#or they forgot she will absolutely burn down the kitchen (affectionate) | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

cowgurrrl · 2 years ago

Note

Requesting and begging for an OFTM uni where actress!reader is heavily pregnant and there’s a cute little family pool day (Joel being overprotective of reader in the pool bonus scene plsssssssss) happening at home with Joel taking care of dessert and he burns the pie or something and it’s actress!reader, Tommy and Joel in the kitchen trynna salvage whatever with Joel trying to get her to move away from the smoke and Tommy just takes the pie and the actress!reader in, looks at Joel and goes “you really can’t pull out anything in time huh???”

Stop this made me laugh so hard I love this

Daylight

Pairing: rockstar!joel miller x actress!reader

Author’s note: now what the fuck do y’all know about a Texas Trash Pie

Summary: An almost perfect Texas day with the Millers [2.3k]

Warnings: pregnancy, talks of body image, Hank Miller being the original Shit Stirrer, June your Texas is showing

You love your husband. You really do. However, sometimes you question his choices, like taking the entire family down to Texas before the twins are born. Hank and Lucia are more than happy to see their grandkids, but you're twenty weeks pregnant with the girls and absolutely exhausted. Ethan, Sarah, Ellie, and Dina try to get you out of the house to go to H-E-B with them, one of their favorite things to do when they're in Texas, but you're so sick, you can't even stomach the thought of a car ride. Tommy and Maria, who's also pregnant, are there too, so they can help with Sam. Lucia is also a great help, practically bossing her oldest son around to help you. Not that he needs it, he's always been so supportive, but it's fun to watch their dynamic.

It also doesn't help that Texas is experiencing a record-breaking heatwave while you're there. You can normally withstand heat after so many years in California, but Texas heat is just different, and the extra weight pulling you down makes it ten times worse. The joys of pregnancy, right? Thankfully, the Miller men (and Ellie) help clean and set up the in-ground pool Hank put in a few years ago so you guys can have a family pool day.

Sam gets slathered in sunscreen, a big floppy hat, a sun shirt, and floaties before Tommy throws him in the pool, the little boy screeching with joy the whole way in. Sarah sits poolside with a book, cheering her husband on while he, Ellie, and Dina throw a football around in the water. Hank grills while Lucia fusses over you and Maria, making sure each of you is comfortable and drinking enough water. And Joel, dear, sweet Joel, is baking for you.

When you guys got married, Lucia made you what is affectionately known as a Texas Trash Pie. It has chocolate chips, coconut shavings, pecans, pretzels, graham crackers, and probably an ungodly amount of butter in it. Hank's grandmother passed down the recipe when they got married, so she wanted to make it for you guys. It was amazing, perfect, and so Texas that it fit right into your little wedding. With two grown kids and a toddler, you almost forgot about the gooey monstrosity until you returned to Austin. In the few days you've been here, you've been craving it nonstop, and Joel finally decided to make it for you. Lucia tried to help him, but he pushed her out of the kitchen, ordering her to relax so he could make something for his wife.

So, that's how you end up watching Joel through the windows of his parent's house, making sure he doesn't burn anything down. The girls kick at you and each other incessantly, and you have to push a hand into the side where Baby B lives to get her to calm down. "Would you leave your sister alone, you psycho?" You say, looking down. The big hat Joel forced on your head casts a shadow over your bump, but you're still able to make out a little foot pressing against your skin in protest. Maria catches the movement, too, and makes a shocked noise from next to you, and you laugh.

"Oh, my God, do they always do that?"

"Yes! I swear, they're always kicking at each other like they're trying to find more room." You say as Lucia walks over and pulls up a chair to sit between you and Maria.

"How're my two lovelies doing?" She asks, resting a hand on each of your bellies. "Or, I guess, there's five of you if we're counting these lovelies." One of the babies kicks at Lucia's hand, and she laughs. "Well, aren't you just a little troublemaker?"

"You have no idea. This one," you say, moving her hand to where Baby B likes to hang out. "Is only awake when this one," you move her hand again to where A is. "Is asleep. It feels like they only both fall asleep when I'm working or we're driving."

"That's what she's doing too! She gets antsy if I'm sitting for too long." Maria chimes in, and Lucia shakes her head.

"The boys were like that too. Now, Joel," she says, looking at you. "Joel was quiet a lot of the time, but if he heard music, forget about it. He'd be up for hours. And Tommy," she looks at Maria. "Tommy would only fall asleep if he was listening to music. Nearly drove Hank crazy."

"He still can't sleep without something playing in the room," Maria says, and you laugh.

"Miller men are resistant to change. I'm convinced they've got stubbornness in their blood at this point. I barely got Hank to change his soap after he'd been usin' the same one for thirty-five years. Turns out, it was irritating his skin, but he thought it was exfoliating." Lucia says.

"You talkin' bout me?!" Hank calls from his place at the grill, and Lucia shakes her head.

"You're hearin' things!" She yells, and he points his spatula at you and Maria.

"You girls see how she treats me? Y'all are gonna have to call Elder Protective Services on her."

"I thought you were forty-five, Grandpa," Ellie says mischievously from the pool, and Hank laughs loudly.

"Shit, that's why you're my favorite!"

"Hey!" Sarah shouts, suddenly looking up from her book, and Hank throws his arms up in defeat.

"Oh, now you're listenin'?"

"When you're talkin' shit, I am!" She says, a twang peeking through her words. Hank and Lucia laugh, but Joel steps out of the house as the words leave her mouth, and he gives her a look.

"Sarah Beth Miller, I know I didn't just hear you talkin' to your grandfather like that."

"Grandpa started it!"

"Would ya leave the girl alone, Joel?" Hank teases from the grill, and Joel's jaw drops, making you laugh.

"I'm a grown man, and if I curse in front of you or Mama, I still get read the riot act."

"Me too!" Tommy argues from the pool.

"Well, you two ain't our grandkids."

"That's right," Lucia says, and Joel shakes his head, smiling, as he walks over to you. He leans over your chair and kisses you, bumping your hat in the process, and you smile.

"Ew!" Ellie yells, and Joel flips her off, still kissing you. He scoots to sit next to you, grabbing your hand as he stares at you. Lucia and Maria start talking about something else, giving you two some semblance of privacy, and you send her mental gratitude for it.

"My pie in the oven?" You ask, and he laughs as he kisses your knuckles.

"Yes, ma'am. Should be ready soon."

"Good because the girls are getting impatient."

"Are they now?" He asks, and you nod. He presses the back of his hand to your cheek and furrows his brows. "You're burnin' up, babe. Why don't you get in the pool?"

"Well, here's the problem with that," you start, and his eyes twinkle with amusement. You blame the pregnancy hormones, but you just want to squish his face. He's so goddamn cute. "There are two babies in here, making me huge, and if I get in the pool, I won't be able to get out."

"You ain't huge."

"Well, I feel like I've got a basketball attached to my body at all times, and that's not small." You say. You are about to launch into a tirade about it, but he kisses you before you can continue. He tastes sweet and a little bit salty, the Texas heat making him sweat, and you can't stop the smile from spreading across your face.

"If I get in the pool with you, will you get in?" He asks quietly, and you take a deep breath.

"Pie's almost ready?"

"Nearly there."

"And you'll help me get out if I get stuck?"

"Always."

"And you'll still think I look good in a bikini even though I'm five months pregnant with twins?"

"I think you look good all the time." He charms you, and you roll your eyes. Finally, he helps you stand from your pool chair, and you pull his purple Red Hot Chili Peppers shirt off, revealing the black swimsuit underneath. Joel wolf whistles when you turn around to hang the shirt on the back of your chair, and you slap his arm. Still, he holds your hand and helps you step down into the pool's cool water. The water helps take some pressure off your hips, and you have to try hard to avoid thinking that you're pretty much a human submarine for your twins. Still, you sigh in relief as you stand in the pool, a satisfied smirk on Joel's face. "Feel better?"

"A little bit."

"Mama!" Sam yells from the other side of the pool, and you and Joel both turn to look. "Watch what Ethan and I can do!" Ethan hauls Sam onto his broad shoulders without any further warning, and Ellie ducks underwater so Dina can sit on her shoulders. Then, the four of them get into the most dramatic, over-the-top game of chicken you've ever seen in your life. Ellie and Ethan splash at each other blindly while Sam giggles as he holds Dina's hands. Eventually, Ellie tips back and takes Dina down so Sam and Ethan can win. Everyone cheers on Sam and Ethan, including Ellie and Dina, who are good sports about losing. Sam stays on Ethan's shoulders and starts pretending to be a pirate, and you turn back to Joel with a big smile.

"Our kids are pretty cool." You say, and he nods as you wrap your arms around his shoulders.

"Yeah," he puts his hand on your bump. "You think these two will be just as cool?"

"I think these two are gonna give us a run for our money."

"Yeah?"

"Oh, yeah. They've been battling it out with each other all day." You say, and he makes a face as he pauses, waiting to feel movement.

"Seem pretty quiet to me. Maybe they just like me better." He snarks, and you give him a look. He laughs and pulls you close, kissing your forehead, but you try to push him away.

"Oh, Joel Miller knows everything about this pregnancy! Excuse me, Mister Professor!" You exaggerate as you try to swim away from Joel, but he catches you and pulls you back. You smile when he pouts and ducks his head to kiss your jaw.

"I was just kiddin'. I'm sorry." He mumbles, and you laugh, shaking your head.

"You're fine, Miller." You say. He wraps his arms around your waist, and you turn in his arms, his chest to your back, so you can watch the kids splash around together. The sun is high in the cloudless blue sky, and from here, you can see the acres of the Miller ranch, the stables not too far from the house. Barbeque and chlorine hang in the air as a perfect ode to summer, and you smile as you watch Sam jump in the water to the cheers of his adult siblings and their partners. Joel hums as he rests his chin on your shoulder and traces patterns into your skin.

"D'you ever think we'd be here? Married with five kids?" He asks, and you shake your head, giggling to yourself.

"No," you admit, and he laughs. "But, now that it's here..." You try to come up with the words to explain what your family means to you. How they've changed your life, your career, everything. Except, you can't. You'll spend the rest of your sunshine, kid-filled days trying to describe what this means to you. You could cover every mile of the earth, see every wonder the world has to offer you, meet people from different walks of life, and still never be able to explain why watching Ellie carry Sam through the water tugs at your soul the way it does. Or why seeing Sarah and Ethan relax into each other by the pool makes you want to cry. Or why you look at Hank and Lucia, almost fifty years into their marriage, and see hope and unconditional love and a glimmer of you and Joel. He seems to understand, nodding against your shoulder.

"Yeah," he says as he kisses your cheek. "Me too." You turn to kiss him again, but Hank emerges from the house with a blaring phone, pulling your attention.

"Joel, your phone won't stop goin' off. Now, you know I'm not good with all that tech stuff, so here ya go." Hank says as he hands the phone to Joel. He stares at it, confused like he can't figure out why his alarm is going off before his eyes widen, and he pulls himself out of the water.

"The pie!" He yells as Tommy steps out of the house with a beer. He seems to realize what's happening at the same time Lucia does and quickly turns on his heels to go back into the house. Seconds later, you hear the smoke alarm go off. You laugh and, with Ethan's help, get out of the pool and pad inside. You follow Joel's wet footprints through the house and into the kitchen, where Tommy stands with the burnt pie in his oven-mitt-clad hand. He looks at you, down at the pie, back at you, before looking at Joel, and you can almost hear the thought before he says it.

"Can you just not pull anything out on time or..." He says, and Lucia smacks the back of his head before he can even finish the sentence.

"¡No digas mierda así!"

"¡Pero Mama es verdad! Mira, mira, mira-"

"¡Ay, no! Help your brother!" She yells as she leaves the kitchen. "And help him make a new pie!"

#one for the money two for the show #rockstar!joel x actress!reader #rockstar!joel miller #dad!joel miller #tlou au #the last of us au #the last of us fluff #joel miller fluff

132 notes · View notes

wizkiddx · 4 years ago

Text

this deleted itself but the req was for an ill reader who likes to try and carry on even if they feeling shit and tom noticing I think?!?

Summary: you take start to feel a bit shit at toms family barbecue and get caught out and taken care of

///////////

It should've be lovely, an evening in the rare but much appreciated British summer sun in Dom and Nikki’s garden. Everyone was there; all the Holland boys; both sets of Tom’s grandparents; Haz and his long time girlfriend Lucie. It was a reunion of sorts, although no one had been away working, you’d somehow all timed your individual holidays simultaneously. You and Tom to Australia; Sam and Harry to south-east Asia; Paddy, Dom and Nikki to Sweden. Having all returned in the space of a week, everyone was catching up, involving great British barbecues (which are always a little disappointing) and a fair amount of booze.

You were sat on the garden furniture with Tessa (Tom’s grandma), Nikki and Lucie. Very much a ‘girl power’ meeting if ever there was - which in a family full of boys was often needed just to keep the peace. Everything about the evening was lovely… except perhaps your body. God knows why, because you rarely got ill - having not had a day off work in two years. As much as you’d been trying to push away the slow creeping feeling for a couple of hours - it was now getting impossible to ignore. The slightly unsettled feeling in your stomach had you fidgeting in the wooden chair constantly, trying to ease it by shifting positions... to no avail.

“Y/n… Y/n?” Looking up to see three pairs of beady eyes trained on you, you faked a smile, looking over to Nikki who had been calling your name. “Tess was asking how long the flight back was?” “Oh sorry, was miles away!” You tried to cover, shifting once again, this time pressing a hand to your lower abdomen in the hope that’d distract you as you turned slightly to make eye contact with Tessa. “And I think 11 hours ish.” The girls all pulled a grimacing face in sympathy, to which you chuckled at. “No no honestly cos Tom spoiled me completely so we were in the fancy seats, I honestly was spark out of it the whole time!”

It was enough of a response for the girls to all nod, carrying on the conversation as you, now not the main focus, rubbed your pulsing temple with your other hand - in the hope to relieve some of the building pressure. Clearly, though, you weren’t a subtle as you thought - since Lucie got your attention by bumping your shoulder and leaning in closely. “Come to the loo with me?” It sounded like a question, though it very much wasn’t - the stern look in her eye enough to scare you into agreeing. With a word to Nikki and Tess, you both stood up and made your way to the inside, not stopping until you were locked into the thankfully spacious downstairs loo - the brunette eyeing you intently. “You look like shit.” “Thanks Luc, that’s exactly what I needed to hear right now.” You sighed, sitting on top of the closed lidded loo heavily. “What’s up?” Her tone was harsh and to the point, but secretly there was a look of worry in her eyes. She was one of your best mates but sometimes could also scare you shitless. “I think I’m just tired, it’s my stomach and my head, I’ll be fine.”

Lucie didn't really seem to believe you, but respected your stubbornness and after providing you with two paracetamol capsules from her bag, she let you off - both going back into the garden, where, by now Sam was plating up the slightly charred burgers.

Naturally, you’d sat next to Tom, who had pulled your chairs right next to each other - so that his leg was pressed up against yours, his arm pulled around your shoulder. That was just Tom, away from the prying eyes of the public and media, he really was an affectionate person. He just liked to feel you there. God knows how long you all sat in those same positions, but it was long enough for the sun to set. In fact, you most definitely weren’t the person to ask, because at some point, unbeknownst to you, you’d zoned out. Nobody had noticed, under the cover of the low sunset light, until Tom felt your head briefly fall against his shoulder before it shot up once again - your eyes blinking heavily.

He frowned at the sight, seeing you huddle your arms across your body, which was bizarre due to the unbelievable hot weather in London. Yes, it might have shifted into nighttime, but it was still at least 24 degrees. So as his Dad had the entire table captivated recounting some long and complex tale of his touring days, Tom took the opportunity to squeeze your shoulder - grabbing your attention.

“You alright love?” In response you just hummed, eyes shifting up to him after a little delay - similar to how your reflexes became stunted with alcohol, though Tom suddenly realised you’d barely had more than half the glass of beer he’d poured you when you’d both arrived. “ I’said are you okay?” “Yeh… yeh I’m fine.” You forced a small tight lipped smile, whilst Tom took his arm that was round his shoulder to rest on the crown of your head before slowly stroking down your hair. “Sure? You seem a little out of it?” He pushed, still in a whisper so as not to draw attention to the two of you. “Maybe just tired.” Flat out lying, you shifted back into the backrest of the chair a little more making his hand accidentally land on your forehead rather than your hairline. He didn't move it though, instead sitting and swivelling in his chair, pressing the other side of his hand to the skin as well. “You’re burning up Y/n/n” he spoke a little louder - eyes full of concern as he looked you up and down. “No I’m a bit cold if anythin-“

That was when Nikki, from across the other side of the table got involved. She’d obviously been silently observing the two of you, now feeling the need to send you both home. “Oh, we forgot dessert! Tom, Y/n would you mind helping me bring it out?” Thank god for Nikki, for finding a cover story and stopping everyone's eyes on you. Because for someone dating, three years deep, an A-lister - you hated any sort of attention, even from those closest to you. Especially sympathy, you had absolutely no time at all for that.

Leading you into the kitchen with his arm wrapped tightly around your waist, Tom waited till the door was shut before turning to you.- claiming you were boiling and looked not so great. “I’m just a bit cold if I can borrow one of sam’s jumpers then-“ “Love, please go home.” Nikki interrupted as she wormed past Tom to put her own hand on your forehead too. “You’ve got the chills and you’ve not been normal all day. Am I right or am I right?” She was the worst to argue against. That was completely due to the fact she was always right. With a defeated nod from you, she clicked her tongue, pushing you to sit down on one of the barstools. “Tom go get a jumper from Sam’s room and order a taxi, I would drive but we’ve all been drinking.” “I can just go back by myself T, you don’t get to see your grandparents a lot and -“ “I love you but please please shut up.” Having rounded the back of your chair he pressed his lips to your temples as confirmation before scurrying off to the back of the house.

“You know he doesn’t mind at all? My son never was at my beckon call like he is with you.” There was a little smile teasing the corner of her lips as Nikki placed a glass of water in front of you, as though instructing you to take small sips. “I just feel bad, he’s always telling me how he regrets not spending more time with all of you and… well I’ve had him to myself for the fortnight in South Africa.” “Your just as much a part of the family as me or his grandparents are okay? Now when you get home..”

Nikki switched the tone to then list off all manners of ways that you needed to look after yourself once back, which she then repeated as soon as Tom returned with a black hoodie that you gratefully pulled over your head.

//////////////

By the time you got home, you were feeling so incredibly shit you weren’t even considering keeping up your brave face. Tom had wordlessly led you up the path to your shared home, unlocking the door and telling you to go straight to bed.

Perhaps he was so concerned because in the whole three years together he’d never ever seen you ill. Yes, the odd headache or whatever, as well as the occasional morning after the night before when you’d opted for a ‘tactical chunder’ to try and protect your modesty. But other than that, you were always the one being sympathetic to him. When he was tired, both emotionally and mentally from work; when he hurt his knee and was on forced bed rest for a couple of days ( which turns out to be the hardest time for you too, dealing with the whiny and fidgety boy man).

He came up a couple of minutes later, by which point you’d already pulled joggers on and wrapped yourself as tightly in the duvet as physically possible. If felt so bloody cold your teeth were actually chattering as you curled up into the smallest ball possible. In his hands was a small tray, carrying a steaming mug; a collection of all the different pill packets you kept in the medicine cabinet (as Tom himself had no idea which one was right so decided to use them all); a hot water bottle and what looked like a damp towel, all scrunched up.

No matter how shitty you felt you had a smile at how sweet and doting Tom was being... and as much as you hated the sympathy - if it was always given by a ripped and beautiful brunette with the sharpest jawline you’d ever seen… well just maybe you could get used to it. After snatching the hotwater bottle up immediately, then letting Tom fuss over you in every which way he wanted you gave in, losing the ability to entertain his puppy energy.

“Can we just go to sleep please?” You whined, which Tom nodded to - quickly getting changed and ready before joining you in bed.

As soon as he felt the way the bed was practically vibrating with the chills you were suffering from, he pulled you up into his chest. Now you had both your own personal heater and a hot water bottle to try and warm you up. “You wake me up if you need anything kay?”

Pressing a kiss into the crown of your head, which was nestled between his shoulder and neck. “Promise me ‘kay?” Him needing the reinforcement caused you to arch back up, looking deep into his brown eyes with the warm glow of his bedside table lamp. “You’re too good to me Tommy.” He tutted at that, bringing his hand up to cup your cheek.

“Oh no” He whispered exclaimed, making you immediately ask him what in response. “I think this fever is making you go all delusional love.” You quirked your head, causing him to continue with a cheeky grin. “Well for one, nothing would be too good for you darling and two…. When the hell have you ever called me ‘Tommy’” With him chuckling at his own joke, you rolled your eyes at his cheekiness, firmly planting your head back on his shoulder as if to shut him up. “Alright, I’ll let you off just this once cos your all feverish… get some sleep love.” “Thankyou Tommy.” “Shh love.”

And that’s how you fell asleep, finally finding a bit of warmth in Tom’s arms.

