#spoiler alert: we slept in his bed snuggled up together

[darthbecky726]

I think I'm falling in love

[one-leaf-grimoire]

“illusion”

Chapter 12

Finally, another chapter!!!! I think you will enjoy this one 0.0

Warning: VERY SEXY CHAPTER. ORAL SEX. :)))

I've never slept a whole night with someone before. Lawrence never stays after he's gotten what he wants, leaving me alone to curl up in my misery. Of course, Alice and I have had sleepovers where we shared the bed, but not like... this. When I open my eyes the next morning, stirred by the singing of the earliest bird outside, it takes me a moment to remember why someone's arms are wrapped around me so tight, their legs tangled with mine, and their face buried into the back of my head. Once the memory fades into my drowsy mind, I can't help but smile.

Because, despite how I arguably embarrassed myself last night, Julius is still here, holding me tight as he snores away.

None of it really makes sense, at least not yet. To be perfectly honest, I didn't know Julius would actually... feel something for me. The most I was hoping for was a one-night-stand, fueled by that fleeting moment of hunger in the hallway. The way he looked at me then, I knew I could get at least that much. I didn't expect him to grab hold and not let go, to show genuine interest in me, not just my body. It's foreign... something Lawrence never wanted to give me. Yeah, he would hold my hand, he would fuck me, but he wouldn't cuddle me at all, much less like this. 

Part of me warns against hope. But everything else is telling me to hold on tight myself.

Despite the warm feelings that flood my chest at the thought, I can't just hang around here forever. I crane my neck (pretty difficult in this position) and see that it's nearly 7 am on the clock. Breakfast is at 7:30, so people will be walking around the base soon. I can't be seen coming out of Julius's room in just my nightgown! If someone sees me, they'll talk, and before I know it, Lawrence is going to be knocking at the door demanding an explanation! UGh- There's nothing more I want to do than snuggle back next to Julius and sleep the day away, but it's too risky. With a heavy heart, I start to try and remove myself from him.

Emphasis on "try." The moment I move, Julius's grip tightens and he silently curls up around me. It's almost suffocating at this point, like some snake wrapped around its prey! "Uh- Julius- I need to go-" I whisper meekly, not sure there's anything I can do. 

"...no you don't." Julius finally speaks, his voice still weighted with sleep. His leg slides over mine and hooks around, trapping me further. "Stay here... just a few more minutes."

It's not like I have a choice, but something tells me that I was looking for a reason to stay. "Alright, fine." I relax into his hold, and I feel him smile against my skin, satisfied that he's won this small battle. His grip loosens, as if he's melting, and for a brief moment in time, I melt, too.

...but... I still don't get it.

I feel his lips again, this time on my cheek, the light touches like a butterfly alighting upon me. I have to squeeze my eyes shut and hold in a giggle at the sensation, a movement he picks up on. Julius chuckles to himself, still sleepy, his lips trailing down my neck and leaving delicate kisses behind. "How did you sleep?" he finally mumbles, his thumb drawing small circles over the hand he's holding. "I hope I didn't snore to loud."

"No, it was nice," I whisper back, his voice somehow grounding me more in reality. "Your bed is so comfy."

"You can sleep here every night, if you want. For- er- safety reasons."

I let out a soft laugh, and I hear him join me. "Maybe... we'll see."

"We'll see-" he repeats, then lets out a sigh. It's almost... sad. "Sorry... it's been a while since I slept next to someone."

Huh? Really? I have to resist the urge to turn over and look at his face. That's surprising... Julius has a lot of admirers, it would be easy for him to invite someone into his bed. But maybe, he has the same problem I do... the only love I knew was the physical kind, a selfish, lustful love that left me drained and disoriented. I remember the way Elia and the other girls talk about him, and how I even looked at him... like he was a piece of meat ready to consume.

He's like me, isn't he? He's... lonely.

"...I'm sorry."

"Hmm? For what?"

Love... I don't know if I'm ready to even say that word. Somewhere deep inside, the feelings coming off of Julius make something very clear... the potency of this feeling almost scares me. And for whatever reason, I'm the one in his sights, but instead of it being an honor, it seems like a burden. I'm a lost cause, right? My perception of love is skewed, ruined. And I know, if I turn around and look in his eyes... I'll get lost in them. I'll drown, because when it comes to love... I just can't swim.

"...nothing."

........................................

"So??? How was it!!!?"

Alice is waiting for me by the time I sneak back to my own room, promising to see Julius again at breakfast. "Um... good?" I deflect the question before turning to my dresser. "It went like you would expect it..." In reality, it did not go at all how I expected it, but at least now I don't have to lie to Alice. 

"Awww, come ooooon~" Alice whines, rolling over to keep watching me. "Tell me the deets!!! 

Uh oh. I avert my eyes and focus on stripping down and pulling on my uniform. "Well... it was very nice. But more than that..." I pause my dressing for a moment, a little smile playing on my lips. "He was nice... I don't know, maybe it's just because I've been with an asshole all my life, but Julius..."

"Ewww, never mind, if you're going to start talking about love stuff!" I turn and give Alice a disgruntled look, which causes her to peel back off into laughter. "Kidding! I'm happy for you, really." She sits up and swings her legs off the bed. "So, do you have a plan? Like- with Lawrence?"

"Not yet... I have to keep it secret for now," I tell her, pulling my robe over my head. "So you keep your mouth shut, you hear?"

"Got it!" Alice smirks and gives me a faux-salute. "And you keep your mouth shut, too... I'm sure it's hard to keep quiet when he's inside you-"

"ALICE."

Despite that just being a little joke, something starts to worry me as we make our way down to breakfast together. I feel... guilty. I know I shouldn't, but I do. God! If only I had held it together last night, I would have actually gotten laid... by a guy who actually cares about me, too. My ears start to heat up at the mere thought of it, but it's accompanied by a pleasant hunger in my belly that's definitely not the result of it being mealtime. I'm sure he meant it when he said he was fine with just sleeping, and he definitely enjoyed cuddling... but... I wouldn't blame him if he were a bit frustrated. Julius is lonely... I feel like I deprived him of something he needed.

It's a ridiculous thought, Julius hasn't demanded anything from me. But still... I want to give it to him. I want to know what it feels like with someone I actually like. Have I missed my chance?

No... there's going to be many more chances. Even today. It's only morning, after all! I'm sure another chance will come up if I'm patient.

Spoiler alert: I'm not patient in the slightest.

"Good morning, you two! My, you're looking radiant."

I thought Alice would be the one I have to rein in when it comes to my secret, but as soon as Julius sees us, I realize that it's him. He's already sitting at the table, fork in hand, but it falls to the table when his eyes land on me, and a big dumb smile becomes plastered on his face. Uh oh... don't be obvious, Julius!!!! I gulp and give him a nervous smile, hoping that none of the others already here will pick up on all the tension. "Oh... thank you! You look pretty good... yourself?"

Alice is nearly drawing blood as she bites her lip, dragging me to sit down next to her at the table. Julius simply chuckles a little to himself and thankfully remains silent, although his eyes don't leave my face the whole time. 

"What's got you looking so happy this morning?" Elia finally slides into the seat next to me, sourly looking at my face. 

"Huh? Oh-" I shrug, quickly busying myself with my food. "I uh- just had a good time at the lake yesterday."

Elia obviously doesn't believe me but doesn't pursue the subject. "Fine. Keep your secrets."

"Hey girls!"

We look over to see Giles and Nigel walking in, plates piled high with food. Those two are unmatched in how much they can eat. "Hey losers-" Alice counters. "Where's Wren? He usually comes down with you."

"Apparently he got called to a meeting with the captain," Nigel snickers. "Sounded kind of serious... maybe he's in trouble!"

"That would be funny," Elia adds, glancing at me out of the corner of her eye. "maybe he'll get kicked out."

"Or imprisoned!"

"Or exiled-"

More laughter comes from my friends, but I can't bear to join in. All I can do is smile weakly and eat, hoping that I'm wrong and one of them didn't drug me that night.

"Hey... look-" Alice grabs my shoulder, her voice hushed, and gestures casually down the table. More of the senior knights are here, but I know exactly who she's talking about. "Guess who hasn't stopped staring at you since we got here?"

Oh boy. Cautiously. I glance over and see that Julius is indeed staring at me, almost dazed-looking, his head tilted slightly as it rests on his hands. His food is going cold for sure by now, but... 

AhH! JULIUS!! Don't be so obvious... anyone looking at you right now will know something is up- His buddy Elger, who's sitting next to him, has noticed, and stares at Julius with a weird look on his face. I quickly look away before he can connect the dots, but it might already be too late. "Ignore him!"

Alice giggles. "My, you must have really rocked his world last night-"

"ALICE."

Even after the conversation moves on, I can feel those eyes burning into my skin. Butterflies swarm in my stomach, but at the core of it is excitement. It takes everything in me to not stare back at him, make bedroom eyes, and let him whisk me away somewhere private. Well... that's not such a bad idea...

