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wonlouvre · 4 years ago

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pairing: doctor!wonwoo x lawyer!female oc genre: modern royalty, arranged marriage, fluff and future angst word count: 5.2k!! WARNINGS: is an awful lot of fluff a warning?

author’s note: FINALLY!!! AGAIN!!! i can’t believe we have reached part 5, you guys ;_; i never imagined this fic would even be liked by so many of you. i am so grateful to even receive notes from the first part up to the latest. i appreciate all of you! please let me know what you think. this is the part i have been excited for, so i hope you are excited too! enjoy!!!

five: the one | masterlist

What happened at the hospital made you cling to Wonwoo in the most subtle way possible. You wouldn’t even consider messaging his phone clingy. But yes, you have finally taken a hold of his phone number. Back then, Jeongyeon was the one who contacts him about your joint schedules. And now, it’s you that personally calls or messages him. Mostly messages. Aside from talking about the official duties you have been assigned together, one of the main reasons why you took the initiative is you just want to hear about whatever from him firsthand. You did notice, however, during the first time you sent a hello, it surprised the Prince a little but he just shrugged it off. You’re embarrassed but you brave through it because it’s only normal to communicate with your future husband.

You try to start and hold conversations with him from time to time but it doesn’t last long. It’s alright though. It’s not like you want to talk about his childhood through message bubbles. You’re also aware that a buzzing phone is the most unwanted item when he’s on duty unless it’s an emergency call. It’s also the same for your job. Staring at your phone while waiting for his reply has caught Jeongyeon’s attention already and she has not hesitated to reprimand you.

“What’s gotten into you?” Jeongyeon asks and drops two lunchboxes on the center table of your office. “Are you still sick?”

You purse your lips and shake your head no, eyes not leaving the bright screen of the small device.

“Come on,” she calls and steals the phone from your hand. “It’s time to eat. I prepared this especially for you.”

You scoff in disbelief, but the smile on your face says otherwise. You stand from your chair and follow her to where the mouthwatering food is at.

“I didn’t hire you to cook for me though,” you say, reminding her how she doesn’t have to do this.

“Ey,” she dismisses your words and hands you the spoon to start eating. “I’m just helping His Highness out.”

Your ear perks up at the mention of the Prince. “What?”

“He didn’t tell me to cook for you, don’t worry,” she quickly informs, noticing your face forming a frown. Then, she smiles. “He just wanted to make sure you’re eating right and well. And, it just so happened I had the time earlier to prepare this. Ta-dah!”

She opens the lid of the first food container and your stomach growls in hunger at the sight. A set of colorful vegetables, fully cooked meat and warm rice were presented before you. By the looks of it, she really did have the time earlier.

“Should I thank you or the Prince?” You ask in jest.

“Of course you should thank me!” She holds her chin up and points to her chest proudly. “I’ve been taking care of you for the longest time while His Majesty just started. He can actually learn

a thing or two from me, you know?”

He’s taking care of me, your thoughts echo, making you smile.

You’re definitely calling him later.

The wedding planning resumes in no less than two weeks after navigating back to your usual routine. And on this one fine Saturday afternoon, Wonwoo decided to drive his own car and have you with him to go to your wedding planner’s office together. He messaged you and you welcomed the thoughtful gesture. He picked you up from your apartment, much to both of your security details’ dismay. Jeongyeon sent you a bunch of heart gifs afterwards and you can picture her screaming (silently) at the top of her lungs.

This is the first time you’ve seen Wonwoo in the two weeks that passed and it’s kind of awkward to be alone with him in one small space. This is also the first time you have witnessed him driving. Security is tailing behind though. They are really not fond of letting the two of you out of their sight.

This car ride is quiet aside from the radio playing some mellow music. Wonwoo has his hands on the steering wheel and his eyes on the road. Which is good because as much as you want to stare at his handsome face, you need to hold yourself back. You let your eyes wander to the view outside the window instead.

Wonwoo doesn’t seem to notice your shyness and that eases your worry because you really don’t want him to think you’re shying away from him. You actually want to talk. Talk about anything and even everything. But, how?

After you called him that one time, you’ve started speaking to him by call here and there. Before his shift starts, after his shift ends, before he goes home or when he’s at home and even before he goes to bed. They’re just casual calls that didn’t even last longer than ten minutes. That’s about it. Phone calls. But now, you are face to face and you don’t seem to know how to form words anymore.

Unbeknownst to you, Wonwoo noticed your dilemma and spoke up first.

“Do you want to grab something to eat after?”

“Huh?” You ask, snapping yourself out from the thoughts occupying your mind.

“I figured it would be nice to catch up and all,” he explains, sparing you a small glance before quickly bringing his eyes back on the road. “Coffee or tea will do if you’re not that hungry.”

Warmth surged to your face. What kind of question was that? Of course you’d love to! You’re just holding yourself from shouting a loud YES! with a bite of your lip because you don’t want to sound overexcited.

After a beat of silence, you boldly answer, “I’d like that.”

Wonwoo smiles and reaches his hand out to yours, squeezing them not only once but twice. His touch reminds you of how he held and kissed your hand that one time he accompanied you back to your apartment. Your breath hitches and you hide your surprise with a small smile. He lets go after a few seconds but those few seconds almost made you faint.

You gulp, heart attack is inevitable with this man.

The meeting was short so you and Wonwoo decided to drive to the nearby coffee shop you passed by earlier. The place wasn’t packed and the facility was notified by security to make sure that distance and privacy from the public is observed. Such protocol is not enacted all the time and you are free to go out and about together or individually but sometimes these measures are taken into consideration to make sure that your safety is not compromised. Especially if there are topics or discussions that should be reserved only for the parties involved.

Such as now when Wonwoo just casually dropped an engagement party bombshell to you like it’s the morning paper.

“An engagement party?”

“Yes,” Wonwoo confirms, a nervous smile drawn on his face. “My mother, in her own words, thought it would be lovely to hold an intimate and simple party back home.”

“Oh,” you mutter and place the cup of coffee back on the table.

“Do you mind leaving us for a moment? I’d like to speak about this with the Princess alone,” Wonwoo politely dismisses the security detail and they obeyed with no protest.

Once they’re gone, Wonwoo stands from the chair he sat on when you arrived and takes the space on the loveseat you chose. He takes hold of your hand, an action you noticed he’s been confidently doing lately. You opened your palm for him because you don’t mind. But a little warning next time is much appreciated because your heart can’t take any more of his surprises.

“I didn’t know we had to hold an engagement party,” you start and he agrees in a heartbeat. “I thought after going public, that would do it.”

“I know and I’m sorry,” he apologizes in a pout and that gave you the strong urge to squeeze his cheeks. Which you actually did. Your urges are becoming stronger than your own will whenever you’re with him.

He smiles at your touch and you roll your eyes when he winks at you. You guess it’s not only the hand holding that Wonwoo has been confident of lately. He has started to always search and meet your eyes and stay as close as possible to you. Earlier after locking the door of his car, he held your hand and the wedding planner couldn’t hide her pleased grin when she opened the doors of her office.

He also has the same confidence to escape from trouble, just like now. Although, of course, you’re not saying Her Majesty is causing trouble. It’s just nerve wracking to go to your future in-laws house for the first time. You’re sure any soon-to-be wife would feel the same way.

But then again, you’re not just any ordinary soon-to-be wife.

“I heard the beaches there are lovely,” you mention to lighten the mood.

“Yes, they are,” Wonwoo guarantees, his arm now completely around your shoulders, fingers grazing the skin of your shoulder every once in a while. He’s completely warm and you wonder if he’s warmer when you finally get to see him in his hometown.

You exhale and reach for a napkin to wipe the remnants of the cupcake he took a bite of off the corner of his lips. “Well, I guess I’m gonna have to file for a vacation leave then.”

Wonwoo’s eyes light up, an excited smile forming on his lips. No words were needed to describe how ecstatic he is to visit home.

With you.

A week went by and you are now officially invited by the neighboring kingdom for a two-week stay at their Royal Residences. Your parents, the King and Queen, have received the official invitation and they have given orders for you to travel at the convenience of your time. They wish to come along but they do respect the Prince’s parents wishes to spend time with their future daughter-in-law.

This is your last day of packing and preparing before the long car trip tomorrow and Jeongyeon is all smiles while helping you. She had mentioned before that when she was younger, her family annually travels to the beach there because of how breathtaking and relaxing they were. You can tell she’s very excited through her humming as she zipped the last of your bags.

Jeongyeon placed everything you’ll be bringing near the door of your bedroom to not miss out on anything when you depart tomorrow. She then leaves after resting for a few minutes, bidding you an excited goodbye and see you tomorrow.

A while later, after scanning your whole room with hands on your hips, you let yourself breathe out and plop down on your bed. The week that went by was oddly busy and tiring. It scared you for a moment because you thought this might hinder you from leaving. But thankfully, after meeting your deadlines and satisfying clients that asked for your legal counsel, the two weeks to come is all yours and Wonwoo’s for the taking.

You draw your phone from your pocket, thinking of ringing Wonwoo to check on him. But the sound of your doorbell distracted you from doing so. Your brows knit in confusion. You’re not expecting anyone other than Jeongyeon today. Well, you don’t expect anyone other than Jeongyeon ever.

Nevertheless, you stand up and walk outside the comforts of your bedroom.

You peek at the monitor near your door and your eyes widened like saucers when you saw the person waiting on the other side.

Wonwoo.

It didn’t take your fingers long to punch your code and unlock the door. You didn’t even bother checking if you completely unlocked the door because your feet sped to open it yourself.

“Hey,” you greet and finally get a good look at his form. He’s wearing an oversized grey hoodie and black jeans outlining his long legs. It won’t take a minute to guess he just finished his shift.

“Hi. Sorry. Did I come at the wrong time?”

“Did you drive here?” You ask instead of answering. Exhaustion can be clearly heard from his voice and it makes you frown in worry.

“No, no,” he assures, giving you a tired smile. “I am way too exhausted to drive.”

You didn’t need words to let him in. You just opened your door wider and turned around to walk back inside, certain he’d follow.

You can’t see it, but Wonwoo’s tired smile brightens when he sees you comfortable around him. The first time he stepped foot here was brief and today he’s hoping it lasts a little longer. The moving car earlier almost lulled him to sleep, but he resisted to not miss telling the driver where to drop him off. “I’m sorry again. You were probably busy.”

“Don’t be,” you say and sit on your couch. You then give him a smile and pat the space next to you. “Now sit.”

Wonwoo returns your smile and takes a seat, dropping his small backpack beside the couch in the process. He lets his head rest sideways and closes his eyes briefly to regain some energy.

You pout and reach out to remove the fringe blocking his eyes. “Have you eaten?”

He gives you a quiet nod before snuggling closer to the couch. “I just wanted to see you before we leave tomorrow.”

You’re rendered speechless with his words, heart definitely swooning. Without thinking twice, you pulled him close to your body by his arm before securing his head to your chest. His eyes blinked in surprise, but he welcomed the affection anyway. He closes his eyes again and nuzzles his nose to the crook of your neck. Soon, his arms are wrapped around your waist and your legs are over his lap, almost sitting on them. A cozy silence is shared between the two of you.

“You have two weeks to see my face uninterrupted,” you whisper while running your fingers through his soft locks.

Wonwoo’s lips stretched to a blissful smile and you can feel it against your skin. “Can’t wait Princess.”

Your first day at Wonwoo’s kingdom has you booked. Similar to the act of kindness their Majesties extended to your kingdom, your parents returned their generosity by donating for the construction and development of a public hospital.

Although a courtesy call to their Majesties should have been your first agenda, their Majesties granted you permission to attend the ceremony commemorating the official start of the project.

Wonwoo’s arm served as your anchor as the two of you stand before a cheering crowd. You make sure to keep a genuine smile and give enthusiastic waves whenever they shout for you. But, you are aware that they are much more excited to finally see their Prince back on their soil. You smile and give Wonwoo a glance who does the same. He holds the hand that’s snaked around his arm, a comforting touch to help keep you calm.

After the Secretary of Health gave his closing remarks, the ceremony ended. The two of you bid farewell but not before you have extended your greetings to everyone present and wave one last time to the persevering crowd.

The climate here is no different from your home. However, you must say that there are still some distinctions after seeing the port and the view of the sea. Even though you have been here before, this trip is a whole new experience because you’re about to be wedded to someone who belongs here.

“Y/N, my dear.” The Queen joyfully opens her arms after you formally greeted their Majesties with a curtsy. You gladly reciprocate the gesture and hug her back.

Wonwoo greets his father on the other side with a bow, but His Majesty wanted to envelope him in a hug instead. His embrace definitely says how much he missed his son after a long while.

“I am so delighted to have you here,” the Queen says, rubbing both of your arms to warmth. “I hope the car ride wasn’t exhausting.”

You shake your head while smiling. “It was alright, Your Majesty.”

Her smile grows bigger. “We’ll let you settle down first before we proceed. We have prepared a room for you and the rest of your staff. But, I’m sure Wonwoo wouldn’t mind sharing his with you.”

You blush at her cheeky wink and you can see Wonwoo grimace from your peripheral. His Majesty just laughs at his beloved’s antics.

“Your mother is joking,” the King assures and gives his son a pat on the shoulder. He then moves to your direction to finally give you a hug.

Wonwoo steals you away from the loving couple, afraid of what else his mother will blurt out. He holds your hand again and you just giggle when you see him narrowing his eyes at them.

“We’ll be taking our leave then, Your Majesties,” you say and bow once again.

Their Majesties nod and wave goodbye. “See you later!”

There are still some instances where your home is called The Palace, however as times have changed, the Royal Family has opened its doors to modernity. It’s now usually referred to as the Royal Residences. Wonwoo’s home had done the same and you’re a little relieved that their customs are not that different from your homeland.

Jeongyeon follows behind as Wonwoo gives you a brief tour to help you navigate around necessary rooms you’d be going to such as the kitchen, library, entrances and exits. All the while, his hand remained clasped with yours.

The Jeon’s have made their mark on their residence and it’s not that hard to see. It’s too early to say but you can see how it is originally them. From the wallpapers, flooring, artworks, furniture and more. It’s nothing uncomfortable. It’s actually exciting and you’re looking forward to the days to come.

Shortly after Wonwoo’s tour, you have arrived at the door of your designated room.

“If you need me…” Wonwoo says, then pauses, hesitating.

You tilt your head to the side, trying to decipher where the sudden shyness is coming from. You try to hide your grin. This is one of the rare times you see Wonwoo not making eye contact.

“Your room is at the end of the hall, I know.” you finish his sentence for him and his eyes widen in surprise. Now, you are laughing indeed. “Her Majesty might have shared the information when she hugged me earlier.”

Wonwoo groans and palms his face, embarrassed. He loves his mother, a hundred percent. But, she’s testing it by how much she’s teasing him.

You squeeze his hand. “You should get some rest. I’ll see you tonight, okay?”

“Okay,” he answers, face still red. “I just hope she doesn’t rub herself on you.”

You shake your head at his remark and let go of his hand, reluctantly.

“See you later, Princess.”

You adore the emerald dress that your mother had personally designed for you to wear on this special night. She actually surprised you three days before you left, presenting a huge box and smile when you arrived at the Royal Residences. She even told you how long she had this in store and she can’t believe that such a day she’d see you wear it would come.

It’s a long-sleeve and backless dress with intricate patterns you believe only your mother would ever come up to. Looking at yourself through the mirror clothed with such a dress makes you confident and strong, reminded by the Queen who’s much more than you already are.

Once zipped up, Jeongyeon helps put your official crown on the top of your head. The last time you’ve worn this was when your parents celebrated their wedding anniversary. And tonight it carries a different meaning and duty because you’re wearing it for the first time in a while, at your engagement to Wonwoo. You really wish your parents could be here. You’ll have to make sure to take and send a lot of pictures.

“You really look beautiful, Your Highness,” Jeongyeon praises, looking from behind you as she does some finishing touches for the last time.

You smile and thank her.

A knock on the wooden door has your breath hitching. This is it. You release the breath you briefly held before turning away from the mirror to walk towards the door. Jeongyeon helps you with the train of your dress then holds the doorknob, waiting for your signal.

“Whenever you’re ready, Your Highness,” she whispers.

You nod and hold your head high. “Let’s go.”

Wonwoo is no stranger to wearing formal clothes such as black suits with either a bow tie or necktie. Although he’s more accustomed to wearing scrubs and his white coat ever since he started working, he still remembers how his mother used to scold him whenever he arrives at events with a disheveled or mismatched tie. All the while, his father just laughs and fixes it for him, without fail.

But this time, he promised to do things right out of respect to the woman of dignity that you are. Well, he’s of age to know how to do such simple tasks anyway so he really does not have any excuses.

He humors himself and dust the invisible dust on his shoulders.

It’s been a long while since you and Wonwoo have been engaged and yet his thoughts and heart are still all over the place. It’s nothing bad to worry about. In fact, he has grown fond of your company already and he won’t deny that the affectionate moments you have shared are more than enough to leave butterflies flying in his stomach.

He then checks the time on the watch his parents gifted him on his graduation. He better get going if he’s to meet you at the banquet hall. He doesn’t want to keep you waiting like the day you asked him if he really wants to marry you.

He wouldn’t be late at all because he does want to marry you.

There. He finally said it and tonight will officially seal that with his parents, the King and Queen, and his people as witnesses.

He gives himself a last look in the mirror and then takes his leave before a knock on the door is even heard.

It came as a surprise when you saw the color of Wonwoo’s necktie that is visibly similar to the color of your dress. It may sound unbelievable and a tad bit cringey, but your heart can’t help but flutter when it catches your attention.

Wonwoo was already standing at the entrance of the banquet hall with his hands behind his back, eyes down on what seems like his brand new shoes and heart and mind patiently waiting for you, when you appeared before him.

When he looks up and sees you at last, his big smile welcomes you. You can see his eyes brighten up when he sees the color of your dress and your nerves are a little bit relieved.

“I didn’t get the memo, but I’m glad we’re matching nonetheless,” he says when he takes your hand to wrap around his arm.

“Are you saying that this is a remarkable coincidence, Your Highness?” You teasingly reply as the two of you face the closed doors, awaiting to be opened.

“Hmm. I think it’s our mothers,” he deducts, making you laugh. “But I’d like to call it meant to be.”

Your ears heat up at his last statement and you have to bite your lip to avoid smiling too wide.

After a few seconds and static exchange from walkie talkies, a loud voice announces your attendance followed by opening the huge doors of the banquet hall. Inside, a number of guests not exceeding a hundred and fifty are standing from their tables, clapping as you and Wonwoo enter.

You feel like the two of you started everything right from the very beginning until now. Your only hope is that it lasts, even just for tonight.

Wonwoo’s family was nothing but all smiles when you met them. Brief yet sincere greetings and hugs were exchanged when your fiancé introduced you to them, the family that you’re soon-to-be part of.

Wonwoo’s hand remained on the small of your back as you moved around the hall to meet every guest. You only got separated when his parents had to take you to different groups of people to engage and socialize. But still, from time to time, you and Wonwoo would meet eyes.

The dance floor was opened after dinner was served. You couldn’t eat much as your nerves hindered you from doing so. It concerned Wonwoo, afraid you could be sick or not enjoying it. But you dismissed all his worries. Telling him you’re more than okay, just nervous. You finally convinced him when you held his hand.

A little while later, Wonwoo excused himself to go to the restroom. He squeezes your shoulder and mutters a quick, “I’ll be back.” You were left to watch the King and Queen’s turn to dance their number and you cheered along with everyone watching the sweet exchange.

So far, you are enjoying the night and as the party is nearing its end, you feel grand.

What could possibly go wrong, right?

The presence of an ex-lover.

Okay, that sounded spiteful, even for you. But seeing them standing from the distance and chatting had your heart dropping a little. You turn your eyes away and remind yourself that a minimal change of your expression can be noticed by the hundreds of people present at this party and you can’t let your jealousy be the trending news for tomorrow.

You swallow the lump on your throat and plaster a smile on your face. You can’t and won’t let this get to your head. There’s nothing bad about catching up. Who knows, they may have chosen to remain friends. Even though you really don’t know how things ended between them.

Your knuckles turn white from tightly gripping the napkin placed on your lap and your cheeks hurt from how fake you are smiling now.

But then you ask yourself, why are you restraining yourself from going there and introducing yourself? Introduce yourself to the girl he once considered marrying. Introduce yourself as the one he’s marrying now.

The jealous side of you is screaming for you to stand up but the lawyer side of you is telling you to stay composed and-

The lawyer in you doesn’t win tonight because before you know it, you have already stood up with feet taking you to where your fiancé is.

Wonwoo’s back was facing you when you see and hear her giggle as you near them. You sneak behind Wonwoo, almost making his soul jump out of his body, startled by you. But when he realizes that it’s you, his tensed shoulders visibly relax.

You smile and hold his hand, purposely ignoring the other girl. “Can we dance?”

WHAT?

Your head grows dumbfounded at your question. You can’t believe yourself.

“It’s an honor to meet you, Your Highness,” Wonwoo’s ex-girlfriend introduces herself with a curtsy before he could answer your question.

You just nod, showing no interest at all. You could feel Wonwoo growing tense again as he grips your hand tighter.

You don’t have any intentions of staying and holding a conversation with her so you return your eyes immediately back to Wonwoo and repeat your question. “Let’s dance?”

Wonwoo didn’t hesitate to give in to your wishes, pulling you to the dance floor without looking back.

He smiles at you and you smile at him too, the other girl long forgotten.

Later in the night when the music died down and the crowd has dispersed, you find yourself growing guilty by your harsh and curt actions towards Wonwoo’s ex-girlfriend earlier. It was so wrong of you and the need to apologize is imperative.

“I’m sorry about what happened earlier,” you say while looking down on the floor. You and Wonwoo just arrived in front of your room and you have to do this before the night completely ends. “It was childish of me and I… I’m really sorry.”

Silence.

You brows furrow when you don’t hear Wonwoo reply or mutter at least anything. You’re about to raise your head but Wonwoo’s warm hands beat you to it when he holds it gently and lands a soft kiss on your forehead.

“She’s married,” he finally says something and that something makes you look up. “But I guess you didn’t notice because you only had your eyes on me.”

You punch his chest when he laughs, definitely not appreciating his teasing tone. “I can’t believe you.”

He’s still laughing when you pull away from him. You roll your eyes before turning to your door, ready to go inside and save yourself from further embarrassment.

Wonwoo doesn’t fail to notice and immediately takes hold of your hand, tugging you back to his arms. You avoid his eyes when leans down and tries to get you to look back at him. He smiles and sneaks a kiss on your cheek.

“Stop it!” You warn and push him away, but it was futile. “Are you drunk?”

Wonwoo shakes his head. “No.”

“Then leave.”

“But I don’t want to,” he whines and sways your bodies from side to side.

Wonwoo is now full on hugging your whole body to his and when you return his hug, he hugs you tighter and closer. He cradles your head with one hand while the other soothingly rubs your back.

“We were young and wanted different things back then,” he suddenly tells. “We were committed to each other but it wasn’t meant to last and as time went by, we realized we were better off as acquaintances rather than as a couple.”

You sigh and snuggle closer to his chest as you listen to his story. “What about now?”

“Hmm?” He hums as he breathes in your scent.

“Would you still want different things, even with me?”

Wonwoo backs off a little with his arms still around yours when he heard your question. That got him thinking. But it didn’t take him long to give you a sure answer.

“I would still, yes.” He smiles and presses his forehead against yours. “But regardless, I’d still marry you.”

Your face blushes at his confession and you try to hide away by diving back to his chest.

Wonwoo chuckles and finds your chin to lift your head up. “I hope it’s not too late, but you really look beautiful, Princess.”

You don’t know what has gotten to you but once you lock eyes with Wonwoo, you hold the back of his neck and gently pull him down to meet your height. You push yourself up to give him a kiss on his lips. He freezes, but quickly melts right after and captures your lips to fully kiss you. It was only supposed to be a peck, but Wonwoo had other things in mind.

A whimper can be heard from you when he deepened the kiss and you can only wish for this night to never end.

“Can I stay with you tonight?”

Wonwoo didn’t have to answer. He just holds your hand and runs.

#wonwoo #seventeen #seventeen scenarios #wonwoo scenarios #wonwoo imagines #seventeen imagines #wonwoo scenario #seventeen scenario #wonwoo imagine #seventeen imagine #wonwoo fluff #seventeen fluff #fic: ifliys

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kissinginkitchens · 3 years ago

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You Bring Me Home—Chapter Eleven: Water Under the Bridge (Finale)

a/n: welcome back my loves <3 It’s so weird to think that this is the final chapter of YBMH and I’m definitely having a lot of feelings about it (denial, mostly). I want to say a huge thank you from the very bottom of my heart for sticking with this story and these characters that I love so much. I’ve had the most fun over the past few months talking to some of you and hearing your thoughts; I cherish it more than you’ll ever know. With all of that said, I’m going to miss this era so so much but I would still love to hear from you lovelies, so please feel free to drop by my inbox and let me know what you thought of this series!! Feedback, criticism, all of it is welcome :) Much love, Mel <3

Pairing: Hawai’i!Harry x Original Character (Halani <3)

Warnings: swearing, angst

Word Count: 6.7k

catch up on parts one, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine, and ten

January, 2018

A strand of hair tickles Harry’s nose and his eyes flutter open. The faint sound of car horns and traffic outside reminds him of his location when his memory fails. He gently slips out of the bed and tiptoes over to the window, careful not to wake the girl sleeping soundly next to him. A thick layer of snow blankets every building and surface in New York City as far as the eye can see, and the grey sky above signals another storm on its way.

I’m going to die of hypothermia, Alani shivers, nursing her steaming cup of tea as she walks away from the office window and takes a seat behind her desk. Even after living in the city for a year, she still hadn’t adjusted to the cold weather and feared that she never would. Her boyfriend had joked on numerous occasions that you can take the girl out of the island, but you can’t take the island out of the girl.

“Vanessa’s on line three,” her assistant calls from the doorway.

“Thanks,” Alani nods before bringing the phone to her ear. “So, what did you think?”

“It was brilliant,” the editor admits. “Insightful, witty. I think they’ll love it,”

Alani smiles and spins in her seat to face the window again. “St. James has been on my ass about this piece for weeks. I hope it’ll shut him up,”

“It will, trust me. Hey, I gotta go, but I sent the revision notes and we can discuss more later,”

“Great, thank you so much. See you at dinner,”

“Ta-ta.”

Alani reaches for a pen and scribbles a reminder onto a pink post-it note nearby.

Bloody five-star hotel, you’d think they could afford decent pens. Harry grumbles to himself, shaking the ballpoint to no avail.

“Where are you going?”

Harry freezes in his tracks and turns to the brunette stretching out her tired limbs. He has to clear his throat to keep from saying the wrong name.

“Just a quick walk,” he explains with a tight lipped smile. “Go back to bed.”

She flashes a wide grin and snuggles back into the covers, but he secretly hopes that she’s gone by the time he returns.

The snow crunches under Harry’s feet and he digs his hands deeper into the pockets of his coat. He had never been very fond of the cold, but he did have to admit that Central Park looked unbelievably beautiful in the winter. His phone buzzes inside his pocket and he digs it out to read the message.

Mitch: Me and Sarah are going to Bisous in ten. Meet us?

Harry: See you there.

********

“French is such a pretentious language,” Maleah scoffs, taking a bite of her pastry. “But I’ll be damned if I have to give up my chocolate croissants,”

Alani chuckles lightly and traces the restaurant’s logo of a red kiss printed on her napkin. Going to Bisous at least once a day had become a tradition during her best friend’s visits.

“I’ll have to smuggle a real one back for you and then you can tell me if this one’s the real deal,”

“When are you going, again?”

“Next month,”

Maleah wiggles her brows. “Oooh, Valentine’s Day? Are you taking Mason with you?”

“No,” Alani says casually. “It’s for work,”

“Well, who says you can’t mix business and pleasure?”

“Literally everyone.”

“Okay,” Maleah sighs, patting her full stomach. “Let’s go now before I get sleepy.”

