#the angst is back

[azure-blaze92]

🕯AYCF Ch 18: Choices🕯

Chapter Illustration by Bananadramaaa

All aboard the angst train! The following few chapters are gonna be something, so prepare the feels ~ ( Also, AYCF has reached over 100K words with this chapter!)

✨️Shout outs✨️

Another big thank you to the absolute legend @bananadramaaa for doing the chapter art! You captured it perfectly as always ~

Thank you to my Betasquad for the help with this chapter ~ you guys rock !!!

[itsjuststardust]

Heaven in Hiding - Chapter 20: The Shadow Queen

Heaven in Hiding Masterlist

Chapter Summary: When it came down to it, Alaina was left with one thought—Was it worth it?

Word Count: 14,249

Author's Note/Chapter Warnings: This one is looooonnnnnngggggg friends. Put your feet up and make yourselves comfortable. There is a 🔥🌶️NSFW🌶️🔥scene for you degenerates. The rest has a surprising amount of plot (or at least build up to the plot). I have more comments, but I’ll save them for later… 🎵Chapter Soundtrack🎵 ‘you should see me in a crown’ - Billie Eilish MINORS - DO NOT INTERACT - 18+ ONLY

Chapter 20: The Shadow Queen

Alaina fiddled with the black stone she had floated earlier. A million thoughts jumbled in her brain as it attempted to right itself back to normal. It was soothing to run her thumbs over the smooth, flat surface of the obsidian rock. It grounded her to reality while she reflected on what she could remember from the last few hours.

It was almost too surreal to believe—that her powers had possibly returned to her… Maker, it’d been so long since she’d been able to use them. She’d all but given up hope that they would ever return… Still… Even with the surreal feeling, she was left with surprisingly conflicting feelings and thoughts about her powers returning. She should have felt excited, but instead of being excited, she was left with more questions than answers. Not only that, but the consequences of floating the stone were brutal.

Unfortunately, Din was there to witness the consequences. 

She was unconscious for most of whatever happened in the woods on Sorgan that night. All she knew was that, in one moment, she could feel the impending pressure that usually signaled one of her visions, and the next blink of an eye was three days later.

She didn’t have the luxury to sleep through the consequences this time.

It felt as if someone had impaled her skull with a dozen, or possibly two hundred, knives. She had briefly lost consciousness in the clearing despite her best efforts, and when she woke up next, the Crest was already in hyperdrive, heading toward their next destination. She’d woken up on the hold floor with what felt like another torn-off scrap of Din’s cloak drenched in water covering her face. Mando must have been hovering nearby because the moment she moved, he was on her. Asking her questions and trying to get her to sit up, all to keep her from drifting back to sleep until her temperature returned to normal. 

Alaina wished he would have let her remain unconscious. At least then, she wouldn’t have to be awake for the pain.

The pain was like nothing she had ever experienced before, even back in the lab on Nevarro.

It was devastating. It felt as if the venom from her imaginary rawl’s bite had seeped into the knife wounds, filling her head with a burning sludge that fueled the wildfire raging inside that flared hotter with each stab of one of the assumed imaginary knives digging into her skull.

She thought that the sharp, stabbing pain and burning was terrible, but soon, it led to her mind throbbing, which just compounded the pain tenfold. The throbbing made her feel like her brain was swelling, and, in time, the pressure would either split her skull in half or force her brain to start leaking out her ears. 

The pain ebbed and flowed, applying pressure behind her eyes and making her sensitive to the harsh fluorescent lighting inside the Crest. Unable to tolerate the combination of light, the throbbing inside her head, and the newly added motion sickness symptom, Alaina was barely able to scramble to the fresher before she began heaving the contents of her stomach. Much to Alaina’s annoyance, her nosebleed returned. She wasn’t sure whether it was from the raging headache or the added pressure from her hurling up what she felt was like every meal she’d eaten in her entire life, but it was the last thing she needed.

Din was beside himself. She could hear him pace outside the fresher for an unknown time. Time was difficult to tell through the pain, but at some point, he was on one side of her, and Grogu was on the other. He’d brought his medkit in and used all his meager supplies on her. Various patches lined her neck. Patches for pain, patches for nausea, and one that Alaina was pretty sure he had said was for a skin rash, but he just gave it to her in a panic. 

Even Grogu tried to use his healing powers, but the second his hands touched her, he jolted away as if her skin had shocked him. After that, Din had to deal with a sobbing Alaina and a crying Grogu.

After she finally finished retching, Alaina lay slumped against the cold metal toilet as she cried and pleaded with him to put her out of her misery. Mando tried to rub her back to soothe her, but when Alaina cried to him that his touch felt like sandpaper rubbing her skin off, he grabbed Grogu and left her alone in the fresher. Once alone, she sobbed into the weird tilting toilet and randomly thought that, for the first time, she actually saw the value of the angled seat, which helped keep her propped up in the perfect position. Alaina also found herself relieved that Mando wasn’t here to see her like this. The moment she had that thought, the lights inside the refresher went out, and she closed her eyes in relief when she no longer had to see or hear the annoying buzzing fluorescent lights. Next, her ears were filled with the sound of the pipes turning on and water streaming from the shower.

“Your temperature is forty degrees and rising,”  he murmured as he pulled her away from the toilet and began to undress her. "We have to get your fever to break,”  he explained apologetically as he dragged her to the shower.

The last thing Alaina remembered before she lost consciousness again was how the water from the shower was somehow simultaneously cold and hot while also feeling like tiny shards of glass cutting her skin. She remembered screaming into Din’s chest while he held her before the pain finally overwhelmed her, and she drifted into blessed unconsciousness.

The next time she woke up, her head was still throbbing, but instead of the sharp, venom-laced daggers, her mind felt like a dense fog that she couldn’t see through. Alaina blearily realized that she had been redressed in her sleep shirt and nothing else. It also took her entirely way too long to realize that she was no longer down in the hold and that Din had carried her up to the cockpit to sit with him. She wanted to laugh at the vision of Mando carrying her around like a doll, positioning her to sit with him, straddling his lap, and facing him, but it was a thoughtful gesture—allowing her head to soak in the cold beskar while she slept. She tried to say something, but it just came out as a low, quiet groan. At hearing her, Din loosely wrapped an arm around her, holding her tighter against his chest. Alaina let herself drift back to sleep, content to stay in his lap for as long as he would let her.

Now, she was in her own room, lying in her own bed.

A soft snore from next to her made her smile.

She was in her own room, lying on her own bed, with her own Mandalorian sleeping soundly beside her.

She returned her gaze to the stone she had been fiddling with and looked at it with a frown. 

The pain was still there, but it was a dull, aching, tolerable pain.

How long had she been waiting to finally get her powers back? She wanted to be excited about this new (old) development, but she couldn’t muster any happiness. Now, some unknown number of hours later, with a persistent, annoying, buzzing headache, Alaina was left with just one thought.

Was it worth it?

A tear dripped off her cheek and landed on the black rock. She wiped the drop away with her thumb.

The beskar-clad man beside her shifted, and Alaina tried to gather herself, hoping to make it look like she hadn’t spent the last twenty minutes crying.

“Laina,” his sleep-filled mumbles rumbled the bed, bringing a sad smile to her face. The man rolled over in his sleep, and a heavy arm came to rest across her legs. He stilled again, and Alaina was almost convinced he’d gone back to sleep before his hand started patting her legs. His helmet slowly looked up to find her propped up against the wall. “You’re awake,” Din said, trying to shake the sleep out of his voice. “Your fever finally broke. How’s your head?”

“It’s fine,” she told him, giving it a strained smile.

“You’re lying. Your blood pressure is still slightly elevated.”

Alaina sighed, too tired to argue with the man, “How could you possibly know that?”

Din reached to tap one of the patches she’d forgotten he placed on her neck at the beginning, which was still there. “It sends your vitals to my helmet,” he explained.

Alaina didn’t have it in her to glare or roll her eyes. “It’s still there, but it’s not as bad—”

“You’ve been crying,” he interrupted, stating the obvious, which Alaina was learning was his specialty.

“It’s fine. I promise,” she told him quietly. When his helmet stared unflinchingly back at her, she squeezed his hand on her thigh. “I’m sorry you had to see me like that. I forgot how bad things could get when they got bad.”

Din’s hand squeezed hers back, “Don’t apologize.”

She broke eye contact and returned to staring at the black stone in her hand. Din didn’t ask for any of this. He didn’t ask for a broken girl who was one breakdown away from her brain melting away. Of course, Alaina didn’t sign up for that either yet…

“Alaina—”

“So, how do you know a King?” she asked, changing the subject. With one last pass of her thumb over the stone, she placed it next to her on the bed and turned her attention to the drowsy man next to her.

Din moved to lie back down on the bed, tugging her with him until they were lying on their sides with her back pressed into his chest while he held her. “Saved his life during a scuffle in a cantina,” he told her, his vocoder struggling to pick up his quiet, soft words.

“Did you cause the scuffle?” Alaina smirked when there was a beat of silence before Mando finally answered.

“Maybe,” he eventually said, and she could feel him shrug behind her.

Alaina grinned and rolled over so she could face him. “So,” she began, putting the pieces together, “you started a bar brawl going after one of your bounties and happened to save a King’s life in the process?”

“Something like that,” he confirmed, but Alaina could hear him struggle to keep the teasing lilt out of his voice.

“I can’t imagine the cantina owner took kindly to you starting a brawl while the King was dining with him.”

“Wasn’t his King,” Din explained, moving his hand to start stroking her waist. “Rhoam got a wild hair snuck under his guard dog’s nose and went off-world.”

“I bet he learned his lesson after that,” Alaina commented, smiling, bringing a finger up to draw patterns on his armored chest.

“Doubtful,” Din hummed. The hand on her waist stilled, and he tightened his grip before he asked, “Are you okay?”

The smile fell from Alaina’s face, and she looked away from him, only for his hand to grip her waist tighter. “The headache is still there, but it’s tolerable,” she told him honestly.

“Do—” he began but stopped himself, shifting uncomfortably before he continued, “Do you think it will be like that every time you try and use your powers?” 

“I don’t know,” she answered nervously. “But I don’t plan to find out any time soon,” she finished, giving him a sad smile.

Din relaxed at hearing that and nodded. “I want you to… I want you to get your powers again. I do. It just seems like every time you use them, the side effects are getting worse,” he finished in a whisper, tugging her closer.

Alaina didn’t have anything to say to that. So, instead, she nuzzled herself into his chest piece and wrapped her free arm around his waist.

They continued to lay like that as the minutes ticked on, neither willing to release the other. Alaina had no words of comfort for the man, and he didn’t have any for her. She soaked in his comfort and hoped she was providing the same for him.

Din wasn’t wrong. Every time she attempted to use her powers, the repercussions became a little worse and a little worse. Before, it wouldn’t have bothered her… but now that she had a family—a clan—she didn’t want to know what would happen if she pushed herself too far. Would she become a vegetable? Would she die? Or worse, would she be forced to live some kind of pain-filled half-life, unable to function as a normal person?

Which brought her back to her original question.

Was it worth it?

“I liked waking up in my own room, though,” Alaina said instead. “I still can’t believe you made me a room in your ship.”

