#the cowboy's twin surprise

[angel-no-crux]

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Comic version of the Gundam Wing Frozen Teardrop epilogue

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just released on Gundam Ace August 2023

source

[loafysainz]

the parent trap (remake) | CS 55

cast: carlos sainz x fem!reader

warn: 100% fiction & remake

chap 1, chap 2, chap 3, chap 4, chap 5, chap 6, chap 7, chap 8, chap 9

PART 8 MEETING DAD

As Mattia stepped off the plane, the warmth of Spain hit him like a wave. He felt both excited and nervous, his heart pounding in his chest. Clutching his suitcase, he scanned the crowd, and then, he saw him.

“Dad...” he whispered, trying to hold back the emotions welling up inside him.

Carlos Sainz Jr. appeared, effortlessly cool in a Cowboy outfit, looking every bit the part. As soon as he spotted Mattia, his face broke into a huge smile. He took off his sunglasses, eyes sparkling. “Hey, Matheo! Welcome home!”

Without a second thought, Mattia sprinted toward him, and as soon as he was close enough, Carlos crouched down and spread his arms wide. “Come here and give me a hug!”

Mattia’s eyes filled with tears as he flung himself into his father’s strong arms. “Finally… It’s you!” he said through his tears, smiling so widely his cheeks hurt.

Carlos picked him up while he was spinning around, with his son in his arms, after that he looked him in the eyes, laughing. “How was camp? Hope it was awful, ‘cause you’re not going back! I missed you too much.”

Mattia wiped his tears with the back of his hand, smiling up at his dad. “I missed you more.”

Carlos ruffled his hair, but looked at him strangely, when he remained somewhat silent. He always remembered that his son was quite expressive when telling stories. “Is something wrong, Chilli?” looking at him curiously. “Hold on... Is it just me, or are you getting taller?”

Mattia blinked in surprise. “What? No, it’s nothing, Dad! I just missed you,” he said quickly, trying to hide his nervousness.

Carlos just give him a warm smile. “Me too. Chilli.”

Mattia couldn’t help but smile. “Dad, how are Chessy and the others?” Mattia asked between the half hug and his way to the car, “Oh, they’re at home, anxiously waiting for you. A Chessy living in hysteria has ended her days. She miss you so much.”

Carlos looked at his son, who was looking at him strangely. “What's wrong? Did I shave too much? I didn't mean to cut off all my beard.”

“It's nothing dad, you really look good, even though you look like a cool cowboy" Carlos raised an eyebrow. “Well, seeing you for the first time is... well, I mean seeing you for the first time after the a month that passed.”

Mattia was nervous and didn't want to ruin the plan. Carlos kept looking at him and the boy felt more nervous. “Suddenly I feel like you're taller, dad.”

Carlos chuckled, patting him on the back. “Well, let's get home, little Chilli. Chessy and Sammy are waiting for you.”

****

Once in the car, it was a long drive for Mattia. But he loves the beautiful view outside, it was really great for him.

Carlos glanced over at his son, who sat beside him in the car, “So, how’s everything going, Chilli?” Carlos asked, a mischievous smile tugging at his lips. “I remember someone promising me letters... but nothing ever showed up.”

“I am glad that I give you that chilli keychains, so you will never forget me” He continued.

God, Mattia didn’t know if his twins had promised to send Dad some letters, because they’re busy planning everything to go perfectly. Mattia scratched the back of his head, a nervous grin on his face. “Well, we were really busy Dad...,” he stammered, his voice trailing off as he tried to think of an excuse.

“Were we?” Carlos repeated curiously.

“I mean, me and my friends with camp and all, Dad. Oh, and I met this nice boy there. We got along so well—just... we kinda like brother’s”

Carlos chuckled, raising an eyebrow. “Since when are you so polite, Matheo?” He finished with a smile as he remembered his twin brother.

Mattia shot his dad a playful look. "What? I’m polite! You know, ... it's all part of growing up."

Carlos was about to say something more when he noticed Mattia nervously chewing on his nails. He reached over, lightly grabbing his hand. “You still biting your nails, huh?”

Mattia blinked, taken by surprise. “How did you notice that, Dad?”

Carlos grinned. “How could I not? You’ve been doing it for 9 years.”

“Ugh, yeah! But I’ll stop! It’s a horrible habit, I swear,” Mattia groaned, feeling a bit embarrassed.

Carlos laughed, the sound warm and familiar. “Nice boy, a horrible habit. Seriously, what camp did I send you to? A finishing school?”

Mattia burst out laughing, shaking his head. “Sorry, Dad, it’s just... I didn't realize I was doing it.”

Carlos smirked. “So, why do you keep saying 'Dad' at the end of every sentence, huh?”

Mattia’s face softened as he glanced out the window. “Ugh I... I don’t realize that, Dad" he admitted, his voice quieter.

Carlos looked at him out of the corner of his eye, trying not to laugh,

“But Dad, do you want to know why I say ‘Dad’ all the time?”

Carlos made a sly smile at that “Because you missed your old man so much, right?”

Mattia looking at his dad, with his smile and his big brown eyes like his dad eyes. “Exactly. It's because in my whole life, I mean, you know, for the past month, I was never able to say the word Dad. Never. Not once. And if you ask me, I mean, a dad is an irreplaceable person in a boy’s life. Think about it. There’s a whole day devoted to celebrating fathers. Just imagine someone's life without a father. Never buying a Father’s Day card, never sitting on their father’s lap, never being able to say, hi, Dad, or what's up, Dad, or catch you later, Dad. I mean, a baby’s first words are always, Dada, Dad, aren't they?

Carlos’s expression shifted as he processed Mattia's words. “Let me see if I get this. You miss being able to call me Dad?”

"Yeah," Mattia said, a small smile tugging at his lips. "I really do, Dad." Carlos’s heart swelled with warmth as he tried not to show his emotion.

Okay now he like wanted to cry, but when Mattia noticed his dad gaze, “God, God, don't make things up!" he said when he saw the large estate in he said when he saw the large estate in the distance.

"Now you're the same Mattia as before," Carlos said, amused.

*****

The sun shine brightly over the sprawling estate, casting a warm glow on the vibrant gardens that surrounded it. Mattia, stepped out of the car, her heart racing with excitement. The estate was even more beautiful than the photos. Right at the entrance appeared a woman, who was coming towards him in a very cheerful manner. She was his babysitter, Chessy.

"Matheo, you're finally back!" The brown-haired woman greeted Mattia with great emotion and went to hug him and lift him up. Chessy put him back on the floor and looked at him.

"You're taller, Matheo! Tell your old man that you're not a kid anymore and you're ready for real action."

Mattia laughed a little at this "Okay, Cheesy." She replied with smile, then asked him. "Are you hungry? I made some Tortilla! Your favorites!"

Mattia smiled, he wasn't that hungry "Great!"

"Am I missing something?" Carlos asked, holding Mattia's suitcases. "Were you talking about Tortilla?"

"Yes, they're in the dining room," Cheesy told him.

"Good, because I'm hungry.” Carlos smiled before going inside the house.

Chessy tilted his head, seeing Mattia “You look different. Something’s... weird.”

“You sure you’re okay? You’ve got this... weird.”

“I’m fine!” Mattia said, a little too quickly, forcing a grin. “Just tired from the flight.”

Chessy squinted suspiciously but let it go, draping an arm around Mattia’s shoulders as they followed Carlos inside. Just then, a loud bark interrupted them. A Golden Retriever dog came skidding into the room, tail wagging wildly.

“Sammy!” Mattia grinned, crouching down. But instead of greeting him, the dog barked, tilting its head in confusion.

Chessy frowned, crossing her arms. “What’s the matter, Sammy? Don’t you recognize your brother?”

Mattia scratched his head awkwardly. “Maybe it’s because I smell like the camps?”

Chesssy chuckled, kneeling to pat the dog. “He’ll back soon. Right, Sammy?” Sammy barked again, but this time his tail wagged just a little.

Mattia straightened up, glancing around the room. The mansion was breathtaking, bright walls, wooden beams, and giant windows flooding the space with sunlight. “It’s even prettier than I imagined,” he murmured.

Chessy clapped his hands together. “Alright, little chilli, what’s the plan? Eat first? Unpack? Or eat while you unpack?”

Mattia’s eyes widened. “Wait, you’re saying I can eat in my room?”

“Why not?” Chessy grinned.

“Super!” Mattia exclaimed, practically bouncing on his toes.

****

Then, on the other side of the room, which was like a door, his father appeared with a plate in his hand that had many Tortilla on it. "Hey Math! If you’re done come out to the terrace, I want you to meet someone," he said.

Mattia smiled “Okay dad”

“Okay Chilli” Carlos said walking to the other end of the terrace.

Mattia heard someone and came a little closer to get a better view. There was someone, it wasn't just someone, it was a young woman with her back turned, wearing a sexy dress and a hat.

“Will there ever be a day when I won't see you eating Sainz?” the young woman asked his father.

"I don't think so" She seemed to approach his Father and whispered.

"Have you told him yet?" Carlos swallowed his food. "Slow down Mer, not yet. He just arrived."

"Oh, Carlitos..." the young woman said in a baby voice.

Mattia frowned at what he witnessed from his room, his disbelief already at its peak. “Who is that woman?” He asked through gritted teeth, he could hear Chessy sighing tiredly behind him.

Its mean she was used to by seeing his reaction. He looked at the young woman again who still had her back to him, he couldn't ignore the feeling that something bad was coming from her.

[pnutbutter-n-j-elyy]

When They Accidentally Bring Up an Insecurity|Seungmin Bonus

Pt1 Pt2 Pt3

Just a little gift of appreciation :)

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"This is...awkward..." You mumbled as Seungmin squeezed your hand under the table at your family's Thanksgiving dinner. To think you flew all the way back home with your newlywed husband so he could experience your first family holiday - just to have your mom and her sister going at it.

"Well, I don't know what you want me to tell you Patricia! The truth hurts!" Your mom said raising her hands in the air defense. "You would think your daughter would stop messing around after getting pregnant by her boyfriend's brother but now she has a baby from the same man she cheated on?"

"Hah! Like Rick had cheated on you?" Your Aunt snaps back, leaving your mom's mouth agape.

"We-Well at least I had a husband to begin with! Where's that little Entrepeneur boyfriend of yours? Still looking for enough money for a ring after 11 years?"

"Hmm, I believe so because I started dating him when Rick and his new wife's daughter was born. Surprised you haven't met the half-sister to your kids yet."

"Well at least my grandkids aren't half-brothers and cousins at the same time! Imagine having your uncle as your stepdad!"

You sighed and slunk in your seat as various other family members either ignored to ongoing battle or were trying to get them to stop.

"I'm sorry baby..." You mumbled resting your head on his shoulder. You could feel it shake and looked up in alarm but were relieved to see that he was laughing. "You think this is funny?" You asked with a smile on his face.

"Hilarious actually." Seungmin sputtered. "They're so quick with their comebacks...I'd love to see them in an argument with Minho-Hyung."

"They'd team up. They argue like there is no tomorrow, but if someone dare start an argument with their sister...oh bless them because they're done."

"I thought like...people argued about Politics and American Football during Thanksgiving. That's what it was like in the movies..."

You smiled into your husband's shoulder and shook your head. "Nope. My family argues but never about the actually valid things you can argue about." Your eyes trailed over to your two older brothers who had gathered their kids in the living room to watch Football through one of the childrens' networks so they could be entertained while the kids could be entertained seeing their favorite cartoon characters on the screen. "Except them." You said nodding your head.

"Bro there is no way you think Prescott is better than Goff. You're actually insane."

"Crazy work thinking Goff is better. Look at the statistics."

You smiled seeing the kids blab as well, not even understanding what their fathers were saying, just uttering nonsense.

"See, my kid is going places. She agrees. Don't you, sweetie?"

"Hey bud- who do you think is better? The lion guy or the cowboy?"

"LION!" One of your nephews roared.

"Uncle Seungmin! Who is better?" One of your nieces ran up and tugged on her Uncle's shirt. Her twin came up right after and then the other kids - as it had turned out Seungmin was some sort of kid magnet and was the favorite of all of them.

"Uh..."

"Honey, if you say Goff is better you're sleeping on the sofa." You whispered.

"Uh...the...Prescott?" The kids started running around chanting out Dak Prescott's name which made some of the other adults turn their heads curiously, and one of your brothers utter out a sound of betrayal at seeing his son switch up quickly.

Soon enough the house was filled with immense noise, and you at first worried Seungmin would be annoyed but instead you watched as he joined with the kids, scooping up his nieces and nephews and making almost as much noise as all of them combined.

You smiled as you placed your hand on your stomach, and Seungmin looked at you and smiled.

And you knew the exact thoughts he was thinking because his eyes told you it all.

Later that night when you had laid down to rest Seungmin pulled you into his arms.

"I want our house to be that noisy one day. I feel like we could do like a Thanksgiving type thing in Korea right? And the guys could bring their kids and spouses and it would be really fun! And we can find something to watch on the TV too! I love baseball but actually it seems that football is pretty cool too! Hyeongnim was telling me - I mean..."

"You can refer to my brothers as 'hyeongnim' or refer to them by their names MinMin... it doesn't matter to them, they're just happy you make me happy." You said relaxing in his chest, feeling tired from the long day and in anticipation of Black Friday shopping the next day.

"Well they were both telling me about all the rules! And how their kids will play football! I always thought that I would have my son play baseball, but since you've lived life in America I feel like they could also play football because sometimes that seems more American than baseball even- even though it's the 'All American' sport. And then I was thinking what if our baby is actually a girl? We're too early in the pregnancy to know but I was like - if we had a girl she'd have such amazing support and a lot of the other guys are girl dad's so I'm sure it would be cool to have their support. And obvs our kids will have their support because they'll have seven uncles, and then they have an Aunt and then they have their two uncles here and-"

As you listened to Seungmin tell you about how much he had enjoyed the day, it couldn't help but make you think about the time when you had believed he would leave you for being talkative.

What a stupid thought.

Because you had never been more sure of the unconditional love Seungmin had for you. And seeing him light up and have that same unconditional love for the rest of your family.

And even if you did talk too much it wasn't like Seungmin could say anything because he slowly became more like you. And the way he was quickly becoming like your brothers as well.

""Crazy work. Half-brother and cousins is absolutley diabolical! Wait until I tell Jisung and Hyunjin!"

You couldn't help but laugh, extremely happy with the chaos in life you shared with the one you loved most.

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@abovenyx @wolfs-archive @oddracha

@iyeeeverydee @parisanmorovati @seungmincenteric

@panbish-1209 @fxiry-vtt @sseawavee @shuporanporang @amarecerasus @softkisshyunjin @whoa-jo

@meanergreener @rikibun @ayyonoona

@shinywombatcrusade @y4yayael @skzstan12345

@mariteez @allys-reads @jazziwritesthings

@skzstannie @yongbokkiesworld @kkkeopi

@neverendingstay @moony-9 @minsungsthirdwheel

[jazzyoranges]

Save a horse, ride a cowboy

Tara Carpenter x fem!reader (r is also implied to be more masculine-leaning)

Summary: Tara rides you 🤷‍♀️ no Ghostface au

Words: 3.5k

A/n: the card game they play is called “do or drink” so if you don’t understand the rules here, search it up and it’ll probably make more sense

Warnings: G!P reader, explicit sex, unprotected sex (you pull out dw), blowjob, face fucking, Tara lowkey has a size kink, R has a praise kink lol, service top!R, power bottom!T (i think? idk positions that well)

MINORS DNI!!

Tara didn’t really feel like being at this party. Unfortunately for her, she was a victim of peer pressure by Mindy. The twin said something about “getting laid” and how Tara needed to “get some”, but in all honesty, she wasn’t actually listening

The party she was at was cowboy/southern-themed, and Tara opted to wear some plaid and a white crop top. Chad went fully cowboy, through. Tara said he looked like a dork, but his eyes were set on looking like someone from Red Dead Redemption. The brunette didn’t know how he did it, but Chad didn’t even look half bad. Tara swears he has a superpower at looking stupid and not stupid at the same time

Mindy on the other hand, did the least. The twin adorned a black shirt and a brown leather jacket with southern-ish accessories

Chad didn’t bother knocking or ringing the bell over the loud music, and he let himself, Mindy, and Tara into the house. There was a familiar smell in the house. Weed and alcohol absolutely flamed her nostrils, and she scrunched up her nose. When Tara’s eyes landed on you, she swore you were a goddess straight from Texas heaven

“Mindy.”

“I see her, Tara”

“Mindy.”

“No straight woman wears a wife beater. You’re in the clear”

In Tara’s favor, Chad yelled your name and waved you over

“Mindy, Tara, this is Y/N! She coached me back in Woodsboro. She’s also from Texas, so i invited her to show up all the fake cowboys like me” The football player slung an arm around your shoulder, and you held out your hand for the two girls to shake

“Nice to meet you two” Your accent was practically nonexistent, but certain words have you away. When your hand meets Tara’s, yours engulfs hers and she swears she can feel her heart beating in her throat

“Chad speaks well of y’all”

“Really? I’m surprised” Mindy laughs, but Tara is too busy sweating over you to engage in conversation

“I’m gonna introduce Y/N to the rest of our friend group, i’ll see you two around!”

“Have a good night, you two” You tip your hat with a wink, and follow after Chad

“So, wanna explain?” Mindy sends a knowing glance at Tara, a small smirk on her face

“Absolutely not.” The shorter girl makes her way into the kitchen, pouring herself a solo cup of whatever alcohol she can find. Tara chooses to ignore the burning sensation down her throat

“Nope, you’re going to talk right now. I didn’t even know you were into women like her”

“Neither did i, that’s the problem” Tara groans, covering her face with her hands

“What’s the plan?”

“There is no plan, Mindy. I don’t even know how to get close to her…” Eros or Aphrodite must’ve been listening real close because not a second later, she sees you being dragged around by Chad, rounding up a few people to play a drinking card game

“Tara! Mindy! Play drinking games with us? Ethan, Quinn, Y/N, Amber, Wes, Anika, Liv, a few other people and i are playing”

Mindy nods, and they follow you two to the living room, where all the aforementioned people were sitting. Some on the couch and some on the floor. You took your spot on the floor with Chad on your left, and Quinn on your right on the couch.

Chad clears his throat, and all eyes are on him. “Alright! Rules are simple. Everyone has to draw a white card, and do what it says. If you get a white card that says ‘Draw’, you have to get a black card and either do what it says, or drink however much it tells you. Make sense?”

The group nods, and small discussions are made between people. Tara is seated between Mindy, who’s talking to Anika, and Ethan, who’s talking to Chad

“Since i’m the one that wanted to play, i will graciously go first” Chad pulls his white card, and his face lights up. “War! Challenge another player to an arm wrestle. The loser must drink”

The twin gets up, and he points straight at your forehead. “Y/N! This cowboy challenges you in a duel of our arms!”

“How could i say no. I agree to your challenge, my good sir” You shake hands, and make your way to the coffee table in the middle of the room. Tara is on your right, and you give her a perfect view of your bicep

“You look nervous, Chad. Are you afraid?”

“You can’t teach an old dog new tricks. Therefore, the student always wins” he smiles at you, and your competitive side starts to bubble up

“When i win, i’ll make sure to spoon feed you your own words” readjusting your grip on Chad’s hand, Ethan makes his way over to be the referee

“Three…”

Tara notices your concentrated face, and how you bite your lip in anticipation

“Two…”

You adjust your grip once again, and Tara wonders what else your hands can do

“One!” Ethan lets go of yours and Chad’s attached hands, and they both stay in place. Tara can tell you two were pretty evenly matched

“C’mon, Y/N! Gag him!” Mindy cheers for you

“Don’t listen to her, babe. You got this!” Liv cheers for Chad

“Show him up, Y/N! You’ve got it” Tara cheers with a smile on her face, and you momentarily stop pushing before you catch yourself

“What’s the matter, Y/N? Losing already?”

