#thankfully there have been some cloudy days and i have been able to take walks then

[khaire-traveler]

Can I just say how frustrating it is to have people acknowledge that, yes, global warming is a thing, but when I say I can't take a walk today because the sun will fucking roast me, I'm suddenly just "being lazy" or "not trying hard enough" or "just needing sunscreen? Have these people stepped out recently? The world had a record amount of wildfires last year due to the heat, and it's somehow my fault that I can't take a walk on a boiling sunny day. Sure, ok.

[americancowgirl19]

So Much More

Summary: Riley finds his mate in the most unexpected place. Within the coven he had tried to destroy.

Warnings: angst, fluff, suggestive parts but nothing explicit or too detailed

Reader: Plus Sized Gender Neutral Reader. I tried to make this gender neutral. There’s no pronouns for the user and I tried to make the descriptions as gender neutral as possible so I apologize if the reader seems more feminine. 

Pairings: Riley Biers x Plus Sized Gender Neutral Reader

Word Count: 1,942

A/n: This was a request by a anon: Would you please do a Riley biers plus size human Cullen imagine please? Where he escapes and they are mates and it ends happy and the reader is sassy. I hope you enjoy it!

Masterlist - Part Two (Yours Forever - Female Reader) - Part Three (Our Little Family - Female Reader)

Riley screamed for Victoria but she never came. Her need for revenge consumed her as she abandoned him in an attempt to get to the human, Bella. He didn’t have time to feel betrayed and upset, those emotions would have to wait.

The wolf that had him in his jaws sunk his teeth even deeper into his marble shoulder. Riley screams in agony. He uses his one good hand to punch the wolf. The wolf release him for a second to readjust his grip. Riley knew the would go for his neck next and needed to act quickly.

Riley narrowly avoids the snap of the wolf’s jaws. He spins around and kicks its rips. The wolf whimpers as it falls in the snow. Riley stands and sends another kick to the head before the wolf could get up. He could hear the wolf’s heartbeat signaling that he had just knocked him out. His instinct told him to kill the wolf but the flight response was beginning to overpower his fight.

He could hear the cackling of fire and another heartbeat. He knew Victoria was the one burning in the snow. He also knew he wouldn’t be able to fight off the mind reader. Grabbing his broken off hand, Riley fleas the scene.

When he feels as if he’s a safe distance from the fight, Riley reattaches his arm. His would heal but leave his throat blazing in hunger. He stumbles upon a home in the middle for he woods. He hears a heartbeat inside.

Silently, Riley enters the home. Music plays loudly from one of the bedrooms. Riley checks the house and finds that the human upstairs is all alone. Soundlessly, Riley speeds to the upper-level and comes to a stop just outside the closed door.

The scent of the human inside flows from under the door. Riley’s eyes close and he inhales sharply. He’s never smelt something so sweet, so intoxicating. He hears footsteps coming towards him. He makes a split second decision. By the time the door opens, he’s nowhere in sight.

He doesn’t understand it. He’s unbearable hungry. Yet, when he had the perfect opportunity, he hesitated and fled. He didn’t stop running until he was in the small town of Forks. A couple of unfortunate souls falling victim to his ravenous hunger.

He knew this was Cullen territory and now he’s had a taste of their power. He knew they could tear him apart. The logical plan was to leave and never come back. He had to get as far away from here as possible but he stayed.

That scent clouded his mind. He didn’t even know who it belonged too. When it occurred to him that he didn’t even know what the human looked like he was overcome by the urge to find out. He needed to know.

This lead him to sticking around. He prayed the Cullen’s didn’t know. He kept his head on a swivel and kept moving around. He hunted discretely and never drew attention to himself. 

He stayed around Forks for a couple of months before he smelt the scent again. This time, it’s wasn’t muffled by a door. The smell almost knocked him off balance. His feet followed it before his brain could comprehend what was happening.

Then he saw you. You were as beautiful as you were intoxicating. He wondered if your skin was as soft as if looked. He imagined what your lips would feel like against his. He felt as if cupid took the time to shoot him with an arrow as he stared at you with that human, Bella, that Victoria was obsessed with.

Then his eyes fell to your stomach and hips. By God, his mouth watered at the sight of you. All he wanted to do was wrap his arms around you. He wanted to touch you all over. He wanted to grip your love handles and kiss every inch of skin. He smirks as he imagines you on a bed covered in bite marks and hickies.

He wanted to worship your body. Everything about you drew him in. Once he was able to push past what your body did to him, he began to wonder who you were. Were you kind and compassionate? Did you have a dark and dangerous side? He was desperate to find out.

He followed you and Bella for a while. He knew Bella would recognize him. He needed to get you alone but she just wouldn’t leave. But when she did, he moved in.

“Oh, I’m sorry, wasn’t watching where I was going,” Riley apologizes as he ‘accidentally’ bumps into you. A jacket covers his freezing arms and glasses hide his ruby eyes. Thankfully it was bright out despite it being cloudy so he didn’t stick out too badly.

“Oh, no problem,” You assure him. Riley became desperate to hear you talk more.

“I’m Riley,” He introduces himself praying you didn’t know who he really was.

“Y/n,” You reply, shaking his gloved hand. He smirks, giving your hand a gentle squeeze before releasing it.

“You here with friends or something?” He asks looking around. His eyes quickly bounce back to you unable to look away for long.

“Uh, yeah, my friend just went to the bathroom”

“Oh, well, can I buy you a drink while you wait for them?” Riley asks hoping to have some more time with you. However, it doesn’t work out like he hoped.

“Y/n!” Bella shouts, strutting up to you quickly. “Get away from him,” She roughly grabs your arm and pulls you back. Riley can’t help but grow threateningly. He didn’t like her handling you so roughly.

“Bella! Let go,” You grumble, ripping your arm from her.

“That’s Riley,” Bella tells you. “The one Victoria turned,” She explained. You turn back to him and he gives a shrug not denying it.

“Is that why you’ve been following us all day?” You ask him. His eyebrows raise, impressed you had caught him. “Because you wanted to get Bella?”

“No,” He shakes his head. “Because I want to know you.” He tells you. He takes his glasses off, unashamedly staring into your eyes without the glasses as a barrier. “You caught my eye and you simply look too... ravishing to not know,” He flirts.

“What can I say?” You shrug trying to control the blush. “I’m a snack,” Riley smirk broadly.

“How about that drink?” He asks you, tilting his head. He continues to smirk coyly at you.

“Y/n, don’t,” Bella whispers. “We should go back.” She states eyeing Riley uncertainly.

“Sure,” You nod, accepting Riley’s invitation. You had meant to agree with Bella but something about Riley made you want to go with him. You grew up with vampires so you knew it wasn’t his vampiric attractiveness that drew you in. It was something else that caught your attention, something specifically...  Riley.

“No, let’s go,” Bella says, trying to keep you safe. She didn't trust Riley. Hell, last time she saw him he was trying to kill her. The last thing she wanted was for you to go off with him and have him kill you.

“I’m sorry, I don’t take orders.” You snap at Bella. 

“I’m sure I can change that,” Riley flirts more. You blush madly, this time there’s no controlling it. The purr in his voice sends a shiver down your smile and desperately makes you want to palm your pants but you restrain yourself. 

Bella rolls her eyes and her attitude that you’ve been dealing with all day finally makes you snap. You liked Bella but you liked Bella in small doses. At this point, you’ve had enough of her to last a year.

“Keep rolling your eyes. Maybe you’ll find a brain back there,” You snarked.

“Carlisle won’t like this,” Bella warns.

“Carlisle doesn’t have to know,” You says, giving her a warning look. You grew up with the Cullens. By now, you know how to keep certain thoughts private from Edward but evading Alice’s visions are a little trickier. You just hope that she isn’t seeing this.

“Fine, be that way, but don’t say I didn’t warn you.” Bella says, eyeing Riley once again.

“I’d tell you to go to Hell but I don’t want you stinking up my home,” You spit back before walking across the street to the nearest bar. Riley is quick to follow behind you. “I’m big, Riley Biers, I hope you can keep up” You try to flirt. 

He smirks at you. Your breath hitches when his hands don’t hesitate to grab you meaty hips. He slams your back against the outside wall of the bar with just enough force to turn you on. He growls lowly and dips his head into your neck. He takes a deep whiff of your scent.

“I look forward to it,” He growls, his voice an octave lower than normal. “I hope you taste as delicious as you look,” He growls in your ear. His hands give your juicy curves another squeeze before he steps back. “After you,” He winks, opening the door for you.

You should have known that blabbermouth Bella wouldn’t be able to keep a secret. By the time you got home, all the Cullens knew about you and Riley. The only ones that seemed remotely happy was Esme and Alice. Carlisle looked conflicted but wasn’t rude nor mean like Edward.

“What were you doing spending the day with Riley Biers? Do you know how dangerous he is?” Edward growls the minute you enter the room. You sigh looking at Bella.

“You do know what they say about snitches, right?” You ask, tilting your head. Your insinuation causes Edward to growl menacingly. He only takes two steps forward before he’s thrown across the room and you’re pushed behind someone. “Riley,” You breathe in surprise.

He had followed you home. He didn’t know how the Cullen’s would behave if they knew about your day together. He smirked when he heard your comment to Bella but it disappeared when Edward appeared threatening to you.

He acted upon instinct. One second he was watching from a distance and the next he was in the middle of the room protecting you. He knew he was out numbered but he realized it didn’t matter. He’d take on the world to make sure you were safe.

Instantly everyone’s on edge. Edward stands back up and hisses at him. Riley hisses back, holding his arm behind him as if to assure himself that you’re safe. Before things can escalate, Alice moves between the two of them. In order to ensure her safety, Jasper moves with her. His eyes glare at Riley and Edward, daring either of them to even go near Alice.

“He’s not going to hurt anyone, especially, Y/n. You know that, Edward” Alice tells him. “I know you’ve read his mind. All he wants is to protect Y/n. They’re mates, I’ve seen it.”

“Wait, mates?” You question. Riley relaxes slightly when Edward does. Riley then turns to you looking unsure but hopeful. You offer him a small smile. “I look nothing like Victoria... but hopefully you still like me,”

“You’re right, you’re nothing like her.” Riley tells you. His hand raises to cup the side of your face. “You’re everything she’s not. You’re electrifying. You awaken emotions, instincts, in me that I didn’t know I had. You’re everything I could ever want...” His hands both graze over your luscious curves. You have a moment of insecurity that’s washed away when you see the hunger in his eyes. He lips his lips and pulls you close. “And so much more,” He whispers.

[jedidragonwarriorqueen]

All right fam. This year, instead of doing resolutions for the whole year, I decided to break it down into monthly “bucket lists” so that they’re less overwhelming, tailored to the time of year, and gives me the freedom to reassess where I’m at.

I don’t know about y’all, but 2022 got off to a.......really rough start for me, and I did not do great in January. Thankfully, things are looking a little brighter going into February, and I’ve decided to share some of my goals for this month on here for accountability. We’ll see how I do at the end of the month!

February Bucket List:

go for one long (at least 1 hour) walk a week. The dark, cold and constant cloudiness in my area this time of year always gets to me, but i think one of the worst bits is the lack of fresh air since the windows are always closed and I spend most of my time indoors.

finally schedule an appointment for the tattoo I've been wanting to get since before the pandemic!!

something that I’m calling “Take Up Space” while I’m at work; things like asking coworkers to cover me for a bathroom/take-five-for-a-breather break when I really need it, bring a water bottle with me when doing bedside runs because hey, I’m a human being with needs too, and putting my foot down when I’m already in overtime for the week and charge asks me if I can stay late.

read a book!! I love love love reading but haven’t been able to convince myself to actually relax and not be constantly productive on my days off (which mostly leads to scrolling aimlessly through my phone because I'm too tired to “be productive”.) I’ve never actually read any Discworld books, but they sound like they’re right up my alley, and @mountainsatellite recommended I start with Guards! Guards! or Maskerade, so my goal is to read at least one of those.

I finally got figuratively smacked in the head in no uncertain terms that my job is Not Good For Me despite my best efforts, and my goal is to keep up applying and scheduling 1-2 interviews a week for a new one. (The hard part won’t be finding a job in my field. The hard part will be finding a job in my field that won’t run me into the ground and suck out my soul.)

post the next chapter in my Dragon Prince Robin Hood AU! One of the few nice things that happened in January was getting some of my writing mojo back (three cheers for coping by torturing fictional characters) and while I’ve mostly focused on shorter stories that are less plot-worldbuilding-and-character-development intensive, I have made a little bit of progress on TLB and hope to focus on that more once my current WIP is written.

one of my year-long goals is to stay ahead of friends and family’s birthdays! There’s three in the second half of this month, and my goal is to make & send fun cards and envelopes to get to them by their birthdays, not weeks afterward😅

I think those are achievable goals. February is usually my least favorite month, but we’ll see how it goes. Hope everyone else’s month is a little brighter than January, too!

[i-did-not-mean-to]

Diary found in K---D--- : Part 2

So, here's the next little part of this :D

Imagine by @lathalea is indented!

Enjoy <3

Taglist: @shrimpsthings, @mulasawala (so you see where I'm going with this lol)

(Yes, there will be MORE artwork coming, stay posted...)

Fandom: Hobbit

Characters: Ori x OC

Rating & Warning: Fluff and silliness

His name was Ori and he was a scribe in Erebor. It turned out he visited the forest often to sketch the animals and plants. You spent the rest of the day together. In the evening, you exchanged campfire stories, sharing a meal. At one point, he shyly asked about where you came from. Blushing, he admitted, almost whispering, he never saw a person with such beautiful hair before.

You told him that you came from another world, from a region called East Asia, where many people looked similarly to you. He was very curious about your homeland, your culture and your world. You spent hours telling him everything about it and he listened to you in awe.

“Ori.” He replied, his lips quirking a tiny bit as if he was not used to speaking his own name. “I’m a scribe. In Erebor. The Mountain.” He pointed to a tree beyond the clearing.

Thankfully, I was familiar with the Lonely Mountain and did not think that he didn’t know the difference between a living organism and a pile of minerals.

“I have never seen you, neither here nor in that Mountain.” I replied, for I went into the halls sometimes to translate for travellers, but for the most part, I let the king be his grumpy, glorious self.

“I come here often, to sketch, but I seem to have lost my way.” He admitted with a tiny frown. Ah, a real dwarf. They only knew up and down seemingly and if there was no way into a hill, they’d stubbornly trek up until they tumbled off the other side again.

As if to prove to me that he was not lying – dear reader, he had a face that was utterly devoid of malice or dissimulation – he showed me rather good sketches of the fauna and flora of the dense forest surrounding us. “That is really good, Ori, the scribe, from under the Mountain.” I commented which made him blush with a fierce and, apparently, unexpected pleasure.

In an expression of indescribable cuteness, he literally wiped his face with his sleeve as if he could clean away the rosy hue like a stubborn ink stain from under his skin.

“What are you here for?” He then asked, pushing out his chest heroically. As a reminder, he was the one who had lost his way, but apparently, he wanted to defend either the forest from me or the other way around.

“I am here to think…in silence.” I replied; he retreated a few steps. “Oh? I’ll leave you to it then, I guess. It was great to make your acquaintance…”

I gave him my name, after all, he had given me his, and he chewed on it for a few moments before his face split into a smile that was like the sunlight breaking through the cloudy afternoon sky: tentative, warm, and strikingly beautiful.

“Stay. I like your face.” I heard myself saying. Maybe, it was my teasing, mischievous streak acting up, but I had liked his embarrassment so much that I couldn’t help wanting to coax more of these blushes out of him.

“My…face?” In that weird dance he had been engaged in for the last few minutes, Ori stepped closer again, shuffling his feet in the heavy boots dwarrows insisted on wearing.

No, your ass, I thought, but bit my tongue; Ori the dwarf looked like someone who would die on the spot if I said anything even remotely inappropriate…as I was wont to do when nervous.

My sarcastic thought spurred my own interest though and I examined him a little closer: he was indeed swaddled like a babe, beads of sweat pearling down his temples on account of the steep climb and the stubborn blush powdering his nose and cheeks with pink blotches.

“Sit down, you’ll get a heat stroke.” I invited him and pointed to a patch of moss beside me while rummaging in my pack for the flask of ale I had brought.

“Thank you ever so much.” He plopped down in a cascade of earthen-coloured wool and awkward limbs. He did smell warm, I noticed, a blend of cinnamon and comfort.

Also, he had one of those faces that only became better when seen up-close, I admit freely; there were golden stars dancing in the depth of his dark eyes and he had the most adorable freckles as if some outlandish fairy had sprinkled gold dust over that heart-wrenchingly handsome face.

“Are you thirsty, Mistress?” He asked, nodding at the flask in my hand.

Handing it to him rather abruptly, I realised that I had spent the last moments intently staring at his face as if I had never seen a male dwarf before in my life.

“I have work to do.” I snapped, feeling immediately guilty for taking my own embarrassment out on him, but he merely nodded and pulled his sketching supplies into his lap.

Strangely enough, Ori did not disturb me. If anything, the silence felt fuller, richer, deeper with him by my side. As I translated a letter, as a spinster I had to support my family and my insufferable sisters as best as I could, I felt like the chirping of the birds and the vibrancy of the colours around me were even more enjoyable now that I shared them with someone else.

…

The sun crept along its never-changing arc slowly and yet, much too fast.

As I looked up, I wished I was a better painter myself, for this dwarrow was made for sunsets.

The way the last golden hurrah of a perfect day exploded in a halo of warmth around his figure, the way all the greys and the blues seemed to bleed out of the world to leave nothing but warm tones behind, and the way his smile was the perfect expression of this mellow, unhurried mood…it struck me deeper and more violently than a thunderstorm in all its booming rage would have.

“Will you join me for dinner, Ori?” I asked gently, “I shall escort you back down.”

“It would be my honour.” He nodded, tearing out a page of his notebook and handing it over.

“It was an invitation; I do not demand payment.” I said seriously, for the sketch of the doe was so good, it might have been worth actual money. “Oh…” His nose crinkled at little at that.

“I wanted you to…have something beautiful. I have seen you work very hard.”

Of course, he was a scribe as well, he would consider the scribbling work, I thought and gave him a thankful smile. “You’re beauty enough for one day.” I shrugged.

He gasped, bringing his notebook up to his face as if to shield himself from my words.

“You’re having me on, aren’t you? Dori has warned me that girls do that sometimes.” He sounded utterly dejected. “I am not having you on. Has nobody ever told you that you’re handsome?” It was my turn to be wide-eyed with shock.

“And who is Dori?” I followed-up when he didn’t really reply to my question even though I thought I had seen his braids move like strings of pearls in a draft. The minutest of shakes of the head, a quiet admission of inadequacy that sunk ugly, ragged claws into my soft heart.

“He’s my brother. I have two of them. Dori…and Nori. They’re…” – “Older than you.” I completed. “Protective.” He supplied.

He was still holding his drawing out to me, and, after a moment, I took it gingerly and put it between the pages of my own writing supplies. I would hang it in my room and look at it daily.

Nowadays, there were but very few gifts for me; all the money went to my two younger sisters who were still nubile and would, if Mahal willed it so, be able to make a good match.

Busying my hands with making a fire, I asked him to tell me about his brothers.

“Oh, Nori is…agile. He’s…funny and brave and resourceful.” Ori started, his voice warm with affection and admiration. He sounded like a proper rogue to me, and as it turned out, he was, but he also deserved every single ounce of the deep-felt care Ori held for him.

“Dori is…fussy. He’s polite, he’s very caring, and he’s exceedingly proper.” Ori went on as I waved a hand for him not to stop. I enjoyed hearing about the life of other families than my own.

“So, is he the one who raised you to be this…warmly clad and gentle?” I asked, turning to place the foodstuffs I had brought up and stored in the cool lake water on spits to roast over the fire.

“Warm? Oh yes…I was a sickly pebble and he’s been worried ever since. I hope I have behaved in a way that would not make him disappointed in me.” Again, he worried his lip.

“Let’s see, you’ve startled a bird and an unsuspecting dwarrowdam.” I listed with a wicked gleam in my eyes; his face fell, and he looked properly guilty.

“Then, you’ve kept me company, and the best company I’ve ever had, it has been, on my grandmother’s grave, I swear.” I went on and that treacherous blush was back with a vengeance.

“I didn’t mean to startle you.” He then said in a low voice. “Great beauty is always startling.”

“I am hardly Thorin Oakenshield.” He laughed. Readers, you cannot imagine that sound just by reading my words. If flowers blossoming had melody, if the sun setting on the eternal sea had a song, if autumn leaves dancing on a gale had a tune, they would have sounded like nails on scree, like cats having their tails trampled, and like kettles going unheeded compared to Ori’s laughter.

“There’s beauty in the doe as much as in the wolf.” I replied gently.

“May I…can I ask where you’re from? I don’t seek to be rude, but I’ve never seen anyone quite like you; your hair looks like those fabrics the Elves weave. It…seems so soft, so liquid, so smooth.” He blushed a darker shade yet.

This might well have been the first time that someone had asked me about my origins without making it sound like an accusation; there was honest fascination in his demeanour.

“My family and I have come from the Far East. I have travelled a lot, Ori, I have seen landscapes entirely made up of rock and sand, I have walked forests so stiflingly hot and moist it felt like being underwater, and now, I am here in the land of tall trees and taller mountains.”

I said, surprised by my own frankness.

“That sounds amazing.” He took the food I offered readily enough, and I told him about the people I’ve left behind to be stranded at the other end of the world.

“This is good, is that a recipe of your homeland?” He asked, looking down on the piece of meat I had seasoned with herbs I had grown myself in our small backyard.

“It actually is. I’m glad you like it. I had not planned to have company, otherwise I’d have brought something more palatable to the local tongue.” I apologised quickly.

“No, I like it. You should definitely trade some recipes with Dori…and Bombur…oh, and if any of your delicious herbs are medicinal, Óin.” He laughed again when he saw my dumbfounded expression.

“I make a good honeycake, if I can interest you in that? Maybe…” He fell back into silence.

…

A look at the sky told me that it was too late to go down in the inky darkness.

“We’ll have to stay here for the night.” I mumbled, slightly uncomfortable at the idea of spending the night with a dwarrow who had not lost a single word about a wife.

“Are you married, Mistress? Will that endanger your wedlock?” He asked shyly.

“No, I am not and I have no name to lose…It’s a long story.” I didn’t feel like blurting out my disgrace, lest it give him strange ideas after all, especially as he would easily have been able to overpower me if he so chose.

“Neither am I. I don’t know about my name…Doesn’t look like I’m going to be married either. There’s not enough dwarrowdams as it is, and I think the royal line has a prerogative there.” There was no resentment in his tone; he seemed to accept this as a fact.

How could someone that sweet not be married, I wondered. He was courteous, he was cute, and he would have made the fortune and happiness of someone.

“Well, in that case, I think we can risk our reputation rather than our necks.” I grinned, rolling out a blanket I kept tied to my pack for emergencies and stretched out next to the fire on the moss.

“Erm, yes…Good night…” He mumbled, fidgeting around with his different layers of clothing. Apparently, he was deciding which one he needed least on his body to use it as a bedroll or blanket.

I eyed the proceedings with interest and a good deal of amusement.

