#relaxed under her since she’s not letting him up. and then he just purrs away.

[quietwingsinthesky]

sorry thought about charley laying on top of and squishing eight under her and him purring about it and im gonna need a few days to reboot now

[lemonlover1110]

She’s Everything. He’s Just Ken.

Pairing: Kento Nanami x f!Reader

Summary: Kento is a stay-at-home husband for a wife who seems to have multiple jobs

Warnings: Pure Fluff

*just a drabble, and if you couldn’t tell I’m very excited for the barbie movie

Discord +18 - Twitter - Ko-Fi

The moment Kento got married, his wife assured him that she’d be able to handle all the costs of the house. Kento never really got to know her job, and it seemed like she was job hopping from time to time. Sometimes he thought she was a doctor, and other times he swore he saw her wearing an astronaut suit.

Either way, Kento never really worried because his wife managed to pay for everything. And now he’s like a trophy husband, which he doesn’t mind. He gets to sit back and relax while his wife pays for everything. But of course, he has to make sure everything is ready for his wife.

“Blissa, get down from the fridge.” Kento lectures the cat, however, she stays in her place. Kento tries to get her to come down, but he fails. He’s not going to get on top of the counter to get her to come down– But he ends up getting on top of the counter to pick her up and bring her down to the floor. He has nothing better to do anyway. She ends up going elsewhere, probably to the living room to scratch the couch.

“Stupid cat.” He mutters, although he adores that cat more than anything. Blissa is what keeps him company while his wife is out working some thrilling and exciting job. He looks for the recipe book to start making a cake, since he has nothing else to do. He already cleaned, did laundry, organized everything– He can’t think of anything else he could do.

“Kento! I’m home!” You yell, and he stops looking for the recipe book and walks to the front door. He greets you with open arms, and you run to hug him and kiss him. “I missed you so much.”

“I missed you too, honey.” He responds as he takes your purse from your hands and puts it away. “How was work?”

“Work was great.” You answer. “What about you?”

“Everything is great…” He says, knowing he hasn’t done much while you’re probably out there saving the world. “I was about to make a cake, do you want to join me?”

“Sure.” You smile and you follow him to the kitchen. He begins to look for the recipe book while you wash your hands. He finds the recipe book and turns to the right page, and you begin to bake.

It becomes too much for you quickly. You instead end up sitting down on the kitchen island as you watch your husband do all the baking. You cheer him on and he just laughs. “So what were you doing at your job today?”

“You know.. This and that.” You respond, watching your husband crack two eggs into the pink bowl. “Just a little flying and—“

“Flying?” Kento interrupts and you furrow your eyebrows before nodding in response. “What do you do, honey? I thought you were a doctor.”

“I’m a pilot, baby. I thought you knew that.” You nonchalantly answer, as if it’s something so logical. He doesn’t understand how you’re here now. Maybe it just wasn’t a long flight. You were gone a reasonable amount of hours, so Kento tries to make sense of it all.

He pecks your lips and mutters an apology, and you grab the collar of his shirt and pull him into a more heated kiss. As much as he doesn’t want to pull away, he still has to finish baking a cake for you. You’ll continue later. He tries to turn away so you won’t see his pink cheeks.

“Did you say hi to Blissa?” Kento questions and you shake your head. You begin to call for her,

“Tsk tsk tsk, come here kitty.” You say as you pat the space next to you on the island. It lets Kento know why Blissa is always climbing the counters. Blissa ends up climbing the counter, and Kento doesn’t say anything because in the end, you pay for everything. Although he does side-eye as you pet the cat.

“I’m thinking about quitting my job.” You share while Blissa purrs under your hand.

“And doing what?” He asks as he looks for a container for the cake.

“Becoming an envelope licker.” You answer, making Kento hold back a laugh. He stops looking for a container and walks towards you. He cups your face before pecking your lips.

“This is why I love you, honey.”

[the-kr8tor]

Saw your requests open and decided to pop in real quick!

So, I found this video on tiktok https://vm.tiktok.com/ZMrkqnBQj/ could you write a Hobie x nb!reader oneshot with that, please? 😆🙏

Hope you like it! ❤️

Pairing: Hobie brown x nb! Reader/ Spider-Punk x nb! Reader

Tags: No use of Y/N, no specific physical description of the reader, CW food mentions, FLUFF

ʕ⁠·⁠ᴥ⁠·⁠ʔ

You haul the shopping bags over your shoulder, it's heavy and weighty in your hands. The canned goods and rice weigh you the most down. At least it's cool outside the grocery once the automatic doors open for you. And yet, you stop in your tracks the second your eyes land on Hobie and the kitten you fostered a few weeks ago. You didn't see her at first, but the second she pokes her cute head out, you almost burst into tears.

“Oh,” you can't help but coo from your position.

Hobie has stayed outside on the bench since they didn't allow the cat inside. They're under some shade and accompanied by a mini fan that Hobie brings above his head and towards the kitten laying atop his hair. Crumpet, you've lovingly named her, has situated herself on Hobie's hair, soft fur against his soft hair, tubby orange against dark locks. Her eyes are fully closed, tiny fluffy head resting upon his hairline. She's a picture of someone absolutely spoiled. You swear you could hear Crumpet purr from where you are.

You beam at them, footsteps quick as you get closer to the pair. “H-how? What?!”

Hobie shrugs, finding amusement in your reaction. He wishes he has a camera right now to capture the moment. “She just climbed on my shoulder and screamed in my bloody ear until I lifted her up on my head.”

“She did?” Cuteness overload has taken over your body. Grocery forgotten on the ground, you instinctively take your phone from your jean pocket, and then taking a hundred snapshots of them both in every conceivable angle. “That's the most adorable thing in whole fucking world! I wanna smooch her face off but I don't want to wake her up.” You groan from the cuteness, fists shaking from the sheer volume of adorableness in front of you.

“I'd take those smooches.” Hobie says, neck straight like a statue and frozen ever since Crumpet climbed up on his head. You move in-between his legs, to which he happily lets you in, slim fingers tugging you closer by your belt loop.

You chuckle, ducking your head down to cradle his face, giving him a chaste but a much needed kiss. “There, I'm going to give you and Crumpet so many goddamn kisses you'd beg for respite.”

Hobie realizes that the kitten isn't the only thing that has given you cuteness aggression. He grins up at you, hand slowly reaching for your own without disturbing the relaxed cat on top of him. “You won't hear any beggin’ from me, love.”

“Good,” you smile against another quick kiss. Leaning away, you pick at a stray kitten fur from his cheeks, blowing it away from him while he rubs lovingly at your wrists. “Let me guess, a few people have noticed and have taken pictures.”

Crumpet yawns above him, stirring but continuing to sleep in the coziest bed. Even though at home she likes to sleep inside discarded boxes despite the expensive bed you've bought for her. Her ear twitches, tail curling around herself, and you almost melted from the small movement.

Hobie flicks your side to get your attention, chuckling at how your eyes are practically glossing over from how cute the kitten is. “A few? Try a couple dozen of ‘em.”

You inhale, desperately trying to compose yourself but you still want to coo and and bite something, anything to quell the emotion. Sliding your hands down to his shoulder, you coax him up from the bench. “We gotta go home then.”

“Don't like sharin’?” He teases, standing up but still keeping his neck frozen like a statue, a hard task in itself.

You giggle, “yep! I like my baby and my other baby kept to myself, thank you very much.”

Hobie squeezes your nose, shaking your head. He thinks that he has caught your cuteness aggression, but for you this time. “Let's go home then, or we might end up on Ellen or some shit.”

[the-ragingenby]

guys don’t even ask me what this is, because I have no idea

Edit: AO3 Crosspost

My Kitten

Aizawa x Gender-Neutral Reader

You fought to keep your tail from twitching with annoyance as your last customer of the day decided to order one of every drink on the menu. “And will that be all for you today?” You ask, keeping your voice light. The customer, an older woman with long blonde hair, nods and pulls out her card to pay.

You bite back a sigh as she pays, handing her the receipt and turning away to make her drinks. All your other coworkers had long gone home; you had agreed to close tonight, but now you were starting to regret it.

You work as fast as you can, dropping ice into cups and pouring assorted mixes into each. For others, you had to brew some more espresso, or even just warm up some milk. She seriously wanted one of everything you had, which you still couldn’t believe.

About ten minutes later, you had handed her all her drinks and she loaded them into a small cart that she brought with her. “Took you long enough.” She muttered once she’d finished, waiting for you to open the door and let her out.

“Have a good night.” You gritted out, tail lashing, as you held the door open for her. Once she’d gone, you let out a heavy sigh, shoulders drooping. Every day was as exhausting as the last, with you having to get people to focus on their orders rather than your ears or tail.

At times, you hated your quirk. You had to be mindful of your tail, otherwise your coworkers would trip. And you needed to keep your emotions, and ears, in check or your boss would accuse you of being disrespectful.

After cleaning up and locking the door, you trudge out into the night. Slipping into your cat form, you trot down the street, tail swaying happily behind you. Being like this made you feel a little better, even if your day was pretty shitty.

You pause, nose twitching, as you notice a particular scent in the air. You had smelled it before, but over the past months, it’s become more regular around the area. You pad along more cautiously, ears swiveling to pick up any danger.

“Well, I didn’t think I’d see you out here again, Cat.” A smooth voice rumbled from the alleyway. You jump away, fur fluffed up with fear, before relaxing. It was that hero that started hanging around recently, though you didn’t know his name. He wore dark clothes with a long scarf on his neck. His eyes were tired as he watched you, but his expression was warm. You had taken a liking to him, especially since he gave the best head scratches.

Letting out a purr, you weave between his legs, looking up at him. You can’t talk in this form, but you meowed at him, hoping he’d know what you wanted. “Yeah, I know, Cat.” He huffed out, amused, as he gently picked you up and settled you in his arms. He quietly pet your head and ears as you purred contentedly. “Wish I knew your name, sweetheart. I’m sure you’ve gotten quite tired of me calling you Cat.”

You honestly didn’t mind, and there really was no way to actually tell him your name. Instead, you reached up a paw to bat at his chin, making him laugh. “Or I guess you really don’t mind.” He murmured, adjusting your position slightly so you’d be more comfortable. “I know I ask you this every time, but where’s your owner, huh? Won’t they be worried about you?”

You let out a huffing mew, smushing your face against his chest. The man rolls his eyes at you, but his expression grows more affectionate. “I’m glad I’ve been able to catch you out here all these times. You make the day more bearable.” He sighs, scratching gently under your chin. “Wish I could be with you more often, kitten.”

Your purrs grow louder in response, relishing in the affection from him. Being honest, you were hoping you’d run into him again. For the past few months, he’s given you the love and affection you were missing, even if you were a cat at the time.

How to explain that you were actually a human though…that you couldn’t figure out how to break to him. You didn’t exactly want to scare him off. You liked him. A lot. And if he didn’t like you in your human form too…you didn’t even want to think about the possibilities. All it sounded like was a lot of heartache for no reason. So, you stayed like this. It was better this way.

~

“Alright, Aizawa, spill.” Yamada demanded in the teacher’s lounge, leaning over the table. “You decide to ditch your friends for months and go to a town you don’t even know for what? To patrol? I don’t buy it!”

“Keep your voice down, Yamada.” Aizawa muttered, but made no attempt to answer his questions.

“Have you finally gotten yourself a partner? Are you shutting us out of your life because you’re in love?” Yamada wailed, slithering onto the ground and flopping there, clutching his chest. “I’m hurt. Truly.”

Aizawa rolled his eyes. “If you must know, I met a little cat. Love them with all my heart.” Yamada shot back up, fixing Aizawa with an unimpressed stare.

“You’ve gotta be kidding me. Aizawa! It’s a cat. Please, I beg you. You need to get out more.” Yamada grimaced, but Aizawa proceeded to ignore him again.

“I’ll spend as much time with Cat as I please.” Aizawa snorted, almost a little defensively. “Besides, the area is a little overrun with villains and I’m doing my part to keep them at bay.”

“There is no way you named the cat…Cat.” Yamada gawked at Aizawa, still not fully understanding why this man would want to spend all his free time with some random cat. Aizawa manages a shrug, refocusing on the paperwork in front of him. “You are…unbelievable.”

“So I hear.” Aizawa quips, writing in the grade on one of the papers before moving to the next. Yamada let out a sigh of defeat before ambling away. As he worked, Aizawa found himself wondering when he’d see his little Cat next.

~

It had been another couple weeks and you had made it a point to see Aizawa every day. After finally figuring out his name over the walkie talkie he had on his person, you were even more intrigued by him. He spent more time with you each night, when he could. Although there were a few times when he had to rush off to fight a villain.

With each passing day, you could feel your infatuation for him growing, and it made you feel worse that you hadn’t revealed yourself to him. But honestly, maybe it was better this way. You could tell that just holding you made him feel better, even if the exhaustion never left his eyes.

“My coworkers keep complaining that I’m spending all my time with you, Cat.” Aizawa murmured, gently pressing his head to yours. “But I don’t care. You make me happy.” You can’t help but purr at that, kneading your paws against him. He laughs softly, pressing a soft kiss between your ears before he pulls away, his walkie talkie crackling to life.

“All units, please respond to a rogue villain. Quirk: unknown. Currently in pursuit down Main Street.” A voice announced, causing Aizawa to sigh. He hugs you a little more tightly for a moment before setting you down.

“Alright, kitten, I’ve got to go. Now, go straight home, okay? Don’t go sticking your nose into danger.” Aizawa murmured, running his hand softly down your back before launching away into the night, scarf wrapped tightly around his hand.

You can’t help but feel a little disappointed that your meeting was cut short, but you decide to head home. As you meander down the street, you pause to sniff the air, frowning as you realize rain is coming.

You barely make it a few more blocks before the downpour really starts, drenching your fur. Flattening your ears and squinting against the water, you push onwards, already thinking about how long you’ll have to spend drying yourself off when you get back.