“We’ll see” When you hear Tara say your name again, a new urge to win rushes through your body. In one swift motion, Chad’s hand meets the table, and those who were supporting you cheer

“What did you say about the student always winning?” You say with a wide grin on your face, and you kiss your arm in a show of ego

“That was a fluke! I want a rematch!” The twin says playfully

“Like you wouldn’t just lose again”

“Whatever, it’s your turn to draw”

You pick up a card, and you laugh to yourself. “Vote! On the count of three, everyone points to the person they think has had sex in the most interesting spot. The player with the most votes must confess their sex spot and take a drink”

“Alright! Three, two, one!” You count down, and mostly everyone is mostly pointing at Quinn

“Geez, what do you guys think of me?” She takes a sip of her drink. “And my most interesting spot was under the bleachers during his football practice”

This goes on until it’s Tara’s turn. Amber got an “All brunettes must drink” card, Anika got to be Simon in Simon Says (which Tara had to drink for losing first), and Mindy drew a card that made all of the single people drink. Luckily for Tara, you drank when Mindy pulled her card

“Your turn, Tara! What’ll you get?” Chad quickly made himself the keeper of cards, sitting in the middle as you sat on the couch in his place. Tara leans over, and she takes a card from Chad. Revealing her card, she see’s it says to draw

“Our very first ‘Draw’ card! I wonder what it’ll be” Chad grins, and Tara pulls a black card from the deck

“Spin a bottle. Whoever it lands on, sit on their lap for the next 2 rounds or both must drink four times”

Oohs are exchanged throughout the group, and Tara rolls her eyes in embarrassment. Less than a second later, Chad hands Tara an empty beer bottle. The twin takes his spot somewhere in the circle, and the brunette spins the bottle

“I’ll pray it lands on her” Mindy playfully nudges her shoulder, and Tara blushes. Neither of you knew it, but both you and the brunette hoped the bottle ended up pointing at you. It went around once, twice, three times

Slowly passing by the person to your right, the bottle points straight at you and you swear time stops for a second. Tara meets your eyes, and you swear she’s blushing when Mindy shoves her towards you

Tara awkwardly sits on your lap, moving to find a comfortable spot

You place a reassuring hand on her hip. “You know you don’t have to do this, right? If you’re uncomfortable, nobody is gonna judge you” Tara can feel your hand leave her side, and the smaller girl has to physically stop herself from letting out a whine of frustration

“I’m not uncomfortable. I just… need to adjust.” The brunette not-so-accidentally grinds her hips against yours, and she swears she hears you let out a tiny groan

It’s Wes’ turn next, but Tara can’t focus as she gropes around the couch for your hands. The alcohol in her system takes over when she leans back into you, and makes you wrap your arms around her torso. You happily oblige

“You having a good night, so far?”

Tara decides to be bold. “It’s definitely better in your lap”

Despite your semi-hard cock uncomfortably rubbing against your jeans, you try your best to learn more about Tara. Asking how her day was, what she’s majoring in, if she has any family; all while the brunette causes more friction by slowly rubbing her ass on your crotch. You have to suppress many moans as she not-so-casually grinds on you

Tara learns that you used to work on a family farm in Texas, but moved to California for college. You told her about the animals, the pumpkin patches, and looking up at the stars with your siblings

Not even noticing it’s your turn again, Chad has to remind you to draw a card. You instantly miss Tara’s heat when she crawls off your lap so you can draw a card. The game goes on for the next hour or so, and you can barely remember what you had to do after all the drinks you’ve had

You end up having to quit the game halfway through when you refuse to send a nude photo of yourself to a random number or take a drink. Tara’s card no longer applies very early on, but she actively decides to sit in your lap for the rest of the game

Amber kicks out the rest of the party-goers around 1 am, and you’ve been tasked to drive Tara and Mindy home. Somehow you’re the least drunk. Since Chad was their ride and he’s off somewhere making out with Liv, you so graciously offered to drive them home.

The ride to Mindy’s house was quiet, but it was a comfortable quiet. You tapped on the steering wheel to the soft music, Mindy was half asleep, and Tara was discreetly trying to look at you from the passenger seat. You dropped Mindy off at her place, and now you were on your way to Tara’s house. The moonlight was hitting your eyes in the right way, causing them to sparkle the tiniest bit Tara had a little staring problem

“Do i have something on my face?”

“Do you want to stay over at my place?” The brunette blurts out, instantly regretting her words. “I mean- uh, if you want…”

“Sure, i’d like to stay over. I’m pretty sure i have some extra clothes in here, anyway. Any scary dogs i should beware of?”

“Does my sister count?”

“Only if she bites” This earns a laugh from Tara, and you mentally pat yourself on the back

“Definitely beware of her. She’s staying at her boyfriends place tonight, so you’re good”

“Noted” You pull into the Carpenters driveway, and both of you get out. Grabbing an extra hoodie, shirt, and shorts, you follow Tara into her house

“Bathroom is on the left. Do you want to watch a movie?”

“Sure, you can pick”

“You’re gonna wish you never said that. Let’s watch The Babadook”

“Seriously? Dude, i used to jump like six feet in the air when the floor boards creaked in the barn”

“You’ll live” Rolling your eyes at her words, you made your way to her bathroom to change. You made sure to freshen up, even though you two were just watching a movie. The smell of buttered popcorn filled your lungs and you could faintly hear the popping kernels

When you leave her bathroom, Tara’s already changed into something more comfortable

“Do we have to watch something scary? Can’t we watch a sitcom or something?”

“Listen, you let me decide but we don’t have to if you don’t wanna” Tara finds her seat on the couch, your shoulders touching when she sits down the bowl of popcorn between you two

“But i will think you’re a pussy”

“The Babadook it is” You click play on the remote, and Tara lays her head on your shoulder. She barely pays attention to the movie, considering she’s seen it far too many times. Instead, the brunette opts to watch you and all of your reactions. You’ve raised the blanket up under your nose and leaned into Tara about 20 times, and the movie is just about halfway through

Every now and again you’d flinch in anticipation, and Tara would rub your thigh in support. You don’t know if your heart is beating due to the movie, or due to Tara practically being on top of you for the second time this night

When the movie ends and the credits roll, you can only stare at the black screen and Tara lets out a laugh

“So, what do you think?”

“I don’t think i’ll be able to sleep tonight, Tara”

“You’ll be okay” The brunette pats your cheek

“Can we watch something lighter? Like My Little Pony?”

“Of course you were a horse girl”

“Actually i was an Equestria Girls girl, thank you” You huff

“Tomato, potato, they were all ponies” Tara rolls her eyes, and smiles “I think i have another horror movie you’ll like. Well, it’s technically a trilogy”

“Absolutely not! I’d like to be able to close my eyes tonight and not hallucinate a monster leaning over me”

“There’s a scene where two girls kiss”

“…Fine.”

An hour in, the two main girls are making out in their bras, and you’re staring quite intensely at the scene. Something in the room shifts, and all of a sudden you start to feel hotter. Tara goes from rubbing your thigh to slowly dragging her hand to your crotch, leaving a trail of goosebumps behind. Your breath hitches when she starts to rub your clothed cock

“A-Are we about to do the thing?” You say unsure, but the brunette is already pulling you off the couch and leading you to her room

Before you know what’s happening, Tara is guiding you into her bedroom and pushing you up against a wall. Her kisses are hungry and fast, wanting to taste every part of you. When she starts to fiddle with your shorts, you let out a small laugh at how she huffs in frustration

“Take it off, already.”

“Someone’s needy” You tease

“I’ve been eye fucking you all night. I’m not waiting any longer. I had to drag you here myself”

“I didn’t know if i was reading your signals wrong…” You mumble, and Tara hates how adorable you look. God why were you cute and hot at the same time

“I was grinding on you the entirety of those two rounds at the party”

“You said you were adjusting! I thought my lap was uncomfortable!”

“I hate how the oblivious ones are always the hottest.” Tara finally manages to pull down your shorts through shaky hands, and she feels her mouth water when she sees the small tent in your underwear

“Spider-man boxers?” the shorter girl quirks an eyebrow at you

“I didn’t think i’d have sex tonight” You suck in a breath when Tara starts to rub your cock through your boxers

“Really? You didn’t think you’d get laid tonight looking like this” Tara motions to your entire body with her non-busy hand. “Maybe i should show you how pretty you are. Do you want that, baby?” The brunette squeezes your cock; and you nod, not trusting your voice to do anything but moan

As she gets on her knees, Tara pulls down your boxers just enough to reveal your hardened dick

“Jesus, you’re big…” The brunette says to herself, but you can feel your ego boost at her words. Tara starts to lick the veins on your shaft, and you can feel her massaging your balls. Your cock is drooling pre-cum when Tara kisses your tip, and you let out a breathy moan

“Please, Tara…”

“Tell me what you want, baby”

“Please let me fuck your mouth”

“Let me adjust to your size first. I’ll let you know when you can start, does that sound good?”

“A-Anything you want”

“You’re cute.” Tara kisses your tip again before taking it into her mouth, eliciting a moan from your throat. She swirls her tongue in a way that drives your crazy. Her hands make their way around your thighs, and Tara squeezes your ass as she takes half your cock into her mouth. The brunette squeezes your balls and you hear her gag as her nose meets your lower abdomen. The sight of Tara deepthroating your cock almost makes you cum

“Fuck.” You breathe out. You try backing away to give Tara a little room to breathe but she just ends up making you thrust into her mouth, making her gag. You pull her face away from your cock not wanting her to choke, and the shorter girl wipes a little drool off her chin

“Why’d you do that?” Tara asks, a little annoyed

“I didn’t want you to run out of breath. Your eyes were watering”

“It’s nice how much you care about me. I can assure you i can handle your cock, baby. It helps you taste good”

“If it ever gets too much or becomes uncomfortable, squeeze my hand” You tuck a strand of hair behind her ear, and Tara’s heart flutters at how soft you’re being despite the situation

“I promise i’ll let you know if it starts to become too much, baby” The brunette kisses your tip once again and dives right back into sucking your dick. When you look down and she gives you a small nod, your hands tangle in her hair. You start off with small thrusts, slowly going faster as Tara gets used to your size

“F-Fuck you’re amazing” Your balls slap against her chin, and Tara almost cums at how dirty it feels having you fuck her throat like a fleshlight

“Shit, i’m gonna cum, Tara…” You moan, and the brunette gives you a pleading look. You can only assume it means ‘Please cum down my throat’, so that’s exactly what you do. You release your load in her mouth with a groan, and Tara happily swallows all of it down. When she pulls away from your cock, you use your thumb to wipe away the leftover cum on her chin. Tara takes your thumb in her mouth, and licks away the rest of your semen

She gets off her knees, and gets up to pull you into another searing kiss. You can taste yourself on her tongue, and you moan into her mouth at the flavor

“Jesus, you’re still hard?”

“I have the stamina of a stallion” You shrug, feigning a big ego

“Oh, yeah? How about i ride you and we’ll see if you can handle it”

“You have such a beautiful way with words”

“I’d be mad about the teasing of you weren’t cute. Hurry up and get naked, already”

“Yes ma’am” Barely a second passes before Tara’s lips are on yours. In a flurry of heat, both of your clothes end up strewn about her bedroom. Tara pushes you onto her bed. She straddles your lap and kisses you with a new wave of confidence and fervor. When the brunette urges you to lay back, you have to actively keep your jaw closed at the sight of Tara. Unfortunately for you, she notices your staring

“Take a picture, it’ll last longer”

“Can i really?”

“Mm… maybe next time”

Your face lights up. “Next time?”

“After you take me on a date first. We can talk about the specifics later” Tara softly kisses the bridge of your nose, making you close your eyes and blush

“Right now, i want you in me.” The brunette on top of you lines up your tip with her pussy, slowly sinking down your shaft

“Fuck,” Tara takes the rest of your cock in her, and you massage her hips when you can feel her squeezing around you “You feel so good, baby”

Noticing how you moan at her praise, Tara takes note of this. She starts to move up and down, and the feeling of her around you earns a whimper from your throat. Moans are exchanged as Tara starts to ride you faster, constantly increasing her pace

“I’m close, Tar” You breathe out, letting her nickname slip through your lips

“Fuck i am too, baby. You’re so big” Her words are reinforced as she starts to tighten around your cock, and you have to use all your strength to pull out. You ejaculate your cum all over your stomach, and so does Tara. When you both come down from your high, the brunette notices how you’re still somehow hard

“Round two?”

—

A/n pt.2: cookie if you can guess the second movie they watch

[wittymumbledon]

If I had a nickel for every DTIYS I spontaneously decided to participate in that involved a Pines twin getting dangled like a tiny little cat...I'd have two nickels

(But can you blame me? How could I resist the call of Fiddleford in a hot pink cowboy suit?)

I don't usually combine my softer lineart style with screentone, but I saw this as good an opportunity as any to experiment - pleasantly surprised, if im being honest

Drawn as part of @/Jian_Hue's 2K DTIYS on Twitter ✨

(alt versions under the cut):

(both w/o paper grain so you can see the details, and one with the original, screentone-less shading✨)

[frankenstein-ate-my-left-shoe]

i literally have no idea what this is, or where it came from but here's a thing:

pairing: steddie | word count: 2,043 | rated: M (will be E in next part)

Eddie Munson was not Steve’s bi awakening, okay? He wasn’t.

He just happened to be standing in the middle of Family Video dressed like his bi awakening (and it didn’t help that he already had an embarrassingly huge crush on the guy).

Steve had come out of the back none the wiser to what he was about to see, glancing up from the tape he was carrying for someone who’d called earlier. His eyes met big, clunky, worn-in cowboy boots, long lean legs (and very nice ass–damn, they’ve got one of those stupid bandanas in their back pocket too) in classic Levis so tight they looked like they were painted on, the back of leather jacket (--hold on), and the back of a head of long, wild-looking, sun-kissed, yet still dark hair.

After his seconds-long oogling, Robin, who was chatting with Bon Jovi’s twin at the counter, glances behind him at Steve. 

Bon Jovi tries to turn and look back without taking himself off the counter, but when that insane hair of his gets in the way, he shoves up off the counter and spins on one heel.

“Munson? Where the hell’ve you been?” Steve thanks whatever it is up there that the surprise of seeing Eddie again temporarily suspends his frazzled ‘hothothothothot’ thoughts about his friend enough to respond normally.

“Damn, Stevie, been gone all summer and all I get is a ‘The hell’ve you been’?”

“Of course, asshole, you’ve been gone All. Summer.” Steve says, finally getting to the counter himself and dropping the tape on it. He scoops Eddie up in a tight hug, one long won from their month of recovery post-Vecna.

Everything went fine, Vecna was dead, the upside-down sealed away, but they hadn’t all left unscathed. Specifically Steve and Eddie, both of whom ended their spring break from hell nursing bat wounds, and closer than ever before. 

Then, after finally graduating, being hailed a hero for “saving” Max and Dustin from the real killer (thank you, suspicious government people), Eddie was hauled out of Hawkins by his Uncle, the former of whom got just enough time for a quick ‘Gotta go, Wayne wants me helping out at the farm this summer,’ before he was gone.

“I told you I would be, Harrington,” Eddie says once Steve sets him back down on his own two feet.

“So what happened? Where’ve you really been?”

Eddie raises a brow, “At the farm. Like I said.”

“Okay, well, excuse me for thinking it may have been the same 'farm' my parents said my childhood dog was sent off to.”

“You think my Uncle was gonna take me upstate to shoot me dead?”

“Obviously not, dumbass, but what other goddamn reason would you, Eddie Munson, have to be on a farm. Like with cows and stuff?”

“Though the sun did you some favors,” Robin cuts back in.

And isn’t that the truth. Up close now (and letting himself look), Steve could see how Eddie’s normally dark hair and pale complexion were now sun-kissed and so well be-freckled that it sent his stomach for another rollercoaster ride.

“Yeah, Munson, you planning on keeping the blond around?” Steve teases, picking up a strand of sun-lightened hair off Eddie’s shoulder and giving it a short tug.

“I don’t know, I’m not really used to how light…”

Whatever Eddie says after that is completely drowned out by ringing in Steve’s ears because Eddie stretches an arm up to paw at the top of his head and he’s wearing a crop top.

He’s wearing a goddamn crop top under his jacket, some band tee that looks like he’d hacked off himself..and are those abs?? God damn he is so fine. It’s not fucking fair. Who does he think he is running around like Steve’s own personal wet dre–

“Holy shit.”

He couldn’t help it. The words just fell out of his mouth.

“H-holy shit, you’ve got abs, Eddie!”

‘Thank you, Robin.’ Steve thinks at her absently since his brain is completely preoccupied..

“Wha–? Oh! Yeah! Check me out, huh?!” Eddie grins wide, lifting his shirt just a bit more to show off the toned expanse of stomach. 

Steve’s mouth goes bone dry.

“And that’s not all,” Eddie says. He drops his shirt and shucks the jacket off his shoulders.

His very well sculpted shoulders.

And arms.

And oh god those hands. Steve could hear the soft scrapes of rough callouses against the leather when Eddie threw the garment onto the counter beside him and his only thought was about how they might feel against his skin..

Still beaming, Eddie flexes one, then both arms, his biceps bunching under more tanned skin. “I got a lot of ‘lifting heavy things and putting them back down again’ in over the summer.” he continues, “I’m probably stronger than you now, Harrington.”

“Ha haha, right..yeah. Robin, can you excuse us for a second?”

Steve doesn’t wait for her response before he grabs Eddie around one of those absolutely delicious biceps and hauls him through the store and out the back door.

He lets a grinning Eddie go as soon as they’re through the back door, taking a couple steps away towards the woods behind their building, and trying to calm down with measured breaths.

When he does turn around, Eddie’s stood away from the door, one hip cocked out and his arms crossed across his chest.

The grin on his face has melted down into a smirk though, and the look in his eyes is less teasing and more cautious.

Steve steps back up close to the other man, and literally starts to circle him like a shark. Scanning his eyes up and down Eddie’s body as he does.

“What’s goin’ on Stevie? Looking for some style tips?” he jokes.

Steve doesn’t answer, and starts his second cycle around his friend.

“You know, maybe get rid of some of those polos?” Eddie sounds just a bit more unsure this time.

Steve’s behind Eddie’s right shoulder when he speaks again. “You think you can barge back in after all this time, looking like that,” Steve comes around to stand in front of Eddie again, “And not expect me to react?”

Eddie grins wickedly again, and steps back at the same time Steve steps forward.

“Expect me to not want to devour you whole?”

“You expect me to want that, big boy?” Eddie says as he’s pressed between Steve and the closed back door.

Steve rears back immediately, “Shit, Eddie, I’m sor–”

“‘Cause I do.” Eddie grabs hold of Steve and spins them around, pressing the younger man back against the door instead. “Ohhh boy, do I want that.”

Steve groans as Eddie slots their hips together, “You really are a big boy, aren’t you sunshine?”

“The things I’m gonna do to you..” Steve growls out, Eddie’s jaw snapping open with his words.

They’re both startled away from the back door when Robin bangs on it, “You’ve got five minutes to get back in here before I drag you back in! It’s Friday and we’re about to get busy!” she yells through the door.

He hears her converse squeak on the tile inside the door as she heads back to the front, then chances a look at Eddie.

He looks as red as Steve feels, from the bit of his face he can see from behind the hair he holds over it.

“Eddie–”

“It’s cool, Harrington,” he wheezes out a dry laugh, glancing over at him, “Better get in for the rush before Robin comes back.

He reaches for the handle again, but is stopped short by a hand on his wrist.

“Listen, Eddie.” Steve says, giving the other man’s arm a soft tug to get him to turn around. “I may have gotten a little…over enthusiastic…”

Eddie’s face scrunches up in a weird way.

“No! Not in a bad way, unless you weren’t as into it as I was–doesn’t matter! Point is, I may have gone a little crazy, but I wasn’t faking it.”

“I don’t think guys can fake it, Steve-o.” Eddie jokes softly, a small smile on his face.

Steve chuckles just as soft, “Shut up man, you know what I mean.”

“Do I?”

“I think you do.”