“I can offer you my cloak to lie upon…the ground will grow very cold and wet soon.” He said in a low voice, not sure if I had already fallen asleep or not.

“Alright, I can offer you a spot under the blanket then?” I extended my own graciousness.

“With you?” No, with the red bird, I thought, rolling my eyes internally.

“Yes, Ori the scribe, with me. I will not eat you, as you have witnessed, I have had dinner.” Not that he did not look good enough to devour, standing there with his cloak in his hands and his face all crunched up in embarrassment.

“Hmmm…I guess.” He muttered doubtfully, spreading out the cloak and sitting down on it carefully. Impatiently, I scooted over and spread my lousy blanket over the both of us with a flourish.

“Sleep!” I commanded as I turned around only to find him staring wide-eyed at the spot where the back of my head had been only a second ago. Now that he was presented with my face, only inches away from his, his eyes grew even rounder and bigger in wordless distress.

“Friend…Have you never lain with a woman? And I literally mean, lying next to one?” I laughed for there had been friends and cousins aplenty in my own life and the feeling of having another body so close to mine was not a new experience for me.

“Well, I fell down on the battlefield once, next to a foe…I’m pretty sure that was a Lady-Orc. She was dead. There was a…” He gestured, indicating a spear or a lance sticking out of his chest and brushing against my own with the back of his hand. Dear reader, he flinched back as if I was a tiny Durin’s bane wreathed in flames.

“A Lady-Orc, indeed…” I mused; no doubt, he could hear the smile I hid in my voice for his face crunched up in embarrassment.

“I am sorry.” He sighed, rolling his eyes, and thinking – there was not a shadow of a doubt about that much – of his brothers who would have mocked him mercilessly for his stammering.

“There’s no need to be sorry” I tried to reassure him, but I admit now that there were things that I did not tell him right away then. We had only just met, and he was blessedly unaware of my shameful past.

How could I have made him understand – without hurting his feelings – how much I enjoyed that air of purity about him that I had squandered myself on an undeserving fiend? As a daughter amongst others, I had been used to dwarrows coming to court or to seduce, their eyes ablaze with greed and their hands wandering.

He would not have comprehended how much the absence of that voracious hunger that had plagued my youth and had ended up destroying my promising future meant to me.

“Sleep.” I repeated, unable to put into words how miraculous and precious the things he seemed to be most ashamed of were to me.

“Good night, Mistress.” He breathed with a soft smile that was nowhere near the wolfish baring of fangs I was used to and so, it was easy to return it.

You who may or may not have stumbled upon this ludicrous account of the most important story in an otherwise unimportant life, you shall hear another confession I did not make at the time.

I was fiercely aware that – had I but leant forward a little – I might have pressed my lips upon his; I was young still at that time and, despite what had happened, parts of me, that should have withered and died in the aftermath of my botched engagement, were much alive.

He smelled like our dinner and warmth, and the gentle reticence of the curve of his smile was more inviting than any flashing grin I had ever seen before.

Yes, in that very moment, on this very first evening, I had already been conscious of the shrewd attraction this self-effacing dwarrow held for me…and it scared me half to death.

…

Part 3

[cosmiclatte28]

Hot Patch (Dad! Yuta x you)

a/n : Hey! I am here to share another Yuta domestic au :) Himnaseyo everyone! I hope this oneshot can make you feel calm before sleeping or just have a better day :) Hold On Pain Ends! Idk if you remember, but welcome Nami and Kenji back to your pages.

tagging my eonni @yutahoes and amazing fellow ais who always support yuta with all their hearts @2-3-t-i @ailoveyuta and all the domestic yuta lover out there

here we go ~~

The cloudy sky starts to cry and that gives you a bad feeling. You pause in track, open your umbrella and quickly pull Nami under the umbrella and Kenji up on your shoulder.

“Kenji sweetie, hold on tight okay?” You ask through your shoulder as you hoist him up so he can hold on to your shoulder nicely.

Kenji just nod and with his firm grips on your shoulder you now check on the growing beautiful girl who already clings her hand on your dress.

“Nami, stay close.” One of your hand is under kenji's body making sure he is not slipping off while your other hand is holding the umbrella. Nami understands and three of you start walking down the pouring rain.

You are glad you didn’t bring much stuff when walking with them to the park, you give yourself a good job for bringing an umbrella but in your mind you have to remember to make Nami bring her own. Before Kenji is here, you can pick Nami up and run through the rain but not now.

Your phone rings and you guess it must be Yuta. He said he was heading home earlier and you guess he must have been homed and found your message that three of you are going for a quick afternoon walk.

Nami glances at you for ignoring the call, but you chuckle “It's probably dad, don’t worry he's home already. Now Nami after this you go inside and take off your wet clothes okay?” you tell the little girl that when you see your home sweet home.

Yuta’s car was parked already in the garage and the lights are on. Nami made it to the front door mostly dry, she bangs on the door and waits for Yuta to open the door for them.

“I was super worried when the rain fell-" Yuta's sentence stop and his eyes run from Nami who dashed through him, to you who look super struggling keeping Kenji up with one hand and holding an umbrella. His heart goes warm and he wants to scold her.

“Help me please?” you raise your brow. Yuta quickly step forward and you turn your back to him. Yuta takes over Kenji from you and you winces when your left arm was completely numb and sore from hoisting him up. You drop the big heavy umbrella. Good thing you're still able to bring both of your kids home safely.

But your duty as a mom is not over. Nami has already taken off her clothes, Yuta runs the hot water and you're helping Kenji escapes from his dry clothes. You smile feeling proud that the torturous journey at least makes Kenji dry as bone.

“Kenji fell asleep already since he arrived!” Yuta said when the kids are already sitting in front of the TV, eyes glued to their favorite ninja series, while hands and mouth are busy drinking hot chocolate.

You have taken a warm bath too and stretch your aching limbs a little, before getting teased by Yuta.

“Really? Kenji fell asleep? No wonder he felt heavier on my back.” You sigh and gulp down the steaming hot ocha Yuta placed in front of you.

Under the dining lamp on the small dining table, Yuta sits across you. In his comfortable clothes and smiling face.

“You could’ve called me. I will pick you while you wait in the park.” Yuta taps his fingers on the table.

You cross your arms over your chest and giggle “Aigo, we were already halfway home, I thought going back home before the rain gets heavier is a better choice.”

Yuta nods “It is, but you overworked yourself.”

“A thank you would be better. Look at Nami and Kenji arriving home dry!”

“yeahh but you, your front side is totally not dry.”

“kids are the priority Yuta…” you lean to your chair while keeping your palms warm with the heat from the tea cup.

“I know, but look at your hands. I'm sure you won’t be able to move them tomorrow.” Yuta clicks his tongue.

“Then it’s your turn to babysit them.” You clap your hands and stop when the pain hits your arm.

Yuta laughs and leaves his chair “Hold up okay let me get you some hot patches.”

He comes back with the famous hot muscle patches from his homeland and Yuta walks to your side. He seems to know where to put the patches on, because he went for specific points.  Unlike you who usually press all your arm and find the aching spot and put the patch there.

“Now, done!” Yuta slams the empty sticker to the table and you crack your neck “Thanks. Can you prepare dinner?” you bat your eyelash and if this is anime, he'd have blood dripping from his nose.  Both from your aegyo and the request to cook.

“Alright, since you look so cute and you've been a great mom. I can cook dinner. What should we eat?” he leans over to grab his phone and you press your back to the soft mattress.

“Anything edible. Don’t burn the house, I'll take some nap.” You yawn and stretch your arms up before disappearing under the blanket.

Yuta scrolls through the internet, using a website that can give you recipes from the stuffs you have in your fridge. He smiles when he found one that will suit the children's palette and yours too.

“Guess it’s some italian night dinner today. I at least know I won’t burn the house from boiling pasta.” Yuta thinks to himself. He changes his clothes to a comfortable one where he won’t mind getting oils or sauces on and he walks to the kitchen.

With his apron on and his hair tied back, he begins organizing the tools he needs, ingredients and starts boiling the water.

There's an hour to dinner time, he hopes he can finish on time before any of his little piglets come for food. Talking about his piglets (aka children) Yuta walks to peek into their room after putting the pasta into the boiling water.

There he sees Nami laying on her bed with her favorite doll cuddled next to her, Kenji on the other bed is already snoring lightly. They must’ve been tired from playing all day long!

He steps into the room to cover Nami with her small soft blanket, a purple one! Similar to what Taeyong has, just his is black. Kenji has tossed his blanket on the floor and Yuta gently returns the blanket on his smaller copy of him.

He adores his babies so much and sometimes seeing them already this big makes him wants to cry. He has been missing a lot of things! His idol career doesn’t allow him to always be on their school activities or events. He's glad you stopped your office job and listened to his aid to just start your long wished start up project. A small florist with a coffee shop next to it.

You have your workers so you just have to occasionally come for control. Other than that your children have your attention and time 100% of the day.

He remembers about his cooking and before he can escape from the room, a small whine catches his attention.

He twists his body to see the owner of the voice rubbing and blinking his eyes and turn over to stand on his bed. Oh Kenji can go down from his bed by himself now! Yuta just witnessed that.

“Otosan?” he yawns and blinks several times confused at the dark room condition. Yuta puts a finger over his lips and kenji copies it. “Your noona is sleeping,”

Kenji seems to understand and slowly tiptoes to his father who's already kneeling down to hug him.

“Hungry,” Kenji grins and Yuta swiftly picks him up in one go and make a dash to the kitchen. He comes back in time, with Kenji on his other arm, he turns the stove off.

“Kenji, I have to move this water but it's hot. Do you want to sit first?” Yuta asks nicely but Kenji shakes his head eagerly and clings into Yuta's neck stronger.

“I miss otosan.” He buries his face to the crook of Yuta's neck and Yuta sighs. Oh so this is why you always said clingy kids are annoying when it comes to cooking.

“Okay then, you can be on my back but behave.” Yuta walks to take the baby carrier on the sofa. Well he has this baby strap where you can keep your baby on your back safely while you do your chores.

Kenji happily climbs into his back and Yuta’s glad he can put on the strap by himself. After making sure it's secured and Kenji is comfortable, Yuta begins throwing away the hot water, and prepares for the sauce.

Although he knows you love creamy pasta, the children love tomato bolognese more and so as parents both of you will have to set creamy pasta aside.

“Otosan, am I heavy?” Kenji asks after he keeps quiet when Yuta is stir frying  the meat.

Yuta chuckles when did this kid learn this phrase? “Of course not! Otosan is strong. I can carry you even if you are heavy.”

Kenji leans his chubby cheeks on Yuta's shoulder and his small fingers play with Yuta's ear. Yuta's glad he doesn’t have any earrings now. Having Kenji pulls one accidentally or not is a nightmare.

“Then Otosan should do this more!” kenji claps his hands happily “Mommy says she cannot carry me on her back anymore when she does chores.”

Yuta is surprised at his eloquence but more surprised to find out that you've been carrying Kenji on your back while doing chores.

“Eoh okay then Kenji.  Since otosan is stronger, you come to me when you need a lift okay? We don’t want mommy to get hurt.” Yuta speaks softly to his son while his focus is still on making sure he didn’t overcook the meat and pours the right amount of sauce.

“Otosan cool.” Kenji's sentence return to fragments and he sure is a surprise eh?

“Cool? Otosan looks cool?” Yuta's proud voice is back and his sassiness is showing.

“Hm" Kenji nods and his eyes are focused on the plates filled with pasta now.

“Hungry!” Kenji points to his lion plate and Yuta takes them all to the table. He quickly sets the plates and glasses  not to forget the cutleries.

“We wake up mom and noona then we eat?” Yuta always makes sure they are eating together, thankfully Kenji is used to this and he rushes Yuta to wake Nami up.

He gets down from Yuta's back and Yuta moans in relief when his back feels lighter. He giggles now why he understood you asked Kenji to stop being on your back all day long. Yuta makes his steps to your room and wakes you up gently. You stir in your sleep and smell the delicious food.

“Hmm pasta?” you ask while rubbing your eyes and smiling to Yuta. His heart softens at how cute you can still be even after having two kids. Without holding back, Yuta plants a quick kiss on your lips and takes your hand to stand up.

“Kenji is starving and he is waiting.” Yuta only needs to say that for you to quickly walk to the door and greet your two loves with big smile as the four of you wash your hands and sit around the table.

“Thank you for the food.” The four of you chime together “Itadakimasss!”

Yuta pauses before taking his own bite. He looks around the table to wait for complains or thumbs up but looks like everyone is too hungry.

“It's delicious.” You mutter the praise, it’s the truth. A food cooked by your husband is always delicious. Because you don’t have to cook and don’t have to wash. No kidding.

Nami gives a thumb up and kenji is already shoving his face into the bowl.

Yuta feels happy and he digs into his own plate. You're right this is not bad. He expected it to taste too bland or too salty, but it's perfect.

Dinner ends nicely with Nami and Kenji asking for more pasta and you gladly give them more. They're kids and they need nutrients to grow.

All in all this is a perfect day and night. You got to spend a fun afternoon in the park with your kids and Yuta cooked you all dinner. You even get to rest afterwards because he washed all the dishes and even play with the kids and sings them lullabies.

He returns to your room when the kids are alseep. His face shows he is tired but the glow he radiates shows he is happy to do this father-children bonding time.

“I told them their favorite bedtime stories.” Yuta says after he changes into his pajamas and dives into the space next to you.

You're watching a tv series and Yuta hugs you from the side “Don't you want to sleep? You're tired.”

You turn the tv off and face Yuta, slowly you cup his cheek “Why would I sleep when I still don’t receive my bonding time?” you wink at Yuta and he chuckles.

“You really are naughty!” he tickles you but you tickle him back “I am just waiting for you so we can sleep together! Pervert.” You playfully hit his chest and he grabs your arm that's on his chest.

His gaze is deep and he kisses your palm without breaking eye contact “Okay we'll sleep. What queen wants , queen gets.”

You laugh and press yourself closer to Yuta. He engulfs you in a hug and you nuzzle yourself to a comfortable position.

One slight shift and suddenly everything's so good. The pillow feels cold, the blanket soft and Yuta's heartbeat is a great lullaby for you. You don’t want to move, you want time to stop and pause here.

Life is great with Yuta and the small family you love. Your small family with Yuta.

endddd, it’s rainy season somewhere out there please take care of yourself :D

[kitsunesakii]

I don't bite - part one

  I walked down the street, my hands in my pockets and my headphones on. It was well past midnight and the moon was at its peak. I fiddled with the placement of my headphones resting against my ears, having just got off the bus they were jostled out of position. Normally I didn't ride the bus, instead flying over the city. But, my mission's house was a little past my favorite park, and I had time on my hands. Shoving my hands in my pocket I heaved a sigh. I wasn't really fond of my mission. I hated biting if there wasn't consent. And there wouldn't be in this instance. I dragged my feet, skipping over the cracks in the sidewalk like a child.

     I arrived at his apartment complex a little after one. But I knew he wouldn't be home, it was Saturday, and every Saturday he wasn't home until around three. Hence the headphones. I sat down at the bus stop, he wouldn't be arriving from the bus, amusingly he walked home from wherever he left. But I didn't plan to stand for a whole hour. So sitting down, I waited.

     My eyes met movement, and I felt him come up. I sucked in a breath, I can do this, I can do this. I got up and nonchalantly walked behind him. The tap on my shoulder is what made me whip around, my headphones clattering to the ground. Making my mission turn as well.

     "Hey sweetheart, didn't mean to scare ya, just wanted to ask why you were out here all alone? "

     I stared at him kind of dumbfoundedly, he was clearly homeless, and by the smell wafting off of him I would say he was drunk.

     "Who said she's alone? " the voice was small but firm, as my mission, a guy who's name I wasn't given, walked up besides me, I stilled. both his hands in his pockets. "I told you to keep up, " he handed me my headphones "you know you slow down when wearing these" he made a disappointed frown.

     I looked from him, to the homeless man, then back to him. My brain slowly catching on to what he was doing. He's protecting me, a stranger I forced out a laugh, "haha, gosh I was falling behind, sorry bout that! " I gave him a smile, weary to keep my mouth shut. The homeless man looked at us for a moment, before turning and walking away. Leaving us alone on the sidewalk.

     I turned to fully face the guy. In pictures I had always thought he would be taller, instead, he was only a half an inch taller than me. "Thank you" I sputtered, my brain still catching up to the events that had just transpired. He just stared at me, his face resting in a rather relaxed posture. Neither frowning or smiling.

     "I noticed you were behind me, do you also live in that apartment complex? " his voice was low, like the gentle hum of a cat. His eyes locked with mine, they were a tainted blue with gold lining. This is your chance, no ones around. I clenched my headphones, my mind spinning a million miles a minute.

     "Ah- no, I don't"

     "Oh, " he responded cooley, "well, then, lead the way" it was probably rude to just stare at the boy that basically saved me from someone, but my mouth wouldn't work and my hands were hurting from the plastic rim of the headphones biting into my fingers.

     I gave him a quick smile before forcing my legs forward. Walking aimlessly. He walked beside me quietly, glancing at me every couple minutes. After a while we hit a cafe, and I walked up to the door, once again turning to face my mission. "Thank you,this is my stop, may I ask you your name? "

     "Matthew" he stated.

     "Well then, thank you Matthew" I gave him another small smile. He nodded, his eyes flickering up and down me before he simply walked away. I watched him, my heart beat rapidly increasing with every second. You could still finish your mission, it would be quick, painless I took in another breath. I couldn't do it. He protected me, looked at me like a person. His eyes, blue golden. I felt a small dash of heat nest itself on my cheeks. The anger came second. What was I supposed to do now? I couldn't go back empty handed, could I? I failed, I couldn't kill him. Why did it have to be him. A good person with a lax life. I gritted my teeth, there wasn't anything else to do besides head back home. It wont be home much longer. Leaving the coffee shop I headed back to the bus stop, no longer feeling up to walking.

     "What do you mean you couldn't kill him!? " I winced at the tone of voice he used, looking at the wooden floor, unable to make his gaze. The room in question was small, but I felt smaller. It was musty and you breathed smoke with every grab at air. I had spent most of the night into the early hours of the day waiting for him to return. 'Initiation' you could have a home, safety, love and more with a stupid test. I'm an idiot my brain screamed, drilling the words harder then the cutting edge of his own.

     "I-"

     he grabbed my chin with his long nails, cutting into my skin easily.

     "Such a simple task," he growled, "this should of been easy for you, such a waste of energy" this wasn't the first time I had seen him this mad, last week, another lonely vampire seeked refuge with him, and they too couldn't do what was asked. using the hand gripping my chin he yanked me to the floor. I recovered quickly, standing to my feat instantly, taking a small step back. Focusing my attention on his words instead of the  burning sensation the cuts caused.

     "You can stay here until sunset, but then, consider yourself cut off" he growled, with that he used his other hand to scratch from my cheek to the length of my neck,  leaving a scar. I waited until he left my small room before patching myself up.      

     What was I getting myself into? Hot tears trickled down my face, collecting bits of blood on it's way down. I should of never accepted his offer. Idiot, it was stupid to rely on others. All it did was end in pain. It didn't help that I had insomnia. Stupid night Terrors that left me trembling. He had said he could help. Instead he stepped all over me, and I let him. I wiped away the tears. I was fine, I was able to handle myself before and I could do it again.

     I tried to sleep, getting only a few merciful hours before I couldn't stop fidgeting. Thankfully it was a pretty cloudy day, and I didn't own much. Shoving the clothes I did own, and a few other belonging into a bag, I forced myself to leave. Going back to the park, under the shade of a great willow. I breathed in the fresh air, so much better than the musty air of the shady apartment I was forced to stay in. I pulled out my book, enjoying the quiet.

     A small shuffle got my attention, I looked up, wincing at the pain the quick movement pierced into my neck. Only to see Matthew sitting besides me, looking up at the sky. He glanced at me, and once again I was peering into his blue gold eyes. Sparkling in the sunlight. I couldn't help but smile, cautiously keeping my fangs out of sight. "Fancy seeing you here" I stated.

His eyes swam, tracinging my scar wordlessly. "Hi" he said flatly, his features neutral. I felt my fingers absentmindedly play with the corner of my book. "Your bleeding"

     My hands emediatly grazed my scar, my eyes still locked with his. "Oh, yah,  fell-" I muttered, without a moment to process I felt his hand come up and trace the length of the wound. Moving his hand gingerly, his eyes fixated on the scar. I held my breath, his fingers sent ripples that danced over my cheek down to my neck. It was almost soothing, the gentle carressing made my scar itch. I stared at him, his face was like stone, not even paying attention to the surprised expression that was slowly melting from my face, replaced with a tint of scarlet.

     "Does it hurt? "

     I almost didn't register his words, being he practically whispered them. I  caught  his wrist, holding it before it left my neck, "no" I whispered back. He opened his mouth, then closed it, removing his hand and shoving them back into his sweater pockets. Then, as if nothing happened, he once again tilted his head towards the sky, and I back down to my book. Some time passed, I felt him look back over to me, quietly watching me read. It was hard to ignore, and after a few minutes I matched his gaze. He looked lost in thought, not even registering that I caught him staring. Instead, he looked trapped in deep conversation with himself.

     "Do you come here often? " I asked, ripping him from his thoughts.

     "Not really, Do you?" his voice had such a nice hum, almost like an accent.

     "Not really, but it's been a rough day and I didn't have anywhere else to go and I quite enjoy reading-" I felt myself start to ramble, and quickly shut up. My sharp loud voice a stark contrast to his. His brow folded slightly, barley making a dent on his neutral expression.

     "Did someone- Do you need somewhere to stay?"

     "No" yes, I watched him nod before slowly  turning his gaze back to the sky. I looked up as well. The clouds were striking. Each had a unique shape and the sun created shadows that bounced on the tips of some and on the body of others, adding to the depth of the cloud cluster. In total it looked like I was staring at a painting, perfectly mastered to fit the atmosphere. Each cluster was like an island, floating in the blue sea, each containing it's own form. I admired the brilliant picture of white on blue, getting lost in it, feeling time slowly slip away. My eyes closed, lost in my own sea, I didn't even hear him leave.

     I watched the clouds, the day slowly passing over me, fading into the shadows of dusk. I slung my backpack over my shoulders and adjusted my headphones on my head, choosing a playlist before heading out into the night. I walked the same road I had just yesterday, when an idiot decided to look out for me. I bit my lip, a little too hard. Ah, I stopped, abruptly wiping away the bit of blood with my sleeve. "Just another scar to add to my growing collection" I grumbled into the breeze. I found myself walking up to the same cafe I had seen last night. I decided to go in, since I had no real destination.

     Pulling of my headphones and Opening the door I was greeted with the late night song of a coffee shop. in total, there was about 6 people. Not including the barista and myself. There were two girls at a table, looking over a laptop. And a boy flirting with the barista, who wasn't giving him the time of day. Over by the tv was a couch, empty besides a guy with his back to me.  And in another table was another girl and boy, talking lightly. I walked over to the couch, listening to the music that echoed quietly throughout the room. The couch was awfully comfortable, like a warm hug it beckoned me into the soft safety it had to offer. I closed my eyes, hugging my backpack to my chest as I let myself drowned in the beconing noises of the coffee shop.