The two friends make their way out of the busy restaurant and Alani’s shoulder brushes someone next to her.

“Sorry.” she apologizes, making brief eye contact with the other person before doing a double take.

Mitch purses his lips and turns his head back to the other girl at his arm while Maleah drags Alani out the door.

********

“I mean, what the hell was that? I could barely keep my drum kit together,” Sarah laughs gently, sipping her coffee.

“Cause of death: rocking too fucking hard,” Mitch shrugs. “There are worse ways to die,”

Harry stirs his black coffee with a spoon and watches the mini whirlpool grow. “Rob said you could feel it in the balcony, too,”

“I’m surprised you didn’t die,” Mitch pokes. “Mr. defective lungs,”

“Heyyy, I can’t help the asthma thing, alright?”

“Well it’s the last night,” Sarah chimes in. “Are we gonna try to beat the Kiwi record and go for four times in a row?”

Harry shrugs, a soft grin on his lips. “Dunno. Maybe if it feels right,”

“I say we cut out the middleman and just bulldoze MSG ourselves. What difference does it make if the fans tear the house down or if we do?” Mitch suggests.

“Oh yeah,” Harry nods. “I’m sure Irving would love that.”

“Some food for thought.”

The trio finish their breakfasts and excitedly continue their conversations about the impending show, but the entire time, Mitch is haunted by the knowledge of Alani’s presence in the city. He debates telling Harry, but is suddenly reminded of the intense aftermath of the pair’s falling out.

********

“Where’s Alani?”

“Don’t fuckin’ say that name to me ever again.”

Mitch’s brow furrowed. “What’s going on?”

And with a simple question, anger had subsided into grief. Mitch still didn’t know all of the details surrounding their split, but he had pieced together sufficient bits from Jeff and, in part, from the lyrics Harry penned in the following weeks. The slump had lasted through the fall and winter of that year, but as spring rolled around and the album’s release drew closer, Harry pulled himself together enough to promote and tour. It felt good to be on the road, and he found himself revitalized by the energy of those who came to support. Tour itself had been relatively intimate, as he had actively decided to play smaller venues than the sold out stadiums he was accustomed to, but the enthusiasm of the crowds hadn’t changed from his band days. As Harry occupied his attention with music, Hawaii grew smaller and smaller in the back of his mind. Eventually, it dwindled into a dull ache at the center of his chest, felt only on particularly long nights coaxed with a little bit of alcohol in his bloodstream. For now, he tried to focus on his last show at Madison Square Garden.

********

Alani’s stomach turns. Had she really seen Mitch or had it been a remarkable doppelgänger? She hoped it was the latter, knowing that if he really was in New York City, Harry wasn’t far behind. This was by no means the first time she had been reminded of her summer love turned sour, but it stung just as much every time. The first incident was last April when she turned on the T.V. only to find Harry performing one of his new songs on Saturday Night Live. It had resulted in the loss of her favorite mug as it shattered against the hardwood floor in her apartment. Since that day, Alani had seen his face on countless billboards in Times Square and habitually asked taxi drivers to change the radio station or turn it off entirely. After a while, she had gotten better at dealing with the sinking feeling whenever he was mentioned, it was easier to detach feelings for someone who lived on a screen. Running into Mitch, however, had blasted a hole straight through the fourth wall that Alani had erected, and she knew that there was absolutely no way she could cope with a similar encounter from Harry.

“Oh shit,” Maleah gasps softly, looking through the windshield at the hundreds of people lined up on the pavement outside of Madison Square Garden.

“What?” Alani asks, head still spinning.

Her best friend immediately turns to her with a nervous smile and shrugs. “Oh it’s nothing. Hey do I have something in my teeth?”

Alani glances out the window behind Maleah and her eyes bulge. “Woah, what’s happening there?”

“Oh it’s probably, like, Lady Gaga or something. Anyways, look at this random text I got the other day.”

But it wasn’t “Lady Gaga or something.” The marquee reads “Harry Styles—SOLD OUT” in bold lettering. Alani retches into her bag.

********

“Oh, for fucks saaake!” Harry shouts playfully, the sound of his obscenities echoing throughout the large venue.

Mitch and Adam chuckle beside him and continue setting up their equipment while Sarah offers a comedic “badum-tss” on her drum set.

“Okay then at that point, stage lights will come down and it’s ‘Meet Me in the Hallway’,” the technical director speaks into his earpiece.

Harry nods and watches the screen behind him roll through the animation that will play during the song.

“Alright, then it’s—”

“Wait,” Harry interjects over the mic. “Sorry, can we run it?”

“Run ‘Meet Me’?”

“Yeah,”

Mitch tenses listening to the conversation that filters through his own inner ear piece, but he continues fiddling with the strings of his guitar.

“Running ‘Meet Me’,” the director affirms. “Sarah, stand by.”

Harry’s eyes dart over to Mitch and he nods as a sign to begin. The guitarist clears his throat and strums the opening chords.

Meet me in the hallway

“M’gonna go wait in the hall…”

Meet me in the hallway

“Give you some space to think and then we’ll talk, yeah?”

I just left your bedroom

“I never wanted to hurt you.”

Give me some morphine

“I hope you got all the material you wanted.”

Is there any more to do?

“Please don’t go.”

Just let me know and I’ll be at the door, at the door

Hoping you'll come around

Just let me know I’ll be on the floor, on the floor

Maybe we’ll work it out

********

“Maybe I shouldn’t go,” Maleah offers. “I can catch a return flight tomorrow,”

Alani sits up in her bed and shakes her head. “No, Mi, it’s okay. I’ll be fine,”

“Are you sure?”

“Yeah. It’s probably just a stomach bug or something,”

Maleah gives her friend a tight squeeze and pulls away to read her face. “Let me know if you need anything, I’ll come right back,”

“Thank you,” Alani says, forcing a smile. “I’m so sorry to put a damper on your last day.”

“Nah, there’s nothing to worry about. Feel better soon, Nani.”

The door closes softly and Alani burrows deeper into the covers. She tries to bury the emotion back under a lock and key, but a gentle sob fights its way up her chest. It wasn’t supposed to be this way, she cries, but maybe it was. Just as the sun rises and sets, so had Harry entered and exited her life, and maybe that’s exactly how it was meant to be. After all, Alani had gotten exactly what she wanted, hadn’t she? So why does it still hurt?

The snow falls gently outside of her window, but the entire scene blurs into shades of white and grey behind her tears. It had snowed just like this on the day she moved to the city. Shortly after the article about Harry had been published by a small gossip site, Alani had contacted the publishers and threatened litigation if they didn’t take it down. Unsurprisingly, they had also been contacted by Columbia Records and thus, the piece was removed that same day. Despite the quick turnaround, Rolling Stone had caught wind of the storm brewing on social media and reached out to Alani a few days later. They had been impressed that the elusive Harry Styles granted her an interview, but they didn’t push the matter much further. Instead, they had offered her one piece of her choosing to prove herself. If the reviews were favorable, she would be given a regular contributor spot, unpaid of course. They would re-evaluate at the beginning of the new quarter and negotiate from there. When January of 2017 rolled around, Alani’s writing was making surprising waves in the Rolling Stone community, so she had been hired on as a junior writer and assistant to the Editor in Chief. The pay wasn’t great, but it was a leap in the right direction.

Despite everything that had changed in a year, a string of random letters on a building that Alani passed a million times had brought her emotions right back to the day she had tried so hard to forget. Her phone buzzes under the covers and she reaches out a hand to locate it. Her editor’s name appears and she answers it quickly.

“Hello?”

“Darling, hello! Where are you?”

“Oh my god,” Alani groans. “Vanessa I’m so sorry,”

“Is everything okay?”

Alani sits up and clears her throat. “I have food poisoning,”

“Christ, from where?”

“Bisous,”

Vanessa sighs. “Poor thing. Okay, no worries we’ll just reschedule,”

“I’m so sorry, I’ll make it up to you,”

“No need to be sorry, get some rest and we’ll catch up later!”

The call ends and Alani gawks at the time. 7:30 already? She slumps back under the covers and sifts through her social media, wincing when she sees several of her friends posting about the line outside of Madison Square Garden. No, Alani decides sternly when the sudden urge to go stirs in the pit of her stomach, absolutely no fucking way.

********

“10 minutes!”

Harry scans the crowd from the monitor backstage. He pinches his lower lip between his index finger and thumb as the nerves settle in.

“The house is packed,” Jeff comments with a hand on the singer’s shoulder. “And there’s still a crowd outside,”

“We did it?”

“You did it,”

So why does it still hurt?

“Thanks for everything,” Harry says, bringing his manager in for a hug. “Couldn’t have done it without you.”

Jeff pats Harry on the back. “All in a day’s work for the dream team.”

Before heading out, Harry stops one of the crew members and asks if any of the guests on his list have arrived yet. Names are read off, friends from different inner circles over the years, but there’s one name in particular that isn’t called. He offers a thumbs up and a forced grin before making his way to the stage.

It always surprises the technical crew at every venue that Harry has specific lighting requests for the house. Performers had their individual preferences, this wasn’t unusual, but no one made a bigger deal about being able to see the crowd like Harry did. He enjoyed being able to see each person and connect with them, especially when performing an album that was as personal as this one. But in every sea he searched, one face was always missing. Tonight’s audience, much to his disappointment, was no different.

The crowd cheers as “Sweet Creature” fades out and the lights on stage dim. More than half of the show has already gone by and they’ve reached the point that is always a little harder to get through. Harry takes a swig from his water bottle and clears his throat to fight the lump that forms. He breathes in deeply and “Meet Me in the Hallway” begins, but no matter how hard he tries to focus on the technical aspects of his performance, it’s nearly impossible not to get dragged back into the moment when the song was written.

“I should go back,”

“H, I don’t know if that’s such a good—”

“I have to go back.”

And so he had. After two hours of pacing the airport lounge, Harry had jumped into an Uber and sped back to the hotel. It had taken another agonizing twenty minutes to explain his situation to the front desk workers and retrieve his old room key, but it was no use. He was too late. The bed was still unmade, but there was no sign of Alani save for the faint scent of Baby Honey and a gold necklace tucked away between the sheets.

The flight back to the mainland had already departed by the time Harry stumbled through the hotel lobby, and there wouldn’t be another one for three more hours. In the meantime, he decided to get some fresh air and clear his mind, hoping all the while that he would find Alani at the edge of the beach waiting to run back into his arms. She never did, and he was left with all the words he wished he had said.

I walked the streets all day

Running with the thieves

‘Cause you left me in the hallway

Just take my pain away

Just let me know and I’ll be at the door, at the door

Hoping you'll come around

Just let me know I’ll be on the floor, on the floor

Maybe we’ll work it out

********

“Great show,” praises Rob Sheffield, author of one of Harry’s favorite books, Love is a Mix Tape. “Drummer’s incredible,”

Sarah beams and Harry flashes her a grin. “Thanks. It’s Sarah’s band, really. I’m just the frontman,”

“Well she kicked ass. All of you did, and I can tell by the way the floor was shaking that I’m not the only one who thought so.”

“Thank you so much, that means a lot.”

More guests filter in and congratulate Harry and the rest of the band, but while he sincerely appreciates all of the love, he can’t help the way his eyes flicker to the door every once in a while in the hope that someone else will straggle in. He slowly loses that hope when the room empties and the night drags on.

********

This isn’t ethical, Alani chastises herself, this is wrong on every level and you’re gonna pay. She runs her fingers over the Rolling Stone press badge in her hand and stares at the marquee towering over her. What the fuck are you doing?

“Excuse me!” Alani calls when she sees an employee slip through a side door. “Hi, I know I’m really late but I’m actually here with Rolling Stone,”

The blonde-haired woman blinks and scans over the badge with an unamused look on her face.

“Nice try,”

“No, wait,” Alani begs. “I have to get in there, please—”

“You and every other girl within a twenty-five mile radius.”

Alani takes a deep breath and re-groups. “You don’t understand. I really need to get back there, I’m working on an important piece,”

As the struggle continues, another woman in stiletto heels exits through the side door with a clipboard in tow.

“My name is Alani Hale, see? Please just—”

“Wait,” the woman with the clipboard intervenes. The name sounded strangely familiar, probably from the blacklist, in which case security would need to be notified. “What did you say your name was?”

Alani holds her badge out and swallows hard. “Alani Hale, junior writer for Rolling Stone.”

The woman checks through the blacklist but the name isn’t registered. She does a cursory glance over the V.I.P section and her finger lands on a note that reads “Mahealani ‘Alani’ Hale—Code Carolina: escort backstage and inform Mr. Styles immediately.”

“Follow me, please,”

Alani trails behind, doing her best to keep up with the long strides of the woman with the clipboard.

“Marta to security, I have a Code Carolina,” she murmurs into her ear piece. “Repeat, I have a Code Carolina.”

Alani’s heart races as they zig-zag through the arena. Did Harry know that she was coming? Had Mitch told him that they saw each other at Bisous? The answer was no, Mitch hadn’t told and Harry didn’t know. He had only hoped. Unbeknownst to Alani, her name was printed on the Madison Square Garden list and on every list of every show in all the countries scheduled. Through Paris and all through Rome, Harry had looked for her face in the crowd and he dreamed that one day his efforts wouldn’t be in vain.

“Wait here,” Marta instructs, leading Alani to a back room with mirrors, a couple of couches, and a clothing rack. “Someone will be with you shortly.”

Before she can ask any questions, Marta is gone and the sound of her heels echo down the hall. Alani takes a deep breath and her lungs are immediately filled with the familiar scent of vanilla. Her eyes carefully rake over the scene and land on a familiar white shirt hanging on the rack and the words “Enjoy Health, Eat Your Honey.”

“Thief,”

“I meant to return it.”

Alani spins on her heel and Harry stands with his fists shoved deep inside the pockets of his flared pants, eyes cast down at the floor. She tugs on the sleeves of her coat and offers a shy smile.

“It’s okay, looked better on you anyway.”

A brief silence follows and they size each other up like it’s a gunfight, each waiting to see who will draw first. His hair is longer and curlier, Alani notices, chest and shoulders broader, too. But there’s a familiarity in his creased brow and in the heart shaped curve of his cupid’s bow. Harry does his own inventory; dark, almond shaped eyes, check. Round face, cinnamon skin, check and check. Her long, wavy locks are now shoulder length, but he’d recognize the scent of Baby Honey anywhere. The two are absorbed in their own silent assessments for a moment longer, but Alani quickly gets the urge to flee after she counts too many similarities between this Harry and the one that left her with a broken heart.

“I should go,” she croaks, taking a step back. “I shouldn’t have come—”

“Why did you?” Harry asks earnestly.

Alani tugs at a loose thread on her sleeve before crossing her arms. “Saw your name outside and got curious. For a while there, I started to think that maybe I imagined you,”

Harry doesn’t know what to do with the knowledge that he had haunted her as much as she had plagued him. He had spent so long believing that he meant nothing to her, but nevertheless, a part of him left room for her return.

“You did, this is a hologram projection,”

Alani smiles and her shoulders relax at his humor. It really was him.

“Did you enjoy—”

“I didn’t see the show—” they speak at the same time, eager words overlapping.

“Oh,” Harry laughs softly. “You didn’t miss much,”

Alani shakes her head and takes a single step forward. “No, that’s not true. I’m sure it was amazing,”

Harry offers a coy grin, the shadow of a dimple on his left cheek. One hand emerges from his pocket and his knuckle brushes against the tip of his nose. Alani catches sight of the silver rose on his finger and she still remembers how it feels under the pad of her thumb.

“Are you hungry?” he asks softly, pulling her from her reverie.

“What?”

“Have dinner with me?”

Alani blinks, her throat suddenly dry. “Oh. Well I don’t know, I don’t wanna interrupt—”

“Never an interruption,” Harry assures her.

She nods and he takes a step back.

“M’gonna go change,” he explains. “I’ll just be a minute.”

“What, you don’t wear custom Marc Jacobs suits to dinner?” She teases.

He grins, amused, and continues backing away towards the door before correcting her. “It’s Gucci.”

Alani rolls her eyes and he disappears into the hallway.

When Harry reemerges in a beanie, puffy coat, and light wash denim jeans, he leads them through a series of tunnels and exits.

“Where are we going?” Alani asks, bracing herself for the snow outside.

“It’s a surprise.” he offers and she doesn’t fight him on it.

********

“We’re not eating here?”

A soft smile falls on Harry’s lips. He hadn’t realized just how much he missed her incessant questioning.

“No,” he replies, opening the passenger door with one hand and passing her the bag that contains their dinner. “Too crowded,”

“Oh,”

It made sense that Harry would want to keep a low profile and avoid any possible paparazzi sightings of the two of them, but it still felt strange to worry about such things after they had lived so carefree in Hawai’i. But that was then, and this was now, things had inevitably changed.

“D’you wanna play some music?” Harry asks, settling behind the wheel. The parallels between this moment and their first excursion together make her chest tighten.

“How about,” Alani starts. “Your album? Since I didn’t get to hear it live,”

Harry’s breathing hitches. “Well, I dunno—”

“Please?”

He meets her pleading eyes momentarily and, against his better judgment, agrees.

“What’s it called?” she questions.

“It’s just my name,”

“Self-titled, very classy. I like it,”

“I thought about calling it Sign of the Times,” Harry reveals. “But it’s already been done before,”

Alani hums. “Prince,”

“Yeah,” he nods. “But then I also thought about going with ‘Pink,’ because, you know, when in doubt—”

“Go with the pink one,” they say in unison and Alani smiles softly. How had he remembered that?

“And it’s the only true rock ‘n roll color,” she continues.

Harry beams. “Exactly. But then Jeff suggested that we just go with the name. Simple, but effective,”

“Okay, so now that we’ve got the background,” Alani pokes. “And you’ve sufficiently distracted me, can I listen now?”

He swallows and checks the GPS, still twenty-five minutes to go.

“How about we hold off,” he suggests. “Just for now so we can listen to the full thing and really soak it in?”

Alani backs off. “Alright, deal.”

She presses shuffle on the playlist of her frequently played songs for the month and immediately regrets doing so. Clearing her throat, she goes to press skip but Harry stops her.

“S’a good one.” he says gently, so Alani lets Adele fill the awkward space.

If you’re gonna let me down

Let me down gently don’t pretend

That you don’t want me

Our love ain’t water under the bridge

********

Harry opens the passenger door and Alani steps out, her eyes squinting to make out any recognizable landmarks in their surroundings. They remain a comfortable two feet apart and make their way to the entrance of what appears to be some sort of greenhouse. Alani is filled with more confusion, but she doesn’t ask further questions until they reach the white double doors.

“What?” Harry questions. “Never been to the New York Botanical Garden?”

Alani’s eyes widen. “The—wait, you—we’re?”

“After you,” he chuckles lightly, opening the doors.

“Are we even allowed? I mean is it open?”

“I pulled some strings,”

She enters cautiously, immediately met with an archway of blush colored flowers and string lights that takes her breath away. A long, narrow pond in the center reflects the image back and creates a kaleidoscope of pink, green, and golden hues.

“How did you,” Alani begins, at a complete loss for words. “Who are you?”

Harry nods in the direction of an adjacent hallway. “There’s a ballroom set up for a wedding tomorrow night, but Jim said we could crash as long as we clean up after ourselves,”

“Jim?”

“The director.”

“Of course.”

Sure enough, round tables with cream colored tablecloth and elaborate floral centerpieces are arranged around the room. A delicate, yet undoubtedly expensive, chandelier twinkles in the center of the room and casts such a warm glow that Alani momentarily forgets about the snow outside.

“Dig in,” Harry instructs, setting the pasta on the table in front of them.

Alani sits and gently sheds her winter coat as he does the same. Underneath his jacket, Harry wears a yellow shirt that catches her eye with the words “treat people with kindness” printed in black lettering. She freezes when she spots a gold chain with a sun and moon pendant nestled comfortably between above the words.

“How is everyone?” Alani questions politely to shift her attention. “Mitch, Tom, Jeff,”

“They’re good, yeah,” he nods. “How’re Freddie and your family?”

“They’re fine, and he’s living his blissful little life,”

“Good for him. Miss his cuddles,”

And yours, Harry thinks, but he pulls back. Alani offers a shy laugh and thinks about the elephant in the room yet to be addressed: the break-up. It’s worth discussing, but she sure as hell isn’t going to be the one to bring it up.

“And how’ve you been?” Harry asks when the silence stretches out for too long.

Alani chews and ponders the question. “Good. Been working a lot,”

“Where at?”

“Rolling Stone,”

“Really?” he beams. “That’s incredible, congratulations,”

“Thank you,” she replies graciously.

Harry’s chin rests in his palm and he twirls a noodle around his fork. “So you live here?”

“Yeah, in the Village,”

“Wow. Greenwich Village, a real city-slicker now. Traded Stevie in for the Holland Tunnel?”

A bittersweet smile spreads across Alani’s lips at the memory of her beloved Bronco. “Sadly, yes. And you?”

“Malibu,” Harry divulges. “I hate the cold.”

“It’s not so bad. You can always cuddle up with the giant rats,” she jokes, which makes his nose scrunch.

“I’m just gonna pretend you didn’t say that,”

“Speaking of pretend,” Alani wiggles her brows. “You were in a movie after all,”

“I was,”

“I didn’t watch it, sorry,”

Harry feigns offense and Alani quickly back pedals. “I don’t like war movies!”

“And you hated my guts.” he teases, though it pains him that there might be some truth to his words.

Alani shakes her head and fights the urge to reach across the table for his hand. “No, not really. It was kind of the opposite, actually.”

Harry’s eye wanders to the outside of Alani’s wrist and a faint smile creeps across his face when he spots the black outline of a crescent moon. He wonders if there are any new inked designs that he isn’t aware of. Despite all the time that has elapsed, there is a familiarity in her presence that he hadn’t felt even in the comforts of his California residence. It was like kicking off your shoes in the doorway after a long trip. It was like coming home.

They finish their meal and continue their light-hearted banter into the night. Harry tells his favorite stories from tour and Alani wishes more than anything that she could have been there. She details the events of her own busy life in New York and the highlights of working for Rolling Stone, one of which being the time that she got to meet Stevie Nicks in the flesh.

“Did you tell her about your car?” Harry presses enthusiastically.

“No way,” Alani chuckles, draining the last of her drink. “I wasn’t gonna embarrass myself in front of the Supreme,”

“I think she would’ve found it flattering,”

“Naming your child after someone is flattering, not a car,”

Harry shrugs. “I think it’s cute,”

“Yeah well,” Alani sighs. “You’re not like most people,”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

She mulls it over, studying the familiar sea glass irises that she never thought she’d see again. What had Alani meant by that statement? Truthfully, she didn’t know if she could put it into words, nor had she meant to say them in the first place. But something about Harry always made her feel brave, like she could speak her mind uncensored and he would understand without even trying.

“I just meant that you’re, you know,” she starts. “Not judgemental. Like, I could tell you that I think I’m part alien and you’d probably try to help me find my home planet,”

Harry laughs and leans forward with his elbows on the table, an unspoken challenge for Alani to continue her thoughts.

“You make people feel seen and heard,” she says finally with a wistful look in her eye. “I mean, why do you think all those people lined up to see you tonight?”

The last part of her statement is a deflection from what she really wants to say, which is that Harry makes her feel seen and heard. Despite all the time and space between them, it was still true and it terrified her. There was only so much bravery that Harry’s presence could evoke. The mood shifts suddenly when Alani’s phone buzzes and the name “Mason” with a pink heart emoji lights up the screen next to her glass of water. Harry hadn’t meant to look and he deeply regrets that he did.

“You have a boyfriend,” he comments dejectedly, and though he hadn’t meant it to be accusatory, all words carry the sting of judgment when falling on guilty ears.

“Oh, and I’m sure you’ve stayed celibate this entire time,” Alani bites back.

Harry’s brow furrows. “I wasn’t—I didn’t mean—”

“I’m sorry, this was a mistake,” she apologizes, standing with her coat.

“Wait,” he jumps up. “What just happened?”

“I have to go—”

“Just stop for a minute, please,”

Alani stops in her tracks and turns back to face Harry slowly. His jaw is tight and the crease between his eyebrows is deeper than she remembers.

“I’m sorry,” she begins carefully. “Thank you for tonight, but I really shouldn’t be here—”

Harry’s eyes clamp shut and he runs a frustrated hand through his messy curls.

“Can you stop acting like you’re doing me a favor by leaving and just talk to me?”

“What do you want me to say?” Alani pushes back. “‘I’m sorry that I saw your name in flashing lights and I got caught trying to spy on you’?”

“Alani—”

“‘I’m sorry that I tried to move on’?”

“Stop apologizing—”

“I’m sorry that I fell in love and fucked it all up because I was afraid and I’m sorry that I betrayed the one person who meant everything to me,”

Silence falls between them and the only sound is the sniffling of Alani’s nose as she tries, and fails, to hold back the emotions that pour over.

“That’s why I went,” she continues, voice wavering. “Because I’m selfish and I couldn’t stay away. Every single day, I’m reminded of how royally I screwed everything up and it tears me apart, so I went to try to make things right and take some of that pain away. Even though I hurt you and there’s nothing I can ever do to change that,”

Harry swallows hard and his eyes sting, but Alani speaks up again before he can respond.

“So please,” she begs. “Please, just let me finally do something right by you and let me go,”

He takes a cautious step forward and shakes his head. “I don’t want to,”

They both hold their breaths, anticipating the other person’s next draw.

“And maybe that makes me selfish too,” Harry adds. “‘Cause I went back that day, back to the hotel,”

Alani blinks. “You did?”

“Yes,” he nods. “Because I wasn’t mad that you published the article, I was scared that it was the only reason you were with me—”

“Harry—”

“But then I realized that I didn’t care,” he laughs dryly. “Because I still loved you, and I figured that having you— having just a little bit of your heart and your attention—was worth it, even if you didn’t really love me back,”

He takes another step forward and the toes of their shoes nearly touch. “And maybe I’m being selfish now by asking you to stay, but you’re not the only one trying to get rid of the pain,”

Alani takes a shallow breath and studies the eagerness in his eyes. The sight makes her chest pound.

“I’m sorry that I ever made you doubt,” she whispers. “But I meant every word I said, you were everything to me. You were the sun that my life revolved around and I was terrified of losing you because the truth is that I hate the cold, too,”

Harry gently reaches a hand up to her cheek and Alani leans into the warmth of his touch.

“Can I show you something?”

You and your goddamn surprises. “Yes.”

He leads them down several winding hallways before flicking a light on in the gallery. Alani’s heart stops when she sees it.

“Not quite as impressive as the real thing,” Harry offers. “But Ms. O’Keeffe did a pretty damn good job,”

An original Georgia O’Keeffe painting of a waterfall, their waterfall, the one that Alani had mentioned all that time ago, is displayed proudly on the wall before them. A replica had hung above the bed they shared on many nights and all at once a faint memory resurfaces.

“Where did you say the original was?”

“New York Botanical Garden,”

“M’gonna take you one day,”

“Promise?”

“Promise.”

Alani takes a step closer to the artwork and examines the details of the oil on canvas. A few steps behind, Harry is only concerned with her reaction and pays little attention to the piece of art on display. As far as he was concerned, Alani was the only one worth admiring.

“Do you remember what you told me when I asked why you went to the falls to write?” Alani asks.

Of course Harry had, but he remains silent to let her continue.

“You said that you liked going there,” she adds, deliberate. “Because it made you forget about every bad thing that ever happened to you, because none of it was real in comparison to the feeling of standing in front of that waterfall,”

Harry nods gently, but he still doesn’t speak.

“Do you know what that feeling is called?”

“No,”

“It’s called home,” Alani says softly, turning to face him. “It’s what I felt, what I feel, when I’m with you,”

His breath hitches and he stands frozen as she carefully walks toward him.

“And while we’re making wishes come true,” she smiles delicately. “I never told you what I wished for the day we saw that rainbow,”

“What did you wish for?” Harry searches.

Alani’s eyes fall to his parted lips. “That you would kiss me.”

His mouth curls at the edges and he releases a long breath. “Think maybe I can deliver on that one, too.”