“I dunno Steve," Eddie shrugs sarcastically, "You’re quite an enigma.”

“Okay, fine, here’s it spelled out for you: I am super into you.” Steve puts up a finger to stop whatever it is Eddie was about to say, “Hold on– I am bisexual, have been for a while and would like to try this..with you. If you want.”

“You gotta be more specific on what ‘this’ is, sunshine.” Eddie steps close to him once again.

Steve smirks, walking Eddie backward to the door again with both hands on his waist. Once he’s got him pressed back against the warm metal, he scoops the hair away from Eddie’s ear and holds it out of the way with a hand on the back of his neck.

He leans in, whispering right into Eddie’s ear. “I want to take you apart, Eddie.”

Eddie sucks in a sharp breath and Steve can feel the man’s heart hammering against his own chest.

“I want to suck you down, eat you out, and fuck you into next Tuesday.” He states, nipping on his earlobe for good measure before pulling back. 

Steve takes in Eddie’s flushed face, his eyes blown out they’re almost completely black, his chest heaving.

“I’d also like to totally romance you and date the fuck out of you, but…” he shrugs, grinning as Eddie smacks his chest lightly with a laugh of his own.

“I’m serious though, Eddie. I want this.”

Eddie’s smile falls slightly. “You sure about the whole dating thing, Harrington? You know you can’t date me for real..like in public and shit.”

Steve shrugs, “I know, but… I don’t think I’d survive something casual with you, Eddie.”

Eddie lets out a breath like he’d been punched.

He takes back in a deep breath, then pulls Steve flush to him again.

“I think that sounds amend—-”

Eddie’s forehead smashes into Steve’s nose when Robin shoves the door open behind Eddie.

“Damn! I knew the door was a bad idea.” Steve says, his voice coming out nasally from where he’s pinching at the bridge of his nose.

“Time’s up, Dingus, get your fruity butt inside.”

Eddie chuckles after her, leading Steve inside. “You shouldn’t tip your head back, lean forward and let it drain out.”

“Ugh, you sure? I’ll get blood all over me,”

“I’m sure, sweetheart, I’ve had a few bloody noses in my time.”

“Here,” Robin says once they reach the counter.

Steve takes the offered tissues, and soaks up the small trickle of blood.

“You still wanna date me if my nose is crooked?” he asks Eddie, who’s (sadly) shrugging his coat back on.

He pretends to think for a moment. “Sorry Stevie, that’s a dealbreaker. Even if it was my forehead what done it.”

“Ugh you’re such a dweeb, I don’t know what you see in him, Steve.”

“He’s hot, okay? And he’s still hot even after he rejected me just now.” Steve states matter-of-factly while shoving a wad of tissue into the one nostril still bleeding.

“You think I’m hot?”

“Very.”

“No, you’re gross. You guys are both gross.”

“Oh Birdie, you should've heard the things he was saying to me outside; all ‘Ooh Eddie, your muscles are so big and so is your hair and also your di—’”

“OKAY! That’s enough of that!” Steve cuts him off, pushing the still grinning Eddie toward the door, then, a softer: “Yours or mine after I’m off?” once they’re at the door.

“Definitely yours, unless you want Wayne to be privy to our shenanigans.”

“Yeah, that’s a no. Also, shenanigans? Really? You’re a super dweeb.” Steve smirks, pushing his boyfr— frien— Eddie out the front door. “I’m off at four, see you at five?”

Eddie fumbles backward over the curb but manages to catch himself, “It’s a date, Steve.”

He watches Eddie climb up into his van, and follows its path down the road and out of sight with a dreamy sigh.

“You still have tissues in your nose, Dingus.”

part 2/2 here | and on AO3!

definitely inspired by this post from @sparrowtapes

[goldenseresinretriever]

Subject To Change: Chapter 1

Tyler Owens x Reader

Summary: It’s been five years since you’ve been back home and when life brings you back to your hometown you find that while some things have changed, others have stayed the same. Your brother still has his head in the clouds but the cowboy currently sleeping in your childhood bedroom is definitely a new development. You’re trying to avoid falling into old patterns but maybe some of them aren’t so bad after all.

Chapter CW: Angst, fluff, mention of natural disasters (that would be the tornados), mentions of emotional abuse, swearing, suggestive language, science inaccuracies, medical inaccuracies

Word Count: 3.3k

A/N: Welcome back to Twisters Tuesday y’all!!! Let’s get back to Siren and Tyler, shall we?

Previous Chapter // Series Masterlist // Next Chapter

“Who the fuck are you?”

You watch as the blonde man blinks sleep out of his eyes, and his head cocks slightly to the side as he takes in the sight of you on the floor of your bedroom, a tangle of limbs, and glaring up at him past the mess of hair that’s tumbled over your face. Due to the hair obscuring your vision you miss the finger that reaches out to uncover your face. His face morphs into one of understanding as your uninhibited visage stares back at him. “So,” he says and his voice is still rough with sleep as he reaches up to scratch his head. “You must be Siren,” he says and your body jerks back in a visceral reaction to the name you haven’t been called in years. You slowly slide a hand under the edge of the bedsheets, feeling along the floor under the bed.

“I said,” You struggle to keep the shake out of your voice as your searching hand finds its quarry. “Who. The. Fuck. Are. You.” The mystery man shakes his head and then he moves, shifting forward and you yank the dusty baseball bat out from under the bed, trying your best to bring it up in an attempt to defend yourself but the angle is all wrong combined with the odd angle of your body on the floor and you hear the crash before you register your mistake. The room is plunged back into darkness and you hear the mystery man curse loudly in surprise before the sound of footsteps pounding down the hallway reaches your ears. The door swings open and the overhead light clicks on, temporarily blinding you.

When your eyes adjust to the sudden change in lighting you find yourself staring up at your mother where she’s frozen in the doorway, her hand still on the light switch. When your name passes her lips you feel yourself wince, guilt bubbling up in your gut.

“Hi Mom,” You don’t get anything else out before the gangly form of your brother Garrett appears over her shoulder, and his face morphs from fear to surprise to cool disinterest.

“Well look what finally blew in from the West Coast.” You meet Garrett’s icy glare with one of your own, narrowing your eyes at what’s a damn good reflection of your own. Despite being fraternal rather than identical twins, you and Garrett have always had a strong resemblance to each other. “Dad, don’t bother calling the cops, the prodigal daughter has returned.” He sneers in your direction before turning to leave, presumably to go back to bed now that he’s surmised that you’re not a threat. Your eyes go back to your mom who’s still staring at you like you’re a ghost.

“I see you didn’t waste any time waiting for me to come home,” you say casually. While your words are sharp, your tone is just exhausted as you reach a hand out for the familiar wall of your room and you push yourself to your feet. Against your better judgment, you cast a glance behind you at the blonde man sitting up in your bed. He’s regarding you with a neutral expression even as his green eyes dance with curiosity.

“Are you leaving?” Your heart aches at the tentative note in your mother’s voice like you’re a skittish animal that she’s trying not to spook.

“Do you want me to?” You ask simply and she shakes her head before the words even finish leaving your lips.

You nod curtly, at odds with the way your hands fidget at your side, a stranger in your own home. “I’ll sleep on the couch.” She nods quietly, eyes still trained on you like she’s afraid you’ll disappear if she looks away. You head for the doorway, where she stands in your way. You expect her to move when you approach but instead, she surprises you as she throws her arms around you, dragging you against her chest with a strength that you always forget that she possesses. You feel her lips press against your hair as you squeeze your eyes shut, trying to keep the tears at bay as they threaten to crawl their way to the surface. You’re not sure how long the two of you stand that way, locked in a jagged tapestry of the past and present, but you feel like you’re splitting in half when she lets you go. Every step back down the stairs to the living room feels like a stitch ripping in the elegantly-crafted mask you’ve meticulously constructed over the years and when your head meets the worn cushion you’ve propped under your head you feel nothing but raw as the darkness comes up and consumes you whole.

***

It’s not the morning light that wakes you, blocked from your view by curtains that have faded from bright gold to a dull yellow over the course of your lifetime. You’re roused by the sound of clanking dishes and enthusiastic chatter. When you sit up and look towards the sounds coming from the dining room, your brows wrinkle at the chorus of unfamiliar voices. You wonder if perhaps something happened on your way here and now you’re looking around at some alternate timeline where someone else lived in these walls and it’s not your home after all. Curiosity spurs you to your feet and you tentatively creep across the worn wooden floor towards the sound. Before your guard can go up, you’re standing in the doorway and looking into a room that’s not nearly large enough for the eight people squeezed into it. You don’t recognize most of them, but your eye catches on the mystery man you’d found in your bed last night and you feel your lips turn into a frown as you glare daggers into his blonde head.

Garrett is the first to notice your arrival and he sits back in his chair as he regards you cooly. “Good mornin’, sunshine.”

All of a sudden you’re a teenager again, ready to go to blows with your brother over the last of the bacon and your frown deepens. “Go fuck yourself, Garrett.” He doesn’t react but the mystery man seated next to him chokes down a laugh around the toast he has in his mouth. You turn your gaze on him, raising an accusatory eyebrow at him. “Who the fuck are you?” It’s Garrett’s turn to bark out a laugh as your mother snaps your name with a tone that holds harsh reprimand. The blonde man’s eyes dance with mirth as he grins around the piece of toast. He swallows before he tips his chin in greeting.

“Tyler Owens, pleased to finally meet you, and very grateful that you never played baseball.” Your parents exchange confused looks while Garrett hides a snicker behind his fork as your lips widen into a smirk.

“Right, I played softball.” You say cooly as you reach for an apple off the table past a girl with long hair eyeing you skeptically.

“Easy, Si,” Garrett pipes up, lazy rather than wary and three steps ahead of everyone else at the table since Tyler’s still got that stupid grin on his face instead of one of fear. You flick your eyes over to him and your gazes battle wordlessly for a beat before you shrug.

“Catch,” you say and you pitch the apple at his head like it’s a softball and you’re a little impressed when Garrett manages to deflect the apple before it collides with his nose. Tyler lets out a low whistle as the apple lands on the table in front of him with a dull thud. He picks up the apple and holds it up in your direction in a silent toast before taking a huge bite out of it, grinning from ear to ear.

“And that’s why we call her Siren,” Garrett says as he places a placating hand on your mom’s arm, “because she should come with a warning.” You snort in response. You both know that’s not the real reason, but it’s one you’ve taken on over the years. There are no empty chairs so you grab a plate and fill it with food, trying not to interrupt the meal anymore, fully planning to slink back to the living room to eat when Tyler stands with his plate, motioning to his vacated chair.

“Sit,” I just finished. You try and wave him off but he’s insistent. “Really, we’re just about ready to head out anyway.” You don’t ask where and who ‘we’ includes but you silently take the seat next to your brother. Tyler’s made the trip to the kitchen to drop off his plate and is casually leaning against the doorframe waiting for other people to finish.

“Any idea where we’re headed today?” Garrett says and you let your shoulders slump in relief as the spotlight shifts from you. You keep your attention on Garrett and Tyler, though, trying to read what they’re talking about.

“We’re tracking some potential cells to the east,” a short-haired woman sitting across from Garrett speaks up and Tyler and Garrett nod as you make the connection.

“You’re kidding,” the words are past your mouth before you can filter your words. Everyone turns to you and you’ve already stuck your foot in it so you turn to your brother. “You’re still chasing?” You can’t believe it.

Garrett shrugs nonchalantly, “Obviously, we’re all chasers,” he gestures to the other strangers around the kitchen table and you shake your head. He frowns at you. “Get off your high horse, Si,” and you roll your eyes, shoveling the rest of your food into your mouth, eager to exit the dining room and this conversation. “Just because you quit, doesn’t make you some kind of better person.” You can feel his glare digging into the side of your head but you do your best to ignore it, like you have for the last ten years, every time this argument comes up. You stand up, still not dignifying Garrett with an answer as you head to the kitchen to deposit your dirty dishes, pushing past Tyler where he’s still leaning in the doorway. You feel his eyes on you, no doubt holding questions of his own but you have no intention of entertaining them. The clank of your dishes in the sink feels final and you take a deep breath before you decide to take advantage of Tyler’s presence downstairs to grab clothes for yourself from your bedroom uninterrupted.

***

It feels wrong, strange, the way your nose naturally wrinkles at the distinct scent of the well water that pours from the shower head. You’ve spent more years under it than you have away and yet your body seems to have forgotten to assign familiarity to it. You know that your hair is going to protest the change and it makes your heart ache as your body rejects the nostalgia that your mind is under the spell of. When you step out of the shower, you fish into the linen closet for a clean towel, suddenly feeling like a robber in your own home as you dry off and slide on your old clothes.

It’s a wonder they still fit and you feel your breath catch as you examine your reflection. The soft cotton of your faded rodeo t-shirt and the worn denim of your shorts feel like meeting an old friend again. You don’t remember the last time you wore jeans. Your stomach twists at that and you glance down at your bare ring finger. You’re still getting used to it, the freedom, the ability to breathe when you weren’t aware you were being strangled. You run your palms along the smooth denim and blink the tears that have risen unbidden in your eyes. The healing is slow but you’re hoping that being home will expedite the process. Eventually, there will be questions you’ll have to answer, ones you’re still wrapping your mind around. Why you’re here, why you’re not back in LA planning your wedding?

You’ve felt frozen since that fated day. You’d come back from a girls’ trip in Mexico, a rowdy week of fun, your bachelorette party to be exact. You’d been exhausted, coming down from the adrenaline of the week, and desperate to take refuge at home in the arms of your fiance. Instead, you’d come home to two envelopes on the kitchen counter. One contained a letter that explained that your fiance was long gone. He’d completely moved out during the past week and left you with his keys and half a page of bullshit explanations. The second envelope was thicker, and empty, with an address written on the front with the intention of you mailing back the expensive ring on your finger. The very next day you’d marched down to a pawn shop and sold it. You spent the money combined with what you made selling your half of the furniture and most of your possessions to compensate for breaking your lease before you’d caught the next flight out to Oklahoma. It was as you did so that it had all come unraveled. You’d watched each piece of clothing that you folded, realizing they had been bought for you, not by you, slowly but steadily replacing your old wardrobe. You’d been too busy between working yourself to the bone and spending every spare moment working to be perfect for your fiance. Somewhere you’d become lost to yourself, just becoming a doll for your husband-to-be. And even after all that, he’d left you without a second thought.

You blink at your reflection again and a tiny smile creeps across your face as you raise a hesitant hand and wave awkwardly at the girl staring back at you. You’ve missed her. You slip out of the bathroom, secretly hoping the storm chasers have made their exit. Downstairs is quiet and you slip into the garage, digging around for a pair of your old sneakers. You eventually find one, battered to hell and permanently stained with red dust from the road. You run a finger along the faded drawing of a tornado you’d boredly doodled at some point. You glance out the open garage door, looking east to try and spot any signs of the cells the woman at breakfast had mentioned. You spot the beginnings of clouds forming on the horizon as you stand, hands on your hips. A longing you’ve long learned to suppress calls out to you like a siren song, begging you to chase. It’s been a decade since you’ve chased a storm and turns out absence does in fact make the heart grow fonder.

Your feet carry you out to the second barn. Nostalgia brings the scent of freshly-carved wood to your nose and you lean your head against the door, closing your eyes and pretending that when you swing open the doors, your grandpa will be in there, working his magic and creating something out of nothing, watching as your eyes widen in awe. It’s been years since the barn stopped being a source of his magic, but you’d made it into a source of your own. You swing open the door, and your heart catches. Some small part of you expected it to be frozen in time, waiting for you after all this time. Admittedly some things are the same, you realize as your eyes adjust to the view in front of you. The barn became a storm-chasing base years ago, back when you’d had a laptop, your brother, and a teenage obsession, but what you’re faced with now puts that to shame. There’s all kinds of equipment over every square inch of the tables on the lower level, some of which is scientific in nature and the other looks like filming and camera equipment that makes your brown furrow in silent confusion. The upper level of the space has been rigged up with hammocks and turned into a sort of barracks which explains the quantity of strangers that had been in the kitchen this morning and you shake your head.

You’d always hoped that one day your brother would wake up from his dream of being a storm chaser like you had and get his life together. Now, ten years later, he’s still got his head in the clouds. At least he has company, a tiny voice in the back of your head remarks. At least he’s not running into danger all alone. You close the barn behind you, feeling once again like you’re intruding on a space that used to be yours. Your feet take you out to the fields and your eyes clock the crops, and the animals, and your lips purse into a thin line. You can see all the work that needs to be finished, things that have been passed over without the hands to get them done and set your jaw as you head back to the garage.

***

Several hours later you’re crouched by a section of fence closer to the house, nails held in your lips, and as you carefully repair the area that looks like it's been begging for mending longer than it should have. It’s the fourth stretch you’ve mended so far. Your parents are busy, you catch sight of them hard at work, tending to the animals, making repairs to the main barn, and guilt twists your stomach even as bitterness licks to life. For now, the work keeps your hands busy and you’re able to try and make a dent in the mountain of repairs that need doing, but what about when you go back to California? Your stomach lurches in protest at the thought and you try your best to ignore your visceral reaction to the thought. Maybe not LA, maybe you’ll go somewhere else, San Diego maybe? It’s far enough but close enough. You’ve spent the last decade making a life for yourself out there, you can’t just give up on it. After all your job won’t wait forever. You’re lucky that they agreed to wait at all. You’d been ready to put in your two weeks but your lead had given you a good long look and told you to take all the time you needed, that your job would be waiting for you when you got back. If you go back. That little voice whispers in the back of your mind.

A shadow falls over you and you look up, frowning at the figure blocking your light. Tyler looks down at you, arching a single eyebrow at you as he examines what you’re up to. He’s got a ridiculous cowboy hat on his head and you jerk your chin to the side and when he doesn’t move, your frown deepens and you reach up to take the nails out of your mouth so you can address him. “Move it, cowboy, you’re blocking my light.”

“Yes ma’am,” he drawls, stepping to the side and you turn back to your work. “You need a hand?” He asks, voice casual yet cautious.

“No, thank you.” You reply curtly but the bitterness you’ve been harboring all afternoon fights its way to the surface and you turn from your work to face Tyler. “You know, you could lend a hand around here once in a while? You sleep here, you eat here, this damn farm has more people living on it than it ever has, and yet it’s still going to shit,” you knock the final nail in with a particularly hard swing of the hammer. “So no, I don’t need a hand, but whether they want to ask for it or not, my parents do. It’s the least you could do.” You stand up and meet him face-to-face. You step away from him without a backward glance, watching the sky and trying to gauge whether you can squeeze one more repair in before the sun sinks too far below the horizon. It’s the least you can do while you’re here.

A/N: More than a few things revealed here, Siren’s definitely got some baggage she’s carrying, but hopefully she can finally find a place to put it down.

[chronically-ghosted]

Dry Run

rating: T

pairing: javier peña x f!reader

word count: 1513

summary: you meet javi in a club and he shows you his favorite way to foreplay sex.

warnings: no smut, no y/n, this isn't explicit but outrageously horny, naughty language and bad touching in public, slutty dancing

a/n: @ravensmadreads reminded me that the songs "Gasolina" and "Rompe" exist and then forced me at gun point to write this drabble. no one talks about what a good dancer javi would be and i've had enough!

🤍Masterlist

It started simple enough. 

A smile at the bar. The tang of tequila and the sour bite of a lime. A touch against your thigh to see if you are easily startled. He has to lean in close to ask if he can buy you your next drink, the deep rub of his voice only audible above the pound and hum of the music when his lips brush the shell of your ear.  

Then you tug him by that linen shirt, the tails already creeping out of the waistband of his jeans as if in anticipation of what comes next. His damp throat visible through the shamelessly undone collar, you wonder if he barely dresses himself because he knows some woman will just tear him naked again. His breath smells smoky, rich, like the mezcal he’s been sipping on, his broad chest warm under your palm as he now herds you onto the dance floor. There’s a grin on his face, a dark fire in his eyes that tells you he likes to play with his food, that this is nothing more than foreplay to him. Practice before the test. A dry run. 

