you here just to yell at me? Remind me how I’m an idiot and a coward?”

For a moment, I regretted coming, remembering how hopeless he was, but fear of his impending death kept me from leaving. “I’m trying to save your life,” I said, using all of my strength to keep my voice from wavering. “Yoongi’s going to call you into his office tomorrow.”

“And I’ll tell him the same thing I told you: that I want out.”

“You can’t do that!” I cried, involuntary, and raised both hands to cover my mouth. I wished we were back in my office, where I knew my role and how to practice it over him. This place smelled too much like him and looked too much like him and I was pale in the face of it. “If you tell Yoongi you want to leave, he will let you, and you will die. Your mother and your brother will die. If you can’t do it for yourself, do it for them.”

“You’re not supposed to care.” He took one step towards me and stopped, like he hadn’t meant to, like the draw was invisible and he had no control. “If someone who isn’t an official member wants out, you’re supposed to let them go back into the streets to fend for themselves. If a member wants out, you’re supposed to kill them. No questions in either case. The only people you’re supposed to care about in this entire world are the ones who swear themselves to you, and I won’t.”

“What will it take?” I asked. He cocked his head at me—out of pity, not curiosity, I realized with dread—and took another step forward, then another. “You won’t make it out there. The Park Clan will get to you. If you think you can escape them and catch a plane somewhere safe and beautiful, you won’t, and—”

He had stopped, forced himself to, with only one more step between us. Up close, with the tilted window shades casting opalescent moon shadows over his face, I saw the resignation of a man who was already dead. He had let go of my hand years ago, when we stopped running, and now he was weaving his fingers with fate’s.

“The Parks won’t ever get to me, will they?”

My heart stopped. I felt it. My blood ran cold and the room fell apart underfoot, leaving only him and I, suspended together in death.

“You said during our meeting that they would torture me until they got the information they wanted. Later, I realized you and your brother would never let that happen. If I leave, you kill—”

“Shut up, Jungkook. Shut up.” I clamped one hand over his mouth and one at the back of his neck, standing toe-to-toe with him now. “I wouldn’t. I won’t. Every day and always, remember? Remember?”

He didn’t shove me, didn’t even let anger pool in his eyes. He just raised a hand, removing mine from his mouth, and squeezed once before letting go. “Not you, specifically. Maybe Yoongi himself, or another one of your hitmen. Every day and always ends with death. You’ll have kept your promise just fine.”

My knees buckled and met hardwood floor, face in my hands. He hated me for so, so many years, that I didn’t even know what I was doing on his floor, didn’t know why I hadn’t volunteered to kill him myself, but here I was, begging him to change everything he believed in. I hated him with half my heart for being an embarrassment and a coward, and I loved him with the other half because I was one, too.

“I need you to do me a favor.” He sunk down on the ground with me, pushing locks of hair from my face to restore a shred of my dignity. “My mother and brother—I have enough money for two plane tickets to the other side of the world. Give them those tickets. Get them out of here safely, please, so they can have another chance. Once they get where they’re going, they won’t be your problem anymore. Just this one last thing.”

“I can’t. I won’t. Not if you die.” I shook my head, despising myself for telling him no, but his family was the only leverage I had, my only means of keeping him with me. “You join us, and I’ll tell you where they are, and you can make amends and live happily with them in your life. Isn’t that worth it? To live for them?”

“Not if I have to kill a—”

“Grow up, Jungkook. Your father’s murderer is going to die whether you’re responsible or one of our hitmen. His life is already gone, but yours doesn’t have to be.”

He sighed, the sound heavy with so much pity. “Get up,” he said, standing and offering me a hand but I pushed myself up by my own strength because his hand in mine was too much, too intimate. We sat on the couch instead, where I wouldn’t have to rely on my feet to hold me up but could still straighten my back and feign a sense of power. He had done this intentionally, I thought, because he didn’t want to see me weak. He knew I needed to look like I had a purpose. “You’ve always said the best kind of man is one who dies by his beliefs, and the worst is one who lives by others’, and that’s what you’re asking me to do.”

“Call me a hypocrite, then.” I snapped. “Tell me I don’t have what it takes to be boss, or that I’ll never be like my brother or my father. You were right, yesterday, when you said you were the weakness I have never been able to get over, but what you didn’t get is that I’ve stopped trying to.”

He leaned his side into the couch, resting his head on the back of the couch and inhaling, deep, like he wanted to memorize the smell of his life and keep it with him afterwards. “I’m sorry,” he said. That was all. He was done fighting.

