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nana-n-nono · 3 years ago

Text

Starborn

cw: mentions of death, mild injury, fire, lmk what else

SBB says: This thing is gigantic and got completely out of hand (at a word count of 7726 oh my god) but I hope you like it anyways and find some interesting lore points! Please do yell at me in the ask box! I'll try to have Jeno's up in less time but honestly it probably won't come out until end of August just before the event ends anyways lol.

They say in Soladium that being born is as instantaneous and explosive as a supernova. Jaemin always thought that was a bit odd, considering supernovas only occur when stars die. There's never an explanation either, when he asks. It's always, you'll understand when you're older.

According to the history books, the kingdom of Soladium was birthed the same way. It appeared entirely overnight. One day there was barren land under twin suns that were far too hot for life, the next a single sun and a brilliant realm built of white gold and molten lava. People questioned of course. Where did the second sun go? How did they do this? The first king answered none of these, instead going forth to conquer surrounding realms with swift and deadly force. These realms were by no means small either, the ancient lands of Tonitrua and Beongae being some of the lands razed. Soladium was fearfully hailed as a kingdom built in a single lunar cycle and as an empire built nearly as fast.

Now, those days seem like only stories, exaggerations from history. Memory is imperfect in that way. But Jaemin, and really every royal of Soladium, knows they're real. Knows that Soladium on the surface may seem like a cheerful, festive kingdom built on the foundations of honesty and sincerity, but that it lives on a foundation of bloodshed and deceit. It's hard to reconcile at times. You would look at someone like Jaemin and think, how can he be lethal?

True, Jaemin does not look particularly deadly. He's tall but he's not broad like his brother, nor does he seem clever like his sister. Often people will whisper that Jaemin was raised as a carefree child and that his parents spoiled him despite his status as the second prince, the second heir to the throne. Jaemin's inclined to agree with them to some degree, he was spoiled and he is carefree. But like everything in Soladium, that which is bright is built on something dark. And he is no exception to that rule.

——————————————————————————————————————————————

Concentrate. Feel the heat around you. Feel it rise, heat always rises. Feel the intensity, that life breathes into—

"Your highness?"

Jaemin's head snaps up, a pure deer in the headlights look on his face as he's startled out of his training. The messenger sighs to themselves, fondly of course. It's well know that the second prince will get wrapped up in anything, and that he needs to be reminded of his other duties. But no one has the heart to tell him to stop, not when he looks so excited when he succeeds. Not when he looks so absorbed, eyes locked into whatever he’s studying when he’s concentrating. Jaemin clears his throat. “Yes?”

“I apologize for the disturbance, but your mother is requesting your presence in the courtyard.” The messenger sweeps into a bow and then straightens up, opening the door. Ah, so then it’s an immediate summons. The prince sighs, getting up and dusting off his trousers. Casual wear for the day, stuff he can run in since he had morning training with the weapons master. He nods to the messenger to lead the way, following closely behind. What could mother be summoning him for?

Even before entering the courtyard, Jaemin could sense his mother. Not through heat sensing, though he could do a bit of that as well, but rather through sheer presence. The queen was a formidable woman, even by Petramus standards. Tall, regal with a hard set jaw and narrow eyes. She was terrifying, at first glance. But underneath all that was a woman who based her strength in kindness, someone who was never afraid to stand up for justice and happiness. She didn’t back down on anything, didn’t back down from anyone. Though Soladium was a patriarchal society, the queen stood on equal ground as her beloved the king, and Jaemin admired that so.

The ideal behind marrying a Petramus princess to a Soladium prince was to form political alliances, of course, but also to try and instill a new set of values in the children of their union. Soladium’s undying determination and pride, Petramus’s stone cold analytics and cleverness. But it seemed there was still some way to go, with the first prince falling more into Soladium’s habits while the first princess fell into Petramus. Jaemin, it seemed, sort of fell into neither. An oddball.

As soon as Jaemin steps into the courtyard, the quiet chattering ceases and the queen turns with a beautiful smile. "My baby," she coos, reaching her arms out from where she sat. Jaemin immediately steps into her embrace, pressing a kiss to her temple as she does to his.

“Mother.” The queen gestures to her side to the empty space reserved for him. The bench is quite small, especially considering the size of the queen’s skirts that flare out but Jaemin still manages to sit down without accidentally sitting on the silken fabrics. “What is it?”

“My baby,” she repeats, but it’s different. A touch sadder. Jaemin leans into her touch when she cups his face with one hand, thumb caressing his cheekbone. "Oh, my precious Jaemin-ah."

He stays quiet, unsure what to say. What to ask. There have been few times in his life that his mother has taken this tone. When his grandfather died. When he was so ill they thought he may not survive. This tone is always accompanied by the pain of loss, potential or real.

"As you know," she starts softly, "You'll be fifteen soon." Between when he sat and when she began speaking, all the servants had stepped away to the edge of the courtyard, leaving only the two of them. Jaemin nods. Of course he knows, it's his own birthday for one but for two it's his Blessed day, so the entire court has been preparing for this. His birthday is happening in only a few days, but the planning for festivities has been so much longer. Months of color design, decor placement, outfit tailoring, inviting foreign royals. Of course Jaemin knows.

He also knows that Blesseddays are special. They're secretive and sacred but after a Blessed day, people change. They grow into themselves, whatever that mean for them. For Jaemin's older brother that meant becoming more confident and bold, bordering brutally honest with every passing day. Jaemin's older sister embraced her innovative spirit, devoting all her time to strategy and intelligence. That wasn't to say they weren't those things before their Blessed days, but after... It was like they'd been shocked into realizing their life purpose or something. It was, frankly, a bit terrifying for a young Jaemin. And just a bit lonely, though he'd never admit that.

Jaemin doesn't know what any of that has to do with the queen calling him today though. The way it works is that three days before the day of celebration, the person in question (Jaemin in this case) is brought somewhere (of course he doesn't know where yet) by the last person in the immediate family who had their Blessed days (Jaemin's sister in this case). Then they undergo some kind of ritual for the three days and emerge on their birthday to undergo a more public ritual. The public one is more for appearances than anything else, but it's an important ending to the whole process. The only part the queen needs to play is in the public ritual so... What's the whole point of this?

She doesn't say anything for a while, for a time that seems to stretch on and on though it's likely no more than a few minutes. Jaemin has his father's eyes but his mother's smile. A smile, no matter how small, is always the warmest thing in a room. A smile that embodies Soladium, as he's been told again and again. He offers this smile to her now, as reassuring as he can.

"I just wanted to see you," she says finally. Some part of Jaemin is confused and maybe a little disappointed. This seemed like something so serious and yet...? But he just smiles wider and tilts his head in her touch, childlike despite no longer being a child. Young, but not a child. That just seems to make her sadder, though she still smiles and boops his nose with her free hand like she did when he was a toddler. "You'll always be my baby, okay? No matter what, you'll always be my baby."

Jaemin really doesn't get it, maybe this is a nostalgia for him growing up? Still, he nods and replies, "Yes mother."

——————————————————————————————————————————————

Jaemin is awoken just as the sun begins to peak out from over the mountain tops. The break of dawn, three days before his birthday as promised. His sister, dressed in white robes with simple gold trimming herds him out of his room, ushering him into a bath first before dragging him down the hall, down the stairs, down down down. Jaemin has never been this far down. Jaemin hasn't seen another living soul since he woke up either, not in the bath, not in the halls. No knights, servants, gardeners... no one. His skin prickles at the loss of heat.

He's dressed in grandeur unlike his sister. A white shirt of satin, hand sewn with thread that is so fine and delicate it looks more like it was woven into the shirt rather than sewn in. Gems embellish the hems on the sleeves, the bottom of the shirt, the collar. And then simple slim fit trousers, in the same fashion except with some extra curling embroidery creeping up his legs. For once, he looks every bit the prince he's meant to be. And yet he feels so vulnerable, the satin unusually light and thin.

"Jaemin." His sister stops at the base of the stairs. How long have they been walking while he got caught up in his thoughts? A long ways down if the endlessly spiraling stairs above him have anything to say. It's entirely pitch black down here too, not a single light in sight. Jaemin only knows to turn to his sister by sound, by instinct. By...

Oh.

He inhales sharply. When he was first introduced to the idea of heat signatures, Jaemin was confused. Which was unusual, because nearly every living person in Soladium can pick up on heat signatures one way or another. But Jaemin had no idea what they were talking about. He was a rare case, someone who could not innately tell where heat was coming from. So they trained him from the beginning, and now he's made enough progress that if he concentrates, he can pick up strong heat signatures. But only strong ones. His sister's is not very strong, but what she's standing next to...

It's blinding. It's so, so very bright and Jaemin wants to take a step back. Something they teach you about sensing heat is to avoid things that are too hot. Most things will not fall in that range. Certainly not humans, at their internal 37°C count. Not even boiling water at 100°C. The limits alter per person but the general consensus is to cap out around 300°C. Some of the more talented individual can push it to 500°C. But this... Jaemin feels like his skin is melting, his throat is closing up, his eyes--

"Jaemin," his sister says softly. And just like that, he's back in darkness, gasping as he collapses onto the cool stone floor. For a few minutes, there's just the sound of Jaemin's wheezing. Deep breath in, hold, breathe out. Do it again.

"I won't be going any further with you. For the next three days, you'll be here alone. This place has everything you need, food, clothes, water, baths. Anytime during those days, you need to confront it. It doesn't need to be now, and it doesn't need to be in the last hour. But you must. If you don't..." She sounds so far away, echoing softer and softer. Jaemin wants to call to her, but he can't. He still can't breathe. Everything is unsteady. It's too dark, completely and utterly dark, and yet he still feels light fading around the edges of his non-existent vision. "Be brave Jaemin." A pause, so short it might not be a pause at all really. And then infinitely softer, so soft that he can barely catch it. "Until last light."

——————————————————————————————————————————————

When his eyes open again, Jaemin is 100% sure he's awake and yet it doesn't feel like it at all. Right. All consuming darkness. How Jaemin didn't break his neck walking down somehow eludes him, he's always been clumsy. He slowly gets up, but his body isn't stiff as expected. The stone beneath him is hard and cold, and yet he feels like he's just slept on the softest, warmest bed in the whole world. He rubs his eyes to try get some sensation out of them, but. It's just dark. If he strains his eyes to see then it'll definitely hurt him later. So instead he closes them, to try and trick his brain a little.

He doesn't really want to stand with how his legs gave out earlier... Earlier? How long has it been since his sister brought him down? God he doesn't know at all. He's not hungry though, so maybe it hasn't been that long. He stretches his legs, wiggling his toes and by the feeling of it, he might be okay to stand in a few minutes. But for now he just keeps stretching, slowly but surely waking up every part of his body.

After he feels enough blood in his limbs, he stands and though he wobbles a bit, he's stable enough to not fall over. He'll take that win. He doesn't recall at all what this area even looks like, so he just takes a step in a direction. There's faint heat signatures around, but most of them are near muted completely. Not entirely bizarre since Jaemin doesn't have a good track record of heat tracking anyways, but definitely inconvenient. He wants to squint but-- oh wait. His eyes are closed. After a momentary battle of what to do, he settles for scrunching up his nose and stepping towards a cluster of signatures, small ones. When he feels around them, he thinks ah okay, so this is food. It's simple stuff really, bread rolls, some fruits, a block of cheese. Probably? It feels like that anyways.

To its left are something that feels definitely like clothes, though he has no idea what kind. They’re soft though, so it probably doesn’t really matter. Who’s going to see him anyways in all this?

Somewhere further left is a kind of hallway that Jaemin finds by feeling along the walls. There at the end, the heat signature rises to a more normal view. A hot spring maybe? It’s close to that if it’s not. A slight misstep confirms it though, and Jaemin, disgruntled, hauls himself out sopping wet.

After changing into some dry clothes, he finishes cataloging (which isn't much, just a lot of soaps and an actual bed) and then sits on the floor to just... Ponder. His sister said he needed to face it, but what is it? His own weaknesses? And then there was that bright light. He's fairly certain that it had to be a hallucination or something. After all, if he saw it after being in the dark for so long, wouldn't he go blind? Or... Is he blind? No way... Except there's no way to tell because even with his eyes open, the darkness is as thick as ever. Fear sinks into his blood, cold as ice. But he shakes his head, it can't be. It can't be.

He stretches himself out on the bed, apprehension still crawling on his skin when he settles. There's a lot to consider here. So, Jaemin thinks, let's take it step by step.

First: Jaemin must complete some kind of task during these three days. His sister mentioned it doesn't matter when, only that he do it. Caveat? He has no idea how time is passing here.

Second: There are faint heat signatures all around but they're muted, even the hot spring that should be very bright. Could the mysterious light have something to do with that?

Third: What happens if he doesn't complete the task?

Third: What happens if

Third: What

Jaemin blinks, suddenly dizzy in his attempt to sit up. It's as though the bed is pulling him down, coaxing him to rest his head and close his eyes and let go of this thoughts. Oh, he thinks as he sinks back down. Maybe it's been a day already. Maybe it's night now. There's no reason for him to be sleepy though, he thinks even as he yawns. After all, doesn't that mean he was asleep on the floor longer than expected...?

——————————————————————————————————————————————

"Jaemin-ah!"

He turns, blinking. It's not dark anymore. Not at all. In fact it's very bright, so much so that Jaemin should be squinting against the shine. And yet he isn't, instead slowly twisting around with a growing smile. He knows that voice anywhere.

"Jeno!" And there in full view is Lunaste's only prince, eyes crinkled in their usual moon crescents. Jeno looks good as always, wearing a tighter fitting formal shirt tucked into newly tailored dark pants. On his ears sparkle the mark of an heir, small gem from Lunaste's mines. They're a shimmering dark blue, not unlike the night sky before the sun fully sets down. Jaemin half runs over to hug his best friend, reveling in the clean and cool feeling that Jeno always gives off.

"What, did you miss me that much?" Jeno laughs, squeezing Jaemin just as tightly. "C'mon, let's go sit. It's been ages since I last saw you."

Jaemin genuinely has no idea where they are but Jeno seems to know it well, so the younger boy just follows behind with a spring in his step. They don't walk long, just enough that Jaemin gets a bit whiny to Jeno's endless amusement. "Jenooooooo--"

"Shush you big baby, we're almost there." Jaemin's pout does nothing but make Jeno smile wider, tugging them both along until they're suddenly in some kind of clearing. A huge meadow? Jaemin's never seen it before, in either Soladium or Lunaste. But he just accepts it, trusting Jeno. The older boy takes them to a patch of grass that's mostly clear of flowers, laying down first and gesturing for Jaemin to join. It's nice out here, a light breeze ruffling the grass and the suns not too bright. Wait. The suns?

"Jaemin-ah." Jeno's voice sounds so far away. Jaemin looks to his side, and yet there's no one there. He sits up, looking around but Jeno's no where to be found. The meadow is still there though... As is a plume of smoke, slowly encircling the edges of the horizon. "Jaemin!" The boy scrambles to his feet, heart racing as he hears his best friend yell. "Jaemin!!"

"Jeno?" Jaemin yells back, eyes widening in horror at the smoke approaches. And where there's smoke, there's fire. The meadow's burning up. And Jeno... Is nowhere to be found.

"Jaemin you have to run!" Jeno's voice sounds more strangled, like he can't breathe. Did he get caught somewhere?

"Jeno! Jeno where are you!" Jaemin coughs as the smoke starts to crowd where he is, ash falling onto his skin and burning him just like real fire. There's no where to go though. Even as Jaemin turns, he's confronted with more smoke, more fire. "Jeno!"

"Jaemin you--" The rest cuts out, the flames roaring too loudly. Jaemin swallows dryly, crouching down to the floor. What can he do? He's going to be completely surrounded soon. There's no where to go--

"JUMP!!"

Jaemin's eyes snap open at the feeling of a hand on his elbow hauling him up. Jeno??? He's scuffed up, scratches and blooming bruises across his cheek and on his hands. Jaemin hesitates, mind racing too fast to comprehend but Jeno whips around with his eyes blazing. "Jaemin trust me. You have to jump." Jump where? The solar prince looks down and oh. There's a hole, about two times his width. It seems to go straight down, just down down down endlessly. Jaemin's logical brain doesn't understand, but his instincts do. And his gut trusts Jeno.

So he jumps.

Down

down

down.

Jaemin gasps, hands clenched tight in the sheets as his eyes fly open. Where is he? Why is it dark? Is he underground, is this--

His voice is barely above a whisper. "Jeno?"

Silence stretches endlessly, swallowing his soft call.

——————————————————————————————————————————————

Jaemin doesn't really dream. Or at least he never remembers his dreams, so this is really unusual and quite frankly very unpleasant. He'd taken a long bath right after waking up, wincing at the sensation of hot on his skin but settling in after anyways. He's awake now, definitely.

The dream... Well, maybe nightmare would be more appropriate. Jaemin shudders thinking about how vivid it was, how he still feels his throat closing up at the vague thought of ash. Soladium residents have some heat resistance, sure, but that sensation was... Like being surrounded by...

The sun.

Jaemin blinks, understanding slowly coming through. The sun! But wait... Wasn't that just a legend? Two suns? One shot down--

No. It was never fully explained what happened to it. Jaemin just assumed it was shot down as part of the story, but in fact... What if it wasn't?

This is crazy. Jaemin, you're nuts. You're losing it. And yet in his heart he knows he's right. Something about this ritual has to do with the sun. The second one that vanished without a trace the day that Soladium was established.

You need to confront it. It. Not yourself, not them, but it. A non-human entity.

——————————————————————————————————————————————

Jaemin spends the rest of the day not thinking. Honestly his head hurts, waking up with a hammering heart and a confused brain was not been a great way to start the day. And then all that thinking immediately after in the bath... Yeah, Jaemin's calling it for day 2. He still has at least 24 more hours in day three. And then... Does he technically have part of his birthday? Maybe?

He spends the day nibbling on apples and cheese and crackers. Another thing, the food is always prepared in easily eaten bites. Apples are sliced, sometimes peeled. The cheese is always cubed. Weird. Magic isn't really prevalent in Soladium, not really. The only thing really would be their heat control. Even the heat sensing doesn't seem that magical, more a byproduct of adaptation to the landscape. But there's definitely something magical about this whole thing. It's a bit unsettling.

Like the previous night, Jaemin starts to feel the pull of bed at some point, probably around the peak of the lunar cycle. He yawns as he settles down, curling up on his side and falling asleep.

——————————————————————————————————————————————

It smells like earth. Like damp earth. Jaemin doesn't hate it, but he's not the fondest fan either. Rainy days are nice, and he like them just fine, but they're not his favorite. That's just how it is. But he likes them when he can be with Jeno, then it's fun. Running around with Jeno chasing him is fun. Spending the day inside talking over snacks is fun. Finding new hiding places and cozying up is fun.

"Jaemin-ah."

"Jeno-yah."

Jeno's always been there. Jeno is reliable, like how the lunar cycle always follows and leads into a solar cycle. They may be princes of different realms, but somehow they're still best friends. Constant letters, excuses to visit. Sometimes the queen dowager of Lunaste will whisper to the reigning queen of Soladium, ah they're kindred souls.

"Jeno, I'm scared." It should feel scary to even admit that and yet it doesn't. It just comes out. Jaemin still has no idea where he is, has no idea where Jeno it. Everything's blurry, like he's looking at it through some thick frosted glass. But Jeno's there, he knows it.

Jeno doesn't ask why. Doesn't say that it's going to be fine. Instead he says, "But are you going to let it stop you?"

Jaemin almost wants to say yes. It's infinitely scary to think that perhaps the thing he has to face is what he thinks it is. But it's infinitely more terrifying to think that if he fails, he might never be able to see the people he loves again. After all, no one knows the cost of failure for the ritual, only that if you fail you don't come back the same. Or at all sometimes.

"No," he says instead. "No, this is something I have to do. To move forward." To be with everyone, with you.

Jeno smiles and Jaemin feels a warm hand over his own. "That's right. It's something you have to do."

——————————————————————————————————————————————

Jaemin takes a deep breath. He hasn't tried to heat sense much outside of what's necessary, but even then he's gotten so familiar with the space he doesn't need the sensing to tell him where everything is. But he has a feeling he should try again, maybe it'll show him what's there.

Sitting in the center (or what he thinks is center) of the room, he closes his eyes and takes a deep breath.

Concentrate. Feel the heat around you. Feel it rise, heat always rises. Feel the intensity, that life breathes into objects. Take a deep breathe in, do you feel the warmth in the air around you? Stretch your senses out, feel for the things around you. Exhale slowly, do you sense the warmth of your own breath, your own life?

Slowly but surely the heat signatures return, muted as they were before. Jaemin furrows his brow, hands clenched into tight fists that rest over his knees, legs crossed in front. He can feel that prickling on the back of his neck, warm across his back. He peeks open his eyes a little at a time, seeing heat wrap around in wisps. The signatures of the ordinary objects have all but disappeared. The only one left is the one seemingly behind him, emitting curls of heat that flutter around the room before vanishing. It's much too bright to be the bath.

He doesn't turn around immediately, he'd be a fool if he did that. "I'm not sure if you can speak, but I..." He pauses, unsure how to say what he wants to. In the end, he settles for a simple, "But I'm ready." Jaemin squeezes his eyes shut again as the light starts to flash, brighter and brighter until the entire room is engulfed in white.

——————————————————————————————————————————————

The first thing Jaemin registers is screaming. A mix of voices, adults and children, men and women. Incoherent, though he picks up a few repeated words. Run! Hurry!

He's afraid to open his eyes, but he forces himself to and it's definitely not within the castle. It doesn't even seem to be a dreamscape, with how vivid everything is. Jaemin finds himself in the center of a jostling crowd, everyone seeming to sprint in the same direction. He turns to what they're fleeing from and...

He sees the lion emblem of Soladium. He sees gleaming gold breastplates over white chainmail. He sees a soldier slam his sword into someone who is fleeing, and watches as red stains the pristine silver metal.

Jaemin's going to throw up.

"Nana! Nana what are you doing standing there? You have to run!" What? What the hell, how can this be? It's Jeno, but he's... Younger. A lot younger. Is Jaemin that young too? Only seven, maybe eight? And how can Jeno be here, he's not a resident of Soladium. But wait, is this Soladium? Or...? "NANA!" Jaemin feels himself being yanked along the stream of people.