He wants you to know exactly where you liked to be touched before you bring him home, to surprise and bewitch you as if he had known those places all along. 

But you’re not so easily convinced. Not so easily made dumb by slim hips and wide palms. He wants to dance, you want bailar. 

It starts simple enough. His head hung low, teasing grin on his face, he encourages your arms around his neck. You feel his hair stick to your forehead as he leans in rough palms easing down over your wrists, your elbows, your shoulders, then steadying against your hips. He moves like many men in this country do, with the self-assuredness that the music listens to him and not the other way around. He’s light on his feet, cowboy boots taking two steps forward, one step back, and you wonder what kind of a job he has. What kind of a man he is, that he can dance like this but his palms are so rough. You wonder how he would dance if he didn’t have plans of fucking  you in the club’s bathroom. His hands rest lightly on your hips, hardly respectable but a little possessive, a promise and a warning that you are going to only dance with him tonight. 

You watch his eyes flick down to your chest only a few times. 

But then the music changes, the crowd drunk and eager for something stronger than seduction. The bachata gives way to music not about love but lust, its desirable twin. It’s faster, something more metallic and driven. 

The hands on your hips tighten and the pulse in your wrists quickens. It comes as no surprise that this stranger, this man can easily handle the switch – the slide into something that demands a change of pace, the roll of the hips instead of a sway. 

He is never rough and never grips too tight. His hands glide up to the arch of your back, hot and rolling like candle wax, as he suggests silently that you come closer, that you let him feel only what you’ve been showing. You go willingly, curious and painfully turned on. What is he capable of? What can he do to you? What would you let him do to you?

His feet widen apart and you slot in like you’re supposed to. He seems surprised by it, as if every move you’ve made towards him all night hasn’t been bold, hasn’t explicitly told him what you want. His arm now up around the low dip of your ribs, the thumb on the other hand brushes under your lip. He won’t kiss you, you don’t kiss to this music, but you see he wants to breathe you in, wants to make your air his. 

“Hermosa,” he murmurs, everything about him from his hair, to his mustache, eyes and eyebrows dark and heavy. “Que hermosa.” 

You don’t realize you’re pinned to his chest until his arm has nowhere to go, trapped between you two. So he doesn’t move it. He cups the back of your neck, fingers pressing into the damp lining of your hair above the knot of your spine. This isn’t what he expected to happen and neither did you. His belt buckle digs into your hips and you can’t resist pushing into that cold pinch. His nostrils flare, eyes searching, breath short. Sweat drips over his left eye and you half-bite, half-kiss the spot on his forehead, tongue printing on his skin. 

You feel more than hear the groan in his chest. 

The music changes again, the lights spinning and dropping in the low beats. In the half-dark, he tugs your elbows from around his head, finger rubbing over the lining of your panties over your dress, and he turns you, barely allowing an inch of space between you. 

You feel his breath on your neck before those wide palms curl around you, that hot, damp chest curl around you, and he’s dragged you against him, all without missing the flow of the music. You moan when his hard cock, confined by the seam of his jeans, spreads your ass cheeks apart and you drop your head onto his shoulder. His fingers twist the hem of your dress but don’t move it. The bareness of your skin is for him alone, in private, in the half-darkness. Instead, he palms the hand pressing into your thigh, your legs screaming from the constant movement, and brings it up to your chest, his fingers intertwining with yours. He nudges your jaw with his nose, breath heavy against your ear. 

He likes to fuck like this too, you realize.

His hips flow and buck with the music, yours nestled as tight as you can without him physically being inside you. You purposefully fall out of sync for a fraction of a second, your ass grindings against where he is so deliciously hard and he grunts. He drops his head, tongue then teeth digging into the muscle between your shoulder and your neck. You intentionally rub against him again, in the opposite direction, and his other hand again overtakes yours, threading his fingers and yours together, and wraps your arm around your ribs, his own like a hot steel bar across you. 

You toss your head back, gasping for air before you are pulled back under. 

Wrapped around you, he fucks you without penetration, the music a whispered instruction to the pace of his hips. You turn your head and bite his ear, making him groan deep, the metal teeth of his jeans imprinting their shape onto your ass. His eyes closed, his fingers dig into your palms. Hot, humid air puffs from his wet mouth over your shoulder, into the curl of your neck. Your skin beneath your wet hair twitches with sudden goosebumps. 

You realize, in a daze, he’s muttering the filthy lyrics to you, smearing promises into your skin long before you can reciprocate that pleasure. You push back against him, a reward, and this time, he purposefully rubs against you, against the music, his hand over yours dropping to your abdomen, just where your panties sit under your dress. He cups you as if he could mount you –  drive you under him, and eat you out on his knees.

On the next flash of light, the drop of the beat, you slide your hand out from under him and wind up into his hair. His free forearm binds you just under your tits, keeping you against his grinds, his sweat-damp body, so you curl your fingers into his hair and yank. His head drops back as he pants from the sharp spike of pleasure and pain. 

His heartbeat is the same as the bass, you think. Maybe yours too, the heat of his chest felt all the way down your spine. 

He is minutes away from unwinding himself from you, from flushing you cold without the fervor of his body, your own drenched in sweat, only to all but drag you into the nearest bathroom, shove your panties down to your knees and actually, properly fuck you until you have bruises and beg him for more. But not yet. 

There’s an intimacy in dancing like this. A familiarity that is too often rapidly lost and gained in the physicality of later acts. 

You think deliriously that all couples should have to dance like this before going out or even hooking up. Because this, this chemistry, this natural heat and rhythm, can so often provide honesty that can rarely be spoken about so early. This, this dancing, asks, “are you going to fuck me like I need it?”

Yes, his body proves as his strong, thick thighs cage you even further into him, yes, he can. 

He will fuck you. He will, he promises every time he makes you squeeze yourself with his hands. 

But not yet. 

Not yet. 

[ailoda]

updated: 17.01.25

ᯓ ✈︎ smut

It's That Simple (❤❅✘): praise kink. (@tropes-and-tales) (warning: self-doubt, panic attack)

Four Eyes (❤✘): asking bob to make a mess of himself on your face while you wear his glasses? absolutely. (@promisingyounglady)

Pretend (❤✘): you aren't sure what's worse: having to share a bed with the boy who was your first boyfriend who you haven't seen in years, or having to pretend he's your boyfriend when you wish he actually was. (@attapullman)

Bob From Stats (✘): college is a wild time, but absolutely nothing could prepare you for the quiet guy from Stats riding around campus as a cowboy. Or what a good kisser he is. (@attapullman)

That's Mine (✘): Bob likes Rooster. He does. So why does he suddenly hate him when his childhood best friend agrees to go out on a date with the pilot? (@attapullman)

Ruin the Friendship (✘): the night before Bob leaves for Boot Camp, he's learned no one has gone down on his best friend. He's determined to fix that. (@withahappyrefrain)

I Need A Minute (✘): overstimulation. (@roosterforme)

I'm Not Sorry (✘): "i should be riding some nerd’s thigh while he gropes all over my body & tells me i’m the girl of his dreams." (@drabbles-mc)

Domesticated (❤✘): on a lazy Sunday morning with Robert Floyd and your twin girls, you're reminded exactly how well he takes care of your family. And you. (@attapullman)

Warmth (❤✘): you took care of Bob the night before, and he makes sure to return the favor in the morning. (@sugarcoated-lame)

new! Entertain Me (❅✘): after fighting, you make bob eat his words. (@peachystenbrough)

new! Deserve It (✘): after working hard, your boyfriend gives you several rewards. (@withahappyrefrain)

new! Explicitly Yours (❤❅✘): when Bob met you, he fell for you hard and fast. He thought you might be his perfect match, the one that would make his days feel full instead of lonely. He never would have dreamed you had a secret. But secrets are known to be revealed at the most inconvenient of times, and Bob's surprised hesitation could cost him the thing he wants most. (@roosterforme)

[pretending-ican-write]

Cowboy Up - Pt.7

Here we are! Finally into the series itself. Cowboy Up will be a combination of me inserting the reader into scenes from the show and putting together some scenes myself that I imagine happen around what is seen on screen.

Disclaimer that I am not a horse trainer or qualified in any way but I've spent a good part of my life around them so my experience is the basis for anything in the fic about horses.

Pairing: Ryan (Yellowstone) x Dutton!reader

WC: 1121

Previous part - Next part

---

John Dutton stopped his truck in front of the round pen where Kayce was working a horse and got out to watch his son work.  He was confused to see that his youngest daughter’s truck was parked in front of the house.  He knew that she had the day off from the ranch but John wasn’t aware that she had been visiting her brother all those years.

From inside the house, y/n was on the sofa keeping an eye out the window where her twin and father were having a tense conversation that she assumed was about the cattle that had ended up on the reservation.  Monica was next to her watching her son play on the floor in front of them.

“I know he’s my father and all but I worry about what might happen if Tate ever goes to the ranch,” y/n admitted, “it’s the most beautiful place in the world if you ask me but god does it come with conditions.

Her sister-in-law nodded, “John Dutton isn’t exactly synonymous with good news.”

They lapsed into a quiet conversation about how life had been for them both over the last few months since she’d been able to get out to the reservation, Monica smiling widely when y/n confirmed Ryan had finally made his move the other month.

Once John had driven off, the women exited the house behind Tate who ran excitedly towards the rifle John had left propped against the round pen.  Y/n leant against the fence next to Monica watching the horse come to a stop.

“I don’t trust him trying to be in Tate’s life,” she admitted to her brother, “you’ve spent all these years out of his grip.  I’d hate for dad to use him as a way back in after not being around.”

Kayce sighed, “we can only see.”

-/-/-

The next morning, y/n was in the barn mucking out the stalls whilst the other hands worked around her and in the corral.  Cleaning the stalls was normally considered the job of low man, but she found some sort of enjoyment in the mundanity of the task. 

As she finished the last stall, y/n wheeled the barrow out the front of the barn and was surprised to see her sister’s black Mercedes rolling down the drive.  She dropped the handles and watched as the car went past, Beth looking at the window to make eye contact with her younger sister before continuing on to the main house.  After emptying the wheelbarrow, she re-entered the barn with her mood notably dampened by the return of Beth.  Y/n headed down the aisle to the last stall where a blue dun colt was pacing the space.  She took him out to the round pen to assess the problem’s Rip had complained about the horse having.

The colt danced at the end of the rope whilst she closed the gate and when she undid the halter, he shot off around the pen as if afraid to be anywhere near a person.  Y/n sat on the fence, patiently watching the horse work his anxiety out with a cigarette smoking between her lips.  Ryan led his horse across from the corral and leant on the fence next to her.

“He’s got a hell of an opinion in him,” he commented.

Y/n shook her head, “not an opinion Ry.  Nerves.  Poor boy is a ball of anxiety, doesn’t know what he’s supposed to do or trust.”

“How you gonna sort that out then?  Can’t wear it out of him,” Ryan asked.

She watched the colt slow to a trot, “gotta show him that he can trust us and to trust in his own decisions.  Shouldn’t take too long.”

“It’s a nice shirt you’re wearing sweetheart,” Ryan smirked, referring to the blue check shirt of his she had on.

Y/n laughed, “well my boyfriend left it lying around and I was cold so figured he wouldn’t mind.”

“He doesn’t mind at all, not one bit.  In fact I think he quite likes seeing his girlfriend wear his clothes,” he mused, running his finger up her arm, “you not going to the house to see your sister?”

She sighed, “me and Beth aren’t exactly what you would call close.  She does what dad says without question, never said shit when he did what he did to Kayce and it ain’t like she was begging me to stay.  To top it off she treats Rip like shit and the bastard just lets her walk all over him because he’s been in love with her since he was 16.”

“Being in love with someone for a long time sounds familiar,” he teased 

Y/n leant back against his arm, “difference is we were both pining.  She fucks around with his feelings every chance she gets and he’ll never go against her.”

-/-/-

Sat on Comanche, y/n watched as her brothers reunited for the first time in years and laughed as they teased each other as if they’d never been apart.  She smiled at how comfortable Tate looked on his grandfather’s horse and, as much as the sisters fought, she was reassured that Beth had her twin’s back like her.  

“Kayce let’s go,” she called across to him, “grab a horse.”

Part of her soul felt like it was healing watching how her father was with Tate and being back on the plains with all of her brothers.  Beth hadn’t been on a horse since their mother’s death but y/n had spent days of her childhood riding with the cattle alongside her brothers, racing each other despite the annoyance of John.  As Lee and Kayce raced around the herd of buffalo, y/n rode up to where Jamie was talking to their father.

“Kayce might be the only man who can outride him,” her brother observed.

She smiled, “only man but sure as hell not the only person.”

With a click to Comanche, y/n took off galloping after her brothers.  The three of them took turns pulling ahead of the others but ultimately it would have been too close to decide a winner.  Although we all know that in a straight line race y/n had the advantage, what with being a barrel racer and all.

“You joining us to fish?” Lee asked when they finally came to a halt.

Y/n shook her head, “I’m not the one who has years to regain with him Lee.  I’ll let you have your boys day out.  I’m gonna head back with the rest and do some more work with that colt."

[echoingbirdsofprey]

Delicate (Jake's Version)

1 - Iceman's Daughter

Pairing: Jake 'Hangman' Seresin x OFC Samantha Kazansky

Rating: Explicit

Warnings: swearing (as usual) and Jake just getting shit from everyone

WC: 2.5k

A/N: So I'm borrowing the twins idea...so Tyler and Jake are twins so those stories will coincide at some point. Enjoy please! Don't be a silent reader either!

Playlist

Sam didn't need a damn thing in this world. Not a thing. She certainly didn't need a man. She certainly didn't need any of these cowboy fighter pilots in Fightertown. They all seemed to want to flirt with her, but it always ended there. No one ever made a move because of who her father was.

Iceman.

U.S. Pacific Fleet Commander Tom ‘Iceman’ Kazansky.

Her father was one of the highest ranks in the Navy. And when she walked in a room, in a bar, or almost anywhere in Miramar, California, people knew exactly who’s daughter she was. 

To say that Sam wanted for nothing was an understatement. Sam would consider herself well off with her almost brand new truck, that yes, daddy did buy, and all her pretty clothes, that yes, daddy did buy for her. She flaunted the fact that her dad bought everything for her. So it was no surprise that there hadn't been a man who could match up. Especially where Sam was much smarter than most of them, and worked harder than most of them too. She had a younger brother and sister, Mark and Alexandra, who were both in high school. Sarah, their mom, had always been a stay at home mom, and took the best care of them all, while Iceman did his duty. He provided a beautiful home, and whatever they wanted or needed. 

But it didn't stop the guys from trying.

As she stepped through the open doors at The Hard Deck, a local bar where most of the military personnel hung out, Sam made a vow to herself. None of these stick jockeys were getting in her pants. Not now, not ever. These guys weren't getting a single thing from Sam. She went toward the bar and sat, noticing the sign that said ‘disrespect a lady, the Navy, or put your phone on my bar, you buy a round’ and she made sure to keep her phone off the bar. 

“Nice touch, Penny, the sign’s new, huh?” She asked the brunette woman behind the bar. Penny had known Samantha since she was little and it had been about two years since she’d seen her. Penny whipped around and a huge smile that went all the way up to her eyes formed as she nearly ran to Sam. 

“You’re back!” She exclaimed as she hugged Sam tight. “And you graduated?”

“I did. Dad was able to make it too.” Sam said, her tone turning slightly solemn. Penny hugged her again, tighter this time.

“I heard he’s not doing well...” Penny said quietly to her and Sam nodded.

“Yeah. So I’m home for now. Working remotely so that I can be here for as long as I need to.” Sam explained. “I’m meeting a friend here.”

“Well, it’s five so the entirety of the Navy should be showing up soon. Speaking of...” Penny said, glancing at someone as they came in. Someone that Sam also knew. 

“Mav.” Sam said as Pete ‘Maverick’ Mitchell walked up and pulled her into a hug. He then sat and his eyes traveled to Penny. Sam knew they had some history, so she checked her phone and then saw Maverick turn to her. 

“Tell your dad thanks for saving my ass. Again.” Maverick said and Sam laughed.

“What are you doing here?” Sam asked and he explained that he was there on a special assignment. Sam nodded and felt a hand at her back. She turned to see her friend Natasha ‘Phoenix’ Trace. Another big hug and when the two parted Nat had a big smile on her face.

“I’m so happy you’re here. I’m glad I’ll have a friend to go to the beach with while we’re on assignment.” She said and Sam smiled wide. “And you can tell me all about Harvard and all those boys you met. By the way, you look super pretty as always.” Sam had worn a pretty, lacy dress, pink on the top and blue with flowers on the skirt. She had dressy flip flops on and her phone which had her wallet with her cards and cash attached to the case.

Nat said shed be back in a few and went over to the other Naval Aviators that were there. Sam took a moment and glanced around, taking in the familiarity of it all. There were the tables and high tops on one side, some booths here and there, and then there was a jukebox, a piano, and a pool table overlooking the view of the ocean. The sun was going down so the rays were shining in through the windows, creating interesting shadows. 

She hadn’t even noticed the other aviators filing in, all meeting in the corner with the pool table. There was a tall blond, another blond with glasses, a rather handsome black guy about the same height as the first blond, and a shorter Hispanic man. They were all dressed in tan uniforms, names on their right chest, patches and wings on their left. All well put together.

Sam ordered a cider beer, and took a sip. That was the biggest thing she missed about Harvard. Every bar around had a different cider beer. She was going to miss being there in the chilly autumn months when the leaves were changing colors and falling, and everyone was decorating stupid early for Halloween. Penny smiled back at her as she chatted with Maverick, noticing Sam had seemed to be stuck in a daydream, her pink lips on the edge of the bottle opening. She was deep in thought until more of the tan uniforms walked in. A blond with a mustache who wore a Hawaiian shirt, whom she knew as Rooster, then a bearded black guy, two asian guys, an asian woman, and a dark haired white male who winked at Sam as he walked by.

Fuck.

She was trying to not be noticed and of course, one of them noticed her. She should’ve just taken her cider and gone outside onto the beach deck. She couldn’t now though. She had a great spot on the bar. And she did like people watching.

The taller black man and the tall blond had come over to the other side of the bar, asking for a round of drinks for them and their friends. Eleven beers in all. They had to come back and when they did, the black man smiled at Sam. She tipped her head down. 

Well fuckity fuck.

She noticed Nat glance over and she decided to shoot her a text. 

Sam: don’t mind me i’ll just hang out by myself

She saw Nat glanced down atr her phone and then up at Sam and mouthed a ‘sorry’ and then texted her back.

Nat: i’ll come back over in a few, catching up with Chicken Little

Sam: thought I recognized him, i forgive you as always 🥰

Sam nursed her cider and flipped through her Instagram, looking at her friend’s stories who were back in Boston. 

“You here all by your lonesome, darlin’?” A voice asked from beside her. She turned to see the tall blond leaning on his elbow over the bar. His friend, the handsome black man, was standing to his left, staring at Sam with a smile. She sighed and pursed her lips.

“Waiting for someone.” She said, trying not to look at his stupid, very handsome face. He had an air of arrogance about him that unfortunately, Sam was instantly attracted to, but she couldn’t let him know that. And the accent? Fuck.

“Well, someone isn’t here yet, so...” He said as he scooted in a bit closer. His friend whacked him on the shoulder and the blond glanced at him with a smirk. 

“New in town?” His friend asked and Sam’s eyes flicked to him. She took a sip of her cider and looked him up and down, just as another one of the tan uniforms walked up. This was the one that winked at Sam. Now she had the attention of three very good looking, very testosterone driven males, who were looking at her like she was a very unattainable snack. And they didn’t seem to know who she was. She saw Nat’s eyes gleen over and a horrified look spread across her face. Sam smirked at her. 

“You’re TopGun pilots, huh?” Sam asked with a grin, as she left the beer close to her lips. The blond’s eyebrows shot up and a wild smirk spread across his very pretty, very kissable lips. God, did she want to kiss him. FUCK.