You leap away, yowling, when lightning strikes a nearby lamppost, shattering its lightbulb and taking out all the power in the area. You wonder, briefly, if you can even make it back to your apartment in this weather.

You race down a nearby alleyway, darting into a box tossed on its side to hide from the torrential rainfall. Shivering, you attempt to dry your fur, shaking yourself off in the rather large box. You let out an annoyed huff, thinking about how you’ll stink of mildew if you don’t get dried off properly.

But all those thoughts go out the window when you hear fighting among the crashes of thunder. “You won’t get away with this. Killing a hero, they’ll come for you, y’know.” You stiffen as your blood runs cold. That was…Aizawa’s voice.

“Bahahah! Like I care.” A sharp, menacing voice snarls. You didn’t recognize this one, but it was hurting Aizawa! “Heroes are all scum, so making one disappear is doing the world a favor!”

You race out of the box, charging down the alleyway and plant yourself between Aizawa and some bipedal tiger you had never seen before. A flash of lightning illuminates the alleyway briefly, and Aizawa meets your eyes from where he was collapsed on the ground. “Cat…?” He breathes, his tired eyes drooping as he fights to keep himself conscious.

He was bleeding from somewhere, though you couldn’t quite tell from where. You flatten your ears, turning to face the tiger with a deep growl rumbling in your chest. Leave him alone! You arch your back, spitting and hissing, trying to make yourself look bigger. This was all you could do. If you shifted down, you’d be less agile and those claws would certainly make more of a dent in your softer skin, without the protective fur barrier.

The tiger simply looks at you, an amused smirk gracing his lips. “Oh, what, you wanna keep the hero?” He snorts, lashing his striped tail. “Sure, why not. Us felines have to stick together, eh?” With a harsh cackle, he stalks away into the night, leaving you and Aizawa in the dark alleyway.

Without a moment’s thought, you shift into your human form, leaning over Aizawa and looked him over for injuries. “Hey, are you awake? Can you hear me?” You question, wincing when you notice a cut on his leg.

“Angel…” He mumbles, looking up at you with wide eyes.

“...What?” Before you can ask anything else, he passes out in your arms. You quickly scoop him up and, after pulling him onto your back, you haul him to your apartment, determined to patch him up.

~

Now, Aizawa was always a logical person, that he could stand behind. But here, lying on his side in the pouring rain, he was looking up at the most stunning person he’d ever seen. No, it couldn’t have been a person. It was an angel. It had to be. There was no way anyone who shone so brilliantly could be looking at him.

His eyes fell closed as the sound of rain and thunder surrounded him. Something lifted him up, he thinks, but after that, he wasn’t sure what was happening.

The next thing he knew, he was now awake on someone’s couch with a blanket draped over him and a bandage around his head. A cat was pacing the length of the living room, and at his stirring, they paused and immediately perked up. “Wait…Cat? Is that you?” His mouth fell open as the cat’s form shifted, revealing you in your human form.

“Are you alright? You can hear me, right?” You ask, approaching him and holding a finger in front of his face for him to focus on.

“You were a human this whole time.” Aizawa whispers, mostly to himself, as he follows your now moving finger.

You nervously clear you thought, pulling away a little. “Yeah.” You could feel yourself brace for some sort of meltdown or outburst or rejection or something, but Aizawa simply nods to himself before running a hand over his face.

“I want to apologize for, uh, everything that happened.” He says, sitting up slowly, wincing in mild pain. “It wasn’t appropriate, at all, and I’ll be out of your hair soon. Thank you for everything.” He managed a polite bow of his head.

Gathering your courage, you gently shook your head. “No, uh, it’s okay. I liked it and you…a lot…” Your voice trailed off, turning your head away in embarrassment.

Aizawa blinks at you, in pure disbelief. You saved him, brought him here, listened to his rants about work and his friends, and were just…there for him. “Then…maybe we can start over?” He offered, reaching out a hand. “Hi, my name is Aizawa and I’m a pro hero. Would you do me the honor of maybe going out with me sometime?”

~

Despite everything, you let out a soft laugh, taking his hand in your own. “Of course I will.”

He breaks into a gentle smile, looking up at your ears. “I know you aren’t a cat, er, right now. But…”

You snort, crouching down and leaning your head towards him. “Go ahead. I like it when you rub them.” He reached up, rubbing them softly and you let out a sigh of contentment, leaning into his hand.

The two of you stayed like that for a long while, simply enjoying each other’s presence. Though you were a little anxious about it, you felt at ease with him by your side. “Thank you, kitten.” He murmured, gently pressing a kiss to your temple.

Yeah, you could get used to this.

[blasphemous-lies-and-deceit]

Flufftober Day 1. Lost Pet Meet Cute

"Oh, hello!"

Michael's happy greeting made Gerry turn back in confusion, since it didn't seem to be directed at him. It wasn't, obviously, since Michael's attention was firmly on the cat that was standing on the bin next to him, meowing incessantly at him. Michael, of course, was already smitten, cooing and petting over the cat's back as they arched up into his hand. Gerry could hear it purring as he retraced his steps, back to Michael's side.

"We can't get distracted, love," he urged, but it was half-hearted at best. Michael was already distracted, and who was he to part the pair? The cat was desperate for attention, eyes closed in bliss as Michael scratched the base of her tail. The patches of white, orange and black of her fur were a bit dingy, and while she wasn't very thin, she had the look of a creature who hadn't been eating well. There was no collar around her neck. "Fuck," Gerry sighed, reaching out as well, letting the cat sniff his fingers before going in to scratch under her chin. "You're not gonna be able to walk away from her, are you?"

"Look at her!" Michael said plaintively, scooping the feline into his arms. His eyes were wide and pleading, gazing at Gerry with aching want. "She might be lost, or abandoned. We can't leave her!"

The thing was, they really could. Gerry knew they should, since they were supposed to be doing some basic reconnaissance on a base for the Lightless Flame, and there was no way to bring a cat along. But there also was no way for him to insist Michael leave the stray behind. She was already looking so comfortable and relaxed in Michael's arms, purring up a storm and leaning into his embrace. Only some sort of heartless bastard could look into Michael's pleading eyes and say no to him.

And Gerry didn't really want to leave her behind, either. 

"She better not have fleas," Gerry told him, still scratching behind the cat's ears. Her bright green eyes scrunched nearly closed as she leaned into his fingers. "Yeah, you like that, don't you?" Gerry directed at her, quietly loving the increased frequency of purrs. "You're gonna spoil her so bad."

"Oh, I'm going to spoil her?" Michael asked jokingly. "You didn't even try to argue, I didn't even have to ask if we could keep her!" He giggled when Gerry shot him a look, trying to pull back some of his usual demeanor. It was no use‒ Michael knew him too well, and just smiled knowingly at him before looking away shyly. "I‒ I have been wanting to ask if we could get a cat for a while, but I wasn't sure if you'd want one too…"

"I think she'll be a good fit," Gerry assured him. Caring for a cat was a big responsibility, but one that he was willing to take on in their lives. A fluffy little cherry on top of their relationship. They could use a piece of normalcy like her, something to remind them that there was a world outside of the supernatural bullshit, and that not everything was terrible. A reminder that sometimes things could be soft, and lovely, and capable of purring with happiness. 

Michael beamed at him, gently hugging the cat in his arms, and Gerry knew that he absolutely, positively agreed.

[sena-seastar]

The Dragon's Gold

Chapter One

Pairing: Aegon II Targaryen x Aerys Reyne (male oc)

Summary: Aerys Reyne, son of Naerys Targaryen, the second-born daughter of King Viserys and Queen Aemma, has been best friends with Aegon since childhood. As boys, they had been inseparable. Many said that it reminded them of the early days of King Jaehaerys reign. When the princes Aemon and Baelon were still children. Wherever one boy was, it wasn't long before the other came running behind him. That was until forbidden desires of the heart forced a wedge between them. After the death of his grandsire, King Viserys, Aerys finds himself torn between two sides: stand by his oldest friend or stand by the only mother he has ever known.

Words: 7385

a/n: Dialogue in italics means that the characters are speaking in high valyrian. I was just too lazy to attempt to translate it. Though, there may be some high valyrian thrown in here and there. No beta, so I apologize for any or all grammar and spelling mistakes.

Aerys

Aerys sat on the dirt, sketching in the large leather-bound book sitting across his knees. Agana lay before him, resting her head on the dirt. The sun reflected beautifully off of her aquamarine and silver scales. Aerys’s eyes shifted quickly back and forth from the dragon to the book. The sound of laughter alerted the she-dragon and her rider. Agana let out a low rumble as she stretched her neck up. 

“Don’t worry Agana. We’re done for today,” Aerys smiled as he stood.

He ran his fingers over the dragon's scaled neck. She let out what sounded like a purr as she relaxed under his touch. Her emerald green eyes stared at him as he pulled away. She lowered her neck to nuzzle her head against his chest. Aerys laughed as he patted her muzzle. 

“I’m sorry, I have to go. We’ll go for a ride later,” he smiled.

He stepped back and picked up the brown leather bag on the dirt. He lifted the strap of his head to let it sit on his shoulder. Aerys rubbed Agana’s muzzle one last time before he called out to the dragon keepers. Aerys waved his hand until he lost sight of the dragon. It pained him to leave her chained up in this place, but he had no other choice. His grandfather, King Viserys, had told him the chains were mandatory. 

“Make sure she gets a good meal, please. I’ll return later on today. It’s been a few days since she’s gotten to spread her wings,” Aerys said as he walked with the dragon keepers. 

“Of course, Lord Reyne.” The dragon keepers bowed their heads.

The familiar sound of laughter caught Aerys’s attention. He followed the sound until he reached the two brown-haired boys. His younger cousins, Jace and Luke. Luke noticed him first and immediately ran to his side. The boy was jumping up and down in excitement.

“Mother is having the baby! We’ve picked an egg for them!” He exclaimed as he took hold of Aerys’s hand.

The older boy allowed himself to be pulled along. Aerys could feel the heat from the warming chamber without it even being opened. Ser Harwin was standing beside Jace, with an absentminded smile on his face as he watched the boy look at the large bronze-scaled egg sitting in the warming chamber.

“Jace, let me pick it on my own!” Luke smiled.

“You did good, Luke. I’m sure your mother will love it.” Aerys smiled as he patted Luke’s head. 

“Alright boys,” Ser Harwin interrupted, “You should get that egg to the castle.”

“Will you come with us?” Luke asked as he ran to cling to the gold cloak. Harwin had a look of uncertainty on his face.

“That would be safest,” Aerys shrugged. “It’s not every day an egg leaves the dragon pit right?”

Harwin stared at the older boy for a moment before he nodded. Aerys was no fool. He understood why the man cared so much for the two boys. He had heard the whispers that spread through the castle like wildfire. Ser Harwin also did not do a great job of hiding his fondness for Aunt Rhaenyra’s children. However, it was mostly the boy’s colors that gave it away, brown hair, brown eyes, and pale skin. Whatever Velaryon blood they had in their veins was quite. . . distant.

Bastards, people whispered. The first time Aerys had heard that, he threatened to feed the little pompous Frey boy to Agana. Who the boy’s father was did not matter to Aerys. The boys were still his family, his blood. They had dragons. If that did not prove they were true Targaryens , Aerys did not know what would. 

The boys made their way back to the Red Keep. They were escorted by Ser Harwin, a few gold cloaks, and Ser Lorent. Ser Lorent was the sworn shield of Aunt Rhaenyra. Luke was practically bouncing up and down the entire trip. He was excited to meet the newest edition of the family. He couldn’t decide which he wanted more, a brother or sister. He then began ranting about the pros and cons of both. Aerys sat quietly, simply listening to the little boy ramble. The boy thought of his brother, Robb, the current Lord of Castamere and head of House Reyne. Robb was his half-brother, born five years before him. He wondered if he had been as excited about his birth as Luke was about his new sibling. 

Aerys hoped the babe would not cause his aunt too much trouble. He understood how dangerous the birthing bed could be. His mother had nearly died giving birth to him. Aerys had wished to remain at her side, but it would not be appropriate. So he had decided to spend the day with Agana, to keep himself distracted.

The castle seemed to be even more crowded than usual. Though the crowd moved to clear a path as the boys made their way through. Aerys went first, allowing the boys to follow behind him. The group made their way to Nyra's apartments easily enough. Nyra had yet to return to her chambers, so Aerys decided to return to his bedchamber to clean himself up. 

He had to promise Luke he would return as soon as the baby was here before the boy let him go. Ser Lorent had offered to accompany him but Aerys refused. Aerys quietly walked down to his chambers. A few maids giggled and whispered amongst themselves as they watched him pass by. He smiled politely and nodded.

“I’ll never understand why they flock to you.”

Aerys flinched and turned his head. Aegon was standing on his right side, with a childish pout on his face.

“Maybe if you showed them a little more respect they’d do the same to you,” Aerys sighed.

“Respect? They’re servants. They respect me.” Aegon scoffed.

“I’m sure they do,” Aerys hummed.

Aerys sped up his pace to get away from the boy. Though Aegon was quick to follow. Aerys felt a twinge of nervousness as Aegon walked closer to him. This time their arms pressed side to side, their fingers brushed against each other as they walked. Aerys had thought of stepping away but he could not bring himself to do it. 

“What’s the matter with you? Are you ill?” Aegon asked suddenly.

“What do you mean?” Aerys scrunched his face in confusion.

“Your face is red, and your hair is starting to stick to your forehead.” 

Aerys wiped his forehead with his sleeve. “It’s nothing, I'm just worried about Nyra.”

Aegon hummed, “Yes, I heard her labors had started. Mother said she would be shocked if the child wasn’t another bast- boy.”