Safe to say he very much didn’t sleep so well. Yes, you felt cold - but Tom was bloody boiling. Still he didn't move because if you were comfortable, his discomfort didn’t matter. It was also a physical impossibility for him to relax until he felt (yes, technically not the most scientific way) your fever coming down. Every five minutes or so he’d gently press the back of his hand to your forehead. This boy was so whipped for you... but he wouldn’t have it any other way.

~~~feedback is really really appreciated~~~~

taglist for tom: @lovehollandy12 @hollandlover19 @thefernandasantana @hunnybunimdun @hallecarey1@cedricdiggorysimpp @msmimimerton @hollandfanficlove @pandaxnienke @crossyourpeter @thegirlwiththeimpala @tom-softie @sunwardsss @spiitfiiires @radcloudenthusiast @ladykxxx08 @prancerrparkerr @wildxwidow @Elishi03 @arctic-monkcys @Ownbauer13 @tomhollandlol @marvelsbitch8

#tom holland imagine #tom holland fanfiction #tom x reader #tom holland one shot #tom holland imagines #tomholland #tom holland #tom holland x reader #tom holland fluff #tom holland x y/n #tom holland angst

234 notes · View notes

universalistotalis · 4 years ago

Text

Too Far

Angst!!!

Atsumu Miya x Female Reader

Word count: 1.5k

Loving Atsumu Miya was absolute bliss. You loved every second of his affection, his skin, his warmth, his laugh, and his jokes. That giant bastard may be a crackhead to his friends and family, but with you, his affectionate side just pops out of nowhere. His eyes filled with love when he looks at you. His arms opened so wide to envelope you in an embrace so tight, your feet lift up the floor with ease. His words laced with care and love with a hint of playfulness at the side and they never failed to make your insides scramble everytime.

You shake your head from the daydream that you’ve consistently been having since the start of the relationship.

God, you loved him so much, didn’t you? You gave your whole world to the man of your dreams. You sacrificed time, effort, patience, you name it, just to have one second by his side.

And because of that love, you became an absolute fool.

Who were you kidding, right? THE Great Atsumu Miya will never settle. Who were you to tame that wild beast? How special did you think you were when he had a sea of people under his spell, his command?

Just face it, you’re nothing to him.

And so you did. You left your shared apartment after waiting for him to come home for the nth time. Who knows where he was, who he’s with, what he’s doing. You were done thinking of an imaginary Atsumu who will love you wholeheartedly. That’s just not going to happen.

After many sobs and insecurities flooding in, you were ready to face the world again. Even more ready to face Atsumu. He’s nothing to you now. There were no grudges held in your heart. There were no tears in yours eyes. But more importantly, there was new love formed in your chest and that’s reserved for the most important person in your life. You.

“Damn, y/n!!! What happened to you?!” One of your friends cheered as you met to go to a club on a Friday night. Work was pretty hectic lately and you all agreed to a well- deserved night out.

“No kidding, you’re literally glowing!!!” Another hyped and slapped your ass playfully as you walked through the doors. “Let’s get wasted tonight!!!”

And my god, your whole group did. You all danced to your heart’s content, ordered liquor until your head got rid of all inhibitions, laughed at each other’s faces and jokes… overall, it was a night to remember.

“Y/n?” You heard a voice behind you followed by your right wrist being cased within the hands of another.

You were just on the verge of getting sober so you wonder if the image right in front of your eyes was real or not. He used to stand with his chest puffed out in confidence but now, he looked deflated. Under his eyes were dark circles, proof of him not sleeping well. His usual playful demeanor was gone and the man in front of you now looked so lost, confused… lonely.

“Atsumu?” You squinted, not believing the sight in front of you.

“It really is you.” He slurred and you had a whiff of liquor on his breath. “How have you been?”

“I’ve been doing great, Miya. Thanks.” You smiled, genuinely.

“Where’s my sweet nickname?” He joked. “You look so damn happy celebratin’ with yer friends tonight, huh? That happy to be rid of me, ain’t ya?” He chuckled darkly.

You were taken aback with what he said. What does he have to do with you having a great party?

“Miya, don’t do this right now. I have to go.” You tried to excuse yourself from his intrusion.

“I hate it. I hate it so goddamn much.” He whispered, closing the distance between you two and caged you on the wall behind. “I’ve been a mess since ya left, sweetheart. Seeing you having the time of your life makes me feel so damn angry. Am I that easy to forget?”

“Atsumu, I—“

“Come back to me.” He puffed. “Come back to me and I promise to treat ya right. I’ll do everythin’ ya want, just please… I love you.” His voice faltered at the end as whimpers of his cries followed. Never in your whole life did you think you’d see him break down because of you. But here he is! AND you never thought of hearing those three words with utmost sincerity from his lips. But again, here he is!

A nostalgic smile lifted from your lips and Atsumu stared at it for a while. The alcohol in his system was enough to make himself go haywire but your smile sent him spiraling. He meant what he said. He missed you to death. He needed you back.

“Come back to me, please.” He repeated and leaned his forehead on yours.

“I’m sorry, Miya.” You said as you held his face in your hands. “Thank you for being honest with me. But it’s too late. I’ve moved on from everything and you should too.”

His head violently shook no as more tears spilled from his eyes. He’ll do everything for you except let you go. “I’ll be better. Please, I’ll be better! I’ll try my best to keep ya, baby, that’s how much I love you! I can’t—“

“Then try your best with the next person because it won’t be me, Miya. I hope you understand.” You said while wiping his tears. “That relationship was too toxic for me and I can’t go back.”

“I’m sorry.” He said, voice too slow and too low to even hear but you did. “I’m so sorry.”

“Atsumu! You prick!” Your head whipped to the left at the familiar voice that boomed. Osamu barreled over to where you were but his steps slowed as he saw your figure caged inside Atsumu’s arms.

“Y/n.” He said, as if in a daze.

“Hi Osamu.” You greeted awkwardly since Atsumu’s stare is still hard and focused on your face. The alcohol seemed to have a toll on him and he was beginning to doze off. Either that, or he still did not process what you’ve been saying.

“Stop it, man.” Osamu came behind his twin and caught him by the collar. He turned to you next while carrying a limp Atsumu in his embrace. “I’m sorry for his behavior. He drinks more than he can take. He’s been out of it since… you know… your break up.”

You smiled sadly. “Oh.” Well, what were you supposed to say to that?

“Y/n!!! Come back here!” One of your friends saw you and waved you to the table.

“That’s my cue to go.” You smiled.

“Yeah.” Osamu nodded.

“Osamu, you’re here!” Atsumu woke up from his reverie and comically hugged his brother, surprising the both of you.

“You know what? Y/n was here! I told her I love her but she didn’t believe me! Tell her! Tell her for me! Maybe she’ll believe you! Help me man, I can’t lose her!”

Your chest burned at the sight and at his words. How you longed for him to say those three words in the past. But it’s just too late.

“Stop it, Tsumu.” Osamu whispered, heart aching for his twin. He saw how broken he was these past few months but then it was his fault after all. He shot you an apologetic look. “I’m sorry for this again. Take care, Y/n.”

“Take care too, Osamu.” You smiled. “Take care of him too.”

“I will.” He agreed then proceeded to take Atsumu to their table.

“It hurts, Samu.” Sudden whimpers came out from Atsumu’s mouth after a few steps. “It fucking hurts. I don’t think I can take this.”

“Imagine how she felt, you bastard.” Osamu sighed. “She really was a keeper, wasn’t she?”

Atsumu hummed in agreement. “She was. She still is.”

“Look, she’s gone, Tsumu. You need to move the fuck on and stop tormenting the poor girl! You’ve caused her enough pain.” Atsumu then was dumped harshly on the cushions.

“You don’t know what you have until it’s gone.” The saying rang in Atsumu’s ears, echoing louder and louder as the music in the club intensified throughout the night. It mocked him to the core! He drank himself to oblivion for months now, trying to forget your presence in his life. Visions of you were everywhere! You were in his room tucking him to bed. You were in the kitchen whipping up a random recipe from the internet. You were in his living room, dancing to his playlist even when you heard the songs for the first time. You were in the stands cheering for his every move. You were even on his morning jogs, passing his water bottle to make sure he’s hydrated.

You took care of him in the best way possible and he can’t believe how involved you were with his life. How did he not see that? He didn’t realize that what he bothered himself within the past were temporary things that brought temporary bliss. You were his life, his love. How could he throw something so serious? So permanent?

He watched you from afar, drunk as fuck but visions still sharp as a hawk on your side. You were happily talking to your friends, rewarding them with your gorgeous smile and wonderful laugh. Maybe this was his punishment for ever breaking someone as pure as you.

He may be close to where you were but he can never be too close to be yours again.

Okay wait HAHAHA I love Atsumu but I wanted to write an angsty post about him so here it is! This was inspired by the song “Bedroom” by JJ Lin and Anne- Marie. I just love that song so much, I have it on repeat rn.

ALSO YOU'RE SO WORTH IT AND YOU DESERVE THE BEST! Just reminding y'all in case you forgot. <3 hope you liked this one! <3

#atsumu x y/n #atsumu angst #atsumu miya #miya atsumu #haikyuu scenarios #haikyuu reader insert #haikyu x reader #angst #atsumu fic #atsumu x female reader #atsumu scenarios #hq atsumu #atsumu imagines #haikyuu angst

288 notes · View notes

kyber-crystal · 5 years ago

Text

➳ pickup lines || s.w.

summary: you’re oblivious to the fact that sam, your best friend is hopelessly in love with you. and it kills him inside because he’s been dropping hints for as long as he can remember.

warnings: none, just fluff and a cliche best friends to lovers trope :)

words: almost 2k

a/n: for @marvelsswansong ‘s late birthday present! sorry this was so late and that it’s so bad RIP i tried to write it in one go...anyway our boy sam deserves some more recognition sksksk

“Guess what this shirt is made of?” Sam smirked as he pointed at himself. “Boyfriend material.”

You rolled your eyes, suppressing a chuckle. “Oh, stop it.”

He slid into the seat next to you at the kitchen counter, swiping the spare muffin from your plate. “Y’know what’s on the menu today? Me-n-u.”

You just shook your head, spreading jam across your toast before biting into it. “Wow.”

“They say Disneyland is the happiest place on earth,” he cleared his throat, “well, apparently, nobody has ever been standing next to you. You are absolutely breathtaking.”

“I look gross,” you argued as you tried to hide your face with one hand, “I got three hours of sleep after helping Bruce in the labs and I’m a mess.”

“Don’t be silly, Y/N. You always look beautiful. Especially to me.”

Even if he was joking, you couldn’t help but feel the butterflies in your stomach at his comment.

“Oh my god, will you shut UP,” Bucky groaned. “You’re cheesy as fuck, Wilson.”

“You’re just jealous because nobody likes you,” Sam retorted.

“Ooh, shots fired,” you whispered, cupping your hands around your mouth, “need some ice for that burn, Barnes?”

“He isn’t wrong, though,” Wanda shrugged, pouring herself a mug of coffee, “the chemistry is evident here. I’m surprised you haven’t gotten together yet.”

You let out a long sigh and went back to focusing on finishing your meal, not noticing the several glances Sam stole out of the corner of his eye at you.

...

“Y/N. “

“Natasha,” you replied without breaking your concentration on murdering the punching bag in front of yourself.

“Girl, how long are you going to keep this act up for?”

You dropped your fists by your side, sighing. “I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

“I think you do.”

“No, I don’t.”

“You and Wilson.”

“What about it?” you questioned as you began unwrapping the tape from your hands. She handed you your water bottle and you took a long sip, “We’re best friends. I don’t see anything special about that.”

“Best friends or not, he clearly likes you. I’m not gonna sugarcoat this: you’ve been the most oblivious idiot ever. If what he’s doing isn’t obvious enough, then I don’t know what is.”

“He does not. Sam’s just being Sam. That’s who he is. It’s in his nature to joke around.”

“Does he use pickup lines on me in every other sentence he speaks? No. Does he do that to Bucky? Never-”

“Because him and Bucky are rivals, and you guys are just f...”

“Just friends! Babe, you proved my point.”

“Oh, shut up...”

“If you don’t take matters into your own hands, then I will. You keep turning the poor man down and you don’t even know it. Tragic.”

“Natasha, I do not like any-” The redhead gave you her signature ‘look’, crossing her arms over your chest. Your shoulders sagged in defeat. “Fine. I don’t know. I guess I’m scared.”

“What reason do you have to be scared? You’ve gotten shot, you’ve led countless teams into battle before, you’ve taken out aliens with the power of your fists alone. Hell, we survived the Red Room together, and you’re afraid of catching feelings?”

“What if I embarrass myself by telling him?”

“Are you nuts? He’d be over the moon if you did so much as react to what he said. Poor guy’s feeling discouraged by your poker face. Give him a chance. He’s your best friend, you don’t wanna ruin the relationship you have together.”

“Fiiiiiine.” You whined and tossed your sweaty towel at her. “Now leave me alone so I can go take a shower.”

She laughed and tossed it back. “Alright. Tell me when you’re officially dating!”

“I hate you!”

“Love you too, babe!” she called out after you as you left the facility.

...

“SAM!” you yelled from the bathroom “Get your ass over here!”

“Am I in trouble?” he asked innocently as he peeked his head through your doorway. “You need something?”

“I forgot to bring a shirt with me. Can you get mine from the laundry? The black one?”

“Yeah, of course.” You heard him shuffling around before falling silent, then there was a knock on your door. “Here. Take this.”

“Thanks,” you nodded before taking the shirt and closing the door behind you.

You looked down and let out a groan when you realized he’d mixed up the shirts and given you his instead - a V-neck you’d seen him wear plenty of times when you, him, and Steve went on morning runs together. It was ridiculously tight on him and you absolutely hated it because you couldn’t help but stare. But you didn’t like him. Definitely not.

Right?

Right.

You trudged down the hall to the kitchen, walking into to see Bucky’s and Sam’s awaiting smirks.

Crossing your arms, you raised an eyebrow at him, “Samuel, where is my shirt?”

“Dunno,” he feigned innocence, “I got mixed up.”

“Okay.”

“I’m no photographer, but I can picture you and me together,” he sent you a finger gun and a flirty wink.

You rolled your eyes for what felt like the millionth time that day. “You’re such a sap.”

“Y/N! Hi!” Peter dropped his backpack and rushed forward, tackling you into a big hug.

You stumbled backwards in surprise but quickly returned the gesture, ruffling his hair playfully. “Hey, kid. How was school?”

He made a face. “Sucked. I actually need your help with an assignment. I’m supposed to interview three role models in my life about stuff and Mr. Stark is in the middle of a conference call right now so...yeah.”

“Oh!” Your eyes widened in pleasant surprise. “Me? I’m not special-”

“If you weren’t special then Ned wouldn’t constantly fangirl over you to me. He always asks me if it’s true you can shoot lasers out of your eyes and hands.”

You chuckled. “I feel honored. Count me in, Queens.”

The two of you headed off to the labs together, and as soon as you left, Sam let out a loud groan, his face falling into his hands. “She doesn’t get it. I keep throwing hints her way but she doesn’t get it at all. I don’t understand. What exactly am I doing wrong?”

“Y/N isn’t an openly affectionate person. She rarely ever tells people how she feels. She usually conveys her emotions through killing her enemies and channeling all her energy into punching bags,” Bucky replied simply. “And the occasional Mario Kart deathmatch. She’s not very easy to read.”

“Even I had a hard time getting to her,” Wanda admitted. “She’s very...private. Prefers to keep her feelings to herself.”

“Does she even have any sort of clue?” Sam looked over at the young woman with a desperate look in his eyes. “Otherwise I’ve been humiliating myself all this time, for nothing.”

“She likes you, but she’s too afraid to admit it,” Steve suddenly spoke up. All heads turned in his direction. “It’s a thing I picked up from my ma when I was young. I can read into body language. And hers, well...she likes you, Sam. She’s just very subtle about it.”

Hope glimmered in his eyes. “She does? So she doesn’t mind my pickup lines?”

The super-soldier laughed. “As terrible as some of them may be, yeah, she doesn’t. I’ve seen her walk away flustered many times.”

“What do I do now?”

“You’re gonna win her over, once and for all,” Natasha declared. “And we’re making sure of that.”

...

“Y/N.”

“Pete.” You glanced over at the teenager, who had stopped furiously scribbling notes down in his notebook, “what’s up?”

“What’s up is you and Sam.”

“What about us?” You quirked an eyebrow. “I genuinely have no idea what you’re talking about.”

“Sure you don’t.” The boy wrinkled his nose, “I know he likes you, and you like him. So why do you keep pushing him away?”

“Peter-”

“Y/N, I’ve known about this since we first met. So why haven’t you made a move yet?”

“I don’t know.”

“He’s trying his hardest to win you over and you’re refusing to budge! I bet he feels so bad about it.”

“Oh, God, I know...” you rubbed your forehead and let out a long sigh, “I just don’t know how to react.”

“Send a pickup line right back at him! He loves pickup lines, so gauge his reaction on that!”

“Alright...”

"Back to Chemistry! Which you two clearly already have...”

“Queens!”

“Okay, okay!” You both burst into laughter. “Okay!”

The team had all agreed on an outdoor barbecue, so you all gathered outside on the massive rooftop of the compound to eat dinner. Tony, Thor, Steve, and Rhodey were busy flipping the meat, Wanda and Pepper were setting up the refreshments, while the others were lounging around and casually conversing with one another.

You noticed Sam standing alone by the edge, hands stuffed in his pockets as he stared out ahead at the horizon. He seemed to be deep in thought, but as soon as he turned around and saw you approaching him, his face lit up with a grin that the others knew he only had when you were around.

“Hey,” you offered him a small smile. You felt your heart skip a beat as you locked eyes - the early evening glow only made him look better than he already was. “Penny for your thoughts, Wilson?”

“Are you a magician? ‘Cause when I look at you, everyone else disappears,” he stated.

“Are you a parking ticket? Because you’ve got ‘fine’ written all over you,” you replied smoothly, taking him by surprise. This was a first --

“Am I dreaming, or did Y/N just send me back a cheesy pickup line?”

“I did,” you laughed lightly, breaking into what he thought was the most beautiful sight on earth - a million-dollar smile. He’d never forget it. “How’s your week been?”

“Uneventful. You?”

Your face fell momentarily, and he felt his heart drop at the same time. “Could’ve been better.”

“You wanna talk about it?”

You took in a deep breath before responding. “Fury’s got me leading Team Alpha in a recon down south in the Outer Banks. Then as soon as I get back, I’m called to represent the team at a press conference about disaster relief. After that I’m stuck filing reports for a solid six hours and I end up only eating one meal that day. So yeah...it’s been pretty rough.”

“Did you make up for all that lost sleep, though?”

“A little. Compared to my typical three hours, I’d say 5 is a good enough improvement.”

“Progress is what matters. And you did that,” he nodded. “Look, if you ever need someone to talk to...you know I’m always here, right?”

“Definitely. That doesn’t eliminate our weekly Mario Kart competitions with Bucky, right?”

“Of course not.”

“Good.”

You stood there in silence for who knows how long, until he spoke up again.

“Did you know that when you smile, you can’t breathe?”

“Really?” You looked straight at him and gave him the brightest smile your face could produce.

“I’m kidding. I just wanted to see you smile.”

At that moment, all the Avengers immediately stopped what they were doing and froze on the spot.

“I think you broke her,” Peter whispered as he poked you in the shoulder multiple times, and you didn’t move. “That was smoother than butter.”

Your mouth opened and closed like a fish but no words came out, face burning with heat - the butterflies in your stomach had turned to hummingbirds. Since when did he make you feel this way?

“Yup,” Bucky coughed, “she’s definitely in love with him.”

"I’m not in love with him, I love him. I have for a while,” you muttered so quietly that he almost didn’t catch what you said.

Now, it was Sam’s turn to be left speechless.

#the falcon and the winter soldier #anthony mackie #falcon #falcon oneshot #sam wilson x you #sam wilson #sam wilson x reader #avengers oneshots #marvel fic #marvel imagines #HAPPY BIRTHDAY BAE I LOVE YOU #theavengers #sam wilson oneshot #sam wilson imagine #this is late and i'm so sorry omg #avengers #marvel #mcu

165 notes · View notes

skelemira · 3 years ago

Note

GIVE THE UL SNAS AND ROWAN LORE PLS PLS PLS I NEED THIS

OK FINALLY DONE WITH ART AND ON THE BUS HOME LET'S *DO THIS*

But before I start I should say this is not my characterization, it's actually how my bestest friend @hyacinthlanes characterizes him (she's also the one who drew my pfp btwwwwww I love you Saphhhhhhhh)

Aight so these two motherhuggers are the cutest fRICKING couple you ever will see. So I actually lowkey uh forgot how they met, I don't even think I set it in stone, I think I started writing a oneshot about it and then just straight up didn't finish it lol but I think I'm gonna go with that they meet at Muffet's.

(btw when I refer to Sans and Papyrus hereforth I mean UL Snas and Paps)

So Paps has a bit of a sweet tooth, nothing major just a bit of a craving for pastries now and then, and he knows Muffet is good about not making her pastries with an ungodly amount of sugar, so he pops by every once in a while. So one time he goes to Muffet's and he sees a new waitress. Now Muffet has *never* hired somebody to help her, so that immediately caught his attention. He noticed that she was a little bit awkward, clearly new to waitressing, and a little bit clumsy every now and then, though she seemed a bit more fearful of Muffet when she made mistakes than he thought was brought on by Muffet being a spider.... Especially because Muffet seemed to be acting extra sweet to the waitress. The waitress eventually got to him, asking for his order before stopping herself and apologizing, introducing herself as Rowan and then asking for his order again.

He brought out all the charm he could, and by the end of the conversation he had even coaxed a giggle out of her. It wasn't even much of a giggle, and she quickly stifled it, but he knew in that moment he would do anything to hear her full blown laugh. (In a completely platonic way, dw there is no jealousy. Though perhaps it might go a different way in an au 👀👀👀)

He went home and Sans noticed he was much more upbeat than normal. Usually when he went to Muffet's he was happy but he would go straight for a 5 mile jog to "burn off the sugar", but this time Paps just went into the kitchen to start prepping for dinner, humming merrily.

Eventually Sans pried it out of Paps about the new waitress and how adorable she was, and you just KNOW Sans is a sucker for adorable things so he decided to pay Muffet a visit (though he would definitely get Grillby's after to "atone").

Yeah so uh it took a couple of weeks for him to get around to going to Muffet's, not that he was dreading it, he just takes his sweet time to do something he says he's gonna do.

He steps one foot into Muffet's and curses under his breath.

Because he sees Rowan tentatively confident, making a joke with Muffet as she wiped down a table, and the ensuing giggle had a burst of magic zip through him, apparently so much that Muffet paused in her laughter, her gaze going to him and raising one eyebrow.

(I really just ended up writing a whole thing huh XDDD)

He saw a glimpse of that confident radiance peeking through the walls that seemed to be slowly crumbling and he became resolved to break them down, if just to see what was hiding behind them.

It started with him trying out various comedy routines as she took his order, anything to hear that giggle again (oh my stars she likes *puns*), and it eventually turned to flirting (her blush is *adorable* and he loves it more than anything) which eventually turned to him asking her out. She said yes <3 (obviously lol) and they started going out.

So obviously my boi Sans has some trauma, we hc him here as asexual, but I mean either way being forced to be in constant heat is gonna have some nasty consequences even if you weren't asexual, plus he feels like in other people's eyes he's been reduced to just sex, plus a lot of other stuff that I'm not going to mention bc that's Saph's territory lol (Btw forgot to mention Rowan is panro-ace like me <3 bc self indulgence XDDD)

So having a girlfriend who is also asexual and doesn't *at all* expect sex or even really want it most of the time if at all and who's basically like a best friend but also romantic is just. Exactly what he needs. Their dates are just the cutest and they both understand the other has trauma so when one has days where the "air is heavy" (basically days where it's hard to move or hard to breathe, like the air is too heavy to move through etc) the other is just there for them. ANYWAY they're too cute your honor

So eventually they move in together, think cottagecore and you've got basically Rowan and Oberon's house, they're adorable and their home is so cozy.

There are so many little moments that are just adorable I can't even think of them all but eventually they get married.

I love. Their wedding okay.

Like have you seen that post of a couple that invited their friends to a party they said was a costume party but it was actually their wedding? Yeah that's them. Except the people know it's a wedding, they just can wear whatever the heck the want, the wackier the better. Their wedding is outdoors and full of shenanigans and laughs and I don't quite remember who I had officiate, it might've been Grillby or my friend's sona, but ik Muffet was the maid of honor.

Tho since they shared so many friends it wasn't really a split situation, the wedding parties were all just kind of mixed together. Rowan was barefoot and it was by the edge of a forest so it was very nature-y (Rowan gardens like a LOT I mentioned it like offhand in the last post).

Super super cute.

Now RANDOM TIDBITS

Sans' favourite food is apple pie. Why? Because Rowan smells like apples. (Or it's her scones bc goshDANG they are good).

Rowan's favourite color is the purple of Sans' eyelights.

Sans (with Papyrus' help) builds Rowan a greenhouse with floating pink magic lights and it's the most romantic fricking place ever.

When their relationship is first starting to get serious, they plant a tree together (a Rowan tree aha). (If/when they have kids, the kids would play underneath that tree).

Sans' favourite colour is the red of Rowan's hair (it looks pink in the picture but it's kind of a pinkish red, like a pink lady apple).

Rowan and Papyrus have such a good relationship with each other man. Like when Paps finds out Rowan is drinking **EVERCLEAR** every night he is like absolutely Not you uncultured swine (affectionate) and so he starts up a Wine Night with her. Every Thursday he brings a new wine for them to try while maybe doing a puzzle or just chatting or baking or something. Together they become wine connoisseurs (bro I spelled that right the first time without autocorrect look at me go)

Ok I'm rambling at this point but uh yes <3 you're also free to ask me random questions about these two if you'd like!!!! Thank you so much for the ask Hyper beloved <333333 literally Saph is like almost the whole reason UL Sans is my husband now lol.

#ask #oc #Rowan beloved #UL Sans #Underlust Sans #Sans x OC #x sona??#anywhodles #I love these two okay I live vicariously through Rowan just to get some goshdang cuddles

1 note · View note

miracleboiz · 5 years ago

Text

Secret Night~ Arankita

Kita Shinsuke had lived on his own strength for years, only tripping occasionally. Now, everything seemed to hit at once and the only place he feels safe to fall is in Aran’s arms.

This is part of my Making a Home series, between chapters 19 and 20. I would suggest reading that I’m not sure if it’ll make sense otherwise.

Read on AO3 or below!

The knock at the door barely reached through to Shinsuke. Another knock punctured the silence before he was able to stand up and move towards the entrance. Even still, Shinsuke paused, letting himself try and think over the decision to let Aran in.

After a few seconds he realized that might be the problem. He was trying to logic his way through a very illogical situation. What was logical about human emotions? What was logical about parenthood? What was logical about being in love with your best friend for almost thirteen years and never having the courage or will to confess? What was logical about deciding to ignore any romantic pursuits only to realize it was because you’d foolishly thought your best friend would be beside you always and never move on?

Shinsuke was almost displeased with how illogical his life was at the moment. Actually, he was extremely upset with it. He liked order, he liked routine and rules instead he’d somehow managed to take on Akagi’s wild life.

“Hello, Lady.” Shinsuke greeted as the door opened and the poodle pushed her way through to sniffle at his leg. He reached down to stroke over her ears, taking the moment to stare at Aran’s feet instead of having to look him in the eye.

“Shinsuke…” Aran said softly, like a whisper in the wind.

Shinsuke sucked in a breath, then looked up.

Aran looked soft, head tilted with amber eyes endlessly affectionate. The smallest, sad smile curved up on his lips and Shinsuke couldn’t stand it. The emotions welling in his chest, the understanding nod in his direction, even the damn boba tea plush that he knew Aran had brought just to tease him. It was all too much and not enough.

He stepped forward without a thought, burying his face in Aran’s chest and holding onto him as tightly as he could. A sob ripped out of him as Aran held him in return.

Shinsuke barely noticed being pushed back into the house, or the sound of the front door closing. All he cared about was Aran, holding him, touching him, being here . He’d forgotten how comforting it was to have Aran around, to be able to lean on him physically and mentally.

The ice skating was just a taste of their old dynamic and Shinsuke hurt with how much he missed that.

“It’s okay to let go.” Aran murmured, voice vibrating even deeper through his chest and Shinsuke just tightened his hold. He shook his head, only releasing one arm to scratch at Lady’s shoulders as she whined and tried to sniff at his hip.

“Shinsuke… Just for tonight. Let go . You don’t have to be the strong one, not when I’m here.”

“I’ll do something stupid, I just… I just don’t want to be alone.”

“Shin, your definition of stupid is very different then mine.” Aran said and Shinsuke wanted to laugh.

He wanted to laugh at the ridiculousness of the entire night. At the chances that the first person to meet the boys would be the one who gave them up years ago. The fact that he was, after three long years, back in Aran’s arms and crying. That right after the final piece to his plan fell into place, everything struck him at once.

Part of him knew it wasn’t actually all at once, he just wasn’t prepared for it. The logical side creeping in to remind him that life wasn’t about luck but opportunities to grow like his granny always said.

Right now, Shinsuke didn’t feel like it was an opportunity. He felt like he was drowning in responsibility he wasn’t quite as prepared for as he thought. Like he’d simultaneously trapped himself in his routine and destroyed any safety outside of it.

“When’s the last time you did anything stupid, Shinsuke?” Aran asked, one hand gently rubbing small circles over Shinsuke’s back. “C’mon, let’s go sit in your room, the living room echoes into the back rooms. I don’t want to wake the boys… Did you eat already?”

Shinsuke was half tempted to refuse to move, wondering if Aran would just carry him off or let Shinsuke collapse on the floor. The floor sounded much nicer than trying to have a conversation when all he really wanted to do was curl up and sleep on top of a dog and his best friend.

“Yes.” He finally managed to push out, pulling away until Aran’s hand just barely lingered over his hip.

There was a question on his face, eyes trained on Shinsuke. They took in everything, reading him like he was a book and Shinsuke’s chest ached.

There was no need or want in Aran’s touch, the way it hesitated, brushed over Shinsuke’s skin before starting to pull away. Nothing on his face told Shinsuke that Aran was here for anything other than Shinsuke’s wellbeing. Aran would never ask for anything more than Shisnuke offered, never push.

Shinsuke loved that. Loved him.

Sometimes, like now, he wished Aran was just a touch more selfish like Shinsuke was. Chasing after what he wanted without regard to everything else around him.

Perhaps in a way he was, Shinsuke could concede. Aran chose volleyball, Shinsuke chose his business. Perhaps Shinsuke just wanted someone else to make this choice for him so the overwhelming guilt and panic would disappear.

The tug on his sleeve made him look down to see the fabric caught gently in Lady’s mouth. She tugged on it again, intelligent eyes looking him over with worry.

“Okay… C’mon Lady.” Shinsuke murmured, letting her turn and lead the way down the hall sniffing curiously at the wall. Shinsuke paused before he’d gone more than a step, reaching back to wrap his fingers over Aran’s wrist.

There was no hesitance as Aran stepped up with him, back to his side like he’d never been anywhere else. Like he would never be anywhere else.

Shinsuke leaned into him, keeping the hand on Aran’s. Trying to memorize the feeling of Aran’s body beside his, warm and strong but so soft and tender. The way Aran’s fingers brushed over his cheek as he wiped away tears and the entire world seemed to fall away as his eyes shut and he stopped moving.

