#raindrop soulmates au

[cheerycherrycandy-resurrected]

hey hey, can i see a bit of your Soulmark AU for the WIP game? I'm sorry i'm so late with it <3

Helloo!!

Of course! It's still in the planning stage at the moment so it's mostly rambling ideas and lore, but I plan for it to have a few chapters and be set around the start of era 4 when Rain is summoned. I think the vibe is going to be a bit angsty, definitely some enemies-to-lovers, but in the end I really do want Raindrop to be happy!

So for this AU, my setup is that the ghouls in the pit are quite separated by their element, the main 5 types never really interacting with each other at all, with multighouls being anomalies born into one of the elemental "clans". Each elemental class has a distinct type of soulmark, and having one of a different type is pretty rare.

This obviously means that two soulmarked ghouls from different elemental species are very unlikely to ever meet in the pit, and will probably remain unmated forever. So lots of them join topside projects to distract themselves.

“Crossmated ghouls were rare: the geography of the pit providing many physical barriers to them ever finding each other. Thus the Ghost Project, with its mix of elemental ghouls, had united its fair share of crossmated ghouls. Alpha and Omega; Ifrit and Zephyr; and, as many had thought, Aether and Dewdrop.”

Thanks so much for asking about it!! 🖤

[feralghxuls]

my brain is open to the idea of New Music again so perhaps ill have some braincells to write things again soon 👀

[amazzwon]

my go-to ENHYPEN (hyung line) fics

°˖➴ Fiancé for Hire

(series)

smut, angst, fluff, non idol au, rich!Heeseung x broke!reader, contract au

°˖➴ Cherry

°˖➴ Cherry II

°˖➴ Cherry III

°˖➴ Cherry Epilogue

rich kid au, 80s au, smut, angst, fluff

°˖➴ Stitch me up

underground fighter!heeseung x nurse!reader, smut, angst , fluff

°˖➴ Rile Me Up

pwp, 6.1k

°˖➴ POOL PARTY

7.3k, smut, fluff, angst

°˖➴ LET’S GET MARRIED

he fell first but she fell harder, childhood friends to a married couple, fluff, 5.1k+

°˖➴ WANT

angst, smut.

°˖➴ CHERRIES

strangers to friends to eventual lovers

°˖➴ NDA

idol!heeseung, fem!fangirl!reader, smut

°˖➴ SURPRISE

smut, fluff, 9.3k

°˖➴ PRETTY BOY

fluff, 0.2k

°˖➴ Dances Avec Les Etoiles

(series)

Prince!Heeseung × Princess!fem!reader, arranged marriage, smut

°˖➴ as long as you'll let me

smut, badgirl!reader x virgin!heeseung, college au, 15k

°˖➴ your lips, my lips, apocalypse

angst, suggestive, implied college! au, 2.0k

°˖➴ hopeless

fluff, high school! au, non-idol! au, 10.8k

°˖➴ YOU CAME AND WENT, JUST LIKE THE SEASONS

lovers to exes, angst, 7.6k

°˖➴ KNOCK , KNOCK

skinship, swearing

°˖➴ TRIAGE

(series)

romance, comedy, fluff, high school, written series

°˖➴ STRIP CLUB

virgin Jay, crude words, smut, reader works in a strip club

°˖➴ Carmesi

(Series)

ceo!reader x secretary!jay, smut, suggestive, angst, fluff

°˖➴ Stars and Raindrops

highschool au, strangers to lovers, love at first sight, fluff, angst, crack, 23k

°˖➴ A La Folie

(series)

King!Jay × healer!fem!reader

°˖➴ APPLE CIDER!

crying, angsty, hooking up/sex, weed, 7.9k

°˖➴ you, my fate come and kiss me :

fluff-angst, soulmate au, 0.4k

°˖➴ touch me, feel me

Ceo!jay x Model!reader, smut, fluff

°˖➴ situationship!texts

angst, toxic relationship

°˖➴ just for you

fluff

°˖➴ 4 TIMES JAY ALMOST PROPOSED + 1 TIME HE ACTUALLY DID

established relationship au, romance, fluff, 2k

°˖➴ Cherry Chapstick

fluff at the beginning, smut with plot

°˖➴ Good boy

coworker!Jake x fem!reader, smut

°˖➴ Birthday Sex

smut

°˖➴ LUCK

fluff

°˖➴ kiwi and layla

high school au, f2l, fluff, angst, 26.3k

°˖➴ Royal Sacrifice

prince!jake x maid!fem reader, 7.1k, smut, angst

°˖➴ STRAWBERRY LIPS

fluff, 0.5k, classmates to lovers

°˖➴ cherries

fluff, est rshp, 211

°˖➴ Heartbeat

Friends with Benefits, smut

lyrics theme — "Ayo Fuck this, are we dating? Are we fucking? Are we best friends? Are we something?"

°˖➴ forbidden attraction

hogwarts, wizard!sunghoon x witch!reader, smut, fluff

°˖➴ star-crossed

prince!sunghoon/fem!reader, fluff, smut, greek mythology, angst, 6.8k

°˖➴ Relaxing

smut, 4k

°˖➴ HEAVENLY

playboy! sunghoon x fem reader, exes to lovers, fake dating, mutual pining, fluff, angst, 9.5k

°˖➴ will you let me

smut MDNI, angst

°˖➴ overtime

office au, fluff, 0.3k

°˖➴ Sparks

angst, 1.8k

°˖➴ BED

fiance!sunghoon x fem!reader, 7.8k

‧₊˚🖇️✩ ₊˚🎧⊹♡ Headcanons

Enha when their idol!partner has a wardrobe malfunction

Enha when their actress partner films with a hot actor

music bank hosts: idol!enha x idol! reader

the moments that make everyone think you’re dating (all eyes on you)

Enha hyung line reaction to you being bratty

Reaction to you asking them Ass or Tits

JAY tattoos the hickeys you leave

JAY spitting in your mouth

enhypen falling in love with you during hybe game caterers

their "oh" moment (the moment they realise they're in love)

when you play with their hair

when you call them ‘babe’

calling them “husband” trend.

texting them "please don't leave me"

[thejakeslayla]

╰─▸ ❝ soulmate connection ❞ - ,, jake sim

pairing bf!jake x gn!reader ୨୧ genre fluff non idol au ୨୧ warnings none ୨୧ wc 0.5k ୨୧ req; prompt 20 (falling asleep on the couch, waking up to not only a blanket around them, but their partner squeezed in behind them); dialouge 27 (“how come you always end up under my blanket?”);

you signed while entering your flat, the first week of autumn was absolutely awful. not just because of the heavy workload but also due to the relentless weather.

you had always enjoyed the rain, but only when you were snugly wrapped in a blanket with a warm cup of tea and soft music playing in the background, listening to the raindrops gently tapping against your window. the rain lost its charm when you found yourself soaked for the third time this week as you stepped inside your flat.

without wasting any time, you changed into dry clothes and took a soothing warm shower, hoping to restore your body to its normal temperature. exiting the bathroom, you couldn't ignore the uncomfortable sensation in your throat, and your head throbbed.

cursing silently, you realised you were experiencing the first symptoms of a cold. a few minutes later, you entered the living room, clutching a couple of medicine packages in one hand and a steaming cup of tea in the other. you settled down and placed everything on the coffee table.

you turned on the tv to break the silence that had filled your apartment and took the pills, all the while trying to focus on the show playing.

you didn’t even noticed when you drifted off to sleep on the sofa, your body curled up in search of warmth.

when jake arrived at the apartment, he noticed the unusual quietness, the only sound being the muffled tv. he was surprised that you didn't greet him as usual, assuming you were just focused on the show playing. however, he was surprised when he entered the living room and found you fast asleep, surrounded by medication. concern immediately welled up within him.

"oh, my angel," he whispered softly, gently brushing the hair away from your face. he planted a tender kiss on your forehead and briefly left the living room to get a blanket from your shared bedroom, changing into more comfortable clothes along the way.

upon his return, you were still in a deep asleep. jake covered you with the blanket and contemplated that taking a quick afternoon nap wouldn't hurt anyone. he carefully manoeuvred your body to create some space for himself, and as he did, you groaned in your sleep, instinctively wrapping your arms around him, your cheek resting against his chest.

ake's heart nearly melted when he saw how cuddly you were. he couldn't resist planting another kiss on your cheek, which stirred you from your slumber. you rubbed your eyes and glanced around, a bit disoriented when you found yourself unable to move due to jake's arms embracing you.

"jake? you're back already?" your voice sounded husky and deep, likely from a sore throat.

"sweetheart, you sound terrible. didn't you wear the scarf i got you?" he inquired, his hand gently stroking your hair.

"i didn't," you admitted, resting your head on his chest once more. you closed your eyes, listening to the soothing rhythm of jake's heartbeat. "i was in a hurry this morning."

your boyfriend let out a sigh in response, his fingers continuing to play with your hair.

“how come you always end up under my blanket?” you broke the silence after a few minutes. "especially when i need you the most?"

"i just know, my love," he replied, his voice still soft, just like honey; a sweet feeling wrapping around your heart. "it's what they call a soulmate connection."

requests: open; prompt list © 2023 — all rights reserved to user thejakeslayla, please do not steal, plagiarise or translate any of my work !

[generalsdiary]

there is no rain without clouds

rain deity!Dr. Ratio x nonbeliever human!Aventurine

warnings: kissing (?)

word count: 6.5k

a/n: the intro will be the og post reframed- jump to keep reading to get to the added writing, one cannot escape Ratio being tsundere wherever you go (it’s literally canon), not beta read Firefly you better come home

description: an au, sorta soulmate vibe of a rain deity Ratio and human Aventurine falling in love (with an alternative ending), a smidge of angst; mostly fluff

I

What if Ratio is a type of deity with control over the rain/sky and Aventurine is a nonbeliever except for his immense luck given by the Mother Gaiathra Triclops.

And what if every time before it rains, he feels a drop on his shoulder or person much earlier than the rainfall actually begins- like a warning to seek shelter. And when he realizes that others don't notice the rain that early on, he feels somewhat special.

And on one day he is walking below a gray sky and a drop, tiny, smaller than any other, falls on his lips. And he smirks to himself and says to the sky, why do you kiss me in the form of rain?, he wipes it off with his thumb like there's an intimacy between him and the oncoming rain, a lingering feeling on his lips. A minute passes and another tiny drop falls to his nose, he assumes the rain will fall down any second now.

But in all actuality, the deity of rain, Veritas, is blushed and looking away, frozen, not making the rain fall because he is shocked and flustered from being called out on his very obvious bias.

And what if when he swims in a body of water, Aventurine feels light and free, comforted by the waves of the sea or the current of a river. But almost every time he is swimming the rain starts to fall. It is a gentle, soft one and he feels even more in tune with himself. Like he is being hugged, held. Veritas can't help but be obvious with his preferences in every universe.

Ratio would curse the deity of the sea, because why doesn't he hold those powers so he may feel Aventurine in his embrace, he'd beg the nymph of the river to take their place for a moment only to be denied. So he caresses him in the form of rain, from which Aventurine seeks cover. He curses the sage of the wind, because why can't he dance across the blond's skin, feeling the softness of his cheeks. Cursed to bring rain. Bold to make a drop fall on his lips, and now have his feelings revealed.

It won't rain for days, he is hiding, out of fear of being rejected, ignored... Vulnerable.

So when the rain does fall, weeks later, the great deity of rain is on his knees in the sky upon the sight of Aventurine sitting down on the ground in the downpour with a smile on his face.

II

“I am not.”

“I want to kiss you, hold you, hug you, have you- just-” he sighs, “and I know love and relationships can be much more than physical-“Aventurine exhales, looking up to the sky, his voice turning lower, “Why do you touch me like this?... Why does the water make me imagine your lips in their place- when I have never even seen you, why is it your hand which I wish to hold when I feel raindrops on mine... Why do you caress me,... Why do you touch me- it feels so personal every goddamn time and so… teasing.” When the skies bring no answer except the soft occasional raindrop, he turns and goes back inside.

About a week later the rain came again. Aventurine is standing behind a casino, catching a break from the heavy air inside. Veritas decides this is the right moment, the rainfall shifting to act as a waterfall and merely showcase an invisible silhouette like a ghostly figure, creating his shape.

“It is not easy to take a physical form.” There's no sound, Aventurine cannot hear his voice with his ears, but with his mind. His eyes widen upon seeing the elemental shape, he walks closer. This is the confirmation of everything- he isn't insane- well, that's still debatable, for some reason he doesn't feel shocked, surprised would be the better word. Aventurine reaches out with his hand, fingers moving through the rain which shapes a cheek. It is just water. Feels less real than the same drops that warn him. “I don't think you can call this a physical form.”

“Why me?”

“Indeed, why you?”

“I do not have to.” With a small wave of his hand, a larger raindrop falls on Aventurine's bottom lip, making him close his eyes. It isn't just the water, it gives him this feeling, this image of being kissed- of lips pressing into his own.

Aventurine ponders, a rain person, and his shape- it is a tall shape that much he can conclude.

“I wish to see you partake a physical form.”

“I can feel you, through the water- don't you wish to do it yourself?”

The elemental shape is quiet. “Things are more complicated than you know, Aventurine.”

Aventurine raises his eyebrows in small surprise from hearing his own name, “Introductions are due?”

“You know my name.”

“How could I possibly know your name, Veritas?” There it is. He stops, shocked, how do I know that name?

“Did you really think I'd make droplets fall to your lips without leaving my name there? It would've been rude.”

“This feels right- but I know it is wrong- I don't know anything about you.”

“Yes, you do, you just need to think- we have been communicating this whole time.” Within a blink of an eye he leaves, nothing left behind to mark his existence.

The facts list on in Aventurine's mind like pretty organized bullet points, Veritas is a rain deity, cold in nature, knowledgeable, etc.- and the list turns into... Memories? Or perhaps future memories; his mind fills with images, a fact of Veritas' dark blue hair showcased by Aventurine pulling his fingers through it, the high cheekbones shown with his lips on it... Aventurine feels dizzy, leaning back onto the wall of the building for support. What is this? It feels like he left a list, he wouldn't leave the second part as is. What is going on?

Veritas’ eyebrows furrow whilst observing the human. Why is he stumbling over a list- I didn't leave anything of such a mark on it. He didn't drink... Is he feeling ill? He moves past his worry when Aventurine goes inside.

III

One could ask the rain deity when it began, and how it started, this is what he would say.

„Darling… you ask a difficult question,“ Veritas says softly. His gaze shifts lower, and with soft eyes and a small smile he continues, „Allow me to quote a book…I cannot fix on the hour, or the spot, or the look or the words, which laid the foundation. It is too long ago. I was in the middle before I knew that I had begun.“

With a sharp inhale Aventurine wakes up from the dream. He cannot remember what the man looked like and his voice is even fading from his memory. What was this dream- it didn’t feel like a dream. It felt like a memory that hadn’t happened yet. The dizziness he knows from the first time is there again. Luckily he is still lying in bed. From all the given information, he concludes this isn’t the doing of the deity… Veritas. This is something else entirely, frightening and eerie.

Aventurine is now aware of the rain deity, and his strange preference… and whatever they have together. Opening his phone he checks the weather forecast- it will rain. When leaving the apartment building, he leaves his umbrella by the door on purpose.

Aventurine ponders his…memories, visions? under the warm water of the shower head. They feel amazing and real and genuine- and overwhelming, exposing. Why is he seeing them- feeling them… living them?

Going about his day and obligations to the IPC, Aventurine ultimately forgets about today’s forecast until he feels the soft raindrop on his hand. It feels like putting on noise-canceling headphones, everything quiets down and slows down for him. He can feel the lingering touch, “Why don’t you hold my hand yourself?” Aventurine decides to call Veritas out early on; he has grown used to the water hitting his shoulder or shoes, and the rain deity is getting bolder by the day.

Out of the gambler’s sight, Veritas has his hand over his mouth, dumbfounded and astounded at the younger man’s forwardness. The second raindrop meaning to hit Aventurine’s shoe misses and falls beside him- out of pure lack of focus from Veritas, once again frozen and… one would dare say blushed. Much like the previous time the rain falters and falls later than the deity originally planned. Veritas can only observe from the sky as Aventurine smirks and walks cheerfully along; the happy feeling he has clears the sky of its clouds.

When Aventurine decides to go home, he is met with gentle rain outside. He somewhat regrets leaving his umbrella at home. The knowledge of how this communication works puzzles him, for a moment it is there and for a moment it isn’t. He speaks aloud, “Must we dance around like giggling teenagers? I will warn you, I am not a patient man. especially when teased like this.” He regrets saying the last sentence as soon as it leaves his mouth, I am so fucking touch deprived, I should keep my mouth shut.

The same elemental shape, that even if anyone saw would brush it off as nothing, shows up and walks beside Aventurine. “No umbrella?”

This is his moment, he will go all out. It is all or nothing. “I wanted to feel you on my skin.”

Unfortunately for him, Veritas came prepared, “Why don’t you walk naked then?” he asked with a snicker in his soundless tone.

Aventurine tilts his head, “Good one… maybe I should.” He teases, turning his head to look at the shape beside him.

Fortunately for him, Veritas isn’t that well prepared. With a silent cough, he quickly tries to think of something. “You could get ill.”

Aventurine stops in his steps, “Then take a physical form. I may then relish in your warmth” he pretentiously declares.

“Is this really something you want?” Veritas softly asks, or at least it seems soft in Aventurine’s mind. Another memory fills his sight and overwhelms him; his hand on the man’s cheek, breaths mingling- standing together- he can almost make out his eye color, the one of dawn? He can feel the warmth radiating from Veritas’ skin, the frequent how does he know it is frequent? blush in the man’s cheeks warm under his fingertips… Light-headed again. Aventurine blinks a few times, stabilizing in the present again.

There it was again, he almost fainted. Is he alright? “Are you okay? You seem unwell.” Veritas mumbles.

“I’m fine, don’t stress about it” Another typical hand wave from the blond. “Yes, I- I’m sorry, I..” The dizzy feeling threw him off his game, “Can we continue this conversation another time, I have to get home.”

Of course, the rain deity leaves silently.

Veritas is a deity who loves rationalization, thereby he is confused as to why he is so drawn to the human, so defensive over him. What made him make an actual move after a couple of years of silent appreciation passed? It would’ve not been an actual move hadn’t Aventurine called him out on it. Veritas feels like he knows him, like he knew him before… well, before anything he knows at this moment. Like they knew each other elsewhere, spent time together. Why must there be history here and now; to justify his feelings? It is not a crime to love what you cannot explain. I am one with the water and it too flows through me as do the affections I feel.

IV

What can you expect from a gambler than to gamble? And this one uses his life as a chip.

Aventurine exits the worn-down building, made of brown moss-covered bricks, through the side door into an empty alley. A dead end one. He had fun, getting all the hard-earned and well-needed information from the players at the poker table and quite a bit of money.

One of the men followed him out, asking for another round, which Aventurine dismissed with a wave of his hand. They chat along, the man making different suggestions regarding other gambling businesses and potential scams.

“As intrigued as I might be, I prefer to work alone- and, you know, stick to what I know,” Aventurine says with a thousand credit smile.

“Yeah, yeah, understandable- but listen I got this gig- you will love it, it is made for you…” The man’s tone suggests hidden intentions, his body betraying him- the shaky hands, his eyes jumping all over the place… Maybe it is due to the strong smell of cigars and heavy alcohol that clouds Aventurine’s perception, or perhaps the few drinks he had (he isn’t actually drunk, not even tipsy), maybe he is tired or maybe he is just feeling so cocky at that moment that he doesn’t notice the imminent threat.

The rain knows, he- Veritas knows. He recognized the man’s intentions early on and tried to warn Aventurine, to no effect. The time ran out, the man gnarling his teeth and hitting Aventurine’s head, making him lose consciousness and fall limp on the concrete. A heavy downpour with sharp raindrops starts, and those sharp ones of course avoid the blond’s body. As if someone emptied a bucket of water, a curtain forms between Aventurine and the man. He appears surprised, but it doesn’t stop him from taking a step forward before a flash of lightning spooks him for a second. The lightning flash blinds him for another moment, Veritas tries his best to protect the young gambler, but it will not be enough and he knows it. Another flash of white and the curtain of heavy water normalizes, the man’s vision clearing up to see a tall man standing menacingly before him, practically towering above him. He has dark violet hair which is dripping with water, long dark indigo, and blue robes that flow to the ground, and a white shirt that is sticking to his torso. The arm which isn’t under the cover of the robes reveals a well-defined muscular shape. It is strange, the way the tall man appears to be soaked and completely dry at the same time. The water sliding off of his robes like off of a duck’s back, meanwhile, his shirt is stained and his hair drenched. There is power in his presence, the unnatural way he appeared already sent fear down the other man’s spine. Veritas raises his head, the sharp amber dawn-like eyes flashing a light blue when he in a deep voice with a sharp tone commands, “Leave.”