Harry leans in, ever so slightly, and Alani closes the gap. They had been standing mere inches apart, but the meeting of their lips bridges an entire chasm. Over and over again, like waves against the shore, their mouths collide desperately as they pull each other closer with no intentions of ever letting go.

********

February 14, 2018

“Comment est le temps?”

Alani peers up at Harry and shields her eyes from the sun behind his back. “What does that mean?”

He grins softly and kisses the top of her head before taking a seat on the balcony next to her.

“Means ‘how’s the weather?’,”

“Oh,” she leans over, lips puckered for a kiss. “Full of perfectly Parisian sunshine,”

“Try sayin’ that ten times fast,”

Alani swipes his pink, heart shaped sunglasses and slips them onto the bridge of her nose with a contented sigh. Ahead, the Eiffel tower stands proudly in the distance and the lenses of her glasses tint the entire scene in a picturesque rosy glow.

“La Ville de L’amour,” she hums. “Did I say that right?”

“Oui,”

“Hey, you know what I saw on the room service menu?”

Harry shakes his head. “No, what?”

“Piña coladas,” Alani wiggles her brows. “Think they deliver at midnight?”

He chuckles lightly and his hand takes purchase on her knee. “They better,”

“Never had a Parisian piña colada. Sounds romantic, though.”

“Sure does, sweets.”

Alani stands and reaches for Harry’s hand. He accepts and rises to his feet, pulling her close. Below, the sounds of the city serenade them as they gently sway in the chilly breeze. When Harry feels Alani shiver, he hugs her to his chest and rests his chin comfortably on the top of her head. She feels his steady heartbeat against her cheek and smiles softly, fingertips smoothing up and down his back.

“Are you ready for Valentine’s Day surprise number one?” he asks, pulling away slightly to meet her eyes.

She narrows her eyes. “Where are we going?”

Harry pulls back with a mischievous smile, hands still attached to hers, and leads them back inside.

“Wouldn’t you like to know.”

Alani giggles but she doesn’t push. Instead, she happily follows him out of their room, down the hall, and into the bustling streets of Paris.

We don’t know where we’re going

But we know where we belong

And oh we started

Two hearts in one home

It’s hard when we argue

We’re both stubborn

I know, but oh

Sweet creature, sweet creature

Wherever I go, you bring me home

Sweet creature, sweet creature

When I run out of road

You bring me home

#harry styles #harry styles imagine #harry styles fanfiction #harry styles fanfic #harry styles fic #harry styles writing #ybmh #so!!!! that's all folks <3

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s-creations · 3 years ago

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Return the Flames - Chapter 12

All at Dead Bird Studios knew of Amos' (The Conductor's) ability. How the owl could suddenly erupt into flames if angered enough. When the studio first opened, Dominic (DJ Grooves) was told that Amos had his ability under control. Nothing to worry about. No possible loss of anything from an open flame.

A few years later however, and that control seems to have lessened to a dangerous degree.

It should have just been a simple, week long drive to fix the problem. It really should have been.

Dominic should have asked a lot more questions and should have been prepared for a twist ending.

_________________

Fandom: A Hat in Time Rating: General Audience Relationships/Pairings: The ConductorXDJ Grooves Warnings: Eventual depictions of violence, slow burn relationship, named characters, attempt of an accent, being hunted down, a race against time (sort of).

Author's Note: I finished Student Teaching, passed my Content Test, and I have a new job lined up for the school year! I’m getting back into writing, but we’ll see how consistent I am with my stories. XD

The morning after was surprisingly quiet with knowing what was waiting for them. Dominic and Amos waking to find themselves tangled up among each other. The fire from the night before was fully dead. Both quiet as they packed up their meager belongings and headed out. While it was quiet, it wasn’t uncomfortable. A quiet hope of believing this would all be over soon.

By late afternoon, the duo had finally reached the base of the mountain. A single hut was waiting for them, small and a deep blue scrap of fabric swaying in the entrance. A system of two carts resting on thick vines that disappeared into the mist covering the peak. It was calm, leaving Dominic to wonder how worried they needed to be.

“Are you also expecting the worst?” Dominic whispered to Amos, whose feathers were ruffled.

“In the shape o’ C.A.W.” the owl responded, “Let’s not stick around any more than we need ta.”

Without a glance, Amos made his way towards the carts. Only to curse when he was unable to move it forward. It was a simple crank system that moved the tram forward, one that, even when working together, wouldn’t move.

“Alright...so… What’s the next plan.” Dominic panted.

“...Think we could fly?” Amos teased.

“Um, excuse me sirs?”

Both jumped at the new voice that sounded from behind. Another shock came at the large Nomad they found, bigger than the ones they’d met in the village proper. Draped in clothes of deep blues and purples. The growing panic broke when a small Nomad child wavered happily at the birds from behind the larger companion. It was an intense shift in size between the two.

The smaller Nomad dashed forward, waving their way between the two of them. “Are you the two that our Elder sent a message about?”

“I will assume so. Unless there’s another traveling duo we were unaware of nearby as well,” Dominic laughed, “I’m Dominic, and this is Amos.”

“I’m Bakle! And this is Papa! We’re supposed to take you to the mountain’s peak. That’s where the temple is.”

“I’m assuming yer Papa has ta be the one ta get the thin’ goin’?” Amos asked, tensing slightly as the mentioned Nomad stepped forward.

“Uh huh! I was also told that we need to move quickly.”

“Aye. The sooner we’re done with this, the better… I hope so anyway.”

“Then we need to get going.” Bakle instantly dashed forward. Entering the card and eagerly waiting for the others to follow. Papa was on next, taking his place next to the crank.

Dominic frowned as, when he placed one foot into the cart, he realized Amos wasn’t following. He turned back around to find the owl’s attention focused on the mist hidden peak. It was clear the other director was nervous. Dominic understood. He wasn’t sure how this all was going to end. It felt as if they had escaped death and disaster numerous times. And to be so close to the end...whatever that end may be.

Amos was broken from his thoughts feeling something slip into his hand. Looking down to find Dominic had taken it.

“Come on,” the penguin said softly, “We’ll be okay.”

There was little resistance as Amos was pulled towards the cart. The small door was closed behind them and they were off. Papa turned the large crank easily to move them forward.

The ground around them fell away. A new worry arrived in Amos’ mind as they were swallowed up by the mist. “This contraption is sturdy, right?”

Bakle nodded. “We may not use these very often. But they are well maintained. We won’t fall.”

“That’s...only slightly reassurin’...”

“Don’t worry! Only a few more minutes and we’ll be-”

Whatever reassuring words Bakle was going to offer was cut off. A familiar dart wheezing past all and embedding itself in the wooden ceiling. Just barely missing Papa as well. Dominic, who’d recovered from shock the quickest, leaned over the side. The second cart was filled with C.A.W. agents. Five or six moving the wheel to push them forward while the rest were refilling their dart guns.

“Peck necks!” Amos called out, growling darkly. He yelped as he was pulled back. Another round of darts going past and barely missing him. The feeling of panic growing when deep horns sounded, echoing over the mountain and growing stronger as more joined the first.

Dominic turned towards the Nomads. “What is that?”

“Our warning system,” the child answered, “The other carts must have been stolen as well.”

“It’s a race ta the top then.” Amos muttered weakly.

“We’ll be trapped…” The penguin frowned, standing next to the owl.

Amos didn’t respond. His attention was focused on the thick vines that were acting as the cable. Eys traveling down to where the ground laid beneath the veil of mist. “How high are we?”

“Oh, um, a few feet? I’m not really sure. But we are high.” Bakle offered.

“I see those gears turning Amos,” Dominic frowned, “What are you thinking.”

“Destroyin’ their means o’ transportation. I’ll need ta cut the cable.”

“Amos, that’s suicide, you’ll fall as well!”

“I’ve survived worse. Besides, I was able ta walk away from that car crash before.”

“Barely! Amos-”

The owl reached over, taking Dominic's hands into his own. Effectively cutting the other off. “Just listen. It may not be much, but I’ll be able ta cut their numbers down. I have the best chance at survivin’ this.”

“Amos-”

“Ya need ta barricade yourself in the peckin’ temple as best ya can when ya get up there.”

“How will you get in?”

“There’s an opening at the very top of the temple. You can drop down to enter.” Bakle offered as a solution.

“And I just need you to focus on keeping yourself safe. I’ll meet up with you all back in the temple. Alright?”

Dominic frowned. His hands shaking as he squeezed Amos’. “I...really hate this idea sweetheart.”

The owl’s face softened, giving a weak smile. “I know… But do ya trust me?”

“Of course I do.” Dominic’s mind seemed to freeze when Amos’ beak gently pressed against his own. Heart beating furiously as the seconds ticked by.

Holy peck. Amos was kissing him!

As his brain finally caught up, Amos had pulled away. Climbing out of the cart and onto the roof.

“Amos, you absolute peck neck! You did not just kiss me before jumping to your possible death!” Dominic shouted, leaning out of the cart again to glare at the other director.

The owl smirked. “I thought ya believed in me?”

“That does not make you less of a jerk!”

“Noted… I’ll see ya up there Dominic.”

“...You’d better Amos…”

Nothing was left to be said. Taking a deep breath, Amos didn’t allow another second of thought as he jumped. It was a relief grabbing onto the other sturdy vine. A strange comfort in knowing the first step in his plan worked. He didn’t look back, knowing if he did so it would cause him to freeze in fear. Amos concentrated on his free hand. Feeling no pain as flames erupted from it, using it to cut through the vine easily. A sickening sensation filling his stomach as gravity fully kicked in.

He could hear the caws and screams coming from the agents as they fell as well. All probably wondering how they were going to get out of this alive.

But Amos didn’t care about them. Their cries seem drowned out by the rushing winds. His attention on Dominic, who was leaning over the edge of the cart as he watched, helpless, as Amos fell. Face full of fear. The owl wished he could find his voice. To reassure that everything was going to be fine. But too soon his vision was obstructed by the mist. Just as he began to wonder how long this was going to take, Amos collided with something solid. There was a sickening ‘crack!’ before he fully hit the ground and the world turned black.

When Amos came to, his body was screaming in pain. It hurt to breathe and he was sure his body was trying to put itself back together. But he was alive. Which was the entire point of his idiotic plan, so good to know it wasn’t all for nothing. The sky had begun to turn a dark blue with the horizon being painted numerous pastel colors. It had taken almost to nightfall to finally recover from the stunt. Or at least recover enough that he could move.

Peck, was Dominic alright?

Letting out a grunt as he slowly sat up, Amos gave himself another moment as he looked around. He was thankfully close to the mountain’s peak. Even able to see part of the mountain that had been carved away. Ignoring the copper smell that lingered in the air, knowing what laid behind him, Amos limped his way forward. He’d done what he needed to do. Now he just need to see how this all was going to end.

________________________

Dominic was unsure what staring into the mist below would do for him. It certainly wasn’t bringing Amos back. But the penguin seemed unable to turn away. Mind stuck on watching Amos disappear into the white void below them.

“Um, sir? What do we do now?” Bakle’s voice through.

The penguin took a deep breath, setting his face in determination as he faced the Nomads. “How many entrances are there?”

“Four doorways and the ceiling that I mentioned to the Child.”

“Okay. Hopefully we’ll get to the temple before any C.A.W. agents arrive. We’ll barricade the doorways and...wait. I suppose. I just...Amos did have to pull a stunt like that.”

“I believe in the Child.”

Dominic sighed weakly. “I do as well… But that doesn’t stop me from worrying.”

He stumbled slightly as the cart bumped against the mountainside. All clamoring out and rushing towards the doors surrounding the temple. Papa immediately rushed over to the doorway to the right. Closing them and beginning to pile boulders to keep them from opening again. Bakle grabbed Dominic’s hand and directed him towards the doors directly across from them. Passing by a pillared altar with a deep purple feather that seemed to have stars dancing on it.

If they all weren’t in mortal peril, Dominic would have marveled at it.

They reached the double doors and closed them quickly. Dominic put as thick of a layer of ice he could make. “Hopefully that will be enough. Let’s get the other one before-”

“WHERE IS THAT PHOENIX.”

“C.A.W. can get in.” Dominic groaned weakly.

The familiar leading crow stood in the final doorway. A large crowd of agents standing behind them. No longer looking together and smugly in control. Feathers were ruffled, hat off kilter as eyes filled with anger as they flicked around the chamber. Rage grew when he didn’t find his target.

“Penguin, where is the Phoenix.”

“Not here. Obviously,” Dominic glared back, “Your agents made the trip for nothing.”

“Do not play dumb with us! We did not come all this way here to result in nothing. Tell us where it is!”

“Are you dumb or just playing the part well? Where in this place do you think we could even hide Amos?”

That gave the agent pause. Eyes once again traveling the room, his shoulders dropping slightly. “Well-”

There was a cry of surprise when a large boulder landed in front of them. All scrambling back as more landed and pushed them back out the doorway. Papa clearly took advantage of the lull in action to go on the offensive. The last way being blocked by a large pile of boulders. Dominic re-enforcing it with another layer of ice. The three let out a deep breath as they finally relaxed.

“Your blockade means nothing!” The C.A.W. agent cried out, “Do you really think this will stop us! Creature or not, once we get back in there you will all pay!”

Bakle rushed over to Papa, hiding behind the larger form. “I don’t like the screaming bird.”

“I don’t either.” The penguin agreed. Eyes glaring from the blocked doors to the ceiling. A circular hole had been carved there. Showing the sky above, the sun barely starting to dip below the horizon. Stars starting to barely be seen over the darkened colors.

“Amos...where are you?”

#A Hat In Time #discotrain #the conductor #dj grooves #ahit conductor #ahit dj grooves #s-creations #fanfiction #Multi-Chapter

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songtoyou · 4 years ago

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Chapter 12: Switch - Part One

Tolerate It

Paring: Modern!Tommy Shelby x Original Female Character

Story Rating: R (No minors should read this fic).

Word Count: 3,791

Warnings: Swearing

Story Description: Tommy Shelby is the owner and CEO of Shelby Company Limited. Starting out as a Bookmaker, Tommy had big ideas to expand his riches. In the past ten years, the company has grown rapidly to expand its business ventures from bars to producing alcohol, manufacturing motor vehicle parts, and exporting. One of the richest men in Great Britain, Tommy Shelby, has it all. Unfortunately, the death of his wife, Grace, left the multi-millionaire mogul alone and depressed. He needed someone to fulfill his needs and deepest darkest desires.

Chapter Summary: Easter has arrived. Tommy is spending it with his family, while Rose is forced to spend time with her ex. We learn that Tommy does not always want to be in control.

A/N: This chapter will have two parts.

I do not permit my work to be posted on any other site without my permission.

Tag list: @owenniasstars

There was a part of Tommy that wished he did not have to be in control all of the time. It was understandable that he be the one in charge of his business as he had no other person to rely on to step up to the plate. Michael was still too young. Also, Tommy had been developing doubts and distrust towards his cousin. It didn’t help that Michael would schedule secret meetings with potential business partners and act as if he was doing it to help Tommy and the company. Tommy used to rely on and confide in his Aunt Polly. Yet, she began to distance herself more and more from the company, especially since getting remarried to Aberama Gold, a fellow business associate to Tommy. John and Arthur had their business deals to worry about, and Ada spent most of her time in the States.

He wished Grace was still alive. She was Tommy’s number one supporter. He shared almost everything with Grace (the legal side) and truly valued her advice and opinions. When Tommy was with Grace, he was able just to be himself. He was allowed to be calm and not have to overwork his mind. He didn’t have to be in control.

It was only with Grace that Tommy allowed another person to have total control over him in the bedroom. Both he and Grace shared characteristics of a dominant and submissive. They often switched roles, with Tommy as the dominant and Grace as the submissive, and vice versa. He loved it when Grace used to dominate him. No one would have suspected the sweet-natured blonde woman had an alpha personality behind closed doors, who was and controlling and overtly sexual.

With Grace gone, Tommy never allowed himself to be vulnerable in front of anyone. Lizzie tried to get Tommy to open that side of him up, but he denied her. He couldn’t do it. A part of Tommy felt as if it would be a betrayal to Grace. Both Ada and Polly constantly told Tommy that it was okay for him to move on from Grace.

“She gave you, on her deathbed, the permission to move on, Thomas. Respect your deceased wife’s wishes,” Aunt Polly would tell him.

“Find someone to have a family with, Tommy. Charlie deserves to have a mother figure in his life and possible siblings if it were to happen. Let yourself be happy,” were Ada’s words of encouragement.

No doubt Tommy would hear those exact words at his sister’s house this Sunday afternoon to celebrate Easter with the entire Shelby clan. Boy, it was going to be a long day. Charlie ended up spending the night at Ada’s with his cousins. Tommy was glad for that as indeed his sister would provide his son with an Easter basket. Tommy was not one for decorative or holiday pleasantries. That was all Grace. When Grace passed, Ada, Polly, or Esme would be the ones to step in and make sure Charlie celebrated his birthday with a party or invite him over for holiday festivities. Guilt would riddle Tommy at that notion that he could not provide his only child with a happy environment. Yes, Tommy loved Charlie dearly. However, Tommy could not deny that he lacked in other emotional departments. He was not one for sentiments or terms of endearment.

Another subject Tommy was not keen to have brought up was his “relationship” with Rose Turner. Unfortunately, he knew better than to expect his family members to rile him up about her and ask questions. None of them knew how Tommy met Rose. It was the same with Lizzie. While both Arthur and John were not faithful to their wives, neither were allowed to be members of Excelsior Club. He had mentioned Arthur and John to Tatiana to inquire if they could become members. Tatiana stated that they were both a liability. “Your brothers are too reckless and don’t fit the standards of our usual clientele. They are, how do I put this nicely? They are too ‘rough around the edges,’ so to speak,” Tatiana said dismissively when Tommy first started going to the Club.

It didn’t matter to Tommy either way; his brothers still managed to do fine all on their own. Besides, Arthur and John were not the faces of Shelby Company Limited; Tommy was and had an image to protect. If Tommy went down in disgrace, it would be for his business dealings, not that he kept himself in the company of whores.

However, Tommy could not help his growing feelings for Rose. There was an energy about her that was attractive to him that he could not quite understand why. Tommy was not sure if it was because Rose was able to adhere to his wicked desires. It amazed Tommy how she was keen on submitting and doing almost anything to please him. During scenes, Rose responded to Tommy as if he was the only man she needed, the only man she desired. And it felt genuine, not put on. There would be moments during aftercare where Rose would look at Tommy with such admiration and respect, that at first, it made him feel uneasy. But after a while, he came come to desire that look. That Tommy would do whatever it took to make sure Rose always looked at him in such away. Tommy found that he craved Rose’s respect, which caught him off guard.

Tommy soon realized that he also respected Rose and how she would do anything for her son. He admired that notion about her. She willingly entered into a line of work that could be demanding, demeaning, and possibly dangerous to provide for her child was not something that Tommy took lightly or was flippant about it. He would never refer to Rose as a “hooker with a heart of gold.” No, she was much more than a trope. Tommy knew Rose did not need a knight and shining armor to save her.

Lizzie wanted Tommy to save her. At the time, Tommy was in no position to be someone’s hero. He was too bruised, too shattered, too broken.

Now, here Tommy was at his sister’s home celebrating Easter. He sat back and watched everyone. The laughter, the smiles, Tommy felt like he didn’t belong. Tommy felt like he couldn’t breathe, so he stepped out back to smoke a cigarette since Ada did not allow smoking in her home.

The inhale of nicotine helped soothe Tommy’s anxiety and calm his nerves. Often, he wished he was back on opium. It was his way of coping after coming home from Afghanistan. He was only able to get clean because of Grace and her support. He never touched the stuff after getting clean, but there were still cravings. The feelings that came with the high brought such bliss. The satisfaction that nothing could harm you. Those weren’t going to go away magically overnight.

Tommy’s solitude was interrupted when his son, nephews, and nieces ran outside with their baskets to search for eggs. He looked at his watch and sighed. He was not sure how much longer he could stand this.

As the children flittered around the yard, Tommy took out his phone. He opened the message from one of the Blinders he had assigned to watch over Rose that day. The text message Tommy received earlier unsettled him. It was a picture of Rose exiting her house with Louis and a man. The three got in a car and drove off. At first sight of the image, Tommy felt enraged. He immediately wanted to know who this man was and why he was with Rose. Tommy was livid. Fortunately, he calmed himself down when Rose sent him a text an hour later.

Rose: I know you have your guys watching over Louis and me. While I do appreciate that, it is a little much. The man I am with is Louis’s father, Nick. We are going out for an Easter brunch. Nothing for you to worry about, and Happy Easter.

Tommy didn’t respond, but he was grateful that Rose cleared things up. He knew his reaction to the picture was ridiculous. The slight pang of jealously surprised Tommy. He didn’t quite know where it came from; it was the same feeling when Rose told him that Changretta contacted her. He was still unsure about what to do with Changretta. First, it was only business that Changretta was causing Tommy grief; now, the man was gearing up to steal his girl. Tommy realized that he must have been too lenient when dealing with the Changrettas now overstepping their boundaries. Tommy and the Peaky Blinders would have to put them in their place for good.

Tommy would make sure that Rose was not a casualty if a war broke out. He was not going to lose her or the war.

“Mum! Come on!” Louis yelled. He was dressed and ready to go, but his mum was taking forever. “What is taking so long?”

“In a minute!” Rose shouted back. She was ready but was busy doing making an Easter basket for Louis. Rose placed the items strategically in the basket. She grabbed the basket and walked down the stairs. “Happy Easter, my little man.”

Rose handed the basket to Louis, who had a look of confusion and annoyance on his face. “What the Hell, Mum? Is this what you have been doing for the last thirty minutes?”

“Yes,” Rose said. “Don’t you like it?”

Louis sighed and placed the basket on the table. “I’m too old for an Easter basket,” he moaned but still looked through the basket to see what he got. “Holy shit! A new iPhone! AirPods!”

“Still want the basket?” Rose questioned sarcastically. “I mean, I’ll take it back if you don’t want it.”

“No, I want it. Mum, thank you,” Louis beamed with happiness and hugged Rose.

“You’re welcome, sweetheart. You’re a good kid. I love you.”

“I love you too, Mum.”

Their tender moment was cut short when the doorbell rang. “Who the bloody Hell could that be?” Rose asked, confused.

“It is probably Dad. I told him it would be easier to pick us up,” Louis explained and went to open the door. “Dad! So good to see you.”

Rose stood back, arms crossed, as Louis hugged his father. It was a sight that had Rose feel a pang in her chest. It reminded her that the three of them could have been a family, a typical family. That is what Louis deserved. Nick looked over at Rose and smiled at her. It was a warm and genuine smile. Rose felt like she was sixteen all over again.

“Rosie, you look…beautiful as always,” Nick complimented and went in for a hug but stopped himself. “We can hug, right?’

Rose scoffed, “Of course we can hug, weirdo.” The former lovers embraced, and Rose felt a familiarity, the feeling of being safe and uncertain. She pulled away. “Well, we better get going. Louis, where did you decide we go to eat?”

“Bella Roma. Can we stop by an Apple store after we’re done eating? I want to be able to switch over from my old iPhone to the new one. Mum, got me a new iPhone.” Louis held up his phone to his dad.

“Nice,” Nick admired.

“We’ll see. Come, let’s get going,” Rose ordered and ushered everyone out of the house. Locking up, Rose turned around to see Louis and Nick walked towards a car. “Wow. Is this your car, Nick?”

“Don’t act so shocked. It is a used car, but yes, it is mine,” he told Rose. “It is a 2017 Hyundai Elantra. Got a pretty good price for it too.”

“Very nice,” Rose approved as she got inside, with Louis settling himself comfortably in the back seat.

“Dad has a full-time job now. Isn’t that right, Dad,” Louis spoke up eagerly.

Nick started the car and drove away from the house. It would not be too long before they arrived at the restaurant. “Where do you work?” Rose asked, trying to hide the tone of suspicion in her voice.

“My father took pity on me. I work at his insurance company. It took a while for him to trust me again. But Mum told Dad to give me a chance, especially when I got out of….”

“Prison,” Rose interrupted, and she noticed Nick straighten up in his seat. “That is good to hear. I’m glad your relationship with your parents is better. Better than mine, that is for sure,” she added under her breath.

It was not long until Nick parked near Bella Roma. Once they entered the restaurant, the three were seated quickly. Rose sat on one side, while Nick and Louis sat together on the other side. Rose sat back and watched the interaction between father and son. It was sweet to watch Louis interact with his father. As Rose looked between the two, she was reminded how much they both looked so very much alike. It was eerie. Dark brown hair and brown eyes were two of the features they shared, along with a dimple on their chin.

Soon, their waitress stopped by to get drink orders. “I’ll just have water, thank you,” said Rose. Truthfully, she would have liked a glass of wine to help take the edge off. However, Rose didn’t want anything to hinder her guard up around Nick.

They ended up ordering pizza to share and a plate of arancini as a starter. Louis was the one to dominate the conversation. He was desperately trying to get his parents to interact more. Louis kept praising his dad’s accomplishments to get his mum’s attention. “Mum, did you know dad volunteers to help underprivileged kids. It’s like, what did you refer to it as, a nice version of scared straight?”

Nick chuckled, “Something like that. I figured I could do something good and help guide kids to not make the same mistakes as me.”

Rose bit her tongue. For Louis’s sake, she would be nice. However, she wanted to bite back and ask Nick what he considers mistakes he has made throughout his life. Rose hoped he didn’t view Louis as some mistake. That would set her off. Rose picked at her pizza; she found herself not hungry all of a sudden. Nick and Louis continued to talk amongst themselves about mundane topics such as school, sports, music, etc.

At that moment, Rose’s thoughts drifted to Tommy. She wondered what he was doing, and kind of wished he was with her. That thought caught Rose off guard. She pulled out her phone and sent him a quick text. She wanted to let him know that she was out with Louis and Nick, along with wishing him a happy Easter. There were times where Rose wished she didn’t have to leave Tommy after their rendezvous in the hotel that Friday. She always felt safe with Tommy. There was a sense of security and a feeling of being protected.

Rose found herself that the more she hung around Tommy, the more she began to trust him, and the more Rose began to like Tommy, which scared her. She was not supposed to develop feelings for him. He was a client, after all. He paid for her services. She willingly allowed him to do unspeakable sexual acts to her. Rose was willing to let Tommy do things she would never allow any other man to do to her. She wondered what made Tommy different compared to someone like Luca or Alfie. Probably because, in a weird sense, Tommy treated Rose like a human being and not some toy. Yes, she knew Tommy tended to be possessive, but he still respected Rose’s boundaries. Rose trusted Tommy not ever to cross them.

“Rosie, are you still here?” Nick asked. He waved his hand in front of Rose’s face to get her attention.

“What?” Rose shook her head to clear her mind. “Sorry, what’s going on?”

“Dad asked you about the guy you are currently seeing,” Louis answered. He was frustrated that his dad brought up Tommy.

“Oh yeah, what about Tommy?”

“Just wondered how long you have been seeing this guy? How did you two meeting by the way?” Nick questioned. “I’ll be frank; I was stunned to find out that the mother of my child is dating the one and only Tommy Shelby. Isn’t he an OBE?”

Rose shrugged her shoulders at the question, “I guess he is an OBE. I don’t know; he has yet to show me his medal or whatever it is they get. You know, Tommy is just a guy I met, and we hit it off. Nothing too outrageous.”

“Is it serious?” Again, another question from Nick.

Louis sighed in annoyance, and Rose quickly picked up on her son’s discomfort on the subject of Tommy. “Let’s see if they have dessert,” Rose changed the subject and tried to wave over their waitress.

“Have you met him, Louis?” asked Nick turning towards his son.

Rolling her eyes, Rose interceded, “No, he has not met Tommy.”

“And I don’t want to,” Louis mumbled under his breath.

“Hey, here is an idea, how we don’t talk about Tommy, okay,” ordered Rose, and both guys agreed.