Din hummed something that she understood was Mandalorian for ‘You’re Welcome.’

Alaina blinked, suddenly remembering that she had something she had planned on giving Din before they left the moon. The arts and crafts project she had been working on with Grogu while being oblivious to the fact that Mando made her a karking bedroom. 

She patted the bed and then struggled to sit up to look around the room. However, she moved too fast, and she had to hold her head as she felt the heavy contents inside her skull slosh around inside their confinements.

Din was up in a heartbeat, holding her shoulders steady and preventing her from getting up off the bed. “Hey, take it easy,” he instructed, trying to pull her back to the bed.

“Pants,” Alaina mumbled. Once the contents inside her head stilled, she tried to look around the room, looking for the grey pants she had been wearing. Mando cocked his helmet curiously at her word but refused to let her go to find them. “Where are my pants?”

“Down in the hold, why?”

She shifted her shoulders out of his grasp and tried to stand up, but her liquified brain sloshed, and with it, the entire room tilted, and Alaina immediately fell back onto the bed.

He caught her quickly, thankfully preventing her from bouncing. “Careful,” Mando chided, forcing her to lay flat on her back. “What’s the rush?” he tried to tease. “We’ve got another thirteen hours left to go.”

“No, I had something in them. Grogu and I have been working on a surprise for you, too,” she tried to explain as she attempted to sit back up, but Mando’s hands prevented her from getting up.

“There’s no rush, Alaina. Besides, there’s no way you’ll make it down the hatch, much or less out of this room before collapsing.”

She relinquished in defeat and sagged back into the mattresses that Din had brought up from the hold to line her new bed. “Then maybe you could go get them for me?” she asked hopefully, looking up at Din’s helmet. “Please?” she continued, throwing on a pout with it for good measure.

The Mandalorian caved with a sigh and moved to get off the bed to leave her room.

“And bring Grogu up with you!” she added, smiling when she saw Din’s helmet shake as he turned to head down the hatch.

Alaina grabbed the white knit blanket from the foot of the bed, pulled it up over her lap, and propped her pillow against the wall so she could comfortably prop her back against the wall while waiting for Din to return.

Left alone with only her headache for company, she looked around her room, imagining other happy things instead of her head. 

She imagined what the room would look like with her clothes hanging on one side of the pole and Din’s flight suits hanging from the other. In her imagination, small tables or shelves were on either side of the bed. Alaina would have her mother’s dagger and a datapad on hers, and Din would likely have a blaster or two on his. Maybe she could talk him into stringing little twinkle lights around the perimeter of the ceiling so there was another light source other than the harsh fluorescent lighting.

Oh, how the times had changed, she thought, looking around the closet-turned-bedroom. This wasn’t anything remotely close to what she used to imagine in what she had dubbed as the before times. She’d imagine what it would be like to live with someone else in years past before everything happened. In those dreams, her home was usually a real house filled with books, plants, and knick-knacks that reminded her of her mother. Alaina would still be dancing, and the someone else she was living with was her husband. They’d have full lives. They would have their work and friends, and at the end of the day, they’d go to bed discussing the possibility of starting a family.

It seemed realistic then, but it played more like a fairytale now.

So much had happened between then and now. Her visions were a little different now. They were no longer romantic fairytales. Instead, they were minimalistic and practical. Still… she couldn’t stop new dreams from filling her head. Alaina smirked, looking over the sparse room on a spaceship. Dreams where she shared this room with a Mandalorian named Din Djarin. New dreams that included sleepless nights for good reasons and waking up to find Grogu had joined to sleep between them in their bed. Dreams of learning what everyday life would look like on the Razor Crest for her and her new family.

Her chest warmed moments before a happy coo pulled her from her daydreams, and Alaina looked up to find Grogu smiling in Mando’s arms as they approached the bed.

“Hey, little one,” she greeted. 

When Grogu made grabbing motions for her, Alaina held her hands out for Din to pass him over. Grogu started babbling excitedly while he was passed to her, and she nodded along to his attempt at filling her in on everything she had missed out on since they last saw one another. The kid squealed excitedly when Din came to scoot beside her in the bed, mirroring her position with his back propped up against the wall and his legs stretched over the covers. Her grey pants were in his hands, and he placed them on her lap while his helmet was tilted, watching the kid.

Alaina winced at the high-pitched squeal, but her hopes that Din hadn’t noticed were dashed when he said to the kid, “What did I say about making shrieking noises?” he chided the toddler.

“It’s okay,” Alaina told Grogu, stroking his ears. 

“Push over,” Din muttered.

“Want to give Mando our present?” she asked, ignoring his comment. The green toddler smiled his big tooth grin up at her and settled between her and Din’s thighs.

She grabbed her pants and started feeling around the cargo pockets, looking for their gift. “Now, keep in mind it’s not a bedroom,” she told Din, giving him a little smile while her hand pulled out what she was looking for.

Mando’s helmet cocked curiously at the three handmade bands in her hand, making Alaina smile. A small, medium, and large one handmade with things Alaina felt represented each of them, or at least she worked with what she had.

“We worked on them when you would go hunting,” she explained, passing Din the largest one. He accepted the gift in his gloved hand and fingered one of the stones while he examined the gift. “Grogu picked the stones,” she explained, showing him the other bracelets. Mando’s had the largest stones, Alaina’s a little smaller, and Grogu’s were basically tiny pebbles. “The purple is made from the lavender grass from our moon, so we always have a piece to remember it by,” she explained when his thumb rubbed the purple band. When his thumb moved to the gold band, she continued detailing the components of the bracelet, “A lock of my hair—”

“You cut your hair?” Mando asked, snapping his helmet to look at her.

“Just a piece from the back,” she answered, eyeing him skeptically. Her eyebrows rose when she noticed that his helmet had shifted to analyze her hair as if she had told him she’d shaved it off. “Don’t worry, there’s still plenty,” she deadpanned.

Mando sighed. “I like your hair,” he mumbled, sounding embarrassed, and returned his helmet to the band in his glove.

“And now you have a piece of it wherever you go,” she nodded to the bracelet, which had the lavender grass and her hair braided and woven around the small black stones evenly spaced throughout.

He stayed silent as he stared at the piece, and when his thumbs started rubbing over the silver bands, he asked, “What are these?”

Alaina smiled at his question. Each band had one silver wire wrapped around the circumference of the black stones and two wires on either side, holding them in place. She’d pilfered the silver wires from Mando’s bag of tools he’d left out one day. It took a little trial and error, but eventually, she figured out how to use his soldering pen to reinforce them without lighting the grass or her hair on fire.  “Those represent you,” she told him, her smile brightening when his helmet looked back at her. Alaina scrunched her nose before she explained, “I maybe stole them from you.” His helmet cocked at the statement, and she giggled. “But you’re getting them back now,” she defended, and Din’s tilt deepened.

“So, they represent me because you stole them from me?” he teased.

Alaina playfully shoved the helmet, staring at her. “No. Well, I guess, kinda, but that’s not the whole reason,” she explained, earning her a disbelieving hum from the armored man. She smirked and took the bracelet back, and before Mando could protest, she grabbed the orange leather fingertips and tugged on them until he got the hint and loosened his vambrace so she could tug the glove off. Alaina’s eyes became transfixed on the tanned, calloused, well-manicured hand before her. She took Mando’s bracelet up and wrapped it around his wrist, using the silver wires that she had used to make the ends of the band connect, holding it in place. “The silver wires are you because you are what holds us together,” she whispered.

Mando’s helmet dropped to look at the bracelet wrapped around his wrist. While he was otherwise occupied, Alaina grabbed the tiniest of the three and held it out for Grogu, who waved his left arm out for her, no doubt wanting to match the Mandalorian. She grinned at him while wrapping the tiny band around his tiny wrist twice before she tied it off. Next, she went to put hers on her right wrist and frowned when she realized that she had miscalculated her size and it was slightly too large for her. Not to be disappointed, she simply shrugged, shuffled out from under the knit blanket to attach it to her right ankle, pleased to find that it fit perfectly, and tied it off.

When she turned back from her ankle, she found that Din’s gaze had dropped from his wrist to her ankle, where her matching anklet rested. “They represent us. Our clan,” she continued, giving him a soft smile. “I know it’s not a bedroom, and it’s not very manly. You don’t have to wear it all the time. When you want to take it off, it just unclasps here,” she explained, pointing to the silver clasp, but Mando pulled his arm out of her grasp. “Or you don’t have to take it off,” she countered and smiled when Din relaxed. He grabbed her right hand in his left and entwined their hands and fingers together so Alaina could feel the bracelet rub against her wrist. “I hopefully made it flat enough that it won’t be uncomfortable under your gloves. But you don’t have to wear it—”

“I want to,” he interrupted, voice quiet but thick with emotion.

Alaina blushed and looked down, smiling at Grogu sitting in their laps, showing Din his matching bracelet.

No, this wasn’t what her former fairytales were like. Sitting here next to a man who wasn’t hers but was. The two of them sat with a child who wasn’t theirs but was… 

Content, Alaina thought as she snuggled into Din’s left side and rested her head on his shoulder.

No, sitting here hand in hand with the Mandalorian who had once been her bounty hunter, with their all but adopted child sitting between them, wasn’t how she imagined her future.

Din’s thumb stroked her hand with his roughened callused pad as her earlier thoughts returned, clouding her mind.

Was it worth it?

Was finding her powers again worth this? Was it worth losing this? Was it worth losing her family?

Din’s helmet tilted to rest on top of hers, chasing away her thoughts, clearing her head of them. “I liked your surprise better,” he whispered.

Bittersweet tears pricked in Alaina’s eyes as she smiled. 

Was it worth it?

She didn’t think it was.

Alaina fussed with her hair in front of the mirror in the refresher, trying to comb and shape her curls into something slightly more respectable than the rat’s nest she’d awoken to after her nap.

The three of them had eventually drifted off to sleep in their room, with only the light from the stars streaking past them filtering in through the opened door from the cockpit. When she woke up, she found that she had slid to lie down on the bed and had Grogu clutched against her chest in her arms. 

Alaina said a silent prayer to the Maker when she found that her headache had diminished to more of an annoying buzz. Her mind was clear, and she felt more like herself. She was pulled from her thoughts when she felt something grip her ankle, and she jumped in surprise. Looking down at the foot of the bed, she relaxed when she saw Din sitting there, holding her ankle in his lap so he could inspect it. She smiled when she saw that his left hand was still uncovered, showing off his bracelet as he held her ankle, with their matching pieces of jewelry side by side.

That was the last quiet moment they had. Before either of them could say anything, Grogu was awake and running excitedly around the bed.

Mando sighed and slid his glove back on, covering his bracelet from view before plucking the toddler out of the bed and into his arms. “Don’t get used to this, kid,” he leveled with Grogu. Alaina giggled when Grogu gave Din his sweetest smile, making the Mandalorian turn fix her with a look that pleasantly twisted her insides. It was funny that she didn’t even know what the man looked like, but she just knew the looks he gave her under his helmet.

Over the next few hours, the three of them moved around the Crest as if they’d been doing this for years.