     My brain sank into the small specks of sleep, pulling me just enough to be jolted awake. Mently cursing at pain it caused in my stomach. I adjusted to the striking colors surrounding me, rubbing the last flecks of sleep out of me. I was me with a pair of eyes, blue with gold lining. "Hi" I gasped, still recovering from the violent awaking.

     He stared at me a moment, and I got the feeling he had been staring before. I straitened in the cushions, fighting against the stiffness of my body. Sleeping in a sitting position wasn't in the least bit comfortable. "How long you been there" I joked, trying again to shift myself into a more polite position.

     "Are you sure you don't need a place to stay? " his voice carried the same low hum as before, but I noticed the concern. Feeling the tips of my cheeks get red. I did need a place to stay.... But I had no money whatsoever, except for a few bucks for the bus. I looked down, why was he being so annoyingly nice??

     "I-im" for the first time, I truly didn't know what to say, he was being so calm, it was driving me mad.

     Without warning, he stood up picking up a coffee that I hadn't noticed before. "Follow me" he said

     We walked out of the coffee shop and into his apartment complex, I fidgeted with the handle of my backpack, forcing myself to keep my mouth shut. A million excuses flooding my thoughts. We entered an apartment room, well, more like two room, one small and one large. The kitchen seeped into a nice living room, equipped with a cute couch and coffee table. A little to the left was a separate room that I could only assume was the bedroom. There was a tv on the wall, and a couple shelves to the side, adding a touch of comfort. As I looked around, he walked into the kitchen and placed his coffee on the counter.

     "The couch folds into a bed, and I have spare blankets, oh-" he walked over to a  cupboard and pulled out some medical supplies. Quickly walking over to me, "here, sit" without process I stumbled into the couch, barely catching myself, bracing into the fluff of the fabric.

    "What-" before I could finish my thought my breath hitched as his hand cupped my chin, gently tilting my head, looking at my scar. He glanced at his supplies, picking up a Q tip and dipping it in a thickly coated gel. He put it on my scar, I gasped, the gel felt cold against my skin. He pulled back, his eyes widening

     "Did I hurt you?"

     "No, no, you just startled me, that's all" I gave him a reassuring smile. After a hint of hesitation he carefully glided the Q tip on the length of my scar, only stopping to add more gel. His fingers pressed lightly on my cheek, being carful to not be rough. His gaze set on my scar, his eyes shining in the light on the ceiling. "So pretty" I mumbled, blinking at the fact that I said that aloud. His eyes flickered to mine and I emediatly went beet red. A small smirk rested on his face.

     "Thank you" he mumbled back, his face a light shade of red. He finished quickly, and soon he just sat there, stroking my cheek with his thumb. Not bringing himself to move away, his face back to its same stone look. I yawned, it had been a while since I had gotten even a few hours of sleep, and I was weak. He caught on emediatly and let go, muttering something about blankets while he headed off into his room.

     I rubbed my eyes, setting my backpack down on the floor next to the couch. He came back and opened the couch, creating a cozy looking bed, a perfect fit for me. He placed down the pillow and blanket, and wordlessly I climbed into it. Letting my body relax, barley feeling the blanket being pulled up over my shoulders, or the lights being turned off.

     No, no no no, I wimpered, the shadow looming over me. "Your dreaming, wake up"  the shadow took a step towards me, I let out a low wine, unable to back up, "your dreaming, it's ok, I got you, it's ok"

I felt a tight gripped hand pull me against something, ripping me almost completely out of my nightmare. My eyes still closed, I bared my teeth at the shadow. I tried to pull my legs up to my head, trying to cower from it. My stomach tightening in knots. Something gripped me close, I felt breath on my ear. "Hay hay, it's alright, nothing can hurt you, your safe, your safe." I felt my body relax, the voice louder than the shadow. I let the invisible thing pull me closer, laying my head on something rhythmic. Slowly sending me back to sleep, my eyes still closed, I felt somthing brush against the top of my head, already to far asleep to notice.  

     When I woke up it must of been early because the sun was still well behind the horizon. I sat up, yawning and baring my teeth. There was a clatter in the kitchen, I looked around, the lights were off, but there was Matthew, cooking something over the stove. The smell wafting over. I couldn't help but smile, I didn't know why, but I had slept through the entire night without waking, and I felt very relaxed. I stood up, careful not to disturb Matthew, who was deep in thought. I walked over, leaning against the island and just staring. He was smiling. It was quite a sight, making his eyes shine even more. I wondered what he was smiling about, what was causing his face to show such emotion. I looked over his shoulder, in a pan was two eggs. They crackled and popped.

    "Good morning," I said finally, unable to keep myself quiet. He look over and his smile faded slightly, going back to its stone look. But the light in his eyes only got bigger. "Oh please, don't stop smiling for me" I teased, watching his face go bright red.

     "Good morning" he said back, watching my movements closely. "Did you sleep good?"

     "Yes actually! I sleep wonderful, your couch is super comfortable" I said, his eyes searched mine, as if looking for a clue. I cocked my head to the side, giving a playful frown to his reaction. "Everything ok?" I asked, the tense silence growing too much for me.

     His features relaxed, "yah, just making sure" he said, turning his attention back to the pan of eggs. After a moment he skillfully slid them on two separate plates and handed a plate to me. Opening a drawer and pulling out two forks. We sat down over at a small table that bordered the kitchen. It was in front of a window, outside I could see the sun peeking out. I shuffled nervously, taking a bite of my eggs.

     "These are really good" I said, my mouth full of egg. His blue gold eyes brighteded, and he glanced at the window, noticing the rising sun. Then, he stood up and pulled the shutters closed, making sure no light got in before proceeding to continue making work on his eggs. Without any words said. My brow folded, confusion and slight paranoia lapping at my senses.

     "What was that about?" I asked innocently, my eyes narrowing.

     "He looked at me a moment, his fork still fiddling with his breakfast. "The sun is too bright in the morning" he said flatly, averting his eyes.

     "Ok...."

     We went back to eating in silence, after I was done, and noticed he was also done. I stood and took his plate, quick enough so that he didn't have the chance to argue. "Thank you for breakfast" I said again, placing the two plates in the dishwasher. "And... Thank you for letting me stay the night, but..." I made myself state what had been bugging me for the past few minutes. "I don't have enough money to pay you for your hospitality. I don't want to invade on your privacy, and you probably don't want someone like me hanging around your apartment and-" I was cut short in my rambling by the small smirk that was slowly growing on his face. I had expected him to be disappointed, maybe even mad. But he looked, amused. "What? Why are you smiling" I said, embarrassment flickering in my words.

     "I wasn't expecting payment. I enjoy the company." He explained, trying but failing at forcing his smirk off his face. "You can stay as long as you want" he finished. Standing to his feet he walked over to a drawer and pulled out a spare key, handing it to me. "Just make sure to lock up before you leave" he hummed, his voice back to its low sing song like melody. Leaving me flabbergasted.

     I cleaned up the couch, folding it back to a sitting position and placing the blanket and pillow on it neatly. When I finished I sat down, he had left shortly after our conversation. Mumbling something about work. He had tossed me the remote before leaving. I skipped through the channels, the news wasn't ever really interesting, it was all the same now. Talk about the politics of vampires and humans, vampire rights and freedoms. Stupid. Ten years now, people have lived with them peacefully. The news was grasping at strings. Still, it was better than nothing, and I settled for a channel on cooking. It wasn't long before I got fidgety, and had to pace around the room for a while. It was too bright to risk going outside, so I opened the fridge to drink something instead. There wasn't much, but orange juice sounded good, so I drank that. Slowly but surely, as the day carried on, the sun started to settle behind the horizon, kissing the mountain tops.

     I fiddled with my headphones, when the door opened and in he came. "Hay!" I shouted, giving him a closed lipped grin.

     "Hi" he breathed back, clearly exasperated from whatever he was getting back from. He made a beeline to his room, closing it behind him. It didn't take long before he had came back out in a new more comfortable outfit. His hands in his pockets. "Are you hungry, I know a really good place over a ways" he asked, his blue gold eyes locking with mine.

     "Yes! I would love that!" Jumping off the couch giddily, I needed to get out into the fresh air. We walked out of the apartment and into the night air, softly lit with the last remaining glow the sun had to offer. There was a slight breeze, and the trees danced to its rhythm. I smiled, unable to contain the happiness stirring inside of me. Like any vampire, I absolutely loved the nighttime. The shadows that played in the corners of your vision, mixed with the hum of others basking in the night air. Bats gliding gracefully in the air, silent as the darkness around them. Pulling myself from my thoughts, I caught Matthew staring at me. His eyes full of awestruck wonder.

     We made our way over to a cute little restaurant and ordered food, sitting in the outside seats. Per his request.

     "How was work?" I asked, nibbling On the sandwich placed in front of me.

     "It was fine"

     We ate quietly, silently enjoying each other's presence. When I finished, I closed my eyes. A gust of wind crashing into me, it felt amazing. And I itched to be up in the sky, feeling the rush of the flight. The high it gave. I opened my eyes, his soft gaze peiring into mine.

     "Your so beautiful when you get lost in thought"

     His abrupt complement left me red and speechless, "ah," I averted my eyes, my gaze faultering towards the floor. "Thanks" I mumbled, unable to meet his blue gold eyes. My stomach stirred with the same weird feeling I felt the day before. We walked home, too flustered to speak. I noticed him watching me in the corner of my eye, his face in its calm stone stare. I could get used to that, I pondered to myself.

     We got home and I once again got ready for bed, this time entering the bathroom and changing into pj's. I layed back down into the comfy blankets and drifted into sleep, the events of the day still lingering in my thoughts.

@vigilantetendencies

[tact-and-impulse]

Shinkane Week 2021 Day 5

For the “arranged marriage” prompt, I went for the Sengoku era.

In Place

Akane hoped that at the very least, he would be kind.

She set her mirror down, unable to look at her reflection any longer. The heavy embroidered robes, the cosmetics on her face, her hair hidden away under white silk. The guilt in her eyes.

Yuki had been the charming one, the one who was supposed to marry a general aligned with their closest neighbor. She had cheerfully shown her wedding garments to Akane during her last visit, that she had only met her betrothed once but liked him immensely and he had been pleased with her in turn. It seemed a fitting fate for Yuki, who wanted nothing more than to have a happy marriage.

Then, Sasayama Mitsuru had died on the battlefield.

The news had been delivered, along with the fact that the engagement would now be with a different general instead. Yuki had fainted and then grew feverish. It was believed that she had been weakened by the sudden upheaval of events, it was too much for her frail spirit to bear. But whatever the truth was, it would forever remain a mystery. Her dear cousin was gone too quickly, in the span of a night that left Akane numb and paralyzed.

At the funeral, she learned that the wedding would be occurring anyway. With her, in place of Yuki. She barely registered anything after that. The sewing alterations, the packing of her belongings, the trousseau moved to her room, that would only remain so for another two weeks.

Most of the ceremony passed in a blur. She kept her eyes downcast, sensing that her new husband was taller than she was and catching the aroma of kizami when he moved. He must have smoked the shredded tobacco, and she racked her mind for what else she knew about him. He was a little younger than Sasayama had been, but he had already cultivated a favorable reputation. Had he ever met with Yuki?

She glanced up at him, and though she didn’t recognize his handsome features, she couldn’t complain. His expression was stoic, serious. Then, his gaze slid to her, and she immediately turned back to the proceedings. She was much more aware of her surroundings, than she had been since Yuki’s death.

She actually tasted her food at the celebratory dinner, though her appetite hadn’t fully returned yet. Her husband wasn’t faring any better, and in her periphery, he was frowning. As the guests descended into merrymaking and she sipped her sake, he spoke for the first time.

“Do you want to leave?”

Oh. Well, there was that part to a wedding, and she hurriedly downed the rest of her drink. Swallowing the burn, she agreed. “Y-yes.”

His hand was larger than hers, callused and strong, but he touched her gently and she appreciated that. Her face flamed at the cheering and his grip tightened. The hallway was quieter, the party’s sounds muffled, and she felt like she could breathe.

“I hope everyone will behave.” She said aloud, as he presumably led the way to the chamber. Their chamber.

“They’re only pleased about the alliance. It would have been the same, whether it was us or your cousin and my friend. We’re a couple of shogi pieces, that’s all.” His voice was dark with resentment, but it wasn’t bad to listen to.

“I’m sorry about your friend. General Sasayama was kind enough, from what I remember. He and Yuki could have been happy together. Not that it matters now…” The grief opened up again, the cloudiness returning.

“No, it doesn’t. He was too reckless, he got himself killed because he wasn’t satisfied, and his death took your cousin with him.” Outwardly, he sounded angry, and he slammed the door a little too hard. Inside the room, a lantern illuminated the sparse interior. One futon, with two pillows. He pulled her inside, before taking hold of the sliding door again. She wasn’t sure where to look, what to do. Of course, the basic instructions had been provided, but she was too nervous to start anything. She flinched as his sleeve brushed hers, and he must have noticed.

He walked around her, taking one of the pillows and tucking it under his arm. “Are you tired?”

“A little. It’s been a long day.” She let out a shaky laugh.

“Then, get some rest.” He blew out the lantern, the room plunging into darkness. She clutched her embroidered outer kimono, trying to still her trembling fingers. But he never approached, his footsteps drifting away. “That’s your side. This is mine.” A pause. “Good night.”

“…Good night?”

The silence crept up, and when she realized nothing would happen tonight, she smiled.

***

They still hadn’t consummated the marriage, when she traveled with him. He explained that until winter, they would be residing with his lord’s family and she would be assisting the lady, while he was on campaign.

“Do you know how to use a naginata?”

“I have some training.”

“Rely on it. We get attacked on a regular basis.”

“Eh?” She hadn’t heard of that before. “What about the castle’s defenses?”

“They’re adequate, but you should be prepared, in case there’s a spy. Don’t trust anyone easily.”

“Not even you?”

“If I act dishonorably, you shouldn’t hesitate.”

“I don’t think you will.”

His gaze might have softened, but he never responded.

Within the castle town, she was introduced to a variety of people. The lord, who seemed rather easygoing, and his demure, proper wife accompanied by her ladies-in-waiting. The metsuke, Ginoza. The seasoned general, Masaoka, and the recently promoted Kagari. There was even a warrior woman, Kunizuka. They all seemed pleasant, addressing her as the wife of General Kougami. It was strange at first, but she did her best to be just as kind.

Meanwhile, she and her husband slept apart from each other, as much as they could with one bed. He hadn’t made a move yet. She considered that he had a mistress, but from what Kagari told her, he only trained in his spare time. And although it was commonplace, she didn’t like the idea that there was another woman. He always came back to her anyway.

He had seen the books she brought with her and skimmed through each one. He genuinely seemed interested in her tastes and didn’t belittle her opinions. His questions were direct, calculating, and purposeful. He shared his books too, marked with his notes. Her husband had neat handwriting, she thought. In the evenings, he smoked his pipe as he read his own papers, and she found the sight comforting.

Not long after her arrival, an enemy clan drew too close. The entire household mobilized, and she saw him off. Along with his armor, he had a mask to resemble a wolf’s open mouth, but she didn’t feel any terror. It was only her husband, who was resolute and intelligent. She had faith in him.

“Be careful. I hope you’ll win.”

“Ah.” His hand lifted and for a moment, she thought he was going to touch her face. Instead, he ruffled her hair. “I’ll return soon.”

She watched him leave, feeling oddly empty.

It was a harder fight than expected, and the news came that they had been breached. The lady was newly pregnant, and after ensuring her safety, Akane took up her naginata and headed for the battlements. She could barely see past the drizzling rain, and the clamor was deafening. An arrow whizzed past her hair, and she felt pain and a warm trickle past her temple. But she kept going, searching for any unfamiliar faces.

At one corner, there were two figures, one readying to finish off his prone opponent. It was hard to discern who they were, but the man who was down seemed to have a mask. In the dim torchlight, she spotted the painted fangs on porcelain. She lunged forward and drove her naginata into the stranger, who tumbled over the wall.

“Akane!” Her husband was surprised to see her, and he struggled to rise. With her aid, he was able to stand. He’d suffered a few minor wounds, but he was still speaking and breathing. “You’re here.”

“Yes, I couldn’t stand by and wait.”

He blinked, the rain in his eyes. “Where’s the lady?”

“She’s in hiding. I’m glad you’re alright.”

“So are you.” He gripped her shoulder, and he gave a strained smile. “Stay safe!” Before she could reply, he was running off. She sincerely prayed he wouldn’t die, and she lifted her spear with renewed determination.

By dawn, the enemy had been subjugated. She had returned to their room, examining her head wound. Thankfully, the bleeding had stopped and it wasn’t very deep. She had finished bandaging it again, when the door opened.

“Shinya-san!” She rushed to him. He looked tired, but the dried blood had been cleaned off, and strips of white cloth covered his chest. She pulled him to the futon, urging him to sit and rest. “Are you hungry? Thirsty?”

“No.” He seemed distracted, not quite meeting her eyes.

“If you need to sleep, I’ll leave you alone.” She was about to leave, but he grabbed her wrist. He stared at his own grasp, his thumb slowly bending. She ignored the heat overcoming her, lowering her voice. “Please, tell me what you need. I’m your wife, I want to help you.”

“Anything?”

“Anything.”

“Don’t regret saying that.” And he kissed her, with unrestrained ferocity. She was too stunned to react, and when he parted from her, his eyes were completely dark. “Did you not like it?”

“I don’t know. One more time?”

He leaned towards her again, and she tried to meet him. Gentler than before, but his fingers twining through hers demonstrated that the passion hadn’t subsided. Breaking for air, he asked. “So? Should we stop?”

“No. Never.” And she initiated, claiming his mouth. He pulled her down and for a while, there was no need for words.

Neither of them were intended to be in this marriage at first, but they were now and the life that stretched ahead wasn’t terrible at all.

[skywalkerstyles]

Skin (Bakugou x OC!Reader insert)

Warnings: kidnapping, stockholm syndrome, quirkless AU, criminal Bakugou, robbery, hostage situation, anxiety, mysophobia

Summary: Katsuki Bakugou is a killer, hell bent on revenge. Hikaru Moshimoto is a college student with a dark and cloudy past. When Hikaru is taken hostage and forced to work with Bakugou in order to survive, will the be able to get passed their differences, and see the people behind the scars? A stalker seeks to finish something Hikaru started a long time ago. When they come head to head, will Bakugou protect her? Or will he add another victim to his list? 

Hikaru Moshimato felt sick when she woke up that chilly september morning. Monday, September fifteenth to be exact. It was a day she would never forget or get over. It changed the course of her life forever. 

It started out like any other morning, she got up, got dressed, had breakfast, fed her little cat Yoshi and headed out the door on her way to work. But there was a presence, it was dark and gloomy, and hung over her like a shadow. Something was coming, and she wasn't ready for it. At all. 

She pulled up to the little gas station by her job, it had a little convenience store attached, a place she could grab snacks and drinks before work, the vending machines there were usually way overpriced, so it was easier to just bring food with her. She got out of her car, locking the doors as she held her wallet close to her chest, tucked her head down and walked inside. 

She sighed, upon stepping into the cool air conditioned building, and instead of walking up to the counter and just paying for her gas she eyed the slushie station. She loved slushies,  and she could never pass one up. She smiled to herself thinking, fuck it, and strolled over to the slushie machine. There was a man standing to the side of the machine, where the fridges held the drinks, he had a Redbull in one hand and a smartwater in the other. He wore an unbuttoned, navy blue flannel with a black t shirt and grease stained blue jeans. His eyes were covered by dark sunglasses and his hair was covered by a blue and white striped baseball cap. Hikaru was hyper aware of his presence, making sure to keep aware of her surroundings. She didn’t like the vibe she was getting from this guy. He scared her. Seemed like trouble.

But if he noticed her presence, he didn't show any signs of it.

So Hikaru relaxed her shoulders, shaking her head and began to ponder the flavor she’d get today. Hikaru had never been one for conversation anyway. She always kept to herself, due to some social anxieties and quirks she had, that made her ‘unapproachable’ as her mother had put it. But if you had a doctor mother who abused prescription medication and neglected you after your father’s death, you might have some fucked up issues too.

 Which is why she found it strange when she felt the man’s presence shift, he’d come closer to her, and she could feel him staring. She kept her eyes down, feeling her cheeks heat up as she pulled a cup from the slot and got ready to pour her syrupy drink into it.

 "What's your favorite flavour?" He asked suddenly, and the deep rough voice startled her. She twitched and peek at him curiously through her hair, that thankfully, covered most of her face.

 "Coke." she answered meekly. The man cracked a smile, his teeth were perfect and bright. It was almost, alluring. Definitely charming.

 “Really?” he asked, reaching out and taking the cup from her. She didn’t have time to react, before he plucked it from her hands and filled it with the drink of her choice. “I like blue raspberry best….sometimes cherry’s good too.” He handed her the drink and she took it hesitantly. He chuckled at her demeanor, cocking his head to the side, that ridiculously handsome smile still plastered to his face.

 “Thank you.” she managed after a moment, she placed a lid on her drink and grabbed a straw.

“No problem,” he replied, following her as she turned towards the cashier. She can feel the panic and the nerves rising within her. Why was he following her? As they stood in line, waiting for the other customers to leave, she could feel the man change, his whole demeanor took on a darker, more serious tone. She curled in on herself, hoping he wouldn’t try and follow her to her car. Hikaru hadn’t always been this way. Afraid of germs, afraid of touch….Basic human contact. No. If you looked at her high school yearbook, you wouldn’t even think it was the same person. She used to be bright, and outgoing, willing to chat it up with just about anybody, a regular teenage girl. Until Amano. And...Hina... She shook her head, trying to focus on the task at hand, get the drink. Get the gas. Go to work. She took a deep breath, she would complete her goals today.

 “Hi! How are you today?” a cheery red head smiled at Hikaru, she tried to smile back, and return the enthusiasm, but the feeling of dread was starting to creep back up on her and she couldn’t shake it off.

 “I’m fine thank you. Ten dollars on pump-”

 “Shut up.” Hikaru feels a strong hand wrap around her upper arm and tug her back, she looked up to see the man who had been by the slurpee machine, pulling her towards him, a pistol in his hand, pointed right at the cashier. Hikaru squeaked as the man pulls her into him, jabbing the gun into her side. “Give me all the money in the register, or you, and her die. Now!” Hikaru flinches at the last word, which he snarled at the cashier. She had her hands up, tears streaming down her face. “Move.” he ordered. The cashier slammed a metal grate down and an alarm began to sound. The man held onto Hikaru even harder, yanking her around as he turned to find an exit. “Fuck!” he exclaimed. Hikaru shifted, trying to wriggle free. He pulled her closer, he was big and intimidating. He reminded her of Amano. “You’re not going anywhere.” he said. “I need you. Come on.”

 Panic began to rise within Hikaru, she could feel her breath growing more ragged by the minute, all the things she needed to get done shooting through her head. The man dragged her towards the back of the store and into the warehouse, once inside, he shut and locked the door, shoving her from him and holding the gun to her. Surprisingly, the slushie hasn’t spilled. “Don’t move.” he said coldly. A sob escaped her throat, the bubble was rising, she could feel the panic getting ready to burst.

