#oh actually she got me HUGE beautiful earrings like they are huge silver circles but sharp look like. a weapon if you use it right

[ashmp3]

The top my sister got me is going to be a hit with the "teo can i touch your shoulders" crowd i seem to attract (in real life and online)

[writeblrfantasy]

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pax said he liked my clothing descriptions and i haven't been able stop thinking about that so i put together this compilation!! from acogs, brenin, oots, a short from gkbk i'm working on, and the farlingverse. i hope you love all of these because i'm super proud of all of them <3<3

taglists and ts under the cut

Katya is dressed in a brilliant red velvet gown whose floor length skirt trails behind her. Gold is embroidered onto the hem of the skirt and the bodice, supported by a thin red strap that curves around her neck. Her orange hair covers her shoulders in loose curls, two parts on either side pulled back from her face and secured with a ribbon on her head like always. She wears no jewelry on her pale, freckled skin, and the neckline of the gown teases her breasts.

In a few minutes, one huge golden ring will sit on her right middle finger. Nikolai pictures it now.

Beautiful and mighty, she’s sitting on the old throne of the temple, from when this was the palace and Aspiania was the capital. The fingers of her left hand curl over the white armrests, and she leans her head back onto the red cushion there. Green eyes dulled behind the wire frames of her spectacles have the power to freeze an empire, a whole world.

Nikolai is more interested in the drawn golden sword in her right hand.

~

Esme is wearing custom made robes in a beautiful mix of red, dark blue, and purple, with a sash and hems of shimmering gold. Embroidery of the sun and moon decorate patches in tiny patterns, stars covering every inch of them.

In traditional Tan style, they wrap around his shoulders and tie at his waist with the knot in the back, the sleeves loose and flared out at the wrists. They go down to his feet, covered in polished black boots. His black hair is sparkled with gold dust, but it’s forever too long and strands fall into his eyes.

He grins when he sees Laurent across the temple for the first time, dopey eyed, as Laurent’s soul evaporates from his body. It’s a remarkable testament to his self-restraint that he doesn’t cross the temple in three strides and tackle Esme to the ground.

~

Feryn looks truly like an angel, or a god, or grace incarnate. No veil covers her head, but her white hair hangs loose round her face. Cygnus was expecting curls, or a braid with flowers, or an updo with a diamond circlet wrapping her hair. But the reality is plain. And it’s beautiful.

She’s wearing cosmetics, he’s sure, but he can’t see them well. Her brown eyes just look a little brighter than normal, her lashes a little longer, her cheeks a little fuller. She smiles at him with warm eyes and pink lips.

Her gown is something he’s been looking forward to seeing and endlessly imagining ever since she and Lian got engaged. Like her hair, it’s much simpler than expected. The fabric is shiny like satin, the straps thin and the bodice plain like the gown Evan wore to her bridal shower.

Unlike Evan’s, the neckline dips, and the skirt of Feryn’s dress is slim. Feryn must be wearing shoes with tall heels, because Cygnus knows she isn’t naturally this tall. Or perhaps it’s just her posture, the straight back, the easy, content way she holds herself.

~

Feryn, who asked Cygnus to trust her when he asked what he would be wearing at the play, dresses him in bright red silk robes with drapes over the shoulders that blow out behind him. She says she had them made especially for tonight. Cygnus is rendered speechless, reminded of the luxury he lives as king. Feryn seems only pleased.

The shoulders and collar are decorated in sapphires and embroidered in gold. The robes don’t allow trousers to show that much, so he wears plain black. Feryn chooses polished black shoes with gold trim, and a red and gold clip for his hair.

When he looks in the mirror, he thinks he’s dressed for the most pristine play in the whole country, not Cherie’s little central company.

~

“Valerie—” Ruby begins, words dying in her throat as Cygnus holds up a hand. A rich sapphire ring adorns on his hand, and that’s not the only finery he’s wearing. His silk jacket of dark green is bejeweled with glittering gems and delicate piping. His boots are shinier than she’s ever seen them, and with his purple cloak and combed hair, he’s obviously going to meet someone important.

~

Like every other lady in the castle, Ruby allows Feryn to force her into nice clothes. She refuses the robes Feryn brought out, heavy red velvet, and chooses instead black breeches, a fine shirt, and an ornate jacket. The jacket is dull green, trimmed in gold and fastened with gleaming buttons. Ruby pulls on a new pair of black boots and actually gives some thought to her hair, after a moment permitting Feryn to braid it down her back. It’s all tedious to her, but she’ll endure it to keep poor Cygnus company.

~

“Come in,” came Alea’s voice at my first knock. I opened the door, watching Moureen muttering and fussing over Alea’s dress. The mix of sea greens and blues complimented her beautiful hair, some curls braided into a crown around her head, the rest lying around her shoulders. I couldn’t hold back a grin.

“What?” she asked.

“You look beautiful. I have something for you,” I said, bringing forth the box from behind my back and thrusting it into her hands. I motioned for her to open it.

“Oh, Bren, you didn’t have to—” She opened it, her mouth falling open. “Oh, my—” Alea turned and set the box down, picking up the jade and sapphire teardrop earrings that I’d bought her in the shop. It must’ve been the gods’ will for the dress and earrings to match perfectly, making her green eyes stand out. She looked every bit the duchess, every bit a queen.

~

Alea was in a stunning gold ballgown that glittered and shone when she moved. The skirt was embellished with pearls and diamonds, dripping and glittering. Her hair was up, a white flower hairpin keeping it out of her eyes. She smiled, and her green eyes looked even more beautiful than ever. I told her so. She laughed like she didn’t believe me.

~

More footsteps came to the door. I glanced up at Moureen, who was coming in with my freshly shined shoes. Thales hovered in the doorway in front of Lakus. I looked him over, taking in his bright blue jacket, adorned with gold trim and beading. The finished jacket looked much better now than it had during yesterday’s boring afternoon in the store. I found myself catching my breath.

He gave me a small smile. “You look good. The green, uh, looks good.”

I did something with my hands. “Thanks, I guess.” My jacket was well done. Light green and silver, pearl buttons and dark stitching. I chose the silver just to get on Lakus’s nerves, since I knew Danda couldn’t care less about whether people wore gold or not.

Lakus, by contrast, had bright, gaudy orange on. There was so much gold on him I could feel the money, and I grimaced, looking away from him after a glance.

~

Cerrick doesn’t recognize anyone else in the purples, reds, yellows, but he sees his man in the center of the pack in bright blue and green armor, cloak fluttering out behind him. his horse is gray, mottled with black spots, shorter than the rest. His sword is gleaming in his right hand, black gloves clutching the hilt like one born to it. His braid sticks out of his polished blue helmet, shining in the sun. Cerrick doesn’t care if Olin laughs at him for his reaction, he still curses softly under his breath.

Njord is beautiful.

The knights run a few casual circles around the stadium, waving to the crowd. Cerrick watches the crowd hand their knight of choice bracelets, charms, wreaths with fresh flowers braided into them.

acogs taglist (lmk to be added/removed) @magic-is-something-we-create @inkflight @spencer-nyx @writing-is-a-martial-art @ashen-crest @wisteria-eventide @nikkywrites @denkis-phone-charger @myhusbandsasemni @lynolord @ettawritesnstudies @golden-apple-s-blog @chazzawrites @pen-of-roses @47crayons @wickerring @sleepy-night-child @florraisons @faithfire @croctears @inkovert @kait-writes

fv taglist (lmk to be added/removed): @mel-writes-with-her-dragons @magic-is-something-we-create @47crayons @idk-bout-tonight

oots taglist (lmk to be added/removed) @willowiswriting @ninazeniks @magic-is-something-we-create @myhusbandsasemni @ren-c-leyn @justwriteyoudummy @47crayons @yejidoesthings @ettawritesnstudies @faithfire @a-forgotten-dusk @talesfromaurea @ashen-crest

general taglist: @magic-is-something-we-create @myhusbandsasemni @wickerring @directionoftime @47crayons @familiarvillain

gkbk taglist: (lmk to be added/removed) @magic-is-something-we-create @idk-bout-tonight @ren-c-leyn @crystallized-ink @hysteriwah @denkis-boyfriend @ashen-crest @aconfusedomni @myhusbandsasemni​ @oshaaru​ @metanoiamorii @47crayons

[vickyskpopkingdom]

ATEEZ - From The Wonderland Pt.1

this story is based on ATEEZ' performance of wonderland on Kingdom: Legendary War. while i was writing it got a little out of hand and i wrote way more than anticipated so please keep an eye out for pt.2 and possibly pt.3. they well be up in a few days!

if you haven't you should definitely check all of the performances out, the link to ATEEZ' performance is here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-uDitNeFO-I&t=183s&ab_channel=MnetK-POP so please do check it out, it is amazing.

pt.1 pt.2 pt.3

warnings: guns, swords, drinking and fighting

2k words

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While the ships in the harbor swam quietly above the water, swaying to the rhythm of the waves crashing on the stone walls of the dock, the inside of the bar was much more loud and chaotic. The pirates took care of their ships but not so much of themselves. Beer, rum and wine seemed to flow endlessly, the bar staff barely keeping up with their customers.

This was a usual development of the evenings in the city. Pirates everywhere knew that they would be safe here, the town flourished thanks to them spending their money on alcohol, women and repairs for their ships. It never took long for the alcohol to take over, resulting in bar fights and various other showdowns or show-offs.

Two men sitting directly in front of the bar downed a shot of pure rum, before falling back into their previous conversation.

"The Kraken is a legend. Nothing more, nothing less. Probably made up by some pirate some centuries ago to make sure no one sails there to steal his treasure", the younger of the two said, his voice slightly cracking because of the amounts of alcohol already running through his body.

The other, slightly older but equally as drunk, shook his head, grabbing the wood of the bar to steady his swaying body. "Then tell me why no one who sailed there came back? I don't trust that part of the sea one bit, you hear me? Not one bit!"

A hiccup escaped his throat, as he called for a bartender with his hand. "We would like another round please", he ordered as the woman approached them. Then he looked back to his previous discussion partner. "It is real. And there is no one out there that could defeat The Kraken."

"It's a myth! Crafted to keep cowards like you away from what could be a huge treasure.", he other retorted.

Two small glasses were put down on the counter in front of them, the sound of glass hitting wood disrupting their conversation. "Both of you are wrong", the female bartender scoffed, "The Kraken was real and it was defeated."

Both men stopped their movements to look at her. The younger grinning from one ear to another, seemingly amused by the previous statement, while the older one eyed the bartender up and down. "And how would you know, lady?"

"What? Have you never heard of ATEEZ?", she asked back, a smile playing around the corners of her mouth now, "They slayed The Kraken."

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Hongjoong sat inside his most prized possession, his ship 'Wonderland', as he waited for the final object needed on his quest to arrive. Above him on the deck of the ship he could hear his crewmates running around, making finishing touches for departure. He couldn't help but smile at the thought of sailing out with his crew again, finally getting back on the sea after a break on land.

As the noises calmed down a little, Hongjoong could already tell that the supplier had arrived. His hunch turned out to be true, as the door to his private room opened and a man dressed in all black stepped inside. This was not their first meeting and as it also wouldn't be their last Hongjoong had already gotten used to the large black hat the person opposite to him wore that covered the most part of his face.

To say that he was curious to see that face would be an understatement. And yet he had never asked to see it. Hongjoong knew that sometimes secret had to be kept. Besides he certainly did not want to taint this relationship. It was way to beneficial.

Without a word spoken the man in black set down the object on Hongjoongs desk: an hourglass, held in a circle made of gold. The words 'Symphony No.9' were engraved on the circle, almost invisible to those who didn't know about their existence. Pearly white sand flowing freely from one side to another if turned right. It was beautiful, breathtaking even, to finally see the ominous hourglass on his own ship.

"Thank you. I appreciate your work", Hongjoon said, as he pulled a small leather bag from one of the drawers in his desk. Coins rattled against each other as the bag got exchanged form Hongjoongs hand to the gloved hand of the quiet man. "I will let you know, when I am searching for new objects."

At this the man in black nodded, tipped the brim of his hat at the Captain and left.

Hongjoong looked at the hourglass, smiling as he turned it over. The white sand started flowing down. "Show us the way, Symphony Number Nine."

As the Captain stepped out of his cabin, he could already see his crew ready on deck. The only thing they were waiting for was his 'go' and they would start sailing in an instant. By the atmosphere surrounding them, Hongjoong could already tell that they were just as excited as he was to see for themselves if the legendary treasure, the 'Symphony', was real. The legends surrounding its existence described it as one of the largest treasures out there. Shimmering gold coins, fiery red rubies and the finest silver swords were only few of the objects rumored to be part of the Symphony.

Hongjoong could feel the eyes of his crewmates on him. He couldn't hide his smile anymore as he finally said: "Let us start our journey, ATEEZ!"

Excited yells were the answer and everyone got to work. Soon the ship was leaving the harbor behind, the wind being on their side today.

As the captain, Hongjoong usually didn't have much to do with the actual sailing. He was more into planning their journey, making sure they had enough food and water and ordered his crew to stop at a nearby harbor to fill up their supplies if necessary. Today however he stood on deck with everyone else, breathing in the fresh air of the sea while trying to calm down his beating heart. It had been quite some time since him and his crew went on such a mysterious journey.

"Bring all of this below deck!", Hongjoong could hear Seonghwa ordering some of the lower ranked members of their crew. He turned around to see his right-hand man standing tall between the other crewmates, overlooking the whole process. Seonghwa was a reliable partner to Hongjoong, his right hand, who always kept his cool. Which was more than necessary because Hongjoong held intense pride for everything he did and could get into heated arguments with other pirates from time to time.

As if he had sensed something Seonghwa turned to look at Hongjoong. "You are still out here today? Don't you trust us, Captain?" His voice was calm, as always but Hongjoong could hear the teasing undertone.

"I trust all of you wholeheartedly. Just didn't want to miss our departure", he answered nonetheless. Seonghwa smiled warmly at him before walking over to Wooyoung who had called out for him.

Hongjoong let his eyes wander a little more over the deck, spotting Yunho who was currently training his sword-skills. Or at least he tried to do as much as he could with the limited resources he had to fight against. His enemy of choice were some thick ropes spun between the masts of the ship. The Captain had told Yunho countless times already that he was a skilled fighter especially with a sword, but Yunho always strived to do better.

"Don't tire yourself out too much, Yunho", Hongjoong finally spoke up as he approached the younger man, "We can not tell when we will arrive and I need you to be ready if we actually have to fight someone... or something."

Yunho cut through the centre of the ropes with a final strike. "Fine, fine. I'll tone it down a little." He smiled brightly at the captain before collecting the now cut ropes and knotting them to the masts again.

Sometimes Hongjoong felt as if he had adopted a puppy into his crew and not a 22 year old man.

"Hongjoong!", someone called for the Captain. He of course knew, that this voice belonged to San. His eyes found San and his bright pink hair standing at the ship's wheel as he was responsible for steering it. He waved for Hongjoong to come over.

On his way over to San, Hongjoong passed by Seonghwa once more who was now with Wooyoung. Similar to Yunho they were training. Well Wooyoung was training with a gun while Seonghwa gave him advice on the angle, the stance and the technique. Somehow the vice-captain had an incredible aim and a steady hand. Hongjoong would trust Seonghwa to shoot an apple off of his head.

Wooyoung wasn't quite there yet, he still had a long way to go to reach Seonghwas level of skill, but he was eager to learn and had improved highly ever since he started training his aim.

"You two as well? I guess, you can join Yunho in wasting your energy", Hongjoong sighed at them.

Seonghwa shrugged, pointing to Wooyoung. "It was his idea, not mine."

Wooyoung fired a shot at the makeshift target and almost hit the bullseye. "Ah~ so close! Did you see that Seonghwa? Was that one good? It was good, right?"

"Sorry, Woo. I was talking to Hongjoong and didn't pay attention to you."

"What? Oh my god Seonghwa, you are so mean!"

Hongjoong left the two to bicker among themselves and finally reached San. "Whats up?", he asked.

Just like the other crewmates San seemed to be filled to the brim with excitement. Which wasn't exactly something new or unusual. San, together with Yunho Wooyoung and Yeosang, whom Hongjoong had yet to spot on their big ship, were always giving high energy especially when they were all together.

"Just wanted to confirm our current route with you", San answered, gesturing towards the small table next to she steering wheel. On the wooden surface San had laid out a map covering most of the sea and of course the hourglass, which would lead their way. None of them knew exactly how it worked, but i seemed as if the sand inside the glass was drawn into a specific direction as long as it flowed down.

Hongjoong took a look at the white sand, comparing its flow with the direction of their ship and nodded. "Seems good to me. I think, you can work it out by yourself just fine, San."

San shrugged. "Better safe than sorry, right Captain?"

"Right, San", Hongjoong said, smiling. He knew that San worked hard to reach the level of skill he had now. No map was too complicated, too old, too ripped for San, somehow he was able to read them all. San had always gotten them to their destination safely and yet he still liked to check in with the Captain, making sure they were on the right path.

With a friendly pat on the head, after which San smiled proudly and most pleased, Hongjoong made his way down to the main deck again. Once more his eyes landed upon Yunho, who had stopped wielding his sword. Instead he was now bend over a black cloth. Next to him were the last two main crewmates, which Hongjoong had not yet seen after their departure: Jongho and Yeosang. Seeing those two and the mysterious black cloth reminded Hongjoong of something that he had entrusted them with. As he walked over to them he wondered, if they were already finished with their task.

"And what are you three plotting?", he greeted them as he arrived at their current position.

"Nothing much", said Yeosang, "Just showing Yunho our new flag."

So they were finished with their task. Hongjoong couldn't help but smile. Their old flag had been ripped during their last quest. Of course that wasn't something to stop ATEEZ from continuing, but Hongjoong had noticed that his crew's motivation had been higher while they were still in possession of their flag, their symbol, the sign which let others know that they were dealing with ATEEZ. And because of that he had asked Jongho and Yeosang to think about a new flag.

Hongjoong scanned the new flag. Similar to the previous one the background was black, appropriate for a pirateship, but this time Yeosang and Jongho had decided to paint the lettering, the word ATEEZ, in a fiery red. But there was something else that caught Hongjoon's eye: "Is that fire above our name?"

"Yes, but also no", Jongho started to explain, "It's supposed to resemble a crown that is on fire... or made out of fire. Whatever floats your boat, you know?"

To say that Hongjoong was impressed would be an understatement. He had always known that his members were creative, always thinking about what to do next and most importantly what would benefit their crew. There was a tight-knitted bond between the members of the core-crew, Seonghwa, Yunho, Yeosang, San, Wooyoung, Jongho and Hongjoong himself, forged by their adventures on the sea. Somehow he felt as if the new logo, the fire, the crown, their name in red, combined all of their characters perfectly.

"It's time to hoist this new flag up, guys", Hongjoong ordered, "Let's show everyone who they're messing with."

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Hongjoong was awoken by someone slamming his door open. By the dim light coming in from the outside of his room, he assumed that it was early morning, around five am maybe.

"Captain, I think we're here!", San's clear voice resonated into the room. There wouldn't be another crewmate up at this time of day anyways. At least up until now. During the last few days on their journey all of the crew had gotten more and more restless. Nobody could tell why, since there were no changes in their surrounding, but somehow they all were getting sure that their destination was close by.

Their intuition had not been wrong Hongjoong thought as he stepped out on deck and saw an island coming closer and closer to the ship with every second. His members stood by his side as they all watched the island draw closer. With a quick glance Hongjoong was pleased to see, that they were just as ready as him to step off the ship and get to finding the treasure. They were all dressed accordingly and Yunho and Seonghwa even had their weapons with them.

They couldn't help but feel an ominous feeling wash over them as Hongjoong, Seonghwa, Yunho, Yeosang, San, Wooyoung and Jongho landed on the island with a small boat. They had decided to leave the rest of their crew on board of the 'Wonderland'. Too many men could potentially be more dangerous and just the seven of them going alone. Besides that they were skilled and could handle fights by themselves, as they had proved countless times already.

They didn't regret this decision even as the dark forest loomed over them on the island, they never regretted a decision they had made. But neither of them could deny that a little more company would have felt more comfortable.

Hongjoong adjusted his long fur coat. It was a piece of clothing many deemed unfitting for such an adventure but Hongjoong felt most comfortable in it. He was the captain, he was talented, he was the leader, the brain. The fur coat wouldn't be an obstacle in whatever situation he had to face. "Let's find that damn treasure, ATEEZ!", he said as he took the first step towards the densely wooded forest. His crew followed suit.

A shiver creeped up on Wooyungs back as the trees started to surround them. During the first few minutes his mind was busy to figure out what was so confusing about this forest. Something was off, wrong almost but he couldn't quite put his finger on it. Then finally it clicked: There were no noises. No birds singing, not any other animal making a sound. No wind flowing through the leaves. Even the sound of their shoes on the forest floor seemed to be swallowed up by the darkness around them.

Of course they had heard rumors about this island. And there were many. One talked about the treasure being cursed, bringing the finder only harm and misfortune. Another said that the treasure was being guarded by a giant kraken. And the most popular of them all of course told them that no one who stepped a foot on this island was able to return back home. All of these rumors could be true Wooyoung now realized. This was definitely the right place to hide a cursed treasure guarded by a kraken with a preference for humans.

Wooyung realized that his friends must have felt the same way. None of them dared to talk. Every single spoken word would have felt too loud in this forest. But on the other hand there was no denying that this was the right place to hide a treasure! And up until now they had always been successful on their adventures. Their teamwork was outstanding, no one could compare. They had risen in ranks ever since they started sailing. There was no way that this would be their breaking point.

The cracking sound of a stick made Wooyoung flinch. He was a little ashamed but was instantly less embarrassed when he saw how Yunho clutched at San's biceps. Just as he was about to point this out though, Seonghwa hissed a "Someones's coming" to no one in particular. Wooyoung could see how the older already laid a hand on his sniper.

Without talking the pirates stood in a circle, their backs to each other. It was quiet again, somehow the silence felt even more heavy than before.

Suddenly even more tree branches cracked, Wooyoung could even hear footsteps approaching them. This time he didn't need Seonghwa to tell him that someone was on their way. He could hear them himself, loud and clear. Someone was coming. They were fast. And they were many.

People started breaking through the trees attacking ATEEZ on sight. As he ducked under a thrown fist Wooyoung made a mental note to thank Hongjoong and Seonghwa later for training them so hard in hand-to-hand combat before they started sailing all those years ago. He was able to avoid another punch and in turn could kick his enemy off of his feet, making them fall to the ground with thud and, Wooyoung noticed in horror, an extremely loud cracking noise. Now that his sole focus wasn't on dodging he was able to get a good look at their enemies. They were around the same height as him and his friends but there was no flesh, no hair, no skin, not even eyes in their sockets. They were fighting a bunch of skeletons. The one Wooyoung had previously thrown on the ground was no longer moving. It seemed to had landed on a rock of some sort and cracked its spine.

As he looked around Wooyoung noticed that breaking their bones seemed to be the only way of getting them to stop fighting. His crewmates were struggling with the skeletons because simply pushing them back or slicing into the bones wasn't enough to keep them back. They didn't feel pain.

"Break their spine or their legs!", Wooyoung called out, while trying to escape the boney hands of another skeleton approaching him, "They need to be unable to move."

At this exclamation San aimed a swift kick at the head of his enemy. The skull made an ugly noise as it dislocated from the rest of the body and landed on the ground. The skeleton stopped moving before falling collapsing.

"Yeah, I guess the head works too", Wooyoung commented.

"You should concentrate!", Seonghwa barked back, but even he couldn't help a small grin making its way onto his lips.

As it turned out his call to focus wasn't without reason. Wooyoung struggled more and more with every punch, with every kick. He was getting exhausted, feeling the hits the skeletons were able to land on him while his enemies remained unbothered at anything that wasn't cracking them in half. He could hear Jongho's heavy breathing behind him and saw Yeosang limping. This was not going well. Not at all.

He wanted to help his friends but he was equally beat up. Still Yeosang definitely needed help. Wooyoung took a step towards his friend and felt a hand closing around his arm. Slender bones held him in his current spot, as another set of bones wrapped around both of his legs. How could these people only made out of bones be so strong?

A yelp escaped his lips as more and more hands got hold of his body. Yeosang, who Wooyoung wanted to originally help, turned around. He realized what was happening to Wooyoung and started to run towards him but it was too late. The skeletons dragged Wooyung with them. Yeosang was still struggling with his limp, unable to follow them.

"They have Wooyoung!", he cried out, panic clearly audible in his voice. If he wasn't used to one thing it was seeing Wooyoung like this; helpless, alone, frightened. Normally Yeosang would not have distracted his other friends from their own fights like that but this situation was different. All of the rumors they had heard before came back to his mind at once, his worry for Wooyoung only increasing.

Hongjoong broke from their circle and sprinted into the woods, following the skeletons who had captured Wooyoung.

"San, no!", Seonghwa's voice resonated over their heads. Yeosang turned around to see San, who was also trying to leave into the same direction.

"He can't fight them all alone, Seonghwa!", San called back.

"They are leaving...", Jongho panted. He made a sweeping gesture around them. Their attention diverted to their surroundings. The youngest had been right. The skeletons retreated back into the forest, using different directions as they ran.

"Then it should be fine for me to go find Hongjoong and Wooyoung", San stated, already starting to walk again.

Seonghwa opened his mouth to say something, but he was cut off by someone-- something screeching.

All of them froze. That was a noise they had never heard before and Yeosang was more than sure that he never wanted to hear it ever again. It sounded angry, it shook him to his core. Yunho and Jongho seemed to have the same reaction as him, while San was still staring towards the part of the forest, that he suspected their other two crewmates in. Seonghwa on the other hand had a grim look on his face.

"I guess, that rumor about a kraken wasn't just a rumor after all."

Before one of them could react to his statement in any way, Seonghwa looked at Yeosang. "Are you able to walk?"

Yeosang tried to put weight on his right foot. It hurt but it seemed to be endurable. "I don't think I can run, but walking should be fine."

"Then we will all follow Hongjoong and Wooyoung. Don't try running off on your own, San, do you hear me?"

San didn't answer Seonghwa, he only kept on looking into the forest.

"Did you hear what I just said, San?", Seonghwa asked again, sounding even more stern this time.

"Yes, I did. And I won't run off."

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that concludes part 1 of this story, hope you enjoyed it so far & will come back to read the rest!

sorry for not including mingi but as he is not part of the performance i would have found it very difficult to add him as well. i already feel bad because i gave the members different "screentime" in this story (my program tells me i wrote "wooyoung" 21 times, followed by "seonghwa" with 12 times and "hongjoong" and "yeosang" with 10 times each).

[cora-vizsla]

Cabur Chapter 5

Rating: Explicit (18+)

Word Count: 7.5K

Warnings: Mentions of death (nothing explicit or described), violence, shooting, punching, sadness, angst, I'm so sorry I wrote this in a mood, talking about loss of parents, implied panic attack (character doesn’t know what it is), fluff, love

A/N: This part is pretty sad. If you have an issue with death (nothing is talked about in great detail at ALL but it does mention it, please just shoot me a message or ask for a synopsis so you can skip the chapter. Reader has some issues with panic but is helped through it. Also, I know I usually put the translations at the bottom but this chapter is heavy with Mando’a so I put the translations right after the conversation so you aren’t flipping back and forth trying to figure out what it meant. If I missed tags or you think something should be added PLEASE let me know! Much love to all of you!!

It was easy being with Paz. Once the helmet issue was out of the way there wasn’t much to fight about. Months went by in a comfortable routine of helping the village while getting to know each other better. You both were happy.

Your favorite part was being able to walk around again without the helmet. It wasn’t just you without the helmet though. Looking at Paz always put a smile on your face. You had heard of Mandalorians being smitten once they saw each other’s faces and you’d always wondered if it was due to the already established relationship. You knew without a doubt that Paz was the most handsome man you had ever laid eyes on. It should have been illegal to make him cover his face.

The village had noticed that you now wore the same symbol that Paz wore on his armor. You had explained that you were now part of his clan. They had wanted to throw a huge celebration but the elder explained to everyone else that your vows were simple as was the life you lived. They had all brought you different meals for two weeks after the announcement, but you didn’t have the heart to turn them away. They just wanted to show how much they appreciated and celebrated your happiness.