I still want him. Even if I have the rest of the day ahead of me, I want him now. 

"Hey, where are you going?"

"To wash my dish! I'm not that hungry." I smooth out my cloak after I stand up, making sure to talk loud enough that the other end of the table can hear. "See you guys soon." With that, I turn and sashay off, fighting the urge to glance back at the table. All I can do is hope that this vague plan works...

But of course it does.

"Heyya."

As soon as I finish washing my dishes, Julius is already up and leaning against the kitchen doorframe, his usual smile on his face. "Oh, hi!" I greet, giving him a smile of my own. My pulse quickens as I struggle to move onto the next phase of my plan. Luckily, he does it for me.

"Want to go talk in private?"

"...yeah!"

And so, we head off upstairs, to his office. The entire walk there is filled with tension, so thick I could choke. I barely notice when he shuts the door behind us, I'm so lost in my thoughts. Now what? I'm not used to taking this type of initiative... oooh, what if he thinks I'm being to presumptuous? No, no,of course not... well-

"So... I've been thinking." Julius suddenly speaks before I can get my first word in. "We should start seriously sizing everyone up, and figure out who might be our culprits."

"...huh?" I blink, so lost in my self-made adrenaline that I can't immediately catch up.

Julius frowns. "You know? The ones who attacked you?"

"OH. Right!" I connect the dots and let out a nervous laugh. Get yourself together! Don't look like an idiot, at least... "Right, right, right... it's not fun to think about, but I suppose I have to."

"I'm sorry." Julius moves over to his desk and leans against it, his feet planted firmly on the ground. My eyes drift over his strong legs before quickly flickering away. Now that we're having an important conversation, I can't just derail it by jumping him right now... despite how delicious he looks. 

"Are you okay?"

Fuck! I just started going off into another daze. I jump a little as I feel his hand on my shoulder, and I blush a little as I let myself look up at his concerned face. "I know it's overwhelming, but I want to get to the bottom of this, okay?" I nod slowly, prompting him to lean in and press a sweet kiss to my forehead. I can't help but let a smile flicker on my face for a moment. "You know what you mean to me now... we can talk about this more later, though, okay?"

"...okay..." I lean forward and press my face into his chest, a gesture he accepts eagerly. The safe feeling of his arms around me threatens to make me melt right then and there, but then I realize that I have an opening.

"Julius?"

"Mhmm?"

"I was... uh... thinking."

"Thinking? Really?" I pinch his arm as he teases me with mock-disbelief. "About what?"

"...about..." I gulp, glad he can't see my face right now. "er... l-last night."

It's hardly noticeable, but I feel his grip shift at the words, just enough to make me realize that he's been thinking about it, too.

"Is that so?" His voice hasn't changed, still calm and comforting. "What about it?"

"You know..."

He finally gives me a real reaction, a soft laugh that I feel more than hear. "Right... I had a good time, you know."

A little pang of guilt hits me again. "Did you?"

"...yeah!" He suddenly pulls back to smile down at me, his narrowed eyes taking in my embarrassed face. "I always have a good time with you."

"Yeah, but- uh-" I feel a little frustration. I don't want him to think I'm so timid after last night! That was just a fluke! He's being so careful with me... I need to be more aggressive! 

"I mean it, don't worry." Julius's hand lands on my head and strokes it softly, which incidentally gives me an idea. "I thought I made it pretty clear... you're special to me, and even though I'd love to go farther with you, I want to go at a rate you're comfortable with- AH! W-what are you doing-?"

Julius cuts himself off, his voice wavering nervously as I suddenly kneel down in the middle of his little spiel. "I'm showing you that I'm perfectly fine with this rate- or whatever-" I tell him quickly, willing myself forward before I chicken out. I run my hands up his thighs, my heart skipping beats with every band of muscle I feel. "I mean... if you want me to?" I look up at him through my eyelashes, my lip pouting just slightly. I might be naive about a lot of things... but I know how to get what I want. 

The concern in Julius's eyes fades slightly, not quite disappearing all the way, but it's replaced by something else. Almost like curiosity... but more than anything, want.

"... go on."

I give him a little grin, finally letting my hands continue sliding up. Julius sucks in a little breath, for the most part silent as he stares down at me, his mouth twitching just slightly as I avoid his crotch and go for his belt instead. The anticipation is killing me, and it must be doing the same to him, but I will myself to be patient and make him so hungry for it, he can't resist. I want him to let go of his fear, and let himself pull me close, to let me in. He's a lonely man, and I want to help... in whatever way I can. And right now, this is how I do it.

"Here, let me help-"

Julius is quick to reach down and make quick work of the belt I was fumbling with, the zipper quickly following. Last night, I got to feel him up but couldn't actually get a look at him since I... passed out and all. But now, there's nowhere else to look as he pulls the front of his pants down and lets his already-stiff cock spring out at me. 

Oh shit-

It's bigger than I remember feeling last night, and I can't help but stare for a long moment, my mouth slightly open. I'm drooling, yeah, but it's also very intimidating. And it doesn't help when I feel that hand on the back of my head, pulling me in. "Take your time... but not too much time." Julius bites his lip and glances at the door. "We are in a shared office after all."

He's right, and I give a little nod before finally leaning in and letting my tongue dart out. Julius nearly spasms when I go right for the sensitive tip, sucking once before pulling off and kissing lightly around the spot. "Oh, you have a little technique?" he asks, his voice still steady.

"What did you expect?" I mumble back, fighting off a blush as I catch a glance of him staring at me. "I'm not innocent... not that innocent." To express my point, I lick up his length once deliberately, finally getting a reaction. I feel his knees wobble slightly, and his hand suddenly knots in my hair.

"Of course not... you'll be good and innocent for me, though, won't you?"

The words send a pleasant chill down my neck, the soft growl in his voice, stirring many forgotten emotions within me. This is nothing like it is with Lawrence. It's not so much a demand when Julius pushes me down onto his cock, softly moaning as I finally get to work some magic. It's... a plead. "Ah- y-ou're good that this-" Julius breathes out, his hand pushing me faster, more deliberately. He's coming undone, a lot quicker than he expected, and despite the way his cock chokes me and tears form at the corner of my eyes, I almost smile. This is what I wanted, for him to feel good because of something I'm doing. He only pauses once to sit down in his chair, his limbs weakening. I take the opportunity to pull myself off and smirk up at him, my cheek resting against his inner thigh while my hand teasingly strokes him. "Enjoying yourself?"

"What do you think?" Julius, despite being out of breath, flashes me a grin, his hand stroking down to my neck once. "Don't tell me you're getting tired." I shake my head quickly. "Good girl."

I lean back down to continue, this time his hand restricting my movements, slowing them. Despite saying that we needed to be quick, Julius is taking his time now, determined to milk me (or- er- himself-) for all I'm worth. I can't help but think about Lawrence in the moment, how he would react one day once I leave him to take the arm of my gorgeous vice captain. How indignant he would be, how enraged to find out that I willingly pleasured this man. Every aspect of this experience...

It's thrilling.

He starts poking into the back of my throat, and I whimper slightly at the foreign feeling, struggling to keep taking it. Despite how I was talking before, my stamina is terrible and I'm not sure if I'm going to hold on for much longer. "I'm almost there, baby, I promise-" Julius grunts out, one hand gripping the side of his desk while the other starts setting an unmerciful place. I just weakly whine in response, my throat starting to burn a bit. "You're being so good- I'm going to make you cum so fucking hard after this-" The promise makes another jolt of adrenaline go through me, the thought of him doing this to me quite exciting. "God- ah-"

Just as he starts to lose himself, something grabs his attention. Maybe it's a sixth sense, or maybe he was using his time magic to check ahead, but Julius freezes up before he reaches a climax. I blink my eyes open to see his own widening, a look of shock and fear on his face.

"Fuck-"

There's no time to hide. Just as the word leaves his mouth, the door swings open and the other vice captain Malota walks in. Julius lets out a squawk of surprise and nearly jumps in his seat in a vain attempt to react, but only manages to knock his knee super hard against the bottom of his desk. "YOUCH-" The shout leaves his mouth as he panics, disoriented, horny, and scared.

"Julius-"

The only good thing about this situation is that I'm hidden behind his desk, and from where Malota is standing right now, she can't see me. But still, she stops in her tracks at Julius's reaction, arching a thin brow as he does nothing but sit there and pant, slowly turning red.

"Julius... were you-" A look of slight disgust crosses her vulture-like features, and her eyes just glance down at the table, very aware of the presence behind it, before rising back up to her comrade's embarrassed face.

"You know what... I don't want to know."

Without another word, Malota swiftly turns around and races out of the room, her face becoming indifferent again. A moment later, the door slams shut, and the two of us are left alone once again.

"... "

Neither of us dare to move. Julius's eyes stay fixed on the door as Malota's footsteps fade away, before looking back down at me. He lets out a soft sigh, the corners of his mouth twitching at the sight of me staring up at him with his cock still in my mouth (it's not like I had time to move! And plus, the hand on my neck is heavy-). "That was... close."