A heavy raindrop falls onto his shoulders, the prior blue sky turning a silvery shade of gray, almost purple. He knows this, what it means, even in his mind he disregards it, waving his hand around; seek shelter, yeah, yeah, it will rain. I’ll live. The conversation continues and a few more heavy raindrops fall onto his frame, unusual. The overblown self-confidence makes him ignore it, ignore the obvious warnings he doesn’t even see. It’s just rain, nothing more. It was never used for anything else except for a sign it would rain. Well except that one time…

Aventurine keeps talking, more raindrops fall- showing the rain is getting impatient, he even feels annoyed with the way it only keeps falling on him and not in the general area.

The man scours away in a blink of an eye. Veritas doesn’t turn back to look at Aventurine, he can hear him inhaling sharply and he disintegrates with the rain, leaving as quickly as he came.

When Aventurine comes to, there’s an ache in his head and his clothes are wet. He is disoriented, confused as to where the man left. His eyes drift to his jewelry and his personal belongings- all safe, all still here. He frowns. What happened? Slowly he stands on his feet, walking away to get a cab. While he stands in the heavy rain he ponders what went on. Was he really warned? It isn’t real, it can’t be real. Rain is just rain. And after all, he is a deity, why would he trouble himself over a mortal? Aventurine enters the vehicle and goes home.

With a yellow soft towel, he is patting his hair dry and looking out the window to the white sky. That man would not leave without robbing him or beating him up, he should’ve been more careful. A deity wouldn’t help. Why would they? They never did in the past.

Despite his thoughts, he doesn’t yell at the sky for explanations or behave like an angry toddler. For some reason, there is a certain amount of respect there. He can’t find it in him to converse in a rude way, even when he doesn’t believe in any of it. At the end of the day, it is just rain, and it isn’t anything special. Aventurine simply writes it off to his luck.

V

Veritas isn’t observing him at this moment. He lets the rain fall heavily down, not caring for it. How dare he be so careless with his life? He scoffs to himself, arms crossed and pacing around. Veritas feels angry and the masked emotion washes off of the rain deity to reveal the worried god underneath it. Thus, when Aventurine walks out on the balcony to grab a jacket left there before the weather changes, a raindrop falls on his cheek caressing it as if to say, don’t do that again.

And it is those simple, intimate moments where Aventurine feels like he is going crazy. How could he possibly explain all of it- or any of it? He felt water on his lips before so why did it that day feel like a kiss? A kiss he wants more of… why did this drop on his cheek feel comforting? No, he is losing it. I am not falling for rain- I cannot ‘fall in love’ with rain, what is going on? The rain stops and he finds himself drawing his fingers to the lingering drops on the outer side of his balcony door. If it isn’t real, why does this feel… like that? Cold droplets turning warm under his fingers, he sighs and leans his forehead on the glass door. Would the rain be able to hug? Maybe I’m just touch deprived… with that he goes back inside and ends his day.

“… if you’ll let me.” Veritas notices the way Aventurine wavers, losing balance as his eyes turn back into focus. “You worry me.” He whispers.

Aventurine is standing under a red umbrella and conversing with Veritas. Both gravitate to each other with slight confusion as to why it feels right- good. They are trying to have a normal conversation, and sort of get to know each other, yet the more they talk the more they realize that they already do know each other.

“I could show you so much, my favorite places; food, music…” Veritas’ voice fades off in Aventurine’s ears- another one of his visions…before the sound switches to normal inside this memory. “I will show you so much, my favorite places; food, music, art, culture- history of the world,” Veritas utters the sentence between kisses he places on Aventurine’s knuckles, looking up at him with a smile. Aventurine laughs, “And I will show you how to have fun- you will learn poker and so many fun, fun games and how to dance-“, Veritas jumps in, “I do know how to dance, and I am incredibly clever I will pick up poker easily for you, my love.” In a cloud of smoke, he loses focus and falls back into reality.

The hand wave every time, “It is jamais vu* from what I managed to find out.”

“From my knowledge, that doesn’t cause dizziness.”

“It is often related to migraines”

“You are not experiencing migraines.”

“How would you know my lack of pain?”

A sigh, “The same way you know things about me.” Veritas prettily forms the sentence to avoid the question he has no answer to. He simply knows, how could he not know?

Aventurine tries not to think about the intimate scenes the memories show him, he doesn’t want to spiral down the rabbit hole. And when he does try to recall how Veritas looked in them, it melts away from his mind like chocolate in the summer sun. The memory stays, with the visual and audible facts fading if he focuses on them too hard. He isn’t allowed to see them yet, is what he believes. The touch, the warmth- that doesn’t go away, it stays, lingering like the raindrops on his fingertips. It feels exactly like Veritas.

An hour later, Aventurine is back at his home, he takes off his jacket- staying in a white button-up shirt. He walks over to the glass doors to the balcony, sliding them open and his fingers drift to the unmoving raindrops on the glass, it takes his full attention… giving him comfort and he closes his eyes, turning the tables as to who is touching who through the raindrops.

Weeks pass with them having conversations and confused thoughts, shifting between yearning, flirting, and curiosity. The air around them stops for a millisecond when Aventurine makes a suggestion, “I want to show you my apartment.” He expressed with a smile, with no ulterior motive, but to show a more private part of himself which is his home. The elemental form, expressionless as ever is silent.

“I am certain you’ve noticed we only converse while it is raining and I take this shape, how would I go inside as this?” Veritas makes an excuse.

“Come in through the balcony- you can stay there if you must drip like that- but there is a way, don’t play dumb with me, oh great rain deity~” He flails his arms about and rolls his eyes with a big smile while he teases Veritas.

The shape disappears due to Veritas losing his concentration and falling to his knees once more from the teasing use of his title.

In his waterfall shape, Veritas appears in front of Aventurine- the gambler didn’t even have to call him, he felt his touch. What a strange feeling…

He stands still as ever, no emotion readable off of his figure, no voice able to be heard. He felt the… teasing way the phantom touch is, and felt a tad impatient- he would have great use of a few breathing exercises at that moment. To reframe his thoughts and ground- instead, he is on the balcony, in a distant form, as he said he would be.

“Why?” Aventurine asks.

“Ah, Veritas. You came! Allow me to show you my home~” Aventurine cheerfully exclaims and steps backward into the apartment, “Unless you plan on bringing the water inside- in which case you can observe through the glass…” Aventurine’s voice fades off exactly when the elemental shape shifts and Veritas takes his actual physical form, taking a step forward into the building, towards Aventurine. His eyes are the colors of dawn… The tall, attractive man steps closer until Aventurine’s back meets the wall behind him. Memories become clearer- the indigo hair, the dark blue robes, the deep baritone voice that soothes his ears- “Is this the form you wished so hard to see?” Veritas tilts his head and raises his eyebrows.

Aventurine is speechless upon the sight of a literal god in front of him. He did expect him to look good, he is attracted to him, but oh dear gods, this is… wow. Why is he standing so close? Aventurine can feel the change in the room’s temperature, turning slightly warmer.

“…yes…uhm, it is good you… changed and now you can get a tour of the place.” It took Aventurine a few moments before he softly answered. His eyes shift around, surprised by the moment, despite it all, his thoughts calmed down since Veritas is physically here. Aventurine feels at peace, safe, and content. Until his eyes fall to Veritas’ lips and everything is out of the window, his head filling with thoughts of how it would feel to actually kiss him. Their breaths are mingling, why is he standing so close? he barely notices his hand moving the Veritas’ side to pull him even closer. The air feels heavy, filled with electricity and the scent of another man which is entirely new, but then again it is a scent he knows all too well from his memories- focus allowing only now to remember it clearly.

To Aventurine’s surprise, he isn’t the only one feeling like this. He watches Veritas summon a raindrop between his fingers and drop it onto his bottom lip. Veritas eyes trained on the way it falls, then closing them relishing in the feeling. It also makes Aventurine close his eyes, and he holds on to not just crash his lips against his.

“I… don’t know,” Veritas admits.

VI

With the droplet still on his bottom lip, Aventurine raises his chin and presses his lips onto Veritas’. The heavy air, frozen, flows again when they connect. Lips opening to get closer, hands hesitant and shaking to bring the other closer, fearing to not get overwhelmed, minds connecting to ask the same question, why does it feel so good… why does it feel right? Aventurine’s hands travel up, one rests on Veritas’ chest and the other one cups his cheek, it is as soft as he recalls. Veritas embraces Aventurine, his arms wrapping around the shorter man’s torso and pulling him closer. Clouds fill the sky and no rain falls. The moment is theirs and it is hidden. It felt like the built-up pressure in the atmosphere right before a storm, was released. The tension loosens up when they finally feel each other’s touch and not through water.

When the kiss ends Aventurine’s head fills with questions such as, how dare he gatekeep this form- why?

Veritas, still close, quietly points out an observation, “Your eyes glow in the dim light.”

“So do yours.” Silence. They spend the next few minutes staring into each other’s eyes, Veritas is the one to break the silence and ask for a tour of the place that was promised.

“You will outlive me. I will die. I am…” he sighs, “just a human. I have, what, maybe 50 years left at best?”

They fit together like puzzle pieces, perfect in every way. Veritas takes his physical form much more often and spends most of his time beside Aventurine, going on walks, dinners, and spending simple time together. Veritas still sends the raindrops to his lips, embracing him through the rain. Their physical affection turns simpler and is shown through occasional lingering fingers and short-lived hand-holding. They find solace in each other’s company much more than anything else. It is another one of the simple days, both sitting on the couch, Aventurine is fidgeting with Veritas’ hands when he asks, “Are you immortal?”

“Hm… what a strange question. I am not immortal in the true sense of the word, I am meant to live forever- well as long as there is rain.” He explains in a gentle tone, causally watching the man caress his fingers.

“I will be by your side through every day then- and after, I will find a way, I will not leave you and you will not leave me- do not worry, dear gambler.”

Beat. Aventurine ever so slightly slumps, leaning back and looking up. “Are you sure?” he presses on in a shaky voice which he desperately tries to hide.

“I promise. I will do my best to make it happen.” Somewhat reassured by his words, Aventurine moves to rest his head on Veritas’ shoulder.

It can’t be all sunshine and rainbows- or in this case, clouds and rain. There’s turmoil happening inside the rain deity. Doubts fill him, guilt poisons his head, and self-consciousness traps him in a spiral of negative thoughts regarding his feelings and actions. He knows all emotions flow through him, water takes on any shape, and therefore at some point in time, it will take the shape of a whirlpool. The rain deity feels chained by his thoughts, trying to solve them- work them out, only for the bounds to get tighter. The days turn into weeks, the rain no longer warning Aventurine- he cannot focus, and the sky turns a shade of dark purple, calling thunder and lightning at times, it is loud, terrifying. Aventurine can’t help but worry, is someone punishing him? Every loud snap and whip sound burns his ears, Aventurine mumbles his name sometimes in distress- to no avail.

Months later, he stands on his balcony. Uninvited, he waits for Aventurine to return home. When he does, most part of the conversation is silent, Aventurine opens the door- sees him, and stares. Thoughts are exchanged without a sound, of Veritas’ pain and regrets, and of Aventurine’s anxiety. Am I even human anymore, why can I do this? He ignores that thought.

“Talk to me next time- let me help-“

“This isn’t something that would be safe to have you around for.”

“I agree, since when do you have control over the thunder and lightning?”

“I do not… When a deity, a sage, a nymph, or whichever being; goes through strong emotional turmoils- their power expands because they lose control over it. I apologize for making you worry.”

“Don’t do that again.”

“I cannot promise it won’t happen again.”

“I’ll make you promise” With furrowed eyebrows and a firm step he walks over, looking up at the rain deity with a frown. He shall put it in words even Veritas will understand, “Lack of your well-being leads to me not feeling good. If you care about me as much as I do about you, you will do better. I expect of you to do better- no better yet- I demand it.” Aventurine stands tall, chin raised and proud, putting a god in his place- equal to him, right by his side. His eyes focused on the man in front of him.

Veritas is weak, too weak to say no- to deny anything Aventurine may wish… He is the air I breathe, how could I ever reject him? His eyes scan his face, not a single tread of fear in the shorter man. Veritas nods, “I will have you near me, next time such a thing occurs. I promise.”

Aventurine’s shoulders relax, he nods to himself and steps back in, “Come inside, you’re cooking tonight.” Veritas politely follows with a shy smile on his face, his eyes looking down at where Aventurine’s fingers are pulling him and leading him inside.

VII

A century passes. Aventurine passed away years ago, and not a day nor night has gone by without Veritas building up his power to summon him here. Until he succeeded. A bright light blinds him, making him turn his head and look elsewhere in the plush, warm-toned clouds he was sitting in. Turning his head back he is met with a smiley Aventurine who immediately jumps and embraces Veritas- making him lie on his back.

“You did it- you actually did it! Took you long enough!” Through warm laughter he greets.

“It was no easy feat. It, indeed, took too long.” Veritas’ arms tighten around Aventurine’s frame, inhaling the scent of the perfume he missed so much, “I missed you- it feels so good to actually feel you- the human realm cannot convey the feeling of touch the way it does here.”

“It does feel different.” Aventurine props his elbow to look at the rain deity better.

“Now, it is a tad more complicated than I… originally explained. You are a… cloud deity now.”

Aventurine tilts his head and narrows his eyes, “A what now?” He laughs softly, “Aren’t you in control of that?”

Veritas slowly explains, “No, I am in control of the rain- and yes while clouds are water- they are not rain. By controlling the rain, I pull also the clouds indeed, but for example- I could never pull a cloud over a desert area where it won’t rain. Whereas, you can. Clouds are timeless and everywhere- you are free to manipulate them- all across the space and time.” He ends it with a smile, “There is no rain without clouds, my dear.”

The pieces all fall into space, their connection, his memories of the future- they have yet to happen right here in these clouds- he saw them happen, the way he felt less and less natural and more supernatural, the way they communicate- he knew Veritas wasn’t controlling that. It is also obvious that the rain deity did not plan for this, it is simply the way it all worked out. He provided them a… forever. The visions made so much sense now- clouds are timeless. It flows for him, time flows- he smiles and kisses Veritas’ cheek. “I knew this would- I- thank you, I am overjoyed to be here with you.”

All the memories become, soon enough, memories. Now, they spend their time almost always in some time of physical contact- hands never separating. They float around and smile at nature, Aventurine very excitedly leads Veritas through old games he had won, teaching him poker and blackjack, they laugh and enjoy this powerful life to the fullest.

On one of those countless days, Veritas takes him to the waterfall and the river, where he had previously begged the nymph to borrow their powers to hold him.

“Ah, Lord of the rain… and Lord of the clouds, what can I do for you today?” The nymph of the river smiles, their hair, the color of a cherry tree, flows with the wind, sending a scent of strawberries. The easygoing smile relaxes both men.

“We were passing by- how did you know about Aventurine?” Veritas is surprised, they do all know each other in the end- maybe it has something to do with his partner’s time-related affinities.

“It is written, the Lord of the rain will bring forth the Lord of the clouds. And no matter when he is brought forth, he shall be gifted the control of time so he has always been with us.” They say without a tremor in their voice like it is a well-known fact.

“I have not read this in the writing, Ro.” Veritas crosses his arms, mentally recalling every line in the very long text.

“You cannot know the lines which refer to you. Just as I didn’t know the ones that were related to me and my Lady of the Flower lotus.” Ro nods, the smile unmoving from their face, they seem at peace, content… happy. The beings of nature live pleasurable lives, and Aventurine feels fond of it.

“Wait- you have told me the previous time I was here that you loved a human and no one as well had borrowed you their powers to come closer- is this the same Lady? You didn’t tell me of this.” Veritas continues, Aventurine floats off to the familiar beach and jumps in the water, partaking in his old physical form. “I mean, I was aware of what was written… The nymph of the river will love the flower lotus.”

“Veritas, we have been over this, do not fret- enjoy the Lord of the clouds- and I shall go have tea with my Lady, it is late afternoon and I refuse to keep them waiting. I’d be more than happy to have you two join us, but I am afraid we won’t have enough biscuits for today- how does tomorrow sound?”

Veritas nods. “Enjoy your time, Ro. Tomorrow is fine.” Veritas leaps out of the clouds, taking his physical form as well and diving into the water. Aventurine is quick to swim over and put his arms on Veritas’ shoulders, “The water feels amazing, and you look good like this- we should go swimming more often~”

“Don’t belittle me, you just like the sight of me shirtless,” Veritas smirks, and Aventurine chuckles. Veritas moves his arms to his lower back.

“Mhm~ Yes I do, doctor” Aventurine moves closer to kiss him, there are drops of water on their lips and they mix along with the kiss, the sun shines brightly illuminating the water's surface and the wind blows over their shoulders. What a perfect world they got so lucky to exist in- together and in love.

VIII (alternative ending)

Aventurine’s eyes suddenly open, with a hollow chest and faster breathing than normal. He turns to his side to see Veritas already awake, his hand on Aventurine’s cheek wiping away… tears?

“Bad dream, darling?” He whispers.

“No- I… a lovely dream. I don’t know why I am crying…” He moves closer to Veritas, seeking his warmth, “You were a rain deity and I suppose the tears might be happy ones?... It feels like a beautiful world was ripped away from me… It was so real.”

“A rain deity? You truly have creative dreams…” Ratio pulls his head into his chest, hand in the blond locks soothing his partner. “You have me here, I am not going anywhere.” A soft kiss is placed on the crown of his head.

“I love you… thank you for being here. It was a nice dream, maybe somewhere utopian where it is all perfect and where we could be happy… it was a bit unrealistic but comforting. Although I could feel you were missing something, you also were human before you became a deity so perhaps you didn’t recall what drove you. Your motivation for knowledge and spreading it- I missed it in the dream.” Aventurine draws small circles on Veritas’ chest. The digital clock shows 3 am, they should go back to sleep.

“I love you too,” He whispers.

“When did you… when did you realize it? That you… ‘loved’?” Aventurine inquires, a sleepy mind asks strange questions.

“What a strenuous question…” Veritas answers softly, his eyes travel lower to meet the colorful ones of his partner, his own softening when they meet. With a small smile, he goes on, “To quote a wonderful writer; I was in the middle before I knew that I had begun.”

Tiredly, Ratio nods and freezes once the words register in his head, “Mhm, yes, wait what- excuse me? That I will do what now?” The surprise is evident in his voice.

Aventurine’s eyes widen, dreams spill over into reality and every scene flashes before his eyes, he feels overwhelmed, his head running around with so many thoughts…

“I hope you will even in this reality kiss me in the form of rain.”

“Hush, go to sleep- I have an interview in the morning.” With a quiet grumble he listens to Aventurine and goes back to sleep.

a/n: s/o to J. Austen for being an amazing author; the quote is from the book called Pride and Prejudice, *jamais vu - a French loanword meaning "never seen", is the phenomenon of experiencing a situation that one recognizes in some fashion, but that nonetheless seems novel and unfamiliar

tags under:

@starfall-reef

[berryhobii]

Clouds (jhs x reader)

Pairing: Jung Hoseok x black!female!reader

Word Count: 6K+

Warnings: heavy angst, metaphors and illusions of depression, mentions of autism/depression/sociopathic disorders, mentions of the mistreatment of black women in medical situations(bc this very much still happens), overbearing mothers(but she comes from a good place I swear), feelings of being incomplete, feelings of inadequacy, a very bad date, mentions of fetishizing black women, Hoseok being a ray of sunshine, CRYING, mentions of codependency(bc it’s a soulmate au), one kiss but it’s very sweet, lots of rain and sun metaphors

A/N: Hi hi! I’m back with this sobfest of a fic 🥹 I swear I did not mean to make this this sad, it just kind of happened. I rewrote it a bunch of times and finally flowed on his particular idea. I love soulmate au’s, especially the cute ones with a countdown timer but I wanted to try something different. Something not as overt while still keeping the spirit of a soulmate au which is finding your other half. This is also a shoutout to all of the black people who suffer from depression. I know us being depressed isn’t taken as seriously especially to our families. Mental health isn’t taken seriously in black communities altogether and I really hope that will change. I see so many of us breaking generational curses; with our children, our friends, our relationships, and ourselves. I love seeing it. If you’re non black and read this, I hope it gives you some insight as well. To my black and melanated readers, I hope my stories can give you some comfort outside of just BTS. I hope you feel represented, I hope you feel important, and I hope you feel loved. Because you are all of those things🩵🩵much love. Stay safe. Criticism is always appreciated.