The communication with the Armorer had been much easier. She was pleased that you agreed to marrying Paz and was planning new armor for you. You let her know that anything that would be replaced would be donated back to the tribe for foundlings. She wasn’t surprised at all but thanked you all the same. It still wasn’t safe for either of you to go to her, but the time was nearing.

The idea of leaving was hard. The village had been your home. It didn’t help that you were getting increasingly close to Lahta. She had been confused at first by Paz being around all the time but eventually she loved him just as much. She loved riding on his shoulders and being taller than everyone in the village. You loved hearing him laughing fully right along with her. You hadn’t been lying when you said you wanted a family. You just knew Paz was going to be a great biur.

“What color do you want your new armor to be?”

You were sitting on the porch between Paz’s legs. He had his arms wrapped around you so you could lean back against him. He often kissed you on the top of your head and your temple whenever you were close enough. It was one of the sweetest things he did, and you were sure he did it without even thinking.

“Hmm. I was thinking pure silver like Din. That was we can match.”

You smirked back at him when he growled and tightened his arms.

“I think you would look beautiful in blue.”

“You think I look beautiful in anything.”

“Not true. I think you’re also beautiful in absolutely nothing.”

“You are insatiable.”

“Then stop being so alluring, cyare.”

You laughed and nuzzled yourself into his neck.

“I don’t think we should take Lahta.”

Paz sighed and turned you so he could actually look at you. It had been a conversation you both skated by more times than not. You both loved her.

“Why?”

“The village is safe. It’s been really quiet lately. There isn’t even a safe place for the tribe to settle. When it’s time for us to leave here, we would be taking her from safety to that. I don’t think that it’s fair to her. If she were older, I’d give her the decision but she’s still so young.”

“She’s going to be sad when we do leave.”

“I know. I will be too. I just think that as long as this is a safe place it’s the best option for her.”

“I can’t argue that. We should be hearing from the Armorer any day.”

It was your turn to sigh. He held you tighter and you nestled back into him.

“I’ll miss our cabin.”

“As will I, cyare. Gar cuyir ner yaim.” (You are my home.)

“I know, Paz. We are one.”

He nodded and kissed you deeply. You moved forward to straddle him, wrapping yourself around him. Both of you jumped when a deafening boom came from the distance.

“The village.”

You both scrambled to your feet and pulled your helmets on, running towards the village as more explosions rang out. You could hear his footsteps behind you, almost as loud as your heart pounding in your ears. You were quicker than him, but he wasn’t slow by any means. You were just quicker at navigating around trees and brush.

When you burst through the clearing you skid to a stop, pulling your blaster. You heard Paz do the same thing as he came up on you. Your chest was heaving as you looked around.

There wasn’t a village left in front of you.

You started running towards where the elders and the school used to be. The kids should have been in school, but you couldn’t see any standing buildings. Panic was rising up in your throat until you saw three men laughing and running away. You quickly shot two of them, dropping them with one shot each. The third you shot in the leg and walked over to him. You stepped on his chest and pointed the blaster at his face.

“What did you do!?”

He laughed again and winced when you ground your boot into him.

“Boss said you’d be here. Shouldn’t have stopped him from raiding it before. Now there’s nothing left. Some protector you are.”

He cackled again and you dropped, your knee slamming into his chest.

“Who the fuck is your boss?”

“Figure it out yourself, bitch.”

You climbed on top of him and punched him square across the face.

“Tell me!”

“What does it matter? They’re all dead. We took them all out first. The explosion was just to get your attention. You failed them, Mandalorian.”

You screamed out in anger and hit him again. And again. You lost count of how many times you pounded your fist into his face as tears started streaming down your face. You felt a hand grab the back of your armor as you were lifted off the now unconscious man. Or maybe he was dead. You hardly cared at that point.

“Cayre. Stop. You got him.”

“No. He needs to feel the pain. He needs to know.”

“He does.”

Paz tried to pull you into his arms, but you ripped away, running over to where the school was. Your sobs were unfiltered as you tried to search for someone; anyone. You heard Paz calling your name, but you kept ignoring him, full panic starting to set into your bones. You turned in a circle looking at the entire carnage but of all the horrible things you saw, you didn’t see the children.

“Paz, where are they? The kids? I-I don’t see the kids.”

He looked around and stiffened.

“Did they take them?”

You switched your vision over to tracking and only saw the three sets of footprints from the men you had stopped.

“No. No they didn’t go with them.”

You turned towards the woods behind the school and saw a mess of footprints. You took off in the direction with Paz on your heels. You ran for at least ten minutes until you saw a cabin. You put your blaster away and heard Paz protest, but you walked directly to the door, listening intently. You could hear the children crying and murmuring to each other and it shattered your heart.

“Ad’ika, are you in there? Lahta?”

“Cabur!”

The door burst open and you barely had enough time to catch Lahta when she flung herself at you. You clung her to your chest, keeping one hand on the back of her head. She sobbed into you as you dropped to your knees.

“Cabur, oh Cabur I was so sc-scared! I th-thought they g-got y-you too!”

“No, ad’ika. No, I’m here.”

Paz glanced at you but walked past and into the doorway, dropping to a knee to get himself closer to the kids. They all came out of their hiding with tear-stained faces.

“Verd, we saw them come. The adults told us to run. We came here s-so they wouldn’t find us.”

One of the older children had stepped forward, holding the hands of some of the smallest around him. Paz put his hand on the side of his neck and pressed his helmet to his forehead gently.

“You did good. You did very good.”

“Is the.. it’s all gone isn’t it. We.. we heard the explosions.”

“Where are the other children?”

“Their parents took them and ran.”

You looked up and saw that there were only eight kids. You sighed hoping that the rest had gotten away unscathed. Lahta tightened herself around you and you spoke to her softly letting her know that you wouldn’t let her go. She whimpered into you in response.

“Verd, what do we do now? We’re all alone.”

“You come with us.”

“You’d take us?”

You looked up, speaking partially to the children with Paz and partially to Lahta.

“Yes. You are all coming with us. We will keep you safe.”

Paz stood and turned to you.

“I’ll go get the ship and get ahold of the Armorer. It’s going to be a tight fit, but we will make it work.”

You stood as he got closer, still clinging Lahta to your chest.

“Do you think we could get them around the village and to the cabin? It would be closer, and we wouldn’t need to be split up as far. If either one of us are alone and they come back..”

He nodded and gently put his hand on Lahta’s back.

“Alright kiddos. We’re going to go for a walk. How does that sound?”

None of them sounded happy, not that you thought they should, but they all perked up at the idea of leaving with you. You tried to shift Lahta to the side, but she clung tighter. You had Paz put one of the kids on your back and he put two on his own. The five left were more than able to walk the distance even if it was slower than you were used to.

You just hoped the Armorer was set up so there was somewhere you could bring them to.

---

You settled the kids in the cabin quicker than expected. Between the beds and the couch, all the kids were comfortable and sleeping off their exhaustion. The only one still awake was the smallest one. She had allowed herself to let go of you just a little, but you had yet to put her down. Part of that had to do with how scared you had been that she was gone.

“I like your cabin, Cabur.”

“Thank you, ad’ika. Would you like to see my favorite part?”

She nodded as you walked outside, quietly shutting the door behind you. You sat down on the top step to the porch and nestled her against your side. She looked around and then up at you.

“I thought you were going to show me something?”

“I am. I sit here often and just listen to the trees. Where I come from it was very dry and dirty. There were no trees or vegetation.”

“Were there people?”

“A lot of people. Not all of them nice.”

“Like the men that came today?”

You sighed and nodded.

“Yes. They attacked my people too.”

“Woah, they did? But you’re so tough! And so is Verd. What happened?”

“A very dear friend of mine had a child, an ad’ika. There were very mean and bad people that wanted to hurt him, so the tribe fought to protect them. People like us aren’t liked very much in many places. They found where we had been hiding and hurt us. A lot of people left because they were scared but some of them died.”

“That makes me angry.”

“Why angry, sweetheart?”

“B-because you and Verd are nice! I’ll yell at anyone who is mean to you.”

You smiled at her and wrapped your arms around her tighter.

“I know, ad’ika. You’ve grown so much in the cycle and a half that I’ve known you.”

“I remembered what you said. I’m strong because I’m me. So, I’ll be strong.”

You both looked over as Paz walked into the clearing, sporting more weapons than he had left with. He came over and sat next to you, tucking Lahta’s hair behind her ear.

“Why is it that you’re the only one awake?”

“I want to stay with Cabur.”

She let out the cutest yawn you had ever seen. You wished that she could see your smile and to know that she was safe with you.

“You can stay right here. I won’t leave your side unless I have to.”

She nodded and nestled into you, falling asleep quickly. You listened to the small breaths coming from her and shut your eyes, thanking the stars that she was still alive.

“The Armorer is settled. The space is smaller than Nevarro but cleaner. Plenty of space for the nine kids.”

“Eight.”

His head snapped up and looked at you.

“She’s not going anywhere. Not unless she wants to. A-almost losing her today I-”

Your voice cracked and Paz reached over to take your hand in his.

“We will figure it all out. You already know how I feel cayre. Whatever she wants.”

You nodded and shuffled yourself and Lahta closer to Paz, who wrapped his arms around you. You knew it was going to be a long night and a long day with energized kids with no sleep. There was no way you were going to sleep though. You already felt guilty enough that you had failed the very village you swore to protect.

---

Fitting all the kids in Paz’s ship was a challenge. Luckily most of them got along with each other and most of all they were grateful that they were safe. You had explained to them what it would be like to take off and that your journey would be long. They all had questions about the planet you were going to and the kind of people they would live with.

You told them about how you had been on the street as a child. You had lost your parents and your biur had found you and taken you in. Although you left out the condition that had been given to you, they children understood that Mandalorians took in anyone that needed help. They were community above all and cherished their children. They were all excited that they would be surrounded by more people like yourself and Paz. Their elders had taught them that Mandalorians were saviors and protectors, so it didn’t take much convincing for them.

You noticed that Lahta stayed in the back not paying much attention to what you were saying. When you were done with your stories the rest of the kids spread out as much as they could and talked about their new adventure. You turned your head to the side but kept your eyes trained on the small girl. She kept looking up at you and chewing at her lip.

“Lahta?”

Her head popped back up and she stood up quickly.

“Can you help me with something?”

She walked over to you and gave you a huge smile. You helped her up into the cockpit and climbed in after her. You sat next to Paz and pulled her on your lap. She gasped as she looked out at the stars.

“Do you like the view, sarad’ika?”

“Yes. Wow. Wait, what does that mean?”

Paz turned to look at the both of you fully.

“Little flower.”

She beamed up at Paz and you couldn’t help but smile.

“I like that.”

Paz chuckled and rustled her hair playfully.

“What was bothering you earlier, Lahta?”

She looked up at you and shrugged.

“You can talk to me. I will always listen.”

“I.. I don’t want to go to your tribe.”

“Why not?”

“I want to stay with you.”

“Why is that?”

“You two always listen to me. And you’re nice. And your armor is pretty. And the others might not be nice. And what if I don’t fit in? And-“

“Shh sweetheart. You will always fit in with our tribe. I promise you that. But if you want to stay with us, you can stay with us. For as long as you want to.”

She squealed and tossed her arms around your neck.

“Really!? I can stay with you!?”

“Of course, sarad’ika.”

“Then I’ll stay! Until you two want a baby and then I’ll go back to the tribe.”

You looked at each other then back down at her.

“What?”

“At the village I got to stay places until they had a baby then I needed a new home.”

“We don’t believe in that, sarad’ika. Family is more than blood. Family is who you choose to love and cherish. You could never be replaced.”

She smiled and nestled into you, letting you wrap your arms around her.

“Cuyir ibic meg gar copad, mesh’la?” (is this what you want, beautiful?)

“Vaabir gar mirdir vi liser keep kaysh morut'yc?” (Do you think we can keep her safe?)

“Ni mirdir vi liser kar'taylir darasuum kaysh.  Vaabir gar copad at cuyir a buir?” (I think we can love her. Do you want to be a mother?)

“Ni don't kar'taylir pehea.  Kelir gar Gaa'tayl ni?” (I don’t know how. Will you help me?)

“Elek ner kar'taylir darasuum.  Ni cuy' de gar eso.  Vi cuyir solus.” (Yes my love. I am by your side. We are one.)

“This is the way.”

“This is the way.”

Lahta stirred on your lap and giggled.

“You two talk funny. Will you teach me your language?”

“Ad’ika, I will teach you anything you ever want to know.”

“Haa'taylir? gar cuyir already a buir.  Vi Kelir raise kaysh at cuyir kovid.  Creed ra nayc creed.  Vi cuyir alit.” (See? You are already a mother. We will raise her to be strong. Creed or no creed. We are family.)

“Ni kar'tayl gar darasuum, Paz. Vor entye.” (Thank you, Paz. I love you.)

“Naas Ru'lis Gev ner kar'taylir darasuum par gar, mesh'la.” (Nothing could stop my love for you, beautiful.)

You smiled at him as he squeezed your knee.

“Ibic Kelir borarir.  Bic Kelir cuyir jate.  Vi Kelir cuyir jate.  Cuun clan cuyir kovid, mesh'la.  Gar ganar given ni or'atu than Ni Ru'lis tionir par.” (This will work. It will be good. We will be good. Our clan is strong, beautiful. You have given me more than I could ask for.)

“Ni'll cuyir giving gar or'atu tion'tuur vi rusur.” (I’ll be giving you more when we land.)

Paz growled at the insinuation you purred out and you laughed lightly, looking down at the sleeping form on your lap. He was right; everything was going to be okay. You could feel it deep in your bones.

---

The Armorer was waiting with a few other Mandalorians when you landed. Paz walked out first full of confidence and pride. You had Lahta buried into your neck with her arms wrapped tightly around your neck. The rest of the children tentatively followed Paz and you followed them.

“It looks as if you have completed your task, Paz Vizla. And some.”

He nodded at the woman standing tall in front of him.

“I am safe to assume your clan has grown?”

“Yes.”

“De Tion'solet?” (By how many?)

The other Mando’s looked at you and almost in sync moved their visors down to the signet resting brightly on your chest.

“Vi enteyor jorhaa'ir.” (We must speak.)

“About te adiik ra gar riduur?” (About the child or your wife?)

“Bintar.  Vi enteyor jorhaa'ir be bintar.” (Both. We must speak of both.)

You smiled at Paz and felt a small hand reach up to grab yours. You knelt down keeping the small girl balanced on you.

“Cabur, I am afraid.”

You looked at the sweet boy in front of you. His face was tear stained and even more were threatening to fall down his face. You wiped his tears gently after you pulled your glove off.

“Do not be afraid, ad’ika. All of those around you that wear the armor as I do will protect you.”

“They speak weird.”

You chuckled and cupped the side of his head with your hand.

“You will learn that too, if you wish.”

He nodded at you and peeked at everyone standing around them. When you stood you saw that the Armorer was watching you intently.

“The children will be safe while we speak. Follow me. We can stop to drop them off in the nursery. They can eat and play.”

The kids perked up at the idea of eating. You followed Paz and the group of kids followed you. It was a much nicer area, but they were right to say it was smaller. Though, if all the Mando had come out when you arrived there wasn’t going to be an issue with space.

It took no time at all to get into the building and where the nursery was. There were only a few children but the Mando taking care of them perked up when you walked in with the new additions. They were ushered in and led to a table with promise of food and water. It took no time at all for them to start chirping to each other and starting to connect with the younglings already there.

“Lahta, we need you to go join the other children.”

She mumbled a no and buried herself deeper into you. You figured it couldn’t be comfortable against the metal you were covered with, but she didn’t want to let go.

“Lahta, ner sarad’ika, Cabur and I will be back. The sooner we get this done the sooner you can see us again.”

“You won’t leave without me?”

She finally turned to look at Paz and you felt her grip start to loosen.

“Of course not.��

Paz bumped his forehead to hers and she giggled. She finally let you put her down and walked slowly over to the table. When she saw there was food she perked up and started talking to some of the kids she knew. Your heart swelled at just how strong she was being.

“Cyare, let’s go.”

You looked up at Paz and nodded. You almost missed the way Lahta looked at the two of you before you walked out of the room. You hoped that she wanted to stay with you as much as you wanted her to.

---

You sat next to Paz as the Armorer and a senior member of the tribe sat across from you. It had been so long since you had seen anyone but Din and Paz that you felt nervous. You were also used to being around people who had readable expressions. Even with Paz you were used to seeing him.

“Welcome back. I was afraid that Paz had failed in his mission.”

“He almost did.”

“Don’t let her downplay. She shot me when I showed up.”

The Armorer let out an amused huff.

“I would expect nothing less from you. The children called you cabur. Do they not know your name?”

“No. They had an elder that knew a bit of our culture. They never pushed for a name nor did they push to see my face.”

“So, no one has seen your face?”

“No one but my riduur.”

She nodded once, seemingly satisfied with your answer.

“The children will be safe here. Their home is gone?”

“Destroyed. They are all alone.”

“They are safe here until they decide to stay or go.”

“Armorer, they won’t be forced, right?”

“No. To take the creed or not will be their choice, not a condition for their safety.”

You felt Paz tense up next to you. Without thinking you reached over and touched his hand gently to assure him that it was okay. You noticed the two across from you look down slightly then back up. Paz gave you a nod that he was okay.

“What of the girl that seemed attached to you?”

You sighed, not sure where to start.

“Her name is Lahta. Her parents were killed long before I showed up to the village. Paz and I have grown close with her. We would like to take her in as a foundling if she wishes it.”

“Is this a new decision?”

“No.”

You looked up at Paz and nodded, letting him finish.

“We have spoken of it before. We were going to let the idea go because she was safe. She no longer was and the idea of leaving her was.. difficult.”

“Then you will give her the choice. She may choose to become part of your clan or stay here until she makes the same decision the others must make.”

“This is the way.”

“This is the way.”

All of you stood and you were ready to get back to Lahta. You wanted to talk to her and hoped she would choose to stay with you.

“You have shared quarters set up. I had backup provisions in place, but it seems like the two of you are on good enough terms.”

You felt your face heat up but gave her a quick nod.

“Paz you may go. I wish for a minute alone with your riduur.”

Paz looked down at you and you nodded. He touched the pendant lightly and walked away. You smiled at the gesture. It was harder to be intimate with him when both of you were wearing armor, but you understood what he was trying to tell you.

I’m with you.

Once the two men left you sat back down.

“Tell me, young warrior, why did you not return here when your helmet was removed?”

“I knew what my options would be.”

“We could have voted for an exemption. From what he tells me, it saved your life.”

“It did. He did.”

“Did you agree to be his riduur to come back?”

“No. I know it was his goal and at first I think he saw it as more of an obligation but now.. it’s changed. We are together because we want to be. I am glad that I can be back here, and I think part of my decision was made for the tribe.”

“But part was decided for you. For happiness.”

You nodded and hoped she wouldn’t be angry.

“Your biur were particularly hard on you. Even before you took your oath you never wore a smile. Now I can hear it in your voice when you speak to him. We are a community, but your happiness is important too. Din Djarin left behind enough beskar for new armor for you.”

“I don’t wish to take away from the tribe.”

“You aren’t. Those who left also left behind a lot. Din just made it clear that if no foundlings were in need of it that you should have it. He knows how hard it has been for you to get to this point.”

You nodded and looked down at your own armor.

“I think you becoming part of the Vizla clan is a fresh start for you. You deserve the honor of the signet you represent now. You deserve armor that you have earned.”

You nodded and stood.

“Thank you.”

“I have already started it. It will be done in a day’s time. This is the way.”

“This is the way.”

You went to walk out of the room but stopped, turning slightly.

“Din wasn’t there when Paz and I had worked things out.”

“He said he had a feeling.”

“When did you start my armor?”

“Does it matter?”

You sighed but shook your head. It was starting to feel like everyone knew you better than you knew yourself.

---

You walked in the room to Paz making the bed. You shut the door behind you and locked it before slipping your helmet off. He stood up tall and took his off as well, smiling at you. You returned the smile and walked over to kiss him.

“How did your talk go?”

“Apparently I’m getting all new armor.”

“Like a whole new set?”

“Din left the rest of the beskar for me. He talked to her after he left us, and the armor is already almost done.”

He smirked and shook his head.

“How are you feeling about it? I know I feel connected to my armor.”

You shrugged and sat on the bed, groaning when you twisted as much as possible to alleviate the kink you had been holding between your shoulders since the explosion went off.

“I earned this armor with my biur. Other than the memories it holds no sentiment to me. Even the memories aren’t always the best.”

“Did you regret taking your oath?”

“I think at first. It was more that the hardships were turning into resentment because of being forced. I knew what I needed to do and what it meant but it’s not like I grew up seeing it or even was able to see it knowing I could choose.”

He sat next to you and put his arm over you, pulling you to him. You leaned against him and sighed.

“I think you would have taken it. I vaguely remember when they brought you in. You’ve always been full of it.”

You laughed and shook your head.

“I don’t remember you.”

“Yeah, because you saw Din and immediately latched onto him.”

“Oh, shut up I did not latch onto him.”

“He calls you his shadow, cyare.”

You laughed and shrugged. He pulled you back, so you were lying next to him still wrapped up in his arms. You started to feel just how exhausted you were after not sleeping much on the trip. There always to be at least one kid needing attention or assurance. You loved them all, but you were damn tired.

“So, tell me, how long did you have a crush on Din for?”

“What?”

“Oh, come on. I saw the way you followed him around. We used to pick at him for it.”

“How did that end?”

“A lot of fights.”

You laughed and shook your head.

“Maybe a childhood girlish crush but I think it was more admiration than anything. He was strong. I mean everyone in the tribe was strong, but he didn’t look at me like I was different. He didn’t.. uhm.. he never saw me as aruetii.”

Paz stiffened beside you. The silence between the two of you was deafening. You had talked about a lot of things with him, but you had never brought up how harsh his words had been. You pulled away, moving so you were lying flat on your back.

“I was so horrible to you.”

“Yes, you were.”

“How could you possibly forgive that? Called your aruetii and pulled your helmet off. What an asshole.”

You laughed and turned your head to look at him. He was staring up at the ceiling with a small frown tugging at his lips.

“I did shoot you.”

He finally laughed which brought a smile to your face.

“You did shoot me. You know, you may be the only person who has shot me and lived to tell the tale.”

“Wow, I feel so lucky. You were so enamored by being shot at you gave me your signet and a spot in your clan. Good thing some other woman didn’t do it first.”

He growled and rolled over, propping himself up over you. You were laughing up at him, knowing there was no way you could move. Between how hard the bed was and the fact that the man above you was a giant covered in beskar, you were pinned.

“You’re the only one for me, cyare. Don’t you dare think differently.”

“Hmm, and what happens if I do?”

“Then I’ll have to remind you over and over until it gets through that pretty skull of yours.”

“That sounds like it could be.. interesting. Maybe I need you to remind me.”

He growled again and pressed his lips to yours. He kissed you passionately but broke away sooner than you wanted him to.

“We have things we need to do first.”

“I’m so tired.”

“I know, cyare. Let’s get these things finished then I will not let anyone disturb us until tomorrow afternoon.”

“You say that now but you’re their big bad warrior. There are foundlings and younglings to teach. There are security protocols that need to be looked over.”

“I also have a riduur that needs to be fucked until she can’t move.”

You gasped and looked up at him.

“Paz Vizla. Listen to you getting all dirty. I like it.”

He kissed you again, nipping at your lip before climbing off of you. You grabbed his extended hand and laughed when he pulled you to his chest. He gently grabbed your chin and made you look at him with a sly smile on his face.

“Just you wait, mesh’la.”

---

When you walked into the nursery room, all the kids from the village ran over. You noticed the younglings that were already there looked at you cautiously but lit up when Paz followed you. You both sat on the floor and listened to them all talking about their food and how everyone is nice. You could have lived forever in that moment finally seeing smiling faces and barely any tears.

“Cabur?”

You turned your head to the oldest boy from the group and took his hands in yours. Those in your tribe weren’t usually so touchy but you found the children responded better when they knew you were paying attention to them. Your face couldn’t be seen so you had to show them in other ways that they had your attention. You thought hard to remember his name until it dawned on you. Spending most of your time with Lahta had made it harder to get to know the other kids on a more personal level.

“What is it Thomas?”

“Why did those men come and hurt everyone?”

“Sometimes people are bad for no reason. They do horrible things without a cause. I don’t know why those men attacked, not really.”

Paz placed his hand on your leg and gave you a light squeeze. You did know why they were there, but it was only because you had been protecting them.

“Why didn’t you stop them?”

You weren’t sure if the room actually went quiet or if it was just the blood pounding in your ears. Your entire body was stiff and the panic you felt was only rivaled by the panic when you couldn’t find the kids. Paz’s hand clamped down on your thigh which started to bring you back, but you had no idea how to answer him. You didn’t know how to answer any of them.

“You were there to protect us, Cabur. But everyone is gone. My mom and dad are-“

The small boy lunged at you as he began sobbing. You wrapped your arms around him and held him close. The guilt and pain had been nagging at you, but you had been so busy it didn’t have time to fully hit you. Not until Thomas asked you the same questions you had been dying to ask yourself.

“I’m so sorry, Thomas. I would give anything to go back and change what happened.”

“I miss my mom.”

His voice hiccupped and you bit your bottom lip to stop yourself from crying.

“I know, sweetheart. I know ad’ika. Your m-mom would be so proud of you.”

“She would?”

He sat up and wiped at his face, resting all his weight on one of your legs.

“Yes. You saved them. You saved the rest of the children. You listened and you were so brave. You kept them all safe until I could get to you. I was so scared when I couldn’t find any of you, but you went exactly where you were supposed to. Your p-parents would be so so proud of you. I promise you that.”

“I-I didn’t know what else to do.”

“You did the right thing. You’re already so strong. You have a warrior’s heart.”

You poked gently at his chest and he beamed at you through his tears.

“You are safe now. All of you. We spoke with the Alor, our leader. This is your home for as long as you want to be here.”

“Will we get to wear a helmet like you?”

You looked back at Thomas and nodded once.

“If that is what you want. You all are welcome to learn the creed and take it as you grow older. You do not have to though. It will be your choice. You are safe and welcome until you are ready and able to make a decision.”

Thomas leaned in closer and whispered, hoping only you could hear him.

“I want to be a warrior like Paz.”

“You can be whatever you want to be, ad’ika.”

You could tell by the way Paz puffed his chest out that he had absolutely heard the childs confession.

You forced yourself through sitting with the kids for a few hours. You could see as they became more comfortable not only with their surroundings but the others in your tribe. You were glad that the rest of your tribe seemed to understand just how hard things had been for them.

“You doing okay, cyare?”

You looked over at Paz and nodded once. He continued looking at you. There was no way he didn’t know that you weren’t being truthful but for the sake of the kids, you were glad you had your helmet on.

“Cuyir gar jate?” (Are you good?)

You smiled at his change to Mando’a.

“Ni cuy' o'r aaray.” (I am in pain)

“Vaii?” (Where?)

You touched over where your heart is. After that you touched the side of your head.

“Oh. Cyare-“

“Not here.”

He sat up straighter but nodded.

“Liser gar rejorhaa'ir Lahta ni kelir haa'taylir kaysh nusujii?” (Can you tell Lahta I will see her soon?)

“Elek. Slanar.” (Yes. Go.)

You slipped out of the room and made your way towards your chambers. It was hard to breathe and you knew it was another episode. You didn’t know what to call them, but you had them often when you were living alone, and you became too overwhelmed. You made it into your room and locked the door. The only person coming in would be Paz.

You whipped around when the door opened, surprised that Paz had shown up so quickly. He locked the door and walked right to you, pulling your helmet off gently so he could set it on the floor. He yanked his own off and dropped it to the ground with a thud.

“Talk to me.”

“I just.. can’t breathe. It’s like.. It’s like my beskar is too heavy.”

He gently led you into the bedroom and started to carefully pull all the beskar off your body. You tried to control your chest from heaving, but it didn’t feel any better. Once it was done, he backed you up, so you were sitting on the edge of the bed. He knelt down between your legs and put his hands on the sides of your face.