Nothing mattered, not the ache in Shinsuke’s chest or the pain of tomorrow. Even the uncomfortable feeling of his wrist twisting to hold Aran’s desperately. The only thing that mattered was here. Now.

Aran.

How badly he wanted to kiss Aran, how badly he’d always wanted to kiss Aran.

It wasn’t a usual feeling. Shinsuke just lived with an undercurrent of ‘Ah, I love him and I’d like to be with him right now’. Then it would hit him full force, choking and giving him life at the same time. Want and need fighting in his mind for comfort, love, touch. For Aran .

He didn’t even realize how close they’d gotten until he could feel the softest breathe over his cheek. A nose brushed against his and Shinsuke almost gave in as he opened his eyes. Understanding, warm, adoring eyes stared back at him and Shinsuke didn’t need to look to know Aran was smiling.

Aran was always smiling when he looked at Shinsuke. Even when he was being teased or laughed at. Even when Shinsuke insulted his ritz crackers or stole his only jacket at a festival four years ago. He didn’t stop smiling when Shinsuke called him a fool on a walk home one day for falling for an obvious prank. He didn’t stop smiling when Shinsuke would harass the first years, pretending to be far more serious and popping up behind them far more than he had any right too.

Aran always looked at him, like he loved him. Loved loving him. Loved being in love with him, even with all this drama and pain and never getting anything but friendship in return.

Everyone in highschool always called Shinsuke a saint, godlike, ethereal. Standing here though, in the pale yellow light from the kitchen, at the start of the dark hallway and holding Shinsuke like he was absolutely precious, Shinsuke knew Aran was the one they should have been complimenting. Aran was the amazing one, the soft and caring one, the loving and loyal one.

Yes, Aran ate way too many crackers with cheese and told terrible jokes. Not to mention the way he never figured out how to properly clean a shower, or the fact that Shinsuke had to nag him to throw away underwear (“It’s not wasteful if it belongs in the garbage Aran.” “... They have atleast two more goes.” “They do not, I’m burning them.”). Or how Aran always sung songs off key to purposefully deafen them in cars, or would get beyond huffy about anyone saying peanut butter chocolate was overrated. Even though Aran chattered over people without realizing and forgot how to order coffee twice a week, Shinsuke thought he was brilliant.

Aran was beautiful, kind, and thoughtful. He was Shinsuke’s best friend. Aran was the single most beautiful person Shinsuke could say he’d ever met.

“I love you…” Shinsuke breathed, the words spilled out without thought or intention. He froze, pressing his eyes shut so he wouldn’t see any reaction and tried to pull away. This wasn’t the time or the place, it most certainly was not the right headspace.

A featherlight touch graced his cheek and for a moment he thought he imagined it. As if a fox had run past, that half touch the only sign of his existence.

“I know, Shinsuke.” Aran said and Shinsuke wanted to insist he didn’t know . Because if he did then why was he being so kind and considerate? Why hadn’t he just told Shinsuke before all of this and told him not to be an absolute idiot and give up on not only the only person Shinsuke ever wanted to spend his life waking up beside but his best friend ?

“Shin,” Aran’s voice shifted to gently admonish as if he could hear the thoughts in Shinsuke’s mind, “whatever thing you’re thinking, stop. This isn’t a matter to regret. I’m here now . That’s all that matters. You’re not one to get caught up in the past, don’t let me change that after twenty eight years.”

“I’m sorry.” The words were a croak that Shinsuke hated, revealing how weak he was, how tired, how lonely. “I’m sorry I can’t… Not right now, I shouldn’t have said anything-”

“C’mon.” Aran didn’t bother to ask this time, moving to tug Shinsuke further down the hall, past the boys’ room. The boys.

Just thinking on how much he’d failed them hurt. His boys. All of his boys. He’d hurt all of them in one day and Shinsuke couldn’t find a grip. Nothing felt solid except Aran and the pressure of Lady against his leg.

Shinsuke didn’t put up a fight at all, allowing himself to be guided back to the bedroom. He made the last two steps by himself, falling face first into the comforter with his legs hanging off.

“Should I just leave you there then?” Aran teased gently before he was sliding his arms under Shinsuke and moving him properly into the center of the bed and sitting beside him. Shinsuke moved to sit up, only to hear a patter of paws and then the weight of a fifty pound poodle on his legs.

“Gods- Lady, off the bed. You’re not allowed on other people’s beds.” Aran moved to push her off before Shinsuke reached for his hand this time.

“It’s okay, she can stay on my bed I really don’t mind.” Shinsuke told him, blinking up into the familiar gaze. “Really… She helps.”

“Okay… Atleast she doesn’t shed.” Aran sighed, reaching down to scratch at her cheek before she laid her head down over the back of Shinsuke’s knee.

Aran shifted until he was lying on his back beside him. He turned his head to meet Shinsuke’s gaze and almost laughed at Shinsuke’s quirked eyebrow.

“Is… Is this one of those things that happens in Oomimi’s rom coms?” He asked slowly and Aran actually snorted, nodding.

“Yes, this is exactly like those stupid rom coms… Stop distracting me, bad Shinsuke. Talk about your feelings for once.” Aran murmured, voice softening again and Shinsuke ached.

“Haven’t I said enough? Haven’t I ruined enough lives tonight?”

“ You haven’t ruined anything. ‘Cept maybe your sheets with Lady’s nails, they’re due for a trim.” Aran said, keeping it just light enough that Shinsuke hurt more but could feel himself relaxing regardless. “Hey.”

Shinsuke watched him shift closer, reaching up to stroke Shinsuke’s cheek and hesitating just over his cheek bone. Waiting. Endlessly waiting for Shinsuke to let him have anything, Aran would wait eons for just a touch.

“Just for tonight, Shinsuke. Nothing that happens tonight has to continue in the morning. Tonight you can cry and scream, anything you need.”

“Nothing has to continue in the morning.” Shinsuke repeated, eyes flicking down. “What if I asked you to kiss me?”

“Shin.” There was a touch of admonishment and Shinsuke wanted to curl in on himself before the fingertips finally made it to his cheek. “Do you really think I would lie to you? About that of all things?”

“That of all things?” Shinsuke murmured, not really able to stop himself from repeating.

“Shinsuke, I’ve never gone back on my word and I don’t intend to start now. Besides, it’s not as if you don’t know I’ve loved you for almost thirteen years now. Waiting for you is perfectly fine with me, if you want me to kiss you and forget it tomorrow morning I can do that.”

“... You never said anything.” Shinsuke didn’t look away, couldn’t. He didn’t want to lose sight of Aran for a second. The fingertips on his cheek were soft, too soft, and Shinsuke felt like Aran was one blink from disappearing.

One blink, one moment of letting Aran drift a touch too far and Shinsuke feared he would wake to a world where Aran never returned to him. One where he would awaken with tears on his face and an empty heart, dregs of dreams turned into nightmarish thoughts. A world where it wasn’t just Aran missing, but the entirety of this last upheaval in his life. No boys, no laughter, no shopping trips and family dinners, no Akagi making him laugh and Oomimi holding him up on skates.

A world where Shinsuke was just as he thought he wanted to be.

In control of everything and so terribly, terribly alone.

“Shinsuke.” There was that smile again, sad but affectionate. Voice deep and so familiar like Shinsuke was coming home. Just Shinsuke’s name was enough to make him feel like his chest was cracking and his heart was healing. It was so much and far too little.

“I have been telling you how much I love you, from the day we met, with far fewer words.” Aran’s fingers traced down his cheeks, and Shinsuke felt the tension bleed out. “And I will be telling you until the day we can no longer meet. Then I will find you and start again.”

A sob ripped out of Shinsuke’s chest before he even realized it was building. Two more followed before his eyes were too blurry to see and he reached for Aran desperately as his eyes pinched shut. Strong arms wrapped around him and the bed rocked as Aran moved closer, pulling Shinsuke onto his chest as much as he could without disturbing Lady.

Shinsuke clung to him, another harsh cry ripping from him as tears poured down his face. Everything seemed desperate to escape.

The hidden fear of the business failing. The terror of the boys hating him. The pain of knowing he still couldn’t have Aran even knowing they loved each other. The idea that the twins could be hurt over and over again because Shinsuke failed them. The guilt that rolled in his stomach knowing that Oomimi would blame himself for all of this, for not checking better on Rika. The pain of knowing Akagi would bear the burden of Shinsuke’s break, thinking it was his own fault for not returning home more and seeing it coming. The horrifying, terrifying, disgusting idea that if all of this ended and things went back to before, he would be so alone.

Not once did Aran’s hands leave him, not once did the steady heartbeat stutter.

“I’m sorry.” The words hissed out, over and over again like a prayer that Shinsuke never wanted to memorize.

“What did I tell you about apologizing?” Aran murmured into his hair, lips brushing over the strands and making Shinsuke shudder.

“Dunno… Wasn’t listenin’... just listenin’ to your voice.” Shinsuke admitted, keeping his eyes closed as he pressed against the firm chest. His fingers curled in Aran’s shirt, clinging to him desperately. Lips pressed against his head and Shinsuke sighed, trying to keep absolutely everything from spilling out.

He couldn’t.

Word after word, if poured from him like a waterfall. Powerful and dangerous, secrets Shinsuke hadn’t even realized he had. Fears so entwined in Shinsuke’s being he had forgotten that others didn’t know they even existed. Everything fell, hissed and whispered again a warm heart beat and endless comfort.

Exhaustion seemed to creep over him like a blanket, but the idea of sleeping and waking alone was too much to bear.

“Shin.. Gods, how long have you had this bottled up? Didn’t I tell you before? You forget you need coping mechanisms too… Try talking with someone if one of us isn’t available. You have a lot of friends who would do anything for you.” Aran murmured, fingers tracing endless designs over Shinsuke’s back as he moved his head to be able to look into Shinsuke’s face. “Open your eyes, Shin, you need to talk, not fall asleep.”

Shinsuke wanted to insist that he’d just done far too much talking and that he wasn’t planning on ever doing something so emotionally draining again. But he was tired and Aran’s voice was sweet with love and care, so much kinder than his own inner voice reminding him that it was his job to take care of the others not Aran’s. Aran’s voice was a light in the dark, a beacon guiding him home and Shinsuke never wanted to lose sight of it, already craving the smile that always seemed to whisper ‘I love you.’

There it was. The moment Shinsuke opened his eyes, that gorgeous smile that had been telling Shinsuke everything he needed to know about where Aran’s heart was for years.

There was so much in thirteen years that Aran had done so naturally that Shinsuke never really thought about it. So much that he had done in return that he hadn’t thought about because it was Aran. What wouldn’t he do for him?

Why wouldn’t he hold his hand at their first shrine visit together when Aran had forgotten his gloves? Why wouldn’t Aran always tuck Shinsuke into his jacket when the wind took them by surprise? Why wouldn’t Shinsuke sit by his side for hours when his first dog died? Why wouldn’t Aran travel almost three hundred miles to hold him when his Grandmother fell ill? Why wouldn’t Shinsuke drop everything into the hands of a coworker he’d known for a week, to fly across the country and see with his own eyes that Aran was okay after an accident?

Why wouldn’t Shinsuke finally give in? When everything was right there, so close and so tempting. When the pieces fit, already crafted and molded together. Two giant puzzles, beautiful and challenging on their own, but combined were so much greater.

Why couldn’t Shinsuke say anything?

“You can say it.” Aran whispered, endless understanding in deep brown eyes.

“I can’t.” The words struggled to come out after the flood he’d just given. “I can’t do anything with the words.”

“You have to start listening to me for once, you might find that I know what I’m talking about on occasion.” Aran chided, familiar in all it’s nagging glory. Shinsuke wasn’t sure when the last time he was on the receiving end of it was but it was nice all the same.

“I told you. One night. Tonight. You are not Kita Shinsuke, shop owner and foster parent. You are Kita Shinsuke, held down by a dog and a giant idiot with a huge crush on a… pretty great guy who understands that you’re not ready for a romantic relationship.”

“... I can’t believe this entire time I’ve had a huge crush on Azumane and nobody told me.”

“How can you be crying and still manage to be a little shit? How does that even work? You’re cryin’ Shin, and you’re trying to harass me of all people?” Aran’s face was filled with wild bewilderment and Shinsuke only managed a few seconds before he was bursting into laughter.

Aran laughed with him, chest shaking under him but Shinsuke just laid against it. Like the spring warmth after winter, laughter felt so much better now. A reminder that they weren’t just sad moments built up with pain, no matter how much it felt like that now. Pain was a part of growing but that wasn’t all there was, never had been.

“I missed your laugh. I missed you Shin.” Aran said, and for a heartbeat panic welled in Shinsuke’s chest. Then he let it go with a sigh, moving to rest his chin on Aran’s chest instead, blinking slowly at him like a content cat.

“... You’re not wrong… I’m not ready for a romantic relationship. I don’t… I don’t understand them, not really. Kids I understand, it hurts… knowing what I’ve done and how I’ve hurt them, but I understand the boys. I know how to help them, how to keep them healthy and listen to them, I know how to make sure they’re safe and how to comfort them if they get injured… But…” There was no judgement in Aran’s eyes and that was the only thing pushing Shinsuke forward. “But romantic relationships I don’t know, and I don’t have the time or… honestly the will to learn how to do one. Not right now… If… If the boys forgive me, then they’re all I want to focus on.

But you’re…. Aran you’re like home. It’s so easy with you, beyond kissing I can’t even say anything would change really… But I would know it changed, I would know I owe you more time and attention and… emotional support. I would be making a commitment to you that I don’t intend to keep. Not when the twins are the other choice and I only have the ability to handle one right now. Maybe when… I.. when the boys are older, and they don’t need constant emotional support to survive, then we can give something a try. But I can’t promise you anything.”

“I know. But I can.” Aran hummed deep in his chest and Shinsuke wanted to fall asleep to the vibrations. “I can promise you that I won’t push you, I’ll help with the boys just like Akagi and Oomimi, I’ll be here if you’re ever ready. I’m not looking for romance. Don’t tell Akagi because I refuse to deal with his questions, but it’s not like I haven’t dated in the past ten years. Even with volleyball… I dated within volleyball and out… and no matter what I never found anyone I could say I would be willing to commit to for the next eighty years. With everyone else I wasn’t willing to work out all our problems, or give my all for their happiness. It wasn’t fair to them and it wouldn’t be fair to anyone further down. Love is a commitment and a promise and the only one I’m willing to offer that to is you. And if you can never accept then I’m fine with that, Shin. ‘Cuz I’m still your best friend and I fully intend on harassing you for the rest of both of our lives and then quite a bit after that.”

“Aran…”

“I love you, Shinsuke. As a friend and as a lover, but whatever we are is up to you.” Aran said and Shinsuke let his head fall to the side, focusing on the smooth heartbeat, steady and strong. Of course he had to go and fall for the one guy who would actually promise to wait eighty years and then some more just to see if Shinsuke would finally be ready for him.

“I don’t… Just… for tonight… Can you stay with me? Like this.” Shinsuke said, tugging on the shirt before pausing. “Or y’know, without that part.”

“I cannot believe you. I’m pouring my heart out to ya and you’re teasing me.” There was nothing but adoration and humor in Aran’s eyes and Shinsuke knew the tease was alright. Their old boundaries still applied, which was to say hardly any at all.

“So you’re sleeping in the shirt then?”

Aran grumbled something in french, probably rude, before he was sliding out from under Shinsuke and heading towards the closet.

“I’m takin’ your sweat pants and if I stretch ‘em out I’m keepin’ them.” Aran yawned, accent thickening with exhaustion. A weight started to settle on Shinsuke’s body as he realized how late it was, nearing one a.m. and they’d both been up since five.

Guilt rolled in Shinsuke’s stomach but before it could build, Aran was already back in the bed, pulling up the covers and climbing in. He snapped his fingers for Lady’s attention and pat his own legs.

She eyed him for a moment before Shinsuke started to move and she finally jumped off and settled on her owner’s knees. Shinsuke barely managed to stumble over to the dresser and strip off his clothing and pull on clean pajamas before he was making his way back and burrowing under the blankets.

He didn’t hesitate to move directly over to Aran, tucking himself between Aran’s chest and arm. He moved his head to rest over his heart, the steady thump nearly putting him to sleep immediately.

Gentle fingers stroked through his hair and he sighed, cracking open his eyes again. He shifted, giving up his comfortable spot to lean just over Aran. Amusement and curiosity danced in his eyes, as the hand drifted down from his hair to the back of his neck.

Shinsuke hummed, leaning down only to hesitate.

“Promise you won’t hate me in the morning?” He asked, because Aran never broke promises. A promise from Aran was like a fact of life. Something that Shinsuke could rely on no matter what happened, constant and consistent.

“I promise.” Aran breathed, leaning up just enough to bump their noses together. Shinsuke couldn’t stop the smile from spreading across his face, even as tiredness tugged at him and his eyes burned from crying, he just wanted to stay like this forever. In Aran’s arms, smiling like everything would be okay.

Shinsuke kissed him, sighing against the warm lips that slid together like they’d been doing this for years. He wasn’t expecting fireworks, that’d always sounded ridiculous and honestly a bit weird to hear loud explosions from a kiss. But there was still... something. Not a spark, but a pleasant warmth that washed over him as their lips moved slowly, gently. Just like the rest of him, Aran’s lips felt like home, like Shinsuke was right where he belonged. Drawing him in and sapping any remaining tension from him with a familiarity that defied the newness of the arrangement.

Shinsuke could feel his ears burning and the twist in his stomach as he pulled back an inch. He was almost pleasantly surprised to realize he was nervous. That was new but not unwelcome, not when it came to Aran atleast.

Aran leaned up just enough to kiss him again, the hand on his neck just drawing Shinsuke back down into it again. Shinsuke didn’t bother to count them, though he suspected Aran was probably cataloging them all. By the time they kissed again, Shinsuke probably would barely remember how the first one felt beyond the rush of adrenaline and the warm settling of contentment in his stomach.

A yawn broke it up, catching Shinsuke’s tooth on Aran’s nose as he pulled up too sharply. He whined tiredly, scrubbing at blurry, dry eyes. He let them droop for a moment and Aran took advantage to tug him back down into his arms. This time Shinsuke was tucked under his head, arm wrapped around his waist.

Lady was instantly back on Shinsuke’s legs, like she was aware she was now allowed to interrupt without being shooed off.

“S’ch a good girl.” Shinsuke yawned as he reached down to pet her. “Tra’ned her really good.”

“I know, Shin… Get some sleep, we’ll deal with things as they come okay? Starting with tomorrow.”

“Mm… ‘Slong as you’re still my best friend… I’ll be just fine… Aran? One more promise?” Shinsuke mumbled into Aran’s pec, splaying his hand over his stomach. His tired brain was more than a little amused at the difference of their skin, tracing his finger over the small scars from the years. A few he knew, a few he didn’t but all rather thick or long compared to Shinsuke’s own tiny nicks on his fingers from fabric scissors and needles. It honestly wasn’t fair, Aran had absolutely no right to look as gorgeous as he did.

“Shin, are you going to keep talking to my abs or are you going to finish your sentence?” Aran tried not to laugh, he really did but tired Shinsuke was almost as much of a blabber mouth as drunk Shinsuke. Aran found it far too amusing watching him mumble about how hot Aran was to Aran’s own chest.

Shinsuke used to wax poetry about his skin tone when they were drunk their first few years out of highschool, often followed by admiration of his arms or face. Once, Aran even managed to get him to admit he was jealous Aran could grow decent facial hair. Aran had no idea how Shinsuke had come to the conclusion that Aran didn’t know he was in love with him. He wasn’t very subtle at the best of times.

“Shh… I need ya to promise me… Ya won’t take Lady away… I love Lady. She’s m’ dog.” Shinsuke grumbled as he snuggled in closer.

“She’s not… but okay, I promise I won’t take Lady away.” Aran hummed, pressing a kiss to Shinsuke’s head. “Sleep well, Shin.”

#fluff #HQ #haikyuu #Arankita #Ojiro Aran #Kita Shinsuke #Fanfiction #Making a home au

28 notes · View notes

lynelovespopculture · 5 years ago

Text

THE CHILLING ADVENTURES OF ZELDA-CHAPTER 11: ALL HELL BREAKS LOOSE!

LIFE IS NOT EASY FOR GREENDALE’S HIGH PRIESTESS. HER BELOVED STEPDAUGHTER KEEPS REJECTING HER, IT’S GETTING HARDER TO RUN THE ACADEMY AND WHEN LITILH FINALLY GIVES BIRTH, THINGS GO FROM BAD TO WORSE!

She was horrified. “Here, Father?! You want to spend the night here?!”

“Yes,” came the answer, “and as I’ve been trying to explain to you, it wouldn’t be only for tonight. I live here now and as of this moment, so do you.”

“But this the Spellman house! We can’t live at the Spellman house! We hate the Spellmans! You most of all!”

“I don’t hate anyone and the Spellmans are my family now, our family.”

“Have you lost your mind, Father? The Spellmans are the enemy. They’ll silt our throats in our sleep. You taught us that!”

“I didn’t teach you anything, that’s kind of the problem,” Faustus said with desperation in his voice. “Also, for Hecate’s sake, lower your voice please.”

Yet, it was already too late. The 1 person Faustus really didn’t want to hear this conversation was hearing everything and had been for the past 10 minutes. For Zelda Spellman, clad in her nightgown could hear the voices in the kitchen perfectly from she was, on the left bottom staircase before the stairs spilt. It wasn’t Zelda’s intention to spy on anyone. She had a valid reason to come downstairs, Zelda just couldn’t remember what it was at the moment. Instead, for the last 10 minutes, Zelda found herself listening to her husband and stepdaughter’s conversation, hoping to answer her burning questions. Questions like how on earth did she manage to escape Blackwood, the insanity curse that raised her? Where was her twin, Judas? And how did she come to live with Dezmelda again, the very witch that Zelda had entrusted Letitia’s care to? However, all Zelda was learning was how much anger and hate her beloved stepdaughter had toward her, and the rest of her family. This was not at all what Zelda had in mind for Letitia’s homecoming. 4 hours ago, when she, Faustus and baby Cordelia returned from their trip and found Letitia, the girl Zelda had loved since birth and thought of every day, had come home, at last, Zelda’s 1st instinct was to give the girl a hug. It hurt a lot when Letitia shrunk away from her touch when she figured out Zelda was going to hug her. Zelda also saw the fear in the girl’s eyes when she beheld Faustus.

“I’m sorry I ran away, Father,” the girl’s voice trembled. “Please don’t punish me.”

Everyone knew that this wasn’t going to be easy. Letitia would only talk to Prudence and her father, ignoring the Spellmans and refuse to speak to any of them.

4 hours later, Faustus and his daughter were still speaking in the kitchen. Hilda and Prudence had gone home, Sabrina and Ambrose were both upstairs, asleep and Zelda was only getting sadder listening to Letitia bashing the family. Giving up entirely on trying to remember what she came down for, Zelda turned and started back upstairs while still hearing yelling coming from the Spellman kitchen.

“Letitia, please calm down.”

“There it is again! My name is Judith, Father, not this Letitia you keep calling me!”

Letitia. The very name Zelda herself had given to the babe and now, only 2 years in Zelda’s timeline, but 16 to Faustus’s daughter, and she hated the name Zelda had given her. Zelda sighed as she opened the door that separated the funeral formal front from the family’s personal 2nd-floor hallway. Zelda let out another heavy breath as she leaned against her now closed bedroom door. She looked up as she heard baby noises. She crossed the room and took Cordelia out of her bassinet. It was then that Zelda finally remembered what she forgot, Cordelia’s bottle! Yet, it wasn’t that big a deal. Being a witch sometimes meant you could cut out the middle man. Once she relaxed on the bed with the baby in her arms, that bottle magically appeared.

“You won’t ever turn against Mommy, will you Cordelia?” Was it Zelda’s imagination or was her baby girl snuggling up against her?

Even after feeding her, changing her, and settling her daughter back into the bassinet, Faustus had still not come up. Zelda smoked an entire cigarette and found herself anxiously pacing up and down the room, absent mindlessly playing with her wedding ring when her husband, at last, came into the room.

“How is she?” Zelda asked the moment she saw him.

“Fine,” Faustus replied. “Letitia’s asleep now. I put a root of sage under her pillow. I put her up in the nursery on the roll away bed. I hope that’s okay?”

“Oh, of course, of course,” Zelda demised his concern quickly. “Now, please tell me all you know about Letitia. How did she escape from Blackwood? Where is Judas? Why was Letitia back living with Dezmelda again?”

“Well, it’s a long story, but it all started the night of the twins’ dark baptism.”

“Their baptism?! But that was way back in December! That was over 6 months ago!” Zelda’s eyes widened.

Faustus knew that look. After so many centuries together, Faustus was still amazed by Zelda. She had long ago perfected her cold, hard outer shell. Yet, the ones who know her best, aka her family, knew that Zelda had a big, kind heart, especially when it came to children. Zelda had not only delivered his twins as part of her duties as a midwife. She had cared for Letitia and Judas as if they were her very own. First as their night mother and then stepmother. It wasn’t only the twins. Zelda was a perfect blend of supportive friend/concerned mother that Prudence needed. Of course, other than Hilda, there was no one Sabrina loved and trusted more. Faustus also felt honored that he not only fathered Zelda’s only natural child but Zelda also chose him to raise Cordelia with. Zelda was still looking at him for an answer, so he walked over to his wife and rubbed her arm affectionally.

“Just let me change and I’ll tell you all I know.”

5 minutes later, Faustus and Zelda lay in bed, talking.

“Just as I feared, Blackwood planned to marry the twins to each other on their 16th birthday. Apparently, Judas had no problem with this, but Letitia, rightly so, didn’t want to become her brother’s bride. So, before dawn that day, before Blackwood and Judas were awake, Letitia ran away.” Faustus explained.

“Poor girl. What a horrible way to spend your 16th birthday,” Zelda shook her sadly. “I hope she wasn’t alone for long?”

Faustus saw the genuine worry on Zelda’s face and couldn’t help but smile. Was it any wonder that he absolutely adored the ground Zelda walked on? “No, not too long,” he replied. “Just for 2 days and a night. Dezmelda found her right before the 2nd sunset.”

Zelda frowned. “Well, then that begs another question if Letitia has been with her for over 6 months, why didn’t Dezmelda tell anyone?”

“Letitia told me that she begged Dezmelda not to tell anyone that she was there. Letitia was terrified of being taken back to me, er, Blackwood.”

“You did explain the insanity curse to her, didn’t you?”

Faustus sighed. “I did but I don’t think she understood. I may have to explain to her all again. I mean, it is all very complicated. I really think that all Letitia needs is some”

“Time?” Zelda offered. “We can surely give her that. I’m just so happy that she’s here under our roof where we can protect her.”

Faustus stroked Zelda’s cheek and kissed her. “My thoughts exactly. I love you.” They fell asleep shortly after.

Hours later, Zelda woke up to Cordelia’s cries and stepped from the bed to her daughter’s bassinet. After feeding the baby, Zelda realized that she had a perfect excuse to sneak into the nursery. After tiptoeing into the room and settled Cordelia in her crib, Zelda turned to look at the young girl that was asleep in the pale moonlight. Zelda longed to sit by Letitia’s side, stroke her hair, and kissed her brow. Yet she didn’t do anything like that for fear that Letitia would wake up and flinch from her as she did before.

“Sleep well, Letitia,” Zelda whispered softly. “I’m so happy that you’re finally home.”

Zelda sadly closed the door, went back to her room, and got back into bed. Zelda instantly felt a bit better when a still half-asleep Faustus wrapped an arm around her.

Despite the fact that she would have preferred to stay with Letitia, on her full 1st day home and was still tired from the trip from Rome, Zelda kissed Faustus and Cordelia goodbye the next morning before heading to the academy. Zelda froze at the front door when she heard Letitia asked her father.

“Are you really going to just stand there while that bitch steals your job?!”

“Watch your mouth, young lady! Zelda isn’t stealing anything!”

The redhead closed her eyes, took a deep breath, and forced herself to continue on her way.

It was during morning assembly that Zelda got to tell the whole school, students, and staff alike about her trip to Rome and how successful it was. Zelda was touched when the whole crowd burst into applause and then Zelda kept on being stopped on the way back to her office to offer their congratulations. When she finally got to her office, Zelda saw her 1st appointment was waiting.

“Hello, brother Barker.” Zelda smiled. “Please take a seat.”

The warlock sat before the desk as Zelda went to sit behind it. “So, what can I do for you today?” Zelda asked.

Barker sighed. “I hate to do this to you, Zelda. Especially when you’re just back from Rome, but I’ve thought long and hard about it and I’ve decided to retire.”

Zelda was shocked. “Retire? You? But you are the most experienced teacher at this school. You taught most of the staff, myself included.”

Barker nodded. “I know, I know. As I said, I hate to do this but I’m a whole century older than the rest of you and I just can’t keep up. Even with your sister and the young teachers in training, the student body still outnumbers us 3 to 1.”

Zelda raised an eyebrow. “So, your solution to a teacher’s shortage is to resign yourself?”

“I’m sorry but I can’t keep up this pace anymore.”

Zelda sat back in her chair, thinking. “Brother Barker,” Zelda said slowly, “if you were me, how would you solve this problem?”

The old warlock shrugged. “I don’t know. Take out an ad in the newspaper?”

Zelda laughed shortly. “Oh, that would go over well. Wanted: 2 or more experienced teachers for a secret witch’s school right in our own backyard. Oh, I can see that in the Greendale Gazette.”

Barker shook his head. “No, I didn’t mean the gazette, I actually was referring to the IWD. I’ve heard they had gone digital.”

Zelda closed her eyes. “The newspaper run by the International Witches Database, of course, that’s what you meant! Forgive me, Brother Barker, I’m afraid I’m still suffering from jet lag from the flight from Rome. Anyway, I think placing an ad in the IWD is a brilliant idea! I think as the most senior member of this academy’s staff, I think you’re the perfect person to write up the ad, or at least the 1st draft. In fact, what’s your next class?”

“Um..it’s casting 101,” Barker answered.

Zelda nodded. “I’ll handle your class so that you can get started on the ad. Please feel free to use my office. I’ll also take a look at the schedule and see if I can divide the classes more evenly between the teachers. I just need to ask you 1 favor. Until the person who is selected from the ad is picked and settled, can you stay on?”

“Are you kidding? If this leaves off enough pressure, I may not retire after all.”

Zelda smiled. “Good.”

1 crisis down, about a million more to go. Barker was right; every teacher was stressed to the limit. Of course, the fact that the headmistress had been gone for a whole week, didn’t help matters. On top of her classes, Zelda also had a mountain of paperwork to get through. Zelda was so swamped that she had to call Faustus at home to tell him not to hold supper for her. Zelda sensed something in her husband’s voice, sadness perhaps, but decided not to pursue it. By 7, Zelda was still working at her desk and was not all happy when she looked up and saw the hell minion was right before her.

Zelda sighed. “What on earth are you doing here?” She demanded of the bellhop.

“Lilith is” the minion started and Zelda, tired and cranky, cut in rather quickly.

“Is not due for another 6 weeks and her last check-up is not for another 2 weeks.”

“Be that as it may,” the minion tried again. “Lilith said that she was bleeding and to fetch you right away.”

Zelda sighed as she opened her desk drawer, took out a pad of paper, and quickly wrote a note that she quickly spelled to the dining table of the Spellman house where Faustus was sure to find it. Then Zelda stood up and held out her hand until she felt the handle of the medical bag in her palm. Then she gestured to the minion. “Lead the way.”

Hell was the last place Zelda Spellman thought she would be tonight. All she wanted to do was go home, check on the children, have something to eat, cuddle up next to Faustus, and go to sleep. Yet, duty called. The minion was walking her down a palace hallway when Zelda felt herself being grabbed and pulled into a room. The next thing Zelda knew, she was face to face with Lilith.