Mando worked on cleaning some of his weapons while she snacked and played with Grogu. Mando’s helmet was on her instantly whenever she got up, ensuring she was okay and not about to faint or fall over. She found it endearing the first couple of times it happened, but after the third or fourth time, she shot him an annoyed look. He at least pretended not to watch her after that, but Alaina knew better than to think he wasn’t constantly keeping tabs on her.

When Din announced there were only three hours left, Alaina decided that if she were going to meet a karking King, she should, at the very least, put pants on, which is how she found herself in the tiny fresher over two hours later, freshly showered and dressed in her purple dress, glaring at her hair. Normally, she would just braid it back and be done with it, but once she gathered all of her unruly hair off to the side to start braiding it, her mouth fell open at what she saw.

A brilliant, vivid bruise painted her neck in shades of purple, black, and blue where her neck met her shoulder, and if Alaina squinted, she could make out what appeared to be kriffing teeth marks. She rolled her eyes at the marks on her skin but couldn’t stop her smile from slipping back in as she went to work to make sure she could wear her hair down to hide the evidence of Din’s bite mark. Etiquette and manners hadn’t had much meaning over the last few years. However, Alaina was reasonably confident that it wouldn’t be professional to meet any royalty with what had to be the galaxy’s largest hickey on display.

Once Alaina had the last curl as good as it was going to get, she exited the fresher to an empty hold.

A snore pulled her attention to the old sleeping alcove, and she smiled when she found Grogu sleeping with his frog in the hammock. She let Grogu sleep while she went up top to check on Din because Alaina had no idea what to expect once they landed, and if the kid needed to sleep, she would let him.

Once she climbed through the hatch, she smoothed out some of the wrinkles in her light purple dress and subconsciously fixed her hair one last time as she walked to the cockpit.

Din was in his pilot’s chair, front and center, analyzing something on the screen. His helmet turned to see who had joined him, and Alaina smirked when he did a double take.

“Why are you wearing that?”

Alaina’s mouth flattened at the question, and she looked down at the dress before glaring at the back of his helmet. “Because this is the nicest thing I have?” she answered, but it came out more like a question.

“Your normal clothes are fine,” he replied, returning to the controls.

Alaina’s frown deepened at his borderline annoyed response. She wasn’t going to meet royalty in grey tactical pants and a black shirt that exposed her midriff. It was bad enough that the only pair of real shoes she had to wear with the dress were boots. This was the first of one of Din’s friends of sorts that she was going to meet, and she wanted to make a good impression.

“Din, we’re meeting a King—”

“It’s just Rhoam,” he grumbled, keeping his helmet directed forward.

Alaina rolled her eyes and walked to stand next to his chair. “Well, I’m sorry that I didn’t ignite a riot—”

“Bar scuffle,” he corrected.

She ignored him and continued on, “—just so I had an excuse to meet a King,” she teased, resting her hand on his shoulder.

Din sighed in his seat and shook his helmet. “I didn’t know he was a King at the time,” he told her, and if she listened closely, she could hear what sounded like a pout in his words.

Alaina smirked and spun to sit in his lap with her legs dangling over the side of his armrest. “I bet you did,” she teased. “I bet you knew there was a runaway King, and you set up your whole little brawl just to impress his highness—”

“Why are you being a brat?” he cut her off, cocking his head at her.

“Not being a brat. You’re being weird,” she accused, raising her eyebrows as she waited for him to explain himself. “I thought you liked my purple dress?”

He sighed and leaned back in his seat, spreading his legs and resting his arms on the armrests while he stared at her. “I’m not being weird. Rhoam is just… difficult to explain.”

Alaina narrowed her eyes at the silver beskar helmet looking at her. There was something he wasn’t telling her. His words held truth to them, but something else was under them—an undercurrent of… apprehension.

“Are you worried about me meeting your friend?” she asked. Mando didn’t answer her; instead, he moved his hand to play with her anklet. “Don’t tell me you’re embarrassed of me? I’m wearing the nicest thing I own, and even tried to fix my curls.”

“Not embarrassed, Tranyc,” he sighed.

“And I had to fix my curls because I had to wear my hair down because someone—” she paused to give him a look—“got a little overzealous with his teeth.”

Din hummed and brushed her hair back over her shoulder, revealing her bruised neck to him.

Alaina continued to study him, but the beskar refused to tell her Din’s secret.

She shifted in his lap to thread her legs through his armrests, effectively straddling him. Now that she could look him directly in the helmet, she narrowed her sights on him.

“So, if you’re not embarrassed by me,” she began slowly, trying to feel him out. “Why are you nervous about me meeting your friend?”

He shifted under her with a strained sigh. “I’m not nervous,” he grumbled, and this time, Alaina could definitely detect a pout in his tone.

“You are!” she accused, thrusting a finger at his helmet. “You’re nervous about me meeting your friend!”

“He’s not my friend,” he argued, but Alaina gave him a disbelieving look. “He’s… Rhoam. You kind of just have to experience him firsthand.”

“If I didn’t know you any better, I would think you were jealous,” she teased, looping her arms around Mando’s neck to scoot herself further up his lap. Silence hung between them, and Alaina’s mouth dropped open in shock. “Seriously?” Alaina gasped. “Oh my—you’re jealous? I haven’t even met him yet. What, is he attractive or something?”

Silence answered.

Oh.

This King Rhoam must really be something if Mando thought the man was attractive.

“I suppose with that mark on your neck, Rhoam will get the picture,” Din responded quietly, his voice rumbling in his chest, forcing her to blush.

“Mando, people on the opposite end of the galaxy can see the little love mark you left me,” she deadpanned.

His hips shifted up, and she bit her lip when she could feel a firmness through his trousers press into her core. “Good,” he answered darkly, growing harder by the second.

Alaina gasped and instinctively rocked her core against him until he felt just as stiff and unrelenting as his armor.

“How can I show you that you have nothing to worry about?” she questioned with a knowing smirk as her hands left his neck and trailed down his chest all the way down until they rested on his trousers. 

Mando remained frozen in his chair as he stared at her, and Alaina quirked an eyebrow at him when she felt the hardness under her hands lurch when her fingers found his zipper.

“Where’s the kid?” he asked as she slowly unbuttoned his trousers and slid his zipper down.

“Sleeping,” she answered, slipping her hand into his open trousers to free him. “Now, back to my question,” she continued as she wrapped her hand around his thick cock, free of its confines, standing at attention. “How can I show you that you have nothing to worry about?” she asked again, lazily stroking his length.

To her surprise, Mando remained quiet, looking almost bored as he leaned back in his chair with his legs splayed open. The only evidence that he wasn’t as bored as he led on was in her hand, stiff and eagerly pulsing under her palm in anticipation.

Well, two could play at that game.

Alaina let go of him and thought she heard an agitated static huff escape from under his helmet at the lack of contact. She kept her gaze fixed on him as she moved and shifted up to hover her center over his straining cock. She held their look for another second before she moved her hand under her dress and shifted her dress so she could push her panties off to the side, allowing her to start to sink over him.

The fat tip of his cock breached her, and she stilled with a gasp. Not used to taking him without Din preparing her a little bit brought about surprisingly sharp pain that wasn’t entirely unwanted. This wasn’t like the pain she had experienced earlier. This pain whispered promises of pleasure. 

Alaina’s mouth stayed open as she stared into the helmet, looking unflinchingly back at her as she lifted herself off of him, only to sink back down, taking a little more of him this time. Mando gave her nothing as she repeated her actions, adjusting to him as she was able to take more and more of him.

“Have I proven myself yet?” she rasped, face contorting as she slid down another inch.

Mando hummed and shook his head. His hands finally left the armrests, and Alaina watched their orange fingertips skate up her bare arms and to her shoulders. He played with her hair as he made sure it was all pushed behind her, and she knew he was staring at his bite mark from earlier. Then, in slow motion, those hands grabbed the straps of her dress and dragged them off her shoulders and down her arms until her dress bunched around her waist, exposing her chest but still covering their laps.

“That’s better,” he purred, bringing his gloved hands up to cup her breasts. Alaina arched her chest into his awaiting hands, gasping when his thumbs rubbed over her nipples. With her chest between his gloves, he grabbed onto her and slowly began pulling her down the rest of the way over his cock.

Alaina’s head fell back as she let out a moan mixed with equal parts pleasure and pain as she felt herself splitting open to take every last delicious inch he had to fill her with until he had her wholly sheathed around him. She whimpered and writhed over him, panting as she tried to adjust to him, but Mando silenced her when he bucked his hips up, nudging his cock even deeper inside her heat.

“Mando,” she moaned, returning her head to look into his helmet. “Oh!” she cried out when he bucked his hips inside her again.

“What did I tell you to call me?” he asked darkly, making Alaina’s walls clench around his cock buried inside of her at the sound of his commanding voice.

“Din,” she panted. His hands let go of her chest to return to their previous position on the armrests, and without them to hold her up, she fell forward, pressing her forehead into the center of his helmet.

“Go on,” he said, leaning back into his chair. “I believe you were proving something to me,” he murmured.

Alaina bit down on her bottom lip and nodded into his helmet. Kriff, Mando—Din could be possessive, domineering even, but this was something else. She continued to nod through the lust-filled haze that had flooded her mind and rocked her hips over his lap.

“Come on, Tranyc,” Din purred, pulling her back so she could sit upright. “I thought you said I made you feel powerful?” Alaina’s walls clenched around him, and she eagerly nodded her head. “Show me that power.”

Alaina responded instantly, rolling her upper body while she started gliding up and down the rigid length buried inside of her. With one hand on his shoulder and the other gripping his forearm resting on the armrest, she slowly started riding him. Mando nodded, encouraging her to continue. She closed her eyes, enjoying the slow burn and stretch as she rode him while his helmet remained fixed on her. Pleasure coursed through her, erasing any lingering pain every time he filled her.

She lost herself in that moment. With the stars reflecting against his silver armor and his helmet trained on her, analyzing her every movement like a predator waiting to pounce on its prey, Alaina felt invincible.

The next time she rose herself off him, Mando shifted, and the tip of his cock rubbed against the sensitive bundle of nerves eliciting a low moan to escape her lips, and her hips faltered, losing their rhythm. She stuttered, and when she found him again, she was unable to control her fall, causing her to impale herself over him. The stoic man let a growl slip out, and Alaina’s chest arched at the sound, meeting his hands as he gripped her breasts again.

“Din,” she keened, crashing down over him again, forcing moans to leave the both of them. “Din,” she rasped, continuing her rough tempo of sliding back up, only to forcefully take him again. “You—You have nothing to be jealous about.”

Din growled, and his hips started bouncing off the chair, meeting her every time she came crashing down over him.

Soon, the cockpit was filled with her whimpers and Mando’s growls as his chair squeaked every time she bounced in his lap. It was erotic being in this position—straddling Mando’s lap, riding him in his chair while he growled and watched her breasts jiggle in front of his helmet.

“Ha-ve—Hav-eee I proo-ven myself yet?”

“Tell me you’re mine,” he growled, lifting his hips off his chair to spear himself inside of her.

Alaina gasped at his command, picking up her tempo.

Mando’s hands went to her waist and took control. With every word he spoke, he used his hands to slam her over him. “Tell—Me—You’re—Mine,” he growled.