After sharing a tiramisu, Rose had enough and was ready to get back home. Nick offered to pay, and Rose didn’t fight him on it. She figured it was his way of showing he had his own money and could provide a meal for them. With their leftovers boxed up, Rose led the way back to Nick’s car.

“Louis, did you still want to go to the Apple store?” Rose asked him.

“Can we? I thought you wanted to get back home.”

“I do, but we can get the leftovers in the fridge, and I can take you,” replied Rose. Truthfully, she did not want to go. She had enough excitement for one day.

Suddenly, Nick piped in, “I can take him if you feel like staying home.”

Rose turned around to look at Louis, “Is that okay with you?”

“That’s fine,” answered Louis, happily. He was excited to get to spend some alone time with his dad.

Nick parked in front of the house. Rose and Louis and got out of the car. He handed the pizza boxes to Rose and got in the front seat. “I’ll see you late, sweetie. By Nick. Take care.”

“Bye, Rosie. Talk to you later.”

Rose waved them off and walked towards the house. She breathed a sigh of relief upon entry. She went upstairs to undress and put on a pair of comfortable sweats and sweater. All Rose wanted to do was relax.

Looking at the clock, it was only 3:30 PM. Lunch with Nick felt like it went on longer. As Rose was about to settle herself on the couch to watch television, the doorbell rang. “Now, who the Hell is that?”

“Fucking ‘ell, people. It’s Easter Sunday, for God’s sake.” She walked to the front door and opened it to find none other than Tommy Shelby.

“Tommy, what are you doing here?” inquired Rose, totally not expecting it to be him.

Clearing his throat, Tommy shuffled on his feet. He looked down, then up at Rose. “I…I needed to get out and away. It was all too much.”

Rose was confused by what Tommy was telling her. She motioned for Tommy to come inside, and he obliged. “What do you mean it was all too much? Are you okay?”

Guiding Tommy to the couch, Rose sat down next to him. She was concerned since she had never seen Tommy like this before. It was as if he was lost.

Tommy sighed, “I was at my sister’s house. Everyone was there, my brothers, their wives and kids, Aunt Polly and her husband, his kids. Everyone had someone but me. I was alone. Charlie was there, of course, but it if feels like the bond we once had is dwindling. He doesn’t need me. I watched him play with his cousins and interact with his aunts and uncles and realized that my son is better off without me.”

Rose was shocked at Tommy’s words. She scooted closer to him and placed a supported hand on his knee. “Tommy, no. That is not true. Of course, your son needs you. You are his father. You’re his family.”

“He has other family members who can give him the love and attention he deserves. Maybe I should have listened to Grace’s parents and had Charlie live with them.”

“No. Tommy, listen to me,” Rose began and made Tommy look at her. “Charlie is your son. You love him. You told me that you love him. He is a part of you and Grace. If you give Charlie up, you will regret it. Then you truly will lose him.”

“It would be better for him….”

“No, it would not. It would only scar that child for the rest of his life. He will feel that you abandoned him,” Rose stated firmly. “You’re not thinking clearly. It’s a holiday. We all get weird when we are forced to hang around family members. Just stay here for a while and relax.”

Rose found that her hand moved from Tommy’s knee to his hand sitting back on the couch. He was holding on tight as if he was afraid Rose would disappear. She used her other hand to cover his. Rose wanted Tommy to know that she was not going anywhere. Taking in Tommy’s appearance, he was dressed in blue jeans, a black sweater, and black boots. It was the most casual look Rose had ever seen Tommy. She was always used to seeing him in suits. It was a nice change. However, the look on his face was one of sadness and defeat.

“Tell me what you need, Tommy?” Rose asked. She pulled Tommy closer to her and wrapped an arm around him. “Tell me how I can make it better,” she crooned in his ear and ran her fingers through his hair.

What did Tommy want? He was unsure. A part of Tommy didn’t want to feel always in control. That he could let go and be in the moment. That’s what he wanted; he wanted to be in the moment with Rose. Just the two of them, sitting together. “I just want to sit here, with you, Rose. That’s all I want right now. I don’t want to think about anything.”

Kissing the top of Tommy’s head, Rose leaned her head on his. “Okay, we can do that, Tommy. I’m here. Whatever you need, I’m here for you.”

#tommy shelby #tommy shelby x oc #thomas shelby #thomas shelby x oc #peaky blinders #peaky blinders fic

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sassyduckqueen · 4 years ago

Text

Miraculous: Rise of Anatis 39

Here's Ikari Gozen! I hope you guys like. I'm really happy with how it came out. Anyway, I thought I'd add a bit of context before I write heroes day, which I hope you guys are looking forward to. I know I am but I should warn you. It will be long. Unlike the previous 'season' finales, it wouldn't be split into two parts and it will also just be called Heroes day instead of Mayura or Catalyst. Also while it's on my mind, I should let you know until season 4 comes out, I will be doing OC Akumas after I've finished with the season 3 stuff. Once season 4 comes out, I will adapt the episodes in this so feel free to suggest OC akumas if you want. If I end up using them, you will get full credit for their existence :D

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Chapter Thirty-Nine: Ikari Gozen

"Hey buddies. As you know, friendship day is officially here," Mireille stated, on the tv as Marinette and the girls glanced at the TV in her room. Aurora was stood next to her and the two girls were smiling. Their friendship had come along way since Stormy Weather's first appearance. Marinette had seen them hanging out around school and had heard from Luka how they were in class. Aurora didn't actually blame Mireille for losing the contest and becoming Stormy Weather. As it turned out, the reason why was because the hose, Alec, had rubbed salt into the wound so to speak and had embarrassed her which in turn had upset her and caused her to become stormy weather but that was then and this is now. Now meant friendship day, an event Marinette was really excited for.

"Today, hundreds of amazing, new friendships will be created all over Paris," Aurora grinned, before turning to Mireille. "Right, Mireille?"

"You got it, Aurora," She smiled back at her before facing the camera. "Once again, buddies, you and your secret new friend... picked at random... will go on an exciting new journey across Paris, searching for a hidden celebrity,"

"And this time, our secret celebrity is none other then the muse of Gabriel Brand. The one and only Adrien Agreste!" Aurora declared, gesturing to him as the camera panned out to reveal him. He smiled and waved at the camera.

"Hello," He smiled, causing the girls to grin excitedly.

"This is gonna be great," Marinette grinned before her eyes went wide. "Oh no! What if I forgot to sign up like last year?!"

"Relax, girl," Alya grinned, taking out a pin and placing it on her jacket. "I know what you're like so as your amazing BFF I made sure to sign you up so everything is gonna be just fine,"

"Thank you, Alya," Marinette gasped, hugging her. Rose suddenly let out a squeal, causing everyone to look at the screen as she pointed at it excitedly.

"Here we go!!" She gasped as she clapped her hangs. "It's starting!!"

"Let me recap for our buddies here," Mireille stated, lifting a tablet that Adrien was holding. It had a red button on it. "When Adrien pushes this button, thousands of texts will be simultaneously sent all across Paris. In the message, you will find a first riddle to solve, which will eventually lead you to your new friend. Then together, you will attempt to solve more riddles which if done correctly will lead you straight to Adrien,"

"Right here in this super secret location where I'll be waiting for the lucky winners," Adrien declared, pointing at the camera before he held up the tablet as Mireille and Aurora joined him. "Ready?"

"Three! Two! One!" They counted down together before Adrien pressed the button, turning it green. "Go!!"

The girls all gasped as their phones vibrated, causing them to open the text. Alya was the first to rush off as reading hers and declaring where it would be. She wished everyone else luck and headed down the stairs. Rose was next, heading towards the zoo and was followed by Alix, who was going to the Louvre. Juleka mumbled before gasping and leaving shortly after Alix. Marinette looked down at hers and decided to read it out loud.

"With one turn of a handle, I can raise the level..." She muttered, frowning before sighing and slagging her shoulders. "What evil mind came up with this one?!"

She began to pace around her room as Plagg flew out of his hiding place.

"If you ask me, this game is a waste of time," He grinned, making her shake her head. "Unless your new friend will have cheese,"

"Plagg, I'm trying to work out the riddle," She muttered, shaking her head. "With one turn of a handle, I can raise the level... game shop maybe... or maybe it's something else... hmm... game shop does seem too obvious for the answer... oh..."

She took out her phone as it vibrated and saw Luka had sent her a video. She pressed play to watch it.

"Hey, Melody. Just wanted to wish you good luck in the friendship day game," He smiled as he was stood by the Seine. She smiled a little as she noticed the button on his jacket. He was playing the game too. "Just about to solve the riddle I got. Not sure if I'll win but this should be fun anyway. I hope you have fun too,"

The video stopped playing, making her smile before she went to make her own.

"Hey, Lu," She grinned, waving at the phone. "Just got my first riddle too. Honestly, can't wait to see who I met. Once I actually solve it that is. Mine's pretty difficu- ohhh! The Seine! Of course, water! That makes sense. I think I just solved it, thanks to you!! Thanks, Lu!! Good luck as well!!"

She stopped filming and sent the message before grabbing her purse and opening it for Plagg, who flew in.

"You solved it then?"

"Yup!" She grinned before running out the house and made her way to the Canal Saint-Martin. She grinned to herself when she got there, causing Plagg to poke his head out and look around. "Here we are! 'With one turn of a handle, I can raise the Level'... Ta da!! It's Canal Saint-Martin!! The water rises when the locks are open with the handle,"

"Meh..." Plagg shrugged, making her giggle.

"You're a little terror," She muttered, shaking her head before looking around. "Now, I just need to keep my eyes peeled. Hopefully, my new friend is here somewhere,"

"New friends are overrated," Plagg stated, causing her to shake her head. "Now if this was a game to find sweet, gooey cheese... then I'd play..."

"That's because you're basically a talking stomach," She smiled, gently patting his head. Plagg grinned and purred a little. "I'll get you some nice cheesy snacks when we've finished today,"

"I can't wait!" He grinned, making her smile a little as they looked around. He tapped her leg, making her look at him. "Isn't that Adrien's girlfriend, Kagami?"

She looked over and saw Kagami stood by a red car before it drove off. She was looking around like she was looking for someone. Marinette grinned and ran over as Plagg ducked into her purse.

"Kagami!!" She called out, making the girl look at her as she raced over. "Hey, I think you're my new friend,"

"So it would seem, Marinette," She replied before moving her mouth in a strange way that showed off her teeth. It unnerved Marinette slightly but she shook it off for now. "It is nice to see you again,"

"Likewise," She smiled as their phones vibrated. "Ooh, the next riddle!!"

She pressed the message, causing a new riddle to come up.

"Congratulations, you have located your game partner and who knows... maybe even a friend for life," The automated voice stated as the two girls looked at their phone. "You've just received the second riddle,"

"To get closer to your goal, you must explore farther and deeper," Marinette read out as Kagami made a thoughtful face. Marinette frowned a little. "Do you think it means to go onto the metro? That's underground so that counts as deeper right?"

"Hmm... no, explore farther and deeper means we have to go farther along the banks of the Seine, which is deeper then this canal," Kagami explained, causing Marinette to look at her with a little awe. That did make sense. "We'll probably have to fish for our next clue. Come on, Marinette, let's hurry up and win,"

"Ok," Marinette nodded, following her as she headed towards the Seine. Her phone vibrated twice, causing her to look at it and smile as she saw she got video messages from Alya and Luka. She opened Alya's first and smiled as she introduced Wayhem before pausing to do a reply.

"Hey, I've got Kagami for my friend. I'm really excited to get to know her," She smiled before sending it then opening Luka's.

"Look who I found," He smiled before moving the camera to Chloe who was looking at her nails. "Chloe decided to join in as well,"

"Is that to Marinette?" She asked, causing him to nod before she moved over and wave. "Hey, Marinette! Just so you know I may be nice now but I'm totally gonna win this! I mean we're gonna win this. Right, Luka?"

"We'll try but even if we don't win, we can still have fun," He grinned, causing her to roll her eyes but she was also smiling. "I hope you're having fun with your new friend, Melody,"

"Oh come on, you dork. We have to find the next clue," Chloe grinned as he waved at the camera before the video stopped. Marinette smiled and set up the camera again.

"Hey, Lu. I found my partner and it's Kagami. She's really smart and has solved the first clue already," She grinned before pointing at the camera. "And Chloe, it is totally on! Maybe the best girl win!"

She grinned and winked before sending the video before running to catch up with Kagami, who had found a magnet and fishing rod on one of the bridges.

"Look, we were right," Kagami stated as she step up the fishing rod, causing Marinette to blink in surprise. "We have to fish out the next clue using this fishing rod and magnet. Here,"

She grabbed Marinette and pulled her over, placing the fishing rod in her hands and securing her hands around. Marinette blinked and when with it as Kagami moved her so she was stood with the rod over the edge before she pushed it down.

"Now fish," She ordered, causing Marinette to blink and reel up the first item she got, which was a rusted whistle. She showed Kagami who pulled it off and threw it in the box. "Probably not the clue,"

Marinette nodded and lowered the magnet again, glancing to the side when she heard a phone notification. Kagami briefly looked at it before facing her again.

"Do you prefer to be known by your whole name or a nickname?" She asked before doing that weird thing with her mouth again, unsettling Marinette.

"Uh... by... my whole name..." She mumbled back, reeling the magnet back up. A rusted saucepan was connected to it. "Though Luka calls me melody and I don't mind that..."

"Thank you, Marinette," Kagami nodded, ignoring the comment about Luka's nickname for her. She looked at her phone again before facing Marinette again. "Uh... your hair is very shiny,"

She didn't the funny thing with her face again before taking the saucepan as Marinette looked at her with confusion and a little fear. Her comment made her wonder if her hair was greasy and gross, even though she took a shower earlier that morning.

"Uh... thank you?" She asked, unsure how to react to her comment. "Uh... your hair is not too bad either..."

Kagami threw the pan into the back and then looked at her phone again as Marinette threw the fishing line again. Marinette frowned a little and tried to glance over.

"What is your blood type?" Kagami asked before once again doing the strange action with her face. Marinette blinked, feeling really uncomfortable as she felt like that maybe Kagami was messing with her and teasing her.

"My blood type? I don't know..." She replied defensively as she glanced to the floor a little before frowning. "Are you messing with me?"

"No, not at all," Kagami replied in an emotionless way. "Everyone in Japan knows their blood type. It tells you who you are,"

She turned and faced the water as Marinette reeled in the line again.

"Mine's O," She continued, making Marinette look at her as she pulled up an old skate. "Which means I'm independent, optimistic, strong-willed and intuitive,"

Marinette frowned a little as she lowered the line again before noticing Kagami glance at her phone again. She tried to look over but Kagami faced her again with a serious expression.

"What's your favorite season?" She suddenly asked, making Marinette jump a little as she did the face action again.

"Summer, cause it's nice and hot... or spring! Because that's when Nature awakens," Marinette gasped a little excited. Kagami finally asked a question that was weird or invasive and was actually kind of normal. "Or maybe the Fall... the colors are so gorgeous at that time of year... but then again, winter inspires me so much,"

"You're indecisive, scattered brain and irresponsible. You have a split personality. Typical AB," Kagami stated, making Marinette frown before she did the strange movement with her face. Marinette went to say something but saw she was looking at her phone again before she looked back at her. "Let's say you found out about some special chocolate ice cream. You really want to try it but someone else gets there first. Do you... A) Steal it from them?"

Marinette gave her a confused and offended look.

"B) Get another type of chocolate ice cream even if it's not as good," She continued, confusing Marinette. "Or C) Never eat chocolate ice cream again?"

She moved her mouth again as Marinette blinked.

"Um I guess I would try another flavor?" She asked, making Kagami narrow her eyes again before she looked at her phone again. Marinette frowned deeply but felt something heavy on the wire. She reeled it up and grabbed the plot as Kagami looked back at her. "Would you like to grab an orange juice with me?"

"N-Now? I mean sure but we're in the middle of the game?" She gasped, making Kagami look at the pot in her hand. She took it out her hand and took out the bottle before placing the pan down before looking up at Marinette.

"The clue... you've done a great job fishing," She replied, giving her a creepy grin as she slowly patted her shoulder. Marinette wasn't sure how to react. "Congratulations, Marinette. First, we win then we get orange juice to celebrate,"

"Oh... right... that makes sense," Marinette nodded, following her as she walked off. The rest of the clue went on the lines of that. They would work together to find the clues but Kagami would ask strange questions and act weird. She would make strange faces and state Marinette's flaws, causing Marinette to frown and feel like Kagami didn't like her. She would also constantly look to her phone, like she was messaging someone and checking the time. It gave Marinette the impression that she didn't want to even be here, which made her wonder. If she didn't want to be in this game, why join? It made no sense. Marinette frowned to herself as they came to the next clue. She was sure that Kagami was messaging Adrien to laugh at her. Sure, they were solving the clues but Kagami clearly didn't like her or want to be friends so she had to be laughing at her. Her phone vibrated, causing her to look at it as Luka and Alya send her messages. She opened Luka's first.

"Well, maybe she is trying to get to know you," He replied, making her frown a little. "But if it's making you really that uncomfortable, you should tell her. I'm sure she would understand,"

She pressed record and held it up to her.

"I don't know, Lu," She sighed, looking down. "She keeps looking at her phone. I think she's texting Adrien and they're both probably laughing at me. Honestly, Lu, I don't think she likes me at all,"

She pressed end and send it before opening Alya's.

"Girl, don't let it get to you," She grinned as Wayhem grabbed the next clue. "Just focus on winning. After all, Adrien is the prize,"

Marinette let out a sigh before pressing the reply button and holding up the phone.

"Which is great but he won't notice me," She sighed. It's not like she could tell Alya that Kagami and Adrien were dating. She only knew that info as Lady Noir after all. "As soon as he sees her, he'll ignore me... they're really close and I think he likes her a lot... not that I blame him... she's pretty and smart,"

She sent the video before walking over a bench and sat down as Kagami read over the next challenge. She walked over to her, causing Marinette to look up at her.

"Trust challenge," She read out. "Exchange unlocked phones. Separate and take a selfie at different monuments, using each others' phones then regroup and take a selfie together like the true friends you've become. Once we've received the selfies, we'll send you a final text revealing where Adrien Agreste is hiding,"

She held out her phone, causing Marinette to glance at it.

"I don't know, Kagami..." She mumbled, causing Kagami to shake her head and take her phone before she pushed her own phone into Marinette's hand.

"You really are an indecisive girl," She declared before beginning to run off. She stopped and face Marinette again. "We'll meet back here once we're done. We're gonna win!"

With that, she ran off, leaving Marinette in the dust. She got up and made her way over some trees before sighing. Plagg poked his head out of her bag and looked up at her.

"If you're that bothered, why don't you just look through her phone?" He asked, making her look at him. "What? At least, that way you'll know for sure if she was laughing at you,"

"Plagg, the point of this excise is trust," She pointed out, making him grin.

"That trust is only broken if she knows you when through it," He pointed out, making her frown. "So have a sneak then take the selfie and meet back up with her. It's not like she's going to check for fingerprints,"

"I don't know," She mumbled, frowning. "It feels wrong..."

"So does her laughing at you," Plagg pointed out, making her frown even more. On one hand, it is wrong to going through her phone but on the other, this would allow her to know how much Kagami does dislike her. "What you got to lost, Dollface?"

She bit her lip and pressed the messages button, frown as she saw that Kagami only had messages from the contest. Thinking that maybe she managed to delete them before the phone swap, she checked her contacts. To her surprise, she only had her mother's contact in there, making her frown. She exited the contact list and swiped across the screen, finding another app. She didn't recognize it so she pressed on it and gasped, making Plagg look up at her.

"Oh, shoot," She gasped, placing her hand over her mouth. "This is what she was looking at all this time,"

"What is it?" He asked, making her show him. "30 tips for making friends..."

"That explains everything. Her strange behavior. Her weird questions. She was trying to be my friend," She gasped, looking down. "She wasn't messing with me at all. She was trying to get to know me and that weird thing she was doing with her mouth was her attempting to smile,"

"Well, at least, she wasn't laughing at you,"

"But now I feel so bad," She gasped, frowning before straightening up. "Maybe there is still time to fix this! We can win this and get orange juice together,"

"Eh... cheese is better..." Plagg replied, diving into her bag again as she ran towards the nearest monument which happened to be the Statue of King Louis XIV. She quickly took a selfie with the phone before running back to the bench that she would meet Kagami at. She frowned as she saw Kagami walking back over to her. She was frowning and handed her phone back to her, confusing Marinette.

"I guess I'm not worthy of our friendship," She stated, looking down before she began to walk away. "Our blood types must not be compatible,"

"Kagami, wait!" Marinette gasped, running after her. Kagami stopped and looked at her, frowning.

"I saw your friend's message. I didn't mean to but it played," She frowned, making Marinette frown. "She suggested that you should quit the game since you don't like me,"

"What?" She asked, confused before shaking her head. "Kagami, it's not that I don't like you. I thought you didn't like me,"

"It doesn't matter anyway," She mumbled, walking away again but before Marinette could chase after her, one of the phone's vibrated. She looked at it and noticed it was Kagami's mother. She pressed answer and held it to her ear.

"Hello?"

"Kagami! Where are you?!" Her mother shouted, making Marinette jump. "You were suppose to wait for me at home!"

"Um... Hello ma'am, I'm not Kagami actually," Marinette gasped, causing her to demand who she was and where Kagami was. Marinette jogged over to her as she called out to her, causing Kagami to look at her. "Um I'm a friend of Kagami's. I'm with her and can put her on the phone,"

"Kagami doesn't have any friends!" She growled, making Marinette frown as Kagami signaled to give her the phone. " "Why do you have her phone?"

"Oh, I can assume you, Ma'am, I am Kagami's friend," Marinette corrected, causing Kagami to look at her in surprise. "In fact, we teamed up for a game,"

"A game?!" She growled, making Marinette gasp. "But I fobade her!"

"G-Game? Did I say game? I meant a grab... uh... to grab..." She gasped. "I invited Kagami to grab an orange juice with me,"

Kagami's features softened as she watched Marinette try to calm down her mother. Even though she knew it wouldn't work, she appreciate the attempt.

"She'll be home soon I promise," She gasped as Kagami smiled. "I'll even walk her home myself,"

"Stop fooling around, young lady and put my daughter through!" Tomoe demanded, making Marinette frown even more. "I can assure you that Kagami will not be enjoying any glasses of-"

"Ma'am, please don't punish your daughter," She gasped as Tomoe went quiet. "Ma'am? Hello?"

Kagami frowned as Marinette glanced at her before Tomoe said something that send a shiver down her spine.

"With pleasure, Hawkmoth," She declared, causing Marinette to gasp. She quickly turned to Kagami and placed the phone in her hand before grabbing her hand and running.

"I'm so sorry, Kagami. I tried to smooth things over with your mum but now she's super angry and will be looking for you," She gasped as they ran. "We should hid somewhere far from here I think,"

She took her phone and activated the akuma alert app as they ran. Literally, minutes after, they heard distance screaming before a huge red centaur jumped towards them, causing them to go fly. Marinette wasted no time and pull Kagami to her feet before running as fast as they could.

"Kagami!" It screamed as it began to chase them, causing Kagami to gasp in shock and trip, letting go of Marinette's hand. "You disobeyed me! You'll never go out again!"

She went to reach for her but before she could, Marinette pushed her down before helping her back up and running behind the centaur. Kagami looked surprise but didn't complain as they ran. The centaur turned around and jumped, landing in front of them, causing both girls to scream and jump back as she reached for them again. She growled and stomped her feet, causing them to fall down and reached for them. However, a yoyo string wrapped around her hand as Anatis arrived, yanking it back so Kagami was far from her mother's grip. Marinette rushed over to her and helped her up as Anatis turned to them.

"Get away from here!" He shouted, jumping away from the centaur. Marinette nodded and ran with Kagami as Anatis kept her busy, throwing his yoyo at her. "You know today is suppose to be friendship day but if you ask me, you're going all the wrong way about it!"

"I don't need friends! I am Ikari Gozen! As elusive as the wind, as powerful as the flood and as swift as lightning!" Ikari Gozen screamed as he jumped up. However, she backhanded him, sending him flying and crashing into a statue but before he could get up, she grabbed him, causing him to struggle. Marinette gasped as the centaur opened her mouth and swallowed him. Her eyes widen as she called out for him but Kagami suddenly grabbed her arm and ran underneath her mother's legs and into the metro station, running down the stairs with her. She didn't stop until they were deep in the station, causing Marinette to gasp.

"Marinette, are you ok?" She asked, causing her to look at her.

"Anatis... he's..." She muttered, shaking her head. "Kagami, stay here,"

She turned on her heel to run but Kagami grabbed her arm.

"If you go out, you might get captured,"

"Someone needs to flag down Lady Noir," Marinette gasped, making Kagami frown but nod. "I promise I'll be careful but please stay here,"

She nodded and ran off. As soon as she was out of view from people, she opened her purse and Plagg flew out.

"Anatis has been captured!" She gasped, making him frown.

"We need to go to Master Fu right now," He declared, making her blink in surprise before she nodded. Anatis told her about him for this very reason. She slipped up from the stairs and saw Ikari Gozen looking around for Kagami. Seeing her chance, she made her way to a building and looked to Plagg.

"How do we get there?" She asked, making him frown. "Hey, I've only been there a couple of times and that was by rooftop,"

"Good point," Plagg stated before flying off. "Follow me!"

She nodded and ran after him, trying to go as fast as she could. Plagg did his best to get her there quickly as well, meaning they took what could be called an ally cat's route but it got them there. She rang the door bell and got buzzed in before she rushed up into Master Fu's shop. She knocked on the door and entered.

"Come in," He stated as she entered. "I expected you would- Marinette?"

"I'm sorry, Master Fu but the akuma Ikari Gozen has captured Anatis and Plagg said we should come here and I don't know what to do!" She gasped, tears in her eyes. She was afraid and worried for her partner. "What if she gets his miraculous and hurts him? Oh, god this is all my fault! I should have just tried to trust Kagami and-"

"Take deep breathes, Marinette," Master Fu stated, causing her to nod and breathe in as he got her to knee down. "All is not lost. You can save Anatis but you will need help,"

He walked over to the phonograph and took out the miracle box, placing it in front of her.

"Marinette Dupain-Cheng, choose an ally to fight along side you this mission," He declared, opening the miracle box, causing the draws to pop open. She gasped in amazement as she saw the miraculous, glancing at them. She knew what some of them did thanks to Anatis and their allies. He had also informed her about some of the abilities but she didn't know as much as he did. "Choose wisely. Such powers are meant to serve the greater good,"

"I need an experienced user... someone who can match Ikari Gozen's ability..." She muttered, frowning. "Someone as elusive as the wind, as powerful as the flood and as swift as lightning... oh... I know... but..."

"Trust your instincts, Marinette," Master Fu advised, making her look at him. "If they tell you that the miraculous you have in mind is the right one then choose it,"

"In that case," She smiled, picking up the dragon miraculous. "It's time for Ryuko to come out of retirement,"

"Ryuko is a good choice," Master Fu nodded. "I'm sure she will be a great help,"

"Thank you, Master Fu," She nodded, turning to leave but he got up and opened a draw before taking out a little hexagon shaped box and handing it to her. "Oh so that's where those are kept,"

She placed inside and put it in her purse before rushing out. As soon as she was in the allyway, she turned to Plagg.

"Time to find Kagami and rescue Annie," She grinned before holding out her hand and calling on the magic words. Once transformed into Lady Noir, she jumped up onto the rooftops and ran across to the metro where Kagami should be. She jumped down inside and rushed over, causing people to gasp and point. She saw Kagami sat on a bench, looking down. She ran over to her, causing her to jump up.

"Lady Noir," She gasped. "Anatis-"

"I know but we need to get you to a safety hiding place," She replied, grabbing her hand and running off with her. They moved up onto the street and looked around before rushing over to an allyway, causing Kagami to look around as Lady Noir faced her. "Sorry but as you know secret identities must be protected,"

"Secret identity? But I'm not Ryuko anyway," She stated before blinking as Lady Noir reached out into her pocket and took out the box. Kagami blinked in surprise as she stated at it. "Is that?"