“Did you find it? Did you bring it?” Lilith demanded.

“Did I find or bring what?” Zelda honestly didn’t know what Lilith was talking about.

“The spell!” Lilith cried as if it was the obvious thing in the world. “The spell that pauses my pregnancy.”

Zelda made a face. “No, I bring that! The spell would be against nature. There is no magic against nature! You know that! Every witch knows that!” It was only when Lilith threw up her hands and was walking away from her, that Zelda noticed something. “You’re not bleeding, are you? You bought me down here for nothing.”

“Nothing!” Lilith turned back sharply. “I’m due in only 6 weeks! The moment after I give birth, my stay of execution will be over and Lucifer will kill me!”

“You’ve had 13 months to plan your escape,” Zelda pointed out, “why didn’t you?”

“How can I plan anything with Lucifer watching me 24/7! Besides, why should I plan anything, when it’s your fault I’m in this mess!”

Zelda was so shocked she could only blink. “My fault?!”

“Yes!” Lilith returned with a hiss. “If you hadn’t turned me away, I wouldn’t be in this mess!”

“You having a baby, I hardly call that a mess, Lilith! And for the record, I turned you away because you are untrustworthy, and as high priestess, I always have to put the safety of my family and coven first. Besides how was I to know when you left the academy, how was I to know you would run right into Lucifer’s arms!”

“I was trying to save my life!” Lilith defended herself. “As Lucifer already showed, I wasn’t in his arms. I was in your husband’s and you say I’m untrustworthy.”

“Blackwood is not my husband, Faustus is!”

Lilith waved her hand dismissingly. “Same difference.”

“There’s a lot of difference!” Zelda instantly defended. “Blackwood is a soulless, evil parasite. A curse, who we would have been rid of by now if you haven’t of given him the mark of Cain. Faustus is a real person, who has been through the darkest pain, has owned up to his mistakes and now tries harder to be better every single day, to redeem himself. That’s the difference. Lucifer hasn’t paid me in information for months. The only reason I’m still your mid-wife is to protect my coven and family, including my husband, from the dark lord.” Zelda turned to leave but then turned back. “As you said, you’re due in 6 weeks, and if I were you, I’ld start planning something.” Then Zelda left.

Although she was tired and long to go home, Zelda returned to the Academy and managed to do another hour of paperwork. Then she went home. Stopping at the kitchen’s entrance, Zelda watched Faustus cleaning the island while Letitia fluttered around him.

“I bet she’s not even a mid-wife. I think she been with her lover all night.” Suggested Letitia.

Faustus didn’t even bother to look up. “Zelda doesn’t have a lover,” His tone was completely calm, if slightly annoyed.

Letitia then lit up. “Why am I saying it like it’s a bad thing? The more time she spends with her lover, the more you can spend with your mistress. Maybe even invite her over so I can meet her. Anyone would be better than a Spellman.”

Faustus sighed. “I’ve already told you; I don’t have a mistress and Zelda doesn’t have a lover. We are faithful to each other because we’re a happily married couple. We love each other and have no need for anyone else.”

It was a sweet statement but Letitia looked horrified. “I don’t believe it. No man is happy with only 1 woman.”

Faustus shrugged. “Believe it or not, it’s true and as I’ve told you numerous times today, I’m very happy being married to Zelda, caring for Cordelia and being a house husband.”

His daughter frowned. “That’s not natural. Women should stay in the home.”

“So, you’ve said numerous times today!” Faustus forced himself to stay calm. “It’s late, Judith, maybe you should go up and get ready for bed.”

The girl left the kitchen and Faustus finished up and hung up the kitchen rag before he turned and finally noticed Zelda. “How long have you been standing there?”

“Long enough to know that you had a rough 1st day.” Zelda walked over to her husband, putting her medical bag on the island and then kissed him. “Feel better?”

“Much,” Faustus smiled and put his arms around her.

Zelda smiled. “I’m glad to hear that you don’t have a mistress. If you did, you realize I would have to kill you.”

“As would be your right.” Zelda laughed and Faustus kissed her. “Listen, I only called her Judith just now is because she yelled at me all morning that her name was not Letitia.”

“There’s no need to explain,” She told him truthfully as he put an arm around Zelda’s shoulder as they left the kitchen. In the parlor, they found Sabrina bouncing the baby. Zelda lit up at the sight of her niece and her daughter.

“Cordelia! Did you miss mommy today? I sure missed you. Hello, Sabrina. How was your day?”

“It was good, aunt Z and Cordy is finished her night bottle,” Sabrina explained as she handed Zelda the baby and Faustus the bottle. “Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have a little more homework to do before bed.”

“Goodnight,” Zelda smiled as Sabrina kissed her goodnight.

“Thank you for all your help tonight,” Faustus added.

With Sabrina gone, Zelda sat down and began to rock Cordelia. Faustus sat down on a stool, and he took Zelda’s foot out of its high heel and began to rub the foot. The pleasurable moan that escaped Zelda’s lips made Faustus smile. “Feel good?”

“Like Hecate’s palace,” Zelda’s smile was one of pure bliss.

“Funny, there’s where I thought you came from,” Faustus got up and kissed her.

A little while later, Letitia was in bed, reading, however when she heard the door opening, she stashed her book under her pillow.

“Don’t mind me,” her father said softly. “I just need to put your sister to bed.”

Letitia was confused. “She’s not my sister. You told me yourself this morning that Cordelia was Zelda’s baby.”

Faustus put the infant in her crib before turning to answer Letitia.

“Yes, Zelda is Cordelia’s mother but I’m her father. She’s a part of us both.”

Letitia’s eyes widened as she got up off her cot to face her father. “Father, are you telling me that you actually mated with a Spellman? That is so wrong!” She wore a look of utter disgust.

Faustus sighed; his mouth was a thin line. “The only thing wrong here is that statement. I married a woman I loved and we were blessed with a child. It’s that simple.”

“But a Spellman!? To dirty our bloodline like that?! Father, you can do so much better.”

“That’s enough!” Letitia opened her mouth to say something else but Faustus held up his hand. “This is not up for debate, young lady. Now get back in bed and go to sleep!” Faustus closed the door behind him and went to his own room. There he saw Zelda, in bed, her arms around her knees, in a very un-Zelda like manner. In her hand was the 2-way baby monitor. She looked up at Faustus.

“She hates me,” Zelda was on the verge of tears.

Faustus went to her and took the monitor from her. He switched it off to ensure that they could talk in private. “She doesn’t hate you,” Faustus assured her. “She doesn’t know you. She doesn’t even know me yet. All she knows is Blackwood and his warped world view. After 16 years, it’s tough to overcome. Believe me, I know. Like you said last night, it’s going to take time.”

He was right, partly. Over time, Letitia did get closer, to some people. Like her sister, Prudence, and even Sabrina, once Letitia learned she wasn’t a true blood Spellman. As for Ambrose, Hilda, and Zelda, Letitia remained ice cold, no matter how much or how hard they tried to befriend her and it was breaking Zelda’s heart.

It was a few days after Dezmelda’s funeral, that Zelda was in the middle of teaching a class when something odd happened. Zelda smelled the smoke before she actually saw it. Then the pain set in. It was only then that Zelda’s finger burst into flames. The screaming students certainly didn’t help anything. Zelda ran out of the classroom and was thankful for whoever placed the water pitcher in the hallway. Dropping her whole hand in the jug, it did stop the fire but not the pain. Only when Zelda took off the boiling hot ring and dropped it on the floor, that’s the pain started to fade. Once she caught her breath, Zelda leaned down and saw her smoking, half-melted, and now utterly unwearable wedding ring.

Faustus looked up from his cooking and smiled. “Welcome home, dearest.” He kissed her hello. “So, how was your day?”

“It was fine darling, mostly.”

Faustus arched an eyebrow. “Care to explain that mostly?”

Zelda sighed and then dug into her purse. “I was smoked,” She explained as she produced the ring.

“Is that your wedding ring?” Faustus asked and frowned when his wife nodded. “I was afraid of this.”

It was only then that Zelda noticed that Faustus’s hand was ringless as well. “What happened to you?”

“I was feeding Cordelia her bottle this morning when suddenly, out of nowhere and for no reason at all, my ring snapped in 2 and fell off. Alright, I’m going to fix this right now,” Faustus put down the wooden spoon and turned off the stove before marching out of the kitchen.

Zelda followed him. “What are you doing?”

“Going upstairs to talk to Letitia. It’s obvious that it’s her who did this. Who else would want to destroy the symbols of our marriage?”

“Faustus, no!” Zelda grabbed his arm. “We have no proof that it was her. And even if was her, I’m sure it was nothing but a childish prank to blow off steam. I’m sure the worst is over.”

How wrong Zelda was.

“So, what do you think?”

It was the following week and Zelda and Faustus were alone in their room. It was late at night and Zelda was asking her husband his opinion about Brother Barker’s newly finished teacher’s ad for the IWD’s newspaper.

“This is fine, very fine, indeed. This should attract some excellent teachers. Yet, I’m afraid that Barker forgot something very important.”

Zelda took back the paper. “Really? I could swear Barker got in all the information.”

Faustus chuckled. “I truly do trust you, dearest, I do. But I do remember that the last time you hired a teacher, it was Mambo Marie and she was wildly attracted to you. Not that I blame her. I mean, any person with eyes would be attracted and since most teachers have eyes…”

Zelda smiled. “So, you think we mention that the headmistress is not available right in the ad.”

Faustus smiled back. “How about the headmistress is married?”

“How about the headmistress is in love?” Zelda suggested.

“Madly in love?” Faustus added.

“Passionately?”

“Completely?”

“Forever.”

Zelda allowed the ad to slip through her fingers to the floor and closed her eyes as Faustus began to kiss her deeply. They were in each other’s arms as they both fell backward toward the bed. The moment their bodies touched the mattress, Zelda and Faustus were torn apart. Due to some unknown source, Faustus was flung into the left side of the room; Zelda, the right.

“Hey!”

“Ow!” After a few seconds, they got up, dusted themselves off, and looked at each other. “What the heaven was that?” Zelda asked her husband.

The next morning, after Zelda left for work, Faustus sighed as he went back upstairs, into his room and lifted up the mattress. His heart dropped as soon as he found it. There, right in the middle of the frame was a penny. One side of the penny was flat, the other side stood straight up. Frowning, Faustus took the penny and when downstairs to the kitchen was Prudence and Letitia were.

“Hello girls,” Faustus forced his tone to remain calm.

Both of his daughters looked up and smiled at him. Prudence was helping Letitia with some of her schoolwork. It was hoped that if she worked hard enough that Letitia would be ready to attend the academy next term. Prudence gestured with her pencil. “What do you have there, Father?”

Faustus kept it cool. “Oh, this? This is a bent penny. I haven’t seen 1 of these in a very long time. That’s because a bent penny is used in a specific spell that is usually used by jealous teenage witches with cheating boyfriends. Anyway, the witch would enchant this penny and put it under the boyfriend’s mattress and if the boyfriend took another lover to his bed, he and the lover would be jolted off the bed and far away from each other.”

Prudence smiled. “Well, I’ll have to remember that if Ambrose starts acting strangely,” she joked. However, Faustus was more interested in his younger daughter’s reaction. Letitia didn’t even look up from her schoolwork. However, when Faustus turned to leave, he saw in the glass above the door that Letitia wore a smile.

That smile told Faustus all he needed to know.

“I can’t believe it took a whole month for all of us to come together again.” Hilda declared as she and Zelda prewashed a few dinner dishes while Faustus and Dr. C got the cake and coffee ready.

Zelda smiled. It was true, the Spellmans had not been all together for a full 30 days, since the night Faustus and Zelda got home from Rome. That was 1 of the reasons for tonight’s get together. The adults made their way out of the kitchen and into the dining room where the kids were waiting but 1 had flown the coop.

“Where’s Letitia?” Zelda asked.

Ambrose shrugged. “She said didn’t want dessert and went upstairs.”

Zelda sighed. Be it meals together or any other family event, Letitia would get away as soon as possible or not show up at all. Zelda hoped it would change over time but it was a month now but nothing was changing. Zelda smiled at Faustus when her husband took her hand. It was to focus on telling the family the news.

“Everyone,” Zelda began, “as wonderful as tonight’s dinner has been, Faustus and I have gathered you all here for another reason. You see, we have something to tell you, something we learned in Rome. We planned to tell you all the night we came home but we got sidetracked by Letitia being found and everything.”

“Is it about the council?” Hilda asked. “Did something happen? You are still a high priestess, aren’t you?”

“What? Oh yes, Hildie, of course, I am. No, this news has nothing to do with me, and everything to do with Cordelia. Do you remember what happened the night of her presenting? Her birthmark- “

“The mark of the divine,” Ambrose said, suddenly remembering a phone call he, Faustus, and Prudence had, “Did you find out what it all means?”

“Yes,” Zelda had the whole table’s attention as she told the family everything. She told them all about Maxine and the secret sisterhood. How they freaked out about Cordelia’s crescent moon birth mark-the mark of the divine. Zelda told them all about her research, about Hecate’s grandchildren, the tale of the 2 cousins, the start of the Spellman and Blackwood bloodlines, and what it meant for baby Cordelia.

It was Prudence who first broke the shocked silence. “My baby sister is fated to be the most powerful witch ever born?!”

“That is what all the prophecies I read said, yes.” Zelda nodded.

“I can’t believe it,” Prudence whispered.

“I can,” Said Hilda. “A lot of things make sense now. The reason why Cordelia has been so alert and awake since she was born. The reason the pregnancy was healthy and was able to survive even after you were shot, Zelds. It makes complete sense now. Cordelia was meant to be born.

“I didn’t even consider all that, but yes, Hildie, I believe you’re right,” Zelda nodded.

“So, what are we going to do with this information?” Asked Sabrina.

Zelda shrugged. “I don’t know if there is anything to be done. I just remember how hurt Hilda and I were that Edward didn’t tell us about going to the dark lord for a child. So, this is us telling you all about Cordy.”

Ambrose frowned. “What about Cordelia herself? When and what will you tell Cordelia about all this?”

“Faustus and I spoke about almost nothing else on the flight home and for the foreseeable future, we decided to say nothing to Cordelia. We want to give her as normal a childhood as possible.”

A couple of hours later, after the meal, after Prudence, Hilda and Dr. C went home and Sabrina and Ambrose were in their rooms. Zelda entered the nursery and smiled at her baby.

“Hello, Cordelia. Mommy going to give you a little bath and your bottle before bed. Won’t that be fun?” Zelda tried to pick up Cordelia but she just couldn’t. It was as if there an invisible wall around her daughter. “What the heaven?”

“I’d step away from the baby if I were you.”

Zelda turned to see Letitia, her arms crossed and leaning against the door. “Letitia, what have you done?”

Letitia’s frown deepened. “Firstly, my name is Judith! Secondly, if what I heard you say is true, I must protect my little sister. I can’t just let anyone come in off of the streets and take her.”

Zelda looked from Letitia and Cordelia and back again. Her heartbreaking with every glance. “But I’m not just anyone. I’m her mother.” Zelda said firmly.

Letitia made a movement of dismissal. “You’re a Spellman! I made it so no Spellman will ever be able to touch Cordelia Blackwood ever again.” As if to rub it in, Letitia took the bottle from Zelda, made a show out of taking Cordelia out of her crib, and then sat down to feed the baby.

Before a stunned Zelda could react, Faustus came into the room. “What’s going on here?” he demanded.

“Nothing, Father,” Letitia said calmly. “Just protecting your youngest from the Spellmans.”

Not quite understanding, Faustus looked to his wife.

“She cast a spell so I can’t touch Cordelia,” Zelda explained.

“It’s not just her, it applies to all the Spellmans.” Letitia seemed proud of herself.

Beyond annoyed, Faustus rolled his eyes. “Not 1 of your stupid, childish spells again! Letitia, I want you to take your spell off your sister and apologize to your mother! Right now!”

Letitia was seething. “HOW MANY TIMES DO I HAVE TO TELL YOU THIS? MY NAME IS JUDITH AND SHE,” Letitia eyed Zelda upper and down in utter disgust, “IS NOT MY MOTHER!”

Faustus sighed deeply, trying desperately to keep calm as he reached out to grab Cordelia. “Please don’t scream in the baby’s ear. Now, why did you feel the need to put a spell on the baby?”

“I overheard some of the conversation that was happening downstairs. About how powerful Cordelia will be and I wanted to protect her. It’s like you always told us, it’s us or them. It’s the Spellmans or it’s the Blackwoods.”

Faustus sighed. “For the 10000th time, I didn’t tell you anything, the curse did. Also, there are no Blackwoods here. Like I’ve already told you, I’m a Spellman now, Cordelia is a Spellman and even you are a Spellman.”

“I will NEVER be a Spellman!” Letitia snapped.

“But you already are, isn’t she, Zelda? Zelda?” Faustus wasn’t sure when but Zelda had left.

After telling Letitia they’d talk more about later, Faustus went looking for Zelda. He found her across the hall, in their own bedroom. Zelda was seated at the end of their bed. Her head was buried in her hands. Faustus could tell she was crying because her shoulders were shaking violently.

“Oh, dearest,” Faustus took Zelda into his arms.

“I’m such an idiot!” Zelda declared between sobs. “I truly believed that once we found the twins, we would be 1 happy family.”

Faustus found himself rocking his wife. “We will be, my dearest, I promise you. I just need to figure out how to get through to Letitia. Maybe a little time.”

“Time? It’s been a month already. Instead of things getting better, they’re getting worse. Letitia hates me, she hates me so much that she doesn’t even want me to touch her little sister, my own baby!”

“I will never allow the spell to stand!” Faustus soothed as he rubbed Zelda’s back. “I’ve Cordelia back in your arms before you know it.”

It was easier said than done. Letitia refused to take off the spell and Faustus was having trouble finding an anti-spell. Father and daughter got into screaming matches. Faustus no longer trusted Letitia to be alone with the baby so Cordelia moved into her parents’ room. It drove Zelda absolutely crazy not being able to hold or touch her own child but Faustus made it somewhat better was when Faustus would lie Cordelia down to sleep between them and they could be near each other. It was at the most heartbreaking when Cordelia would smile at Zelda and hold out her arms, obviously wanting to be picked up by her mommy. No matter how hard she tried, Zelda couldn’t, and it wasn’t just her. Both Hilda and Ambrose tried to hold the baby and all failed. This awful tension, which grew and grew, continued for 2 weeks. The tension in the house got so bad that certain members of the household, namely Sabrina and Ambrose, went out of their way to be out of the house. She would never admit it, but even Zelda was happy that the academy needed her more and more. They were starting the summer session and the responses to the teacher’s ad were coming in and there was much more than expected. This meant a lot of late nights for Zelda. It all came to a head 1 evening.

Faustus was sitting at the table, feeding Cordelia her bottle while Zelda was at the stove, stirring the soup.

“Dinner, children!” Zelda called out. Ambrose and Sabrina presently came into the kitchen, smiling at and thanking their aunt as she handed them their bowls. A moment later, everyone heard a door slam and stomping on the stairs, Letitia came into the kitchen. Like she did for the other kids, Zelda held out the soup bowl to her stepdaughter.

However, all Letitia did was stare daggers at Zelda. “Whore!”

Hearing this, Faustus balanced the baby on his hip and went over to his wife and daughter. “Hey! What did I tell you about calling Zelda names?”

“But she is a whore!” Letitia insisted. “I was just in my room, doing a memory spell”

“You did a memory spell, all by yourself?” Zelda asked softly. She couldn’t help but be impressed.

“Yes, I wanted to see my mother and I did see her when she was pregnant with Judas and me and I found this 1,” She pointed at Zelda, “tending to her.”

Faustus shrugged. “So? I told you that Zelda was your mother’s midwife.”

“Yeah, but after the check-up, I followed her, down to the cells, where she promptly had sex with you.” Letitia turned her attention back to Zelda. “You killed her, didn’t you? You killed my mother and blamed it on childbirth?!”

“No, I didn’t.” Zelda’s voice was reassuring but also very firm.

“Yes, you did!” Letitia screamed. “It shouldn’t have been her. I wish it had been you who had died!”

Sabrina gasped as Faustus took a step forward. “That’s it! Go to your room! Now!” Faustus watched his daughter stalk out of the room and turned to his wife. “Are you alright, dearest?”

“I’m fine,” Zelda said but looked anything but as she shut off the stove. “I’ve just remembered, I’m going to be late for an appointment.”

Faustus followed Zelda into the hall where she began to gather up her things. “What about dinner?”

“I’m not hungry.”

“So, are you going to tell me what’s wrong?”

Zelda looked across the room at Lilith and shrugged. “There’s nothing wrong. The baby’s fine and everything right on schedule.”

Lilith frowned. “I meant with you. You show up 2 hours early and that is the 1st sentence you said all the time you’ve been here. So, what’s wrong?”

“Nothing,” Zelda cleared her throat. “It’s personal.”

“Zelda, you just finished working inside of me, I think we are beyond personal.”

Zelda sighed deeply. “Fine, if you really want to know, Letitia hates me.”

“Oh,” Lilith nodded. “Who’s Letitia?”

Zelda drew an even deeper sigh as she explained about the twins to Lilith.

Lilith was less worried. “Why should you care? She’s not even your daughter.”

Zelda rolled her eyes. “Why am I even discussing this with you? You’re due soon and I don’t even think you love your own baby. I told you it was a boy months ago. Have you spent 1-second thinking of a name? Or even wanting to hold him?”

“I already told you, this baby is not for loving.”

“All babies are for loving!” Zelda snapped. “I remember when I was pregnant before finding out about the curse. I remember being terrified but ready to be kicked out my coven and disowned by my family, as long as I got to keep my baby.” And now I can’t even hold her anymore. Zelda thought to herself as she quickly wiped a tear away and went back to pack up her medical bag. Her back to Lilith.

“You know the difference between you and me?”

Zelda shrugged. “I’ve loved before and you haven’t?”

“I’ve loved. I loved Adam!”

“Adam? As I recall, you couldn’t run away from him or the garden fast enough.”

“No, another Adam.” Lilith was afraid she had said too much so she lashed out. “You know what? You’re a fool! That girl will never see you as anything but as an evil stepmother!”

Zelda said nothing; she just closed her bag and left in an annoyed huff.

“Now I know that we never talked about manners, young lady but calling your stepmother a whore, especially to her face, is certainly bad form.”

After having a quiet if slightly awkward dinner with Sabrina and Ambrose, Faustus decided to wash the dishes and clean up the kitchen before he called down his daughter for a stern talking to in the living room.

“But she is a whore!” Letitia insisted, rather loudly. “She had sex, knowingly, with another woman’s husband. That’s the very definition of a whore!”

Faustus sighed. “Then what about me?” he wanted to know. “I was the 1 who was married during the affair. I’m married now and you been encouraging me to take a mistress.”

Letitia shook her head. “That’s different. You’re a man. All men enjoy sex but the only women who enjoy sex are whores.”

“That is your grandfather talking! I didn’t believe in that stupid double standard when I was 12 and I don’t believe it now.”

“Let’s leave,” she sat up straighter, “You, me, and the baby, let’s leave this house and never come back.”

“We are not going anywhere. As a minor, you will live where I live and I’m not leaving Zelda.”

“Of course, you’re not leaving Zelda, because you’re under her spell. How else would you explain enjoying being a housekeeper while she’s at work every day?”

Faustus crossed his arms. “That’s ironic. Lately, the only 1 casting spells and trying to control things is you and that has to stop, Judith.”

Their conversation was interrupted by a ringing phone. Faustus walked in the hallway to answer it. “Hello?”

“Hello, darling.”

“Zelda, my love! Thank Hecate! I’ve been worrying about you ever since you left here 4 hours ago. Where have you been?”

“I went to see Lilith for her last check-up and then I returned to the academy to do some paperwork. In fact, that’s why I’m calling. I’m afraid it’s going to be another long night, Faustus. I’m going to stay here tonight.”

Her husband was not fooled, not for a single second, “Dearest one, I know you’ll still upset about what happened with you and Letitia and you have every reason to be so, but running away is not the answer.”

“No, I’m fine,” Zelda said but the tightness in her voice told Faustus that she was anything but. “I just have a lot of work to do.”

Faustus tried again. “Alright, I get that you have work to do. But even if it’s 3, 4, or 5 in the morning, please0 feel free to come home at any time, even if it’s just for a few hours. I love you. I need you.”

“No, he doesn’t!” Faustus was horrified to hear his daughter’s voice on the phone. Then he remembered. The Spellman house was an old house and as a result, it only had 1 landline. Faustus was using the phone in the hall, Letitia’s voice sounded like it was coming from the kitchen.

“That’s right,” Letitia continued to scream at Zelda over the phone. “No one needs or wants you here! The longer you stay away, the better! In fact, I suggest you never come back, mother killer!”

“What are you doing?” Faustus growled as he came up behind his daughter, took the phone out of her hand, and covered up the mouthpiece. “You have no right to attack Zelda like that. Go upstairs, NOW!” Faustus placed the phone to his ear. “Zelda? Honey?” All he heard was a dial tone. “Damn it!”

Although Faustus waited up for her, Zelda didn’t go home that night nor did she come home the next night even though she had called several times during the day to check on the family. It was becoming clear to Faustus that if he wanted his wife to come home, he would have to go get her himself. But first thing first.

Cordelia laughed wildly as she splashed in the water, Faustus couldn’t help but laugh too. Yet this was no regular bath. Faustus was bathing Cordelia in the strongest anti-spell he had ever come across. “Thank Hecate you’re such a water baby, Cordy.” He kissed her head before Faustus looked to the ceiling. “Ambrose! Can you come here for a moment?”

A second later, Ambrose appeared at the door. “Yes? What can I-Judas Priest, what is that smell?”

“I’m sorry, I can’t help it. It’s the anti-spell,” Faustus pointed to the sink where Cordelia sat.

Ambrose made a face. “That is foul! How can you stand it?”

“I spelled myself and Cordy before we started. I can’t smell anything right now.”

“Well, you could have warned me!”

“Sorry,” Faustus grabbed a fluffy towel and scooped up his daughter. “Anyway, you can go as soon as I figure out if the anti-spell worked. Can a Spellman hold this baby?”

Ambrose held his breath as he held his cousin.

“It worked!” Faustus took Cordelia back, kissed her, and gave her a proper bath to wash off the stench.

To avoid any more fighting, Faustus waited until nighttime to make his move. He checked that everyone was asleep before returning to his room.

“Well, Cordelia, all is quiet and well here. Shall we go visit Mommy?” Faustus watched the 5 months old squeal excitedly. Faustus smiled and picked up the basket and teleported. A moment later, Faustus was walking into his old bedroom on the top floor of the academy. Faustus felt a little uneasy about seeing it again. After all, this was his 1st time in the academy in years. After a nervous breath, Faustus focused and noticed that the bed was littered in papers. Ad responses and corrected schoolwork. Zelda was in the shower; he could hear the water running. A moment later, Zelda appeared.

“Faustus?! What are you doing here?”

He smiled. “I decided that 3 nights without my wife is much, much too long. Plus I have a surprise for you.” Faustus picked up Cordelia and held her out in front of him.

Zelda tilted her head. “Faustus, what are you doing? You know I can’t touch her.”

“But you can, my love. I broke the spell today.”

Zelda was still doubtful but came forward. Her eyes lit up as she took Cordelia in her arms. “My baby! Mommy missed you so much!” Zelda covered the infant’s face with kisses making Cordelia giggle which led to more kisses. Faustus watched the precious mother/daughter moment, put his hand on the small of Zelda’s back.

“I missed you too.” He kissed his wife and she smiled.

Since it was already brewed, they sat down and had tea while Cordelia curled up and fell asleep on Zelda’s chest. Later, when Zelda was settling Cordelia into bed, Faustus noticed the black and gold robe that didn’t quite fit her. He waited for Zelda to turn to him before Faustus tug the robe’s belt and Zelda was in his arms.

He kissed her deeply before he asked, “Isn’t this my robe?”

Zelda smiled. “Yes, it is and that 1 of the 2 reasons I’ve worn it all 3 nights I’ve been here. To remind me of you and the 1st time I wore this robe was to check on baby Judas and he gave me the cutest smile.”

As Zelda talked, Faustus kissed Zelda’s neck and untying the knot in the belt of the rope. When she mentioned Judas, he thought about when Zelda called home to check in, she never failed to ask about Letitia, no matter how badly the girl had mistreated her. The fact that she still worried and thought about the twins constantly proved that Zelda was their mother.

“I love you,” Faustus whispered against Zelda’s collarbone. “I could live a million years and never adore anyone half as I adore you.”

They undressed and made love all night long. Zelda had to leave the bed only once; to tend to the baby, but then happily returned to her husband’s embrace.

They met the dawn in each other’s arms. “I have a favor to ask of you. Come home tonight.”

Zelda sighed. “Faustus, Letitia is-“

“A 16-year-old child,” Her husband rushed to remind her, “and we’re a family. As parents, we should correct, not reward Letitia’s bad behavior. Speaking of correcting behavior,” Faustus reached down into his discarded pants pocket on the floor and took out a small velvet box. “I ordered these weeks ago but they only came in yesterday,” Faustus explained and opened the box to reveal another pair of wedding rings that Letitia’s spell had destroyed.

Faustus slid the ring onto Zelda’s finger and kissed her. “Will you come home?”

Zelda smiled and put the ring on him. “I will.”

After a few hours of sleep, Zelda hurried downstairs to attend morning assembly while Faustus and Cordelia went home. Faustus spent all day working. Be it protection spells, sealing spells, anti-spells, and more, he makes sure that every inch of the house was ready to take on his daughter’s spiteful little spells. Faustus didn’t tell Letitia that Zelda was coming home until the very last minute. He also told her, quite sternly to be nice to her stepmother and to everyone’s surprise…she was.

5 days after Zelda came home, Letitia laid out a wonderful tea service and sandwiches and then invited Zelda to join her. Touched, Zelda accepted. Meanwhile, Faustus was upstairs, putting Cordelia down for a nap. Turning away from the crib, Faustus noticed that Letitia’s cot was unmade. He made the bed, but when he grabbed the pillow up to fluff it, a book hit the floor. The book fell spine up and pages spread out. Faustus picked it up, flipping the pages, thinking nothing of it until he got to the last page, then his eyes bugged out.

“NO!” He dropped the book instantly and ran downstairs.

“A toast,” Letitia raised her teacup, “To us and a new beginning.” They clinked the cups together and Zelda was just about to take a sip when the teacup flew out of her hand and crashed against the wall. Zelda turned and saw a panicked Faustus entering the room.

“Dearest, how much tea did you drink? Do you think you can bring it back up?”

Zelda shook her head. “I haven’t had any tea.”

“Father, I can explain- “

“I’m not even ready to talk to you yet!”

“What’s going on?” Zelda asked.

“I was making up Letitia’s bed for her and under her pillow, I found a book of spells and on the last page was a cargarli spell and I thought that” Faustus waved an arm over the tray, making the tea and sandwiches vanish and then he flipped over the tray, revealing a picture of Zelda taped to the bottom of the tray, “she would try to use it on you.”

Zelda took a step back, her hand over mouth. When she looked at Letitia, her eyes filled with horror. “Is that why you been nice to me these past few days? To lull me into a false sense of trust?”

Letitia opened her mouth but it was Faustus spoke first. “No, I don’t even want to look at you now! Get upstairs!” Letitia left in a huff and Faustus took a shaken Zelda into his arms.

Meanwhile, Letitia wasn’t in her room long before she had a visitor.

“What the heaven were you trying to do down there?”

Letitia turned and saw Prudence standing in the doorway with her arms crossed. “Where did you come from?” Letitia asked.

“I was in the attic, hanging out with Ambrose. I was just leaving with I saw Father running down the stairs, I followed him and I heard the whole ugly scene. Did you really try to put Sister Zelda under a Cargarli spell?”

Letitia shrugged. “So, what if I did?”