She nodded in agreement, but that wasn’t enough for him. He growled, holding her hips as he rose out of the chair, bringing her with him. Alaina cried out when he pulled out of her, making her feel empty now that he wasn’t inside of her. When her bare feet hit the floor, his still-gloved hand came to grip her chin, forcing her to look up at him.

“Tell me,” he growled.

Alaina’s thighs clenched together when she felt herself start to drip down her legs. “Yes,” she nodded, but he shook his helmet and tugged her dress down over her hips until it pooled on the floor.

In one swift motion, Din spun her to look out at the window over the control deck as he ripped her last pair of underwear off her hips. Her mouth opened to complain, but one of his hands gripped the back of her neck, forcing her to lean over the controls while his boots stepped between her feet, spreading her open for him. Her hands struggled to search for somewhere to hold her up without pushing any buttons and thankfully managed to find a place to rest just as he shoved himself back inside her aching heat. “Tell me,” he grunted as she felt his hips press into her backside.

“Yours!” she gasped. “I’m yours,” she whispered, pleading for mercy.

“Again,” he ordered, resting his hands on her hips.

“Yours—Din!” she cried as he slammed inside of her, forcing her further up the console. 

He grunted behind her as his hands held her hips in position, allowing him to drill his cock inside of her. “Dreamed of this, Laina,” he murmured. “Dreamed of you bent over my controls just like this,” he revealed. “Fuck,” he gasped when Alaina’s walls squeezed him. His hips slammed against hers, filling her to the brim as she cried his name. “Say it again.”

“Yours,” Alaina growled, lifting her head to stare at their reflection in the window. Her gaze found Din’s in his reflection against the stars. She watched their reflection in the window. Watched as her breasts bounced each time his hips slapped against her ass. Watched as Din watched his cock pump in and out of her as he took her from behind.

“That’s right,” he growled. One of his hands left her hips and tugged on her hair, forcing her to look up just as an alarm sounded from the dashboard. “That’s the five-minute warning, Tranyc,” he told her, sounding like he was speaking through clenched teeth. “In five minutes, you’re gonna cum screaming my name as we drop out of hyperdrive.” Alaina could only nod as he continued to drill himself into her. “I’m gonna fill you up and force you to meet a King wearing nothing under your dress, just so you can feel me leak from you so you can remember who you belong to.”

The handful of times they’d done this before, there had always been a sign—a wind-up or a coiling in her abdomen warning her that she was approaching her release. This was the first time it came without warning.

Alaina cried out, “Yours!” as his words ripped her climax from her, taking her by surprise.

An obscene, static moan came from her as Din ground himself inside her, letting her soak his cock as her orgasm rippled over him until she was breathless, resting her upper body on her forearms.

“Three and a half minutes left to go, sweet thing,” was the only warning she got before she felt him drag out of her.

He didn’t start with the brutal pace he had set before. He worked her slowly, building her back up—he was on a timeframe, after all.

She tried to drop her head to rest on the dashboard, but he gripped her hair tighter, forcing her head to look out at the stars whirring past them. Din’s thrusts started to become sloppy, losing some of his original, even tempo. However, they were still forceful because every time he rammed into her, their bodies made a slapping noise that progressively became quicker with each smack against her ass. 

All she could do was watch Din’s reflection in the mirror, fully dressed in his armor, as he took her from behind, and Alaina didn’t know what came over her.

The pleasure. The euphoria. The sound of Din grunting every time he thrust his cock back inside of her, but Alaina wasn’t going to be the only one left out of the Mandalorian’s power trip.

“Tell me you’re mine,” she said, looking at his reflection in the viewscreen, giving Mando a sinful smile when his helmet snapped to look at her. 

“Can’t you feel it?”

Alaina shook her head, and Mando growled, tugging her hair to pull her up and forcing her back to arch painfully. Her hands had to find purchase on the dash to relieve some of the pressure. His pacing increased, and she did her best to give him the same stoic treatment he had given her earlier, no matter how much she wanted to whimper whenever she felt him hit all the right spots.

“You think you can be a brat?” he asked, and this time, there was no doubt that he was growling through clenched teeth.

“What’s wrong, Mando?” she asked, drawing his name out. “I thought you liked powerful women?”

A low growl came from behind her as his thrusts became frantic. He tugged her hair painfully, causing her to gasp as he yanked her back so her head looked directly up at the ceiling.

“I like powerful women,” he growled into her head. “But currently, I’m teaching a lesson to a brat.”

The Crest sounded another alarm, and at the sound, Din’s hand left her hair and returned to her hips. He shoved her weeping hole full of his cock, losing his tempo. He grunted as he rocked inside of her. Suddenly, her thighs were in his grip, and he pulled her legs up off the floor. Alaina was barely able to throw her hands in front of her to catch herself from crashing into the deck. 

His hips went into overtime as he desperately rammed himself inside of her, and there was nothing she could do except hang on for dear life as the beeping increased, warning Din to drop out of hyperdrive. One hand left her hip to pull the lever back, throwing them out of the hyperdrive channel so hard that his cock slammed into her womb while his hand returned but flicked an orange fingertip over her clit instead of returning to her hip. 

Alaina broke again just as the new planet came into view and collapsed onto the dashboard. Din’s roar cracked as his vocoder struggled to process it while his hips frantically slammed his cock inside of her, losing control as Alaina’s climax had her convulsing around him until she was a puddle on the dashboard. 

His hands came to rest over her shoulders as he grunted and ground inside of her until she felt his cock swell inside her heat until it exploded, and just as he promised, he dumped his release inside of her, filling her pleasantly sore, aching cunt full of his seed.

The cockpit was full of their ragged pants while they both struggled to come down.

“I’m glad we settled that you’re not the jealous type,” Alaina sighed as she sagged into the deck.

Alaina attempted to keep her face neutral and impassive while standing beside Din.

She didn’t know what to expect when Din mentioned he was friends with a King, but she supposed she shouldn’t be surprised that there was an actual castle. 

The Razor Crest landed on one of ten landing pads around the castle, placed atop a mountain. There was an ocean that crashed into the rocky side of the mountain behind them, while a deep, lush forest of evergreen trees surrounded every other side of them.

The castle itself was… imposing. From the outside, there didn’t appear to be any evidence of technology. The outside was made of dark stone and black iron with spires that looked so tall they speared the grey clouds in the sky.

Din stood stiffly beside her, with Grogu tucked away in his satchel, hiding under his cloak. His helmet turned to look down at her, and she must have looked just as nervous as she felt because his hand briefly rubbed the small of her back before he returned to sentry mode. 

Alaina shifted again, grimacing at the sticky feeling between her legs, but before she could chastise him again, the door from the castle to the walkway opened, revealing a shock of color against the dark stone. Four people filed out the door in bright, turquoise robes, wielding staffs. The four formed a single file line in front of the door and stomped the bottom of their staffs on the stone ground before they parted, making room for a fifth. 

From the dark, a deep purple robe with swirls of gold embroidered patterns emerged between what Alaina realized was the King’s personal bodyguards.

The five marched down the walkway toward the Crest, and if Alaina had been nervous before, it was nothing compared to how she currently felt as she watched a King march toward her with his Royal Guard.

Din wasn’t kidding… he was handsome. He was tall, even taller than the Mandalorian standing next to her in his full armor. The purple robes did little to hide the broad, well-built, muscular shoulders and chest under them. Sharp, electric blue eyes locked on hers as he approached, and Alaina found it difficult to look away from him. His face was rugged yet polished. Every hair in its place, from the top of his light brown hair to the perfectly groomed beard on his face.

“Mando!” he greeted with a brilliant smile as he approached. Din grabbed the man’s forearm, and the two men pulled each other in for one of those manly pats on the back before pulling apart. “Good to see you, friend.”

“Staying out of trouble?” Din asked, giving him a knowing head tilt.

The other man scoffed but turned his attention to her instead of replying. “Well,” he started, shifting to stand before her, “who do we have here?”

She smiled nervously and, in a panic, curtsied, earning her a dazzling smile from the King and a head tilt from Mando. “Um, Alaina. Alaina Corra, your Highness.”

“Your Highness,” he chuckled, smiling down at her, looking every bit like the apex predator cornering its prey. “Don’t tell me this bucket of bolts filled your head with lies about me?” Alaina watched dumbly as the man reached for her hand. “Please, call me Rhoam,” he introduced, pressing his lips to the top of her hand.

She saw Mando shift uncomfortably next to her, trying to stand a little taller. Rhoam must have noticed because he let her hand go and returned his attention to the Mandalorian. “Now, tell me, Mando, how long have you been keeping this exquisite creature from me?” he asked, and his words caused Alaina’s cheeks to blush. “Besides, the last time I checked, you worked alone.”

When Mando took a protective step closer to her, Rhoam shot her a little wink, and Alaina couldn’t help but smile at the King. 

“Let’s just say that Guild work has dried up for the foreseeable future due to a couple of certain someones,” Mando answered.

Rhoam’s electric blue eyes moved to hers before he started looking around, searching for something before returning his attention to Mando again. “Don’t tell me this angel has a twin hiding somewhere?” he asked hopefully.

Mando sighed and lifted his cloak to reveal Grogu in his satchel, blinking up at them.

Rhoam bent over to study the green toddler with large ears and a confused face before standing back up to his full height. “So, no twin then?” Alaina couldn’t tell if the disappointment in his voice was real or fake.

“Sorry.”

Rhoam waved him off. “Wishful thinking. Well, I hope your couple of certain someones are worth it,” he finished, giving Alaina his complete attention.

“They are,” Mando replied, his answer more like a growl.

“Careful, lover,” another voice warned from somewhere behind them. “I think you’re making Beskar Boy here jealous.”

Alaina turned around to find a woman wearing a turquoise robe, similar to the other guards, but hers was lined with gold thread that matched the gold thread on the King’s purple robes. The mystery woman walked out from somewhere behind the Crest as if she’d been there all along.

A static sigh escaped under Din’s helmet, “I see you still have your guard dog.”

Alaina looked between him and the woman sauntering toward them and pieced together that this was the Chief of Security Din had complained about.

What was it about this dark, ominous castle on top of a mountain that made wildly attractive people?

“Don’t act like you’re so disappointed to see me again,” the guard teased Mando, narrowing her sights on him.

She was beautiful. Long, flowing chestnut hair covered her shoulders. When the woman’s eyes flicked to her, Alaina decided that Chief of Security was an appropriate position for her. Her deep, chocolate eyes felt like the other woman could look directly into her soul. Those chocolate eyes studied her, making her nervous. How could she not be? With her olive skin and curves that Alaina could only dream about, the woman made her feel wholly inept, especially when she turned her sights back to Din, giving him a wicked smile.

“I wondered how long it would take you to come sniffing for the Mandalorian,” Rhoam said, and the woman turned her smile back to the King. “My Chief of Security,” he introduced, waving a hand toward the guard. “Iris Haze.”

Alaina smiled and nodded at the woman, hoping she kept her face schooled.

“What, no curtsey for me?” Iris sneered.

Alaina’s cheeks blushed, and she ducked her head in embarrassment.