"Je- Nono, what's going on?" Jaemin can barely keep on his feet, tripping over himself often. Jeno's hand pulling is the only thing keeping him upright. "Nono, wha--"

"There's no time, we need to get out of--" There's a fuzzy sound, not unlike TV static.

"What??? Out of where? Where are we??" Jeno's younger look alike looks at Jaemin like he's crazy. He repeats the word, but again it's just static. Jaemin's really losing it. Jeno twists down an alley, escaping from the crowd but still moving. It's a little like going down the stairs with his sister, Jeno just keeps taking him down and down and down. At some point they enter some kind of tunnel, barely big enough for them. Jaemin has to crouch a little as he walks.

It's dark.

"Nono?" Jaemin can still feel his touch on his wrist, but he can't see him and Jeno doesn't answer. After what seems to be hours but could be minutes, they stop.

"Nana." The voice speaking is soft, a blend of an older sounding man and a young boy. "Nana, I'm gonna go ahead okay? Wait for me here?"

"Y-yeah," Jaemin-- Nana-- says quietly. "Come back soon?"

"Always."

And then Jaemin is alone.

For minutes. Then hours. Maybe a day has passed. He doesn't know, he hasn't moved. A voice inside whispers ever so faintly, maybe he won't come back. But Jaemin believes in his best friend, or this person who looks like his best friend. So he waits.

——————————————————————————————————————————————

"Jaemin?" He blinks, yawning. When did he fall asleep? Is he still in the tunnel? He can't be, it's too light out. The air is too fresh. Jaemin snaps awake, scrambling up. He nearly headbutts the person above him, who rears back just in time to avoid breaking their nose. "Jesus!"

"Wh-- Where am I? What time is it?" Jaemin tries to calm himself down, taking stock of what's around him. It's some sort of courtyard like area, but there are people everywhere. In the same clothes. Yellow blazer coats and black pants, white button up shirts. A uniform?

"You're at school and it's twelve thirty." Jaemin snaps his head to the side to look at Jeno, who's rubbing his nose lightly. "Damn, I think you actually nicked me a little with that iron head of yours."

"Jen?"

"Huh?" Jeno stops touching his face and Jaemin almost wants to cry at the sight of his best friend. Jeno from Lunaste has near perfect pale skin, his mole stark against it. Jeno-- Nono-- from wherever had the youthful tan of carefree boy. This Jeno looks just like he'd expect a teenager to, skin a bit pocket marked from acne scars, uneven redness all over, more freckles and moles. But it's Jeno, it's definitely Jeno. Jaemin really is going to start crying. “Jaem what’s wrong?”

Shit is he crying? Like for real? Ugh, gods that’s embarrassing. He shakes his head, pressing his sleeves to his eyes and heaving a breath. “It’s nothing Jen,” he mumbles. At least it’s just light sniffles and not full blown sobbing. That would be hard to justify. “Just tired and yknow how it is.” Why’s he talking like this? Maybe it’s just a tic of this Jaemin.

“Ah.” Sweet, understanding Jeno, who never questions when he doesn’t need to. “Yeah that assignment was pretty rough, I was going to strangle Hyunseok when he almost deleted our files. Here.” Oh a handkerchief. It’s just like Jeno to be a little old fashioned like that. Jaemin takes another minute to collect himself, stuffing the cloth into his pocket.

For a minute it’s just quiet and peaceful. A light breeze drifts across, ruffling the grass and just barely shifting Jaemin’s bangs. This is nice, yeah. Jaemin leans back on his palms and tilts his head up. It’s warm.

“So Jaem, I was asking about Friday? Cause I know you said you had student council stuff—” does he? “and you know how caught up you get when Donghyuck slacks off.”

Jaemin doesn’t even have to think about it for a second. “I’ll make time for you.” He always will. But of course he can’t say that part here, this isn’t his Jeno even if the beaming, crescent eyed smile he gets looks so familiar.

“You’re the best Jaem!” Jeno grabs a bag and slings it over his shoulder, offering a hand out to Jaemin. “Thanks for always being there for me.”

“Yeah,” Jaemin says with a smile so genuine it hurts his cheeks. “Of course Jen, always.”

——————————————————————————————————————————————

How much more must he go through? Somehow it feels a little like he’s been through countless iterations, countless universes. Him as a gangster, Jeno as the innocent bystander. Jeno as a celebrity, him as a devoted fan. Sometimes it’s Jaemin who is cruel and heartless, sometimes it’s Jeno who’s broken and hurting. And yet always the same, Jaemin and Jeno, Jeno and Jaemin. Tied together, always faithful to the other. Not once does Jaemin regrets getting shot at, getting strangled, getting screamed at if it means he can protect Jeno. He never regrets stealing or lying or smashing things if it mean staying with his best friend. Always, he thinks as he fades out of yet another life. I will always be there for you.

——————————————————————————————————————————————

“Sir.” Jaemin turns to see a squire, stiff in their naivety. “King Jeno has requested your presence.” The mere words send shivers throughout his skin, but he nods and dismisses the boy before spinning on his heel.

King Jeno is every bit as regal as Jaemin knew he would be. Midnight black hair coiffed just so under his crown of silver and white gold, dark sapphires embedded as accents. His expression is cold, something Jaemin himself has only seen once in his fifteen years. Somehow he suspects this version of himself has seen it far more often. Jeno looks almost bored, but his voice simmers with anger. “Na Jaemin.” Jaemin swallows but keeps his head bowed where he kneels. He hears a kind of clicking, not loud enough to be shoes but certainly loud enough to be a threat. Jeno’s rings most likely.

“Report.”

Jaemin still doesn’t raise his head as he speaks. In his memories, there are too many blood splatters to ignore. “The Southern Isles have refused to relinquish their control over the pass, they say that… that they won’t unless their demands are met.”

“And what are their demands?” The temperature seems to drop another ten degrees. Jaemin doesn’t want to say it, but he know when Jeno sounds sickly sweet like that… there’s no room for arguments.

“They’ve demanded that their prince be returned to them, no matter what. And that… and that you be removed from power your majesty.” There’s more of course, but those are minor compared to this. Jaemin knows that the Southern prince with caramel skin and a halo of golden curls is alive, but perhaps not for much longer. He prays he’s wrong, but he’s known Jeno for far too long.

For too long there is silence. Jaemin is almost shivering with how tense he’s gotten with every passing second. And then Jeno laughs, a soft chuckle that is so icy, so unlike his own Jeno, that Jaemin almost wants to curl in on himself and scream because it’s wrong. It blows into full, body shaking laughter and Jaemin can’t help flinching when he feels rather than sees or hears Jeno come close. A cold hand tilts his chin up and he meets Jeno’s eyes. Dark, black not brown.

“Is that so,” Jeno says softly. Jaemin doesn’t try anything funny. Jeno’s technically unarmed now, there’s no one else around. Just them. Jaemin could so easily overpower the King if he tried. Jeno isn’t special here, he can’t predict what will happen. And they’ve always been equal in strength. Jaemin could end it all, save the people from war. But he doesn’t. Not that he can’t, he doesn’t. Because this is Jeno, who he chose. “Na Jaemin, what are you?”

“I am your right hand, your majesty. Your shield and your spear to command as you see fit.” A practiced answer that spills as easily as oil over ice.

“Yes, that’s right,” Jeno coos, tapping Jaemin’s cheek. Has Jeno ever been this cold? Physically or otherwise? “You do as I ask.” Jaemin’s heart is hammering so hard he’s surprised Jeno can’t hear it. “And now I ask of you this.” Jeno leans in close, voice a sly whisper. “Kill the prince and send his mangled remains to them. They want to make demands of us? Of me? No. Jaemin-ah, show them who we are.”

Kill. In all the universes, Jaemin has killed before. But this is the first time he’s been asked to by someone he loves. The first time he’s been asked to kill someone he cares about.

Show them who we are. We, Jaemin and Jeno. Jeno and Jaemin.

Jaemin swallows and whispers back, “As you wish, your majesty.” And later, when he’s in the dungeons with a far familiar face glaring at him, spitting insults at him, when he raises his sword high and brings it down with all his force, all he can think is that he promised he would never turn his back on Jeno, no matter what.

——————————————————————————————————————————————

It’s quiet after he plunges the tip into the southern prince’s chest and Jaemin welcomes it. A brief respite between universes, somewhere he can rest. These breaks never last long, some hardly over a minute or two. Jaemin closes his eyes and waits, waits for the next universe to wake him up somehow. But instead he hears a voice, one that echoes like thousands of voices speaking at once.

Have you made your choice?

Jaemin blinks slowly and then stumbles back. Oh, so he’s in a corporeal form for this. Okay. It should be burning hot and blindingly bright, given that he’s staring directly at a sun. Neither sensations occur though and he tentatively steps forward again.

My choice?

The sun rumbles.

Yes. Your choice on your will.

My will?

Yes. That which makes you strong and that which makes you weak.

Oh…

You must decide now. Your will is what you are, but you may choose another way. Be warned child, your will is the strongest and weakest you will ever be. Your other cores may save you from those extremes, but you will never fully involve yourself in your fate. You may end up simply drifting along, always feeling away from yourself.

I don’t want that.

Most do not. However it is an option.

Can I… Can I ask a question?

Of course child.

Why was it always Jeno?

I cannot answer that.

What? Why?

It is simply not my place to do so. I can only answer questions about you.

Was it something I chose?

Yes. In a way.

…

In the last one. Why didn’t I stop him? Would I… would I do that in real life?

That I cannot tell you. I can only show you what could be, given the strength of your will.

What is my will?

Do you not know? Hm... A pause, as if the entity is pondering how best to answer this. You, Na Jaemin, third child of King Na Seomin and Queen Lee Minyoung, are destined to be the strongest ally. Your loyalty knows no bounds. Once you have chosen a person or a cause to dedicate yourself to, you will do so endlessly. Without question, without fear. Regardless of who you might hurt to achieve the goals they've asked of you. Regardless of what might be taken away. You will do what is asked, if that person is who you've chosen. That is your will.

That doesn't sound very good...

A will is neither good nor bad. It is, like everything, something that is altered based on what you choose.

…

It seems you’ve made up your mind.

Yeah. But one more question. Who are you? All of you?

Ahh, but you already know this do you not?

Just checking.

The entity chuckles. Are you ready to make your choice?

“Yeah,” Jaemin says with a smile. “Yeah I am.”

——————————————————————————————————————————————

“… Min”

Huh?

“Jae… min…”

Oh that’s his name.

“JAEMIN!”

“Gods above what!” Jaemin snaps as he opens his eyes, annoyance vanishing in an instant at the sight of Jeno’s tear streaked face. Actually, looking around, everyone was in various states of distress. His mother had her hands over her mouth, silent sobs wracking her shoulders as she leaned against his father who was pale but wearing an expression of pained pride. “Wh-why are you all crying??”

Jeno’s face contorts in a way that would be funny if not for the fresh wave of tears dripping down his cheeks. “You were gone for so long, I thought— we thought—”

“Gone?” Jaemin echoes, brows knitting together as he tries to piece it together. It must be his birthday right? The ritual shouldn’t last longer than that.

"You— you were— Gods Jaemin," Jeno hiccups, hands wrapped tightly around Jaemin's in his lap. "You were gone, you were—" Jeno can't finish it, instead sobbing again and releasing Jaemin's hands to pull him into a tight hug. Jaemin automatically raise his arms to wrap around Jeno's shaking shoulders, neck getting uncomfortably wet with tears. Jaemin turns slightly to his parents for clarification.

"You were dead, Jaemin," his mother says in a broken but somehow calm voice. She was just sobbing a second ago, how has she collected herself so quickly?

Dead? He was... dead?

"Your h-heart wasn't beating," Jeno cries, "A-and you weren't breathing and— Jaemin. I thought, we thought—"

Oh.

"What... What day is it?"

"It's the day after your birthday."

After?

No wonder... There's never been someone who didn't complete the ritual after their Blessed day. He... Wow.

"I came in," his sister says with an odd detachment, "on the dawn of your birthday. Like I was supposed to. And you, you were just laying there and gods..." Her voice cracks. "You were just laying there and you were so cold."

"When I saw Jaehee in her ceremony, she was sitting there like she was dead too. But she was warm when I touched her, and she opened her eyes immediately. And I saw— I saw the sun in her eyes so I knew. But you," Jaehyuk swallows. "You just didn't. We tried to look but it really was like you were dead Min, your eyes were so empty."

Jaemin squeezes his best friend tighter, throat closing up. "B-but I, I just accepted it like noona said to?"

"Accepted? Jaemin, I said confront. What do you mean accept?"

"Huh?"

"Jaemin-ah," his father says now. "When you meet the second sun, you should have seen yourself in different scenarios." Jaemin nods, that he did. "And you should have always made the same choices." Again, he nods. "And then the final scenario is the hardest, it's the one where you choose. And then you wake up."

"You, you didn't talk to anyone?"

"What?" No one seems to understand. Not even his father. "You spoke to someone? Do you mean in the final judgement?"

"No! No, I mean... After. After I made—" Jaemin shudders at the memory. "After I chose, I spoke to someone. To it."

"You..." Jaemin's sister was always the clever one in the family. "You spoke to it?"

"To them, yeah."

"THEM??"

"Gods them! Yes!" Jaemin reels back, earning himself a yelp from Jeno who gets tugged along. "Them. The second sun isn't just a sun. It's, it's our ancestors."

"WHAT," Jaehee shrieks, lurching forward as if to grab Jaemin's collar to demand what he knows. Ah, so this is what they meant when they said strongest and weakest. Her thirst for knowledge, her willingness to do anything to get it. How similar it is to his steadfast devotion.

"Stop that!" Jaehyuk hauls her back. "Stop, you're scaring him."

Jaemin's... Not scared. But he doesn't understand. "So none of you have spoken to them?" He's met with three mirrored head shakes. "Wow..."

"So what happened then?" His mother asks, the voice of calm despite how frazzled she looks. Jaemin's never seen her like this, pajamas underneath a coat, hair undone. His heart swells at the sight, at how much she loves him.

"They asked me to make my choice. They uh, they told me what my will was and how it might be... hurtful." And they mentioned something else but that's for Jaemin's ears only.

"That's it?" Ah ever shrewd, his sister.

"Yes."

"Why does it matter," comes a muffled whine. Oh shit, Jeno. Jaemin reels back but is held in place by his best friend. "He's not dead, he passed your stupid test. Isn't that enough?"

Evidently not for everyone but no one seems to want to challenge the Lunaste prince. It makes Jaemin wonder what happened when he was dead.

"We should give Jaemin some time to rest." His mother is the first to collect herself, standing and lightly dusting off her skirts. His father is quick to follow, always one to support his wife. "Jaemin-ah, although it's late, happy Blessed day." Jaemin hears the proud, unspoken happy birthday my baby.

Jeno stays behind though, unwilling to let his best friend out of sight. Jaemin understands it, he would be the same. For a while it's just quiet, Jeno clutching onto Jaemin and trying really hard, it seems, to not cry again. And it's like at that sight, Jaemin loses all his strength and pitches forward, pressing his face into Jeno's neck and mumbling, "I'm sorry, I'm sorry Jen, I'm so so so sorry."

Jeno just pulls him in closer and buries his own face into Jaemin's neck. Jaemin will pretend that they're not both shaking, even though there's no one to pretend to. Cause it's Jeno.

"Don't you ever do that to me again," Jeno whispers fiercely, voice thicker and more ragged than usual. "Na Jaemin I swear I will pull you back just to kill you myself."

Jaemin laughs at that, shaking his head. "I won't. I'll never leave you Jen."

"Don't promise things you can't keep," Jeno sighs back. But Jaemin knows, feels it hot in his chest, that this is one promise he's never going to break. Not even on his life.

——————————————————————————————————————————————

Notes:

- A lunar cycle is just one night. The only special time terms are solar cycle/lunar cycle instead of day/night. If it's a week, it's still called a week.

- While this event states that Jaemin/Jeno have only recently discovered they are princes, this blurb is slightly separated from that. This blurb is set in the full AU but is twisted slightly to fit the bot, thus both Jaemin and Jeno have been princes from birth. So just, don't think about it too hard?

- Inspiration: Stars are born from nebulas in which the gas and stardust in the nebulous cloud begins to collapse in on themselves from the gravitational pull. Stardust is from the death of other stars. This got a little out of hand but those various scenarios Jaemin goes through are like his own lives and deaths, so when he dies in them or when he kills in them, they "piece" together to form his will which is his strongest trait. Jaemin's a unique case where he always chose the same thing. Often people will kind of alternate their choices and whatever is strongest/gets picked the most often becomes their will.

- In the final dream sequence, Nana is Jaemin's ancestor. Naming conventions differ in the past, children would receive a nickname (Nana) and then once they became adults they would receive their formal name (Jaeyoon). In Jaemin's current timeline, you receive the name you live with when you're born. So when Jaemin was born, he was named Na Jaemin and that's just it. I can explain it more if it's confusing. Really I just wanted an excuse to make a Nana and a Jaem compared to Jaemin, yknow?

- The final dream sequence serves as the final judgement by the second sun. It weighs more heavily than others with higher emotional stakes. The reason why people lean into their attributes so heavily is because of this last scenario. In their minds, they have already played through everything that could be and will not deviate from their choices. Thus people of Soladium are considered rigid and stubborn.

- The second sun doesn't always choose to enhance positive attributes. Though Jaemin and his siblings received (in order) loyalty, cleverness and determination, others in Soladium history have received things like ruthlessness, deception and fear. Generally speaking, what attribute is chosen is what the individual's core value is, and has a lot to do with nature vs nurture.

- Don't @ me about plot holes lmao

#celestial royals event #lore.txt

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bvidzsoo · 5 years ago

Text

Shell

Author: bvidzsoo

Warnings: violence and swearing

Pairing: Park Chanyeol x female reader

Summary: Mermaids and Pirates, in this story they are all true. Fairytales come to life when you least expect them, bringing you on amazing adventures. What you could have never even imagined became a nightmare as soon as you are kidnapped by some cursed pirates that perhaps aren’t as evil as myths make them out to be.

A/N: Well damn, it’s been a long time since I have written something but motivation hasn’t been with me for a long time now. Maybe it’s the stress and the time I don’t have anymore, but quarantine made sure I have enough time now. This one shot has been sitting in my drafts for a long time now so I’m glad I finally finished it. This was a request btw and if the one who requested it sees it, I hope you enjoy it even though I made some changes! Happy reading now!

Have you ever heard of mermaids? Do you believe in mermaids? What about pirates? Do you fear them? Well, you better do. Pirates are ruthless men who navigate on the seas and at night, when everyone is sleeping, they make a stop at shore towns and then...they robe the whole village, killing men and taking the women and children.

Even if these are just myths, people in the town I grew up still believe in them. And unfortunately, I do too. It’s not just the pirates, the creatures of the night and sea...they are real. I haven’t seen a mermaid yet, but when I was younger my grandfather, who was a sailor, would tell me stories about the big sea and its mermaids, sirens. Mermaids, who were kind and guided him...sirens, who were bloodthirsty creatures who guided him towards his death. One day, when I was ten years old, my grandfather didn’t come home. Some say it was the sirens who killed him, others say that the pirates attacked him and took him as a prisoner. But growing up as the daughter of the major, with a sailor grandfather, my hopes still rely on the fact that he found that much-desired chest of gold he always told me about and decided to settle on a quiet island, with his mermaid friends.

Our town is called Shell, and it has two origins. Elders say that before humans lived in this place, this was the territory of all kinds of mermaids, their sanctuary. And those who still refuse to believe in ‘fairytales’, as they call it, say that the town got its name because of the influx of shells the sea brings to the shore. It is true, if you go on the Vest side of the beach, you risk of getting cut by the many shells that lay untouched on the sand. But that’s also one of the things we are famous for, rich people who wish for the finest jewelry or people who would like to gift something elegant to a significant other, travel to our town to buy these shells, handmade by the people of the town...that including me.

The streets of the town were buzzing with people running up and down, getting ready for tonight’s summer festival, the Mermaid Night. It’s a celebration our town always holds on the third week of July, a way of showing their gratefulness to the mermaids that left this land behind for us. But truth be told, people are just happy that they can get drunk and holler around the streets without getting sanctioned and probably hook up with others.

I sighed as I stared out the window of the shop, the wind blowing gingerly my bangs away.

“Is something bothering you, Miss?” The rusty voice of the old lady resonated in the vacant shop, her fingers working fast as she braided the rope of the bracelet.

“My father” I answered with a sigh, staring at the people longingly “He said I’m not allowed to attend the festival this year--Have you heard anything more absurd than this?”

“Maybe he knows something you don’t” The old lady, Mrs. Han, muttered quietly.

“And what could that be?” I asked with a huff, closing the window and turning around to face Mrs. Han.

“The legend says…” Mrs. Han looked up, a glint in her eyes as she grinned “On every fifteenth year, there will be a white moon...and the white moon is the guide of the pirates, meaning it brings pirates. I’m sure the Major just wishes to protect you from any oncoming danger”

“But if pirates are coming, doesn’t that mean the whole village is in danger?” I asked quickly, standing up from my place and walking closer to her.

“The village is fine, dear. The people are getting older and older, we aren’t in danger but you and your friends--I can’t say the same” My eyebrows furrowed as I stared at Mrs. Han’s wrinkled face.

“Because we are young? Are we potential targets?” I raised my eyebrows, growing a little amused. Even if I believe in the myths, until I don’t see something I won’t truly believe it. Just like mermaids, maybe they left this land for us, but maybe they are already dead and we just try to carry on with their memories. What if pirates don’t exist anymore? Leeteuk and Donghae, friends from the Sun kingdom, last time they visited, they didn’t bring any bad news...in fact, I haven’t heard of pirates ever since my grandfather disappeared eight years ago.

“It’s a dangerous thing to play around like that, child. You should be careful, the Major didn’t say those to you to scare you off” Mrs. Han’s words were stern as she looked up and I just hummed quietly.

The door opened behind me and two voices I already know too well abruptly stopped talking.

“Y/N!” It was Sooyoung who called out first, her voice loud.

“Hello, Mrs. Han” The always respectful Joohyun bowed as I turned around and smiled at my friends.

“Hi” I waved a little before turning back towards Mrs. Han “Well, I will come and pick up the bracelets tomorrow, Heechul is quite impatient” I muttered, gathering the gown in my hand from the table as Mrs. Han just chuckled.

“Tell the boy I expect more silver from him this time, he might travel here from the Sun kingdom, but I work on these not him” I giggled and kissed Mrs. Han’s cheek before heading for the door with the girls.