"Yes. I need your help to save Anatis and what better way to hide Kagami then in plain sight," She replied, causing Kagami to nod. She opened the box, causing Longg to appear. He frowned and huffed, refusing to meet Kagami's eyes. "Uh... Longg, is it?"

"Yes, Miss Noir," He replied, looking around. "Where's the young master?"

"He's been captured by the akuma, " Lady Noir admitted, causing him to gasp. "Which is why I need you to put aside any hard feelings with Kagami,"

"Of course, Miss Noir," He nodded before turning to her. "Well, what are you waiting for, Tsurugi-san? You know the magic words,"

Kagami frowned but put the choke on as Lady Noir frowned.

"Longg, bring the storm!" Kagami declared, transforming into Ryuko before turning to Lady Noir and taking out her sword. "Thank you for the miraculous, Lady Noir but I'll take it from here. Stay behind as this is a personal matter between a mother and a daughter,"

"What?!" Lady Noir gasped as Ryuko jumped off. "Hey! That's not how this works!"

She jumped after her as Ryuko blindly attacked Ikari Gozen, making Lady Noir frown.

"God, she is so stubborn!" She growled as Ryuko clashed against her mother. She took a deep breathe and looked around as Ikari Gozen grabbed Ryuko. "What would Anatis do?"

"Wind dragon!" Ryuko called, transforming into her to escape her room before diving at her. "Lightning dragon!"

"What?! No!" Lady Noir called, jumping up and diving at her. She grabbed her before she could hit Ikari Gozen, causing both her and Ryuko to fall and roll behind a bus before dragging Ryuko to behind a wall as Ikari Gozen turned to look for Kagami. Ryuko pushed her away and growled.

"What the hell, Lady Noir?!" She gasped. "I was just able to defeat her!"

"No, you were about to put Annie in more danger then he's already in!" Lady Noir gasped, making Ryuko roll her eyes. She went to run off but Lady Noir snatched the choker off her, causing her to look at her with surprise as she transformed back. She narrowed her eyes and held out her hand.

"Give it back," She declared.

"No! You are going to listen to me for once!" Lady Noir growled as Longg nodded and glared at Kagami, who looked surprise at the harsh look she was getting. "I trusted you and you just run off without even listening to me! You just wasted two of your abilities and almost put Anatis' life in danger!"

"Oh, the suit would have-"

"That thing is made from metal and you were able to hit it with lightening! We don't know if the suit would protect him but that is not the point. The point is you are willing to put him in danger, despite the fact that he is the only person who can fix this!" She screamed, causing Kagami to blink in surprise. "You are reckless and impulsive! I didn't give you this to settle a score but to help me save my best friend and you just rush off!"

"Well, it's not like you have a plan,"

"Because I haven't had a chance to work one out!" She growled, making Kagami frown before she took a deep breathe. "I get that you want to save your mum but endangering everyone else is not the way to do it,"

Kagami sighed and looked down, clearly looking guilty. For a few minute, she was quiet as Lady Noir gave Longg some cheese to recharge.

"I behaved hastily and I have failed you and Anatis, Lady Noir," She muttered, causing Lady Noir to look towards her as she bowed towards her. "I am not worthy of the dragon or to fight by your side. I recommend that you find a new holder,"

"Kagami, listen to me. Been impulsive can be a good thing but you've gotten be clever and listen to other people. One of the things that makes me and Anatis such a good team is because we listen to each other and work as a team," She replied, causing Kagami to nod. "Yes, you've made mistakes but that's not a reason to give up fighting. You're a good match for the dragon, Kagami but we must work as a team. Only you can help me save your mother and Annie so please, work with me as my friend and ally,"

"Lady Noir..." She whispered before bowing again. "I have clearly misjudged you as I misjudged Anatis. I will follow your lead and help you in any way I can,"

"I'm glad," Lady Noir smiled. "Longg, you all charged?"

"Yes, I am," He replied, turning to Kagami, who looked guilty and like she wanted to say something. Lady Noir had a feeling she knew what.

"Longg..."

"We can talk after we've defeated the villain," He stated, making her nod and re-transformed. Lady Noir blinked in surprise as she looked at her. Like Aspik, Ryuko's outfit had changed but unlike Aspik's, the changes in hers were small and subtle. Her gloves were still the same length but one side had an upright triangle in gold whereas the other one was inverted. Her main outfit was the same but her right leg had a thigh high boot on with a gold trim and her leg had an ankle boot that turned into the dragon tail that wrapped up her leg and stomach. Her emblem was on her belt instead of the middle of her chest. She still had four horns but they were slightly different to the original ones. They had a black strip in the middle with two gold bands around them while the rest were red. Even her mask had changed. Originally it was most red with a bit of gold and black detail but now it was half black and half red with a gold trim. She looked over herself and smiled.

"Ready when you are, Lady Noir," She replied, getting a nod of Lady Noir before the two of them looked over at Ikari Gozen, who was tearing up buildings and crushing cars. The two heroines frowned as they moved back. "She's really on a war path. Do you have any ideas?"

"Well... I have an idea..." She mumbled, making Ryuko raise an eyebrow as she took out her baton and used it to call Anatis' yoyo. He answered, causing both girls to let out a sigh of relief. He was still transformed and ok.

"Is that Ryuko?" He asked with a slightly confused expression, causing Ryuko to wave a little.

"Sorry but you got captured and I had to do something..." She mumbled, looking down. Of course, he would be mad. "Don't be mad..."

"Mad? Why would I be mad?" He asked, generally confused before shaking his head. "Anyway, I'm glad to see you're ok. I was worried she had crushed you... though how did you know I was captured?"

"Uh... live streaming..."

"Yes, almost everyone is filming and there is a live feed on the ladyblog," Ryuko nodded, making him pull a thinking face before nodding. "Any idea where the akuma is?"

"I don't think it's anywhere inside her but she was holding a huge stick..."

"It's called a Bokken, Annie," Lady Noir giggled, making him roll his eyes in a playful manner.

"Anyway, I think that's where the akuma is... it seems to be the most logical place for it to land," He mumbled, making the two girls nod.

"I can destroy it but first we need to get you out of there," Lady Noir mumbled before looking back at him. "Have you summoned a lucky charm yet?"

"No, I didn't want to risk turning back into my civilian mode and risking Hawkmoth finding out who I am," He mumbled, looking worried. The two girls nodded. "But I'll get one now... hang on..."

The screen went dark as before he came back on.

"Bath bombs... I got bath bombs..." He mumbled, shaking his head as he showed them. Lady Noir covered her mouth as she tried not to giggle. Tikki had a weird sense of humor. He glared a little at Lady Noir before glancing around. "Nothing here is lighting up..."

"Bath bombs?" Ryuko asked as Lady Noir straightened up.

"Maybe Tikki is telling you to get a bath?" She asked, smirking a little. He rose an eyebrow at her, causing her to shrug a little. "Just saying..."

"Well... knowing Tikki it's a possibility but they're useless without water," He sighed, looking around. He was still trying to work out how to use them. "And this is a frigging car.... I'm sure of it so it's not going to have a water source in here,"

"Water..." Lady Noir muttered as she looked up at Ikari Gozen before glancing over at Ryuko. Her eyes went wide as an idea popped into her head. "Oooh... I know what we can do with those bath bombs! Annie, hold on tight! We're gonna get you out,"

"Alright," He grinned before she hung up and turned to Ryuko.

"What's the plan?"

"You're gonna get eaten!" Lady Noir grinned, making Ryuko frown. "Then once you're inside with Annie and the lucky charm, activate water dragon. It will flood her from the inside and-"

"Activate the bath bombs which should cause her to weaken!" Ryuko gasped, causing Lady Noir to grin. "Anatis can then escape, you can destroy her bokken and we save the day,"

"Exactly," She grinned as they looked at Ikari Gozen again. "Go full on attack but let her capture you,"

"Alright," Ryuko nodded before she rushed out and attacked Ikari Gozen, striking at her as Lady Noir pretended to sneak up on her. Ikari Gozen caught her and went to grab her, causing Ryuko to push her out of the way and get grabbed instead. She went a wink to Lady Noir before Ikari Gozen swallowed her and turned to Lady Noir.

"I guess I'm the Last hero standing," She grinned, taking out her baton and holding it like a sword.

"And you shall fall like the others," Ikari Gozen replied, charging at her while inside her, Ryuko landed on the seat next to Anatis, who rose an eyebrow at her as she grinned before she turned to him.

"Hold your breathe, bug boy," She grinned, making Anatis grin as he realized the plan. "Water Dragon!!"

She burst into water that began to fill up the area they were in and break down the bathbombs as Anatis grabbed the box that they came in and took a deep breathe before the water covered his head. He felt the akuma shake and jolt before, feeling the water move upwards as she gagged and puked up some of the water with him. He landed on the ground as Ikari Gozen fell onto her side before Lady Noir jumped over as he took the yo

"Cataclysm!" She shouted, slamming her hand onto the bokken, causing it to rush. He kicked it, releasing the butterfly and capturing it as Ryuko reformed from the water. He released the purified butterfly before he threw up the now wet box.

"Miraculous Ladybugs!" He shouted, causing it to burst into the magical swarm that flew around and fixed all of the damage that Ikari Gozen had done, causing both girls to let out a sigh of relief as Ikari Gozen turned back into Tomoe and her car. Anatis pointed at it as the door opened and Tomoe stepped out, leaning on her stick. "I knew it was a car!"

"What's happened to me? Where is Kagami?!" She gasped, causing Ryuko to walk over and take her hand, causing the blind woman to gasp.

"Your daughter is near by, Ma'am," She stated. "She'll be here soon,"

"Ryuko... time to go," Anatis declared before the three of them jumped up to the roofs and ran off. They jumped down into an allyway.

"Before I transform back... I need to talk to Longg..." Ryuko stated, causing Anatis and Lady Noir to nod and move away to her some privacy. She called off the transformation as Anatis leaned against the wall. Lady Noir played with her braid and bit her lip, causing him to look at her.

"Kitten?" He asked, causing her to look at him. "You ok?"

"I... I know you're probably mad at me for get-" She started but he chuckled a little and pushed himself off the wall before moving over to her as she looked up at him before he leaned down and gently pressed a soft kiss to her cheek. "Um..."

"That's for saving me, Kitten," He smiled, making her face exploding into red. "I'm not mad at all. What happened today is the exact reason why I revealed Master Fu's existence and location to you. I trusted you to save me and you did,"

"But I choose Ryuko..." She mumbled, looking down. "And we almost failed,"

"But you didn't," He mumbled, gently lifting her chin up. "I don't know how you nearly failed but what I do know is you overcame it and found a solution.... and it seemed that Ryuko has grown as a person too if her new costume is anything to go by. You made the right call, Kitten and I'm proud of you,"

"Annie," She gasped, hugging him. He chuckled a little before hugging her back as Kagami came back over with Longg. Lady Noir pulled away, looking at them. Kagami looked to Longg, who gave her a smile and a nod before she faced the two heroes and bowed to them, making them both blink.

"I apologize for my earlier behavior towards both of you. I was reckless and petty so I apologize..." She stated, making them blink before she straightened up. "And I thank you for giving me a chance to prove myself. As you know I am not one for many words but I tell you this. You have my allegiance, my respect and my trust. I understand that you might not be able to give me the same in return but I hope that I can continue to build a friendship with both of you. Should you ever need my help again, I will drop what ever I need to and help you as best I can,"

"Thank you, Ryuko... That means a lot," Anatis smiled before looking to Longg. "Have you two made your peace?"

"Yes but we have a long way to go, young master," Longg replied, causing Anatis to nod before Kagami took off the choker and handed it to him. However, he glanced at Lady Noir and smiled at her. Encouraged, she took the necklace and placed it back in the box.

"I should return to Mother and Marinette but thank you both," Kagami smiled before walking off. Anatis turned to Lady Noir as she held out the miraculous to him and gently pushed it towards her, making her blink at him.

"I think it will be ok to for you to return it,"

"But won't Master Fu be worried about you?"

"I'll drop by his later tonight. Besides..." He mumbled, pointing to his earrings that beeped. Her ring beeped as well, causing her to look down at it. They still had a couple of minutes left til they de-transform but not to get across to the other side of Paris. "Can't let the cat out of the bag just yet, Kitten,"

She nodded in agreement as he took out his yoyo and swung up to the roof. He smiled at her and saluted her before disappearing. She looked down at the miraculous before nodding and jumping up to the roof before running across it to get to Master Fu's. She jumped down and landed in an allyway, just as her transformation dropped. She caught Plagg and took out a chuck of cheese for him, causing him to happily dig into it as they headed into Master Fu's apartment. She knocked on the door and waited for permission to come in. Once he called out, she opened the door and entered, smiling at him as she saw he was making tea.

"Ah, Marinette, you have returned," He smiled, walking over to her and giving her a cup of tea. The smell of jasmine drifted up from it, making her smile before she gently blew on it and took a sip. It was the right amount of sweet for her, making her grin. "I take it the mission went well,"

"Yes, Master Fu," She nodded before taking another sip. She put it down for a second and took out the miraculous as Master Fu took out the miracle box and opened it. She put the dragon back and watched as he returned it. "Anatis said he would drop by later tonight but he thought I should be the one to bring it back to you. I hope you don't mind,"

"Not at all," He smiled, sipping the tea. "Did Kagami do well?"

"Well, there was a little hiccup at first but we took down Ikari Gozen with panache," She smiled, making him nod before her eyes went wide. "Kagami! Oh no! It's still friendship day! Sorry, Master, I have to go!"

She jumped up, making him smile. He had never meant anyone like Marinette or Luka. Both were perfect matches for their miraculous. He created his throat before she could leave, causing her to look back at him.

"You did very well today, Marinette," He smiled, making her smile before he walked over to her. "And should you need anything be it miraculous related or not, my door is always open to you as it is to Anatis,"

"Thank you, Master!" She gasped, bowing before rushing out. He chuckled as Wayzz came out.

"She is very energetic," He muttered, making the old man chuckle. "Do you think they realize they are made for each other?"

"Love is the biggest mystery of life," Master Fu mumbled, looking over at a picture of a young him and a beautiful woman. "But if they are destined for each other then even the oceans of time can not separate them,"

~One Month before Princess Justice~

"Sir?" Nathalie asked as she came into his office. She had been summoned by him, causing her to worry. Was her job at risk? Or was it good news? She knew he was actively searching for his wife since her disappearance. She couldn't help but hope that maybe he had found her but then she saw him stood in front of the portrait of Emile. The way he was stood wasn't a man who had finally found his wife back. She could practically feel the sorrow raiding in off him. "Sir, you called for me?"

"Nathalie, please close the door and lock it," He stated in his usual tone but usually he wasn't so secretive. She frowned a little but did as he asked. "Nathalie, I can trust you, can't I?"

"Of course, sir but can I ask what has brought this on?" She asked, confused as he turned around. Honestly, he looked tired and like he hadn't slept properly in ages. "Are you ok, sir?"

"Tell me... what are your thoughts on our local heroes?" He asked, confusing her.

"Well, sir, I'd say they are brave..." She replied, making him nod.

"And the man terrorizing Paris... what do you think of Hawkmoth?" He asked, making her frown. Why did he care what she thought of Hawkmoth?

"Well... he seems to be...." She muttered, thinking about this carefully. She didn't want to come across as a terrorist sympathizer because she wasn't. Not really. She just believed that he was a desperate man. Not that justified his actions but he never actually kills anyone and she had a feeling that he was doing this for a reason. However, she knows she could very much be wrong. Gabriel frowned, waiting for her answer. "He seems like to be a desperate man,"

"A desperate man?" He asked, getting a nod of her. "And why do you think that?"

"I'm not sure, sir," She replied, looking to the side. "It's just the impression I get from his actions. He seems so desperate to get the heroes' jewels that it makes me think he has a reason for it and I don't think it's too rule the world or anything. If he wanted to rule the world, why go after the miraculous when he could just make an akuma who will do the work for him? No, I think he is after something more personal then that and I think it's something he can't do himself.... but sir... how do you know he's called Hawkmoth? Not even the heroes or the police know that..."

"How insightful," Gabriel muttered, nodding before turning around. The statement confused Nathalie. "Nathalie, what I am able to show you must be kept secret no matter what,"

"Of course, sir," She nodded. He gestured to her, causing her to move and stand next to him before he pressed hidden buttons on the portrait. She gasped as the floor shook before they descended down into the floor. Her eyes widen as she saw the hidden garden underneath. She had no idea this place existed. It was beautiful yet strangely full of sorrow. Gabriel opened the door to the lift and stepped outside before offering her his hand. She took it and he helped in her into the garden. They walked over to a strange object in the middle of it.

"You are very resourceful and insightful woman, Nathalie," He stated, making her look at him. "I wish to share my burden with you,"

"B-Burden?"

"My wife..." He muttered, looking down. What did he mean? Her mind raced at possibilities. What if he killed his wife? What if he was about to kill her? This man could be a murderer! "My sweet Emile... she always wanted to live a full and exciting life.... so when we found the miraculous... she was overjoyed. She took the peafowl and I took the butterfly. Oh those days were glorious but then she got sick... it progressively got worst and worst to the point that even the doctors had no idea what was wrong... by all means she was healthy yet a mysterious illness swept over her, draining her... It was then I noticed the cracks on her miraculous and made the link. She had only gotten ill when she started to use the miraculous..."

"It made her sick?"

"Yes... and I searched for a cure but nothing I did helped," He sighed. "Then we learnt from the kwamis that they were other miraculous... in particular two that could merge together and grant a wish that could change the world... we were going to find a way to claim them but then-"

"She disappeared...." She muttered but he shook his head and pressed a button on the object, causing it to come to life and open up, revealing Emile laying inside of it. Nathalie gasped in shock as Gabriel pressed his hand on the glass. "I-is She..."

"Dead? No... she's in a coma..." He muttered, making her frown. Shouldn't she be in a hospital? "This chamber is a life support machine. It keeps her alive and breathing but she is stuck in a coma. This is why I have been creating akumas... if I can lure out the heroes who hold the earrings of the ladybug and the ring of the black cat, I can merge them and make a wish... but no matter how many akumas I create, the heroes I need don't turn up. Instead, I am forced to battle with those two fools, Ryuko and Aspik..."

"Y-you're the one making the villains..." She gasped, making him to look at her. "W-Why..."

"To bring her back to me and Adrien..." He gasped, desperately. "Nathalie, I know this is a lot to take in but I am trying to save my wife's life. No medicine or doctor can heal her and if I bring her to a hospital, they'll declare her dead but as long as I can get those items, I can bring her back. I need to bring her back!"

Nathalie looked at him and instead of seeing an evil villain, she saw a broken man.

"Gabriel... you love her that much?"

"Yes! I would do anything for her," He gasped, making her heart flutter a little. She couldn't help but admire him. He was so devoted to his wife that he was willing to brink her back from the brink of death. She walked over to him and took his hands, surprising him.

"I will do what I can to help you," She stated.

"Nathalie... I only need someone to understand my pain..." He gasped but she shook her head.

"Whatever you need I will do," She declared, looking at him with admiration. "I will do anything for you,"

"Thank you, Nathalie. You really are my trusted friend," He smiled before dismissing her. She walked back to the lift but she failed to notice the smirk that came onto Gabriel's face as soon as she walked away. She would be a perfect ally and never betray him. After all, he knew she was truly in love with him and when someone is truly in love, they just want the person of their affections to be happy no matter what.

~Two Hours After Ikari Gozen~

"Sir, are you ok?" Nathalie asked as Gabriel came up from his secret room. Nooroo was eating a snack and he looked annoyed. He waved his hand and sat down as Nathalie cleared her voice. "Ikari Gozen was the closest we've came to capturing Anatis. We would have succeed if Ryuko hadn't come out of retirement,"

"Yes, I am aware of that," He growled, making her frown a little. "Anatis has gained more allies. It's bad enough that he has Culpeo, Abeille and Leatherback on his side but now he has managed to repair relations with Ryuko and Aspik..."

"What do you want to do, sir?" She asked, making him glance at her.

"Tell me, how is Miss Rossi doing?" He asked, causing Nathalie to look on her tablet.

"She is still hiding away from the shame of her defeat," She muttered, typing. "She has been harboring her anger against Anatis for weeks and with heroes day coming, she will see the object of her hatred everywhere she goes. The mayor has already announced that Anatis and Lady Noir will be a theme on at least one of the floats during the heroes parade. Since she will be faced with his visage wherever she'll go, I predict her anger will reach devastating heights, meaning she will ripe for akumatization. We could bring back Volpina,"

"Interesting," He muttered, taking the tablet she had handed to him. "Heroes day hm? What better day then to claim their miraculous once and for all?"

"So we use Volpina,"

"Yes but she only has some much use," He replied, making her glance at him. "Nathalie, you said you would do anything for me? Does that still ring true?"

"Of course sir," She nodded, looking at him with a serious expression. "What do you need me to do?"

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Next Chapter: https://ultra-sassyduck.tumblr.com/post/637807797675900929/miraculous-rise-of-anatis-40

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cycat4077 · 4 years ago

Text

Paradise Found (pt. b)

Summary: A continuation from Paradise Lost (pt. a). Sonny has become extremely distant after Mike’s death and it seems that life has just thrown you one bad thing after another. Will Sonny finally open up? (Set after S17x23, Heartfelt Passages.) Pairing: Sonny x Reader Warnings: Angst and some fluff. Basically a lot of feelings. Words: 2100 AO3 here

Part 7b of the Changes verse. Masterlist here you’re interested :)

A/N: This has sat in my drafts for far too long. I’ve had to shelve my fic writing for academic writing and even posting this feels like I’m cheating on my school work. I’ve got so many more ideas in the waiting so I hope that I can squeeze a few more in here and there and hopefully people will still want to read my crap ^.^

They say bad things happen in threes. The death of Sgt. Mike Dodds was the first thing to set the world off kilter while the way Sonny reacted was the second. That leaves you fearful of how life could get worse with a possible bad thing number three…

It’s been about two weeks since Mike died and two weeks since you woke up alone. To say Sonny has been distant is an understatement. Initially, you tried phoning (to no avail) and eventually resorted to texts instead:

Good morning, Sonny. Have a good day. Love you. Sent 7:04am

Classes are done for the day and I just got home. Sent 5:32pm

Sitting down to supper. Tried making chicken parm. It's definitely not as good as yours, but not terrible! Love you. Sent 7:16pm

Miss you, Sonny. If you want to talk, know that I’m here. Sent 8:03pm

Night, Sonny. Love you. Sent 11:28pm

Worked late. Goodnight. Received 11:52pm

You persisted in this way for a few days trying to convey that you would stick by him through anything, but it was clear Sonny wanted his space and eventually you conceded into giving it to him.

One evening, when sitting down to the seven o'clock news, you find coverage of Dodd’s funeral. What seemed like a hundred officers stood in uniform paying homage to their fallen brother. The casket was carried down the church steps by Mike's closest comrades; Sonny being one of them. It was sort of surreal seeing him on tv as he was absolutely stoic, though you knew him well enough to recognize the grief that lay just beneath the surface.

It tore your heart apart seeing him that way. You felt powerless because you wanted nothing more than to take away his pain, yet he wouldn't let you in. The days were hard and every night you shed new tears.

Finally, after two weeks you receive a phone call.

"Hey," Sonny's voice comes through. It isn't saturated with sadness like it had been on the night he showed up at your apartment. Instead, it’s apologetic.

"Hey," you reply cautiously. As much as you were thankful to hear from him again, his actions had still left a hole in your heart.

"I'm sorry..." You hear him exhale. "I'm so sorry I pushed you away. I know you were just tryin' to be there for me through all this 'n I've been a complete dick."

You feel tears prick your eyes. "Sonny-" you manage but it's only a whisper.

"No, doll. You don't have ta say anythin'," he interrupts gently. "Would it be alright if I come over? Cook us dinner? Do a little grovellin'? Talk this out ‘n try ta get back in your good graces?"

As hard as the last little while has been on you emotionally, you simply can't refuse.

Sonny shows up to your apartment a short time later, ingredients in tow. He sets them down right away and takes your shoulders gently in his outstretched hands. You can still see traces of grief in his eyes but it doesn't drown out the light like it had before.

He apologizes again and again until you're accepting a hug. Two warm arms engulf you and the emotions hit you all at once: just how much you've missed this – how much you’ve missed him.

“Can ya forgive me, doll?” he speaks into your hair.

You withdraw from his embrace to look into his eyes. “Of course, Sonny,” you reassure him, “but I don’t think I can handle going through this again. I need to know that you trust me enough to talk about what you’re feeling.”

It’s an unintentional shot to his heart. Sonny’s brow furrows and his blue eyes soften. He glances at his feet for a moment and takes a shaky breath before meeting your gaze once again. “I’ve never been through this type of thing before,” he begins. “Partly ‘cause I’ve never stuck around a precinct long enough ta get attached to my coworkers. But with these guys – with Mike - it almost felt like he was my brother. And then his life was gone just like that.” Sonny snaps his fingers, the sharp sound piercing the air around you. “I prayed for him. For his fiancée. For his father. I was supposed ta take that call, y’know?” Sonny’s shoulders sink as guilt weighs heavy on his conscience. “I was supposed ta be the one in that house that day. But Mike wanted one last crack at SVU before he left ‘n he payed for it with his life.” Your hands are in his now as he gives them a gentle squeeze. “I didn’t know how ta deal with that ‘n least of all I didn’t wanna to drag you down with me.”

With Sonny’s true feelings exposed, your heart breaks all over again. You lace your fingers with his in an attempt to put him at ease. “Sonny, needing someone to talk to isn’t a weakness,” you state reassuringly. “We’re in this together. That’s why I kept trying to reach you…but it seemed as though you didn’t want me around. I didn’t want to pry, but…but this was really hard on me,” you sniffle, trying to keep the tears at bay. You in no way want to take away from what Sonny felt, but you still need him to know how his actions affect you. “I had no way of knowing whether you were okay or not. You left me in the middle of the night, barely answered my messages. We went from “all” to “nothing” in a matter of a day. What was I supposed to think? I tried to tell myself that when you were ready, you’d let me back in.” The tears now start to roll down your cheeks as you lay your feelings out in the open. “But – but I couldn’t help thinking about the worst-case scenario: that somehow all this would create something between us that would be too hard to fix.”

“God no!” exclaims Sonny as he disentangles one of his hands from yours to tuck a strand of hair behind your ear. He levels his gaze on you and you can see the shimmer of tears in his eyes too. “One thing that never wavers is how much I love you. You’re my everything, doll ‘n if Mike’s death has taught me anythin’ it’s that you never know what could happen. I don’t want to lose you. I can’t lose you. I need you more than you could ever know. So, I’m sorry I was so distant. I should never have -”

You silence him with a sad smile. “I’m sorry for everything you had to go through, but I love you with all my heart. So, all I ask is that you let me in. Whenever you’re stressed or something goes wrong at work, whatever it may be, I’m here. Talk to me. Hug me. Kiss me. I may not always have the right words to say, but I will hold your hand through it all. Just please don’t disappear.”

Instantly, Sonny gathers you in his arms once again. “I promise, doll. I promise.” As he gently sways you back and forth, all you can do is hope that he truly means it.

Eventually, the two of you part and the mood lightens as Sonny sets to work preparing dinner. The food is delicious, as his cooking always is, and you both quickly fall back into old routines of smiling, laughing and just being yourselves.

Later, Sonny is chatting to you with his back turned towards the sink while he puts away the last of your dishes. You’re already heading for the couch when a notification pings on your phone. Upon reading the email it suddenly feels as though the earth is dropping out from under your feet. Your whole body sags, pulling you down onto the sofa. Your eyes glue themselves to the screen, reading the lines of text over and over incredulously and as a result, you don't hear the lighthearted joke Sonny makes. And it's when you don’t laugh that Sonny turns in confusion.

Your ghostly state causes him to toss the dish towel and hastily arrive by your side. "What's wrong, doll?" Your hands begin to tremble. Your mouth is completely dry. "Doll?" Sonny repeats, the concern in his voice growing. "Everythin' okay?"