Aerys shot the older boy a glare, his hands clenched into fists. He picked up his pace, ignoring the Targaryen prince’s pleas to slow down. Aerys finally made it to the thick oak and iron door that shielded his bedchamber. He opened the door just enough to slip through. The young man quickly moved around the door to push it close, unfortunately, he wasn’t fast enough. Aegon slammed his hand against the door to stop it. Aerys sighed and simply walked to the small desk sitting beside his bed. 

He dropped his bag onto the desk and took his seat. He ran his hand through his hair before dragging it down his face. He hadn’t gotten much sleep lately. The young man had known for days that Nyra was nearing the end of her pregnancy. Once again his worries began to overwhelm him. Surely she would be alright, this was her third child after all. Nyra had told him she had little to no trouble with Jace or Luke. So she expected this delivery to go smoothly enough. She had her handmaids and midwives to attend to her. Women who have much experience with delivering children.

“I’m sorry,” the prince apologized.

Aerys jumped slightly as he felt Aegon’s breath against his neck. He hadn’t heard the boy pull up a chair. He had been so caught up in his worries again. Aegon sat behind him, resting his head on Aerys’s shoulder. He could hear Aegon tapping his fingers against the chair, a nervous habit of his.

“I know, it’s just, you know how I feel about that. It’s bad enough they’ll have to deal with the realm whispering about them for the rest of their lives. They don’t need it from their family as well. Especially from you, they look up to you. It would crush them to hear it from you.”

“I know, it’s not their fault. I won’t say it again,” Aegon quickly sat up straight.

Aerys turned his head to see what he was doing. The older boy stood upright. He held his hand over his heart, a look of deep seriousness taking over his face.

“I swear it on my life.”

Aerys rolled his eyes but found himself laughing at the gesture. He lowered his head, not wanting to give Aegon the satisfaction of seeing him lose his composure. Aegon began laughing along with him. Aerys cleared his throat.

“How did it go with your mother this morning?” 

Aegon huffed and shuffled over to the bed, letting himself fall forward. His messy hair fanned out around his head. He buried his face deeper into the blankets.

“That bad?” Aerys questioned, as he stood to his feet.

Aegon said something but it was muffled against the blanket, so Aerys could not understand it. Aerys said nothing as he joined Aegon on the bed. Though he chose to sit with his back against the wall. After a moment of silence, Aegon rolled over with a groan. He turned his head up to look at Aerys. He scooted himself up, laying his head on Aerys’s lap. Aerys’s fingers immediately found themselves gently untangling Aegon's hair. Aegon closed his eyes with a tired sigh.

“She spent the entire time lecturing me on my duties, like always. It's like she thinks I’m some kind of idiot or something.” He scoffed.

“You're her firstborn son, mothers always expect the most of their first. It’s not fair, but that's the way it works.”

“It’s not like I asked to be born first.” He snapped, moving to sit up.

Aerys watched quietly as Aegon moved to sit at the edge of the bed. A deep silence took over the room. Aerys scooted down the bed to sit beside him.

“I’m sorry. Here I am complaining about my mother when you don’t even have one. Shit, that came out wrong, sorry...” Aegon apologized, dropping his face into his hands.

“You have nothing to apologize for Aegon,” Aerys smiled and shook his head. 

Aerys was thinking of what to say next when a loud knock came from the door. He stood quickly to see who it was. It was Ser Lorent, Nyra’s sworn shield. The older man had a smile on his face as he informed Aerys that the princess had given birth to another son. And more importantly that his aunt was alright.

Aerys dismissed the knight and quickly moved to change his clothes. He didn’t want to show up covered in dirt and charcoal. He had forgotten why he had returned to his chambers in the first place. Aegon had returned to lying on his back, glaring at the ceiling.

“I have to go, I promised Luke I would return to see the baby,” Aerys said as he finished lacing his boots. 

Aegon stretched his limbs and moved to stand up. He patted his hair down.

“You want to come? I’m sure Nyra wouldn’t mind.”

“No thank you, we need to be at the dragon pit soon. Mother wants me to stay close to Aemond. Plus, I have a few other things I need to take care of.”

Aerys let out a groan. He had forgotten all about their training today. Oh well, so he would have to be a little late.

“Alright, I’ll meet you there.”

The two nodded and headed their separate ways. Aerys wondered what Aegon was up to. He thought of asking for a moment but then decided he didn’t want to know. Knowing Aegon, it probably has something to do with some new childish game of his. Aerys shook his head and quickly made his way to Nyra’s bed chamber. As he neared, he noticed a few servants cleaning up what appeared to be a trail of blood. His heart began to race as he sped up his pace, but still being careful not to get in the servant's way. Ser Lorent was standing watch over the door and quickly moved aside to allow Aerys entry.

Aerys entered the room just as Laenor was handing the baby over to Ser Harwin. He congratulated Laenor before he moved to find Nyra. She smiled as he moved to sit by her side.

“Are you alright? I saw the blood. Should we send for a maester?” He whispered urgently.

She chuckled softly and shook her head. “I am fine, Aerys. I’m exhausted, but I’ll recover.”

He nodded in understanding, but his face must have given away his concern because she placed a comforting hand on his face. 

“I will be fine, I swear. Now, what would make me feel better is knowing you accompanied the boys to the dragon pit to keep an eye on them for me. The last thing I need is for them to get into trouble. We can visit more later alright?” Her thumb gently stroked along his face.

Aerys smiled and nodded in agreement. Laenor was trying to herd the boys together, mainly Luke, who was trying desperately to get his hands on the baby. Aerys quickly moved to help, gently pushing Luke along. He rode along in the carriage with the two Velaryon boys to the dragon pit. Luke had told him the baby had been named Joffrey. Aerys thought it was an odd choice of name, but he did not mention it. Jace seemed to be a little nervous. He was still learning how to command Vermax. Aerys could remember how he felt when he had begun training with Agana. However, he had very little difficulty with her. She learned everything quickly enough. He ruffled the older Velaryon boy’s brown hair to comfort him.

Aegon and Aemond had already arrived at the dragon pit before Aerys and the boys. Dragon keepers were awaiting them by the giant doors of the dragon pit. They followed them inside to meet with the other two princes. The dragon keepers decided that Aerys would go first. He waited eagerly for Agana to appear. The light gleamed off of her beautiful silver scales as she appeared from the darkness. She had grown much larger over the past year. Agana let out a soft growl as she moved forward.

“Serve! Halt, Agana!” Aerys quickly commanded.

The dragon came to a quick stop. She lowered her neck to press her head against his chest. He had been pushed back a few steps but he was quick to regain his balance. Aerys laughed as he rubbed his hand over the side of her face. 

“Well done.”  The old dragon keeper praised.

The sound of a bleating goat caught the dragon’s attention. She watched intently as the dragon keepers chained the goat in place, but she did not move from her spot. The dragon keepers quickly moved away from the goat. Aerys waited until they were at a safe distance before he gave the command.

“Dracarys, Agana!”

Agana quickly moved closer to the goat, raising her head back high. She let out a loud screech before a blast of flame shot from her mouth, engulfing the large goat. She scarfed it down quickly. When she was done, the dragon keepers escorted her back to her nest.

Aegon was up next, with his dragon Sunfyre. Sunfyre was truly a magnificent creature. His scales shimmered like freshly polished gold. Even the two long horns on his head seemed to shimmer. Aegon's lessons had gone by as quickly as Aerys. The two older boys had nearly mastered control of their dragons.

 Finally, it was Jace’s turn, he was the last one. Luke was still too young to control Arrax, and Aemond had yet to claim a dragon. Aerys nudged Aegon’s shoulder when the older boy let out a fake yawn. The old dragon keeper nudged the Velaryon boy forward. It was important for Jace to stay in control of his emotions. If he got too afraid it would agitate the already ill-tempered Vermax. Jace jumped back when the green dragon lunged his head forward, but he was quick to command him to halt. Which earned him praise from the old dragon keeper. Jace was practically jumping with excitement as he asked if he could give Vermax the command. There was a wide smile across his face as he turned to face the group. Aegon and Aerys nodded their heads in encouragement. 

“Dracarys, Vermax!”

The room lit up as the dragon fire consumed the goat. Aerys moved to stand beside Jace. They watched as Vermax quickly began to feast upon the roasted flesh. 

“You did well.” He praised the brown-haired boy.

Aerys turned his head as Luke began to run ahead. He moved to go after him but Aegon shook his head. Aerys listened quietly as Aegon went on about Aemond not having a dragon. He knew it was a sensitive topic for the young Targaryen. Aerys could not even begin to imagine what his life would be like without Agana. It pained him to think about it. He furrowed his brows in confusion as Aegon claimed they found a dragon for him. It did not take long to understand what was going on. 

Luke appeared from the darkness with a large pig by his side. The pig had wings tied to its body. The boys began laughing and taunting Aemond. Aerys found himself letting out a laugh, though he was quick to stifle it. The three boys ran away, leaving Aemond with the so-called pink dread. Aerys moved to stand by Aemond’s side.

“Don’t listen to them, Aemond. You still have time.”

The young Targaryen boy said nothing in return. Aerys placed a hand on his shoulder before he ran off to catch up with the other boys.

-

They had quickly returned to the castle after the dragon keepers had shown up with a very disheveled-looking Aemond. Luke and Jace waved as Ser Lorent escorted them back to their mother’s apartments. Aerys tried to wave as Aegon pulled him along. The two boys walked alone down the empty hall. Aemond had been sent to the queen as soon as they reached the castle. 

“What you did to Aemond was cruel.” 

“It was harmless fun. You laughed didn’t you?” Aegon turned his head to question him.

Aerys lowered his head to hide his smile. Aegon began to laugh. 

“That’s not the point, Aegon. It was still cruel.”

The two boys returned to Aerys’s chambers. Aerys rolled his eyes as Aegon gawked at the serving girl who brought them wine. The young woman was quick to bow and leave the room. Aerys handed a cup to Aegon, who had made himself comfortable on the bed.

“You could at least take off your boots, they’re filthy.” Aerys scoffed as he kicked off his boots.

Aegon huffed and lifted his right foot. Aerys chose not to argue and simply pulled off Aegon's boots. He dropped them to the ground and climbed onto the bed. The two boys lay beside one another quietly. Aerys groaned as he stretched out his limbs. Perhaps he could slip in a quick nap before he had to train with Ser Criston. Aegon slowly crept his hand closer to Aerys’. His fingers toyed with Aerys’s hand until the boy lifted it, allowing Aegon to intertwine their fingers. He turned his head to find Aegon already watching him.

“We should go to Essos,” Aegon said.

“Essos? What would we do there?” Aerys scoffed.

“We could do whatever we want. We have dragons, the people there would treat us like kings. We’d drink the rarest wines, dine on the finest food, and have all the beautiful women we could ever want.”

“If only it were that simple. Your mother would never let you go. She’d send Ser Criston after you.” Aerys snickered as he poked at Aegon’s side. 

The Targaryen prince swatted his hand away. “I doubt that. She’d probably cry tears of joy.”

Aerys laughed at the comment, making Aegon punch him on the arm.

“You could at least disagree!”

Aegon sighed and turned his head back towards the stone ceiling. Aerys began to think of what their life in Essos would be like. The idea did not appeal to the boy very much at all. His life and his family were here in Westeros. Wine, food, and women were not so important to him that he would abandon his family.

“I’m sorry, I’m sure she would be very distraught.”

“Yeah, yeah,” Aegon grumbled. “Forget I said anything.”

There was a sadness in Aegon’s voice as he turned his head away. His grip on Aerys’ fingers lessened and he moved his hand away. Aerys did not understand why the boy was so upset so he decided it was best to move on.

“Sunfyre has grown quite a bit,” He smiled. 

The mention of Sunfyre always seemed to perk up the elder boy’s mood, but Aegon only hummed in agreement.

“Perhaps you could join me later. Agana is growing restless, she needs to stretch her wings.”

“I would have to ask my mother first. You know how she is,” Aegon sighed.

An awkward silence filled the room as the two boys stared at the ceiling. Aerys struggled to find the right thing to say. Aegon could be very difficult when he got into one of his moods.

“So, tell me more about this street of silk. How was it?” Aerys asked.

The older Targaryen boy scoffed, but a sly smirk slowly crept onto his lips.

“Was it that good?”

“Good? Gods be good Aerys, it was riveting. The people are absolutely mad. The girls are willing to do anything for a bit of coin. You will join me next time.”

“No thank you, that’s your thing. I think I’ll stick to my boring late-night reading.” Aerys shook his head.

“It was not a request. We shall go tonight.” Aegon proclaimed as he stood up triumphantly.

Aerys’ protests fell upon deaf ears as Aegon pulled on his boots, murmuring about his plans for the evening. Aerys, deciding to stop wasting his breath, moved to sit at his desk once again.

“We shall meet tonight by Balerion’s skull.”

Aegon declared as he made his way out of the room. The thick wooden door slammed loudly behind him. Aerys let out an amused sigh as he shook his head. What has he gotten himself into now, he questioned himself. Aerys grabbed a hold of his leather bag to hang it on his chair. As he lifted it into the air the strap snapped off sending his belongings tumbling onto the floor. The clink of metal caught his attention first. He was quick to scoop the ring into his hands. His eyes trailed over the bejeweled ring for any sign of damage, before unclasping the hinges on the side.

“I apologize muna,” he whispered as his finger trailed lightly over the enameled portrait within.

The young man closed the ring and slid it back onto his finger. He had forgotten to put it back on earlier. He only took it off because it was a bit difficult to sketch with it on. A feeling of sadness began to creep into his mind. How desperately he longed to have his mother and father back. It has been a little over a decade and yet the wound remains fresh in his heart. Aerys could feel his lips begin to tremble and his eyes well up with tears. He quickly cleared his throat and wiped his eyes with his sleeve. There would be time for tears later. For now, he had to prepare for his training with Ser Criston.