“Of course, I’ll make sure myself he pays more” Mrs. Han just snorted before I closed the door, turning towards the girls.

“Why is she always so...cranky?” Sooyoung asked with a grimace, her red dress shorter than usual.

“She can hear you, you know” I rolled my eyes as Joohyun pushed Sooyoung to the front as we started to walk.

“She’s too old to hear us” Sooyoung snapped back as she fixed her eyes on me.

“She’s not” I huffed, crossing my arms in front of my chest, almost letting my white gown fall on the sandy street.

“That’s not important” Joohyun was quick to interfere “Tonight, however, is important. How are you dressing up?”

“Oh, my sister made a dress for me at least two weeks ago” Sooyoung shrugged as she pouted “I don’t really like it but she wants me to wear it, so I guess I have to”

“Your sister is the best tailor in the town, how can you not like it?” I asked, eyebrows furrowed.

“She has a different style compared to mine” Sooyoung shrugged, taking an apple from Yuta’s tavern, who was too busy grinning at Yeri, a girl that is three years younger than us.

“You should pay for that” Joohyun was quick to narrow her eyes at Sooyoung who just chuckled and took a bite of the apple.

“When was Sooyoung ever fair?” I asked in a mocking whisper, making Sooyoung roll her eyes.

“It’s not my fault he was too busy flirting with Yerim” Sooyoung just shrugged, leaving Joohyun sighing.

“I’m not coming” I suddenly forced out the thought that has been bothering me all day.

“What?” Joohyun stopped walking, wide eyes directed at me.

“My father forbid me from doing so” I sighed loudly, watching the ground as I pushed the sand around with my feet.

“Why?” Sooyoung asked, her voice not as concerned as Joohyun’s was.

“Something about pirates and the fifteenth white moon” I just shrugged and Sooyoung hummed as her eyes surveyed the market.

“My mother told me about it too” Joohyun spoke up, placing a comforting hand on my arm “I’m not allowed to stay out later than midnight”

“Of course, can’t have a beautiful maiden like you disappearing” Joohyun stiffened at the masculine voice, her face suddenly turning blank. Sooyoung just chuckled as she took in the sight of Yunho. His hair was tousled, he probably just came back from fishing judging by the smell and bag he carried. His white shirt unbuttoned until you could see his tanned chest and trousers at the end slightly wet.

“What do you want?” Joohyun asked as she sent a glare towards him.

“I hope you didn’t forget about that dance” Yunho only winked at Joohyun.

“I told you, I am not dancing with you, Mr. Jung” Joohyun held her head high even if Yunho towered over the three of us.

“Irene, dear, why won’t you drop your attitude and--”

“It’s Joohyun, and why won’t you leave me alone already?” Joohyun hissed at Yunho who didn’t look that amused anymore.

“Where’s the fun in that?” He still chuckled, but a small glare was sent at my friend.

“I bet it won’t be too much fun when the Major hears about it, huh?” I raised my eyebrows, speaking before anyone else could. Yunho’s eyes snapped at me and Joohyun hissed, glaring at me. It’s known by everyone that Yunho doesn’t like me, he thinks I’m arrogant and hold power over everyone just because I’m the daughter of the Major. But those aren’t true, I’m only like that with people who are rude and won’t stop bothering me. So maybe Yunho is right, I do kinda act rudely towards him.

“Oh look, Miss Kwon found her voice, are you now running to daddy as well?” Yunho rolled his eyes as I just smiled, waving at him.

“I’m sure you know your way to the Major’s house. I’d like to thank you in advance for the delicious fish you brought for us” I winked at Yunho as I took Sooyoung and Joohyun’s arms, pulling them after me.

“You need to stop doing that!” Joohyun hissed as I felt dagger-like glares melting into the back of my head, no surprise, coming from Yunho.

“Why? It’s funny” Sooyoung snickered and Joohyun was quick to slap her back.

“Because it’s dangerous” Joohyun looked at me, pulling her arm free from my grip “You know Yunho is not a very good man”

“And you expect me to stay calm and not worry when he’s after you? Of course I know about his reputation, that’s why I always interfere”

“He could hurt you”

“No, I’m the daughter of the Major and you are not, Miss Bae” I stared at Irene with concern, eyebrows turned into a frown.

“Okay, fine” She sighed, turning away from us.

“What did you do to him though, Miss Bae?” Sooyoung’s voice was mocking as she nudged my shoulder “Tell me your secret spells”

“Do not call me a witch, you know how people react to that, Sooyoung” Joohyun snapped, apparently her good mood gone thanks to Yunho.

“Come on, I was just joking” Sooyoung rolled her eyes offended “But I’m serious though”

“I didn’t do anything” Joohyun shrugged, her eyes lingering on a set of shell necklace. I eyed it too with a smile, I’ll buy it later for her.

“He’s just...Yunho. You know he can’t accept a no and I’m constantly giving him no’s, figures why he’s still after me” Joohyun shrugged and Sooyoung rolled her eyes while I chuckled.

“You say no to every boy”

“Well…” Joohyun’s cheeks suddenly turned red and Sooyoung and I glanced at each other amused. Jaemin was standing in the doorway of the flower shop, waving with a big smile at Joohyun. She waved back, throwing us a glare when Sooyoung and I waved at Jaemin while giggling.

“Why are you like that?” Joohyun hissed as Sooyoung and I just continued to giggle.

“Yunho is going to be livid when he finds out about this” Sooyoung commented with an evil smirk and I mirrored her reaction.

“Oh, really?” Joohyun’s tone turned darker as she looked at us with the same smirk “I guess he won’t take it well when he hears Jaemin is my date for tonight”

“What!” Joohyun just giggled as she hurried away to her mother’s tavern, leaving Sooyoung and I with our mouths hanging open.

“This girl!” Sooyoung just sighed as I started giggling again.

“At least she knows how to get a man...unlike us”

“Speak for yourself” Sooyoung nudged me, eyes narrowed “I always get what I want”

“I almost forgot” I rolled my eyes as she just chuckled and pulled me after her, going to Mrs. Bae’s tavern.

The lights were dim in the room as I rushed underneath the covers, pretending to read when I heard my father’s steps getting louder.

“Y/N?” He asked as he knocked on the door, his deep voice soft.

“Come in” I cleared my throat as I looked at the door.

“You are reading…” He trailed off, looking around the room “I thought you left”

“Left? How?” I asked with a chuckle and dad only shook his head, which was lowered due to his height so that he wouldn’t hit in the doorframe.

“I’m sure I don’t have to say more” He raised his eyebrows and I chuckled as I lowered my book and slightly turned towards him, making sure the blankets still covered my whole body.

“You know I usually listen to you”

“Usually, that’s the problem” I chuckled and dad just sighed as he ran his fingers through his gelled back hair.

“I have to go now, you stay home, okay?” I just hummed as dad sighed again and turned around, closing the door behind him as he walked away. I grinned as I threw the blankets off my body, rushing to my mirror to clip my bangs to the side and place on red lipstick. I patted down my red dress, slipping on my sandals and taking the little jewelry box I quickly opened my window, glad that my room was on the first floor for the first time. Dad left a few minutes ago so it was safe for me to go too.

I know I’m doing wrong by not listening to him but I can take care of myself and it’s not like some legend is actually true. I carefully climbed out the window and closed it back, my sandals sinking into the sand of the beach.

“Hey!” I quietly called out, looking towards the bushes on the left, “Joohyun, Sooyoung”

“Is it okay to come out?” Sooyoung hissed quietly and I giggled as I answered a ‘yes’.

“Finally” Joohyun sighed as she stepped out first, patting down her light blue dress, “I’m never hiding in the bushes again for you”

“Next time this happens, drinks are on you” Sooyoung threw me a glare and I just laughed, walking up to hug them. Sooyoung’s dress was absolutely pretty, the green contrasting her red hair nicely.

“Why were you complaining about your dress?” I huffed as Sooyoung just scoffed, “It’s gorgeous”

“Yeah well...it’s not that bad…” Sooyoung just grimaced as both Joohyun and I snorted, she obviously likes it. She’s just too stubborn to admit it.

“Joohyun” I cutely smiled at Joohyun as I took her hand and placed the jewelry box in it.

“What’s this?” She asked confused, taking the box.

“Open it” I muttered and Joohyun’s eyebrows were furrowed as she opened it. Sooyoung’s mouth fell open as Joohyun gasped, quickly looking back at me.

“No, Y/N, why?” She whined like a little kid and I just shrugged.

“I saw you looking at it in the market”

“I can’t accept this” Joohyun quickly closed the box, trying to hand me back the light pink shell necklace.

“Yes, you can” I sassed back and Sooyoung took the box from Joohyun, opening it.

“This is really pretty” She muttered as she took the necklace out and turned Joohyun around.

“Next time tell me when you are in the mood to buy us something” Sooyoung muttered as she carefully placed the necklace on Joohyun.

“This isn’t fair” Joohyun just whined as she touched the shells tenderly, looking at me, “This costs a fortune, how will I pay it back?”

“Your friendship, both of you, is enough. I don’t need money or anything else, just you two” I smiled at Joohyun and Sooyoung gratefully while Joohyun just looked away while Sooyoung rolled her eyes.

“That’s cute, but now we need to go unless you want to miss out on the fun?”

“Let’s go!” We intertwined our fingers as we quickly took off towards the market.

Obviously, thanks to Sooyoung’s needs, we first stopped at the Inn to drink something. It was loud and more crowded than usual. Men usually populated this place, but now women were roaming around too.

“Something light or…?” Sooyoung raised her eyebrows as we made our way up to the bar.

“Beer” Joohyun was quick to call out as Mr. Kwon looked at us with his eyebrows raised. He’s a middle aged man who’s been working at this Inn ever since it opened.

“Three?” His eyes narrowed at us, trying to recognize us, “Miss Bae, Miss Park and...the Major’s daughter?”

“That’s right” Sooyoung flashed Mr. Kwon a cute smile, waving some cash in her hand. Mr. Kwon got the message and quickly handed us three big glasses of beer. Sooyoung liked her lips as she quickly drank it while I took my time. Joohyun’s eyebrows were furrowed as she carefully gulped down the contents of the glass. I shivered when I finally finished the beer, Sooyoung’s eyebrows raised at us as she already finished it.

“You are supposed to drink it faster” She said with a chuckle as I placed the glass on the high table beside us.

“I’m dizzy” Joohyun muttered as she took a last sip and placed the glass beside mine.

“What?” Sooyoung rolled her eyes as we made our way out “There’s no way you are already dizzy”

“It hits hard” Joohyun muttered as she clung onto my arm.

“This is beer, it can’t hit as hard as Vodka or whatever Mr. Kwon likes to mix” Sooyoung pushed some people away as they were blocking our path.

“Shut up” Joohyun snapped as she sent a little glare at Sooyoung “We are all different”

“Wow, they overdid themselves this year” Sooyoung’s voice was mocking as she stared at the market with a scoff on her lips.

“What did you expect? It’s the one-hundredth year anniversary of this Festival” Joohyun deadpanned, rolling her eyes.

“Well, I don’t think it’s bad” I shrugged while looking around. The market was cleared of the stalls, a decent looking stage placed at the other entrance as the middle was left empty for people to dance. On the stage, a band was singing some slow songs, an older band that had been playing ever since I was born. They are quite old but people here like them a lot, well, mostly elderly people.

“I should find Jaemin” Joohyun muttered as she looked around, just as people started clapping and the band left the stage only for another to come up.

“Good evening!” The young boy spoke loudly into the microphone, he was one of Jaemin’s friends, Jeno.

“We hope we can make you feel good tonight, have lots of fun!” The youngest, Jisung, spoke into his own microphone enthusiastically. The crowd clapped loudly, some even whistled.

“They do look good” Sooyoung’s lips pulled into a grimace as she watched the band pace around before starting to play some upbeat music.

“I’m going now” Joohyun flashed us an excited grin before running off towards Jaemin. Both Sooyoung and I watched with a pout as Joohyun was hugged by Jaemin, and our usually shy Bae Joohyun, actually kissed Jaemin on the lips.

“I didn’t see that coming” Sooyoung’s voice was surprised as I looked at her with my eyes wide.

“Well...at least she’s having fun tonight”

“Yah, if you think I’m not having fun tonight...you are wrong” Sooyoung crossed her arms in front of her chest as she pursed her lips at me.

“Are you leaving me too?” I asked with a sigh, maybe I’ll just go home after that.

“Not yet” Sooyoung flicked her hand, leaning closer to me “We have fun first”

I giggled as Sooyoung took my hand in hers and we went to join the others dancing, the music loud as people laughed and danced together. I grimaced at Sooyoung as she twirled me around, making her laugh. Our fingers intertwined as we danced around, bumping into people, even being able to tickle Joohyun as we passed by her, our dancing wilder than others. Some people glared at us when we just laughed but others joined us and soon we were breathless and retreating to a table that was empty by the stage.

“Oh, this is fun” Sooyoung laughed as she patted her forehead.

“Who needs boys, right?” I winked at her as I gathered my long hair in one hand, fanning myself.

“I do” Sooyoung pursed her lips and I just rolled my eyes, eyes falling on the crowd. I could see Joohyun dancing with Jaemin, a big grin on her lips as Jaemin was smirking at her. Unfortunately, it wasn’t just me who saw them, Yunho, on the other side of them was dancing with a girl, Soojin, but his eyes were on Joohyun and Jaemin his glare hard as it was directed at the happy couple.

“Yunho isn’t too happy” I muttered as Sooyoung searched the crowd, a snort leaving her lips.

“That’s what he deserves, Soojin is just made for him” At that both of us burst out laughing, Soojin being not one of the best girls in the town. After cooling off, Sooyoung waved at a bartender from the Inn and asked for water as we continued to sit at the table, wanting to rest just a little more.

As I looked around, my eyes lingered on the entrance to the market, a strange feeling enveloping me. I can’t be spotted by my father or Mrs. Han or else I’ll get in trouble. Just as I was about to look away, nine men came walking towards the market.

“Sooyoung” I called out, reaching for her arm to get her attention.

“What” She snapped as she ignored the boy that tried flirting with her “I was in the middle of some--oh”

“Exactly” My eyebrows furrowed as my eyes took in the figures of the nine men “Who are those?”

“I have no idea…” Sooyoung chuckled, a smirk forming on her lips “But they definitely live up to the image of a good man”

“They seem dangerous” I muttered as my eyes were drawn to the tallest one, his black hair curly as it fell messily on his tanned forehead. They all looked tanned, too tanned. My eyebrows furrowed as I let my eyes rest on them for longer, observing how they were dressed. Their pants were a dark green, form-fitting as they were tucked into black boots and they all wore white shirts, some tucked some not, their tanned chests on display.

“I don’t know about you” Sooyoung was on her feet, dusting her green dress of “But I really like what I see”

“Sooyoung” I finally averted my eyes from them, catching her hand when she went to move away, “We don’t know who they are. They could be dangerous people”

“And what if they are from the Sun Kingdom?” She raised her eyebrows.

“But we don’t know” I insisted and Sooyoung only rolled her eyes, shrugging my grip off her hand.

“And I will get to know them, unlike you” She shrugged as she walked away with a small wave, heading to the Inn, where these nine mysterious men disappeared to. I sighed watching as Sooyoung had a bounce in her step, greeting a few people. Now I really am alone, should I head home? But as that crossed my mind, suddenly someone appeared in front of me. I looked up to see Yeri smiling down at me.

“Did your friends ditch you?” She asked.

“Oh...I guess they did” I chuckled, scooting over to let her sit down.

“Well, Seulgi and Wendy unnie left me alone” Yeri sighed as she looked at me “And I saw you sitting here so I thought I’d come up and speak to you”

“Thanks, Yeri” I patted her shoulder, making her smile widely back, “Do you not have a date?”

“Oh...well, I kinda did” She played with her blonde hair, biting her lip “But I guess I was ditched”

“By whom?” My eyebrows furrowed as Yeri just sighed.

“Yuta” She muttered and I snorted loudly. Yeri’s head whipped in my direction, eyebrows raised.

“Yuta is a charmer, you should have known better. He targets young girls, don’t fall for his flirting anymore, okay?”

“I realized that too” Yeri just pouted, voice quiet.

“Well, since we both are dateless...let’s go and dance!” I exclaimed, pulling Yeri up with me. She giggled as she followed after me, waving at Jisung and Chenle when I dragged her to the front of the stage.

“Why are you dateless?” She raised her voice, swaying to the music.

“Because my father forbid me from coming”

“Why?” Yeri asked surprised, giggling when I twirled her around.

“White moon, usual superstitions” I just rolled my eyes and Yeri giggled again, bumping her hip into mine. We both giggled as we made eye contact and wiggled our butts to the rhythm.

“Y/N” She spoke up as we connected our palms, dancing in circles “Did you see those men that came?”

“I did, don’t speak to them” I warned her, changing places with a jump “They can be dangerous”

“What if they are pirates?” She bit her lip in excitement as I tensed a little, looking around quickly.

“They disappeared eight years ago” I answered, holding her hand in one hand as we got away from the stage, dancing more in the center of the market.

“But my brother says that there was a crew sailing around the Moon Kingdom and rumors say they are ruthless and powerful. You know my brother wouldn’t lie about something like that” Yeri’s eyebrows were furrowed as I hummed, twirling around as she pushed me around. From too many spins, I became disoriented and ended up tripping over my feet and sent Yeri back, making her giggle. She almost fell on her butt but she seemed like she wasn’t bothered by it as some hands steadied her by the waist. My eyes shoot up at the face of the person, only to make me tense when I realized it was the tallest of the nine mysterious man.

“Tricky these dances are, aren’t they?” His deep voice rumbled over the loud music, making me quite surprised that someone like him could have such deep voice. From closer up, his eyes were too big and lips plump, his ears big almost as if he was a Fairy.

“Good enough if they sent me in the arms of a man like you” Yeri was quick to answer and my jaw almost dropped open upon her words. The man’s lips quirked up in amusement as he pushed her slightly away, to let her stand on her own feet.

“Would you mind dancing with me then?” But before Yeri could answer, I gripped her arm and pulled her behind me. Yeri remained silent as I narrowed my eyes at the taller man in front of us.

“She’s not up for a dance with strangers, sorry” I said, voice steady and stern as the man’s eyebrows shoot up.

“And are you her mother to tell her what she can and can’t do?” The man was quick to fire back and I raised my eyebrows at him.

“And who are you to ask such question from a young girl? Dancing? Seriously?” That seemed to shut the man up as he glanced at Yeri once again, his eyes racking over the little body that was still visible from behind me. He seemed like he realized how young Yeri looked and lowered his head a little, almost like in a bow.

“My apologies Miss, I did not realize how...young she looked…” His tone was sarcastic, dripping with teasing and I just smiled at him, obviously not affected by his words.

“Yerim, go find your friends” I muttered to the younger girl as she nodded and patted my shoulder before running off.

“Seems like you don’t have a partner to dance with anymore” I clasped my hands together in front of me as I smiled up at the tall man, “What a pity...”

“That’s truly a pity” He rubbed his jaw as if he was thinking but then a dangerous glint appeared in his eyes “And since you are the cause of a potential dance partner leaving me...how about you dance with me?”

I chuckled loudly, raising my eyebrows at him, “I don’t trust strangers”

“In that case...I’m Chanyeol” He extended his hand and I glanced at it but didn’t shake it, “Come on, we aren’t strangers anymore”

“Fair enough, I’m Y/N” I gave him my name as well and a smirk appeared on Chanyeol’s lips.

“So...you owe me a dance, Y/N” He muttered, stepping closer. I flashed him a confident smile, maybe I can get some information out of him.

“One dance” I pointed a finger at him and Chanyeol just nodded his head, extending his hand for me to take. Walking us back to the dancing people, Chanyeol’s big hands landed on my waist as I grabbed his elbows. The beat of the music slowly turned slower and slower, until people were swaying to the beat in partners.

“This place seems lovely” Chanyeol spoke up as he lead us to the beat of the music.

“It is” I nodded, looking up into his eyes “Where do you come from?”

For a little moment, his eyes narrowed into slits, but as fast as they came they were gone. A big smile spread on his pink lips, eyes glinting in the lights of the market.

“From the sea” I cocked an eyebrow, lips pulling into an amused grin.

“What a surprise, I would have never guessed” At my tone Chanyeol laughed quietly, but I waited for a real answer.

“Me and my comrades are from the Seven Seas Kingdom” My eyes widened a little bit as Chanyeol hummed along the music, bringing me a little closer to him. The Seven Seas Kingdom is up in the far North, those who travelled there say that people are ruthless and don’t like new comers. The waters are always harsh there, the weather a lot colder than here, in the South.

“Then what are you doing here?” I asked, eyebrows now furrowed as I watched Chanyeol’s lips twitch.

“We are...explorers” That didn’t sound too convincing as he said it, his eyes narrowed when he probably saw I didn’t believe him entirely.

“We wanted to see new places, meet new people. This is my favorite so far” I smiled at him, growing a little stiff when he leaned down.

“And the girls here…” He trailed off with a chuckle, a smirk settling on his lips “are quite beautiful, those people who said so sure didn’t lie”

I snorted, detaching myself from Chanyeol as the song ended and Jeno said his goodbyes before a girl band would take over their place.

“I bet those people had some great experiences here” Chanyeol just smirked as I looked past him to see Sooyoung with a man that arrived with Chanyeol. His light brown hair was pushed back, his jaw sharp as his head hovered dangerously close to Sooyoung’s. My eyebrows furrowed as I watched them dance, not happy to see Sooyoung so careless.

“Ah, do you know her perhaps?” Chanyeol was quick to see the change in my face as he turned around, eyes on Sooyoung and his comrade.

“She’s my friend” I answered, looking back at Chanyeol to see him nodding at the man who was smirking. I really don’t like this.

“He’s Baekhyun, a comrade of mine” Chanyeol looked back at me, his features holding amusement “Don’t worry, he’s a good guy. I’m sure your friend will enjoy her time with him...”

“Yeah, I bet she will” I muttered rather unhappily as the town clock gonged loudly, alerting us that it was midnight. Since I promised my father I wouldn’t come, but I still did, the most I could do was at least go back by midnight.

“Well, if you are looking for fun I suggest you find someone else” I smiled at Chanyeol as he raised his eyebrows.