You manage to turn your head towards him and open your mouth to speak. "I...I...I'm being fired."

"What?!" Sonny blurts, jumping to his feet.

You follow him with your eyes as he paces, raising his hands in disbelief. "It...it says here that the professor who used to teach my course is coming out of retirement and they won't be...needing me anymore."

"Can they do that?" he exclaims, growing angry.

"Apparently so," you say, absolutely defeated. There it is. Bad thing number three.

Sonny lets out a huff, his hands emphasizing his frustration. "But it's the end of the semesta!"

"I don't know what I'm going to do," you admit. "Once this course is over, that's it. Where am I going to work? How am I going to pay my bills?" The tears begin to fall which instantaneously flips a mood switch inside your boyfriend.

"Hey, hey," his voice is soft and gentle. "Don't cry, okay? You'll be alright." Sonny sits back down next to you and wipes away a tear with his thumb. Then he suddenly lights up. "Move in with me."

"What?" you sniffle.

"Move in with me!" he repeats like it's the most natural thing in the world. "It's not outta the ordinary for two people who love each other to move in together. And I love you. Besides," his words tumble out at a mile a minute, "you won't have ta worry 'bout rent and it'll give ya time ta find a new job. Yourra great teacha so you will finda new job."

Your heart melts over his kindness. "Sonny, I couldn't," you shake your head dismissively. "I don't want to mooch off you -"

"Nah," he puts up a hand to shush you. "I want ya with me. Honestly."

You try to smile but there's another dreadful reality that emerges from the depths of your mind. "But Sonny...what if I can't get a job? What if there's no positions available in the city? I...I may be forced to move away."

You watch as Sonny's whole body droops. You can tell immediately that he never considered that possibility. He studies you for a moment with saddened eyes before taking your hands in his. They're soft and warm; a sense of comfort among this entire mess. "We'll cross that bridge if we come to it, doll. What we've got is bigger than any distance we may have ta face." He kisses your forehead, lips lingering so you know he means every word. All the heartache from the last two weeks just melts away. None of it matters now. It's just you and him against the world once more.

You squeeze his hands and look Sonny in the eyes. "Stay with me tonight? Please?" It's a desperate plea, vulnerable and exposed. Maybe it's because of his two-week absence. Maybe it's the fear of your uncertain future. Or maybe it's a combination of both. But the thing is: you simply can't bear the thought of being alone. Now, it’s you who needs him.

"Absolutely," agrees Sonny without a second of hesitation. He pulls you to his chest for a much-needed, comforting hug.

In the weeks that follow, Sonny helps you pack your belongings up and transfer them into his place. Your parents drive in from upstate to help you move as well, allowing Sonny to wiggle even farther into their hearts.

All the while you finalize the semester's grading and say a reluctant goodbye to the course you've come to love teaching.

Doing your research, you send your dossier to other colleges in Manhattan and the surrounding boroughs. Thankfully, your luck shifts and a phone call comes through with an offer for the fall. It would be a similar contract as before with courses you would enjoy teaching. The cherry on top is that your new campus would be even closer to Sonny's apartment than your previous job.

It would have to be a summer of tight budgeting to make up for your unemployment, but it would also be a summer where every night you get to fall asleep in the arms of the man you love. And really, there is no other future that could be as bright.

-x-

Thanks for reading!

Part 8 here :)

#Sonny Carisi x Reader #Sonny Carisi #Sonny x reader #law and order svu #law and order svu fanfiction #Sonny Carisi x you #Changes #The Changes verse #my fanfic

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andrewmoocow · 4 years ago

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Steven Universe Alternate Future chapter 6: Why so Blue? (originally published on January 11, 2021)

Author's Note: This is one chapter I've been excited to write. In my opinion, Lapis is my favorite character because aside from having cool powers and being pretty, I also relate to her a lot because I've been through a lot of suffering like her. Though thankfully, I wasn't caught up in warfare, trapped in a mirror for thousands of years, and finally released only to be trapped in a walking, talking abusive relationship under the sea; just some standard bullying by people who love pushing my buttons, being framed for something I obviously didn't do that forced me to drop out of my first high school following first semester of freshman year. But enough about my life story, onto my #1 Gem waifu!

Synopsis: Steven and Lapis try to confront a pair of Lapises that continue terraforming worlds.

Cast:

Zach Callison as Steven

Jennifer Paz as Lapis Lazuli, Mean Lapis, Nice Lapis

Amy Sedaris as Blue Zircon

"Thanks for the help Lapis." Steven thanked Lapis Lazuli as they planted some new flowers in his conservatory. "These blue hyacinth flowers really tie the place together."

"You're welcome, Steven," Lapis replied with a smile. "Peridot helped me pick these out from the greenhouse. You know, it's funny. The two of us didn't get along at first, me more than Peridot to be honest, but thanks to you, we're basically inseparable."

"Aw shucks Lapis, was nothing." Steven blushed, just as the communication console nearby began to light up. "Hang on, I think this one's for me."

When Steven turned it on, a particular Gem who he barely got to know greeted him. "Oh hey, you're that Zircon from my trial! How are things?"

"Going pretty good." The defense Zircon answered. "Ever since the other Zircon and I were unbubbled at the start of Era 3, we've left our lawyer days behind in favor of politics. With the Diamonds essentially no longer in power, Homeworld had decided to turn to democracy when the caste system was dissolved."

"It's nice to hear some more good news," Lapis interjected. "but why did you call us?"

"Oh yes, that." Blue Zircon realized before she conjured up a hologram with her monocle. "Rumor has it that despite the caste system's end, there are at least two Gems who continue to terraform regardless of the end of colonization. Last we heard, they were busy remodeling the former Blue Diamond colony Aozul 2."

"Wait, terraform?" Lapis said with surprise at the mention of her old duties. "Are they other Lapis Lazulis by any chance?"

"Yes, that is why I contacted you today." Blue Zircon continued explaining. "Why do you ask?"

"I think I might remember them from when I was a terraformer." Lapis revealed, before she turned to the Warp Pad. "That's why I'm coming with you, Steven."

"Alright then." Steven agreed. "Who knows? Maybe we can get them to come to Little Homeschool."

"I'm not too sure about that, Steven." Lapis nervously replied before they stepped on the Warp Pad and activated it, taking off for Aozul 2.

On the other Warp Pad that dropped Steven and Lapis off was Aozul 2, a gorgeous-looking moon orbiting a yellow planet thriving with unique wildlife. Though the pair was amazed by the nature around them, they still had a mission to do.

"Let's not get distracted, this may not take long." Steven said as he stepped off the Pad. "Most Gems come around pretty quickly when I invite them to Little Homeworld in person."

"What a beautiful place." Lapis muttered in awe, distracting her from the strange little native creature they almost stepped on. "Wait!"

Looking down, Steven and Lapis found a cute flower bud-like alien with its petals opened up. "Whoa, thanks for the save Lapis." Steven thanked his blue buddy before kneeling to pet the creature. "Hey, little buddy."

The creature closed its petals in fright and raced into a nearby bush, making more of its kind nervously emerge in front of Steven. "It's okay Flower Buddies." He chuckled at his name for the creatures as they began to crawl all over him, now no longer seeing the boy as a danger. "Haha, whoa now!"

"Wow, Steven, it took you all of five seconds to make a new friend. You must be getting rusty." Lapis commented as she approached the Flower Buddy resting in Steven's arms and began to pet it gently. "You know, I used to never notice creatures like this. Before arriving on Earth, I used to not think twice about terraforming, never taking a moment to appreciate what I was destroying." The Buddy smiled at Lapis and began to open its petals for her as well. "Life is so precious. And these guys remind me of Pumpkin in particular."

The other Buddies began to blossom, only to just as quickly close up their petals as the silhouette of a figure similar to Lapis zoomed over them.

"Uh, Steven?" Lapis brought her friend's attention to the figures flying around and conjuring up water to cause untold chaos upon Aozul 2.

After putting the Flower Buddy down, Steven made his way to the edge of a cliff to get a better look at the pair. From what he could gather, one of the Lapides had her gemstone on her stomach, darker colored skin and hair than the one he knew, the hair was done up in a ponytail, and had gold-colored freckles on her cheeks. The other Lapis had her gem on her shoulder, light azure skin, and medium-blue curly hair.

"So, the rumors were true." Steven wondered as the pair of Lapises continued their path of destruction, laughing all the way.

"You think that Zircon called us because they didn't get your message?" Lapis asked Steven while gazing upon the terraformers' progress.

"I'm sure they did." Steven replied assuredly. "Everyone did, but I'll try and get them to stop."

"This may be harder than you think." Lapis added as her fellow Lazulis flew closer to the pair, using their powers to cut a massive rock in half and terrifying the Flower Buddies.

"Hey, stop!" Steven called to the blue Gems, who reacted to their work's sudden intrusion by preparing to launch a massive tidal wave at the pair. Steven was ready however, and defended himself and Lapis with his shield.

"Wait, that's Steven Universe!" the ponytailed Lapis cried as she grabbed her partner's arm. "And is that who I think it is with him?"

"He's smaller than I thought." The curly-haired Lapis replied when she came to the same realization as her fellow Lazuli. "No way!"

"You guys!" Lapis squealed in delight, causing the other two to cheer happily as well. "Oh my gosh, it's been ages!" she yelled as the two Lapises raced down to hug her. "I haven't seen you two since I was sent down to Earth!"

"Wait, you all know each other?" Steven asked the three terraformers.

"Yeah, we go way back with ol' 3E8C-4XF here." The stomach gem Lapis remarked. "That's her facet and cut, by the way. I'm 2F8D-9ZE, and Curls here is 1J9G-5KL."

"Yeah, the three of us were an unstoppable terraforming trio back in the day." 1J9G-5KL snidely explained with a flip of her hair. "Tearing planets apart, taking names, and looking cool while doing it!"

"But then I was given a solo mission to Earth, which was how I got caught up in the Rebellion, and here we are." Lapis continued for her old friends.

"We're just so glad you're okay!" 2F8D-9ZE exclaimed happily. "So anyway, what do you think? We're just about almost done with this world. Exemplary work, no?"

"And we don't need the extra help." 1J9G-5KL said meanly. "So it was nice catching up, but please, ta-ta."

"Look, we came here because you gotta stop." Steven explained to the Lapides. "The Diamonds don't control you anymore. Didn't you get my message?"

"Yeah, we did." Freckles nodded.

"So, you don't have to terraform for them anymore." Steven continued. "You're free to do whatever you want now! In fact, we want to offer you the chance to come learn at Little Homescho-"

"Oh, so this is all some big misunderstanding?" Freckles interrupted Steven.

"This has got to be a joke." Curls rolled her eyes. "Like, terraforming is what we like to do, and now you're saying we shouldn't do it anymore?!"

"Oh, here we go." Lapis groaned. "1J9G was always pretty passionate about her work."

"You're getting it wrong." Steven tried to ease the tension. "You can do whatever you like! As long as nothing gets destroyed and nobody gets hurt."

"That's not what you said a sec ago!" Curls pointed out. Freckles tried to speak, but Curls shushed her by forcing her mouth shut with a finger. "Are you listening to yourself right now?"

"Why should we stop?" Freckles lowered Curls' finger to ask.

"Because it's wrong!" Lapis answered, becoming irritated with her former partners' behavior.

"Wait, wait, wait." Freckles said, gesturing to the destruction she and Curls caused. "How can what we were made to do suddenly be soo-oo taboo now? At least let us get back to work, we're almost done with Aozul 2 here!"

"Team huddle?" Steven nervously muttered to Lapis.

"Team huddle." Lapis replied, slowly retreating into the cobalt-leafed forest away from the other Lapides. "We'll be back with you in a bit, girlfriends."

"You're right. This is harder than usual." Steven said to Lapis as they hid in the bushes.

"You've gotta force them to stop." Lapis suggested while spying on her old friends from the foliage. "This is definitely gonna be a fight. They're not nice like what I became. 1J9G was always the alpha of our little trio, ordering us around and treating lower-ranked Gems like trash. 2F8D, on the other hand was more of the follower, as loyal to 1J9G as a Pearl is to their Diamond. I, on the other hand, was essentially the third wheel, mostly existing to follow along with them."

"So you guys were basically high school mean girls?" Steven compared Lapis's former situation to fiction. "Did any of you play the Gem version of croquet in your spare time, or wear pink on Wednesdays?"

"This is nothing like those movies, Steven." Lapis stated.

"Well maybe like those girls in the movies, they just don't know what they're doing isn't nice." Steven tried to assure his azure friend. "You get it, what made things click for you?"

"A cycle of horrible torture that I came close to repeating myself." Lapis gravely answered, much to Steven's fright. "But also like, living in nature and making meep morps."

"Yeah, that's it!" Steven cheered quietly. "Come on, we can do that for them."

"C'mon, not even a little torture?" Lapis asked while squeezing her hands together.

"No torture, just the other stuff." Steven decided against any lethal force before he and Lapis returned to the water Gems.

"Geez, what's taking those two so long?" the Mean Lapis asked impatiently while waiting for Steven and her fellow Lapis to return.

"I'm starting to get wet here." The Nice Lapis added, prompting her curly-haired buddy to turn to her with a raised eyebrow of disbelief. "I'm trying to make it a catchphrase. It depends on the context, in this case, I'm getting bored."

"Well, I urge you not to make that happen." 1J9G commanded, just as Steven and Lapis finally reemerged from the bushes, waving to them while walking backwards. "Oh, look who finally decided to come back."

"Okay, we've come to a decision." Steven declared. "Why don't we show you fun things you can do on Earth other than causing mass destruction?"

"Should we listen to him?" 1J9G asked 2F8D.

"He's only half-Diamond, so maybe we should half-listen to him." 2F8D suggested.

"I'll take that as a yes." Steven answered, trying to hide his eye twitching at being called a mere half-Diamond, before taking the two terraformers into the forest. "Let's go."

Once within the extraterrestrial woods, Steven began to show the Lapides around, trying to get them to appreciate the beauty of nature. "It's a beautiful day here. Fresh air, pretty trees, peaceful wildlife. Any life-changing epiphanies yet?"

"It's so bright." 2F8D observed as she gazed directly into the sun.

"No duh, Too-Eff." 1J9G rudely replied while poking on a leaf with a stick. "I only prefer two colors, rocks and mud. Right?"

"Well, I have to admit," 2F8D said as she continued looking at the sun. "that sun is a real pretty shade of-"

"I said, right 2F8D?" 1J9G cut her friend off.

"Uh yeah, rocks and mud!" 2F8D laughed nervously, her pupils rapidly darting around while holding her hands behind her back.

"I understand you don't see the beauty with this, but I know you will with time, girls." Lapis said. "There was a time where I didn't appreciate organic life as well, much like you guys. But I learned of how beautiful it can be. Maybe you can try something like this."

Gazing at the small puddle of mud in front of her, Lapis began to conjure up a strange shape from the wet dirt.

"This is what we call art, or in Lapis's terms, a meep morp." Steven demonstrated. "And it can be made out whatever you want to be, whether it be nature or just random junk you find lying around."

"So you can do whatever you want with your powers," 1J9G asked. "but you choose to make junk."

"It doesn't have to be like that." Lapis answered, continuing to toy with the mud. "You can make anything with a little imagination."

As an example, Lapis shifted the mud to take the form of a lawnchair for Steven to sit on, along with a drink and sunglasses. When Steven drank out of the mud-made cup, he immediately spat it out.

"So lifelike, I almost forgot!" Steven exclaimed in realization as the mud fell apart.

"That's it?" 1J9G muttered with a tilt of her head.

"It's more satisfying than you think it is." Lapis claimed. "Go ahead, give it a shot."

"But what can we make?" 2F8D asked, scratching her chin as she examined the wilderness around them.

"Didn't you listen, dummy?" 1J9G responded while conjuring up some water. "They said we could make anything!"

"Right, anything!" 2F8D said as the two turned the water into the shape of a ball. "I totally knew that."

"That's it!" Lapis cheered for her former friends. "Try making some other shapes, it can be anything you want!"

The Lapides listened as they made the water ball grow spikes before flattening it into a sawblade that they tossed in-between Steven & Lapis, cutting down a mountain behind them in two.

"Wow, you just made our jobs easier!" 1J9G cackled and pointed at the fallen rock behind the two Crystal Gems.

"We'll have this planet cleaned up in no time!" 2F8D agreed with a laugh.

"Steven, this isn't working." Lapis muttered fearfully, prompting Steven to try something else.

"Looks like you two still have some energy to let out." Steven laughed. "Maybe you should try something more physical, like dancing!"

"Dance?" 1J9G wondered while Steven pulled out his phone. "And what is that thing in your hand?"

"Just watch us." Steven stated as he turned on some funky music for he and Lapis to dance to on his phone, as another demonstration to the Lapides. Although 1J9G was unimpressed, she noticed 2F8D starting to get into the groove as she swayed her arms from side to side.

Steven and Lapis took this as a breakthrough and continued dancing to the music, but then their gems started to glow by complete accident. "WHOA!" they exclaimed in unison, stopping their dance to keep the glowing down.

"Almost fused there, Lapis." Steven chuckled.

"Yeah, wouldn't want a repeat of Peridot." Lapis replied.

"Uh, who's Peridot?" 1J9G asked while ordering 2F8D to stop dancing with a mean look.

"Only Lapis's best friend!" Steven exclaimed with a hand on his Lapis's shoulder.

"Yeah, you can meet all types of people on Earth, humans and Gems." Lapis said. "Peridot and I got off on the wrong foot because when we first met, I was basically her hostage in an invasion of Earth." She continued explaining. "But over time, we grew closer thanks to Steven's influence and even had our own home in this little barn, but then due to circumstances I'd rather not get into at the moment, we just kinda drifted apart for a bit. We did eventually get back together, but when Little Homeschool first started, we unfortunately didn't have as much time to enjoy our shared inter-"

Before Lapis could finish, the other Lapises started laughing. "Really, you and a low-class Gem like a Peridot?!" 1J9G guffawed, forcing the primary Lapis to scowl at the pair.

"What's next, an Aquamarine fusing with a Ruby?!" 2F8D let out a loud wheeze.

"Funny story, actually." Steven began, but 1J9G cut him off.

"Look, we don't wanna hear anymore, kid." The Lapis snarked. "We know you want to do what's best for everyone or some stupid stuff like that, but we decided on what's best for us, and that's terraforming." She stated. "Now, please, run along back to your little school before you make me slap your face off."

"Geez, Jay-Nine, no need to threaten him like that." 2F8D tried to convince her pal otherwise.

"He's threatening our way of life, you clod!" 1J9G yelled at 2F8D, who reflexively knelt and cowered. "If you think a little kid like him is right, then why don't you come with them?"

"Gee, 2F8D has real bad taste in friends." Steven whispered to Lapis.

"It's like I said, One-Jay really liked to order us around." Lapis replied. "She also really doesn't like it whenever what she says gets questioned."

"Now, if you'll excuse us 3E8C," 1J9G finally said while turning away from her belligerent friend. "we're gonna go back to work, so no more interruptions."

"Y-yeah, let's get back to it!" 2F8D meekly added.

Ironically, the pair was stopped from flying away when Lapis finally spoke up. "I get it." She said to her old friends. "All this won't make you feel good right away, maybe not even at all. You guys are just afraid of change after thousands of years doing one thing, but they can help you navigates new ways of feeling. If you aren't into dancing, maybe singing would be more your speed."

Lapis prepared to demonstrate, but then she started hesitating for a bit. But thanks to some encouragement from Steven, she worked up the bravery and finally started to sing. "Oooo-ooo-oooh, why so bluuuu-uuuu-uuue? So many shades of sorrow got mixed into my hue." Lapis began. "And each new moment just astounds me, so much I wanna do. I finally feel my colors shining through."

The other Lapides began following their former friend as she gazed into her reflection in a puddle. "I'm tired of the fighting, I'm tired of the blame." Lapis continued as she reminisced on her struggles. "That mirror was a prison, and fusion was the same. What's with these new sensations that suddenly appear?! Deep as the roaring ocean, free as the atmosphere!"

Racing away from the puddle, Lapis excitedly pushed back some leaves to show her ex-partners more of Aozul 2's beauty as her song reached its high point. "Oooo-ooo-oooh, why so bluuuu-uuuu-uuue? So many different reasons, but are they really true?" Lapis began to finish as she knelt to watch the Flower Buddies surrounding her. "I wanna keep on going, wanna be right here with you. I'd love to see your colors shining throoooo-ooough." The Buddy that made its territory in Lapis's lap then blossomed for her. "I'd love to see your colors shining through."

Despite what Steven and Lapis believed the song would do, 1J9G laughed mockingly at her, and 2F8D was ordered to do the same with a poke to the elbow. "You really expect us to dance and sing like we're Pearls?!" 1J9G said derisively. "Look, Steven Universe, you already got 3E8C doing it for you! I mean, did you make her like this, or was she this much of a loser?!"

"You never bothered to ask what I liked back in the day!" Lapis angrily said before her curly-bobbed ex-friend grabbed her by the shirt collar.

"Listen 3E8C," 1J9G commanded Lapis just as angrily. "you and that so-called Diamond are going to leave this planet so we can get back to doing what we want to do, not be reconditioned into following everything you say with a dumb song! End, of, discussion."

"You don't have to be so cruel!" Steven yelled at 1J9G. "And you don't have to be such a horrible friend ei-"

"Did I stutter?" 1J9G continued as she glared daggers at Steven before turning away from him. "Come on 2F8D, let's get back to work."

"Yeah, see ya." 2F8D replied and said farewell to Steven before they flew off. "It was wet seeing you again 3E8C!"

"CONTEXT!" 1J9G yelled.

Steven was just about ready to give up, but Lapis just started angrily as her fellow Lapides got back to terraforming. "That's it!" she declared. "I've had enough of you two!"

"But, you promised we wouldn't fight!" a worried Steven reminded Lapis.

"If we had done this my way, we could've gotten this done way earlier!" Lapis replied before she flew up to her former friends. "Hey girls, that's enough!"

"Oh, look who it is." 1J9G grinned sneakily.

"You finally come to give us a hand?" 2F8D asked.

"You could say that." Lapis smiled before she spawned a pair of water hands from below, and used them to flick 1J9G and 2F8D away.

"Did she just do that?" 2F8D said, recoiling from the attack.

"Yeah, she did." 1J9G replied as she got an idea. "So, you can make hands, huh?" she said as she and her beleaguered partner formed a water hand of their own. "Okay if we try?"

The giant hand slapped Lapis away towards Steven, who summoned his shield to catch her and protect himself from the water. "Lapis," Steven cried. "are you okay?"

"I'm okay, just stay out of this!" Lapis demanded Steven before she flew back up and sprouted another pair of water wings that she turned into fists. "DORARARARARARARARARARARARA!" She yelled while unleashing her fury on 1J9G. "DORA!"

1J9G was thrust out of the sky and almost crashed onto the ground, until 2F8D caught her with a water hand.

"You alright?" 2F8D said sympathetically.

"I'm fine, you big baby." 1J9G growled and rubbed her head just as Lapis tried to restrain the two with chains made of water, but were nimbly dodged. "Water chains?"

"You really need to stop teaching us these wet new things!" 2F8D giggled, invoking another angry glare from 1J9G, before they created chains of their own to restrain Lapis and pin her to the cliff face.

"Lapis!" Steven cried for his Beach Summer Fun Buddy.

"We really gotta hand it to you." 2F8D said. "This new stuff you're showing us isn't actually useless."

Once again, the Lapides created a sawblade. But this time, instead of chopping a mountain in two, they had darker intentions for it. The blade was tossed straight at the seemingly powerless Lapis, and Steven couldn't help but watch.

"OH NO!" Steven yelled. But suddenly, the saw stopped right in front of Lapis's face and was reduced back into droplets as the earth shook around everyone. Water from all around began to surround her, washing over the other terraformers along the way as Lapis formed a massive watery figure wielding a harpoon around her.

"WHO'S DULL NOW?!" Lapis boomed, terrifying 2F8D into hugging 1J9G for protection while Lapis prepared to land the killing blow. "WHO'S PITIFUL NOW?!"

However, when Lapis turned to Steven with a sadistic grin, his disappointed expression made her realize what she's become. After the water figure fell apart, Lapis returned to the cliff's edge in exhaustion.

"You okay?" Steven asked while having one of the Flower Buddies in his arms.

"I'm fine." Lapis answered as the Buddy jumped into her embrace. "Sorry about losing control there."

As the water receded, the Lapides sat there stunned as Steven and Lapis flew down to face them.

"It's over now." Lapis declared to her ex-friends. "No more fighting. Okay?"

"Fine by me." 1J9G said with a smirk.

"Yeah, that was so wet back there!" 2F8D smiled earnestly, with Lapis giving her a confused stare this time.

"And no more terraforming too. Promise?" Lapis suggested.

"Oh, we'll do anything you say now!" 2F8D exclaimed cheerfully.

"After that ridiculous show of strength, we're at your command!" 1J9G added.

"No, that wasn't strength!" Lapis said hotly. "That was weakness! Patience takes strength; restraint takes strength!" Before Lapis could finish, she just decided to stop and walked away. "And I don't have the strength to deal with you anymore."

Before he could follow Lapis, Steven fished some brochures from his jacket pocket that he handed to the Lapides. "Here, have some Little Homeschool brochures. In case you change your mind." He offered before walking off after her.

After Steven and Lapis left Aozul 2, 1J9G and 2F8D sat on a rock reading through the brochures Steven gave them. While 2F8D was growing interested in the opportunities Little Homeschool had for her, 1J9G wasn't amused.

"So what, it's not just dancing and singing like Pearls?" 1J9G complained. "We have to do all this other junk too? This totally goes against what we were made for!"

"Yeah, but as Steven said, we can do whatever we want now!" 2F8D exclaimed as she pointed at some of the activities. "Like, gardening, for example! Isn't that wet?"

"Stop trying to make 'wet' happen!" 1J9G yelled. "It's never going to happen!"

After having her attempts at a catchphrase ruined, 2F8D clenched her fist and worked up some courage to tell her so-called friend the truth. "Hey, Little Homeschool also gives us opportunities to make new friends outside of our old castes. And I mean actual friends, not Gems who relentlessly pick on you for the stupidest of things."

"Is this about our bond?" 1J9G growled. "I'm totally your friend! I just have a different way of expressing it!"

"Yeah, well, Steven treats 3E8C with some level of respect and kindness!" 2F8D argued back. "You ever heard of either of those terms before?"

"This isn't funny Two-Eff." 1J9G growled. "We are not going to that stupid school. And you will stick with me, no matter what! End. Of. Discussion!"

However, 1J9G realized a bit too late that 2F8D had already left her, and was already racing to the Warp Pad with one of the Flower Buddies under her arm.

"Sorry One-Jay, but I'm going off to learn how to be nice to people!" 2F8D said rapidly before the Warp Pad took her away from Aozul 2. "OKAY, BYYYYYEEE!"

And so, 1J9G was left utterly alone on the blue-colored moon. Alone and positively furious. As she began angrily chopping down trees with her powers, a black dropship slowly dropped into Aozul's atmosphere.

Night fell by the time Steven and Lapis finally returned to Little Homeschool. Still guilty for giving in to her anger, Lapis sat forlornly on the Warp Pad, only for Steven to seat himself next to her.

"I wish I hadn't done that." Lapis moaned. "They just reminded me so much of myself, and how I acted in the past. All high and mighty with no regard for anyone but myself."

"Hey, don't beat yourself up." Steven gave his blue friend a comforting smile. "You've grown a lot since I first broke you out of that mirror, but everything takes time. It's not your fault those two are still stuck in their ways."

As Lapis smiled back, the Warp Pad activated once again. This time, 2F8D stood behind them, and a Flower Buddy peeked from behind her. "Hey, is this that school you were talking about?" 2F8D asked sheepishly. "One-Jay and I had a disagreement, so now I want to learn what real friends are like."

The Flower Buddy stepped up from behind 2F8D and nuzzled itself on Lapis's leg. "I also brought this little guy along as a way of saying sorry." 2F8D continued. "Hope you like him."