~

Dull. Stagnant. Lifeless.

That’s how you’d describe your world.

Each minute passed slower than the last, the monotony of your days only broken up by the arrival of the night. You didn’t even dream. Sleep was purely a necessity for you; you couldn’t escape to the vividness of a dream because color didn’t exist in your world.

You’ve accepted it. Accepted that you’d simply exist, drifting as another human among the billions of others. There was nothing special about you nor did you have any qualities people desired to interact with you for.

Mundane. Indifferent. Uniform.

That was you. Plain ol’ you.

“Are you okay, baby?” The voice of your mother called from the doorway of your childhood bedroom.

Rain pattered against the window, your gaze following whatever drop you found most interesting. You’d follow it until it disappeared or until it merged with other drops, the combined weight causing it to cascade faster down the glass.

You wished you could be a raindrop. Falling from the sky to nurture the earth then returning upward to form clouds. Then at least, you’d be useful. You could help plants grow, overfill the streaming rivers, bring relief to dry deserts.

Raindrops were so important.

You tore your eyes away from the window, looking at your mother. “I’m fine, mama.”

You could say that but she knew it wasn’t true. She also knew that asking you too many questions only resulted in her own emotional breakdown.

Why was her baby like this? What was wrong with you? Why did you look at her like she was just a stranger?

Swallowing back her tears, she managed a tiny smile. “The food is ready. It’s baked chicken, your favorite.”

Was that your favorite meal? You didn’t even know. Food didn’t matter much to you. It just kept you alive.

“Okay. I’ll be down in a second.” You said before turning back to the window, only to find the rain had let up. A light drizzle.

Your mother didn’t say anything, just backed out of the room, a single tear rolling down her face.

When you were born, the doctor’s considered you kind of a strange child. Not only was your mother’s entire labor pain free but you didn’t cry coming from the womb. You were breathing and all of your senses were completely fine.

You just wouldn’t cry.

You didn’t cry when you were hungry or wet, not even when you fell and hurt yourself. You felt pain but you didn’t cry.

Lots of people chalked it up to you just being a well behaved and calm kid. That should have been a blessing to your parents, right? A kid who didn’t cry or throw tantrums to do regular stuff kids did. Your parents should be so lucky.

But your mother knew something was wrong. That perpetual blank stare you always had, how you never smiled or found any real interest in toys or television, how you kind of just drifted around. You reminded her of a still flower on a rippling pond; so beautiful but unaffected by things around you.

She consulted many doctors on possible reasons for your seeming lack of emotions.

Were you chronically depressed? Did you have a sociopathic disorder? Were you autistic?

Maybe. Perhaps. A possibility.

Nothing was set in stone.

It even hit a point where your parents just completely lost hope. They still loved you the same. They’d just have to accept that you were the way you were.

But then your mother took you to see one final doctor who cleared up every suspicion anyone ever had.

Soulmates.

Less than 0.0001 percent of the population were comprised of these special people. However, there was so little information on this phenomena that affected such a minuscule portion of the population. Did a such thing even exist?

Your father was skeptical. He thought you just had some sort of mental problem and that the doctors were misdiagnosing you. He worked in the medical field and he knew black women were more likely to be mistreated. He believed they just didn’t care.

But your mother believed. What else could she do? She was holding on to the little ray of hope that you could get better.

Soulmates were opposites of one another in a multitude of ways. Sometimes it could be something as simple as height or biological sex, other times it could be complex like gender or religious affiliation.

And in serious cases like yours, it could be something as deep as the very fibers of your being.

You were incomplete without your soulmate. Only they could shine the light and illuminate the darkness that surrounded you.

The only problem is there was really no identifying factors that could help find your soulmate. No marks, no red string, nothing.

And with so many people all over the world, the chance of you finding them was almost nonexistent.

But your mother wouldn’t give up. She’d fix you.

~

“He’s a very nice boy. His mother says he’s upbeat and friendly too. He might be the one.” Your mother gushed as she removed another flexi-rod from your hair, her oiled fingers working carefully to unravel each one.

You didn’t say anything, staring ahead into the mirror in front of you. You had become used to seeing your made up face; foundation, concealer, highlight and whatever color eyeshadow matched the outfit she chose for you. You didn’t really care but your mother insisted you wear some to impress your date.

That’s why she was doing all of these preparations; to send you on yet another date in hopes of finding your soulmate.

Now that your mother knew the cause of your “ailment”, she was working overtime to find whoever they were. So far, you’ve met 41 people, male and female, multiple ethnicities, and all from different backgrounds. The only thing that tied them together was that each other them were happy and bright people. Each of them were social and loved by many. That had to be who your soulmate was, right?

All of these people and meetings and you’ve yet to find your other half. Your mother had been expanding her social circle in search of the person who would “heal” you; children of close friends, children of friends of close friends, even random people she’d overhear talking about their own children. She was on a mission and nothing would stand in her way.

Your mother completed the final touches on your hair, her smile wide.

“Look at how beautiful you are.”

She told you that often, ever since you were a little girl. Words of affirmation recited to you in an attempt to build your self confidence.

You guessed it must be true since she said it everyday.

You didn’t say anything again, her smile faltering just a tad but quickly widening again. She retrieved a simple necklace off the vanity, clasping it around your neck.

“There. Perfect.”

Suddenly, the doorbell rang and your mother sprang into action.

“He’s here! Come come.” She beckoned you with a frantic hand.

You stood from the chair, following her out of the room and to the living room. She handed you your purse and draped a shawl over your shoulders.

“Okay, you’re ready. Remember your manners and smile, okay?”

You nodded. “Yes.”

She pulled you into a hug, squeezing you tightly as she always did. Affection wasn’t really something you minded nor did you reciprocate it. Your parents hugged you all the time but you never really felt anything. You understood it was how people showed affection and love, the internet told you that.

You just didn’t get it. You didn’t feel it.

But you hugged her back anyway.

You stood there in her embrace for 23 seconds longer before she released you. Her hand came up to cup your cheek, her thumb running across the apple of it.

Her smile was gentle but it didn’t reach her eyes, that glossy sheen always misting her eyes. Your mother cried a lot but never in front of you. You could sometimes hear her or find her wiping away tears if you’d enter the room, that smile always pulling at her lips acting as if nothing was wrong.

It confused you. It was obvious she was cried so why did she hide it?

Oh well.

“Have fun, okay?”

Opening the door, you found date number 42 standing there. He was dressed sharply in a crisp suit, hair gelled back out of his face, a bouquet of flowers in his hands.

His mouth dropped when he saw you, eyes traveling from your feet to the top of your head.

“Wow.” He breathed out. “You look stunning.”

Remembering your manners, you answered, “Thank you.”

Clearing his throat, he held out the flowers to you. “These are for you.”

You took the bouquet from him then you remembered something your mother drilled into you.

“Always smile when someone gives you flowers. It means you appreciate them.”

Wasn’t saying thank you the appreciation?

Still, you put a smile on your face. A practiced smile that you’d rehearse in the mirror under your mother’s watch.

“They are lovely. Thank you.” You tried to add some inflection to your voice to sound grateful but it just came out robotic.

If number 42 noticed, he didn’t say anything, simply taking your thank you for what it was.

Holding out his arm, he asked, “ready to go? Our reservation is soon.”

Nodding, you placed your hand on his arm and let him escort you out of the door and down to his car. He opened the door for you, helping you inside and even making sure you put on your seatbelt before closing your door. He rounded to the driver’s seat and got in, buckling himself in and starting the car before pulling off.

“I hope you like seafood. The restaurant we’re going to has the best seafood pasta.”

You didn’t dislike it. Food was food to you. It was simply sustenance.

You stared out of the window as he began rambling about his favorite restaurants. You blankly watched the scenery pass, not really taking note of anything. Just watching.

Then you saw a raindrop hit your window, followed by a few more.

You heard your date make a noise of concern. “I didn’t think it would rain. Hopefully it’s only a drizzle. I hate when it rains. Don’t you?”

“No.”

He glanced over at you, a little chuckle coming from him. “Ah you’re one of the ones who like rain, huh? Why? It’s cold and wet and makes you sick.”

You continued to watch the drops patter against the window.

Yes rain was cold. It passes through a thin layer of cold air before falling to the earth. Yes rain was wet. It was water.

But rain was also….

“Rain is important.”

He snorted. “I guess so. It’s just inconvenient in cities.”

Inconvenient, huh?

You didn’t say anything in response to him, silence engulfing the inside of the car.

He coughed to break the air before reaching for the radio. A low pop song began playing through the speakers, not doing anything to alleviate the awkwardness but doing everything to prevent any more conversation.

Thankfully(for him), you arrived at the restaurant just minutes after. The rain was still at a very light drizzle which was good since he didn’t bring an umbrella.

He opened your door, holding out his arm to help you out.

The restaurant was nice on the inside. It reminded you a lot of the places your parents would take you for birthdays or graduations.

Clean. Fancy. Stuffy.

You both approached the hostess that sat behind a podium. She greeted you both with a bright smile.

“Welcome to Rêverie. Do you have a reservation?”

“I do. Two under Lee Jihyun.”

Oh yeah. That was his name.

She scrolled through her tablet. “Ah yes. Right this way.”

She led you through tables filled with other patrons. For a Thursday night, this place certainly was busy.

Jihyun pulled out your chair and you thanked him before sitting down.

“Your waiter will be with you shortly.” The hostess said, bowing and then walking away.

After removing his suit jacket and draping it over the back of his chair, he turned to face you.

“So, y/n. Tell me about yourself.”

That was an open statement. You didn’t know what to say.

So you questioned, “what do you want to know?”

He tapped his chin in faux thought, a little inquiring smirk on his face.

“Hmm….what’s your favorite food?”

“I don’t have one.”

His smile dropped a little but he remained positive. Letting out an awkward chuckle, he ran a hand through his hair.

“Okay. What’s your favorite color?”

“I don’t have one.”

You saw the little twitch in his brow. Your father did that sometimes when he was really focused on his work. He told you it was because he was annoyed or frustrated with something.

Was Jihyun annoyed or frustrated with you?

“Then where are you from?”

“Chicago.”

He exhaled some air through his nose, tilting his head a little. This was getting nowhere.

At that moment, a waiter came to your table with 2 glasses of water and some menus.

“Hello there. I’ll be your waiter today. Can I start you off some drinks?”

Jihyun seemed to perk up at the arrival of the waiter, his smile returning full force.

“Yes we are. I’ll take a glass of your finest red wine.” Then he looked to you. “And for you? A glass of wine?”

You didn’t drink alcohol. Mainly because you just didn’t like it.

“No. I’ll keep my water. Thank you.”

The waiter nodded. “I’ll be right back with those and to take your order.”

Now you two were left alone again. Great.

A silence just as thick and uncomfortable as the one in the car encompassed your table.

Jihyun drummed his fingers on the table, thoughts racing as he tried to think of a conversation topic to get you talking. Then it hit him.

“Your mom set this date up, right? My mom’s been hounding me about settling down. What about you?” He curiously inquired.

He didn’t know? Hmm.

“She’s searching for my soulmate. She said that I’ll be happy if I find them.”

That seemed to spark his interest. “Soulmate?”

You nodded. “Yes.”

He tapped his finger again. “So…..how exactly does that work?”

You barely knew fully. The doctor who diagnosed you could only explain so much since soulmates still aren’t very common or explicitly studied.

“I can’t express or feel most emotions, specifically ones of joy or sadness. Whoever my soulmate is is the opposite of me. That’s why my mother set you and I up.”

He let that information soak in. His mother didn’t say anything about this. All she told him was that a friend of hers had a gorgeous daughter. And if he was being honest, he was pretty curious about dating a black woman.

You certainly were beautiful and your poofy hair was interesting looking.

Your personality though? It left a lot to be desired. He was expecting you to be a little sweeter, more responsive to him. You didn’t even react at seeing his super expensive car nor did you say anything about the restaurant. He was putting a lot of money into this date so he was expecting more.

At least you were pretty.

Now as for this soulmate business. It didn’t make a lot of sense to him. Of course he’s heard about soulmates but he thought it was a load of crap.

Then again, you were strange. You were expressionless and lackluster. Your monotone answers showed your lack of interest and you’ve only smiled once since he met you.

Maybe you did have a soulmate. No one could be this boring without reason.

Well, your personality didn’t really matter. You weren’t ugly, that’s all he was concerned about.

He snorted, waving a hand around. “You don’t have to worry about that. You have me now. I’m all you need.” He reached a hand over to cup your chin. “As long as you listen to me and stay pretty, it’ll be fine.”

Listen? Stay pretty? You already did that.

Your objective wasn’t either of those things. It was to find your soulmate; the person who was your other half.

The person who would help you.

“You’re not my soulmate. What could you offer me?”

His eyebrow twitched again, a forced laugh falling from his lips. He released your chin and leaned back in his chair.

“Ha! What do I have to offer? I have plenty.” He bragged with a huff and a flare of his nostrils.

But what? What could he offer you? Your mother said that only your soulmate could give you what you really needed. This man obviously wasn’t it so what could he give you? Why were you even still here?

“Never leave a date early. It’s rude.”

What was the point? Wasn’t the goal of this date to figure out if he was your soulmate? He wasn’t so why couldn’t you leave? All the lessons from those etiquette classes your mother instructed you to sit through danced around your head.

“You aren’t my soulmate. There’s nothing you could give me.”

That really seemed to piss him off because he was suddenly slamming his hands down on the table. The force caused your water to shake, the liquid rippling in the glass.

“How dare you?! I take you on this fancy date and try to be nice to you and you insult me like this? You should feel grateful I even entertained the thought of meeting you.” He ranted spitefully, his entire face blazing red and veins popping out of his forehead.

Grateful? You should feel grateful? How did you do that?

Other patrons were startled by your date’s sudden outburst, whispers and mutters sounding around the restaurant.

That’s when the hostess appeared at your table.

“Sir, please calm down or I’ll have to ask you to leave.” She attempted to soothe him, holding up her hands as if calming a wild horse.

But your date wasn’t hearing any of it. His anger was too much to contain right now.

He pointed at you. “I only went on a date with you because my mom said you were pretty but she didn’t tell me you were so disrespectful. She also said your mother was desperate to marry you off and that she’s been trying to push you on any person she could.” He bellowed with a hearty and mocking laugh. “Just how many people have you been with already?”

“41. You’re number 42.” You answered simply and that took his irritation from a 100 to a 101.

Letting out a growl of frustration, he stood from the table, grabbing his jacket and practically snatching it on his body.

“You know what? I don’t need this! I have plenty of women lined up for me. I thought dating a black girl would be exciting but you’re seriously a bore. I’m leaving.”

He stomped away from the table, leaving you alone and letting the mind’s of the strangers surrounding you racing.

Just as you were about to get up to leave, he came back to the table, snatching the flowers he gave you earlier from the surface.

“And give me these back!”

Ah. There goes number 42. Your mother would probably get that look on her face again. That misty look in her eyes…..that she’d just cover with a smile and reassure you that she’d find someone else for you.

Again and again. Over and over.

Out of the corner of your eye, you saw your waiter shuffling back over, a small brown bag in his hands.

“Um, we won’t charge you for the wine since it never reached the table.” He stated nervously, worried that you’d blow up next at his words.

“Okay.”

He then placed the bag on the table. “Please take this red velvet cake. It’s on the house.”

~

The rain was pouring when you stepped out of the restaurant. The awning outside protected you from the brunt of the downpour but you could still feel the drops hitting your bare legs.

You should call a cab. A cab would take you home.

Home.

As if they had a mind of their own, your feet carried you out into the heavy rain. The harsh drops hurt your skin but you continued.

Cold rain soaked through your clothes and all the way down to your shoes, goosebumps rising across your skin but it didn’t bother you.

Nothing did. Maybe that was your main problem.

The stares of people you walked by didn’t bother you. The chill of the rain didn’t bother you. The pain of your feet in these heels didn’t bother you.

Why? Why were you like this? Why couldn’t you feel anything?

“Because you’re broken.”

That’s right. You were broken. Like a porcelain ballerina on a music box; anyone could see how poised and perfect you were, a true sight to see. Sparkling and beautiful, their expectations were high but when they turned your key…..

No music came out. The inner workings of your soul were rusted and stiff, your heart merely a muscle that pumped blood through your veins, your life just something you lived.

You had no purpose. You didn’t exist for anything. You were just a doll, one that would collect dust in an antique case until the end of time.

Your feet slowed to a stop, the assault of the rain feeling like daggers against your skin. You tilted your head back to stare up into the dark sky.

You wished you could be a raindrop. You just wanted to fall and then go back to the sky.

At least then you wouldn’t be so useless. You wouldn’t make your mother cry. You wouldn’t be a burden.

You wouldn’t be incomplete.

“Hey are you okay?”

Your ears itched so you lifted your hand to scratch at it.

“Why are you out here without an umbrella? It’s pouring.”

Why were your ears so itchy? Did you need to clean them?

“Did the rain come out of nowhere for you too? The forecasts are so unreliable sometimes, huh?”

You didn’t understand. Why was……why…..?

Your head slowly came down from its craned position and your heart did something other than simply beat.

It squeezed.

Something you’ve never felt before jolted through your entire body, so powerful and consuming that your knees buckled. You stumbled forward a little, the grip on the bottom of your heels doing nothing to keep your upright.

“Oh hey! Are you alright?”

Then you were met with warmth. No, something more than that.

Heat. Body scorching and all encompassing heat engulfed your body. It felt like someone had poured gasoline over you and a lit a match.

A hand touched your arm and that heat spread like a hot brand across your skin. You couldn’t even feel the coldness of the rain that soaked your clothes and skin anymore. It was like someone wrapped a warm towel straight out of the dryer around you.

“Hey….”

Slowly, as if this bubble you formed would burst, you leaned your head back to look into a pair of eyes so iridescent and dazzling that you thought you were staring right at a cluster of stars.

Like the sun after rain, a rainbow stretching across the blue sky.

It was him. He had found you.

You two stayed locked in eye contact for a very long moment. The world seemed to fade away, not even the sound of rain or honking cars could bring you back.

Then like a ray of sunshine, he smiled but unlike your mother or other people you’ve met, this smile held no sadness, no pain, no ulterior motives.

It was pure. It was beautiful.

“Have you been waiting long for me? I’m sorry.” He lifted the hand that wasn’t holding the umbrella to cup your cheek, his thumb wiping away a stray raindrop.

Then the dam broke and for the first time in your entire life, you did something you never thought you’d be able to do.

You cried.

Loud and heart wrenching, as thunderous and roaring as the storm you two were in. Every emotion you’ve never felt since birth swelled in your chest, traveling up your throat and out of your mouth as you let out wails of sorrow.

Wails of joy. Wails of anguish. Wails of strife. Wails of gratitude.

You cried.

And he held you, shielding you from the rain and holding the broken pieces of you together before you could fall apart again.

His hand stroked your back up and down as he hummed a song to you. “It’s okay. Let it out. I know it’s been hard for you. I’m here now.”

Yes. He was here. He found you. You’d be okay.

~

The sound of a phone ringing woke you from your haze of sleep. Your head felt fuzzy and your body felt heavy.

Where were you?

Lifting your arm, you felt around the nightstand until you touched the object you were searching for. You turned on your side, bringing your phone to your face, eyes squinting at the brightness.

Mama.

Why was she calling you? Wasn’t she in the next room?

Pressing the answer button, you held the phone to your ear.

“Hello?”

“y/n! y!n, where are you? My friend just called me and told me you had a falling out with Jihyun. Are you okay? You didn’t even come home. I thought something happened to you.”

Jihyun? Oh yeah, your date. The memories of that awful dinner were starting to come back to you. You couldn’t even call it dinner since you didn’t even eat but whatever.

“Sorry, mom. He left me at the restaurant and it started raining really hard so I….” Your train of thought derailed, more memories of last night flowed into your brain.

Jihyun leaving you. Your walk in the rain. Bumping into someone.

That feeling in your chest….

Your soulmate! You found them. You never went home. You went with them instead.

“y/n? Is everything okay?” Your mother questioned with concern laced in her voice.

You felt something move behind you and you remembered everything.

“Mama, I promise I’m fine. I’ll be home later, okay?”