“Have you been like this before?”

You nodded and finally felt tears start to well up in your eyes.

“How often does it happen? I’ve been with you for half a cycle and I haven’t seen it.”

“Ever since.. I left. They just.. happen.”

“Your mind is troubled. Your biur never taught you this?”

You shook your head and felt even worse. He pulled his armor off quickly and tossed it to the ground so he could pull you to his chest. You let him hold you tight and focused in on the steady heartbeat coming from his chest. He murmured to you in basic and Mando’a. After a while your breathing returned to normal and your body started to relax.

“Is your breathing okay?”

You nodded against him and finally wrapped your arms around his waist. You were absolutely exhausted. He helped you lay down and after shucking off the rest of his armor and his boots he joined you. You looked at his chest, embarrassed that he had seen you like that.

“The first time my biur felt like that around me, he destroyed his entire room. Din and I had been waiting for him to return after a hunt. He had run into some really bad trouble. He never talked about it, but he finally just snapped. He explained later that sometimes when you see things so terrible that they eat at you until you can process it.”

“Have you ever felt like that?”

“Yes. There is nothing embarrassing about this. I’m just sorry that you had to go through this alone for so long.”

“I thought I was losing my mind.”

He tilted your chin up so you had to look at him. He gave you a soft smile and shook his head.

“No, cyare. Everyone has their breaking points in different situations. You’ve had a lot of weight on your chest in the last cycle. Just please remember that you’re not alone anymore. These burdens are not yours alone to carry.”

Your chest tightened up as you felt tears sting your eyes again.

“I failed them, Paz. I failed every single one of them, even the ones left living.”

“What do you think would have happened if you hadn’t been there?”

“They came there because of me.”

“No. Stop. They came there because they are horrible creatures hellbent on hurting others. They were there before you got there. You gave them almost two cycles of peace. Who knows if the children would have survived if you hadn’t shown up. They all could be gone.”

“I should have protected them I should have-“

Paz silenced you by pressing his lips to yours. You wanted to continue speaking but when you moved your hands up to push him away at his chest, he wrapped his hands around yours. You finally huffed against him and couldn’t help but smile when he chuckled.

“If one Mandalorian could save the galaxy we wouldn’t have lost so many during the purge. Right?”

“I guess.”

“You did great things for them, cyare. Those who are lost are living on through the little ones that are now safe here. Grieve those who are lost but cherish the ones still here.”

“I just wish I could have done more.”

“I know the feeling. When the guild attacked, I felt like I didn’t do enough. I felt the same way when I found out you had left.”

“I’m sorry I-“

“No. You owed me nothing. I was the one who hurt you. Don’t apologize for reacting to being hurt.”

You nodded and sighed. Not feeling much better but you felt peace at least being with him.

“I thought of you, you know. On Nevarro.”

“When the guild attacked?”

“More often than that, but that is what I’m referencing.”

“Why?”

“Part of me wished you were there so I could apologize. I didn’t know if I was going to be standing by the end of that fight. Then I was just overwhelmingly glad you weren’t there as I watched our family fall. I know that you are tough, and I know you can hold your own. I just knew that if you were still out there then our strength would carry on.”

“Or was it because I’m beautiful when I’m dying.”

His hands stilled on your body and the pause between the two of you was deafening. You burst out laughing and he grumbled against your skin.

“Would you shut up?”

“No. No you aren’t living that one down.”

You laughed again and he pulled you further into him. He finally chuckled and buried his face into your neck.

“Remind me to never misspeak around you again.”

“It was cute, Paz.”

He huffed out a sigh.

“I do wish I had been next to you fighting.”

“It wasn’t time for us to be together yet. Now is the time and I will do what I can to make sure you are by my side for as long as possible.”

“I love you. I’m so glad you came to find me. I’m so glad I’m not alone anymore.”

“Never. Never again.”

He wrapped his arms around you, letting you nestle into his chest. You felt the blanket being pulled across you as your eyes started flutter.

“Sleep, my sweet riduur. Sleep knowing that you are a strong warrior worthy of the love and admiration of those around you. I will remind you every day just how strong you are.”

Cabur Tag List:

 @computeringturtle​ @mrsdaamneron​ @finnisrioting 

Permanent Tag List:

@mapplestrudel​ @cannedsoupsucks​

If I missed you or you want to be added/removed please let me know!

[lost-in-the-80s]

I Don’t Wanna Lose You

Pairing: Slash x (fem) reader

Words: 1,716k

Requested by: anon

Summary: It’s a Friday night and you and your boyfriend, Slash have a birthday party to attend. Everything is going as planned, that’s until he gets drunk, of course. (fluff)

A/N: I hope this was what you had in mind, honey. I got two different ideas for this, but chose to do this one ‘cause I thought would fit more your concept.       

Tag list: @roger-taylors-car​ @ladieswttda​ @teasid​ add yourself to my tag list :)

You were at your house getting ready, Saul, your boyfriend would pick you up soon.

It was Axl's birthday and the guys were excited about finally meeting you.

You and Saul were together for a few weeks now, a little bit more than a month, and he had been talking about you all the time.

You two met through a mutual friend, Rachel Bolan, who introduced you guys.

It was during one of his band's parties and you two spent the whole night talking, exchanging your numbers when you finally got tired and decided to head home.

You knew who he was, obviously, you had seen his band on MTV, and he had caught your attention right at the first moment you saw him playing his guitar.

He knew you too, you were a model, starting to become famous because of some big campaigns you had done in the past months. 

When he saw you for the first time, it was in a television campaign, and he couldn't take his eyes off of you, even though there were other models with you.

After that party, you two went on a formal date, having dinner and going to a Bon Jovi gig after.

You two became inseparable after that, going out on dates every weekend and talking through the phone every day.

Then, Axl's birthday party arrived, and he decided that it would be the perfect opportunity to introduce you to his bandmates.

You decided to wear a short satin white dress with some silver high heels. 

You put on a simple makeup and applied some perfume, checking yourself in the mirror and liking the result.

You looked at your living room clock. 7:56 pm. He should be here soon. Sitting on your yellow couch, you played with your kitten's ears while waiting for him.

Suddenly you heard the house bell ringing. Getting up and stretching your dress, you walked towards the door, opening it slowly.

"Hi!" You smiled, seeing how handsome he was in his leather jacket and jeans.

"Hey, gorgeous!" He leaned in, giving you a quick kiss on the lips.

"You look stunning tonight!" He touched your hand and lifted it, motioning for you to make a spin, so he could see you better.

You chuckled a little. "You look great, baby." 

He gave you one more kiss, this time a slower one. "Are you ready?"

"Yes!"

You said goodbye to your cat, closing and locking your front door, before walking with Saul to his car.

He drove for almost half an hour before you two got to Axl's mansion. It was huge and all its walls were painted white.

You locked your arm with Saul's, while you walked through the garden. 

Once inside that blasting music took a hold of your ears. People from all over the house showed up to say Hi to Slash. He introduced you to all of them, always saying: "This is Y/N! My girlfriend!" Or "This is my beautiful girlfriend, Y/N!"

He looked so proud to be with you that you felt your love for him grow even more.

Love was a strong word. And it hadn't been said yet, but you knew you felt it. 

You knew it, because every time he touched you, it was as if the world had stopped, and every time he called your name, it sounded like music. He was your first and last thought every day and you felt so glad that you met him. 

But you hadn't said you loved him, and probably wouldn't, for now at least. It was still early and you were afraid that he would get scared by the gesture and would leave you. 

The night went by, he introduced you to his bandmates and you really liked them. They were all nice to you, and introduced you to their girlfriends, making you feel yourself at home.

After a while you two parted ways, Saul went on with his friends, while you sat at the living room couch with Axl's girlfriend.

"Seriously, you're the only thing he's been talking about lately." She told you, taking a sip of her beer.

"I can't judge him, I think I do the same thing all day too." You chuckled.

"You really love him, don't you?"

"Yeah! I do!"

"I can see, there's a sparkle in your eyes when you're talking about him!" She smiled at you.

You chuckled, feeling your cheeks burn. 

"Speaking about, have you seen him?"

"Not really, I think he's in the backyard with Ax."

"I think I'll look for him."

"Okay! Call me sometime so we can go shopping together!"

"Will do!"

You started walking through the crowd of people, everybody dancing, laughing and singing.

Spotting Duff with his girlfriend at the stairs, you got closer.

"Hey Duff, where's the backyard?"

He pointed to the kitchen direction, without parting his lips from hers. 

"Thank you!"

He gave you a thumbs up.

Walking towards the kitchen you saw no other than Nikki Sixx himself. You were a huge fan, Motlëy Crüe was one of your favorite bands, so you decided to say Hi. 

"Hi! Mr. Sixx? I'm Y/N Y/L/N!" You extended your hand for him to shake.

He looked at you and changed his posture, leaning against the kitchen's counter and shaking your hand.

"Call me Nikki!" He shouted over the music.

"I love your band! You guys are awesome!"

"Oh really, I'm glad to know that such a beautiful chick like you, likes us."

You felt your cheeks burn and giggled a little, putting a lock of your hair behind your ear.

"I have all your records, and got a tattoo!" You showed him the back part of your arm, where you had Motlëy's Girls Girls Girls logo on. 

"Fucking nice!" He said touching your arm slightly. 

You smiled at him.

"Are you here alone?" He asked.

"No. I'm with my boyfriend, actually."

"Hmm. He isn't very smart then, to let a girl like you alone here." He took a step closer.

"He doesn't have a reason to be worried." You replied stated, not liking the turn this conversation was taking.

You didn't notice that Slash had entered the kitchen, looking for you. He saw you and Nikki talking, you laughing at him, he getting closer to you, and his blood boiled.

"Are you sure?" Nikki took a step closer to you, his body almost pressed against yours. "He's not here now, and I can think about something very fun for us to do."

Before you could dismiss him, Saul arrived, circling your waist with his arm. 

"Leave the girl alone, man!" He was drunk, you could tell by his voice.

"She doesn't seem to mind my company, bro."

Everyone around you stopped, even the music got quieter, everybody wanting to see the fight that was about to come.

"Stay the fuck away from my girl, Sixx!" He gritted his teeth.

"Oh, so you're the famous boyfriend? I think you don't really like her, since you left her all alone here."

That was it, Saul lost his temper and shoved Nikki with all his strength. 

"I said: Stay away from my fucking girlfriend, Sixx!"

"Oh yeah? Or you gonna do what?"

Saul closed his fists, his knuckles getting white because of the strength.

You touched his shoulder, but he didn't seem to feel your touch. You got worried. What would you do if they started punching each other?

At that moment, Duff showed up. Saving the party. 

"Wow, wow, wow, guys! Let's calm down ok?" He positioned himself in the middle or both men, towering over them.

"This is clearly a misunderstanding, let's have a drink and calm ourselves huh?" 

They didn't seem to calm down.

"Come on guys, this is a fucking party! Let's not fuck this up alright!?"

Then, Tommy Lee showed up, grabbing Nikki's arm and pulling him away.

You got closer to Saul's ears and whispered. "Please, baby. Calm down!" 

Your words seem to affect him, as he let go of a long breath and opened his hands again. 

Everyone went back to the party, dancing and laughing again. 

You grabbed Slash's hands, pulling him towards an open bedroom, closing the door once you were both inside. 

"What the fuck was that?" It was your turn to get angry.

"I should be the one asking you! Why were you flirting with him?"

He had sobered up by now, the adrenaline affecting his body. 

"I wasn't! I told him I had a boyfriend! And I could have handled that without making a scene if you hadn't shown up!"

"Bullshit!"

"Why did you make such a scene? I thought you guys were friends!"

"Friends don't flirt with your girlfriend!"

"He didn't even know I was your girlfriend, you didn't give me a chance to solve the shit!"

He ran his hands through his hair, groaning with annoyance.

"You looked like a fucking asshole out there! We could have dealt with that in a much calmer way!" You kept complaining.

"An asshole!? I looked like an asshole!? Well, I'm sorry if I get pissed when I see someone flirting with the woman I love!" 

You froze. "Wait, what?"

"I fucking hate it. It looks like I mean nothing to you!"

"No. The other thing. You said you love me."

"I fucking do Y/N! I love you! And I see the way men look at you, and it lets me fucking crazy!"

You walked closer to him, cupping his face. "Hey! Calm down, baby!” He looked in your eyes, getting calmer “I love you too!"

He frowned.

"I don't care about how they look at me, because you're the only one I love!”

He let go of a long breath. "You do?"

"Yes, Saul! I love you!" 

He hugged you, getting calmer. "I'm sorry. It's just that… you're fucking perfect, you know? And I don't wanna lose you!"

"You're not going to lose me, silly! I'm staying with you until you get bored with me." You pecked his lips. 

"Then I guess you'll be staying with me forever."

"I don't see a problem with that." You put your hands on the back of his neck. 

He grinned, involving you in a passionate kiss that stole your breath away.

[heyyyharry]

Chapter 3: Fire in a Silver Storm

(from ‘The Conman and the Maid’ Series)

…in which Harry and Y/N get trapped in a cave in the middle of a snowstorm.

Word count: 5k

AU: princess!y/n, prisoner!harry, conartist!harry.

Series description: Y/N is a princess and Harry is a prisoner in her castle. With his help, she escapes from her arranged marriage in search of a happy ending, if there is one.

A/N: things are about to get interesting 😌

.

Harry had never thought he would live to see this day. He had just helped a maid take down two guards twice her size and steal their weapons, and now they were heading to the stable to steal the king’s horses. He’d been arrested for unintentional murder, but it wasn’t until tonight that he was truly considered a criminal.

The worst thing was that he barely knew this girl. All he knew was her name, which sounded as fake as the Northerners’ hospitality, and she used to be the princess’ maid before she was a thief. The only thing they had in common was their fate if they ended up getting caught. They would both be dead, probably hanging side by side on the curtain wall.

“Find the prisoner! Find whoever helped him escape!” one guard shouted to the other and they both deserted their posts to rush back to the keep. The stable door was left unguarded and Y/N silently gestured Harry to follow her inside.

He’d been warned about winter nights in Isolde, but tonight was the first time he’d got to really experience it. He ran like his limbs didn’t belong to him, his body heat was fading, and he only had a fur coat which she’d brought for him to keep himself warm. They entered in silence and shut the stable door. It was warmer inside, and for a split second, Harry actually considered staying instead of running away.

Anxiety intensified when he saw Y/N walk toward the most beautiful yet intimidating black horse he’d ever seen. He was about to warn her about what these animals could do if they got angry, but the horse’s reaction to seeing Y/N was the opposite of what Harry had expected. The gelding reared his front legs upward, happily nickering at her.

“A friendly and handsome fellow.” Harry tiptoed nearer and declared, “I’m getting this one.”

“You’re not getting this one. He’s mine,” she scolded him under her breath while petting the animal. “His name is Thunder. He’s nicer than he looks.”

“I guess this is the princess’ horse?”

“It’s Prince Egon’s actually,” Y/N scoffed, rolling her eyes. “Thunder was mistreated a lot. He was trained like a warhorse but he’s actually a sweetheart.”

“He likes you.”

“I’m very likeable, that’s a fact.”

Her response made him chuckle. “I love the confidence, Peach.”

“Do not call me Peach.”

“Peach sounds better than your fake name.”

Y/N widened her eyes at him, her jaw fell slack. “Rain isn’t a fake name!”

“Oh please, who would name their child after drops of water from the sky?”

“Um, my mother? That was rude.”

Thunder seemed to have taken a side as he flattened his ears backwards and snored at Harry.

“Okay, fine, I’m sorry.” He scoffed, raising an eyebrow. “Thunder is yours. Which one can I get then?”

“That’s Lonely,” she said, pointing to a skinny white horse lying in the corner. If her tail wasn’t moving, Harry would’ve thought she was dead.

With a smirk, Y/N said, “Lonely is going to die pretty soon so you’ll do her a huge favour by taking her on an adventure.”

“Okay, first of all, naming a horse Lonely is basically animal abuse,” he said as she tried not to laugh too loud. “Second of all, we don’t have time to fool around. Do you want to die, Peach?”

“Oh, so it’s fine when you fool around but when it’s me...”

“You’re supposed to be the quiet and grumpy character and I’m the charismatic and funny one. Have you not read those stories about two people going on an adventure?”

Y/N rolled her eyes at his nonsense and turned away to get Thunder out of his stall. “You take the brown one in the corner,” she told Harry.

He excitedly punched the air and rushed toward his new friend to release her. “Hello, my name is Harry. What’s your name, beautiful?”

“Lightning.”

Y/N’s answer made Harry chuckle, but then he saw the look on her face and realised she was serious. “Wow, you Northern people really hate normal names, huh?”

“We just don’t want to share the same name with thousands of others. I mean, Harry?”

Harry narrowed his eyes at her, nodding slowly. “Good point.”

They proceeded to put saddles on Thunder and Lightning before leading them out of the stable, trying to be as discreet as they could. These royal horses were very cooperative, probably because they somehow understood that they were on a mission to get two people out of the castle safely; or maybe they were so close to Y/N that they were willing to do anything for her.

Harry didn’t know much about the servants in the castle, but it made no sense to him that they would let a maid spend that much time with the royal horses, let alone teach them how to put a saddle on one.

“Do you even know how to ride a horse?” he asked and received a smirk from the girl.

“Do you?”

Right when he opened his mouth to answer, Y/N hopped onto Thunder’s back and rode in circles around him and Lightning. He was amazed for a second, but then he saw the sword strapped to her waist and was reminded of those guards she’d injured.

Of course she can also ride a horse. Who is this girl?

“Don’t be so surprised.” She scoffed at the look on his face. “Every servant in the castle knows how to ride a horse, use a sword, and do archery.”

“Why?”

“Why not?” Y/N mocked as Thunder stopped in front of Harry, rearing his front legs as if he wanted to kick the man in the face. “Is the brave Southern man intimidated by a fragile Northern maid?”

Harry breathed out a laugh, letting her remark slide as he mounted his horse. The snow had begun to fall. The flakes were dancing in the moonlight, a beautiful dance choreographed by the wind, and Harry suddenly caught himself staring at the girl for a little too long.

For his entire life, he had never been shaken by a beauty other than his Kenny. But at that very moment, when the snow landed on her fur coat and her cheeks turned almost as pink as the colour of her lips, Harry felt something he had never felt before.

This girl was truly beautiful. If a maid could look like this, then how much more stunning was the princess of Isolde?

“Oh no!” Y/N’s voice pulled Harry back to reality. He heard the distinct sound of horses running toward the stable and caught the alarmed look on her face.

“Ride!” she yelled, digging her heels into the sides of her horse and the gelding leapt forward, galloping toward the gatehouse.

Harry was racing along by her side. They didn’t know who was after them, but they didn’t look back nor slow down because those people were all capable of killing.

“Close the gate!”

“No, do not close the gate!” Harry shouted in terror as he saw the portcullis being lowered. “There’s no way we’re gonna make it, Peach!”

“Do you always talk this much?!”

“Only when I’m in danger!”

Y/N bit her lip and rode even faster. Harry didn’t know if she was really sure they weren’t going to die or she was really good at hiding her fear, whatever it was, it worked. He trusted her.

Their horses pranced ahead and tore out the great clods of snow which flew behind them, and in a split second, they flew through the portcullis, completely unharmed.

Harry snapped back to reality as they rode into the forest outside the castle. The colour had drained out of his face when he looked to the right to see her. Both of them were shaking.

“Did we just--”

“No, we’re actually dead. We’re riding to hell,” Y/N joked, tossing her head back and laughing aloud. Their laughter broke the silence of the woods, echoing within these rocks and trees and bringing this sad wintry land back to life.

Once they were sure they weren’t being followed anymore, they slowed down and stopped to navigate.

“We’re on the right path,” Harry said as he looked around. “If we keep following this trail, we’ll cross that mountain tomorrow night.”

“Tomorrow night? But it looks so close from here.” Y/N’s face scrunched up as she squinted her eyes at the mountain peeking out of the woods.

Harry looked at her and chortled. “You don’t go out much, do you?”

“I grew up in the castle and I followed the princess wherever she went, and you know, the princess rarely leaves the castle.”

“Poor thing.” He pouted, making her roll her eyes. “Anyway, thank you for your service, darling. From now on, you follow me and you’ll be safe.”

“I doubt that. You were screaming when you thought you were going to die.”

“I said ‘from now on’.” Smirking, he kicked his horse and bolted ahead. She immediately followed.

.

.

.

“You let him escape? Are you telling me the best archers in the kingdom could not take down a clown on a horse?!”

The poor guard immediately dropped down on his knees in front of Egon. He was trembling in fear and well aware of the consequences when he was asked to see the prince.

“He was with the princess, Your Highness. We couldn’t risk hurting Princess Y/N.”

Egon let out a wry laugh, slowly shaking his head. “Princess Y/N?”

“Yes, Your Highness.” The man swallowed. “Princess Y/N...injured our men to release the prisoner from his cell. They stole two of our horses and...and were headed into the North forest...”

“Idiot!” Egon smacked the man across the face. He collapsed onto the floor. Without waiting for him to get back up, Egon dropped down on his knees, took out the knife strapped to his waist and put it to the guard’s throat.

“You think I care about that whore?” he said, adding just enough pressure on the blade to cause pain but not to make the man bleed. “She ran away with a murderer, which made her a traitor and a criminal as well. Now she’s dangerous.”

“Your Highness, p-please--”

“Dangerous?”

Egon shot his eyes to the entrance where the female voice had come from and let the man go when he saw Jo coming in.

He stood back up, putting his knife away. “What did I say about interrupting me?”

The maid ignored the question and walked straight toward him. “Y/N is not dangerous. You got rid of her. Wasn’t that what you wanted?” she said, making him freeze for a moment.

The guard was perplexed when Egon told him to get lost, but he ran as fast as he could before the prince changed his mind. The door fell shut once again, sending the room back to silence. Jo took a deep breath. Her eyes followed Egon as he walked toward the fireplace. His features were illuminated by the flickering light, the only one in the room.

Jo waited for him to say something, but as he glanced back up to meet her eyes, she knew he wasn’t going to.

“Y/N is gone. Wasn’t that what you wanted?”

“Yes, it was,” Egon breathed as he raised a finger. “But she should’ve left Isolde with you, not a prisoner who slaughtered two guards!”

“I--”

“The original plan was you fucking Kavan Gennady and blaming him for taking advantage of you, and then convincing Y/N to run away with you so she wouldn’t have to marry him.”

Jo swallowed, trying to look unfazed to hide the fact that she was scared. “What’s the difference?”

“The difference,” Egon raised his voice suddenly, “is that if she had run away with you, you would make sure she stayed far away from Isolde. But now she’s heading to Theros with a Southerner as her guide and will most likely return with Edgar’s army.”

“Y/N would never invade Isolde.”

“Only if she didn’t find out about the prophecy.”

“The prophecy?” Jo furrowed her eyebrows in confusion.

Egon let out a breathy laugh as he flopped down on a chair by the fireplace. “Our beloved father believes in a stupid prophecy that said I would destroy his kingdom if I was to be King, and my sweet little sister would be his only hope. So he planned to marry her off to this prince and let her rule the kingdom with him. Kavan Gennady is the one who’s going to be your new king, not me.”

Jo gasped and covered her mouth, but Egon didn’t even bother to look at her. He clenched his jaw and said bitterly, “a fool from the West ruling the North with a whore as his queen. What would the fate of this kingdom be?”

“But…” Jo uttered as she took the courage to take a step forward. “The king is going to die soon, just make sure Y/N stays gone until then and you’ll become the rightful king. The people of Isolde won’t accept an invader as their queen and Y/N knows that so she’ll stay away.”

“Well, as long as she’s still alive, we cannot make sure that she stays gone.”

“No! Please!” Jo dropped down on her knees and grabbed Egon’s hand. “Please don’t hurt Y/N. She’s harmless. I know her.”

“Let’s pray my men will bring her back alive then.” He pulled his hand away and cupped her jaw, tilting her face upwards. “And you better keep your pretty mouth shut. If I find out that baby isn’t mine, or if it’s a she, then you won’t be alive to see the girl you love again. Are we clear?”

“Yes, Your Highness.”

“Good.”

The dancing flames reflecting in his dark eyes made him look more like the devil than a prince. But Jo, just like everyone in this castle, could never tell the difference.

The snow was falling thicker and harder outside the window by the fireplace. There was about to be another snowstorm tonight, and Jo could only pray that Y/N was safe, wherever she was.

.

.

.

“We have to stop, Peach! A snowstorm is coming!”

Y/N raised a gloved hand to shield her eyes as she looked back, desperately searching for Harry and Lightning. The sun had just come up not so long ago, but now it was as dark as night and the snow was angrily swirling around her as if wanting to swallow her whole. She wanted to tell Harry to stay calm and just keep on going, but she was too familiar with this kind of storm to risk their lives for her impatience.

Finding shelter was a matter of life and death at this point, and Thunder seemed to understand that so he ignored her command and galloped ahead, following his own instinct.

“Over here, Harry! There’s a cave! Thunder found a cave!” Y/N shouted loudly, waving her hands in the air even though she couldn’t see Harry and Lightning anywhere. But thanks to his horse, Harry had managed to find her and the cave which was obscured by snow-covered trees.

It was dark inside. The more they entered, the more they became engulfed in chilling blackness. Y/N got off Thunder and settled down on a large rock, hugging herself while shivering. The cave was no warmer inside than out. The absence of light meant the absence of warmth, and her body heat was slowly being sucked away by the cold air. Her throat was aching from thirst and her teeth were chattering.

As if Harry could read her mind, he handed her a bottle and said, “drink this.”

“Where...Where did you get that?”

“From a dead guard.”

His reply made her frown. “They weren’t dead. We didn’t kill them.”

“Is that what you tell yourself at night?” He chuckled and nudged her cheek with the bottle.

Y/N hesitated for a second and eventually grabbed it and took a sip. Her face twisted as the unfamiliar taste bit her tongue.

“This isn’t water!” she cried out, making Harry cackle.

“Wine.” He gave a shrug, grinning when her mouth fell open.

“I can’t drink wine!”

“Why not?”

“I’ll get drunk.”

“You won’t.”

“I will.”

“Then stay thirsty.”

Just like that, he turned his back to her. He left her sitting there to go find more dry sticks so he could build a fire, but when he came back, the bottle which had been nearly full at the beginning was now half empty.

“Did you spill it or drink it?”

She held his questioning gaze and wiped her mouth with the back of her hand. “Getting drunk sounds like a better idea than dying of thirst.”

He lifted an eyebrow, looking amused. “Aren’t you afraid I’ll do something to you if you get too drunk and pass out?”

“You won’t,” she said, to his surprise.

“How are you so sure that I won’t?”

“Because I trust you.”

The way his lips parted and his eyes widened made her giggle. She was blushing harder than before and so he knew it wasn’t only because she was cold. She wasn’t joking when she said she’d get drunk.

“If you wanted to do something to me, you would’ve done it already,” she said, about to pick up the bottle again but he was quick to move it out of her reach.

“Enough for you, young lady. The rest is for me,” he said, pressing his chapped lips into a soft smile.

.

.

.

Lucky for them, Harry knew how to build a fire. Y/N had asked him to teach her, but his complicated instructions had got her frustrated so she gave up and said, “now I have to keep you alive until we get out of Isolde.”

“I can’t believe you brought me on this trip just to make fire for you,” he joked and she burst out laughing.

“I fight the bad guys. You make fire. That’s how it works.”

“My masculinity is offended.” Harry huffed as he ran his fingers through his long hair. “But fine. Now I’ve got a bodyguard. Peach, the bodyguard.”

They both dissolved into laughter as she gave his shoulder a playful push and he pretended to fall backward, groaning in pain.

Once the laughter had faded out, the atmosphere was weighed down immediately and silence sank right back in. The pair sat side by side, silently watching the flames dancing on top of the pile of woods.

The flickering light slowly hypnotized the princess, but as the heat melted the snow on her clothes, she began to feel the discomfort when water soaked into her shirt, pants and undergarments. She was wearing more layers than him, and so she started sweating and shifting on the rock.

“You’re wearing too much,” Harry said suddenly, making her cheeks turn even redder.