Prudence shook her head. “That’s not good enough, this time. Your other spells were childish and annoying but a Cargarli spell is dangerous and traumatic to those who already were under it as Zelda and Father both were. As a girl, you should stay away from that spell.”

“You know, as a girl, I was raised a different way.”

“Yes, and you know it was wrong, or you wouldn’t have run away. Letitia, you have to let go of this anger and stop pushing away the ones that love you the most.”

“Judith! My name is Judith and why do you care so much about Zelda Spellman? She’s not your mother, either.”

“No, she isn’t,” Prudence agreed. “But if I had to choose my own mother, I would pick Zelda every time.”

Letitia scoffed. “I bet my mother was the better stepmother.”

“Before or after she tried to kill me?” Prudence raised her voice, disturbing Cordelia. Prudence went to the crib and patted the baby’s belly. “Sorry, Cordy, we’ll keep it down.”

Letitia, however, wanted to continue the fight. “I see, it’s wrong when my mother tries to kill you, but it’s perfectly alright when Zelda Spellman actually kills my mother?”

Prudence sighed and rolled her eyes. “For the last time, Zelda did not kill Constance.”

“How would you know?”

“I know because I helped Zelda with the delivery, the night you and Judas were born.”

Letitia looked confused. “You were there?”

“How did you not know that? You said you preformed a memory spell. What did you do, you didn’t like the 1st memory so you ended the spell early?” 1 look and Prudence knew. “Oh, Hecate, that’s exactly what happened.”

“So?”

“So, doing a memory spell for 1 memory is as foolish as reading only 1 chapter in a book and then claiming you know the whole plot. You can continue to be an angry, misinformed girl or you can do another memory spell and face reality. The choice is yours, little sister.”

A week later, Zelda awoke in the middle of the night, to the sound of crying. Since it was her turn, Zelda took extra care not to wake Faustus as she slipped out of their bed and tiptoed down the hall and into the nursery. As Zelda got nearer to the crib, the little nightlight let Zelda see that Cordelia was sound asleep. The baby was not the 1 crying in this room.

“Zelda?” The redhead turned to see Letitia in bed, tears shining all over her face.

“I’m sorry, I thought Cordelia needed me. I’m going.”

Letitia sat up and reached out to grab Zelda’s wrist. “No, please. Don’t go.”

Despite herself, Zelda’s heart jumped with hope. “You want me to stay with you?”

Letitia nodded. “Yes, but I feel like I don’t have the right to ask you to stay. In fact, you could demand that I get out of your house right now and I wouldn’t even blame you.” Letitia started to cry again as she buried her head into her hands. “I’m so ashamed!”

Zelda sat down beside her on the cot. “Slow down, child,” Zelda gently wiped away the tears. “Now, what bought all of this on?”

She told Zelda all about her fight with Prudence and how she just quit after just 1 memory.

Zelda nodded understandingly. “So, you went back and took a look at all your father’s memories.”

“Not only his but yours too. That why it took me all week long. You didn’t need to help me but you did. You didn’t need to love me but you did. And to repay you, I was an utter jerk to you.” Letitia started to cry again and Zelda took her stepdaughter in her arms. “I just don’t know how I’m ever going to make this to you.”

“You already have. You are letting me hold you, that’s all I’ve ever wanted. All the rest is water under the bridge.”

Letitia sniffed as she moved to hug Zelda around the waist. “You’re so wonderful. Why are you so wonderful?”

Zelda placed a kiss into Letitia’s raven hair. “I love you. I may have only have given birth to Cordelia but I love all you children.”

“You’re not at all what Fath, I mean the curse, said you were. But he lied a lot. He always blamed me for killing my mother but I learned quite surprisingly, that I was born first.”

They sat and talked for over an hour. Suddenly, Zelda felt a presence over them. She smiled; Faustus must have heard them over the baby monitor. Zelda looked up and her smile faded. The man before her wasn’t her husband; it was the hell minion.

“Ms. Spellman, you have to come with me. Something’s wrong with Lilith.”

“Now?! It’s the middle of the night.”

“Go,” Encouraged Letitia, “We’ll talk tomorrow.” Zelda stroked her cheek, got up, and went with the hell minion.

Lilith was lying on her side, moaning in pain when the minion led Zelda into Lilith’s bedchamber.

“What wrong with her?” the minion asked once Zelda had a chance to examine the patient.

Zelda looked up, annoyed. “Nothing. She’s just having a baby, right now.”

“No!” Lilith cried. “It’s too soon!”

“What do you mean? You’re due in less than a week.”

“I mean for me! I don’t want to die!”

Zelda sighed. Up to the bitter end, Lilith’s pregnancy was all about her. It was a long and difficult labor. In her long career as a midwife, Zelda had seen her fair share of stubborn mothers, but Lilith was the worst. She constantly screamed at Zelda to stop the labor and Zelda tried numerous times to explain that her body was preparing itself for the birth, whether Lilith liked it or not. By early evening, Lilith was delivering.

“Push!” ordered Zelda.

“No! I am not giving birth!”

“You have to! The head is already out!” Despite Lilith fighting her all the way, Zelda soon delivered the rest of the child. “It’s a boy!” She announced, “born at 5:40 pm on August 10th.”

Lilith said nothing but only took a glance from Zelda to tell that Lilith was not happy. Zelda felt sorry for the infant was she cut the cord, cleaned him up, and swaddled him in a blanket. “Come with me, sweet boy.” Zelda bounced the baby gently as she crossed the room and put the babe in Lilith’s arms. Lilith beheld her son for the very 1st first time, a strange expression on her face.

Lilith looked up at Zelda. “Get me out of here.” And it still all about her. Zelda sighed, rolled her eyes, and started to turn away but Lilith grabbed her sleeve. “Okay, forget about me. You got to get him out of here, I beg of you.” And there it was. For months and months, Zelda had tried to see any little maternal instinct in Lilith, any little sign to prove Lilith cared for the life inside of her. However, as the pregnancy progress, all Lilith did was complain about how uncomfortable she was and how her delay of execution was drawing closer. But now, she was begging Zelda to get the baby to safety, with or without her. Lilith was prepared to make a sacrifice, a mother’s sacrifice. At that moment, Zelda knew what she had to do.

“Ok, I’m going to get you both out of here. But you have to help me by doing what I say. Now, scream!”

“Scream?”

“Yes. If you scream, Lucifer will think you’re still in labor and that will buy us some extra time.”

So, Lilith screamed and Zelda ran around, readying both mother and child. She bought Lilith slippers and a robe. Then both witches grabbed the baby and teleported.

“Penny dreadful for your thoughts, my dear?”

Letitia looked up to see her father smiling down at her.

Faustus handed his daughter a mug of hot chocolate and sat across from her in the living room. “Are you okay? Aside from telling us about the memory spells and where Zelda went to, you barely said a word all day.”

Letitia smiled, “I’m fine, just thinking. The memory spells made me see that most of my life was a lie.”

“How I wish I could be there for you.”

“We’re together now, that’s what matters,” His daughter said sensibly. “Besides, what I really been thinking about is my name.”

“You name?”

She nodded. “I now understand why you all call me Letitia, I do, but after 16 years, I got used to the name Judith, but I think I’ve reached a compromise.”

Faustus raised an eyebrow. “A compromise? On your name?”

She smiled. “Yes. Father, what do you think of LJ?”

“LJ, huh? I like it. Trendy.” That made her laugh, “LJ Blackwood.”

LJ frowned. “Actually, after all, I learned about our family’s past and the curse, I would prefer LJ Spellman but considering what I put them through, I don’t think the family would agree.”

“I love it and I think the Spellmans will too.”

They both looked up as Zelda and Lilith holding her baby appeared before them. Zelda stepped forward. “Okay, something happened.” Zelda quickly explained what was going on and then the family spent the next 2 hours preparing the house for an attack. 3 hours later, Lucifer showed up.

“LILITH! WHERE ARE YOU?!”

Zelda told Lilith to take the baby and go up to the nursery and look after Cordelia as well.

“Don’t worry, guys. He can’t get in here. I put the magic locks on myself.” Ambrose said proudly.

Everyone heard a loud crack and the dark lord appeared in the huge hole in what used to be the Spellmans front door.

Ambrose gulped. “Never mind.”

They tried to fend him off but they were pushed aside with a wave of Lucifer’s hand. He climbed the stairs to the nursery. When the family caught up with him, they all saw the was no sign of Lilith or her newborn.

“WHERE MY SON?!” Lucifer demanded. Before anyone could say anything, a baby’s gurgle was heard and Lucifer’s attention turned to Cordelia.

“No!!” Zelda cried. After magically throwing Zelda into a wall, Lucifer picked up Cordelia.

“She’s not my son, but she’ll do until you give me my son.” Cordelia opened her eyes and cried. Her cry was so powerful, it was like a sound wave, Lucifer dropped her immediately, was pushed across the hallway, downstairs, out the ruined door and onto the lawn. Zelda ran in and picked up her daughter. After Lucifer dropped her, Cordelia landed back in her crib, unharmed, and giggled.

Zelda hugged her baby. “Thank Hecate you’re alright.”

“Nice to know that the mark of the divine is already working,” Faustus added.

“He’s passed out,” Sabrina said as she beheld Lucifer lying on the grass. “That’s good, right? Easier to get him into a cell.”

“Yeah, cuz, but he won’t stay there long. You know, we need a body to trap him in.” Ambrose sighed and got an idea. “Blackwood would be perfect for the job. Too bad we don’t know where he is.”

From her place beside Sabrina, LJ smiled. “You might not know where he is, but I do.”

Faustus wouldn’t let LJ come with him to go get Blackwood, so they worked together to draw a detailed map, then LJ stayed behind to babysit Cordelia. Meanwhile, Zelda and the others rushed to get Lucifer into chains. They even spelled him to stay out cold longer. Zelda then went upstairs to take a nap. After all, she had been up for over 53 hours.

When Hilda woke her up, she had news. “Faustus found Blackwood.”

The sisters ran downstairs and sure enough, both were there. Everyone helped with the soul transfer and Ambrose had a bonus spell to send them to hell. Later, the family went home. Faustus said he had to go get Judas. The other Spellmans went into the kitchen, while Zelda went upstairs to check on Cordelia.

“NO!”

The others could hear Zelda’s cry and they ran upstairs only to find Zelda crying on the floor of the nursery.

Zelda looked up and held out a letter. “I found this in the crib.”

Hilda took the letter and the more she read, the whiter she got.

“What is it, Auntie?” asked Sabrina.

Hilda looked up. “Faustus never found Blackwood. He searched all over the hideout but there was no sign of Blackwood or Judas.

“But we just saw them together.”

Hilda nodded. “Faustus knew that we couldn’t hold Lucifer for long, so after looking for Blackwood, Faustus went down to the river, made a man out of mud, used a glamour spell to make it look exactly like him so the mud man could pose as Faustus so Faustus could pose as Blackwood. Saying he was going to get Judas was like code for the spell is over and I’m going back to being mud.”

Ambrose’s head was spinning. “So, the real Faustus is-“

“In hell, with Lucifer.” Sabrina finished.

“He saved us,” Hilda said.

As the others talked, Zelda got up and left the room.

“Where are you going, Zelds?”

“I’m going to hell and getting my husband back.” Zelda charged down the stairs, the others were at her heels. However, when Zelda opened the magically restored front door, someone fainted into Zelda’s arms; someone they all knew. “Elizabeth?”

“He stole my world” was all Elizabeth Tudor could say before she passed out cold.

#chilling adventures of sabrina #save caos #renew caos #part 4 my way #caoz #chapter 11 #fanfic #zelda spellman and faustus blackwood #spellwood #zelda spellman #faustus blackwood #hilda spellman #ambrose spellman #prudence night #letitia #judith blackwood #cordelia spellman #comment and reblog

16 notes · View notes

the-omni-princess · 5 years ago

Text

Blood Bound [Chapter Five]

Author: @the-omni-princess

Pairing: Vampire!Bucky x Witch!Reader

Summary: Vampires and witches have been known enemies since the dark ages. Backstabbing, secrets, and magic turned supernatural brethren again each other. As a natural-born witch, you grew up on these stories, your own monsters under your bed. What happens when one of those sworn enemies claims that you are his blood mate, the vampire equivalent of a true mate? Will you give in to this man out of time? Or destroy him for the sake of your Coven?

Word Count: 3.3K

Warnings: fluff, angst, swearing, mentions of death, major character death, talks of death, talks of a historical event with a twist

A/N: So, this was supposed to be for Halloween so Happy Halloween! Lol, this series was supposed to be done by Halloween and I think I’m like halfway through. I had two lab reports and a test today and its two am Im ded

Enjoy!!!

[Series Masterlist] [My Masterlist] [Playlist Inspired by the Series]

----

Sleep in Bucky’s arms was virtually dreamless, which after the day you had had, was a sweet relief. Once you woke up, you could only remember a fraction of your remaining dream. A peaceful scene, you and Bucky laying in a field of flowers, smiling, talking about nothing in particular. It seemed awfully familiar. Maybe you were really- no. That simply was impossible. There was no way you were reincarnated. But why did everything feel so familiar? Like home?

The sun filtered in through your balcony, the curtains were slightly open. Cool arms were wrapped around you protectively, cool breath fanning against your neck. You bit back a giggle, hearing Bucky snore behind you. His hand shifted slightly lower, resting against your abdomen, sending a wave of flashes before your eyes. Hands. Warm, big, pulling, gentle, soft. Light kisses below your ear. Whispers of love. A murmur of “Sweetling.” Contentment. Sated.

As you gasped softly, the memory fled, slipping through your fingers like sand. Bucky groaned softly behind you, “Are you alright?” Concern laced in his sleep heavy voice.

“It was nothing, I think it was a flash of a memory…” you indulged. Okay, maybe this whole reincarnation theory would explain all of this memory flashes, but it seemed ridiculous. “Guess, for the time being, we both have memory issues,” you teased. Okay so maybe you were using humor as a coping mechanism but finding out you had a vampire soulmate was a little overwhelming.

You could feel him smiling into your neck as he looked at the glow in the dark stars on your ceiling. “So, I gather you like stars?”

Your pulse beat just inches from his fangs, and yet you felt nothing but absolute trust in the one creature you weren’t supposed to trust. It was alarming how you unequivocally trusted this man. “I love them. The stars guide our everyday lives without even realizing it.”

“Spoken like a true witch,” he sighed softly, unable to stop smiling. “Creeks… you also used to like creeks and springs in the woods,” he murmured. “Right before a storm as the skies darken and the lights leave the forest floor.”

“Mountains,” you mumbled absentmindedly. “You liked the snowy mountains because as spring thawed the ice, it brought me more streams.” You let your eyes close, leaning against his touch. It felt gratifying to remember something. Okay, fine. Maybe you really were Theo. But how?

Bucky tensed behind you, interrupting your existential crisis thoughts, soft growling sounding from the back of his throat, sending shivers down your spine. “Someone’s here.” His grip tightened on you, protective.

“Probably the Coven, Bucky it’s okay, as long as Carol isn’t the one to find us like this.” You turned in his arms, a little surprised to see crimson red eyes staring towards your door. You placed your hand on his chest, feeling a small beat below your fingertips. You quickly moved your hand, that must have been your imagination. Vampires didn’t have heartbeats.

He sat up, tensed, hair standing up on the back of his neck. “It’s not your Coven Sisters. I know their scents, this is different. It smells like witch, and wolf.”

Stretching, you stood, “I think I know who it is, calm down,” you sighed softly. “But he can probably smell you, so you need to hide.” You glanced at the sun floating in through your blinds. “Can you stay quiet up here?”

He smirked, which sent your heart for a ride. “I’ll be as quiet as a mouse,” he assured with a smile that promised mischief.

“Cool, because when I get back, you and I are having a serious conversation about this whole memory thing,” you tossed the blanket from last night into your hamper, dirt and dry leaves still sticking to it from your run in the woods. “Maybe you can help me look through the books and find that spell you think you performed on your Theo. Figure out if I’m her, or just remember things she knew.”

“Anything you wish, Sweetling,” you didn’t need to turn around to know he was grinning, joyful at a chance to explore this, so you just rolled your eyes affectionately, pulling on a jacket to hide the fact you were wearing the same exact clothes as last night.

Closing the door behind you, you made your way downstairs. As you walked through the living room, three very recognizable voices made their way to your ears. Two of your three guests were expected from what Bucky told you. One of them made your blood start to boil, anxiety and nerves shooting through you. You took a deep breath before rounding the corner to the kitchen, silently praying that Bucky wouldn’t hear your heart rate spike and come down here.

Pepper spotted you first, already having brewed coffee and smiling at you. “Good morning, y/n.”

Smiling back at her, you took the mug of coffee from her gratefully. “Been a few weeks since you visited, Pep. I was wondering if you forgot about me.” You teased before turning to your other guest. “Keeping her busy, I presume?” You smiled at Tony.

The two must have just come back from their Honeymoon, something you knew Pepper was looking forward to. The Coven wasn’t quite the same without your mother hen witch sister. Older than you, she took over as your mother figure rather quickly after finding you. She was the reason your powers were under control most of the time, having taught you everything she knew.

You then turned to your third visitor, “Council Member Pierce, what brings you to my little nitch of the woods?” You gave a polite smile, noticing Tony’s apologetic smile behind the Council member.

“Simply passing through during our investigation of what happened to the Mountain Coven,” he provided. God, you always hated how calculating he sounded, even with simple sentences. Alexander Pierce, one of your least favorite Council Members and the current Head of the Council, and they all inadvertently hated you.

“We heard what happened and wanted to check in on you when we found Council Member Pierce here already on his way,” Pepper, ever the diplomat, supplied you with the missing gap. He probably forced his way into your home or forced Pepper to open the door knowing him. Manipulative and slimy seemed to be common Council member personality traits.

Rubbing the inside of your wrist, you smiled warmly, plastering the fake grin on your features. “Well make yourself at home before continuing on in your journey.”

“Oh, he was just leaving,” Tony snarled lowly. Pepper placed a hand on his shoulder, and he visibly relaxed, yet you could practically see the fumes coming off of him.

Pierce simply stood, “Keep a tighter leash on your dog Ms. Potts,-“

“Potts-Stark,” Tony snarled, eyes narrowing, Pierce ignored him as he continued.

“I will be seeing more of you during the investigation, don’t disappoint Ms. L/n.”

You gave him a fake smile once more, “Have a great day,” he promptly left, and you shut the door none-to-gently behind him.

Sitting back in the kitchen you took a sip of your coffee, letting the scorching liquid boil your insides. You could feel both Starks’ gaze burning into your head as you sighed. “I know you smelled him the second you walked through the door Tony, and thank you for not tell Pierce. Now, tell me what you’re thinking,” you locked eyes onto the werewolf.

“That you’re insane, or that you’re going to get yourself killed, where should I start?” He deadpanned.

You sighed softly, taking another sip of your coffee. “Bucky, you can come down here,” you called softly, knowing he could hear you from your room.

A small gust of wind notified you of his added presence. He placed a hand on your hip possessively, fangs bared as he growled. “Mutt,” he scowled.

“Leech,” Tony responded in kind, baring his own fangs. Pepper shot you a look, one you shrugged off. Both men were confrontational, but you knew Tony since you were younger, and he wouldn’t just hurt another nocturnal without a reason. And Bucky, despite technically barely knowing him, well, he was just a goofball at heart. And you knew he would trust you.

Placing a hand on his shoulder seemed effective, the growling buzzing off softly. Inky black eyes looking at you for an explanation. “Bucky, this is one of my Coven Sisters, Pepper, and her husband, Tony. You two better play nice,” you threatened giving them both a look.

Tony scowled at you, “You dragged a leech into your home and you want me to play nice?!” he fumed. You knew Tony was just trying to protect you but sometimes he did go a bit overboard.

“Yes, wolfie. I have some explaining-“

“Yeah, no shit!” He cried out.

Sighing softly, you headed out towards the library without another word, all three on your heels. You quickly gathered the books you needed, dropping the new additions besides the books on witch and Soul Bound Lore already sitting on your desk. Bucky took an interest in one, in particular, an old relic Wanda had found for you. He gulped faintly, running his fingers through the yellowed pages before looking up at you. Tony and Pepper watched curiously, both noting how the two nocturnals in front of them seemed to gravitate towards each other like magnets.

Grabbing the book, you most frequented about Soul Bound, you slid it towards the couple, taking a deep breath. “Bucky and I are Soul Bound,” you explained in a meek voice.

Both Starks responded at the same time.

“You’re name’s Bucky?!”

“You’re Soul Bound to a vampire?!”

Taking a chance, you gently intertwined your hand in Bucky’s, who seemed quite shocked you would do that. You were positive that if he could, he would be blushing, staring at your hand. Tightening your grip on him you nodded, “Yeah…”

Tony burst into a fit of giggles, making Pepper roll her eyes. “I’m sorry, what kind of old fashion name from a vampire is Bucky,” he continued to laugh.

“Short for Buchanan. My baby sister, Becca, came up with it,” he babbled, swallowing against the bile rising in his throat.

“What happened to her?” Your mouth moved before your brain told it to shut up and not interrogate the man with the missing memories.

He squinted faintly at your interlocked hands, thinking for a moment before replying, “Died of yellow fever when we were young.”

“Wow, we’ve known him for ten minutes and we’re already learning the tragic backstory. Can you believe that, Pep?” Tony interrupted.

Swallowing back the new wave of memories the words ‘yellow fever’ brought into your head, you opened the book in front of you. “I need your help, Pepper. Is there a way to bring someone back to life? You’re the only witch I know who even read the necromancy chapter in school and took it seriously.”

“I mean probably, in theory, that’s the whole point of necromancy, bringing life to the dead and dying.” She shrugged, turning the book towards her. She browsed a few pages, while you ignored Tony’s looks towards your vampire. Wait. When did he become your vampire? “This might be it,” Pepper mumbled, turning the page towards you. Both you and Bucky started skimming through the words. “There’s a difference between bringing back from the brink of death and actual death, but this is the main difference.”

Bucky squeezed your hand faintly, “I did the spell wrong,” his shoulders were hunched, his Adam’s apple bobbing as he swallowed harshly. Preoccupied with his reaction, you didn’t notice the rest of your Coven filing through the library doors. They visibly froze at seeing Bucky, Carol’s eyes zeroing in on your intertwined hands.

“Did what spell wrong?” Natasha called, causing you to jump with a small shriek.

“Shit! Nat, don’t scare me like that,” you glared at her. She gave you a self-satisfied smirk in response as you spoke. “Necromancy. Specifically, a spell to bring someone back. Well… we don’t think this is the first life we’ve been tied together.” That was the first time you said it out loud, accepted it. It was terrifying. Liberating.

“First life?” Maria was the one to speak up, sliding into a nearby chair, Sasha happily jumping into her lap. The tabby purred as she rubbed behind her ears as you tried to think about how you could explain this big mess.

Thankfully, Bucky spoke. “I was born in the 1600s, my wife and I moved to a newer colony, and they killed her, Theo, for being a witch. She was my Soul Bound. I… I tried to save her, but I think I used the wrong spell. I think I used a rebirth spell instead of a bringing back from the brink of death spell.”

Carol’s eyes narrowed in on him, “You were a witch too? Convenient if you ask me. Besides, how do we know your ‘Theo’ is y/n?” All the Coven’s (and one amused werewolf’s) eyes were bearing into him.

He held up the hand he was laced into, “This birthmark, Theo had one in the exact spot. Well, her’s was a scar, from when she pricked herself on needles.” He put your hand back down before continuing. “Mint leaves like her, exact same scent,” his vision started to double, and he took a shaky breath, “Same powers, same eyes when she uses said powers, same smile, same kindness towards any creature,” he groaned softly, using his free hand to clutch his temples. “Fuck, not now,” he whimpered.

You helped him take a seat, ignoring your Coven to make sure he was comfortable. “Are you okay? It’s a memory isn’t it?” He nodded weakly, looking up at you, which made you realize your hands had migrated into cupping his cheeks. “I’m right here, Bucky, I’ve got you,” you murmured, moving up to gently rub his temples as he whined. Vulnerable and terrified, soul in your hands, the Coven watched as you guarded over your defenseless vampire.

Laughter like honey. Smiles like sugar. Candied hearts, crystallized tears of joy. His Theo. Always his. He was a liar. She was gone. And it was his fault.

He kept running, too slow for the woman – no, creature – beside him, but he no longer cared. Running for far too long. Kill him. He deserved it. He was a monster. He lied. He broke his promise.

Somewhere along the way, a man started to run with him as well. To blind by his own tragedy, he truly didn’t even notice the two vampire companions having a fling. Peggy. She had dragged him away from her death. Now, Steve, was it?, was to lovesick with the older vampire to notice she was stringing him along. She never did like the loneliness of eternity.

Mud, moss, gross green stuff. Bucky no longer cared. That was until the caught up with him. Finally, finish this. Kneeling in the cold mud, freezing rain biting into his skin. A gun pressed to the back of his head to keep him still, but he didn’t care. He begged for it to finally be over.

It was truly ironic, he though at least, that the very judge that passed the sentence that murdered his love, would put the bullet in his head and kill him. A loud shot, and a consuming, blinding pain encompassing his head and body. He couldn’t cry out as he fell onto the mud. Limp, hoping for his death to be just a little quicker, his murderer turned his body over. Through caked vision, he finally understood why he was always so wary of witches.

Judge Armin Zola stood above him, grinning murderously down at him. “Such a shame, Barnes. We could have been great, but you and your Bound were too powerful to control. Don’t take it too personal, after all, we don’t like any Natural Born, not just you.” Tormented, and alone, on his dying breath, Bucky could only think of how he couldn’t wait to see Theo again. And that’s when the burning pain started to shoot through his veins.

When Bucky came to, his head was resting on her lap. He practically purred, despite it sounding like a whine, as her hands ran through his hair. Home. Safe. His eyes shot open, scanning the room as he realized they weren’t alone.

“Calm down Count Chocula, y/n explained the memory thing while you were out, and her own issues,” Tony sneered, not looking up from the book he was perusing through.

He shook his head, trying to speak but his brain decided to disconnect with his mouth. “Let me help,” Wanda offered, already sitting beside the pair. “I read minds if you would like, save your strength.”

He looked up towards Theo – no, she’s Y/n now – who nodded, still running her hands through his hair. “You can trust her, I trust her with my life.”

That’s all he really needed. Anyone worthy of her affection earned his own a moment later. She’s all he needs to trust in, his new own personal religion. He nodded towards the red witch, who placed a hand on his shoulder. He felt like he was swimming in reds and burgundies. Wanda gasped softly, lifting her hand away quickly as if his touch burned her. “No way,” she muttered, rushing for a book. She hastily opened it, flipping through pages before freezing on a very specific section. “Look familiar?” She turned it for him to see. The crude drawing looked like his Theo, a noose around her neck, the Judge he saw standing beside her.

“That… that looks like me?” You murmured softly, hands stilling in Bucky’s hair.

The man in question sat up, groggy as the memories started to flash through his eyes, the blurry picture slowly coming into focus. He blinked a few times before pointing towards the Judge. “Him. He killed me ten years after killing you.”

Carol looked a bit skeptically towards them, “Yeah but why would some witch kill you two? Got him mad?”

He tilted his head towards the pages, skimming his finger along with the words. “He wasn’t just some witch.” He closed his eyes, straining to hold onto his racing thoughts before his eyes flashed gold then red again. “He was the Head of the Witch Council.” He turned towards a stunned you. “The Council killed us because we were gaining too much power,” he reached forward across the sofa, taking your hands in his.

“Ten years… you said you died in Queen Anne’s War, and I died ten years before that. My dreams, it's chilly, like October.” Your hands were shaking as your thoughts started to pull the information together, but Bucky’s cool and soft hands were acting as an anchor to this moment.

“Eighteen. They hung eighteen girls that October.” He was starting to connect it together as well.

“Holy shit, I died in the Salem Witch Trials,” your voice rang out throughout the room. Bucky squeezed your hands gently, and you let him act as your tether to the mortal whelm. “We were killed by the very Council that had sworn to protect all witches, and you were saved by the vampires we were told by them to fear.”

“Well, this is just getting deeper and deeper. Before you know it, you’ll be telling me the Coven to the North died because they found out the Council has been killing Naturals.” Tony quipped from the side of the room.

The room froze, taking in the statement. “Well, it would explain a lot,” you murmured. “They were getting powerful, and dominant witches who don’t need as much energy to have magic aren’t easy to control.” That was the last connecting dot. The darkness in the distance wasn’t just some mythical monster. It was the very same man that stood in your living room and drank your tea just an hour ago.

Tags:

Permanent Tags:

@minetticatinwonderland / @lumar014 / @maniacproffesor / @gollyderek / @nerdy-bookworm-1998 / @avengerstones / @momc95 / @loving-life-my-way / @thelibraryoffanfiction / @marvelmaree

Bucky Tags:

@cassandras-musings / @darkness-doughter / @novaddictx / @thedancingnerdmermaid / @mood-pancakes / @gracethegeek9902 / @ravennightingaleandavatempus / @sunkissedbarnes / @annavega333

Blood Bound Tags:

@itz-kira / @rinthehufflepuff / @evilzinblr / @starkrobb / @paranoiadestroyah / @misplacedorphan / @ladysergeantbarnes / @gobemywonderwall / @yallneedtrek

For a tag, just reply/comment, if I don’t see it, just message me. Tell me what you think! Literally, any comment makes me happy! Like, comment, reblog, interact <3

161 notes · View notes

the-gedonelune-times · 5 years ago

Text

The Giver Of Love

Happy Hugo Day everyone! I would say Valentine’s, but it’s Hugo loving hours in this house tonight. As you can guess from the title and from the small introduction, this story is going to be about the sweet, caring and just downright sweetheart: Hugo.

I’m confused as to why Hugo hasn’t had any content for Valentine’s Day, for the second year in a row. I would have thought that he would have at least gotten something considering he’s the Gatherer of Love. Because of this, I’ve decided to pour my heart out into making a fic all about how wonderful this man is because honestly? He deserves the world.

Also, quick little note that I really want to mention is that this fic does have some implied sexual content at the end. Regardless of it not being explicit, I want to go ahead and put that out there. Anyways, with all that being said, I hope you guys enjoy!

Pairing: Reader/Hugo

Words: 3,739

“Thank you, come again!”

The shop owner called out to you as you headed outside with a few bags in your hand. They were a little heavy but you couldn’t complain, after all, you did get quite the deal! As you continued walking down the street in town, you began to feel your arms becoming free of the weight from the bags that are, well were, in your hands. Looking up, you saw Hugo towering over you, his hands now holding your bags.

“Hugo?”

“Seriously, when are you going to learn that I can help you when you go shopping.”

He gave a soft sigh and shook his head.

“I didn’t think you’d want to come shopping with me today.”

“I don’t mind going shopping with you.”

“Huh? But the last time I asked if you wanted to go shopping, you said no.”

“I was busy at the time and had to decline. Now is different.”

“If you say so. Anyways, what were you doing in town?”

“I was sent on a mission.”

“R-Really..?”

Your heart began to tighten in your chest, worried that something bad had happened. Hugo caught on pretty quickly and gently caressed your cheek.

“Don’t worry, it wasn’t from the higher-ups in the future. It was from Mischa. She wanted me to go out and bring more of that milk you got for her that one time.”

“Oh, I see.” You could feel a weight being lifted from your chest and you smiled at Hugo. “I guess that explains all the extra bags you have?”

“Were you worried that I would have to go back?” His whisper made your heart pound ever so slightly.