“Jake. Jake Seresin.” He said, holding his hand out for her to shake. She did, immediately noticing how warm his hand was. He flicked his head toward his friends. “This is Reuben Fitch, and Neil Vikander,” pointing first to the handsome black man and then the brown haired, freshly shaven white guy. Reuben held his hand out for her to shake and she did so. Neil did not, instead he just smiled at her. 

She took another sip of her beer and glanced at each of them, up and down, before asking, “What are your callsigns, boys?” 

Reuben said his was ‘Payback’, Neil’s was ‘Omaha’, and then Jake...Jake took a second, tipping his nose down and flashing his pretty smile before speaking.

“Know a little bit about pilot shit, huh?” Jake asked and she rolled her eyes at him. He smirked.

“I know a lot about a lot of shit. What’s your fucking callsign, Jake ?” Sam said, the swears rolling off her tongue calmly. Reuben and Neil broke out into a fit of laughter and they both patted Jake on his back as they left. Neil leaned in and said, ‘good luck’ to him. Jake’s eyes followed his friends for a moment before the sage green locked back on her mahogany brown ones. 

“ Hangman .” He said as he sat on the stool next to Sam. 

“See that wasn’t so hard was it?” She said, finishing her beer.

“Penny, m’dear, she’ll have another, on me.” Jake said and Penny shook her head and smiled as she took Sam’s empty and replaced it with a full, ice cold bottle. 

“Oh, all I have to do is insult you and I get free beer? Excellent.” Sam said, starting on her second. Jake tilted his head and scooted closer, manspreading next to her. She placed her hand on his chest and looked him dead in the eyes. “Easy there, Peacock . I get it. You’ve got the prettiest feathers . Don’t need to see them any closer.” 

“Goddamn you are somethin’ fuckin’ else.” Jake said, shaking his head, an opened mouthed grin plastered to his face. “ Let me buy you dinner .”

“Don't need you to buy me anything else, handsome.” Sam said and Jake just kept on smiling. He looked like a love struck puppy, all wide and sparkly eyed. The only thing that was missing was the wagging tail and the tongue hanging out of his mouth. 

“Hard to get is your game then? I can hang .” He said and Sam laughed down the barrel of the bottle. 

“That why they call you ‘Hangman’?” She asked and he didn't have a come back this time. He just sat there, smiling like a fucking idiot at her, clearly hoping his handsome fucking face would get her to do whatever he wanted. Oh, boy, when he found out who her dad was, he’d change his attitude for sure. She saw Nat heading back over.

“I see you’ve met Bagman.” She said as she placed her arm around Sam’s shoulders.

“Oh no, are you Phoenix’s girlfriend. Shit. Now I really wanna take you to dinner...I didn’t even catch your name, sweetheart.” Jake said, eyes darting between Sam and Phoenix. She scoffed at him and side hugged Sam.

“I'm not going to dinner with you.” Sam said, taking her phone out and opening Instagram back up. She scrolled for a moment as Jake watched her. Waiting for the right moment. Waiting for her to give in.

“You really don’t know who she is, Hangman?” Nat asked, with a knowing smile. Sam glanced at her, Here it comes. The implosion of his self confidence. “Sam Kazansky...” Nat said and Jake’s eyes locked on Sam’s, then widened. He touched his beer to hers and then smiled and tipped his head.

“My Insta is jseresin90 when you decide to follow me.” He said, as he stood. He began to walk away and Sam's eyes followed him. He turned and smiled at her, saluted her and said, “Can't wait to see all your pretty pictures, Sam!”

She followed him with her eyes as he made his way back over to his friends. Sam turned in her seat as Nat sat at the bar next to her. She motioned to Jake.

“ So tell me more about Jake Seresin. ” She said and Nat smirked and asked Penny for another beer.

🛩️🛩️🛩️

As Jake continued drinking and playing pool, his friends and co-pilots teased him. 

“What the fuck, Jake? Tell me you got her number.” Neil said, and took a sip of his beer. 

“Yeah,, seriously, she’s hot as hell, man.” Reuben said, shaking his head.

“Well?” Bob piped up, with a smirk. Jake stopped as he was about to make his next shot, glancing around as everyone got quiet. And then he lied.

“Course I got her number.” He said, a bit sheepishly, and Bradley ‘Rooster’ Bradshaw, the dirty blond with the mustache, raised a brow. He’d give him shit later but not here. They all laughed, a few of them sighed and rolled their eyes, and then they went back to drinking and conversing with each other for a couple more hours. When everyone was sufficiently drunk or buzzed, they all decided to head home. 

Jake stepped out onto the patio and gazed out over the ocean. Behind him was his friend Coyote, aka Javy. He clapped him on the shoulder and shook him a bit, making Jake smile. 

“You okay, man?” Javy asked, and Jake nodded.

“Yeah, yeah. I’m good.” Jake said tentatively and Javy patted him on the back.

“When you wanna talk about it, I’m here.” Javy said and went back in, just as Rooster came out. Jake had turned to go back toward the parking lot and he drew in a sharp breath as he caught Rooster’s disapproving stare.

“You didn’t get her number.” He said and Jake shook his head.

“Why do you have to be an ass about it...” Jake said and Bradley stepped into his space.

“ Don’t ruin her. You’re gonna be in a world of shit if you do. You have no fucking idea who she is. ” Bradley said and Jake bumped his shoulder into his, as he brushed past him.

“There’s a whole side of me that y’all won’t ever see because you think I’m a dick. Fuck off and let me be.” Jake said as he went down the patio stairs and toward the parking lot. 

“Maybe stop acting like a dick then, Bagman!” Bradley yelled as Jake got in his truck and slammed the door. He punched the center console and swore. He took his phone out and checked to see if he had any notifications. Nothing. 

Fuck.

[caystar13star]

This little piece is an ode to @snapghoul ’s Seresin twins au. I added Fritz (and his fandom-assigned storm chasing history as well). He and Tyler met at college in Arkansas, where the Wranglers got started. Then Fritz and Jake met and it was chaos.

“Shit, that’s Fritz!”

It took everything Jake had not to react when Payback called out to the newly arrived aviator. He and Fritz had been stationed together exactly once, and between the constant goading and their “insane” flying when they were paired in the air together, the brass tended to keep them separated for the good of the Navy.

That sobered him for a moment. What kind of mission was this?

Jake was surprised that Billy kept his distance during training, but he figured the other man must be waiting for just the right moment. They were all pretty focused on training.

It was a rather unremarkable Saturday after the mission that Fritz made his move.

The Dagger squad had been permanently assigned to North Island, under the command of the newly-appointed Admiral Mitchell (his husband refused to let him change his name, saying two Admiral Kazanskys would just be too confusing). They had been invited to the admirals’ home several times, and met even more admirals, and retired captains, and even a Texas Ranger! The TOPGUN class of ‘86 was certainly an interesting group.

Fanboy had cornered Fritz, asking him for more details about his storm chasing days, when Jake overheard them. “Hold up, let me show you. My old partner has a YouTube channel. It’s badass.”

Jake groaned, leaning his head against Bradley’s shoulder. “Kill me now, please.”

Rooster looked at the other aviators, confused as to what Jake’s problem was. Fritz was giggling quietly in that half-crazy way of his as he swiped and scrolled on Mickey’s iPad. “Here you go, check this out.”

Bradley caught on but held back his laughter when he heard Tyler’s voice through the speakers. “Alright, what’s up, chat?!?? Welcome back. Thank you for joining us. It’s a perfect weather day!”

Reuben and Mickey were staring wide-eyed at the screen, glancing between the scruffy cowboy Tyler on YouTube, and the perfectly put together mirror image Jake sitting curled up on Admiral Kazansky’s sofa.

“Is that…Hangman??” Fanboy’s confused voice brought the rest of the squad over to see what they were watching. Mav looked and cocked his head to the side, then narrowed his eyes at Jake.

“I didn’t know you had a twin!”

Jake looked surprised that Mav came to that conclusion from only seeing a short clip of Tyler. Most people who knew them all their lives still got them mixed up, despite their different styles and Jake’s efforts to minimize his accent (except when Bradley royally pissed him off).

Bradley squeezed his hand as if knowing the direction of his thoughts. “Dad has a twin, too,” he offered. “But I’m not sure if the Daggers are ready to meet Uncle Ethan yet…”

[writingfromasgard]

𝔹𝕝𝕦𝕣𝕓𝕤

Masterlist

𝕋𝕖𝕩𝕥

Cowboy Graves - rambling, anti-graves "My Girls take after me" - anti-graves, pro-soap, cowboyAU TF141: Dick tricks Sexting w/ 141 TF141's therapist Monsieur Price + His Escorts You got a Lame ass boyfriend TF141+Konig: Surprise! I'm Naked! TF141 away from home for weeks TF141 who turn Cowboy after meeting you Chat: See cat, lick cat - Gaz, Price, Ghost, Soap, Laswell TF141 + Konig Birthmarks TF141's (Female) S/Os Fae141 + Konig Cures for the common Cold Uninterested/Distracted kink TF141's Anniversary Dance Party - Gaz, Soap Doll, Babes, Flower, Hen - reader inserts for Price, gaz, simon, soap Gaz would buy a bread maker TulsaKingAU! Poll: "Call me the twin towers the way her bush got me falling" Chat: Price x Doll; Hotdogs + My favorite response from y'all Minecraft - Gaz, Soap, Ghost Gaz x Soap - how it started

𝕄𝕖𝕕𝕚𝕒

Konig vs Ghost Audio - Talking to their SO Eating pussy - Video, meme

[sourcherryandsprinkles]

SCREAM MASTERPOST

*= smut

CHAD MEEKS MARTIN

Bodybag | Riley!Reader

Chad comforts you after Dewey's death

Cockblock roommate *

Ethan stops you and Chad from continuing your activities

Don't go upstairs with him

Chad stops you from going upstairs with Frankie...and then confesses to you

Goodnight kiss * | Riley!Reader

Chad walks you home and finally takes your relationship to the next level

Helping hand *

After Chad gets released from the hospital, his personal nurse gives him a helping hand

I can't go through this again

Another ghostface strikes and Chad has PTSD from the legacy murders

Is that my shirt?

Chad notices that the shirt you're wearing is his

Late night in the kitchen *

During a trip to the twins' family cabin, you and Chad have a late night adventure in the kitchen

Save a horse, ride a cowboy *

You make a move on Chad and end up in an empty bedroom with his cowboy hat on, riding another kind of horse

Setting up the tree

You and Chad decorate the Christmas tree together

Stab stab stab

Chad gets stabbed by Ghostface when looking for you

Stood up

You get stood up and Chad offers you his shoulder to cry on

The no-sex rule *

You and Chad don't listen to Mindy's 'surviving a horror movie' rules

Wrong person

You send you nudes to your ex by mistake

You drew stars around my scars

You sleep over at Chad's dorm and see something you hadn't seen before

MINDY MEEKS MARTIN

Blood on the subway

Mindy gets stabbed on the subway...there's a lot of blood

Give me attention *

Mindy works on a school assignement, but you're bored and decide to tease her

Movie night

After watching the horror that is Halloween Ends, Mindy needs kisses to erase the movie from her memory

Skilled fingers *

Mindy is a goddess in bed

TARA CARPENTER

Caught *

Tara asks you to use a vibrator on her...and Sam walks in

I was so scared

After Tara gets attacked at her house, you visit her at the hospital

Is this good? *

Tara tries to top for the first time

I thought you were dead

You survive the attack inside the shrine

Sleepover *

It's the first sleepover since Tara got attacked in her house. You and her breaks the friendship

We might die tomorrow

After Sam and Tage get attacked at the bodega, everyone stayed over at the appartement

ETHAN LANDRY

Catching feelings *

You grown feelings during a game of teasing your roommate Ethan

Friends touch each other, right? *

You teach virgin!Ethan how to touch a woman

I can't forgive you | Riley!Reader

Ethan betrays you, but you can't forgive him

It's you *

You figure out Ethan is Ghostface

Let's play a little game *

You get a phone call from a masked ID when you’re home alone…

Night visits

As Quinn's friend, you are not allowed to see her little brother, so you and Ethan have a secret relationship

No protection needed *

You and Ethan do it without a condom for the first time

Play with me *

Ethan asks you to play with him

Panty stealer

Pervy!Ethan steals your panties

Pretty boy * | camgirl!reader

Ethan purchases a private session with his favorite camgirl

Pretty boy part 2 *

Ethan purchases another private session...and get the girl's number

Pretty boy part 3 *

Camgirl!Reader and Ethan finally meets

Roomie *

Ethan jerks off to his roommate and gets caught

Shy!Ethan

Ethan has a huge crush on you but is too shy to make a move...so you make one

Study time

Studying econ turns into teasing your boyfriend

That's hot

You find out that Ethan does boxing

Video games *

You give Ethan a blowjob while he games with Chad

Video girl *

You convince Ethan to make a video with you

BILLY LOOMIS

Knife play

You seduce Billy with the knife he used to kill Maureen Prescott

Ménage à trois * | Billy x Stu x Reader

A typical movie night at Stu’s turns into a ménage à trois

Mouthful * | Billy x Stu x Riley!Reader

Why settling for one when you can get two?

PG-16 at the Theater

Billy gets handsy at the movie theater

Stranger danger *

Billy decide to surprise you on your way back from Tatum's

Talk dirty to me *

Phone sex with Billy

[winchesterwild78]

The Ranch pt 2

Master List

Characters: Jensen-cowboy, single dad, x Reader-city girl moved to country to get away from it all

Warnings/Theme: brief mention of depression, angst (more like guilt), fluff

A/N: A short little story featuring our favorite green eyed cowboy, not an actor in this, lives on a ranch in Texas, is a widower with 3 kids. Reader is a city girl who moves to the country to get away from her ex and start a new life. She takes a job on the ranch and things develop between her and the cowboy. Internal dialogue in italics.

So much love and thanks to @cheynovak for the idea. ♥️ All work is my own. No disrespect to anyone, this is a work of fiction. Real names are used, but again this is a work of fiction. Got a little carried away with this chapter, sorry.  Do not take my work

Minors DNI 18+

The next morning you woke up early, showered and headed down to the kitchen. Jensen was up and was sitting at the table with a cup of coffee. “Good morning, Jensen.” He looked up and smiled, “Good morning, Y/N. How did you sleep?” “Like a baby. The bed was so comfortable, thank you.” “There’s coffee in the pot if you want some, I’ve already eaten, and the kids should be up soon.”

“Great, so what would you like me to do today?” You asked as you filled up a coffee cup. “Well, the kids need to get to school today, so if you could get them ready and out the door that would be great. The bus will be here at about 6:45. Once they are on the bus, you can come find me. I should be at the horse stable.” “Sounds good, I’ll see you shortly.” 

Jensen nodded and stood. He was wearing a t-shirt, jeans, boots and he grabbed his cowboy hat. Damn he looked good. Jensen walked outside and you heard his truck start up and pull away. 

You walked upstairs and woke up the kids. JJ got out of bed quickly, the twins were a little slower. Arrow just glared at you when you tried to get her up. You smiled sweetly at her and she rolled over, putting her back towards you. You softly sighed and got up. You went to Zeppelin’s room and got him up. He was excited to see you, and he hugged you. It took you by surprise, but you hugged him back. 

You went into the hallway, “Okay guys, 10 minutes I need you all downstairs so you can get to your bus on time.” Walking back down the stairs you went into the kitchen and started to make breakfast. You figured pancakes with orange juice would be a good breakfast. JJ and Zep were the first down the stairs. They came into the kitchen excited when they saw the pancakes. 

They both sat at the kitchen table and you put pancakes on their plate. You cut up Zep’s and poured him some juice. “JJ, do you know where Arrow is?” Stuffing her face she looked up at you, “She said she’s not going to school.” “Hmm, okay. You two stay here, I'll see what’s going on.” 

You walked back upstairs and took a deep breath before going back into Arrow’s room. You walked in her room and saw her still in bed. “Arrow, honey, you need to get up, it’s time for school.” “No! I’m not going.” You stepped closer to her bed, “Arrow, come on, your daddy wants you to go to school.” “No! I said, I'm not going, I don’t feel good.” “Okay, I’ll let your daddy know you’re not feeling well. It’s a shame you are going to miss the delicious pancakes I made just for you three. Your daddy didn’t even get any.

She rolled over and looked at you with her big eyes, “You made pancakes?” “Yep, and I even put out chocolate chips to go on them, but you’re not feeling good so I’ll let you sleep.” 

“Wait, Miss Y/N.” You turned and softly smiled at her, “yes, sweetheart?” “Um, If I get dressed now, can I still have some pancakes?” You walked over to her bed and sat down, “Of course you can. I’ll make sure you get some.” She smiled and whispered, “Thank you.” You stood up and walked back downstairs. A few minutes later you saw her coming down the stairs and you smiled slightly. 

When she sat down you handed her a plate with pancakes on it. You slid the chocolate chips over to her and smiled. She nodded and put some on her plate. A few minutes later the kids were fed and grabbing their book bags to head to the bus. As the four of you walked towards the end of the driveway, Zep ran up beside you and took your hand. You smiled down at him and he smiled at you. 

You looked over and saw Arrow staring as you all walked towards the bus stop. She smiled a little but then looked away. As the bus pulled up you told them all to have a good day and they climbed on the bus. JJ and Zep waved at you as the bus pulled off. 

Once back in the house you cleaned up from breakfast and you went upstairs to make the kids’ beds. Making your way to each room, you made the beds and cleaned up. You walked into Arrow’s room and started to clean up and make her bed. You noticed a piece of paper on the floor. You bent down and picked it up. The paper was a picture she drew. It broke your heart, it was a picture of Jensen, her, JJ, and Zep. In the sky was a woman with red hair. You knew from the pictures you saw downstairs it was her mother. It all made sense to you. Her treatment of you, her walls. She missed her mother so much. So you came up with a plan to help her open up, but you needed to talk to Jensen.

You walked over to the horse barn and saw Jensen inside working. He was moving bales of hay. His shirt showed off his back muscles and his biceps flexed with every movement. You bit your lip and your thighs clenched together. God he looked so good. You cleared your throat getting his attention. “Oh hey there darlin’. Did the kids get up and off without any trouble?” “Yeah, they all got up, ate some pancakes and made it on the bus. Sorry I’m late getting down here. I cleaned up the kitchen and made their beds.” 

Jensen stood up, wiped the sweat from his forehead and chuckled. “They got you good this morning. They know they are supposed to make their beds.” You both laughed. “I’ll remember that.” “So, what would you like me to do?” You asked him as he moved the last bale of hay. 

“Well I figured I could teach you how to brush the horses and muck their stalls.” “Sounds good to me.” “Okay, so the first thing we need to do is brush the horses. You pull them out and tie them to the hook on the wall, and use that brush over there to brush them.” “Sounds easy enough.” Jensen grabbed the brush and pulled out the first horse, the one he rode yesterday. “This is Cinnamon. She’s my favorite.” Jensen said as he smiled at you. “She’s beautiful, Jensen.” “She was Dee’s horse. Her and I bonded after Dee died. She got so depressed she wouldn’t eat, I would sleep in here with her, keeping her company. Well, we both got depressed after Dee. We saved each other.” Your breath hitched.

“Oh Jensen, I am so sorry. Seems like Dee left an incredible mark on everyone and everything here. You know, Arrow really misses her too.” “Yeah she did, she was an incredible woman. Arrow and her were really close too. After the twins were born, I was gone a lot trying to keep the ranch going. She bonded with them and Arrow was her mini-me.” 

You told Jensen about the picture and you saw his eyes fill with tears. A few tears fell from his eyes, and you reached up and brushed them away. His breath caught in his throat. “I’m sorry Jensen, that was inappropriate.” He looked at you and gently smiled, “It’s okay. Thank you for being so kind.” 

Jensen stared at you for a few minutes before breaking eye contact. He went back to brushing the horse and showing you how to brush them. “Okay, are you ready to muck the stall?” “Sure, I still have no idea what that is, but let’s do it.” Jensen laughed, “Oh you’re going to regret saying that.” 