“Are you telling me to get naked?”

“Would you prefer wearing wet clothes then?”

She shot him a glare, but she thought he’d got a good point. She had tried to ignore it but the longer she sat there, the more irritating it got. She just wanted to rip all her clothes off and toss them into the fire.

“Just do it,” he encouraged her. “I’ll look away for you to strip. You can cover yourself up with the cloak I stole from the same dead guard.”

“How?!” Her eyes went round when he pulled out the cloak from her own satchel. “I didn’t even see you take it, let alone put it in my bag!”

“That’s called talent, darling. Get used to it when you’re with me.”

She rolled her eyes at the reply and said, “will you swear that you won’t look?”

“Didn’t you say you trusted me?”

“Yes, but all men would stare at a woman’s naked body if given a chance.”

“Not this man.” He said and pointed a thumb to himself. “I already have a--”

“A lover back home,” she finished the sentence for him and sighed. “Fine. Look away. Cover your eyes too.”

“Hey, I have a question,” Harry said, now sitting with his back turned to her and his eyes covered with both hands.

Y/N let out a hum to give him permission to ask.

“How did you meet your lover if you’d spent all your life in the castle? Did the two of you meet in the castle and later on get separated or something?”

“He’s actually my uncle.”

Her response froze him to the spot. He nervously cleared his throat. “Wow, I don’t want to judge anyone but--”

“No! God, no!” Y/N exclaimed, laughing out loud. “I meant to say that it wasn’t my lover that I was going to see. It’s my uncle. I lied just so you would relate to my situation and agree to help me.”

“Smart,” was all Harry said as he released a laugh.

Y/N paused for a second before she continued, “my uncle is the only family member I’ve got left. I used to have my mum but she died four years ago.”

Harry didn’t expect to hear that, and even though he couldn’t see her expression, he could imagine how sad she was just from the sound of her voice.

He opened his mouth, wanting to ask her why she’d stolen from the princess for she seemed softer inside than she was on the outside. But on second thought, it was never a good idea to dive too deep into someone’s past.

“You can turn around now,” she told him, and he finally took his hands off his eyes and turned back to her.

She was sitting down with the black cloak wrapped around herself, hiding her entire body and leaving only her head visible.

“So you’re really naked under that thing?”

She gasped and poked her hand out of the cloak to punch his arm, making him crack up.

“My turn,” she said. “I have a question for you.”

“Go on.”

“Do you have a family?”

“Yeah.” Harry nodded as he folded his arms on top of his knees. “My dad died last year, now it’s just my mum and sister.”

“And your lover.”

“She’s not yet my family.”

“But she will be, right? When you marry her.”

“I guess so.” He shrugged, giving her a smile. “We’ve been friends since we were little. It was my dream to marry her when I grew up, and I will if we make it back to Theros.”

If we make it back to Theros, she replayed those words twice in her head and decided to try to forget about them.

“So she’s your betrothed?”

“What did you just say?”

“Betrothed,” Y/N repeated the word, beaming. “You know, it means--”

“The person you’ll marry,” he said, staring at her attentively. She furrowed her eyebrows in confusion, only because she didn’t know he was having flashbacks. For a second he thought he’d recognized her, that look on her face, those eyes. Could this be--

His thought was interrupted when a strong wind blew into the cave and put out the fire, causing Y/N to scream and cling onto him, her face buried into his chest.

“It’s just wind,” he said with a light chuckle. “Since when did you get scared of anything?”

“I don’t know,” she murmured like a scared little girl. Because right now, she was a scared little girl.

While sitting in front of the fire, she had recalled those nights by the fireplace with her mother, and she had allowed herself to put down her guard. But reality had set back in when the fire went out, and she remembered that they were still in that cave, now surrounded by complete darkness.

“Can you build another fire?” she asked without releasing his arm.

But he didn’t push her away nor ask her to let him go. Calmly, he said, “why don’t you get some rest? I’ll need to find more wood and I’ll build another one.”

“Wait!” She gripped his arm when he attempted to get up. “Can you stay with me until I fall asleep and then get the wood later?”

She didn’t want to ask him for something like this, but she desperately needed to rest for a few moments.

“Sure,” Harry said, patting her on the back.

“Thank you,” Y/N mumbled as she secured the cloak around herself and then snuggled into his arms like she would with her mother when she was a kid. When her eyes fell shut, she dozed off immediately.

.

.

.

It was around noon when they woke up. The birds were chirping outside as if there had never been a storm.

Y/N was the first to open her eyes. Her limbs were aching, probably from riding Thunder through the blizzard. But something felt strange. Why did her body feel so light? And why was the ground warm and...moving?

No, she wasn’t lying on the ground. She was lying on top of Harry. Her cloak had been discarded in her sleep. He was still fully clothed but she was completely naked on top of him. Her entire body stiffened as she was too shocked to react, but then she felt his gloved hand on her lower back moving down to her buttock so she pushed herself right off him.

Harry’s eyes shot opened and he screamed when he saw Y/N’s naked body. He jolted up. She quickly picked up her clothes and covered her front as fast as possible.

“Why are you naked?!” He turned away, holding his head with both hands as if trying to figure out if he’d done anything to her that he didn’t remember.

No, he didn’t, she thought. He still had his clothes on and the bottle hadn’t been touched. He wasn’t drunk. Wait, where’s my cloak?!

Y/N frantically looked around and her eyes stopped at Thunder, who was standing in a corner with a black cloak covering his back.

“Really, Thunder?!” she raised her voice, causing Harry to snap his head to look at the horse.

“Did he steal your cloak to keep himself warm?” he said, trying not to laugh, but she couldn’t blame him for finding this funny.

“Apparently so.” She rolled her eyes and Thunder nickered at her in response.

“Don’t worry, I only saw your breasts,” Harry said, making her jaw drop.

“How is that supposed to make me feel anything but worry, Harry?!”

The corners of Harry’s mouth quirked up as he got on his feet and turned away without being asked to.

“Eyes,” she reminded him, making him chuckle and bring his hands up.

“Covered.”

“Thank you.”

She quickly put her clothes back on, mentally cursing at herself, Thunder and Harry too. Once she was done, she cleared her throat to give him permission to turn around.

With a big smile on his face, he eyed her from head to toes, making her feel even more naked than before. She had never fallen asleep with a man let alone while she was naked! Another first for her, but this one was certainly not an achievement.

“I’m sorry about that.” She looked down at her feet to avoid eye contact with him. The blood was rising up to her face and she knew Harry was dying to make another joke about the nickname Peach. But he didn’t. He only laughed.

“You were really...smooth and soft. Like a human pillow.”

The comment earned him a death glare.

“That was a compliment.”

“I will break your neck.”

“Woah, woah, woah. Calm down, lady!” He took a step back as she stepped forward. “I only caught a glimpse of your breasts and nothing else below the waist. I swear on my life.”

“Why are you so calm?” she asked, crossing her arms and watching him put his fur coat back on.

“Because I’ve seen the female body plenty of times before?”

“So you’ve been unfaithful to your lover then.” Y/N stuck her nose up and furrowed her brows. “You said you’d known her since you were small. She should be the only female body you’ve seen if you two are brave enough to lie with each other before marriage.”

“Who raised you? The nuns?”

“Decent and educated people, actually. Were you raised by monkeys?”

Harry rolled his eyes as he strapped the sword back to his waist. “We were best friends before lovers. I’d been with other women before her but no one since her. Kenny is going to be my wife so...”

“Kenny?”

“Ugh, why did I tell you her name? Now you’re going to think you’re my friend.” He tossed his head back and smacked his forehead. But Y/N didn’t react, she was just gawking at him.

“I think I’ve heard that name before,” she whispered but it was loud enough for him to hear.

He looked at her funny. “Are you about to make another joke about how Southerners have basic names? Because the name Kenny is pretty unique.”

“That’s why it’s strange. It’s unique but I’ve definitely heard it before.”

“Then it must have been someone else because Kenny has never been out of Theros.” Harry scoffed as he picked up Y/N’s sword and tossed it to her. She caught it effortlessly, earning a smirk from him.

“Let’s go,” he said but covered his mouth so he wouldn’t laugh out loud.

“Stop thinking about it!”

“What? Your breasts?”

“And stop saying that word! God, what is wrong with you?!” She stomped her foot and followed him to where their horses were waiting. Embarrassed, she took the cloak off Thunder’s back and put it away as fast as she could, but she knew Harry would never let it go.

“Your nickname has a whole new meaning now, Peach.”

“One more word and I will cut your throat in your sleep. Got it?”

With a smirk, he locked his lips with an invisible key and tossed it over his shoulder. Y/N rolled her eyes at him and turned back to her horse. This is going to be a long trip, she told herself.

[vanilla107]

The Absurd Plan to get Amity Blight a Girlfriend (Chapter 2)

Summary: “You’re late Mittens. Caught up at school like the teacher’s pet you are?” Edric teased and she rolled her eyes.

“I was hanging out with my friends. I have a life outside of school you know,” Amity huffed before a book fell out of her bag and the twins stared at it. 

It was the latest Azura the Good Witch novel and she quickly picked it up and shoved it back into her bag.

“So…hanging out means Azura book club? With Luz huh?” Emira winked and she gritted her teeth.

“We’re just friends and happen to like the same books. Leave it alone.”

“We never said anything about you two being more than friends…right Ed?”

Chapter: 1 / 2 / 3 

Read on AO3

“Hey Emira…I was thinking that we should change up our strategy a little,” Edric said when they got home that afternoon.

“What do you mean? We planned everything already,” Emira said as she flopped onto the chaise lounge.

“Well now that we’ve ‘promised’ Mittens that we’ll back off, I think we should…physically at least. I know that we only were supposed to do this on Thursday, but I think she’ll be suspicious if we try any physical contact tomorrow,” he explained, and she sighed.

“Okay fine. We don’t want this falling through, so we’ll do this one change for her,” she said, “What are we doing then?”

“I thought we’d swap tomorrow’s plans for Thursday’s.”

“Thursday? Hmmm…that means that-” her eyes widened.

“Em? What’s wrong?”

“The flowers! We can’t order flowers of the size we wanted for tomorrow! It’s impossible!”

Edric closed his eyes and thought for a moment before smiling.

“Wait, I have an idea!”

“Let’s hear it,” Emira mumbled.

“What if we spoke to Willow? Luz and Amity’s friend? She does plant magic and she’s strong! She could do it!”

Emira paused for a moment and she grinned.

“Surprisingly…that idea doesn’t suck Ed! Okay, but how do we convince her to do flowers of that size without raising suspicion? We have to think of a good enough reason for her to make flowers for Luz.”

“It’s not Luz’s birthday anytime soon…actually I don’t know when her birthday is and none of the special holidays are coming up…ugh why does this have to be so hard!” Edric said resting his head on his hand.

“Wait…when did Luz start attending Hexside?” Emira asked and Edric drew a circle before a calendar illusion appeared in his hands.

“It says here…roughly a month ago. Why? Can we celebrate that?”

“Well she’s attended a month at Hexside so we can celebrate a month at Hexside! We don’t know how long Luz is supposed to be here so that’s a reason to celebrate!”

Edric raised his eyebrows before shrugging his shoulders.

“That works for me. I don’t have any other ideas so let’s go with that one.”

“Great! We just need to find Willow and ask her!”

~~~

They ran back to school and to the green house. They knew Willow hung out there sometimes after school, but they weren’t hopeful either. She was Luz’s friend, not theirs and for all they knew, she could’ve gone home but to their relief, she was there, watering her plants.

"Hey Willow!" Edric said and she jumped in surprise.

She turned to face them before cocking her head to the side in confusion.

"Hey Edric and Emira…um...what are you doing here?" she asked, and they smiled at her.

“We have a favour to ask,” Edric responded and she looked at them warily.

"No, I'm not going to create plant bombs for you," Willow said flatly and she turned back to her flowers.

The twins cringed, remembering how Boscha stole some of Willow's special seeds two weeks ago and mixed them with one of her exploding potions. That day had been nearly disastrous for Hexside, with plants growing randomly around the school before exploding, but Principal Bump managed to stop it and suspended Boscha for two weeks.

"Wait, we don't want plant bombs! Well actually those do sound pretty cool-" Edric said but Emira pushed him aside.

"It's for Luz and you're the only person who we know could do it."

Willow turned around slowly, exhaled and adjusted her glasses.

“What favour?”

The twins were aware of how Amity broke off her friendship with the girl years ago, but never knew any details. They didn’t know how it all happened and what had changed until they asked Amity about it a few weeks ago after they caught her having lunch with Willow.

After Amity explained what had transpired between them, they couldn’t help but feel sorry for her.

Emira and Edric always had each other, so there was never an urgent need to make friends and when they did, it was coincidence that those friends ended up being from families that their parents approved of.

Amity had just been unlucky.

They had decided to keep Amity’s rekindled friendship with Willow a secret from their parents.

"Well you see the thing is, it’s Luz's one-month anniversary at Hexside tomorrow and it's a Blight family tradition to celebrate! We usually get a huge bouquet of flowers, but our order got cancelled last minute!" lied Emira.

"Yeah, apparently there was an infestation and the pesticide was not flower friendly," Edric nodded, "So, we're asking if you could do us a huge favour and make some flowers with your plant magic?  We've called other flower stores but it's impossible to get an order that huge in time for tomorrow."

“A Blight family tradition to celebrate the first month attending Hexside? Amity never mentioned that when we were kids,” Willow said, an unsure look on her face.

“Yep, a tradition! We usually get them when were really young because ‘first day of magic school in the baby class’ and all that but because Luz only started recently, we thought it would be a nice gesture to make her feel more welcome. Amity probably doesn't remember her bouquet.”

Willow thought for a moment before smiling.

"That's really sweet of you two! I'd be happy to help. Is there anything specific you'd want me to do?"

The twins grinned before showing them a sketch of what they had given to the previous florist.

"We know plant magic can be hard to control since it is nature and all but if you could do this, we'd be in debt to you," Emira said as she handed her the sketch.

Willow looked at their sketch and adjusted her glasses before taking in a deep breath.

"It's definitely something I've never done and quite complicated. It will take me some time, but I'll give it a try. No promises that it will work though!" she quickly added.

They thanked her before sitting back and letting her work her magic. They watched her first couple attempts fail before it started taking shape.

Half an hour later, they were bored and Edric had started to make mini plant illusions while Emira scrolled through her Penstagram.

“Done!” Willow announced and they jumped up so they could see her work.

She presented them the extravagant bouquet and their jaws dropped at the final product. It was a large creation made of plaited vines, silver fern and red roses wrapped in floral tape with a silver bow around it.

"I know these aren’t the exact flowers you wanted but I felt since it's for Luz...I added a little bit of human flare. Boiling Isles flowers can be a little harsh on the eyes and Luz mentioned how much she was missing roses the other day, so I've been researching and practicing how to grow them. I removed the thorns and I added the Boiling Isles silver fern you wanted and the vines as too your instructions."

"Willow...this exceeded our expectations! Thank you! It's gorgeous! This is so much better than the other flowers we initially planned," Emira gasped as she felt the soft petals.

“What do red roses mean? They smell beautiful,” Edric asked, inhaling the scent.

“Red roses specifically mean love but if that’s not the message you’d like to bring across I could change them to something else if you want-”

“No! It’s perfect!” Edric said quickly and Emira marveled at the flowers.

Edric looked at his sister, amazement in his eyes before turning back to plant witch.

"We must pay you for your services," he began, and Willow lifted both her hands.

"Oh no, it's okay! It's for Luz after all and she deserves it. I’m happy you asked me for help."

"Have you ever thought of running your own floral shop when you graduate?" Emira inquired.

"I mean...I have thought about it but...I don't know. I love plant magic, but I don't know the first thing to running a business."

"Willow, you'd be great! Just think about it."

"I guess I could give it a try...maybe do some commissions for the school first?"

"That's the spirit! Now we going to leave this here and tomorrow morning we’ll put it in her locker. She's going to be so surprised!"

~~~

“Be quiet Emira! We don’t want to get caught!” Edric grumbled and she tried to hold in her laughter.

It was Tuesday and they were cutting class so that they could put the bouquet into Luz’s locker before lunch.

“Okay, I think we managed to get it in without damaging it as well as the locker,” Emira whispered and Edric nodded before he gently tickled the locker and it opened its mouth, growling at the bouquet it's mouth.

“We know those flowers are a hassle, but they will be removed shortly,” he whispered to the locker and the locker seemed to sigh before closing its mouth.

The bell screamed for lunch and they quickly walked away from the locker so that they could watch the scenario play out in front of them. After a few minutes, students began filling up the corridor to swap books from their locker or make their way to the cafeteria.

“Look! Look! There’s Luz with Amity and Willow!” Emira pointed as the three students walked to their lockers.

They watched Luz laugh at something their sister said and noticed that Amity's cheeks went red and she shyly tucked a strand of hair behind her ear.

“Damn, Mittens has got it bad. How does Luz not see it?” Emira snickered.

“She’s probably so caught up with wanting to be a witch, she doesn’t notice,” Edric said and gripped his sister’s wrist as Luz tickled her locker, "Look! She's opening it!"

Luz let out a scream when the bouquet fell into her hands and the rest of the students in the corridor turned to look at the commotion. It took the girl a couple seconds to realise that she was holding flowers before she gasped and raised them to her face and breathed in their scent.

“Roses?” she squealed before noticing a tiny card sticking out the bouquet.

Whispers came from the other students and she read the card and her cheeks were bright red.

“Who’s it from Luz?” Willow asked before spotting the twins and giving them a small smile.

“It’s from Edric and Emira! It’s a gift to celebrate my first month here!” she giggled before smelling the roses again.

“What?” Amity asked before looking at the card, “A Blight family tradition? We don’t have a-”

Edric and Emira sensed that Amity would blow their cover and made their way towards the group.

“-Luz! We see you got our gift!” Emira said and Luz looked up before smiling widely.

“Amity could you hold these? I need to thank Edric and Emira,” she said as she handed her friend the bouquet.

Luz ran up to them and hugged them both and they smirked at Amity, who had an expression of disbelief and confusion on her face.

“These are so thoughtful you two! Roses are my favourite! How did you know?” she asked as she pulled away.

“A lucky guess,” Edric said.

“Only the most beautiful flowers for the most beautiful human in the Boiling Isles,” Emira said as she winked at Luz.

They cast a glance at their sister who looked outraged.

“Edric. Emira. Can we talk?” she asked, each word dripping with anger as she handed back the roses to Luz.

The twins grinned before excusing them from Willow and Luz and followed Amity down the corridor, out of earshot from her friends.

“What is this?” Amity hissed, gesturing to Luz who was still sniffing the roses.

“Just a gift, baby sister,” Emira said.

“We know how hard Luz has been working and we wanted to do something nice…can’t we do something nice for a classmate?” Edric asked and Amity shifted uneasily before narrowing her eyes.

"She's not your classmate! You're two years ahead of us!"

"Okay then, we wanted to do something nice for a friend," Emira smiled.

“What are your intentions? I told you to back off yesterday!”

"Intentions? Seriously, Amity we're just trying to be nice!" Edric said in exasperation.

“Amity! We’re trying to do something nice for once and this is your reaction? We thought you’d appreciate us liking your friends but clearly not,” Emira said frowning, frustration in her voice.

“I…I just…” Amity trailed off, looking down in embarrassment.

“Mittens. We said we’d back off yesterday and we planned the roses a few weeks back. It would’ve been a waste of money and flowers if we cancelled it,” murmured Edric and Amity seemed to shrink into herself before sighing.

“I’m sorry for how I reacted. I’m so used to you two messing with me and now that Luz is here…it’s just hard to know what your angle is,” Amity mumbled, and the twins laughed.

“No angle here, Mittens. We just want to get to know your friends better, especially Luz cause she’s human. It’s been a while since you were this happy and we wanted to do something nice. Honest!” Emira said and squeezed her sister’s shoulder gently.

That wasn't a complete lie. Amity was happier than they've ever seen her but they did have a angle.

Amity nodded slowly before looking back to Luz who was discussing with Willow where to keep the roses until school ended.

“I better get going to lunch and...thanks for being nice to my friends,” she murmured and walked back to Luz and Willow before they headed to the cafeteria.

Edric and Emira high-fived once they were gone and laughed.

“She looked ready to strangle us!”

“And her face-”

“Good job on the lying, Ed. I’m so proud of us! Now all we need to do is to get Luz alone after school. Mittens has training this afternoon with Lilith so it’s best we’re in view of her at least.”

“Wait…wasn’t it supposed to rain this afternoon? How are we going to get Luz alone, within range of Amity without being hit by the boiling rain?” he asked and Emira rubbed her chin thoughtfully before her face brightened.

“I know exactly what we should do!”

~~~

“Come on Luz. It’s just a little further!”

“Where are we going Emira? You kinda ambushed me...but I’m also filled with nervous excitement!” the Latina exclaimed.

“You don’t want me to ruin the surprise now do you, cutie?” Emira asked with a wink and Luz let out a nervous laugh before looking away so that Emira couldn't see her blush.

She had been so focused on avoiding eye contact with her that she hadn’t seen a branch in her path and tripped over it, nearly falling on her face in the process. Luz waited for the impact of the hard ground on her cheek but instead she felt warmth and the scent of jasmine.

She looked up and her eyes widened when she realized that Emira had caught her in her arms.

“You okay?” Emira asked with a giggle, and Luz nodded quickly before standing up properly and, to Emira's delight, was a lovely shade of red.

“Good because we're hear! I like to call this place The Sanctuary. No teachers and no students ever come here because it’s rumoured to have a curse” -Luz gasped before hiding behind a tree and Emira laughed-  “But that was a rumour Ed and I made up to keep people away. This area gets the best sun on warm days and it’s perfect to just…get away from the rest of the world.”

Luz took in the sight of the area and at that moment, the sun peeked from behind the clouds for a minute and light up everything in gold.

“Woah…it’s like those places in fairy stories that’s filled with magic,” Luz said in awe and Emira smiled.

“Well…the Boiling Isles is filled with magic so you’re not too far off. Come on, take a seat with me and just relax.”

“Are…are you sure? The boiling rain is supposed to hit any minute and shouldn’t we head for shelter?”

“It’s only been light showers today and they last five minutes, tops. We’ll be okay. Plus…Lilith will put up a force field in three…two…one-”

On cue, there was a burst of blue in the air and Luz jumped in surprise. She turned around and peeked behind the bushes to see Lilith and Amity in the centre. From the looks of it, Amity was nodding along to every word coming out of Lilith's mouth before she drew a circle and an abomination appeared.

“Don’t worry. Amity’s training session is over and they’re just cooling down. Lilith just puts up a force field on days like this when it seems like it’ll rain,” Emira said and Luz nodded, her eyes glued to Amity and Lilith.

“Luz, they’re just doing some breathing exercises with an abomination. You’re not missing out on anything,” Emira chuckled and Luz blushed once more.

“Sorry. I got excited since Lilith’s in the Emperor’s Coven so I thought I could watch what she'd teach Amity but it’s okay,” she smiled before sitting down.

"Lilith usually leaves once Amity starts her breathing exercises so you will only be seeing Amity and an abomination. No Lilith today," Emira said.

She tilted her head back and bathed in the little amount of sun that was provided while Emira undid her plait and ran a hand through her hair. A couple seconds later, it began to rain and Luz watched the raindrops sizzle above them on the force field.

“Your hair’s really long Emira. It’s lovely,” Luz noticed and yawned, the sun making her feel lethargic.

“Thanks Luz. Have you ever thought of growing out your hair?”

“I got it cut a few months back because it's hard to maintain natural hair consistently but I’m learning. I’d like to have long hair like Azura one day and maybe dye it like Amity’s!”

Emira gave her a smile before looking over her shoulder and glancing at her sister. From what it looked like, Lilith and Amity were almost done with their breathing exercises and Lilith seemed to be in deep discussion with her.

“Hey Luz…how close are you and Amity? Just asking because you two seem to be getting along more.”

Luz thought for a moment before responding.

“After she patched things up with Willow, it’s been better. We talk more often, chat about Azura and she tells me bits of her life like how she was Grudgby Captain! So, to answer your question, I think we’re good friends!”

Emira internally groaned at Luz’s obliviousness but shrugged it off. For all she knew, Luz didn’t want to be in a relationship but that didn’t mean that her hopelessly romantic sister didn’t know that.

“That’s good to hear and I’m glad that it has been a little easier. So…now for the juicy stuff-”

She turned to look into Luz’s eyes and grinned.

“Do you have a crush on anyone?” she asked, and Luz’s face immediately went red.

“What? No! I mean…no particular interest in anyone right now…I mean there was this one prince who ended up being a puppet to this demon creature thing and that didn’t plan out the way I expected,” she mumbled and Emira chuckled.

“I’m sorry, didn’t mean to make you uncomfortable Luz. I just thought we’d do some bonding since Amity talks about you all the time and she never really spoke much about Boscha and Skara.”

“She talks about me?”

“Yeah! How amazing you are and how hard you’re working to becoming a witch,” Emira said, trying to be subtle but laying it on thick.

Emira stood up and stretched before looking at the sky, the rain stopping drop by drop.

“But Amity's so cool too! She’s smart and-”

“Well, have you told her that?”

“I…no…no I haven’t.”

“Well you should! The next time you two talk, you should mention it. Some words of encouragement are good to hear from time to time!”

Luz smiled widely, stood up and hugged Emira.

“Thanks for everything Em. I know Amity and I got off on the wrong foot but it's really thanks to you and Edric. If we hadn't faced certain death that night in the library, I think it might've taken longer for us to be friends.”

Emira laughed loudly and for a moment didn't care if Amity spotted them. Luz was a strange human but she liked her and was happy that she could help...even if that help meant almost humiliating her sister with her diary entries when they first met.

“No problem, Luz. Now, I think we should get going before it starts raining again,” she said as she looked up at the dark clouds, "It looks like these clouds won't just last a couple minutes."

Luz grinned before grabbing Emira’s hand, her eyes sparkling.

“Race you back to school? Last one there is a student of Glandus High!”

They ran off laughing but in the distance, in the middle of the field, Amity glared at them before letting out a sigh.

"Emira was just talking to Luz. Don't over think it," she mumbled to herself.

But she couldn't help it.

She had seen them hug and even though it was a quick one, Amity still felt her insides squeeze uncomfortably. She saw how Luz grabbed her sister's hand and she groaned.

Calm down Amity. Your siblings are being nice and are getting to know your friends better. Ed and Em said they wouldn't manipulate Luz or do any funny business. Just breathe in...you are overthinking things and you just need to breathe-

"They're just being nice people to your friends! Stop worrying about it!" she yelled, her emotions getting the better of her and some birds flew from the trees at the sound of her voice.

"Amity?" Lilith asked from behind her and she jumped before turning to face her mentor.

"Lilith! I thought you left! Sorry. Just some frustrations at school. Small things that don't need to be worried about," she said quickly and Lilith nodded.

"I forgot my bag here and I was going to let you wind down by yourself but...let's do one final breathing exercise together and then you can go home. It looks like you need it."

Amity bit her bottom lip in embarrassment and nodded before standing next to Lilith.

Just breathe. Ed and Em are not up to anything weird. This is normal. This is fine.

But the sinking feeling in her stomach said otherwise.

~~~

A/N: Hello everyone!

Firstly, thank you all so much for the lovely comments on chapter one! <3 They made this last week bearable as I had assignments due and I would just reread them to give me a push to finish my work so I could update as soon as possible!

Also damn updating in just a week? I'm one to usually go on month long hiatuses but after Agony of a Witch...my dudes...I needed to write happy stuff.I hope you all have a lovely day further and as always, if you liked reading this, leave a comment, reblog or a like!

 Feel free to follow me on Twitter or Tumblr to see my writing and rambles (you'll also get notifications from me about updates earlier so...if you're that obsessed with this fic then...you know what to do).

Stay safe and wear a mask! vanilla107 xoxo

[paperficwriter]

A Deer Dance (Charlastor, Hazbin Hotel)

Alastor is a deer demon, and while he's never been lonely, he's not going to say no to a little doe that seems as interested in him as he with her.

Dirty Paper warning!