I was not. “Do you want to die?”

Jungkook’s eyes fell shut. I remembered him saying he had been trying to sleep before I came, and I had to be tiring him beyond measure. I was ready to repeat my question when he opened his eyes again, only partway, and stared right at me. Right through me. “There’s only one thing I want less than to die, but it’s the one thing you’re asking of me.”

“Could you be happy, do you think?” I copied his position, resting my head close to his and watching him watch me, reminded of when we used to love talking to each other so much that we’d fall asleep unwillingly on the couch or the living room floor of my home, and we’d wake up hours later with a blanket draped over us. “After initiation. If you could run your own club or casino, and find a girl who’s either okay with what we do or is involved in it herself, and have a million fucking kids—”

“I only wanted two.”

“Shut up. I’m talking,” I scolded, but the faintest traces of a smile appeared at the edges of his lips. Breathtaking. “If you could have all that, could you be happy?”

“I said I don’t want to raise my kids with a criminal father. Or put my wife through what my mom did. But maybe if I married within the syndicate, or tried to raise the kids so they could have a better life, then maybe. I don’t know. Doesn’t matter. That fantasy’s gone.”

“You won’t kill? Ever?” I asked.

He shook his head, the faint echo of ever leaving his mouth.

“That’s the only thing you wouldn’t do to save your life?”

He nodded.

“Then would you lie?”

I could barely stomach the question, knowing what it would mean if he said yes, knowing that I was ready to keep a secret for the rest of my life if it meant he would do the same.

“What’re you talking about?” he asked, fully awake now given the change in pace. No more killing. Just a lie, one lie, one monumental lie.

“I’ll kill him. The man who killed your father. I’ll do it, but we’ll say that you did it and no one will know any better and you’ll be initiated and you’ll be one of us and protected. And you can have the whole world, but no one can find out.”

Jungkook could turn me in right then if he wanted to. Maybe he was part of a covert operation this whole time and his apartment was bugged with microphones waiting for me to confess to the greatest sin of all. A traitor to my own blood. Willing to build a soldier into a king on a throne of falsehoods. I’d be killed. Yoongi would have no choice, and Jungkook would smile over my grave knowing that he had taken me down, like he had wanted all along.

But there was no gotcha, no sudden burst of light or noise or pain, just a silent apartment with a foolish boy and a foolish queen. We had always been quite the pair.

“What if someone did?” he whispered, like he too was scared of spies in the midst of the dust collected on his coffee table. “What if someone ever found out?”

“We die.” No use in sugarcoating since he was already familiar with the concept. “You have to be willing to live with it—the shame, the possibility that we could fuck up and someone could find out.”

“What do you think are odds are of survival?” he asked. An improvement. I could almost see him coming back to life, right there, blood rushing back into his face and the taste of plasma under his skin.

“Fifty-fifty: either we pull it off or we don’t.”

We would be a gang of our own, the two of us, like the old days when we hid ourselves within blanket forts and conspired against evil. Maybe we were evil. My family name would be stripped from me if anyone was ever to find out, and I would be buried—if even—in an unmarked grave far from the generations of Min men and women before me. The tiger with its amethyst eyes would be scraped from my skin, raw, and I would be forced to watch.

But if no one knew— I’d continue having everything I had ever wanted, and Jungkook would have the same with his wife and his kids. Wherever my father was, maybe he’d understand since he had been the one all along who said every day and always and I was only fulfilling the first promise I ever made.

“How do we pull it off then?”

I smiled first, and he followed, easy smiles that wouldn’t last, but we were here now.

“Tomorrow, when Yoongi calls you into his office, you tell him you’ve made up your mind, and you want to kill the man. Whatever he asks, just make him believe you want to be one of us. Talk about honor and duty and vengeance and family—you know how. I’ll write up your assignment and give it to you. The day of the assignment, I’ll say that I’m going out for the day and staying in a hotel or hanging out with strippers or—”

“Strippers? Taehyung’s not good enough for you?” Jungkook snorted.

I pinched the skin of his arm. He slapped my hand. We traveled back ten years for a single moment. “One of these days I’m going to cut off one of your fingers, and you’ll learn when it’s your turn to talk. Anyway. You’ll take my car, head out somewhere remote, wherever I tell you to. I’ll take your car, and I’ll do the job. Then I’ll come out and find you, and we’ll trade cars back, and you’ll tell Yoongi that it’s been done. The news the next day will confirm that he’s dead, and if anyone sees the car leaving the scene, it’ll be yours.”