Jensen grabbed the shovel and large trash can and opened the stall, “The first thing we have to do is use this shovel to clean out the old hay and the manure. We throw it in the trash can. Once we get it shoveled out we spray it with the hose and scrub.” 

You grabbed the shovel and started cleaning out the stall. Jensen let Cinnamon run in the corral as he got the next horse out to brush. You were just shoveling the last bit out as Jensen’s head popped around the stall, “Looking good, Y/N.” You looked up at Jensen and smiled softly. Putting the shovel down, you grabbed the water hose and sprayed the stall and scrubbed. As you were rinsing the floor, you slipped. You braced yourself for a fall that didn’t come. When you looked up you saw Jensen. He had his strong arms around you, he caught you as you slipped. 

Your heart beat wildly in your chest as the two of you looked in each other’s eyes. His arms were wrapped around you tightly. You both were breathing heavily. “Jensen, thank you for catching me.” He helped you up, “You’re welcome, sweetheart. These floors get slippery when they are wet. Be careful.” 

The two of you stood there inches away from each other, you could feel his hot breath on your face. He reached up and brushed a piece of hair behind your ear. You blushed. Your lips were inches away from each other. You could hear your heart beating loudly in your ears. “Jensen, I um.. I don’t think this is a good idea.” You bit your lip, not believing what you were saying. 

Jensen backed away, “I’m so sorry, Y/N. I don’t know what came over me.” You touched his arm, “It’s okay, I understand.” He ran his hands through his hair and walked away. You grabbed clean hay and put it in Cinnamon’s stall. You moved to clean out the next stall, and saw Jensen out in the corral with Cinnamon. He had a saddle in his hand. Jensen put it on Cinnamon and climbed on. You watched as he took off on her. 

You sighed loudly. “Great, just great Y/N. He was about to kiss you and you screwed it up. What the hell is wrong with you!?” “You okay there sweetpea?” You jumped when you heard a gruff voice behind you. “Oh yeah, sorry I was just talking to myself. I’m Y/N.” “Yeah, I figured, I’m Clif. I saw Jensen take off on Cinnamon.” “Yeah, um I’m not sure why. He was showing me how to take care of the horses and the stalls, then he left.” 

Clif sighed, “I know where he’s going. He’s going to talk to Dee. He does that from time to time. He’ll be okay.” You nodded in understanding. “Well, Y/N when you finish here, come find me at the other barn. I’ll show you what to do there.” “Okay, Clif, it was nice to officially meet you.” “Yeah, you too, Y/N.”

Clif left and you continued cleaning the stall. The last horse was larger than the other two. He was a beautiful gray and white horse. You were able to get him out of the stall, brushed and in the corral. You cleaned his stall and put in fresh hay. After you were finished you cleaned up the equipment and went to find Clif. 

As you approached the barn you heard talking. You saw Cinnamon in the corral outside the barn. You heard Jensen’s voice, “Yeah, she slipped and I caught her. Clif, I almost kissed her. I don’t know what came over me.” “I do, you’re a man, and she’s an attractive woman. You’re allowed to be happy again, Jensen. Dee would want that.” “I know, I just feel like I’m betraying her.” Clif put his hand on Jensen’s shoulder, “I understand, but just know you’re not. It’s been 2 years, it’s okay.” 

You walked up to the barn and opened the door, trying to make enough noise so they knew you were there. “Hey, Clif, are you here?” You called from outside. “Yeah, in here.” You opened the door and made eye contact with Jensen. “Hey Jensen.” “Hey, Y/N. Did you get the stalls clean?” “Yep, sure did. Came down here to see what I could help Clif with.” “Well, there isn’t much here today. You’re more than welcome to head back up to the main house if you want.” Jensen told you with a soft smile. 

“Oh, okay. If you’re sure.” “Yeah, I’m sure.” “Okay, well I’ll head back, take a shower and make y’all some lunch.” Clif and Jensen smiled at you, “Sounds good, thanks Y/N.” You nodded, smiled and walked towards the house. 

Great. Now things are weird between you and Jensen. Why didn’t you just let him kiss you, you know you wanted him to. I guess I need to start looking for somewhere else to live. He’s not going to want me here anymore. Maybe I should just go back to Alex. 

You sighed as you walked and thought to yourself. You made it to the house and went to your room. Grabbing clean clothes you walked into your bathroom. Showering felt amazing after cleaning out the horse stalls. You washed your hair and body, getting out you dried off and pulled on clean clothes. 

Walking into the kitchen you decided to make sandwiches, chop some fresh fruits and vegetables and make a fresh pitcher of sweet tea. You had just finished when you heard the front door. Jensen walked in the kitchen and smiled at you, “You clean up good, sweetheart.” Your heart fluttered. “Thank you. Lunch is ready if you’re hungry. It’s not much, just some sandwiches, fruits, veggies and some tea.” “Sounds great, thank you.” 

Jensen walked over to the sink and washed his hands. Grabbing a plate he put some sandwiches, fruits and veggies on it. Then he grabbed a large glass out of the cabinet and poured himself some tea. He sat down at the table and started to eat. 

You grabbed some food and started to head outside. Jensen looked up at you, “Where ya going sweetheart?” “Oh, I was going to eat outside, give you some space.” Jensen looked shocked. He stood up, walked over to you and grabbed your plate. He set it down on the table, taking your hand and looking in your eyes. “I’d rather you eat with me, if you want to.” You nodded yes and sat down beside him.

The two of you sat eating in silence. “Look, I think we should talk.” Jensen said, interrupting the silence. You looked into his green eyes and took a deep breath. Here it comes, he’s going to ask you to leave. “It’s okay, Jensen, really. This was supposed to be a trial basis. I can pack and be gone before the kids get home. Really, no hard feelings.” 

Jensen sat stunned, “What?! No, that’s not what I want. Wait, is that what you want?” You put your head down and whispered, “No.” “Okay, good. What I was going to say is I’m sorry I tried to kiss you. You just got out of a relationship and I’m still a mess. I like you, but I don’t want to push you into anything. I don’t want you thinking you have to be with me to keep this job either. I saw the horse stalls and they looked incredible. You do amazing work, and the kids love you already, especially Zep.” 

You smiled, “Yeah, they are great kids. Jensen, I like you too. I just don’t want you to think I’m trying to jump in your bed and replace your wife. I’m not. I think we should just take things slow.” Jensen smiled, “I agree. Let things happen naturally. No expectations, no pushing.” You nodded in agreement. “Great, now that we have that out of the way, thanks for making lunch, Y/N. It’s delicious.” You smiled, “Thanks, it’s not much, I’ll cook something really good for dinner.” 

“Oh, I wanted to ask you something, Jensen.” “Sure, anything.” He looked up at you. “So the picture Arrow drew, where she had Dee in the sky, had me thinking. I want to do something special for her and the other two. Do you happen to have any pictures of Dee holding each one, just the two of them in the picture?” “Yeah, we should have some in the photo albums in the living room.”

“Do you mind if I look after lunch? I want to have copies made of each picture and give them to the kids to put in their room. That way they can see her and talk to her whenever they want to. It’s something my mom did for me when my grandmother died. It helped me grieve.” Jensen smiled at you, placed his hand softly on yours, “I think that’s a great idea, thank you for thinking of my babies like that.” 

You looked at his hand on yours and smiled. Clif came in and grabbed some lunch, just as you were finishing. “Jensen, could you help me find the albums?” Jensen stood, “Sure, I’ll be right there.” You nodded and left the room. Clif smiled at him and Jensen smirked, “Stop it Clif.” They both chuckled.

Jensen walked in the living room and pulled out the albums for you. “They should be in one of these. Would you like some help looking for them?” Jensen asked as he handed you the albums. “Sure, that would be great.” The two of you sat on the floor and looked through the albums. He laughed and showed you different pictures telling you about the day they were taken. 

Clif heard you two laughing and walked towards the living room and watched you two interact. He smiled and looked over at Dee’s picture that hung on the wall near him, “I’m trying Dee. He’ll be okay, she seems good for him.” Clif whispered to her picture, like he was talking directly to her. 

Jensen was able to help you find 3 different pictures that were taken not long before Dee died. Jensen stood up and walked over to where you were sitting and offered you his hand. He pulled you up, you stumbled forward and landed flush against his chest. 

You looked up at him and he looked down at you. Your breath caught in your throat, your heart racing again. You licked your lips and Jensen’s eyes were focused on your lips. You leaned forward, and so did he. You both took a deep breath as his lips were inches from yours. 

Closing your eyes you leaned forward until your lips touched. The kiss sent electricity through your body. Jensen’s hands cupped your face, and then his fingers went into your hair, pulling you deeper into the kiss. His tongue licked your lips and you parted your mouth allowing him access. Your tongues fought for dominance, moving together in an intricate dance. You moaned a little into his mouth and he pulled you closer. 

The two of you finally pulled away and were breathing heavily. You looked at him and blushed. He ran his thumb over your cheek, “You’re so beautiful.” You blushed, “Thank you.” He kissed your forehead before letting go of you.

“Jensen, what time do the kids get home? I want to have the pictures ready and go to the grocery store before they get home.” “They should be home about 3:30, do you mind if I go with you? I have some things I want to pick up in town.” “No, not at all. I’d welcome the company.” “Great, let me go shower and change. I’ll be back shortly.” You nodded and Jensen left the room.

You sat down on the couch and thought about the kiss. The two of you had decided to let things happen naturally, I guess once the pressure was off things just happened. You weren’t sure what the kiss meant, but you knew you couldn’t wait to kiss him again. 

Waiting for Jensen you pulled out your phone and noticed you had a message from Alex.

Alex: Hey, you’ve got some mail. Where should I send it?

You: I’ll find out if you can send it directly here or if I need to get a PO Box.

Alex: Why can’t you just tell me where you are?

You: It’s not my house, Alex. I don’t want to just give you the address without asking my boss.

Alex: You live with your boss? Are you sleeping with him too?

You: What the hell Alex, No! This is a live-in position. I help take care of his kids and I work on the ranch. 

Alex: Okay, well if he tries to sleep with you, then you can sue him.

You: Alex, he’s not like that. I’ll let you know where to send my mail.

You let out a frustrated sigh and tossed your phone to the side. Jensen stepped in the room and saw, “You okay?” “Yeah, just my ex being a jerk.” Jensen’s jaw clenched, “Sorry, anything I can help with?” “No, not unless you can go back in time and tell my younger self not to date him.” You chuckled and Jensen smiled. 

“Are you ready to go?” Jensen asked. “Yep, ready when you are.” The two of you headed out the door. His hand instinctively went to the small of your back, leading you outside. He opened the truck door for you and you climbed in. Jensen walked around to the driver’s seat and got in. 

Before too long, the two of you were pulling into a parking spot at the local grocery store. Jensen told you they had a photo lab inside where you could make prints. You grabbed the photos and walked towards the store. Inside, Jensen led you to the photo lab and helped you make copies of the pictures. 

You picked out three nice frames and put them in the cart. Jensen smiled at you, he was in awe of your kindness towards his children. You continued shopping together and loading up the cart, picking out things for dinner and other groceries the household needed. As the two of you rounded a corner you noticed a tall man, with dark hair walking towards you two. 

He was smiling and approached you and Jensen. Jensen looked up and smiled. “Hey, Jay! I thought that was you. How ya doing? How are the rugrats?” “Hey, G! We are doing good. Oh where are my manners? G, this is Y/N, Y/N this is G, well Gino. He’s Dee’s brother.” You extended your hand, “Nice to meet you Gino.” “You too, Y/N. So how do you two know each other?” “Oh, I work on the Ranch. Jensen just hired me.” Gino nodded and looked at Jensen.

You noticed the shift in energy, and it made you a little uncomfortable. “Jensen, I’m gonna finish getting the things I need.” Jensen shifted a little, “Yeah, sure. I’ll catch up.” You nodded, “It was nice to meet you, Gino. Please excuse me.” “Yeah, you too, Y/N.” 

When you walked away you let out the breath you’d been holding. Not exactly sure why, but you felt a twinge of guilt now for kissing Jensen. Gino turned towards Jensen, “Dude, what is going on? Are you two a thing?” Jensen’s eyes went wide, “No, she works for me. She helps take care of the kids and does things around the ranch.” “Listen, Jay, I’m sorry if I’ve come off as anything but supportive. It’s been 2 years, Dee would want you to be happy, I want you to be happy. Just remember it’s not just the two of you who could be hurt if anything goes wrong.” Jensen shifted and rubbed the back of his neck, “Yeah, I know. She’s really good with them, G. Especially Arrow. That little firecracker gave her a bit of trouble this morning, but she was able to break down a bit of her wall.” “That’s great Jay, just promise me you two will take it slow.” “We are, I promise.”

The rest of the day went pretty fast. The kids came home from school excited about their day. You helped them with their homework as Jensen finished working. As the kids played you cooked dinner. You were excited to give the kids their pictures and figured after dinner would be the perfect time to do it. 

Jensen came into the house shortly before you finished cooking. He walked in the kitchen covered in dirt and sweat. “Smells good. I’m starving.” “It’ll be ready soon. Why don’t you go take a shower and change.” You smiled at him. Jensen walked over to you, he was about to kiss you when he heard the kids. He pulled away and offered you an apologetic look. 

You whispered, “it’s okay” and he nodded, walking away. You knew the two of you had to be careful with this relationship. Agreeing not to move too fast. This wasn’t just to protect the two of you, it was for the sake of the kids too. 

About 20 minutes later, dinner was ready and the five of you sat around the table. Laughter and conversation filled the air. Your heart warmed at the sight. Looking up you made eye contact with Jensen. You blushed, and he offered you a soft smile. 

After everyone had their fill of dinner, you went into the kitchen to clean up. Jensen walked in with some dishes from the table. “Hey, Y/N, thank you for cooking dinner. It was amazing.” He pulled you into a hug and you inhaled deeply, taking in his scent. “You’re welcome, Jensen. I’m glad you liked it.” You handed him the towel, “I wash and you dry?” You smiled. “Sure, sweetheart.” He chuckled and took the towel.

A little while later Jensen called the kids to the living room, “Okay guys, Miss Y/N has something she wants to give you guys. Go ahead and take a seat.” You were a little nervous. Especially with Arrow. You’d been trying to break down some of her walls, you were afraid the slightest thing would build them back up. 

“So your dad and I were looking through some pictures today and I found some I thought you three would love, so I had these made for you.” You handed all three kids their own framed picture of them with Dee. JJ and Zep were off the couch quickly and threw their arms around your neck. JJ looked at the framed picture, “It’s me and mama. Is this mine?” Jensen looked at his oldest daughter, “Yes baby, it’s for you to keep in your room.” “Forever?” Her voice small. You looked at her, “Yes, JJ, forever.” 

JJ and Zep ran to their rooms to put their pictures beside their bed. You and Jensen noticed Arrow hadn’t said a word, or reacted. The two of you exchanged looks. Jensen sat next to her, “Sweetie, you okay?” Arrow didn’t answer. 

Panic filled your body and you looked at Jensen with fear in your eyes. Arrow just sat on the couch, looking at the framed photo. Her eyes flashed up and met yours. You smiled softly at her. She looked back down at the picture then back up at you.

She leapt off the couch and threw her arms around you with tears in her eyes. You let out the breath you were holding and hugged her tightly. Jensen’s eyes filled with tears. Arrow let go of your neck, grabbed the picture and went to her room with it. Not a single word was spoken. 

A few hours later, after showers, brushed teeth, and bedtime stories, it was time for the kids to go to bed. You and Jensen made your way around telling each of the kids good night. Zep and JJ had their pictures on their bedside tables, when you walked into Arrow’s room you didn’t see the picture. 

“Good night, Arrow. I hope you have sweet dreams.” You said as you kept looking around for the picture. “Good night, Miss Y/N.” Her voice was so soft. You smiled at her and turned to walk out. “Miss Y/N?” “Yes, sweetie?” “Thank you for my picture. I love it. It’s my favorite picture of me and mama.” You crossed the room and sat on the bed beside her, “Oh sweetie, I’m so glad you like it.” Looking down, you noticed the picture was in her bed with her. Your heart soared.

You leaned down and softly kissed her forehead, “Good night Arrow, and good night Dee.” You didn’t know Jensen was standing outside the door and heard the whole conversation. Before you walked out he slipped away. His heart warmed in his chest. 

With the kids in bed you went to your room and slipped into your baggy t-shirt, and sleep pants. You threw your hair up in a messy bun, grabbed a blanket and your book you had been reading. Stepping out on the balcony, you settled in one of the chairs and pulled out your book. 

You heard a soft knock on your door and got up to answer it. Standing there in a t-shirt, and gray sweatpants was Jensen. His hair was slightly messy, and a relaxed look on his face. “Hey, sweetheart, am I interrupting?” You shook your head “no”. Jensen licked his lips and looked at you. You stepped to the side and let him in. As soon as he was inside the room, he closed the door and his hands went around your waist, pulling you into a searing kiss. 

Your mind was racing, heart pounding and your body began to respond to his touch. The kiss was different from the first one, it was full of passion and need. The two of you finally pulled away, gasping for air. A blush formed on your face.

“I love it when you blush, you’re so beautiful.” “Jens, not that I’m complaining, but what was that for?” “You’re an incredible woman. You put my kids’ needs before anything today. You’re helping my baby girl come out of her shell, and I heard you in her room. When you told Dee good night. I can’t ever thank you enough for what you’re doing to help my babies, or me.” 

You touched his face and smiled, “Jensen, you don’t have to thank me. The four of you are hurting, and rightfully so, I’m just showing kindness, nothing more than kindness and sympathy.” “You’re doing so much more than that, you’re fixing our broken hearts.” 

Your breath hitched. You’d never seen Jensen’s eyes so brilliantly green. You smiled at him and he smiled back. 

There was a comfortable silence that fell over you two. Just sitting on the balcony, looking up at the stars. The rest of the night was filled with stolen glances, soft kisses, and falling deeper for each other. As Jensen told you good night and placed a soft kiss on your lips, you felt yourself yearning for him. You knew keeping that feeling inside would be difficult, but Jensen was worth it. Little did you know he was feeling the exact same way. 

Part 3

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[bluemoonsunrise]

Demons and Savages

pairing: tsu’tey and human!avatar driver (fem presenting)

content warnings: graphic language, violence, alien vs human differences, awkward friendship?, tension, angst, vulgarity. (also, i don’t like to capitalize sentences on tumbler :3)

word count: …idk :D

pov: 2nd person so you can add yourself in. for writing/plot purposes, your character is named eris ramsey. i’ll use the name sparingly but i can’t take myself seriously writing y/n— so please just work with me here. i promise it’ll be worth it. (i hope)

< previous chapter

———🌌———

SUMMARY: earth was dying and your sister was, too, but cancer killed her faster than humans were killing earth. when she passed, she not only left behind an empty apartment full of memories but a billion dollar avatar without a driver. in a desperate attempt to not waste that money, the program she had spent the last five years preparing to join recruited you— her twin. of course, you agreed. there was nothing left on earth for you. there was nothing left on earth for anyone— that’s why people like your sister were sent off to pandora.

when your sister had spoken of pandora, it seemed like a dream.

the RDA promised it would be like a safari adventure.

truth was that pandora is beautiful. beautiful and unlike anything else across the whole of the universe. it is breathtaking— and that’s because what chases you through the forest hunts with the intent to kill; so you best run like hell even if your lungs are on fire. beasts and monsters of all kinds lurk out of sight waiting for the right moment to kill you dead— but none are as dangerous as him.

the blue shadow with the bow.

chapter two

— cowboy —

you should have linked to your avatar body sooner. the morning had nearly passed by the time you opened your eyes and stirred in your hammock. when you rose, he was waiting.

he had been waiting.

for hours.

anger made him look volatile. his tail flicked behind him as he watched you climb out from your hammock. you nearly tripped over your own feet trying to rub the daze of shifting into this larger, still-stiff body from your eyes.