---

Living or dead, Alastor always did like to believe that he was one of a kind. The best of the best, and a step above the rest. And, in many ways, he was right; when he compared himself to other radio personalities, or home chefs, or, now, demon lords, that knowledge that he was better would add a skip in his step and the huge smile on his face.

He wondered if that gap that remained open between him and everyone else was the reason why his appearance was so different here. He’d never seen another deer demon before. All of the other shapes of demonic beasts were represented, certainly. Wolves. Bears. Goats. God, so many goats, it had ruined any dish with meat or milk that he might come across.

There were rumors of others, but perhaps his presence, his power, had sent them all into hiding.

That would make sense. Alastor didn’t particularly appreciate being shown up (and most denizens across the Nine Circles were more than aware of that). Just his average appearance - his dashing suit, the cloven prints of his shoes, the long fluffy tufts of his hair and his sharp-toothed grin - parted many a crowd, but in his true demonic form with its rack of horns and dead-eyed, sharp-toothed leer, most hoped to just survive the encounter.

But it was in his fairly casual shape that he went to Mimzy’s Club for a colorful event that she was hosting that particular evening. The Burlesque Revue had been all the talk across the city for several weeks before, something that was supposed to combine the lurid fantasies that were commonplace in this corner of Hell with something a little more artistic.

“Listen, if there’s gonna be stripping, ain’t nobody gonna say no to that,” he had heard one demon say as they looked at the poster of one particularly long-legged dame with a boa around her shoulders. “If they wanna make it fancy, s’alright by me, just so long as they take it all off at the end, yeah?”

There certainly wasn’t any proof that Alastor had set the unbearable dolt on fire. People combust all the time in Hell!

After all, the concept alone sounded entertaining enough for Alastor, that was for certain, but what really intrigued him the most was the rumor that the whole thing was being hosted to bring attention to some hospitality project being taken on by the Princess of Hell herself, Charlotte Magne. And if she was anything like the classical piece of art her mother Lilith was on stage, he did not want to miss this for anything.

Mimzy clearly had tried to doll up the place. There were fairy lights everywhere, and thick drapes of black and red velvet scooped down from each pillar along the edge of the club floor. An entire area had been elevated into a stage and that was littered with props and poles and bars.

“Al!” Mimzy gushed as soon as he came in, rushing over to take both of his hands. “I can’t tell you how happy I am to see you. These people are annoying the shit out of me. I forgot how the artsy crowd could be such a bunch of divas.”

“Mim, Mim, Mim,” he tutted, “I think you just described the entire population of the here-after. The artists just happen to have practice, don’t you know?”

They laughed about that, and then someone spoke up behind him, a young, sweet voice that was so different from the raucous roar he was used to that it was almost startling. “Hey, Mimzy, I’m so sorry to bother you. Can we get a little more light on stage left?”

“What do I look like, an electrician?”

“No, but the electrician snuck into one of the dancer’s dressing rooms, and I’m pretty sure he won’t be waking up anytime soon.”

Mimzy sighed as Alastor turned to the source of the voice. “I’ll get right on it, Princess,” she groused before disappearing.

And there she was. The Heir to the Throne of Hell. What had Alastor been expecting? Someone dressed like Lucifer, probably, a mess of over-the-top vaudevillian aesthetic and an extremely untrustworthy face. And yet somehow, that horrible cretin had helped to birth the most beautiful creature Alastor had ever laid his eyes on. Even if it had just been the classy black dress, the diamonds in a cascading pattern down her neck, the silver apple tiara atop her blond hair styled in a gorgeous updo...all that would have been more than enough to catch Alastor’s attention, but then...

“Charlie. Please.” She said it like it was one of a thousand times she had insisted. And although Mimzy was already gone, her ears perked at Alastor.

Her slightly furry, tear-drop shaped ears, and a tail turned up behind her where the dress had been perfectly cut to let it out.

Another demon just like him. No, not just like him. A doe.

“Well,” he greeted with a low bow. “I’m glad I won’t be making that mistake. I will never call you by a name that is not your preference, my dear.”

She giggled into her hand, covered by a long opera glove that matched the black of her dress. “I appreciate it. And you must be Alastor. Unless you prefer ‘the Radio Demon’?”

Oh, she was a quick one. Not that Alastor was ever good at flying under the radar. “I would prefer ‘yours,’ actually.”

That got an even darker blush from her already-rosy cheeks. Her tail twitched a little bit. “That’s a title that comes with many responsibilities, Alastor,” she said through a little smile, clearly trying to keep up with him.

“Where do I send my resume, darling, because I’m always looking for a job with better benefits.”

“Well, you certainly know how to dress to impress.” Charlie bit her lip as she glanced at him up and down. Alastor knew when he was being sized up, and he let her take him in, knowing already that she was having the same response to him as he had to her. You’re someone like me, her eyes said. After so long.  

“Maybe in this case,” he said quietly, stepping in close to her. “I should have left the suit at home. After all, you should dress for the job you want, shouldn’t you?”

Charlie leaned in. This close, he could see all the soft strands of fur on her ears, the pink inside. He wanted so, so much to touch them, but...not yet. There would be time and privacy for that yet. “I’d really like to continue this interview,” she whispered, “but as you can see I have a revue to oversee.”

“After, then,” he said, slipping her hand into his and cradling it. So small. Delicate. “I have a tower with an extremely quaint office overlooking the city. It’s quite comfortable, you’ll find.”

She nodded, voice breathless. “After.”

---

Charlie let Alastor take her home. If anything, Alastor thought he noticed her speed up a bit through her acknowledgements and post-show credits, now and then glancing his way. Nobody else would notice, but he could see the way her tail was flashing, how she wanted to run.

Run to him, no less.

And she did, in the huge fluffy stole that she had worn on stage after her act when her dress had been taken off and then pulled back on only as a skirt, her pale skin just showing though her breasts were hidden. He had never driven himself faster back to his Radio Tower.

The only person down in the “lobby” was Husk, and he was playing a computerized slot machine that he had won in a game with Alastor (though to be fair, Alastor let him win, because otherwise he threatened to leave altogether, and one piece of infernal technology was payment enough for service he could count on).

“Don’t wait up, Husker-chum,” he said, Charlie on his arm.

“Why the fuck would I literally ever care what you are do...do...” He trailed off in that moment. Husk had looked up momentarily from the game, catching a glance at Charlie, and his mouth just stayed in that same ‘o’ until they were in the elevator. Then, as though realizing that the moment Charlie went upstairs with Alastor it would all be over, he fell over himself running toward the quickly-closing doors. “Hey, what’s the rush?!” he asked hastily. “Let’s hang out! The night’s young! We can get some drinks or hit a bar or--” Alastor snapped his fingers, and the doors refused to open, even as he hit the button. “I’m not always great with sharing,” he said as Charlie was quietly laughing into the fur around her neck.

“Good,” she said, dropping the wrap to the red floor. She stood before him now with nothing but diamonds from the waist up, blinking at him bashfully despite the fact that she was the one who had made this quite-forward, more-than-brazen move. In the mirrored wall of the elevator, he could see her tail, soft and twitching just so. Now, now he did reach out to caress it, to run his long fingers through it. She shivered and instinctively huddled close to him. “So what were you saying about your qualifications before?”

As much as he had planned to continue their little tete-a-tete, it was hard to manage at the sight of her so natural. He pulled her out of the elevator when they reached the top floor and made quick work of getting her out of the rest of the dress. He dragged his mouth across her thigh, the little freckles there looking like the same pattern on young does.

At some point, his antlers sprang from his head, creaking slightly like branches over them, and when she sprang to his boudoir, he didn’t know how she would respond to his coming up from behind her, grabbing her waist and pressing in tight and close where she could feel the bulge in his pants.

He didn’t think she would moan and raise her tail to him, inviting him inside.

It wasn’t the only way they would have one another that night, but it was the most intense. The most instinctive, the best and only way he could imagine fucking in this form of his that he had gained. They didn’t speak, not even each other’s names, and yet he felt like he had known her for eternity before that, and that she wasn’t some mysterious woman that had just happened to fall into his life.

They didn’t even kiss until that first round was over, when she was gasping and clutching at the covers of his four-post bed, and he had nuzzled her face until it met his.

“I think,” she said softly, sometime quite a while later, her head on his chest, gold hair now free and messy all over his sheets, “we might have a position available for you.”

“Only one?” he teased as he rolled her onto her back and came back down to kissing her neck.

[daysswithyou]

Fallen Chapter 15: Lucky one

previous / next

Characters: DAY6 Young K x OC (Rachel)

Genre: angst, fake dating, high school romance, fluff, romance

Playlist

------

“Wait, just one moment.”

“What is it again!”

Your aunt sighs in exasperation as you run back up the stairs to your bedroom for the third time in the past 5 minutes, wondering why you’re still not satisfied with your appearance. Sticking your face close to the mirror, you dab a little bit more of the pink lipstick off your lips, finally backing away when you found yourself looking acceptable. With the pink lipstick looking less vibrant now, you breathed a sigh of relief, hoping that your little effort to tone down your makeup was actually working. You wanted to look good, but you didn’t want to overdo it either.

“Are you finally happy with your look now?”

You can see your aunt folding her arms across her chest in the mirror, her lips set in a thin line as you turn to smile sheepishly at her.

“Yes, I think I’m finally presentable now.”

“What nonsense, you’re more than presentable Rachel. You look absolutely stunning tonight.”

“Oh, please don’t say that! You’re only going to give me more jitters!”

“You know that I’m right. Besides, Brian will like you even if you’re wearing a trash bag; I’ve seen the way the boy looks at you. He’s absolutely in love with you.”

Your heart stops for a moment as you process your aunt’s words, your heart breaking a little when you doubt her words.

It’ll be great if he does… but he doesn’t.

Too lost in your own thoughts, you absentmindedly followed your aunt as she guided you by the elbow to the door, giving you a once over before leaving you with some advice that floats over your head.

“Come home safely, and don’t drink too much. If Brian drinks, don’t let him drive.”

“Uh…”

The door to your house is then flung open and you watch as Brian waves to your aunt in greeting.

“Bring her home safe! And don’t drive if you drink!”

“Got it!”

Brian flashes your aunt a thumbs up as he grins at her, but the smile fades after you hear the door shut behind you with a soft thud, the look on his face now one of wonderment. The two of you stand in silence for a few moments, taking time to admire one another.

His hair is done differently today – his slightly longer hair slicked back to reveal his handsome forehead. His crisp navy-blue suit adds an air of youthfulness around him, making him look suave. The sleeves are rolled up till the point just below his elbows, exposing the forearm and hands that were used to protect you.

You had matched him today – upon his request – with a navy-blue dress. It was one with your favourite halter neck, the bodice of the dress covered in sweet lace details. The skirt that ended just above your knees billowed around you slightly as a gentle breeze passed by, causing your hair, worn down today, to flutter around your face.

Both of you simply stand in your spots, wishing for time to stop so that you had all the time in the world to marvel at one another’s beauty. Yet the sun was setting in the horizon, signalling that the wedding will start soon, and that both of you should really get going.

Stepping off the steps of your front porch, and him off the pavement, both of you walked till you met one another right in the middle. You stood there unmoving for a short while, peeping up at Younghyun nervously from beneath your lashes. He remained the same as he was a few seconds ago, still carrying the same look of amazement on his face, his lips parted slightly in astonishment. Extremely self-conscious now under his focused gaze, you tugged your dress lower, hoping to cover more skin and you looked past his shoulders; at the horizon, at the clouds – refusing to look anywhere but him.

With a timid voice, you ask,

“W- W- Why are you looking at me like that? Does it look bad?”

“No! No, it doesn’t look bad at all!”

Startled by his huge response, you turn your head to look at the previously stoic boy, surprised to find him instead with eyes blown wide, a look of seriousness on his face as he waved his hands fervently, trying to convince you that you looked good. In fact – to him – you were more than good. You were absolutely breath-taking – maybe even perfect.

After a few moments of frantic gesturing, he then falls silent again as his hands still, mouth slightly agape as he continues to admire you. His eyes slowly scan over the details of your dress, right down to the silver straps of your high heels. You continue observing him as he slowly takes in the exquisite sight in front of him; his gaze on you not at all predatory, love shining out of his twinkling eyes instead.

The sight in front of you makes your heart throws all caution out of the window and for tonight, you just go where it feels right.

Brian is still beaming at you when his eyes finally find their way back to your face, the shy curve of your lips making him smile. In his mind, he has a grand speech all planned out; he wants to talk about how the navy of the dress brings out the colours of your eyes, or how your loosely worn hair is such a drastic yet nice change from your usual neat hairdo in school. He'll even talk about the perfectly timed moments; about how the soft orange glow from dusk shines upon the planes of your face perfectly, making your usually sharp eyes look gentler now. If he could, he would go on and on about how wonderful you look – yet – you render him speechless and this, is all he manages.

He whispers his next words softly, so softly that you would not have heard it, if not for the gentle breeze carrying them to your ears.

"Wow. You look beautiful Rachel. Really."

You could no longer contain your laughter, throwing your head back to let it out freely as your teeth show in a radiant smile. Brian captures this moment like a snapshot in his mind – the first time that you’re so carefree around him – and stores it safely in his memory forever. When you finally come back up to face him, he spots the stray strand of hair that has escape from your hairdo due to your actions just now. He instinctively reaches out to tuck it behind your ear as the other hand gently clasps around your fingers to pull you closer.

His adoring eyes never left yours as he does so, the rough pads of his fingers resting against your jaw as he continues to repeat the words to himself, his physical body unable to contain his feelings towards you anymore.

“You’re so beautiful… so, so beautiful…”

“I know that Younghyun, you’ve said that three times already.”

He snaps out of his trance when he hears your voice, his snarky self coming back to make a cheeky remark.

“Have I? I must have been so mesmerised by your beauty that I didn’t even realise it.”

You smack the back of his hand lightly for being too cheesy, scrunching up your nose as you did so. You were supposed to look angry, but Younghyun found your actions absolutely delightful, now beaming brighter than before.

“Kang Younghyun, what are you smiling at? We’re going to be late; we should leave now.”

“Your wish is my command, my dearest.”

Your eyes grow wide at his flirtatious nickname for you, and Younghyun lets out a hearty laughter at your scandalised expression; one that comes from a place deep within his chest, rumbling with happiness. Teasing you will always be worth it if it meant that he got to see your cute, flustered self.

He turns behind to open the passenger car seat, and you gladly enter, using the precious few seconds he took to round the car and assume his seat beside you to frantically fan your face, willing the blush creeping onto your face to go down instead. But a quick glance into the side mirror reveals a face flushed red; your body reacts to him on its own now, and you have absolutely no control over it anymore. From his spot beside you, Younghyun lets out a small chuckle but quickly starts the car when you turn to glare at him, clearing his throat loudly to ease the tension.

Halfway through the drive there, he lets a hand slip from the steering wheel to reach for yours. He almost does so successfully, until…

“Both hands on the steering wheel Kang Younghyun.”

“Yes ma’am.”

---

The wedding was going on in full force by the time both of you arrive – you could easily spot waiters and waitresses donning their chic black and white uniforms darting through the colourful sea of people, trying their best not to step on the expensive dresses and shoes as they balance flutes of wine on their tray. Your heart palpitates at the inevitable future; having unknown faces staring back at you as you get whisked around to repeat your introduction, perhaps even being forced to make small talk – which sounds like an absolute nightmare.

Brian senses your apprehension, and he’s immediately by your side, fingers gently slipping through yours before giving it a reassuring squeeze.

“What’s wrong?”

“I’m very bad with meeting new people.”

“Don’t worry, I promise to not leave your side. And anytime you want, we can just leave the venue for a while.”

“Thank you.”

“Anything for you sweetheart. Let’s go?”

You nod – and that’s how you found yourself walking into the wedding reception hand in hand with Kang Younghyun – breathing in a deep breath to steel yourself for the onslaught of questions ahead.

---

Younghyun keeps true to his words, and never once leaves your side. He’s always physically reminding you that he’s always there – sometimes it’s a reassuring squeeze of your hand, or his fingers rubbing lazy circles onto your clothed hip, and at other times, his thumb stroking straight lines along your waist. You’re grateful for his support; the slow, almost imperceptible touches helping to soothe your previously frayed nerves. With time, you get much more comfortable talking to his family, although the compliments still catch you off guard. You’re receiving it from everyone – the little ones hug your legs as they babble about how pretty you are through gummy smiles, the elders clasping onto both your hands, complimenting your look as a couple and your kind manners. Younghyun is also getting many claps on the shoulder from his relatives, many telling him that he’s lucky to have you as a girlfriend.

Yet, he thinks – I’m the lucky one here.

By the time you make one round around the entire lobby, your face is hurting from smiling too much, your hands sore from all the squeezing by his relatives. You’re all ready to take a seat on the plush velvet couch at the quiet corner of the room, but Younghyun has other plans.

“I know you’re tired Rachel, but just one last person; the most important one.”

You give him a smile of reassurance as you nod your head, and Younghyun breathes a sigh of relief as he leads the way through the crowd to finally reach the person sitting right at the back of the room. When she turns to look at you, the resemblance to Younghyun is striking, especially the eyes. She had got the same fox-like eyes, sharp at first but immediately melting into gentle crescents when she smiles at you to beckon you forwards.

You turn to Younghyun – asking the silent question – who is she?

He merely smiles at you, before turning his attention back to the lady in front of him.

“Grandma, this is Rachel, the one you’ve been asking about for so long.”

You immediately bow your head when you hear her salutation, realising that you’re now talking to one of the heads of the household. Brian pushes you forward slightly as she reaches her hand out towards you, and you naturally extend your hand to meet hers. Her palms are warm, and you feel the coarseness of her skin when she rubs her palm across the back of your hand, a lasting reminder of decades of hard work before you were even born.

“Rachel my dear! It is so good to finally see you! How have you been? Has our Younghyun been good to you?”

“I’m doing great and Younghyun has been excellent so far… Grandma.”

Addressing her as grandma sounded very foreign on your tongue, yet Younghyun’s grandmother seems to be loving it. The creases on her face deepen as her smile grows upon hearing you address her so affectionately, and her smile is mirrored by Younghyun’s – not that you can see it, with him standing behind you as he keeps one hand on your waist.

“Come Rachel, sit beside me and tell me more about yourself. If Younghyun has been mistreating you, you can tattle on him now, and I’ll make sure to give him a good beating.”

“Grandma!”

You hear Younghyun’s cry of indignation coming from behind, but you can hear the teasing lilt beneath his words, knowing that he isn’t actually angry. Grandma clicks her tongue at Younghyun as she chases him away to talk to his other relatives, before pulling you to sit beside her. Both of you soon lapse into a comfortable conversation, her hands covering yours the entire way. The occasional pat or squeeze of your hand as she listened to you talk was very comforting, albeit something unfamiliar at first. Growing up without parents, you’ve never had the opportunity to have someone hold your hand as you talked, your aunt often busy working to provide for you when you couldn’t. Grandma’s physical touches were a constant reminder that she was listening, and that was especially touching for someone like yourself that grew up lonely. It was very easy talking to her, and that’s what you do; the concept of time getting further lost on you as both of your transit from one topic to the next with ease.

Younghyun watches the entire scene from afar, his heart swelling with adoration at the sight before him. You’ve gained the approval of his grandmother, and it was heartening to see two important people in his life hitting off so well right off the bat.

Like a scene in a movie, this frame is picture perfect – and he wants it to last forever.

[noonaduck]

Elite School pt.1

Pairing: reader x Namjoon, reader x Yoongi Words: 3763 Genre: School AU, Fluff, Angst, Smut in part 2. A/N: Slow building, nothing quite interesting happens in the 1st part. Summary:  You  were one of few lucky students who were selected into South Korea's number one academy to study by scholarship. The school was only fort the elite of the country, those who were rich and smart enough to get in were rare.  your hard work had paid of when you had been granted the scholarship among another student from different school. His name was Kim Taehyung. He fastly become one of your closest friends with his roommate Park Jimin. Kim Namjoon is the leader of the school’s most popular group in where also belonged Jung Hoseok, Kim Seokjin, Jeon Jungkook and your current crush Min Yoongi. After both Namjoon and Yoongi shows interest towards you, your choice between two of them isn’t that easy after all... 1. > 2. coming soon.

[Gifs belongs to their rightful owners]

You were one of few lucky students who were selected into South Korea’s number one academy to study by scholarship. The school was only fort the elite of the country, those who were rich and lucky enough to get in were rare. Even the school knew that commoners would never be able to afford to their academy which was known for its high education that guaranteed that all doors were open for their students. That’s why The school granted two scholarships outside of their academy for the top students of the country. There was countless opportunities and majors to choose for. If you were lucky enough you would be able to spend your whole school life there. Sadly the scholarships was only granted for higher educations . In the huge campus area was two school buildings. One for the primary and secondary school and another for the higher educations. Primary and secondary school building was old mansion with two floors which has belonged to some old elite family. The building for the higher educations was rather modern with it looks, after all it wasn’t old as the other. Huge glass windows covered almost every floor. Even tough the designs of the buildings were quite different they both were colored rusty red. The buildings were located in that way that Higher education building’s entrance was towards the front gates and the other building was on it’s left side sideways. In center of all was huge fountain made of marble. Small angles were pouring water from pots on top of the structure. It was also possible to live in the school dorms, which rather looked like hotel rooms than actual residences for students. The dorms were located near by the school behind the forest which was located backside of school buildings.

Your family wasn’t poor but it was neither rich. Your heritage was half Korean and half [your country ] which showed in your features. Your mother was from [your country] and your father was Korean. You have always been hardworking student who barely had any time for friends. Your main goal had been as long as you could remember to attend one of the top schools and your hard work had paid of when you had been granted the scholarship among another student from different school. His name was Kim Taehyung. You two clicked right away, maybe because you both came from similar backgrounds. You both were regular people among the rich elite. You were a major of literature when Taehyung was focusing becoming top fashion designer. Sadly boys and girls weren’t allowed to live in same dorms so you were left to live in same room as a girl named Soo Jin. You both had your own bedrooms but you shared one bathroom and living space. The living space was decorated with heavy red satin couches in the middle of the room. Top of them were as well red pillows with golden rims. Huge antique carpet covered almost the whole floor and red curtains which matched with couches were hanging in front of huge window. There was also small kitchen corner with newest kitchen gadgets, but Soo Jin never used them. She preferred to eat outside in the school cafeteria which was actually pretty similar to high class restaurant if you did not count that you had to get your food yourself from food line up. Soo Jin was pretty girl with long wavy brown hair and slim body. She had round face and brown eyes like a deer. You weren’t any sort of friends but you get along, Soo Jin mostly liked to ignore you, maybe because of your status. She was majoring in finances, because one day she would inherit her family’s hotel business. You had never have a change to look into Soo Jin’s room, because she kept always her door closed, but you were quite sure that it had the same layout than yours. The doors into your room’s and shared bathroom was also located in the living area also with the front door of your dorm room. You had comfortable bed ,with softest bed sheets you ever had had, opposite of your window where you could see the campus area’s forest. Right under your window was your work desk and top of it was your laptop with your school supplies. Your walls were white with silver decorations and your floor was made of dark wood. small two persons couch was located in corner of your room and next to it was standing full length mirror made of same colored wood as the floor.

You were laying on your bed and reading a book when your phone beeps. It was text from Taehyung.

Tae: *I’m bored, what ya doing?*

You: *Nothing much, I’m reading a book.*

Tae: *Do you want to go to the cafeteria with me and Jimin?*

Park Jimin was Taehyungs roommate and despite their difference in status they had quickly become good friends. Jimin was major at marketing, against his will if I may add, but his side subject was his true passion. It was dancing. It did not matter was it classical or modern, as long as he was able to follow beat of the music with his body.

You: *Idk, I’m not that hungry :I*

Tae: *Jimin is paying ;) .*

You: *On the other hand i could use something to eat.*

Tae: *great, see you in ten at the cafeteria.*

You: See ya :)*

When you arrive to the cafeteria Jimin and Taehyung are already sitting on the table. It was weekend so you were allowed to wear your regular clothes instead school uniforms. You thought that it was stupid how you still had to use school uniforms in this age, but the point was to show of that you were a student of your 'highly valued' school. Jimin’s and Taehyung’s heads were pushed together and they were watching something on Jimin's phone. It was so cute how Taehyungs blonde and Jimin’s orange hair mixed together. The school wasn’t that particular with looks if you weren’t a student in Primary or secondary school, rules there were more strict. Taehyung was wearing long sleeved shirt whit grey and white stripes. On top of his nose was round glasses, which he insisted using even when his eyes were perfectly fine. He had straight white pants and brown leather shoes. Jimin was dressed in more relaxing manner. He had white t shirt with v-collar and loose black pants. He had Adidas sneakers on his feet. You on the other had were wearing loose black shirt with pair of regular jeans. Your H/C hair was at loose ponytail.

“Hi Y/N!” Jimin notices you and waves excitedly.

“Hi.” You greet and sit opposite of two males. In front of Jimin was half eaten muffin and coke bottle and Taehyung had salad with water.

“Sorry, we bought our food while we were waiting, but if you want I can go get something for you?” Jimin asks and smiles shyly at you.

Taehyung had once confessed that Jimin had told him that he had small crush on you. You were touched but did not feel the same way. That why you pretended to be oblivious about his feelings.

“That would be nice, could you get me a coke as well with ham sandwich?” You ask grateful.

“Sure, no problem.” Jimin says and leaves the table. Taehyung is still focused on Jimin’s phone.

“What ya looking at?” You ask and reach towards the phone. Taehyung grins and shows you a video about cat who is balancing on top of a huge ball. You roll your eyes at him ad he just shrugs his shoulders and turns his attention back to the video.

Right then the noise in the cafeteria got louder and you could hear hushed whispers and giggles from girls of nearby table. From the cafeteria doors steps in the schools most popular group leaded no other than by Kim Namjoon itself. Not everyone has change to interact with the elite of elites . Behind him walks Jung Hoseok talking to his other friend Min Yoongi who listens his friend with bored face. Scrolling his phone follows soon after Kim Seokjin, or Jin like he wanted to be addressed. Namjoon was on the top of the top elite being the number one student of the academy. It was almost unfair that with his brilliant mind came such a good looks. He had silver hair pushed back on his forehead and the most beautiful dimples when he smiled. His tall figure was dressed in designer clothes. He had white button up shirt with sleeves that were rolled over his elbows and a silver watch on his right wrist. He was wearing black pants with black polished shoes. He was a literature major like you were. Hoseok ,or Hobi to his friends, was the brightest among the group with a smile that could make even the darkest clouds to fade. He had dark brown hair and straight nose with the most soft looking lips. He was wearing similar outfit than Namjoon except his shirt was black, and instead a watch he was wearing a bracelet. Jung Hoseok came from long heritage of artist and performer family and was majoring as dancer. Min Yoongi was a pale man with a yet black hair which made him look almost like a ghost. His friends often teased him about his skin color and called him Suga, oh boy if you made the mistake calling him that if you weren’t part of his circle of friends, you were swimming in the deep end of the pool. Silver earrings were hanging from his both ears and he was wearing white t shirt and black jacket with golden decorations top of his shirt. he had black skinny jeans with black boots. He was majoring in classical music , but there was rumors about him doing really different music on his free time. In your opinion he looked particularly good today, maybe you were biased because your crush for him. Then there was Jin, the flirt of the group. He had truly beautiful face which made every girl swoon who he granted his attention. Even tough he liked to flirt a lot he actually never dated anyone. Female population couldn't do anything else than dream about the handsome man. He had blonde hair that made him look almost like a angel with his tall and well formed body. He was wearing pink short sleeved button up shirt with top button open and white dress pants with suede shoes. Jin was majoring to become a doctor and many girls were ready to be his test subjects.

“Ah, look who is there.” Taehyung teases when he follows your stare. Your crush for the pale man was something that Taehyung liked to often to tease you about.

“Shut up.” You mumble and turn read like a tomato and Taehyung smirks fort that.