“I’m leaving...but you can search for a girl called Soojin, she’s quite fun to hang out with...at least that’s what I heard from men around town” I winked at Chanyeol and before he could say a word, I turned around and left the place, hurrying home hoping that father didn’t arrive before me.

~~~

Usually, on a Sunday morning, the town is quiet, everyone enjoying their time with their families. But the loud noises outside steered me awake, eyebrows furrowing as I sat up in my bed, rubbing my eyes. The Major’s house wasn’t far from the market but you still had to walk down the beach or go through the little street to get there. There was some sort of commotion happening outside that I didn’t understand as I got out of bed, opening my door.

“Father!” I called, walking around the house “Are you home?”

There was no response as I knocked on his study door so I pushed the door open, indeed finding it empty.

“Father--” My sentence got cut off by the shrill scream that traveled around the beach and into the house. I froze, heart picking up. I know that scream, I could recognize it anytime.

Throwing the door open, in a haze, I picked up my white gown and threw it over my nightgown as I ran down the beach, barefoot. The wind whipped at my face as my feet sank into the sand, heart beating faster and faster as there was another scream, from the same person. The splashing sounds of the water only edged me on to go faster, the market coming in view as I spotted the people gathered around the stage that was placed for the festival. I ran even faster, lungs burning as I finally got off the beach, feet aching when it made contact with the wood and sand on the ground of the market. I pushed the people out of my way, eyes wide when I could see the people on the stage. A blonde man was holding Sooyoung, holding a knife to her neck while the one who she danced with yesterday night, Baekhyun, was threateningly holding a sword towards Sooyoung’s family. My heart seemed to fall flat when I saw little Yeri, with tears streaming down her cheeks, as she was held by Chanyeol. No, this can’t happen. I flinched back when someone suddenly gripped my hand.

“Y/N” Joohyun’s voice was shaky as she stared at me wide eyed “They--they are pirates”

“What!” I breathed out, still trying to catch my breath.

“They want to take Sooyoung and Yeri” Joohyun continued and I almost choked on air as I looked back towards the stage. It seemed like Sooyoung’s eyes found us as she stared at us, face blank but her eyes held fear. No, this can’t happen, not to them.

“Mother!” Yeri called out when Chanyeol suddenly started dragging her away and my muscles tensed as I knew I had to do something.

“No!” I screamed, pushing past the few people that were in front of me, Joohyun still gripping my arm, “Let them go!”

The people went silent, shocked as they stared at me. The pirates were looking at me amused, but the blonde one looked surprised even. As my eyes darted around, I saw my father’s wide eyes as he was pushing the people out of his way.

“I’m not letting you take them!” I screamed, looking directly into Chanyeol’s eyes as he stared at me with a smirk.

“Oh really?” His deep voice resonated in the market as people covered back, “What are you going to do?”

“Y/N, no” My father’s harsh voice made me jump, wide eyes looking at him “Stop it”

“Y/N, you can’t--”

“I have an offer” Chanyeol’s voice silenced my father as we looked back at him, “You give us your daughter and these two girls can stay”

The market went dead silent as my heart stopped beating. I felt all eyes slowly fall on me and I gulped. By now, Joohyun’s grip felt normal but the way she was squeezing it suddenly made my whole arm go numb.

“Y/N” She whispered, eyes searching for mine.

“No” My father said, head held high as he looked at Chanyeol and the other three pirates, “I will not let you waltz into my town and take away our women. My daughter or not, you can’t take them”

At that, the three pirates started laughing and people started muttering around us.

“Or we can kill you, it’s your choice” Baekhyun said with a shrug and I glared at him hard.

“Let them go” I said again, eyes pleading as I looked back at Chanyeol.

“Come with us then” Chanyeol tilted his head with a grin and I gulped as Joohyun whimpered beside me.

“I’m not letting you take her!” My father shouted as he charged forward and I gasped when suddenly two more people jumped out from the town people, swords pointed at my father.

“One more step and you are dead” A man with big eyes and a killer gaze spoke up. My father stopped abruptly and silence once again settled over the market until Yeri’s brother turned towards me.

“Go” He spoke up, eyes narrowed at me “They want you, go with them!”

Yeri’s eyes were wide as she stared at her brother, unable to speak.

“Yes, they want you not my Sooyoung!” Mrs. Park screamed, pointing a finger at me.

“Very well” Chanyeol smiled and he nodded at Baekhyun and the blonde man who let go of Sooyoung and they both took off, coming towards me. Before my father could react he was held back by a gentle-faced man, hold firm.

“Y/N, no, wait, please--” My father continued calling out as Baekhyun grabbed my arm and urged me forward.

“No.” Joohyun’s grip was iron like as she glared straight in the eyes of the blond haired man, “I’m not letting go of her”

“Then you come too” The blond haired man scoffed as he gripped Joohyun by the arm, trying to pull her off me but she was not letting go. Now that Sooyoung was free, her mother was clutching her to her chest as Sooyoung watched with tears in her eyes.

“Kill me if you want to but I’m not letting go of her” Joohyun’s voice was low and her eyes screamed murder.

“What about you come with us then?” Chanyeol suddenly proposed as he roughly pushed Yeri away from him, who stumbled a little before running to her brother.

“I said, let her go” She hissed as she gripped the blond haired man’s arm tightly, the man had a cheshire grin on his face.

“Sorry, but I can’t do that, Miss” He almost looked apologetic as he flashed Joohyun a look before hauling her up by the waist, her grip instantly disappearing from my arm.

“No, let me go!” Joohyun screamed as she started kicking around, Baekhyun suddenly picked up his pace as he dragged me off. I couldn’t do anything but stumble after them, not if I wanted the town and my friends safe. Joohyun’s cries were loud as she screamed after us, probably putting up a fight with the pirate. I caught Sooyoung’s regretful eyes before I was fully dragged out of the market and my father’s tearful eyes. It was okay, I saved people. So after all, pirates were really real. That should have been a shock but I was expecting it in some ways, it was too good to be true, as some would say.

Baekhyun’s grip on my arm was still harsh but he wasn’t dragging me after him anymore, rather walking beside me, whistling quietly as Chanyeol led the way. The other pirates were behind us and as we neared the beach, the blond man ran up to us, cheek a little red and forearms marked with red scratch marks.

“That friend of yours is quite feisty” He chuckled as he fell in step with Baekhyun and me, chest falling and rising quickly. I refused to acknowledge him but I couldn’t fight off the little grin that appeared on my lips, serves him right for touching Joohyun.

“May I get her name?” His question was polite, a charming smile on his lips. I scoffed but still didn’t spear him a glance, my eyes glaring daggers into Chanyeol’s broad back.

“I wouldn’t mind having fun with her when we return” The blond haired man muttered and that ticked a nerve as I flinched away from Baekhyun, jumping to the blonde haired man’s collar.

“Don’t even dream about it. You have me, leave her alone” I hissed as the others eyed us amused, Chanyeol with a scowl on his face.

“All are women like you in this town?” Baekhyun only laughed at the question, pulling me off the blonde haired man quite roughly.

“I guess yes, you have no idea how hard it was to get Sooyoung to finally shut up last night” At that the boys cackled and I looked at Baekhyun, my glare directed at him.

“You don’t scare me” He chuckled, looking down at me “I’ve dealt with scarier things, and I know how to shut you up”

I felt like gagging at his wink but got distracted by the huge ship in front of us. How did we not see this? Was it here all the time? When did they arrive? I wish I did listen to father and didn’t go to the festival last night.

“We have our ways” The big eyed man spoke up behind me, examining my face as if he read my thoughts, “We hid the ship, we aren’t stupid”

“Anyone with two eyes would see such huge ship” I muttered, biting my lower lip when I was getting dragged into the water in order to reach the ship.

“Let’s call it…” A weird grin stretched on the same man’s lips “Magick”

“As if” I scoffed but the man just remained with the same grin, making me feel uneasy. The water reached my waist by the time we reached the ship and I already regretted wearing such a nice gown. The salt water probably ruined it, not like I could wear it anymore, who knows what will happen to me now. I’ve heard enough horrible stories about women who are taken by pirates.

Chanyeol was the first one to climb up the ladder, easily jumping on the ship. I was nudged forward and I almost fell face first into the water. I turned around to glare at Baekhyun but he wasn’t even looking at me.

“We haven’t got all day” He shrugged, pursing his lips “Go on, hurry, little princess”

“Don’t call me that!” I snapped at him, angrily gripping the ladder and hauling myself out of the water, “Try to peek and you are dead”

The men bellow hollered in laughter as I scoffed, eyes set into a glare as I climbed the poorly bid stairs of the rope. It was hard to climb it, it was cutting my feet and the wet dress was another weight on my body. Great choice to wear all white, Y/N, really amazing I must congratulate myself.

To my relief, there was a hand extended for me when I reached the top and I grabbed it tightly, jumping on the other side of the railing. I was stunned when I looked up, the youthful face handsome and sharp.

“Come” He muttered lowly, voice not too deep as his grip was gentle but firm.

“Where are you taking me?” I asked, panic rising in my voice as the boy sighed.

“To your room”

“My-my room?” I asked wide eyed, looking at the boy’s face. He seemed serious, not giving much away.

“Captain Park said so” He just shrugged as we descended the desk that led underneath the deck.

“Captain Park” I scoffed, finding it amusing. It sounded amusing. He’s just an asshole, not worth the respect.

“I suggest you don’t anger him, he’s not pleasant when he loses his temper” The boy commented casually, opening a black door. The room was definitely not big, far from my room back at the Major’s house. There was a bed in the left corner, just enough to fit a single person. A little closet on the opposite and a desk on the right side with a fallen chair. The light was dangling from the ceiling, and I haven’t seen something like that before.

“It’s not that horrible, just listen to the captain” The boy said as he gently pushed me inside the room, “I’m Sehun, by the way”

“Okay” I muttered, eyeing the waiting boy. He had his eyebrows raised, waiting for something.

“Y/N” I muttered, realizing he wanted to know my name. For the first time he smiled, he looked even younger, before he turned around and left me alone, closing the door behind him. I sighed and went to sit on the bed, not bothering to raise the chair back to its place. Curse this whole day.

I was left alone for a short time before I heard loud voices above me and I figured it was the boys from the deck. The ship suddenly jolted and my heart clenched, we are taking off. This really is happening, they really are taking me away from my home, my family and my friends. The door opened and I couldn’t help it but glare at the man standing in the doorway.

“I hope you like your room” He grinned, stepping inside uninvited. I glared more at him, murdering him in my mind. It’s all his fault I’m here right now. If he didn’t have to show his masculinity back in town, I could still be at home, but no, he needs to show off.

“Did you forget how to speak, sweetheart?” He asked with a chuckle when I scoffed, still glaring at him.

“You wish I did, and don’t call me sweetheart” I snapped at the pirate.

“I guess you are quite shocked” Chanyeol smirked, only now did I see he had some clothes in his hands.

“Shocked? Not really. Angry? Very much” I flashed him a sweet smile, standing up when he started coming closer towards me.

“Why so snappy? You were nicer yesterday night” Chanyeol pouted fakely and I rolled my eyes, standing with my back straight.

“Yesterday night I thought I was speaking to a man, not a pirate”

“You make it sound like we aren’t human, sweetheart” My jaw clenched at the usage of the nickname as I crossed my arms in front of my chest.

“Are you though?” I raised my eyebrows, gaining Chanyeol’s attention as he was looking around the room before, “If you say you are human, why do you steal, rob towns and kill people? Why did you take me away? I tell you why, for your own sick entertainment. You are just a bunch of assholes who grew up in a bad family and now have to show their superiority to others by such acts? You know what Chanyeol? You got yourself the wrong girl if you think I will obey you or anyone on this ship. Filthy pirates”

“Watch your language” Chanyeol’s deep voice raised an octave as he glared at me, “I won’t let someone like you treat me without respect. A little princess who was raised in wealth and luxury? You have no idea what’s waiting for you”

“Really? What makes you think I’m not going to kill myself the second you leave this room?” I challenged Chanyeol, knowing well damn it was wrong. I shouldn’t test my limits.

“If you want that town to live, you won’t, trust me” He chuckled, standing too close to me for my liking.

“Don’t expect me to respect you, not after what you did, you are just a filthy pirate who probably has some daddy or mommy issues and doesn’t know how to--”

“You will--” Chanyeol’s big palm gripped my neck harshly, cutting my words off “listen to me and obey me. I won’t be treated without respect. You have one week to prove yourself to be useful before I send you out on the dark market or feed you to the sharks. If you know what’s best for you, you will listen to me”

I didn’t want to show it, but I knew the second Chanyeol smirked that the fear I felt was obvious in my eyes. He pushed me away, making me fall on the bed as he strode towards the door, head held high.

“And you won’t be wearing those princess clothes anymore” He chuckled mockingly and my jaw clenched as he slammed the door closed after him.

“I’m not a princess!” I screamed at the top of my lungs, falling in the bed limply, closing my eyes when I suddenly felt them fill with tears. No, I can’t go to the dark market or die, I need to go back to my father and friends. I couldn’t help it but curl up in a ball and let the tears fall as sleep quickly took over me.

~~~

The heavy knocks on my door woke me up from my deep slumber, eyebrows furrowing when I sat up. At first, I felt confused as to why was I slightly swaying but soon realized I was on the ship with those pirates.

“The captain wants you on deck in ten minutes, I suggest you hurry, princess” Baekhyun’s irritating voice made me furrow my eyebrows as I groaned loudly.

“I’m not a princess!” I shouted again for everyone to hear, jumping out of bed. I kept huffing as I paced up and down in the room, not wanting the pirates to see me in my nightgown, it’s quite see-through. What about the clothes Chanyeol brought in yesterday? I suppose they are for me to wear since they don’t have any female clothes. I sighed as I eyed them, thankfully they seemed clean, and quickly got myself dressed. I pulled my hair in a high ponytail, tying it with a rope I always keep on my wrist, just in case. The clothes weren’t too big and they surprisingly fit well, only around the hip area were they a little too baggy. With a grimace, I opened the door and went back the way I was lead here yesterday by Sehun. The hallway was darker than upstairs, so as soon as I stepped into the light my eyes started hurting. I groaned loudly as I walked up to the stairs to the deck, the chatter stopping between the pirates.

“What!” I snapped as nine eyes were on me. I felt a little intimidated but I kept my back straight and head high, that’s how my father taught me, no matter what the situation is, I show who I am.

“She doesn’t look like a princess to me” A man with a weird accent whispered, not quietly, obviously, if I heard him, to the man beside him who had peaceful features. His comrade only chuckled before looking back at me.

“Welcome, princess, I’m glad we didn’t have to drag you up here ourselves” The deep voice beside me was so sudden that it made me jump. The pirates snickered as I glared at all of them.

“That’s probably best for you” I snapped as I looked at Chanyeol “You are not allowed to touch me in any ways”

“Oh really?” Chanyeol asked as a smirk spread on his lips. If he is trying to humiliate me in front of these men, I hope he stops before I kick him in the balls, I’m not afraid to do it.

“That refers to all of you” I snapped, looking back at the other eight boys.

“Captain, why did you take her? She sounds annoying” A man with cat like eyes commented as he was sitting on some wood barrel, sharpening his daggers.

“I didn’t have much of a choice” Chanyeol sighed beside me and my eyes widened.

“You didn’t have much of a choice?” My voice raised as I looked back at him “You could have easily left my town without showing off, you asshole. Wasn’t I clear enough last night? Do you want me to repeat my thoughts about you all? Would you like the boys hear my thoughts as well?”

Chanyeol’s eyes narrowed as he took a step towards me, making me take a step back away from him.

“If you want to live, shut up” I snickered at Chanyeol’s threat, crossing my arms in front of my chest.

“Really, I’m not afraid of you” I grinned at him but Chanyeol’s jaw was gritted as he suddenly grabbed my arm harshly. I was about to protest but he started dragging me harshly after him, I tried fighting my way out of his hold but he was obviously stronger.

“Stop” I hissed at him as he stopped right by the edge of the ship, a piece of the railing missing here. The ship was rocking stronger as the wind picked up, waves also stronger. A wrong move and I’d be sent into the sea underneath us.

“See this?” Chanyeol muttered darkly, his grip tightening only a little bit, “Keep that attitude going and this will be your faith”

I yelped when Chanyeol pushed me just a little forward and I quickly latched onto his arm, afraid that he’d really push me into the water.

“You have no power over me, Y/N, don’t forget that” He looked directly into my eyes before pulling me back harshly from the edge, eyes still on me as I slapped his hand off my arm.

“Did you enjoy the show?” I sneered at the rest of the crew as they were looking at us curiously, my comment made them crack up.

“It wasn’t even that entertaining” Sehun said with a shrug and I glared at him.

“Since you are already here” I flinched away from the hand on my back, glaring hard at the tanned boy, “Your help would be nice around the deck”

“My help? I’d rather root away in my room” I scoffed making the boys laugh.

“Actually, Jongin, that’s an amazing idea” Chanyeol grinned as his eyes lit up, teeth showing. I stared at him a little longer, finding that expression adorable. No, what the hell, we hate Chanyeol, remember?

“I know it is” Jongin grinned as he placed his hand again on my back, making me step away from him.

“So, what are you thinking about?” Chanyeol asked as he eyed Jongin curiously.

“She can be our personal maid!” Jongin exclaimed and my eyes widened as affirmative responses came from the other boys.

“Oh no” I shook my head with an almost hysterical laugh, “I’m not going to clean your mess or be ordered around by you. You did it yourself before, keep doing it. If not, I’d rather jump into the water by myself”

“She’s funny” The blond haired man from yesterday said with a loud cackle, earning a grin from Baekhyun and an eye roll from the big eyed boy.

“I wouldn’t mind some help though” The cat like eyed man spoke up, putting his dagger finally away as he seemed pleased, “Cleaning up the mess after them can be horrifying”

“Exactly my thoughts” I nodded eagerly, pointing my finger at each pirate, “I’m not going to clean their dirt”

“That hurt, princess” Baekhyun placed a hand against his chest “We aren’t that filthy”

“Yes, you all are just some filthy pira--”

“If you’d like…” The big eyed boy spoke up, voice softer than what I was expecting it to be, “You can help out in the kitchen today and clean up tomorrow”

“My room needs cleaning today” The weird accented guy said with a pout, he actually looked cute.

“Clean it yourself” I scoffed, crossing my arms in front of my chest.

“Here” I jumped at the loud sound when the blond haired man and Chanyeol dropped different cleaning items in front of me, “You can start right now”

Chanyeol’s grin was the most annoying one, making me fum with anger. I huffed as I picked up a cleaning rug and stormed off, knowing I didn’t have much of a choice but to clean the ship. Screw these pirates.

Was I right to call them filthy? Oh yes, I was very right. I wonder if these boys even know what washing a cloth is? Except like three people, their clothes smelled horrible and I was forced, by my own brain this time, to wash their clothes as best as I could with the salty water and some soap I found in the ‘dungeons’. It was just actually the storage room underneath all the other rooms, basically the bottom of the ship.

After washing their clothes and proudly hanging them up on a rope on deck, I finished cleaning their rooms, actually happy they didn’t posses many things. But the dust was horrible in one room and I didn’t even want to find out whose it was. By dinner time I was spent as I usually don’t do this at home, we had a house maid who did this job. Sometimes I would help her, but my father wasn’t too fond of the idea. I was forced to not wear the little vest as the burning sun was making me sweat like crazy on deck. Yes, I even had to clean the deck. When I finally finished cleaning, the big eyes man, who’s name is Kyungsoo, approached me cautiously.

“I don’t bite, you know” I muttered, rolling my eyes as I tapped away the sweat on my forehead with some mop I found in my room.

“I take your threats seriously, I still need my private parts, you know” I couldn’t fight back the little smile as I looked at the boy.

“Dinner is ready, you should come and eat with us” The boy continued to watch me as I stood up and rolled down the sleeves of the white shirt.

“Are you the cook or something?” I asked Kyungsoo as we made our way down, heading for the kitchen.

“I can cook too, to their luck otherwise they’d die of hunger” I couldn’t help it but chuckle, imagining Baekhyun whining for food like a little kid. It’s my first day on this ship, what am I doing going around imagining things? No, get yourself together, Y/N. You are the daughter of the Major and you need to get back to Shell somehow.

“That would be nice to watch” I muttered barely but Kyungsoo still heard it and chuckled, opening the door for me. I offered him a thankful smile as the others stopped whatever they were doing, eyes set on us.

“Wow, she smiled” Sehun was the first to break the silence, his face just as blank as his voice. I rolled my eyes and went to sit beside Minseok, the cat like eyed man, rather than Jongdae, blond haired man, who had a dangerous grin on his lips. Kyungsoo occupied the seat beside Jongdae and the boys suddenly went back to eating, digging into their food. Even though Baekhyun was sitting across from me, his loud chewing was getting on my nerves as he kept grinning at what Yixing, the weird accented guy, was telling him. Junmyeon, kind faced guy, kept sighing beside me as he slowly ate his food. My mouth pulled into a grimace when Kyungsoo placed some rice and fish on my plate.

“Oh, princess doesn’t like the food?” Chanyeol mocked from the head of the table. I rolled my eyes and started eating the rice, eyeing the fish.

“You can eat it, I made sure it’s well cooked” Kyungsoo eyed me as I hesitantly teared the fish apart to take out the little bones.

“I don’t exactly like fish” I muttered and Minseok eyed me as him, Junmyeon, Yixing and Kyungsoo were the only ones eating like civilized people.

“Aren’t you from a shore town?” Minseok asked, eyebrows furrowed.

“That has nothing to do with me liking or not fish, it’s not my favorite dish” I shrugged as I slowly chewed the food.

“Well, princess, you’ll have to get used to it...or at least for this week” Chanyeol smirked when I glared at him.

“One week?” Sehun asked curiously, stealing some pepper from Jongin’s plate when he was busy staring at Chanyeol.

“If she’s not useful to us, we are sending her to the dark market. Our next stop is in the Vest Kingdom, so we shouldn’t worry” Chanyeol spoke with authority and the boys remained quiet as he continued, “I’m sure Blackpink wouldn’t mind an addition to the team”

“Jennie and Jisoo would be thrilled to hear” Baekhyun said with a smirk, mouth full of food. I glared at him for not being able to eat like a normal person.

“Who’s Blackpink?” I finally voiced my thoughts, looking around, eyes landing on Junmyeon who sighed once again.

“An organization of girls, a cult, anything you want to call it...they take girls and teach them different things...if they are good fighters, they add them to the Vest Army under Rose’s division, sometimes Lisa gets new girls for entertainment purposes or...Jennie and Jisoo get new girls either for prostitution or different criminal activities” Junmyeon’s explanation made me gulp hard as the boys eyes were on me.