“Now!” Rhoam began, either oblivious to the tenseness that settled over their group or eager to move past it. “Why don’t we get you situated? You must be tired from your journey. Rest and clean up. I insist the two of you will join us for dinner later!”

“Yes,” the chestnut-haired woman agreed, fixing her fake smile on Alaina. “Will you be needing one room or two?”

“One,” Din replied, dropping his voice to remind her more of the intimidating bounty hunter Alaina had first met. Mando surprised her by stepping so close to her that their arms touched before he looped a possessive arm around her waist.

Iris’ smile turned wicked at the sight. “One room it is, then,” she said before sauntering around them to head straight to Rhoam, looping her arm through his offered one before they started walking toward the castle.

Alaina took a deep, centering breath before directing her questioning eyes at Din’s helmet.

“I warned you that Rhoam was just something you had to experience.”

Alaina blinked, unable to think of anything to say as they turned to follow the King and his guards into the castle. Her gut twisted nervously as they approached the dark stone and iron castle, and Alaina wondered if it was too late to ask Din if they could turn around and try the thugs that would likely toss him out of the airlock instead.

Alaina poked her head out of the bathroom, “Have you seen the size of the privy? It's almost as large as the bedroom!”

Mando hummed from the bed where Grogu was currently playing. “I need to talk to you about something,” he said, not looking at her or commenting on the size of the enormous marble bathroom.

“Okay, but there are two bathtubs in there,” she continued, stepping out of the ornate marble privy to point back at it. “Like, two full-sized tubs that could both easily fit three or four people.”

“I’ve been here before,” he reminded her with a sigh, picking up the kid to place him on the ground to let him explore the massive bedroom.

While the castle's exterior appeared ominous and outdated, its interior was anything but. New technology had been seamlessly integrated with its older architecture, almost looking as if it’d been there all along. Black marble floors with flecks of gold lined most of the hallways, bedrooms, and bathrooms, strikingly contrasting with the white and gold stone walls and lavish, colorful furniture.

In fact, Alaina wasn’t even sure you could classify the room they’d been assigned as a bedroom at all.

The room was massive. It was probably even larger than her childhood home and was just one bedroom. Next to the privy was an enclosed changing area with two vanities and closets. And the bed… the bed was as big as her room on the Crest. The four stone posts holding it up and the gauzy, black canopy hanging from it gave it a gothic, romantic look. The room also had a fireplace opposite the bed, with two doors on either side leading out to a balcony overlooking the ocean, a kitchenette, and a sitting room. It wasn’t just a bedroom. It was an entire karking house.

“Well, if you stay crabby, I won’t let you join me in one of those bathtubs later,” she grumbled.

Din’s helmet snapped to look at her but was prevented from following through with anything by a knock on their door.

Alaina smiled at the irritated sigh she heard from the man as he turned to answer the door.

“I’ve come to escort you to the King’s private dining chamber,” an older woman dressed in a long silver, full-armed dress with a hood said from outside.

Her gut churned again, nervous to spend an evening in front of their hosts. Rhoam the King was a little too nice, and Iris was… unnerving.

She bent over to pick up Grogu and noted the frown on the older woman’s face.

“We will take your child for the evening,” she announced.

Alaina shared a panicked look with Din before the Mandalorian returned his attention to their escort and said, “The Child stays with us.”

The woman appeared to assess the situation momentarily before she thought better of arguing with a Mandalorian and stepped away from the door, gesturing for them to follow her.

Din turned back to look at her. Alaina nodded and smiled at Grogu, “We’re going to be on our best behavior tonight, aren’t we, little one?”

The toothy grin he gave her as she and Din followed the woman in the silver dress could go either way.

“So, what did you want to say?” Alaina asked Din. When his helmet turned to look down at her, she bumped her shoulder into his arm. “Earlier,” she reminded him. “I was talking about two bathtubs, and you said you needed to talk to me about something.”

She couldn’t hear the sigh but saw his chest inflate. “It’s nothing. We can talk after we get this over with,” he said lowly.

Alaina shrugged and took in the exceedingly lavish castle interior as they were escorted to dinner. The sights even distracted Grogu, and she smiled when she realized that her and Grogu’s faces looked rather similar as they looked around the castle with equal looks of awe.

After nearly ten minutes, their escort stopped before a large, black iron door and knocked. Alaina tightened her hold on Grogu and shifted nervously next to Din.

Before she could work herself up anymore, the door flew open, and Rhoam filled the doorway with his bright, dazzling smile, putting her at ease. The man had discarded the purple robes he had worn to greet them outside earlier and changed into a black button-down shirt with the sleeves rolled up to expose his muscular forearms, black slacks, and black dress shoes.

“Come in, come in,” he ushered, stepping aside to allow his guests to enter. 

Din’s hand on her back gave her a firm, encouraging push when she didn’t start walking, and Alaina gave Rhoam a nod of thanks as she walked into the King’s private dining chambers. Alaina looked over the new room. It was similar to the rest of the castle with its black marble floors and white stone walls, but it had various pictures of the castle at various times throughout its history. In the center of the room was a large black, iron table with a red tablecloth, candles, plates, and utensils.

“I hope you found your accommodations acceptable,” Rhoam said as he walked beside her to the table, stopping to pull out one of the black iron chairs.

“Thank you,” she said, smiling at the King. “And acceptable is an understatement. Your home is gorgeous,” Alaina complimented him as she settled into her seat with Grogu on her lap. Din sat beside her, back ramrod straight.

“Sometimes, I think it’s a bit much, but then I come home after visiting other places and can’t imagine living anywhere else,” the King admitted as he walked around the table to sit across from her. “The castle itself is… oh, three-some-odd-thousand years old. The marble and stone were mined from all over the planet,” he explained, relaxing in his seat.

Alaina smiled, listening to Rhoam speak about the castle’s construction and remodels over the years. She allowed herself to relax slightly when she realized that the King’s Chief of Security was nowhere in sight, and it appeared to be just them for dinner. There was just something about the woman that put her on edge—

“You’re not boring them already, are you?” the familiar, smooth voice of Iris Haze said, entering the room from a door off to the side that she hadn’t noted was there.

Apparently, the beautiful guard was joining them for dinner after all.

Iris had changed into a black dress tailored perfectly to her curves. The dress had a corset top that made it almost impossible to look away from her cleavage, but the rest of it just flowed around her. The arms were made out of a gauzy material that had slits down the length of her arms to expose some skin, and the extra material around the shoulders and upper arms formed panels that fell to the floor and floated around her as she walked toward them.

The other woman’s chocolate eyes flicked over her before shifting to Din. Although Din refused to look at her, Alaina found it difficult not to stare at her. 

Rhoam got up from his seat and took the two bottles of wine she was carrying before offering her his hand to walk her to her seat next to his. The two shared a passionate look as he kissed the top of her hand and pushed her into her chair. Then, he returned to his own chair and opened one of the bottles of wine.

“The job,” Din began, straight to the point. Usually, Alaina would roll her eyes at him for being blunt and rushing over what would otherwise be a somewhat normal evening. However, with Iris Haze staring her down, she was eager to return to their bedroom.

Rhoam scoffed, interrupting Din with a wave before he began pouring them glasses of wine. He started with Iris to his left before reaching across the table to fill her glass next. When he moved to Din, the Mandalorian placed a gloved hand over his glass, declining the drink. The lack of manners didn’t appear to phase Rhoam. The King shrugged and poured himself a glass before leaning back in his chair. “No work talk before dessert,” he proclaimed. “I find it is usually easier to discuss business matters with full stomachs and a glass or two of wine.”

Alaina caught Iris rolling her eyes at the King’s statement and sipped her wine to hide her smirk.

“Besides, it’s been… what? Three? Four years since we’ve seen you? What have you been up to, my friend?” Rhoam continued, smiling at the stiff Mandalorian sitting diagonally across the table from him.

“Work,” Mando answered flatly.

“Work,” Rhoam mocked, turning to give Alaina a wink. “Tell me, does the Mandalorian ever speak more than one word at a time?” he asked her, sipping from his wine glass.

Alaina looked to Din, who refused to turn and look at her. She turned to look back at the King across from her. “Would you believe me if I told you he once spoke an entire sentence to me, and three of his words even had multiple syllables?”

Din sighed under his helmet, and the King laughed at her joke. “Almost too ludicrous to believe,” he answered with a smile. “Although, I could only imagine the things an angel such as yourself could make a man do,” he answered, fixing her with a heated look.

Alaina blushed and ducked her head, taking a long drink from her glass to hopefully hide her blush.

“That is hard to believe,” Iris interjected, fixing Din with her sharp eyes. “I found him to be the silent type the last time we… interacted,” she said, fixing the Mandalorian with a sultry smile.

Alaina looked between Din and the chocolate-eyed woman sitting across from them, trying to figure out how the three of them had come to know one another.

Chocolate eyes slid from Mando’s helmet to hers, and the woman’s smile turned evil. “He did tell you about us, didn’t he?” she asked.

“Iris,” Din growled, only making the woman’s evil smile light up.

“Tell me,” she said, placing her wine glass down to lean into her arms across the table. “Has he ever had you up against an alley wall?”

All the blood drained from her face when she realized what the woman was implying. She put her glass down and turned to look at Din, silently asking him if what the woman had said was true.

“Iris, my love,” Rhoam interrupted, placing a hand over the woman’s next to him. “I think you’re making some of our guests uncomfortable,” he said, voice low, but Alaina could hear the quiet reprimand there.

Iris shrugged and leaned back into her seat. Her eyes never left hers, even when she reached for her wine glass and took a sip.

“Apologies, angel,” Rhoam said, nodding at her. “It was all years ago. It’s water under the bridge now.”

Alaina gave the King a tight smile and nodded. Suddenly, the room felt hot, and Alaina couldn’t decide if she should put her glass down for fear that she couldn’t stomach any more alcohol or down the rest of it in one go so that she could deal with the rest of the night.

“So, tell me,” Rhoam started again, once again talking right over the awkwardness. “How did your and your…” he tapered off, squinting at Grogu, “pet’s paths cross with Mando here?”

“Um, it’s kinda a long story,” she answered quickly and quietly, ready for the night just to be over with.

“I think we have time to hear it,” Iris said, staring expectantly at her.

Alaina could feel Din’s gaze but refused to look at him. “Really, it’s not that exciting,” she attempted to wave the woman off. “One day, he was just there and never left.”

Iris raised a skeptical eyebrow and set her wine glass down to get up from the table. The woman walked down the room to grab a datapad from a small table in the corner, then turned to saunter back to the table, her dress flowing behind her as she flicked through the pad.

“I imagine it’s a little interesting,” Iris purred, retaking her seat before reading from the datapad. “Alaina Corra, the former ballerina who went missing from her home one night, never to be seen or heard from again,” the woman finished, staring at Din with a severe look. “You’re a long way from home and your husband.”

Din shot up from the table, hand hovering over his blaster, but neither Iris nor Rhoam flinched.

“Calm down, Mando,” Rhoam encouraged, pouring another glass of wine for himself before topping the other three glasses. “You, I invited. I wasn’t expecting you to bring guests. My Chief of Security was just doing her job, looking into our other guests. You can imagine my surprise to find that you brought someone married to an Imperial Officer.”