You couldn’t see the look of confusion on her face but you could feel it was there. “Uh, alright honey. Be careful. I love you.”

You smiled, feeling tears prick your eyes as your heart rapidly pounded in your chest.

“I will. I love you too, mama.”

And you did. You loved her so much. You could feel it.

Just like how you could feel her own tears even after you hung up the phone.

After placing your phone back on the nightstand, you paused and sat in silence for a moment.

So many feelings and thoughts rushed through your body like a rapid stream, rain had fallen and filled the cavern that was your soul, overflowing every empty crevice and nourishing the flora that had been withered and dry. With these new and unfamiliar feelings expanding, it almost hurt.

You were happy that it hurt though because that meant you were feeling.

You could feel now. You were so unexplainably happy.

Turning back to your other side, your eyes met the sleeping form of the person who made all of this possible.

Reaching a hand out, your fingertips grazed over his cheek. You could still so vividly remember how the cheekbone rounded when he graced you with that breathtaking smile. You wanted to see it again. You wanted to learn about what makes him smile, what makes him happy, what makes him sad.

You wanted to understand his feelings.

Your finger traced all across his face; his eyebrows, his nose, his lips, his chin. As if you were trying to memorize each atom of his face.

A part of this felt like a dream, one you were afraid you’d wake up from but if you did, you still think you’d be happy. Happy because at least you had this much. If this was a dream, you wouldn’t mind because this dream would be precious to you.

With another touch of his eyelids, he flinched causing you to do the same. His hand lifted to rub at his face, grumbles and mumbles coming from his lips. You watched as he stretched his body before flopping back down and then his eyes cracked open.

Your breath hitched in your throat, heart going crazy in your chest and another swell of emotions you couldn’t place surging as well.

He blinked sleepily before his eyes finally landed on you. Staring into the brown irises brought that heat back but even stronger this time. You didn’t really understand it but you wanted to.

“Oh, you’re awake? Did you sleep well?” His light voice croaked as he rubbed the drowsiness out of his eyes.

You nodded. “I did. Did you?”

Then he smiled and your heart squeezed.

“Yeah. I did too. For the first time in a while.”

There was a hint of something in his words but you couldn’t place it.

“Do you have a hard time sleeping?”

He looked up at the ceiling, staring as if it held the solution to all of his problems.

“Yeah.”

You felt like he had more to say and you were about to ask a follow up question when the sound of your stomachs growling interrupted.

His smile was bright and his laughter was contagious. “Are you hungry? I can make us some breakfast.”

“That sounds great.”

~

“I’m Hoseok, by the way.” He said as he placed a fried egg on a plate and then served it to you.

He let you shower first, even letting you wear some of his clothes since the dress you wore last night was still soaked through. You were actually already wearing a large t shirt of his and a pair of boxers that he leant you, both brand new of course. A part of you didn’t even want to shower because you didn’t want him to leave your eyesight. You finally found him and all you wanted to do was admire him and be close to him. He felt exactly the same but he was starving since he didn’t eat dinner last night. And now that you thought about it, neither did you.

Now you were both in his kitchen while he whipped up breakfast.

You didn’t even realize you never asked him his name. Hearing it now flared that heat in your heart again.

Hoseok. It was nice. It fit him.

“I’m y/n.”

He smiled at you again. You really liked seeing him smile.

“That’s beautiful. You’re beautiful.”

You’ve been hearing that for years, all your life really but hearing him say it, you truly believed it. From his lips, it sounded sincere, like he was looking past just your physical appearance.

He was looking at you. All of you.

“I have a question.” He said as he ate a blueberry.

You hummed in acknowledgment, letting him know he could continue.

“Why were you out in the rain like that?”

Any other time, you wouldn’t have hesitated to give the answer but your words got caught when he asked. Should you even tell him? Would he get upset? Why did you feel so guilty?

He noticed your hesitation and it was like he could see the cogs turning in your head. He didn’t quite understand you yet. What were you experiencing before you met him? What were the effects of your incomplete soulmate bond?

You felt a hand place itself over yours where it rested on the table, your eyes lifting from your half eaten breakfast to meet those sweet eyes.

“You can tell me. I promise I’ll accept whatever you say. I’ll accept you.”

Tears prickled at your waterline but you didn’t let them fall. You felt like if you cried again, you’d never stop.

Taking a deep breath, you admitted, “I was on a date.” When he didn’t say anything, you continued. “My mom would set me up on dates in order to find my soulmate. I was on one with this guy and he left me at the restaurant. I was about to go home but something told me to start walking.”

He listened intently, a little burst of anger firing in his heart at whatever asshole left you by yourself like that. He couldn’t help but feel a little relieved, however. Because if they didn’t leave you, he probably wouldn’t have found you.

“I see. I’m sorry that happened to you.”

“I’m not.” You quickly responded, moving your hand so your fingers could entwine with his. A look of surprise crossed his face, his gaze going to your linked hands. His own heart thudded wildly like a stampede.

Then you smiled and what an absolutely wonderful smile it was.

“Then I’m not either.”

You two tucked back into your food in silence, hands still locked on the table.

“I have a question too.”

“Yeah?”

“Why were you out in the rain?”

He made a noise, shrugging his shoulder and finishing off the last of his breakfast. “I couldn’t sleep so I took a walk. It started raining on my way back home. There was a convenience store on my way so I got an umbrella there.” He explained as if it was so simple but something told you it wasn’t.

“Why couldn’t you sleep?”

What a good question.

“Whenever I try to sleep, I get this overwhelming feeling that keeps me up. It’s like…..I’m always uncomfortable.”

“Uncomfortable?” You parroted.

He hummed. “Like whenever I try to sleep, I can’t. It feels like….something was missing.”

“Like what?”

He pondered in thought for a moment, trying to figure out how to explain it to you. He’s been asked that question before and he could never quite answer. To him, showing emotion came so easily. He could empathize with most; he cried when others did, he rejoiced when he was happy, he got angry when something didn’t go his way. All of it came naturally to him.

But when it was time to shut those feelings down and rest, he couldn’t. He took walks often as a way to both clear his head and try to tire himself out. He slept sometimes but never more than a couple of hours, those feelings always startling him awake again. He slept but he didn’t rest.

Something was keeping him awake. Something was missing. Something that he didn’t have.

His eyes left his empty plate to finally lock on the beauty of you. With you, all of those conflicting feelings calmed down. They settled in his heart, that heavy weight that once constricted him now lifted. Like when you curled up next to a window, a book in your lap and a blanket over your shoulders as a gentle rain fell.

“Peace.”

A soft smile stretched across his face, his eyes holding so many feelings that he’s always been able to express but never truly able to receive. Looking at you now, he knew he could have it all now.

He could have peace. The reason he couldn’t sleep was because there were too many emotions storming around him, leaving him lost in the torrent of his own life. He had friends who loved him, family who supported him, and bonds that could never be broken but even with all of that, he still lacked one thing.

One person.

You.

He rounded his small kitchen island until he was standing next to you, his hand that wasn’t holding yours moving to cup the back of your neck. He leaned down just a little. Your lips were so close, a few centimeters closer and they’d touch. A frenzy of everything was happening in both of your bodies; anticipation, fear, passion, and more things neither of you could make.

His eyes flickered from your lips to your eyes, back and forth.

“I’m so glad I found you.” He whispered.

“I’m glad you found me too.”

And just like that, your lips joined. As did your hearts, as did your souls, as did your beings.

Complete.

Like the sun shining through the clouds after a rainy day and the rain returning to cover the sun, you two fit together in a delicate cycle.

One that could never be broken.

The sun. The rain. The earth. The sky. The moon. Red. Purple. Orange. Green.

Blissful. Confusing. Playful.

The colors that made up your world were bright now.

All thanks to your sun ☀️

[sacredjake]

Carpe Noctem

pairing: Jake Kiszka x Siren!Reader

warnings: MDNI 18+!!! blood, death, killing, angst, cursing, supernatural elements, brief mention of weapons and minor assault, guilt, talk of dying, smut, fluff, soulmate au

word count: 13.8k

This fic will display themes of death and killing, and i will do my best to tag every warning, but if i miss one please, please, please bring it to my attention.

As Nympha Legatus of your pod you must do what it takes to complete the duty bestowed upon you and your sisters. Even if it means killing the man you love. Will fate continue to haunt you or will you give in to what you truly desire?

a/n: this fic has been almost a month in the making and even longer in the brainstorming stage and i am so excited to share it with everyone! thank you @malany-gvf for always helping me talk out the ideas i have. huge, massive thank you to @gold-mines-melting for giving endless feedback, support and suggestions and taking time to read this and edit it. i appreciate and love you both so much, thank you from the bottom of my heart <33333

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Light from the full moon overhead illuminated your already glistening skin every so often as clouds passed by. The silver rays that shone upon you reflected a scene like the ocean you had emerged from, like moonlight glittering off the waves. The night was misty, rain falling lightly as your pod walked through the streets towards the closest club or bar. Forgoing the need for a coat, raindrops dotted the exposed areas and rolled off seamlessly disguising the naturally dewy texture of your skin. 

The rain was purposeful, a product of your magic to blend in better with the humans. If not for that you would look even more out of place with the way your skin looked wet even when dry. It was also a way to ensure everyone was hydrated and avoided drying out. While a quarter of you would not return tonight, at least it would not be from lack of water. 

Scuffing from shoes on gravel and rocks being kicked were the only sounds echoing through the dark streets. Some of your sisters were still getting their bearings, it being their first night on legs and all, stumbles were to be expected. Wearing shoes was a major adjustment, but to fit in, shoes were a necessity. 

Oh how you missed the days when the humans walked around barefoot. Things were so much simpler then. Before him. 

You shook the memory out of your head before it snowballed any further. Now was not the time for that. Focus. 

Red light caught your eye as it reflected off puddles and the shiny black gravel. Your eyes followed the trail, landing on multiple different neon signs lighting up the club your pod approached. Like you had expected there to be, a long line formed outside the bar of humans waiting to get inside. At the front stood a tall, large man wearing a tight black shirt and jeans with his arms crossed looking over the line. 

Sarenya stopped beside you, and your sisters who followed closely behind mirrored both your actions. She turned to face the pod as you eyed the bouncer a bit longer, sizing him up. When she began to speak you turned around and met the faintly glowing eyes of your younger sisters. 

Another distinguishing trait that showed you were not human. 

Nymph’s eyes were usually different from the humans’. The color of one’s eyes determined their age and their status. While a siren’s eyes were green in the early stages of their life, red during their middle age and silver in their later years, a mermaid’s eyes were blue, purple and then gold in their respective life stages. The commonality between the two? Every nymph’s iris sparkled. No, not like that disgusting glitter humans loved so much that stuck to everything. Within each iris lay a million tiny flecks of their color in a lighter shade, reflective and bright. And definitely not human. 

And yes, mermaids and sirens were both sea nymphs. Humans always tried to make different categories for everything they knew little about, but it was not that complex. Although the technical terms back home were oceanids and naiads, you had learned long ago that people on land had left their original names behind. It didn’t matter much to you honestly, you were all children of the sea, and there wasn’t much difference between a mermaid and a siren anyways beside your eye color and abilities. 

Everyone knew sirens had beautiful voices, but this was merely an amplification of their compulsion. While sirens couldn’t compel any other sea nymph, it worked on every other living being. But that’s just the most well known ability. Sirens can also manipulate water, and alter the way something may appear to others. Illusion was the most useful ability a siren could use on a night like tonight.

A mermaid’s abilities were different of course. While sirens could manipulate water, mermaids could control the state of water turning it from liquid to gas to solid. Hence the rain, a combination of both your powers working together. Their most useful power for tonight, however, was their ability to control the emotions of others. 

“Alright, we have a few fleshlings with us tonight so we’re going to go over how this works.” Sarenya addressed the pod since she was tonight’s leader. “Use your abilities, rule number one. We are here for one purpose and we must do whatever it takes to achieve that goal. Rule number two, do not leave any damning evidence behind. We do not need a repeat of 1986 where a scale was left behind for a human to find and cause a frenzy. Rule number three, the humans can be quite attractive, but do not forget that they are not one of us. They are food, not mates. Kill them and move on. Fail and you will die. We can not survive on land.” 

At the end of her rules she caught your eye, speaking the last one almost directly to you. Like a reminder. As if you needed one. It made your chest hurt, your heart being squeezed torturously by an invisible vice. 

She was right though. You only got one night on land, one night to quench the insatiable thirst and gather enough blood for the members of your pod who were not allowed to join the hunt. 

Sea nymphs didn’t rely on blood to survive, it’s not the main source of food. Proteins and sea veggies like kelp and seaweed were a big part of an everyday diet. But human blood was a delicacy, and the key to immortality for a nymph. Just a drop of their blood, and a few ingredients, and you had the key to another ten years of youth. 

“We only have nine hours until sunrise. I do not care what you do in that time as long as all of your vials are full when you return and you follow those rules. Remember, when the sun comes up this is finished. If you do not make it back to the ocean by then… Well you get it by now.” For a mermaid Sarenya was quite blunt and cold, but when so many of your sisters fail to return over the years you kind of have to be. 

“Fleshlings stick by me until I say otherwise, everyone else, you know what to do.” Her golden eyes landed on yours once more with a reassuring glint to them before she strode off towards the bouncer, fleshlings in tow.

The two of you had been overseeing your pod’s hunt since 1693 when you were both promoted to Nympha Legatus, or Nymph Lieutenant. Rising in rank isn’t an easy thing to do, and it was rarely heard of especially since they usually lived forever, but that was an unusual circumstance. The hunt had started out as it usually did with the Nympha Legatus, Nymerian and Tessaya, leading your pod on the shore before breaking off for the night. As the night progressed things went horribly wrong. It had been a year since anyone had been on land and no one was aware of the witch mania that had overtaken the town of Salem. Along with a few others, Nymerian and Tessaya were captured, accused of being witches and thrown in jail to which they never made it back to the sea. Upon returning to the Nympha Ducem, Nymph Commander, you and Sarenya were the only two old enough within the pod to assume the position which required one mermaid and one siren. Since then she has been by your side through everything. You looked out for one another and always made sure the other made it back to the sea even if they had wavering thoughts. 

“Alright everyone, you heard Sarenya, you do what you need to and get back to the beach before sunrise. This isn’t your first Hunt. You know what to expect and how to handle it and we expect you to do just that. Enjoy yourselves, but don’t return home empty handed. Good luck…” Your silver eyes flitted to each of theirs briefly before continuing on the last note before separating. 

“Carpe Noctem.” Their voices mingled with your own as they recited the phrase with you. Sharing smiles, you and the pod turned towards the bar and made your way to the big guy in front of the door. 

Convincing him to let you in was easy. There was no need to use compulsion on him, your beauty taking care of that all on its own. When he asked for an I.D. however, you knew you had to turn it on. Pretending to look for the nonexistent item you pat down your pockets before giving him a sad, doe-eyed look. 

“Oh no… It seems like I left it at home. If I tell you a secret will you let me in?” You could feel the power roll off your tongue, sweet and thick like honey coating each word. The bouncer’s eyes glazed over and he leaned forwards at your request. 

“You don’t need to see my I.D. or any of the girls behind me. You know us.” He straightened back up, his eyes still in a haze. 

“Oh I didn’t realize that was you! Go on in ladies, I don’t need an I.D. for my best girls.” 

There was muttering from the line of humans behind you. Most of them were women expressing their displeasure and jealousy and some were men who were fawning over you and your sisters. Human men were so simple, each one of them the same as the last, year after year. All but one had ever shown you any difference. 

The bouncer opened the door and stepped aside letting you walk past him into the crowded bar. Cigarette smoke lingered in the air and blurred your vision slightly as you push through people to find an empty spot to sit. In your experience the hunt always worked better when you let the humans come to you. It was nice to sit and enjoy your time on land, appreciating the music, observing the humans and their strange behaviors, and savoring the cocktails they made. There was work to be done, sure, but you had the time. 

After an hour had come and gone of observing and accepting drinks from different men you had found yourself in conversation with one. And by Zeus was he the most obnoxious human you had ever met. Ethan, or so you think you heard right, went on and on and on about how much money his family had and how nice his house was and how he just got back from Italy- blah, blah, blah, blah, blah. Pfft. Italy, big freaking whoop you had been there more times than you could count, and you really could not give less of a fuck about his money either. So trivial. 

Ethan, or was it Evan, who cares honestly he was about to be dead, kept talking even though you had zoned out long ago. For the last few minutes while what’s his face rambled on you were thinking how exactly you wanted to end his life. Would you promise him sex if he walked out of the club with you only to die in the alley? Or would you use your illusion and kill him right here without anyone noticing? You could also ask him to show you his ‘sick new lambo’ and bleed him dry all over the white leather seats he was raving about. New ideas kept popping into your head, each one better than the last, but your train of thought came to a screeching halt when you caught his eyes. 

He looked the same as he did every damn time. Long, slightly wavy chestnut brown hair, a soft yet strong jawline, plush soft lips, and gentle brown eyes lined with subtle dark circles underneath. No matter how many times you saw him he always seemed to steal the air from your lungs. 

Once his eyes were set on you they didn’t move. It was like he was trying to piece together where he recognized you from although you knew he never would. Your eyes bore into his own taking you back to when you first met. 

June 1713

Dover, England

Twenty years. It had only been twenty years since you were appointed Nympha Legatus which seems like a long time, but in the life of an immortal that’s nothing. Barely scratching the surface. 

The first ten years were rough. You and Sarenya had lost every single fleshling each year, none of them returning to the sea. Some were killed in random accidents, and the others just never made it back. On the eleventh year the first fleshling from your pod survived, finally giving you both hope that maybe you could do this. Maybe everything would be okay. Each year after more and more survived until only one or two didn’t return. That in itself was a success. 

Sarenya led the speech this year warning your sisters about pirates in the area, and human officers in the streets. Men were not so kind to women, especially pirates, and on land nymphs were at their most vulnerable, the Nympha Ducem deeming it illegal to use your abilities during the hunt in fear of causing suspicion amongst the humans. Deciding to hunt in a well populated port was dangerous, but it also offered a safety that desolate towns could not. More people meant you were less likely to be looked upon for being strangers, the sea was close by and there was safety in large crowds. 

“Carpe Noctem.” Everyone spoke the phrase in unison just as they had for centuries before, beginning the hunt. 

You wandered the streets for some time before finding a small pub to begin your night. Drunk men were always easy prey. But they were also unpredictable. A man who went by Billy had approached you shortly after entering the rickety establishment and offered his rum to you. The rum should have been the first indicator of who you were dealing with. The cutlass at his hip should’ve been the second. 

Between sips of the dark liquor and hollow flirting you had ended up in a back alley with Billy trying to execute your plan for killing him. You had sorely underestimated how aware, sober and strong he was. When he caught on that you were not going to do him any sexual favors the cutlass at his hip had been drawn to your neck with his other forearm laid across your chest, pressing your back into the rough brick. You squeezed your eyes shut and waited for whatever Billy was about to do, but nothing happened. 

The pressure against your chest lifted, and the cold metal of the blade at your throat was gone. When you opened your eyes Billy stood in front of you, his hands up in defense, shock and terror written all over his face, dagger pressed to his jugular. 

“Drop the cutlass. Now.” A male voice spoke from behind him, commanding but smooth. Billy did as the disembodied voice said, the sword clattering loudly, the metal banging and scraping against gravel. 

“Apologize to the lady.” 

“I- I‘m sorry miss. Won’t ha- happen again.” Billy stuttered, his legs shaking and hands trembling in the air. 

“Leave and don’t come back. If I see your face in Dover again I can’t promise I’ll be as kind a second time.” 

The man behind your attacker lifted the blade off his throat, nicking the skin ever so slightly drawing the smallest amount of blood. Finally free, Billy bolted down the street not staying to try and fight. You swore you saw his brown trousers darken as he ran away, streams of piss flowing down his legs. Coward. 

When the man straightened up from retrieving the cutlass off the ground you were able to see his face. His brown wavy hair was illuminated by moonlight, plush lips upturned at the corners into a gentle smile, and brown eyes twinkling in the silver beams from above. He was the most gorgeous human you had ever seen. 

His smile dropped a fraction when you made no movement, continuing to stare at him with wide eyes. He took a step back thinking he must have frightened you even more and mentally cursed himself. Instead you took a step forward wanting to not be any further from him than you already were. 

“It was not my intention to frighten you, my lady.” He hung his head in disappointment and shame, unable to meet your eyes again. 