“I don’t...want to meet these girls” I muttered, looking down at my food as I continued to eat.

“Then be a good girl” I could practically hear the smirk in Chanyeol’s voice but for once I decided to gulp down my remark with my food, it won’t do anything good. I don’t want to get to the hands of Blackpink...especially not to Jennie and Jisoo’s hands.

After dinner, I was nice enough to offer and wash the dishes as the boys left me behind, apparently going back to the deck, cards and bottles in their hands. They were definitely not up to something good. My hands felt numb by the time I finally finished washing the dishes. Drying my hands on my brown pants, I left the kitchen, heading to my room when I heard someone groaning from the top of the stairs. Curiosity getting the best of me, I took a peek only to see Kyungsoo glaring at the steps, leaning against the railing. I was just about to leave when he called my name.

“Y/N?”

“Yes?” He sounded unsure, almost confused.

“Could you help me?” My eyebrows shoot up but I climbed the stairs and joined Kyungsoo.

“What happened?” I asked curiously, realizing he was drunk as his clothes smelled of some strong liquor.

“Oh, we went to play cards and I drank too much” He chuckled, his eyes not exactly on me “Now I’m drunk and can’t descend the stairs...could you help me out a little?”

I sighed but took Kyungsoo’s arm and placed it around my neck, letting him lean against my body.

“I feel sick” He muttered and I almost cringed away, afraid that he’d throw up.

“Why did you drink then?” I asked instead, taking one step at a time, careful to not fall.

“We need to loosen up from time to time” He just shrugged and I huffed as we got to the bottom of the stairs.

“Which is your room?” I asked as I walked down the corridor with Kyungsoo.

“The one beside the kitchen” He muttered, swaying a little, almost knocking us over. I chuckled, looking at him.

“The cook is closest to the kitchen, the boys would die without you here” I muttered and it made Kyungsoo laugh a little too loudly.

“They are good boys, you know” He hiccuped as we arrived to his room, “Especially Chanyeol, just give them time. Chanyeol is pretending to be all this big and bad boy, but he’s actually softer than any of us--”

Kyungsoo’s eyebrows furrowed as I helped him sit on the bed, glad that his weight was finally off me, “Well, maybe he’s not softer than Jongin, but he’s nice, you know”

“He didn’t leave the best impression” I muttered as I headed to his closet, opening it.

“I’m surprised my clothes fit you that well” Kyungsoo muttered as he eyed me taking out his clothes.

“Your clothes?” I asked surprised, turning towards him.

“Yeah, mine” He chuckled and I grinned a little as I went back to him.

“Can I help you change, you smell awful” I grimaced a little and Kyungsoo hummed.

“So it was me” I chuckled a little as he struggled out of his shirt.

“I’m sure the others are just as smelly as you are and I’m also sure I’m not helping them as well” Kyungsoo laughed drunkenly and held his hands up like a little boy as I fidgeted with the clean shirt.

“You know…” Kyungsoo trailed off for a second as he looked at me seriously with his big glinting eyes, “I’m surprised how much I like you, it’s only the second day of having you here”

“Well, at least I know someone likes me genuinely” I muttered as I buttoned Kyungsoo’s shirt rather clumsily as the waves were harsher tonight and rocked the ship more.

“I guess you don’t like us…” Kyungsoo trailed off, again, watching the ceiling.

“I do like you, it’s just--” I sighed as Kyungsoo and I locked eyes, “You stole me away from my life. I didn’t want this, your Captain dragged me into this mess. I want to go back to my father and my friends. I miss them so much and it’s been only two days, Kyungsoo. I want to escape from this nightmare. Every day I wake up I just hope it was another bad dream, but then Baekhyun whistles ‘princess’ outside my door and I know I’m in the same hell”

Kyungsoo chuckled at my last words and sighed as he gripped my arm, carefully laying down as I helped him.

“I understand how you feel, because I was once like you” He muttered so quietly I almost didn’t hear him, “My life, our lives, weren’t like this always. There’s horrible things out there in the world and we stumbled upon one of them”

“What do you mean?” I asked softly, my eyebrows furrowed in confusion as Kyungsoo pulled me to sit down on his bed, hand still holding onto my arm.

“We were once all carefree kids, running around the markets in our Kingdom and causing mischief” He smiled fondly at the memory, eyes closing, “But one day...Chanyeol stumbled upon something dangerous and that cursed us…”

I stared at Kyungsoo’s peaceful face as I let his words replay in my head. Chanyeol stumbled upon something dangerous and that cursed them? That made no sense. I didn’t see Kyungsoo as the one to believe in fairytales. Was he so drunk that his mind made up stories? They do say after all...drunk men tell no lies. My head swirled with confusion that night as I left Kyungsoo’s room and headed to mine to rest. Were they really cursed? But how did that happen?

~~~

Next day I was up before the sun was. I decided Kyungsoo deserved a good breakfast after the night he had. He most definitely will be hangover. It leaves me confused as to how the swinging of the ship doesn’t make them feel sick as every morning I wake up I feel dizzy and lightheaded.

Thankfully, I knew my way to the kitchen and didn’t cause any hubbub, however, I did stumble into a chair placed in front of Baekhyun’s room, which left me confused. Why was the chair there in the first place? It wasn’t an easy task finding every ingredient for the seaweed soup I planned on cooking which Mrs. Han taught me after my father had a huge hungover and couldn’t stand up from his bed for a whole day. There was no pepper but paprika would work as well. I hummed quietly to myself as I added all ingredients into the cauldron, careful with the fire of the stove. A very weird stove that I had to stare at for at least ten minutes before I figured how it worked...at least they have a stove. I also figured if Kyungsoo drank so much the other boys must have done the same, and as much as I don’t like them, I don’t wish to hear all day some men whining about how bad they are feeling or worse...having them throw up which I would have to clean afterwards, disgusting. I moved around quietly as I looked for a cup and spoon that I could take to Kyungsoo.

Today I felt rather creative so before leaving my room I decided I would freshen up a bit my outfit. The pants were too warm as I spent my days out in the blazing sun on deck and decided that I could just shorten them, like Sooyoung’s sister taught me once. Just the thought of Sooyoung brought tears to my eyes but I blinked them away knowing she was safe, and focused rather on the little happiness I felt after successfully designing these new pants for myself. I hope Kyungsoo wouldn’t mind seeing as I ripped one of his pants.

I jumped as someone cleared their throat behind me, slamming the cup down against the table beside me.

“What are you doing?” The deep voice was hoarse and I turned around with a glare.

“Cooking, obviously” I muttered as I took in Chanyeol’s disheveled form. He looked horrible, honestly. The only thing that sat rightly on him were his pants. His blue shirt was wrinkled and all buttons undone and black curly hair sticking out in every possible direction while his face looked swelled.

“Are you planning on poisoning us?” He chuckled as he shuffled inside the kitchen, eyebrows furrowed as he held onto his head.

“I wish I was doing just that...but no” I answered Chanyeol as I watched him amused. He seemed disoriented as he opened cupboards.

“What are you searching for?” I asked curiously as I watched him hiss as he closed his eyes. Just how strong was the liquor they drank last night?

“Stop asking questions or else my brain will blow up” Chanyeol hissed and I chuckled as he drew closer opening and slamming the doors of the cupboards.

“Then I shall gladly continue questioning you” I said with a smirk when Chanyeol sent me a dark glare, making me chuckle. Who would take a man seriously when he looked like that? He stopped in front of me and I tensed as he leaned up and opened the cupboard above me, his chest pressing dangerously close to my face. Bare chest, tanned chest, muscular chest...I hissed at my own thoughts, silently lecturing myself for openly drooling at the enemy.

“Curse Kyungsoo, we’ve got no hangover potion anymore” Chanyeol slammed the cupboard door close with a groan. I grinned as I looked up at him.

“Luckily for you, I have just what you are looking for” Chanyeol’s eyes landed on me as he stared down at me, eyebrows raised.

“And what is that?” He asked mildly interested and I smirked at him as I pushed him away harshly, making him groan as he stumbled backwards.

“My poison is actually a soup for hangovers so...sit down and wait patiently” I pointed the spoon at him as I went and took another cup and walked back to the cauldron. It was boiling, green bubbles raising to the surface, that means it’s all good to serve. Filling half of the cup, I walked to the table and placed the cup and spoon in front of Chanyeol while staring at him expectantly. He stared at the soup in disgust as it continued boiling, the green bubbles continuously raising to the surface.

“I was right, you are trying to poison us” He muttered as he carefully took a spoonful and stared at it.

“Well excuse me, but until you stare at it and contemplate whether it will kill you or not, I shall head to Kyungsoo’s room and feed him the soup” I said with a glare and walked past Chanyeol, ignoring his confused gaze as I knocked on the boy’s door. There was a quiet murmur and I walked inside, closing the door behind me.

“Morning!” I called loudly and cheerfully, watching as Kyungsoo squirmed and pulled the covers over his head. I chuckled and went to sit beside him on the bed.

“You know, as much as seeing you all squirming and whining amuses me, I decided to be nice and not poison you while I cooked this soup” I said quietly as if talking to a child and Kyungsoo peeked out from underneath his covers.

“What soup?” He asked quietly, voice barely audible.

“Seaweed soup, the best one from my Kingdom, an old lady taught me how to make it”

“It must be good then, old ladies always know what they are doing” Kyungsoo muttered as he carefully sat up and took the cup from my hands.

“You are underestimating me, comrade” I glared at him jokingly and a smile appeared on his lips as he smelled the soup. I watched as he started eating it carefully, slowly grinning and grinning wider.

“So it’s good then?” I asked with a grin and Kyungsoo nodded eagerly as I chuckled.

“Its effects come rather quickly so you shouldn’t worry about--” There was a big commotion outside the door as loud whining and footsteps combined together.

“You better go and feed them before they realize we have no more hangover potion and think it’s the end of the world” Kyungsoo said with a chuckle as he nodded towards the door.

I sighed as I glanced at the door, not wanting to leave Kyungsoo’s room, “Fine”

The second I was out in the hall it felt like I was in the market. The boy’s voices blended together, louder and messier than ever before. This was a disaster already. I stood in the doorway to the kitchen and clapped my hands loudly. Everyone in the room groaned loudly as Baekhyun glued his palms to his ears, Yixing following suit.

“If you’d just take a seat and calm down I could actually help you out!” I said loudly, making Jongin whine as he looked at me in pain. Chanyeol remained quiet as he looked at everyone and as he nodded everyone took their places at the table, except for Kyungsoo who was still in his room.

“Very well” I said with a pleased smile and walked to the cups and took eight of them to fill with the soup, I was hungry as well. Handing them the cups and spoons I took a seat opposite Chanyeol and quietly started eating, that is until someone made a gagging sound.

“What the hell is this?” Of course it was Baekhyun who was glaring at his green soup.

“Poison” I said casually and all boys stopped eating as their eyes fell on me. Jongdae spit back the content from inside his mouth into his cup. I remained nonchalant as I kept eating that is until Chanyeol started laughing loudly. My eyes widened and we all looked at him as if he was crazy.

“You good, Captain?” Junmyeon asked softly as he had already begun eating again, having seen that I was eating the same soup.

“You really don’t think she’d poison herself as well?” Chanyeol asked as he looked at the rest of the boys that weren’t eating anymore, “It’s good for your hangover, eat it”

And with that Chanyeol rose from the table as the boys started eating again, eyes finding mine when he was in the doorway. He nodded at me subtly and I looked back down to my soup as he walked away. I guess that was his way of saying ‘thank you’.

~~~

The days passed by quickly and I became more and more nervous as we were drawing closer and closer to the Vest Kingdom. Chanyeol still wasn’t saying if I would stay with them or if they would sell me away. I was really holding onto the hope that seeing as Kyungsoo, Sehun and Jongdae really liked me, Chanyeol would keep me around. But then...Baekhyun doesn’t like me and neither does Chanyeol and seeing as those two are rather close, I will most likely be sold off. Before that happens, however, I have formed a plan in my head. If I am to be sold, I shall act like a weeping princess and beg them to keep me, acting of course because I wouldn’t beg a pirate even if my life was at stake. So then we get to the market in the shore town of the Vest Kingdom and I kneel whoever is with my in the groins and run away, hiding. After they leave I travel to the Queen of the Kingdom and beg her to send me home, our Kingdom’s might not be on good terms, however my father once helped her and she needs to turn back the favour.

I was busy cleaning the Captain’s cabin, which was fairly larger and fuller of objects than the others room. Of course Chanyeol would take the largest room, he was that selfish. I sighed as I dusted off another shelf of books until one book caught my eyes, ‘Curses and how to live with them’. What was a book like that doing here? The others were about traveling, the kingdoms and some myths and fairytales written by famous authors. My eyes narrowed as I took the book and walked back to the big oak desk, abandoning the rag on the chair, as my eyes fell on another book laying beside the outstretched map, ‘Witches, Curses, Countercurses’. What is all this curiosity about curses? Was Chanyeol planning on cursing someone? Perhaps me? Then suddenly Kyungsoo’s drunken words about a curse rang through my brain. Was it true then? Did he really say the truth? It seems like.

“What are you doing?” I slammed the black book against the desk in fright as Chanyeol’s deep voice boomed in the room.

“Cle-cleaning your room” I cursed myself for stammering, but Chanyeol’s gaze was murderous.

“Doesn’t look like it” He snapped as the door behind him slammed shut, making me jump again. Curse you, Y/N.

“Who allowed you inside?” He walked closer and I walked to the other side of the desk to make sure there was distance between us.

“I’m supposed to be cleaning every single room on this ship, remember?” I snapped as I sent a glare at Chanyeol, heart beating faster than before. I’m afraid, but I don’t know why. Being closed inside a room with Chanyeol alone makes my hair stand on edge and heart beat fast. Maybe because he’s the one that basically kidnapped me or maybe because he’s really handsome, however this is the first and last time you hear me saying that, or maybe because he looks like he could kill me with his eyes after he took a look at the book I took interest in.

“I didn’t give you permission, however, to clean this room” His dark eyes watched me intently as he walked closer.

“Yes, but you also didn’t state that I was not allowed inside, so how was I supposed to know?” I raised my eyebrows at him as we kept circling the desk, him trying to close in on me and me trying to put more and more distance between us.

“You were snooping around. I don’t tolerate thieves on my ship” My eyes widened at the accusation. Does that mean he’ll really sell me? I’m not even a thief!

“I’m not a thief!” I exclaimed angrily as I walked faster after Chanyeol tried lunging at me, “Stop running after me, I told you I won’t let you touch me!”

“As if someone will respect your wishes on this ship” Chanyeol sneered and I glared at him fiercely as I took the black book from the desk in my hands, his eyes fixating on it before his glare intensified.

“To keep you updated, Kyungsoo, Sehun, Junmyeon, Yixing, Minseok, Jongin all respect my wish so I don’t see your problem here, Chanyeol” I taunted him with a smirk and Chanyeol scoffed before his glare returned again.

“Put that book down” He demanded, making me look at the black book in my hands. He stopped in his tracks and so did I.

“No” I answered defiantly, glancing at the open window. Chanyeol seemed to pick up on my train of thoughts as his eyes darkened even more.

“Don’t even think about it” He warned, Adam apple bobbing up and down as he gulped. He almost looked...nervous.

“Why does this book matter so much to you?” I pressed on, knowing my luck was running thin.

“Put it down on the desk and I will let you go unharmed” Chanyeol’s voice sounded nice for the first time, but I didn’t like the threat.

I smirked as I took a small step towards the open window, the waves crashing loudly against the side of the ship, “What if I throw it out the window? The ocean will swallow your book and then--nothing will remain of it. Like you did with me. You took me away from everything I held dear and threatened to sell me off”

“I will take you back home, but put that book down, now” Chanyeol’s lips pulled into a tight smile and I chuckled as my eyes widened, amused that for once I had the upper hand while interacting with him.

“I don’t believe you” I said the words slowly, looking down at the book with a deep fake frown, “And I don’t like this book, we’d be only even if I made it disappear, don’t you think, Chanyeol?”

His eyes stayed fixed on my hand and I smirked as the silence dragged on, neither of us making a move. The desk was still between us. What’s my plan though? I throw the book out the window and run from his room? I can’t hide in my room, I’m on his ship for God’s sake. He’ll throw me off the ship in the best case, better to drown than get sold off to that Blackpink organization. I’d rather die than become a slave. But I want him to hurt like I do, knowing how far away I am from all of my loved ones. My eyes must have shown finality because Chanyeol’s eyes widened as he jumped towards me right as I raised my arm. I was going to throw the book out of the window, it almost left my hand, but I was roughly showed into the bookcase behind me, book flying out of my hands but sadly onto the wooden floor and not out the window. I hissed as the shelves dug into my back, Chanyeol’s big body pressed against me. I flailed my arms, pushing against his chest hard but Chanyeol growled and just held on tighter. I kicked his shin hard, realizing my hands were no use, and Chanyeol yelped loudly as he let go of me, I was finally able to push him away. I turned sharply and went to run for the door but before I could take even three steps hands around my waist whirled me around and I screamed as I was thrown against the desk. I yelped in pain as my hips crashed into the edge of the desk, probably bruising it as well, before I was turned around again, hand around my neck. I was bent backwards, feet barely on the floor and hands gripping the desk tightly as I fought against Chanyeol trying to push me down against the desk fully. Realizing I wasn’t about to give up the fight, he stopped pushing me but his hand remained around my neck, keeping a firm grip. He lay his other hand on the desk behind me, leaning so close our lips were almost touching.

“You are going to pay dearly for that” He spoke quietly, aware that due to our closeness I could hear him very well, but his voice was deadly.

I huffed, maintaining his eye contact even if I was close to shaking, “I didn’t even get to throw it out the window so why are you getting worked up, Chanyeol?”

“Stop saying my name like that” He snapped and I smirked as I raised my eyebrows.

“I don’t like being called princess and yet you still call me that…” I pretended to think for a moment, “What to do, what to do…”

“I know what I’m going to do with you” The dark smirk that stretched on his lips made me gulp, “And I have a feeling you won’t like it--”

“You and your crew are cursed” I blurted out in panic, not wanting to hear the rest of Chanyeol’s words. Chanyeol’s mouth remained opened as he looked at me mildly shocked, hand tightening around my neck.

“How do you know” He growled after collecting himself.

“Kyungsoo told me when you all got drunk” I whispered, my heart pumping fast due to the adrenaline.

“He can’t keep his mouth shut when drunk, the idiot” Chanyeol hissed as he looked past me.

“So it’s true then…” I trailed of gripping his wrist with one hand as his grip was becoming uncomfortable, but Chanyeol didn’t loosen it he just looked back at me with a fire burning in his eyes.

“I decided last night to sell you off tomorrow” Chanyeol’s words felt as if a weight was dropped onto me. My eyes widened and I gripped his wrist firmly now, feeling the panic rising in me again. But I thought he’d keep me after everything I did for him on this ship!

“But--but I did everything you asked and I--”

“You are too annoying and what you did everyone else on this ship can do, therefore you are to no use to us” Chanyeol’s voice held finality as he pulled me upright, back to my feet and let go of me.

“No, you don’t understand! I--I did everything you asked me why would you--the boys like me! I help Kyungsoo a lot and I--Sehun said how much he liked my company and that you feel better having me around! He told me that you enjoy my company, Chanyeol, why would you--”

“All that boy talks is nonsense” Chanyeol scoffed, averting his eyes from mine. I felt the tears in my eyes as I gripped his biceps trying to get him to look at me.

“Chanyeol, please--”

“Get out” His voice was quiet as he didn’t look at me.

I shook his arms as I stared up at him helplessly, “Please, Chanyeol, don’t do--”

“Get out” He repeated his words still refusing to look at me, still standing numb underneath my touch.

“Chanyeol, I--”

“Get out!” He suddenly shouted so loudly that a sob involuntarily escaped my lips. He stepped back and wrenched his arms out of my hold as he walked to his chair, leaving me trembling. I took off towards his door almost numbly as my lips trembled as tears rolled down my cheeks.

“You are the monster they speak about in the fairytales and myths” I muttered lowly before slamming his door shut and running down the corridor and towards my room.

I wanted to die.

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mikeisthricedeceased · 5 years ago

Text

Big Shot 2

Maxwell Lord x OC

This is a part 2, so if you want to read Part 1 first, there’s the link!

Warnings: Smut 18+, D/s, sub!Maxwell, Mommy kink, praise kink, bondage, slapping, spanking, orgasm denial, overstimulation, choking, some humiliation, spitting, cum eating, aftercare

Word Count: ~5.6k (bruh)

A/N: Part two of that Maxwell Mommy kink thing inspired by a few asks that @zeldasayer got a little while ago. Sorry this part took so long, I’m a big dumb who can’t write.

Summary: After what happened in his office, Maxwell finally reaches out to Beth for a followup. Things get pretty intense.

~*~*~*~

Maxwell knocked at the front door, looking down at his watch to make sure it was exactly eight o’clock.

There was a brief pause before the door swung open, revealing a blonde woman in a dark satin robe, stockings, and heels.

He gave her a smooth grin. “Ms. Lancaster. Or is it Madame Minx?”

Beth pursed her lips, eyes trailing down and back up his frame. “Took you long enough,” she said, turning away and walking back inside, leaving the door hanging open for him.

His jaw clenched as he stepped inside, trying to ignore the immediate wave of anger at her utter dismissal of him. He eased the door shut behind him and followed her retreating figure.

“I’m on time, I can assure you of that,” he snapped.

She stopped at a door, raising an eyebrow at him. “I wasn’t talking about tonight, Maxwell.”

He instinctively tensed, nostrils flaring. “What exactly are you referring to, if not tonight?”

Her slow smile was positively feline. “I meant the amount of time you made me wait while you finally grew the balls to come seek me out after that morning in your office. I was beginning to worry about you.”

His hands balled into fists as she pulled the door open and gestured for him to enter. He held her gaze, glaring while he walked into the dim room.

He turned to take in the space as she shut the door behind them.

The room was a deep purple, the floor covered in what seemed like a dense foam material.

There was a large bed outfitted with rings all along the headboard and footboard, as well as a sturdy, barred canopy that almost reached the ceiling. Various forms of what seemed like seating furniture were spread out within the space, each with its own set of attachments. A massive X was up against one wall. There was a section of wall that was mounted with different tools, from spreader bars to floggers to canes. The most ordinary things in the room was a set of cabinets and the small clothes hamper beside them.