“Of course I was. You know how much you mean to me, Hugo. I’d be devastated if you…”

You couldn’t bring yourself to finish the sentence. The words had formed a lump in your throat. Hugo just gently pulled you into an embrace and kissed the top of your head.

“Don’t worry, I’m not going anywhere. I belong here now, with you.” He smiled before pulling away. “How about we head home.”

“Absolutely!” You exclaimed while quickly wrapping your hand around Hugo’s.

The two of you took a bit longer to get home than expected. Vendors had been busy setting up special food stands for a special upcoming festival. The two of you didn’t have time to stick around to hear about, however, not like you would have found out anyway considering everyone was too busy. In fact, you wouldn’t find out about what it was at all until the last minute…

“I’ll go and set the bags down in the dining room.”

“Alright - oh, can you separate mine from yours? Mine are the ones with the stripes on the bag.”

“Dare I ask why?”

Your cheeks grew warm. “Those are...clothes Yeah, I went and got a few new outfits today.”

“I see. Are they for a special occasion or something?” Hugo asked curiously.

“Huh..?”

Did he really not know what today was? You cocked your head to the side in thought, but quickly disbanded your thoughts and attempted to change the subject. Even if he forgot, you didn’t and you were going to surprise him with the small gifts you secretly got for him. Besides, this was going to be the first Love Holiday you were going to spend as a couple, let alone the first time Hugo had ever celebrated!

“Oh, yeah, something like that! Anyways can you please do that for me?”

“Sure.”

“Thank you!”

You smiled while shutting the front door, then quickly grabbed the bags before ascending the stairs to the bedroom you and Hugo shared. Meanwhile, Hugo waited until he heard the sound of the bedroom door closing before he began rummaging through his own bags, making sure everything he had bought was there. After he confirmed that everything was as it should be, he quickly grabbed the glass bottle of milk for Mischa and placed it into the refrigerator. Ironically, that was around when he came down the stairs, happily walking over to your boyfriend with a little pep in your step.

“So, what all did you get?” You asked curiously while trying to peer at the bags. Hugo quickly stepped in and blocked you from taking a closer look at the bags.

“It’s a surprise.” He replied bluntly before grabbing his things.

“Huh?”

You stood and watched as Hugo placed the bags one of the higher shelves, out of your reach. Then he glanced over at you, almost nervously.

“I have to go and do something real quick. I’ll be back - oh and no peeking.”

“Fine, fine.” You shooed him off with a smile.

The hinges on the door creaked as Hugo stepped out onto the front porch, quickly grabbing out a small device; a magic phone, dialing a number rather quickly.

“Hurry and pick up.” Hugo muttered.

“Hello?”

“It’s me.”

“Oh hey, Hugo! What’s up?”

“You know exactly what’s up. Listen you know the deal.”

“Yeah, yeah, I know. We make a distraction for y/n while you go and take care of the rest.”

“Correct. I’m sure that considering you’re such a troublemaker you’ll have no issue with this.”

“Hey.” The voice on the other line laughed. “If it wasn’t for this ‘troublemaker’ then you wouldn’t have known what today was.”

“Shut up Luca.” Hugo sighed.

Hugo had actually come into contact with Luca while walking around in town. Much to his dismay, Luca had approached him. It wasn’t that he didn’t like him, but Hugo just wasn’t a people person so to speak, plus he knew that with this particular student, trouble always seemed to follow. Despite that though, Luca had provided him useful information about the Love Holiday, which just so happened to be today.

He informed him that giving gifts like chocolate and flowers were of the utmost importance for a day like this. It was to show just how much you cared for your significant other. Hugo had never experienced this holiday, let alone love until he met you, but he loved you dearly and wanted to do all that he could to make this day special for you. In the end, Luca ended up lending Hugo an extra magic phone along with his number in case he needed help and now seemed like a good time.

“Hello? Are you still there?” Luca asked.

“Yes. I am. Please get started on your task.”

“You got it, boss.” Luca snickered. “Oh, how long do you think you need? y/n might get suspicious if the distraction goes on for too long.”

“Hm.” Hugo pondered. “Would forty-five minutes be sufficient?”

“Yeah, I can work with that.”

Without another word, Hugo cut the call and placed the phone back into his pocket before heading back inside. He saw that you were curled up on the sofa, indulged in some book. Quietly, he walked over and stood behind you for a second before leaning down, resting his head by the crook of your neck.

“Enjoying your book?” He whispered.

His breath tickled your neck and you felt a chill run down your spine as you placed a bookmark on the page you were at before closing the book.

“I was.” You smiled before smiling. “You know, I’ve been wanting to ask but what’s gotten into you today?”

“What do you mean?”

“Well, I mean you’re a lot more affectionate than usual.” You pointed out.

Hugo seemed to stutter for a second before regaining his composure. “Is it wrong for me to be affectionate around the one I love?”

“W-Well no, of course not. I’m just not used to it like this.”

Hugo smiled and kissed your cheek gently and at that very moment, a magical note came fluttering over and landed on your lap. You moved your hands down, grabbing the note and opening it before reading the contents. You groaned and tossed the note to the sigh.

“Something wrong?”

“Luca. He said something is happening over at the Academy and he needs my help. He said Seth is trying to eat Strange Taffy...again.”

Hugo’s eyes widened slightly. Luca had brought Willem into this mess? I guess that explained his absence all day. He let out a sigh, beginning to think that this was a horrible idea.

“I’ll have to go and help them real quick.”

“I’ll be here waiting for your return.”

“You’re so sweet.” You gently reach up and kiss Hugo briefly before leaving to go to the Academy.

Meanwhile, Hugo waited patiently by the window, watching you as your figure disappeared in the distance. He then went and grabbed his bags, peeking inside each one and grabbing the items he needed for the surprise. He put some of the items aside and decided that he would start in the kitchen first, trying his hand at a recipe he had been wanting to try and cook for you for a while now. It was a more simple kind of dish, but if it turned out the way it did in the cooking magazine he had in his hand, then it should taste, as one review said: exquisite.

He started by getting the main ingredients which included dried porcini mushrooms, shallots, a little bit of white wine for the sauce and a few more items. He lined them up on the counter before grabbing a pan and setting it to the temperature stated in the recipe. Next was a little bit of water which, after coming to a boil, he dropped in the dried porcini’s, letting them soak up the water until they were softened. Everything was going smoothly up until the cooking part. Prepping everything took a little bit longer than what he expected and he realized he was running low on time. Surely if he just adjusted the heat by a little bit, then it wouldn’t hurt, right?

Wrong. Though it had seemed like a good idea at first, Hugo soon realized his mistake when a burning smell began wafting in the air. Hugo quickly checked the food with panic, only to realize that the rice was stuck to the bottom of the pan, continuing to burn. He quickly turned off the stove and quickly moved the pan away from the burner. Unfortunately, the burning smell soon reached the fire alarm and set it off causing him to press his hands against his ears to block out the intense ringing while he waited for it to go off.

Luck just wasn’t on his side, at the last few seconds before the alarm quieted, you happened to walk in just in time to hear the final beep. There in the middle of the kitchen was a wide-eyed Hugo and on the stove was a pan of burnt food.

“Y/n, welcome home.”

Hugo awkwardly tried to pull off a smile, resulting in you looking at him with surprise and confusion.

“What in the world happened here?”

“I…” Hugo bit his lip ever so slightly. Seemingly embarrassed to explain the situation.

“Hugo?”

With an exasperated sigh, Hugo slumped his shoulders. “I tried making you dinner.” He explained. “But I wanted it to be a surprise so I may have tried to turn up the heat in hopes of it cooking faster so that it would be ready by the time you came back.”

With the pieces finally, in place, you couldn’t help but chuckle.

“You really almost burnt the kitchen down to make dinner for me?”

“It’s not funny…”

Walking over to him, you gave him an embrace. “I appreciate the thought.” You murmured.

Hugo’s arms wrapped around you and pulled your frame closer to his before resting his chin atop your head. “I’m sorry…”

“It’s alright. Hey, how about we get this cleaned up and order something from in town?” You asked while pulling away from him.

“We can do that?”

“Yep. We’re still close to town, so it shouldn’t be hard to call through the magic phone and order something. Besides, we wouldn’t have to leave the house.” You playfully nudged your shoulder against Hugo and watched as a smile curled on his lips.

“I’d like that.”

“Alright, then it’s settled.”

You both gave a nod before starting the clean-up in the kitchen. Thankfully, it wasn’t a huge mess, but still messy nonetheless. It still brought a small smile to your lips as you cleaned, realizing the sentiment of the situation despite the outcome. Once you were done, the two of you discussed on the places in town that you knew could deliver and once the options were selected you dialed the number and waited. It took about an hour before you heard a knock at the door. You were about to get up to go and answer the door, but Hugo beat you to it and paid for the meal himself. The two of you had decided on pizza and the smell that filled the air when Hugo opened the box, had your mouth watering.

You both took a slice and ate in the dining room, talking about the simple things. Asking how each of your days had been, how you were doing so on and so forth. It was moments like these that made your heart skip a beat. You felt so happy that Hugo had opened up so much to you since the day you had first met him. A soft giggle escaped your lips, causing Hugo to look over at you, giving a questioning look.

“Is something funny?”

“No. I just can’t help but feel happy in this moment right now.”

“What do you mean?”

“I just can’t believe how far we’ve come. When I first met you, I wasn’t sure if I’d ever get the chance to spend time with you like this. It makes me so happy that I’m able to sit down and actually have a heart to heart with you.”

You watched as Hugo coughed, choking on his pizza a little bit. He quickly calmed himself and took a sip from his drink as he slowly began to recover. Clearly your boldness was proving more effective than ever today.

“I’m happy as well.”

Though his words were blunt, the gaze he gave you was anything but that. It was filled with nothing but compassion, which in turn made your chest tighten

The two of you finished up the rest of your dinner and while Hugo was putting the stuff away, you pushed your chair out and stood up, ready to head up to the bedroom and grab the gifts you had for Hugo. However, right before you could take a step forward, Hugo stopped you, asking if you could stay down here for a second. You were beyond curious but obliged as you took a seat on one of the sofas in the living room.

“Y/n?”

Hugo’s voice called out to you a little while later, his face barely coming into view as he beckoned you up the stairs. Something had seemed off since the moment you got back home after the incident at the Academy. Hugo had been acting a bit more affectionate than usual, plus he had almost burnt the kitchen and now this? You furrowed your brows as you tried thinking of an explanation for the recent behavior. The sound of Hugo opening the bedroom door drew your attention to the inside.

Scented candles were practically on every flat surface available in your room. The dresser, vanity, end tables, all of it had at least one or more candles. You looked up at Hugo, expecting an explanation, but all he did was grab your hand and lead you to the bathroom door. You were already unsure of what to expect when the door slowly opened, but this? This was something that had you practically dropping your jaw to the floor.

More scented candles, ones that particularly made you feel at ease, were lit and dimly illuminated the room. Steam from a freshly drawn bath was rising up and when you glanced down, you noticed the various floating flower petals. You also took note of the small weaved basket which held a multitude of spa supplies, ranging from salt scrubs, face mask, shower cap, bath bombs and much more. You turned to look at Hugo with wides eyes and mouth agape, but he was nowhere to be found. Instead, your eyes locked on to a small stereo resting comfortably by the sink, next to it was a CD and a note from Hugo.

‘Y/n...I was going to wait to give this to you, but today seems like an appropriate day to give this to you. I’ve compiled a list of twelve songs onto this track. Each one is a song that I’ve seen you humming or dancing to, so I can only hope they give you a great deal of joy now. Please enjoy yourself on this Love Holiday, I love you.’

Tears pricked at your eyes by the time you reached the final word of the note. Still holding the note, you clutched it closer to your chest. It all made sense now, Hugo had known that today was the Love Holiday and had been giving it all to make you smile. You felt like the luckiest person alive to be dating such a true gentleman. With a small sniffle, you brushed away any stray tears before setting the note down and grabbed the CD, placing it into the small stereo. You waited a few moments until you heard a soft *click* followed by the first song of the track.

Your heart was giddy as you hummed along to the music while going over to the small towel cabinet. Opening it up, you greeted by another surprise. Neatly folded and resting on the top shelf was a velvet plush bathrobe and in your favorite color too! You ran your hands along the soft fabric, sighing as it felt like you were holding onto what you thought a cloud would feel like. With gentle movements, you grabbed it, along with a towel and sat them on the nearby glass accented storage table. With a satisfied sigh, you stripped yourself of your clothes, tossing them into the clothes bin before dipping a foot into the water. Once you confirmed that the water was at your preferred temperature, you got the rest of your body in before sinking down, submerging yourself in the water.

You let out another sigh while you rummaged in the basket full of supplies, humming as you pulled one object out after another and inspected them. Once you had picked what you wanted, the real relaxation began. You started by putting on the shower cap to protect your hair, then you began to applying your hydrating face mask cream. Once you were finished you leaned back into the water and closed your eyes. Only the CD and the rippling of the bathwater offered any noise, not that you were complaining, but it was starting to make you feel a bit too relaxed. So much so to the point where you almost contemplated on the idea of taking a nap...almost.

You were whisked away into a feeling of bliss for a while until you realized that the water’s heat was quickly diminishing. Seeing this as the moment to get out, you unplugged the drain and got out, drying before slipping into the robe Hugo had bought you. A gasp escapes your lips when you open the bathroom door. From the door to the bed was a path made from rose petals, and sitting right smack in the middle of the bed was another pile, in the shape of a heart where Hugo was sitting.

“Hugo.” You smiled as you walked over to the bed, wasting no time in getting on and crawling over to Hugo. “Did you really do all this for the Love Holiday?”

“I was told the Love Holiday was where you’re supposed to show the one you love, just how much you love them. So technically I did it to show you how much I love you.”

Hugo’s hand reached out to brush a stray strand of your wet hair and brush it back before cupping your face. Something sparked within you and you found yourself being thrown into Hugo for a tight embrace. Hugo was startled by the fact and ended up toppling backwards into the pile of pillows and roses. You both stared into each other’s eyes, your faces being drawn together by some unseen force, your lips coming into sweet and soft contact. Your ability to think clearly was being wiped out as your both your body and soul slowly melted from the burning sweetness of Hugo’s lips.

Your eyes were fluttering ever so gently, on the verge of closing completely. It wasn’t until you looked down, regaining some of your thoughts, that you realized that you had been straddling Hugo. Still enveloped in the kiss you felt his hands gently tugging at your clothes, trying to free you from the very fabric that was making the heat you felt, even more bothersome. Luckily for you, Hugo was and had just now skillfully removed you of the last of those restraints and lovingly brushed his fingertips against your skin, causing a chill to creep down your spine. His hands finally found yours and he gently gave them a soft squeeze, bringing your attention to his face as he broke the kiss.

He was beyond flustered at this point, his breathing was a little hitched and he seemed to be holding his urges back quite well. He gave a soft smile while his hand let go of yours before he started to map out every part of your body as sensually slow as he could. Then he began to lovingly ravish your body again and again until the both of you ended up cuddled in each other's embrace. Completely drained of any energy you might have had left in your body.

You smiled as you cuddled up closer to Hugo, his soft snores and rhythmic beating of his heart had you slowly drifting in and out of consciousness. It might be a little late, but tomorrow you were going to return the favor and give him the gifts you got from him. After all, the Giver of Love was going to be Reciever of Love tomorrow.

#wizardess heart #hugo peers #reader insert #fluff #Love Holiday #Hugo Day

10 notes · View notes

pierregaslays · 5 years ago

Note

max n dan pls 🤟🥺

as you wish dude 🤘🥺🤘

1) who is the most affectionate?

they’re both affectionate, especially after the awkwardness in the beginning - idk boys isn’t everyone awkward at the beginning of a relationship. but. yes. anyway, they’re both very big on physical affection and when they’re together, if they can, they always crave being able to touch the other even if it’s as simple as shoulders brushing as they stand together but when they’re at home it’s holding hands and cuddling all the damn way.

2) big spoon/little spoon

max likes to be held, what can i say? for real though, most of the time they start off with max being held by dan but by the morning they’re more than likely on opposite sides of the bed because they manage to annoy each other in their sleep. dan will only be the little spoon if he has a bad night which has been known to happen.

3) most common argument?

when they were teammates it was about racing but now they mostly argue about household stuff but their worst arguments are about max’s dad (i’m refusing to write his name), those arguments can get pretty heavy.

4) favourite non-sexual activity?

cuddling and watching tv, napping together, just cute domestic activities where they don’t have to leave their house.

5) who is most likely to carry the other?

idk about you boys but what started off as dan taking max back to the hotel when they were drunk by piggyback because max literally couldn’t stand up without stumbling became a Thing. listen i’m a sucker for people giving other people piggybacks idk does that make me a child? oh well!

6) what is their favourite feature of their partner’s?

max loves dan’s hands, his fingers are calloused more often than not and there’s nothing more that max likes doing more than tracing his fingers across every inch of dan’s hands. honourable mention to his tattoos too - it was a choice between these two. anyway. dan likes max’s eyes, the colour of them are so unique and dan watches the way they dull or light up and shine depending on what max is looking at/thinking about. idk. dan looks at him like he has the stars in his eyes n it’s gay.

7) what’s the first thing that changes when they realise they have feelings for the other?

how they treat each other. whilst max backs off due to his newly found realisation, he immediately backs off - terrified by what all of this means but not wanting to think about it (but being unable to think about anything else, am i right?) dan takes the complete opposite approach - more less-subtle touches, obvious flirting, things that dan know will have an affect on max.

8) nicknames? and if so, how did they originate?

again, they’re pretty unoriginal and the old favourites babe and baby are used a lot of the time. also mate but romantically, am i right? no i’m kidding

9) who worries the most?

in general, neither of them worry or try not to worry a lot but dan worries about max more than himself a lot of time.

10) who remembers what the other one always orders at a restaurant?

they don’t go out a lot for obvious reasons but dan knows max’s pizza order off by heart and max doesn’t even have to say the words anymore.

11) who tops?

dan. goodbye!

12) who initiates kisses?

normally? dan. he’s sometimes like “act now. deal with the consequences later” so there have been some close to being caught moments but most of the time it’s him. this probably doesn’t answer it but i just wanted to say it. but. idk sleepy max is particularly needy so come those hours he’s always trying to get kisses.

13) who reaches for the other’s hand first?

max! solely because of how much he loves dan’s hands but it’s also a comfort thing, how touches - small or big can rapidly calm max down if things are getting to be too much at any given moment.

14) who kisses the hardest?

both. both. both. not like to be competitive but there’s just much love and emotion between them that they try and pour as much of that emotion into every kiss.

15) who wakes up first?

in general, dan wakes up first but on special occasions max wakes up first, he still has that little kid at christmas feeling about him on days with a little more meaning.

16) who wants to stay in bed just a little longer?

max in general, but if they’re both together then neither of them want to get up if they don’t have to. they would both try and pull off an entire day in bed only getting up if they absolutely have to.

17) who says I love you first?

dan. he’s not shy about hiding his feelings and what should be a huge moment, a moment that should be so impactful and it was just wasn’t. it’s just a normal day, they’re not doing anything special and dan’s just like “i love you, you know?” and max, contrary to what dan thinks - just nods and repeats the sentiment.

18) who leaves little notes in the other’s lunch? (bonus what does it usually say?)

dan does this and the notes are less cute and more along the lines of “do the fucking laundry” because who wants cute and sappy notes when you can tell your boyfriend to do what he forgot to do three days ago.

19) who tells their family/friends about their relationship first?

dan’s family are the ones who know about them as a whole but max first tells his sister about it because of how close they’ve always been, how much of a support she is and she knows about him and dan from long before they started dating.

20) what do their family/friends think of their relationship?

the family members/friends that do know about them are in full support because it’s never truly been dan and max it’s danandmax and they bring out the best in each other and it only takes a glance or two to realise that they’re it for each other. there’s no getting better than them.

21) who is more likely to start dancing with the other?

dan. if they’re at home he just plays his music on shuffle and tries to get max to dance with him. trying to distract max by moving up behind him, is this just an excuse to be really close to him? idk boys but it happens.

22) who cooks more/who is the better at cooking?

they’re both average even though they both probably have that one meal that they’re really good at and probably over make. do we we mention the fact they’ve probably almost burned down the kitchen more than once? oh, i did.

23) who comes up with cheesy pick up lines?

i feel like dan has these in abundance and he probably tries to make them the cheesiest, almost cringeworthy pick up lines that anybody has ever heard but max still laughs every single time because they’re so bad they’re funny.

24) who whispers inappropriate things in the other’s ear during inappropriate times?

have you met daniel ricciardo? he does this every chance he gets, it was better as teammates as dan would take every chance he could during lulls in talking he would lean over and try to catch max out. they make contests out of it and max hates that his ears especially are a massive giveaway with how quickly they turn red.

25) who needs more assurance?

i feel like max needs it more, idk, dan is the only person that max is completely open with - dan’s seem him at his best and at his worst and whilst he doesn’t always ask for it, max probably needs it more than he wants to accept, sometimes.

26) what would be their theme song?

https://open.spotify.com/user/loserkidmgc/playlist/5geFXfKZt3OPOumRAFTpe0?si=FGzWkFq9Q8ypadnn50Q5Qw because i’m really bad at picking one song so have the playlist boys!

27) who would sing their child back to sleep?

dan, and hear me out, he sings whatever song is stuck in his head at that precise moment, he probably hums it at first before singing it softly.

28) what do they do when they’re away from each other?

is it a cliché if i say miss each other? because they miss each other so badly. they’re always thinking about each other, sometimes they’re doing something and wondering what the other is doing at that time. they try and talk as much as they can and even if it’s the most boring conversation - even about the weather - just hearing each other is a big source of comfort when they can’t be together.

29) one headcanon about this OTP that breaks your heart?

no matter how much dan tries... max struggles with a lot of what happened to him as a kid and a teenager and dan can’t magically fix all of it and it breaks his heart to see max fall apart and not know what to do or say to make it better.

30) one headcanon about this OTP that mends it?

they’re everything to each other. whilst their lives don’t revolve around each other, dan always has max with him and max always has dan with him. they don’t need to be together 100% of the time but if they could - they would. they made the smooth(ish... because it wasn’t the smoothest at first) transition from friends to something more and because of that - they can still live their own lives but with the knowledge that they always have each other to come back to.

#maxiel #dan #max #m.asks

6 notes · View notes

gracelight87 · 6 years ago

Text

Sins I Can’t Mention

Happy Jonerys Week everyone! Here is my Day 1 contribution.

Sins I Can’t Mention - A collection of post-war Jonerys drabbles.

Read on Ao3.

***

Rhaella and Robb Targaryen were the spitting images of their parents. Rhaella looked every bit a Targaryen with her thick, silver-blonde hair and violet eyes. It sometimes gave Jon pause to look at her, his eyes tricking him into seeing a childlike version of his wife. Robb inherited the Stark traits of black hair and grey eyes. Daenerys could only differentiate between Robb and his father when they were standing facing her, otherwise it was like her husband had a twin.

The children had been born at Dragonstone not too long after the end of the Great War. As luck would have it, a brood of dragons were hatched soon after Robb’s seventh nameday. Jon and Daenerys spoke extensively in their bedchambers about the possibility of having their children become dragon riders just like them. Daenerys, ever the Targaryen, argued strongly for her children to bond with the dragons and ride them. Jon, on the other hand, returned that they had no reason to ride the dragons as Westeros was experiencing a period of peace like none before.

Eventually, Daenerys won out; Jon had trouble resisting her when she batted her eyes and showed him just how much fun riding a dragon could be.

Rhaella bonded with the dragon she named Vhagar right away. After all, she lived for her Aunt Arya’s visits that often brought hushed bedtime stories about the warrior Queen Visenya and her dragon. Robb had a little more hesitation when approaching the dragons, however. He finally decided on the name Snowfyre when he learned of his father’s original bastard status.

As the dragons grew bigger and stronger, so did Jon’s apprehension. Daenerys had every confidence that her children would succeed, but Jon knew how volatile dragons could be. He still got a terrified feeling in the pit of his stomach when he rode Rhaegal, and it had been over ten years since his first mount.

The day finally came for Rhaella and Robb to attempt to ride their dragons. Daenerys had been instructing them for weeks on how to ride, and as children they had taken turns riding on Drogon and Rhaegal with their parents. The children had taught their dragons the same Valyrian commands that their mother had taught her dragons before, so Jon knew at the very least that the dragons would listen to his children.

“Remember, it’s probably going to be uncomfortable at first, but the feeling of flying is like none other in the world.” Daenerys smiled at their children as she quickly re-fastened Rhaella’s coat. “Your father and I will be in the air with you the whole time. Shout if you have any problems,” she said with a wry smile, no doubt remembering what she had said to Jon the first time he rode Rhaegal.

Jon mounted his dragon with practiced ease; the awkward positioning of his legs had become second nature at this point. The plan was for Daenerys to fly first and for Jon to bring up the rear so he could keep an eye on them from behind.

He watched his children approach their dragons with confidence, holding their hands out to touch their snouts affectionately. Daenerys smiled encouragingly at them as she mounted Drogon. Rhaella stuck her chin out confidently and slowly made her way to Vhagar’s side. The dragon sat low to the ground as if in preparation for what was about to happen. The breath caught in Jon’s throat as he watched his daughter climb onto Vhagar’s back. Seeing how effortless she made it look reminded him of how fascinated he was when he first saw Dany atop Drogon.

Rhaella was sporting a huge grin by the time she mounted her dragon. Robb, on the other hand, had yet to make a move towards Snowfyre’s wing. He looked back at Jon with furrowed brows and a frown. Jon did what he could to give him an encouraging smile despite the churning feeling in the pit of his stomach. Robb smiled weakly back at him and began to move stiffly towards Snowfyre’s left side.

Jon knew that Robb was under a lot of pressure to be a good dragon rider. He had come up under his older sister who was seemingly never nervous about anything. Jon remembered many late night talks with Robb about his frustration with being bested by his older sister during training, as well as the many reassurances he had given his son that he was doing just fine.

Jon looked on with nerves as his youngest child slowly mounted the dragon. It took him a little longer than Rhaella to find his seat, but eventually he settled in and grabbed on to whatever he could. Jon smiled to himself as he looked onto both of his children.

Without warning, Daenerys shot her family a smile and commanded Drogon forward. They took off over the cliff and below, out of Jon’s sight, before rising up in front of them. Rhaella followed as quickly as she could manage, and the image of her and Vhagar disappearing over the cliff’s edge left him choking back fear. It was only when he saw her soar up towards her mother that the feeling eased. Robb followed his mother and sister carefully, putting on a brave face to mask what was likely pure terror. Slowly, he and Snowfyre dipped below the cliff and soared off into the morning sun. Jon followed quickly after, not wanting to be left behind by his speedy wife.

Daenerys was right; the feeling of flying was the best thing he had ever felt. Every time he mounted the Rhaegal and sped into the sky, he felt as if he were lighter than air. The wind whipped across his face and clothes, but the burning feeling was definitely worth it. There was no place that he would rather be than astride the dragon named for his father as they rose through the sky.

The only feeling that would ever rival this was the absolute pride that he felt at watching his children follow in his and Daenerys’ footsteps.

No doubt because of their Targaryen blood, Rhaella and Robb were complete naturals. Despite his initial apprehension, Jon could see that Robb had a huge smile on his face as Snowfyre flew him over the ocean. Rhaella’s resounding hollers were contagious and he found himself whooping along with her. He could see Daenerys far ahead of him, circling back around to look onto her children with pride. It was later that night that he found out that the usual tears that pooled in her eyes from the wind were caused by something else that day.

Their children were dragons through and through, and there was nothing that could take away how proud Jon and Daenerys were of that fact.

***

Daenerys rarely spent much time in the kitchen, preferring to eat the delicious food prepared by the chef than to watch it be made. However, she did enjoy making lemon cakes when the occasion arose. As soon as they settled into their family home at Dragonstone, Daenerys planted lemon trees in the back garden. It connected her to the one place she felt at home while she was a child and it provided her with plenty of lemons to add to her diet.

It was a warm summer day when she found herself bent over a bowl, mixing furiously. The cook often knew to leave her during her baking time because baking typically meant that the queen wanted to be alone. Of course, she would not mind some company in the form of her handsome husband. He often liked to sneak in while she was baking and lick the bowl.

“You are going to get ill!” she would scold him as he stole the bowl away and ran around the corridor. He often left her rolling her eyes and chuckling with how childish he could be. She expected that this day would be no different.

She was putting the tray in the oven as she heard Jon’s heavy footsteps round the corner. “The bowl is on the table,” she informed him when he entered the room. He flashed her a sheepish grin and rounded the counter to pick it up.

“How do you always manage to know when I am finished?” she asked him.

“Because I know you better than you think,” he replied with a grin.