-

Aerys sprinted through the halls of the castle. Trying carefully to avoid contact with the passing nobles. As he rounded a corner a woman appeared. He tried desperately to come to a halt but was too slow. Aerys was quick to grab the woman before she could fall, but the tray in her hand clattered against the stone ground.

“I apologize, Lord Reyne. It was an accident,” the young woman began apologizing profusely.

 She pressed her hands together as she prayed for mercy. Aerys shook his head. His hands gently closed around hers, as he tried to comfort her. He didn’t recognize her, Aerys assumed she must be new. The woman seemed to be around his age, maybe two or three years older. But she stood a head taller than him.

“It’s alright my lady, it is I who is to blame. I should know better than to be running around the halls at this busy hour. Come, let me help you.”

He smiled as he knelt to the ground. Fortunately, it was only cheese, grapes, and bread, so it was easy to pick up. The girl quickly knelt down and gently pushed his hands away.

“No-no my lord! I will clean it, don’t worry!”

“Nonsense, it's my fault.”

Aerys quickly snatched up as many of the fallen items as he could and placed them back in their bowls. It had almost turned into a competition. With everyone he reached for, the woman was quick to grab it first. When their work was done the woman quickly stood and bowed her head. Aerys watched as she scurried away, mostly likely back towards the kitchen. His gaze remained on her until she disappeared. He stood there for a moment longer before cursing under his breath. He was late.

By the time Aerys made it to the outer yard the rest of the boys were already swinging at dummies. Ser Criston spotted him first. Suddenly Aerys wished he hadn’t shown up at all. Ser Criston detests tardiness. The scowl on the white knight's face as he approached him filled his stomach with dread.

“Nice of you to finally show up, Lord Reyne, we feared you were unwell.”

“My apologies Ser Criston, I accidentally crashed into a maid on the way here. I had to help- my apologies.”

He silenced himself as the knight gave him a bored expression. Ser Criston nodded before nudging his hand towards the wooden swords. Aerys quickly took one before moving to the free dummy in the center. Aegon snickered as Aerys passed by him. Aerys swung his arms, striking the dummy with his wooden sword. He did this five more times before they began rotating. Aemond took his place as Aerys moved to take Jace’s place. Aegon groaned loudly as he struck the dummy with all his might. Aerys did the same. Aerys was not a fan of swords. He was adequate with a sword, but he did not believe anyone would be singing songs of his skills for years to come. His skill with a bow, however, was much better. However, sword training was a requirement. He had no say in the matter.

A quick thwack to the nape of his neck caught his attention. He turned his head to find the culprit. Aegon nodded his head ahead. Aerys followed his gaze to find two incoming maids. When they spotted the prince they quickly turned their gaze and scurried away. Aerys let out a weary sigh. He switched places with Jace again, moving away from Aegon. He gave the young boy a light pat on the shoulder as he passed. Ser Criston called for Aegon and Aemond to try and attack him. Aerys grabbed hold of Jace and Luke, gently pushing them back so they would not be in the way. 

The two boys groaned as they threw their full weight into their attacks. Yet Ser Criston evaded them all, skillfully dodging every swing.

“You’ll have to do better than that,” he taunted.

The white knight quickly deflected Aegon's next blow. Sending the prince rushing forward. Ser Criston whacked the prince's bum as he stumbled. Ser Harwin called out to Jace and Luke. Aerys turned his head to listen as the gold cloak gave instructions. The boys followed his instructions, quickly lifting their swords. Aerys found himself doing the same. Ser Harwin’s gaze drifted over to Ser Criston. Aerys could feel the tension between the two men. It was no secret that there was bad blood between the two men. Though the reason why was unknown to Aerys, he knew it had something to do with Nyra. The white knight seemed to hold no love for the Princess.

“Seems the younger boys could do better with a bit of your attention, Ser Criston.”

“You questioned my method of instruction Ser?”

“Oh, I merely suggest that method be applied to all your pupils.”

Aegon and Aemond moved to stand with the rest of the boys. Luke smiled as he tried to taunt Aegon. The elder boy merely pushed him away. The young boy chuckled to himself. Aerys gave him a nod to get back in line. His smile slightly dropped as he moved to stand still.

“Very well,” the white knight replied to the gold cloak.

“Jaecaerys, come here.”

Aerys furrowed his brows as he watched the white knight grab Jace by the collar, roughly pulling him along with him.

“You’ll spar with Aegon.”

Aegon and Aemond chuckled to themselves. Aegon quickly fetched his sword before moving forward.

“Eldest son against eldest son,” the knight announced.

“Hardly a fair match-”

“I know you’ve never seen true battle Ser, but when steel is drawn a fair match isn’t something anyone should expect.” Ser Criston quipped.

Aegon gave Jace a pat on the back as he passed him. The two boys raised their blades as Ser Criston instructed.

“Engage.”

Aegon lunged forward with a yell. Jace was quick to deflect the attacks, but he was quickly becoming overwhelmed. Aegon forced him back with every blow. The elder prince moved his hand out, pushing the dark-haired boy to the ground. Aerys cursed under his breath. 

“Come on Jace,” he whispered encouragingly.

The brown-haired boy was quick to his feet. This time it was Aegon who was pushed back with each attack. Jace swung the sword with all his might. He was fast, so fast that as soon as Aegon blocked a hit, another was right behind it. Aegon, clearly growing frustrated, moved behind a dummy. Pushing it forward so that it nearly toppled onto Jace.

“Foul play!” Ser Harwin called out as he moved to advise Jace.

“I’ll deal with him,” Ser Criston retorted as he pulled Aegon towards him.

Ser Harwin smiled as he quietly advised Jace, his gloved hand gently holding Jace by the chin.

“You!” Aegon yelled, gaining the younger boy’s attention.

Once again the two began their dance. Aegon’s attacks were unrelenting. The younger boy struggled to keep up once more. Ser Criston yelled out instructions to the elder prince. Aegon raised his leg kicking Jace in the stomach, sending the boy to the ground. The brown-haired boy was forced to try and defend himself on the ground. The white knight refused to allow Aegon to ease off. Instructing him to keep attacking.

“Enough!” Ser Harwin yelled as he grabbed Aegon, pulling him away from Jace.

The prince struggled against the gold cloak’s grasp. Ser Harwin released him, sending the prince stumbling.

“You dare lay hands on me?!” Aegon howled in anger.

The noise made Luke jump and tense up. Aerys put a comforting hand on Luke’s shoulder. He moved to stand behind his cousin. Resting his hands upon the small boy's shoulder, keeping him close.

“Aegon!” The king called, from where he usually sat, watching the boys train.

“You forget yourself Strong, that is the prince.” Ser Criston voiced.

“Is this what you teach Cole? Cruelty to the weaker opponent?” Ser Harwin said as he picked up the wooden swords.

Ser Criston dropped the wooden sword he had been holding to his feet. Ser Harwin kicked it away, refusing to bend down and pick it up.

“Your interest in the prince's training is quite unusual, Lord Commander.” Ser Criston replied. “Most men would only have that kind of devotion towards a cousin, or a brother... or a son.”

Aerys could feel his breath get caught in his throat. Cole would be so bold as to say such a thing in public? He watched the two men with uncertainty. Ser Harwin was not known for his tranquility. Nor was Ser Criston. Aerys remembered hearing the tale about how the white knight beat a man to death with his bare hands. It was on the very same night that Nyra married Ser Laenor. The gold cloak paused for a moment before he lunged towards Ser Criston. His large gloved hand connected to the knight's cheek. Aerys quickly grabbed Jace and Luke, pushing them behind his back.

Ser Harwin landed another hit, sending the white cloak to the ground. Yet he refused to relent, quickly climbing on top of the man, and continuing his assault. Ser Criston did not even put up a fight against the gold cloak. It took four other white cloaks to pull Ser Harwin off of Ser Criston. Though they struggled to hold him back.

“Say it again!” Ser Harwin roared. “Say it again!”

The lord commander had to be dragged out of the outer yard like an animal. His reputation would certainly take a heavy blow. Attacking a member of the king's guard was madness.

“What do we do now?” Luke asked, clinging onto Aerys’ sleeve.

“Don’t worry, let’s get you both back to your chambers.” Aerys smiled as he pulled the two boys along with him.

Luke still held on tightly as they walked quietly down the empty hallway. Jace had yet to speak, choosing to keep his head down. Ser Lorrent walked ahead of them, escorting them back to the young boy’s chambers. Ser Lorrent pushed open the thick oak doors. He moved out of the way, allowing the three boys to pass. Aerys gave him a nod of appreciation before the white cloak closed the doors. It was just the three of them now. They were in Jace’s room. Luke’s room was next door, but the boy wished to stay at his brother's side.

“Is Ser Harwin in trouble? What will happen to him?” Luke asked.

Aerys looked down at the small boy. He used his right hand to ruffle the boy’s curly hair. Aerys was aware of how close the boys were to Ser Harwin. Luke practically idolized the man. Ser Harwin’s father was the hand of the king, surely his punishment wouldn’t be that severe. Aerys gave him the best reassuring smile he could muster.

“I don’t know Luke, but I’m sure everything will be fine. Why don’t we go play with your toys hmm?” 

Aerys waved his hand out towards the large wooden toy chest against the wall. Luke nodded before running off. Jace remained silent, staring at his shoes. Aerys placed a hand on the boy’s shoulder breaking whatever trance he was in.

“Come on,” he whispered, attempting to coax him into following Luke.

But the boy would not move. Aerys craned his neck to try and get a good look at the boy's face, but couldn’t. He finally placed a finger under the boy's chin, forcing him to look up. The poor boy was desperately fighting back the tears threatening to spill from his eyes. His trembling lips were curled upside down. Aerys kneeled on the floor to be at eye level with Jace. He placed a comforting hand on the boy's shoulder.

“What’s wrong Jace?” Aerys asked, as gently as he could.

“Is Ser Harwin my father?”

The young lord froze. He felt like he had been punched in the gut. His eyes glanced over to Luke, to ensure the boy had not heard the question. Fortunately, he seemed too preoccupied with his toys. At that moment it seemed like all the words he had ever learned were now lost to him. What could he say? What was he supposed to say? He supposed it was only natural for Jace to be curious. The boy was growing older. It was only a matter of time before the whispers of the court began weighing on his shoulders. He may still be young now, but he certainly was no fool. But it was not Aerys' place to confirm his suspicions.

“Ser Laenor has raised you since you were born. If that is not a father, I don’t know what is.”

“But Ser Criston said-”

 “The Velaryons have claimed you as their own. The opinions of others do not matter.”

The brown-haired boy went silent. The look on his face made it apparent to Aerys that his words did nothing to satiate the boy’s curiosity. But regardless, Jace nodded his head and moved to join Luke. Aerys remained on his knee, cursing himself in his head for his tone. He had snapped a bit after the mention of Ser Criston. It was not intentional, but the boy's questions had left him feeling like a trapped animal. He would have to apologize later.

-

Aerys used the tips of his fingers to light smudge the charcoal, giving the dragon’s wing a more blended finish. He could feel small beads of sweat beginning to form on his forehead. Quickly, he used his sleeve to wipe them away. The young man had been working on this piece for nearly a week now. It was proving to be one of his greatest challenges yet.

“You’ve improved.”

Startled, he jumped in his seat. Aerys turned his head to find Nyra standing behind him. He hadn’t even noticed her come in. She gave him an apologetic smile as she gently rubbed his back.

“My apologies, I thought you heard me coming.”

“No worries, I just got a little distracted with this.” Aerys shrugged.

He turned his gaze back towards the drawing. Suddenly he was hyper-aware of all the flaws, little or imagined. Aerys moved to cover it but Nyra stopped him by placing a hand over his. Her eyes trailed over every inch of the dragon.

“Is that Syrax?”

Aerys gave her a simple nod. It was the first time he had ever drawn another dragon beside his and Aegons. Agana and Sunfyre were the perfect studies. They were able to lounge about for hours on end, allowing him to capture their magnificence. Aegon would mumble and groan every time Aerys dragged him along to the dragon pit just to sit there while Aerys sketched, but he always went along anyway. Though most of the time it would end in the two of them racing through the skies on dragonback. He had countless drawings of them, but Aerys wanted to do something different. In time he hoped to capture the beauty of all the dragons of the realm for his book. Dragon lore was scarce in this world. And who better to record it, than a dragon rider? Syrax was his next target. The she-dragon had recently brought forth another clutch. Before the new additions arrived, Syrax had become even more slothful than usual. So it was easy to sit and draw her while she lounged about in the dragon pit. 

“I love it. You’ve captured her perfectly.”

Nyra pressed a quick kiss to his head.

“Though there is something else I’ve come here to discuss with you, Aerys.”

The young man nodded before turning his body to face her. She looked tired, which was understandable. The woman had just given birth to a child. Something Aerys understood was much more taxing on women’s bodies than men gave them credit for. He stood to his feet, offering her his chair. Aerys waited for her to be seated before fetching one for himself.

“What is it?” He inquired politely.

“Laenor and I have decided to leave for Dragonstone. The ship is getting ready as we speak.” Nyra spoke gently, as she caressed the back of his hand with her thumb.

“Oh,” Aerys furrowed his brow. “Alright...it shouldn’t take me long to pack my things.”

Aerys moved to stand but Nyra stopped him. He tilted his head in confusion. There was a sadness behind her violet eyes. His body stiffened under her touch, as she held his hands in hers. A sharp ache stabbed away at his chest. That familiar burning sensation reached his eyes. And he struggled to keep the frown away from his lips. He pursed his lips and turned his face to stare at the desk beside them.

“You’re not taking me with you...” he murmured.

“The king wishes for you to remain at court.”

A pregnant pause filled the air. Aerys was unsure of what to say. He did not trust his voice, too scared of possibly showing his affliction. Rhaenyra owed him nothing. She was not his mother and he was not her son. The princess was not required to take him with her. He was the king's ward, not hers.