Maxwell’s mouth went a little dry as his eyes roamed over everything. “How do we begin this?”

Beth loosened the tie on her robe, which he now realized matched the walls perfectly. “When we enter this room, you can assume that the scene is beginning. I expect you to undress fully and fold or hang your clothes before putting them in the armoire. We agreed that the safeword is ‘zebra’.”

He turned on her. “You want me naked before we’ve even done anything?” he asked, exasperated.

“I do.” She slipped the robe off and hung it on a small hook by the armoire. She faced him in a black lace bustier, silk panties and a garter belt that held up her stockings. “Will that be an issue, Maxwell?”

He let his gaze wander all over her, his breath coming a little quicker. “I’d rather start things off where we left them last time.”

She took a moment to consider him. “Very well. But only this once, since it’s our first real scene. If you want to keep doing this, you’ll follow my rules.”

“Of course, Madame Minx,” he said, a sly grin on his face.

“That’s five,” she told him, strolling over to grab his tie. She tugged him toward the wall of tools.

“Five what?” he growled, almost losing his footing at a sudden yank.

She looked over her selection. “Five spanks,” she said simply, pulling down a set of stiff leather cuffs and leading him over to a seat.

His eyes widened. “You plan to spank me? For what?”

She pulled him around so that he was in front of her, face to face, his tie still wrapped up in her fist. “For refusing to address your Mommy properly. Now sit,” she commanded, giving him a rough shove.

He caught himself on the chair behind him, scowling at her. “Fucking bitch.”

Her brows lifted. “We’ll call that ten more.”

“You can’t just—”

“Sit,” she snapped, her tone shifting from neutral to pure authority.

His ass hit the seat so suddenly that it shocked him.

A slow smile. “Better.”

The chair had a back but no arms. He wasn’t sure if that meant his hands would be free this time around, or if those cuffs would come into play.

He got his answer when she held out a hand, gesturing for him to hold his up.

“These may ruin your sleeves,” she warned flatly.

“I don’t care.”

Beth nodded, taking his left hand and quickly tightening the cuff around his wrist before doing the same to his right. She brought each of his hands down to hang at his sides and hooked the cuffs into small loops that adorned either side of it, making him unable to lift his hands from his sides so they just hung awkwardly while he sat.

She crouched in front of him and fastened a strap around each ankle, before moving up and fastening two more around his upper calves.

Once she was done, she stood up and surveyed her work. “Lift your arms,” she said.

He pulled at the cuffs, but they held fast.

“Close your legs.”

He looked down at them as his thighs flexed, the straps digging into him. They didn’t budge.

She grinned in satisfaction. “Perfect.” Taking a step closer, she grasped his tie and pulled him forward as she bent at the waist. “You’ve been very naughty this evening, Maxwell. You know Mommy doesn’t like naughty boys. Are you going to be good now, sweetie?”

He scoffed, but his nerves were on edge. “Is this really—”

She slapped him hard across the face, enough to leave him dazed for a moment as she took hold of his chin. “Are you going to be good for Mommy, Maxwell? Or does she need to spank you five more times for backtalk?”

His cock jumped in his pants as his vision slowly refocused. He blinked up at her and nodded.

Another hard slap, this time on his other cheek and he felt his eyes sting.

“You need to use your words. Will you be good, or will Mommy need to add to your spanking?” she asked, her hold on his chin tightening.

He was painfully erect. “I’ll be good, Mommy,” he groaned.

She gently cupped one of his reddening cheeks. “That’s good. Mommy just wants to take care of her sweet boy.”

He stared at her face with hooded eyes as she carefully slipped his necktie from the collar of his shirt. She really was something to behold, an undeniable gleam of authority in her hazel eyes, the set of her plush lips making them seem always on the verge of a biting smile or a disapproving sneer. Her hair, left loose to frame her face and flow down around her neck and shoulders, was the sort of sun-warmed blonde that was near impossible to replicate, even with help from the best colorist.

He was vaguely aware of her fingers working their way down the buttons of his waistcoat.

Her perfume was something subtle but fiery, leaving him feeling like he’d just downed a glass of strong scotch that only hit when he swallowed. Cool fingertips on his bare chest made him look down.

She’d unbuttoned his waistcoat and shirt. His dress shirt was untucked and spread open wide.

Maxwell became aware of a low sound, only to realize that it was his own moan as she dragged her fingers over his bare skin.

“You like that, sweetie?” she cooed.

He leaned his head back, breath hitching slightly. “Yes, Mommy.”

Beth’s mouth curved into a smooth smile and she dropped her hands down to his belt.

He tried to shift his hips closer to her, the awkward set of his arms and the restraints around his legs working against him. “Please, Mommy,” he groaned.

The sound of leather sliding free of his trousers made heat travel to both his face and crotch.

“What do you need, baby?” she asked, slowly pulling down the zipper of his fly.

“You, Mommy.” He licked his lips, chest heaving. “Please touch me. Touch me, Mommy.”

Her soft, lilting laugh made a shiver run down his spine. “I will, sweetie. Mommy’s gonna have her hands all over you.” She hooked a finger into the waistband of his boxer briefs, dragging it down to reveal his cock, precum already forming a bead at the tip.

“Don’t leave me again, Mommy,” he whined softly. “Please stay.”

She wound her fingers into his hair, bringing her lips to his jaw and nipping lightly. “I’m not going anywhere until I’m done with you, sweetie.” One hand slid up his thigh, coming agonizingly close to his weeping cock. “Mommy is gonna take such good care of you. Gonna make you feel so good, baby.”

He moaned, squirming in his seat as she slowly rose back up in front of him, her hands leaving him. He watched her return to the wall of tools and toys, his lips parted and eyes wide with anticipation.

She pulled down another set of leather cuffs, as well as a riding crop.

“Yes, Mommy,” he said, trying to straighten up at the sight of the riding crop, “yes, please!”

Giving him a small smile, she set the crop and cuffs down on a bench. “Oh, Maxwell. You’ll have to get out of that suit before we can play with all of this. You want to feel it, don’t you?”

He nodded enthusiastically. “Please, Mommy.”

Beth strode back to him, a hand sliding up into his hair as she bent to press a slow, soft kiss to his cheek. “You’re my good boy,” she whispered. “I’m gonna take these cuffs off of you for a bit so I can help you out of these clothes. Then, we’re gonna go over to that big cross for a while.” Her lips brushed over his ear before she nipped his earlobe. “After that, Mommy’s taking you to the bed.”

Eyes sliding closed, he let out a moan. His thighs tensed and his cock throbbed hard at the thought of what she might do to him.

She freed him of his restraints quickly, getting his dress shoes and socks out of the way as well, and pulled him up to his feet. He swayed slightly, dazed eyes following her as she moved around him. She guided his suit jacket, waistcoat, and shirt off all together, the fabric landing in a rumpled pile behind him.

She grasped his trousers by their waistband and dragged them down his legs, quickly followed by his underwear.

“I would normally punish you for letting your clothes be ruined like this, Maxwell. I want you to remember that. Mommy wants you looking presentable after we play.” She delicately brushed a strand of hair from his forehead. “But this is a special occasion, hm?”

He blinked slowly at her, gaze lowering to her mouth for a moment. “Yes, Mommy,” he murmured.

Taking a step back, she smiled at him and gathered up the first set of cuffs.

He held his hands out eagerly as she returned to him, a thrill running through him as she tightened them around his wrists once again.

The second set of cuffs came next and were secured around his ankles.

She knelt down to put them on him and his breath caught when she looked up at him. Her grin was deliciously cruel as she gripped his thighs and slowly stood. The head of his cock caught the front of her bustier, just between her breasts, and he let out a gasp that turned into a high keen when it continued to drag all the way down her front until she was standing before him.

“So sensitive,” she said, a finger tracing his jaw as she gave a wicked smirk. “Go stand with your back against the cross, sweetie.”

He did as she said, feeling so much more vulnerable now that he was completely naked in front of her. Embarrassment burned up his neck and face as he stood in front of the big X, fists clenching and unclenching as he resisted the urge to touch himself.

She lifted his hands up and spread them, clasping the cuffs onto the X. Spreading his legs open as well, she secured them in place and picked up the riding crop.

When she stood there for a moment, just observing him, twirling the crop in her grip, he felt something in him twist.

She held the crop out, tracing it across his collarbones and making him tense.

“You’re a good boy, aren’t you, Maxwell?” she asked, head tilted.

He nodded, trying to shift his stance as the crop brushed down his chest. “Yes, Mommy.”

“You want to make Mommy happy?”

The crop slid down his outer thigh.

“Always, Mommy.” He pulled at the cuffs around his wrists. “Please touch me,” he whined.

The crop snapped high on his inner thigh and he let out a hiss. It didn’t hurt much, but it woke his nerves.

“Patience, baby. Mommy said she’s gonna take care of you, and this is part of it,” she assured, smoothing the leather over the spot she’d hit.

The leather struck his other thigh before she pressed it teasingly against his balls, drawing a strangled moan out of him as his body strained. She watched a drop of precum slide slowly from the head of his cock while she pulled the crop away from him.

She brought the leather up to one of his wrists and brushed it down his forearm to his elbow, not putting any pressure behind it. Dragging it from his elbow to his underarm, she placed a quick smack to the inside of his upper arm, making him jolt and bringing a smile to her face.

His muscles jumped and twitched as the leather delicately glided down his side. He bit his lip, hand curling into a fist at the overwhelming sensitivity. When the crop left again only to appear at his other wrist to begin the process on the other side of his body, he couldn’t hold in his whimper.

She worked him over slowly, snapping the crop against his skin until his whole body was buzzing with overstimulation. He was a live wire.

She pressed the leather under his chin and stepped close enough for him to feel the warmth of her body. “Are you ready to be taken to bed, Maxwell? Are you ready for Mommy to use you?”

Eager eyes stinging with the threat of tears, he nodded.

He flinched as she suddenly spat in his face, his eyes going wide.

“I need to hear you,” she said, voice hard.

Squirming slightly, the spit sliding down his cheek, he let out a quiet “Yes, Mommy.”

Humming lightly, Beth carefully unhooked the cuffs from where they attached to the X, but left the cuffs themselves on.

They moved over to the large bed, riding crop left on a bench near the X.

She stood next to the bed and met his gaze. “Lay down in the middle, face up and spread eagle.”

He crawled up onto the bed, glancing at her to make sure he was doing everything correctly, heart hammering with excitement and apprehension. He watched her walk around the bed, fastening his limbs to the frame so that he couldn’t go anywhere.

Breathing heavily, he held her gaze before he saw her thumbs hook into the waistband of her panties and he suddenly noticed that she wore them over the garter belt and stockings. She slid the underwear down her legs and let it drop to the floor, leaving her still mostly covered except for her slick cunt.

“Mommy,” he groaned as she crawled onto the bed with him.

Her soft chuckle made his chest ache. “I’m here, sweetie.” She trailed featherlight touches along his lower stomach, following the path of hair there. “You want Mommy to play with your big cock, don’t you?”

He shifted his hips to try to get her hand where he wanted it, eyes screwing shut. “Yes, please, Mommy.”

She was so close to his heavy, painfully hard length. But, her hand disappeared and he let out a loud whine at the loss.

The weight on the bed shifted and she was straddling him, her slick heat parted against the underside of his cock.

He felt lightheaded at the glorious warmth of her.

She slowly rocked herself along his length, earning high, choked sounds from the back of his throat. Leaning over him, she whispered in his ear. “You’re not allowed to come while Mommy is using you, Maxwell. If you do, you’ll get spanked twice as many times. But, if you’re a good boy who can hold it back, I promise you’ll get a very special reward before we’re all done tonight. Do you understand all that, baby?”

A hot tear escaped from the corner of his eye. “I understand, Mommy,” he said weakly. He hurt with how much he needed release, but he wanted to be her good boy.

She rose back up over him, palms running down his chest. “Sweet boy.”

Looking down between them, she grasped his throbbing cock and ran the head of it through her folds, her hips tilting so that it brushed her clit. She bit her lip lightly and glanced up at Maxwell. His eyes were shut tight, body tense with restraint.

“Watch,” she commanded.

He forced his burning eyes open, face hot. Letting his gaze drop down, he watched as she brought the tip of him to her entrance and slowly sank down onto him.

It took everything in him not to close his eyes and throw his head back at the feeling or just come undone at the sight of his cock disappearing in her warm, velvety pussy.

When she fully surrounded him, he let out a desperate groan while she huffed a satisfied sigh. One of her hands braced on the mattress, right at his side, and the other settled around him throat with barely-there pressure.

Her thumb traced his Adam’s apple as she rose up and sank back down again. She leaned down to press a kiss to his chest. “You feel so good, baby,” she murmured against his skin. The kiss became a nip as she brought her hips down a little harder on him.

He made a small, choked off noise. “Mommy,” he ground out.

Her fingers tightened around his neck as she ran her mouth over his chest and up to his shoulder. “You’ll stay still for me, won’t you, sweetie?” she asked softly.

“Yes, Mommy. Any—anything for you,” he gasped.

“So good,” she praised, adjusting the arm that she braced herself with. She shifted the hand around his throat for a better grip and slammed her hips down onto his as she bit down on the meat of his shoulder.

He let out a startled cry that turned into strangled near-sobs as she kept a fast, brutal pace.

His balls ached with need, his cock overwhelmed by the intense friction created with the slight changes in angle she made as she chased her own release. His skin felt too tight as she sank her teeth into him, squeezing her fingers around the sides of his neck until his eyes lost focus.

She let her grip loosen a bit, enough for the world to sharpen and for him to see her clearly, riding him hard. There was a warm blush along the top of her chest, breasts almost spilling free of the bustier, her hair just barely losing its loose styling, eyes hard as they caught his gaze, lips parted. There was such power in the way she held herself.

He felt his balls tighten and he forced his eyes closed, throwing his head back. “Please, Mommy! I can’t keep—I’m gonna—” he whined brokenly.

Her grip on his throat tightened again and she leaned harder into him. “No,” she growled. “You’re going to hold it.”

“I can’t, Mommy,” he sobbed, tugging at the restraints as he trembled beneath her. “Please! I can’t!”

“You will.”

His whole body tensed up as he tried desperately to keep himself from letting go. It was torture. Horrible, blissful torture.

He bit down hard on his lip as her pace faltered and she ground down against him, her pussy clenching around his throbbing cock as she tilted her hips to drag her clit along his length.

Her breathy moan of his name as she came left him feeling shattered.

When she slipped off of him, he let out a pitiful whine, brows furrowed with the strain of controlling himself.

He felt hot, so hot that he could hardly stand it.

“Good boy,” she panted, combing a hand through his messy hair. “That’s Mommy’s good boy.”

He couldn’t form a response, only able to focus on steadying his breathing.

She let him lay there a few moments to recover as she slid off the bed and made her way over to one of the cabinets.

He looked down at himself while he was laying there, craning his neck to see how his cock glistened with her arousal. He could feel it gathering at the base and sliding down his balls. Letting his head fall back, he bit back a groan.

Beth returned and he offered a tired smile.

She returned it, but he caught the dangerous glint in her eyes. “You did such a good job, Maxwell.” A hand rested lightly on his thigh. “But you were being very bad when things got started tonight. Mommy has to spank you for being bad, baby.”

A sound caught in his throat and he pulled at his cuffs, eyes starting to well back up. “Mommy, please—”

Her nails dug into his thigh. “Don’t argue. I am going to spank you fifteen times, and you are going to count them aloud for me.”

His face flushed in frustration. She had told him he’d get a reward if he was good, which he had been. But now she wanted to punish him?

She brought her face close to his. “I promised I’d make you feel good, baby, but we have to get this spanking out of the way. It’ll all be worth it,” she told him. He saw her gaze trail down to his lips before returning to his eyes. “It’ll be worth it.”

He wanted to taste her mouth. He wanted to taste any of her.

She straightened up and showed him what she’d gotten out of the cabinet. A silicon cockring. “I don’t want you making a mess of yourself while you’re counting. It would ruin my rhythm and make your reward afterward pointless.”

She slid it over the head of his cock and he watched, shaking, as she worked it down to the base.

Then, she removed his cuffs, fingertips gently tracing the red marks left behind on his wrists and ankles, and kneading the ache from his shoulders. His whole body still tingled, alive with sensation, but the only ache he still felt was in his stiff cock.

She pulled him up off the bed with her and led him over to one of the many benches, this one looking the most like an ordinary cushioned bench, with only a few little ring attachments.

“Kneel down and lean over this. Make sure you keep your chest flat across the surface. You can grip the legs to steady yourself.”

He got down and did as she said, looking up when he felt he was positioned how she wanted. He got a small nod from her as she walked closer and smoothed a hand down his spine.

“I want you to count each spank aloud, as clearly as you can. There will be fifteen total and they will get harder as we go. Do you understand, Maxwell?”

He tried to calm his breathing as he nodded. “Yes, Mommy.”

“Good.”

He listened to her walk behind him, her heels making an odd sound on the dense foam of the floor, and braced himself.

The first smack made his skin burn and forced a gasp out of him. “One.”

He grit his teeth in preparation for the next one, but still couldn’t keep from grunting at the impact. “Two.”

“Three” and “Four” were much the same, but “Five!” was the increase, the shock of a higher intensity that made his breaths come a little faster.

He was gripping the legs of the bench hard by the time they reached ten, his thighs flexing as the force of the spanks rocked him hard against the edge of the seat.

“Twelve,” he ground out, fresh sweat glistening across his back.

His skin was sticking to the leather cushion. “Thirteen.”

“Fo—Fourteen!” She’d caught him on an inhale, making him choke on the number.

He went limp after a biting “Fifteen,” his legs trembling as he huffed across the leather surface, his ass somehow feeling like it was both numb and stinging.

Careful hands smoothed over hot skin as she knelt down behind him. “You took that so well, baby. You’ve been so good for Mommy.”

He shivered at the praise, cock jumping where it hung heavy between his legs.

“Can you stand up, baby?”

Shifting his legs, he tried to get his feet under him, but the trembling just intensified and he fell back to his knees. “I can’t,” he grunted, tears of frustration burning his eyes.

Her hand moved up his back soothingly. “That’s alright. You’ve been through a lot tonight. Let’s just scoot around so you aren’t laying longways and up so high on your knees.” She wrapped an arm around him and helped with the switch in position. He ended up with his chest and head resting on the cushion, slumped over it in a more comfortable way, his knees spread a little wider to change how his weight was distributed across his legs and so he was lower to the floor.

“Better?” she asked softly, kissing up his back.

A low hum rose out of his chest. “Yes, Mommy.”

One of her hands reached down between his legs and he jolted with the contact as she slipped the cockring off. “Let Mommy take care of you, Maxwell,” she said, voice so gentle it sent a shiver through him. Her hand wrapped around his aching cock, still covered in her slick.

“Please, Mommy,” he moaned, bucking up into her hand.

A light grip on his hip stilled him as she stroked, squeezing when she neared the head. “I’ve got you, baby. Come for me,” she whispered, pressing herself against his back. “I’ve got you.”

The hand on his hip slid up and flattened on his chest.

“My sweet boy,” Beth hummed, twisting her grip on him.

He panted, burying his face in the bench’s leather cushion, brow furrowing as she brought him right back to the edge.

After being denied for so long, he came almost embarrassingly fast. “Mommy,” he moaned, dragging the name out as pleasure rolling through him, making him shudder.

She didn’t take her hand away once the shuddering eased, continuing to stroke him instead.

He winced from the sensitivity, trying to squirm away. “Mommy, I—”

“Another,” she demanded quietly. “I’ll decide when to stop.”

Reaching to let his fingers curl around the edge of the seat, he let out a whine as he started to harden in her hand.

“That’s it, sweetie. Mommy wants to make you feel good.” She shuffled closer to him, breasts against his back, the clasps of her garter belt pressing into the tender flesh of his ass and making him whimper.

The pain of sensitivity blended into pleasure and it was hard not to thrust himself in her grasp. She stroked him harder, faster, until he was moaning into the cushion, stomach tightening.

“Please,” he whined. “Please, Mommy. I’m so—I’m so fucking close, Mommy.”

Digging her nails in, she scratched down his chest, forcing a hiss out of him. “Such bad words, Maxwell. Do you want me to stop?”

“No!” he cried out, “please, Mommy. I’m sorry. Please don’t stop. It’s so good, Mommy.”

The hand on his chest dropped down and grabbed his balls.

A gasp tore out of him as she squeezed, forcing him over the edge again so suddenly that all he could manage was a high pitched cry of pleasure.

She didn’t slow down, didn’t give him time to soften at all before she was building him back up.

His knuckles turned white around the edge of the seat as pain throbbed through his cock.

“I can’t take it, Mommy!” he whined. “Please, it hurts. It’s too much!”

She tightened her grasp on his cock, massaging his balls in her hand. “One more, baby. Give Mommy one more.”

He whimpered, stomach twisting up in pain and pleasure. “P—Please, Mommy,” he begged.

Tears burned hot on his face, the last orgasm ripping through him with a loud keen that became breathless sobbing as she let him come down slowly, his body shaking from the overstimulation.

The mess of his cum was everywhere. It was on her hands, his cock, his stomach and thighs, the floor between his legs, and slowly dripping down his balls.

She sat back, drawing her hands away from him, and got to her feet. “Head up, Maxwell.”

He slowly raised his head, feeling like a bowling ball had replaced his skull as he looked up at her.

She sat lightly on the bench and showed him her hands, his cum clinging to her fingers. “Lick them clean,” she ordered.

He moved his face closer to her, resting his head on his arm as he opened his mouth.

She slid two fingers into his mouth and he groaned lowly, sucking and swirling his tongue around them. He did the same with her other fingers, his own salty bitterness clinging to his tastebuds as he stuck his tongue out to lick across her palms and the backs of her hands until there was nothing left.

She ran her knuckles over his cheek. “Good boy.”

He let his eyes slide shut at the caress.

Beth stood up and went back to the cabinet, pulling out a pack of wipes, a small towel and a bottle of lotion. Walking back to where Maxwell was slumped, she knelt beside him and started cleaning him up with the wipes. He shivered when the cool wipes touched his oversensitive cock, legs tensing slightly.

“Just relax,” she said softly.

When his cum was cleaned up, she set the wipes aside and brought the towel to his face, wiping the sweat from his forehead and ruffling through his hair, working her way down, drying his neck, chest, and back.