 “P-Please,” she rasped, her throat was closing, she couldn’t breathe.“I-I have money.”

 “I don’t want your money. We need to get out of here.” Hikaru looked at him confused.

 “W-we?” the man grabbed her again, yanking her towards the back of the warehouse.

 “Yeah. We. You’re my hostage,” fear filled her as the man’s lips curled into a confident smirk. He pulled a set of handcuffs from his pocket and yanked her forward, cuffing her. “Don’t struggle. And you live.” She was about to faint. The alarm was blaring, but through the sound Hikaru could hear the doors bursting open. The same doors she had walked into only minutes ago, it seemed like hours now. The man cursed again, kicking the back exit door open and shoving her through.

________________

They hid behind a dumpster, he peaked out, looking around to see cops, flooding into the gas station, Hikaru shifted uncomfortably, the cuffs were tight on her wrists, digging into her skin. He didn’t seem to notice. “A-are you a criminal?” she asked. He didn’t even turn to look at her, inching forward slowly, his hand still gripping her tightly.

 "Yeah."that was it. No explanation. Just a straight no bull answer. As the cops go into the front of the store, the man gripped her tightly and yanked her towards an older Astro van. Hikaru pondered why no cops were looking over towards them, how no one could see he was taking her. But it would be just her luck. He threw the passenger door open, shoving her inside, before running around to the otherside and climbing in. The door shut with a slam and he pealed out and away, the cops just noticing as you leave the gas station. The sweet and tasty slushie, left on the floor of the warehouse.

 ____________

The van was loud. It sent deep rumbles of vibration all the way down to Hikaru’s bones. Like a  massage after the chaos back at the gas station. Her hands are still bound but the man had finally stowed the gun. There was no handle on the inside of the passenger door. She was stuck and she stayed quiet. Out of fear. The man drummed his fingers against the steering wheel, listening to a song on the radio. The silence wasn’t tense, but it wasn’t comfortable either. "Are you going to kill me?" she asked softly, so low he might not even hear her. He stopped drumming and turned to look at her for the first time since he’d taken her.

 "Wasn't planning on it." He replied. “I just needed some cash….but damn that cashier was quick on her feet. Taking you was the only way I would have gotten out of there alive.”

 “W-why do you say that?” she asked, curiosity getting the better of her. He cocked his eyebrow, finally taking off his glasses, his eyes were a deep blood red.

 “You...You don’t watch tv do you ?” she shook her head. The news gave her anxiety. The only time she left her dorm was for class or work. Necessities. She kept to herself. He chuckled and shook his head as he turned on his turn signal.

 “Why do you ask?” she asked a bit louder. She watched his adam’s apple bob and his eyes scan the road, searching for the right answer.

 “I uh, I’m in a business most don’t agree with.” he said.

 She decided to push a little further, “what do you do?”

 “I’m...I’ve killed people.” he said it solemnly. Like he wasn’t proud of it, but he had to do it. Hikaru feels the panic begin to rise again. He cleared his throat. “What’s your name?” he asked, changing the subject.

 “M-my…..it’s Hikaru.” she said, wishing she sounded braver than she felt. “Hikaru Moshimoto.”

 “I’m Bakugou, Bakugou Katsuki.” he responded, “You know, you’re the first person I’ve met in a long time who didn’t know who I am.” he sighed, clicking his tongue, “You’re a weird girl.”

 “Says the man who just admitted to murder being his occupation.” he laughed, shaking his head. She didn’t want to admit it, but she liked his laugh.

 “Yeah, maybe we’re both just weird.” He paused and then said carefully, "I won’t hurt you."the tone of his voice is softer, calmer, and surprisingly soothing "Unless you make me." He added with emphasize on ‘make’.

 “H-How many…” Hikaru trailed off, unable to finish her question. It was strange, she could never talk and be this open with just anybody. She usually just kept quiet, and stayed in her lane. She wasn’t the type of person to make waves. Not since before…..

 “How many people have I killed?” Bakugou finished for her. She nodded, glad to have been pulled back from the darkness of her thoughts. He can tell that she’s got something going on. She looked so small and fragile. Like the china plates his mom used to collect. He really didn’t want to hurt her, and silently prayed he’d never have to. He bit his lip, trying to think of the right answer, “If I had to count….possibly sixty.” Hikaru’s mouth fell open in shock.

 “Oh my….” she instinctively moved further from him. He couldn’t help but feel a pang of rejection. She focused on her shoes, on the scuffs and the threads in the laces, anything to keep her from going crazy. They sat in silence for a long while. Bakugou began to twitch as it stretched, it was slight, barely noticeable. Except she saw it. "So where are you taking me?" Hikaru asked awkwardly, eyes darting to his before looking ahead again

 “I’m taking you to my family. You’re my hostage for now, but they’ll decide if you know too much or have seen too much.” Hikaru swallowed hard, wondering what that could possibly mean. He must have sensed her worry, because he reached out, only to pull his hand back when she flinched, with a sigh. “Just don’t worry….You seem harmless enough.”

 “Can you take the cuffs off? Please? They hurt.” Bakugou pulls off onto the side of the road.

 "Don't try anything, okay? I have a gun." Bakugou met her eyes as he shut off the van and turned to her, he looked down to her hands. He quickly unlocked the cuffs and sat back. She rubbed her swollen wrists and he started the car back up.

 “Are you scared?” he asked after a while. Hikaru looked up at him again. She noticed he had freckles, they were light and scattered across his cheeks...He’d be a good subject to draw.

 “I….” she bit her lip, unsure of how to proceed, “I’m terrified…..I know that mentally….But I guess I’ve shut down. I don’t really feeling anything.” 

“Why?” he asked, suddenly curious. Did he want her to be afraid. 

“I’ve been in….I’ve been in a lot worse situations,” he scoffed at that, disbelievingly.

 “You’re my hostage. I had you at gunpoint. I’m kidnapping you and you’ve been in worse situations?” she smiles at how ludicrous it sounds.

 “It does sound crazy but….I don’t know. I have a lot of anxiety disorders and I’ve been struggling with depression so I….maybe this was too much and my body is protecting itself.” he pursed his lips together.

 “How old are you?”

 “22.”

 Shit. He thought. She’s just a kid. “I’m sorry it had to be you.” she gave him a questioning look. “In the store. If you hadn’t been there, I wouldn’t have taken you.” she nodded, not quite accepting his apology, but understanding, that he knew, she had been through some shit.

 “I haven’t…..I haven’t left this town my entire life.” she said quietly, changing the subject. Bakugou picked up her switch in demeanor and followed it, trying to lighten the mood.

 “Yeah?” she tried to smile, it was small and tight, but she could feel the uneasiness begin to grow again.

 “Yeah….where is your family?”

 “You’ll see,” he said, flashing her a grin. “You’ll like it better than this dump.” he snorted as they passed the ‘Leaving Town’ sign.

 “Why did you come here?” she asked before she could stop herself.

 “Don’t ask questions you already know the answer to.” she nodded, sinking back into her seat. Bakugou cleared his throat and turned the radio back up. “Better settle in. We got a long drive…..what kind of music do you like?”

 ________

He shut the door behind him. The dorm room was quiet and he couldn’t feel her presence as he looked around. Everything was in it’s rightful place, meticulous and germ freak as ever. He missed her so much. He walked over to Hikaru’s desk and lifted the sketchbook that sat open on it, he touched the lines of the person she drew, imagining the way she drew it, the way her hands moved. His heart was racing. It was 4pm and she should have been home now. She didn’t have any friends.

 Where was she?

 Where was the girl he’d been searching for for so long?

 He was dying to see her again…….

[laine-o]

SasuSaku Month 2020 Day 14: Battle Scars

Traveling SS/ Blank period

Collaboration with writer: @ss-tyytyy (please give her a follow!!!!) and artist: Laine-O (me!)

Rating: T

Note: Thank you for taking the time to read and please let us know your thoughts! Also, thank you @ss-tyytyy for being so lovely to work with. ^_^

…

“Tch. Rain.”

Hearing the annoyed comment come from her traveling companion, Sakura looked up and to her side at him before turning her gaze to the sky. Just moments before, it had been clear, though cloudy. Now though, the clouds had become much thicker, darker and the smell of impending rain was prominent. It was a smell so natural and earthy, Sakura quite liked it.

There was something about the rain that was calming and gave her a sense of ease, but Sasuke didn’t appear happy about it in the least.

“The inn isn’t too far up ahead, Sasuke-kun.” Sakura offered him a reassuring smile and reached over to give his shoulder a soothing rub. 

Sasuke hummed knowingly, cutting her a glance with his lone visible eye. “We can’t afford to have you becoming ill.” He muttered and she clamped her mouth shut as he removed his cloak and placed it over her shoulders. 

The kind act warmed Sakura from the inside out and her smile remained present as they walked ahead. She didn’t say anything nor call him out, having already learned how easily flustered Sasuke was. She didn’t wish to make him uncomfortable, so she just accepted his kindness and affections silently—repaying them as often as she could.

By the time they reached the inn, the rain had picked up, coming down hard and fast upon their bodies until there was no help. Even with Sasuke’s cloak, Sakura wound up soaked from head to toe and Sasuke was just the same. The rain brought about a drop in temperature too, making their wet bodies feel chilled as well. Sakura was shivering as they stepped into the room they’d be sharing. She knew Sasuke was just as cold, but he hid it well.

“Get those wet clothes off, I’ll grab a towel.” Sakura said to him, passing him a glance on her way by him. 

“Ah,” Sasuke agreed, thinking nothing of it as he turned his attention to his shirt and went about removing it.

So cold! Sakura musingly thought while entering the bathroom.There was a small shelf stocked with towels and washcloths. Before reaching for any, Sakura took off Sasuke’s cloak and hung it on the back of the bathroom door, then slowly peeled away her drenched top, hanging it over the shower. She also quickly removed her boots and was soon padding back into the open room, barefooted and wearing nothing other than her compression shorts and her chest bindings.

Sakura’s priority was Sasuke and not herself, but she knew he wouldn’t think that way, so she made sure to dry herself adequately on her way to him. He’d stripped out of his wet clothes like she told him to and was waiting on the bed. When he turned to look at her, Sasuke’s mismatched eyes widened a fraction before averting from her completely, a slight pout forming on his lips as he faced away from her.

“Sakura—you—”

“I know you’re freezing, Sasuke-kun,” Sakura commented, brow slightly furrowed as she clambered on the bed behind him, wasting no time in beginning to pat his skin dry.

Sasuke’s jaw tensed and he could feel his skin heating from his neck up, blood filling even his ears at the proximity and the vivid image of Sakura in nothing but those shorts and the bindings. They’d been traveling together for a few months at this point, but he was always careful not to view her in any such revealing instances. Sasuke always respectfully gave Sakura her privacy, but he didn’t consider until now that it was more for his own benefit than hers.

One glimpse of the not so subtle curves she possessed that were normally hidden beneath her clothes had Sasuke hot and bothered. Embarrassed. Suddenly aware of his own lack of clothing, though he was only shirtless and it was a regular occurrence. He was a man. It was only that he couldn’t believe Sakura could be so brazen around him—but she was always proving to him that she was truly a wonder. 

Beautiful. Confident. Strong.

“Even you have battle scars, huh?” She murmured, green eyes taking in the scars littering his back. 

Sakura had finished drying him for the most part and draped the damp towel over her shoulder, her touch still lingering on his skin, tracing the scars she found each in turn. Some were faded until they were barely noticeable while others were painfully obvious. Her medical knowledge permitted her to know how grave each injury had been for the scars to form how they had.

Sasuke was a man full of imperfections, but to Sakura, he had always seemed perfect.

Even when he made mistakes.

The question pulled Sasuke away from his wayward and unwanted thoughts—thankfully. “Scars?” He questioned, voice cracking slightly. He cleared his throat and added, “Well, I don’t think about that, but I suppose everyone does.”

She, of course, had her own. Her deeper, more noticeable scars went beyond mere blemishes of her skin, reaching to the deepest recesses of her heart and mind. Sakura’s battle with Sasori flickered through her mind, the memory one she knew she would never forget. The scar was one she could no longer feel as she carried it around proudly upon her back—but it was one she thought of on occasion. One she carried in the back of her mind at all times. 

Though she wondered if Sasuke remembered the causes of his deepest scars and if they plagued him at times, Sakura didn’t question him on it. She only committed each one to memory, wanting there to be nothing of him that she didn’t know and understand so long as she was able. Sasuke was patient and kind to a fault—he felt so deeply, cared so much and Sakura was one person who understood that, while most thought him to be cold and unattached. That just wasn’t who Sasuke was. It was once who he tried to be, but he clearly regretted those days now.

“Sasuke-kun?” Sakura called, voice that of a whisper as she stared upon his shoulders, still patting his pale skin dry. He made a quiet noise to let her know he was listening, a familiar ‘hn’ that had her smiling fondly. “Thank you.”

The words of gratitude surprised him enough to have him turning to face her, but he made sure to keep his eyes on hers and nothing more. “What for?”

“For caring about me… and letting me travel with you.” She told him, smile brightening though there was a lingering, subtle shyness as she spoke. 

It was Sasuke who had once again become flustered, ears burning red. He turned back around much more quickly than he had turned to face her and Sakura did her best to stifle a giggle. She felt blessed and grateful to be the one to see this side of him. To see all sides of him and love him unconditionally. Sakura had loved him for as long as she could remember and she would continue to do so—to support him wholeheartedly and care for him no matter the distance between them or the circumstances.

They both owned their own battle scars and though it was likely that they would obtain more over time, each one would have its own story and with it—more memories. 

[writing-gifts]

datura (moth!bruno x butterfly!reader)

—–

A/N: ahh this fic just passed 10k words 👏🏾

First Chapter || Previous Chapter || Next Chapter

Reader is gender neutral!

-----

[Mid Summer]

There were insects everywhere.

Avoiding going out early in the day would only last so long. You knew this, as it happened every year, but you couldn’t help feeling a bit frustrated while avoiding brushing shoulders with mosquitos, butterflies, bees--everyone!

Even the place where you met Bruno was much more crowded than usual. But you still try to bear it as long as you can.

However, today when you see the crowd, you finally decide it isn’t worth it.

Adjusting your sunhat, you fly to Abilene’s. You didn’t want to go home just yet so you might as well visit.

Once you’re in front of their home you start knocking over-enthusiastically on the door.

"Abbyyyyyy!"

You continue this until the entrance swings open and your nose is immediately pinched between two fingers.

You grimace and grab at Abilene’s wrist but they don’t let go. “Is this how you greet guests!?”

“Loud ones!”

With one more squeeze, they finally let go and you rub your nose. “Why must you bully me?” you whine dramatically.

The grasshopper rolls their eyes and moves to the side so you can walk in.

“Why the surprise visit?” they ask.

“No special reason. It’s just too crowded for gathering so might as well bother you instead.”

“It must be really bad then.”

You sigh as you lay down on the couch, taking up all the space. “Where did everyone even come from?”

Your friend shrugs. “It gets like this every year.”

You notice Abilene walking towards their kitchen. “No come back, I won't stay too long.”

You were a little thirsty but you didn’t want them to have to make anything since you came by without notice.

They come towards you and move your legs off the couch so they can sit down.

“Shame, I had just stocked up again recently.”

Your brow furrows slightly. “I could have just bought some for you. Why trade for something you won't use for yourself anyways?”

“I already told you why."

“I know but still…”

“Seriously, it’s fine and you won't convince me."

One of these days you would. But for now you decide to give up and lay your legs on their lap.

"Getting nectars much cheaper right now anyways. By the way I wanted to ask if you want to go watch a play with me, maybe you can invite Bruno along.”

You sit up at Bruno's name. That did sound like a good time and you could use this as a way to introduce both of your friends to each other.

“What’s it about?”

------

"You seem less energetic than usual," Bruno says.

He just stopped for his nightly visit and you had admitted that you didn't have anything new today to trade. Which he didn't mind of course, but you were still bothered by not being able to get fresh nectar.

You shrug. "I guess."

“Do you want to tell me what's wrong?

"...It's just that all the flower fields I go to are busy and I don't really want to gather in the crowds. It’s super awkward when you visit a flower and someone has already occupied it."

There wasn't exactly any harm telling him. And you wanted to try being more open and honest with him--with your friends in general.

Bruno nods in understanding. “Well, I know a quieter place that I can show you. It would have to be at night though.”

"Really?"

“It’s also somewhat out of the way, if that’s okay?”

“That's totally fine! When would be the best time?”

You and Bruno decide on an appropriate night to go. And when it finally comes, you make sure to pack up enough canisters where you can gather a good amount but still be able to fly back without needing to take breaks.

Bruno greets you when you meet him at the front of your home.

“Here.” He places a glowing lantern in your hands

Your eyes widen in shock. “Holy crap, where did you get this?”

These weren’t cheap but very useful.

“Someone owed me.”

For some reason that comes off a little ominous, but you pin it on the moth's stoic expression.

“You can see in the dark though.”

“But you can’t. It would be better if I didn’t have to lead you. And now you can get back home safely whenever you stay out too late.”

“You--you're giving this to me? Are you sure?”

He nods as if he’s not casually gifting you something that's extremely hard for most to obtain. Part of you wants to deny the gift but you force it down. It would most likely be hard to make him take it back anyways.

You look at the lantern in wonder before looking back at the moth. “This is a really great gift. Thank you.”

Bruno gives you that dumb small smile and you suddenly feel a lot at once.

"L-LETS GO!"

Bruno’s eyes widen, caught off guard at your exclamation and you laugh awkwardly.

“I'm just so excited!”

He gives you a questioning look. "Okay...Is that all you want to take?” He points at your satchel.

“Well, I usually carry more than one bag but it’s going to be a longer flight than I’m used to”

“How about we both carry a bag each then?”

“You're already doing so much--”

“It’s fine.”

Instead of saying more, you decide to remove your satchel instead and hand it over to him. “I’ll be right back!”

After you quickly fill one of your other satchels with empty canisters, you both leave. You trail a short distance behind Bruno as you both fly through the night sky.

Flying without the Sun brightening everything was definitely a different feeling but...it wasn't bad. It was probably better when the moon was completely out.

You could get used to this.

“You okay?”

You're almost surprised to.see that the moth had slowed down to fly next to you.

“Flying in the dark is definitely different.”

“Do you not like it?”

You think you hear a hint of disappointment with that question.

“It’s not that, I’m just not used to it. But I’d like to do it again.”

“That's good. It’s especially nice during a full moon.”

“That's what i was thinking!”

“Well in that case, I’d like to bring you out again during one.”

“For fun?”

“Why not?”

Well there isn't really anything stopping you from doing it.

“I guess you're right so...why not.” You smile to yourself at your “clever” use of words.

When you look over at Bruno, he’s giving you a funny look and you stop smiling.

“W-What?”

After some time, the sparse giant tree trunks that you’re used to seeing become much more common and packed closer together and it gets much darker, thankfully the lantern helps light your way. It wasn't your first time in a forest but it had been a long while.

Soon you both enter a clearing within the forest and Bruno starts to slow.

The little light coming off the revealed parts of the moon in the cloudy night sky barely lights the area. Fortunately, it's just enough for you to make out the silhouettes of flowers.

You marvel at all the different kinds, you think you even see a couple of Datura shaped ones among them. The surrounding area was impressive too with all the trees.

“This is so cool! I feel like you know a bunch of cool areas.” The lake was most likely as scenic as this.

Bruno leads you to one of the flowers' open petals. It was a part of a shrub and it gave off an amazing smell. Not as amazing as your Datura of course but pretty close.

You open your mouth to tell Bruno that you're gonna start gathering and that he can wait here but he's kneeling to crawl into the flower.

“What are you doing?”

“Gathering?”

“I can do it!”

“Let me help. It’ll be quicker this way.”

It would take half the time--or at least three-fourth with your current vision. And you didn’t want to take too long with this. It would also help conserve your energy for the flight back. So the both of you start working, flying from flower to flower to fill all the canisters with nectar. You pretty much leave Bruno to pick whatever for you, while you try to figure out what you wanted to collect more of.

By the time you're both done, you both smell of various flowers and you feel very full.

As you both sit down to rest, you hold the glowing lantern out in front of your face. You wondered how it works, but you quickly find your mind going blank and you struggle to look away.

It takes a long while for you to notice that Bruno's staring at you which finally pulls your attention away from the lantern

“What?”

He rests his head in his hand. “Nothing, you just look so content staring at that lantern.”

“The lights pretty…I really couldn’t look away for some reason?”

“Don't worry, I do that sometimes too.”

You couldn't really imagine him zoning out like that like that though.

"Wow…"

Bruno doesn't stop staring at you though and you quickly get caught in his eyes. They always glowed more intensely at night and just like the lantern you didn't want to look away. But when you realize what you're doing, you force yourself to look elsewhere and lower the lantern, placing it in between the two of you.

Your heart beats rapidly but you try your best to look calm as you stare at your lap. Was he still looking at you?

“L-Look lights!” You point out the small floating lights that were fading in and out in the distance.

What's wrong with me tonight?

“Those must be fireflies,” you say.

“...Or maybe butterflies with glowing lanterns."

"Th-That's ridiculous..."

The moment passes and you open one of the canisters and smell it before taking a sip. You had been “taste testing” the whole night so you didn't see any reason to not do it now. The flavor reminds you of thick white petals.** **

“Hey do you know what this one’s called?”

Bruno leans towards you and smells directly from your canister.

“That’s Gardenia.”

You nod. Now you had a name to the taste and smell. You take another sip before closing the canister and pulling out another.

“At this rate you're going to finish everything before you get home.”

“Please, even I have a limit.”

You continue to ask the moth about the various flowers you met today until you start to get tired.

“Okay maybe we should head back, I don't want to take up your whole night and I think I might fall asleep here.”

Bruno hums in acknowledgment and hangs one of your satchels from his body before flying.

You pick up your other satchel as you take one last look in the distance. The lights from the fireflies in the distance were nice to look at. It was easy to feel jealous when you struggled to find your way in the dark but now you have this lantern.

The view had you thoroughly distracted so you weren’t really watching where you were standing.

Suddenly, your foot slips off the edge of the petal and you fall off the flower.

You should have fallen into a leaf or bumped into something before catching your bearings, but instead you fall into a pair of arms.

“Careful.”

Your mind goes blank as you look into Bruno’s face. You had gotten used to his presence but you were way too close!

The moth's 2nd pair of arms help you balance as the 1st lets you stand on a nearby leaf.

Once you're on your feet again you look at the moth. “Uh thanks--!”

You clear your throat.

“You okay?”

You nod way too harshly. “I'm usually not this clumsy.”

“Just easily distracted?”

“I mean, the lights are pretty.”

Bruno smirks, amused. “Come on, let's go back.”

----

“Baking Take Two LETS GO!” you yell. “Well I've actually been practicing so technically not ‘take two’ but whatever.”

“So did you figure out what went wrong last time?” Bruno asks.

“Yep! I’m 100% sure everything will work out this time.”

After the first cake you went back to the ant who provided you with the oven and asked them to show you how to work it again. And you quickly realized that it wasn't the weather that prevented the first cake from cooking properly. Honestly, you're just lucky you didn't cause a fire.

You grin. “By the way, I got honey this time so this is going to be super yummy.”