The group walks past of you without granting even one glance towards your table. Jimin returns with your food and puts your sandwich and coke in front of you. You open your coke with thanks. Jimin and Taehyung keeps chatting when your mind and eyes begins to wander. Your eyes finds Yoongi who is sitting on the table with his laughing friends. You are so close attention to Yoongi that you don’t notice the pair of eyes who keeps staring at you from the same table where Yoongi sits. Maybe if you should have looked closer you would seen Namjoon’s thoughtful gaze. The cafeteria doors slams open and boy with messy brown hair runs inside. He does not stop until he reaches the table where Yoongi and his friends are located. Jeon Jungkook is the last of the group to arrive. He is also youngest of the bunch. He is still wearing striped pajama pants and large black hoodie over it. On his foot is red slippers. He is art major and more importantly Namjoon’s cousin.

“Good morning.” Jin says and sips his coffee calmly.

“Did you sleep well?” Hoseok asks and burst into laughing. You follow their interaction with interest.

“It’s not my fault that Namjoon Hyung turned my alarm off.” Jungkook mumbles and sits next to Hoseok. He gives Namjoon nasty look and Namjoon smiles sheepishly.

“You wouldn’t have woken up even if I had let your alarm on. All three other of your clocks were turned of.” He says and the whole table begins to laugh.

“What ya looking at?” Jimin’s question makes you jolt in your chair. Jimin turns his eyes towards the table which interactions you are following and rolls his eyes. “They are at it again. Because their parents has most of the money or are most famous it doesn’t mean that they rule the place.” He grunts.

Taehyung looks at his friend with tilted head. “Are you maybe jealous?” he asks.

“What? No!” Jimin blushes and shakes his head rapidly.

“If you say so.” Taehyung says and stretches his arms above his head.“If you say so…”

It was getting late but you couldn’t sleep. You had hanged with Jimin and Taehyung for a while and watched their bickering over a video game over their dorms. Girls were allowed to visit boys dorms during the daytime as long as they left before seven p.m. It was funny that boys weren’t allowed to do the same. You kept rolling in your bed but you finally gave up when it was almost eleven p.m. You sigh and push yourself up on your bed. You take your sweater from your school chair and put it over your pajamas. Finally you slip into your slippers. You take your phone and dorm keys from the table and head outside. The campus area was highly guarded and surrounded by tall fence so it was safe to move outside even on the night time. School staff still did not recommend that kind of behavior but no one really were observing that, even less if you weren’t from primary or secondary school. You walked in the forest path which leaded towards the school building. The trip wasn’t that long and even there street lights illuminated your path. The school building was never locked and only few guards were patrolling on the hallways. You avoided them easily and slipped into empty music room. Spring was getting even nearer and you could see the moon shining trough the huge glass windows. You walked past the grand piano and the other instruments which were on the walls or their stands. You stop in front of wall covering mirror and took deep breath. You closed your eyes ans begun to sing. Every time when you were upset or something was on your mind you liked to sing. The songs and melody was often the best way to relive your stress. There wasn’t many who knew about your hobby, not even Taehyung knew. You were frightened when suddenly you heard clapping. You spun around and saw Min Yoongi standing by the door. You froze, oh no anything but this. He was also wearing his pajamas which consisted black t shirt and grey college pants. On his feet was white plain slippers.

“I’m surprised, I did not know that you could sing.” Yoongi says when he stops clapping.

You feel embarrassed “Not many people know about it.”

“I see.” Yoongi says thoughtfully and leans on the door frame. “You have a beautiful voice.”

“Well, thanks I ques.” You scratch your neck awkwardly.

You both fell into awkward silence. Neither of you is good with social interactions. For a while you two just stare at each other. When you almost can’t take it anymore Yoongi walks towards the piano and sits in front of it. He motion to you to sit next to him and you do so hesitantly.

“Do you play?” he asks and puts his fingers on top of the piano keys. You shake your head for answer. “It’s okay, maybe someday I will teach you.” he says with soft voice and began to to play.

The tone of the song is sad but at the same time really beautiful. You close your eyes and let the melody flow trough of you. You are still in your own world when Yoongi stops playing. He is waiting for you to open your eyes which you do slowly.

“That was beautiful. I believe that I haven’t heard that song before.” You admit.

“It’s my own song. It’s not quite finished yet.” Now its Yoongi’s turn to blush.

“You are indeed talented man. Why the melody is so sad though? Is there any reason for it?” You ask curiously.

Yoongi turns his face towards you and looks at into your E/C eyes. “There isn’t much a reason. It was raining when I begun to compose this song, so the mood kind of came naturally.” He is so close toy you that you can feel his hot breath on your lips.

Yoongi seems to notice it too and for a while you two just stare each other faces in wonder. Finally he leans closer and you close your eyes. When your lips are about to touch noise from the door interrupts you and you jump separate. You and Yoongi look at the door and dim lighted corridor but there wasn’t anything. Maybe it was a guard who was patrolling on the hallway. Either way the mood was broken and you both looked everywhere except each other.

After that evening in the music room you and Yoongi become quite close even though you kept it as a secret. neither of you graved for attention. You were barely able to keep your eyes open while drinking your tea in your dorm’s kitchen table. You had been writing your literature essay for the whole evening and late to the night. Soo Jin stormed out of her room wearing school uniform and designer briefcase. The school uniform consisted of white button up shirt with red vest on top of it, knee length black skirt and kneel length white socks or tights. She was wearing the socks. Also pair of plain black flats were part of the set. Her hair was in tight bun on top of her head and her make up was without fault, like always. Soo Jin wrinkles her nose when she walks past of you but says nothing. It seems that you aren’t worth of her time this morning. You finish your tea and put your mug in the sink. You were also already in you uniform, but you did not look as groomed as Soo Jin. You weren’t one of those people who would get up early just to look good. You take your school bag from the couch and head for your class. You sit on to you usual place at the lecture room, which was one row lower than where Namjoon was siting, like you were keeping note. When you had entered the class room you had given your essay to your teacher who was a woman in her late forties. She had short straight black hair and red classes on top of her nose. She was wearing long sleeved brown tunic with long pearls hanging on her neck. She was after bohemian look, which suited her carefree nature. She insisted that you called her by her first name Irina, and not by her last name Novikov.  She was from Russia, but spoke fluent Korean and English.

“Good morning class, today we are going to work in pairs and discuss about one of the English literature classics, Emily Bronte’s Wuthering Height’s. I believe that everyone has read it already, after all it was part of your reading list, which was handed to you in the beginning of the semester. Today I’m choosing your pairs so no need to go look for your friends.” Irina tells happily in front of the class. You can hear quiet unhappy murmur, but no one say anything against it out loud. “Miss Ji Hye Choi you are going to pair with Miss Soo Hyeon Lee, Mister Gi Hoon Park you are going to pair with….” She begins to share pairs but you don’t pay any attention until it yours turn. “Mister Kim Namjoon and Miss L/N Y/N….” She continues to name pairs for the rest of the class.

You turn your eyes towards Namjoon and he smiles widely at you. He takes his notebook and changes his seat next to you. Other students are as well looking for their pairs which causes noise to rise in the room.

“Hello partner.” Namjoon says when he sits next to you.

“Hi.” You answer shyly.

“So have you read the book?” Namjoon asks and you nod.

Voice of the teacher’s gains your attention again. “I’m going to reflect the questions on the board which you are going to discuss. I will follow that everyone indeed focus on them and not into something else.” She says and soon the questions are on the board.

Number one: Name the main characters of the book. “The main cast depends on how you look at the book. Do you count the old maid Nelly Dean who tells the story of Wuthering Heights as a main characters or only those who are part of her story.” Namjoon says without much of thought.

“That’s true. I would at least count Nelly Dean as one of the characters, maybe even on of the most important of them.” You agree and Namjoon looks you surprised. Maybe he might been excepting an quite different answer. “ Mister Headcliff is the male lead of the book whom is driven by his greed and need for revenge. On the other hand Catherine…”

Namjoon puts his hand on top of yours and you fell silent by surprise.

“I saw you and Yoongi in the music room few nights ago. I wasn’t able to sleep so followed him when he left the dorm in middle of night.” He confess which causes you to blush. “Do you like him?”

“Excuse me?” You stutter.

“Do you like Min Yoongi?” He repeats and looks your eyes with intensively.

“What is it to you?” You are quick to defend yourself.

“I’m just asking.” Namjoon shrugs his shoulders lightly, but his eyes are rather serious.

“Mister Kim and Miss L/N, please turn your attention to back at the task in hand.” Irina’s voice saves you from answering.

After that you try to focus entirely for the subject and try to avoid Namjoon questions. Maybe he senses this but he didn’t say anything. School bell saves you from the situation and you hurry out from the class. You weren’t going to admit for anyone that you might like Yoongi, at least not before you had admitted it to man himself. You were trying to gain courage to do it and find the right time, but you haven’t had luck with neither. You have to only hope that you are able to confess how you feel one day.

[rachelstwomoms]

CHILDHOOD FRIENDS AU: Rachel’s Birthday (Part 1/?)

Sera is a big part of this AU, so if you want to know a little more about her character before reading this story, check her profile out!

Originally written as a birthday gift for @ohdoeadeer .

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

Stupid.

The birthday girl sits alone, face twisted into a deep scowl, watching her party from her from her spot on the edge of the sofa. Some of her classmates are crowded around the kitchen counters where the party snacks lay out in big bowls, grabbing handfuls of cheese-flavored chips, bright orange dust sticking to fingertips still wet from the pool. She can’t see into the backyard from the living room, but she can hear the boys howling and whooping wildly, playing some kind of obnoxious game that’s causing a lot of splashing. A few of her friends are taking a break from swimming and are watching her from the next room. Whispering. And from the way they keep glancing towards her practically every other word, it’s obvious that they’re talking about her.

Stupid.

Two girls break from their circle and slowly, cautiously come her way.

So she narrows her eyes, locks her jaw in a stiff frown and glares daggers at them. Daring them to take another step. When they freeze, changing their minds and quickly sitting back down, she smirks in satisfaction.

This party is stupid.

Her back itches and she twitches. Tilting her head backwards, she shakes out her long, blonde hair from where it was sticking to her shoulders due to a combination of chlorine, sunscreen and mid-July heat. Sighing and crossing her arms tightly across her chest, she presses herself deeper into the sofa cushions.

It’s not like she expected her party to pause for her.

It’s just really… no, hella unfair and annoying that everyone else gets to be happy and have a great time when this is the worst day of her life.

She wonders how much longer she has until Chloe and Maxine come looking for her.

“Rachel! Where are you?”

Speak of the devils.

Chloe, dripping wet and tracking water across the hardwood floors, spots her first and comes bounding over. Maxine, wrapped like a burrito in her oversized bath towel, trails close behind.

“What are you doing in here?” Chloe plops herself down on the sofa right next to Rachel. “You said you would be right back and that was ages ago. What were you doing?”

Rachel gives a short shrug and gestures to the half-empty cup of orange soda on the coffee table. “I was thirsty.”

“Oh, sweet!” Chloe grabs the cup and takes a swig, then passes it over to Maxine, who first peers inside at the liquid before taking a small sip too. “Anyways, you took forever so Maxine and I finished the game by ourselves.”

“We did wait for you,” Maxine insists, “but you never came back.”

“So, after you left, we found a secret underwater passageway that led us straight into enemy territory!” Chloe explains. “They didn’t see us coming, so we were able to sneak up and ambush them. They put up a good fight but, alas, they were no match for Captain Bluebeard and Long Max Silver!”

Smiling, Maxine frees one of her hands and holds up something shiny and round. “We got the amulet back.”

“Yeah, no thanks to somebody who abandoned her crew in their time of need,” Chloe teases, expecting a snarky comeback or a playful shove on the shoulder like usual. It never comes. Actually, it doesn’t even look like her friend’s paying attention. She seems to be in a strange sort of mood all of a sudden. Chloe waves a hand in front of Rachel’s face. “Hellooo? Earth to Rachel.”

“Are you okay?” Maxine starts to worry.

Rachel heaves an agitated sigh. “This party hella sucks.”

Chloe and Maxine share an equally confused, equally concerned look. After a moment, Chloe clears her throat and speaks in a lighthearted tone, trying to bring Rachel out of her funk. “Well, anyways, Rose told us to come get you. It’s time for cake!”

Although Rachel doesn’t give a verbal response, she allows her friends to drag her into the dining room where most of the party guests have gathered. Maxine leads Rachel by the hand to the empty chair at the head of the table and tells her to sit. Rose carries a pretty double-tiered cake from the kitchen over to the dining table, eliciting various noises of awe and excitement from Rachel’s sugar craving classmates. Already a skilled little actress, Rachel puts on her most convincing look of disinterest and boredom.

“All right, kids, step back please,” James says, clearing a small opening so he can reach the cake. He pulls out a matchbook from his pocket and he and Rose start to light the candles. It takes four matches and over a minute for the pair of them to get all twelve lit. Red, blue, yellow and pink wax melt into unappetizing puddles on the frosting, and Rose encourages everyone to hurry and start the birthday song while there are still candles left.

Chloe grins and starts waving her hands like the conductor of some grand orchestra, and Maxine and the other kids all start to sing.

------------------------------ 

Rachel the Pirate Queen is on a very important mission, entrusted by Captain Bluebeard herself. She only has a few minutes to return to their trusty ship, the Bane of Arcadia, before the tides change and it becomes impossible to reach the island tonight. If they don’t, it will be too late to reclaim their stolen treasure, and worse, their amulet will be in the hands of the enemy!

The most practical way to access the island is by swimming through a dark, treacherous underwater cave. But the entrance is always under heavy surveillance by evil mermaid guardians.  

And Rachel has a bunch of old mermaid dolls that would be totally perfect for their game.

The newly turned twelve year old leaps up the stairs two at a time and bursts into her bedroom, immediately opening her closet and tearing its contents apart. Rose will probably get mad at her later for making a mess, but she can deal with that when the time comes. Right now she has to find those mermaids. After going through the closet without any luck, Rachel starts to rummage through dresser drawers and bookshelves.

That’s when her phone rings.

Breaking into a huge smile, Rachel immediately drops what she’s doing and grabs her phone from her bed, flipping it open and hitting the “answer” button without looking at the caller ID. There’s only one person who could possibly be phoning her right now, and Rachel’s been waiting for this call the entire day.

“Hi Mom!”

“Happy birthday, Baby. I love you so much.”

“Love you too!” Rachel takes a seat on the edge of her mattress and cradles the phone to her ear. “Mom, where are you? You’re gonna miss the cake and presents!”

“Dawn, listen-”

“Wait ‘til you see the cake! Rose got me the special kind, you know, where there’s the bottom cake and then a smaller one stacked on top? It’s chocolate with chocolate frosting, and the frosting is really, really shiny, like the kind we had for my birthday last year. From that place near the mall that you and me went to! Remember?”

“Dark chocolate cupcakes. I remember.”

“The outside is covered in rainbow sprinkles and it’s so pretty. Mom, some of the sprinkles are tiny silver stars!”

“It sounds beautiful. Eat an extra slice for me, okay?”

“Chloe and Maxine are sleeping over tonight, but tomorrow we can-” Rachel halts mid-sentence as the implications of her mother’s choice of words hit her, and all of a sudden there’s a strange sort of heaviness in the pit of her stomach. “You’re still coming, aren’t you?”

“My boss called me late last night. Baby, there was a big mix-up involving some of the orders at work and he needed me to come in today to help straighten things out.”

“But you already took the week off. You told me that he said it was okay.”

“I know, Dawn. But I was the one in charge of those orders. They can’t fix the problem without me.”

“You’re almost done, though, right? You can take a later flight, and I can save you a piece of cake, and… and it’s okay even if it’s really late! I’ll stay up until you get here!”

“We’re trying to sort everything out as fast as we can, but things aren’t looking good.”

There’s a long pause of silence before Rachel speaks again. When she does, her tone is flat. “So you’re not coming.” It’s not a question. She already knows the answer.

“I’m so, so sorry. I want to be there with you more than anything. You know that, right?”

The longer Sera talks, the less Rachel hears. Her heart thumps in her ears. Her grip tightens around her phone. Her shoulders start to tremble, but not from the cold. In fact, her skin is still warm to the touch from spending most of the afternoon in the sun. “But it’s my birthday!” Rachel growls, voice strained and a pitch higher than normal.  

“I might be able to come up next week instead. I promise we’ll celebrate then.”

“NO!” Rachel is feeling a mixture of emotions, hurt and disappointment at the top of the list, but it manifests as anger and she explodes at Sera through the phone. “It’s not fair! You promised you’d come today!”

“Rachel, please. Believe me, I wish-“

“You’re a liar!” Rachel spits, the words spilling out as rage takes control of her mouth. “Forget it! I don’t care! This… this is BULLSHIT!”

Before Sera can say anything else, or scold her for throwing in a swear, Rachel snaps her phone shut.

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

The “Happy Birthday” song is a big, fat lie. Rachel isn’t happy at all.

About halfway through the song, she reaches her limit and she’s over it. Over everything. Everybody. Over this whole stupid party. Rachel tries to hold back her anger, tries to just keep her eyes on the cake and block out everything else, but she can still see everybody’s stupid smiling faces in her peripheral vision.

And she can’t take it.

Standing so abruptly and forcefully that it sends her chair skidding backwards several inches, Rachel grabs the platter underneath her cake and lifts it up as high as she can. The cake is heavier than it looks, so she struggles to hold it any higher than eye-level, but this is more than enough to cause her party guests to stop singing and watch her in confusion.

Having about a decade’s worth of experience dealing with her stepdaughter’s fiery temper and subsequent outbursts, Rose is the first to realize what’s about to happen. Her arms shoot out towards the cake instinctively. “Rachel, don’t-“

But the warning is a little too late, and Rose is pretty sure that it would have been futile regardless.

To everyone’s horror, Rachel smashes the cake down onto the tabletop. The top layer is knocked askew, cracking into two chunks, and the motion alone puts out all but three of the candles. A few of her friends gasp, but then shocked silence spreads through the room. Rachel can tell without even looking that everyone’s staring at her.

In the next second, Rachel bolts from the scene, pushing past several classmates in her haste and roughly bumping into somebody with her shoulder. She doesn’t stop to see who it is. Right now she doesn’t care. She disappears upstairs and slams her bedroom door behind her. James calls his daughter’s name and makes a move to go after her, but Rose stops him.

“No, James. Let her be.” Rose is all too familiar with Rachel’s tantrums and knows that there’s no point in trying to talk to her until she’s had time to cool down. “Right now I could use your help.”

While Rose and James decide what to do about the birthday cake situation, the rest of the room falls into chaos. The kids all start talking at once, some asking what’s wrong with Rachel… some wondering if there’s still going to be cake… but most expressing their utter astonishment at the cake incident.

“Hey! Maxine’s bleeding!”

The announcement is loud enough to be heard over all the clamor. Rose whips her head around at the mention of blood and spots Chloe fussing over Maxine, who’s in tears and has her hands over her nose and mouth.

Rose hurries over and sits her in one of the chairs. “Oh, Maxine, she ran into you, didn’t she? Let me take a look.” Carefully taking Maxine’s hands away from her face, Rose is met with the unpleasant sight of dark red blood trailing slowly trailing down the girl’s mouth and chin. “James, grab me some Kleenex, would you?”

“I’ll get it!” yells Chloe, jumping up. She quickly retrieves the box of tissues that she remembers seeing in the living room earlier.

Rose thanks Chloe, then grabs a handful of tissues and holds them against Maxine’s nose. Maxine pulls back slightly, crying out in pain, so Rose adjusts hold to one that’s more gentle. “Sorry, sweetheart. I know it hurts.”

Chloe stands by her best friend’s side and holds her hand. “Don’t worry, I promise it’s not that bad.”

After a minute, Rose removes the tissues and inspects the damage. The bleeding already seems to be stopping. “Chloe’s right. There’s not too much blood left. You’re going to be fine.” Behind her, James finishes inspecting the confectionery carnage and reports that the serving platter is still intact and the cake should still be safe to eat. Rose plucks some fresh tissues from the box. “Thank goodness. Here, Maxine, take these and I’ll check back on you in a bit, okay?” The woman runs off to wash her hands, then joins her husband in slicing up the cake for anybody who still wants some.

“Does it hurt?” asks Chloe, worried about her friend.

Maxine, still holding tissues to her nose, nods slightly. “Kind of.”

“Something’s wrong. There’s no way Rachel would hurt you on purpose.”

“I know,” says Maxine. “I think something really bad happened after she went inside.”

“Do you think she got into a fight or something?” Chloe wonders. She lowers her voice so only Maxine can hear. “Or maybe she got in trouble. Do you think Rose found out about the-“

“Think I found out about what, now?” Rose suddenly reappears from behind, startling the girls. Chloe shakes her head and starts to stutter, but Rose chuckles. “It’s all right, I won’t ask. How’s your nose doing, Maxine?”

Maxine slowly removes the tissues from her nose and waits a moment. She gives a tiny, careful sniff, but it doesn’t feel like there’s any more blood. “I think it stopped.”

“Why don’t you go into the bathroom and clean up?” Rose hands Maxine a t-shirt that the girls recognize as one of Rachel’s. “When you’re done, give me your shirt. I’ll try to get those stains out.”

Looking down at her own shirt, Maxine sees the reddish-brown splotches that have already started to dry and set into the fabric. Her stomach churns at the sight and she gratefully accepts the change of clothes. In the downstairs bathroom, Maxine rinses herself off and gets changed. She comes back out blood-free and looking as good as new. She hands Rose her soiled top with a shy thank you.

“No problem, dear,” says Rose, taking the shirt. “Girls, could you go upstairs and see how Rachel’s doing? I don’t think she’ll want to talk to me or her father just yet, but she might appreciate having you two there with her.”

Chloe and Maxine nod. Even if Rose hadn’t asked them, checking up on their friend was already next on their list of things to do.

“What happened?” asks Chloe.

“Do you girls remember Sera, her mother? Sera was supposed to be at the party today, but she ended up not being able to come. Rachel’s… understandably upset.” Rose gives a sad smile. “Anyway, you girls go on ahead. I’ll be up in a bit to check on her.”

Chloe and Maxine climb up to the second floor and stop in front of Rachel’s room. Chloe knocks, then opens the door a few inches and sticks her head inside. Rachel is lying on the bed facing the opposite wall. “Rachel?” Chloe pauses for an answer but she doesn’t get one. “It’s just me and Maxine. We’re coming in.”

Walking into the room, Chloe glances around. The closet looks overturned and Rachel’s belongings are strewn all over the floor. A few drawers are open, their contents messily tossed about as well. “Hey, are you okay?” When Chloe is once again met with silence, she turns to Maxine only to find her still in the hallway, clinging to the door frame. Chloe gestures for Maxine to hurry up and come inside. After a moment of hesitation, Maxine runs on her tiptoes to catch up to Chloe, who climbs onto the bed next to Rachel. Maxine perches lightly on the very edge of the mattress.  

“Rose told us about your mom,” Chloe says. “That hella sucks…”

Silence.

“Do you wanna talk about it?”

More silence.

Rachel still hasn’t moved, nor given any indication that she’s even aware of Chloe and Maxine’s presence. So Chloe makes herself comfortable and motions for Maxine to do the same. “Well, it’s okay if you don’t. We’ll stay here to keep you company. Right, Maxine?”

Maxine finds her voice. “Yeah, it’s not a party without you.”

“Rach, you should’ve seen Maxine earlier. You clocked her in the face good and her nose was, like, gushing blood-”

“Chloe!” Maxine swats her friend on the arm.

To their surprise, Rachel rolls over, pushing herself into a sitting position.

And she speaks!

“Oh my god, really?”

Chloe and Maxine and relieved to hear Rachel’s voice again, even if it sounds tired and scratchy. They take a good look at their friend’s face for the first time since before the cake catastrophe. Although Rachel’s eyes are dry now, there are shiny tear streaks down her cheeks and it’s obvious that she had been crying.  

Maxine’s tone goes soft. “It wasn’t that bad.”

“Sorry. I totally didn’t mean to.”

“It’s okay!” Maxine gives Rachel a small smile. “We’re, um… more worried about you.”

“Oh.”

“If you wanna tell us what happened, we’re here to listen,” Chloe repeats.

“Okay, okay, fine,” Rachel sighs, scooting backwards until she’s against her headboard. Chloe and Maxine are watching her intently, waiting for her to talk. Normally, Rachel loves being the center of attention, but this is a sensitive topic and her friends’ gazes are making her uncomfortable. Keeping her eyes down, Rachel hugs her knees to her chest in attempt to feel less vulnerable. “My mom called.”

As soon as Rachel mentions her mother, her voice breaks and her tears start anew. Chloe moves right beside her and puts an arm around her shoulders. Even Maxine ventures to a new spot on the bed closer to her friends. Neither of them speak. They just let Rachel vent.

“She said she’s too busy to come to my party... even though she promised!” Rachel’s voice is thick with emotion. “It’s not fair! Why did Dad have to make us move so far away? I hate it here! Now I never get to see her!”

“But she still texts you, like, every day, right?” Chloe tries to cheer Rachel up. “That’s pretty cool.”

“And you talk to her on the phone,” Maxine adds.

But Rachel snuffles and shakes her head, letting out a quivery, shuddery sob. “It’s not the same!”

There’s a knock on the door, and all three girls turn to see Rose standing in the doorway. “Rachel, honey, can I come in?” Taking her stepdaughter’s lack of a response as a yes, Rose walks around to the other side of the bed and takes a seat. “I know you’re disappointed. Your father and I were looking forward to seeing Sera today too. It’s completely normal to feel sad.”

“I’m not sad!” Rachel glares in Rose’s direction. “I’m mad! She cares about work more than me!”

“Oh, Rachel, you know that’s not true.”

Rachel scoffs. “Well, she’s not here, is she?”

“Honey, come here,” Rose says gently, opening her arms towards Rachel. The girl tries to keep up her tough front, staring hard at her stepmother for a few moments, but Rose waits patiently, looking at her with eyes full nothing but love. Sure enough, Rachel’s defenses crumble and she surrenders, breaking away from Chloe and falling forward into the embrace. Rose’s hugs are always warm and comforting. Her anger melts away, leaving just the hurt behind.

Rose was right.

She is disappointed.

For as long as Rachel can remember, Sera has always been there on her birthday. She’s been at every birthday party and every special birthday dinner at Rachel’s favorite restaurant. There’s plenty of photographic proof in the photo albums Rose has compiled over the years. Rachel has so many special memories celebrating her birthday with her mom. On her ninth birthday, Sera surprised her by showing up at her theater camp with birthday treats to share with the other campers. When Rachel turned five, she had a really bad cold and wasn’t able to leave the house, but Sera came over with a box of cake mix and a tub of frosting and they made a birthday cake together. She even got to lick the batter off the spoon!

But this was before they moved to Oregon. When the Ambers still lived in California, Sera was only a fifteen minute car ride away. Rachel saw her mom all the time.

And everyone knows that it’s impossible to get from Long Beach to Arcadia Bay in fifteen minutes.

Rachel thinks about her mom and wonders how many more birthdays she might miss now that they’re a thousand miles apart.

Rose was right.

She is sad.

And so Rachel cries for what feels like several minutes, or days, or years, or maybe an eternity. Rose just holds her tightly and rubs soothing patterns onto her back until she gets all her feelings out and has no tears left. There’s still a smidge of sad left, the kind that will only fade with time, but, compared to how miserable she was earlier, the birthday girl is feeling a whole lot better now. Taking a deep breath, Rachel pulls away and looks up at Rose, ready to confess the truth that she’s been keeping inside all day. “I just really, really miss her…”

“I know, I know…” says Rose, brushing the remnants of Rachel’s tears away with her fingers. “And I know she misses you. But she loves you with all her heart. So do I.” Rose leans down and kisses the top of her stepdaughter’s head. “So does Daddy. And Chloe and Maxine.”

Rachel looks over her shoulder at her friends, who nod their heads enthusiastically. Chloe puts her hands over her heart and playfully bats her eyes at her before erupting into laughter. Maxine watches, shaking her head at Chloe’s antics, but then she turns to Rachel and gives her a sweet smile.

Her friends are such dorks. Rachel can’t help but let out a tiny giggle.

“Are you feeling better now?” asks Maxine.

Rachel shrugs. “A little.”

“See, Rachel? Right now there’s a house full of people who care about you and want to celebrate your big day with you,” Rose continues. “What do you say? Will you come back downstairs and join us?”