She dropped the towel next to the wipes and took the lotion next. “Lean forward a bit, sweetie. This will help with the sting,” she told him as she opened the cap.

She spread a generous amount of lotion over his ass, warming it in her hands before touching him.

His mind drifted as she massaged the lotion into his skin. Her hands were so certain, practiced in this sort of care, molding him back toward some semblance of his usual self.

He just felt good when she was done.

“Don’t fall asleep on me, baby,” she said, running her fingers through his hair.

Giving a small, satisfied smile, he sat up a bit and looked at her.

She kept playing with his hair as she shifted his arm so that it fell to his side and only one remained draped over the seat. Then she shuffled closer and pulled his mouth to hers.

It was so soft, her lips warm and gentle against his.

His breath hitched when her tongue brushed his lower lip and he eagerly opened for her. The grip on his hair tightened every so slightly as her tongue met his. He pressed forward more, a low groan moving up from his chest.

She pulled back just enough to let their noses brush. “Such a sweet boy, aren’t you, Maxwell?”

“Yes, Mommy,” he breathed, trying to recapture her lips.

She moved out of reach, mischief dancing in her eyes. “Maybe when we do this again,” she told him. Getting up off of the floor, she reached down to him with both hands. “Time to stand up, I’m afraid.”

He blinked up at her for a moment before taking her hands and putting his feet under him. She pulled him up and he swayed on wobbly legs.

“Just give it a second,” she said, holding him steady.

He gazed at her, a hand gripping her shoulder. “You’re nice like this,” he blurted.

Her eyebrows lifted as she carefully helped him over to his clothes. “I take this very seriously. I want to make sure you’re okay. And I tend to be fairly nurturing when I’m treated with respect.”

“But you left me last time,” he said, frowning slightly, pulling his underwear and trousers on.

She gave him a small smirk as she separated his dress shirt, waistcoat, and suit jacket. “You weren’t showing me any respect.”

“I should have,” he said softly, taking the shirt from her.

“Things are usually far more pleasant that way,” she told him. “But I can handle a touch of brattiness every so often. Plus, the spanking is fun.”

He offered a little grin. “It is.”

One brow arched up. “That’s not an excuse to start acting out all the time, Mr. Lord.”

His head tilted, that grin still there as he buttoned his shirt. “I like it better when you call me Maxwell, Ms. Lancaster.”

“And I prefer being called Beth, Maxwell,” she said, holding out his tie.

He nodded, grin widening a bit as he took it. “Alright. Beth, then.”

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

Taglist:

@spacegayofficial @mandoandyodito @tarrevizslas

~ Mike

#maxwell lord #maxwell lord x oc #maxwell lord fanfiction #pedro pascal #pedro pascal fanfiction #ww84movie #wonder woman 1984 #maxwell lord fanfic #pedro pascal fanfic #big shot fanfic

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envision-fandom · 5 years ago

Text

Scandal

Fred Weasley fanfiction

Couple: Reader x Fred Weasley

Rumors spread around Hogwarts like wildfire and the latest rumor was the most scandalous ever.

The rumor was you were a slut.

It all began on your first day at Hogwarts, when you, a muggle born, was placed into Slytherin.

You were instantly outcast from your peers. No one in your house wanted to be friends with someone from your caliber, and no one from the other houses had an interest in befriending a Slytherin.

The rest of your problems however, began in your fifth year at Hogwarts, regarding this ridiculous rumor.

Until now you had managed to avoid any real issues, by keeping your head down and hiding away at the top of the Astronomy tower to study.

Of course, you still received snide remarks about your blood status, especially from the ring leader Draco Malfoy. But all in all, you lived a quite life at Hogwarts.

The night before the rumor began, you were studying as usual in your favourite spot in the astronomy tower, you books piled beside you, whilst you dangled your legs over the side and admired the view. The sunset slowly descending behind the hills always managed to provide you with the feeling of tranquility and peace.

You packed your books away into your bag, readying yourself to return to the common room for the night, when you heard two sets of footsteps approaching.

Afraid they would belong to a teacher, you hid yourself behind one of the large golden telescopes, not wanting to be caught and have your secret hiding place discovered- the astronomy tower was out of bounds except for classes after all.

You breathed a sigh of relief when the foot steps didn’t in fact belong to a professor after all, but rather two sets of pupils. Blaise Zabini from Slytherin and a random girl from Hufflepuff.

You prayed they had simply been sent to fetch something and would leave soon, but your prayers were not answered and instead you edged further back into the shadows, not believing what you were witnessing.

The two students had begun to undress themselves and lay on the floor, bodies tangled together, inches away from where you were sitting earlier.

Not wanting to watch anything else begin to unfold, you stealthily crept along the room, edging towards the only door into the astronomy tower.

You managed to get there unseen and slipped through the slightly ajar door, unnoticed.

You sprinted down the staircase, not caring if they heard your footsteps, as long as you managed to get away safely.

You reached the bottom of the staircase, your cheeks burning red and struggling to catch your breath.

You stopped for a moment, to compose yourself, wanting to push aside the thoughts of what you had just witnessed and began to return to the common room, trying to act as innocent as possible.

The next day the rumors had begun to spread.

You were sitting alone, in your usual spot at the Slytherin table for breakfast, when you heard a glimpse of the conversation, between a group of girls sitting next to you.

“Yes I heard she saw her coming down from the astronomy tower, all breathless and flustered.” One of them whispered.

“But how do you know that’s what she was up to?” Another asked, not entirely convinced.

“Because not long after Blaise came down the stairs, and he was also breathless, buttoning up his shirt, with the zipper on his trousers still undone!”

‘So someone found out about them then?’ You thought to yourself ‘Well they weren’t exactly stealthy about it. I was standing only a few feet away, and they left the door open.’

You continued to listen in, wondering who it was who had caught them.

“I can’t believe he would stoop so low though.” Pansy Parkinson interrupted “He wouldn’t actually like a mudblood like her, I bet he is just using her for sex.”

You were used to people calling you a mudblood, but you didn’t expect the Hufflepuff girl to be referred to as once, simply from being in a different house.

“Honestly, I always knew she was a slut that Y/N Y/L/N!” Pansy finished, no longer bothering to keep her voice down.

You couldn’t help but jump at the sudden mention of your name. You looked over at the group and was shocked to find them all glaring daggers in your direction.

Surely you must have heard wrong. There was no possible way everyone thought you were the one spending the night with Blaise in the astronomy tower. Unless…

Someone must have seen you leaving, and Blaise had obviously heard your footsteps and rushed down after you!

By the third lesson the rumor had spread like wildfire, and there was no way for you to extinguish it. You had no friends to confide in, or help you plead your innocence and quite frankly no one would believe you anyway.

What you did find strange however, is why Blaise hadn’t tried to shut down the rumour, surely, he wouldn’t want everyone thinking you were together.

However, by lunchtime it all became clear.

There Blaise was, surrounding by a large group of guys, bragging that he had slept with you. You couldn’t believe it.

Without a second thought, you stormed over to his table, ignoring the calls and shouts of the guys surrounding him and poured his drink over his head.

He stood up, towering over you menacingly, but stopped in his attack when he looked down and noticed you pointing your wand towards him.

“If you say one more lie about me, I will fucking curse you! Do you understand?” He nodded his head slowly and you lowered your wand.

You left the hall instantly, not wanting to attract the teacher’s attention and risk getting expelled. But where could you go? The common room was a definite no go, and you didn’t want to risk going back to the astronomy tower until the rumours had died down.

You strode out of the school, wanting the fresh air to help cool down your burning rage. As soon as you reached the edge of the grounds you began to stroll around vacantly, allowing the tears that had been threatening to escape finally run down your cheeks.

You eventually ended up at the lake and sat on the end of the peer, manipulating the water to form different shapes with your wand.

“Hey that’s pretty cool. Mind teaching me that spell?” You jumped at the sudden voice, and let out a small squeal. Fred Weasley was standing behind you, a sheepish grin on his face. “Sorry I didn’t mean to scare you.”

“Yes you did.” You reply sharply “Otherwise you wouldn’t be smirking, clearly pleased with yourself” You turned back to look out at the lake, hoping he would get the idea that he wasn’t welcome and would leave.

Instead he took a seat beside you “Okay so maybe I did mean to scare you a little bit.” He admits “I just didn’t like seeing you with such a sad look on your face.”

“I don’t have a sad look on my face.” You turned to him defensively.

“Well not anymore you don’t!” He chuckled “Now you just look pissed off.”

“Hmm I wonder why?” You reply sarcastically, causing him to let out another light hearted laugh.

“Well I sincerely apologise for offending you, would you please forgive such a foolish man as myself?” He bowed towards you, causing you to smile slightly.

“And what will you do to earn my forgiveness?” You ask, playing along.

He stood up abruptly, startling you slightly “My good lady, I would climb mountains for you, travel across deserts. I would even jump in this squid infested lake for you!”

“Words. They mean nothing to me! I want to see actions!” You smile up at him, glad for his presence and the fact that he was trying so hard to cheer you up.

“If that is what my lady wishes.” He began to take off his shoes and robe.

You stared up at him questioningly “What are you doing?”

His shirt was suddenly undone and he began to unbuckle his belt. You stood up defensively “Just because there is a rumour going around that I had sex with Blaise, does not mean I am up for doing it with anybody!”

Fred suddenly edged towards you, his hands raised “Oh no Y/N, that’s not what I’m doing. I know you didn’t do it with Blaise. I promise…”

“…Then why are you getting undressed?!” You interrupted and he suddenly had a serious look on his face.

“Because I’m going to jump in the lake for you. You did say words meant nothing.”

You stood, staring at him in shock “You’ve got to be joking?”

He smiled mischievously down at you “I’m afraid I’m not this time.” He carried on unbuckling his trousers until he was standing there in nothing but his boxers.

You watched him for a moment dumbfounded and impressed by the view, before you realised he was already walking to the edge of the pier.

“Fred, stop! You don’t have to actually do this! I was joking.”

He turned and winked at you, “Sorry but when I promise something, I never break that promise.” He went to step of the edge, and before you could stop yourself, you were latching onto his bare chest, trying to stop him from going into the lake.

Except, your plan to save him didn’t go as planned and the next thing you knew, you were also falling into the lake with him.

The cold water engulfed you, temporarily freezing your muscles. You fought against it and pushed you way to the surface, spluttering.

You were shaking from the cold and looked around in panic for Fred. A mound of red hair suddenly shot out of the water “Jesus fucking Christ it’s cold.” He turned towards you suddenly “And why did you jump in with me?!” He swam towards you, and wrapped you up in his arms.

You pressed against his body, a slight blush on your cheeks “I was trying to save you.” You replied timidly.

He laughed heartily “And in the process you killed us both!”

“Hey we are not dead!” You defend yourself, “Well at least not yet, but I think if we stay in here any longer, we may catch hypothermia.”

You reluctantly pushed yourself away from Fred and swam back to the bank of the lake, with Fred following closely behind. He helped you out of the water and ran to get his clothes.

You struggled out of your wet robes, and stood shaking, waiting for him to get dressed.

Fred sprinted back over to you and forced his jumper over your head “Here this should keep you warm for now.”

“But what about you?” You asked worried for his health.

“Don’t worry about me my lady.” He put on a joking voice “I am here to protect and serve your every command.”

“Well then, I command you to run back to your common room as quickly as possible and dry off before you catch a cold!”

He once again smiled down at you, a playful glint in his eye “As you wish.”

#fred weasley #fred weasley fanfiction #weasley #weasley fanfiction #fred fanfiction #harry potter #harry potter fanfiction #slytherin #gryffindor #fanfiction

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wordtotherose · 5 years ago

Note

kiss #10 for Merthur pretty please??

Um....it got kinda long... :D Hope you like! (Mentions of blood, injury)

The world had crumbled around Merlin in the space of seconds. Roughly fourty two to be precise. Enough time to step in front of Arthur and the young guard, Howard, hovering in his post. Just enough to throw up a glimmering shield that he barely managed to hold together as the rubble started to fall, as everything scattered into greys and differing shades of blacks. More than enough time to hear Arthur shout and stand and throw himself in front of where Merlin had been. Effectively switching their places; effectively leaving the strained circumference of Merlin’s shield.

He stayed awake the whole time, the whole day they were trapped. The young lad, barely an adult in anyone but his own eyes, was knocked out by the edge of the barrier clipping the side of his head. Which was....less than opportunistic. But the graze on his head had clotted quickly so Merlin wasn’t sparing him much attention past ensuring his breathing didn’t stop. There were only two things he truly spent his time on.

Not collapsing lower than his knees under the weight of his own spell.

And straining to pick up any signs of life from outside the bubble, where Arthur supposedly was.

Alive or dead; it was impossible to know.

There’d been one shifting of rubble, a brief needle of light had broken through for a blessed minute then disappearing just as strangely. It must have been hours later, definitely after Merlin had slid onto both knees, arms wobbling above his head, when there had been the one shout. If it had even been real. He was more than aware that the mind would trick one long before it gave out. Whether it was cruel or not held no bearing.

Tears had long dried on his cheeks, his neck, soaked salt into his trousers. It was excruciating. Physically. Mentally. Magically.

The usual tingle that accompanied his spells had evolved into a static burn then devolved further into a yawning ache, itching and pulsing, never easing. Only worse and unbearable. It was agony.

Rescue came slowly. It came in bits and pieces.

The hissing of falling trickles of rocks.

The shaft of light that stayed for what he was later told was about half an hour until a support beam was eased off the top of the shield. Merlin remembered that bit as the first spike of clarity. The reduction in energy expended to stop that section from cracking under the pressure had sent electricity through his veins, through every particle in every cell of skin. He’d screamed in relief, sharp and bloody in his dried out throat.

He would notice the ways the staff of the house stopped teasing him for his skinny stature after the incident and he, at first, would attribute it to the fact he’d held it together for so long. This reasoning would fall through a week later when he’d overhear Gwen crying to Morgana about how Merlin’s own shout of pain still echoed in her nightmares. No one would address it. He didn’t want to either, though, to himself, he vowed to never scream again if this was the duress it caused days later. Arthur mentioned it once. After a nightmare. Merlin had spent the rest of the night crying on his own after Arthur had fallen back to sleep.

It wasn’t Arthur who broke through at last. It was some masonry woman who’d been there to request stricter regulations on structures being built. Merlin had recognised her instantly, had laughed out loud, loud enough for her to hear and spot him. She’d smiled, strong in the face of such horrors, and motioned that help was coming before retreating.

Arthur was second though.

He batted away the hands trying to pull him back to safety in favour of hauling rocks, shoving broken timber beams out of his way. Merlin had started crying again. There was blood and dust in Arthur’s hair. Numerous cuts and grazes covering every inch of skin that Merlin could see. The biggest was partially covered by Arthur’s sleeve, hiding it’s greedy reaching up Arthur’s inner forearm. It looked like it had been cleaned but that was all.

Arthur was shouting his name. He didn’t really need to shout. The barrier didn’t block sound from coming in. Coming out...yes. It was a versatile spell he’d had too many chances to use.

Merlin waited until Arthur was looking at him before directing his gaze deliberately, slowly at Arthur’s injury then back, mouthing just how badly he was behaving with a wound like that and just how annoyed Merlin was about it. Arthur’s eye roll meant the message had been received loud and clear.

It was still another half hour before he judged it safe enough to drop the shield. Arthur was the only reason he didn’t fall face down the podium stairs into the debris when he did. His head rung like the alarm bells had taken up residence between his ears. Arthur’s questions, his touches, barely registered against his skin, the message getting lost on its way to his brain. The last thing he did as his vision started dropping away into nothing was to shoot a last burst of magic at the prone guard to wake him up to be tended to.

***

He briefly woke whilst in Gaius’ chambers, Arthur pacing the length of his cot over and over. Gaius himself worrying at him as he forced various concoctions down his throat. The taste of them, the valerian especially was foul on his tongue but they did their job. He slept like the dead. Or like a man drained of all energy.

***

It was roughly the third time that he managed to wake up and stay awake. Calling out through chapped lips for Arthur before starting the fight to open his eyes. Arthur was there instantly, rolling over in their bed to face him, pulling him close. Merlin threw up in the morning from the nightmares mixed with memory.

***

He was alone the next evening when he woke up. He was shivering, shaking with the imbalance of energy and magic readjusting to being contained in his worn out frame. It didn’t stop him from pulling on a robe and shuffling like a new-born foal towards the door though. Not to say it wasn’t a ridiculous relief when Arthur stepped through the door before he got there, thus safely negating the need to go any further. Arthur’s eyes widened and he stopped trying to untuck his loose shirt from his trousers, instead rushing forwards to stabilise Merlin, hands on his waist and arm. Merlin, for his part, choked out a laugh and wrapped his arms around Arthur’s neck. Effectively cutting off the harried question about what he was doing that was making its way out of Arthur’s mouth. Instead, he put Arthur’s lips to far better use.

The ghosts of a very recently eaten apple on Arthur’s mouth had him welling up even with his eyes closed. Arthur, forever attuned to his other half, pulled him in close; kissing back, taking every ounce of Merlin’s desperation and trading back just as much before easing them off the cliff’s edge. Leading him back down the path that led them there, back to safety and warmth and easy comfort. Reassurance.

Back home.

#my writing #merthur #merlin #arthur #merlin/arthur #fanfic #kisses prompts #hurt/comfort #tw: injury #tw: blood #guardian_rose

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rboooks · 5 years ago

Text

Based on the wonderful fic C’est La Vie by the ever talented @cywscross. I just love the fic so much and I am very late to the fandom but whatever.

AU: Had Hadrian had arrived a little earlier and Fate had given him a different back story.

Orion Black had not noticed the new store until it’s opening day.

He had been passing by with his Father who was ever so excited about buying Orion his Hogwarts supplies, insisting they needed to beat the crowds and go the moment the owl dropped it off at their home. (He knows the real reason, of course, being werewolves made it difficult to shop and “beating the crowds” was another way of saying “Avoid large amounts of discrimination”. He let his father think he wasn’t aware though)

Orion couldn’t work up the energy to match Father’s enthusiasm. His first year of Hogwarts was everything and nothing like he expected it to be. He knew he would meet students who would not like him for his condiction but he had hope that he could make some kind of friends. Naive as it was, he went there with the desire to find the kind of best mates his Father had found among the magical castle walls.

That hope had been shoot down the moment the headmaster announced what he was. Harry, always eager to put Orion in his place, jumped at the chance to turn everyone against him until it felt like he was sitting behind enemy lines no matter where he was.

Add to the fact, he was sharing a room with Harry and his new idiot best friends not to mention the open hostility Weasley and Longbottom showed when drawing that line. Orion could honestly say he hated every second of his schooling.

Throughout the year, the eleven-year-old encountered some kids who seem friendly at first, but it all had ended up as a prank, often with Harry as the mastermind behind them. It was eye-opening, in a twisted so of way, to realize just how the world saw him.

A part of him wanted nothing more than to burn the second year Hogwarts letter and never return. But he was no coward. He would not run away from reality. He was a Gryffindor after all, and he would endure these next six years like he did his first. (Maybe, just maybe this year will be different? First years wouldn’t be told of his status...maybe one of them would like him)

“’ Rion? Would you like to go get your books first or some new robes?” Father called, smile soft but the corners of his eyes strain with distress when his son did nothing more than stare at him for a few seconds before shrugging.

All summer long, the young werewolf had spoken as minimum as he could, shut away in his room. He’s always been a bit reserved and socially awkward but never to these levels.

Orion knew his parents were worried, had known each time they came over during the full moons. They tried their best to cheer him up, to get him to talk but even that took the levels of energy he just wasn’t feeling anymore. Each passing day at Hogwarts caused him to shrink further in on himself in order to protect what little Orion could of his heart and now, well into the summer he seem unable to unshrink. Not even for his parents’ sake.

“Well, how about-”

Whatever Father was going to say was lost on Orion, because his attention had been taken by a new store. The one that had just open with no pre-warning. (Magic buildings tended to do that but they were at least advertise days beforehand in order to generate some kind of clientele).

Or to be more precise Orion’s attention had been taken by the young boy standing in front of it, who was staring right back at him with wide eye astonishment. The boy was small, almost delicate face but painfully average and the only thing that really stood out were his green eyes. He was wearing Muggle brown trousers and a plain white shirt, a white apron was thrown over his outfit and a tray of little cups in his hands.

He must have been handing out samples.

Orion sent him a sneer, suddenly angry that even here, even away from his classmates, other kids still stare at him like he shouldn't be real.

The boy didn’t so much as blink. He returns the sneer with an intrigued look, unoffended in any kind of way before his eyes shift up to look at Father who had to realize Orion was no longer listening. It was only because he was watching that Orion caught the ripple of emotions that went over the boy’s face before it settles into a calm friendly glance.

“Is that one of your school friends?” Father asks a tad bit too eagerly. To Orion’s horror, he was already moving in the direction of the child even before finishing his question.

This seems to be all the approval the stranger needs, seeing as he straightens up, turning in their direction fully. Before he could state he had no friends, the boy left his post and was walking quickly in their direction.

It was almost a run, but the boy didn’t seem to waste a single step, graceful in a way that didn’t make sense. There might be a mistake, maybe the sounds of the always busy alley masking it, but he swore he couldn’t hear his footsteps either. In only a matter of seconds, he was standing before Orion, holding out his little try.

“Free sample?” The werewolf didn’t miss the way he seems to stare at him like he was drinking up his features.

Orion said nothing staring back at him before his father cleared his throat an obvious sign he was disapproving of his manners. “Um, what is it?”

“Dragon’s Breath. You stick the puffball in any of these flavors and blow smoke out while you eat” The boy said easily, and for a startling moment, he realizes he may not be all that young. In fact, they may even be near the same age despite how tiny this kid was. “It’s really popular in the States.”

“Are you from the States?” Father asked taking the toothpick the boy offers and stabbing one of the puffs. He quickly dunks it in the white melted chocolate like Orion knew he would.

“I’m from all over.” The kid answers staring up at him with an odd emotion in his eyes. “My parents were curse breakers so the family traveled a lot.”

His eyes flicker to Orion. “Would you like one?”

He doesn’t answer, and the air thickens with awkward stillness for a few seconds before Orion careful takes one of the puffs going for the caramel flavor. Luckily the other doesn’t seem all that offended, patiently giving him time to decide what he wanted.

Once it’s in his mouth the flavor of caramel dances over his tongue, and he makes a small O with his lips as smoke rushes out. It’s not a little puff like he expected by a long white smoky breath of air that curls and flickers in the air.