“So we are doing honey flavored instead of Datura?”

"Yep. Well maybe I can mix them?"

Bruno looks slightly disgusted.

“Okay, we will not mix them.”

After you run out to turn on the oven, Bruno assists you in the kitchen as your sous chef again but much more proactive as he had a better idea of what to do this time.

You pick up the measured honey to pour into the batter but stop. “Wait, you like honey right? I think you said that.”

“Yes, I actually like it a little more than I should.”

You tilt your head. “What does that mean?”

“Moths don't really eat honey.”

“Well, I doubt most bugs other than bees are supposed to either but here we are,” you chuckle.

You grab a spoonful of the honey from the measuring cup and put it in your mouth.

Bruno takes the cup from you. “Now I have to refill this.”

You roll your eyes. “Have some, it tastes good!”

Bruno sighs but takes a small sip from the cup. You watch his usually sure eyes light up in wonder. But just for a moment.

“It's really tasty right? Super strong.”

“Where did you even get this?”

“Straight from the source. A lot of non-bees like to water it down so it's just better this way!”

You toss the dirty spoon into the pile of other dirty dishes to wash later.

“I didn't know that. It’s really good.”

“You can have the rest of mine if you want?”

“Is that really okay with you?”

“Bruno, please you literally gave me a glowing lantern and I can easily get more. And you looked so pleased when you tasted it! How can I not give you my honey?”

“...I did?”

You nod.

It was actually kinda cute...

When you both finish mixing you did the same thing as last time--wait on the daybed.

You talk about unimportant things but you start to notice that Bruno is drifting off.

“You can sleep on my actual bed if you want?”

Bruno shakes his head. “I don’t think that's necessary. It won’t take that long and I’m not that tired.”

“If you say so...”

You watch him fall asleep on the daybed--you still aren't sure if he’s fully asleep but at least you knew that he was comfortable.

You decide to rest on the couch, watching the sand slowly sprinkle from the top of the hourglass to the bottom.

Once it’s empty, you quietly go out to remove the cake from the oven. You smile seeing that it came out well.

Looks like the practicing is paying off!

You ready the cake in the kitchen and fly back into the living space to place it on the low table.

You kneel in front of Bruno and shake him awake.

“Urgh, what’s wrong?” The moth groans. His usually prim hair looks slightly awry and you can’t help grinning at the confused look on his face.

“I thought you were a light sleeper?”

He stares at you, still dazed. “What do you mean?”

“Nevermind--cakes done and it came out great!”

You point at the sliced pound cake and plates and utensils sitting behind you on the table.

Bruno pushes himself up into a sitting position while you move to the side of the table.

“It looks like it came out well,” the moth says as he smooths his hair down.

“Yea, but what really matters is the taste.”

You grab a slice for the both of you. You hand over the plate and fork to Bruno and stare.

Bruno picks up the fork, cuts off a piece of the cake with the side of the fork and brings it to his mouth.

You watch his face closely for anything as he chews. You can’t help remembering the first time he came into your home.

Bruno finally nods.“ It’s good. I think the honey was a great choice.”

You feel a burst of satisfaction from that. “Thanks! I’ve been practicing on my own so yea…”

“It really shows.” He continues to eat the cake.

You pick up your own fork to take a piece from your own cake. “You can actually take the rest of the cake for you and Narancia. I've been giving away anything I bake cause it’s too much for just me…”

“That sounds good. I might not be able to stop Narancia from trying to sneak and eat it all though.”

“He's a bit of a troublemaker?”

“I wouldn’t say that. He just a handful a lot of the time.”

You’ve interacted with larvae around his age so you knew they had way too much energy in their tiny bodies.

“Being a parent must be hard...”

"Yea. I didn't really plan for it either but I don't think I would give it up."

A soft look shows on his face--one you had never seen before--and your heart clenches a bit.

The moth is being extra cute today.

You both finish up your slices and you go to package up the rest of the cake in a bakery box for your friend so you don’t forget. You also gather the jars of honey you have and place them in a small bag for him.

You both spend a good amount of the evening talking about nothing in particular and then you remember the play.

“I almost forgot to ask. Do you want to go see a play? It's in the Fall--the unlikely love between two opposites is a common tale but can it prosper the supernatural trials thrown its way, “ you recite the synopsis you read from the poster Abilene showed you. “My friend’s gonna be there too.”

“Supernatural?” Bruno questions.

You shrug, “The poster didn’t explain, but we can all find out together?”

“It would be nice to spend more time with you outside of your nectar addiction.”

You're so happy by the agreement that you barely realize what he fully said, “I’m going to ignore that last bit! I’ll let you know the exact day when it’s announced.”

[kiatkiat-tree]

Onset (2)

A/N: ITS THE PART 2 TO THIS. i didnt mean it to be so fluffy though, forgive me ;-;

-

Within just a few hours of being told you were an omega, it started to make sense why your Servants were acting the way they were. Even Emiya seemed affected. The poor Archer was probably trying his best to cook dinner for you at his insistence. He maintained his stoic facade, but you could see right through it.

“Emiya, it's fine. Thank you for the offer, but I can cook for myself,” you said, as if you were any better. Dr. Roman hadn't told anyone about this, but you realized how obvious you must've been to the others. Aside from the embarrassment you felt, arousal also pooled between your legs. It was taking everything to not pounce on him..

He didn't have the chance to reply, though, as the door to the kitchen swung open. Gilgamesh, in all his golden glory, had stepped in. His red eyes zeroed in on you, scrunching his nose. With only a day or two before your heat, you had attracted even more people than you thought. Thankfully, Emiya moved between you and the other Archer.

Gilgamesh scowled, obviously displeased. “Step aside, Faker, and allow me to claim what is rightfully mine. This fool's scent has been an affliction to myself. I will take care of it, as pervasive as it is, and mark her as my own,” he said. Gold swirls formed a portal, letting the Archer take a sword from it. “Now, if you choose to disobey me, I shall cut you down where you stand. Move.”

“You are wrong to think I will bow down to the likes of you,” Emiya said. He hadn't drawn his weapon yet, but neither of them wanted to back down yet. Their scents reeked of power and dominance. You rubbed your thighs together, mentally berating yourself for feeling so excited by this. Normally, you would have stopped it already.

As much as you liked the feeling of being fought over, you had to remain rational. It would be an even bigger problem if a fight broke out here. You poked Emiya's side, hoping he'd feel it through his firm muscle that you wanted on top of you—

You shook your head. “S-stop it, you two. I'm heading back to my room,” you said, walking past both of them. Gilgamesh scoffed, reaching out to grab your arm, but Emiya was faster. Both of your Archers scowled at each other, and you thought this would've been the end for them.

Hunger and anxiety gnawed at your stomach as you bolted to your room. A few Servants tried to wave at you, but you couldn't really stop now. It would've been another showdown between them if you paused to chat with them, and that in itself was a major inconvenience.

You were so eager to lock yourself in your room and stay there until the suppressants kicked in that you almost didn't notice the poor doctor standing right outside your room, holding a paper bag. It was his scent that made you falter in your steps, slowing down just to talk to him. He looked like he was waiting, too.

“Ah! Hello, (Y/N),” Dr. Roman greeted, extending the paper bag to you. “I thought you would be in your room, since um... anyway, I got a little concerned since the kitchen was full of alphas a while ago. That would be a little scary for you, so I heated some food with the microwave in my office.”

Words couldn't even describe how thankful you were for a beta like Dr. Roman. While Mash was good company, only the doctor knew about your heat. That was probably the case until Gilgamesh just had to make a scene, anyway. You sighed, taking the still-warm food from his hands.

“Thanks, I was getting hungry anyway....” you replied, opening the door to be wide enough for the two of you. You smiled at him, gesturing him to go inside. “How about the two of us eat together? I'm starting to miss any sense of normalcy.”

The doctor appreciated your offer, he really did. Roman was just scared that something they'd regret might happen in a closed room with him. Your scent (which was slightly tinged with arousal, God help him) was already getting to him, too. Still, the past days must've been hard on you, so he allowed himself to indulge you just this once.

He returned your smile, hoping he didn't look as nervous and horny as he felt. Your room was refreshing, and maybe a bit bare, but that really didn't deter him. What stood out to him was your overwhelming scent scattered all over the place. That, and the sound of the lock turning behind him.

“Sorry, I didn't want another Servant barging in like a while ago,” you said, taking note of how his body tensed up. Dr. Roman relaxed, though, taking a seat on one of the chairs. A few months ago, you invited Mash to have dinner with you in your room, then Mata Hari, or maybe even Bedivere. Since then, you've had a small table and two chairs for them.

It was incredible to see how much trust you've put in him, Roman noted. Now that he didn't have his lab coat on, though, he wouldn't be able to hide any erections in the foreseeable future. The doctor briefly wondered if you would still be able to trust him if you knew what happened right after you left his office.

Maybe he could take you right there. On a proper bed, one that was yours. Maybe if he spilled on your bed, you'd be able to start to smell him and realize just how much you've been tormenting him all along. If he was lucky enough, he'd be able to finish inside you and mark you as his own. Fuck you all day and night—

“Doctor? Are you alright?” you asked. Your sweet, lilting voice combined with the increasing smell of your slick was making his head turn. You couldn't detect anything other than his odd behaviour, but Roman knew you were getting turned on by him. This was giving him a surge of confidence, however misplaced it was.

He couldn't stand it. He sighed, closing his eyes before flashing you a brief, apologetic smile. “Mhm, just lost my appetite. Don't worry! It's not you, I just remembered I had some work to do...” he said. Standing up, he was careful not to let his growing bulge known to you. There wasn't anything else to cover him. He had to get out of there, fast.

Leaving the room should've been easy enough if it wasn't for you going after him. You stood up as well, grabbing his arm. You weren't sure why you did it, but the feeling of his skin against yours was so nice. You sighed, unconsciously leaning towards him. Normally, this would make you ashamed, but you couldn't care less now.

“Ah, doctor, you feel so warm...” you murmured. Heat filled your body as you moved closer, rubbing against him like a cat in heat. Roman stiffened against you. It felt pleasant as you moved your body against him, and he almost gave in to the temptation when he placed a firm hand on your shoulder.

“(Y/N), you shouldn't be doing this,” he said, making sure you were at a distance from him. Your desire for him was thinly-veiled, but he knew it was because of your heat. Thankfully, the cloudiness in your eyes slightly let up. Roman needed you to listen to him because he didn't even know what would happen if he didn't stop. “Please, eat and use the suppressants—“

“No, I don't want that,” you cut him off. You pulled his body against yours in a hug, taking in his scent and... realizing he was hard. Hesitantly, you grinded against him, trying to look for a reaction. The doctor bucked against you in a knee-jerk reaction. “You don't want that, right, doctor? No, Roman. Don't you want me?”

Of course I want you! I've wanted you ever since... Roman's thoughts trailed off, letting himself moan as he felt you palm him against his jeans. This was too sinful, too wrong, and yet it felt so good. He unconsciously moved against her, wanting more of the friction between his clothed cock and her hand.

“I-I do, (Y/N), but...” he stuttered. His jeans were slowly being unzipped by you, allowing you access to his thinner underwear. The doctor closed his eyes in bliss as you stroked his cock through the thin fabric. He didn't know how he found it in himself to stop you, but he did, grasping your wrist in a pause. “You're not in the right mind. A-and whatever might happen, I don't know if I could control. We could talk it out before your next heat.”

With your wrist restrained, you resorted to placing a kiss on his lips. “Trust me. I've liked you for a long time, Roman, but this just gave me courage. I was thankful you weren't affected, but it seems like I was wrong,” you mumbled against him. “This is better. Won't you take me?”

Roman breathed in, capturing your lips in another kiss. He moved your arm away, edging you to your bed. Your lips separated before you settled on the mattress, caged right between his arms. A moment passed before he rested his forehead against yours.

“Please, tell me to stop.”

“I won't,” you say, softly, before kissing him and pulling him onto the bed. Shoes were kicked off impatiently before he crawled on top of you. You could feel his hand making its way under your blouse. His hand was cool against your feverish skin, providing you little relief as he explored your body.

He lightly tapped your stomach teasingly, eliciting a soft whine of his name from you. Roman nipped your neck before looking up at you. His eyes were darkened and hazy with lust, and it was a miracle he was even going slow. At this point, he thought he would have had ripped your blouse off.

“You feel soft,” he absentmindedly commented, latching onto your lips and sucking on them. As he played with your mouth, he slipped through the extra fabric of your bra. Two of his fingers caught your nipple between them, making you cry out as he rolled it until it stiffened.

“R-Romani...” you gasped. The doctor grinded against your core, earning another moan from you. Your hands went to his arm, where your blouse had ridden up to your chest. “Wait, let me take it off...”

“Oh,” was all he could reply. The tips of his ears went red as he removed his arm, fumbling with the buttons of your blouse and the strap of your bra. He flung them to wherever as you let out a breathy laugh. Even in the dim lighting of your room, you looked so beautiful. Scars littered the expanse of your torso and arms, but you had never looked so ethereal before.

“Now isn't the time to be embarrassed, Romani,” you teased. Roman felt what little of the self-control he had crack. He took his shirt off to let it join your own before hiding his face in the crook of your neck. You were about to coo at him again before you felt him suck on the skin of your neck. Red tinged your cheeks as he laughed.

“Hah, I feel you getting a bit too warm here. You're embarrassed too, right?” he said, lapping at the patch lazily before moving downward. Your skin was slick with sweat and saliva, mostly coming from his open-mouthed kisses as he paused between your breasts. The familiar pressure was back again, and you were left with a new hickey on your chest.

Roman was back to playing with your nipple with one hand, while his mouth was occupied with the other peak. One hand was moving across your waist and stomach as well, light on your skin. You carded through his hair, sighing in pleasure as he continued to lave your nipple with his tongue.

His hand moved closer to your skirt, letting you wriggle out of it until you were only left in your panties. With your skirt gone, your scent's intensity has increased tenfold. Roman groaned, resting his head against your chest. The lack of action made you whine, squirming as his hair started to stick to your skin.

“What's wrong?” you asked. Asking him calmly was a feat, honestly, especially when your cunt was almost exposed and you felt like your body was on fire. Roman hummed, the skin on your chest vibrating as he did it. He stroked the outline of your slit through your panties as he sucked another hickey on you.

“Do you know how good you smell?” he mumbled, his words slightly muffled. He shifted around so he was at eye-level with you again, but his fingers never left your panties. The thin cloth covering your pussy was deftly moved aside, letting him slip in one finger inside of you. Your confused expression morphed into one of pleasure as your pussy was finally granted some attention.

Roman smiled at your widened eyes and dilated pupils, never removing his finger from your cunt as his thumb brushed against your puffy areola. “Even now,” he started, placing a small kiss on your cheek. “When your face looks like that... (Y/N), do you even realize how pretty you are?”

You blushed. Compliments like that weren't really common during finger-fucking, and especially when you weren't in heat. Media made you thought that heats and ruts were fast and mind-breaking, but Roman hadn't been anything but sweet and considerate. And maybe a bit of a tease.

You were going to come up with either a snarky remark or a compliment of your own until you felt him add another finger. A whine slipped past your lips as the doctor moved them in a scissoring motion. Some of the slick dribbled past your cunt and onto your mattress. Both of you were too into this to even care.

Another whimper was forced out your throat as he curled his fingers into you, hitting a spot you never knew felt good. You moaned, wrapping your arms around his neck to pull him into another kiss. He paid special attention to that spot, stroking it gently before putting pressure on it. Your body tensed, and you arched your back before you could even notice.

“Nngh, I'm sensitive!” you pleaded as he continued to move his fingers through your orgasm. Your pussy throbbed as he removed his fingers. Roman brought his slick fingers to his mouth, making sure you watched as he sucked on them. A smile broke out on his face as he tasted your cum.

“You taste just as good,” he reminds you, but there's no teasing tone in his voice. It's sort of predatory, and you felt like his prey that moment. There was still a small, thin thread that was holding his sanity together, but Roman felt as if it was going to snap any moment now. He lowered his mouth to yours, letting you taste yourself on him.

“It tastes... weird,” you note, but he's not laughing with you. Instead, you watch as he has a mental battle with himself. On whether or not he should stop before they reach the point of no return. You reach out to him, softly stroking his hair. Your belly is filled with fire and your groin aches, but you still. “Are we still going?”

“I don't think I can stop, even if you tell me to,” Roman answers, cradling your cheek with one hand. You give him a chaste kiss (as chaste as you could when you're naked and he's got half his clothes on) and smile at him. “I really don't want to hurt you. Or do anything we'll regret.”

“I don't think you will,” came your reassurance. You moved to his jeans, which you belatedly realized were still on. As the blood pounded in your ears in your heat-addled state, you traced the outline of his leaking erection. You didn't go any further, though, as you waited for his reply. “Thanks for staying with me.”

Roman hums in acknowledgement as he observes you. Red and puffy lips, and hazy, clouded eyes. Your body was warm, almost feverish, and you weren't really relieved of the warmth plaguing you yet. Still, here you were, telling him that you wanted him as your partner for this heat. His hand moved to where yours stay.

“Of course,” his eyes softened. He still had that lust-filled look from before, but it's better now. He gets out of his pants, taking his underwear with it, before lining up his cock along with your entrance. He held your hand in his, intertwined together. “I can eat you up any moment during your heat, but I want to be inside you now.”

You made a noise that was agreement or something, but you definitely became louder as soon as you felt him stretch your walls with his cock. Slick was dripping out of you, making his movements easier as he waited for you to settle. Your walls clench around him, and you whimper at the feeling of being so full.

“A-ah, Romani!” you cried out. You wanted him to move so badly, why wasn't he moving? Your muscles tensed as you tried to squirm, but your partner warned you with a low growl. It was a warning to stay put.

“Y-you're so tight, ngh,” he said. Beads of sweat rolled down his forehead and along its creases. He was still getting used to the feeling of your warm walls around him, and he knew that he could never go back to his hand after this. You tried to move again, but this time, he snapped his hips against you.

A squeak falls from your mouth as pleasure fills your body. God, Roman felt so good. The movements he was making was your only relief for the past few days. Your knew your fingers were inadequate for the arousal you were feeling, but you never knew by how much. He thrust inside you again, making you moan and cry out in bliss.

You wrapped your arms around him, loosely hanging off his neck as he pounded into you. Your partner's pace slowly quickened, making you whine with each thrust he made. You barely registered his hand moving to where you clit was until you felt pressure on it. Mewling his name, you arched your back from the bed.

“Ah—Romani!” you cried out. He responded with a breathless sigh of your name, making fast and small circles around your clit. The familiar coil wrapping itself tighter in your belly was back. “Mm, I'm so close—oh God, please...”

“Come for me, (Y/N),” he called out to you. His thrusts were out of rhythm with the circles he was making, but it was still enough to make you snap. You moaned, writhing under him as he continued to move in and out of you. You were so sensitive, but he was still going on without a care in the world.

Your pussy throbbed around his cock, twitching ever so slightly every time he hit your g-spot. He groaned as he felt your walls clamp tight around him, sending pleasurable jolts through his body as he continued. He rested his head on your neck again, sucking on the skin and giving you little kisses.

“I'm so close again,” you whined. It wasn't your fault, anyway. You were already so sensitive from this heat, and now he just wanted to fuck you like a little toy. At least now his hands were on your waist as he held you tightly. They would probably bloom into purples and blues tomorrow.

“M-me too,” he replied. His thrusts became more erratic as his grip on you tightened. “Let's come together,” he added before kissing you fully on your abused lips. You nodded, speechless as he continued to jerk into you. Roman let out a shaky breath as he located where your scent glands were, nibbling on it.

“Are you going to mate me?” you managed to breathe out. Both the rational and irrational parts of you wanted him to, and you give him a little clench around his length. He gasped before thrusting into your sweet spot. Through your moans, you tried to tease him a bit more. “Romani, please bite me. Nn... finish inside, too.”

With encouragement from you, he lapped at your skin before his hips stuttered, coming inside you just as when he bit into you. Pain blossomed from your neck, and a few tears pricked at the corners of your eyes before you came. Your walls fluttered, milking his cock and cum for all it was worth as he licked droplets of blood beading from your mark.

The pain from the bite subsides into small stings here and there as the two of you come down from your high. You breath a little easier now, especially when your body was finally cooling down. Roman had collapsed onto you, panting as well. His sweaty body should've grossed you out, but you still held onto him tightly. His cock was still plugged into you, keeping all the warm cum inside.

The two of you rested for a while before Roman tiredly looked down on your bite mark. His eyes snapped open in alarm as he skimmed his thumb over it.

“W-wait, I marked you?” he asked. Panic flooded your body instead of bliss, and you frowned as you raised a hand to hide it from him. Did he not like it? Was he already regretting it? “Oh no. Sorry. Oh God. You must feel forced—I'm sorry, I know you didn't want it, and—“

You released the tension from your body as you cupped his face in your hands, effectively shushing him. “No, it's alright. I love you, Romani,” you said. “It's different if you don't want it, though...”

“N-no! I love you too, I want it,” he stammers out. His nervousness and everything made you laugh, the corners of your eyes crinkling as you grinned at him. He eyed you, still a bit ashamed as he marked you in the heat of the moment. Nooo, I wanted it to be special!

“I'll mark you after all this is over,  I promise,” you told him. “You look like the type to want everything to be romantic, anyway,” you teased. He felt his cheeks warm up as he tried to avert his gaze from yours. Aw, he's acting like a shy schoolgirl!

Even as his body heated up in embarrassment, you moved closer to him, snuggling next to his chest as the two of you rest. You clung to him like a baby koala, he noted, before wrapping his arms around you. After all, this wouldn't be the only time you'd be doing it for the whole week.

[shikonotama]

Hello @celisart​, I was your @noragamisecretsantas this year! I hope you have some sweet holidays this year  🎄 🎅

You told me, that you’d like something Yatori related. So I decided to write something about them. I hope you like it. 🤗

Silent night

The days had gotten a lot colder recently. Even during the sunny parts of the day, the warm sunbeams just barely made it all the way to the ground, therefore not able to properly heaten neither animals nor humans anymore. Despite the weather being close to freezing the whole day, you’d never consider to call it bad at all. Only the lack of pure white snow throughout the city’s streets caused all the children to stay at home, meeting their friends or playing games inside their parent’s house. Adults and elders on the other hand were busy making their way to the city and back, trying to get everything ready for the upcoming holydays at least.

Just in between all those people walking straight to their destinated place to get what they needed and then hurrying back to their houses, a young man ran through the shopping mile; not even sparing a glance on one single storefront even once. His outfit did not quite fit the weather nor was it suited for celebrating the upcoming holidays in the slightest. Despite wearing a pair of brown boots, he did not wear a coat or jacket. All that covered his body was a black tracksuit and a greyish scarf tied around his neck.

His vision was sharp and clear, his mind focused on something ahead, as if he was chasing after a thief that stole his wallet – no one around seemed to notice neither him nor the one he was chasing after, though.

“Yato, it’s no good! If we continue like this, it will-…”, the voice of a young boy reached the young man’s ears, even though there was no one right beside him.

»I know…«, he murmured, biting his lips. His fingers already felt numb and the cold wind blowing in his face caused his nose and cheeks to turn slightly red. »… but that’s the last one.«

“You sure ‘bout that?”