“What if anyone sees your face?” he challenged.

“Theoretically, there wouldn’t be any witnesses, but…” I trailed off, almost tugging on my earring but not needing to. “I do have other tacky disguises I can put together. A man’s wig, a suit, and a pair of your sunglasses ought to keep any bystanders off my trail. No one will be close enough to tell that I’m not you. Whenever you go back to Yoongi, you’ll just have to be wearing the same kind of suit, and I’ll give the glasses back.”

He was studying me like I was either a madman or a genius, but centuries have proved there’s hardly a difference, the two caught in permanent, blissful embrace. “You think we can pull that off?”

I shrugged. Yes. No. Even if we did it might not be worth it. We might suffocate on our own shame. “Only one way to find out.”

“What do we do after?”

“I start you off working at one of our casinos, I guess, or a strip club, depending on which you prefer and who you want to work under,” I mused. “You’ll have to answer to a few other higher-ups, and you can’t talk to them the way you do with me. Not if you want to stay in one piece.”

“I’ve been working under half a dozen different capos over the years, and they never cut me to pieces.”

I raised my eyebrows. “So it’s just me, then?”

“I’ll start following decorum better when we’re in public, but if you’re ever in my apartment again, I reserve the right to speak informally. I’m still older, after all,” he said. I bit my cheek to hold back a comment about how he could only afford this ratty home because of the jobs we provided him. I didn’t want power over him, not here at least. “I’d prefer to work in the casino, too, if that’s possible.”

“No strip clubs?” I pretended to pout. “You might meet your future wife there.”

“I’ll take my chances, thanks. My future wife could come by the casino, too.”

“Looking to marry a high roller? Fair enough. Your children will be spoiled.”

He shook his head, laughing—laughing. I hadn’t made him laugh in years, and I felt like I had just walked into frigid ocean waters, struck stupid with shock before I eased into calm familiarity. For a moment I even forgot how much time had passed since we had been this way, like the chasm from the last years had never been there at all, but it was, even still.

“Jungkook?” I whispered. His eyes found mine, still crinkled at the edges. “What do we do after? Us. I’m still the same person you hated.” Maybe he did even now, but I didn’t care to guess anymore. All I could remember was Jungkook’s face in my office when I told him Yoongi and I didn’t keep track of the number of murders we signed off on. “After this, I might be even worse, and I’m not going to change what I do. I’ll spend the rest of my life killing people and letting other people kill people and committing a million other crimes to uphold an empire.”

Uncertainty crossed his face again, his confidence from the past couple minutes wasting away. “It’s an empire that I’m a part of,” he said. “You’re not the only criminal.”

“That’s not what I’m asking. Your crimes will never be anything next to mine.” I would drown in the same blood that would never touch him. “Will you hate me for what I do?”

“What you do isn’t who you are. Killing people isn’t who you are, it’s just—” He tripped over himself, trying to justify what he desperately hated. “I hate what you do, okay? The murder part, at least. I can live with screwing people out of money or selling drugs. But I don’t hate you. I won’t.”

I didn’t say anything, satisfied with the improvement, but Jungkook must not have liked the silence because he continued. “I don’t…I don’t think we’ll be friends after this, though. You know? We’ll be connected forever between our past and our secrets, but the excitement of all this will fade and we’ll probably have that kind of chummy boss-employee relationship where we catch up once in a while but mostly we just smile at each other when you give me orders.”

He had always been the one in dreamland, with my feet kept firmly on the concrete, so I had no idea what shifted now. All I knew was that I hated his vision for the future, so much so that I reached for my wig, tucking my hair back into the cap in preparation for my exit.

“You’re leaving?” he asked, sitting back up. In retrospect, I didn’t know what answer I expected him to give, but I’d hoped for something more than the dull pleasantries exchanged between a boss and a worker.

“You said you were tired,” I pointed out, slipping the sunglasses over my eyes before he noticed my disappointment. “Besides, we have our plan, so it’s time for me to head home.”

He hurried after me to the door, stepping between me and my exit. “What did you want me to say?” he demanded. “That everything will be the way it was when we were young? That we’ll stay up until the break of dawn laughing like the rest of the world doesn’t exist? That we’ll be best friends all over again?”

“Grow up, Jungkook.” I waved him out of the way, pushing the door open myself. The one thing I was good at was talking down to him, but it wasn’t a skill I wanted to have anymore. “I never wanted to be your damn friend.”

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