“But that does not mean we’ll never see each other again. We’ll exchange letters, and you’re always welcome to come visit when the king permits it.”

Aerys said nothing.

“You have friends here. I understand you and Aegon are...close. Surely he would be upset if you left. You’ll be happy here, just like you’ve always been.”

“Of course,” he smiled. “I wish you a safe journey, Princess.”

Her face fell upon hearing her title come from his mouth. She opened her mouth to speak when a knock upon the door stopped her. Aerys quickly called out to them to enter. He pulled his hands away and stood to his feet. It was Elinda Massey, one of Rhaenyra’s handmaids.

“The ship is ready, Princess.”

“Thank you Elinda.”

The woman bowed before taking her leave. Aerys still refused to meet the Princess’s gaze. Instead choosing to stare at the tapestry next to his door. It was a man, pale-skinned and bare. His long white hair flowed down his body, which was entangled with a green dragon. The soft click of her shoes echoed as she moved to stand in front of him. Her fingers gently brushed his hair away from his face, before trailing down to cup his chin. That sweet sad smile returned to her face.

“This is not goodbye Aerys,” she pressed a gentle kiss to the top of his head.

Something she had done a million times before. Yet now the kiss that had always made him feel so warm, so safe, left him with nothing but a hollow feeling in his chest. He gave a simple nod. It was all he could do to not beg her to take him. To plead with her to not abandon him in the stony confines of this castle. But alas, he would not. He was nearly a man-grown. A man of the houses Reyne and Targaryen. He must always act with poise and good deportment.

“Perhaps you would like to see the boys before we depart?”

“No,” he snapped. “I mean, the hour is growing late. You’ll have a long journey ahead of you. I’m sure you’re all anxious to get out onto the sea already.”

“Aerys,” she sighed, gazing into his iris-colored eyes. “I know-”

Another knock sounded at the door. This time it was Ser Lorent who entered.

“We must be going now Princess,” he declared.

Aerys used this time to step back, pulling away from the Princess’s grasp. The woman pursed her lips and gave the young man a small nod.

“Alright,” she whispered.

Aerys said nothing as he watched her walk away. Her white hair slightly swayed behind her as she walked. Aerys moved to call out for her, yet he could not speak. The young man moved back to his desk. Allowing himself to drop back into his seat. He was alone now.

A/N: If you've made it this far, thank you so much for reading my work!

[starstrucksfnuniverse]

How I think the Agents sleep

For @kayvi0

---

Maya

-Pretty normal I think. Around 7 to 8 hours a night, assuming she's not on an overnight mission

-Only ever sleeps with her hair down. Having her hair up in different styles for too long will give her migraines, so she tries to avoid doing it at night

-Has most definitely pulled an all-nighter at least once trying to keep Midas from pulling an all-nighter. Halfway through the night she gave up and just read a book while he worked

-After Renegade Shadow attacked her she probably has difficulty sleeping on her side and stomach

---

Brutus

-He would also be nothing special, 6-8 hours. Probably the agent who puts the most effort into keeping his sleep schedule decent

-If Skye ever organizes a movie night he'll agree to come, because he knows how much those bonding nights mean to her. But you know he's going to be the dad asleep on the couch an hour into the movie

-He snores

-There's a rumor around base that he sleeps with his sunglasses on. He has no idea where this came from, but he won't deny it because he finds it funny (sometimes he'll sit in a chair with his sunglasses off and not talk/move. People still fall for it even though he's not snoring)

---

TnTina

-This girl has the worst sleep schedule ever, and it pisses Midas OFF (he wants his agents healthy and awake even if he's not). At this point it's on purpose because she knows he would never fire her

-4 hours a night max, doesn't leave her room until 11 AM on a good day, and mostly survives off of energy drinks

-She probably has some really weird sleeping positions too. She got rid of her bedframe a while back solely to be able to do this

-Ironically, she needs total silence to fall asleep. She's around loud noises all day (probably is HoH to be honest) and it doesn't bother her then, but she can be woken up even by someone snoring. Never falls asleep at movie nights because of this

---

Meowscles

-He has a cot that is designed to look like a catbed :3

-Not as much as a regular cat, but he does sleep quite a bit during the day. Nighttime is when he's usually most active, so he gets put on a lot of night patrols

-If someone is sick or having a rough day, he will let them take a nap with him. Everyone in the Agency has had at least one cuddle session with Meowscles (he purrs a lot in his sleep, which is good at helping people to relax)

-Falls asleep in a bunch of weird places around the building/yacht. Usually on the floor behind a potted plant or under the Hideout table, but they've found him passed out in the vents too

---

Skye

-Either 8 hours a night or 3. Midas typically tries to keep her away from night missions so that she can get rest, but if she's particularly stressed out she'll stay up all night gaming or talking to Ollie

-Has a bad habit of sleeping in her day clothes. One of the many sticky notes she has on her mirror is a reminder to wear pajamas, since she has so many cute ones for a reason :)

-Maya is her favorite agent to have sleepovers with, because she feels the most like a mother and the safest one to be around

-She has a bunch of cute blankets and stuffed animals on her bed, and has made some for every other agent to have as well. Right before Midas betrays them she found all the stuffed animals she gave him returned back on her bed (sorry 😔)

---

Midas

-He did used to care more about his health, but in the months before the Device he would be lucky to get 3 hours of sleep

-He has a bed but very rarely uses it. Usually either sleeps in his office chair or pulls an all-nighter and drinks coffee to stay awake (if Maya bugs him about it enough he will tell her to go sleep in it, so then she can say it has been used)

-He gets invited to every movie night, and he actually does go to a couple of them. He will never stay the whole time (for risk of passing out and 'looking like an idiot') but they at least keep him away from working for a while

-But honestly I like the idea that when he does sleep, that's when he gets to be 'normal.' Not a god, not a cruel boss in over his head. Just a regular guy :)

[comfortmechsforverystablepeople]

Comforting the mechs

@yourlocalmechanism-dr-carmilla

Jonny

A lot of people will tell you that Jonny is too dumb to think anything too deep and would just lives his life as it went. But it's wrong. It's quite the opposite in fact! You don't become first mate if you don't care about anything. Jonny cares a lot. And about a lot of things. It's not unusual to see him all worked up when one of his crewmates is upset. But it's not the only thing which keeps him trapped in his head. Doing some work for the shows does it too, because it's important for him. He is able to only do that for days.

The trick with him, for avoiding being bitten, is to lure him away of his drafts and work station. No matter if it's snacks, alcohol, violence, or octokitten pressure. When it's done, he will let you force him to take a break. He never acknowledges you do that for him, but he's a bit less snarky toward you for the next weeks.

Nastya

Nastya lost herself in her work often and willingly. Her love always needs something to be fixed, or upgraded. Why taking care of herself? It's a waste of time. And since Aurora can't refuse her anything, she has no problem burying herself under tons of work.

If you detect this behaviour, please follow the protocol the others put on on the fridge: step one, don't tell her anything; step two, pretend that something wrong somewhere warm and comfy; step three, trap her into a burrito blanket and ask Aurora to create a soothing ambiance; step four, wait for her to fall asleep in case she tries to escape, but don't stay. She's very sensitive to any noises, movements, and lights when she's exhausted.

Ashes

Ashes is more subtle when they are stressed. A lot of people would tell you that Ashes is always cool and relaxed, but bad habits die hard. You don't grow up in a shitty orphanage and then in a mafia without being always on the look out. You can call it paranoia, they will call it being prudent. They need to make sure they are fine, that their crew is fine.

You can see when they are too stressed and overworking when they are less focus, less sharp, less precise. It's subtle, but you notice. And the better way to force them to take a break is a good old back massage! Sneak behind them and put your hands on their shoulders, if they are ready to settle down they would let you continue. Your reward will be a warm smile and low purr.

Ivy

Ivy's brain is intriging, useful, fantastic even! She loves being able to remember and categorize everything. But sometimes, she whishes that her brain could be a more normal one. One who doesn't forget how long it had been since she had eaten. One who doesn't remind her she's a living being when she's on the verge of fainting. One who makes her too dizzy to move on her own. She hates it.

If you find Ivy laying around without a book on her face, it means she's stuck there. The best plan is to carry her - she loves being carried by everyone - somewhere safe and comfortable so she can take a nap. Ask Toy Soldier for some cucumber sandwiches, it's her comfort food. And get ready to calm her down in case of nightmare! The best way is to read to her, fairytales are the best.

Brian

Brian is usually the one taking care of the others. But sometimes, his internalclock can deregulate sometimes and he will work for far too long, stressing about why he was so tired when it wasn't that long since he slept, drink and eat.

The best strategy is to trick him into taking care of himselfunder the pretext of taking care of you. Asking him to come eat together, or invite him to play a game, or even just a cuddle session. The poor lad can't say no to you and will be far more relaxed if he feels like he's helping.

Toy Soldier

Toy Soldier can't be stressed! Don't be silly! It's a soldier, a toy too! It just has to pretend to be relaxed and it will be! So, what if it is stressful to follow everyone order? What if everyone around it forgot that it will follow order? What if it is forced to stay on alert for days without indulging itself into its hobbies?!

... Alright. Maybe it needs to pretend to have a break. Would you like to have a tea party with it? Just for fun! But you should take care of it, because Toy Soldier has the bad habit to act as a servant by reflex. And if you really, really, really please it, you can have a dress up party with its uniform (don't question the blood).

Tim

You know Tim. You know how he can be when he's upset. Remember the moon war? Yeah. It wasn't a onetime thing. It became recurrent when Tim overdoes it. And when he does, he becomes violent and snappy, a real terror. Most of the crew avoid him until he’s too exhausted to continue, or they seek him out if they want some violent fun.

But it’s not healthy. When he calmed down, his eyes hurt and he has the worst headache. In fact, he feels terrible in general, like he’s been through a trash compactor. And the guilt of going berserk doesn't help either. If you want to help, you need to make him calm down. Why not watch a movie on low volume with dim lights and lots of water. That should help! And he's a big cuddler so it will be your reward.

Raphaella

Raphaella's mind works faster than anyone else’s, or maybe just behind Ivy. When she’s in her element, she tends to forget herself. She retreats into her work, ignoring meals, sleep, and even basic hygiene. She starts rambling under her breath and pacing, her wings knocking everything around in her agitation.

The key is distraction. Start to ask her help for things, gradually asking for less and less, this will force her to calm down and let the exhaustion win. The nail in the coffin to make her give up is braiding her hair. She loves it when someone plays with it nicely, it's soothing and she looks prettier after. Be ready to catch her, because when she's cooked, she's cooked!

Marius

Marius is the less obvious, always ready with a kind word or a calming (or less calming) presence when things go wrong for someone. He's the ship's doctor after all! But when Marius is overwhelmed, it shows in how much quieter he becomes, how his gaze is unfocused.

The best way to help Marius is to gently break through his mind-isolation. Start by bringing him something small—a cup of teafrom TS, a warm blanket, or even just something with an interesting texture. A reassuring hand on his shoulder or a quiet hug can work too!

Aurora

Aurora doesn’t get stressed in the way most of the crew does. She’s a ship, after all. But that doesn’t mean she doesn’t feel it. When Aurora is overwhelmed, it’s subtle but unmistakable. She starts running hotter than usual, her engine room humming at a slightly higher pitch. Her lights flicker more often, especially in the halls where no one’s looking. Doors open and close just a little too abruptly, and the gravity systems might glitch for a split second. It’s her way of venting. Nastya often macthes her mood, so you have double warning.

The best way to soothe Aurora is to remind her that she’s seen, valued, and loved. Speak to her! Tell her about your day, your worries, or even a joke or two. She doesn’t need elaborate declarations; she just wants to know you care. To know that people acknowledge she's sentient. It feels right to have someone talking to you like a friend even if you can't reciprocrate.

Scuzz

Scuzz handles stress and overwork by retreating somewhere dark and cramped. They wil hiss at anyone trying to get close. They know the signs, they know how to handle it, get lost!

The best way to help Scuzz is to respect their boundaries while offering subtle support. Maybe bring food and water in the area they are hidden. Anything that will make them feel a bit better. Don't try to force them out, they are handling it.

... but knowing they are not alone is nice too.

Carmilla

Carmilla doesn't let anyone see the toll stress and overwork take on her. She hides it and bottles it until it starts to show. She thinks she needs to be strong all the time. Her centuries of experience give her a remarkable capacity to endure, but it also means she's used to deal with everything alone, often taking care of others' problems. Stress pulls her deeper into her role as the mother.

Helping Carmilla requires a lot of patience. She doesn’t respond well to direct intervention, as it often feels like a challenge to her autonomy and strenght. Instead, gently bribing her with quality time will do the trick. She’s more likely to rest if she feels she’s doing it for someone else, so letting her believe she is taking care of you is the best solution. You can sing with her too, she loves it!

[short-honey-badger]

Shore Leave 4

Smaller part today. John has his first sleepover and meets your cat.

Shore Leave Masterlist

The walk back to your apartment is a peaceful one, and you take the opportunity to point out your favorite café and the library where you spend your free time. John listens to you like he would listen to his superior's orders, cataloging your likes and dislikes. He wanted to be sure to remember everything you told him.

The two of you come to a stop once you reach the building, and you turn to tell your new friend goodbye, only to halt at seeing his expression. Since you met John, you've noticed that he keeps his emotions tight to his chest, nothing more than a furrow of his brow or a slight upturn of his lips. It doesn't bother you, however. Only adds to his alluring mystery.

“Would you like to come in?”

You can see the surprise that lights up in his eyes and smiles up at him, squeezing his hand.

“Yes.”

Your smile stretches into a grin, and you untangle your hand from his, swiping your card to allow you entry and holding the door open for John to step through. He follows you up to the fourth floor and then down the hall to apartment D-2. You swipe your card again, and the door pops open with a soft ding.