He finally lets go, and I draw in a shaky breath as I sit up, my throat awfully dry after the recent abuse it just received. "S-she didn't see me, did she-"

"No, no, she didn't!" Julius assures me, glancing at the door again, his fingers deftly brushing the hair out of my face. "Malota wouldn't care anyway, don't worry." he gives me a reassuring smile before licking his lips a little. "So... are you-"

Wait, he wants me to continue? After we got walked in on?! I blink a few times, too aghast to say anything at the moment. Julius laughs sheepishly. "I mean, she's probably not coming back, right?"

"...right..."

Somehow, I find myself smiling once again. Julius mirrors it, his pulse quickening as he grabs the back of my head again. "I think we're going to get along famously."

Julius doesn't beat around the bush this time. He thrusts down my throat again and again, his hips raising just slightly to meet my lips each time, his hands guiding me at his pace. I handle it a lot better this time, feeling satisfied every time he moans under my touch. He doesn't say anything, but I know he's getting close by the way his movements become sloppy, and his cock twitches needily. I give him exactly what he wants, sucking hard for a few thrusts. And that's it- With one last pleasured sound, Julius pushes me down and cums, hard. I wasn't planning on spitting anything out, but I still gag a bit as his release hits my throat, hot and thick and almost too much for me to handle.

For a few blissful moments, he just sits there, tensed up with his eyes squeezed shut. Then, finally, he lets go of me.

Not completely, though. His hands gently take hold of my shoulders as I sit up and cough a little, taking a few deep breaths through my nose. I'm a little dizzy and can't really see through my blurry eyes, but I feel overwhelming satisfaction. I did it... Julius, you're mine, you hear! I want to make him feel like this, again and again, and for him to do the same to me. Maybe love is something I can't handle right now... but I can let myself be close to him.

Eventually... love will follow.

The sensation of his fingers on my face pulls me from my thoughts. Julius chuckles, worn out, and traces the corners of my lip with a fingertip. "You missed some-" he states, swiping up the remains of his cum and pushing his finger into my mouth. I whine a little at the movement but get my revenge by sucking once. Julius sucks in a breath and quickly removes the digit. "Ah ah- don't tease me, or I'll have to punish you~"

"Punish?" I repeat, reaching up and rubbing my eyes. When I blink them open again, I can see just fine, the blur of the passionate moment gone. "I thought I deserved a reward."

"Oh, that's right. Here-"

Before I can do anything, his hands close around my waist and hoist me up, so easily that it makes me squeak out in surprise. The moment he set me down on the desk, his lips are on mine, his arms holding me as close as can be. I eagerly kiss back, my sore jaw enjoying the respite, and reach up to cup his face with my hands. Julius pulls back just enough to look into my eyes, and the look of sparkling admiration in his own catches me off guard. "What?"

"Hmm?" Julius seems to almost be lost in thought. "Oh, it's just... I like you."

"...?" I frown a little. Isn't that obvious? "Well, that's good to know."

A little laugh comes from his nose, and his goofy smile widens. "No, I mean- Ah, you're full of surprises, and I like that... not just with this... kind of stuff, but also with- you know-" Julius's words are fumbled, almost incoherent He finally spares himself and cuts himself off with a shake of his head. "Never mind, don't listen to me, I'm just being an old sap."

Despite his sheepishness, I somehow understand what he was trying to say. With just a little difficulty, I lean up and kiss his forehead softly. "It's okay... I feel the same way, Julius."

"...I'm glad. Thank you."

With that, he buries himself back into my embrace, our lips moving so perfectly that it seems like they were made for each other. I close my eyes and start to get lost again, pure joy overtaking all logic and guilt in my mind. For a brief moment, Lawrence doesn't exist, my attacker doesn't exist, nothing does... nothing in this world matters but him. 

At least, just for that moment. Because the door slams open a minute later.

"Julius! Sorry to interrupt again, but-"

Both of us scream and whirl around, still holding each other, to see Malota run in again. For the first time, the emotion on her face seems real, the shock of seeing me, a girl engaged to a prince, being kissed by Julius. We sit there in silence for a moment, but then, in true Malota fashion, she sighs deeply, all emotion leaving her face.

"...I won't ask... but-" She straightens up. "We're leaving."

"Leaving?" Julius repeats nervously. I can feel his heart racing through his chest. "What's happening?"

"Apparently the Diamond Kingdom's been attacking the border since yesterday-" Malota explains, shocking us both. "But the Crimson Lion Kings were sent to handle it in secret. Now we're being called in."

We're being called in... wait... A jolt of fear shoots through me. That means... the Crimson Lions failed! The Diamond Kingdom beat them?!

"I see- the whole squad is going?"

"Yes. Our briefing is in 2 minutes." We can hear footsteps all around the base now, thundering urgently in the rush to get ready. "Be down there beforehand."

"Right." Julius's face is stony now, but flinches slightly as Malota turns to leave again. "Er- Malota- about this-"

"Don't worry. I don't care anyway-" Malota assures him before disappearing once again.

With a deep sigh, Julius lets go of me, helping me get off the desk. "I'm sorry," he apologizes, still looking pale. "She saw us- I should have been more careful."

"Maybe... but we have a bigger problem now." That familiar pre-battle feeling is already coursing through my veins. Trying to ignore the dread balling up inside me, I reach down and take his hand one last time. 

The Diamond Kingdom...

Maybe, for a moment, the world didn't exist. But now, it's crashing down on all of us.

[neshabeingchildish]

Poly Wanna? Ch. 10

Even though this is a rated M story with characters in the 27-29 age range, I understand and respect that there are kiddos here and have no intention of writing flat out graphic adult material. I’ve used a lot of mature language, but have hopefully not gone too far in this chapter, which has numerous dreams and situations that I tried not to make too explicit. Be prepared for a few shockers, but hopefully, the M didn’t go into some other higher letter!

I stopped tagging as many people. I heard that the tags weren’t really working well anyway, so I just started over on these tags with the people that I know are reading and if anybody else is, they can find it on my page. @adorkable-blackgirl @chenoahchantel @woahjusttakeiteasy-man (I hate this because it’s way too mature content for your eyes and I feel like I have to say that, but also feel like if I didn��t tag you, that’d be effed up, because you’ve read and reviewed every chapter!) @up-the-tube Anywhooo, if any of the 4 of y’all, or I guess I should say if Lizzie and Niah want me to PROMPTLY remove you after this update, I understand completely and I am SO SORRY FOR THIS. I tried to handle it hella different ways. Nothing went right. I know them first two just put up with ANTYTHING from me. 😅

Laughing Fits and Lucid Dreams

The movie watching went well. They wound up turning on some horror movies and Charlotte practically clung to Jasper the entire time. He loved that. She was so fearless, but whenever a horror movie was on, she would be worked up and a little bit terrified. Jasper fell to sleep first, probably because the past couple of days he hadn’t slept well at all. He had been awake and worried, then the three were awake all night and before the sun even set, he was passed out and draped around Charlotte. She tried to get up a few times, but he clung to her and groaned whenever she attempted. Poor thing. “I was pretty positive that between Jasper’s lack of sleep, my pulling and tugging his emotions in various directions and Henry and I arguing in front of him that he was not only exhausted (which I think is why he had a panic attack), but he was also scared and even in his sleep, his abandonment or rejection issues were flared up. I sent Henry to get my travel box of crystals from my room and I was determined to intercede on Jasper’s behalf, so that he’d be able to sleep well.”

Charlotte selected a rainbow moonstone, herkimer diamond and opal aura to set out. Henry didn’t mind if Jasper remained in his bed, but he recommended that Charlotte stay too. “If he wakes up in bed with me, and you’re not here, I don’t know how he’ll react to that.”

“Like I could get away, anyway. This boy is squeezing me like a python.” Jasper snuggled in even closer to her and held more tightly. 

Eventually, he did let go. He was asleep and Henry was out fighting crime, so Charlotte went back to the Man Cave to check up on him. Nobody told her she could, but being back in there had stirred something up in her. She went up there to sit at the control panel and see if she still “had it.” Spoiler alert, of course she did. No plot twist, though. She was surprised to see Henry return alone. Where the heck was Ray? Asleep? She shook her head. 

“You just keep exploring on your own, huh?” Henry asked.

“Who’s gonna stop me?” She asked back. He laughed and transformed into his regular clothes. “I started some work while I’m here. Thought about running some stuff past Schwoz, but he’s probably asleep.”

“Like you should be. I mean, I see that you’re dressed for it.”

“Well, yeah, but I’m in the middle of something right now,” she said and pointed to the screen. He couldn’t tell what she was supposedly in the middle of, so he just let her have her way and went to get himself something from the auto snacker.

Henry and Charlotte eventually went back up the elevator and checked on Jasper. He was still completely out. She was in her night clothes while in the Man Cave, so she simply slipped back into Henry’s bed with Jasper and he quickly resumed holding her closely, tightly. 