The room was filled with tense silence, and Grogu buried himself in her lap in an attempt to escape it. Alaina wrapped a couple of protective arms around the child, meeting Iris’ stare with one of her own. Rhoam and Din were having their own silent stare-down.

“You would have done the same if you were in my shoes, Mando,” Rhoam countered, his voice changing from a seductive, jovial one to a threatening tone. “I have enough problems on my own planet. I don’t have time to remind your Empire, Republic, or whoever holds power in the rims these days that there are other planets outside of their reach that they could try for.”

“It’s not what you think!” Alaina panicked. “It’s a long story, but you must believe me when I tell you that Mando saved my life.”

Iris’ eyes left hers to study Mando’s helmet before returning to her, and Alaina stared unflinchingly back. “And what of your marriage?” she asked, keeping her chocolate eyes locked on her.

“It’s a façade. It’s just on paper.”

Iris lifted a high, disbelieving eyebrow.

“As I said, it’s a long story. And it’s not one I’m going to share with someone who will turn us away because of it or worse.” She met both of their host’s eyes with her own serious stare. “You both obviously trusted Mando before, and I promise you still can. Since your problem is with me, I have no problem staying back on the ship while Mando does his job.”

Rhoam’s eyes flitted between the two of them, but Iris had her sights set on her.

“I have just one question,” Iris began, folding her arms over the table. “Do you trust him?” she asked, inclining her head to the Mandalorian still standing beside his chair.

“With my life,” Alaina instantly answered, locking her green eyes on Iris’s chocolate ones.

Iris and Rhoam looked at each other, and when Iris nodded at him, the King broke out into a smile and clapped his hands together. “Alright, with that unpleasantness out of the way, how about we start over?”

Mando retook his seat and scooted his chair slightly closer to hers. Alaina kept her eyes on the couple across from them, and when she felt Mando’s hand come to rest on her thigh under the table, she reached for her glass and decided that more wine would be needed to get through the rest of the night.

“Wait, you just ran after them naked?” Alaina asked, unable to keep from laughing at the ridiculous story Rhoam had just finished telling about chasing after a band of would-be thieves from the castle dungeons in the buff.

“Trust me, it was not one of his finer moments,” Iris grumbled into her wine glass, making Alaina snort.

“Oh, I’m sorry. Where were you, Chief of Security?” Rhoam asked, smiling brightly at Iris. “I shouldn’t have even been in a position to fight off bandits in the dungeon on my own.”

Iris smirked, and Alaina smiled when the other woman’s eyes softened at the man beside her. “I seem to recall that you had me tied up in said dungeon. Something about teaching me a lesson,” Iris grumbled, sliding her eyes to Alaina to give her a wink.

Rhoam shook his head and returned his full attention to Alaina, “It’s so hard to find good help these days.”

Iris retaliated by spearing the King’s last bite of cake for herself.

Alaina pushed her plate away, unable to eat another bite. After the unfortunate awkwardness of the beginning of their evening, the rest of their dinner had been surprisingly pleasant.

Din took Grogu to help the kid eat his food, allowing Alaina to focus on hers. Alaina appreciated the gesture but still found it difficult to look at Din, knowing he was sitting across from someone he’d had… liaisons with.

Plates of the most delicious roast she’d ever eaten were brought out along with a purple soup, apparently a vegetable soup that was a staple of the planet, Dietes. Alaina had to pace herself to eat so she wouldn’t look like a savage in front of the royal couple. Din struggled to keep Grogu from eating his entire portion in one bite, but thankfully, Rhoam and Iris seemed amused by the green child dining with them.

Alaina turned to Iris to try and offer an olive branch of sorts since the woman had tamed down significantly after the earlier unpleasantness. It was only polite to do after all… because Alaina was not jealous of the beautiful woman sitting across from her. “So, Chief of Security and Queen—”

“Oh, I’m not the Queen,” Iris interrupted.

“Oh…” Alaina began, embarrassed that she had made a faux pas already. “I’m sorry. I just assumed…” she tapered off, pointing between them.

Rhoam smirked and reached for Iris’s hand. “I don’t know whatever gave you that idea, angel,” he said, kissing the woman’s hand before his lips trailed up her arm. He smiled and entwined their fingers together before returning his attention to Alaina. “It’s one of those old rules that has never been able to be overturned. The true Queen of Dietes has to be native to the planet. But what was I supposed to do? Look at her,” Rhoam said, smiling at Iris. “Someone paid her to break into the castle and steal some maps and plans. She took out every single guard on her own. I fired my Chief of Security on the spot and told Iris the job was hers.”

“For some reason, I never got paid for that job,” Iris interjected sarcastically.

“I recall paying you quite handsomely,” Rhoam murmured seductively, earning an eye roll from Iris. “So, much to the more traditionalists' disappointment, Iris is the unspoken Queen. No, that’s not it. What was it they called you again? The Shadow Queen?”

Iris smiled proudly, “Personally, I like the title,” she said, wagging her eyebrows at her, and Alaina giggled. “It has led to some difficulties finding him a real Queen. No one wants to be a team player. They all think that they will turn him away from me. No one wants to share the spotlight with me. Can you believe some of his previous suitors have found me intimidating?” Iris asked with a mock gasp.

Alaina laughed at that and shook her head. “Hard to imagine,” she deadpanned.

“Although, we did ask Beskar Boy here to be our third once,” Iris revealed, smiling at the Mandalorian sitting awkwardly next to her. “He turned us down,” she pouted.

“Maybe we can actually talk about the job,” Mando suggested, sounding irritated by how the subject had turned back to him.

Rhoam and Iris nodded, turning serious.

“There’s whispers of a rebellion,” Rhoam admitted. “These sorts of rumors come every few years. Nothing ever happens… but Iris has been getting more disturbing stories recently.”

Iris nodded, “I’ve heard through my sources that there is a plot to take down the entire royal hierarchy. The more grandiose rumors involve leveling the entire castle.”

“Why?” Mando asked, keeping his helmet fixed on their hosts.

“Resources. Dietes has seven mountains, including the one this castle is on top of. Each mountain has various resources that would sell for quite the price in the rest of the galaxy. Unfortunately, everything here is connected. If the mountains are mined and their resources are depleted, the surrounding areas will die because everything feeds from those resources.” Rhoam shook his head and looked pleadingly between them before saying, “I have no Empire or Republic to fall back on. But if the rumors are true… If those who wish to overthrow me succeed, they will start depleting the mountains of their resources…”

“Dietes will die,” Alaina finished quietly, and Rhoam nodded.

“I’m an outsider,” Iris began. “Trust me, I get that the whole Royal Family, castle thing is too much. But… Rhoam is a good King. He has the support of almost every citizen on the planet—”

“If that were true, you wouldn’t be asking for my help,” Din countered, but the other two had nothing to say to that. “Who do you think is behind these rumors?”

Iris turned to glare at Rhoam, and the King sighed. “Iris suspects that it is one of the Dukes,” he said.

“You don’t sound convinced of that,” Mando replied, tilting his helmet.

“I trust her instincts,” he said, face turning sad. “Out of the six Dukes in question, four I have known since I was a boy.”

“And the other two?”

“Were fierce supporters of my mother,” Rhoam answered quickly. “She was the ruler before me until she passed peacefully of old age in her sleep. The current Duke of the Riverlands was her cousin. He’s family. I just can’t imagine that any of them would do something so extreme.”

Iris placed a comforting hand over Rhoam’s before saying, “I know you don’t want to think that, but if someone is going to pull something like this off, it will be someone in a position of power. More than likely, at least two or three in a position of power.”

Mando nodded, “I have to agree with Iris.” Rhoam’s head hung in defeat at Din’s assessment. “So, why the rush to have us get here? You thought something might happen as soon as tomorrow?”

Rhoam sighed. “Once every five months, the Dukes, their significant others, and some of their advisors converge on the castle. We meet, discuss politics, make plans, discuss trade routes, and the mundane things that must happen to ensure the planet runs smoothly. It ends with a little party on the night of the blood moon.”

“Let me guess. That just happens to be tomorrow?” Mando asked.

Rhoam lifted his wine glass in confirmation. “I doubt anything will happen tomorrow—”

“You don’t know that,” Iris argued, shooting Rhoam a glare.

“I doubt anything will happen tomorrow, but…” Rhoam tapered off.

“How can I help?” Mando asked.

Alaina slid her eyes to give him a small smile, glad he was willing to help his friends.

“I need help keeping him safe,” Iris said nervously. “I have a group of trusted guards that I plan on taking to do some reconnaissance during the dance to see if we can find any glaring evidence to back these rumors. But I can’t be in two places at once,” she said, gripping Rhoam’s hand tightly. “I don’t want it to be obvious that I’m not there, but I don’t want someone taking advantage of the fact that I’m not there either. I just need someone to make sure he makes it through the night alive, and I’m hoping that seeing a Mandalorian there will put a little fear into their hearts,” she finished, giving Mando a smirk.

“Consider it done,” Mando nodded.

Rhoam nodded and reached across the table to offer his hand. “Thank you, friend. Having another set of eyes on the inside will be helpful. Maybe you’ll be able to glean something we missed.”

Alaina gave them the warmest, comforting smile she could, but her smile faltered slightly when Iris fixed her with another unnerving look.

“Yes,” Iris murmured, and Alaina had to take another sip of her wine to keep from fidgeting nervously. “Another set of eyes…”

Rhoam looked curiously at Iris, and she turned her chocolate eyes to his blue ones. “Correct me if I’m wrong, but most people that hail from the Riverlands have blonde hair, right?” Rhoam nodded and then looked between Iris and Alaina with a confused face. “The Duke of the Riverlands is technically your cousin and the only one of the six Dukes I trust. Besides, he’s too old to get involved in the planet’s politics anymore. But I would imagine he would like to keep some Riverland blood in the Royal Family,” Iris finished, giving Rhoam a conspiratory look.

Rhoam’s smile lit up when he connected the dots, and both of them turned their smiles to Alaina.

“What?” Alaina asked nervously.

“I think it would be a nice distraction if Rhoam introduced his next Queen at the dance that night,” Iris answered.

“No,” came Din’s immediate answer.

“Now, now, don’t get all jealous, Beskar Boy,” Iris told Din but kept her gaze on Alaina while she said it. “It would just be for one night.”

“Trust me, no one would be surprised if I announced a new intended. She’d be my fourth at this point!” he laughed. “She wouldn’t be in any real danger. She could just mingle with the other significant others there. Just another set of eyes and ears—”

“I said no,” Din growled.

“Why not?” Rhoam challenged. “You’ll be in the room with her the entire time. We’ll get her dressed for the evening. All she has to do is smile, make some small talk, maybe dance a little.”

“I’ll do it,” Alaina agreed instantly. The opportunity to help while simultaneously proving herself to Din and getting dressed up and dance? The answer was obvious.

Mando instantly jumped out of his chair, pulling her up with him before taking her to the other side of the room. She looked at their hosts and apologized as Din pulled her to the far corner of the room.

“What are you doing?” Alaina sighed once they stopped.

“I could ask you the same question,” Mando started lowly, backing her into the corner and blocking her body from curious eyes with his larger one. “What could possibly make you think you could do something like this?”