“You did not frighten me, sir. I am just in awe of your beauty.” 

You wanted nothing more than to reach out for him. To touch him, and feel his smooth skin under your fingers. You kept your hands to yourself begrudgingly. 

The man’s head snapped up so quickly it looked like it hurt. Brown eyes were back on your own, a pink tint flushed onto his cheeks. 

“My beauty?” It was incredulous to him that a woman so fair, so breathtaking, was in awe of his beauty. 

“Yes.” You took another step closer to him as you spoke. 

“The most devine creature I have ever seen is calling me beautiful.” 

Your entire body froze. Every muscle and ligament locked in place and rigid. Creature. Did he know what you were? 

“Creature?” The word rolled off your tongue with disgust. A word you had always despised. 

“Well you certainly can not be human and possess the features of a goddess.” 

Just as your body had locked up in mere seconds, it relaxed hearing that what he had called you was a compliment. This was the first time you had actually liked the word creature. It was filled with endearment not disgust. 

“What is your name?” 

“Jacob.” 

“Thank you for stepping in, Jacob. I can only imagine what could have occurred had you not. Would you allow me to buy you a pint as a show of my appreciation and gratitude?” 

“Only if you’ll stay and enjoy one with me.” He beamed brighter than the moon overhead, eyes and smile wide. 

“I shall join you then.” 

The two of you walked down the cobblestone street back towards the small ale house you had come from with Billy. He had asked your name in which you told him earning yet another compliment. 

“A name just as beautiful as the woman who bears it.” 

You couldn’t describe what he was making you feel. There was never another time during your long life that you had ever felt so giddy and nervous around a human. Jacob was something special indeed. 

Time was lost on you once the two of you entered the pub and sat to enjoy a drink. Various conversations about either of you followed naturally, careful to think about your answers. You were not like him after all and one wrong thing could raise questions. 

“That’s a pretty blade.” You pointed to the dagger Jacob had set on the table, it had been the same one held to Billy’s neck. The weapon was fairly simple, a straight cross-guard that downturned slightly at the end and thinned out, the grip looked to be wrapped in leather leading to a round pommel with an atocha coin in the middle. 

“Thank you, I actually made it. I’m a silversmith.” 

Jacob was quite talented. Every piece of weaponry aside from Billy’s he had made himself. A few of the patrons in the tavern had also been carrying around his creations, all of them beautiful. He had taught himself how to fight with a sword, and how to play the guitar. He was the most intriguing human you had ever met. 

And yet he would die that night by your hand. 

Things had finally been going right for your pod in the last nine years, and you had almost thrown all of it down a trench because of some human. Wasting the night away talking to a human because he saved your life? Because he was a wonder to look at? No, that was not important. What was important was gathering the blood you needed and getting home. You had a mission. 

At least that’s what you told yourself when you drained the blood from Jacob, unable to stop. What you had to remind yourself when you saw his body limp and lifeless at your hands. It was what played in a loop in your head any time you thought of how you would never see his beauty again, how you would never admire another human in that way again. 

But you were wrong. Fate was cruel and twisted. 

You finally tore your eyes away from his and turned back to whatever his name was. He will come just as he always did, but this time you will be prepared. Finally taking a breath from speaking, Erik allowed for a lull in the conversation giving the opportunity for you to suggest the two of you find somewhere more private. Of course he was more than happy to oblige. Naïve human. 

Once Edwin was taken care of and you had your vile of blood, you cleaned the mess in the dirty alleyway as best as you could. The door you walked out of had been propped open from the cardboard box you wedged in the doorframe and you slipped back inside easily. Women filled the tiny bathroom, drunk and stumbling as you cleaned yourself up making sure there was no evidence left behind. Satisfied, you left the bathroom and made your way back to where you had been originally sitting. 

You sat there for some time watching the humans dance, talk and laugh trying to keep your eyes off of him. A truly fruitless distraction, your eyes trained on his form unable to look away. A part of you knew that you had to cherish this before it was too late. Not knowing how much time would pass before you did see him again. 

After what seemed like hours, although you’re sure it could’ve only been thirty minutes, he pushed off the table he was leaning against and made his way over to you. Trying to seem like you had not been staring at him all night, your eyes wandered elsewhere looking for anything remotely interesting. It wasn’t until he was basically right in front of you that you allowed your eyes to shift onto him. He stared down at you, the corners of his lips pulled into the smallest smile. 

“Alright if I join you?” His hand was outstretched, palm facing upwards and motioning to the empty seat next to you. 

“Not at all.” You smiled back at him and scooted over slightly on the small cushioned bench to make more room. 

“I wasn’t going to come over here since you were with someone earlier, but it appears that he left.” 

“Yeah,” You chuckled, “Honestly I’m glad I was able to ditch him. He was a bore. Had I known you’d come over sooner I would’ve gotten rid of him a long time ago.” 

“Is that so?” His eyebrows raised, the smile on his face only growing in size. You hummed a short “Mmm,” your eyes meeting his for the first time since he sat down.  

“I’m Jake by the way.” 

Jake extended his hand out to you and you took it, shaking his hand with a firm, but still soft grip. Neither of you could keep your eyes off the other. 

“Y/n.” 

“Fitting. A name just as beautiful as the woman bearing it.” You could feel your heart skip before it sank. You knew he would say it, but that didn’t make the pain any easier. He dropped your hand and lifted his glass up to his lips taking a sip. 

“Not much of a dancer I presume?” 

April 1865

Boston, Massachusetts  

People were everywhere. In the streets, in the bars, cheering, drinking, celebrating. The perfect time to begin the hunt. 

After separating from the pod you found yourself observing the humans while they celebrated victory. The civil war had just ended and their side won. It was fascinating to watch them dance and sing and drink to their hearts desire without any care in the world. 

So caught up in watching the humans, you hadn’t even noticed him in the crowd. But he had noticed you, of course he had. Not only were you the only person in all of Boston to not be celebrating in some way, but you were also stunning. 

“Not much of a dancer I presume?” 

The accent was much different, but the voice was the same. Your head snapped to where he was standing just left of you, shock wracking your entire body. How was it possible? He was dead. You had killed him over a hundred years ago. 

“Um… Uh- n-no. Not really.” You stumbled through the shock that had taken hold of you, mind racing. 

“I see… C’mon,” He held his hand out to you as an offering. When you didn’t take it he whispered, “If you don’t celebrate in some way they might think you’re a sympathizer. Take my hand.” 

You did as he asked and slid your hand into his. He pulled you up from the stoop you were occupying and led you into the street with all the other humans. Musicians were playing loudly out in the open, the songs always fast and upbeat keeping everyone moving. He dropped your hand once comfortable with where you were standing and began a dance you had never seen before. When you didn’t move an inch he stopped. 

“Do you not know how it goes?” 

“No.” Your teeth sunk into your bottom lip as you shook your head. 

“I’ll teach you. Follow my lead.” 

“Okay…” 

“Jacob. You can call me Jacob.” 

Song after song, dance after dance, Jacob leads you into each one. He taught you all the steps, keeping patience the entire time which would not have been an easy thing to do. While you were no fleshling, you definitely looked like it was your first time on legs with how uncoordinated you were. 

You talked as you danced the night away. Jacob was just as intriguing the second time you met him as he was the first. He was the same man you had met in 1713, but more modernized. Everything about him drew you in. 

Eventually the music died, the streets cleared and it was just you and Jacob left out in the night. The two of you were sitting on the steps of his porch talking under the stars and enjoying each other's company. At some point you were no longer looking at the empty street or the starry night sky, but looking at one another instead. Jacob’s eyes traversed every part of your face like he was trying to memorize even the smallest details. After a few moments of this he sighed dreamily. 

“May I kiss you?” 

“You want to kiss me?” 

“More than anything.” 

“Then yes, Jacob, you may.” 

You had kissed plenty of humans in your lifetime, none of them ever meaning anything significant. But when Jacob’s lips touched yours for the first time you had finally realized why humans liked to do this. Your entire body felt… alive. The feeling was the strangest, yet most blissful experience that you wished would never end. When he pulled away from you sadness ran through every fiber of your being, instantly missing the warmth of his soft lips.  

You would never forget the way Jacob looked at you after the kiss. His eyes were soft, a gentle smile gracing his pretty face, every bit of him glowing with something other than the light from the moon. You would’ve done anything to see him like this for the rest of your life. To feel like he had just made you feel for eternity. 

When the blissful haze cleared however, the longing vanished and panic quickly set in. What was he doing to you? This wasn’t right. You have a purpose and it is not to fall in love with a human. Get it together. Do your duty. 

Every other thought bounced back and forth, your heart and brain fighting for dominance. Your heart told you to let him live, you didn’t need to kill him, but your brain knew better. You needed to do it or you would come back year after year just to see him. Risk the safety of you and the pod for a human you could never be with. 

You had to kill him. 

“Thank you for tonight Jacob.” 

“The pleasure was all mine.” 

He had insisted on walking you home to which you didn’t fight. If he walked you home you could lead him to a quiet place to take his life. Maybe even somewhere beautiful. Jacob deserved more than to just be drained and dumped in some filthy alley. 

When he took you through the public garden you knew that was the place. So you led him down close to the pond underneath a willow tree, rays of light breaking through the wispy leaves that lay in drooping branches.

“Jacob?” You turned to him and gently grabbed both his hands. 

“Hmm?” 

“Kiss me again… Please?” There was the possibility that he would not come back like he had this time. A possibility that you would never feel his lips on yours again and you needed to experience it one last time. 

“Okay.” It was soft and breathy, and had the night been any more lively you weren’t sure you would’ve heard it. 

Jacob did as you asked, his lips pressed to yours like they had the first time. Tingles rolled through your body from head to toe crashing over you like waves. When you thought he would pull away and end the kiss he did something that surprised you. His tongue swept across your lower lip sending new vibrations along your spine, your body shivering slightly. Your own mouth acted without volition and opened against his lips. 

The feeling of his tongue gliding along yours like velvet was euphoric. Noises bubbled from your throat in sighs of pleasure to be swallowed by Jacob. His hands gripped your waist, fingertips pressing into the meat with desperate longing. You liked the way his hands felt on you, almost as intoxicating as his mouth. 

The kiss calmed and turned into short, slow kisses until your foreheads were resting against one another. You watched both of your chests rise and fall rapidly as you tried to regain your breath and slow your racing hearts. Neither of you said a word, just simply enjoying the moment. 

Do it now. Get it over with, the longer you delay the worse it’ll be. Do it. 

“May the flames of our souls dance together endlessly, Jacob.” You didn’t dare look at his face when you spoke your last words to him knowing you wouldn’t have it in you to do what needed to be done. 

As your teeth sank into the delicate skin of his neck you prayed for it to be over quickly. Each desperate gasp of breath was a stab to your already fragile heart, and you were thankful you couldn’t see his face. 

When he finally fell unconscious you filled the vile with his blood quickly before returning to finish what you started. Each pull of your mouth was a physical battle within yourself knowing that if you left now, before it was too late, he’d live. You could save him if you stopped. But that wasn’t an option anymore. You had to see it through. 

You laid him down gently beneath the willow, teardrops dotting his skin, and cried harder at the sight of them. Had you been crying the whole time, you weren’t sure, but deep down you knew you had been. Brushing his hair from his face you looked at him one last time and pressed a shaky kiss to his forehead. 

You had never run faster or sobbed harder in your life than you had that night.

“Something like that. I’m not one for this type of dancing or music if I’m honest.” You shrugged looking out at the people jumping and grinding to the music the DJ played. 

“I’m not either, but my younger brothers wanted to check it out so I appeased them,” His eyes were trained on the crowd as he spoke, “I was starting to regret coming, and was just telling my brother I was going to leave.” 

You peeled your eyes away from the people dancing on the floor and looked at Jake. He did the same, turning his focus back to you. 

“Oh really? What made you change your mind?” 

“Well I saw the most gorgeous woman looking like she’d rather be anywhere but here.” A cheeky smile formed on his lips. You’d forgotten how smooth he always was, your own lips breaking into a small smile. 

“Would you wanna get out of here?” 

“And go where?” 

“I know a place.” Jake stood from his spot on the bench and set his drink on the table. When he turned to you he had his arm extended for you to take. His face gave a look of ‘what do you say?’ 

“Better be a good place.” You smiled and took his hand letting him lead you out of the noisy club. When the two of you stepped outside onto the street his hand dropped yours, the warmth he brought quickly dissipating. The action made you sad, wanting nothing more than to touch him again. 

You weren’t sure where he was taking you, but you trusted him and let him lead you down the wet streets. The two of you talked, and just as you had expected he was the same as each time before just with slight differences. He was a musician now, self made of course, and in a band with his brothers. It was almost relieving to hear that there was finally a version of him in which he played music. You knew he was destined for this profession, his love and devotion for the art always remaining throughout the decades. 

Eventually you came to the entrance of a park shrouded with hundreds of trees and flowers. He continued to walk down the pathway, a destination clear in mind. You couldn’t help but look in awe at the breathtaking scenery around you, all the trees and flowers, the moonlight bouncing off the large pond that sat in the middle of the park. You wondered what it might look like in the daytime. 

Since you had left the club there had not been a moment of silence. Comfortable, casual conversation flowed easily between you, talking about anything and everything you could think of. Jake was well read in human history and literature, things you knew much about having lived through most of them. While you only came upon the shore for one night each year you liked to keep tabs on what was happening with the humans as it usually impacted the lives of the nymphs greatly. Especially as technology advanced. 

The two of you came to a bench surrounded by large drooping trees that overlooked the pond, and your chest tightened. The scene before you looked strikingly similar to the public garden in Boston where you had taken Jake’s life almost two hundred years ago. Images of his lifeless state came flooding back to you, tears pricking your eyes. You took a deep breath and closed your eyes, willing the tears back down. When you opened your eyes again and looked at the trees more closely you breathed a small sigh of relief. They were not willows, but instead oak trees covered in spanish moss that were still living. And they were hauntingly beautiful.

“I like to come here at night when I’m stuck on a melody or riff I can’t quite work out. There’s something about this place that’s so peaceful and reminiscent. Which sounds ridiculous since I don't even know what I could possibly reminisce about in a place like this.” He sat on the bench and looked out over the water as he spoke, like he truly was thinking back to something. You tried to deny that maybe in some way he remembered that night in Boston as you sat beside him. It was easier to lie to yourself than accept that old pieces of his lives that involved you lingered.

The night had grown somewhat cold and a chill ran through your body as wind swept through the trees. Jake noticed the way your arms wrapped tightly around your body and wordlessly took off his light jacket, placing it around your shoulders. 

“Thank you, but you didn’t-“ 

“I wanted to.” 

The skin of your cheeks burned, heat creeping along your face and down your neck. You were thankful for the thickly coated trees overhead as they blocked out most of the moonlight and hid your growing blush. With the wind dying, you could smell his natural musk that wafted from the jacket, woodsy and clean like driftwood that sat on the beach. The smell flooded your senses, reminding you of the last time you had seen him. 

September 1923

Charleston, South Carolina 

Prohibition made hunting harder. Without the effect of alcohol humans tended not to hang around in large groups and were more difficult to subdue, but thankfully speakeasies existed. Sure finding a human who knew where one was could be a challenge, but once you did find one who could point you in the right direction they would do so of their own free will. 

Bourbon and Branch was where you had found yourself this night for the hunt. The darkly lit underground club was congested with smoke from cigarettes and cigars, the sound of jazz filled the space. There couldn't have been a better place to prey on humans and you certainly took advantage of it, your body count for the evening rising higher and higher. Were you out of control? No, not yet, but hey it was the roaring twenties, everyone was on the verge of losing what little grip they had on self control. It didn’t help that you had been nursing your self loathing and pain since 1865.

Every waking moment that fateful night played on a loop in your mind. Over and over. You would do anything to get through the day without thinking about him, and human blood helped take your mind off of everything. The more you drank, the better you felt, the less you thought of him, but the more you drank, the more you pushed yourself further to the edge. You were quickly becoming a liability to the pod with each hunt that took place. It’s not that you didn’t care that you were endangering the pod, you just couldn’t see past your own misery to realize that what you were doing was dangerous.

You had lost track of just how many bodies you had left in the alley behind the speakeasy that night. It was nearing double digits, but you didn’t care and instead headed back inside the small club to find your next meal. When you slipped back inside though the image of the next human you had intended on targeting vanished instantly. 

Sitting in a booth with a drink in hand looking at home was the man who haunted you. His eyes seemed to be scanning the room, like he was looking for something in particular when they landed on you. You didn’t dare take your eyes off of him, fearing that maybe the blood had gotten to your head. You watched as he said something to one of the men who sat by his side, identical to him in some ways, before sliding out of the booth and walking towards you. Not once did his eyes leave yours. 

It felt like catching up with an old friend in some weird way. You know the person down to their core, but aspects of their life have changed, and small parts of them have too. Most of the night was spent in the Bourbon and Branch just talking with Jacob and getting to know what he was like in this life. There were plenty of smiles, laughs and flirting, and you were floating on air. And when he kissed you that night it was as if no time had passed, like you were back in 1865 sitting on his porch steps under the stars. 

When the bar had finally closed for the night, neither of you could bring yourselves to say goodbye. Jacob invited you back to his house with his brothers and their partners as a proper way to wind down after a night out. More secret booze and music. The lot of you danced and drank for what seemed like hours before everyone either left or went to bed leaving you and Jacob out to enjoy the night alone. The two of you talked and talked until talking led to gentle touches, those touches turned to kissing, and the kissing led to something you had never done.  

While painful at first, the feeling that came after was truly unlike anything you had ever experienced. Nothing would compare to the overwhelming euphoria you and Jacob had shared that night. Images of him above you, bare and glistening with sweat while his light brown eyes bore into your own were seared in your brain. The scent of driftwood and sea salt was all around you, enveloping you wholly. His whispers of praise, encouragement, and adoration echoed forever in your head. How beautiful you were and how good you felt. How utterly perfect you were. If you thought you liked the way his hands felt on you once long ago, you loved how they felt on you tonight. You loved the pleasure he could bring you with just a drag of his finger, and how gentle he was. So gentle like he was afraid he would break you. When you reached your peak you felt nothing but pure pleasure, every thought and memory erased from your mind that wasn’t him. He invaded every part of your being.

Afterwards the two of you laid in his bed, bare and pressed against one another. No words were spoken, but none needed to be. You were both content to exist in the moment listening to each breath the other took while his fingers traced mindless shapes and paths across your skin. The only noise that could be heard was Jacob humming softly, a tune that had no real body like it was something he made up as it came to him. 

When he finally fell asleep you slipped out from underneath his arm carefully to not wake him and redressed. You had decided you would not repeat history this time. You wouldn’t be the cause of his death, you couldn’t do it again. You knew had you taken his life a third time you would come apart at the seams completely. While you were unsure if he would ever come back to you since you had let him live, it was a chance you were willing to take. For one last time you admired him in the faint glow of the candles by his bed, and this time as you looked upon him you didn’t have to tell yourself he was sleeping. 

“May the flames of our souls dance together endlessly, my love.” Your hand caressed his cheek and you bent down to place a gentle kiss to his forehead before you made your exit. You had barely made it to the ocean when the sun rose that morning, your first true close call. To you though it was well worth it.

“So you’re in a band? Do you enjoy it?” You pulled his jacket tighter around your frame hoping to trap in more heat and cocoon yourself in his smell. 

“I love it. It’s been my dream for so long to be a musician and I don’t think I would trade anything in the world for it.” When he spoke you could feel the excitement pour off of him. He truly loved what he was doing and that made you happy- knowing that he was happy. 

“I’m sure it's not easy though being in a band with your brothers.”

“Everyone thinks that, but it’s not always difficult. Sure tempers fly, and things get smashed or broken, but nothing will ever come between us that we can’t overcome. We’re family, we’ll always have each other’s backs.” 

You could understand where he was coming from. Your pod was your family, each member was a sister to you biological or not, and the hunt was your job. Things get dicey every now and then, but for the most part you just tried to do what was best for your family and looked out for one another.

Another hour had passed just sitting under the trees talking about everything and nothing at all. It had taken all the strength you had to not shiver uncontrollably from head to toe till now, Jake’s jacket not doing much anymore. You were positively freezing. The cold finally won, and violent shakes wracked your body. 

“I have this beautiful hand-made dagger from the 1700s, absolutely exquis-“ His sentence stopped abruptly on the count of way your body jolted continuously and he began to rub his hands up and down the length of your biceps, “C’mon let’s get you somewhere warm, you’re shaking like a leaf.” 