Jasper had this cuddle habit. He kinda groped you in his sleep. His hand cuffed her “gens” and his other arm was wrapped gently around her throat. It was a possessive hold that Henry remembered well. He went to get cleaned up and threw on a pair of boxers, stared at himself in the mirror for a while and wondered, was he ready to do this? Should he just grab some covers and take one of the several other beds in the house? Part of him knew that might be best for everybody. That part of him was thoughtful and considerate. It didn’t win. He climbed into his own bed and laid down next to Jasper, wrapped an arm around the two of them and felt Charlotte’s hand touch his, then intertwined their fingers. He didn’t know if that was conscious or not, but was scared that if he questioned it, even in a whisper, it would be too jarring and possibly make it weird. Jasper shifted a little and Henry took a deep breath, cuddled closer to him and let himself fall asleep.

.

Henry blew a bubble, then went up the tube. Charlotte was doing some interpretive dance in the living room, belly full with child, and music playing, accompanied by ethereal voices, in the background. There was a patch of grass beneath her bare feet, a real patch that he had made room for, for her. Jasper was nearby, playing the bongos with his hands and beatboxing. She wound up at his lap, he pushed the bongos aside and collected her into an embrace and kissed her. Henry backed away, giving them some space, or… maybe he was… getting smaller? He looked at the place, it was getting smaller, and eventually, it was no longer his house, but Jasper’s apartment. The grass was gone, the place was cozy and they were perfectly happy without him… And he realized that he’d shrunk so small that he vanished and everything went dark. 

Henry awoke with a start and glanced next to him. Jasper was awake, but cuddling Charlotte, who was asleep. “You okay?” He wondered. 

Henry nodded, “Bad dream.”

“Bad dream, or honest one? Char’s got the good dream crystals out,” he said and pointed a thumb. “I mean… they’re like in HD, Dude. I had amazing dreams. They didn’t all make sense, though. Mostly about… you…” He turned his gaze to Charlotte and rubbed her arms. “And of course, her. Thank God… What were you dreaming about?”

“You… The two of you… Just… like… I don’t know… You two have a connection. You’ve got this beautiful thing going on, and since I’ve been back in your lives, I’ve just kinda been making a mess of things. You’d probably be better just forgetting about me.”

“No doubt, but it’s a little late for that. You said that you love us… You’re going to have to tough out whatever that confession will mean for all of us.”

“Do you think that it does mean anything for all of us?” “I think that I woke up because I heard her say your name in her sleep. I think all three of us are experiencing a lot of feelings.”

“That’s because I stepped back into the picture. You and Charlotte could be on a patch of grass, expecting a baby, with her dancing a tribute to the moon goddess or something and you playing bongos and beatboxing, but instead, you’re sleeping in my bed, and none of us are getting any.”

“That was an oddly specific depiction, but add a cat and I’d say fairly accurate,” Jasper chuckled. Henry sighed. Jasper pointed to a slip of paper beneath the crystals. “I didn’t look to see what she wrote down, but whenever I ask her in the morning, I'll bet it'll be something about the three of us. Come here…" Henry came closer and Jasper shifted to allow Henry to cuddle up with Charlotte. He wanted this SO bad, but she hadn't really made him feel like it was okay. Then again, if she'd said his name in her sleep… Henry wrapped himself around her and moaned out a sigh. He was asleep again in no time. 

.

“Hey, Hen!” Charlotte cheered, come on! You’ve gotta get in here!” He looked over to where she and Jasper were inside of a photo booth. “When was the last time that we took a photo?” She asked, with a beaming smile and radiant skin. He rushed to get into the photo and they took several. They put their faces together, made silly expressions, shared a few kisses. 

Jasper cheered, “Win me something!” And Henry rushed to do so. He got him the biggest stuffed animal… though it was a sasquatch. “Yay! Bigfoot comes home with us!” Jasper celebrated as Henry handed him the huge plushy. 

“You guys wanna get on the ferris wheel?” Henry wondered. They didn’t look excited about that. “I’ll make it worth it, for both of you…” He told them. Their interests were piqued and they went for it. 

Whenever the ride first started, Henry’s hand began to move up Charlotte’s pretty little floral dress. She smiled and looked at Jasper who raised his eyebrows and licked his lips. Charlotte leaned back to slide her pelvis forward and Henry shifted to get on his knees. Jasper simply smiled and set his plushy aside, so that he didn’t miss anything. The next circle, it was his turn. But, Henry certainly couldn’t pull that off with him in his romper… Actually… Henry could! Jasper protested for a short moment that Henry might rip his “romphim,” but was silenced soon enough. As they got off of the ride, Charlotte took one of Henry’s hands and one of Jasper’s. “Let’s go home,” she said…

.

Charlotte woke up and looked at Henry, wrapped around her and shifted to see Jasper wrapped around him. She grabbed her paper from beneath her crystals and looked at it. “Please, allow us to see how it could be, if we got out of our own ways and did was what best for everybody. If we forgive, forget and move forward… I would like to see THAT dream…” She set it back down and went to the bathroom to pee, rub one out and refresh. Henry’s bathroom was even extravagant, though most of his things weren’t in there. Some necessities were in the cabinets and he had really good toilet paper and a very expensive looking bidet. She’d gotten one of those ones that you attach to the toilet whenever they lived together and kept upgrading it whenever she could over the years, but didn’t have a separate and sophisticated basin! 

She came back to the two men cuddled up and wondered how Henry wound up in the middle and if that meant that Jasper didn’t want her next to him. She had several dreams throughout her sleep, that she could remember very vividly. That last one though… it made the most sense and was the clearest, so she figured maybe that was the dream that she was meant to see.

The previous one wasn’t even a current VERSION of her! She looked like she was in college! In fact, she remembered that night that she had dreamed about…

Charlotte was stressed out, gathering a bunch of books to turn back into the library, dressed as a complete nerd, barely able to stay on her feet, with huge goggles atop her head and a messy bun in her hair, with poofy tendrils traveling away from her. As soon as she dropped the books into the deposit, she took a deep breath. She made it! She could go celebrate tonight! She stepped into the place, hair done, and transformed for a few hours into a little vixen, still kinda awkward, but in a delicious little package that reminded Jasper of a golden candy wrapper. He stared at her and she made eye contact with him, then smiled shyly and turned away. She went to find a seat, so that she could size up the room - figure out where the exits were in case of emergency, figure out where her vantage point would be for getting in and out of the bathroom, where she would most likely be more visible, or preferably, most likely not to.. And two guys came up to the table, simultaneously. One, the one that she’d seen earlier had asked if she wanted to dance. The other, a tall blond, asked her if he could buy her a drink. The two men turned to look at each other, challengingly, but then they look each other up and down, rushed towards each other and immediately began kissing. She had found it. The perfect seat.

That wasn’t exactly how it had happened in real life. She had gone out, gotten hit on by about a dozen old men, and went home drunk and depressed, remembering that she had been dumped by her ex and in turn lost her other ex, and she did more drinking when she got home. The dream was a nice little reimagining. 

She wondered what THEY were dreaming about, but shoved her way into the middle of them. They barely resisted her doing so and after she managed to squeeze in between them, both were facing her and laid hands or arms on her in some way or another. That was more like it. Who did they think they were, putting HER on the outside? But, now that she was in the middle with them groping and rested on her. Damn… she’d forgotten how sore she still was… and NOW, she was being poked at by TWO peckers. “Ugh. Good going, Charlotte,” she whispered to herself.

.

Jasper was on the dance floor, twerking. Charlotte, at the bar in a tailored suit and a hat dipped low over her eye. Feelgood walked into the place and several patrons paused to see if that was actually him, or if some person was simply going around dressed like him. He came up to the bar and immediately noticed the tiny stud checking him out. She told the bartender, “His drink’s on me,” then, she took a sip of hers, touching the liquid with her tongue, before her lips. He smiled at her and moved closer to thank her, but she put a single finger up to his lips to quiet him, even though she hadn’t glanced at him again since her initial power move. She was watching something, or rather, someone. He turned to see him, a sweaty, beautiful disaster. He understood completely why she didn’t want to be disturbed. 

After a while, the woman beckoned the dancing man with the curve of a perfectly manicured finger, her pinky, glistening with a pink diamond. He came over and she gathered him to herself by the buttcheeks, slapped him across one and kissed him on the ear, “Got you a present, Babe.” She turned him to face Mr. Feelgood. 

Jasper cheered, “I’m such a fan!”

Feelgood said, “I’ve only seen you for five minutes, and I’m a fan, now, as well.” Jasper blushed. 