Alaina rolled her eyes, “Like dancing?”

“Like espionage,” he argued, sounding frustrated that she was even entertaining the idea.

Alaina let out another sigh. Then, when she saw the toddler in Mando’s arms, she gave Grogu a disarming smile. Grogu looked between his guardians with nervous eyes. She rubbed the kid’s ear and then placed her hand over Din’s glove, where she knew his bracelet was hiding underneath.

“Partners, right?” she asked him hopefully. “Please let me help. You have to let me do something at some point or… or this isn’t going to work,” she whispered sadly. “This is easy. Only a handful of guests and their dates for the evening. You’ll be in the room the entire time.”

Uncomfortable silence stretched between them, but Alaina refused to give in.

“Fine,” he growled, immediately turning away to stomp toward the door.

Alaina’s chest swelled in excitement, and when she looked back at their hosts, Rhoam gave her a wink, and Iris lifted her wine glass to solute her.

She could do this. She could prove to Din that she wasn’t completely helpless.

As she followed Din out the door to walk back to their guest chambers with the same old woman who escorted them down here hours ago, Alaina couldn’t stop the thought from coming…

The thought that she was maybe proving to herself more than Din that she could do this.

Because if she couldn’t help… If she couldn't use her powers without becoming a vegetable…

Then why would Din want her with him?

If she couldn't prove herself to be an equal, then...

Was this—everything that had happened to her—to them—

Was it worth it?

Author's Note #2: Ok, so this chapter was a bit of worlds colliding for me. For all three of you who are excited for Iris, just know I am more excited. If you haven’t read my other OFC story, What Kind of Man (ao3 link), Iris Haze is my leading lady in that story. I promise you aren’t missing anything related to this story if you haven’t read it. I’m just having some fun with constructing my own 'multiverse' if you will 😈 The new characters also allow me to slightly reset Alaina and Din’s relationship. The moon honeymoon phase is over, and they are in the real world now. I love fluffy stuff and writing sappy Din, but… I missed the angst. I hope you did, too, because the angst train is leaving the station full speed ahead.

Tag List: @racheldon @zenrobbins0021 @locked-ness @smoochispoof @hipcheckchick

Drop me a message or comment if you would like to be tagged when new chapters get published.

Heaven in Hiding Masterlist

Next chapter in series - Chapter 21: The Dance

[arysamisu]

no, its not

[ato-dato]

Piss off!!! Thanks!!!!!!!!!! :)))))

[toboldlymuppet]

✨ You have reached the goal [Postmortal] ✨

my piece for @trafficzine 's wild life/6th edition! oh impulse, impulse, better luck next time...

[sparkleshakes]

I’M TIRED OF SMUT, I WANT TOOTH ACHING FLUFF AND HEART SHATTERING ANGST.

[reynemi]

[mikashida]

god's gonna cut you down

[sydneys-adamu]

I always get what I want didn’t u know

feel like shit, just want hawk and demetri’s enemies to lovers arc back

[twisting-in-wonderland]

'Yuu!'

[azure-blaze92]

🕯️A Small part of ch 17 ~ Family Is More Than Blood🕯️

...Caleb closed the journal and stood up. He could feel his entire body quivering, his muscles tense, and his breathing growing erratic and labored. It had been several since he last experienced this sensation. The words he had just read echoed relentlessly in his mind, mingling with Philip's calm and collected yet joyful voice, echoing those haunting words...

“Mr. Mansell was found to be working with the devil… Silly Caleb, you can be so blind sometimes… He was feeding you lies about me... I'm only trying to protect you…"

The words soon turned into images, blurry images at first… then all at once, his mind was thrust into a torturous replay of that horrifying event...

That's all you get from Chapter 17. I wasn't going to share this bit, but I re-read it and was like, know what, you all get to as well, but not the full thing ~

A huge thank you to @thatbloodstainfromcaleb for doing this bit of promotional art for this scene!!!

[prlssprfctn]

No matter if you choose to consider that Jason had the worst time ever in the League of Assassins or that, quite opposite, it was more or less okay, I think we all should unite and agree that Jason would be Ra's bane of existence. This boy is a brat. A certificated one, even. He is not an easy boy to handle, never and ever.

Ra's, after locking Jason up away from the society for a few days: Now. Do you realise what I am trying to say to you? You should focus on your studies. On your trainings. Forget about easy, normal life, about teenage shenanigans. Find peace. Throw unnecessary thoughts away.

Jason, yawning: Yeah, okay. Sure.

Ra's waking up in the 5am because someone is blasting NSYNC's Bye Bye Bye on the whole castle: Talia. What is this?

Talia, shrugging: Jason found old music speakers. He says he is... focusing like this. Just like you advised him to.

Ra's with his eye twitching: Is. he. Now.

Ra's: (accidentally trips on his cloak)

One of the Assassins, in their local comms: Chat, clip that

Ra's, frowning: What is that? What had you said? What is this nonsense?

Assasin: Uh, general had taught us—

Ra's: STOP LISTENING TO HIM, FOR GOD'S SAKE

Ra's: Talia, we need to send the boy to All-Caste. I think he needs some time away. From us. From me. Specifically.

(A certain amount time later)

Ra's, sighing in relief: Finally, peace—

Jason, spawning behind his back: Hi.

Ra's, groaning: YOU WEREN'T SUPPOSED TO SURVIVE THE CLEANSING CEREMONY, OH MY GOD

Jason: Wanna check All Blade? It is kinda cool.

Ra's, pausing: ...Yeah.

Ra's farewelling Jason, who returns to Gotham: I have nothing to wish upon you. Be as annoying to Batman as you were to me.

Jason, smirking: Aw-w, I barely unleashed my annoyingness with you, Ra's. Bruce is going to suffer more.

Ra's: ...Good.

Ra's, closing the door behind him: Barricade the castle. Set bombs. I DON'T WANT TO SEE HIM HERE EVER AGAIN!!!

Also Ra's a half of a year later, watching footage of Jason terrorising everyone's life in Gotham, with tears in his eyes: That's my grandson. I am so proud of him.

Talia, raising her eyebrows: You tried to drown him in the Lazarus Pit. Twice.

Ra's: Shhh.

Talia: Then I'll invite him on holidays this year.

Ra's: NO.

[greykolla-art]

Ooooh careful, Alastor! Your line between manipulation and genuine care is getting blurryyyyyyyyyy 👀!

I missed drawing them man! Miss Sweet and mister Scary in situations together is my favourite! ❤️ (but did it have to span 9 coloured pages I almost died?!)

(No I won’t do a part 2 😘!)

[almadelsur]

💋 The Secrets One Keeps

summary: You're in love with jj but he's with kie, so in moments of pure desperation you often find yourself turning to the person he hates the most...rafe

warnings: some good old angsty pining, very very slight smut if you squint, fem!reader, one or two uses of y/n, plz let me know if I missed anything

a/n: SHE'S BACKKKK, so I've decided to completely reformat and re-post this fic with a few tweaks and editing considering i first wrote this like 3 years ago, and yes for those of you who have been asking, I fully intend to finallly continue this fic....more info on that later ;)

.・。.・゜✭・.・✫・゜・。..・。.・゜✭・.・✫・゜・。.・。.・゜✭・.・✫・

JJ’s eyes change the moment Kiara steps into any room. Immediately his presence is ripped away from your immediate atmosphere, popping the little bubble you'd spent all afternoon crafting as he sprung up to greet the olive-skinned enigma that captured his affections.

“Kie!” The joy in his tone was incomparable to anything he’d directed at anybody else. Nothing could draw out such happiness from the blonde. You hated that about her.

In an attempt at self-defense, your brain shut itself off. Shielding you from processing the scene in front of you, your emotions ran cold like cement pouring down and across your neurons. It was the only way you could survive such a beating to your heart.

You figured that by distancing yourself mentally, you wouldn’t have to raise suspicion and distance yourself physically. In reality, you knew the real reasoning was your inability to stay away from JJ but the facade helped you cope.

“Hey J” she embraced him and his body relaxed around her as if she was the only source of his happiness. The only way he’d find alleviation from what he perceived as a shitty life being through her. “Sorry I’m late my parents had me running like crazy at the wreck today.”

Scattered greetings filled the air from the rest of the pogues, yet you could only focus on the way his eyes fixated on her like she was the most beautiful thing he’d ever seen.

“Here come sit baby” he offered her the seat he had just previously been place holding. What you thought had been quality time with your best friend, presented itself to you now as momentary attention to pass the time until his actual desire arrived.

Settling herself down and offering you a wide smile, her shoulder bumped against yours gently as a sign of acknowledgment.

“Hey dude” she directed at you, but you didn’t reply. You just couldn’t bring yourself to pretend. Not today anyway. Instead, you offered her a small smile, it was minimal but it was the best you could do under the circumstances.

“Yo" A crumpled tissue paper flew at your head, jj attempting to refocus your attention on him, "didn’t you say you were gonna get some water or something?” He spoke up, the scheme evident in his tone.

“um yeah I guess” You lifted yourself up and took a few steps before jj used the opportunity to slump himself down where you had been sat and sprawled his arms across his girlfriend’s shoulders.

“snooze ya loose sucker” he joked as he turned to Kiara to start up some mindless conversation. Leaving you behind in the dust.

Your teeth gritted as you focused on making your way to the kitchen hoping the distance from the scene unfolding would lift the iron grip on your heart.

You made the fatal mistake of glancing back and you were met with the image of jj nuzzling up to kiara in a picturesque display of love. The lump building at the base of your throat indicated that it was your time to get the hell out of there before you broke down in front of everyone. 

“Shit guys, y’know what I just realized I gotta go” You spoke quickly, your tone matching your pace as you rushed to the exit of the chateau. 

“You’re still coming to the party later though right?” John B asked, not tearing his eyes away from the screen in front of him. 

“Mhm yeah sure” you opened the door ready to depart. 

“Shit I forgot about that! Me and jj are gonna be late, we got dinner at the wreck tonight.” kiara added as you stepped out, unable to control the escape of a rogue tear.

“Date night babyyyy” You heard JJ cheer before you slammed the door behind you. 

“Is Y/N okay? She seemed a bit off.” Kie nudged JJ as she questioned. 

JJ furrowed his eyebrows momentarily. Glancing out the window, he saw you jog away from the house, and a brief flash of worry flashed through his mind. As quick as it came, it dissipated. He shook his head figuring that if there had been something wrong, he’d have been the first to know. 

“Nah she’s okay don't worry.” he offered to kie.

Boy was he mistaken. 

——————————————————————

“Fuuuck me” you moaned out, sinking into him one last time. You were hot, sweaty, and heaving as you pulled him out of you.

“I thought I just did” Rafe taunted leaning back to lie down, arms crossed behind his head causing his taut abdomen to flex.

You scrambled off the bed, picking up your garments and shoving them back on your body forcefully.

“What, no pillow talk?” He tried again.

“Rafe..” you trailed off. Whenever you’d finish fucking, you’d struggle to even look at him. The self-hatred flooded your body as soon as the orgasm poured out.