“i’m sorry…” you said as you approached. you dipped your head and signed, ‘i see you’ to him. when his demeanor did not change, you swallowed around the lump in your throat. “really, i’m sorry. i don’t have much control over when i can and can’t be connected to my body.”

tsu’tey flicked his head and you knew to start marching.

he was kind enough to have saved you breakfast. dried fruits and nuts. you picked at them within the pouch he stored them in as you walked through the forest together. you offered him some as an attempt at making peace. to your surprise, he took a handful and poured them into his mouth. it was silent as you walked.

well, not for very long.

you had a bad habit of blabbering when tension arose— and you could feel the negativity radiating off him like the old story of chernobyl you knew about.

“how long have you been up for?” you asked, shooting a glance his way.

tsu’tey popped more pieces of dried fruit into his mouth and grunted. “sunrise.”

guilt made your stomach hurt.

“i really am sorry. i hope you understand that there is a strict schedule i follow. if i don’t, i risk killing myself. water? food? sleep? it’s all stuff my real body needs, too.” you said.

“i am not angry you are late, skxawng. i care not for what you do. im angry my day revolves around you. why i must be the one to teach you is not something i am happy with. i have other tasks i would rather see to. hunting. training warriors who are soon to pass their iknimaya.” tsu’tey said gruffly, not bothering to look at you.

your expression soured and you scowled at him. “you can teach me to be a warrior, too.”

“ha,” tsu’tey laughed. a real laugh. it lit up his face and made his ears perk up. he looked at you and shook his head. “you really are a skxawng.”

“eywa may have given me a sign not to shoot you down with my bow but it changes nothing. i see what you truly are, demon, even with all your practiced knowledge.”

“you are not real.”

you could only stare at him. your throat went dry. your heart shuddered in your chest. your voice was no where to be found— but what could ever be said to that?

nothing. because he was right.

“then why bother with all this?”

tsu’tey turned, stopping dead in his tracks. his tail flicked. “what?”

“why did you save me from the nantang?” you asked outright. you swallowed the fruit you had in your mouth with trouble and tried to keep your chin up. “if you know what i am, why bother saving me? you could’ve let me get torn apart. it wouldn’t have been you who killed me. no blame on you. why did you save me?”

tsu’tey let his shoulders drop. when he met your eyes, he looked at you. into you.

“eywa did not want you dead,” he said. his voice was too soft. he sounded like an entirely different person. a hopeless believer. “the atokirina landed on my arrowhead before it floated down to you. it kept me from firing that shot. it was a sign. you were to live.”

“when it floated around you, i knew what the great mother expected of me when the nantang attacked you.” tsu’tey said as he approached.

you stiffened as he stood in front of you. you had to tilt your head back to see him clearly. “and what…what is it that she expected?”

you winced when he grabbed your hand even though it didn’t hurt. not in the slightest. he touched your extra finger. he fought a scowl, his face twitching. he looked into your eyes and — for a second time — he was staring into you.

“i am to protect you…” tsu’tey muttered. he almost rolled his eyes as a heavy sigh escaped him. “it has been decided by eywa and by the tsahik. eywa is greater than my feelings. the great mother is greater than our differences. demon or not, you have been chosen for something and it is my job to make sure you don’t kill yourself, skxawng.”

“i— i’ve been chosen for something? what?” you asked, grasping his hand. you needed answers. you needed to know all that he knew.

tsu’tey pulled his hand from yours and shook it at his side as if it burned. his scowl returned with vengeance. it twisted his face in a way that was all too familiar. you almost preferred his scowl. you expected his harshness. you had no idea what to make of his gentler voice and softened features.

“i do not know.” tsu’tey said. his voice was tight in his throat. his tail flicked behind him. “i am not capable of interpreting eywa’s will. i am only a warrior.”

“and i can make you one, too, if that is what you wish to be.”

you looked up at him. your ears and tail betrayed you. your tail wouldn’t stay still and your ears stood at attention. excitement tickled your belly.

“really?” you asked, almost bracing yourself for a sudden change in his heart.

tsu’tey grunted and looked away. “it serves as a better use of my time teach you how to fight and hunt rather than help you string beads and teach you how to sing.”

“and if i choose to be a singer?” you asked, raising one of your eyebrows.

“then there are many songs for you to learn, demon,” tsu’tey said with a shake of his head. “but you will learn to ride pa’li. that is essential.”

if he hadn’t tried it so intently then maybe you would’ve missed it. perhaps more subconsciously to him, he tried to raise only one of his hairless eyebrows. it had you biting your lip as to not smile.

you nodded once, placing your hands on your hips. “let’s get started then.”

he took you to the riverbank. the sun was warm. insects buzzed by your head and skimmed across the surface of the water. fish leapt out from the river to catch them. direhorses ate the sweet vegetation that grew by the waterside.

“damn,” you whispered as tsu’tey guided one of the massive direhorses towards you. you took a step back as it stomped one of its feet when he tugged it to halt. “no saddle?”

“you have legs.” he said with a glance towards your thighs. “you will use them to hold on.”

“i don’t know if you know this, buddy, but this body has only ever been in use like four times now. i’m going to fall off.” you said.

“then you get back on.” tsu’tey said with a single flick of his head toward the direhorse.

you swallowed a bit of your pride as he grunted for you to get a move on. you had to raise your arm up high to reach its back. the leather of its skin was tough. it was a tall, powerful creature you knew would buck you off within a second.

“now, demon.” tsu’tey hissed.

“alright, alright…” you cringed a bit and tried your best to steel your spine. with you best foot forward, you tried to swing yourself up.

“bad try.” tsu’tey shook his head and nudged you out of the way. “watch how i do.”

he wrapped his arm around the tendril that hung down by the direhorses neck. with a quickness you wouldn’t be able to replicate anytime soon, he swung himself up onto the direhorses back.

you rolled your eyes. “you should’ve told me to grab that from the beginning.”

“again.” tsu’tey said as he slid down off the direhorses back. he ignored your comment. “this time, do like i did.”

you exhaled a sharp, fast breath. annoyance pinned your ears back. reaching up, you hooked an arm around one of the tendrils just as he had. with all the strength you could, you tried to pull yourself up.

that just pissed off the direhorse and it stomped it’s feet, huffing and snorting.

“you need to swing.” tsu’tey said. he tapped his stomach. “strong belly and swing your legs up. do not use your arms to pull until your belly is tight and you’ve swung your legs.”

“watch.” he nudged you out of the way.

this time, you really watched his form. you watched the way he grasped the tether as a stationary point but swung himself up. he had taken two steps to build momentum. two steps, swing up, mount.

easy enough, yeah?

“momentum. momentum.” you muttered yourself as you grasped the direhorses tether again.

you took a breath and felt it. your core tightened as you geared up to take those steps and swing yourself up. step, step, swing— except you choked. when your leg didn’t quite get up over the side, you bailed entirely and nearly fell flat on your face.

he grabbed your arm and kept you steady.

your ears fell flat as you met his eyes. you could see the scowl threaten to curl on his lips. you braced yourself for harsh words and hisses.

“better.” he said.

your ears perked up.

“swinging yourself with great force is the only way to mount pa’li. you must take larger steps to make that swing.” tsu’tey said.

you nodded. “yeah, i need more momentum.”

“momen…what?” he narrowed his eyes and titled his head.

“momentum,” you said again, clearer this time. you demonstrated the swing you needed to do with your hands. “momentum. the swing. you get it?”

“momentum.” tsu’tey said, watching your lips as your mouth formed the word. his accent was so thick it seemed to get in the way of his tongue. “yes, it is that. you just make more momentum.”

“but how? i mean, i tried doing the same amount of steps as you but it’s the height that’s throwing me off.” you said, looking up at the direhorse.

“pa’li is tall but you are tall, too. try to step, jump, swing.” tsu’tey said. he crossed his arms against his chest and watched.

you shook out the tension in your shoulders. step, jump, swing. his brows pinched together as he watched you take a few steps back. you gave yourself a running start and jumped, pushing yourself up with your arms.

his hands curled around your waist and he pulled you off before you could swing yourself on.

“hey!” you exclaimed, struggling in his grasp.

“wrong.” he placed you down and turned you toward him. “in order to ride, you must make tsaheylu. a bond. in order to make that bond, you must hold the tether. first step, you must hold the tether.”

“jumping on pa’li like that is a waste of time. it is not faster. bad habit. break it. do not do it again.” he instructed.

“alright, alright…” you said softly, holding up your hands.

“strong belly, demon.” he reminded you.

“yeah, i got it. thanks.”

you huffed under your breath as you wrapped your arm around the tether. standing back nearer towards its face, you would be able to run and swing yourself up— and that’s exactly what you tried to do. you ran, kept your core tight, swung your leg up, and mounted the direhorse.

“hey!” you gasped, pupils blown wide as you look down at him. “i did it!”

he was fighting a grin whilst stood at your side. patting the direhorses neck, he kept the beast calm. he looked up at you and nodded once. you could see in his eyes what he did not say.

well done, demon.

“again.” tsu’tey said, pulling you off the direhorse.

“woah!” you hooked your arms around his neck and fell into his arms. as he set you on your feet, you looked up at him. “you are so handsy.”

“i don’t know what that means.” he said as he let you go. his lip curled and he stared down his nose at you.

he thought you were insulting him.

“handsy. y’know, touchy.” you said. for show, you glided your hand along his chest and gripped his bicep in the other. “you touch me a lot.”

tsu’tey huffed and nudged your hands away. “if i don’t touch, you will hurt yourself. i’m making sure you do not injure yourself, skxawng.”

“skxawng. you keep calling me that. what does it mean?” you asked with annoyance lacing your voice. judging by the way he called you demon, you knew it couldn’t be good.

“means you are slow.” tsu’tey said. he flicked your forehead. “in here, you are slow.”

your eyes widened and your mouth popped open. “you’re calling me a moron!”

tsu’tey bared his teeth in a sharp smile. “you act like one.”

“you are such a jackass.” you huffed under your breath.

ignoring the way he chuckled, you once again tried to mount the direhorse. you didn’t keep your core tight enough. you stumble and it bumped you with its hip. the poor thing must’ve been annoyed with you by this point. you were annoyed with yourself— annoyed with him most of all.

on the second try, you swung yourself up onto the direhorses back. tsu’tey came to your side. he nodded at you as you met his eyes. you’d gotten the hang of it. with more practice you’d be able to do it with ease.

“now it is time for you to make tsaheylu.” he said.

tsaheylu. the bond. you knew of it. you’d read about it in grace augustine’s book before they shipped you out to pandora. it was how all living things on pandora connected to one and other. it is how all living things connected to eywa.

“take your kuru and make tsaheylu.” tsu’tey said, guiding the direhorses tether up toward you.

you reached behind your head and pulled your braid over your shoulder. queue. kuru. so many names for it. but there was only one name for the bond you were about to make.

the white spindles twisted and extended at the end of your braid. so did the direhorses at the end of its tether-like queue. as you guided your kuru forward, pinkish-white spindles linked and overlapped as you made tsaheylu.

your pupils blew and your body went rigid. you could hear mighty breath and a strong beating heart. you could feel legs that were not your own.

tsu’tey placed his hand on your thigh. you looked down at him, unaware that you were panting. he nodded once. calm. collected.

“breathe,” tsu’tey said lowly. he ran his hand across your thigh, up your waist, to your belly. “deep. slow. feel her breath and match it.”

you closed your eyes and focused on the way the direhorse inhaled and exhaled. it was much harder to do when his hand was on your belly.

his hand was warm…

in and out.

you focused on that and that alone.

breathing in deep and letting it all out.

“feel her strong legs.” tsu’tey said.

those you could feel without having to try. as she stepped back and forth, you could feel the power within them. fast. faster than horses on earth ever could’ve been. this direhorse had more legs than them. a larger set of lungs. a larger heart.

“when you are ready, think ‘run.’” tsu’tey said as he stepped back.

“run?” you repeated.

the direhorse ran— and you fell straight into the mud.

a soft groan escaped you. the whole left side of your face was mud caked. his shadow blocked out the sun and you heard him sigh.

“a mistake every first rider makes.” tsu’tey said as you pushed yourself up. “you will try again. this time, you will hold on.”

“thanks for the advice.” you huffed, hitting him with your muddy shoulder as you walked by.

mounting the direhorse became easier each time you did it— and you did it over and over again because you could not stay on the creatures back for long. you fell into the mud each and every time you willed the direhorse to run.

tsu’tey brought you to the riverbed not only because it is where the direhorses liked to graze but because the mud cushioned your falls.

“you are not holding on.” tsu’tey said as he pulled you up from the mud.

“i am!” you exclaimed. your frustration was reaching its boiling point and you pulled your arm from his grasp. “how much tighter do i have to grip the damn tethers it has?”

“you are not holding on here.” tsu’tey said, smacking your thigh.

you scowled at him and swatted at his hand. “don’t.”

“you must squeeze your legs, skxawng.” tsu’tey said with a shake of his head. “you cannot stay in place on the back of pa’li if you do not squeeze your thighs.”

“fine. fine.” you huffed and turned away. “i get it. tight core. squeeze my legs.”

“try.”

you looked back at him as he grabbed your waist. your eyes widened as he tugged you towards him. your jaw dropped as he wedged his leg in between your thighs.

“what the fuck are you doing?!” you cursed at him, pushing your arm into his chest.

“squeeze.” tsu’tey commanded.

you laughed in his face. “oh, you’re funny.”

“do as i say, skxawng.”

you had to grit your teeth. chest to chest with him, you had little options. everything he had instructed you to do so far and every correction he made had not led you astray. it bruised your pride to do as you were told.

you squeezed your thighs together, squishing his thigh between your legs. you looked anywhere but at him. he did the same as his hands framed your waist. he rocked his leg from side to side.

“pa’li are fast and they are strong. you must be strong, too, to ride. your legs will tire but falling hurts more.” tsu’tey said softly. he looked down between you both. “you must squeeze harder. i am able to move my leg back and forth without you. squeeze until you are moving as i move.”

looking down, you squeezed your thighs together tighter. you had to grit your teeth. as he moved his leg side to side, yours were glued to him. squeezing his thigh, you moved as he moved. when he dipped to the left, you had no choice but to follow. when he tried to move his thigh upward, the tension in your legs gave the right amount of resistance so that he could not throw you off.

“do you see now?” tsu’tey asked as he met your eyes. he tried to buck his thigh again and could not. not with you squeezing him so tight. “tsaheylu makes you one with pa’li in the mind. you must make yourself one with pa’li like this. strong core. strong legs. strong hips.”

“i get it,” you said softly, ignoring the burn in your face and the tickle in your belly that came with being so close to him.

tsu’tey tapped your thigh and you let him go. he took a step back and flicked his head. “try again. don’t fall this time, demon.”

you dipped your head.

mounting the direhorse, you were quick to make the bond. feel her breath. feel her heart. feel her legs. you wrapped the tethers around your arms and kept a firm grip. at the same time, you squeezed your legs tight around the direhorses sides.

“run,” you thought.

and the direhorse heard you.

with legs that sounded like thunder as they hit the ground, the direhorse ran. you kept your grip tight and your thighs clenched even tighter. gritting your teeth, you held on as the wind whipped across your face. the direhorse ran a lap around the riverbed as it had been trained to do— and you only fell off at the end when you simply could not hold on any longer.

you spit out the mud that had gotten in your mouth. pushing yourself up, you saw him grinning. a soft sigh escaped you. such sweet relief it was to see something other than a scowl after giving it the best shot you had all day.

“we are finished for today.” tsu’tey said as you neared. he picked a twig out of your hair. “you did better than i thought you would. tomorrow it will be easier. clean yourself up in the river.”

the cold river water embraced you like a lover and soothed the ache in your muscles. it washed away the mud caked onto your skin and the sweat that beaded on your hairline and dripped down your back.

you could feel his gaze linger on you as you washed.

and you ignored the way it made you feel.

— 🌌 —

the next day was by no means easier.

nor way the day after that.

or the day after that.

bruises made your blue skin purple. they littered your thighs. your arms. your back. you took the falls like a champ when they happened, but crawling in and out of your hammock each day could not be done without a groan.

until it did get easier.

you could mount your direhorse with ease. mitsia was her name. each time you made tsaheylu, the more your bond deepened. she grew accustomed to you. she did not jostle as much. she did not run so recklessly. she would greet you each morning with a bump of her nose.

you could ride longer and longer each day— and one day you stopped falling all together. leaving the riverbank behind, you rode with tsu’tey through the forest. learning to hold on as mitsia leapt over fallen logs was not as difficult as you imagined it would be. keeping your core tight and your legs secure, you moved as she moved. it became second nature.

it became second nature, too, to compete with tsu’tey as you mastered the art of riding.

“c’mon, cowboy! you’re eating my dust!” you laughed over your shoulder as the two of you raced back to home tree.

he smirked.

racing through the forest, you stole glances at each other as the direhorses below you ran. mitsia and karuk — tsu’tey’s pa’li — had grown accustomed to each other, too. like their riders, they competed to get home first. mitsia’s heart pounded and her breath came hard as fast as she tried to out run karuk.

the male direhorse was older and his legs were longer. when tsu’tey crouched and tucked himself downward to be more aerodynamic, the race was already won.

“i will beat you tomorrow, jackass.” you said as you swung yourself off mitsia. you gave her a gentle pat before joining beside tsu’tey.

“no, not tomorrow. we are finished training with pa’li. you have mastered riding.” tsu’tey said with a glance your way. as you walked inside home tree, the smell of pandoran barbecue made your stomach grumble.

“what’s next then?” you asked.

“you have yet to decide if being a hunter is what you want. tomorrow, you rest and decide.” tsu’tey said.

you watched as he departed. instead of heading up the center column, he made his way towards the olo’eyktan. he bowed his head and signed ‘i see you’ before sitting down beside him. you knew what they were discussing. each day, tsu’tey gave a report about how you were fairing to the olo’eyktan.

you cleaned yourself up before dinner. re-doing some of the braids in your hair, you thought about what tsu’tey had said.

you had yet to decide on what you truly want to be.

you knew you didn’t want to be a singer. you didn’t have the confidence it took to preform. you enjoyed riding and you enjoyed being in the forest, but you didn’t know if you had what it took to be a powerful hunter.

on earth, you hadn’t done more than wait on costumers and clean up messes that they left behind. hunters didn’t scrape gum off the undersides of tables or have to clean matted grease off deep fryers. they were masters with a bow and quick with a knife.

each day that you went to bed and woke up back in the link-pod, you felt less and less uncertain.

uncertain about what you wanted.

uncertain about who you were.

surrounded by scientists, you were not as smart as them. you could help grace log her findings but you couldn’t offer anything more than clicking buttons on the computer. you weren’t fluent in navi like norm. you weren’t as physically capable as jake was when he was in his avatar body.

jake was military.

norm was a scholar.

grace was a scientist.

you were just the replacement for a dead genius.

a blank slate.

that thought stuck with you like a nagging itch as you climbed the center column of home tree and made your way to your usual eating spot. the more you tried to ignore it, the worse it became.

you were a blank slate in a world ripe with opportunity and that had to mean something.

you had few skills.

that meant you could learn hundreds of new ones.

you had poor navi.

that gave you room to improve with those who spoke it fluently and hadn’t learned it out of a book.

you had no muscle.

that meant you could only grow stronger.

in a program full of bright minds and strong spirits, only one of you sat in home tree— and only one of you had been chosen by eywa.

it had not been grace.

It had not been norm.

it had not been jake.

it had been you. you had a purpose on pandora. a purpose that surpassed what you knew about tree roots or how many pull-ups you could do.

if you wanted to be a hunter— you would learn.

and he would each you how. just like he taught you to ride a direhorse in nine days.

“what is it that you had called me today, demon?” tsu’tey asked as he sat across from you. “when we raced through the forest.”

you couldn’t help but smile. “a cowboy.”

“cowboy…” he picked up a bug from the pile on his leaf and cracked the shell with his teeth. he pulled out the soft meaty inside and ate it. “what does that mean? cowboy.”