"I love him." Lapis said as she picked the Buddy up. "Thanks Zuli."

"Zuli?" the Lapis now known as Zuli asked.

"Yeah, 2F8D might be hard to remember." Lapis explained. "Just came up with that nickname off the top of my head. You like it?"

"I love it!" Zuli cheered. "So, when can I start school?"

"Doesn't matter." Steven answered.

"Yeah, welcome to Earth." Lapis responded.

Back on Aozul 2, 1J9G continued terraforming the little moon to vent her stress, leaving a trail of fallen trees and small dirt canyons in her wake.

"I can't believe that freckled clod just ditched me like that!" 1J9G shrieked furiously. "She just fell for that kid's games, and then ran off!" Amid her ranting, the curly-haired Lapis began to cry. "Is this how he gets his sick kicks, just tearing apart friendships like that?! I'm gonna make him pay for stealing my friends when I find him again!"

Just then, some of the trees 1J9G didn't chop down started rustling, frightening her. "Who's there?" she began panicking. "Did you realize you made a huge mistake and come crawling back to me?"

However, 1J9G realized she wasn't talking to 2F8D. Instead, a large, grey hand with a white topaz on the back emerged from the foliage, and reached out for her.

Ominous, isn't it?! This was real great to write, especially since as mentioned above, Why so Blue is my favorite episode of Future. Hope you liked how I expanded on the Lapises and their backstory, and are excited for what I got next. Because on the next chapter of Steven Universe: Alternate Future, we aren't moving onto Little Graduation, that's the start of Part 2. Instead, we get onto cut content territory with Rhodonite's backstory at last. In the meantime, I'd really like this series to get mentioned on TV Tropes like my other written works.

#steven universe #steven universe future #fanfiction #steven universe alternate future #steven quartz universe #lapis lazuli #nice lapis #mean lapis

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valkyrieofsmut · 4 years ago

Text

Captive Love 19

UF!Sans x Reader (or Frisk if you wanna)

Summary: Sweetheart enjoys flustering Papyrus, and he tries to educate her in the greatest of performers; Mettaton... Aka, share his interests with her. Also... other stuff happens.

A/N: Important stuff! So! While looking through stuff, I looked through the bookmarks to this story (on Ao3, for multiple reasons) and saw a comment in the bookmark saying that they weren't sure why she hadn't gotten her voice back, yet. This is honestly a good question. I guess it wasn't clear enough, I mean, a lot of stuff has happened. I tried to put the speech indicators to show that her voice is getting better, but then she'll yell and scream at Sans or someone on the phone (her idiot boss) and it'll get a bit worse. Also, I did a count of the days (quickly scanning through the whole file so I could be a little off) and at the beginning of the next chapter she's only been there for two weeks (13 days actually) and only been awake for 10 of them. Even if we give the benefit of the doubt and say three weeks (pretty sure that's the time frame I was aiming for about the point they had sex), she's basically gotten her voice back, its just a bit wobbly and squeaky. I dunno 'bout the rest of y'all, but last time I got sick (actually right before I started writing this story) I lost my voice for about a month and a half. I started getting it back after a month, had two weeks of the squeaky voice of a dog toy, and then a week of where it was mostly back, but still wobbly and had to clear my throat a lot because of it cutting out and squeaking. This is for informative purposes, not to be a jerk. Even though I feel like a jerk... lol God damn it! Do you know how hard I tried not to make it so he had a sock thing?! Maybe a preference or soft spot, but not an all out fetish. Like, 'ooo, yeah, those're sexy,' sure, but not, 'oh god, I'm so hard 'cause you're wearing socks!' *sigh* I fail at life... Enjoy an about double length chapter!.

Masterlist Series Masterlist

Story

Papyrus tries to be... friendly? Maybe. Is that what he's doing? Yes.

Contrary to what Sans had said, the two spent the time until Papyrus came back not having sex, but cuddling and making out.

“SANS!” Papyrus called from downstairs, knowing too well not to go near his brother’s room unless he was interested in an accidental show.

Sans pulled back from the kiss he was tangled in with (Y/n), glancing to the door before giving her another kiss and climbing from the bed to go down to his brother.

(Y/n) laid back, biting her lip and smiling.

Ok… so it hadn’t started out great, but, really, even if she left now, the sex was amazing, and she wouldn’t have a problem messaging him. Who knew about a relationship, but what they had was pretty sweet.

A sudden realization hit her.

What did Sans think of relationships?

Was it something monsters did? It seemed like they avoided showing that they had feelings or emotions at every turn, and she could see how having a relationship would blow that out of the water.

Did she want a relationship?

Yes, sex was nice, and it was nice spending time with him, but… it was entirely different than having a relationship. Right now, they were basically almost friends, with benefits. Maybe closer to fuck buddies who liked hanging out.

It was a strange gray area to be in.

(Y/n) stretched and climbed from the bed, hurrying to grab some clothes and head to take a quick shower to wash the smell of sex from her.

How long had it been since her body had felt so well used? So nicely taken care of?

...How long had it been since she’d been a willing participant in it becoming this sore?

She shook her head to get that thought out of her head.

It didn’t matter, anyway, that bastard was gone, and she was here.

She needed to enjoy her life.

She instead focused on washing up, bemoaning that her legs had gotten so hairy and that there was no razer around here to shave. How could she have forgotten to tell Sans to get one when she sent him out for everything and the kitchen sink?

After her shower, she went into Sans’ room and found the bag he’d brought back on the off chance that he had gotten one and she’d just missed it.

No luck, though she did find a pair of really cute over the knee socks. They looked like they were either from a halloween display, or from a store that sold punk and goth type clothing, having a print of tiny scattered skull and crossbones, and a bit of lace and back ribbon at the top.

Well… at least they’d cover the hairs on her legs and she wouldn’t be so self conscious about them.

She pulled on a shirt, the pants she’d originally been wearing, and did her best with her hair before she walked downstairs.

Papyrus was making a lot of noise in the kitchen, and Sans was nowhere to be seen.

He must have gone out for something…

(Y/n) went to the kitchen and stopped next to Papyrus.

He looked down at her with a suspicious glare, but she responded with a friendly grin.

Papyrus quickly looked away with a bit of red growing over his cheeks.

Embarrassment… that’s right; being nice flustered him.

A mischievous grin lifted her lips.

This was going to be fun.

As Papyrus started trying to make the shepherd's pie again, she stood near, pre measuring things and handing them to him.

“WHAT ARE YOU DOING, HUMAN?!” He demanded, his hands going to rest on his pelvis.

“He-ping,” she told him, then shot a huge grin. [helping]

Papyrus' sharp teeth gritted hard and he turned away with a glare.

(Y/n) held back her laughter.

So much fun.

As Papyrus was starting to layer, the door opened and Sans came back in.

“SANS! COME GET YOUR HUMAN! SHE’S UNDERFOOT!” Papyrus demanded.

Sans entered the kitchen, seeing (Y/n) helpfully handing a bowl of mashed potatoes to his brother, whose skull was glowing across his cheekbones and nasal ridge.

He stuffed his smokes in his pocket and strolled over to where (Y/n) was grinning at him. He gave her a devious grin back, his sharp teeth flashing at her, and let his tongue trace his golden fang suggestively.

Sans stepped behind her and wrapped his arms around her, nuzzling behind her ear. "c'mon, sweetheart, stop botherin' my bro an' come in th' other room wit me. i got an idea 'f how ta entertain ya." Sans chuckled at her obviously flustered form against him. “c’mon sweetheart, give ‘im th’ potatoes an’ come wit me.”

Papyrus took the bowl of potatoes from her and made a disgruntled and disgusted noise as Sans guided (Y/n) to the other room.

He sat her on the couch and sat next to her, pulling the remote out and putting on a show.

(Y/n) sniffed the air, noticing a heavier cherry and vanilla smell around Sans.

"What's that sm-ll?" She asked.

"what smell?" Sans asked, looking over at her with a brow ridge up.

"It's on you, like… vanilla, and cherry," she told him.

"oh," Sans hummed, pulling out a slightly worn box to show her. "that's my smokes."

"You smoke?" She asked in surprise.

"yeah, sometimes," he murmured, his eyelights flashing to the kitchen.

(Y/n) mentally shrugged. Smoking was bad, but who knew if it even affected him the same way… He wasn't doing it around her, and at least the smoke smelled good.

Over all, filed under 'not her business'.

After a dinner filled with Papyrus shooting them disgusted looks from his spot across the table and telling them the 'thrilling adventures' he'd had that day, Papyrus made them stay downstairs to watch Mettaton shows.

"boss, i don't wanna watch any mettaton stuff," Sans complained.

"TOO BAD; I'M NOT LETTING YOU TWO WANDER OFF TO YOUR OWN DEVICES! WHO ONLY KNOWS WHAT WOULD HAPPEN THEN!"

"heh, i know what'd happen," Sans commented, giving (Y/n) a suggestive wink.

Papyrus gave a put upon sigh and wedged his way between them on the couch.

"hey, bro, what're ya doin'?!" Sans complained, shuffling out of the way a bit so he didn't get sat on.

"I DON'T WANT THE TWO OF YOU CANOODELING RIGHT NEXT TO ME!" Papyrus declared.

"then let us go up ta my room, bro," Sans sighed, managing to hold back his irritation. "simple as that."

"NO CANOODELING!" Papyrus declared.

He spent a lot of the shows explaining to (Y/n) how their star, and sometimes only actor, was better than anything humans could possibly have, often spending half a segment explaining the ‘complicated and far superior’ bits.

After enough time had apparently passed, Papyrus decided it was time to go to bed and ushered them all upstairs.

As soon as the door closed behind them, Sans let out an irritated breath before looking up at (Y/n) and letting his sharp teeth curl into a predatory grin.

Heat shot through (Y/n)'s belly, her heart rate going up.

"c'mere, sweetheart," Sans beckoned her to the bed as he reached it himself. "i have a feelin' yer tongue's been away from mine fer too long…"

(Y/n) felt a bit of embarrassment mixing with the excitement that was filling her, heat starting to build already.

"aw, c'mon, sweetness," Sans drew his voice out temptingly, the low tones somehow reminding her already wettening core what he'd done to it earlier and making it clench. "no need ta be so shy noww."

(Y/n) slowly stepped toward the bed, fluttering filling her belly.

“there ya go,” Sans praised as she got closer. “that’s it, sweetheart, c’mon closer,” he told her as he knelt on the bed and moved to the middle, sitting on his knees. “wait, this’s gonna be easier if ya take those pants off b’fore ya get up here,” he commented.

A wave of trepidation fell over her, and she thought through what was happening, trying to be completely sure she was ok with what was about to happen.

One round of sex and a day of making out, you could… maybe still be friends. Any more than that… who knew…

“what’s wrong, sweetheart?” Sans asked, his expression turning more toward question than the suggestive thing it had been.

(Y/n) paused, then reached for her pants and started taking them off.

“mmm, there ya go, sweetheart,” Sans commented as she started crawling toward him on the bed, his expression slipping back to that one of suggestive intent.

She made her way up, then paused in front of him, biting her lip as she reached under her shirt and worked her bra off without taking off her shirt. Her attention was drawn back to Sans at the lustful noise he made as she threw it to the floor behind her.

“i didn’t know ya knew magic, sweetheart,” Sans chuckled, leaning forward and grabbing her by the hips to draw her closer to him. His hands slid down her thighs, moving around them, then up the backs to take her panties and start dragging them down her thighs.

As she lifted one knee so he could get them off, he caught sight of the dark fabric on her calf and twisted a little around her to get a better look.

Yes, there were little skull and crossbones distributed every so often over the black of the fabric, a bit of lace nearly hidden behind her knee.

“fuck,” Sans murmured softly, his phalanges lingering over the soft fabric as he helped her off with her panties.

(Y/n) looked at him in question, following his gaze, her leg registering where he was touching.

Oh.

Oh!

Ooooooooh…

He’d bought those… maybe not even purposely for her…

Here she was wearing them, and if the tent in his shorts was anything to go by, he wholeheartedly approved.

Sans tried to stop the drool from dripping between his teeth as his fingers took in the feel of her soft leg inside of the socks, tracing the muscles that filled out the fabric and looking sexier than he had imagined.

He hadn’t even dared to hope that she’d willingly wear them, let alone put them on herself, yet here she was, calves covered in the socks, looking sexy enough that if she pressed her knees together, her legs would look good enough to- he’d have to hold on to the backs of her thighs so that he could brace himself to thrust, keeping her feet together with his knees and her knees together with his hands-

Sans blinked his sockets to clear his fantasy, gripping the backs of her thighs and pulling her up into his lap, pausing only to get his shorts out of the way. Then he was pulling her up over him, her knees on the outsides of his hips, angling and positioning them both so that as he eased her to sit down, she felt the head of his cock brushing against her.

(Y/n) bit her lip, her body giving all the signals that it was interested and ready, and one of his hands slipped between them to guide his cock, brushing against her wet folds until he found her opening.

The hand on her hip gripped harder as he encouraged her down, sliding into her, and his face turned into a grimace of pleasure.

“nnn, fuck, ya feel jus’ ‘s good ‘s last time…” He told her through gasped breaths. “fuuuuck, sweetheart… ya a’ways this hot an’ wet, or is this jus’ fer me?” He groaned as she sank down, her thighs finally meeting where his shorts had crumpled around his femurs.

“Sans,” she whispered, her hands clenching around the back of his shirt, grabbing at his ribs and making him growl needily.

One of his hands buried itself in her hair, tangling and fisting in it to point her face to his, his teeth pressing against her lips and parting them to let his tongue meet hers, and she moaned, her hips following the motions he was guiding her through to get a bit of movement going.

It was a bit awkward due to the angle, and only served to make them both want more.

Sans' hand moved from her hip to give a rough grope to her ass, holding her against him as he turned and laid over top of her.

His pelvis stayed against her as he knelt up, his hands running down her calves, the roughness of his phalanges catching a little at her socks.

He gave a squeeze to her calves, then lifted them up over his shoulders, nuzzling them, his hands stroking over them.

His hands slid down to her thighs, gripping them tightly before starting to move his pelvis.

He rocked gently for a moment, but soon leaned forward, pushing her knees closer to her chest as he did, and it seemed to open her up to him more, making her able to feel every inch of him as he moved inside her.

Sans held her thighs tight against his ribs, keeping her calves on his shoulders and nuzzling against them as he thrust. They felt so soft under his phalanges, against his cheekbone-

His eyelights stayed on her as he panted for breath, thrusting into her rhythmically. He could feel her hands grabbing and twisting around his shorts, trying to pull him into her as her hips gave little bucks trying to meet his.

fuck...

She was so cute- the socks were adorable, and they made her look even cuter…

His tongue reached out and traced over her calf, making him grunt as she clenched around him. “oh, sweetheart,” he groaned softly, nipping at her calf.

A noise escaped (Y/n), but she tried to swallow it, trying to keep quiet as he sped up.

Sans gripped her thighs tightly, pushing into her faster and faster, his pointed teeth digging into her sock covered calf, his tongue brushing over it.

(Y/n) gasped, her mouth dropped open as she tried to stay quiet, her body bouncing as he pushed into her harder.

“fuck, sweetheart- ya squeezin’ ‘round me like that- ya like what ‘m doin’ ta ya?” He asked, watching her face.

(Y/n) nodded, her hand tightening in the fabric of his shorts.

“yeah?”

She nodded again as she gasped for air, trying desperately not to make noise to piss off the other skeleton in the house, starting to get light headed at how much oxygen she was taking in.

“nnn, fuck- y’re so sweet, sweetheart,” he told her, gulping in air as he tightened his hands, holding her steady as he pounded into her.

She was going to have bruises there, though it couldn’t seem to matter to her mind. He was hitting every perfect place inside her- it felt so good- he felt so perfect inside her- every spot lighting up with pleasure- so amazing-

And then he bit her calf again, his tongue trailing over the sock that made her seem even more adorable and sweet.

“Ungh-” (Y/n) squeaked, holding back the other noises as she came, her body tightening and pulsing around Sans as she softly moaned his name.

“uuuuuuugh, sweetheart- tha’s right, come fer me- nnn- ya feel s’good- fuck- fuckfuckfuck-!” He growled out as he fell over the edge and followed her into bliss, his jaw clenched tight to keep quiet. He didn’t need his brother bursting in and ruining the mood.

As they came down, Sans leaned forward and kissed her, his tongue and teeth moving with her mouth, small noises leaving them both.

Sans chuckled after a moment, his hands squeezing her ass with her legs now wrapped around him.

“What’s so funny?” She asked, watching his face.

“nothin’, i jus’ feel bad fer humans ’s all. any guy who doesn’t get ta feel ‘is girl keep pullin’ at ‘im like this, really. can’t ‘magine. jus’ feels so good. c’mere, sweetness,” he coaxed, though he was the one who did all the work of wrapping his arms around her and rolling so that she was again on top of him before he gave a content sigh.

“Their loss,” (Y/n) murmured back with a chuckle of her own.

They started drifting off, but (Y/n) would swear she heard Sans say, “‘m glad i found ya… some a th’ best luck in my life…”

A/N: Uh... In case it wasn't clear... Yes, Sans was thinking of pressing Sweetheart's calves together and fucking the space between near her knees... um... while she was wearing the socks... I- I don't know... I was going to have him just think about licking or nipping, but, in the moment that's what came out instead... Sans does what he wants when I write, apparently... Sans: damn straight i do, doll!

#underfell sans x reader #uf!sans x you #red x reader #underfrick #underfluff #tsundere sans #reader insert #mutual pining #y/n #angst #romance #fluff #Smut

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shannonbussberg · 3 years ago

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Shannon Marie Bussberg is a psychopath who caused me great harm in many ways. I'm writing this as an explanation to warn off any who come in contact with her. I'm not trying to exact vengeance on her. The only thing I want from her is the money that she stole from me. A sincere and deep apology, of course, would be nice, but she would never do that. The first part of the writing below largely comprises something that I sent to Shannon recently, and the rest is addressed to you, the reader. Please keep an open mind.

***

(Note: I sent an earlier version of this writing to Shannon, hoping that she would make restitution. She said that she wouldn't, and that she came here to live with me to help me with my depression. Complete BS. Shouldered no blame at all.

Shannon,

As you know, you stole, through forgeries, all the money I had, and you put me in deep shit, not to mention throwing me into tons of debt from all the credit cards you took out in my name. I was in trouble with the IRS over the documents you forged, my credit was nonexistent, and I was psychologically destroyed. You put me in a space that I would never trust anyone ever again. You know all that you did to me, and you never tried anything to make it right.

Although you cost me so, so much pain and suffering, I’m willing to let most of that go financially. But I want recompense for the money you stole and the inflation on that money. Also the damage caused to my teeth when I was unable to afford repairs because of your thefts. Steve might lend you the money--he helped you out financially when you got in trouble for taking money from credit cards under my sister's name. So maybe he'll do that for you now.

(You know, you used to tell me that you're going to Hell. I of course assumed that you were exaggerating. Now I wonder what all other things you're done. An aside: you used to tell me that you would never pay back your student loans, and that as a result you'd have to go to school periodically for the rest of your life to avoid paying the loans back. That did bother me, because it basically meant that you'd be stealing from other students in the future. More recently I saw that you'd somehow got a master's degree. That seemed strange, since you're not a good student--having me do as much as your school and work stuff for you as possible when you were here. So I assumed that you got the degree from online courses, as part of your loan payback avoidance plan. Sure enough I see that your school has optional online coursework.)

If you don’t try to make things right, here’s what I will do. First off, I’ll tell the truth to your whole family. (It was so horrible to have to listen to your mother try to “explain” to me that you were living with me in order to try to “help” me--a lie you told your parents in order to cover the long period while you were not working, while living on the stolen money. Apparently you told her that you were my caretaker of some sort. I'm definitely going to set her straight on that.) My story will be a complete one, and you know that I don't lie. Plus I have *tons* of documents to back me up—everything from police and post office documents, to the forensic document examination report, to copies of the actual documents that you forged. (Plus I became something of a document examiner myself, so that people could see with their own eyes that you’re a forger. For example, doing your school years, you changed the way you form a particular letter--for example, in the forged signature for my last name--in a way that is nearly completely unique in this day and age. And the documents you created have all the hallmarks that document examiners know about forgeries.)

But I will use the internet as well. Social media of all kinds, of course. Forums, relevant sites. Anyplace I can find, with, as before, documents that back me up. People need to know who they’re dealing with in their lives.

***

To the reader: Shannon Marie Bussberg and I live in different states, and met online through a kinky match site. For a long while, we communicated with email and text. Then she told me that she was entering summer school at a prestigious university near me. This was a total lie, as I later learned from them when I was contacting them for writing samples for the document examiner. She ended up living at my place while she pretended to go to school. Then she stayed here with me after school supposedly ended for the term, and lived here for years, meanwhile stealing everything I had (except for a half ownership in the family house). She worked for a little while, but soon stopped, preferring to bleed me while she destroyed me. I loved her, which was a huge misjudgment on my part. In my defense, she hid her lies very well; she is a very good psychopath, and I never noticed any lies while she was here. After she used up all of my money and more, she stole from my sister, who was not in love and less gullible and vulnerable than I. That put the police on her tail, and Shannon, seeing a bleak future ahead for herself if she stayed, went back to Indiana. She, no doubt hoping that everything would blow over and she'd be able to return to continue parasitizing me further, perhaps taking the house (she had wanted to marry me, and I suspect that was the house was her objective for that). I truly thought she was innocent, for way too long. But since she was now back in Indiana and no longer had access to my mail (though she wanted me to send my mail to her, for her to "sort"), a letter from the IRS, telling me about taxes that I knew I didn't owe, was shocking. I still thought that, somehow, she was innocent, but before long I realized the truth. Looking back, I know that she only came to live with me for two reasons: my trusting vulnerability and her unusual sexual proclivities. She never loved me. The bottom line, for readers that encounter her, is that Shannon is a psychopath, is a very convincing liar, and neither looks nor acts like a psychopath. You should skip first impressions, and observe her for a while. I'm particularly concerned for her son, and the effect her behavior has on him.

On to my tidbits directed to Shannon.

⦁ 00, which was our code for a particular form of sex practice. I'm certain that's the main reason that you came to this city. The practice was disgusting and dangerous for me. And you should know that I’ve suffered permanent serious physical damage because of it. Maybe I should describe it in detail, but I'd truly like to avoid sharing it in public if at all possible, even though it gives a great insight into your evil. I'll probably wait for a little while to see whether you're going to make things right, and if you don't, give a more full account. There’s so much related info to tell people, such as the time you tried to drown me in the bathtub. Keep in mind, Shannon, that the story makes you look far worse than me.

⦁ You told the police—TWICE—that I sexually abused you. The irony, of course, is that our roles were exactly reversed. It’s interesting that, when I told the detective that I wanted to press charges against you, he predicted, matter-of-factly, that you would make that claim against me. At the time I didn’t believe him, but he was right. By his statement I guess that many women lie a lot about such things when claims are made against them.

⦁ When you stole the car (yes, OF COURSE I have documents about that as well—and I talked to the prosecutor later), you left a lot of my CDs in there. Then, when I got furious with law enforcement and the judicial system for picking on my poor, innocent (sarcasm), girlfriend, I persuaded you to go to your home state with me so that I could try to straighten things out for you. I don’t know why you agreed to go there, because of course you wouldn’t let me talk to the prosecutor and thereby learn the truth. More important these days is that you wouldn’t “permit” me to go to the police to pick up the CDs from the car, obviously because you were afraid of hearing the truth from them. The result is that I not only didn’t get the CDs, but I didn’t even remember all of the artists and titles, so that I couldn’t replace them. Of course, that's just one of many messes you left behind for me to try to straighten up, such as the reader you stole from the library, the tons of library fines over books you stole, all the services you secretly attached to my landline, and the bill that you ran up on the cell phone that was under my name but that you were the one that used.

⦁ When you decided to screw me over, you knew that any letters and such sent to my address increased your chance of being discovered. So you went to a nearby town's post office, and opened a post office box there. You even added my dead mother's name to the box. I still have the forged federal application in your handwriting.

⦁ One of the writings you left behind was a letter to my money fund, telling them to make you the beneficiary if I die. You sucked up my money so fast and thoroughly that you never had an opportunity to actually send it in, but of course I still have it, with your handwriting. But the take-home message is that you were hoping for my death. Or maybe planning it? If you had played it straightforwardly, you could have just asked me to write it myself. Back in those innocent days, I would have done it for you eagerly.

⦁ When you knew that time was running out between you and the police because you also stole from my sister, you prepared, behind my back, for your departure. You hid all kinds of your stuff in the attic behind the costumes you and I had gathered. That’s how I got so many writing samples for the document examiner to use. Previously I had written to your former employers for any scraps. Treasure trove, afterward.

⦁ When you left, we stayed in contact for a while, before I knew the full truth of what you had done. You asked me to mail your sewing machine to you, while you encouraged me to drink a lot of vodka so I’d finish the task. And you even had me send you money for food. You used me like a parasite does, knowing full well that I was going to have to go through total financial hell in the near future. What kind of human being does that to someone else? A psychopath.

⦁ I noticed that you were looking for a car right after you left. Which is really, really wrong, because I had no car at this point and you left me with no money for a car of my own. Which makes me wonder: there was a lot of money that we could have used to buy a car before, but instead you insisted on continually getting rental cars (supposedly paid for by your father, but really paid out of the money you stole from me). Why did you do that? Buying a car outright would have made my money last longer, so this makes no sense, even for a psychopath. Is it because it would be more obvious that I alone was paying for the car for the both of us?

⦁ I emailed with your former roommate or friend (was her name Elizabeth?—I can’t exactly remember, although I can dig it up if necessary). She said that you were the most deceptive person she’d ever met. I will give you that—you certainly don’t have the *appearance* of a psychopath, shy and quiet acting and all.

⦁ Afterward, in an email to Stacy, you said that my sister and I were totally screwed up. But neither one of us hurt anyone, while you stole from both of us and destroyed one of us.,

⦁ I remember when we were first started off with emailing back and forth, I was online, both day and night. Later I asked whether it seemed strange that I was always available, and asked what you’d thought about that. You said that you’d assumed I was a genius child, keeping school hours. I was shocked, because we were conducting some seriously kinky conversation. Didn’t you worry about damaging the kid psychologically? Nope, you said.

⦁ An aside: In college, you ran away without telling anyone, leaving people thinking, for a long time, that you were dead. (Documentation is available in newspaper copies online.) When you told me about it later, you showed me a picture of your father during the time your parents spent searching for you. He was exhausted and depressed. But instead of that making you feel bad about what you had caused, you were proud that you had evaded detection. At the time, I assumed that I was reading your emotions wrong. But I now know better.

⦁ I just remembered: Once you and I happened to be driving behind a strip mall after hours. A cop car started following us. You were cool. You suggested to me that I should get out and pretend to be examining the tire tread for a stuck rock. That worked fine, and the cop moved on. I told you that I had been nervous. You told me that you hadn't been, because you always assume that you are smarter than the police. That seemed incredibly arrogant to me. True, you might be smarter than some individual cops. But you don't have their training and experience, the capability to call other police on the radio for backup, and weaponry. Every once in a while you'd let such incredible arrogance show through.

⦁ I remembered this as well. Once you joked, about a woman whose child had been killed, that it was no big deal since she can always make another. After you left here, I read a lot of books about psychopaths, to try to figure you out. The author of one of the books told the exact same joke, as an example of how psychopaths have a lack of empathy. I always wondered whether you told the joke because you had read in the same book, while you were reading to try to understand your own self.

⦁ After the police went to Indianapolis to interrogate you, they told me that you'd agreed to pay me back everything you stole. But you never sent me anything at all. I aim to change that. Please don't make the mistake that if you just ignore this email, I will simply drop it all.

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verai-marcel · 5 years ago

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The Light That You Shine (RDR2 Fanfic, John Marston x F!Reader, Chapter 4 of 6, 18+)

Tags, Warnings, & Notes in Chapter 1. | Chapter 2 | Chapter 3

AO3 Link is here.