The woman pressed close to Feelgood, beckoned him down to her, like she’d just done Jasper and he had no choice but to lean closer to her, because she had just commanded it. What was he supposed to do? Deny her? Their faces were joined at the nose and she said, softly, “You’d better not hurt him, or I’ll hurt you. Thank you for your service,” and planted a slow and painful kiss on his lips. The rest of it was a blur of body parts, touching, kissing, the flash of her camera…

Jasper woke up grinding against Charlotte and quickly stopped himself. These dreams were becoming a problem! But, Charlotte was back next to him and facing Henry… Actually, she was laying against Henry’s chest and his fingers were tangled up in her curls. Jasper moved in closer to her and rested his head in her curls and cuffed her to himself, without taking her off of Henry’s chest, because he didn’t wanna disturb her. But, he was also painfully aware of what that last dream had done inside of his shorts. He should probably deal with that? Naw, it’d go away in a while if he ignored it. Whenever it went down, he went back to sleep.He had a filthy, raunchy dream about them. 

It was mostly him speaking very aggressively to Henry and ordering him around, making an object of him and dominating him to serve he and Charlotte. To pleasure them at his command, and cleaning them up. But, with Charlotte, he was not only gentle, but docile, speaking to her as though she were a goddess that he was worshipping through these acts. She was divinity and Henry was a sacrifice. Something that he owned and was offering to her. And Henry was willing to be that to him, to her, for him, for them. But, she explained to him that Henry needed to be pleased and cleaned up to, and asked him nicely if he was willing to do that, for her. Of course, he was. And she collected both of them to her bosom and held their heads in her hands, stroking their hair. 

The situation in his shorts woke him up. UGH! I knew I should have taken care of this! He got up and went into the bathroom and just decided to take a cold shower, since he needed to clean himself up, anyway. He’d read that cold showers curbed libido and apparently, all of his dreams would be lascivious cesspools tonight. His daydream in the shower though was anything but. 

It was them going home together from an amusement park. Charlotte had honeycombs from the rooftop beehives that Henry put there specifically for her and she made them snacks of cheese, edible flowers, fruit, and those honeycombs. She gave the cat some homemade pate that she did herself. She played thunderstorm sounds accompanied by music, and lit candles all over. They talked for a while, laughing about nothing and everything, then kissed, then touched, then… Maybe his daydreams were tainted too. Maybe… this itch just needed to be scratched! Maybe… If they just did this, did it… Everything could just continue on and they didn’t have to think about it this hard anymore. Maybe, he was just hoping for a good excuse to climb back into that bed naked and just let or orchestrate something to happen! This cold shower was VERY uncomfortable and not the LEAST BIT helpful! He turned off the water and shivered as he dried off. Then realized/remembered that his shorts were in no condition to be put back on. He was going to get the towel and go get more, but whenever he was picking them up off of the floor, he heard the bathroom door open and he quickly turned and faced Henry, whose eyes went wide and directly to...well… the jewels. He turned away and covered his face, “Sorry, Dude. I’ll go use another bathroom,” Henry said.

“No, I was just about to go!” Jasper said and wrapped himself in a towel and rushed out, forgetting his shorts. Henry was going to tell him that he had, but when he picked them up, they were still… not wet, but clearly they’d been recently… altered. He chuckled to himself and flung them into his laundry hamper, disturbed that he had been tempted to give them a whiff. 

Whenever he finished using the bathroom and washing his face, he went back to the bedroom and Jasper and Charlotte were gone. Jasper had either woke her up to leave, or had picked her up and carried her out. Henry didn’t want to bother them, but he did want Jasper to know that it was okay and he wasn’t going to do anything because of what he’d seen. He went to check in Charlotte’s room and heard the two of them giggling. The door was cracked, so he peeked in and saw Jasper, releasing his towel and getting in bed, on top of her. He left, but he knew that there was no way that he could go to sleep now. He went back into his room and collected her stones and set them and her paper outside of her bedroom before going back into his own and locking the door. He turned down his lights, opened a bottle of wine from the bedroom wine cooler in his closet, and decided to do a late night wine workout, a bit of wine, a bit of workout to blow off some of his energy, then meditate and finish the wine and then, he might go back to sleep and just hide out in here until those two left… He heard a knock on the door and rolled his eyes. They must’ve left something.  

He opened the door and Char was in a thin little robe and Jasper was in a pair of boxers. “Yeah?”

“Sorry we took off. We had to handle something. Can we come back?” Charlotte asked. 

“Not if you’re bringing those damn crystals. I didn’t get ANY sleep!” Henry complained, but he was really glad that they came back and got out of the way of the door to let them in. Jasper wouldn’t look at him, so he stepped in front of him to make him at least reflexively do so. Jasper and he were face to face and Charlotte laughed, “Now kiss!” She said, playfully. Jasper leaned his head back, but then gave Henry a quick smack on the lips and sidestepped him to go back to the bed. Henry licked his lips. They tasted like Char. He smiled and blushed and asked, “Does anybody want a bottle of inexpensive wine?”

“I’ll take one.”

“I’ll take a couple,” Jasper said. Henry handed Charlotte a bottle and handed Jasper one white, one red.

“Hey… if you two lived here, what kinda stuff would you like to add or take away to or from the house?” Henry asked.

They began talking at the same time and Henry, after years of this, even though it had been a while, managed to hear every single word that they both said. A patch of indoor grass for yoga and meditation, rooftop beekeeping, a colossal sasquatch plushie… “Hey, wait… I had a dream that I won you one of those! I thought I made that up in my head. Are there colossal sasquatch plushies somewhere?”

“You won ME one?” Jasper asked in excitement. 

“Yeah! We went on the ferris wheel and I went down on both of you,” Henry said, laughing. 

“Oh!” Jasper didn’t know how else to reply. “Just throwing it out there, I guess.”

“Well, it’s obviously Char’s fault, because she’s the one who brought in the sex dream crystals.”

“I brought in crystals for dream clarity and recall. Nobody told you to think of going down on people on a ferris wheel. Don’t put this on those crystals.”

“I’m putting it on you!” Henry said. “You wore a chocolate skin tight dress all day, and a silky short set to bed, especting somebody to have decent thoughts.”

“ESPECTING?” Jasper repeated, laughing. “How much wine have YOU had?” 

“How much jizz did you have in your shorts when I found you naked in my bathroom?” Henry asked. 

“WHOA!” Charlotte said and her eyes widened. “You didn’t tell me that Henry saw you naked! Is… that why you needed a late night fix?”

“I needed that before the Henry incident. I took a shower, I wasn’t wrapped in a towel, and he came in to use the bathroom. I promptly covered myself and left.”

“And came to get me for a quickie,” Charlotte said.

“Which I needed BEFORE the cold shower I’d just taken, that didn’t work.”

“Relax. I barely saw anything. All I saw was his butt bent over and like 2.5 seconds of dingle. Are you shaving now?”

“I try to keep things orderly,” Jasper said.

“Good job.”

“Show us your stuff,” Charlotte said to Henry.

“Do what now?” Yeah, huh?” Henry and Jasper replied.

“He saw our dick and we should see his,” Charlotte said.

“Our?” Henry said. “You… You gotta… I don’t remember seeing YOUR…” 

She grabbed a handful of Jasper’s and confirmed, “This is OURS. Show us YOURS.”

“Ours is… awakened,” Jasper said quietly. She didn’t let go. Henry looked at Jasper, wondering if this was an honest request or demand. Jasper knew what his look meant. “I do believe that she means it,” he said. 

Henry laughed and stood up, “Fine. Okay…” He pulled down his pajama bottoms and reached for his boxers, “I mean… it’s just private parts under these. No… not any…”

“SHOW US YOUR DICK!” 

“OKAY!” Henry pulled his boxers down and Charlotte screamed and laughed. “Wow. You are a mean lady,” he said and pulled his shorts back up.

“I’m sorry. I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to laugh. I just can’t believe you listened to me!” She laughed onto Jasper’s chest. Jasper hadn’t laughed. He’d looked right at it and it didn’t seem to be a laughing matter to him. “Nice landscaping. Is it flames?”

“It’s supposed to be a tulip,” Henry said, looking into his shorts. “I couldn’t do a daisy, but I’m definitely practicing.”

“It’s nice,” Jasper said, softly. 

“Yeah, Jasper’s jumped at the sight of it!” 

“You can’t drink anymore around Henry,” Jasper said and took her practically empty wine bottle. She gave him a threatening look, but he just kissed her on the nose and said, “So, I guess you’re not showing us anything?”

“You both know what it looks like,” she said. 

“Henry doesn’t. I doubt that you had the same thing going on when you two were together.”

“You’re right, I didn’t,” she said and smiled. But didn’t make any move to show anybody anything. Instead, she said, “So, Hen. I have a Bermuda Triangle piercing…” he gasped. “I get a Brazilian wax, front to back, but leave a patch of hair at the mons pubis, and it’s trimmed like an arrow pointing down, and above the arrow is a little Adinkra power of love symbol tattoo. My stuff is too much for your eyes to handle. You can’t even handle the description.” 

All he said was, “I don’t know what kinda tattoo you mean. I think you need to show me so I won’t be ignorant.”

“Google it,” she said and laughed. 

“How hot is it, Jasp?”