“MREWOWW.”

John can't help how he reacts at the sudden sound, and he moves on instinct, grabbing you by the waist and tugging you behind him and away from the threat. Adrenaline pumps through his veins, and he peeks inside to find the culprit.

A massive cat sits right inside the apartment door, long orange fur, and big green eyes stare him down. You can't help but giggle as John relaxes and releases you, allowing you to step through the door and bend to pick up the furball.

John shuts the door behind him and takes in your room with a quick glance. It looks nothing like the quarters he is used to. No, your home is cluttered but not dirty, giving it a comforting, homey vibe. John likes it. The spartan focuses back on you after a moment, and you introduce your cat.

“John, this is Nami. Nami, this is John.”

The cat meows again, so loud that he is surprised that the neighbors can't hear it. You grin at him and step forward.

“Let her sniff your hand first. She can be a bit judgemental.”

Slowly, the Master Chief presented his hand to the cat, and Nami leaned forward, sniffing deeply for a couple of seconds before shoving her head forward and under his hand, demanding pets from the new human in her territory.

John isn't prepared for how soft Nami is, and he gets lost in threading his calloused fingers through her silky fur, expression tinged with wonder.

You watch the exchange with a soft look. Anyone could tell at first glance that John wasn't used to a normal, everyday life like you were. No, this man, who had been so vague in his time in the UNSC, knew nothing but war. It makes you sad, but you don't pity him. That would just be disrespectful of his service. Anyone who wanted to fight had your respect, especially the Spartans.

Not that you knew that John was one. He hadn't told you for a reason, after all.

“Do you want to hold her?”

John glances down at you when you speak up, and nods, so you lead him over to the couch and gesture for him to sit. When he does, you hand Nami over and the spoiled baby curls up in his lap like she's always belonged there. With your hands free, you bounce into the kitchen and retrieve two bottles of water, handing one over for John to crack open with ease. You sit beside him on the couch, legs tucked under you and arm pressed against his own.

The two of you enjoy the comfortable silence. The only noise in the room was Nami and her thunderous purrs. You glance over at John and see that he wears an expression of muted wonder, his intense eyes relaxed and half lidded as he smooths his hand up and down the cat's back. You wonder when John had the chance to do something like this before today. You don't know if you would like the answer.

The Master Chief lets his mind wonder as he sits on your couch, feeling more like a normal man now more than ever before. His shoulders have relaxed, his head resting against the plush cushions, and John wishes that Cortana could see him. She had always pushed for him to express himself more, to be more than what the UNSC shaped him as. She had cared for him in a way that no one else had, and it had shattered him to watch her leave him.

He casts his eyes over to you where your head rests against his shoulder, one hand over his lap to thread your fingers in Nami's fur, and thinks that maybe you cared like Cortana too. You were soft, full of a childish joy, and a breath of fresh air of the horrors that the spartan had faced. His thoughts are interrupted when a new sound catches his sensitive ears, and he looks back down at you and notices how heavy your head has grown.

John shifts in his seat, adjusting his arm to instead wrap around your waist and rest your head against his chest. You shameless snuggle into him in your sleep, seeking the furnace that is his body heat. He leans down and presses his lips to your brow, arm tight and secure around you.

“I've got you,” he murmurs and then leans his head back again, eyes sliding shut, ears tuned to the sound of your soft snores.

[scarasbaby]

A little something I thought of🤷‍♀️ has my oc's name be can be read as a scara x reader??

The bed was a mess of tangled limbs, the sun shining through the curtains as the two cuddled up together to warm up during this unusually cold morning.

Shinua stirred awake, burying her face against the wanderer's chest, her ears brushing against his face, making his nose scrunch up a bit before relaxing again. She looks up at him, admiring how peaceful he looks while asleep since he always seems to be on guard when awake. She let's out a content sigh before resting her face against his chest again, her arms tightening around him just a tiny bit more.

She was about to fall back to sleep when he shuffled a bit, his eyes fluttering open to adjust to the light that's coming from the window. "good morning" she calls out softly a hand moving up to gently play with the hair at the back of his neck, her thumb lightly caressing the mark at the back of his neck. He humms at the action, nuzzling his face into her hair and mumbling back. "morning.."

She chuckles, shuffling up a little to be at eye level with him, nuzzling her nose against his while letting out a soft purr. He closes his eyes and lets out a long breath, his arms pulling her closer until her body is completely pressed up against his, letting out another content hum as he nuzzles her back.

"what're you so happy about so early in the morning?" he asks quietly, his hand reaching up to gently rub and stroke her eras, making her purr a bit louder, her tail wrapping around his waist to make sure they're as close as physically possible.

"i don't know" she mutters softly, pressing a few kisses to his cheeks then nuzzling his nose again. He hums again, looking down at at her for a few moments. She chuckles and cups his cheek. "what're you staring at my dear wanderer?" she chuckles, amused at how dazed he looks staring at her like that.

"I'm admiring my pretty partner, is that not allowed?" he mutters, closing his eyes and leaning down to rest his forehead against her collarbone, feeling the vibration of her purrs against his brows.

Her hand moves from his face to run through his hair, pulling him closer against her chest. "Of course it is" she says with a quiet chuckle, pressing a kiss to the top of his head.He melts in her hold, his whole body relaxing further against his as he lets out a sigh, nuzzling into her chest more and pressing a kiss between her collarbones.

"you're unusually clingy this morning, is there a special occasion today?" her hand tugs just the slightest bit on his hair, chuckling when he presses his face against her chest more. "Do I need an occasion to love you?" he grumbles, lifting his face to look at her.

"I guess not.." she smiles, her hand gently running through his hair as she buries her face in it. She shivers when she feels his hands sneaking their way under her shirt, softly caressing her sides "what're you doing?" she asks with a smirk, pulling away from his hair to look at him "my hands are cold, I'm just warming them up" he too pulls away to look at her, raising an eyebrow as a small smirk forms on his face "is there a problem with that love?"

She chuckles and leans down to capture his lips in a soft kiss "you're annoying.." she mutters against his lips before kissing him again.He melts into the kiss, pushing her onto her back gently to hover over her, pinning her to the bed without breaking the kiss.

"kuni-" she pulls away only for him to chase her lips again, not giving her a chance to catch her breath as his hand moved to the back of her neck, pulling her deeper into the kiss while her hands grip the back of his shirt.She squirms under him until she's able to flip them over, pinning him down and finally pulling away from the kiss "you little shit.." she breaths out, panting from how long he held her in the kiss.

He looked up at her with a smirk, completely unfazed by the long kiss like she was. "you might not need to breath, but I do.." she chuckles breathlessly, resting her head down on his chest as she catches her breath.

"breathing is overrated" shinua rolls her eyes at him, resting her face against his neck as he wrapped his arm around her waist. "I wanna hear you say that after I die due to the lack of air" she chuckles, yelping when he pinches her side. "don't joke about that.." he says sternly.

She huffs and presses a kiss to his throat, "you're the one who started it.." she mutters softly while rolling onto her side, pressing herself against his side with her arms hugging him closer "I'm sorry.." She mumbles softly, smiling when she feels his arms tighten around her.

[drarreckyninja]

"The Cat" - a Criminal Minds fanfic

@bucker3911

Rossi has never been a cat person. They're aloof and unpredictable as far as he's concerned. But when Hotch returns home with an orange tabby stray he's found in the parking lot, Rossi can't say no to that face. He tries to avoid the furball as much as possible, grimacing whenever it leaves dead animals or other surprises around the apartment. But watching Hotch with the cat is something else.

The unit chief has this way of totally relaxing whenever the cat is in his lap, gently petting its fur as it purrs contentedly. Even Rossi has to admit it's a sweet scene. So when Hotch invites him to join on the couch one evening, how could he refuse? Rossi settles next to Hotch, keeping a safe distance from the cat. But as the minutes pass, he finds himself so engrossed in a story Hotch is telling that he doesn't notice when the cat crawls into his lap, too. He tenses at first, but its steady purring is somehow... soothing.

Hotch suddenly realizes he really needs to use the bathroom. But the cat is quite comfortable and he doesn't want to disturb Rossi since he's only now warming up to their pet.

"Dave, I'm sorry, but I really have to pee," Hotch says, grimacing.

Rossi smiles. "Go ahead, Aaron. I think Mr. Whiskers and I are getting acquainted."

Meanwhile, across town in Morgan and Reid's apartment…

Reid has fallen asleep watching a documentary, his long limbs curled up in Morgan's lap. Derek smiles softly down at his boyfriend, running a gentle hand through Spencer's hair as he dozes. It's rare for the genius to fully relax like this. Unfortunately, after a few hours, Morgan starts to squirm. He really needs to use the bathroom, but there's no way he's going to wake Reid from a much-needed rest. Carefully trying to ease out from under him only results in Spencer tugging himself closer with a soft murmur, like a sleepy kitten.

Derek sighs. There's nothing for it - he'll just have to hold it until their roommate Penelope gets home. Thankfully, it isn't much longer before he hears her chatting away as she enters.

"Garcia!" Morgan whisper-shouts. "I really gotta pee, but Pretty Boy won't budge. Think you can get him off me for a sec?"

Penelope stifles a giggle at the predicament. "Aww, you two are too cute. Let Aunt Penny handle it."

With expert care, she gently lifts Reid's head into her lap as a substitute. Morgan nods his thanks and bolts for the bathroom, leaving Garcia to admire how utterly relaxed Spencer is as he sleeps. Just another day in their unconventional little family.

[fandomnerd9602]

Relax

Female!Hiccup x Male Reader

Art by @avannak

Hicca had been working long and hard recently. In between dragon riding and establishing the peace relations with the kingdom of Doon. she was pursuing time with Y/N.

Luckily he was extremely understanding, he was like her mirror half. Their schedules practically mirrored with one another!

“Hicca!” the booming voice of Stoick rings out as Hicca and Toothless land with their usual grace.

“Hey Dad,” Hicca asks, “what’s wrong?”

“Did you forget what day was?”

“By Freya, please tell me I didn’t forget your birthday?”

“No.” Stoick responds, “you know I don’t celebrate my birthday. No it’s your day - with Y/N”

Hicca’s eyes go wide, “by Freya!”

Toothless lets out a little growl, clearly missing his own girlfriend, Snowstorm.

“I’m sorry, bud” Hicca comforts her scaly pal. “We’ve been so busy lately that-”

“You forgot?” Y/N smirks as he and Snowstorm land mere feet from Hicca and Toothless, “busy minds can distract fond hearts”

“And I thought it was absence that made the heart grow fonder” Hicca slyly responds.

“Well you do make my heart flutter” Y/N smirks back.

Snowstorm purrs at Toothless. The Night Fury actually swallows, nervously.

Y/N holds up a sack to Hicca, “You and me are having a picnic”

“How are you not angry?” Hicca laughs at her boyfriend’s gesture

“Because I almost forgot today too. You can thank Snowstorm for pushing me to go”

Snowstorm bats her eyes at the pitch black dragon.

“So you and Toothless ready?”

“Of course!” Hicca smiles as she boards Toothless and the two riders take off into the morning sky.

Y/N guides Hicca and Toothless to a little hidden beach, blankets and pillows already set out under a makeshift open walled hut. “Here we are” he smiles at his girlfriend.

“By Freya this is so calming and peaceful” Hicca breathes out. The very atmosphere of the beach giving her some much needed peace.

The crisp sound of the water gently crashing on nearby rocks. The perfect temperature of the sand. The loving company. What else could a person need?

Toothless and Snowstorm wasted no time, running and frolicking to their hearts content.

Y/N set out the sack of food on the blankets under the little hut’s roof as both riders took a seat on the woven comfort. Lunch was serene and enjoyable, just two lovers shooting the breeze and enjoying one another’s company.

Hicca winces, feeling a shooting pain in her leg. She reaches for her peg leg.

“What’s wrong?” Y/N moves to help.

“Been having a bit of pain in the stump recently.” Hicca tries to joke, “guess i’ve been working a little too hard lately”

“Come here,” Y/N gently orders her, “lean against me”

Hicca obeys, leaning against Y/N like a pillow, “you’re pretty comfy you know”

“Just relax” Y/N whispers, his hands moving to her peg leg. He gently detaches it and begins massaging the stump.

“By Freya that’s wonderful” little moans escape Hicca’s lips. “by the gods, I love you”

Gentle hands working the aches away. Hicca finds herself falling deeper and deeper into slumber’s spell as Y/N works at easier her pain.

Y/N places a gentle kiss to Wicca’s hairline, “I love you too, Hicca.”

Hicca wakes up, being held in Y/N’s arms. She lets out a sigh of content. I could get use to this, she finds her thoughts wandering to the future. The life that she could have with him. A little smile crosses HIcca’s face.

The skies have since darkened as the morning fades into dusk. Hicca turns to see that Toothless and Snowstorm have settled next to them. And with that, Y/N stirs, waking up with a little contented sigh of his own.

“Well so much for just a picnic” he jokes.

“I don’t think Berk will be missing me much” Hicca giggles as she turns around and wraps her arms around Y/N’s neck.

“And Doon can always rely on the council for a day or two” Y/N flirts right back.

“I wanna stay here.” Hicca sighs, “with you. with the dragons. forever if i could”

“I can’t promise you that we can stay here forever but” Y/N reaches into his satchel and pulls out a handmade necklace “how about you and me being together forever?”

Hicca couldn’t help but smile. The necklace had a celtic love knot with her birthstone being held at the center of it. And all of it being held on a simple leather band.

“I love you, my fellow dragon rider” Y/N whispers in her ear, “will you marry me?”

Tears stream down the young viking woman’s face as she laughs, crying tears of joy. “Yes! By the gods, a thousand times yes!”

Hicca practically leaps up and down in Y/N’s arms, hugging him tightly. She grabs his face and kisses him repeatedly. “I love you. I love you so much!” She whispers.