Chapter 4 - A Dip in the Road

Word Count: 2416

The next couple weeks were a blur as you temporarily moved back to your uncle and aunt’s place, just for safety. When the cops called, asking you to identify two men who had been arrested for attempted extortion, you gladly did, and when they were off the streets, the police assured you that it was safe to return to your apartment.

The whole time, John stayed in touch, letting you know that he was here for you. He even came to visit you a few times, taking you out for dinner, but he always stayed a little away from your aunt & uncle’s house.

“They don’t need to see me,” he always said as he waved goodbye and sped away.

You had a feeling that one day, he would need to meet your family, because the way things were going, he was starting to occupy more and more of your heart.

***

Early in the morning, before the sun really rose in the sky, you headed back to your apartment, ready to move back in. You carried your IKEA tote full of your clothes from your car and around the corner to the shop front.

At the sight before you, you dropped your tote and rushed forward.

"John!"

Laying on the sidewalk, groaning softly, John glanced up to see you and immediately tried getting up.

"Sweetheart…"

Stepping around the broken glass, you reached for him. He looked like he had taken quite a beating. "We need to take you to a hospital."

"No, no, I'm fine, just need to rest," he grumbled, slowly getting up with your help. When you gave him a disbelieving look, he looked at you, his grey eyes hardening with resolve. "I'm alright. I promise."

You finally nodded and helped him into your shop. Sitting him down at your work table in the back, you ran back out to grab your tote, threw it upstairs and grabbed your first aid kit.

John sat quietly, letting you fuss over his wounds. For as bloody as he looked, they were mostly surface scrapes, minor cuts, nothing that would need stitches. He was bruised to hell, and when he took off his shirt to let you tend to his other cuts, your eyes wandered over his chest briefly.

"Enjoyin' the view, baby?" he teased, winking at you.

"Why would you call me out like that," you accused, putting some hydrogen peroxide on one of his cuts and grinning ruthlessly as he flinched from the sting.

"Sorry, just tellin' it like it is."

You laughed softly. A few moments passed before you finally asked, "What happened?"

John sighed. "You said you were comin' back in the mornin', so I thought I'd surprise you. But when I got here, there were a couple of guys smashing the windows. I tried to stop them, but they got the better of me and took off."

"You should've called the police! What if they killed you?"

John shrugged. "Cops wouldn't have gotten here in time anyway."

You cupped his cheek. "That wasn't my point. I meant you. You could've been more hurt."

When he met your eyes, saw the care you had for him and the worry that he had caused you, he leaned into your touch, closed his eyes, and sighed. "You're right. I'm sorry."

You leaned in and kissed his forehead. "As long as you understand. Please take care of yourself."

He shrugged.

"Please. For me?"

His eyes softened as he took your hand and kissed it tenderly. "For you? Anythin'."

***

You called the police, filed a report, and called the insurance company, and basically spent most of the day taking care of business. John stayed by your side, helping you clean, despite his injuries, and generally being a good boyfriend.

Boyfriend. You hadn't really thought about it with everything else going on in your life, but John seemed really devoted to you, making time to see you as much as possible.

Towards the end of the day, you had appointments for your window to be repaired, and John had helped rebuild some of your display cases, even though you took on most of the heavy lifting this time.

You watched him as he sat down, looking exhausted. Coming over to his side, you ran your fingers through his hair.

“Do you want to rest here tonight?”

He looked up at you, surprised. You were surprised yourself, to be honest. You’d never had a man over before.

After a few moments, while John was clearly debating with himself, he eventually shook his head. “As tempted as I am by the offer, I best be goin’ home. Dutch will chew me out if I’m not there in the morning.”

You tilted your head, curious. He hadn’t mentioned this ‘Dutch’ person before. “Is that your stepdad?”

John blinked. “No, not really.” He was silent after that, and you had the distinct feeling that any further questions in that direction would get shut down.

“Oh. Alright then.” You weren’t sure what to say after that. He was clearly hiding his home life. You wondered if it was shame, embarrassment, or something else entirely.

He must have seen the inquisitive look on your face because he took your hand in his. “I’ll tell you everything, some day. Just not right now.” He kissed the back of your hand. “I promise.”

“Awful lot of promises, John. You better keep them.”

He grinned. “I will.”

Standing up, he leaned in and gave you a tender kiss, his lips brushing over yours before he cupped your cheeks and slowly coaxed your lips open, deepening his kiss for a few blissful moments before pulling away. “Good night, sweetheart. Stay safe.”

As he left the shop, he made sure you were right behind him, locking the door before he walked away, waving as he went. You waved back and watched him go, and wondered why your heart felt like it was going with him.

***

“What the hell happened to you?” Dutch nearly yelled, his voice cracking slightly when he took in John’s form as he entered the motorcycle club. He stormed up to him and stared him down, waiting for an answer.

“Glad to see you too, Dutch,” John shot back. He glanced around but didn’t see Arthur.

“Arthur’s off doing a delivery,” Dutch said in response to his unasked question. He stood back and crossed his arms. “Working hard, unlike some people.”

“I was busy.”

“What could be more important than the gang?”

“The ODB are coming north. Ran into them while I was riding, stopped them from smashing some poor girl’s shop.”

Dutch suddenly stood up straighter. “Which town?”

John told him.

“I see.” Dutch paced around for a few moments. John stayed quiet, watching him. Then Dutch turned to John and glared again. “They’re serious business, John. You see them again on your own, you come straight back here. Don’t put yourself in danger just because you see some girl getting her shop trashed.”

John bit back his response; he hadn’t told Dutch about the girl he was seeing, and he wasn’t about to mention her now. He merely nodded.

“Good. Now, get your priorities in order. The gang comes first.” He touched his shoulder. “I just want us to be in a good place, and for that, we need money.” Patting his shoulder as he walked past him, Dutch bid him good night and left the building.

John let out a breath.

The door opened again. He could hear Arthur telling Dutch the job was done, and that he’d see him tomorrow. Then Arthur came in, took one look at John, and shut the door, walking over to him before speaking in a low voice.

“What happened?”

John told him everything, up to when Dutch had left him alone in the warehouse.

“Well, you’re not wrong.” Arthur scratched his beard. “You really like this girl?”

“Yeah.”

“You serious about her?”

John swallowed. He’d had his share of hookups in the past, but this girl was different. She was something pure, something wonderful. He wanted to be worthy of standing beside her.

Arthur tilted his head when he didn’t answer. A few moments of silence passed.

“Would you leave the gang for her?” Arthur finally asked.

John’s jaw dropped as he stared at him. But Arthur’s serious stare forced him to think, to really consider his own priorities. He realized with a shock that he would do anything for her.

“Yeah,” he finally answered. “I would.”

Expecting to be yelled at, John was surprised when Arthur only smiled wryly before looking serious again. “Then get out of this life, John. Get out and don’t look back. If you want to have a real chance with her, you need to get clean.”

Arthur started walking towards his room, leaving John to wonder what would make Arthur, king of loyalists, to give him that kind of advice.

***

“Boys, we have a problem.”

The gang turned to Dutch as he sauntered into the warehouse as they were all tuning their bikes. Standing to face him, the men shared some discreet glances at each other. Of course, they all knew about John and his girl, and had all encouraged him to start cleaning up his life. And without John knowing, the others had secretly agreed to not breathe a word to Dutch.

“John has told me that the O’Driscolls are comin’ north, towards our turf. Now I know I said that we shouldn’t mess with such a large gang. But I have you boys, the fastest, smartest, toughest gang in the city. I have a plan. We’re going to hit them hard, and let them know to stay south of the county line.”

“How’re we goin’ ta do t’at?” Sean asked.

“I hear they’re trying to open up a new chapter of their club nearby. We blow the place, leave a clear message they are not welcome here.”

The men wore varying expressions of wariness. Arthur, keeping his expression neutral, just nodded. “Alright Dutch, let us know the plan.”

***

As Dutch left the building, he realized that Arthur alone had followed him outside, leaving the others to start gearing up for the mission.

“Dutch, remember the last time we did anything like this?”

“We sent a clear message.”

“We lost Davey and Mac!”

“Arthur, now, if I could take their place, I would. But the gang as a whole survived, thanks to their sacrifice. Don’t let their loss be in vain! We must survive. Don’t you have faith in me, son?”

“...Of course I do.”

***

John looked up when Arthur came back in, his back hunched, his face wrinkled in a scowl. He continued to work, making the molotovs with Sean at the workbench.

When Arthur pulled him aside, he followed quietly until they were out of earshot of the others.

“When we go on this mission, you stay in the back.”

“What?” John nearly shouted.

“Shut up,” Arthur growled. “You have someone waiting for you.”

John glared. “I won’t hide like some little kid.”

Arthur glared back. “Just do as I say.”

“Why the hell should I?”

Arthur reached out to grip his shoulder. “Because you’ll make her cry if you get hurt.” He let his words sink in for a moment before continuing. “Just this once, please listen to me. It’d mean a lot to me if you did.”

John looked at Arthur and suddenly felt the age difference between them. When John had joined the gang 5 years ago, he was only 15, a dumb teenager. Arthur was already 25, probably had his own experiences that he never talked about.

Now, looking at Arthur, a 30 year old man trying to run around as if he was still in his early twenties, John felt his tiredness. He felt the world on Arthur’s shoulders.

So he nodded, if only to help alleviate even a little bit of that weight. “Alright, Arthur.”

“Thank you.”

***

It was easy enough to find out where the O’Driscoll Boys were starting their new chapter. The building was shiny and new, freshly painted and almost ready to open. So the VDL Riders did what they did best: snuck in, did their damage, and slunk off into the night with no one the wiser.

Except tonight their luck had run out.

As John tossed the last molotov into the smoking building, a bullet broke his left rear view mirror. He immediately ducked and started weaving out of the way, looking in the other mirror to see three bikers chasing after him.

“Shit!”

He twisted and turned his way through town, trying to lose his pursuers, but to no avail. He finally reached for the S&W M&P 9mm in his belt and shot at their tires. He didn’t want to use a gun; attracted too much attention, but if he needed to use it, he would.

8 bullets later, the three men had stopped chasing him, their tires flat. He had some bullet grazes because he had to aim and shoot, but it was worth it. He sped up, seeing Lenny and Sean’s bikes go down, only to see Arthur and Charles turn back around and pick them up, pulling them onto their bikes as they quickly raced away, taking a hard left turn.

From the right, John could see five more bikers barrelling down the hill, coming after them.

He didn’t even think.

John threw his empty gun at the biker at the head of the pack, and swerved into the path of the other four, causing them all to scatter around him. Three of them slowed. One didn’t.

It almost was like slow motion, as the last biker careened into John’s rear tire, sending his bike spinning and John rolling and skidding down the road until he finally came to a stop on the sidewalk. He tasted blood, smelled blood, heard blood pumping through his veins and out of his multiple wounds.

He bitterly thought about his favorite leather jacket and how it was probably torn up beyond repair. He felt like his limbs had become lead weights, too heavy to move, too numb to feel pain.

The last thing John saw was blue and red flashing lights coming into his vision, the last thing he heard was the very last thing he wanted to hear.

Sirens.

And somewhere in the background, he could hear the sound of a Harley come and go. Perhaps he imagined it.

Then darkness and blissful silence.

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

Chapter 5

#biker au #john x reader #john marston #rdr2 #rdr2 fanfic #writing #modern au #lemon fanfic #eventual smut #nsft

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the-house-of-the-nine · 5 years ago

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In Mind of Misery: Reflections, Part 1

[Forward: Since the end of “In Depths Below” the Nine have been busy trying to reclaim Lazarius’ family fortune, rebuilding, and forging new allies. We are current in the WoW Timeline with this entry, NZoth has risen, the world is in chaos, and now, the Council of Nine are at a disadvantage. New Readers, please note each of the roleplayers as the following...

[ L.K ] - Lazarius Kashebahl, Algus Kross, Doctor Whistletorque, Marseille

[ V.D ] Verzatea Duskflame , Pame

[ S.K ] Siida-Ray Kashebahl

[ K.A ] Koltun Ancientveil

[ J ] Jursol (AND JIMBA!)

And as always, thank you so much for continued support, posting, reblogs, likes and friendly messages! Please enjoy! ]

[ L.K ] The Bastille. Several months had passed since the botched bank heist on the goblin city of Undermine. Despite its success in freeing the capital of the families estate, Lazarius had cost himself several good captains within his order, as well as potentially risking so much more.

Though it did seem like it would have been a catastrophic end to the organization, with the help of Siida and Marseille; the Kashebahl estate was reinstated back into Quel’thalas and the Magistrate. The family earned its titles and lands back; but also received compensation from the Horde and now Alliance for the loss of Tirisfal. Because of what Sylvanis had done; they were given a large sum of funding to compensate for the loss of their estate.

Siida was fully in charge of the running of the house; because for now Lazarius was busy in Stormwind. Also the fact that she was a surviving victim of Dawnseeker and his plan; the fact that she was a strong independent woman, not to mention an eligible heiress, she was the perfect choice to be the face of the legitimacy of their house.

When the public learned of what the rogue Magister had done, as well as how she survived, she was brandished a hero for her efforts. It was a true rags to riches story and the public devoured it up.

That particular evening; the quiet organization had grown smaller. Many who were still devoted to Nzoth and sought to join the old one in its madness had left. The operation of Azerite that was being mined in Silithus was all but shut down with the end of the war, thusly Krazzlowe had begun moving most of those workers to his own mine and abandoned the order, goblins after all were known for looking out for themselves.

The little green scum bag had been filtering out resources to fund his own works for some time, and they knew. Another loose end. But, he had no idea what was actually coming, and the truth that lay in the sands at this very moment. What had already transpired there which remained a mystery even until now.

Lazarius sat at the massive drafting table in the library with his eyes tracing over the losses and names of those who had been sent away. Their several thousand strong; now dwindled to a mere handful of hundreds. He’d already sent agents to deal with stragglers and deserters; and Marseille had filled his quota for blood lust in quelling the possible dangers.

Kross was tending to books within the library; cleaning up possible students work and things that were no longer being used. And Lazarius pressed his fingers against his eyes while thinking. What plagued him? What was it that drew on his mind? Perhaps the resurgence of Nzoth was causing him pain.

[ J ] Jursol was walking the halls of the Bastille as she used her tail to amuse Jimba, who had grown since they arrived. Her scaled clawed hands curled around a book that seemed to have her attention. Lots had gone on over this time. She like others had grown over time. Learning all she could from her time with her new friends.

Nearing the library she spotted the elf who seemed deep in thought. Closing the book in her hands as she smiled approaching him.

“Ya seem ta be lost in thought. I know dat look of being plagued by ya own mind.” She glanced at Kross as Jimba ran over to him for attention.

“Perhaps speaking about what be troubling you be helpful, hmm? Ole Jursol is a good listener.”

[ S.K ] Siida had grown so quickly in what felt like such a short period of time. Protecting her family's name and getting it reinstated had possessed her waking moments and now that it was complete she finally found time to rest.

Being the face of House Kash'ebahl was tiring, but it was a task she'd been born for. Her gentle smile and kind demeanor made her easy to trust and people often seemed charmed by her. The Matron at the moment found herself wandering, unable to sleep as her mind seemed full to the point of bursting.

[ L.K ] Lazarius gazed upward when the sound of the trolls feet padded across the room and she spoke. Jursol knew his condition well; his sunken black eyes were heavy as he peered toward her.

“My dear Jursol...”. He reached his withered mummified hand toward her; void wrappings covering his badly mangled flesh.

If she’d taken his hand; he would pay it the respect of his forehead pressed against it; a gentle kiss against the top of her scales and his other hand patting it, to hold her three fingered hand.

“It always eases my mind to have you near...”

Lazarius sensed Siida nearby and peered back at Kross. The old steward vanishing from his games with the raptor to tend to Siida. Such an unspoken way they had with one another.

Lazarius glanced back at Jursol. “The tides are calling Jursol. The eyes of the black empire... it is the moment id hoped to avoid...NZoth is reborn...and now..”.

He sighed and shook his head. “I...have a fear that I understand my purpose now...why my Mistress chose me...”

Kross had moved into the halls and appeared beside Siida; walking through the shadows and into being.

“Miss Kashebahl. Your brother is in the library. It is good to have you home for a bit. Please come for a moment to see him.”

[ S.K ] "Good evening Kross....of course, I'd planned on taking some time and it seems fate answered before me."

Siida smoothed a hand through her hair and moved towards the library, knowing the way better than most people, likely able to find it with her eyes closed if she tried hard enough.

As she entered the library she kept her steps soft, not wanting to create too much noise in the temple that she cherished.

[ J ] Jursol gently took his hand in hers as she glanced at it sighing softly. She could tell it was in bad condition, but it was not due to reasons she fully understood. The void she knew some about, but as much as others. She listened to him as he spoke. Nodding some as she spoke softly.

“Ya know I nevea ask why you be chosen by her. What ya purpose is in da end. Felt it be better ta let you discuss it when ya be ready.”

Jursol knew full well that the Old God was back. This meant they all had a part to play in the upcoming events of the world. What part she would play, she could only guess.

Hearing Siida nearing in the halls caused her ears to twitch. A smile forming on her lips. She seemed to find Siida interesting, as she did others of The Nine. One day she hoped to speak to the others more to get to know them better.

[ L.K. ] Lazarius has brought his attention full circle when his youngest sister entered the room. Another soft pat would be offered to Jursols hand as he calmly released her.

“Though it is not my intention to keep anything from you all...it seems the truth of my origin is even more mysterious than I had wagered.”

Lazarius made a motion toward Siida as she entered. “Flower.” he said as warmly as he could, despite the pain in his voice that lingered.

The golden haired vision was the light that brought him back. She was his world. With Vari and Koltun both dealing with Silithus, Lazarius leaned desperately on his younger sister for that bond of affection.

“You are a sight for these tired eyes...join us please.”. He smiled and motioned her over.

[ S.K ] "I could never refuse an invitation. Jursol, it is always lovely to see you." Siida offered a polite bow and moved towards her brothers side and gave him a gentle touch.

"Hello Lazarius, it is nice to see you again." Siida did everything she could to make things easier for him, so that he didn't worry. She felt the weight of her responsibilities, but see Lazarius made them all feather light.

[ L.K ] “These halls are quiet. So much more quiet than before. Our dominance in the sun seems to be waning...losing numbers as we did was a difficult blow. ..” Lazarius nodded into her touch; however it was given.

“Those who abandon us in our greatest hour do not deserve such sympathy Master.”. The voice of the ever present shade appeared in full form.

Marseille stood beside Siida. The withered ancient elf had been running ragged between helping deal with the loose ends and staying by the young sisters side at all times in Silvermoon. He also looked exhausted but would not show it as he hid it well behind his cloth mask.

[ S.K ] "We have dealt with much, taking time to mend and repair is not weakness. We will regain our numbers for the times that are coming."

Siida looked to Marseille and offered him the faintest of smiles, that small touch of puppy love was still there, but she knew there was a time and place for everything. Her duties were to her family first and foremost, her hearts wants and desires could wait.

[ J ] Jursol nodded in agreement with Siida. She knew others were out there, hiding, laying in wait till it was time to come forward to offer their help. For now was the time to plan, heal, prepare for what lays ahead.

“Ya sister be right. We can not be rushing into anything before it be time. Be prepared for times ahead, mentally and physically. Ya be lucky to have so many who be caring for ya. Don’t be taking it for granted my friend.”

[ L.K ] “I never take anything for granted. Not now...not since.”. He trailed off and shook his head.

They would all remember the loss of nearly being crushed beneath the Magisters. Lazarius gave them both a glance as he moved his fingers toward his tunic. He wore a loose fitting black shirt which was slowly being untucked at the waist.

“...we do not have the luxury of time I am afraid...” Lazarius stood before the group of them, his shirt rolled up and showing off his abdomen.

He turned to the side and allowed them the most horrible sight of his wounds and lashings of his youth. But in the center of his rib cage on the side of his body was the tattoo. One that he always assumed was for his mistress and her madness. It was an eye, massive in size with its lids drawn closed.

“It is seeking...”. He whispered softly, and in that same voice the eye would open and reveal to them a very bloodshot and corrupted looking eye which darted around looking in all directions. The folds of his flesh that served as the lid would blink open and closer as Lazarius held it available for them to see.

“Even in death Raelyndia continues to curse me...I had no idea what she’d done with this mark until now...why she always kept me close...like I was her crown jewel...” He sighed and shook his head. “I suspect it was her way of knowing Nzoth returns...”

[ S.K ] Siida had seen such horrid things since coming to this house, since aligning herself to the Nine, but this, it gave her pause. Her poor brother had been through so much and even the past had it's hooks dug so deeply into his flesh that he never seemed able to escape.

Sitting down she looked at the eye before lifting her gaze to Lazarius.

"With Nzoth's return...the balance of the scales are going to topple even further...how...what are we going to do?"

Siida was very much accepting of her role as Matron, she would protect her family and those still loyal to the Nine. "The old ones...endless hunger and limitless reach..." She seemed to say that last part to herself, her lips stuck together in a thin line.

[ J ] Jursol scanned the mans broke body as she frowned. Such pain she saw on his body. As he lifts the shirt more, her eyes rest on the tattoo. Her eyes grew wide as she peered closer at it. Ever the curious troll she was. As she reached to try and touch it, she saw it open. This caused her to leap back from him.

“Dis be bad juju.”

Her eyes still locked into the large blood shot eye. Hearing about the risk of balance being tipped, she calmed herself and stood up straight.

“She clearly be haven her own motivates, your old Mistress. I never seen anything like dis before.”

[ V.D ] There was very little that unnerved Verzatea. She was a devoted woman, unshakeable in faith and stalwart to the temptations trying to veer off the course of the Nine. She followed her people blindly, advocating for her fellow devotees ans protecting them with her very life. That was before she returned to the state of the Nine now, the halls emptier and much lonelier than usual after a great many students and practitioners of the dark crafts had abandoned the Bastille in pursuit for more power.

This had left Tea feeling hollow and empty... Friends and students alike had disappeared without a goodbye, before she could wish the great fortune... She thought often of the people who had left, wondering if they were happy. She sure as fel wasn't. But she wouldn't complain. She couldn't fathom what led Lazarius to his decision, but she wouldn't question it. No matter how deeply the sudden change frightened her.

In truth, Verzatea followed Lazarius. He was their Inquisitor, he was her guiding light when she first joined as a young naive elf seeking purpose, he was the wisest of the lot who guided them and connected them to the other side of the thin veil separating the living world from the realm of the supernatural-- of the Gods which they worship. Or rather... Worshiped. So his sudden change in allegiance was... Startling. In the least to say.

Verzatea walked the halls as if on eggshells, desperate to not disturb the Bastille in fear she'd chew everyone up and spit them out like the traitor heathens Tea felt they'd become.

Desperate to not bring attention to herself, an overly cautious measure she practiced to try and ease her anxiety since her return. She even have gone as far as keeping her daughter in her arms or in her sight as Tea worked. She would not risk losing her precious child-- her miracle baby... Her sweet Brinys.

Tea feared that if somehow she drew attention to the young child the Gods would rip her straight from Teas arms... And Tea would be helpless in saving her babe.

Currently the mother daughter duo walked hand in hand, Brinys's quick growth resulting in the black haired babe having found her ability to walk during Verzateas four month long voyage across the great sea to visit her mother and father. Another major event of which Verzatea had to miss, thus setting the first time mother in a sour mood as she wished desperately to have been present for such a feat... Although, Tea was not shy about dotting on Brinys ever-still.

Quickly the mother had become happy acquainting herself with the joy of dressing her child up fashionably. Tea had a knack for her usual pastel colors and modernized, appealing vintage fashion, of which was a far cry from her current darker toned modest (though chic) gown.

In truth, this was the style Tea had changed to after she returned from her journey. Surely it was just a coincidence? After all, the layered fabric which hung loosely off the woman's thinner frame, was a stylish set that also gave her daughter a girly vibe.

For Tea, the dress billowed in an elegant fall, the layer of dress beneath the second layer clung to her waist and hugged the woman's thin, narrow pear shaped figure (in which her bust is smaller in comparison to her slightly larger hips). The dress stopped just at her ankles, feet wearing a matching color pair of open toed ankle strappies (unlike Brinys's sandals). Over all the greenish-blue fabric still managed to stand in contrast to the partially matching duo, Tea and Brinys sharing in their fair skin tone.

The sunken of Teas cheeks and the heavy bags of exhaustion beneath her eyes expertly hidden beneath a carefully applied layer of makeup meant to contour her face-- all in the effort of softening the devastating state of her emaciation.

Along with wearing makeup, the woman also wore a polite smile as she guides Brin toward the library, encouraging the girl to open the library for them, eager to help Brinys work on her motor skills, strength and coordination. After all, Tea had her hands full with one hand clinging to her daughters whilst her other arm had clasped her larger journal beneath the limb, too with writing supplies in her hand.

As they'd enter the library Tea pauses to acknowledge the other entities of the room, her eyes alight with a wave of peace. She felt less vulnerable with her beloveds close by.

"Blessings," she murmurs, her tone lacking a significant amount of confidence,

"I wasnt expecting seeing nearly everyone in one place tonight. Are you all conspiring without the others present for an official meeting?" She aims to tease, though her dry laugh would only make it awkward.

Another unusual far cry from the often perky and charming Confessor. Brinys stares up in wonderment at her mother, her free hand moving to pat Teas hand before releasing her mother all together. With a playful giggle the child bounces forward toward Siida before sweeping the woman's legs up into a hug as she clings to her favorite chosen-aunt.

And just outside of the library doors stood a hesitating Pame. She had been offered the decision to go, or stay by Lazarius... And she fought long and hard with herself over the decision, despite how easy you'd think the choice to be.

Especially after the mental and physical torture she endured as both prisoner and slave to the Nine. But there was... Something here. Purpose, Pame had come to assume, especially so after Lazarius denounced the Old Ones. She felt more at peace with joining ranks.

Although... She was quite hesitant meeting others that had remained, no matter how much she respected their devotion to one another as a group. In truth it had nothing to do with the individuals themselves. It was all due to the fact that she was just... A very socially awkward woman.

She meant well, but often came off as aggressive and even hostile-- It’d be no secret by now that Pame had made one girl cry after what Pame assumed was a friendly argument over a game of chess they were playing... Of course, as Pame later reflected, she came to understand and make note of how "I'll rip your heart from your chest and devour it before your eyes prior to my slurping those from your skull, you dense fool!" was not an appropriate way to substitute "Check mate".

After that experience she'd become a real wall flower, trying to fit in but failing miserably. Now that she'd watched so many pour into the library to mingle and work, Pame was fighting with her decision to enter and join in an exercise of her socializing.

Her doubt was winning out, evident given how she nervously picked at her more casual attire-- Having found comfort in a fresh, long sleeved brown tunic partially tucked beneath her ripped work trousers(ones often paired with her armor), though against her very nature Pame opted to wear shoes (her armor boots). Her long, dark green hair tied up into a messy bun, few strands hanging freely all around.

Her muscular and broad figure cast quite the intimidating shadow against the doorway, likely peeking from beneath the doors, her arms folding beneath her moderate sized breasts, a massive thoughtful frown weighing her thick lips, silver eyes practically burning holes against the door with such intensity.

[ J ] Jursol seemed a bit more at ease when the mother and daughter walked in. Her smile came off as warm as to not frighten the child. With a bow of her head she greeted them. However her eyes caught the shadow of another who was not yet in the room.

Jimba noticed right away and was in mid leap before she stopped him. Grabbing him up into her arms, Jursol walked over to the doorway. Her usual scent of herbs linger on her body.

“Ah, I see someone be hesitant.” She said softly as she eyed Pame up and down.

“Come now I be sure no one gonna bite ya for entering. If dey not be wanting ya here they tell ya.” Reaching a scaly clawed hand out to Pame as she smiled.

“Come, we can enter together.” Jimba struggled to get free from the trolls strong arm. Clearly he wanted to play with Pame, but now was not the time.

To Be Continued: In Mind of Misery: Reflections, Part 2

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