She scoffed and crossed her arms over her chest. “You don’t know me as well as you think you do, Jon Snow.”

He smirked at his name, knowing that she only used the full version when she was on defense. He put the bowl down and walked towards her. “Really? Then how do I know that you secretly love it when I call you Dany?”

He was walking around her slowly, but she made no movement, reserving to stare straight ahead. She could hear him chuckle lightly at her stubbornness.

“I know that you miss the free cities of Essos more than you’re willing to admit.” She swallowed the lump in her throat that rose at the mention of Essos. He was right; she missed the warmth and rich culture that was found in the place she grew up. Not that she would ever admit it to him, of course.

“I know that you love it when I touch you,” he said in a low voice. She jumped at the feel of him behind her, his breath on her neck making her feel weak. Her body leaned into him on its own, betraying her mind and its resolution to stay still.

“And I know that you love it when I do this,” he said slowly, and before she knew it she felt his mouth at the little spot behind her ear. He had learned early on that she loved it when he kissed her there, and never shied away from it when they were behind closed doors.

Daenerys let out a small whine at the feeling of his hands around her waist and his mouth behind her ear. She swayed slightly, overcome with feeling, allowing Jon to support her weight. He turned her around in his arms and moved on to her neck, lavishing it with kisses as she struggled to keep her eyes open.

She happened to glance over at the hourglass and saw that the sand had almost run out, signaling that it was time to take the cakes out of the oven. “Jon,” she whispered. “The cakes.”

He hummed in agreement, not looking up from her chest. “Jon,” she pleaded. “Don’t be greedy.”

“You’re my wife, I’m allowed to be greedy,” he replied, and moved to kiss her on the mouth. The feel of his lips against hers sent her into overdrive. She momentarily forgot about the cakes as she leaned into Jon, deepening the kiss.

“Mmm, greed is good,” she said softly as he returned to kissing her neck.

The lemon cakes came out blackened, but Daenerys could not force herself to care.

***

There wasn’t much that Daenerys preferred to riding Drogon. The feeling of flying through the sky, wind whipping her hair around, and her stomach moving to her chest left her feeling euphoric for hours after it ended. She didn’t think that anything would ever compare.

Until she met Jon Snow, that is.

The first night he came to her room, the butterflies that had occupied her chest for the weeks previous exploded and left her feeling breathless. His intense gaze held hers for what felt like hours before he made the move to kiss her. That night, every intimate experience she had ever had was eclipsed by the mere running of his hands over her hips. Every place he touched made her skin feel like it was on fire, which is saying something because she knew what it felt like to be engulfed in flames.

It had been years since that first night, and the passion had definitely not diminished. Now that they shared their bedchambers there wasn’t much stopping them from being together whenever the moment felt right.

The moment often felt right.

It was a crisp morning at Dragonstone that saw the unfortunate necessity of Jon riding Rhaegal to north of the Wall. There had been some dissent amongst the Freefolk that Jon was especially equipped to handle, and they had two young children to take care of, so it was decided that he would ride alone. He also had plans to check in on his siblings at Winterfell, especially since Sansa had given birth to a daughter not long before.

Daenerys was sad to see him go, but that was not the only emotion that she was feeling upon watching him retreat towards the north. Ever since that fated day all those years ago, Daenerys had loved watching Jon ride Rhaegal. It warmed her heart to see her husband mount the dragon named for the brother she never knew and the father he learned of so late in his life.

Most importantly, the sight of him on a dragon filled her with a desperate, needy want that hit her like a gust of wind. The fact that she had to watch Jon ride a dragon coupled with the fact that he would be gone for some time was making her increasingly frustrated.

The walk back into the castle was tense. She had to walk carefully so as to hide how hard her legs were clenching together in her husband’s absence. She spent the rest of the day longing for night when she could retreat to her chambers and take care of her metaphorical itch. When the time finally came, she found herself only somewhat satisfied, missing Jon’s touch more than she thought she could.

The days following drug on and on. Daenerys bided her time by playing with her children and responding to ravens from various kingdoms requesting aid. Every night behind closed doors she would try in vain to dull the ache that had taken up residence between her legs.

It was almost a full moon later when he finally returned. Rhaegal touched down just before the sun disappeared behind the castle. Daenerys could barely contain her excitement as she watched Jon slide down Rheagal’s side. Was it just her or did he look even better than he did when he left?

He walked purposefully towards her with a small smile on his face. She felt like he could tell how needy she was for him, but as soon as he reached her he kissed her on the forehead, grabbed her hand, and begun walking towards the castle.

Daenerys walked along with him and listened as he described his trip. He told her of how Tormund was having trouble negotiating with one of the other clans over some land. They were able to get it figured out, thankfully, and he was able to spend some time with his new niece at Winterfell.

“She’s beautiful, Dany. It reminded me of when Rhaella was born and I didn’t want to leave her side for months,” he gushed.

Daenerys smiled at the memory. “We’ll have to take a family trip up north sometime soon. I think the children would love to meet her.”

Jon smiled at her. They had reached their chambers at this point, the throbbing between Daenerys’ legs had grown stronger with every step. They entered the room and Jon let go of her hand to begin removing his cloak.

“That ride is rough,” he mused as he worked on the buckle of his cloak. “I’m not sure I’ll be able to do that again for a while.”

Lust was coursing so quickly through Daenerys’ veins at the sight of her husband undressing that she lost all restraint. “Oh really?” she asked coyly. She began unbuttoning her dress slowly, maintaining eye contact with Jon once he looked up from removing his belt. “I thought you might want to ride another dragon tonight.”

He gulped, eyes widening as he took in the meaning of her words. She smirked at him and beckoned him closer.

“Am I going to have to remove this dress all by myself?”

***

The journey to Winterfell was a long one, and Daenerys resented the fact that she could not make short work of it on Drogon’s back. This was a family trip and her children were still too young to make the journey in the air, so she, Jon, Rhaella, and Robb were left to journey on a ship to White Harbor. From there, they rode on horseback to Jon’s family home.

“Mama how much farther?” asked Rhaella, tucked on Daenerys’ horse in front of her.

“About a day’s journey, my child. We are going to stop to rest sometime soon.” They had been riding all day, and Daenerys felt her child’s discomfort. Though she had become used to the soreness that followed horse riding, Rhaella had not spent nearly as much time on horseback as she had.

After the sun began to disappear behind the trees, Jon and Daenerys decided to stop in a little village for the night. Jon tended to the horses while Daenerys took Rhaella and Robb over to the inn to ask for a room for the night. The innkeeper looked a little shocked to see them, but maintained his composure long enough to guide them to their room. Jon joined them soon after, and they ate a small meal before turning in for the night.

The next morning saw the four of them eating downstairs in the dining hall. People would stop at their table to welcome them to town and make small talk with the official Protectors of the Realm. Jon knew how much Daenerys loved to make conversation with the smallfolk. It reminded him of the stories she had whispered to him about her time in Essos.

They spent the rest of the morning walking around the little village. Rhaella and Robb had found some other children and were playing games with them while Jon and Daenerys bartered with some merchants. As Daenerys looked over to the children playing in the square, Jon couldn’t help but notice a note of sadness in her eyes.

“What is it my Queen?” he asked softly.

She met his eyes. “They live such happy lives,” she mused. “Don’t you ever wish we could live in a small village like this?”

“Aye,” he replied. “But I wouldn’t trade our family for anything.”

“I envy them,” Daenerys responded sadly. “They don’t have to worry about things like feeding armies and threats from the South.”

“That’s true, Dany. But they also don’t have to worry about tyrants anymore, thanks to you.”

She smiled at him. “I suppose you’re right.” She remained silent for a long moment. “Do you think it will ever be possible for us? To live like them?”

He smiled. “How about this? Once Rhaella and Robb are grown and married to other houses and serving as protectors in our stead, we can build a nice little house by the sea. Somewhere where we could be close to the children but also close enough to fly to Essos whenever we like. How does that sound?”

She wrapped her arms around his neck. “I think that sound like a great idea, Jon Snow.”

***

The feast was over, but Daenerys was starving. She had spent much of the meal trying to coax her babe to sleep and by the time Rhaella was finally down, the great hall had cleared out.

Jon and Daenerys had invited rulers of the Seven Kingdoms to Dragonstone to discuss the governing system of Westeros. It had resulted in a week of long discussions about the rights of smallfolk and the extent to which they had a say in the governance of their nation. The group of lords and ladies had finally agreed upon keeping the great houses as rulers and protectors, but allowing the smallfolk to vote on important issues that affected them.

Eventually, elections would be held to determine who would rule over the individual kingdoms, but Daenerys did not want to move too quickly. Her and Jon would remain Protectors of the Realm, but it was decided that one ruler over all of Westeros was too big of a job. They would instead turn their focus outwards, using their dragons and armies to help free people from persecution in the known world.

The whole event culminated in a feast to celebrate the beginning of a new nation, but Daenerys missed most of it when her daughter’s wet nurse came to fetch her after the first toast. Rhaella often had trouble sleeping, so Daenerys excused herself to help put her daughter to bed.

Two hours later, she made her way slowly into the great hall to find the maids cleaning up an empty room. She thought of walking to the kitchen and asking the cook to prepare her something light, but thought better of it when she realized what time it must be. Tired and hungry, she made her way to her bedchambers to try to get some rest.

When she arrived, she opened the door to find Jon sitting at the table by the fire. Before him was a large spread of food from the feast that included all of her favorite things. She stared at him for a moment before a smile broke out on her face. “Jon! What’s all this?”

“Supper. I figured you would be hungry so I had my steward bring some food for you.”

His nice gesture warmed her heart. He wasn’t the best with words, but it was his actions that told her how much he loved her. “Thank you. Rhaella just would not go to sleep,” she said as she sat down in the chair next to him.

“I’m sorry. Next time that happens, I’ll take her and you can stay with the lords and ladies,” he responded after handing her the flagon of ale.

“Actually, I think I prefer spending time with Rhaella to spending time with them.” He laughed at her admission. “What?” she asked with a smile. “I don’t mean to sound rude but they can be so daft sometimes. Don’t blame me for wanting to get away from all of that.”

“Aye, they are a handful. I thought Edmure would never shut up when Sansa asked him about the ship he arrived in.”

Daenerys laughed at that. “I am not sorry I missed that conversation.”

She ate in silence for a while, laughing as Jon recapped some of the more humorous aspects of the night. By the time she was ready for dessert, she was practically bursting out of her dress. “I’ve eaten so much, and yet I am still hungry!” she laughed.

“Well, you are a glutton for lemon sweets.” Jon replied, chuckling.

She narrowed her eyes at him playfully. “I’m serious! I’ve been so hungry lately and I feel like everything I eat is going to my chest!”

“I’m definitely not complaining,” Jon replied. “It reminds me of when you were pregnant with Rhae.”

Daenerys’ breath caught in her throat as she had a thought. She dropped her fork on her plate and moved her hands to her stomach. “Jon,” she said quietly.

His eyes widened and moved to her stomach. “Dany? Do you think…” he trailed off.

“I’m not sure. I can’t remember my last moonblood.” She closed her eyes and moved her hand over her stomach. Emotions coursed through her as she considered this new reality. Was she ready? So soon after having Rhaella, too. She hoped that she and Jon were ready for this. “I think I might be with child again.”

She said it so softly that he almost didn’t hear. She opened her eyes and looked at him nervously, trying to gauge his reaction. “What are you thinking?” she asked.

He gulped and took a moment before responding. She began to worry that he was unhappy, but he moved quickly from his chair and knelt in front of her, placing his hands over hers. “I think that you are the most beautiful woman in the world. No matter what happens, you are the most amazing mother to Rhaella.” He paused. “However, I would love for our family to grow even more.”

Tears welled in her eyes as she considered his words. She wanted nothing more than to have a large family with multiple children and it seemed as if her husband felt the same. “I love you,” she responded as she leaned down to kiss him.

***

Jon and Daenerys liked to take walks around Dragonstone every once in a while to clear their heads and catch up. The days were often so busy that they didn’t get a chance to see each other and talk. They started indoors, walking through halls of bedchambers, and often stopping to listen outside their children’s doors.

They passed Robb’s door to find him being read to by his wet nurse, snuggled in his bed for an afternoon nap. Jon and Daenerys smiled to each other fondly and Daenerys rested her head on his shoulder.

“He’s a sweet boy,” Daenerys said with a smile.

“Aye. You’ve rubbed off on him,” he replied with a kiss to her forehead.

Robb had recently had his fourth nameday, and preferred to fill it with a trip down to the beach with his family rather than a large celebration. Jon and Daenerys had been thankful that they didn’t have to bother with inviting guests.

Rhaella, on the other hand, loved big celebrations. She was soon to have her sixth nameday, and she had already specified that she wanted her parents to invite “everyone.” When Daenerys tried to clarify what that meant, she just shrugged and said “everyone.”

They were coming up on her room now, as evidenced by the sound of her playing with her dolls. Rhaella loved her dolls. They were a specially made gift that Jon had made for her about a year ago. There was a young girl with silver hair and violet eyes as well as a large green dragon to match Vhagar.

“My name is Rhaella Targaryen, second of my name, and I command you to bend the knee or feel my wrath!”

Daenerys shot Jon a worried look that he returned. They turned towards their daughter’s door and Daenerys knocked softly before opening it.

“Rhae?” she asked. “Can we come in?”

“Hi mama, papa. I’m playing dragons!” the child said cheerfully.

“I see that,” replied Daenerys. She sat down next to her daughter while Jon stayed posted by the door. “Can you tell me what that means? Feel your wrath?”

“You know, mama. They’re gonna be in trouble if they don’t follow me.”

Daenerys hummed. She was familiar with the type of speech that her daughter was now emulating; she had made a few herself. The difference was that Daenerys had worked hard since then to establish a peaceful nation that wasn’t ruled through fear, and she worried that her children and those who came after would not honor her creation.

“You know, Rhaella, it’s important for our family to protect those who need it. Many are taken from their homes and forced to do things against their will, which is why we use our dragons to free them and give them the ability to choose. But in order to be a good ruler, you also have to be gentle and kind. Do you understand?”

“I think so. So they shouldn’t feel my wrath?”

Daenerys smiled. “It is important to be strong when someone is committing a crime. You have to answer injustice with justice. But for now, when you play with your dolls, why don’t you try to be more gentle?”

“Okay, mama. I’ll try.”

“Who taught you that word, anyway?” asked Jon from the door.

“It was in one of the books Aunt Arya brought me! She read it to me one night before bed,” Rhaella replied with a smile.

“You’re going to have to have a talk with your sister,” Daenerys told Jon as they left the room to continue their walk.

“You don’t want our daughter to know of her ancestors?” Jon asked.

“Of course I do. I just don’t want her to be exposed to the wrong ancestors.”

“I see your point. I’ll send a raven when we return,” Jon replied easily.

***

The sun shone through the window, waking Jon from slumber. He could tell it was midmorning by its position and the shadow it cast over the room. Daenerys slept soundly next to him, no doubt exhausted from the previous weeks.

Their final battle for King’s Landing had taken a lot out of her. That, coupled with the weeks of rebuilding and reparations that had taken place, had Jon in awe of her tenacity. It was no wonder that she dropped to their bed at night and was asleep without so much as a “goodnight.”

She was honestly the most beautiful woman he had ever seen. He thought he was in love once, but being with Daenerys had shown him what actual love was. She showed it to him in the way that she truly loved her people and wanted to do right by them. She showed it in the way she loved her dragons as children. She showed it to him in the way that she loved him, unselfishly and unconditionally. He didn’t think that a ruler as kind and strong had ever lived.

He was perfectly content to watch her sleep. Her mouth opened slightly when she slept and her face was full of the creases that normally appeared when she was awake. Her hair flowed wildly about the pillows after being freed from her intricate braids. This was one of his favorite ways to look at her, and was all too often interrupted by her stirring slowly.

She moved slowly and opened her eyes, shielding them from the light coming in through the window. “I’ll never get used to that,” she mused.

It was true; King’s Landing was very different from where they had both grown up. They had opted to stay there for a few months while they were getting the Seven Kingdoms back on their feet. Daenerys wanted to be as close to the discussions as possible, which left her missing her family’s ancestral home more and more each day.

“Good morning,” Jon said softly.

She smiled up at him and kissed the corner of his mouth. “Good morning.” She moved to get out of bed, but Jon could tell it was difficult for her. He grabbed her hand quickly and tried to pull her towards him.

“Dany, you’re exhausted. It’s been weeks of non-stop talking and riding and you need a break.”

“Jon, they need me. There’s still so much to do and I can’t leave Tyrion alone with them because he-”

“Dany.” he cut her off mid-sentence. He began to pull her arm slowly until she fell down onto the bed next to him. “I think,” he said, kissing her cheek. “They can handle one day without you.” He began peppering small kisses around her face. Her forehead, her eyes, her nose, her cheeks, and finally her mouth. He felt her smile slightly and give in to his touch.

“Perhaps everyone could do with a day off,” she conceded. “But what will we do instead?”

“I can think of some ideas,” he said devilishly as he began to kiss down her throat. He felt her breath catch underneath him as she lifted her chin to give him more access.

“Hmm? And what would those be?” Her eyes were half-closed at this point, hands coming up Jon’s back to rest in his hair.

“I think I’m making it pretty obvious,” he replied, chuckling.

She could feel him pressed against her, which sent a jolt down to her core. “And after?”

“He moved up to kiss behind her ear. “I don’t plan on letting you out of this bed at all today,” he whispered against her skin.

“Jon, we can’t stay in bed all day. What do you take me for, a sloth?”

He pulled back from her neck and screwed his face in confusion. “A what?”

“A sloth. They are extremely slow and lazy animals. I read about them once in a book that my brother gave me.”

“Well, I’ve never heard of sloths, but today, that’s exactly what we are.” At that moment, his arms came around her behind and he scooped her up so she was sitting on his lap. She giggled as he moved them to a new position, resolving to make an exception for today.

And possibly, many more days in the future.

#Jonerys #Jonerys fanfiction #JonerysWeek2019 #JonerysWeek #iceandfiresource #Jon x Daenerys #Jon x Daenerys fanfiction

35 notes · View notes

shikastemari · 6 years ago

Text

konoha’s grinch - b&s.

pairing boruto uzumaki x sarada uchiha

word count 1,450

when it happens christmas AU!!

warnings none

a/n happy holidays everyone!! here’s a little of borusara fluff to end a good year of writing. thank you everyone who have supported me through this journey and also to the friends i’ve made cause of it. can’t wait to see what 2019 holds for us.

thank you @writing-is-ruining-my-life for the prompts!!! i’m obsessed with your acc.

masterlist on my profile bio

Sarada hates Christmas shopping.

Crowded malls, crazy people trying to get gifts for the best and the cheapest price, kids crying when they got lost from their parents, higher risk to get a cold or something. Of course, none of those things are enough to stop her husband to absolutely love Christmas shopping.

Especially on day December 23th.

Don’t get her wrong, she also loves Christmas. Just not the shopping part.

“You told me we were going to program ourselves not to go shopping so near Christmas this year!” Sarada whisper-yells at Boruto, who are focus to choose between a stuffed dog or chicken for his three year old niece.

He completely ignores her complaints, “Do you think Amaririsu will like this one?”

“Inojin told you to get her paint.” Sarada raises an eyebrow.

“I wanna give her something fun.” Boruto retorts, a small grin playing on his lips.

Sarada just rolls her eyes while reaches out for his hand, to pull him to the mall exit. She can’t wait to get under a warm blanket with him, watching silly holidays movies and making out lazily. “Can we go now? I think we got everyone covered.”

“Yes, just one more thing.” Boruto firms his feet to keep them from moving. “We have to get a picture with Santa.”

The blond man points to the old guy sitting on a big chair in the middle of the room, surrounded by kids. Sarada grabs her husband’s face, making him look at her. “What are you? Ten?”

Boruto frowns as her fingers still squeezes his cheeks. His voice sounds restrained. “What are you? The Grinch?”

Sarada narrows her dark eyes at him and he places his hands on her waist, pulling her close until her body is pressed against his. He shakes his head, making her let go of his face and when she does, his cheeks burned red with her finger marks.

“Have I told you how hot you look when you’re annoyed?” He leans in, pressing his nose against hers.

“Oh, I noticed that in the last twenty-seven years that we know each other. You sure like to annoy the Hell of me.” She feels slightly impatient by now.

“I can’t believe I actually married a hot version of the Grinch.” Boruto teases her, pulling her to the exit, dodging all the kids running in the way.

“Call me Grinch one more time and I’ll divorce you.” Sarada squeezes his hand strongly and Boruto’s face turns into a painful amusement. He laughs while trying to pull his hand away.

“If you divorce me, you won’t get your present.” Boruto says, between the laughs that were leaving his throat. Everyone on the mall stops to observe their little scene, which cause Sarada to be flustered.

Boruto still giggles when he pulls her into a tight hug. “Let’s go home.”

“No! I want my gift!” Sarada says, her voice muffled by his sweater.

“In the car, then. Come!” He grabs her hand and starts running outside the mall, aiming for their car. They quickly get in and rub their arms, trying to create some heat. Sarada looks to her husband on the passenger seat, smiling when she notices the snowflakes on his hair.

“So?” Sarada pokes his whiskers, with one hand and raises the other one so he can put the present there.

“Here.” Boruto sticks his hands on his left pocket and takes a lot of money, putting it on her hand. Sarada frowns.

“Are you giving me money?” She asks through gritted teeth.

“You’re too hard to shop for, woman. Now you can buy whatever you want!” Boruto exclaims, smiling.

Sarada just turns to the wheel, starting the car. During the rest of the travel until their house, Boruto tried to talk to her, but she was too mad with the money gift.

Once she parks, Boruto quickly gets out of the car and goes straight to the door, closing it behind him. She stands there, looking at him incredulous. So, politeness is indeed dead.

Sarada gets out, buffing. She runs to the door, covering herself from the thick snow falling. Once she opens her front door, a tiny husky puppy comes running to her direction. She widens her eyes.

“Merry Christmas, love.” Boruto’s body rests against the closest wall, the smile on his face brightens the room more than the Christmas lights he put around the whole house. “By the way, I want my money back. We need to pay for his vaccines and I forgot to buy a bed for him.”

His wife kneels, caressing the little ball of fur that is currently trying to bite her boots. “I can’t believe you did that!”

“What? You’ve been asking for one since we moved in together. It was about time.” Boruto approaches them, bending down next to her. “Hi, little guy. Do you like your mommy? Cause I sure do.”

Sarada throws herself to Boruto, her arms wrapping him into a tight hug which cause both of them to crash to the floor, she on top of him. Sarada crashes her lips against his and the puppy decides to do his own version of a kiss, licking Boruto’s cheeks.

He laughs against her lips, especially when the dog puts his both tiny paws on his face to have a better support to try to lick Sarada’s face.

Sarada tries to move to lay on the floor next to him, but Boruto wraps his arms and legs to keep her there.

“Boruto!” Sarada says, between laughs. “Let me go!”

“Never.” He places a lot of kisses on her neck, making her laugh even louder and the puppy scares. Running away from them, trying to bark at the both of them.

“Noooo! Borutoooooooo, you scared him.” Sarada frees herself from Boruto’s grip, laying on her stomach next to him on the floor, tapping it gently to call the dog back. He happily obbeys her, licking her face affectionately one more time the moment he reaches her.

“I just bought myself competition, didn’t I?” Boruto puts both of his hands behind his head to give him support. “Did you see his eyes?”

“One blue and one black?” Sarada sits, pulling the husky to get lap. The dog just spins a couple times before making himself comfortable there.

“Our son.” Boruto crawls until he rests his head on one of her thighs, dividing the space with the new family member, peering up at her face. Her heart flutters by the sight.

“What’s his name?” Sarada pets the puppy with one hand and runs her fingers through Boruto’s hair with the other.

“We gotta decide that. What about Boruto Jr.?” Boruto suggests as he closes his eyes, relaxing with her touch.

“What if he decides to take after you? No, thank you..” She giggles.

“Inojin?”

“We’re not naming him after your brother-in-law!” Sarada punches Boruto’s shoulder lightly and Boruto grabs her hand, intertwining their fingers.

“Ama would’ve loved that.” Boruto points out, thinking about his niece reaction when she sees the puppy for the first time. The thought warms his heart.

“Let’s go with Pakkun.” Sarada blurts out.

“Uncle Kakashi would’ve liked that,” Boruto says in a sad and nostalgic tone. “But he doesn’t have a Pakkun face, he’s friendly. How about Kinichi?”

“So, do you want a name that literally means strong and healthy first son?” Sarada raises an eyebrow.

“Ei, it fits.”

“Tamotsu.” Sarada says, excited. “Means protector.”

Boruto opens his eyes, thinking about it for a moment. Then his gaze met Sarada’s and she knows it means they found it.

“Tamotsu Uzumaki-Uchiha.” Boruto licks his lower lip after saying it, Sarada just clears her throat.

“Tamotsu Uchiha-Uzumaki sounds better.” Sarada says, playfully.

“Okay, we are going to have this talk later.” Boruto sighs. “Let’s just get out of this cold floor and move to under the covers.”

He stands up, pulling her together. Tamotsu is still asleep on her arms.

“Hi, Tamo.” Sarada whispers to the sleepy puppy. “Welcome to our family.”

She leans in and kisses Boruto again. He hugs them, carefully not to smash their son between them. When they stop, both of them are still smiling. He caresses her cheek with his thumb. “Not bad payment for twenty-seven of annoyance, huh?”

“Best Christmas present ever.” Sarada replies.

“Really? I can think of something better.” He smirks, malicious, before he turns to the kitchen. “I’m going to make hot chocolate. You two go to find today’s movie.”

“Oh I’ve already know this one.” Sarada moves in the living room’s direction and spins around just to wink at Boruto. “We’re watching the Grinch tonight.”

He just stays there, laughing, while she enters the room.

As the Grinch said once, “Maybe Christmas doesn’t come from a store. Maybe Christmas, perhaps, means a little bit more.”

103 notes · View notes

shannaraisles · 7 years ago

Text

Headcanons Thingy

So ... I saw this post, and thought why not really go for it? It's not like I have fics to update or anything, right? Right?

I present ...

Headcanons for Rory/Cullen

1: Who spends almost all their money on the other? To be honest, they're both as bad as each other. Rory is far more impulsive and a lot less practical when it comes to spending, though - she'll see a charm that makes her think of Cullen, and she'll buy it; a plushie that she thinks would make him smile, she buys it; a joke hat that gently pokes fun at his bad habit of working way too hard, out comes the gold. (Bonus headcanon: Cullen may not wear or display what she buys for him, but he keeps it all in a safe place and has been known to wear all of it just to make her giggle if she's had a bad day.)

Cullen can't help being practical, but he's still more likely to spend money on her than on himself. He's responsible for the partitioned satchel that holds all her work supplies neatly and in order; the chalkboard she uses to write up her to-do list; the good winter boots that she was always "going" to get for herself. On the rare occasion she manages to buy something useful for herself, her money pouch somehow mysteriously regains the coin she paid for it, too.

2: Who sleeps in the other’s lap? Just going by size, it would have to be Rory sleeping in Cullen's lap. That doesn't mean that she intends to fall asleep there; it's far more likely that she's been working too long, and he pulled her into his lap to make her stop and take a moment for herself. She feels so safe around him, it's easy to just drift off, and naturally, he'll put her to bed once she starts snoring.

But ... there are times when Rory can get Cullen away from work, when he relaxes and lays his head in her lap, and she can virtually guarantee that he will pass out for a little while, his arms wrapped about her waist and his face pressed against her stomach, her fingers stroking through his hair. She never complains about the awkward position; just pulls out her book and settles in to pass the time while he dozes in her lap.

3: Who walks around the house half-naked and who yells at them to put on some clothes? Cullen's the culprit here. In their own space, where he knows they have privacy, he'll wander around shirtless and barefoot when he's just woken up - the man is virtually impervious to the cold, anyway! Rory, though, doesn't yell at him to put some clothes on. She's too busy enjoying the view, and relishing the fact that he's forgotten to be the staid commander for once.

4: Which one tells the other not to stay up all night and which one stays up all night anyway? Rory is constantly telling Cullen to look after himself, and that includes getting to bed on time. He doesn't mean to ignore her, but if the work is there and needs doing, he forgets the time, so used to powering through headaches and weariness that he barely seems to notice that everyone else went to bed hours ago. (Bonus headcanon: Rory won't let him stay up all night. After midnight, if he's still working, she'll shuffle down to his office and stare at him pointedly until he gets the hint and comes to bed.)

Cullen doesn't bother telling Rory not to stay up all night. If he thinks she's working too long, and that she isn't necessary to her staff, he's been known to just go into her infirmary and pull her bodily out through the door. If she argues, he throws her over his shoulder. The man has no chill when it comes to Rory looking after herself!

5: Which one tries to make food for the other but burns it all by accident and which one tells them that it’s okay and makes them both cookies? Rory is definitely the failed cook. Even with a recipe in front of her, carefully annotated by a friend who actually knows how to cook, she will invariably burn it all. Hours of prep down the drain because she got distracted reading a medical textbook (or the next chapter of Swords and Shields), and she will always, without fail, burst into tears at her abject failure.

And it's usually about this time that Cullen walks in, takes one look at the disaster zone, and has to try really hard not to laugh at the silly image presented. He's not a particularly inventive cook himself, but he's learned how to make cookies and cakes purely so that he can guide her through how to bake something with success and make her smile again. (Bonus headcanon: the kitchen staff in Skyhold have got so used to seeing the commander leading his dejected wife in through the door by one hand that these days they direct him to the oven they're not using and hand Rory one of the castle cats to cheer her up.)