Jake stood from the bench, his hands falling away from your arms for a moment to help you stand. When the two of you began to walk he was next to you, his arm wrapped around the back of your body so both of his hands were back on your upper arms. The friction from his hands did heat your body slightly, but not enough to subdue the intense shivering. 

“My place isn’t far from here, is that alright?” When you turned to answer him you came practically nose to nose with him. He was so close that the only thing you could see in front of you were his honey brown irises. 

“Um, yeah that’s fine. How far away are we?”  

“About seven minutes, think you’ll make it that far?” The smallest hint of a smile drew the corner of his mouth upwards, his top lip curling the tiniest bit. 

While you didn’t spend most of your time around humans you knew when one was making a joke. Or in this case, poking fun at you. Instead of finding it offensive the jest was rather endearing. Nonetheless you rolled your eyes playfully.

“Yes I can make it that far.” You finally willed yourself to look away from his mesmerizing face and stare out ahead of you. A part of you feared that if you didn’t look away now, you never would. 

Shortly after leaving the park you had stopped shivering and Jake’s hands stopped their vigorous movements on your arms to rest at his sides. It seemed silly, but you mourned his touch as soon as it left your body and you decided to ask him about the dagger from earlier to distract yourself. 

“You were telling me earlier about a dagger that you have?” 

“Oh yeah, I forgot I was nerding out a little.” A breathy laugh escaped from between his lips. It was more of a huff of air than an actual laugh. His focus was on his boots as he walked beside you on the concrete sidewalk. 

“Tell me about it? I would love to know more.” 

“Yeah, uh,” He looked up to you with an expression that looked something similar to disbelief mixed with excitement. “It’s a beautiful handcrafted dagger from the early 18th century I believe. It’s a family heirloom, been passed down to the Kiszka men when they turn twenty-five. That’s how old my ancestor was when he made it.” 

His hands waved about and fidgeted as he spoke like it was something he did out of nervous habit, but you think he just liked to keep his hands busy. You knew exactly which blade he had been referring to, there was no doubt in your mind. The weapon had to be the same blade used to strike fear into the heart of Billy back in Dover, England. The same blade which you complimented later on in the night. 

“This is me.” Jake stopped in front of a large house, very modern and elegant looking, but simple, and dug his keys out from the depths of his pockets. While he fidgeted with the keys you took the opportunity to slide the vial of blood you had collected from earlied out of your pocket and drop it gently in one of his bushes by door to grab in the morning.

He opened the door and walked inside, holding the door open for you to follow behind him. As soon as you stepped through the threshold of his home, warmth flooded over your entire body.

Jake’s home on the inside reflected the outside, modern and sleek, but it still had a cozy and comfortable element to it. In a way it somewhat reminded you of his home in the 1920’s. 

You followed him deeper into the house through a hallway that led into a living room and kitchen. The areas were separated by a black granite bar top that had bar stools lined along the wall facing into the kitchen. Jake walked around the bar into the kitchen and you decided to stay on the other side, standing next to a stool. He looked at you from the other side, his hands on top of the black surface and his upper body leaning towards you.

“Would you like anything to drink? Water, tea, booze?” 

“Hmm, tea sounds quite nice. Would you by any chance happen to have any peppermint tea?” 

“As a matter of fact, I do.” He smiled at you fondly before turning around and walking to a cabinet on the wall behind him. He opened the cabinet and pulled two mugs off the shelf before closing it and opening another one to rummage through it. When he found the proper tea he filled the kettle up with water and set it on the stove to bring to a boil. 

“You can sit, you know, make yourself comfortable.” He was facing you now, back pressed against the island in the center of the kitchen, his hands resting on the countertop behind him and his legs cross at the ankle. You knew with the tone of his voice and the soft smile on his face that he was just trying to make you feel more welcome.

“Thank you, although I’m content standing for now.” You smiled back at him gently with your upper body leaned into the cool black stone. Jake only offered an amused hum in response, continuing to stare at you with fond eyes. 

“What?”

“Nothing… You’re just so beautiful,” His focus shifted to the ground and he shook his head, a giddy smile still splayed across his lips. “When I saw you at the club tonight I almost couldn’t muster up the courage to speak to you, and now you’re in my house and I’m making tea for you, and…” He looked up from the ground and met your eyes again. “You’re just so beautiful.” 

You pushed off of the counter and made your way into the kitchen where he was standing. Neither of you looked away from the other the closer you got. 

“I think,” You stopped in front of him and lightly draped your arms around his shoulders. His hands lifted from the countertop behind him and rested on your hips. “That you are quite beautiful.” 

He was quiet for a moment, your compliment stunning him. He continued to stare at you in wonder and your eyes stayed locked on his.

“Me? Beautiful?” 

“Breathtaking.”

His hand left your waist, his palm coming to rest on your jaw with his thumb splayed across your cheek, and his fingers laid against your neck just under your ear. 

“C’mere.”

Jake pulled you closer to him, his fingers curling gently around the back of your neck, his lips pressing to yours. Just like each time before your skin felt tingly, spreading from your head all the way down your toes. You could feel his lips still curled upwards into the smile he was wearing as he kissed you. After a beat or two he pulled away from you. 

The second his lips lifted from your own you felt the immediate longing of wanting to feel their warmth and softness again. It felt like sand slipping through your fingers. 

However, his mouth was back on yours continuously pressing quick, tender kisses upon your lips over and over. With each time he pulled away, the amount of time between the kisses grew shorter like he couldn’t bring himself to pull away from you entirely. Not only did they become shorter, but they quickly became more heated and needy. Jake’s tongue ran the length of your bottom lip and you welcomed it happily, parting your lips with a low hum. You didn’t fight him for dominance and instead let his tongue explore your mouth as he pleased. The tip of his tongue teased the roof of your mouth slowly from the back to the front before he met your lips again and his tongue brushed against your own. 

He walked forward a few steps and used the hand placed on your hip to turn the two of you in an one-eighty, and then walked you backwards. Your back pressed into the edge of the island countertop, Jake’s chest and hips pressed flush against your own, his hand moving to tangle into the soft tresses of your hair. Everything he did was gentle, careful not to push too far. Even with his body pressed into yours there was no overwhelming force. 

Your hands wound into his hair, pulling him impossibly closer to you and earning a groan from Jake in return. He grabbed both your hips in his hands and grinded his growing erection into your core. You couldn’t help the way your head lulled back, breaking the kiss. Taking advantage of your exposed neck, he trailed kisses down the column of the soft skin. His mouth worked slowly, dragging out each open mouthed, hot kiss with his tongue licking over the area before moving to place the next one.

“Jake.” His name rolled off your tongue in a whisper, broken and whiny. You hadn’t meant to say his name out loud, but the reaction you pulled from him was worth it. The tips of his fingers dug into your hips harder and vibrations rumbled from his mouth through your neck with the low moan he released. 

“Sounds so pretty when you say it like that, darling.” His teeth scraped across your skin with the next kiss just barely applying any pressure. 

“Fuck, Jake.” 

His teeth grazed the delicate skin once again, adding in another roll of his hips into yours. He was much harder now and the friction he supplied was making your head dizzy. You wanted more of him, so much more of him. In the background you could hear the kettle whistle loudly on the stove signifying it was ready. 

“Water’s ready for tea.” Jake’s voice was low and husky while still moving his mouth down your throat. 

“Forget the tea. I need you, please.” Your hand traveled between your bodies to palm his clothed length. His lips finally ceased their assault, his forehead resting on your clavicle with a sharp breath pulled into his lungs.

“Oh darling,” He lifted his head from your chest to look into your eyes. There was a fire in his eyes this time that you had never seen before, dark and swirling beneath the surface. “Have me you shall.” 

He stepped away from you and grabbed your hand, pulling you behind him. He walked over to the stove quickly turning off the burner and setting the kettle aside. Once the fire hazard was taken care of he pulled you into him again and reconnected your lips. You were walking backwards, unsure of where exactly he was directing the two of you, but you couldn’t care less. Your fingers fumbled with the buttons on his shirt popping them open one by one. In return, Jake was working to unbutton your pants. When the last button was undone on his shirt you pushed the light material away from his shoulders and let your hands roam his warm skin. He was solid under your hands, yet still delicate. You loved the way his chest and stomach felt, obsessed with how sturdy and soft he was at the same time. 

He moved on to your shirt once the button on your pants was undone and the zipper had been pulled down. You could feel the material slipping lower on your hips ever so slightly with each step you took. Jake pulled your shirt up over your head by the hem and dropped it to the floor, and you took one more step backwards before your back hit what you assumed was a door. His hand flew out and twisted the knob opening the door. He continued to walk you backwards into his room until the back of your knees came into contact with his bed. 

You let out a shocked gasp, your knees buckling underneath you and falling rather ungracefully onto the bed while pulling Jake with you. He was able to stop himself from crushing you fully, his arms on either side of your head. When the initial surprise subsided the two of you broke into a fit of giggles unable to contain them. 

“Sorry, I should’ve stopped.” He pushed himself up from the bed to stand still chuckling slightly.

“It’s okay.” One last giggle escaped from your lips as he made to stand. He was wedged between your legs while he looked down at you. 

The look in his eyes from before had returned, quickly stirring the heat in your core again. While you were still wearing your bottoms, the top you had been wearing was long gone revealing your bare chest to him for the first time. He leaned forward and placed his hands on both sides of your hips. His fingers gripped the tops of the waistbands on your pants and underwear. 

“Can I?” There was a gruff tone to his voice now when he spoke. 

“Please.” 

Jake didn’t waste anymore time and tugged the clothing from your body. There was no rush, taking his time undressing your lower half, and you propped yourself up on your elbows to have a better view of him. He dropped your bottoms to the ground and stood up straight to have a better view of your naked body. 

“I don’t think I’ve ever seen anyone more stunning.” His eyes trailed along your body, drinking in every inch. You sat up fully, your face level with his toned abdomen and your hands toying with the waistband of his trousers. 

“I have.” 

The sight of you below him made his dick twitch. You were looking up at him almost innocently with your hands and mouth mere inches away from his aching cock. The very thought of having your mouth so close to him made him almost cum right there. 

You started to undo the button and fly on his pants while placing sweet kisses to his stomach just above his navel, never breaking eye contact. Once the button was taken care of and you moved onto the zipper you trailed the light kisses lower and lower until your bottom lip brushed the top of his underwear. You drew your lips from the heated skin of his torso and hooked your fingers into his pants like he had just done to you. 

“May I?” You were still so close to him that your breath fanned over his skin and sent shivers through his body. 

“Oh god, yes.” The words were filled with air and flew out in a hushed whisper. 

You pulled the fabric down his legs taking the boxers down with his pants. His hardened length sprang free, the tip slapping his lower belly gently. You were mesmerized with how gorgeous every part of him was, and while it had been over a hundred years since you had seen him bare, he was the same as before. When you got the top of his pants past his sturdy thighs they dropped freely the rest of the way down his legs. 

Jake stepped out of the trousers carefully before bending down to cup your cheek and bring his lips back to yours. He laid you back slowly as he kissed you, kneeling on the bed with one knee between your legs. His other hand rested on your hip and pressed into you guiding you to move further up the bed. 

Satisfied with where you were, Jake laid into you more fully. His forearm was braced into the mattress next to your head, his chest brushing yours with each heaving breath, and his heavy cock nestled in the crevice where your thigh met your groin. 

His fingers skirted from your hip down the outside of your thigh just barely touching the heated skin. With the same pressure his hand crossed over the top of your thigh and slowly inched its way up to your core. Every touch his fingers made on your skin left behind a trail of raised skin in their wake. A breathy moan was pulled from your lips as he ran his middle and index fingers up your slit slowly. 

“Fuck, you’re so wet.” Jake groaned against your lips. 

Your hips bucked into his hand involuntarily as his fingers swept over your clit for the first time. You writhed under his touch earning a smile from his lips that you could feel against your own before he began kissing his way down your neck towards your chest. Even as he moved down your body you could still feel the smile he wore. His fingers swirled your clit in tight, slow, figure eights while his tongue gave an experimental flick to your perked nipple. Your back arched from the bed, pushing your chest into him silently begging for more. He loved how responsive you were, and you could tell. Each time you reacted to his touches, you felt his hard length twitch and pulse against your hip. 

His lips wrapped around your nipple fully, sucking and licking the bud, earning the sweetest sounds from your open mouth. Not once did his fingers stop moving against your clit and you were quickly being brought to the edge of ecstasy. He pulled his mouth from your breast with a soft pop and kissed lower down your belly. A soft giggle bubbled in your throat as his lips passed over a sensitive area of your stomach, his lips tickling you. He huffed a laugh at the way your muscles contracted and you squirmed under his touch only making the tickling sensation worse. 

“Sorry.” He laughed with you, his eyes catching yours. 

“S’okay.” 

You reach a hand down into his hair encouraging him to continue where he left off. Jake did as you implied and kissed further down your abdomen to your core, looping his arms around your hips and thighs. He kept eye contact as he placed one last kiss to your center right on your clit. When his tongue licked a stripe through your folds his eyes fluttered shut. He hummed against your soaked heat, the vibrations flowing through your entire body. Your fingers wound tighter into his hair and your hips begged for him to be closer. 

He slid his tongue back up your slit, collecting your arousal and wrapped his lips around your clit once at the top. He sucked the sensitive bundle into his mouth, flicking his tongue against it rapidly. Your entire body felt like it was on fire and your head was becoming more fuzzy with each roll of the wet, velvet muscle. Whines and moans of pleasure rolled out from your throat, his name mixed in along with them sweetly. Just when you were about to be sent over the edge you pulled his mouth from your core and back up to your own. His chest and torso were pressed to yours, now propped up on his knees between your spread legs. 

You could taste yourself on his lips and tongue. Sweet with a hint of saltiness. Like watermelon lightly sprinkled with salt on a summer’s day. You wanted more.

“Jake, please,” You whispered against his lips between feverish kisses trying desperately to get the words out. “I need you. I need all of you. Please, please.” 

“Say it again.” His hand pressed down between your sticky bodies, gripping his length.

“I need all of you.” 

“Say my name again.” He ran his swollen head through your wet lips, and coated himself in your slick. 

“Please Jake.” He pressed into you slowly, the tip just inside as you spoke his name causing it to hitch in your throat. Your walls fluttered around him trying desperately to adjust to his size while he continued to push the rest of the way inside you. Your arms wrapped around the underside of his arms holding him close to you with your hands resting on the tops of his shoulders. The sound of his heavy breaths cascaded into your ear, his head dropped with his chin resting on your shoulder between your cheek and his hand. 

“Oh fuck, you’re so tight.” He took a few ragged breaths. “Are you alright if I move?”

“Yeah, I-I’m okay.” Your voice cracked in a whisper already sounding fucked out.  

Jake withdrew his hips from yours slowly, his thick length gliding out easily until just the tip of his head remained inside at your entrance. He pushed back in faster than before, but still at a steady pace. His other hand that was placed next to your head shifted so that he was cradling your head in his hand and gently pushing your opposite cheek into his. 

With each push and pull of his hips to yours, both of your breathing became heavier, filled with moans and whispers of praise. He brushed your cervix upon every re-entry and grazed a spot that made your entire body explode in pleasure. 

There was no doubt how good he was making you feel, and while you knew you were making him feel the same pleasures, you wanted to physically be responsible. 

“Jake.” You tapped his shoulder lightly to get his attention. He quickly stopped all movement and lifted his face, looking at you with worry etched onto his features. 

“Are you okay? Did I do something wrong?” 

Your heart practically melted at his sincerity, and you couldn’t help but smile up at him. Worry changed to confusion at the sight of you smiling.

“Yes, I’m okay. I just, um,” You weren’t sure how to tell him exactly what you wanted. Mainly because you didn’t know what exactly it was that you wanted. “I want to… You’re just making me feel so good, and I… I want to make you feel good.” 

“Baby,” A breathy chuckle left his lips, and his head fell, shaking lightly, “You’re already making me feel good. So unbelievably good.” He looked back up at you, the corner of his mouth pulled upwards showing off the smallest portion of his top teeth. 

“I just want to… actively make you feel good.” You tried to reiterate to him what you meant. 

“Are you trying to tell me that you want to be on top?” 

You nodded your head slowly and watched the adoring smile on his face grow. Without much warning, his arm hooked around the back of your knee securing it closer to his body as he started to roll onto his back. He was seated fully inside you as he changed your positions, making you feel much more full once you were sat on him completely. 

You wiggled your arms out from under his shoulders and sat up using his chest to stabilize yourself. He looked even more gorgeous below you than above with his skin shiny from sweat and his hair falling in waves around where his head rested. You stared at him for a moment longer taking in the way he looked and feeling how firm his chest and tummy felt. 

You also weren’t sure what you were supposed to do, so you were sort of stalling. 

“I, um, I’ve never really done this before…” Your gaze fell to watch your fingers dance along his tanned, smooth skin. 

Jake didn’t respond. Instead his hands found your waist and gave you a reassuring squeeze making you look back to his face. 

“I’ll show you.” 

His hands lifted your hips ever so slightly before angling them forward gently. He continued to guide you upwards at this angle until you reached the end of his length. Just before he slipped out completely, you rolled your hips backwards again with the guidance of his hands and took him down to his base. He repeated the motion a few times to help you get a feel for it, each time speeding up just a little. 

“If something feels good, follow it. Don’t think too much about what you want to do. Just let your body be the guide.” Not once did his hands stop guiding you while he spoke.

You started to take more control by lifting your hips on your own and changing the angle to take him down deeper. His hands stayed on your hips with his fingers extending to your ass. The more comfortable you got, the more you rolled your hips and sped up causing Jake’s fingertips to dig into the meat of your backside. 

“That’s it. Doing so good.” 

You did what he told you and just let your body do what it wanted to naturally. Carefully, you leaned back placing your hands on the outsides of his shins and kept moving your hips forward. With the new angle you could feel a searing hot tightness form in your lower belly with each thrust. You could see his cock, glistening in your juices, disappear in and out of you which only spurred you on more. You looked up to Jake to see him watching you slide along his length, his lips parted and his chest heaving. He caught your eyes and his hands traveled up your back. 

“C’mere.” 

He pulled you back to him, his lips crashing into yours and his hips bucking up into you. A loud moan ripped from your throat and was sent straight into his mouth. You could do nothing for a moment, but lay on top of him and let his hips do all the work, his thrusts disabling your mind and body. When you did finally push back onto him, his breath hitched before a deep groan tore from his chest and his hands gripped you harder. It took you a few tries to find the right rhythm, but after a few moments his hips were thrusting up to meet your own on their descent. Curses and praises tumbled freely from him, air filled and raspy. The movements were perfectly timed and you could feel yourself on the edge of the cliff once again. His kisses became sloppy, filled mostly with grunts and breathy moans against your lips. 

“I’m close. A-are you, shit, are you almost there?” He sighed, his breath fanning over your face.

“Yeah, I’m- I’m about to- Oh fuck, Jake.” Your orgasm hit you before you could even finish your sentence. Intense pleasure ignited every inch of your body as your muscles contracted, squeezing his cock like a vice. His name slipped off your tongue over and over as he helped you ride out the high while chasing his own. 

It was his name falling from your lips continuously like a mantra while you came that had him reaching his own climax. Soft whimpers, moans and gasps spilling from his lips and swirled around your head. He pulled you into his chest further, hugging you tight to his chest and kissed you harder until his hips slowed to a stop inside you. 

Neither of you made to move for a few minutes, both of you entirely spent. Your entire body weight was being supported by him as you laid on top of his chest and stomach trying to come down. Jake was the first to move. He helped you up and gently guided you to lay on your back before making his way off the bed with a promise to return. When he came back he was holding a wet cloth and a glass of water. He cleaned your mixed release up from between your legs tenderly, and then disposed of the cloth in his dirty laundry basket. You gulped down the water while you waited for him to return again. A few moments later he came back and crawled back into his bed laying next to you. As soon as Jake laid down you started to get out of his bed to leave for the night needing to return back to the sea. 

“Hey, you don’t have to go. You can stay- If you want to, I mean-” He fumbled over his words trying to get across what he wanted to say properly. You couldn’t get over how cute he looked, his cheeks getting pink from being flustered. He cleared his throat and tried again. “I would like for you to stay.” 

“I can stay for a little bit longer.” 

You smiled at him softly and eased back into the bed beside him. He pulled you closer to him and wrapped his arm around your shoulder. You rested your head on his chest, his skin warming your cheek, and laid your arm across his stomach. The two of you stayed wrapped up in each other’s arms until you drifted off to sleep, the slow rise and fall of his chest soothing you. Just before sleep took you under you heard him mutter something in his sleepy haze. 