“Super hot. I mean, all of her is, but it's like… unf.” Henry undressed and Jasper and Charlotte watched, speechless. 

He got naked and said, “I’m going to bed like this. This is how I like to sleep and this is how I’m gonna sleep.” 

Charlotte said, “Aight, I’m head out…” And she and Jasper cackled, but she didn’t head out. 

Henry got up and asked, “Any more wine for anybody else?”

“You don’t think you’ve have enough, huh?” Jasper wondered. Henry came out with three bottles and passed them around. Charlotte set hers aside and Jasper opened his. 

“I’m going to sleep, so that I can get up and see the sunrise in a few hours. You two have fun. Be safe,” she said. 

“We’re not doing anything without you,” Henry said, opening the bottle. She fought a smile. “This is a… triad. So, sweet dreams,” he said and kissed her on the forehead… Like he wasn’t stark naked. 

“You… too…” She said and laid down. He dimmed the lights a little more and Jasper climbed under the covers and removed his shorts, as well. But, he was gonna finish this bottle and go to sleep. He didn’t know if he was trying to watch the sunrise. But, he hoped to at least get some sleep. Henry locked the door back, just in case Ray, Schwoz, or worse, PIPER, came through the place. He’d have a hell of a time explaining any of this. He was just figuring out himself what he wanted and needed.

[quinzelade]

By No Constraint (chpt 65)

SS x Danse

Chapter List

Thanks to my amazing beta, waiting4morning, for her wonderful work! Thanks to Musashi1596 for the title.

Major Brotherhood/Danse spoilers.

Want update alerts? Follow this story on FFnet or Ao3.

--

A Wolf at the Door

--

Danse drifted in and out of an uneasy sleep, old nightmares pressing down on him in the dark. Despite this, he’d never felt so content. Quinn slept soundly in his arms, her naked body pressed against his. The night had been a good one, if awkward in places. She’d taken the lead, helping him through when his nerves spiked and he’d began to fumble. Danse didn’t care that things hadn’t gone smoothly, though. He’d enjoyed it, regardless. By the sound of it, so had she.

He grinned to himself, his cheeks feeling hot at the thought of their antics, and kissed the top of her head. She mumbled and squirmed, nuzzling into his chest, and then began to softly snore.

This gentle quiet slowly shifted as the night wore on. Danse watched as she went from calm and still to twitching, her brow furrowed as if in pain. Finally, when she began to struggle against the bed sheets, he gave her shoulder a little shake.

Quinn snapped awake with a horrible gasp, reaching out for something that wasn’t there. She pushed herself upright, shoving aside his attempts to soothe her, and stared blankly at the wall. “Shaun?”

Danse felt his stomach drop, but he didn’t say anything, watching her carefully.

“Shaun?” Quinn repeated, rubbing at her eyes. Gradually, he saw reality creep back into them. With a sniff, she drew her knees to her chest and buried her face. Danse leaned forward, still not speaking, and placed his hand on her bare back, noting her shivers. She’d talk when she was ready.

Eventually, Quinn turned to him. Even in this dim light, he could see her eyes were puffy, laced with troubles. She shook her head. “What kind of person am I?”

Danse frowned. Where was this coming from? “A good one.”

“I wiped out the Railroad. Abandoned the Brotherhood. Betrayed Shaun.”

“And you saved the Commonwealth,” Danse said gently. It occurred to him that he still hadn’t discussed the enormity of this. Well, he was going to tell her now. “The constant paranoia of living in the Institute’s shadow disappeared the moment you pressed that detonation button.”

Quinn said nothing, staring past him with dead eyes. Danse decided to go on.

“The kidnappings, the fear and the threat of their technology running amok...all gone thanks to you. What you’ve done will be felt for years to come. It’s destined to become a part of...”

Danse trailed off as he saw her face crumple.

“I just miss my son,” Quinn whispered.

“I know.” He took hold of her hands and squeezed them. “I know.”

“I don’t understand,” she mumbled, avoiding his eye. “Sometimes I can almost forget what happened—that he was even my son to begin with. I can just focus on you and Charlie and I’m okay. But other days, I’m just...dead.” Quinn glanced up at him, fresh tears streaking her cheeks. “Is this how I’ve always been? A heartless bitch that can rationalise her son’s death? I don’t feel human. I feel like I’m pretending. Broken.”

Danse wasn’t offended at her comment of ‘not feeling human.’ How could he decide what her mourning felt like? “That’s how I was over Cutler. But what you have to remember is this isn’t a sudden death. How long have you been in the Commonwealth now?”

“I don’t know,” Quinn said, wiping at her eyes. “More than a year, I think.”

“Precisely. You’ve had time to come to terms with Shaun and everything he was. Everything you needed to do. You’re not broken—you’ve been going through the grieving process for the better part of a year, long before Shaun died.” He moved Quinn’s hair out of her eyes and caressed her cheek with his fingers. “This is just the final stage—the hardest stage. Letting go.”

Danse kissed her. “And despite knowing what you had to do, you made the difficult choice to carry on. The Commonwealth is safe because you chose to take a leap of faith and make a difference. I am...so proud of you.”

Quinn gave a half-hearted smile. “I wouldn’t have managed it without your help. I’d probably still be drunk in a bar somewhere.”

“And I’d definitely be dead without you.” He held her steady as she flinched. “I’d say that makes us even.”

Quinn said nothing for a while, tilting her head into his hand and watching him. After a few minutes, she said, “Why are you so good to me?”

Danse rolled his eyes. “I can’t believe you’re asking that question.”

She gave a small shrug.

He lay back against the headrest, pulling her to his chest. “You’re a kind, patient person who’s been handed a rough deal. You deserve what goodness the world has left to offer. And I’m more than happy to provide it.”

Quinn propped herself up, a genuine smile finally breaking through. “Sounds more like you’re talking about yourself.”

Danse raised his eyebrows. “That doesn’t sound anything like me.”

“Why not?”

“We already established I have very little patience for anything.”

“True.” Quinn smirked, the last traces of her grief fading. “But it’s those quirks that I love about you.”

Danse flinched. He knew they’d said it to each other earlier, but that had been in the heat of the moment. Now, in the quiet aftermath, when the mundane was settling back into place, he couldn’t imagine her saying it again. But she had—sort of. “Sorry, what?”

She frowned at him, looking confused. “I said that’s what I love about you.”

“Oh. Sure.” He shifted in the bed, suddenly uncomfortable. “Do you mean...you like those things about me, or…?”

Quinn sat up, now thoroughly perplexed. “Danse, I literally said, ‘I love you’ yesterday. What possible other—”

Ah, damn it. He could feel his face burning up. “I wasn’t sure if you meant it.”

“Oh my God.” Quinn put her face in her hands, her shoulders shaking. For a split second, he thought he’d upset her, until he realised she was giggling. She let her hands drop, grinning from ear to ear. “I meant it. I love you, you adorable idiot.”

“But—”

“No buts.”

“But,” Danse said louder, sitting up straight. “I’m grumpy. I’m prejudiced. I’m stubborn. I’m impatient. I’m—”

“—none of those things,” Quinn countered, leaning forward and placing her hand over his mouth. “Well, except for the grumpiness...and the being stubborn, but that’s kind of cute. Everything else, though? You aren’t that man anymore, Danse, and you haven’t been for some time. You called Nick and Hancock by their names for the first time last night, and I bet you didn’t even notice.”

Danse blinked. She was right—he hadn’t noticed. That couldn’t have been the first time, though...could it? He tried to think of another occasion but came up blank. Quinn took advantage of his silence.

“You’re patient with the right people,” she said softly, finally removing her hand from his mouth. “You’re kind and considerate with the vulnerable, not just those who are useful to you. You’re intelligent and resourceful. And most of all, you’re willing to accept your mistakes and learn from them. You’re the best person I’ve met in this shitheap of a wasteland, and because of those qualities, I love you.”

He didn’t know what to say to that. Well, except for one thing.

“I love you, too.” The words felt different this time around. Cleaner. Calmer. And when Quinn leaned in to kiss him, he took her into his arms, basking in her presence. He loved her, and beyond all reasonable doubt, she loved him back.

After that, Danse slept well.

--

Quinn woke to the sound of rumbling snores right down her ear. She grumbled as she dug her elbow into Danse’s stomach, causing him to jerk awake with a loud snort.

“What?” he said, squinting at her.

“You're making a noise like a broken vertibird,” Quinn replied, rubbing her eyes.

Danse muttered something that sounded like, “You're one to talk,” and rolled onto his side with a huff.

She watched him for a second, before reaching out and touching his back. He flinched beneath her fingers and she grinned. “You can't stay mad at me.”

“Yes I can.” He took hold of her hand without turning around and pulled her forward so he could kiss her knuckles.

“Liar.”

“I never lie.”

Quinn giggled and snuggled up to him, kissing the nape of his neck. “I think I still have some mirelurk eggs somewhere. Want me to make breakfast?”

Danse turned to face her, caressing her cheek as he pressed his lips to hers. “Stay with me a little longer.”