6: Which one reads OTP prompts and says “Oh that’s us!” and which one goes “Eh, not really”? Again, Rory's the one who does the reading, but she rarely declares that out loud. She does, however, put it as a question. For example ... "Cul, if we were going to rob a museum, do you think I'd be the one doing all the work?" "Sweeting, if you were the one doing all the work, I would be the one bailing us both out of jail."

7: Which one constantly wears the other’s clothes? They both do. Okay, that needs explanation.

Rory wears Cullen's discarded shirts to bed every night, regardless of weather and the fact that he keeps pointing out she has her own nightclothes. Cullen wears Rory's scarf in winter - that started as a way to remind himself to give it to her, but he found the scent of her wrapped close to his nose so comforting, he "forgot".

8: Which one spends all day running errands and which one says “You remembered [thing], right?” Again, they both do. The only difference is that when Rory says, "You remembered [thing], right?", Cullen immediately nods and produces whatever it is from wherever he's stashed it. When Cullen asks, Rory will blush, swear, and immediately turn around and go back out to get whatever it is she's forgotten. Usually with Cullen close on her heels to make sure she doesn't get distracted and pick up something they will never use instead.

9: Which one drives the car and which one gives them directions? When Cullen drives, Rory is allowed to read the map, even if he never actually takes any of the directions she gives him. She genuinely finds this funny, and has been known to give out ridiculous directions just to see if he'll realize what she's up to.

When Rory drives ... Cullen spends most of his time clinging to the door and his seat, and stamping on the imaginary brake. Rory isn't allowed to drive very often.

10: Which one does the posing while the other one draws? Rory does the posing. Cullen just doesn't have the patience to pose and be still for hours on end while being the sole beneficiary of her attention. He'd much rather be involved, although very little drawing would happen.

Rory, on the other hand, would quite happily pose however he likes for as long as he likes. It may be slightly embarrassing to begin with, but there's something about the way he looks at her when he's sketching that makes her very eager not to interrupt.

11: If they were about to rob a museum, which one does backflips through lasers and which one is strolling behind with a bag of chips? Cullen would be the one doing the work, though he'd be more likely to park Rory outside while he went in and did everything. It isn't that he doesn't trust her ... she's just clumsiness personified, and he'd much rather get in and out without breaking anything more than is absolutely necessary.

12: Which one of your OTP overdoes it on the alcohol and which one makes the other stop drinking? Cullen's the one keeping an eye on her intake. While yes, Rory is very affectionate when she's tipsy - and he loves that - one drink too far turns her into a maudlin goblin who has horrific nightmares and no idea where the chamberpot is. He's discreet about it, though; if she's reaching that point, she'll notice suddenly that the last drink he got her seems to be mainly juice, or is even just straight water. She's stopped complaining about it, however.

13: Which one likes to surprise the other with a lot of small random gifts? I mentioned Cullen's box, right? Rory has no impulse control when it comes to buying him gifts. His box is close to overflowing with little presents, be they serious or jokey, and despite his sometimes resigned smile when she produces yet another gift for him, he loves the fact that she can't stop seeing him everywhere she goes. Every single one of those gifts is a reminder that, even when they're apart, she's never truly away from him.

14: Which one keeps accidentally using the other’s last name instead of their own? Well, both living in a culture that doesn't really put much store in last names, this doesn't really come up. Rory does sometimes forget to respond to her last name when it's used, but that doesn't really have anything to do with the question in hand. Cullen, on the other hand, positively glows when someone calls her Rutherford.

15: Which one screams about the spider and which one brings the spider outside? Rory screams. In fact, she not only screams, she hides. She hates spiders with a vengeance, but cannot bring herself to approach them at all. So Cullen is the one who has to go and fetch out the teeny, tiny money spider and very carefully set it free. He then has to prove to her that it is definitely gone before she'll come out of hiding.

16: Which one gives the other their jacket? Cullen hands over his mantle whenever he feels Rory needs it. It doesn't have to be cold for her to need to be wrapped up in that bear-fur cuddly; he's been known to use his mantle as substitute for a hug while he gets something else done before devoting his time to her.

17: Who keeps getting threatened by the other’s overprotective older sibling? Rory doesn't have an older sibling, but her best friend, Ria, would definitely be the one giving out threats, usually about dreadful things happening to Cullen's manhood should anything negative happen to her friend because of him. Given that Ria is five foot and a fart, and has the musculature of a thirteen-year-old, they aren't particularly scary threats, but Cullen accepts them with a serious expression, nods, and agrees that his testicles are forfeit in the event of unpleasantness. The fact that he doesn't even smirk drives Ria up the wall, too.

18: Who’s the first one to admit they have feelings for the other? Surprisingly, Cullen. He's so focused on his work that it seems odd that he would even notice he was falling for the healer who keeps prodding at him to look after himself, but he's actually had his eye on her a lot longer than she realizes. By the time Cullen actually brings himself to say it aloud, he's already thinking of her in terms of the woman he loves, rather than the woman he has fallen in love with. It's a very present, real feeling for him, and his declaration is never the romantic moment he'd hope for. Luckily for him, Rory answers in kind, no matter how it happens.

19: How good would your OTP be at parenting? I think they'd be reasonably good at it. With his healthy childhood, and good personal examples, Cullen has a very good baseline to start from. He'd definitely be an affectionate, encouraging father, but with discipline as well. He might occasionally be impatient or frustrated, but he would make sure that he never said anything in the heat of the moment that could be damaging. He's also definitely aware enough to apologize to his child for any mistakes he makes as and when they happen.

Rory's background means she has a good grasp on what not to do. Like Cullen, she's got the discipline thing down, and she loves being silly and having fun, as well. She's got a lot of love to give a child (or children!). (Bonus headcanon: Cullen makes room for the little one in their bed when it's too early to get up yet, lifting them up and into the warm space between him and Rory. He falls back to sleep, and Rory tells stories with their child under the blankets until Cullen wakes up properly and declares it's time for breakfast.)

20: Which one types with perfect grammar and which one types using numbers as letters? Cullen is such a perfectionist, he always has perfect grammar and spelling, and his handwriting is beautiful, even when its rushed. Rory, on the other hand, is just happy if her writing is legible. Spelling and grammar happen to other people. Cullen teases her about it constantly.

21: Who gets attacked by a bully and who protects them? Rory puts up with a lot of verbal shit, but you can bet if Cullen hears it going on, he'll be down on the shit-stirrer like a ton of bricks. Big protective man that he is. She doesn't need to be protected - she needs to be reassured, more than anything - but she knows he sometimes needs to be her hero, too.

22: Who makes the bad puns and who makes a pained smile every time the other makes a pun? Rory makes the puns. All the puns. Whenever she can, which isn't all that often, to be fair. Cullen does laugh, on occasion, but sometimes ... yeah, that pained little smile of his does tell a thousand-word story when the joke about seeing stars comes out for the umpteenth time.

23: Who comes home from work to see that the other one bought a puppy? Rory comes home to find the mabari. Absolutely. Cullen might not have intended to bring him home with him, but there he is, and even though she's a bit nervous of dogs in general, he's just so happy to have a mabari of his own, she can't possibly be put out or angry with him. She does have to put her foot down when the dog tries to sleep in the bed with them, though, so Cullen has to spend an hour putting the dog to bed before he can settle in for the night himself.

24: Which one gives the other a piggyback ride when they’re tired? No piggyback rides for these two. Cullen's preferred method of carrying Rory around when she's tired is to cradle her against his chest; when she's being stubborn, it's over his shoulder. And it's not just him who does the carrying - she may be smaller than him, but Rory is a healer. She can lift the commander over her shoulders, whether he really wants her to prove it or not.

25: Which one competes in some sort of activity and which one does the overzealous cheering? When Cullen spars and Rory has the time to watch, she is a one-woman cheering squad, and completely unselfconscious about it. The first time she cheered him on, it was distracting enough that he lost, but he's since got used to hearing her yell his name and variations on the theme of "kick his/her/it onto that bony arse"!

26: Who takes a selfie when the other one falls asleep on their shoulder? Rory takes the selfie. She falls asleep on his shoulder far more often than Cullen falls asleep on hers, but he'd never dream of taking advantage of that fact to get her in an unguarded pose. He's way too concerned about disturbing her by moving. Conversely, she thinks he is absolutely adorable when he sleeps draped over her, so she has to get it for posterity. And for future teasing.

27: Which one would give the other a makeover if they asked? Neither one of them would ask! If pushed, Rory might ask Cullen's opinion on what she should wear if they were invited to a swanky do, but his only contribution would be to suggest what color she should wear (blue is his favorite color on her, for reference). If Rory's opinion is ever sought on what Cullen should wear, she can say whatever she likes, because she knows he won't take a blind bit of notice and just wear what he always wears to such things.

28: Which one owns a pet that the other is absolutely terrified of? I wouldn't say Rory is terrified of the mabari, but she's not mad about him, either. Cullen adores his dog, and rightly so, but Rory's definitely not instantly comfortable with having a wardog in the house. Cullen is oblivious to this; she doesn't mention it to him. (Bonus headcanon: the dog wins her over by continually bringing her treasures he finds around and about. Not even Rory can hold out against a cheerful mabari on a mission to make her like him.)

29: Which one holds the umbrella over both of them when it rains? Rory holds the umbrella. Cullen will just put up with being rained on, far more likely to tuck her underneath his mantle to keep her dry while he gets soaked. So she's the one who puts up the umbrella, and deliberately holds it high enough over his head to shelter him without it getting in his way. In theory, it's over her as well, but she gets soaked too. They're both as bad as each other.

30: If your OTP went on vacation, where would they go and what would they do? Who would take the pictures? Neither one of them is comfortable to just spend their time idle, no matter how beautiful the place is, so a vacation would likely be just a holiday from their respective duties. Visiting the South Reach and Cullen's family, where they can throw themselves into the daily routine of the farms alongside Mia and Branson and Rosalie - Cullen tending the fields and animals, Rory finally learning how to cook a decent meal and playing with the children. It's more about getting them away from the life or death decisions they both have to make every single day at Skyhold. And if there are pictures to be taken? I'm guessing Mia and Rosalie are the ones taking them.

Well, that taught me a scary amount about Cullen/Rory. One day, I may drop them into a Modern AU just to see what happens.

#headcanons #rory/cullen #cullen rutherford #rory allen #dragon age

6 notes · View notes

berry-uglyduckling · 7 years ago

Text

Off To A Rocky Start|Finchel

Summary: Despite their reunion, Finn and Rachel find that their relationship still needs work.

Finn had been having a fairly good day, even if most of the time that he was out with Puck he had kind of wanted to be home. The place nearest to Finn and Rachel’s apartment had actually been pretty nice and the roommate seemed cool, so Puck had decided to go with them. Finn was happy his friend would be so close but he could feel tension between Puck and Rachel so he knew it may not be as fun as it seemed. He headed home once Puck had gotten things settled and was at the apartment not long after. Stepping through the door, he took his shoes and jacket off, setting them in their place. “Hey Rach!” He called out.

Rachel’s phone lay on the nightstand, her text conversation with Finn leaving her both anxious to see him but unsure of whether or not things were going to run smoothly when they talked again. She closed her eyes, trying to focus on something else but there wasn’t much there. The rest of her day had been mundane - vocal classes had been productive, work had been work. What really was there to think about beyond the state of their relationship? Noah popped into her head but she’d dashed those thoughts because they’d only cause emotional discord for her and strain between she and Finn. She didn’t want him to feel responsible for whatever friction was occurring between she and Noah and she most definitely didn’t want Finn in the middle - that wasn’t fair to him. Especially not when they had aspects of their own relationship to work on. She sat up from reclined position when she heard him call out to her, her socks making her steps soft as she followed the sound into the living room. “Hey.”

“Have you eaten yet?” He asked her as he walked over to give her a kiss. “I'm starving.”

Rachel was left dazed by the kiss, feeling almost silly for how affected it left her. “No. I was waiting for you to come home.” Shuffling past him, she retrieved plates from the cupboard and set them on the counter. “I am quite hungry too so I’m hoping you brought something good home.”

Finn paused “I kind of forgot the food..” He admitted with a scrunched nose. “I will hurry and go grab something! What sounds good?”

Surprised that her husband, of all people, could let food slipp his mind, Rachel shook her head. “You don’t have to go back out. I can just make some grilled cheese.” She paused a moment then put both arms around him. “Besides, I don’t want you going to far.”

He wrapped his arms around her “you know I can always have grilled cheese. If that's what you want then I am good with that.”

Rachel had no preferences when it came to what they ate. She was more focused on exactly what she’d said - keeping Finn as close as possible. That made grilled cheese a given. “This is what I want.” Reaching up, she left a soft kiss on his lips. “But we’re both hungry so I must cook.” Reluctantly, she moved away from him and into the kitchen to throw together some sandwiches.

Finn was surprised she was being so affectionate after their conversation; he hadn't been one hundred percent positive she even wanted him home so early. He was glad for it though. “Okay, baby.” He let her go and followed her to the kitchen, getting the pan out for her.

Thanking him as she took the pan from his hands, Rachel took butter and cheese from the fridge before turning the stove on to warm. “So did Noah find a place? Or is he still a hopeless city wanderer?”

“He found a place. It's in an apartment building a few blocks away.. I forgot which street. His roommates seemed cool and his room is nice. He went out for drinks with the guys so I think they'll get along.”

Rachel was focusing on making the sandwiches, letting the butter melt down before she placed the first in the pan, but also listening to Finn. “It’s going to be nice for you that he’s so close. And he won’t be inconvenienced by having to put up with me since you can go over there.” She hadn’t wanted to burden him with her upset over her strained relationship with Noah, but she had a feeling he’d pick up on it when she said things like that. Turning, she looked at Finn with her bottom lip tucked under her teeth. “Sorry. I didn’t mean for that last part to sound bitter. I really am happy for him and for you to have your friend close.”

Finn frowned at Rachel's words, unsure how to respond. “Let's just talk about something else.” He offered.

“Like what we were discussing in our texts before you came home?” The offering was light, suggestional, the next words almost teasing though she was absolutely serious. “Or something that doesn’t make either of us want to run screaming into the night?”

Finn scrunched his nose “I mean, if those are things you want to talk about then I guess…” he shrugged.

“I really do but I also don’t want to be a complete downer, especially since I really did miss you today.” She slipped the first sandwich onto a plate and handed it to him. “I just know what happens when we don’t talk.”

Finn looked down at the plate “Then we can talk about them.”

Rachel put her hand on his forearm, smiling at what she perceived as uneasiness. “Go sit down and eat first. I don’t want to deprive you when you’re starving. I’ll finish up my sandwich and join you. That’s when we’ll talk, okay?”

“Alright.” He said with a nod and moved to the table with his plate in hand. He hated getting into deep conversations that could lead to fighting. He ate his sandwich slowly “How was your day?”

Rachel put another sandwich on the pan to cook, glancing over at her husband as she waited for it to brown. “It was boring. I excelled in my classes, naturally. This semester much less daunting now that the focus of my studies are more to do with singing and acting. Then work was work, but this new place is definitely growing on me. I like it more than the diner.” Turning back to the stove, she flipped the sandwich when it was time. “And your day? How was it, other than your adventures in apartment hunting?”

“I'm glad this semester is easier for you. Hopefully this year is a little less stressful for you in general.” He took another bite of his sandwich. “My day was alright. School was kind of boring and work was.. Work.” He shrugged.

Rachel took her sandwich off the stove and joined him at the table. “Isn’t work always?” She took a bite of her sandwich, the hot cheese leaving a slight burn on her tongue. “So…” She looked at him, her hands resting on the table. “Why is it that you think you going out and having fun is going to hurt my feelings?”

Finn look at her for a moment before shrugging “I don't know. You used to kind of get annoyed when I was with my friends before…”

“That was before though.” Rachel drew in a deep breath, trying to remember that he wasn’t attacking her or criticizing her, just sharing how he felt. “You’re right. In the past, I’ve been a little selfish when it came to your time. I don’t want that to get in the way with you having relationships outside of ours though.” She touched the back of his hand, hoping the gesture would emphasize her sincerity. “I don’t want you to think you doing things without me will make me upset. Unless you’re going to get ice cream. Then I’ll be upset.”

He gave her a small smile at her joke “Okay… it's just me having anything outside of you hasn't come up for a while. The last time I wanted to go out, we got in a pretty big fight and I'm just not in a mindset where I can have problems with you right now so I'm trying really hard to do the right things.”

“You having a life isn’t going to make us fight, I promise.” Rachel squeezed his hand, albeit it awkward from the angle she was at. “Can we agree, though, that we’ll try to talk about plans we have outside of us to make sure they don’t interfere with ones we have with each other?”

He nodded his head “I always try to.” He assured her.

“I know you do.” The corner of Rachel’s mouth perked up, her smile easy as she watched him. “I have to work on being a good sport about sharing you.”

“You've been fine since Puck has been here, I think. I think I'm the one with the issue.” He joked.

Rachel didn't feel fine when it came to the issue of Noah but nothing could be done for that and she knew that her apprehension hadn't motivated Finn’s comments. “You're fine. Like everything else about marriage, you just have to adjust. We both do.”

He nodded his head, his eyes on the last of his sandwich. Though he had been telling Rachel that he needed a life outside of her, he felt a little deflated that she was so highly encouraging it now. “Anything else we needed to talk about?” He asked her, ready to finish eating and go take a shower.

Rachel couldn't tell whether he was okay with everything or not. She knew he needed to keep some aspects of himself private but she hated when she failed at reading him. “Unless you have something to talk about, I just had that on my mind.” Seeing that he was almost done with his sandwich she moved out of her chair and into his lap. “I'm all ears now.” Her cheek rested on his shoulder as her arm moved around his back.

Finn wrapped his arm around her “No, I'm good too. Like I said, I just want to keep you happy so everything stays in a good place. That's all I care about right now.”

“What about you? Do you care about you being happy too? Because that's very important to me.”

“I'm happy if you are happy.” He shrugged.

They always seemed to run into this issue - Finn’s happiness depending upon Rachel's - and it always caused them trouble in the end. Rachel though that this last fight and all he'd said during it would push them past it. Sitting with him now, her fear that they'd end up in a similar place to the one they'd been in before was mounting. But there was no point in fighting about a fight that they might have at some point. “I'm happy that I have you all to myself for awhile. Does that count?”

He gave her a small smile “Yeah.” He pressed a kiss to her cheek. “I need to go shower but then we can do whatever you want.”

Rachel kissed his cheek. “Do you want a shower buddy or would I just distract you?”

“You can shower with me if you want to.” He said with a smile.

“If I got my way, I would be this close to you for the rest of the night.” Rachel didn’t much care if she was being clingy at this point. She simply wanted the comfort she’d missed when he’d been staying with Kurt.

“That's what you want?” he asked her softly.

Finn’s gentle approach caught Rachel off guard. “That’s all I want.” If her words didn’t properly express the truth behind her sentiment, she had a feeling the little smile tugging at her lips might do the trick.

He gave her a quick kiss “Well let's go shower and then we can lay in bed and be close.”

Rachel climbed off his lap and took his plate with her into the kitchen. “I like the sound of that. The most relaxing end to a long day for us both.”

“Yes it is.” He stood up “I'll get the water started.” He headed to the bathroom and pulled his shirt off before turning the water on and letting the water heat up.

It only took Rachel a few minutes to clean up the kitchen, rinse out the pan from dinner, then join her husband in the bathroom. She stopped in the bedroom to pull her hair back and drop her clothes in the laundry before stepping onto the cold tile.

Finn stepped into the shower and closed his eyes as the water fell over him. When he heard Rachel in the bathroom, he stepped out of the way a little so she could get in with him.

Rachel watched Finn for the moment before joining him in the shower. The warm spray felt good on her body, almost as good as pulling herself close to Finn and kissing him.

Finn wrapped his arms around her, enjoying the water and holding her. “I needed this.” He sighed.

“Yeah?” Rachel left fluttery kisses along his neck and collarbone before resting her head on his chest. “You just need to unwind a little bit, don’t you?”

“Maybe a little bit. “ he ran his hand along her back.

“Well, I could help you with that. Maybe a little kissing?” To accentuate her point, she kissed his chest as she worked her way to his mouth.

Finn let his hand move up her back to hold her against him as she kissed him. His lips moved against hers softly “I love you.” He said softly.

Rachel was standing on her toes, one arm coming around his neck as she left him pull her close. “I love you too. With everything in me.”

“Good.” He smiled. “Do you want me to finish washing off or are you enjoying being in here?”

“The draw of being in here is you. But I'll let you clean up, then we can go lay down. I could give you a massage since those seem to help you relax too.”

“I'm relaxed, baby. Don't worry about me.” He stepped away from her so he could put body wash on.

Stepping aside so he could wash up, Rachel leaned against the shower wall. She closed her eyes and listened to the sound of the water, enjoying the steam as he finished up.

Finn finished washing up and reached his hand out to pull her back to him. “Are you gonna let me have naked cuddles?” He asked her with a playful smile.

Rachel put up no resistance to his eager embrace, nor would she to any form of cuddling, naked or otherwise. “Me? See, I was going to ask you if I could have naked cuddles, since you’re so opposed to nudity and all.”

“Yeah, right. I bet you were gonna get out and put clothes on right away.” he scoffed.

Grinning, Rachel kissed him. “You got me. But it was just going to be your shirt so you can't hate that.”

“I can't. But I still like feeling your skin against mine when we cuddle. It's comforting. “

Her hand pushed back wet locks of his hair, her body molding to his as their eyes met. How she could ever take hers off him, Rachel would never know. “One comforting wife coming your way.”

“Why are you being all nice to me tonight?” He asked her, half joking.

“I like you, just a little.” Her lips were light against his. “And I'm often nice.”

“You are nice.” He agreed, though she seemed a little more serving toward him tonight. He gave her another long kiss before pulling away to shut the water off and grabbed a towel for both of them. After handing one to her, he dried off and wrapped it around his waist to walk into the bedroom.

The kiss didn’t last long enough for Rachel’s liking but she offered no complaint when he handed her a warm towel in it’s place. Wrapping it around her body, Rachel walked to the bedroom after Finn and flopped onto the bed. “Is it bad that I’ve been looking forward to this all day?”

Finn lay on the bed and wrapped his arm around her “I have been too. I wanted this all day.”

Rachel scooted in close, dropping her towel on the side of the bed so she could keep her promise as she nestled up to Finn. “Even better?”

“Way better.” He grinned as he pulled his towel off as well and cuddled her close.

Finn felt warm, especially after the shower, and he smelled good too, which left Rachel quite content laying next to him. “Then I feel accomplished. You being good was what I was shooting for tonight.”

“I am good. I was good anyways.” He said with a small smile.

Rachel returned his smile, partly to avoid telling him that she just wanted to make sure he wanted to come home. After their fight, she was still a little shaken and the idea that he could spend so many nights away from her didn’t sit well. “You always are in my eyes.”

He leaned in to give her a kiss “I could fall asleep like this.”

“You seem to do well with it normally. I do too. But you’re not telling me you’re sleepy already, are you?”

Finn shrugged “I did a lot of walking around and stuff tonight.”

Turning on her side, while remaining as close as possible, Rachel propped herself up a little so her cheek was resting on her palm. “True. Kind of makes you glad we had a place before we moved here. Just imagine having to do everything you did tonight but to my standards.”

“Yeah that might have been a little torturous.” He teased. “But we would have found a pretty cool place, I think.”

“If I didn’t love you so much, I might take offense to that comment. Although, my level of taste speaks volumes about you since I only want the best.” Rachel nudged his shoulder a little with her elbow. “We would have. Maybe in a different neighborhood but we would have made wherever we went work.”

“Then I definitely have you fooled.” He said with a laugh. “Yes we would have. And we will someday.”

Rachel’s head swayed in an obstinate manner, her disagreement clear. “You aren't that sneaky so there's no fooling me.”

“I'm not?” He asked with a raised eyebrow. “Seems I need to try harder then.”

“Nooo…” Rachel draped over Finn in a dramatic display, her head turning up toward his with a grin plastered on it. “I don’t like sneaky. I like sweet, smart, silly Finn.” With each word, she left a kiss on his neck.

“How about sweet, smart, silly, and sneaky?” He teased.

“Only a little sneaky, because that might be sexy too.”

“I honestly don't even know what I would do to be sneaky.” He said with a laugh.

“I really don't either. I feel like you being sneaky would end in a sweet gesture. Like you'd plan to make a special dinner or plan a date then but not tell me. That's about as sneaky as I can see you being.”

“I wouldn't even be good at that, let's face it. I am not good with secrets from you. Especially not after… you know, the whole bet thing.”

Rachel stroked his cheek, smiling at his honesty. He was right - the bet had changed their relationship when she found out. But she had learned that, given the chance, Finn was the most trustworthy person around. It was rare that she doubted him, his actions, or his words. “I'm okay with that. I don't need surprises to be a happy wife.”

Finn gave her a kiss “Good, because I'm just not a good liar anymore.” He laughed softly.

“You're good at the important things, that's what matters. Like all your kisses are exemplary. Your cuddles too. I could go on and on.”

“Well as long as you're satisfied.” He kissed her cheek.

“I am.” Rachel wanted the two simple words to sound serious without being harsh, loving but still powerful in their truth.

“Good, baby.” He rest his head against the pillow, his eyes on her. “I wish I didn't have to work tomorrow. I'm tired of this week already.”

Rachel's fingers traced gentle paths along his jaw and cheeks. “It's definitely hard to get up and do things that you know have to after you've had a long day or week.” Rachel kissed him. “I wish I could stay home and just be with you.”

He gave her a soft smile “That would be nice. Just lay in bed all day.”

Rachel reached to play with his hair. “I don’t have to work on Sunday. We could do it then if you want.”

“I have to work for a little bit, but yeah we can after.”

Rachel tried to hide the disappointment that he wouldn't get the whole day with him, especially when she looked forward to any one-on-one time with Finn. “I like the sound of that.”

“Me too. I have Saturday off. I'm guessing you're working then?”

“Dinner shift.” Rachel was starting to begrudge having a job, no matter how necessary it was. “Which means we can sleep in together. I can make you breakfast. Maybe kiss a little.”

“That works for me.” He shrugged. “It's better than nothing.”

“Don't sound too excited.” Rachel teased but she was getting the impression he really wasn't. She reminded herself that he was just tired, that she shouldn't read anything into it. Shifting around so she wasn't smothering him, Rachel laid against her pillow.

“I am. It's just like most days though.” He said with a small laugh. “Nothing to be ecstatic about.”

Maybe she was being sensitive but Rachel's feelings were growing more hurt by the second. “If there's something else you wanted to do, we could.”

He shrugged his shoulders “I don't mind being at home and cuddling. That's our favorite thing to do.”

Rachel kissed his cheek, though unconvinced by his words. “Then it's a cuddle date.”

“Cool.” He gave her a smile. “I think we have one every night though.” He said with a laugh.

“For the most part, you're right. It just seems to happen that way.” The fact that she liked cuddling that much suddenly seemed silly to her. Like it wasn't as good as whatever else he could be doing. She had to stop herself again, knowing full well she was bordering on dramatic.

“Yeah, I mean we are never not cuddling when it's bedtime or when we are just hanging out here. Every day is cuddle day. It's good though. We like each other.”

“This is true. And it's definitely good that we like each other. It makes the whole ‘til death do us part thing easier.”

“Yes it does.” He moved a little closer to her to put his arm back around her.

Rachel turned toward him, her arm moving around his body. Even if her feelings were slightly bruised, she couldn't deny that she liked to be held.

“You feeling okay?” He asked her.

“I am. I just feel like you've had a long day and I'm getting in the way of you getting some rest. Which wasn't my intention.”

He shook his head “You're not getting in the way. I just kind of felt like you weren't excited for me to come home so I've been trying to be cool…”

“The thing I wanted most since the second I got home was for you to be too. I just knew you were with Noah and I don't want him to hate me more than he does for taking your time.” Rachel looked down, wishing she hadn't brought up Noah again. “This is the awkward adjustment period we always have after a fight, isn't it?”

Finn sighed, feeling like Puck was being a wedge in their relationship at an already touchy time. “Who cares about Puck when it comes to our relationship?” He said, maybe a little harsher than he meant to. “Yeah… It definitely is.”

A tear sprung from the corner of her eye, the sharpness of his words catching her off guard. Quickly blinking it away, Rachel tried not to look shaken. “I shouldn't have have said anything.”

Finn sighed, feeling a little defeated. “If you want to talk about it, we can.”

“It's nothing. I just wanted you to know that I wanted you home and that I missed you today. That's all.” Clearly, she'd failed at the sentiment and was more than ready for that failure to be over.

“Okay.” He looked up at the ceiling. “I think I'm ready to call it a night..”

“Me too.” Rachel didn’t let go, even though things had taken a strange turn. She still wanted to be close, whatever the state of things between them was. Tilting her head back, she gave Finn a short, soft kiss. “I love you.”

Finn hated it when things felt like this. Awkward and forced. He knew they would get back to a normal place, but it was hard when they were both so busy to have things be in limbo. “Love you too. Goodnight.” He said softly.

Rachel whispered ‘goodnight’ back before closing her eyes like she might. She would have a difficult time but she was the only one that needed to know.

Finn rolled over and got comfortable before falling asleep, feeling tired enough to fall asleep immediately.

#p: fh #p: otars

2 notes · View notes