“Hey you called me” he eyed you intently but you knew he didn’t actually care. To rafe cameron everything was just a game. At this point it was pretty much common knowledge. “In fact” he moved closer to you so that he could speak directly into your ear “It’s always you that calls me.”

“Don’t be a dick” you stood up and eyed your heels contemplating whether you could face the walk back in them. “You know it makes me feel like shit.” It might have sounded brutal but that’s how things were with rafe.

“Yeah, it’s like you punctuate your orgasms with self-hate.”

“I'm a pogue, rafe.” You argued back as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.

“So? Kooks and pogues can fuck you know.” You couldn’t comprehend why you were even having this conversation. Why now, why tonight.

“Yeah maybe, not you though.” You didn’t want to tell him the reason explicitly.

“I fuck pogues.”

“You fuck anyone.” The words came out almost instantly and without thinking, yet rafe took no offense.

“Exactly so what’s the issue?”

“The issue is, rafe.” You paused trying to find the words without actually having to say the words. “The issue is that if my friends found out they’d hate me, probably more than I already hate myself.”

He just chuckled, the look in his eyes changing as he figured you out.

“What's funny?” You challenged.

“You don’t have to bullshit me princess.” He looked up at you with a devilish glint in his eye. “You just don’t want jj knowing about your little escapades huh?” Bingo.

“He’s with Kiara.” You shrugged him off.

“Uh huh, you like him but you can’t have him.” Every word he spoke striking a nerve deep within you. “So you’re fucking me to fuck him over.”

“You don’t know what you’re talking about.” You grabbed your heels and shoved them on, wincing as you buckled them up.

“Don’t I?” He threw his joggers on lazily as he stood, the level dynamics changing significantly. The older boy towered over you. “Where are they tonight?”

“Back at John B’s, we had a little get-together.” You crossed your arms. More often than not you usually called rafe after a few drinks left you feeling lonely. “Sorry, your invite must have gotten lost in the mail.” You attempted to jab at him with sarcasm yet he clearly held the upper hand with his line of questioning. 

“So all of them are there now?” He stepped towards you.

“Mhm,” You lied.

“Even jj?” Moving closer until your neck was craned upwards to meet his eyes.

Taking your silence as an answer, he reached up and ran his palms across your upper arms, prompting you to uncross them.

“He was uh- him and kie should be getting there soon” You mumbled.

“So would i be wrong in guessing, that might have prompted your call then?” You let yourself be guided by his movements leaning your neck further back as his hand trailed up to your jawbone.

“rafe…” you called out insignificantly.

He leaned in and pressed his lips against your neck, right over where he could feel your pulse, and pressed down.

You couldn’t help the gasp that left your mouth. Because as much as your heart belonged to jj, rafe was just so fucking good at raising your temperature.

“Round two?” He mumbled against your neck.

“Yeah..” you attempted yet it came out as a whisper. He grabbed you swiftly and lifted you, moving you across the room and throwing you down onto his bed, crawling on top of you in a predatory manner as he did so. As your back hit the bed, the ringing of your phone brought you back from the haze he had you under. 

“Wait rafe stop stop” you pushed him off and grabbed the screeching mobile, pressing it up to your ear. “Hello?”

“Dude, where are you?” The sound of jj’s voice came through over the pumping sound of music and party chatter. “Me and Kie just got back and John B says no one’s seen you for like over an hour.”

“Oh I’m uh, I had to go do something for my mom” The lie pouring out of your mouth caused rafe to chuckle which was of course met by a slap from you signaling for him to be quiet.

“Oh well, when are you getting back? I have to tell you about this date. You’re gonna be so proud of me I actually think I’m ready to tell Kie I love her” you screwed your eyes shut as he spoke.

“Yeah I- you know what I can’t make it back my mom needs me to stay and help out but uh I’ll see you tomorrow or something.” You hung up before he could even reply, throwing your phone down uncaring of its state.

“What’s wrong? They getting hitched?” Rafe spoke up from behind you.

You turned to Rafe, the fire in your veins pushing your arms to grab him, roughly pulling him back onto you.

“Just shut up and fuck me rafe.”

And fuck you he did.

——————————————————————

The next morning you woke up to the sight of rafe’s bare back. Not much of a cuddler, you figured.

Quietly you pushed the covers off and began to dress yourself back up. As you got to your shoes you sighed and shook your head, as if there was any way in hell you were going to walk home in heels. You scooped up your shoes and your now-cracked phone shaking your head, slightly ashamed at your outburst.

Without even a second glance at the sleeping body you were leaving behind, you made your way over to the door. As you turned the knob and stepped out to leave, a husky voice spoke up.

“I’ll keep my ringer on for you babe.”

You rolled your eyes looking back at him, “Fuck you rafe.”

“Yeah, that’s what I’m counting on.” He didn’t even open his eyes as he answered, instead just rustling around in the bed and turning to the other side, once again facing his back to you.

You scoffed as you exited. Your internal rant clouded your vision, body on autopilot with an excellent self-navigation of the Cameron house from the countless times you’d made this exit.

“Y/N?” The gentle voice wiped your thoughts clean as the shock stilled you dead in your tracks, slowly turning to come face to face with none other than Sarah.

“Sarah” you drawled out. “What are you doing here?”

“It’s my house?” Her head was cocked to the side, equally shocked to see you.

“No I just mean- I thought you were spending the night at John B’s.” You forced the small talk, avoiding the topic of why you were here, sneaking out at 8 in the morning.

“He had to work today, did you spend the night here?” She glanced up at the door of rafe’s bedroom.

“Umm-“ There had only been two other instances where you had been at a complete loss for words. The day jj told you he and Kiara were dating, the morning after your first sexual encounter with rafe, and now this.

“Are you sleeping with my brother?!” She whisper-shouted, eyes wide as the realization hit her. Busted.

“No?”

“Oh my god!” She grabbed you by the wrist and dragged you to her room, slamming the door as soon as you were both inside. “How long has this been going on?!” Her tone was loud and her hands wild as she interrogated you.

“Just a little under a year.” You sat on her bed and looked at your lap as you spoke. Reminiscent of a child being scolded.

“A year?! Oh my god!” She repeated. “Who knows about this?!”

With that, you looked up at her desperately. “No one. No one knows so please don’t tell them.” You didn’t have to name names for her to know who you were referring to.

“Are you two like” she paused “together?” She scrunched her nose up, disgusted at the thought of her bully of an older brother dating anyone.

“No god no. It’s just sex” you were just as uncomfortable as Sarah was, having to tell her about boning her older brother.

“Disgusting.” She turned away from you with her arms crossed, looking out the window.

“Look I’m not proud of it okay? Just-“ You sighed “Just please don’t tell anyone” pleading again.

Sarah let out a long sigh and uncrossed her arms. She walked over to you and joined you on the bed, her eyes showing concern mixed with something you couldn’t quite place your finger on.

“I thought you were into jj” she spoke softly, there it was. Pity.

“Yeah well, jj is with kie and instead of sitting around wallowing in self-pity, I decided to do something about it.” As the words left your mouth, you realized how weak the explanation was.

“So you just use rafe to bang the jj out of you.”

“It’s not like Rafe cares, if anything he’s also using me.” You tried to reason.

“I don’t doubt that. But I mean, that’s- It’s not healthy, you’ll never move on if you don’t actually process your emotio-“

“Look Sarah, I don’t need to do any of that shit okay? What I have here works, when I fu- when I’m with rafe, I don’t think about jj.” Tears began to swell in your eyes “Sleeping with rafe helps me forget about everything, even if it’s only for a little while he uh- he makes me feel good.” To an extent, there was truth behind your words, while you and rafe fucked the rest of the world went away. It was only after, that the crippling self-hatred hit you along with the return of your immense feelings for jj. 

Sarah shuffled over and threw her arm around you. “That’s not good for you, it’s just momentary. It’s easy and it's a cycle, you’re never going to get better going down this path. Especially not with rafe.”

“Rafe he’s- he’s not that bad.”

“Yes he is. But i bet it gives you satisfaction fucking him knowing jj hates him. Feels like revenge right?” She’d always been so perceptive your Sarah, you hated how she could see right through you.

Tears ran down your cheek silently. “You’re not gonna tell anyone right?” You sniffled.

She gave you one of those classic salt-of-the-earth Sarah Cameron smiles, the kinda smile that would light up any room she walked into. “Takin' it to the grave babe.”

A loud beeping caused both your heads to whip towards the window. “Shit, I completely forgot I was supposed to go on the HMS with pope and jj, we were gonna chill there until John B and Kie finished work.” She rose to her feet and extended an arm towards you. “Wanna come? Or we could drop you home if you’re not up for it.”

With a sigh you took her hand and pulled yourself up, walking beside her as you mentally prepped yourself to face the blonde you desperately pined for.

“Well rise and shine campers.” jj yelled out of the window of the drivers seat.

“Y/N! Where you been dude? you totally bailed last night.” Pope was next to speak as you and Sarah filed into the Twinkie. As JJ began to drive you avoided any form of eye contact in his general direction.

“I had to go help my mom out, blackout at mine again.” You didn’t even look at pope either, instead focusing your attention on the blur of trees and houses pacing by the window as JJ sped down the winding roads.

“Isn’t that what you were wearing last night?” pope, observant as always, pointed out.

“Uh yeah, I didn’t really get any time to change cause…”

“I called her last night when I got home, I was so drunk I don’t think I was ready to stop the party.” Sarah covered for you.

“Yeah I wrapped up helping my mom out and then this one calls me talkin bout a sleepover or something so I didn’t exactly have much time to change.” 

Thankfully pope had lost interest as soon as he had asked the question, otherwise, your overcompensating ass would have been caught out straight away. You always had to add to the lie until you felt like you had sold it completely.

Keeping your eyes trained on the outside meant that jj’s frown directed at you through the windscreen mirror went completely undetected. He always knew whenever there was something up with you and right there and then he knew something definitely was.

“Hey, you okay?” He didn’t need to address you explicitly for you to know he was talking to you.

“Yeah just tired.” You shrugged him off in an attempt to distance yourself from him yet again.

He knew you were lying but he didn’t understand why, you never lied to each other. Apart from John B, the pair of you were closer to each other than with anybody else in the group. You’d been best friends since kindergarten, and since then you’d sworn 3 things to each other.

1- You’d always share your snacks.

2-You’d always be best friends even if you argued.

 3- You would never ever lie or keep secrets from each other.

Of course, as the both of you grew older the rules became more and more lax. The snack sharing was limited only to when you felt nice enough and sometimes you’d go for days without making up if you had argued particularly badly. Having kept two friendship-breaking secrets from him, the childhood rules seemed pretty insignificant by now.

“Mhm,” he responded, flickering his eyes between you and the road. “Are we taking you home to change first?”

“Yeah, I don’t know if I’ll join you guys afterward though.” You chewed down on your nail anxiously as the tension from being in the same space as jj paired with the guilt from having fucked rafe prior, suffocated you.

JJ made a face as he focused on the road, something was wrong with you and he’d be dammed if he wasn’t going to put his everything into finding out what that was.

[miaogo]

The sun in my galaxy

I also posted this on my tik tok, but I’m proud of it, so it’s gonna be here too

I hope y’all notice the details in the colors and lines

[hinamie]

quick itfs sketch page