»Tzck…«, was all he had to add before he jumped straight off the ground and landed on top of the next building’s chimney with no struggle at all. As he stood up there, his bright blue eyes were directed to a point at about two hundred meters straight ahead of him. The bright sunlight was reflected from two blades he held – each in one hand. Their handles were both wrapped in bandages that didn’t seem to be tightened very well.

»Get ready, Yukine.«, was all he added to their conversation, as a big squirrel shaped cloud of dust rose just where Yato had been staring at the whole time. »We’re gonna finish this with just one blow.«

»Smells good!«, the big and cloudy animal turned itself around to face the black haired man, still standing on top of the chimney, firmly holding both blades. Just one moment later, without any further indication, Yato lifted himself high into the air. In the blink of an eye, he then rushed straight to the Ayakashi facing him, directing both blades to the squirrels head.

»You who would desecrate this land of the rising sun! With my advent, I, God Yato, lay waste with the Sekki... and expel thy vast defilement! – Rend!«

His two blades cut right through the Ayakashi’s body, leaving nothing but blurry dust behind. With ease, the self-proclaimed god stood up in the middle of all those busy people that were still walking by as if nothing had happened the past few minutes.

»Good job, Yukine. You’ve become really strong. Just as expected from my Hafuri.«, he grinned proudly, as both blades started to glow.

»You should be more careful, you know? If we only made the slightest mistake, some of those people might get hurt. You do know that, don’t you?!«, a blond boy had appeared right before Yato’s eyes, giving him a warning look before he sighted in relief. ‘After all, everything went well, didn’t it?’

»I knew you could do that, that’s why.«, answered Yato still grinning, then rubbing his hands to get them warm, at least a bit warmer than icy. »Let’s get going. It’s freezing cold. I’m sure Daikoku got us something to warm up again!« Again, Yukine sighted, tightened his jacket and followed Yato on their way back to Daikoku’s and Kofuku’s house, where they had been living for quite a while now – more than one year to be precise.

Kofuku and Daikoku: the goddess of poverty and her Shinki that was able to open up a vent that summons a huge amount of gloom. But thankfully, Kofuku was not the kind of god that got into a fight very easy. On top of that, Daikoku did not allow her to leave the house and explore the town or other places frequented by many people. She was not allowed to leave very often and never on her own, because her Shinki knew things would not turn out very well, as his master was known to cause disaster, wherever she went. Nevertheless, both of them lived a more or less quiet life, running a small store during the day that was very popular among children and passersby.

As it was already around half past five in the afternoon when Yato and Yukine made it back, the store was already closed for today.

»We’re back!«, Yato shouted while Yukine already closed the door behind them and they both immediately got rid of their shoes. »Time for something warm to eat!«

»Ah – Yato-chan and Yukki!«, a high-pitched and happy voice echoed through the house, right before one of the doors burst open. A young woman with bright pink hair and a big smile on her face showed up to greet them. »You’re late.«

»I’m sure he got them into some serious trouble – AGAIN!«, continued the deep voice of a man from behind her.

»Tse… what do you mean, ‘AGAIN’?«, Yato snorted and hastily turned his head to the left with a sour face.

»Common you guys, don’t start a fight on Christmas eve!«, Kofuku intervened with a smile, while she walked to the two incomers and grinned, then she observed them both and continued with a small amount of worry in her voice: »It’s gotten quite cold, didn’t it?«

»Well… yeah.«

»Doesn’t matter quite that much, does it? Just need, some fresh meal and a beer, and everything will be fine already.«

»And why do you think, you will get any of those?«, Daikoku wondered, watching every single one of Yato’s steps, as he made his way to the kitchen door.

»Ah, common! Don’t tell me you didn’t prepare some delicious food for tonight? No need to lie, Daikoku, I can smell it without any doubt!«, Yato giggled and stretched out his hand to open the door right in front of him. Daikoku on the other hand, crossed his arms in front of his chest, a mean grin on his face. »Don’t have to lie. Why would I even bother to cook for a freeloader like you?!«

»Well then… explain – THAT!«, just in time, Yato pushed the door open and stumbled.

»H-Hiyori?!?«, both Yato and Yukine looked at the brown haired girl, standing in front of the kitchen unit. When she heard the two of them shouting out her name, she turned around. After the first moment of surprise vanished from her face, a big smile returned before she answered: »Welcome home.«

»What are you doing here?«, Yato asked, still standing there as if he did not know how to react.

»She came here around one hour ago.«, Kofuku explained while Hiyori was still busy with something neither of the four was able to get a glimpse of.

»Okay, ehm… and why exactly are you here?«, he wondered, not having moved the slightest.

»She is the only one helping out, so don’t complain!« Daikoku was the one raising his voice this time.

»I’m not complaining at all! And by the way: We were busy, you know? Hunting Ayakashi to keep the people save on Christmas!«

»That does really look delicious, Hiyori!«, Yukine interrupted and stepped right beside her to get a closer look on what she was doing.

»Thanks, Yukine.«

»So… do you still need help…?«, he wanted to know, unsure what to do next.

»I’m fine, thank you. I just helped out Daikoku. But I think you could set the table?«

»Sure.«

While Yukine walked over to the other side of the kitchen to grab the dishes, Yato finally entered the room himself, walked straight to the refrigerator and grabbed a can of beer. He immediately opened it up and took a big gulp. With a satisfied grin on his face and his eyes half closed, he turned around and said: »Ahhh~ that’s what I needed! I’m sure with all the delicious food Hiyori made for us, it’s gonna be the best Christmas eve so far!« Hiyori let out a soft giggle: »You’ll always love celebrating, whatever it may be, right?«

»Wh-… y-yeah, guess so.«, mumbled Yato and from one second to the other his big satisfied grin had vanished from his face.      He did not even manage to maintain direct eye contact with Hiyori. Instead, he put the can back on and took another big gulp from it.

»Whatever, just call me, when your preparations are done. Can’t wait to taste it!«

»You could help us, at least with the dishes, Yato!«, said Yukine, not even trying to cover the slight anger in his voice, as Yato walked past him. He did not reply anything, just raised his Hand into the air, before disappearing from everybody’s view.

»Argh… he can be such a jerk!«

»Calm down, Yukine. We are almost done with the preparations. You too can wait in the living room. Or maybe you should take a bath or at least a shower first? I’m sure it would help you to get warm again, plus I don’t want you to catch a cold.«

»Yeah, she’s right, Yukki. Just take your sweet time.«, Kofuku smiled, »I will help with the dish-….«

She wasn’t even able to finish this sentence properly, because halfway through it, she grabbed the plates, just to let go of them only one moment later. Neither of the tree bystanders was able to react quickly enough to prevent everything from scattering after hitting the floor.

»I told you to leave the preparations to Hiyori and me, didn’t I?«, Daikoku shook his head, while Kofuku shook of the surprised expression on her face and grinned again. »Oookay!« Her Shinki sighted and started to clean up the mess she was responsible for.

After leaving the others, Yato climbed up the stairs and entered the small room he and Yukine were given by Kofuku to live in. He walked across the room to reach the big window over on the other side. He then opened it up and shortly after he climbed outside, the can of beer still in one of his hands, to reach the roof. It was not that unusual for him to be up here. Sometimes, when he could not sleep and did not want to disturb the boy sleeping in the same room, he climbed here.

It had gotten quite a bit colder since he and Yukine arrived at the house, but for now, he did not feel cold at all. With ease, the god found his way over the tiles, right beside the house’s chimney, and sat down on the ridge. From up here, one had a great view at the city and thus it was already dark outside, all the sparkling lights. The latter were even brighter than normal tonight, because a lot of Christmas decoration had been put up.

‘This time, it’s gonna be different, huh?’, he thought and could not hide the fact, that his lips formed to a decent but honest smile. Throughout the last years he found himself wondering from time to time what it was like for all those families and friends to have a proper feast.

»Well… not too long ago we had this flashmob for Yukine’s first birthday, hm? … « ‘… that was a lot of fun, too!’ Yato tried to suppress a short giggle, while placing the can he just drank of between his legs and looked up into the clear sky. There was no cloud anywhere so all the stars above shined brightly tonight and even if the sky changed since Yato was born a long time ago, it never failed to touch his heart.

‘Damn… they really do take a lot of time. What are they even doing down there?!’, he wondered while listening to all the strange sounds and some yelling in between. »Well… whatever.«, he shrugged and put the can back up to his lips.

»There you are.«, the calm voice of a woman could be heard. Shortly after that, Hiyori appeared at the edge of the roof. It looked like she had hastily wrapped a warm jacket around her body, because none of the buttons were closed. So she tried to keep the jacket from going wild with her left hand and used her right to not lose her balance.

Quickly, Yato gulped down the beer in his mouth and sat up straight.

»I thought you’d be in your room, being lazy till we’d be done with all the preparations, but seems I was wrong, hm?«, she continued to talk while struggling to properly climb to the top.

»So… you’re complaining, too?! We fought countless of Ayakashi the whole day!«, Yato replied but as he looked into her face and seeing her smile he got confused. ‘She’s not complaining?’

»Yeah, I know that. You both are trying hard to help, by slaying the calamity. I’m sure many children can celebrate a great feast just because you two were there today.«

»You think so?«

»Sure!«

»Huh? … Mhm!«, Yato answered with a nod, still sitting on the roof, his eyes focused on the girl that carefully made one step after another to come closer. One may say her words were just a praise to make a friend feel better, but Yato knew by the way she looked into his eyes that it was not just her comforting him, but an honest answer how she felt about his latest actions. Maybe his goal, to become a god of fortune, finally came within reach! Coming to this conclusion, even if the roof was only barely lit, his cheeks turned visibly red. It may be due to the cold that started to affect his body, but why had his nose not gotten red as well?

Yato reached out for the can to get the last gulp and took his eyes of Hiyori, when he heard her scream and raised his head again.

‘Damn!’

In the blink of an eye he jumped up, the can fell out of his hand, rolled over the tiles and hit the ground. Not noticing any of this, he reached out his hand to grab hers, »Gotcha!«, he sighted in relief.

»Thank y-… Whoaaa…!«, but the roof was slippery and cold and because he already lost his balance too, the only way to prevent the both of them from falling was to pull her back in his direction.

»Ow…«, his back, as well as his head, were knocked against the roof tiles underneath, but as he was a god it did not bother him that much.

»Are you hurt?«, he asked the girl whose hand he was still holding. When he had pulled her back against his body, the both of them had fallen backwards with his back being hit against the roof and his body softening the impact of her fall. Now, as she tried to straighten herself up, their eyes met again, quite close.

»I- I’m fine, sorry… I’m not used to climb up houses while still in my human body.«, she replied with an excusive smile.

»Idiot… that’s dangerous!«, Yato breathed out slowly.

»I’m sorry.«, Hiyori repeated her apology in a more serious way than before, by lowering her voice. After a moment of silence, she spoke again: »Thanks for saving me, Yato. Not just tonight but throughout the whole year.«

Her face was pretty close to his. Who knows if he had heard her, had her face been any further apart, as she spoke quite softly. Her big, purple eyes looked directly into his, some strands of her long brown hair fell onto his face and there was no way he would be able to look anywhere else now. He did not even know how long they had been like this now. Some seconds? Several minutes? Maybe a whole hour had passed?

It had never felt that difficult to come up with some words to say to her. He was not even able to get a grasp on his own thoughts.

»You-…«, was all he was able to come up with, but as he saw the silhouette of her face, surrounded by the pale moonlight and a beautiful gentle smile her lips had formed into, he was no longer able to continue even that.

»Thank you, god Yato – god of fortune.«, she giggled, but he could tell that she totally meant what she said. ‘Fortune…?’ He had no time to think about that little word any longer. Just before he could sort out his thoughts, he felt something slightly tickling and soft touching his right cheek. At the same moment his heart burst out and started to beat uncontrollably fast. The Doki-Doki that echoed in his ears made it impossible for him to listen to anything else. Meanwhile, Hiyori placed her left palm on his right cheek while watching him closely. Her fingertips had only touched his skin for a split second, when her smile turned onto a slightly worried look.

»Are you okay? Your cheek fells chilly...«

»Y- yeah… I’m not cold at all.« ‘Not at all!’

»… and your face is all red. Maybe you caught a cold while staying outside all day?«, Hiyori continued without listening to his words. Yato shook his head. »I’m a god, remember? We don’t get ill.«

»Is that so?«

»Sure!«

After his quick reply, her features softened again. She kneed on the roof, then stood up and grabbed his hand to lift him up, too.

»Let’s head inside anyways. I’m sure something warm to eat is better than standing in the cold, be it humans or gods?!« He nodded still trying to get back control over his heartbeat. Hiyori smiled in return and turned around to make her way back to the lower floors. Before she could make any step forwards, Yato reached out for her right wrist to turn her back in his direction again.

»Wait a minute…«

»What is it?«

»…« Yato looked at her with his deep blue eyes trying to find the right words he was looking for. Almost as if he was a shy teenager.

»Yato?«

He closed his eyes for a mere second. As their eyes met again, a fresh but gentle gust blew through their hair. »Merry Christmas, Hiyori.«

»Merry Christmas, Yato.«, she smiled back, when she suddenly opened her eyes widely and directed her gaze into the sky right on top of them.

»It’s snowing…«, she whispered, but despite his heart still running wild, he could hear every single word she spoke, »… just in time.« There were not many snowflakes falling down but those that came close to them danced beautifully through the sky as if they were to celebrate with everyone.

»Let’s get back down, shall we?«

»Yeah.«, Yato agreed as she took his hand and kind of dragged him back down.

They stood in front of the foot of the stairs, so technically right in front of the living-room door, when they heard some strange noises from inside followed by two male voices giving the impression of not knowing how to deal with the situation any longer.

»Jeez… what are they even doing?«, Yato wondered, meanwhile Hiyori had walked to the door to open it. When she was just about to do so, all the lights went out and left a confused Yato standing in the dark corridor. »What happened? … Hiyori?! … Yukine?!«, he screamed, but got no answer at all.

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

Yato opened his eyes and jumped to his feet. ‘Hiyori?!’ He looked from left to right, but neither Hiyori nor Yukine were anywhere to be found. »What the-…?«

He moved two steps forwards, but did not notice the body of a young man lying right beside him and stumbled over.

»You-…«, he started to complain, but shortly after he hushed. ‘Kazuma?’

When he recognised the Shinki lying on the ground, he once more looked around. He was not in Kofuku’s house anymore but in one of the city’s back roads. ‘A dream?’ The cold that had increased over night crawled over his back and made him shiver a bit.

After looking down again to check whether Kazuma was still asleep, Yato put his hand into one of the pockets of his tracksuit. With a sigh of relief on his lips, he put his hand back out again and looked at a small statue in the shape of a capybara, Hiyori made for him some days ago. A saddened smile appeared on his face, as he closed his eyes.

»I’m sorry...«, he whispered, holding the sculpture in both hands, tightly pushing it to his chest, »… we shall meet again. I promise.«

[extremelyblackandwhite]

the unseen one - 15

Pairing: Hades!Bucky Barnes x Reader

Warnings: none

A/N: how many chapters would you guys like a week? i feel like posting every single day due to covid-19 quarantine but maybe it’s too much? what do you guys feel like?

anyhow, hope you enjoy this chapter! feedback is always appreciated!!

Next Chapter >>

The Underworld was usually a mess of sounds. From the tortured screams of those who had sinned in their lifetimes to the cries of those drowning in the river of souls for the very first time, the sound of the Underworld sounded just like his nightmares. Bucky always wondered if this was his own version of hell, if this was payment for the amount of lives he had taken. However, today, the Underworld was quiet, all he could hear were the sounds of the waters washing upon the red greyish rocks of the entrance. He always thought that silence was what he wanted but today, silence was a new form of pain levelling upon him. There was almost no work for him, people normally didn’t die during Valentines’ Day, and the judgment court did not really want his opinion for any cases today so he had plenty of time with his thoughts. The one that stuck was Y/N laying in bed, sleeping, and him watching without being able to stay with her. He knew he’d have to make it up to her somehow, he just didn’t know exactly how.

His eyes settled on the little sunflower she’d given him, beautifully sat on his desk as a reminder of her sunny aura. Bucky wasn’t good with plants, he could never make sure one survived but this one, this one seemed to somehow thrive in the sunless Underworld.

    - Your Highness. - a soft yet repeated knock reverberated through his office, thankfully removing him from his mind. The door was slowly opened to show Hecate in a dishevelled state. The always primely kept red locks were pushed back with most of the hair falling, a concerned look on her face, tensed expression. - We have a problem. 

    - What’s wrong, Hecate? - they had fallen into a strictly professional relationship with the Goddess of Witchcraft not being in agreement with him meeting up with a mortal almost all the time. She sighed, arms crossed in front of her regal purple gown.

    - Someone broke into the Elysium last night. We don’t know why, maybe with some aid but there’s pomegranates missing. - she gestured with her hands, James’ mind filling with worry as those words came out of her mouth. He was gonna be thrown into the tartarus if it came out that someone had stolen the fruit of the dead. - Thanatos thinks he can track it but we’re not entirely sure if someone has consumed it yet. 

     - I thought you had your maidens protecting the fruit of the dead. What happened? - he raised from his desk, knuckles turning white as he grabbed onto it trying not to break out into an anger attack, knowing exactly how Hecate would deal with his anger. She raised an eyebrow at his question, hands coming to rest upon her waist, not believing he was about to blame the loss of the fruit onto one of her maidens.

    -  Look, we can’t exactly say how many pomegranates are missing but if someone has consumed them, they should be able to enter the Underworld. God, they belong to the Underworld now and we don’t need any living mortals in the underworld or any bottom feeders. - James and Hecate were of the opinion that mortals had no place in the underworld. Despite a few trying to make their way in, they would usually only destroy their balance and try and achieve immortality by trying to kidnap Thanatos who was sick and tired of being the target of pesky mortals. Due to this, the maidens of Hecate used to look over the pomegranate tree in the Elysium as pomegranates were the only thing that would lock someone to the underworld. The tree had been born by Persephone’s fallen pomegranate itself, so it was also something that most of the Gods and deities on the underworld took pride in keeping away from others. Looked like his day could get worse after all. - This wouldn’t have happened if you were here last night.

    - Don’t start. - he raised his hand at her in a authoritative way. - Ask Thanatos to go and check with the Fates, surely if a mortal ate it, they probably know. 

The goddess nodded, turning on her back to go and find the God of Death. James sighed, rubbing his hand against his face, fingers coming to pitch his nose bridge. First, Persephone’s Groves start dying and now someone has their hands on the fruit of the death. He couldn’t help but wonder if this could’ve all been avoided if the Underworld didn’t obsess over the memory over the lost Persephone. It had been because of her Hades had forged the fruit, to make sure she could stay with him against Zeus’ and Demeter’s orders. However, after ingesting the seeds, the fruit didn’t need to continue existing, but once again, no one went against Persephone, even with her being dead.

James decided to return to work, maybe it would take his mind away from Y/N and the issues that followed him around constantly. However, instead of calming him down, the newly found state of the sunflower on his desk startled him. The once perky sunny yellow flower seemed to have gained a brownish tint to the edges of the petals, with one falling the moment his eyes settled on the vase. A bad feeling formed in his belly, something suddenly felt wrong, wronger than the Underworld being under damage. No. His mind was going haywire, the flower had been given to him by her, what if she wasn’t alright? He tried to shake his head from those thoughts, he probably just forgot to water it. Nevertheless, he took his phone from his pocket. No messages. She always messaged him in the middle of the day to ask if work was going well but still no messages. He was probably just overreacting, he tried to convince himself that he was just feeling guilty for leaving her. 

Bucky tried to return to work but his issue kept eating at him. One call wouldn’t hurt, just to check on her. He dialed the only contact on his phone, bringing to his ear, expecting to ear her lovely beautiful voice coming from the other line, however, all he could hear was the continuous patterned beep of the phone. 

   - Hecate. - he raised from his desk, opening the door from his office and walking outside to try and find the goddess of witchcraft. She shouldn’t be too far and luckily she was only a few minutes away, berating her maidens for keeping their eyes away from the tree. - You’re coming with me to the mortal realm. 

   - Why would I do that? There’s mortals there. - she gestured for her maidens to return to their job of up keeping the Elysium. - Do you want to see your little girlfriend, is that it? 

   - You forget who you’re talking to. We’re going up there and if you whine once more, I swear I’ll send you to the Tartarus.

   - Sure. - she rolled her eyes, fully knowing he wouldn’t send her to the tartarus. He was a good person but she also knew he could be petty whenever he wanted, besides, going to the mortal realm was always an opportunity to curse some mortals.

He managed to grab her from the Elysium and take her to the mortal realm. It was cloudy, too cold and rainy which did not create a calm environment in his mind. James wondered if she was alright, she had to be alright. Hecate followed him into her street, snickering at how small her flat looked from the outside, giving out snarky remarks as they climbed up the stairs to her flat. 

James warned Hecate to stay back as he knocked on her door, knowing Y/N wouldn’t allow a stranger in her house. He knocked again once he heard no paddling of feet against the hardwood floor or the soft sound of music she always had in the background whenever she was home. 

   - Y/N, it’s James. - he knocked once again, this time harsher as he leaned his head against her door. Maybe she had gone shopping or was doing something with Anne. James hand slid to the handle of her door, mindlessly turning it to the side and much to his surprise, the door was unlocked. He found that odd, she was a privacy freak, always double checking if she had locked her door. Nevertheless, his anxiety took over and he walking inside her home, having been invited in by her several times.

The flat looked exactly like when he left it, somehow tidy with some books and clothing laying around in a still organised form. He went further into her flat, turning his gaze to the kitchen, finding a fruit platter standing by which, by the looks of the fruit flies already taking over, had been sitting there for quite a while. His eyes scanned the whole kitchen, walking into the division until his foot hit something, calling his attention. He lowered to the ground to find that his foot had smashed the half of a pomegranate. His hands went to grab it and before he could inspect it he found Y/N laying on her side on the ground, hair covering her face. Without any other thought, he rushed to her side, pulling her onto his lap and pushing the hair away from her face. As he pulled her softly into his lap, a thud sound was heard, calling for his attention which provided a solution to the sound. A pomegranate escaped from her hand, rolling into some corner of the kitchen. 

  - Sweetness, c’mon. - he rocked her side to side trying to awake her up, but she didn’t, confirming his suspicions. - Fuck. 

He got up from the floor, holding her tightly against his chest like the most precious thing the world had to offer. James left the flat, standing now in front of Hecate who stopped her ministrations to give him the most surprised and confused look he’d ever seen. Eyes widen and mouth opened in a soft O shape. 

  - I found your pomegranate. - he tossed the already rottening fruit onto her hands. 

  - I knew mortals were no good news. 

  - She doesn’t know and she was with me all night, I only left early this morning. She did not steal it, she thinks I work for a company. 