Quinn was happy to oblige. They remained entwined, sharing kisses and gentle touches until the darkness of the room was finally interrupted by a long shaft of light. Dust swirled around the faint beam stretching from the window of the inner door to a small spot on the floor. Real life was waiting for her.

Quinn sighed and sat up. They were going to eat before they returned to the settlement, at least. She leaned over the side of the bed and picked up Danse's discarded shirt off the floor. She stood up, a quick bat of her hand loosening the dust clinging to the fabric, and pulled it over her head. As she made to walk across the room, though, Danse grabbed her arm. Quinn looked at him with a frown.

His gaze slowly slid up and down, lingering where the hem of the shirt just touched the top of her thighs. Danse bit his lip as he met her eyes, and then gently tugged her back towards him.

The shirt quickly found its way onto the floor again. Round two was slower, both of them taking the opportunity to fully touch and taste the other. Their chance to make up for lost time. It ended sooner than Quinn would have liked, but she was still content. There was plenty of time to practice, after all. Years. Hopefully decades. Maybe even a lifetime, if she was lucky.

They lay together in the aftermath, a sense of heavy relaxation almost smothering Quinn until she felt like she could drift off to sleep again.

“We have to return to Sanctuary soon, don't we?” Danse mumbled into her hair.

“Yeah.” She didn't bother to open her eyes, lost in the rise and fall of Danse’s chest. “Responsibilities and all that shit.”

He squeezed her tighter and she smiled to herself. It had been a wonderful night, sweeter for how rare moments like this were going to be.

“I suppose I should collect my things from the bunker before some raider finds them,” Danse said, his voice weary.

“You could…” Quinn hesitated. “You could move them into...my place. Or I could move my stuff into yours.”

Had she just said that? They’d barely been a couple for a few months and she was already suggesting they live together. She had a son. What man would want the responsibility of someone else’s child?

Danse nodded. “Yes, that seems sensible.”

Quinn sat up and stared at him. “You...you don't mind?”

“Mind what?” Danse frowned at her. “Is everything alright?”

“Yeah, everything’s fine.” Her mouth was dry as she tried to find the right words. “Me asking you to move in. You don’t mind that?”

“Why would I? We were already staying together at the bunker.”

“Yes, but this is more...official.”

Danse’s frown deepened. He obviously still didn't understand. How could she even explain it, though? The more she thought about it, the more Quinn realised the worlds they had grown up in were continents apart. Things that were important and scary in her society were non-issues in his.

Quinn felt her cheeks burning as she twisted her hands together. “Moving in was a big deal before the war. It showed you were serious as a couple.”

“But we are serious as a couple.” He suddenly looked worried. “Aren't we?”

“Well, yes—”

“So why are you so anxious about it?”

Quinn covered her face, embarrassment worming its way through her. “I don't know. I don't want to fuck anything up by rushing you.”

Danse laughed, pulling her hands away and kissing her. “What did I tell you at the hotel?”

“That you're not going anywhere,” she mumbled, not meeting his eye.

“I’ve already promised Charlie I'll show him how to modify power armour. That means you're stuck with me.”

Quinn smiled shyly, feeling light-headed. “Good.”

Still, there was doubt in her mind. Had Danse fully considered the implications of what he was agreeing to?

“You know you're going to end up like a father to Charlie, right?” Quinn blurted out before she could stop herself.

Danse shifted a little in the bed, but his expression didn’t darken. On the contrary, he looked somewhat hopeful. “It had...crossed my mind.”

She bit her lip. “How do you feel about that?”

Danse shrugged. “That I've been given a chance most synths could only dream of.”

“So what’s it gonna be? Marriage? Happily ever after?”

Hancock’s comment came to mind, innocent enough but weighing on her. Did she really need marriage again to be happy? Quinn didn't think so, but....

Danse shrugged when she mentioned it. “If you’re not enthusiastic about the concept, then there’s no need to discuss it.” He smiled. “You have a husband already.”

“Had,” Quinn corrected. “I had a husband. He’s dead and I’m moving on.”

“True, but that doesn’t mean your relationship should be buried. He’s a part of your life, and if marriage is something you don’t want to repeat, then let it be his and yours alone.” He raised an eyebrow. “I don’t need a ring to know I love you.”

“I can’t get used to you saying that.”

“Oh, uh,” Danse said, flushing. “I mean—”

Quinn smirked. “Say it again.”

His blush deepened, but he grinned. “I love you.”

“...again.”

“I love you.”

“Again!”

“I love you.”

Quinn felt her face settle into a wide smile. “I love you, too.”

Danse beamed at her.

Day had broken fully by the time Quinn forced herself to roll out of bed. She felt bad her friends were still looking after Charlie, but Danse promised her that Nick said he’d hold the fort for as long as they needed.

“Hancock worded it a little differently,” Danse continued, red creeping into his cheeks as he sat on the edge of the bed and stretched, “but they’ve no issues keeping an eye on him for a day or so.”

He pulled his clothes on, and then sidled over as Quinn tried to get dressed, standing behind her and kissing her neck.

“What are you doing?” she giggled, as she tried to get her shirt on, only for Danse to be in the way.

“Interfering,” he mumbled, wrapping his arms around her. “Anyone would in my position.”

“Your position?” Quinn glanced over her shoulder at him, raising her eyebrows.

“Mmm.” His hands cupped at her breasts as he kissed her neck again. “Enjoying what time we have alone before we go back.”

Quinn finally turned to face him, grinning. “Tell you what, let’s eat first and then we’ll see what mischief we can get up to.”

He shot her a cheeky smirk, and it struck Quinn how different he was to when she’d first met him. Would this ever have been achieved if they’d stayed in the Brotherhood? Maybe his true identity was the push required to strip away everything that had been holding him back. Or maybe he’d just needed something to focus on besides work.

Danse eventually let go of her after he had teased her half to death, laughing as she struggled to finish getting dressed.

“You know when I mentioned moving in before?” Quinn said, trying to force the mess of amorous thoughts out of her head.

“Yes?”

“Would you mind if we moved to your house?” She glanced in the direction of Sanctuary, though the walls of the truck stop blocked it from view, and then returned her attention to Danse. “Too many ghosts in mine. I want to leave it as a memorial and make a fresh start. With you.”

Danse stepped forward and kissed her. “Let’s go get your things.”

Quinn gently dug her finger into his stomach. “How many times? Food first.”

He rolled his eyes, but nodded. “Need any help?”

“Oh no. I’ve tried your cooking.”

“I make perfectly adequate, fully nutritional meals!”

“Danse, you managed to burn my pans poaching an egg.” Quinn put her hands on her hips. “I still can’t figure out how.” She started to giggle again. “Besides, if the only good thing you can say about your cooking is it’s adequate—”

“And nutritional!”

Quinn burst out laughing, leaning against him as her shoulders shook and tears sprang to her eyes. He held onto her, patting her on the back when she eventually calmed down.

“Fine. You might have a point.” He raised an eyebrow. “But at least I’ve never accidentally hatched live mirelurks in a freezer box.”

“That was one time!”

“Still counts.”

The next few minutes were taken up with playful bickering, only resolved when Quinn decided to fight dirty. Danse nearly fell over as she tickled him, before picking her up and pressing her against the wall with his body.

“Truce?” she mumbled as they kissed.

“Truce.”

They became lost in each other. Quinn pulled him closer, her fingers raking through his hair as she wrapped her legs around his middle. His hands gripped at her thighs, holding her up without any obvious effort.

Quinn laughed as they broke apart. “For God’s sake, Danse, are you determined not to eat?”

He shrugged, suddenly looking serious. “I haven’t felt like this since Rivet City. Can’t blame me for taking advantage of it.”

“Felt like what?”

“Young.”

Quinn gave a gentle smile and brushed against his cheek with her hand. “Carefree?”

The word startled him, but then he nodded, taking her fingers and pressing them to his lips. “I thought you might understand.” Slowly, he let her go, though he kept hold of her hand. She led him outside towards the campfire, fingers intertwined, and stared down at it, wondering how best to make breakfast.

As she pondered, though, she became aware of an acrid smell, and twitched her nose. The truck stop blocked Sanctuary from view, so Quinn glanced towards the sky. It was clear and blue. Frowning now, she tugged her hand free and walked towards the back of the building, following the scent. She looked over at Danse, who was still stood by the campfire. “Were you cooking out here last night?”

“No?” It was his turn to frown. “You already said I can’t cook. Why would I inflict that upon the world if it wasn’t necessary?”

Quinn didn’t laugh at his joke, but turned on the spot, sniffing the air. If the sky was clear, then Sanctuary wasn’t ablaze, and yet…

“Can you smell smoke?” she asked, beginning to wonder if she was going mad.

Looking slightly bemused now, he inhaled. “No, I…” His confusion turned to a frown. “Actually, I can. Smells like cigar smo...”

Danse’s sentence trailed away, a look of fear dawning on his face as his eyes locked on hers. “Run!”