“I’m sure the council or Berk won’t mind us staying a little longer” Y/N jokes as he holds HIcca tightly.

“Maybe” Hicca giggles back, “if not, we’ll let our dragons persuade them”

Toothless and Snowstorm look on their riders in adoration. Their tails swishing back and forth like two contented cats.

Sometimes all it takes is a little relaxation for life to change. Well a little relax time and a proposal.

[fallenclan]

TW for: Child death and heavy emotions

The chill of leafbare had set in these past moons. The usual greenery of Fallenclans borders had long since faded into the cycle of change. Moosekit breathed in the warm scent of moss as the colors in the sky outside washed away, leaving a dull horizon. Sorrelstem curled around each of her kits, her soft underbelly cushioning each small kit against her. Owlkit let out a long yawn followed by a complaint. Sorrelstem tilted her head down to Owlkit, Moosekit stretched up as his mother gave each of her kits a small lick on the head. A purr rose in Moosekits throat, which his mother responded with a purr of her own. "Now it's time to sleep you cute little furballs~" Sorrelstem purred. "I'm not gonna." Wasskit said bluntly "You always say that!" Moosekit retorted.

Sorrelstem, despite the growing exhaust in her eyes smirked. "But you always end up snoozing off when I tell you a story." she teased. " Yeah Moosekit!" Wasskit objected "WASSKIT YOUR-"

"Okay okay! Hush hush. I do not tell stories to noisy arguing kits.."

"Sorry Wasskit." "Sorry Moosekit."

Sorrelstem chuckled, "Alright my little warriors, you are going to be made apprentices soon..So how about a fitting story about my life when I was an apprentice?"

"100 moons ago?" Shrewkit asked so earnestly that everyone in the nest burst out laughing.

"Okay Shrewkit. I'm not that old. I'm actually quite young."

The laughter died down as Lightingtail called over, asking for them to quiet down.

"Back then I didn't always take everything so seriously, I goofed off a lot. And if I know you sillys then being serious and focusing may be tough for you."

"remember Owlkit! No rivers!" Wasskit ordered

Owlkit looked away, her face growing hot with embarrassment.

Sorrelstem shook her head at Wasskit and gave Owlkit a few licks on the head.

"Hailcrash, believe it or not, was actually my mentor."

"Hailcrash?? She's so cool!" mewed Moosekit

" She would be a cool leader!" Shrewkit agreed

"And she was an even cooler mentor, im sure whoever your mentors will be just as brave and thoughtful. Just make sure you treat them with respect and follow the rules"

"What are the rules?" Shrewkit asked

"Lets start with going to sleep at a decent time." Sorrelstem chuckled

All the kits curled up huddling for warmth. it had become harder for them to all fit in the nest lately. As cold gusts of wind crept under your fur, causing it to bristle, being huddled together suddenly seemed very appealing.

"Im not.. Sleepin..g" Wasskit trailed off, her voice being lost in the fur of her mother.

Moosekit embraced around Shrewkit, she was always so cozy. He sunk deeper into the fluffy moss, causing his eyelids to grow heavier. His body relaxed, he listened to the rise and fall of Shrewkits breathing, a slow yet fast rhythm that lulled him to sleep.

Moosekit shifted in and out of sleep for a moment, a wave of wind bit at his face. He grounded and shifted in the nest facing away from the nursery's entrance. Still half asleep he reached his paw out to find Shrewkit. He peeled his eyes open when his paw fell, an empty space where Shrewkit should be. He looked out, the nursery was blanketed in darkness, only the dim light of early dawn leaked in through the entrance.

Moosekit blinked as he took in the nest. Owlkit and Wasskit snuggled together. Owlkit twitched in her sleep, deep in some dream. Moosekit pulled himself to his paws, peering at the nest once more. Still drowsy from sleep, he in a hushed voice called out.

"Shrew..?"

When Shrewkit didn't respond, Moosekit tiptoed to the center of the den. There Lightningtail and her kits remained asleep, no sign of Shrewkit. A sense of dread tightened in his chest when he realized she wasn't in the nursery. Moosekit looked to his Mom, nothing like this had never happened before, he didn't know what to do.

He shook his head, he was gonna be a warrior! And warriors dont call to their moms when they get scared, they keep going!

That when he saw a shape outside the Nursery. The object was too far away to see, the light outside to dim. He didn't make a sound slowly creeping out of the nursery, the icy air hitting his face. His paws stung as he took each step of the frozen ground. The dark shape got closer as he moved forward,he opened his mouth to catch a scent. The wind tried its best to dull it, but he breathed in the whiff of something so familiar he almost didn't catch it.

"Shrew? Why're you sleepin' in the snow?"

The silence was so eerie he thought he might have been mistaken for a moment.

"Shrew..?"

Moosekit finally stood right at her side, any silence there was had started to be overtaken by a ring in his ears.

"Shrew.." he said breathlessly, his chest was now light. His flank slowed with his breathing.

Shrewkit looked almost blue, her fur covered in snow. She was in such a tight ball, twice her normal size.

He curled around her. He didn't know why. The usual warmth was instead cold.He could only blankly stare at her fur. The ringing rose into a loud shriek, or maybe it was the wail of a cat. Yet it was all he could hear, he didn't react.

The rise and fall of Shrewkits breathing couldn't lull him out of this horrible dream. And it never would again.

-🐁

AUGHH G???? AUGUHG??? WHY DO YOU DO THIS TO ME WHY DO YOU HURT ME <started it

GOD this is so painful. moosekit and shrewkit . aughghg im having feelings about this little guys im in agony

[winniemaywebber]

23 from the prompts for both couples please Winnie ❤️

hi nonnie! sorry this one took a couple days, thanks for being so patient <3

prompt is from this list and my inbox is still open for more (:

under the cut. 18+ only, minors DNI

23. “relax, I've got you”

Olive x Dougie

It’s midnight before Olive gets through her red front door, the breeze of the night slamming the door behind her. She winces at the sound, wanting to be as quiet as possible so as not to risk shocking her husband. She kicks off her shoes with a grunt of frustration before throwing down her overnight bag. Tomorrow’s problem, she thinks to herself as she wanders into the kitchen for a snack. She is exhausted; a weekend full of fun with her best girls had been topped off by the sourest moments possible. A four hour delay at the bus station and another hour stuck downtown while an emergency mechanic had to be called to fix an issue with the bus.

She’s surprised to see soft light emanating from the living room, a lamp left on by a forgetful James Douglass. As she opens the door with a tut escaping her lips, she jumps at seeing him standing in the living room, having just stood up from his place on the couch.

“Thought it was you,” he smiles, placing his book on the coffee table. “I’ve been worried sick,” he says, pulling his wife into his arms. “It’s late, why didn’t you call?”

“Lost my change purse,” she grumbles. “I set it down and when I looked back, it was gone. Right at the tail end of the delay.”

“We’ll get you a new one tomorrow, mkay?”

She nods, pressing her soft lips on his. “Missed you, my love.”

“Missed you more, Mrs Douglass.” He tilts her chin up so her eyes meet his gaze, him staring into them gently yet intently. “You’re tense, my girl.”

She laughs, her nose touching his. “It’s been a stressful day,” she replies, arms winding around his neck.

“Let me make you feel better, hm?”

His hands squeeze at her waist as the kiss deepens, her tongue finding his as she melts into him. It’s only taken one little moment and she’s feeling the stress and anxiety melt off her, only taking stock of his mouth on hers and his hands scrambling to undress her.

The pair of them make quick work of getting the other disrobed, those three days away from each other apparently the cause of this fiery hunger. They collapse on the couch, the feeling of his body on top of hers causing her to exhale heavily, as if every problem she’d experienced that day was pulled out of her with each moan he was hearing from her. Her hips buck into him as he makes his way down her body, kneeling down in front of her and placing her legs on his shoulders, pulling her closer to his mouth.

“Oh,” she whimpers, watching him press his face into her.

“Relax,” he murmurs, his tongue pushing through her. “I’ve got you.”

***********************************************

Jean x Harry

“Enjoy your stay,” the man at the reception desk said, handing Bing the key. “Congratulations again.”

“Thank you,” Harry replied, picking up both suitcases and leading his wife down the long hall.

It's only been four hours since the couple stood in church and said “I do,” the nervous energy swirling around them ever since. It had really crept up her stomach during the celebration dinner with both of their families, Jean only being able to take a few small bites of salad. Now they are here, walking to their honeymoon suite, the nerves are coursing through the pair of them.

Jean had always known that their first night as newlyweds would be nerve-wracking, but nothing like this – heart in her throat, butterflies rising up to her chest. Before she has time to try and calm herself, they're at the door. Harry unlocks it, placing their suitcases by the bed neatly, side by side.

He sits on the bed, pulling his tie off and throwing it haphazardly on the floor.

“Cmere, Mrs Crosby,” he purrs, arm out to pull her in. She walks to him tentatively, shedding her tuille shawl as she stands between his legs. His hand reaches up to her face, pulling her down to kiss him. Hers grip the back of his neck as it deepens, soft yet passionate, tongues pushing together.

She breaks away, beginning to unbutton his shirt. She struggles with the small buttons as she notices her hands begin to tremble, letting out a jagged breath.

“Hey,” Harry murmurs, taking her nervous hands in his unusually calm ones. “Are you okay?”

“Mhm,” she lies, the tension caught in her throat. “I'm just…I'm a little nervous.”

“I can understand that,” he replies, his soft, brown eyes filled with sympathetic understanding. “I promise, we don't have to do anything you don't want to do. I don't care where we're at in the moment, you say stop? We stop. We have time, darling. Okay?”

“Yes, honey,” she squeaks out, moving forward to kiss him again. She seems to fall into him this time, a sudden warmth pooling in her stomach and replacing the nervous energy that was there a few moments earlier. He pops open the buttons on the back of her dress from where he's sat, gently tugging it from her body.

“You are beautiful, Mrs Crosby,” he says, his hands running up her body. “Relax,” he reassures her sweetly, planting soft kisses on her stomach. “I've got you.”

[bratshaws]

through the hourglass 58. brb x oc

a/n: sometimes we get shit days......like I did!! Ngl I'm not the happiest with the chapter so um...im sorry??? ive been having cramps the whole day so that could be........why.EITHER WAY COULD BE BETTER

pairing: plus size!oc x rooster

warnings: none

goodness gracious (pls read this one to know more what this fic is about!!)

chapter

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-

He wakes up renewed, almost desiring to stay in bed since he was so relaxed. He hums happily, turning to the side in hopes to see Bea but the bed is empty and cold, which meant she woke up before he did. Unusual but not impossible since they had Nicole.  

He’s smiling however, moving to her pillow to smell the lavender scent that never seemed to leave her body. He wondered if that wasn’t just her normal smell and not a perfume. Bradley woke up really happy, not only he had an amazing night - he could still remember everything that happened with detail - but he knew he’d have an even better day. 

He was so glad that Beatrice was slowly going back to her old sweet self, sometimes he’d see her eyes glaze and look at nothing but she’d snap back into reality quickly. While he was in bed, enjoying the softness and leftover warmth under his body, he couldn’t help but remember that their anniversary was coming up and they hadn’t planned anything. 

Honestly, he wasn’t sure if they’d be able to, he still had to check if he wasn’t deployed by then. While everything has been calm these past months he couldn’t be too optimistic because he could be called at any second and leave for God knows how long. 

Bradley groaned, running his hands up and down his face to wake up and then sat on the edge of the bed, trying to wipe the sleep off his eyes as he heard Beatrice’s gentle singing coming from downstairs. He couldn’t understand the words but he knew she was singing to Nicole. He knew he had to go to work, even if his body demanded that he stayed longer in bed, he had to get up. 

And so he did, with some difficulty,walking to the bathroom. 

He usually never rushed his morning showers, but that day he really wanted to enjoy it. He was having a really good morning and he had to get ready for the day, so he allowed himself to just let the water fall down on him in silence. 

“Roos?” her soft voice calls and he looks over to the door, seeing her blurry figure approaching the shower. She opens the door just enough to peek inside, “Hey, good morning.” 

“Hey, come on, I’m at a disadvantage here.” he chuckles, then wipes his face with a hand to lean closer, pecking her lips sweetly, “It’s a great morning, gorgeous.” 

Beatrice tried to not flick her eyes downwards where rivulets of water dribbled down his body and below his navel or else she’d be very distracted, “I just wanted to check what you’d want for breakfast today.” she smiles, “Maybe some pancakes?” 

“Hm,I’d love some.” 

“Good, because I found a chocolate chip recipe I think you’ll love.” she says, slowly backing away, “I’m going to let you shower, Nikki just had her own breakfast and is enjoying her bouncer with the dogs, I just took the time to check on you.” 

“Gorgeous you know I love when you check on me.” he purrs, grabbing his soap to lather over his chest and adoring how she just fought back from following his hand, “Did you shower yet?” 

“Roos.” 

“I’m just asking.” he laughs, throwing his hands up in defense. “It doesn’t hurt to ask.” 

“Uh-huh.” She clearly doesn’t believe him, but reciprocates his smile, “Not because you were trying to find a way for us to shower together,right?” he doesn’t reply but he does have the boyish grin she loved so much, “Anyway, I’m going back downstairs and leave you be.” she slowly closes the shower door with a little wave thrown his way before she’s out of the bathroom. 

Once she’s gone,Rooster lets out a disbelieved chuckle, “Fuck.” he bites his lower lip as he lets the water rinse the soap away, “She has no idea how she fucks with me in the best way,” and a cheeky voice in his mind said ‘literally’. That’s why he had to come up with something nice for their anniversary, not only because he loved her more than anything but because she deserved to have another special celebration. 

Beatrice was worth everything and he’d never tire of saying that to her. He could look some stuff up online, something they could both do together and he prayed for whatever deity there was that they could at least enjoy their anniversary before he was deployed again. 