  - Good luck telling Sleeping Beauty she’s doomed to the Underworld.

tag list: @philogrobizedvee​​​  @keithseabrook27​​ @inlovewith3​​19

[chilling-seavey]

Passchendaele WW2 Extension - The National Service Act

Charlie (and Richie!!),

I just had to write you myself because it seems I’m going to be getting a job of my very own soon! The government has started to use conscription as a way to have more men come fight with you but they’re letting us women actually take part in the war effort too! I’m so terribly excited, I could burst. I don’t know what I’m to be doing yet but getting out of this house for more than going to the market will be lovely. Mum has to go into London this week to declare that Dad is unfit to fight since he’s still in the age requirement for conscription. I’m scared they’ll tell her “who cares” and make him go anyway but she has told me not to show my fear in front of Daddy. It only makes him panic. I’m more scared for him than I am for myself…I hate seeing him like this and it seems day by day he’s shutting down more and more. Charlie, please tell me he’s written you. I know he reads all your letters but he’s never given me anything to mail in return.

I miss you both terribly and I know both of your Mum’s have been writing to say how proud we all are – so much so that you hopefully haven’t let it get to your heads! – but it’s true. I wish you could at least come visit for a week. Maybe by Christmas?

All my love always,

Your favourite little sister,

Evelyn

December 18, 1940

Evelyn stepped out of her bedroom, dressed in her favourite dark blue dress and topped with a small hat over her blonde hair. She paused in the hallway and glanced through the master bedroom door that was slightly ajar. Her mother was stood at the side of the bed, brushing her father’s hair and whispering reassuring words to him as his hands clung onto the back of her dress.

“They’re not going to take you.” Elizabeth said softly. “You are not well and coming with me will allow them to assess you and see that.”

“I’m not sick.” Daniel whispered shakily.

“I know, darling. I know that very well, but we have to claim you as such so they can’t take you, alright? I’ll do all the talking. You just stand there and look pretty, alright?” Elizabeth set the brush down on the bed and took her husband’s face in her hands to get him to look at her. Daniel nodded weakly and she pressed a kiss to his forehead before helping him up.

Evelyn scurried downstairs to not be caught eavesdropping and the three of them met in the front hall to put their shoes and coats on. Daniel moved slowly as he buttoned up his coat, sneaking glances at his twenty-year-old daughter as if he was mentally preparing himself to never see her again. She sang softly to the radio as Elizabeth drove them into the city and Daniel kept perfectly quiet, staring out the car window blankly.

Their first stop was to find Evelyn a job to apply for to help the war effort and they joined the queue of other young or able-bodied women who all seemed excited to do something other than tending to a house. Daniel was on high alert, scanning every face the passed and his eyes constantly flicking to the cloudy sky as if expecting an air raid any moment. He wasn’t completely in the wrong to be apprehensive about that.

When they reached the front of the line, Daniel saw the familiar set up of two tables with officers sitting behind them and he grabbed onto Evelyn’s arm and pulled her close.

“They’re just going to give me work, Daddy.” Evelyn whispered shakily.

“Come now, Dani.” Elizabeth said, leading them both up to the next open booth to greet the man behind the table.

Evelyn stood in front of her parents and offered a sweet smile to him.

“Hey there, little lass. What’s your name?” he asked sweetly as he looked down at his long list.

“Evelyn Rose Seavey. I’m willing for any job you can offer me, sir.” she said proudly.

“Not far away.” Daniel piped up.

The officer glanced up at him, eyeing the of-age gentleman who was so obviously not fighting in the war but he turned his attention back to the young woman. “Are you good with numbers, doll?”

“Relatively so.” Evelyn nodded. “I’m a very good worker, sir.”

“We need some ladies to build weaponry and aircraft, would that be something you’d be good at, you reckon?”

“Oh, I would love to build aircraft, sir! My brother is in the Air Force! I would truly love to build him some planes!”

The man smiled at the obviously excited woman and he filled out a form for her, “Here’s the information for all you need to know…the address of the factory and what to wear. Report there next Monday.”

Evelyn thanked him eagerly and the three of them headed back out of the building, the daughter gushing with excitement. Daniel grabbed the paper from her and scanned it over, sighing thankfully when the address wasn’t too far from home and she could easily commute everyday. He would have preferred her to just stay home and never leave anywhere but that wasn’t realistic.

Next stop was to report and state their case in front of the tribunal as to why Daniel was unfit to be conscripted and why Elizabeth had to stay home with him. Daniel felt like a complete burden as she straightened up his jacket and ran her hand through his hair before they headed inside, reminding him not to speak. When it was their turn, they headed into the small court-type room and stood in front of the row of older men, each with a cigarette in hand and papers in front of them. Daniel shuffled closer to Elizabeth under their stares.

“Good afternoon, gentlemen.” Elizabeth spoke strongly. “We come to you today to express that my husband is unwell and would not be a benefit to our military in this war.”

“What are your reasonings?” one of the men asked.

“Well, you see,” Elizabeth sent a reassuring hand on Daniel’s back, “he fought in The Great War and it left him very troubled and unwell.”

“Is he mentally ill, ma’am?”

“Yes, sir, he is.”

Daniel scrunched his eyes closed and hung his head. Evelyn glanced at her father from his other side. There was nothing ill about him at all, at least to her.

“Do you have medical documentation, ma’am?”

Elizabeth stepped away from Daniel as she opened her purse and moved forward to hand over the papers diagnosing his shell shock, but he grabbed onto her arm to keep her close. She strained forward a bit to set the papers on the edge of the table. The row of men eyed Daniel down their noses before taking the doctors papers to skim.

“And he is incapable of functioning in society?” another man asked.

“Without me, yes.” Elizabeth added. “And even some day that’s trying as well.”

“And you’re his daughter?” the man directed to Evelyn.

She nodded, “Yes.”

“Has your father ever shown signs of normalcy around the home?”

Evelyn glanced over at Daniel, frowning sadly at his shut tight eyes and pale complexion, and then turned to the row of men, “This is our normalcy.”

“We ask you not to send an unwell man out to fight.” Elizabeth pressed. “Britain deserves a strong military of capable men and my Daniel would not be among them.”

Well, they got the verdict they were hoping for as the men agreed on the terms to allow Daniel to be exempt from conscription and the family of three headed back to their car quickly. Daniel had tears welling in his eyes as he got in the passenger side of the car and Elizabeth walked around to the drivers side, Evelyn scooting into the back.  

“I hated that.” Elizabeth grumbled as she pulled the car out from the curb to drive towards home.

“Me too.” Evelyn added quietly from the backseat.

Daniel let out a small sob and he held his sleeve to his mouth to try and smother any sounds to not be found out. He hated crying and he especially hated crying in front of his children.

“Listen to me, darling.” Elizabeth said strongly as she set her hand on his as she drove. “You are not an unwell man and Britain would be more than proud to have a man as brave as you fighting for them but we did what we had to do to keep you safe.”

“I’m not ill.” Daniel whimpered softly.

“No, sweetheart. We know.” Elizabeth tucked her fingers around his to hold his hand. “You are perfectly fine but you just need to be kept safe.”

“I’m such a burden.”

“We’re not going down this path again, Daniel James.” Elizabeth warned, giving his hand a squeeze. “You are not a burden; not to our friends or your children and especially not to me. You got yourself out of a really dark place years ago and you were doing so well but it is not your fault that the world turned like this. It’s going to be hard to work through it but you have your family right here with you.”

“Yeah.” Evelyn piped up from the backseat and she leaned forward to set a soft hand on Daniel’s shoulder. “I don’t want you going anywhere, Daddy. I want you right here, just how you are.”

Daniel cracked a small smile and leaned his head against hers.

Taglist: @randomlimelightxxx @hopinglimelight​ @jonahlovescoffee​ @hiya-its-amber​ @chanelwonders​

[ficsilike-reblogged]

Sunshine City: Three

A/N: Thank you to everyone who read/reblogged/commented on the last chapter. You are all lovely and deserve a Whiskey of your own. This chapter still revolves around the plot of the film, so if you have any questions just let me know! I hope this little story can make you smile at least for a moment. My asks and DMs are always open.

Pairing: (Eventual) Agent Whiskey x F!Reader (No Y/N)

Word Count: 5.7k

Rating For This Chapter: T for guns, blood, injuries

Catch up on the Prologue, Chapters One, and Two here!

Y/N sat at the bar and ordered a cranberry juice.

Butterfly Guy was sitting with Eggsy, Whiskey, and a guy who insisted on being called Merlin in a booth near the window.

“Rough day, sugar?” Paula the bartender asked as she set down the cloudy glass filled with purple-red juice.

“Rough couple of days,” she muttered and handed over a handful of crumpled bills that Paula methodically straightened out before placing them in the till. Paula was basically an agent in her own right. She’d been part of the bar for nearly twenty years and since only Statesmen drank here and knew of its existence, they spoke freely about their work. She probably knew more classified intel than some junior agents.

“You sure I can’t get you anything stronger?” She asked, her bleach blonde hair swiping over her shoulders. “Something with a little more oomph?”

“Just the cranberry juice for now.” She smiled and sipped on the too-bitter drink and resisted puckering her lips at the taste. “But thank you.”

Paula nodded and cast a glance at the table where the agents sat. “You know, Whiskey keeps lookin’ over here.”

She ignored the twisting in her stomach and took a large gulp. “ ‘s just post-mission jitters.”

“Uh-huh,” Paula said with a roll of her eyes. “Sure. When a handsome man looks at me like that…” she drifted off with a raise of her eyebrows.

(But she wouldn’t deny that she noticed Whiskey looking at her a little more often. When they met up after she implanted the tracker in Clara, she noticed Whiskey kept turning away every so often, a hand tucked in his front pocket. It was a common gesture used by men to hide an erection, she knew that—she just didn’t believe he would have one at that moment. They were in the middle of a mission. There was no way he was hiding a boner. But the thought was fun.)

Thankfully, Agent Moonshine started hollering and she sighed into her drink and got up from her barstool and walked behind the bar.

Paula was watching the scene unfold like she hadn’t watched a million bar fights before and looked ready to piss herself. Sunny patted her on the shoulder and signaled for her to hide in the little cubby beneath the register.

The Butterfly Guy quickly made a fool of himself, trying to teach Moonshine and his buddies some manners and she leaned against the sticky bar to watch as Whiskey stood from his seat. It wasn’t the first time she would watch Whiskey kick Moonshine’s ass but it was always fun to witness.

And those tight jeans did wonders for his butt.

While she would never understand his affinity for his lasso or his whip, it was nice to watch him work (and to see Moonshine bleed a little).

As he finished, Moonshine and his hangers-on all unconscious or bleeding enough to keep them still, Whiskey adjusted his hat and let out a whistle. “I feel like a tornado in a trailer park.”

She snorted and finished her drink as Paula slowly came out from the cubby and gaped at the mess. “It looks like a tornado came through here, boss. I think you owe Paula another window.”

“And new glasses!” Paula said with a frown.

She patted Paula’s shoulder again with a promise that the window would be fixed within a handful of hours as the televisions switched from the football game and were overtaken by a wash of yellow and red with an obnoxious chime.

A woman draped in a horrendous yellow outfit with fiery red hair soon filled the screens. “Mr. President, my name is Poppy Adams. I believe the UN has no teeth. So I've selected you, as leader of the free world, to receive this communication. And I invite you to begin negotiations on the largest scale hostage situation in history. A few weeks ago, an engineered virus was released and contained in all varieties of my product: cannabis, cocaine, heroin, opium, ecstasy, and crystal meth.” Each line item popped up on the screen in a pretty font. Cap looked over to see Whiskey already looking at her, lips pulled into a frown. “Some of you are already infected. And this is what you can expect in the coming days. After a brief incubation period, victims present with stage one symptoms: a blue rash. Next, second stage symptoms appear: mania, as the virus enters the brain. Very distressing to the victim and those around them. Stage three: paralysis. Muscles enter a state of catastrophic seizure. And once the muscles of the thorax become affected, breathing becomes impossible.” She watched as one new victim after another was revealed on the screen until blood spurted out of the last man’s eyes and nose, dead for millions to witness. “This leads to a very nasty death within 12 hours. But I have good news to the millions already affected. It doesn't have to be this way. I have an antidote.” Poppy held up a clear vial filled with an amber liquid—and Elton John behind another glass wall.

“What have you done to me, you fucking bitch?” God bless Elton John.

Undeterred by Elton John’s outburst, Poppy continued, “100% effective and ready to ship out worldwide at a moment's notice. I will do this if the following conditions are met. First, you agree to end the war on drugs, once and for all. All classes of substance are legalized paving the way to a new marketplace in which sales are regulated and taxed just like alcohol. And second, my colleagues and I receive full legal immunity. Meet my terms. I look forward to helping you keep our beloved country great, boosting our ailing economy, and easing spending on law enforcement. Or continue this blinkered, outmoded, and, frankly, disastrous exercise in prohibition, and live with blood on your hands. Save lives. Legalize.”

The broadcast ended and the televisions screens quickly flipped back to the football game. Whiskey was at her side in a blink of an eye. His hand brushed down her back. “We gotta talk to Champ, Sunny.”

And that was how she found herself bundled in winter gear on an Italian mountainside. Clara had called Charlie, and thanks to the tracking device she had implanted at Glastonbury, they were able to pick up the conversation. Charlie told Clara (who was now covered in the blue rash) to meet him at the ski resort they’d visited last year so he could give her the antidote. The tracking device could pinpoint their exact location and everyone was betting that the Italian resort was one of the storehouses for the antidote.

But she was also wondering, once again, why she found Whiskey attractive. He was in a terrible blue and white snowsuit that had to have been made in the 1970s. And he still refused to take off his damned cowboy hat. She appreciated the dedication to his aesthetic but it still seemed…ridiculous.

And he’d been grating on her last nerve on the flight over.

Ginger had buzzed in and suggested that Cap be the one to retrieve the antidote because only Clara would recognize her as opposed to Charlie possibly recognizing Eggsy or Butterfly Man (who she was told to call either Galahad or Harry). Whiskey then laughed—loudly—and stated plainly that he would be planning the mission and Ginger should stick to her computers and gadgets. “It isn’t like ya have any experience in the field.”

She really thought about murdering her boss for the rest of the flight. Her plots to kill him only got more creative when he told her to stay at the safe-house when they landed.

She was tired. She was angry.

And that was probably why she finally snapped. “If you didn’t want me to come along, you could have just told Champ. God knows you don’t listen to anyone else.” She hefted her bag filled with her own weapons and ammo higher onto her shoulder and turned away from him, readying to hike up toward the house and stew in her lonesome until the three men returned—hopefully with the antidote in hand.

But his hand grabbed her arm and pulled her to a stop before she could get very far. “That ain’t fair, Sunny.”

She pulled out of his grip with a poorly hidden snarl. “No. You’re not fair. To me. To Ginger. All because of some bullshit you think is right.”

“I’m trying to protect you.”

“I don’t need protection. I’ve been in this game a long time-”

“And I’ve been in it longer-”

“-and I can take care of myself. What you’re doing to Ginger is so fucking backwards I’m surprised you can see straight,” she hissed it out like a curse. “I’m tired, Whiskey. I’m so tired of watching her jump through hoops trying to get you to notice that she could outperform half the agents in the field and you want her stuck behind the desk until she dies. I’m tired of you thinking you know best in the field. Why do you even request me to go with you if you’re going to undermine me every step of the way?”

Whiskey’s mouth opened. Then closed.

Her shoulders slumped. Harry and Eggsy both looked like they were very interested in the calibrations of their earpieces and not listening to what just happened. God this whole situation was pathetic. They were trying to save the world and she was waffling between yearning and rage for her stupid boss. She trudged away in the snow toward the safe house and barely heard Whiskey say, “what are you lookin’ at, Butterfly Guy?”

But she continued on, up the mountain and found the small shack of a house and swept the perimeter before settling in. She comm’ed in only to say she reached the safe house. Eggsy responded cheerfully but she didn’t respond when Whiskey also chimed in with a, “good work, Sunny.”

Time ticked by.

There was a commotion on the other end of the comm line when Butterfly Guy wouldn’t respond—and then all she heard was Eggsy and Whiskey screaming. She rolled her eyes. They were so dramatic. But soon, the trio was making their way toward the safe-house and she didn’t bother to open the door when she heard them outside. They all hobbled in, mid-argument.

Eggsy pulled out a small vial and showed it to her with a smile she had to reciprocate. “You got it.”

“We did. A little dicey—Charlie recognized me.”

She glanced at Whiskey who frowned in return. It didn’t matter. Ginger had been right and now he knew it.

“Can I see it, kid?” Whiskey asked with his hand outstretched as he walked toward them. But then his dark eyes tracked to the window and widened. “Get down!” Whiskey all but tackled both Eggsy and her to the dusty ground of the house as bullets started to fly. Glass shattered. Wood splintered.

She watched, unable to do anything from her pinned position, as the small vial was all but knocked from Eggsy’s hand and shattered on the ground.

“You fucking dickhead!” Eggsy hollered as he scrambled out from under Whiskey to look over the spilled antidote, almost uncaring of the bullets whizzing by.

“Fuck you, I just saved your life!” Whiskey retorted.

“Yeah, and cost millions of people theirs!”

She had to slap at Whiskey’s thigh to get him to move off her and she rolled off into the corner when he did. The rain of bullets stopped for a moment and she looked out the window. “They’re reloading.”

Whiskey nodded. “All right, I'll fix their wagons. Cover me, boys!” And then he all but bolted out of the house, guns blazing.

With a roll of her eyes, ignoring how Whiskey had told the ‘boys’ to cover him, she followed suit and ran out into the snow, pulling her guns out from their holsters. The shootout was nothing she hadn’t seen before and, while she didn’t have all the flair most of the Statesmen agents had, she could mow down people just as efficiently. (The acrobatics the Statesmen and Kingsman agents seemed so fond of really just seemed…excessive.)

Whiskey went through the left flank so she went through the unlucky men on the right.

It was easy pickings, really. Despite the heavy artillery and uneven numbers, it was almost too simple of a gunfight. But the adrenaline rush was nice. It had been too long since she had felt her heart beat this fast. Bullets were flying by her head as she dove behind a tree and then twisted to shoot down the other man. Out of the corner of her eye she spotted Whiskey pull out his electric lasso and then cut a man in half who came out with a knife.

“Fucking ridiculous,” she muttered as she stood, lowering her guns and quietly thankful that Whiskey wasn’t hurt.

There was a single gunshot and she froze. A familiar cold crept up her torso and one last man stepped out from the tree line with his gun raised right in her direction. The barrel smoked. But his eyes were wide like he couldn’t quite understand that he’d actually managed to shoot her. With a snarl, she pulled her guns up again and fired twice, painting the trees and snow behind him in a spattering of red.

“Sunny!” Whiskey yelled as he spotted her.

She pressed a hand to her stomach and felt the terrible, wet warmth soak her palm. She holstered her guns again and stepped out to look at him, turning ever so slightly to hide the blossoming red from him. “We’re good.”

“You should’ve stayed in the house.”

“You needed back up!” She said, marching toward the house despite feeling her legs shake. Pressing against the wound only made bile rise in her throat.

“The kid and Butterfly Guy-”

“It’s over, boss. Let’s just-”

Whiskey suddenly grabbed at her waist and all but threw her into the house and she nearly lost her footing. She barely had time to recognize the pain suddenly roaring through her system as the adrenaline started to fade.

“Troop carrier coming in. And I’m out of ammo—whaddya got?” He asked, pointedly looking at Eggsy and Harry.

But they were both looking at Whiskey’s hand.

He slowly raised it to his face and saw it covered in blood. His head snapped to the side to look at her. “Sunny?”

Her knees finally buckled and she hit the weathered wood. She shakily caught herself with her other hand, feeling blood slip between her fingers. She coughed and watched as blood splattered against the wood.

“They’ve got Gatling guns!”

Whiskey was yelling. Bullets whizzed by. And the beat of her heart started to drown out everything else.

“Harry, no!” She barely heard Eggsy shout.

And then, in her quickly-hazing vision, she watched Whiskey’s body crumple to the floor beside hers. She reached out a bloody hand toward him without thinking, pressing crimson-colored fingers against his face as if that would stop the bleeding.

“He broke the vial on purpose, Eggsy. If we made it out of here, he was gonna kill us both!”

The world went dark.  

                                                     **

The sterile scent of HQ’s medical wing was a welcoming aroma as her eyes opened.

“There you are.” Ginger leaned over her with a soft smile. “How ya feeling?”

“Tired.”

“No pain?” She asked as she helped Cap sit up slowly.

“A bit tender—but I know what feeling shot in the chest feels like so I would prefer this.” She pulled at the bland, cotton-blend shirt she was dressed in and saw her stomach covered in a bit of gauze and tape. Despite Ginger telling her not to, she pulled at the coverings to reveal the mostly-healed bullet wound and then pushed back into the pillows. It looked like it had already been healing for weeks instead of a day or two. Statesmen truly knew how to patch someone up. But then a thought struck her. “Where’s Whiskey?”

And Ginger’s soft, answering smile calmed her suddenly clenching heart. “He’s in the next room over, Cap. He’ll wake up soon. Eggsy gave him the Alpha Gel and it worked like it was supposed to.”

She pushed out a long breath through her nose and nodded. “Good. That’s good.”

Ginger’s watch beeped. She looked at the small screen and sighed. “I will be back. Don’t get into any trouble, okay?”

“I promise nothing.”

Ginger chuckled, having heard that answer many times before, and let herself out of the room. 

She let herself stew for a moment (it was really about an hour). Her life had really gone off the rails since Vegas. It was one thing to secretly harbor amorous thoughts about your boss. It was another to scream at him, get shot, and then see him get shot after seeing him (possibly) thwart any efforts to get the antidote and save millions of people. And she had a chance to say something to Ginger. But she didn’t.

Hm.

She carefully slid off the bed and winced when a bolt of pain zig-zagged through her body as her feet touched the cold floor. Shuffling over to the door, she peered out into the hallway and then stepped out. Whiskey’s holding room was only a few footsteps away.

Should she go in? But then what would she say?

Should she just go back to her room and pretend she was unconscious the entire time and remembered exactly nothing from Italy? But what was she trying to forget anyway?

But, thankfully, Eggsy found her in the middle of the hall and broke her rambling thoughts. He pocketed his phone and looked a bit worried as he noticed her. “You okay?”

“Yeah. Better than I should be after being shot. You?”

He started to nod but then shook his head. “My girlfriend…she, uh, she’s got the blue rash.” He rubbed at his forehead.

“You care about her. Probably more than you should, right?” That was easy to see. Eggsy was a good kid, probably a little too easy to read. “Especially in this line of work.”

“You get it—Kingsmen aren’t allowed to have attachments. And I…” he tried to grasp at the words he needed, “love her.”

“Statesmen doesn’t have that rule. Probably because we’re very bad at following any sort of guideline anyway.” She shrugged and regretted the movement as it pulled at her wound. “But that means you’ve got less than 12 hours. You got a plan?”

Eggsy quickly explained that they had been able to trace Poppy’s location to Cambodia and they were heading out there now. But his eyes quickly widened as he realized he had just revealed a plan to a potentially dangerous adversary.

“Relax, Eggsy. I’m not the one you shot in the head.” She waved him on. “Go. Save the world. Look out for landmines.”

“Landmines?” Eggsy parroted, face scrunching into a confused frown.

“If Poppy’s as crazy as I think she is, I wouldn’t be surprised if she has nonsense like that. Who knows? Maybe she has a fleet of man-eating robots, too.”