Chloe clasps her hands together and makes exaggerated puppy dog eyes. “Pleeease?”

“You’re so weird.” Rachel lightly shoves her backwards, laughing. “Fine, let’s go.”

“Yes!” Chloe pumps her fist in the air and runs for the door, calling to her friends to follow. “Come on, slowpokes, let’s see if there’s any cake left!”

“Yeah, yeah, we’re coming!” Sliding off her bed, Rachel turns to Maxine and holds out a hand. As much as she loves Chloe and her silly antics, Rachel’s really glad that she also has a friend like Maxine. Maxine’s quiet, but not too quiet. Perfect quiet. There’s something about being with her that brings Rachel comfort, and that’s exactly what she needs right now. “Sit next to me, okay?”

Excited to have Rachel back, Maxine happily takes her hand. “Let’s go before Chloe eats it all.”

The girls head downstairs and find Chloe sitting at the kitchen counter, shoveling cake into her mouth. There are two slices already waiting for them, forks, napkins and all. Rachel takes a serving and sits next to Chloe, waving Maxine over to the seat on her other side. But before either of them can take a bite, a couple of Rachel’s classmates burst inside the house, shrieking excitedly at the sight of the birthday girl.

“Rachel! There you are!” exclaims one of the girls. “You have to come outside! We just started a new round of spin the bottle truth or dare and, like, the whole class is playing!”

Maxine furrows her brows in confusion. “Spin the bottle truth or dare?”

“Me and Juliet are gonna try and find out if Justin has a crush on someone,” the other girl says in a teasing tone, eyes sparkling mischievously.  

“Dana!” Cheeks turning a faint shade of pink, Rachel pretends to kick her. This only causes Dana to squeal again. “Not so loud.”

“Leave us alone. We’re trying to eat,” Chloe mumbles through a mouthful of cake. Rachel raises an eyebrow. Her friend suddenly sounds grumpy, but she shrugs it off.

“Chloe, Maxine, you guys have to play too!” Juliet insists. “Come on, just bring your cake with you!”

Rachel is on the fence. While she would very much love to stay in the house and finish her birthday cake, this game does sound kind of interesting. Imagine all the juicy gossip. This might be her chance to find out all sorts of things about her classmates. And, well… Rachel does kind of want to know if there’s somebody Justin likes. She looks to her left. Chloe makes a grossed-out face and signals a thumbs down. She looks to her right. Maxine only gives her a vague sort of smile.

Neither of which are very helpful.

Curling her lips into a pout, Rachel turns back to her cake. “I don’t know.”

Dana tugs on Rachel’s arm. “Come on! It’ll be awesome, I promise!”

“Oh my god, look!”

Suddenly, Juliet’s shouting and pointing at something outside. Rachel looks out the sliding glass doors just in time to catch one of the boys doing a backwards flip into the pool. Fully-clothed. The corners of her mouth curl upwards ever so slightly. This party could still turn out to be fun.

Maybe one little game won’t hurt. Of course, she still has to convince her friends to join her. Maxine won’t be a problem, it’s Chloe who will be more of a challenge. Rachel isn’t really worried, though. All she needs to do is play the birthday card and there’s no way Chloe can say no.

And even if she does, Rachel has a few more tricks up her sleeve.

She is a skilled little actress, after all.

[cas-lost-grace]

1 and 24 please for the writing prompt!

Fake relationship +Historical AU

Thank you for the prompt! I made it into quasi-historical fantasy AU, because pretend gay relationship in real history didn´t make much sense to me. I hope you don´t mind. I think it´s still very sweet.

“What’s wrong?” Dean asks nudging Cas’ side.

Cas heaves a sigh and pets his horse who tries to munch the laces of his tunic. “The Solstice,” he says and pushes the horse’s head away.

“I thought you liked Solstice, that it’s a big deal for your people.”

“It is,” Cas says closing the door to the stable. Dean waits for him to elaborate. Eventually Cas caves in.

“There’s going to be a huge celebration in my mother’s house and I’ll have to show up and she will parade me in front of all the unmarried rich man in hope that one of them might find an interest in me. I will have to smile and be polite while I feel like cattle at the market,” he explains on one breath.

Dean frowns. The fact that Nebesians approve of relationships between two men or two women is still hard to wrap his head around. It makes him uncomfortable in a strange way. He often catches himself thinking about it late at night. What has never occurred to him is that Cas would actually have to get married being the second son with no inheritance.

“Do you have to go?” he asks.

“It’s my mother, my home. I want to go, I just wish… I wish I had more freedom in that regard. Like you.”

Dean barks out a laugh. He doesn’t have to marry since he has no family and has been supporting himself since childhood. But he’s not free. There are too many rules that tell him who he can or cannot be with. At least that’s true in his country.

“Is there any way to stop her from acting like that?”

It’s Cas’ turn to scoff. “Do you think I’ll manage to get married till Solstice?”

Dean bites his lip as a spark of idea ignites something in his chest.

“Would being engaged suffice?”

Cas cocks his head. “Yes but I don’t-”

“We could pretend,” Dean suggest, “you can tell her I’m your fiancé and she will leave you alone. Unless-”

“Unless what?”

“Unless it would be an issue that I’m not Nebesian.”

Cas shakes his head. “No, that won’t be an issue. Nebesian tolerate marriage with foreigners.” A happy smile slowly lightens his face. “You would really do it?”

There’s a lump in Dean’s throat. He swallows around it.

“Yeah, you’re my best friend, I’d do anything to help you.”

The smile Cas gives him makes Dean’s heart beat faster.

It’s easy to forget Cas is an aristocrat when Dean usually sees him road-weary in his riding clothes. It’s impossible to not think about it upon seeing his home. Where the rich people in Dean’s country tend to bury themselves behind thick stone walls, Nebesians prefer airy intricate architecture with high arcs and slim columns. They also love immaculate decorative gardens like the one Dean and Cas has to cross to get to the palace.

Inside Dean’s attacked by lights and colors. Everywhere Dean looks he can see the finest silk in bright colors embellished with gold and gems. He feels like a spider among butterflies in his black pants and jacket. The only thing that resembles a jewel is the silver badge of his rank on his chest - a pentagram in a fiery circle. He wasn’t allowed to bring his sword which makes him nervous, but at least he carries an ornamental dagger on his belt.

Cas gently grabs Dean’s elbow and leads him through the crowded room.

It’s the first time he sees Cas in a traditional celebratory outfit and it takes Dean’s breath away more than all the splendor of the house.

He’s wearing a long sleeveless robe opened at the chest, revealing his tattoos. He’s shining with silver thread and sapphires. His face is painted according to custom - sparkly powder dapped on his cheekbones and the bridge of his nose, his eyes framed by black kohl. He looks otherworldly.

Dean’s only able to tear his eyes off him when they stop in front of Cas’ mother. She looks equally stunning as her son but in a regal, kind of intimidating way. Her robe, similar to Cas’, is silvery gray adorned with clear crystals, Dean thinks they might actually be diamonds.

Cas bows deeply, catching his mother’s hands and kissing them. “Mother dearest,” he says stiffly when he straightens, “it’s a pleasure to see you after so long.”

She gives him a smile that brightens her stern face. “You too, son. I’m happy to see you’re well.” Her blue eyes turn to Dean. “Who’s your friend, Castiel?”

Cas lets go of his mother’s hands to put a warm palm on Dean’s shoulder. “Let me introduce my fiancé, Dean Winchester.”

Dean bows down deeply. He can hear it, the wave of whispers expanding through the crowd. When he looks up, most of the eyes in the room are on him.

"Fiancé?” Cas’ mother says in a cold tone.

A muscle jumps in Castiel’s jaw as he clenches his teeth. “Yes, mother, my fiancé.”

There’s a pause that feels like an eternity. Then she smiles, but her eyes remain cold.

“How lovely,” she says with a fake cheer. “Let’s go somewhere we can celebrate in private,” she says and turns her back to them.

Dean shoots Cas a nervous look, Castiel takes his hand and squeezes it tightly as they follow his mother.

The moment the door clicks shut Dean feels trapped.

“Who is this man and why do you think I should accept him as your future husband?” Cas’ mother strikes, her demeanor changed.

Dean stares in awe as Cas grows in front of her, squaring his shoulders and holding his head high. He hasn’t let go of Dean’s hand.

“Dean is the right hand of ambassador Singer,” Castiel says. His mother’s eyes widen as she hears the name of the richest and most influential foreigner in all of Nebesa.

“We’ve met when we were both on a business trip and we decided to make each other company on our travels. Dean helped me out of trouble several times because he’s brave and strong and clever. He’s also the kindest man I know and I love him deeply.”

Dean can’t breathe, his cheeks are burning. He tries to remind himself Cas is just acting, but it’s too hard.

To Dean’s horror, Castiel’s mother turns to him. “Are you going to drag my son out of Nebesa?”

“Na, Ma’am. My place is here. I have to travel a lot, but so does Castiel. We always come back here though.”

Her eyes narrow before she speaks again. “Are you able to provide for my son?”

“I’d say so, ma’am. My job is well paid and the ambassador can provide a suitable living for me and my husband if we decide to settle down.” Dean’s voice hitches on the word husband but otherwise, he’s proud of his speech.

Castiel’s mother takes a long time to study both of their faces. Then she sighs. “Welcome to the family, Dean,” she says stepping closer. She offers him open palms and he puts his hands into them. Her smile is genuine. “Call me Naomi.”

Dean nods, stunned. “Thank you for accepting me. Your son means the world to me.” He says and his eyes automatically dart to Cas who’s cheeks are as red as Dean’s must be.

Naomi takes them back to the main room and announces their engagement. There’s a round of cheers that makes Dean a bit uncomfortable, but then the celebration turns back to the Solstice.

There are chants and sacrifice, burning ritual fires and dancing ritual dances. But then it’s just people having a good time.

Dean enjoys it immensely. He loves the food and the heavy Nebesian wine but most of all he loves posing as Castiel’s partner. It’s so easy it’s almost scary. When people ask how they’ve met, Dean does have to lie. When they ask what he likes the most about Cas, he can go on for hours.

It’s quite late when Cas grabs Dean’s hand - something Dean got used to very quickly - and whispers into his ear: “Shall we dance?”

Dean smiles and follows him to the dance floor. Nebesian dancing is strange, they just lean close to each other, arms wrapped around their partner’s waist and sway with the ethereal music played on harps and flutes.

Castiel’s body is warm against Dean’s. He feels like he could bask in the warmth forever.

“I think our acting was quite good,” Cas whispers. Dean nods, his cheek brushes against Cas’.

“But maybe, we could do one more thing to make it more plausible.” Cas looks at Dean with his beautiful eyes and wets his lips with his tongue. Dean’s heart is beating so heart it must be audible over the music.

“What?” he asks even though he knows. He just needs to hear it, to be sure there’s no misunderstanding.

Cas smiles softly and cups Dean’s face with his palm. “I’m going to kiss you.”

Dean leans down, their lips meet. It’s like fireworks going off. It’s like everything he ever wanted and feared to ask for.

He pulls Cas closer and slips his tongue between Cas’ parted lips. Cas kisses back just as hungrily, his hands clench in Dean’s hair.

They are both breathless when they part.

“I’m not sure this kind of kissing is appropriate,” Cas says with a chuckle.

“Would it be appropriate to leave to your rooms?”

Cas’ answer is a bright grin and a tug on Dean’s hand.

They bid goodbye to the remaining guests and Naomi and head upstairs into Castiel’s chambers.

The moment the door shuts behind them, Castiel pushes Dean against its hard wood. His kohl-rimmed eyes look dark and fierce as they pin Dean in place.

“I don’t want to pretend anymore,” he growls.

Dean’s heart drops through his stomach, he can feel blood stopping in his veins.

“What?” he whispers breathlessly.

He knew this was just a game, he should have been more careful than getting so lost in it. He just hoped it would last longer.

“I don’t want to pretend that this is just an act, that I’m not actually in love with you.”

Dean’s ears must be playing tricks on him because there’s no way Cas has just said this.

“You’re… what?”

Cas presses closer to him. “I loved this night and I know you did too. I want this to be real, not just an act, not just a dream I dream when you sleep next to me on our travels.”

Dean stares at him with jaw slack.

A shadow runs across Cas’ face. He lets go of Dean and takes a step back. 

"Oh-”

Dean grabs him and pulls him back in. Cas makes a surprised sound when Dean kisses him.

“I want it too,” Dean mutters against Cas’ lips, barely able to stop kissing him now he’s allowed to, “oh god how I want it.”

They stumble to Castiel’s wide bed where they undress each other. They’ve seen each other naked before, but this is different. They take the time to discover and cherish each other’s body with eyes, hands, and lips before they join their bodies in one.

If the quests hear the sounds of their passion it’s alright, they’re a young engaged couple after all.

[aspaceformyself]

Upside down; Chapter 5

Note: I didn’t really think I was going to continue writing this anytime soon. I fell into a bad slump and was also too much of a coward to keep going. I somehow picked up enough courage tho. To continue writing, to continue this. Probably because, this series entangles with a lot of my own personal struggles and I really want to find a way to help myself through this. I hope this courage stays long enough to finish writing this. 

Chapter 4 - Chapter 6

His first date with Yuuri involved sneaking out at 3 AM in the early hours to get an ice cream. She called it an adventure and threw a wink along his way. Namjoon blushed so hard he prayed the pink was not visible on his face. Wait, wait, wait, did he just call this a date? Well, at least, that’s what he told himself in his head. After an exhausting day of rehearsals and practice sessions, sneaking out in the dead of the night for an ice cream was not how Namjoon expected his day to end. But hey, it was Yuuri who offered, and he found no reason to say no. More than offered, she just dragged him along with her impromptu plan.

“Man! This feels so good!” She exclaimed throwing her arms around. It was a windy early hours of dawn. The sky is still a blanket of thick dark blue velvet with occasional stars decorated here and there. Namjoon pulled his hoodie further around him as he felt the chill in the air prickle his skin.

“Aren’t you cold Yuuri?” He called out to the girl gleefully skipping in front of him.

“Hm? No”, She said simply, now bouncing, “I can’t tolerate hot weathers, but I can, any amount of cold”.

Namjoon giggled, “I don’t like hot weathers too but then again I’m not a huge fan of cold either”.

“You like it neutral then?”

“Maybe, but I like it when it’s windy, you know, like the atmosphere right before it’s about to rain?”

“Oh! I love that weather too! I actually have a special kind of romantic pining for it!”

“A romantic pining huh?”

“Yes! Especially the smell of soil when it starts to drizzle!”

“I feel you girl, I feel you”.

They fell into a comfortable silence after this into the quiet of the streets around them. Namjoon liked this. He liked how easy his conversations flowed with her now. Not that they didn’t before but he could really feel something change between them. Perhaps it was their conversation a few days ago or perhaps it was the fact that they exchanged numbers now, Namjoon could feel Yuuri’s demeanour around him slightly change. He felt like she opened a small peephole in the barrier she usually surrounds herself with. But a peephole is all it is and Namjoon was still grateful, sizing every opportunity to completely crack her open, figure her out, figure out what about her has him so enthralled that he’s impulsively treading on a path whose end he can’t see.

“I doubt any store would be open at this hour Yuuri”, He sighed almost after 15 minutes of aimless walking.

“Wait and watch”, was all Yuuri said and threw another wink at him. Namjoon lost himself for a moment again but jolted right out of his dreams when he felt her slender fingers circle around one of his wrists and within seconds she was tugging him away into a narrow lane, up a slope. It took awhile for Namjoon to process the change in his surroundings. They were no longer in the posh/ urban cut of the city but a sort of small townish lane. He certainly didn’t expect a place like this to exist in the area he lives. It was a surprise. After treading along the slope, Yuuri stopped in front of a small parlour.

“Wow….” Namjoon awed as he took a bite of his chocolate flavoured ice cream.

“It’s good right!” Yuuri exclaimed, her eyes twinkling as she dug into her own coffee and chocolate mix of ice cream.

“It is!” Namjoon said taking another spoonful into his mouth.

“How did you know about this place?” He asked, still delighted over his ice cream.

“Well”, Yuuri just shrugged, “I found this place about a week ago”.

“Oh”, Namjoon took her answer and didn’t think more of it before he caught her eyeing at him, her expression, a mixture of both mischief and guilt.

“Waaiittt”, He stopped, looking up at her with narrow, accusing eyes, “don’t tell me you’ve been sneaking around by yourself late at nights like this!”

“I’m so sorry Jooooooooon!” Yuuri whined, pressing her hands together and bowing down to him, the nickname escaping her lips very easily, once again making Namjoon all flustered. She never called him that. Heck she never even said his name. This was a first. But Yuuri didn’t seem to notice it, neither the nickname nor how flushed Namjoon looked, she continued, “But I was desperate you know! I was just working and working and working all day long. And, and it was suffocating, just sitting, all holed up in the studio without having the time or space to breathe and whenever I felt the urge, I used to sneak away like this”.

Namjoon sighed. What can he say to that? He understands that all too well.

“I understand that Yuuri”, He said, a bit curtly. Yuuri winced.

“But, do you realize how dangerous this is? It’s one thing when it's crowded but you do know how deserted this area gets after dark right? And it’s not safe at all! Anything could’ve happened to you!”

Yuuri gave a whimper of protest under his stern gaze, guilt smeared over her face. And then she groaned.

“Yuuri!”

Namjoon sighed again. There’s definitely no chance of getting through to this girl. She’s so reckless, fearless and independant all the time that she won’t even give a thought to the consequences she has to face later on.  And she’s unstoppable. So Namjoon did the only thing he could think of then, at that moment.

“Look, I do understand that you get suffocated and you want to get out”, He said and looked at Yuuri who still looked like she’s ready to protest if he objects, “I feel like that a lot of times too. But!”

She groaned again and began to say something but Namjoon beat her to it.

“If you feel like that next time and you really want to get out”, He paused eyeing her carefully, “Drop by my studio or just give me a call or a text or anything. I’ll tag along. But I’m not letting you go alone!”

Yuuri’s face lit up like a thousand bulbs at his offer.

“For real?!” She gaped at him.

“Yes, for real”, Namjoon agreed, without lifting his head up to look at her, his gaze fixed on his ice cream. He was kind of surprised at himself at how quickly he offered himself. He was worried if it looked desperate or came across as something similar. But the expression on Yuuri’s face set aside all his worries. Now he was glad he offered.

“Why are you so kind Kim Namjoooooon?” Yuuri cooed dramatically clutching her heart, “You move me”.

Namjoon just giggled at her.

“Oh, you’re always so extra”, he teased, with a similarly dramatic roll of his eyes, “Such drama queen”.

“What are you talking about?” She feigned an offended look while dramatically falling over the backrest of her chair, “Meeeeee? A drama queen?”

“I definitely do not see anyone else who fits that description in this room”.

“I’m offended”.

“No, you like it”.

“How do you know me so well already?”

“A spiritual sixth sense I guess”.

“Wow, you have magical powers”.

“Girl, you don’t know a lot about me”.

“Can you apparate?”

“Wanna try?”

They left the parlour after more bickering and fits of giggles among each other, once again hitting the dry and deserted road. They walked in silence now. Not the usual awkward one but a more comfortable one. Namjoon couldn’t help but smile thinking back to the time they spent and one look through the corner of his eye told him Yuuri was smiling to herself too. And the smile on his face widened at that, exposing his dimples even more.

“Cute”, he heard Yuuri whisper.

“Huh?” He turned to her, unsure if he heard her right.

Yuuri looked at him, her expression that of a thief who got caught in the act, her cheeks covered in a soft pink blush. It made Namjoon blush too, but in his head, he wasn’t sure if she looked like that because of the cold weather or him.

“I just thought you looked cute with all those dimples”, Yuuri said, chuckling, laying her thoughts out loud now and skipped ahead in front of him.

Namjoon blushed so hard, he was sure his face turned as red as a tomato. He felt like time stopped ticking and he halted where he was walking. Was he hearing things? Did Yuuri just call him cute? Does that mean he has a slight chance of hope? Hope that she might like him too?

“Kim Namjoon!” Yuuri called out, cutting him out of his thoughts, gleefully waving at him from where she was walking, “You’re gonna get left behind if you keep daydreaming in the middle of the road!”

Shaking his head, he jogged up to her.

“You’re so unfair”, he breathed out stopping in front of her. Yuuri just stared at him quizzically. And when he looked at her face, into her eyes, the whole universe came stumbling down around him. Shattering, screaming, wailing and breaking. Yuuri was there, standing right in front of him, with barely any distance in between them. Her face, illuminated by the pale moonlight filtering through the thick cover of clouds in the sky. Her eyes twinkling as they reflected the countless stars, sparkling and glittering.  They were so close, he could just lean in and kiss her but he stands still, swept away by the scene in front of him.

He probably thought this a lot and he was thinking about it again.

“You’re beautiful”, He says, a mere whisper. But Yuuri caught it, the blush colouring her face confirmed it for him. And she looked away breaking their contact. He held his hand up instinctively and placed it on her cheeks, turning her head to face him. They were soft. So, so soft, like velvet and silk. A few bangs of her dark hair sprawled across her face blown by the wind. Namjoon smoothened them and tucked them behind her ear with his other hand. Would it be too early if he kissed her? The silver of a doubt that loomed within his chest held him back from initiating it. He didn’t want to scare her away. Hell, he couldn’t even fathom what’s going on in her mind now.

It all felt very intimate. Too intimate.

[shittyfandomimagines]

Pretty Damn Awesome

Word count: 2,697

Fluff, my heart can’t even

GIF creds to owner

I felt so giddy and happy, the rush of excitement flooded my body. I was honestly so nauseous just because of how much energy was building.

“You’re fucking pregnant!” My best friend shakes my arm a little, she came with me to the doctor because I was feeling a little queasy. I would’ve asked Ashton, but he was somewhere in the world doing interviews.

“I am, I’m fucking pregnant.” I started to cry happy tears and she engulfs me in a hug. “Hey, it’s just a baby, don’t be sad.” She rubs my back soothingly. “I know! I’m just so happy, I get to have my own baby and family.” I smile through the tears. “How are you going to tell Ash?” She asks and I shrug. “Well, he flies back tonight and we have dinner with his mom tomorrow night. Should I do it there?” I ask and she nods vigorously. “We need to find something cute to do.” She suggests and I nod along.

“Well, Mrs. Irwin, you are free to go. We looked at your blood work and it seems that your iron is a little low. We suggest some low-dose iron pills if you become anemic it can interfere with how small your baby can be.” The doctor comes back into the room and tells me, he hands me a slip that had the name of the medicine.

“Thank you, we were going by the store anyway.” I smile towards her and she nods. “Congratulations to you, just stop by the front desk to check out.” She shakes my hand before leaving the room. “I’m gonna search Pinterest for some ideas, you get to drive my dear. You’re no longer sick, you’re just pregnant.” My friend jokes and I roll my eyes.

—-

“What if we got like a vinyl record, like an old one that he probably won’t even know, we paint over the title; after that, we can put ‘for the record, I’m pregnant.’ It would be so cute.” Leslie suggests as we pull up to CVS. “Awe, that would be so cute. We could go downtown to that old record shop.” I wanted to cry all over again because I was so happy.

“I don’t know how you’re gonna hold this in all day when Ashton comes home.” She laughs as we get out of the car. “Well, I’ll try my hardest.” I laugh and we walk towards the pharmacy.

“Well, you’re going to need these, for sure.” Leslie puts prenatal vitamins in the basket. “Look for Vitron-C, it’s what he wrote down,” I tell her and we both start scanning the aisle. “Ah, found it!” I say and bend down to grab it.

“Does CVS even sell paint?” She asks and I shrug. “Maybe we can get the kid ones, I mean it’s not like we’re doing a huge project. We only need to paint the circles on both sides.” I tell her and she nods. “Then we can just find a silver sharpie and write on the record.” Leslie insists and I smile. “I’ll go find the kid paint, you find the sharpies, meet back at the candy,” I demand and she walks off.

I wander around until I find the paint, a few sections down I see some baby clothes and my heart quenches. I’ve never been so happy with my life, I mean besides our wedding. I grab the paint and then move to the baby items, I run my hands over it. I shake it off and go towards the candy, I put some m&ms in the basket. Leslie comes up to me and puts a pack of sharpies in the basket. “Let’s go so we can get the record.”

—-

When we both get home from the record shop, we automatically start painting the paper that was covering part it. “Leslie, you can write it because I have horrible handwriting.” I slide the vinyl to her and she sighs.

It gets quiet as she starts to write on both sides. “Do you have any spray paint?” She asks after she finished writing on it. “Probably our in the garage, why?” I ask as she stands up with the cardboard casing for the record. “I’m going to go spray paint this so he can’t see the artist. You stay here because you don’t need to inhale this.” She pats my head like a little kid.

—-

“Well babe, I’ve had so much fun with you and I’m so fucking excited to be an aunt. I love you so much.” She kisses my cheek and I smile. “Thank you, Aunt Leslie, for the win.” I hug her tightly. “Make sure you film his reaction. I’ll see you on the flip side.” She waves as she exits out the front door.

I grab the record and try to find a place to hide it. I go into the garage and hide it in the tiny safe we had in there.

I grab my phone and call my mom, I needed to tell her before I go to the Irwin’s tomorrow.

“Hello?” My mom answers and I smile. “Hey mom, I’ve got some big news for you.” I grin and I hear her gasp, she could tell already. “Let me go put you on the speaker phone with your dad.” I could hear her basically running into the room. “Listen to this.” I hear her demand my dad. “Guys, I’m pregnant. I found out today.” I hear them both scream and gasp. “I’m so happy! I’m going to be a grandma!” My mom sounded like she was crying. “I just wan- hey guys I got to hang up. Ashton is calling me.” I look at his caller ID. “Well, you two need to fly to America so I can see you.” She kindly demands and I smile. “Will do, I love you guys. Bye.” I hang up.

“Hey, babe,” I answer and I could feel his smile. “Hey, I was wondering if you were ever going to pick up.” He jokes and I smile, I was so glad to hear his voice. “Yeah, I was on the phone with my mom, but we were done anyways. What’s up?” I ask and he sighs a little. “Well, I won’t be able to be home until like 2 am, so I was calling to tell you not to wait up. You need your rest and when you wake up, I’ll be there.” He sounded sad but I knew he’d be there as soon as I woke up. “That’s okay baby, I’m not upset. You’re going to be with me for a couple of months and that’s all I need. Plus, we have the meal with your family tomorrow.” I soothe him and he chuckles a little. “You know how to fix everything, don’t you?” He sounded less sad. “It’s what I do, baby I’m going to get off the phone. I’m feeling a little sick so I’m going to go eat. I love you and I’ll see you tomorrow.” I say my goodbyes and he seemed a little worried. We end the call and I rub my belly a little.

I didn’t want to have that pregnancy where I felt like throwing up every day, so eating crackers calmed my pregnancy jitters. I lay on the couch and turn on Cake Boss. My eyes fluttered shut before I could even see what the cake looked like.

When I woke up I felt someone lifting me up, my eyes opened up wide because of the fear. The first thing I saw was Ashton’s sweet smile. “Hey baby, you fell asleep on the couch. I just got home so I thought I’d carry my lovely bride up the stairs.” He tells me as he presses a kiss to my forehead. “Thanks, Ash, I love you.” I snuggle myself into his chest. “Let’s get some pajamas on, you don’t need to sleep in skinny jeans. He changed me into some shorts and one of his shirts. I sigh contently as I lay my head on my pillows. Ash comes to his side and wraps me in his arms. “Night baby.” He kisses my forehead once more before we both fall asleep.

—-

“Morning, sleepyhead.” I hear Ashton’s voice as I come to. “What are you doing up?” I ask and he giggles. “I’ve been up for an hour, it’s 12 baby, you looked so peaceful I didn’t want to wake you.” He says and he kisses my nose and I grin. “You should have woke me up with you.” I wrap my arm around his neck and he pushes me up against him. His arms were around my waist and I snuggle myself in the crease of his neck.

“I’m so glad you’re home.” I kiss his neck softly and he squeezes me a little tighter. “I’ve missed you so much, I’m surprised you are still married to me. Can’t believe I found someone who wants to wait around for me when I’m busy around the world.” He sighs softly and I lift my head up. “Well I didn’t marry you for your job, I married you because you’re the love of my life. Your job is just a part of you.” I peck his lips lightly.