“I’ve waited for you.” You could barely register what he said, already half asleep and in a dreamy haze yourself. 

A faint yellow glow woke you from your dreamless sleep. Sunlight beamed into your eyes when you finally got up the courage to pry them open, and your heart sank to your stomach. It was daytime and you hadn’t made it back to the ocean. You frantically threw the covers off of your still naked body, jolting Jake awake in the process. You began searching all around the room for your clothes having no luck in locating a single item of clothing. Jake’s hand around your wrist finally stopped you. You hadn’t realized that he had been talking to you the entire time.

“Hey, hey, what’s wrong?” His eyes searched your face, his soft voice trying to calm you down while his thumb rubbed circles on your wrist.

“I can’t find any of my clothes, and I have to leave. I can’t believe I missed sunrise, I-” You stopped talking immediately, the words dying in your throat. You had missed sunrise, by hours, and yet you were still alive. How the hell were you still alive? 

You felt disoriented and nauseous, the edges of your vision blurring and your hearing starting to muffle. The pounding of your heartbeat thundered in your ears completely blocked out whatever Jake had said to you. Your mind raced trying to make sense of what was happening. There was only one possibility that could explain it. 

“It was all a lie…” You muttered to yourself still in shock, forgetting that Jake was still there. 

“What was a lie?”

“Um,” You shook your head, trying desperately to clear the fog from your mind. When you shifted your focus back onto his face, you instantly felt at ease. The nausea subsided, and your hearing came back in full. The black edges around your vision faded away allowing you to focus on his face, seeing clearly the lines of worry between his furrowed brows. 

“Nothing. I- I think I was having a bad dream… I’m okay now.” 

“Are you sure? You had me stressed out there for a second.” His thumb was still rubbing against your skin in soothing motions. 

“Yeah, I’m good now.” You gave him a reassuring smile and tried your best to make him believe it.

It was the truth though. You felt better and it was because of him. With just a look of his face you knew this was your destiny all along. For centuries you pondered over why the universe had always brought him back to you, and now you knew. You were always meant to be with Jake. 

“Okay, good… So you don’t have any plans for today?” 

“No, I have nothing planned.” He smiled at you then, and you had never felt better in your entire life. 

“Would you wanna grab some breakfast then? I’d like to spend more time with you.” 

“I would absolutely love that.” 

———————————————————————

Your bare feet sunk into the warm, white sand with each step you took along the beach. Carrying your shoes in one hand and the other intertwined with Jake’s you looked out to the open water of the sea. The sun was setting over the water creating beautiful orange glitters across the top of the small waves. While the blinding light burned your eyes you couldn’t turn away. Sunset was your favorite time of day and the scenic view of your old home had you somewhat reminiscent. 

Roughly eight months had passed since the night of the hunt. In that time you’ve been adjusting to living life as a human which was quite different than living as a nymph. The biggest adjustment was probably the loss of your powers. Or getting a job, that was pretty difficult. Throughout the whole process Jake was there though. The two of you had started dating and eventually you had to come clean about your true nature, especially when you didn’t understand the simple things that came with human life. Cell phones, bills, cars, rent, social media. It was all very foreign to you and Jake never understood. 

When you did finally tell him about being a nymph and coming from the sea he truly didn’t believe you. He thought you had made the whole thing up which you understood. After a while and some very confusing conversations about the aforementioned topics, he finally believed that you were not originally human. The most convincing aspect for him were your eyes. You were able to hide them for a few months before your powers faded completely, but when your abilities were gone he finally was able to see your glittery silver irises. Now though, your eyes too have since faded and changed color allowing you to look fully human. 

He asked a lot of questions, all of which you welcomed and answered freely. You decided to omit the whole truth from him when it came to your previous meetings in his previous lives. How were you supposed to admit to the man you love that you had killed him not once, but twice centuries ago? He knew your paths had crossed before and in a few instances the two of you had become close in a sense, but you mostly told him how and where you met unless he asked for specific details. When he learned that the two of you had had sex before in the 1920s his only response was, ‘I was better this time.’ Mostly he would ask which version of him you liked better.

As you continued to look out at the sea you thought of Sarenya and your sisters. You wondered who would’ve taken your place as Nympha Legatus and where they would be this time around. Ciree would make a great siren leader if she could focus on- 

“You’re doing it again.” Your thoughts faded away as Jake spoke beside you, squeezing your hand gently. Instantly you knew what he was referring to, you gazed down at your feet that we’re almost touching the water now. Every time the two of you walked along the beach you would absentmindedly walk towards the water until the salty liquid lapped at your toes or Jake made you aware. Usually he would say nothing and just watch in amusement while you led him closer.  

“Sorry.” You laughed under your breath and turned to face him. He was smiling warmly at you, his honey brown eyes sparkling in the orange hue of the sun. 

“Nothing to be sorry about…” You both started walking down the shore again still hand in hand letting comfortable silence take over. Your thoughts continued to wander, thinking about what life would be like for your pod now. 

“Do you miss it? Your old life and your sisters?” 

This was the first time he had asked you if you missed any part of what you used to be. You were sure he never asked because he didn’t want to make you upset. While it didn’t make you upset, you did think about it for a moment before responding. 

“Sometimes... I miss Sarenya mostly. I mean she was my best friend and sister and she probably thinks I’m dead, so it makes me sad to think she’s grieving me and that I probably won’t see her again.” He nodded in response, showing that he could understand what you meant, your arms swaying between your bodies while you walked.

“But I’m happy here. I think this was always supposed to be my destiny… to be human and be with you. Live our lives with one another and grow old together. Even if I could go back somehow I wouldn’t because this feels right. This is right, and I don’t ever want to not be with you. I’d rather have this lifetime and the afterlife with you and remain human than have only fleeting moments together and be a nymph.” 

He was beaming at you now with a smile that could only be described as soft, warm and giddy. The amount of love in his eyes as he looked at you was unmistakable and you were happily drowning in it, letting it lay like a heavy blanket over your entire body. Jake used the hold he had on your hand to swing you forward in front of him and maneuver your body to where he twirled you around a few times before bringing you into his chest tightly and pressed his lips to yours sweetly. He shifted his weight from foot to foot creating a small swaying motion as he held and kissed you.

“May the flames of our souls dance endlessly together, my love.” He repeated the phrase you had spoken to him years and years ago against your lips, smiling the whole way through it against your own smiling lips.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------add yourself to my taglist! taglist: @gold-mines-melting @indigofallingsky @sunandthemoontwinflames @ageofhearingloss @lipstickitty @hellowgoodbye @wildbluesorbit @jjwasneverhere @stardustjake @sanguinebats @sinarainbows @jordie-gvf-admin @malany-gvf @dannyandthekiszkas @popejosh4ever @gretasimp @sacredthefran @writingcold @thecoldwind @reesetrippingthelight @starcatcher-jake @musicspeaks @joshskittytickler @for-ur-love @carbondancingthroughtime @violet-hayes @ohgodthefeeling-gvf @way-to-go-lad @worldsgayestbonenerd @jakesgrapejuice @alwaysonthemend @livkiszka @klarxtr

[lizzy06]

Yamamoto Taketora x Reader Fic Recs!! (Tumblr/AO3/Wattpad)

Haikyuu! Fic Rec Masterlist

Nekoma Fic Rec Masterlist

Anomaly✨ by dinosauruses (Yamamoto Taketora x Reader x Ryuuunosuke Tanaka) (oneshot, soulmate au, fluff, humor) You have 2 soulmates? [COMPLETED]

Block!! ✨ by R0zyP0zy0zy (oneshot, fluff, suggestive)Based off the prompt “Um, you’re kinda touching my… yeah”. Yamamoto tries to save you from a stray ball, and touches your boob in the process. [COMPLETED]

Imagines ✨ by @jesswritesthat (oneshot, humor, fluff) Yamamoto manages to date you, Nekoma's mangaer. bonus: Tanaka asks for tips to woo a manger. [COMPLETED]

My Neighbour Totoro/Taketora by Fogfire(oneshot, fluff) Yamamoto Taketora meets My Neighbour Totoro - or at least his little sister says she met him. Or, My Neighbour Totoro with a twist. [COMPLETED]

Bathroom confessions / AO3✨ ✨ by @itsyoursunshinebabe (fluff, smut) Taketora Yamamoto and Y/n L/n were friends…right? Wrong! For ten years Taketora woke up with the thought of Y/n's beauty, but was too afraid to actually confess. However as the raindrops reached her shoulder, he felt the need to do something. [COMPLETED]

Placing Bets by dasfreefree, imagine_that_haikyuu (oneshot, fluff) Tora definitely thinks he lucks out when his girlfriend turns out to be the domestic type. The Nekoma third-years take bets on that. [COMPLETED]

[dwindlinghaze]

remus lupin master list !

🌫️ angst, 👛fluff, ☁️ blurb

︶꒦꒷♡꒷꒦︶ remus lupin ︶꒦꒷♡꒷꒦︶

one shots

✧˖*°࿐ evermore 👛☁️

- winter date with remus

✧˖*°࿐ moony's song 👛🌫️

- a story of two childhood friends that became lovers at the end

✧˖*°࿐ ribbon and sweater 🌫️👛

- remus is in love with a girl.. he isn't good at expressing himself

✧˖*°࿐ you'll never know 👛

- remus knows about your love for him

✧˖*°࿐ something anyone can see 👛☁️

- remus is gay and so are you

✧˖*°࿐ breathin 👛☁️

- domestic fluff and sleeping with your boyfriend

✧˖*°࿐ moon river 👛☁️

- remus overheard you talking sweet thing of him

✧˖*°࿐ language of flowers 🌫️👛

- remus gave you flowers secretly and the one time you did

✧˖*°࿐ unsteady 👛☁️

- remus being there to comfort you who has anxiety

✧˖*°࿐ one spoon for two 👛

- shy reader couldn't look at remus

✧˖*°࿐ everytime 👛🌫️

- remus helping you in escaping a toxic friendship

✧˖*°࿐ when raindrops fell 👛☁️

- a list of girls who are unattractive and you were in it

✧˖*°࿐ the light is coming 👛

- potter!reader developing love with remus

✧˖*°࿐ sunshine and midnight rain 👛

- sunshine r and grumpy remus' sweet little story

✧˖*°࿐ lover in the foyer 👛

- remus fake dating trope

✧˖*°࿐ painted a picture 👛☁️

- painting a portrait of remus for his birthday

✧˖*°࿐ endless empathy 👛☁️

- post full moon remus who just wants to be with you

series / multipart

✧˖*°࿐ a flight to paris part one part two 🌫️👛

- remus didn't know he broke up with you over the phone

✧˖*°࿐the ballad of moonlight and stars 👛🌫️

- remus x reader x sirius, love triangle and soulmate!au (series)

headcanons

│.˚✿° remus with a girly gf

│.˚✿° just remus thoughts

︶꒦꒷♡꒷꒦︶ sirius black ︶꒦꒷♡꒷꒦︶

series / multipart

✧˖*°࿐ the ballad of moonlight and stars 👛🌫️

- remus x reader x sirius, love triangle and soulmate!au (series)

︶꒦꒷♡꒷꒦︶ james potter ︶꒦꒷♡꒷꒦︶

coming soon..

[cheerycherrycandy-resurrected]

heyo! #2 from your wip list? Raindrop tropes??? 👀👀

hi hi!!

hehehe yessss Raindrop tropes!! I saw someone (I can't remember who unfortunately!) on here months back commenting that as a fandom we don't seem to go in for the og fanfic tropes quite as hard as other fandoms do (soulmarks, hanahaki, bodyswap etc.), and I've always been a sucker for a good soulmark au...

so yeah I'm breaking up Dewther to make written-on-their-arms-by-fate Raindrop happen 😜 I've got thoughts about cross-element mates being rare/hard to find/taboo in the pit, so ghouls with a different element's soulmark volunteering for surface projects for a sense of fulfilment and distractions...and lots of them ending up meeting up top as a result.

it's very much still in the "disjointed rambling thoughts on a page" stage of a WIP right now, but we'll see when I get round to writing it!

[boundinparchment]

Dream a Little Dream of Me - XXVIII

Celestia has a cruel sense of humor. He’s always known this, ever since his days as a student. But a soulmate? Really? Dottore/Female Reader Soulmate AU. Lore speculation, interpretations, etc. On AO3 here.

He caught you after you swayed, your claymore falling with a clatter as your body gave out from the sudden demand for energy it didn’t have.  The last thing you needed was a concussion.

Not that it mattered.  A concussion might have, perhaps, rid you of the knowledge of everything if your head struck the ground just so.  If you were a test subject perhaps he would have let you fall.  But wasn’t this entire experience, finding you to begin with, just another experiment?  Why else had he sought you out other than to see what Celestia deemed worthy for someone like him?  A heretic, a blasphemer, who still somehow received both a Vision and a soulmate.

He didn’t dream for centuries, not in that way, and not before you came along.  Adults in Sumeru did not dream, a well-known fact inside the nation, one that perpetuated itself even now; a byproduct of the Akademiya’s rejection of Buer.  

Dottore adjusted his hold on your body and lifted you as though you were nothing more than part of the arm of a Ruin Guard, and settled you back onto the sofa.  Your arm continued to bleed from the IV site, where you’d torn the needle from your skin.

He did not like this sensation, the way the ache radiated outwards from his chest with every squeeze of his still-human heart.  Would it still hurt if that organ were synthetic, like his Segments’?  He should have seen to that before coming here.

If you care about me, let me go.

The way your voice cracked stabbed him deeper than the words themselves.  Dottore long since stopped listening to the words themselves, rolling off of him like raindrops on oiled leather.  For the first time in hundreds of years, your words and your tone cut right through him.  

His own soulmate didn’t even want him, couldn’t stand him, did not want to be near him.

Feared him.

Just like everyone else.

For all your willpower and resilience (for he would at least give you credit for enduring so much; few in this world could say such a thing), you were just like everyone else.  Stones would have been less effective than your terrified expression.

You were nothing more than a hindrance.  A ball and chain that existed solely to remind him of how inescapable the stars above truly were.  Omega had been doing him a service, being as efficient as necessary, to get you out of the way.  He had greater tasks ahead than to deal with you .

The lies did not soothe him as they used to.  He wasn’t sure what he hated more: you or that the world treated you much the same as it did him.

Beautiful things came from suffering, he mused as he cleaned your arm and bandaged it on autopilot.  His experiments advanced Snezhnaya far beyond the other nations in both military and civilian technology; your music brought raw passion and emotion to those who otherwise might feel nothing.

He stepped back from you and raised a hand to his lips.  Bringing you with him felt wrong now as he considered his options.  A caged bird would not sing and he swallowed the selfish urge to keep you to himself, keep your music to himself.  It was evident already that his presence, especially alone, would potentially do more harm than good.  

But leaving you behind would be negligent with Omega still here, finishing out the tasks given to him.

“Still weighing your options and deciding which will have the best possible outcome, Prime?”

Dottore slowly raised his head, garnet eyes falling on the figure in the door.  A reflection of himself, made of leyline energy and machinery, stood with its arms behind its back, shoulders straight, arrogant in its gait as it crossed the threshold.

The Segment’s voice was cold, taunting.  “I told you I could do more with her than you ever could.”

Something inside Dottore snapped and he was across the room in an instant, his hand tight around Omega’s throat.  The action would do little, for the Segment didn’t need to absorb oxygen, but Dottore lifted him just enough to bring the other’s feet off of the ground.  Omega grinned, the same wide smile reserved for only the most intriguing instances, the same grin he gave you as time wore on in the dream.

“Always observing rather than acting, as though that would have saved anyone,” Omega hissed.  “I lost her too.  Or have you forgotten that more of us than just you remember that day?”

The selfishness that took root in him was only heightened by the inability to save her, by the accidental snapping of her hyoid bone when he tried to slow the bleeding.  All he’d wanted was to keep the one person who believed in him alive and—

Dottore let go of Omega’s throat, shifted his weight, and sent the Segment tumbling back through the door with a push-kick to the chest.  Omega’s laugh bounced off the metal walls in tinny echoes as Prime strode forward.  He needed the Segment to finish the task on schedule, which couldn’t be done if he damaged the Segment too much beyond a self-repair capacity.

The Segment stood and brushed himself off, unaffected by the kick.

Omega was the last Segment, the closest to his current personage, the perfect specimen.  But he was closer to Sohreh’s loss than he, Zandik, was.  Prime had the benefit of time and distance: the beauty of hindsight was always its startling clarity .  He had hypothesized that a Segment in the later part of his life would have been able to shed that selfishness at long last.  This experiment, however, was far from unbiased and instead proved to be insightful in other ways.

After all, he, Zandik, the Prime Segment of himself, was the one who removed the necessary distance and time that Omega would have needed by creating him to begin with.  His actions required a solution only he could provide.  

Omega, in time, could overcome everything, as he had.  Zandik’s own existence proved his own hypothesis correct once.  After all, he already overcame all of this, was able to come to terms with his choices and accept them and the consequences they brought with them.  

Killing his own Segment would do nothing but stifle potential and never offer you, his soulmate, a chance at closure.

You deserved that, at the very least.

You deserved so much more than him.

“You hurt her.  Just like I hurt Sohreh,” Dottore’s words were controlled, but only just.  Omega was already under his skin and the Segment didn’t need more goading.  “Worse, even.”

Death had been a mercy for Sohreh.

“I freed her of the confines of her life here, where she must hold herself back for the sake of others.”

“You fed her lies and a false life.”

“As if you wouldn’t do the same to keep her from seeing your true self.  A monster is still a monster, no matter how finely you dress and no matter how polite you act.”

Dottore resisted the urge to summon his claymore and silence Omega, resources and time wasted.  Omega didn’t even move as his master closed the distance again, this time laughing joyfully as Prime pulled away the mask and faceplate, exposing the Ruin Core and the tangles of wires for the optical sockets.  Both hands then grasped the Segment’s head, and Dottore twisted a finger around the love lock and pulled in the process.  In true selfishness, he only ever loved himself, something only noticeable if one found the other lock and noticed how it always curved around his crystal earring on every Segment.  Leyline energy to preserve memories and experiences, pulled from the roots of Irminsul.

This close, he could access the Segment’s neutral network by mental connection alone through the shared Akasha network he constructed using those crystals.  

“You and I are almost exactly the same,” Omega said softly, his words vicious.  “Unlike you, I’m not afraid to explore something, even if it is a useless reminder of the Divinity that has wronged us at every turn.  You can’t tell me you were never tempted to push the boundary further in every dream.  After all, you wanted to kill her once upon a time.”

Dottore couldn’t fathom that now, not after meeting you, after feeling more alive now than he had in centuries because of your music, your presence.  His bones ached in a way he had never felt before but it was his experience to explore with you, not Omega’s.  

If anyone had been robbed, it was him.  No, you .  You were robbed.  

Archons and Celestia be damned, you deserved better than him.

“You might be the accepted monster but I am better than you in so many ways.  Despite your augmentations and longevity, it stands to reason that I am far more worthy of your Vision, of her , than you will ever be.”

“You want what I have?” Dottore growled, the dam inside him finally breaking as his rage and agony seared his veins.  “Here, take it, have it all!  See what you’ve broken this time!”

The rush of his own blood was deafening in his ears as he flooded the system.   Memories upon memories of dreams, of that night he first laid eyes on her in the theatre and the way his heart swelled at her passion, of her determination afterward, of her laugh, her smile, the peace she brought to his mind when his Perspectives conflicted…

Guilt washed over him, ran through his fingers and into the leyline circuits, followed by the frustration and agony of seeing Omega wreck everything before it could begin, the fear that gripped him as he realized what her presence now might result in, the uncertainty of what would become of her, because of him…

Omega’s Ruin Core spun faster, clicking as its processes picked up in an attempt to accept and understand the data.  Dottore severed the connection abruptly, pulling away.  Omega, overloaded, folded easily, his knees buckling as his body fell limp in response as he titled his head up at his creator, grimacing.

“Maybe in time you’ll understand,” Dottore said through gritted teeth.  “Hope is a thing with wings, Omega, and you clipped hers before she could fly.”

He left his Segment where it fell, like a toy abandoned, and returned to the figure in the office.  Your face was closer to peace, perhaps too close for comfort, but you were breathing evenly.  A good sign.  

Dottore gathered you in his arms, ignoring the squeeze of his heart when your head rolled and rested against his chest, and fell into the veins of the world once more.