“a cowboy is a man who rides a horse and deals with herding animals. they wear hats and boots. on earth, cowboys were seen most in the western part of america.” you said as you picked at the food. you hadn’t gotten used to bugs yet. it was their many, many legs that creeped you out.

when he didn’t respond right away, you looked up. it was clear to see that most — if not all — of what you said had been lost to his ears. again, you smiled.

“on earth, cowboys rode pa’li. they were like hunters, except they kept the animals close together in herds. in a big group that they would move from place to place.” you said, choosing your words more carefully.

“they were also like warriors, too. the word is vigilante. it means that they took the law into their own hands and punished those who broke it.”

“is there no olo’eyktan to answer to?” tsu’tey asked, his invisible brows knitting together.

“no,” you said with a small laugh. carefully, you bit into a bug and chewed. it didn’t taste bad. it was good. smoky in flavor— but the legs still gave you the heebie-jeebies. “on earth, instead of clans there are countries. millions and millions of people live in a single country alone. and there are hundreds of countries.”

“millions of people…” tsu’tey looked around the crowded dinner place and then back at you. “and that is more than navi here in home tree?”

“so many more. unimaginable.” you said with a shake of your head. you popped the shell of another bug and tried to explain it as easy to understand as you could. “let’s use you as an example. you know everyone in your clan, yes?”

“yes.” he nodded.

“right. in a country on earth, you’d never be able to meet every person who lives in that country. there are too many people. it would be like if all the clans from sea to sea across the land we’re on now were one clan.” you tried to explain.

to your delight, he seemed to understand. his eyes were wider than they usually were. he let out a soft breath and shook his head, “and these cowboys…were there a lot of them?”

“in the past, yes. where i lived and in the time i lived, no. there aren’t enough animals on earth for cowboys to be useful. there are no more great plaines, either. no horses to ride. it’s all metal and machines.” you said with a small frown.

“is there no great mother on earth, too?” tsu’tey asked.

you shrugged. “if there was one then she died long before i was born.”

tsu’tey frowned. you could see the sympathy he held for you. his face was so expressive for someone so rough around the edges.

“how did you come here?” tsu’tey asked. the question was careful. it was as if he presented it to you in the palms of his hands and braced himself for rejection.

that was exactly what you gave him.

“i want to be a hunter.” you said outright. you pushed aside your leaf still full of food. you were no longer hungry. as you met his eyes, you nodded once. “i want to be a warrior like you and i want you to teach me.”

tsu’tey sat back. he narrowed his eyes at you and took in the whole of you. his eyes trailed from your head to your crossed legs. the bruises that decorated your body had yet to fade. being a hunter was a lot harder than being a direhorse rider. being a warrior was more dangerous than both.

“tomorrow you shall rest. that is decided. it is needed. the day after, i will teach you how to use a bow.” tsu’tey said.

heat rose to your face and your tail swayed wildly behind you. so wildly that you reached back to grab it. he hadn’t said no. he hadn’t laughed. he hadn’t called you a moron.

he would teach you.

he would mold you into a fierce warrior and a bountiful hunter because no student was better to teach than one who was a blank canvas.

“why do you look like that?” tsu’tey asked with a small scowl.

“huh? uh…” you were quick to let go of your tail. your ears pinned and you looked anywhere but at him. “i don’t know…i think im just surprised that you’re agreeing to let me become what you are. a warrior. a hunter. i figured you would’ve told me to start warming up my singing voice.”

tsu’tey laughed. a low, grunt-like laugh came out of his nose. as he picked apart a green-shelled bug, he smiled. “i told you once before, skxawng. if you want to be a hunter, i will make you a hunter. i don’t like singing. i would dislike you more if you had chosen to sing over shoot a bow.”

you couldn’t help but smile. “right…”

“you learn fast.” tsu’tey said without looking at you, “you are determined, too. you proved me wrong when you got back on mitsia after you kept falling off. i thought you would quit.”

“my only doubt left of you is that your body will give out on you.” he met your eyes and shook his head. “you are not true navi. it will be a very great test of your strength, demon, but if you are willing then i will teach you.”

“i am.” you said with a slow nod of your head. you looked into his eyes and kept your chin up. “i made my choice. i want to learn all that you know.”

tsu’tey seemed to savor your words. more than that, he savored the look in your eyes. he saw into you. he saw your resolve. it was as hard as steel.

on earth, you had been nothing.

on pandora, you would be exceptional.

“it is decided then.” tsu’tey said.

you smiled to yourself. you couldn’t help it. looking above, you took in as much detail of home tree as you could but there was only one picture in your mind.

his face.

over the last nine days, you had done well to keep up with him. so much so that you refused to quit even when you took a particularly bad fall off mitsia. you couldn’t let him know that it hurt. pride kept you stubborn— but the desire to see him proud burned hotter and hotter each time you tried.

tsu’tey was a good teacher. he was handsy and harsh, but he was the only person capable of teaching you. he could handle your stubbornness as well as you could handle his. while he scolded you and smacked you on the back of the head when you would do incredibly stupid and dangerous things, he was quick to congratulate and reward you, too.

not all his edges were rough.

most. but not all.

“here,” tsu’tey said. he tossed you a pouch as you climbed down into your hammock.

“what is this?” you asked.

sitting on your knees, you opened the pouch. dumping it into your hand, a palm-size carving of a direhorses fell out.

it was mitsia.

when you looked up to thank him, he was gone. the flap to his hanging hut closed as he disappeared inside.

you bit back a smile as you laid down in your hammock. holding up the carving, you admired the craftsmanship. for the last three days, you would wake to him sitting on the branch beside your hammock. he had been whittling something. wood chips would be piled beside him. he would be quick to tuck away his work and sheath his knife as you awoke.

in the morning hours you were not here, he carved as he watched you sleep without dreaming.

you kept the carving of your direhorse close to your chest as you laid back. closing you eyes, you wished to dream. in this body, you wanted to dream of thundering hooves and tsutey’s sharp smile.

the whirr of the link-pod greeted you. the hatch opened and the bright, white lights of the lab made your eyes burn. home tree at this hour was dark and quiet. the avatar lab was always busy. pushing yourself out of the pod, you rolled out the stiffness in your shoulders.

“long day again, huh?” norm turned in his chair as you passed by. he was studying slides under one of the microscopes. “what did he have you doing this time?”

“hey, no talking until after she logs.” grace said without bothering to look away from the computer she typed at. “detail the day while it’s fresh in your mind.”

“yeah, yeah…” you mumbled as you made your way over to a chair in the corner.

the blinking red light told you the tiny camera was recording you. that and the fact that you could see your face displayed on the screen as the time ticked by. you gave your name, your badge number, and the date before detailing the events of today. you hated logging. you hated sitting at that desk and recalling everything you’d done.

you hated it because it made you miss him.

the feeling was new to you. it crept up on you like a cold. each hour spent outside of your avatar had you growing sicker and sicker with the feeling.

the feeling of longing that came with wanting to be in home tree. wanting to wake up— really wake up in your hammock. being up early enough to eat breakfast with the clan.

with him.

you liked to argue with him. you could see the slight smile on your lips each time you spoke about him in your video logs. you hated that you smiled— but you couldn’t help it. apart from jake, tsu’tey was the only person you felt you had any kind of rapport with. he could be mean and calloused— but he was also the only person on this giant blue moon who spent any meaningful time with you.

jake kept you company at breakfast and dinner. he played card games with you before bed. he was easy to talk about human life to. you expressed your grief to him— as hard as it was — because he understood. he lost his brother like you had lost your sister. he, too, felt like an imposter in the avatar labs.

the bond you two shared was solid.

he could make you smile. he could make you laugh. he could make you cry. he could make you feel as though you did belong here in the RDA. he was a comforting presence that you hadn’t known you needed after the death of your sister had left a hole in your heart.

jake didn’t fill the hole— but he did a damn good job of making it hurt less.

tsu’tey was not your friend.

unlike jake, tsu’tey refused to be labeled as such— and yet he acted like one. he was a strict teacher. that much could not be denied. he worked you to the point of bruises…but at the same time, he consoled every hurt. he checked every bump. he tended to every scratch.

he may not have known you like jake knew you, but he spent the most time with you. he spent hours and hours alongside you. his days started and ended with you. teaching you. correcting you. yelling at you. bickering with you. teasing you. smiling at you.

jake knew your story.

he knew your heartache.

he knew your fears.

tsu’tey knew your hopes.

he knew your strength.

he knew your hunger for life.

in so many ways you couldn’t quite put into words, tsu’tey was the only one to know you. what you were. what you were capable of. what drove you. what focused you. what lit a fire under your ass. what strength you had in your heart.

on earth, you had been nothing. just another person on a dying planet. you had no plans because there were no plans to have. you had no money. not enough to be comfortable. not enough to find happiness. you had no family. sickness and poverty had withered them all away. with the death of your sister, you may as well have died, too.

on pandora, you had the chance to be anything you wanted to be. a warrior. a hunter. a singer. a scientist. a gardener. a solider. there were so many things you could be— yet you hardly knew who you were.

each day you got into that link-pod, it was a constant battle of which one was real.

which you was real?

you knew the version of you that could no longer exist. the girl from earth had died when her sister passed— and whoever emerged from the smog keeping you wilted was new. she was a stranger to everyone around her.

including you.

which is why you chose to be strong. if you could be anything on pandora, you would be strong. you would be brave. you would be kind.

who you chose to be was a mirror of the first person to look into your eyes and see you.

tsu’tey knew you better than anyone in this lab ever could because he watched you find yourself more and more within the forests of pandora.

you liked the sun. it felt good on your skin. you liked to swim in the river. it felt good to be weightless. you liked to ride and you liked to run. you liked to laugh. you liked to learn. you liked to try and try again when you failed.

while the avatar drivers you had been separated from on your first ground excursion worked on understanding the forest around them on a cellular, scientific level— you worked on understanding the forest on a personal level.

you scraped your knees on the forest floor. you climbed the towering trees. you formed tsaheylu with pa’li. you had been blessed by the atokirina.

grace saw the forest through the lens of a microscope while you saw the forest through his eyes.

“tsu’tey told me as we rode today that all energy is only borrowed. it is through that energy gifted by eywa that we are blessed to live long, fulfilling lives. when we die, we return that energy to her.” you said, rubbing your hand along your jaw. “i wonder if that applies to us demons…”

you smiled at the camera. “well, that’s about all. the same old same old. horses and riding. riding and horses. tsu’tey said that tomorrow is my rest day. i wonder what kind of trouble i’ll get myself into on a day like that.”

when the red light turned off, you sighed. rubbing your face, all you wanted was to go to bed but you couldn’t. you needed to eat and drink something. even though you had such recent memories of eating dinner in home tree that tricked your mind into thinking you were full— your stomach growled and gnawed at itself.

“hey, hot-shot.” you said as you sat down in the mess hall beside jake. he was already halfway done with his dinner.

“hey there, forest girl.” jake said with a grin. “you’re back pretty late again. get thrown off your horse at all today?”

“nah. i’ve got that horse-riding shit on lock down.” you said as you took a bite of your dinner. the food tasted weird. it always did. you tried your best to ignore it. “how was your day?”

“boring. all i do is stand around while grace and norm scurry around the woods together and put dirt into jars. i dunno how tommy found any of this shit interesting. i mean, pandora is awesome but the science work i see grace and norm do is like watching paint dry.” jake said with a sigh.

you laughed and frowned at him. “i wish you could come to home tree and spend a day with me and tsu’tey. i don’t think he’d like you very much, but at least it would be something for you to do. it would be like basic training but navi style.”

“i wish i could, too. im jealous that you get to spend your days running around in the woods while im stuck with the know-it-all’s. but i live vicariously through you in your stories.”

“is it fun?” jake asked. he smiled. “yknow, riding those big ass horses?”

you smiled, too. “so much fun. you’d love it. you’d be good at it. i bet you’d master it faster than me.”

jake offered to stay with you while you finished your dinner even though he’d finished first. you enjoyed his company. sitting together, you talked mindlessly about hobbies the two of you had. on earth, jake had liked to go to bars and gamble while you had liked to come home from work and rot in front of the tv. no matter what was on, you would watch it. any show. any movie. it didn’t matter what it was because all it was was an escape from the shithole you lived in and the dying world outside your window.

“excuse me, miss ramsey?”

you looked over your shoulder as your name was called. a solider dressed in camo stood with his arms behind his back.

“yeah?” you asked, raising one of your eyebrows.

“if you could follow me please, colonel quaritch wants to speak with you.”

you met jake’s eyes in time to see his brows raise. with a small flick of his head, he silently told you to get going. you got up form where you were sitting, cleared away your mess, and followed behind the solider. as you walked, you saw the corporal insignia on his uniform.

“in here.” the corporal said, pushing open a set of double doors. “sit tight. he’ll be here shortly.”

the doors shut with an eery silence as the corporal left you alone. you’d been in this room once before. on your first day at hell’s gate, you’d been brought here and given a briefing. the lights were off. only moonlight spilled in through the massive windows. slowly, you took a seat on one of the cold metal chair.

minutes ticked by in silence.

it was so silent that it was deafening. it was the kind of quiet that was loud. you could hear every little sound. your breath. muffled footsteps from the floor above. faint grumbling from machines outside.

you knew what this was.

you had seen enough old detective movies to know that you were put in a room by yourself to induce worry. worry led to overthinking. overthinking led to over-talking. over-talking made it hard to lie.

the doors swinging open made you jump.

“sorry to make you wait,” colonel miles quaritch said as he strode into the room. “the dangers on this god forsaken planet never seem to cease.”

you nodded as he approached. he turned a chair around and sat backwards on it beside you. he smelled of gun powder and alcohol. it burned your nose. the scar on his face had made you uneasy from the moment you saw him for the first time. you wonder what did it. nantang? palulukan? something worse?

“i read your file, miss ramsey.” the colonel said as he folded his hands against the back of his chair. “im sorry to hear about your sister’s passing.”

“thank you.” you said softly. too softly.

“what luck the avatar program has in seeming to recruit scientists who have twins, huh? you and corporal sully are two miracles for this place. without you two, the RDA would’ve lost more billions than they could afford to make back.”

unsure of what to say, you tried your best to smile. as the colonel looked into your eyes, you found it hard to keep that smile. there was something about him that made you feel small. his eye were empty. they were cold. you felt like a rabbit who’d caught the attention of a wolf.

“i watched a couple of your video logs. you got separated from your team and you’ve been taken in by the natives, yes?” the colonel asked.

you nodded once. “yes…”

“as head of security, it’s my job to make sure my people are safe. you’re one of my people, miss ramsey, which means that avatar body you control is, too. to be honest with you, i’d say you’re now one of the most essential people in this hell hole.”

“i have a job for you, missy. i want you to gather intel about the natives for me and record it in your video logs. find out how they operate. find out what it would take to make peace with them.”

your stomach sank.

peace was still being sought.

you were so wrapped up in day to day life in home tree that you forgot that the relationship between the navi and the RDA was unfriendly in every sense of the world.

it made you feel queasy to remember your first night in the forest. sweat pooled in your palms as you recalled seeing him for the first time. those glowing eyes. that bow half-drawn, aiming for your chest.

tsu’tey had every intention of killing you.

and he would’ve if eywa hadn’t stopped him.

the colonel leaned in and asked in a low voice, “do you think you can do that for me?”

“yes, sir.” you whispered. slowly, you nodded. the only thing you could do was nod. “of course.”

“that’s good.” the colonel said with a smile. he tapped his hands on the metal of his chair as his smile grew and grew. “that’s real good, miss ramsey. you’re going to be a great deal of help to me and you’ll be making the lives of everyone here all the safer. besides, it’ll be easier to answer to me than it is to answer to dr. augustine.”

you smiled, too. you forced your lips to show your teeth and you dipped your head. “ah, she’s not so bad…but i will say i’m more keen on tactical work than computers.”

“i like to hear that.” the colonel said. “have you given any thought to enlisting? it could benefit you a lot here in hell’s gate.”

“truthfully, no. i’m not really sure what role it is i play here and i’m not too sure if i’ll pick one at all. i’m here to fill my sisters shoes in any way that i can. right now, it seems my job is to keep learning.” you said.

the colonel seemed to roll your words between the tips of his fingers. “knowledge is power— and i need all the knowledge i can get my hands on. study the natives as close as they’ve been studying you and in time, you won’t need to fill any shoes that aren’t your own.”

“your sister may have been selected to aide dr. augustine in her studies so that she can write a second book that no one will bother to read— but you? you’ve been chosen by me to ensure the security of the men and women on this base. to me, that is far more important than what you can see under a microscope.” the colonel said.

“i understand, sir.” you said with another dip of your head. “i’ll make sure to detail my findings in my logs.”

“good.” the colonel said as he stood. “you have a good rest of your night, miss ramsey. we will be in touch.”

as he walked passed you, your heart returned to its place in your chest and not lodged up into the back of your throat. you uncurled your hands from fists and rubbed them up and down your thighs to wipe away the sweat. you felt as though you could breathe.

“oh and miss ramsey?”

“yes?” you asked, turning your head.

the colonel stopped by the door and said, “make sure not to tell any of your scientist friends about this little arrangement. grace augustine gets very unhappy knowing i’ve stuck my nose into her program.”

“sure,” you said softly. “no problem.”

the colonel left without another word.

you nearly crumbled into a pile of ashes. curling over the table, you rested your face against the cold metal. your heart was racing in your chest. it was hard to breathe around the pressure on your shoulders and the tightness in your throat.

what the hell are you doing, you idiot?

you had no answer for yourself.

covering your head with your arms, anxiety burned your belly. it put a sour taste in your mouth.

you were now on the colonels radar.

he expected information out of you. he expected answers— unlike grace who expected results.

in bed, you could hardly sleep. tossing and turning, you couldn’t lay still. it felt like there were ants in your sheets. each time you felt comfortable, tsu’tey scowl flashed in your mind.

what you were going to do was wrong.

you knew in the core of your being that spying on the clan and handing over your findings to the RDA was wrong.

but what choice did you have?

you had chosen to be a warrior— and yet you had been chosen to be a spy.

you buried your face into your pillow and tried your best to ignore the way shame made you feel.

it brought you shame to know that each time you’d log the events of the day, miles quaritch would watch your recordings and use them to his advantage. and the worst part was that you couldn’t just spew bullshit. you had been tasked with learning how they operated. learning how they functioned not just as a people but as a united force. if you didn’t make the right reports with the right kind of information, what would happen to you?

you had no idea.

you did know, though, that you’d never be allowed to touch a link-pod again.

the avatar body you’d grown to love would lay a husk until it died. you’d be ripped from the forest like a weed out of the ground. you’d never be able to feel mitsia’s heart. you’d never be able to sit in home tree and listen to the people sing.

you’d never get to see tsu’tey again.

he tolerated you because you looked like him. blue, tall, and freckled with bioluminescence, your avatar did it’s job of seeming normal enough to even the mightiest warrior. even if he’d never admit it, over the last nine days you had become familiar. he wasn’t very fond of you and he was definitely not your friend— but at the very least, you were familiar to him.

he would shoot you dead if he saw you standing before him as the alien you truly were.

that was something you couldn’t risk.

your admiration for him and your hunger to learn from him was not something you could let slip away— so you would do what the colonel asked of you.

in order to run through the forest and bicker with him, you’d do as miles quaritch asked. and you would do so carefully. cautiously. as gently as you could— because you did not want was to lose the freedom you’d been given. you didn’t want to lose the life you had just begun to lead. you didn’t want to be trapped inside metal walls and crowded by machines and pollution any longer.

and the last thing you ever wanted to do was hurt him.

eywa had given tsu’tey a sign protect you. when the atokirina landed on his bow, it had been a duty gifted to him. he protected you from the nantang— from himself. and he would continue to protect you from anything that tried to harm you.

tsu’tey had given you a purpose. when he carried you to home tree and took on the burden of becoming your teacher, he’d given you a second chance at life.

it was now your turn to protect him.

from the RDA.

from the colonel.

and maybe even from yourself.

thanks for reading :)

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