He pushes me on my back and hovers over me, his eyes were gleaming as he took in the moment. “I’m so fucking in love with you, look at you though. You’re so beautiful and you have this glowing skin. I just want to kiss and hold you all day long.” He lowers himself down and pushes his lips on mine. I wrap my arms around his neck once more, but this time I pull him down to me. He was trying to situate his weight but I didn’t care honestly. I allow his tongue entrance and he was taking dominance.

He moves his kissing down to my neck and I sigh contently. He starts to move to my boobs, but I didn’t realize how much they were hurting, so I push him off gently. “We’re going to your moms in 4 hours, let’s not have any marks that need to be covered.” I lie as he backs up, I knew it was probably due to the pregnancy.

I’ve honestly been lowkey reading pregnancy books for months, it’s just something I wanted to do and we’ve been married for a year. I wanted a baby so bad and now I know a lot of knowledge just from the books. “You’re right, let's go watch some Criminal Minds.” He suggests as he jumps over me, he picks me up and carries me downstairs. “I love you so much,” I whisper quietly, I didn’t know if he heard me or not, but I just knew how much he meant to me.

—-

“Anne!” I giddily yell and hug her, she wraps her arm around me. I feel someone tugging me away and I look back to see Lauren. “There’s my girl,” I say and I give her a hug too. “Can I show you my prom dress and stuff later?” She asks and I nod quickly. “Uh, duh. You know I’m your forever person hype-woman.” I tell her and she smiles softly. “Thanks.” We link arms as we go into the living room. “Can you actually walk outside with me for a moment?” I ask and she seemed worried.

“Ash, we’re going to the car! I forgot my phone out there.” I lie and he looks back at me and nods. He turns back to his little brother showing him videos of his drumming.

“What’s wrong?” She asks as we walk down the sidewalk. I make sure we’re out of ear shot by walking to the car quicker, I open the trunk quickly. I pull out the record and show her what it says, her eyes widen quickly. “You’re kidding! Oh my god, I’m so happy for you.” She hugs me tightly and I wanted to start crying. “I need to get this inside but I don’t know how to bring it in without Ashton knowing,” I say and she ponders for a second. “You go in first and be all lovey-dovey, I’ll sneak in after and put it in my room.” She plans and I nod.

I walk in and find Ash sitting on the recliner. Luckily it was turned away from the door. I sat on his lap and he smirks slightly. “Finally realize I’m the best person in the house?” He asks and I shrug. “I don’t know, I never thought you were the best.” I tease and he fake gasps. “How dare you!” He exclaims as he also fakes a pout.

I see Lauren start to dash towards the stairs. “I love you,” I whisper and kiss his neck softly. “Don’t start something you can’t finish, baby.” He whispers back and I grin. “Supper is ready!” Anne yells and I perk up. “Oof, gotta blast.” I jump up and don’t even wait for Ash, I was already at the dinner table. “I still wonder why I married you.” He jokes under his breath, he sits beside me and grabs my hand.

——

Everyone was finished with supper and most of them were drinking wine, well just Ashton and Anne. “Well, did you not want any? I’ll go get you some.” Ashton says and I shake my head. “One of us has to drive, remember?” I admit, that and I’m freaking pregnant.

“I’m gonna go get a glass of water,” I say and look at Lauren, she picks it up and we both stand. “I could go for some sprite.” She says and we both head towards the kitchen. “I’ll go get it and you make a glass of water. That way if Ashton passes out, we have something to splash on him.” She jokes and I nod, I grab a plastic cup from the cabinet and put water into it.

I go back to the living room and sit by Ashton on the loveseat. Lauren comes in with it in her hand, Ashton notices it when she sits on the floor in front of him. I see her pull out her phone and she sneakily records us. “What’s that Lauren? You got me a welcome home present?” He teases and she shakes her head. “It’s actually one from y/n.” She states and he looks at me expectingly. “Yep, I admit that it was me.” I put my hands up in defense. “You shouldn’t of.” He kisses my cheek before picking it up. “Well, I wasn’t gonna take it back,” I mumble to myself.

He pulls the record out and I think he was so caught up trying to figure out who the artist was. Suddenly, his eyes shift to the words. “For the record,” he turns the record over and his eyes go big, “I’m pregnant.” He ended up yelling it. “You’re pregnant? For real?” He asks and I nod. “Oh my god! I’m a dad!” He says as he tackles me into the couch, but he pulls back shortly after. “Hey, there little Irwin. I love you so much already.” He whispers toward my stomach and I feel tears cloud up.

We’ve been wanting a child for so long and his reaction just summed it up. Lauren turns off her phone and joins our little hug. “I’m gonna be the best aunt.” She says as she pulls away.

Anne stands up with tears in her eyes. “I’m so happy guys, l love you too so much.” We stand up so she can hug us.

She pulls away quickly and I see her demeanor change. “But I fucking knew it! You’ve got the beautiful glow, you ate much more than usual, and you had that little twinkle of happiness in your eyes.” She laughs and I groan, “you know me too well.” I say.

“So, does that mean I get to be an uncle?” Harry catches our attention and we nod. “Awesome.” He says to himself. “Yeah bud, it’s pretty awesome.” Ashton comments, he looks and me and kisses me quickly.

“Pretty damn awesome.”

[j-j-ehlby-writes]

Meet Me at the Chalet || day three.

Eventual pairing: Tom Hiddleston x OFC (Jenessee Borosi)

Word count: ~3.1k

Summary (I suck at these): Jenessee goes on a solo vacation after the release of her first novel. She got a little more than she bargained for when she gets snowed in with her biggest celebrity crush.

Warnings: So much freaking fluff, swearing but blink and you’ll miss it, depressing thoughts (THIS chapter), mental breakdown (THIS chapter), Tom being Tom

A/N: This chapter contains very personal experiences for me. I wanted the main character to be flawed (because we all are), and the only thing I could write about that would be authentic was something that I’ve gone through myself. If you have troubles with mental breakdowns and depressive thoughts, either proceed with caution or skip this chapter all together.

night one. || day one. || day two. || day three. || day four. ||

“Good morning, darling.” He greeted once he heard me enter the room. “Did you sleep well?” He finally looked up to take in my appearance. I fully expected him to flinch. There must be dark circles under my eyes from lack of sleep, my hair must be a mess from running my fingers through it in frustration when I couldn’t find the word I was looking for, my clothes wrinkled from the constant position changed they endured through the night- in other words, I look like a wreck. But he didn’t seem to notice or care. He still watched me, waiting for me to answer.

“I actually haven’t been to sleep yet.” I dragged my fuzzy sock clad feet over to where he was standing getting a delicious whiff of the pig fat that was frying in the pan.

He slipped an arm around my shoulder, pulling me to his body. “Oh yeah? Were you writing?” I nodded, leaning into him welcoming the warmth it brought me. I lazily wrapped my arms around his narrow waist, surprising myself by how natural this all feels. This physical contact is new to whatever this is we have going on here, but I like it. I like having his strong arm around me, keeping me close to him like he actually wants me there. I tucked comfortable under his arm as he draped it over my shoulder. I would have buried my face in his neck but I didn’t want to push it. “Well then, let’s get your beautiful brain some food before you go back on up to bed.” He gave my shoulder a gentle squeeze before he returned his attention to the stove. He watched me consume the three strips he gave me before escorting me back up to my room. He cleared off my bed before tucking me in. I was out before he shut my door.

By the time I woke up, my room was pitch black. I found Tom downstairs reading on the couch. “Why did you let me sleep so long?” I questioned as I plopped down on the opposite end. “Now I won’t sleep tonight.”

“Because, darling, you were exhausted and you deserved to rest.” He set his book down next to him before standing up. “Shall I make you some dinner? I’m having a real hankering for some grilled cheese.” The cheesy (pun-intended) smile he plastered on his face was heart-stopping. How could anyone say no to it? He came to stand in front of me, holding out both hands. I happily took them as he pulled me up.

“Again?” I giggled. He started walking backwards, bringing me along with him since he hasn’t let go of my hands yet. They sent warmth throughout my entire body as all of the blood rushed to my face.

All traces of playfulness disappeared reminding me of the pictures I’ve seen of him as Loki. “Oh yes, darling. You’ve created a monster.” He stopped, yanking me to him. My body collided with his, with him catching me like I weighed nothing at all. His arms captured my waist as my arms were crushed between us as I had braced myself for impact. His eyes stayed locked on mine as his voice dropped a few octaves. “A bacon and pickle grilled cheese loving…” His head bent down towards my ear. I could feel his hot breath against my neck. I had to restrain myself from shivering. “Monster.” He almost growled into my ear.

And in one split second, he went from sexy God Tom to playful “Loki’d” Tom as his large hands attacked my sides. The initial contact warranted a very loud shriek, but it was quickly replaced with cackles and pleas for him to stop. I wiggled my way out of his grip and ran into the kitchen to take refuge in. He chased me around the place until I complained of a side ache from too much running and laughing at the same time. We called a temporary truce until I sneakily decided to kick it up a notch. I’d seen them happen multiple times in movies and TV shows and have always wanted to be a part of one. I figured now would be the perfect opportunity. I found myself in the pantry, looking for the perfect weapon to use against him. It can’t be something too big that it’ll hurt him, but I want it to make a mess. Flour is the obvious choice, but I also don’t want to be cliché… Oh to hell with that. I grabbed the huge tub of it and hid it behind a cupboard for future use. I scooped a handful into my hand for my sneak attack. I spotted my clueless victim as he prepared the bread. I went right up to him, hiding all trace of my impending betrayal.

“What were you doing in there?” He asked when he noticed my return.

“Planning my next move.” I brought my flour-filled hand up to his face as he looked at me confused. I blew as I opened my hand, covering his entire face with the white powder. His mouth and eyes snapped shut, flinching away slightly. We stayed still while he processed what just happened. When he finally opened those beautiful blue eyes again, there was vengeance written all over them.

“Oh it’s so on.”

Ten minutes later we were sat on the floor covered in flour, laughing at how ridiculous the other looks. The white powder stuck to our hair, turning it all gray, it clung to our clothes and every single surface it came into contact with.

“I think I have flour in places flour should never be.” He commented, shifting his hips against the floor causing me to fold over in continued laughter. My tears mixed with the flour on my face creating a paste-like substance that will be impossible to wash off later. But right now I didn’t care.

I looked over at the man in front of me who was equally covered in white. His ginger locks and beard were now gray, making him age 30 years right in front of my eyes. To say he will be a hot silver fox is the biggest understatement of the century. I couldn’t help but picture us in that 30 years reliving this moment in our own kitchen, our grandchildren playing along with us, getting scolded by our kids when they came to pick them up. But then I would look at him, all gray-haired and perfect and know that I-

“So I’ve been meaning to ask you…” He trailed off breaking me out of my fantasy. I didn’t realize we both stopped laughing and silence had filled the room until he spoke. He was fidgeting with his hands in his lap, his gaze locked on them. When I realized what he had said, my heart dropped slightly. Panic was lingering, not knowing if it should rear its ugly head or if it would be premature. He took an abnormally long pause which only made it worse. It is the same feeling when someone texts you saying “Can I ask you a question?” and then taking forever to respond to your text back. Agony. Pure agony. “Are you… spoken for?” He finally met my eyes, probably to gauge my reaction. Did he think he was crossing the line somehow? Did he think it was too personal? Was he afraid I would get emotional due to a recent break up? Who knows…

Am I spoken for? Who in the world phrases it like that anymore? Why don’t we speak like that nowadays? We’ve gotten so lazy. Everyone is all about the quick fling or get straight to the physical stuff. No one courts anymore. No one writes long, handwritten love letters anymore. I’m not saying we should talk like Shakespeare, more like in the early to mid-1900s. Going on long walks, bringing her flowers before a date, picnics in the park, then escorting her to her front door, giving a sweet good night kiss before parting ways only to have a smile on your face for the rest of the night.

Like Tom said in an interview a few years ago, “This generation has lost the true meaning of romance,” and how he is an “old-fashioned romantic.” It’s sad that he hasn’t really been given the chance to show that side. And if he has, it hasn’t been appreciated like it should.

Am I spoken for? The only person that could possibly make that sound like the most romantic thing in the world and not at all old-fashioned is sitting right in front of me, covered in flour.

“Okay, first of all, who says that anymore?” I voiced my previous thoughts. He chuckled, breaking the serious façade he put up.

“Well pardon me for being old-fashioned about it.” He placed his hand over his heart in offense. “I am a self-proclaimed romantic.” He stated confirming what he has previously said.

“And second of all, no.” I shrugged, “I’m not spoken for. I am completely unattached.” I shudder thinking about how long it has been since my last relationship and how painful it was. That heartbreak has kept me from opening up again for years. I didn’t want to feel that kind of earth-shattering feeling again. It’s only partly to blame for my perpetual singleness, but a big part nonetheless.

“I find that quite surprising actually.” He admitted.

“Why? Because of my winning personality and devastatingly good looks?” I flipped my current non-existent long hair over my shoulder for effect. I don’t think I have either so I know those are also parts of why I’m single and have been.

He chuckled at my sarcasm. “Why, yes actually. You are beautiful, you have a phenomenal sense of humor,” he gestured around us at everything covered in flour, “you know how to have fun, you like having relaxing nights just sitting on the couch reading, or in your case, writing,” he smiled, “you’re obviously independent since you are on vacation alone-”

“Well that’s not necessarily true.” I interrupted. “My friend would have joined if she could have gotten off work.”

“Alright then.” He conceded. “I still stand by your independence though.” I nodded, not arguing with him. I know I’m independent, sometimes to a fault.

“So, you think you got me all figured out after knowing me for 3 days?” I concluded from his compliments.

“Oh no, darling. I believe I’ve just scratched the surface.” He intensely gazed at me. “And I’m eager to see what else there is to learn about you.”

I found myself asking him “Why?” Why, out of all of the people in the world, is he eager to learn more about me? I’m just a woman from the Midwest that is as complicated as anyone can be. “There’s nothing special about me.” I confessed wholeheartedly. Even if he knew I’m a published author, I still don’t see what’s so interesting that someone like him would want to get to know me? There are so many issues that I’ve buried deep beneath the surface that no human should have to bare or anyone else should have to endure. Dark thoughts that only comes out at night thanks to a trigger… No one else deserves to carry the burden of knowing I have those thoughts. Especially Tom.

“Do you truly believe that?” He asked with a hint of sadness I never wanted to hear or even expected.

“How can I not? When there are so many others out there that are more successful, prettier, skinnier…” I wrap my arms around my stomach, one of my many trouble spots. I’ve always been self-conscious about the way I look. I compare myself to everyone around, no matter what. I always have and I more than likely always will. I know it’s not healthy. It’s just one of my countless bad habits. “It’s hard to see myself as anything more than ordinary. I mean, I know I’m not a-” I use air quotes- “’hot girl.’ I’m probably never going to take anyone’s breath away or impress anyone with the way I look, but I can make you laugh and make you feel wanted, and sometimes I can be really fucking cute. I just wish that could be enough. Just once.” I shrugged again, wanting to change the subject. The way he’s looking at me with such sadness when mere moments ago he was filled with pure joy, I want that gone. So I stood up. “Shall we eat or clean up first?”

For the rest of the night, there was something… off. Like there was a dark cloud hovering over us and was persistent for the entirety of the time we spent together after we peeled ourselves off the floor. I knew the reason for my dark cloud, but even he seemed to be thrown off too.

Not being able to deal with the new weirdness between us, I excused myself and retreated to my room. The heaviness continued all night. I found myself just staring off into the distance as my mind raced with topics I haven’t thought about in years that love to surface at the most inconvenient times, like now. They put me into a funk for hours until I fall asleep, only to wake up like nothing ever happened. I can only hope this is one of those times and Tom forgives me for being sucky company.

More often than not, I will work myself up so badly that I will have a mental breakdown, crying myself into hyperventilation. Unfortunately this time is no exception. My thoughts latched onto the topic that guarantees waterworks and a lot of them. My sobs literally shaking my entire body to the core, gasping for breaths in between, asking questions no one will be able to give me answers to. The kinds of questions only sink me deeper and deeper into the darkness.

Light knocks on my door broke me out of my depression bubble.

Crap. He must have heard me… Well, I haven’t exactly tried being quiet. I banked on the walls being thicker than standard hotels and for him to be a deep sleeper. Both seem to be wrong.

I lay there going over my options: I could ignore him, I could answer and lie about why I’m emotional, I could tell him the truth but that’s not something he needs to worry about…

There’s no way I can ignore him. He was kind enough to leave his room to come and check on me. The least I could do is let him in. However I don’t want him to see me. My eyes are no doubt bloodshot and puffy, along with the rest of my face. I can’t lie to him or tell him the truth. I decide what the easiest option is and unwrap myself from my cocoon of comfort. I slide my room key under the door before returning to the warmth. 

Seconds go by before I hear the door gently opening. I see his shadow in the light of the doorway then it’s dark again. The bed dipped behind me then his hand rested on my shoulder, pulling me back to face him. I lie flat on my back now like he wanted. I bite my lip to keep it from quivering; I tried to even out my shaky breathing without much success. I didn’t want him to think I’m weak for crying for God-knows how long… but those walls have long since been shattered; my strength being abysmal at the moment.

Even in the pitch black room, I can see how close he is. His outline was only mere inches from me. His hand caresses my cheek as I feel his gaze all over my face as if he can see right through me. His thumb wipes away some of the moisture that had remained there. I didn’t bother to try to wipe it all away if more tears were going to flow eventually.

“Oh darling…” He whispered as he slipped his other arm under and around me, pulling me into his chest, tucking me under his chin. An overwhelming sense of comfort- of home- filled my entire being, which only brought on another wave of tears. I’ve never had anyone around during my breakdowns, always suffering in silence. For him to immediately want to comfort me in my time of need… it means more to me than I could ever explain.

“I’m so sorry.” He murmured against my hair before pressing a tender kiss on my head. He runs his hand softly up and down my arm just like my mom used to do on my back. His touch created goosebumps all along my arm.

“What could you possibly be sorry for?” I ask just above a whisper, not trusting my voice at the moment.

He sighed, “For all of the pain that is in your heart that you feel you have to suffer with it alone.”

No more words were exchanged after that. How could I when he says something like that?

What I didn’t anticipate him doing was he took care of me. He got me the Kleenex box so my nose could empty out. He rubbed my back whispering soothingly, encouraging me to let it all out. He even went as far as starting the shower for me after I was sure the floodgates were closing. I stepped in letting the hot water relax my muscles and wash over my face, eliminating any evidence of the past few hours. I washed my body with my peach body wash before getting out. I smiled, noticing my bag that was now sitting on the vanity. I rummaged through it to find a different pair of pajamas to get back into.

When I finally emerged from the bathroom, Tom was waiting for me on the bed. I climbed in and he immediately wrapped his arms around me, pulling me so close there was no space between us. I inhaled the faint smell of his cologne, instantly lulling me into a new sense of calm which terrified me to no end. How can I feel so safe and secure with someone I just met a few days ago? How can he give me everything with no questions asked?

It wasn’t long before I felt myself slip into unconsciousness. There was only one thing on my mind by the time I finally fell… I don’t deserve him, but I sure as hell want to.

day four...

Permanent taglist: @elusive-beauty @drakesfiance @im-a-slut-for-an-accent @fantasy-is-my-reality @hiddlephile @naniky

[mordenheim]

Dr. Mordenheim’s Travels, Book 1:  De Writer’s Equestria, Ch. 1

Dr. Victor Mordenheim has traveled to many different realities in his many centuries of existence.  This series, which I shall add to from time to time, will explore some of them, beginning with the world of @ask-de-writer.

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The tall, slender zebra staggered his way through the tangled undergrowth of the Everfree forest.  Dead branches tangled in his mane, tugging his head back and even clawing at his eyepatch as he trudged onward, pausing occasionally to make sure he still had his saddlebags.  He had been wandering for what seemed like days as the paths constantly shifted and changed direction as he traveled.  Once in a while he would follow a seemingly straight path and end up passing the same tree several times. Other times he would take a sharply curving route that seemed to circle back on itself, only to end up in an entirely different location.

It was still mostly dark when he finally pulled himself free from the brambles and stumbled into a small clearing.  The broken and crumbling remains of an old castle stood before him, however this particular castle was somewhat odd.  From the rubble he could see that various different types and colors of stone were used to construct its walls and towers.  Each tower also seemed to once have a different type of roof.  A rounded spire on one, a flat top where he spied the rotting remains of an open wooden trap door.  Prodding at the walls with a hoof, the remaining stone seemed solid and sturdy.  Perhaps this would be a place he could fix up to stay for a while.  

Around the front there was a short path that lead to a small building.  It had perhaps been a guard house or a small barracks at one time.  A few old, broken benches sat inside as well as various shelves and racks along the walls, all covered in dust and cobwebs.  However, through the front he saw the most welcoming sight of all.  No more than ten feet from the front door was an actual cobblestone road and the faint pink light of the rising sun on the horizon.  He had finally found his way out of this forsaken forest.

He had followed the road to the east for a short way before he stopped, confused.  He could see the outskirts of Ponyville up ahead, yet that town had ever only had a simple dirt road between it and the Everfree.  When had they built such a fine road, he wondered to himself.  As well as pondering just how long he actually had been lost in the wood.  He was well aware that time passed strangely in the Everfree, and space itself seemed warped and broken.

Making sure his saddlebags were still secure and doing his best to get the worst of the burrs out of his fur he trotted into Ponyville proper.  As he looked around he could see that quite a few things had changed while he had been lost.  The buildings seemed different, more colorful and sturdier in build.  The roads were solid and well-maintained and the trees and grasses trimmed and cared for.  All of this, however, was quickly wiped from his mind as the scent of delicious cooking wafted past his nose, causing his empty stomach to clench painfully and give a low growl.

Trotting along the street, following his nose he soon came upon a smallish building with a sign out front sitting across from a well maintained park.  “Caramel Treat’s Sweets” was a lovely little restaurant and certainly the source of the delicious aromas.  He paused outside of the door for a moment.  It was not yet full dawn and most eateries that he knew of only operated from dawn to dusk, or from lunch hour until late.  

He was starting to draw a few stares from early risers as he waited until full dawn.  He rolled his eye as several ponies opened their door to set about their of business, laid their eyes on him, and immediately slammed their doors, peeking through window shades.  He rubbed at his eyepatch as he sighed, he was well used to this reaction by now.  He only hoped that his patronage would be accepted at this little restaurant or who knows how long he would have to wait to eat.  He might even have to brave the pink whirlwind that inhabits Sugarcube Corner.  He shuddered at the thought.

He need not have worried, though.  Just a few moments later the door opened wide and a young caramel colored mare with a blonde mane stepped into view.  She started to speak but quickly changed her tune a bit when she spied a zebra the size of a Rom horse on her doorstep!  “What a beautiful..  Oh!  I’m sorry, I didn’t know we had a customer already!”

Victor was pleasantly stunned by the warm response!  He smiled, careful not to show his sharp teeth as he lowered himself into a graceful bow, “Good mornin’ to ye.  I was just wondering if you were open yet for the day.  I’ve been traveling a long distance and would like to rest my weary bones for a bit and purchase a meal.”

Caramel’s ear twitched a bit.  The zebra’s voice was deep and rich, but that certainly was not a Zebrican accent.  She smiled and nodded, trotting back into the restaurant, “Of course, of course, please, come right in!”

The huge zebra smiled and entered the restaurant, ducking his head as he entered more out of habit than anything.  The inside was well-lit and high-ceilinged with several tables, chairs, a small bar, even pillows to sit on here and there.  He trotted over to the bar so he would be a bit away from the windows and pulled over a soft pillow to rest upon.  His old joints creaked as he lowered himself, grateful that he finally got a chance to relax.

Caramel trotted over with a glass of ice water and a menu.  Setting the glass down, she placed the menu in his hooves.  She sniffed at the air, seeming to be sniffing at her own cooking when an odd look crossed her face.  She blinked once, then smiled knowingly at her huge guest, “Just let me know when you’re ready to order.  I should be able to hear you just fine.”  She leaned in with a soft whisper and mentioned, “If you need any items towards the back of the menu, just let me know, I’ll need to move you in case of other guests, but we will gladly help you here.”

Victor was a bit taken aback by the strange look, but the gentle smile afterwards seemed to reassure him.  He blinked a bit, curious about what she meant by items towards the back, but he decided he would check the entire thing anyway.  He had just about decided on a dish called clovertop scramble with vegetable fries and something called Rom black tea when he flipped to the back of the menu.  His eyebrows raised as he saw the page filled with meat options.  Fried or baked fish, roasted chicken, even bacon!  He had to lift a napkin to his mouth to hide, and soak up the drool.  Shaking his head, he looked up from the menu, wondering how she could have known.

Making up his mind, he decided it might be best to take it easy on his system after having not eaten for so long.  He called out to her and placed his order.  A clovertop scramble, a bit of dry toast instead of the fried vegetables, and a cup of Rom black tea sounded perfect.  In mere minutes, she had brought out the delicious-smelling food and placed it before him.  He thanked her and slowly tucked into his meal.  

Every bite was wonderful.  A slight bit of black pepper and a tang of salt gave the scramble an incredible flavor, every fluffy bite seeming to melt in his mouth.  The toast, in spite of being dry as he requested, was crisp and flavorful, a perfect pairing to the scramble.  The tea was unlike anything he had tasted before.  Spicy and floral with a soft bit of warmth underlying everything.  In spite of trying to take his time, it was mere moments before he was using the last corner of toast to wipe his plate clean.

He smiled contentedly, remarking how wonderful everything was as Caramel Treat trotted back over to the bar.  He paid his fee and tipped a single golden bit.  Caramel looked at the coins a little oddly as she hadn’t seen any quite like these before.  They were real, the right weight and metals, but the imprints were odd to her.  The copper coin had an image of a phoenix in repose, the silver a long, slender dragon or sea serpent curling around the edge, while the golden coin was the most interesting.  Both front and back bore an intricate Celtic knot design around the edge.  The front bore an image of two hooves grasping a heart topped by a crown while the rear bore the motto “Friendship, Loyalty, Love” struck into the soft metal.

He tilted his head to the side as he watched her studying the coins, “Is something wrong?  Did I need to do some sort of money exchange before paying?”  

Caramel shook her head, “No, there’s no problem.  I’ve just never seen coins like this before.”

Victor nodded, “Ah, that explains it.  They’re from my home country, Shireland.  I’ve picked up other coins in my travels, but the majority of them are still from home.  I have a question for you, though.”

She nodded as she got her explanation for the odd coins, but then it was her turn to be curious about his questions.  He leaned in close, still smiling but this time feeling comfortable enough to let his oddly sharp, interlocking teeth show a bit as he whispered, “How could you tell I might be interested in the items in the back of your menu?”

She grinned in return, pointing a hoof up to a sign above the bar, central in the restaurant for every creature to see.  On it were depicted the images of two large wolves with the text “If you have any problem with any customer of ours for any reason, be it race, kind, species, belief or any other reason at all, PLEASE LEAVE.  We bite, HARD!”.  She winked and said, “I think that’s a pretty good likeness of myself and Fangrin.”

Victor’s jaw almost hit the bar!  To find not just one, but two creatures similar to himself was amazing!  He smiled even more pleasantly and reached out to gently take her hoof, bowing his head once more.  “Thank you so much for your hospitality.  I will be sure to stop back very often, indeed.  In the meantime, however.  It’s been a very long time since I’ve visited ponyville and it seems a lot has changed over the years.  Do you know of anyplace nearby where I might be able to get cleaned up and make myself a bit more presentable?”

Caramel smiled and nodded, shaking his hoof in return.  “Sure, the Ponyville Day Spa is right down the road in the town square!  Just tell Lotus Blossom and Aloe Vera that Caramel sent you and they’ll fix you right up and even give you a nice discount!”

Smiling brightly, he thanked the mare once more for her wonderful meal and her company before trotting out of the door.  His spirits lifted, he held his head up high as he made his way towards the town square!  Perhaps Ponyville had changed for the better after all!