[maliciouslove]

𝕀𝕟𝕥𝕖𝕣𝕥𝕨𝕚𝕟𝕖𝕕

SFW—fantasy AU, aged up characters (21+)

pairing //fairy!bakugo x reader

summary // a story about a stubborn fairy born from laughter, refusing to abide by fairy law and instead adventuring into the world to find its maker.

word count // 1.2k

tags // fantasy AU, fairies, platonic love, platonic soulmates

AN // some flower language background you may need

daffodils: symbolize rebirth and new beginnings, bloom in spring, usually in april orange tulips: symbolize understanding and appreciation between two people, being spiritually and physically connected to someone

The sound of raindrops on flower petals, the smell of daffodils in spring and the promise of new beginnings—rebirth. Vermillion eyes open for the first time, the faint sound of laughter echoing over the rainfall. 

A tiny figure rises from inside the blooming yellow flower, sleek golden wings engraved with shimmering patters like moving vines shake off the remnants of slumber and spread wide on the fairy child’s back, full of life and eager to explore. 

In the haze of feelings being born and searching for memories that have yet to be created, crimson eyes gaze into the sky above—a rainbow forming in the clearing sky as the rain dies down and makes way for the fire in his heart to light up. 

Katsuki is the name this flame fairy was given by the unnamed gods, born with fiery determination and unquenching, burning desire in his soul. From the moment his eyes open and he takes in the world, takes his very first breath of air—hundreds, millions of questions bloom inside his mind, making him eager, impatient even to find his answers. 

Normally, flame spirits are mischievous, they bring warmth to those who need it, but they can also set forests ablaze, burning down what stands in their way and defies them. Flame fae are temperamental, never staying in one place for long, their mood as volatile as the fire in their hearts. But all fae folk are born with purpose—they are born from laughter and they fulfill a role, upholding the laws of nature and providing the world with magic that the humans cannot perceive. 

Fairies bring rain after long droughts, then turn it into frost—a single touch of theirs makes flowers bloom each morning, their songs replacing the sun with the moon. From the moment their wings flutter and their eyes take in the world, they know what they must do and they diligently do their work each day. Such is fairy law. 

Yet Katsuki denied these laws—his only purpose being to answer the one question that burns the brightest in his mind, to quench his ever burning desire to meet his maker. To find the person who’s light and gleeful laughter he heard as he took his first breath of life that faithful spring day. He needed to understand what made him who he is, to observe this magic bestowed onto humans to be able to give life to his kind. 

So letting go of his responsibilities, against the better judgment of his elder spirits, he sets out on his own adventure, following his own blazing path as he searches for answers. Through forests and meadows, taking shelter from the rain under amanita mushrooms in the forest and using elm tree leaves as makeshift umbrellas, he kept marching forward, directionless but with strong resolve. 

No matter how many times the sun and moon take each other’s place, no matter how much the stars plead him to stop—his ruby eyes only look forward and his golden wings carry him high. Sharing burrows and seeds with field mice, asking sparrows for directions and following butterflies to patches of flowers that he could use as beds at night. 

Katsuki has long since forgotten how much time had passed, how long he had been searching—not knowing how far he had even gone. But that would not stop him, uncertainty would not extinguish the fire burning in his eyes as he sets out each morning to search for that which he had not yet met. So full of hope and desire, he flies up to an orange tulip at sundown, appreciating the flower under him mimicking the sky above in fiery shades of orange—tinges of pink at the tips. 

He curls up inside the flower, settling on the soft petals and being careful not to harm the stamen inside. The fragrance of the flower calms him, gently coaxing him to sleep and bringing pleasant dreams to the fae. In his dream he’s wandering amidst flower fields, chasing that laughter again—the sound as sweet as he remembered it, full of life and joy. 

The melody of it guiding him home. 

Katsuki is abruptly woken by the rustling of leaves nearby, a somehow familiar tune being hummed as his own flower bed trembles and he feels the world shifting under his feet. Poking his head above the flower petals it becomes clear to him the tulip he was using as shelter was picked and placed in a basket amongst other tulips, all in shades of red, orange and yellow. 

He turns his head and is met with eyes he’s seen before, in his dreams—eyes full of promise and adoration, eyes that reflected his love back at him. These human eyes should not be able to perceive him as he was a fairy, born of magic that has always been beyond the grasp of humans.

Yet he was sure that you could see him—taking in his tiny frame, carefully memorizing every detail of his outfit made from leaves bound together by corn silk, inspecting closely the features on his face. Your eyes sparkle with curiosity and innocence, the most beautiful smile he had ever seen adorning your features.

From the moment his eyes met yours, his purpose became clear to him. His long search is finally over—fate had brought him to his final destination, for these magical eyes could only belong to his maker. 

From inside his flower he waves shyly and is greeted back with the most delightful giggle, just like he remembers it. The sugar laced melody of your voice brings tears to his eyes as the fire inside his heart no longer rages violently, untamed, but calmly spreads from his chest to the tips of his fingers that reach for you. 

Your hand stretches out to him, slowly and carefully as if he might get scared and run—index finger making contact with his tiny hands in a makeshift handshake. To him your smile was brighter than the sun, drinking in your voice as you introduce yourself to the tiny fae, asking questions that he could not answer as his voice could not reach your ears. 

But even so, he gestured animatedly, smiling and flying around, using his body and his surroundings to do his best to answer you—to communicate with you.

“What brings you here?” you ask, hands placed in your lap as you sit on the grass amongst a field of flowers—your beauty overshadowing that of the tulips. 

Katsuki’s wings flutter to life and like a golden ribbon of light he circles you, stopping in front of your chest and placing his little hand over your heart. Though there were no words spoken, you understood he was here for you, and you could feel that unspoken and unseen bond between you. 

The feeling of familiarity seeped in your skin and bones, soaking through to your heart and soul and giving you the ability to see colors and beauty where you had not seen it before. The small frame of the golden fae rests in the palm of your hand now, and you can understand him—with every fiber of your being you understand that this magical being is woven from the same thread you are. 

Therefore the next words that roll off your tongue in a whisper feel natural and ring true:

“Welcome home”

𝐃𝐈𝐒𝐂𝐋𝐀𝐈𝐌𝐄𝐑! I do not own any of the characters or people mentioned in my work. these are works of pure fiction that do not reflect the views, opinions, or actions of any person, real or fictional. Furthermore, all characters I write for [thirsts, drabbles, fics, etc.] are aged up to 21 or older – they are adults with adult characteristics presented and written in adult contexts.

all rights reserved © by maliciouslove. my work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License. all fanfics belong to me, please do not copy, translate nor repost the fics or files seen above as this is strictly prohibited.

[imhereforscm]

Masterlist

Fanfiction

"Morning sweet nothings" (Tauxolouve × reader) (fluff) (request)

"The music of raindrops" (Karno × reader) (fluff) (request)

"Gorgeous" (Tauxolouve × reader) (comfort) (request) Warnings: body dysmorphia

"Murderer" (Ichthys × Dui) (angst/romance) Warnings: Mentions of murder

"Sweet inexperience" (Tauxolouve × goddess!reader) (smut/fluff) (request) Warnings: NSFW

"Sweet inexperience" part 2 (Tauxolouve × goddess!reader) (fluff) (request)

"Sweet inexperience" part 3 (Tauxolouve × goddess!reader) (fluff) (request)

"Paint and vision" (teenage!Tauxolouve) (fluff) (request) Warnings: spoiler for Tauxolouve's main story

"Paint and vision" Part 2 (Tauxolouve × reader) (fluff) (request) Warnings: spoilers for Tauxolouve's main story

"My safe place" (Huedhaut × reader) (fluff) (request)

"Let's recharge" (Karno × reader) (comfort) (request)

"Wonderful moments" (Dui × reader) (comfort) (request) Warnings: social anxiety

"Two different worlds" Part 1 (human!Tauxolouve × goddess!reader) (angst/fluff) (request)

"Two different worlds" Part 2 (human!Tauxolouve × goddess!reader) (fluff) (request)

"Two different worlds" Part 3 (human!Tauxolouve × goddess!reader) (fluff) (request) Warnings: mentions of murder

"Two different worlds" Part 4 (human!Tauxolouve × goddess!reader) (fluff) (request)

"Two different worlds" Part 5 (human!Tauxolouve × goddess!reader) (fluff) (request)

"Two different worlds" Part 6 (human!Tauxolouve × goddess!reader) (fluff) (request)

"New" (Tauxolouve × goddess!reader) (angst) (request)

"New" part 2 (Tauxolouve × reader × Scorpio) (angst) (request) Warnings: graphic death scenes, a lot of blood, heavy language at some points, mentions of attempted suicide

"Blessing" (Tauxolouve × goddess!reader) (fluff) (request)

"Movie kiss" (Tauxolouve × reader) (fluff) (request)

"Lovers written into history" (Karno × goddess!reader) (angst) (request) Warnings: implied death

"Path" (Tauxolouve × reader) (comfort) (request) Warnings: mentions of death, mentions of funeral, suicidal thoughts

"Secret smiles" (Dui × reader) (fluff) (request)

"One dance" (Teenage!Tauxolouve × teenage!goddess!reader) (angst) (request)

"One dance" Part 2 (Teenage!Tauxolouve × teenage!goddess!reader) (angst/romance) (request)

"2+2=4" (Karno + Tauxolouve on a double date with their girlfriends) (fluff) (request)

"Hold me" (Human!Tauxolouve × goddess!reader) (comfort) (request) Warnings: panic attack

"I want to see you" (Human!Tauxolouve × vampire!reader) (smut) (request) Warnings: nsfw, blood (not much, but still blood)

"Moon—his moon" (Myself × Scorpio) (fluff) (self insert)

"Your notes" (Karno × Leon) (fluff/soulmate AU)

"Mess with a human" (Scorpio × reader) (crack) (request)

"What's left" (Karno × goddess!reader) (angst) (request)

"Taste of change" (Tauxolouve × reader) (comfort) (request)

"Verbal slips" (Tauxolouve × reader) (comfort) (request)

"This man" (Myself × Scorpio) (comfort) (self insert) Warnings: daddy issues, family problems

"More of you" (Scorpio × reader) (smut/"Plot? What plot?") (request) Warnings: NSFW

"My perfection" (Tauxolouve × reader) (comfort) (request) Warnings: insecurities about appearance

"It's love" (Scorpio × goddess!reader) (fluff) (request)

"Just a lovely story. Just a tragic myth" (Clotho × Huedhaut) (angst) Warnings: blood, virus, a graphic scene of vampire turning

"Come with me?" (Tauxolouve × reader) (comfort/fluff) (request)

"Pile of leaves" (Scorpio × reader) (fluff) (request)

"Choke you" (Ichthys × reader) (smut/"Plot? What plot?") Warnings: NSFW, choking, hand fetish

"A future for yourself" (Human!Tauxolouve × reader) (comfort/fluff) (request)

"Sing for me?" (Tauxolouve × reader) (fluff) (request)

"Let's build a snowman" (Teorus × reader) (fluff)

"By your side" (Teorus × reader) (fluff/comfort) Warnings: period cramps

"Through your eyes" (Human!Tauxolouve × vampire!reader) (fluff) (request) Warnings: SLIGHT love making mentions

"Why do you love me?" (Karno × reader) (fluff) (request)

"I'll never let you go" (Huedhaut × reader) (fluff) (request)

"Car sex" (Scorpio × reader) (smut/"Plot? What plot?") Warnings: NSFW

"I like taking care of you." (Tauxolouve × reader) (comfort) (request)

"Humid morning" (Scorpio × reader) (fluff)

"Scorpio" (Scorpio) (angst) (credit for the idea goes to an anon, which sent me a headcanon and I made it into a fic🌷) Warnings: Mentions of violence and whatever Scorpio's past entailed basically

"How do you feel?" (Karno × reader) (fluff/comfort) (request)

"Want a hug?" (Tauxolouve × reader) (fluff/comfort) (request)

"Beautiful night" (human!Huedhaut × reader) (fluff/royalty AU)

"I believe in you" (Tauxolouve × reader) (comfort) (request) Warnings: thoughts of you not existing

"Thank you" (Tauxolouve × reader) (comfort) (request)

"A line that should've never been crossed" (Vampire!Zyglavis × reader) (romance/royalty AU)

"A line that should've never been crossed" Part 2 (Vampire!Zyglavis × reader) (romance/royalty AU)

"Childhood memories" (Tauxolouve × reader) (fluff) (request)

"Hurting" (Tauxolouve × reader) (comfort/fluff) (request) Warnings: period cramps, meds

"Stuck" (Tauxolouve × reader) (comfort) (request)

"Fighting for" (Tauxolouve × reader) (angst/comfort) (request) Warnings: suicidal thoughts

"Let's do that thing." (Krioff × reader) (fluff)

"Everything will find their way" (Tauxolouve × reader) (comfort) (request)

"Everything will find their way" Part 2 (Tauxolouve × reader) (comfort) (request)

"Proud" (Tauxolouve × reader) (comfort/fluff) (request)

"Believe in yourself" (Karno × reader) (comfort) (request)

"Piano, moonlight, desire" (Dui × reader) (smut) Warnings: NSFW

"Sweet dreams" (Tauxolouve × reader) (comfort/fluff) (request) Warnings: mentions of centipede

"Enamoured by you" (Tauxolouve × reader) (comfort) (request)

"Off of it" (Tauxolouve × reader) (comfort/fluff) (request)

"Vulnerable" (Tauxolouve × reader) (comfort/fluff) (request)

"Mother" (Huedhaut × reader) (comfort) (request) Warnings: mentions of death of a family member

"That...! Is your strength..." (Tauxolouve × reader) (comfort) (request) Warnings: suicidal thoughts

"Miss hunter" (werelion!Leon × reader) (romance/fantasy AU) (request)

"The riches of your soul" (Tauxolouve × reader) (comfort) (request)

"Yet another dream" (Ichthys × reader) (fluff) (Fluffbruary 1/2024)

"The purity of his thoughts" (Dui × reader) (fluff) (Fluffbruary 2/2024)

"Misty daze" (Myself × Scorpio) (fluff) (self insert) (Fluffbruary 3/2024)

"Between the tall bushes" (Tauxolouve × reader) (fluff) (Fluffbruary 4/2024)

"Rescue you" (Aigonorus × reader) (fluff) (Fluffbruary 5/2024)

"Sweetness on your lips" (Zyglavis × reader) (fluff) (Fluffbruary 6/2024)

"Hold this" (Krioff × reader) (fluff) (Fluffbruary 7/2024)

"Snowed in" (Aigonorus × reader) (fluff) (Fluffbruary 8/2024)

"Every sunset and sunrise" (Tauxolouve × reader) (fluff) (Fluffbruary 9/2024)

"Like an angel" (Huedhaut × reader) (fluff) (Fluffbruary 10/2024)

"A kid's wish" (Tauxolouve × goddess!reader) (fluff) (Fluffbruary 11/2024)

"Fifteen years" (Karno × goddess!reader) (fluff) (Fluffbruary 12/2024)

"Your mind, your beauty" (Huedhaut × reader) (fluff) (Fluffbruary 13/2024)

"Nothing to bother you" (Partheno × reader) (fluff) (Fluffbruary 14/2024)

"Touch and go" (Leon × reader) (smut) Warnings: NSFW, Sort of public foreplay, degrading, choking, light bondage, blindfold, impact play (smacking with hands), name calling (slut), punishment

"Like the lake" (Huedhaut × reader) (comfort) (request)

Headcanons

General headcanons (Tauxolouve × goddess!reader) (fluff) (request)

BPD comfort (all the gods) (comfort) (request) Warnings: BPD

Verbal abuse comfort (all the gods) (comfort) (request) Warnings: verbal abuse

The kind of requests I accept:

E V E R Y T H I N G (⁠┛⁠◉⁠Д⁠◉⁠)⁠┛⁠彡⁠┻⁠━⁠┻

Except:

• Miscarriage (that's terrifying, so I don't wanna write this)

(P.S. I never thought I'd get this far, omg thank you! (•́⁠ ⁠ ⁠‿⁠ ⁠,⁠•̀))

Masterlist 2

[strayfoxxchan]

I only have one chapter left to post (so far) on Raindrops & Cigarettes!

I’m a bit stumped on where to go from here, so leave suggestions in my Ask! Otherwise, I might start another 😭

Raindrops & Cigarettes

Pairing: Bang Chan (Chris) x f!reader (Y/N)

Genre: Fluff, Soulmate AU

Content Warning: Mentions of Nicotine Use, Mentions of Alcohol Consumption, Y/N gets very drunk

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

[whenyouwishuponastar7]

AO3 FIRST LINES

Rules: Post the first lines of your last 10 fics posted to AO3 (Sort by date posted.) If you have less than 10 fics posted, post what you have! Tagged by @discodeviant​ thank yoooooou ;3; Steve is eighteen when he’s drafted. It’s been the most steady and reliable event of his life, something he knows he can turn the radio on to tune in to, start a conversation with, and wonder about. It’s been like this for years already. - and the guns, shot above our heads Billy Hargrove isn’t a fan of Hawkins, Indiana. - shot of love “So, you don’t think I should be aloof.” “No. I mean, yes. Don’t be aloof. That was last year Steve and last year Steve was a fucking moron. Be a gentleman. Kind. Caring. Be nice. Be real, man, too, because they always know when you’re not. Treat them like fellow human beings who deserve respect because they do. More than our sorry asses.” - driftin’ too far from the shore Steve is a born-and-bred hacker. Well, not really. He’s a kid raised on computers, given the best of the best each Christmas, so his parents don’t have to worry about where he is, what he’s up to, or even parenting him at all. - honest with me The landline blares to life and Steve’s eyes snap open. - my bucket’s got a hole in it Steve has never done a single thing wrong in his life. Alright, that’s not true. He’s done a lot wrong and likes to think he’s learning from it every day. He’s still young and fucks up, but as long as he apologizes, learns a lesson, and grows, that’s good, right? - seeing the real you at last Vividly blue marks have always covered Steve’s skin. Scrapes and bruises on his knees and elbows that weren’t his own. Rugburns on his arms and nicks on his shins. They bloom like blue ink touching a wet surface, outward and unique each time. - blood in my eyes Steve sits on the couch in the living room with a bowl of sugared blackberries and raspberries. - one more night Steve Harrington has been working in Cold Stone Creamery for precisely four and a half weeks before Billy Hargrove strolls into his life again. - what was it you wanted A scream echoes through the night, breaking through the steady flow of rain and thunder. Lightning streaks across the sky and a sob is heard over the cacophony of the storm. Thick, heavy raindrops fall onto the grass, dirt, slides and tinkles off animals on creaky springs, their paint chipped halfway off. - shelter from the storm --- Thanks for the tag, Disco!!! I think everyone I know has been tagged so if you follow me and HAVEN’T been tagged guess what? You’ve been tagged. Please @ me so I can read them ;; thank yoooooou. ALL Harringrove and we’ve got some fae, vampire, soulmates, enemies to lovers, modern au, angst/hurt/comfort, a s3 never happened to Billy fix it! Oh, and one crack. But I won’t tell you which.

[feralghxuls]

tagged by @blacklight-ghoulette !!

RULES: post the names of the files in your WIP folder (art, fics or both), regardless of how non-descriptive or ridiculous. let people send you an ask with the title that most intrigues them, and then post a little snippet or tell them something about it! Tag as many people as you have WIPs.

lmao buckle up i have SO many wips.

let's go through my folders, shall we.

ANGST

"When were you gonna tell me you're leaving...

kumbayah

ouch

raindrop 3

terzo pain

untitled document [this is amnesia fic]

untitled document [dewther angst]

[REDACTED] (secret series i've been working on for forever)

dew appt 1

[redacted] ch 1

[redacted] ch 2

[redacted] ch 3

pre-dew appt

rain chase dew

untitled document

untitled document

okay and now everything in my main folder:

aether surprise

all eyes on me

dew/stratus

dew/swiss chase

kaisarion song prompt

leggo my eggo

mean rain (dew)

mist/omega

monstrous rain

muzzled rain

muzzled requests

needy mountain

primo zeph

rain/omega

rain/omega struggle

rain/swiss

rain/swiss soulmate au

say the words

swiss ifrit panties

untitled document

water ghoul lore

wax

zeph/steam

i literally don't know enough people to tag someone for every wip. so. @askingforthesun @forlorn-crows @nocturnalghoul @iamthecomet @endopyre @hypnoneghoul and anyone else who wants to

i'm not really expecting any asks w titles but if anyone sends any yall know i love posting snips