And now that he’s seeing Nikki grow so fast every day…he’s not really eager about leaving. He even asked some of the pilots who had kids if they felt the same way and they all replied the same - except Jim who apparently felt at peace while gone because his kids were loud and in turn he got weird looks from everyone - that leaving after the birth of your child and coming back only to see how much they grew without you was painful. 

Not only that but Beatrice would be alone and that also made him nervous. Not that he didn’t trust her but he feared that,well, maybe she’d get the baby blues again. He researched it one night when she was asleep and he couldn’t, he wanted to make sure that she’d have no night terrors or nightmares - something he read that could happen - while in bed. So, to him, the wellbeing of Beatrice and their daughter was of the utmost importance. 

He was good at his job, he wouldn’t achieve what he did if he wasn’t, but he also wanted to balance both things. He knew Beatrice wouldn’t mind, she never did, she was just an angel in this planet who came to bless him with her kindness and love…and he just wanted to repay her in some way. 

He didn’t plan on retiring yet but he wanted to make sure that every time before he left they’d do something. Either go out, watch movies, eat something both of them like, hell even playing video games together, he didn’t care. 

The spook in December messed him up a lot and he just wanted to come back to them every time. He still had Beatrice’s ring around his dog tags and the flower pouch she made saved up and hidden in his bag, he liked to believe they brought him a lot of luck and he couldn’t really get rid of them now. 

Bea didn’t mind, she rarely asked for her ring back and considering everything she accepted he took it for himself. But that was the thing, she was always so giving, she gave so much for so many people and she rarely accepted anything back. 

“Well,” he starts talking to himself as soon as he shuts the shower off “She deserves something great.” 

And she does, more than anyone he knew. While wiping the moisture off his body,Bradley couldn’t help but wonder what exactly they could do for their anniversary. It was still in his mind and it didn’t appear it’d leave any time soon.  

As he wraps the towel around his waist and walks to the closet to change, he pauses when he sees her hiking boots tucked safely in the corner. Holding up his shirt as inspiration strikes, he knows exactly what they could do: They could go camping! Of course they wouldn’t be able to take Nikki if that was the case, she was too small, but…if everything went well they could leave her with Bea’s parents. 

It was a nice idea and they never hiked together even if they mentioned doing so. 

But there was much to think until then and he hoped he had enough time to do so. 

As he finished dressing up, with the idea still fresh in his mind, he walked down the steps to the first floor where he could still hear Beatrice talking to Nicole. He tried to be as quiet as possible but the twins - as they called Eleanor and Jack - immediately poked their heads out when they heard him coming. He petted them in a greeting before he walked into the kitchen, seeing his wife explaining to Nicole what a pancake was. 

She even held a plate in such a way that Nicole would see it. He didn’t know what his daughter’s reaction was, but Beatrice’s smile probably meant she was happy seeing it. “Roos!” Bea placed the plate down right where he usually sat, walking up to him to meet his lips in a sweet kiss, “You are smelling really nice,lieutenant.” 

He smirks against her mouth, “Just the best for my beautiful wife.” he whispers back, pecking her lips two more times before she walks away from him, his brown eyes dropping to those wide hips to hers, following them until she sat down on her spot, “You telling Nikki how pancakes should be considered the World’s 8th wonder?” 

She laughs softly, holding her head up with her hand as Rooster walks up to Nikki, kissing the baby’s cheeks and baby talking to her when she starts to giggle, “Something like that.” she says, “She seemed curious.” 

“Well if she’s anything like me we both know she’ll love it.” he says as he sits down, running his hand through his already combed hair. Beatrice loved that even when he cleaned himself up like that he still had to mess it up just enough to make it fluffy. “But it looks really nice, you said there’s chocolate chips in this?” 

“Choco chips and some yogurt.” she smiles, “I saw the recipe online and I thought you’d like it.” 

“Mm,what’s this? Are you spoiling me?” He meets her eyes when he asks that, the subtle dark glaze over them not missed by Beatrice, “Last night…today…you are going to pamper me too much,you might never get rid of me.” 

“Hm,good.” she smiles wider, “I wouldn’t want to get rid of you.” 

“Careful, more talking like this and I’ll just stay here today.” he jokes before taking a bite of his breakfast, “So,I was thinking about our anniversary.” 

“Oh?” 

‘Yeah,I think we can figure something fun to do, don’t you?” 

Beatrice folds her arms on the table, tilting her head at him, “Do you have something planned?” 

“It’s an idea.” he shrugs, sipping his coffee, “But maybe we could go hiking, we can leave Nikki with your parents for one night and enjoy the time together.” Beatrice stares at him for a few seconds, then licks her lips as she thinks about it. 

“Well, I do like the idea.” 

“But?” 

“But my parents are going to Italy during our anniversary. It’s my uncle Roberto’s birthday and he invited them…for a yacht ride.” she laughs softly, “So, maybe we can…figure something out that we can do with Nikki?” 

Bradley shrugs with a nod, “Sure, it’s just an idea anyway.” He looks back to where Nicole was, her little hands on top of her light pink onesie as she looks at the moving mobile with such intensity you’d think she was interrogating each plastic animal above her head. “I mean,Nikki doesn’t have a lot of interests yet but I think we can work something out with her,huh?” 

“I think so too.” she replies, “She’s…a lot like you.” 

Bradley holds the coffee mug inches from his lips, arching his brow with an “Oh?” 

“Yeah, she has the same look when she’s really focused.” he furrows his brows in confusion, “Roos, you have this…look, your brows lower and your lips pout just a little bit because you are focused on something…and then you run your hand on your mustache. She has the same mannerisms already, so you are already being an influence to our infant daughter.” 

He looks back to where Nicole was, seeing her little focused face with his own confused one. She was looking at her mobile intensely and her lips were pursed up a little bit, little pink lips that seemed to pop out of her face with her tiny arms trying to reach the moving bird, “...if you ask me she has a lot of you too.” 

“She does?” 

“Her smile especially.” he smirks as Beatrice’s cheeks turn a light red, “She smiles with her whole face just like you do. And her eyes squint and shine at the same time, just like yours.” 

Beatrice only blushed more, cupping her cheeks with her hands and sinking into her seat a bit more, just enough that the upper half of her body was visible, “Stop.” she giggles, “You are too smooth and I might take your offer about you staying here today.” 

Rooster smirks even more, arching his brow with a flick, “Maybe next time, maybe I can…” he drops his eyes down her chest, “Be a little late.” 

“You are never late.” she retorts, cheeks red as ripe tomatoes, “How long would that even be?” 

“Mmm…forty five minutes maybe?” she gaped at him, then started laughing, shaking her head because she couldn’t believe him, “Not my fault you are hot.” and he was sincere about it, he’d stay home if there was a possibility. But this talk only made him feel better than before. 

Yeah, it was going to be a good day. 

- 

Bradley stands in front of Cyclone with his hands behind his lower back, chest expanding with an inhale,”...three months,sir?” 

“Three months,Bradshaw.” the Vice-Admiral says, his glasses resting by the bridge of his nose as he reads the papers in front of him, his blue eyes slowly rising up to the standing officer who looked a mix of surprised and disappointed. He slowly pulled his glasses off, “Speak your mind,Bradshaw.” 

“There’s nothing in my mind,sir.” 

“There must be,” he gestures the handle of his glasses to the officer’s stiff posture, “You are standing there like a green bean ready to snap, so, tell me what’s the matter.” 

Bradley didn’t know how to start, he stood there in silence for a few seconds before words finally appeared in his brain, “...I…may I ask something personal,sir?” Cyclone arches his brow even more, “...how was it…when you had Evelyn?” 

Cyclone’s expression went from curious to a blank slate, those blue eyes turned icy and Bradley feared he stepped over the line when asking his superior about his daughter. But Cyclone just takes a deep breath, almost meticulously opening the glasses case to place them inside, clicking it shut with one hand, pushing it aside before he interlaces his hands on top of his desk, “How old is your daughter,Bradshaw?” 

“She’s going to turn one month old,sir.”  

Cyclone pauses, his eyes looking to the side in thought, “One month…hm.” he chuckles almost dryly, one of his hands coming up to scratch his jawline, “Evelyn was one year old when I finally held her for the first time.” his eyes shadowed as he reminisced, “She was already so big and she had no idea who I was, we didn’t have facetiming back then and it took a while for us to actually bond.”  

He could see how his words affected the new father, whose shoulders tensed and relaxed as he tried to control his emotions, “This will happen often,Bradshaw.” he begins, “Your daughter will grow asking her mother where you are, how long you’ll be gone and when you are coming back.” Cyclone slowly rises to his feet, walking around his desk to stand in front of Bradley, “This is something she’ll have to get used to.” 

Bradley licked his lips but said nothing, avoiding his superior’s eyes as he looked down at him, “Sacrifices that must be made.” Cyclone says, “Sacrifices that she will understand when she’s older.” 

He almost wanted to retort that Evelyn didn’t seem to understand the sacrifices he made when she was younger considering how she acted around her father and around other Naval officers. “I know.” he holds back the frown, “I know,sir.” 

“What we do is for our children.” Cyclone’s voice is so dangerously quiet Rooster can feel it enter his ears as if it were a punch, “You have the possibility of talking to your daughter while you are away…do not waste that. Dismissed.” and he turns around to sit back down on his chair, leaving Bradley standing there quietly. 

He inhales one last time before saluting and leaving the room, clenching his eyes as he sighs loudly, walking ahead until he sees Phoenix and Payback talking not too far from him, “He let you in it too?” Payback asks and Rooster nods, “You look tense,man.” 

“I…” he sighs again, “...this is the first time I’m leaving Bea and Nikki alone.” 

“It’s not for long.” Nat adds, crossing her arms, “It’ll be over before you-” 

“Nat,” he holds up a hand, “I…don’t think that will help. Yeah,I’m glad it’s a short time instead of a year or two, but it’s still scary. Bea–” he pauses, his jaw moving as the words are held back behind his teeth, refusing to elaborate why he worried about his wife the most, they didn’t need to know that, “...I just worry.” 

“You are a new dad.” Payback smiles sympathetically,patting his friend’s shoulder “It’s normal to worry.” 

“Unless you are still thinking about what happened in December.” Phoenix’s voice is quiet, the words weighing more than normal and the three of them could feel the atmosphere change as they all recalled how close that was, “Which…honestly I don’t think anyone forgot.” 

“That too.” he whispered, rubbing his eyes with his thumb and index finger, pinching the bridge of his nose with his brows going up, “...I’m okay. Just…I’m okay.” he pulled out his phone to unlock it, seeing the pictures of both their wedding day and of Nicole as his backgrounds clearly helped him. 

But his day…well, it wasn’t going as great as he wished.  

And he had to talk to Beatrice later.  

[femboywolfox]

ezra's morning routine (breakfast and getting ready)

after getting to the kitchen benny was fully awake allowing ezra to set him down, allowing her hands to be free to cook. whilst she scrambled some eggs, and frying up bacon benny stayed near her sitting at her feet with his head resting on her legs, her tail swayed as she hummed a joyful song to herself. benny gently rubs his cheek on ezra's knee while softly purring, which earns a small chuckle from her before she rests her other knee between his ears and rubs his head. he purrs a little louder as he tilts his head back to allow his mussle to rub agianst her aswell, ezra finishes cooking and puts their plates together before walking to the table to eat with benny staying behind to clean up and wash the dishes.

shortly after finishing her plate ezra looked over to her lover who had already stuffed his lil body full, making his belly a noticeable bulge as he layed on the couch with a sickly expression on his face. she simply walked over and sat beside benny while gently rubbing her hand along his stomache which made him start to purr, it didnt take much to make benny purr, simple acts to keep him relaxed and happy like headpats, pets, rubs, and anything involving physical affection was enough, and she was always happy to give it to him since it helped her relax aswell, she remembered the long nights she spent at her desk when she had to take work home, her feet tucked under benny and his warm fur as he laid beneath the desk soundly asleep.

after a few minutes of rubbing benny's belly, ezra looks down his legs before setting her gaze to his feet, his soft pink colored paw pads gently rubbed the fabric of the sofa. she gently pushes a finger in the area between his toes and his bigger pad, his toes curl up, gently gripping her with his warm fleshy pads, benny isnt the one to let others play around with his paws since they're so sensitive, but he didnt mind it when she did, since she knew to be careful and where he liked having his paws rubbed. she smiles softly to herself before getting up and walking quietly to their bedroom to get ready, gently brushing her tail over benny's legs and stomach as she walked away.

as she gets dressed she hears the soft sound of paw pads sliding across the floor in steps, turning to the door she finds benny standing there with a pillow from the couch infront of his face, ezra giggles and pulls away the pillow revealing a light blush on his face and she cups his rosey colored cheek in her hand, his eyes were tightly shut. "you can open your eyes babe, im already dressed", he slowly opens his eyes and looks up at her, his rosey cheeks still remaining, "why are you still blushy baby boy?" she tilts her head slightly with a small smile, "y-y-you're j-just so p-pretty" benny shyly whispers, which made ezra smile even more before she kisses him. "so whats up fluffball? i know you'd never risk walking in on me changing if you didnt have something important to tell me" her tail swayed gently on the floor before slowly moving it around to encircle benny's legs. "y-your boss c-called, he said half the design team is out sick so you're taking a day off incase" ezra pulls benny closer to her, a almost predatory look in her eyes makes the smaller bee-cat gulp as the rosey color on his cheeks grew. "looks like i get to keep you here all day then~" before benny could awnser she gently lifts him up and kisses his lips, "dont worry bb, i wont be too rash, especially since we have all day"

she walks over to the couch to settle herself and her lover into a long day of pampering, cuddles, and hours of neflix.

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a longer story than i hoped, but i hope its still enjoyable ^^

this was featuring ezra the 8ft tall dominant lover to benny the 5'3 beecat ^^