“What are you on about?”

She shook her head. “I’ve seen some stuff. Don’t worry about it.”

He smiled and started to walk away. “You should come to London when this is all over. I’ll get you a drink!”

She smiled a bit and watched him disappear around a corner before her eyes once again drifted toward Whiskey’s door. “…fuck.” Against her better judgement, she walked up and let the door glide open without a sound. The room was quiet. Whiskey was motionless on the bed, face still covered by the machine to help the Alpha Gel finish its work. His vitals were steady, displayed on large screens across the wall.

He would be fine.

He would be fine.

He would be fine.

She slipped gingerly into a chair near the bed and resisted the urge to reach out and touch his hand. He just looked so…vulnerable. It was so unlike him. An angry, terrible twisting pulled at her chest. “I’m not sorry I yelled at you, you know.” She wasn’t sure why she was talking to him but the words kept coming anyway. “You need to let Ginger out in the field. She’d be a better agent than me. I don’t know why you’re… I don’t understand you at all, actually. I wish I did, I think. I wish I could understand you and why you do things and say things. I wish I could understand why you make me feel so stupid.”

Maybe being this close to death—again—was making her sentimental. Or maybe the pain medication was making her crazy.

Probably the second option. Hopefully, anyway.

The door opened again and Ginger stepped in. “I knew I’d find you in here.”

“How’d you figure that?”

Ginger gave her a look but didn’t answer. “It is about time we wake him up. You remember how it’s like, right?”

She nodded. She had heard stories about how most agents needed a ‘reminder’ of a traumatic event to bring them back to the present and how their minds could be a bit foggy for a few days after, but she had never seen it in person. But she basically knew what to except--right? 

With a flip of a few switches, the machine receded and Whiskey’s eyes opened. He was up and off the bed with a spring in his gait that had her laughing as he gave some terrible pick-up line to Ginger. But the laugh drew his attention and his body went rigid as his eyes landed on her. “Sunny.”

She felt tension she didn’t realize she was holding leech from her shoulders as he smiled at her. “Hey, boss.”

Ginger tucked something back in her pocket and her smile seemed to reach her ears. “I’ll leave you two…alone. But I’m just outside if you need anything.” She then scurried out and left her alone with Whiskey and her hammering heart.

“Sunshine.” The new nickname was all but crushing to her heart, caving in her chest.

She waved him back to the bed and told him to rest before she curled her fingers around his hand. It was warm and calloused and, as cliché as it sounded, seemed to fit hers perfectly. “How’re you feeling?”

“Like I’ve been shot in the head.”

She almost laughed and her other hand carefully pushed his still-impeccably styled hair away from the bandage covering a small bit of his temple. “Yeah. You look great for a dead man, though.”

“That’s probably the nicest thing you’ve ever said to me.” But he said it with a smile and squeezed her hand. “Say it again.”

“You look great.” And her smile grew, heart a little lighter.

He huffed out a laugh but then a long silence stretched between them. She looked away from his dark eyes but didn’t pull her hand away from his, fearing he’d disappear if she did.

“Are you sure you’re okay, Sunshine?” He squeezed at her hand until she looked at him again.

“I’m okay. They fixed me up just fine. A new scar for the collection.”

His smile slowly dropped and he placed his other hand over hers, too. “I saw you drop. You were bleedin’ out and I-”

“I saw you get shot, too, you know. Butterfly Guy has an interesting way of showing he doesn’t trust someone.” She shook the thought away. Harry’s brain was scrambled, too. “I’m just happy you’re okay. Your brain might feel a bit funny for a day or two, but I’ll be here.”  

“Where are they now? The Brits?”

“They’re on their way to Cambodia. They think they’ve found Poppy’s base.”

Whiskey all but yanked his hands from hers and threw his legs over the side of the bed before standing on his long legs. She quickly stood too, chair clattering backward. “We’ve gotta go. Tell Ginger to get the Silver Pony on the runway.” He started toward the door before she grabbed at his arm.

“Boss, c’mon. You need to rest-”

“I need to make sure that bitch doesn’t get what she wants.”

She was scrambling then, hands pawing up his arm to grasp at his face. Her heart was in her throat as she looked at him. His dark eyes looked so cold. Unfocused. She knew the Alpha Gel could scramble someone’s brain as it physically repaired it, pushing them into old habits and thoughts and fears. She knew Whiskey wasn’t thinking right at the moment—no matter how soft he had been with her moments ago, this wasn’t her Whiskey. Her mouth went dry. Thoughts raced by as the pit she had felt growing in her stomach expanded to an abyss. She knew what he’d been through. The death of his wife at the hands of some coked-out druggies was an open secret. And she knew her own grief, dealt with it in her own way—not all of it healthy, she knew. But she had to try. She knew the look of a man who wanted vengeance no matter the cost—and, right now, the cost was millions of lives. “Do you know why I don’t drink?”

“We don’t have time for this,” he said as he pulled out of her grip.

“Drunk driver plowed into my dad’s car. I was at the local pool with some friends and Dad piled everyone in to pick me up so we could get ice cream after. They never made it.” She swallowed the lump in her throat. “Do you think I hold it against everyone who likes to put a little something extra in their coffee? Likes to have a little liquid courage to talk to the cute guy across the bar?”

Whiskey’s face twisted and his eyes seemed to dilate before he scrunched them shut. A shaking hand pushed through his hair.

“I work at a distillery for a man named Whiskey.”

Another silence stretched between them. She would swear he could hear her heartbeat in the quiet of the room.

A careful hand reached out to touch his wrist, too afraid to do much else. “Stay,” she whispered. “Stay with me.”

And his eyes finally opened.

                                                        **

Champ smiled and congratulated them on a job well done. It was a week since the entire Golden Circle situation had been handled. Tequila was well. Whiskey’s mind was clear. And their profits had never been higher.

Merlin, Harry, and Eggsy were standing at the end of the table and each held a glass of amber liquid as everyone raised a toast. Whiskey was sitting across from his Sunny, golden glasses perched on the edge of his nose. He probably should have been listening to what was Champ was saying but all he could see was how she licked her lips after taking a sip of her cranberry juice.

Statesmen, knowing an ally when they saw one, had purchased a distillery in Scotland. It was the perfect guise to help Kingsman rebuild and keep their money looking “clean.” Yes, he should have listened.

Because the Kid opened his mouth and said Kingsman needed more agents.

“I think Ginger would be a great Kingsman,” Sunny said with a smile.

Ginger, tucked into a corner a drink of her own, smiled in return. “I…”

“Agreed,” Whiskey heard himself saying. And he quickly realized that he meant it. 

Ginger’s eyes went wide and she nearly sloshed the entirety of her drink across her shirt.

Champ laughed. “Alrighty then. Ginger Ale, well, I guess you’ll get a new code name, won’t ya?”

But the Kid’s smile widened. “And I was thinking Cap could come, too.” He turned to her and shrugged a shoulder. “Whaddya say, Cap? I’ll show you the real London.”

Whiskey looked at her, feeling like someone had shoved their fist down his throat. Don’t go. Don’t leave.

“I always wanted to be a knight of the round table.”

The men at the end of the table cheered again and Ginger walked over to knock their glasses together.

And while everyone continued to pat themselves on the back for completing the mission, all he could feel was cold.

The revelry eventually died down and Whiskey found himself the last one seated at the table. Everyone else filtered out to ready for the next mission—or the move to London. It was just him and Champ. The older man plopped down in the seat beside him and refilled his empty glass.

“London is only a few hours by plane from New York.”

He took a long pull from his glass.

“I’ve never known you to wait for something you wanted, Whiskey. But sure seemed to drag your ass on this one.”

“What are you talkin’ about, Champ?” He finally asked after another large gulp of alcohol.

But Champ just shook his head with a throaty chuckle. “You two are a mess.”

                                                     **

Royal weddings were…an event, she was finding.

After nearly losing Princess Tilde to the Golden Circle, Eggsy actually proposed. And with Harry now known as Arthur and presiding over Kingsman, the rules changed. Attachments were allowed. And because Tilde knew his fellow Kingsman were like Eggsy’s family, they were invited to the wedding. A handful of Statesmen, too. It had been a year since Poppy’s demise in Cambodia and the world was (mostly) at peace. Kingsman managed to salvage quite a bit from the wreckage of their former bases and Statesmen funded the rest of their necessary rebuilds. It was slow-going, and a handful of new agents were still finding their footing after graduating from the selection process.

“Please tell me Tequila is not wearing jeans,” she muttered.

Ginger, now known as Agent Percival, rolled her eyes with an affectionate smile as she spotted the jean-clad man amid the rest of the American crowd. “I could but that would be a lie.” She paused. “But Whiskey certainly dressed for the occasion.”

She leaned forward just the slightest bit to see Whiskey dressed in a fine tuxedo. “Is that one of ours?”

Ginger hummed. “He came in a few days ago for a fitting.”

She swallowed the saliva filling her mouth and turned back to watch Eggsy nervously fidget with his cufflinks at the end of the aisle. “Looks good.”

The ceremony finished after the vows and a bit of perfunctory reading and singing before the guests were all chauffeured over to the reception space at the royal palace. “You know, Merlin told me that you and Whiskey are quite fond of using emojis in your emails,” Ginger said as dinner was cleared away and dessert started to be served. 

Her glass of water nearly slipped from her grip as embarrassment washed over her. “I was told those were private.”

“Nothing’s private in our line of work,” Ginger said with a pat to her hand. “But you haven’t really explained what is going on between you two.”

She rubbed at her temples. How could she possibly explain that she knew Whiskey, while his brain was still scrambled, wanted to let everyone infected with the Blue Rash die? How could she explain that she, despite all that, missed his smile and stupid mustache? Missed how he had terrible pick-up lines that always made her roll her eyes? Missed how she always seemed a little lighter whenever he would waltz into her office in New York?

Their constant contact devolved away from work and missions and into their private lives. He would ask after Bela and she would ask him to tell her about the view from his office window. It was now a strange sort of friendship that she treasured and protected despite how they hadn’t seen each other in person in over a year. She had taken the position at Kingsman, took the code name Agent Mordred, moved to London. It should have been a clean break. She could have kept their communications purely professional. But she didn’t. She just couldn’t truly let him go.

But on the outside, she shrugged as her hands dropped away from her face.

“It looks like I’ll be able to see for myself because he’s on his way over here.”

Her head snapped up at the sound of Ginger’s smug tone and, sure enough, Whiskey was on his way over, walking through the dancing crowd and wandering guests, right toward their table.

“But oh no. Would you look at that, I need more champagne.” Ginger then scampered off and left her alone.

Whiskey easily took Ginger’s vacated seat and smiled at her. “Hey, Sunshine.”

“Hey, bos-Whiskey.”

He chuckled at her slip. His head tilted to the side as he looked at her, eyes trailing down her form and she resisted a shiver like a teenaged girl but was silently thankful for the designer dress that fit her like a glove in a soft blue silk. “You look good.”

“You too.” And he did. The tuxedo was impeccably cut and the darkest black. A pristine white shirt was held back with a matching cummerbund and a black bowtie was slightly crooked around his neck. She reached out and straightened it.

He reached up to keep her hand pressed against his chest with a small smile. “I miss you.” It was whispered like a secret.

“We talk every day.” But she didn’t pull her hand away.

“ ‘s not the same and you know it.” He squeezed her hand. “Dance with me?” Wordlessly, he led her out onto the dance floor and pulled her close.

His expensive cologne made her mind swim but she resisted the urge to rest her cheek against his shoulder despite every nerve in her body telling her to do so. The music was slow, soft, and romantic. The lighting was low and accentuated by flickering candles that danced across the golden walls of the royal ballroom. If she could let herself remember anything—it would be this moment. Held in the arms of the man she loved even if it was just for a tiny sliver of time.

“I never thanked you, you know.”

“For what?”

“Saving me. My head was a mess—even before Butterfly Guy put a bullet in it. It took me a while but I…” He shook his head. “You’ve given me a second chance.”

She cocked her head to the side with a smile. “To save the world?”

Whiskey’s smile was small and his cheeks reddened the slightest bit but his dark eyes never left her face. His grip on her hand and waist tightened the slightest bit. “A second chance at everything.”

She chuckled and ignored how her chest tightened. Reading into it would only make it hurt.

A/N: Thank you for reading!

Beautiful people who asked to be tagged: @spookyold-saintjm​ @honestlystop​ @paryl​ @fioccodineveautunnale @lackofhonor

[some-dr-writings]

Gundham makes a friend out of a socially awkward reader

·       Interacting with other people had always been a problem for you. If your parents could have afforded to send you to a doctor, you likely would have been diagnosed with an anxiety disorder of some sort. That didn’t really matter to you though. You figured out long ago how to deal with the fear and self-consciousness.

·       Keep conversations short, sweet, and to the point.

·       Don’t interact longer than is necessary.

·       Should you mess up, leave immediately and try again in a day, or so, if it’s something necessary, like a doctor’s visit, then after the conversation, put on headphones and blast music.

·       Last and most importantly, should you get overwhelmed, find an animal, any animal and talk to them.

·       Ever since you were little, animals always were able to steady your racing heart or blurred mind. You found them to be the best confidants. They seemed to understand you and what you said, but they never judged you for it. For the few times you were able to afford to have a pet, they seemed to always love you no matter what. And in return for this, you always made sure to treat them right, even spoil them at times.

·       Ideally you’d have a job with plenty of animals around, but a giant part of you was terrified that if people saw you speaking with the animals they’d think you were mentally unstable and call the police then you’d be sent to jail or something where you’d be forced to be in close quarters with other people! You knew it wasn’t likely, but that paranoid-like way of thinking gnawed at you constantly… You were used to it, but it didn’t make dealing with it any easier.

·       Instead you opted for something simple with little contact. A librarian. It was perfect… for the time being. Libraries were getting less and less use with technology advancing so quickly and the rise of e-books. This was only temporary, but at least you were in a good position for the moment. You knew the library you worked at would close down soon, in a year or two at most, it was inevitable.

·       The only thing that kept it afloat was collage students, since for some reason collages had yet to catch up with the rest of the world and required physical textbooks that were at least thirty years outdated. The season always filled you with dread. It was a necessity to keep your place of employment and the rest of the year was just lovely for you, but it never made dealing with the young adults any easier.

·       You stood by the counter as that dauntingly long line of students formed… Damn, it was a long line… and it kept growing… and growing and growing, and growing, and growing, and were they filling the entire room? Did the room become smaller suddenly? Wait, was it shrinking? Why was the room shrinking!? What the hell is happening!? “Excuse me?” “Huh!? Wha- o-oh, sorry, sorry, you must wan tot take out this book for th e semistrere.” Oh no. No, no, no, no, nonononoonononononononononono You messed up, you really messed up! How the hell were you supposed to proceed from here? You can’t, can you? This can-

·       You yelped out feeling a light pressure on your shoulder. You flipped around only to be face to face with you boss. “Hey, Y/N it’s past your break time. I’ll take it from here.” “H-huh?” “Come on, get going now. It’ll be okay.” Hesitantly nodding, you sped-walked away. Once you were out of sight you sprinted for the rear exit.

·       You sprinted to the nearby park and slumped down on a bench. You needed to catch your breath. It wasn’t a long sprint but that combined with your growing panic left you winded. Hugging yourself you tried taking slow deep breaths.

·       You flinched feeling something hop into your lap. You almost leaped up from your seat before seeing what it was just in time. An orange and white hamster. “… H-hello. What are you doing out here?” There were three other hamsters sitting beside you, nudging your leg. “Oh, were you out for a walk together?” Another hamster, a mostly tan and white one with a chip out of it’s ear, also hopped onto of your lap.

·       You spent a moment simply watching them. The first to hop into your lap seemed to be very sweet while the other one seemed to be a bit feisty. The one that kept sleeping was mostly white with tan splotches and the last, a large orange one who seemed to be calm.

·       “You guys seem to be doing alright… I wish I could be like that for a moment. I think my day may get worse. My boss is an amazing person. Whenever I panic with customers, they always tell me how I am fantastic in every other aspect and it’s a weakness that didn’t matter all too much since people didn’t come by often… But this was the first time they actually covered for me. This is the first time they told me to go on break when it won’t be for several more hours. I think this is it, I think they’re going to fire me after this!” The hamsters looked up at you chattering away. “Well, yeah… if they’ve put up with me for this long, I guess it wouldn’t make sense why they’d suddenly stop now.” To your surprise the large orange one climbed up your arm and perched itself on your shoulder, nuzzling into your cheek. “You’re right. That’s the panic speaking. I don’t actually know what’s going to happen, but it should be okay.”

·       With renewed confidence you straightened your posture. “Okay, break time’s over! I need to get back to work! Thank you for talking with me!” After all the hamsters hopped off you got up and dashed back for work, not noticing the figure that watched you leave. “Hmm… What is it you found so intriguing about that one my Devas?” Holding his hands out they immediately climbed on and burrowed into his scarf. “... They exchanged words of the soul with you!?”

·       The next day was just as busy as the last. Your boss handled the counter while you organized materials, getting old musty textbooks out from the back. Before you knew it, it was already break time. Feeling guilty for yesterday you wanted to stay and work a little longer, but your boss practically pushed you out the door telling you to rest.

·       You always went for a walk in the park for your breaks. Not often were there many people around, just some wildlife, like birds. It was nice. Sitting on a bench you looked out at the still lake, at the small islands that dotted it and the bridges that connected them to one another and to shore. It was a cool, cloudy day. A small breeze rolled past kicking up some leaves as it went.

·       Then you felt something nudge your foot before scurrying up your leg. “Huh!? O-oh, it’s you four again. Hello.” All four curled up in your lap. They all looked so soft and cute. “So, you guys like going on walks it seems.” You placed a hand on your lap. When one of the hamsters began nuzzling your hand you gently pet it. “Boss wasn’t mad at me. They were very understanding. I ended up working at the back away from everyone which was a relief.”

·       You noticed how one of the hamsters was sniffing at your pocket. “Oh, you must be smelling the sunflower seeds.” Taking the small pack from your pocket you saw how all the hamsters immediately got excited, entranced by it. Opening the bag, you began to eat. “I always have sunflower seeds during break. It’s convenient to just always carry them in my pocket. Sorry, I would give you some, but I don’t want to overfeed you.”

·       “The four Dark Devas of Desteructio-” You yelped, leaping out of your seat suddenly hearing that booming voice behind yourself. “AH! Hamsters!” Thankfully they clung to your clothes and climbed up to your shoulders. Quickly you cradled them on your arms, against your chest to give them more stable ground. “You guys okay? S-sorry for suddenly jolting up like that. Here, you can have some sunflower seeds as an apology.” After placing them on the bench you gave each one a seed. “… The Devas accept your offering, but you knew so already, didn’t you? You can exchange words with beasts!” The voice was much quieter than before. Only now did you truly notice the man who stood behind the bench. You began to slowly back away. “Ah- sorry! Please don’t think I’m a scary person! I swear I’m not dangerous! You don’t need to call the cops!” The man looked at you with a slightly bewildered expression for a moment before looking down to the hamsters. “You were right, they are a fellow beast speaker, yet it appears a looming shadow obscures their view and confines their true strength.” “… huh?” The man kneeled down beside the hamsters and continued to speak. You noticed how there were other, similar looking hamsters starting to poke out of his scarf. “… Hmm… I see. So, that must be the power with which attracted you.” “… y-you speak to animals too?” “Yes. My four Dark Devas of Destruction told me of you, how you could understand them. Not many have a high enough level to have such a talent. I simply had to meet you.”

·       He seemed to be quite an odd guy to you, from his speech pattern to having so many hamsters on him at one time, but you weren’t one to judge. A part of you was telling you to just run, there was no reason to speak to him, but with the many hamsters around you were compelled to stay. Though slightly shaking you kneeled down beside the man. “The other hamsters are getting jealous. Is it okay if I give them sunflower seeds too?” “Yes, they will most certainly be appeased by this.” As you gave each one a seed the man continued to speak. “Might I ask, when was it you gained the ability to speak with beasts? You don’t appear to be a being in mortal disguise.” “Uh… I don’t know about speaking to them. Well, I talk to them, and I think they understand me, but it’s not like I can directly translate what they’re saying. I just… listen closely to the sounds they make, and the tone behind it. I also look at their body language. Like the little ones in your scarf began to get antsy as you approached the ones on the bench.” “Hmm… I suppose a mortal can’t truly hear creatures that are not of their own species, yet you still understand even if you don’t truly comprehend. Somehow, you’ve become even more intriguing precisely because you are a mere mortal.” “… w-what? Wait, should I have understood that? Oh no. Have I done something wrong!? I-I-I-I-I-I and I just said I over and over again, h, you now gon think I’m danger out nonononon-”

·       The Dark Devas leaped into you lap or onto your shoulders. They either nuzzled into you or lightly nipped at your skin, not enough to break it but enough to feel a sharp pinch. “O-oh, uh, you g-guys want attention. You okay?” You lightly scratched behind their ears and they stopped. “Sorry for worrying you. Heh, heh… at least you can help me calm down.” You sighed, gently petting them. “It seems the curse placed upon you is worse than it appears on the surface. Though the Devas can dispel it.” “O-oh, well… t-talking to animals helps calm me.” “So any beast would do?” “Y-yeah.” A strained smile pulled on your lips as you lightly chuckled. “Even tarantulas and angry geese. Those were… certainly very interesting conversations I had with them.” “Oh, do go on. Such beasts don’t let just anyone near enough to exchange words.”

·       And that was how you met Gundham Tanaka. For the first few times you met you got so absorbed in conversation with him and the Twelve Zodiac Generals you all kept forgetting to introduce yourselves. Every few days or so you’d meet Gundham and the Generals at the park during your breaks. It was so nice talking with him, even when you messed up and began to panic the Generals would be by your side easing your pounding heart. It was lovely.

·       Soon you and Gundham began meeting outside of your break times. Normally you’d go to his place. He was an animal breeder and had beasts of all sorts even exotic ones you weren’t all to sure were legal to have in your area like Capybaras. These visits were always your favorite. Often, you’d find yourself assisting Gundham in his work. It was fun getting to chat away without worry.

·       One day as you were sitting at that familiar bench, you scrolled through your phone. You stopped, feeling a light pressure hop onto you head, shoulders and lap. “Hello.” “Greetings Y/N. Hmm?” He caught a glimpse at what you were searching through. “The halls of shared open secrets is crumbling already?” “No, it’ll still be open for a few months, but not much longer. Boss says they’re saving so I can have a nice severance check. Even so, I thought I’d start searching now. But what other dying businesses are there where I don’t need to interact with people too often… Maybe one with good enough pay so I can meet a therapist finally.” “… Become my disciple, then all your worldly troubles shall be but dead memories.” “… You… You want me to work for you?” “Indeed. No longer shall the demons of this world trouble you so! For you are under the Overlord of Ice’s protection!” “I… You know I still panic at times even with animals around.” “Yes, but I simply take a step back and let you a moment to channel your power through our companions and your curse is lightened.” “… I… I can’t think of any other reason to say no… Thank you, Gundham. You’re a great friend.” “You need not thank me. This is simply the fruits of this friendship. I treat you in kind to the power you entrust in myself.” “… Yeah, you’re my best friend too. Thank you.”