“Wha—?” she began, but her question ended in a scream as his head snapped forward and he crumpled to the ground. She ran to him, but stopped as a figure materialised behind Danse, pointing a gun at her.

Quinn’s breath caught in her throat.

“Hello, Quinn,” Rachel Marguerie said, her teeth bared in a predator’s grin. “Fancy seeing you here.”

In Quinn’s absence there had been an obvious decline. Sallow-skinned and wearing dirty, crumpled uniform, Rachel was barely recognisable, her manic eyes nestled in heavy, dark circles. Worst of all was Rachel’s hair, which was normally scooped back in a sleek, neat bun. Now it was a straggled mess, sections of it trailing down her back.

Her tone was calm and level...the most frightening thing Quinn had ever heard. She glanced down at Danse, biting hard on her lip. Judging by the gun in Rachel’s hand, he’d been pistol whipped. Thank God he wasn’t killed outright, though Quinn suspected Rachel had other plans for the two of them.

Danse was lying in the dirt, clutching at the wound in his head. He let go and stared stupidly at his shaking, blood-soaked fingers, before his eyes flicked to Quinn. They were filled with confused fear, but she lost sight of them as Rachel stepped down on his neck, pushing him into the ground.

“Fucking pathetic,” she spat, the awful grin slipping into a sneer of disgust. “I didn’t hit you that hard.”

Danse gasped under her boot, but as Quinn opened her mouth to protest, another ripple shimmered in the air. Carson appeared next to Rachel, his rifle pointed at Quinn. He was ashen-faced, throwing frantic glances between the knight-sergeant and Quinn while he trembled on the spot.

“Carson?” Quinn said, suddenly feeling faint. Not him. Not Carson.

He didn't answer, but stared back without blinking, begging her to understand. And she did. It was the church all over again, but this time her role was Deacon. Maybe one day, Carson would justify it to himself, the way she had tried to justify her own betrayal. But Quinn knew then she was finally going to die.

“I trusted you,” Rachel whispered, all emotion gone, her face utterly barren. “I placed my faith in you. I respected you. But not only did you let this thing live—” She waved her gun towards Danse, who was still pinned on the floor. “—but you also bring a synth back from the Institute and try to pass it off as your son?”

“The only synth here is me—” Danse’s words were choked off as she pressed down hard with her foot.

“Machines don't get to speak,” Rachel hissed, and for one heart-stopping moment Quinn thought she’d snap his neck. But then Rachel relaxed the pressure, directing her suffocating gaze back at Quinn. “I pieced the evidence together. From the moment you threw yourself at that boy in the Institute, I knew. But I waited. Bided my time. Hoped your behaviour was just shock and that I was wrong about it. I wasn’t wrong.”

Carson’s mouth fell open in surprise. So Rachel hadn’t told him of her suspicions?

“I only came here to see if you were alright,” she said, her voice low and dangerous. “I had almost convinced myself I was paranoid about the boy. So imagine my surprise when I see this still alive.”

She pushed on Danse’s neck again, and he made a noise of pain. What little restraint Rachel had left was a guillotine, hanging over his life on a fraying thread. Quinn didn’t answer, watching with alarm as patches of colour began to grow in Rachel’s cheeks.

“At first, I thought you had gone rogue. But then another problem occurred to me,” the knight-sergeant said quietly. “Maxson went to this machine’s execution, and when he came back, he said the job was done.” Her eyes narrowed. “Why did he lie?”

“He—”

“He allowed it to live,” Rachel snarled. She paused, letting the statement hang in the air. “This isn’t just you, Quinn. He allowed a synth that had infiltrated our ranks to live. The leader of the Brotherhood of Steel is part of this damn conspiracy—a traitor! And Kells needs to bring him down.”

The future was laid out in front of Quinn: loyalty turned toxic, Maxson’s monumental moment of mercy a double edged sword, allowing the Elders of the West to cut their pound of flesh. Rachel would ruin Maxson without hesitation.

The knight-sergeant removed her foot, hauled Danse to his knees, and pushed the barrel of the gun to his head. He was still so dazed, he didn’t fight back.

Quinn started forward, overwhelmed with panic.

“One more step and I’ll blow its fucking head off!” Rachel put her finger on the trigger.

Quinn stopped in her tracks.

“Not that it makes a difference,” she said, the nasty grin returning with a vengeance. “First I’m going to kill him. Then that disgusting vermin masquerading as your son—”

“No!”

“—and then,” Rachel shouted over Quinn’s pleas, “I’m going to haul you back to Kells. You can watch as Maxson and all his hidden traitors burn.”

“Rachel,” Carson said, alarm etched into his face. “He’s just a kid—”

“It isn’t a child. It isn’t human.”

“You said we were here to check up on Quinn, not start murdering innocent people!”

“Shut it!” Rachel snarled, not taking her eyes off Quinn. “Synths. Aren’t. People! And anyone who helps them and their spies are traitors!”

Carson fell silent, but Quinn sensed the doubt. Whether he would stand up to Rachel was another matter. Without him, though, Quinn couldn’t see a way out of this. Maybe that was why he was avoiding her eye—trying to tell himself she really was a traitor.

Quinn turned her attention back to Danse. He���d regained some focus, staring at her and ignoring the gun at his head. His expression was fearful, but also soft—accepting of his own fate, scared for Quinn’s instead. Maybe if she attacked Rachel first...

Even as Quinn ran the scenario over in her head, she knew it was hopeless. Rachel was bigger than her, stronger than her, and a crack shot to boot. Whatever Quinn did, she would lose her child and the man she loved for a second time.

“We’ve worked together for years, Marguerie,” Danse said suddenly, “and if there’s one thing I know about you—”

Rachel pulled harder on his hair. “I told you. Machines don’t get to talk.”

“You are not a child killer!”

Rachel froze.

There was a long silence as the knight-sergeant stared down at him, the knuckles on both hands white. Danse turned his eyes up towards her, the look he gave her sharp and commanding—an echo of his revoked rank.

“The Knight-Sergeant Marguerie I know wouldn’t hurt a child.”

“It isn’t a child.”

“He is a child. He looks like a child, acts like a child, thinks like a child. What difference does it make that he was made? He’s as innocent as any kid would be.” Danse glared at her. “And I think you know this. Why else would you be standing here instead of killing us outright?”

Rachel bent down, her face inches from Danse’s. “Is that an invitation?”

“It’s a fact,” he retorted. “You’re torn on what to do. Everything you ever placed your faith in has been put into question, and you’d rather kill us all than entertain the notion that your ideals might be wrong.”

“They are traitors!”

“No, they just showed me compassion!” Danse shot back. “Maxson realised I wasn’t a threat and let me go! He gave me a chance!”

“A chance?” Rachel straightened up, and by the tone of her voice Quinn knew it had been the wrong thing to say. “A chance? Why do you get a chance? I had to abandon my husband and child for something that wasn’t their fucking fault! Where was their chance?”

“No one made you abandon them,” Danse said, looking almost as angry as Rachel. “That was your choice!”

“Don’t spout bullshit about ‘choice.’ You know damn well the Brotherhood would have done something about it.” She bared her teeth like a wolf, her face twisted into a hideous scowl. “But you? Special treatment from an unworthy Elder. What about my daughter?”

“Marguerie—”

Rachel’s scream cut like a knife. “What about my Sarah?”

The final word rang out in the open air.

Sarah.

“Have you seen her since?” “Once.”

A ghoul child, her father taken by mutants. No mother to speak of, as if she never existed.

“I helped organise safe passage for them to another part of the country, in a ghoul-only settlement.”

A knight-sergeant, eager to protect a village of ghouls with no valid explanation.

“Those fucking assholes kill kids.”

A husband recently dead, the letter of notification absent.

“I burned it.”

Realisation hit Quinn with the force of a truck.

All the pieces falling neatly into place. Close by, but with no indication of a connection. A ghoul that aged—Danse didn’t realise he’d already met her. Each insignificant event woven into a tapestry of stark, blinding truth. So inconspicuous. So obvious.

“The Commonwealth will be free. Maybe I’ll go see my daughter.”

“Sarah,” Quinn mumbled. “The little ghoul girl from the Slog.”

Rachel went chalk white. The gun in her hand lowered slightly, her grip on Danse’s hair loosening enough that he could move his head to look at Quinn. The knight-sergeant didn’t seem to notice, her eyes wide and distant as she shook on the spot. Her carefully guarded secret was crumbling around her.

Danse blinked with confusion. “No, that's—”

Rachel wrenched Danse’s head back, slammed her pistol against his temple, and pulled the trigger.

--

A/N: Soooo remember when I said I had free rein?

...yeah.

Also, kudos to anyone who caught all the Rachel wolf references scattered throughout the fic leading up to this chapter. I feel the lyrics to Radiohead’s ‘A Wolf at the Door’ fit Rachel very well, and wanted to build to that. A beautifully chilling song and an equally excellent music video. I strongly recommend it.