It’s kinda wicked.

His Father blows out his own smoke smiling. It’s as interesting watching as it is being the one to perform it. “Your dad would love this.”

The boy beams. “We sell some take-home boxes with various flavors if you like to take him some? I’m Hadrian by the way. Hadrian Evans”

“Remus Lupin,” Father answers charmed by Evans. “This is my son Orion Black.”

If he’s curious about the different last names then Evans doesn’t show it. Instead, he bobs his head at him respectfully. “Nice to meet you”

Maybe this year was worst on him then he thought because Orion finds words falling out of his mouth before he can stop himself. “I’m a werewolf.”

He waits for the fear, or the hatred aware his father has stiffened next to him but unwilling to look away from the green eyes. Evans doesn’t faze in the slightest instead, he raises a brow looking far too amused. “That’s nice. I’m a wizard myself”

He wonders if the bewilderment he feels is showing on his face. It was...such a lack of reaction even Father did a double take. What does one even say to that?

Evans suddenly smiles, warm and friendly in equal parts, and Orion doesn’t know what to do in the glory of it. “I like you.”

Is this what it feels like to be kicked in the chest?

“Hadrian Evans!” A man’s voice suddenly cuts through the air, sharp with chiding. Evans winces, for the first time looking like a child.

Walking towards them is an older looking Evans. He’s got long dark uncontrol hair, poorly pulled into a ponytail, like it was shoved there despite it not wanting to be. Loose stands swung rebelliously out, his green eyes aren’t nearly as bright at Evans, more moss then brilliant jewel but they are the same shapes.

He’s older but far too young to be Evans father. A brother perhaps?

His face is pulled into a nasty scowl. “Young man, what did I say about wandering off by yourself? You could have been kidnapped!”

“Sorry Will,” Evans tells...older Evans. He gestures to the werewolves, his eyes seemed to convey another strange emotion. “I just wanted to meet someone my age.”

Orion feels his face heat up as the older man cuts his gaze at him and Father, looking like he suddenly understands why Evans disobeyed him. For some reason, he is embarrassed by that. (From the corner of his eye he peaks up at his parent and is meet with gleeful amusement, beaming in parental pride. His face grows hotter)

“It’s fine, just don’t do it again.” He huffs rubbing Evans’ hair roughly. He grins over at the werewolves open and friendly as Evans. “Sorry about him. He tends to ignore social rules. I’m Will Evans, this brat’s older brother.”

The pair of brothers invite them back to their shop, called Dimension Hoppers, which turns out to be a general store of various imported objects from all over the world. There are so many new things that Orion could barely choose where to look, Hadrien dragging him along pointing and explaining what each item was, with obvious enthusiasm.

Especially when they came across the Ancient Runes section. Orion thinks that’s his new...friend?...favorite topic.

Obviously, he had some experience as a salesman, because he doesn’t flatter whenever Orion asks questions nor tries to push a sale. He just gives a general tour of all the allies as the grown-up talk up front.

Turns out Will was also a curse breaker, following his parents' footsteps. After their deaths, he gained guardship over Hadrian and had chosen to start a business using the family connects to supply rare objects from around the world, so he could be close by when Hadrien started Hogwarts.

“He was going to homeschool me,” Hadrian says a few hours later walking with him as the pair finish shopping for their school supplies that weren’t sold in his brother's shop.

Which were only like five things. Orion himself had most of his list finished there too. The prices were much fairer and his Father had been overjoyed that they could save some for new robes.

“But I kinda always wanted to go to an actual school instead of being taught everything on the road, you know?”

He didn’t. But he also didn’t know how in the world he left Dimension Hoppers with an invitation to come back and hang out sometime before Hogwarts. Nor why in world, Will had passed him some Dragon Breath’s boxes on the house for his brother’s first friend on their way out.

His father wouldn’t stop smiling and...neither could he. Orion hadn’t had this much fun in a long time. He already couldn’t wait to see Hadrian again.

Maybe his second year at Hogwarts won’t be all that bad after all.

#harry potter #C'est La Vie #Orion Black #Hadrian Evans #Au: Dimension Hoppers Store #Will is actaully Bill Weasley from the previous world #He woke as himself but the two preform a Blood Adoption to make him a Evans #He is upset his hair won't listen anymore but unwilling to give up long hair #Hadrian is out there making friends #Cover store as store owners #Orion may be Occ but that's due to him only facing one year of bullying instead of four #Remus misunderstood and now thinks Hadrian has a crush on his son #OrionXHadrian

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izzy-b-hands · 5 years ago

Text

Paralysis

A note that the very beginning of this, the sleep paralysis episode is based on one I had myself this week, that I’m hoping writing out here via Snafu will help me work past. But it is a TW for something like sexual violence, I guess? It was a weird thing and it’s hard to explain. If anything like that isn’t your jam, I’d say skip this one. If you do read it and have ideas for any other tw I should mark on this fic as a result, please let me know. I’m too close to the experience to figure it out myself, I guess lmao. I tried to make clear how it feels during and after, at least for me. We’ll see how well I did at that. The only big difference is I don’t have a cute boy to help me deal with an episode of it lol.

This is also combined with the idea I mentioned briefly in that other post today. I still didn’t like how the original idea didn’t vibe with the boys exactly, so I sort of redid it so it works for them, and I think I’ll have to do a reader insert fic for the full original idea later.

But hopefully this version of it gets across the main thread of the original idea, and y’all like it. It isn’t particularly long, but I’ve been struggling to finish fic rn, so gotta take what I can make happen lol.

My love to all who read/like/reblog!

He could usually shake out of it, after a bit. Even when it felt this real.

Eugene at his side in the bed (but hadn’t he fallen asleep in the living room, on the couch? Never mind it now) hands everywhere, lips at his neck. He didn’t remember coming to bed, or when he’d woken Eugene, or when it had turned from sweet sleepy affection to rough sex, but rough it was. And it was good, even so, he was so close, but-

“Gene, little slower.”

Nothing except lips back at his neck, bruising hard now, enough to make him wince.

“Eugene, baby. Calm down a little, okay?”

Still nothing, but the nip of teeth at his neck and shoulders, harder than Eugene had ever done it before, and his orgasm slipped away at the pain of it.

And then it dawned.

This wasn’t Eugene, and suddenly the little voice that had been fighting to scream, Eugene’s voice, came through: “That isn’t me! That isn’t me, Snaf!”

And he turned back to look to what had been Eugene, and the face was close but the jaw was too extended, like a wolf, and that jaw opened and he could feel it clamp down, all the while he begged for it all to slow, to stop, to be able to move at least-

He was completely awake then, in the living room, on the couch, not moved an inch since he’d first laid down. Eugene was nowhere in sight, and the house was dark.

He couldn’t explain why he went outside then, forewent his shoes and keys, across the lawn and out onto the gravel road. He didn’t know where he was going, but the house didn’t feel safe, nowhere felt safe, surely it had been fake, but those teeth had felt so real and his body ached and if he hurt then maybe, just maybe-

“Snaf?”

He was maybe a hundred feet from the house, and there was Gene, running after him, robe fluttering in the breeze.

“What are doing out here? I heard the door open...”

He fought for words, for something, but had nothing. It all felt too real, too fake, all at once. If he moved too fast, he might shimmer right through the road, through the world, to where, he didn’t know. Was he even awake, really? How could he know?

“Another episode? You wanna talk about it?”

This was Eugene. He was real. He had to be. His face was fine, normal, no distended, extended jaw, with teeth that pierced and ripped and burned as they bit and-

“Let me help you back inside,” and Eugene’s hand was solid, and real, and warm on his arm and had it been this cold outside the whole time? “Come on. Your feet are filthy, why didn’t you grab your shoes?”

He let Eugene lead him back, slow, over the gravel and then the grass, onto the mat inside just in front of their front door.

“Stupid question, right? I know you don’t really think about that stuff, right afterwards. You probably don’t even feel awake yet, huh?”

He managed a nod.

“That’s okay. You stay there, I’m gonna go grab something to clean you up. Can’t have you dragging dirt all over the house.”

And he stood in the darkened house, and he considered shutting the door behind him since he could move now, and he found he couldn’t bring himself to make a single move. Just in case. Just in case the feeling of eyes on him constantly, since he’d apparently woken was real, and it knew where he was, but maybe in the dark it couldn’t find him, and-

“Shit, this one hit you hard, didn’t it? You look...gone. Spaced out. You okay?”

“No,” and his voice shuddered, but it sounded like him at least, that’s reassuring enough. “Don’t feel real yet.”

Eugene nodded. “We’ll get you cleaned up. That’ll help.”

He forgot how light he was to Eugene, until moments like this. Eugene picked up in one fell swoop, moved him over to the couch, laid out a towel on the carpet so he could set down his feet. One small washbasin full of warm water at his knees as Eugene knelt down, another empty to hold the used rags.

Or usually, it would have been rags. Eugene, for whatever reason, had grabbed the nicer washcloths this time.

Maybe it was just the oddness of it all, the struggle to feel truly awake and real and like he was really himself, and Eugene was really himself, but each motion was the softest tension.

The warmth of the water helped, it couldn’t feel that good if it wasn’t real. So did Eugene’s hands, the gentle way he moved the cloth over his feet, washing away dirt and the smaller bits of gravel that had tried to worm their way into his skin. The pain of that came through now, slight though it was, and Eugene stopped when he winced.

“You’re okay,” he murmured, getting up just enough so he could kiss Snafu gently.

It made him shiver, but it was another moment of reassurance. No roughness. No sharpened teeth. No whatever that thing in his head had been.

Just Eugene.

With his careful hands, and soft hair that brushed up against Snafu’s torso as he moved closer, settling each of Snafu’s feet into his lap in turns as he scrubbed away the last of the most stubborn bits of gravel.

He wasn’t a religious man, not really, but when Eugene looked up at him then, drying his feet with another washcloth, he thought he just might understand truly, fully, what ‘holy’ meant.

It was in Eugene’s eyes, in the way he wrapped an arm around Snafu after putting away the cloths and washbasins, and led him upstairs.

It was in the fingers that plucked at the buttons of his shirt, that ran across his chest once said shirt was on the floor, that pulled open the button of his trousers.

It was in his lips that made their way up from Snafu’s chest and neck to his face, in the way his legs intertwined with Snafu’s. In the way he didn’t have to tell Eugene all of it right away, yet Eugene somehow knew not to take it further than the roaming hands, the rutting hips. Even when it grew more urgent, when it was hard to keep the pace, not to move faster, harsher, Eugene was still so careful, so gentle, sweet like summer rain.

It wasn’t anything ground-shaking, but it was warm and comfortable and a breaking of it, whatever had kept him from feeling properly awake, when he came, and Eugene right after him, both of them marked across their stomachs by it.

“You tired again?” Eugene asked.

Snafu tried and failed to fight back a yawn. This was how it always was after, once he finally broke the odd unreal sensation after an episode, finally the exhaustion would descend back on him as if he hadn’t slept that night at all.

Eugene just giggled. “You stay put. I’ll clean us up. You sleep.”

“No, I can help,” Snafu started, but another yawn interrupted him.

“Sleep,” Eugene instructed with a smile and a kiss as he climbed over Snafu and out of the bed. “I’ll be right back. No more episodes tonight, okay? No more fear. You’re safe.”

And he was, and the sensation of it was such a sharp contrast to how he’d felt earlier in the night that it made it all the more easy to fall asleep, like a lullaby that didn’t need to be sung, but just floated on the air whenever Eugene was around.

Which made him perfectly happy not to move too much, once Eugene had cleaned them up and was back in bed beside him, curled against his side. His man (truly his man, for sure this time) slept contently in his arms, and he could finally sleep again.

#text post #LeeH writes #Sledgefu

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aparecium-muses · 4 years ago

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@aliumisms Plotted Starter From Regulus To Tempty

Regulus had been prepared to die. Not right there, within the cave itself but he knew that as soon as he took hold of the real Horcrux that his life was forfeit. He knew there were more and even though he had just turned seventeen he was more than ready to put a stop to the dark lord's plans. It was until he learned a harsh lesson, one that left him with nightmares where he couldn't breathe, water welling up within his throat and violent slashing scars across his body. (((The oddest one by far a scar in the shape of an S below his collar bone.)) He had waited. Had watched his funeral disillusioned, (was it too much to wish Sirius had shown up?) watched a grim approach his grave signaling to all magicals he truly must be dead, had watched his own father's funeral soon after, whispers speaking of how the man died of a broken heart.

"What a load of Hippogriff shit," Regulus muttered to himself having started to make his way to the Riddle manor black cloak fluttering behind him. He could apparate there if he wished for his movements to be tracked or exhaust. No, he'd be doing this the muggle way. He wasn't going to let his plots and planning he did between listening to his mother's wretched wailing fail all because he couldn't do anything without magic.

Some would call his solo Horcrux hunting foolish. Maybe he was, but he had no one he could turn too. Sirius wouldn't have believed him back then, and now his brother was in Azkaban. Cissy had secrets of her own and a child to care for he refused to bring her into his. Then lastly, dumbledore he didn't trust the man one wit. If he- a pureblood could put the pieces together of Lord Voldemort being an anagram for Tom Riddle, then why wouldn't his damned professor step up to do anything about him?

"He was a coward, far more a coward than I, playing his part as a puppet-master rather than take definitive action. So many killed all for what? What point does he want to make?" Regulus scowled, mind whirling trying to think of just what reason Dumbledore didn't do anything against the dark lord. Tromping through dead grass and knarled trees, an average person could miss it, the little shack nestled between tangled trunks, he learned of it within a story from the townsfolks of Little Hangleton. Of the crazy Gaunts', and the Gaunt's ugly, inbreed, cross-eyed daughter, who seemingly managed to sweep wealthy Tom Riddle off his feet, running away with him and never to return.

It was painfully easy to put the pieces together.

"Disgusting," he hissed having cautiously moved closer to the moss-covered shack only to see the sight of a shriveled up snake nailed upon the front door magic being the only thing to keep it from being nothing but a skeleton. The roof was in shambles, the weeds that grew around it where even wilting, the windows so thick with dirt he had no luck in trying to peek inside. Taking out his wand he cased an anti-muggle ward to keep them away. He didn't want to erase any memories, he wasn't the best at them and the very thought of messing with another’s mind made him uncomfortable. All that came too mind was the way the dark lord's mind would sink into his own, slick and oily, threatening to choke him during his search for traitorous actions. Deep in his thoughts, he barely managed to step out of the way as a snake seemed to drop from the sky hissing angrily.

"What the-" he muttered only to suddenly be bombarded by them. Snakes of all shapes and sizes dropped from the air wriggling and writhing as they hissed a few even managing to embed their fangs in his cloak thankfully not reaching his skin due to the thickness as it was not an average cloak. He ends up running in front of the shack, yelling curses in Latin both spells and simple profanity until the snakes were frozen or dead.

Heaving from all the exercise, he flung his cloak off showcasing that he was wearing a simple ruffled shirt and black trousers much different from the robes he was use too. "Well, now since that is over...." He pointed his wand at the shack, the wards would be fairly difficult to destroy – if he weren't a Black, that is. His family had always been dangerous and this was simple child's play. Waving his wand, he walked around the property chanting under his breath. After a few minutes, all the external wards were down and he breathed easily.

"Kreacher."

His faithful friend popped into existence next to him and bowed. "What can Kreacher be doing to help Master Regulus?"

He went on bended knee, the smile on his lips an echo of Sirius' own, a flash of determination in his eyes. "Kreacher, there's something in this shack that I need to destroy, It's similar to the locket," taking Kreacher's worn hand he squeezed it in comfort noticing the flash of panic in his eyes. "I'm unsure what's in there but if I start to act strange, you feel something harmful, or it seems i'm being controlled by something take me away as quickly as possible."

"Yes, Master Regulus."

Rising to his feet he braced himself, sending one last comforting smile towards Kreacher before straightening his back. He strode into the shack, forcing the door open with a spell rather than take the chance of touching the door or walls. Who knew what traps were littered about? All the while unaware that he wasn't as alone as he thought he was.

#Regulus Verse; Horrocrux Hunter: Welcome to the war we've only begun; Pick up your weapon and face it make ’em regret crossing you ⚰️#// GET HIM TEMPTY GET HIM!!!!!#// FORCE THIS DUMBASS WIZARD MAN TO ANSWER YOUR QUESTIONS

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littlebitoffanfic · 6 years ago

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A Marital Bed System

Fandom: Star wars Character: Hux Relationship: Hux/reader Request: I really enjoyed binging on all your hux x readers. Could you write me one where hux keeps leaving in the middle of the night to work. Make it super angsty but happy ending? When you woke up, you immediately knew your bed was empty. You didn’t even need to open your eyes to know. Sitting up, you stretch, allowing the sheet to fall from your body as you moved out of bed to grab a dressing gown and head into the next room of the small apartment. Still no sign of Hux, meaning he must be in his office just down the corridor. It was both an advantage to have his place of work so close but it was also a nightmare since Hux struggled to leave his work at the door when he came back. Knowing there wouldn’t be anyone about anyway, you decided just to go to him in your nightgown and robe. It covered your dignity anyway so even if someone did see you, there wouldn’t be an issue. your bare feet padded along the hallway before you came to the door of his office. You didn’t even knock, just walked straight in. It was a benefit of being the wife of the general. The second you entered, you heard a curse from within. “Damn.” Hux hissed, looking up from desk which had papers scattered across it as well as 3 screens projecting data onto the wall beside him. “Sorry to bother you.” You frowned, annoyed by his reaction to you entering the room. “I hoped you wouldn’t wake.” He shook his head, standing straight and looking at you. “Will you come back to bed any time soon?” You asked, wrapping your arms around yourself, the office a lot cooler than the rest of the ship. “i…”He trails off before looking away from you. “Probably not.” signing, you couldn’t hide your disappointment as your shoulders slouched. You couldn’t look at him anymore. This was the 10th time in 2 weeks you had woken up on your own. While you understood he was in a high position and respected that he had a mighty weight on his shoulders, you missed him. Over the last 2 years especially, he had become so demanded by his work, you barely saw him. He did make time for you, but it really wasn’t enough. You could tell he felt guilty about it and you knew he wanted more time with you, but he couldn’t give it to you. No one could doubt he loved you, and you knew he did all this for you as well as himself. But that didn’t make it any easier. You knew today had been hard for him. The supreme leader had been rather… ‘displeased’ by his work. This had result in him being thrown across the room like a ragdoll. You had been there but couldn’t do anything. Hux had been distance from you all day after that incident. You had just assumed his pride had been hurt. blinking back tears, you walk up to his desk and pick up his data pad. Hux saw your eyes watering. “[y/n], I am truly sorry.” He sounded genuine and you smiled despite your tears as you punched something into his data pad. “I know.” You look up and him and pass him back his data pad, showing an order for coffee and something to eat to his office. “Just make sure you get some sleep, darling.” You turned around and walked out the office, leaving Hux stunned. once you got back to your quarters, you pressed yourself against the wall and cried. Covering your mouth with your hand, you tried to silence the gasps for air and cries but couldn’t. You knew you weren’t going to get back to sleep without crying yourself to sleep and that didn’t sound too appealing right now, then your data pad light up from the table. Walking over, you saw a message from Hux. “do you wish to leave?” frowning, you felt a small rage brew inside you. Was he really trying to start a fight with you over messages? Especially when he was in the room just along the hallway. throwing down your data pad, you stormed out the room, anger now taking over your sadness as you threw open the door to his office. but then you heard a sniff and saw Hux had collapsed in his chair, he held his head in his hands on the table and seemed to be weeping like a broken man. “Im sorry.” He whispered. “I cant. You deserve better than this.” He shook his head, refusing to look at you. All the anger melted away when you saw him like this. He was a hard man to break, and even after 15 years of marriage, you had barley seen him cry. and never like such a broken man. “If you wish to leave, I wont begrudge you. I never deserved you. You should never have married me. You should have found a man who could give you everything.” He shook his head in his hands, growling more to himself than to you. That was when you noticed the drinks cabinet was open. While Hux did handle his alcohol well in a normal situation, when he was stressed and turned to drink it was different. All his deepest fears came out, all his darkest secret, every emotion he tried to conceal left his lips as alcohol entered. “I did.” Was all you said as you walked around the desk and leaned over the back of his chair, wrapping your arms around him. But he pushed back the chair, pushing you away as he stood and moved quickly for the drink. “No, you didn’t. im not a man at all.” He took a deep swig of the drink straight from the bottle. His hands were shaking as he did so. “No man lets his wife sleep alone. Or cry. Because he cant get a damn thing right.” you jumped as he threw the bottle across the room and it smashed on the opposite wall. His hunched over, breathing deeply while shaking and swaying on the spot. “you deserve better.” Hux whispered. You couldn’t take much more of this. Tears were running down your cheek and you wanted nothing more than for this to be over. You hated seeing him in such a desperate and depressed state. You did the only thing you could think of. The only thing that seemed to fix everything so far. Darting around him, you pressed your lips to his before he could protest. Unlike before, he wasn’t able to just pull away from your lips. He never could. His hands grabbed you by the waist and help you against his chest, tightly like he was afraid of loosing you. And he was. He was more than aware that if the supreme leader demanded it, you could be taken from him, shipped away to only see him on occasions. If he didn’t get his act together, it was a very real possibility. He couldn’t imagine his life without you anymore. You were the one constantly good thing. And yet, he didn’t want this sort of life for you. He knew you didn’t like spending every breathing moment on this ship, but you never begrudged him, never complained. You didn’t complain about the crap canteen food you survived on, nor the lack of interactions with your friends and family. You just smiled and said you were grateful he was here with you. One night, that’s all you had wanted from him. One single night to remain in your quarters. And he was unable to give it to you. he could afford anything. He could get you any gadget or jewellery you wanted. Hell, he could even get you your own ship which you could use for traveling in. but you never asked for anything, just his presents. Hux swayed against you, his mind racing. He could get you a little ship, one which you could use to go see your family and friends when needed. He was sure the supreme leader wouldn’t care if he was able to secure it so it could be tracked by the first order and monitored so no one would attack or hack it. And as for his attention, he knew that he could take some time off. Even just a couple of days. You’d enjoy that. You felt Hux relax considerably during the kiss, making you relax in turn. Soon the kiss had turned from desperate to passionate but calm. You pulled away for air, your cheeks a little pink from the kiss. “I think you should come back to bed. Just for a little while.” You smile as you run your fingers of his cheeks before fixing his hair. All hux is able to do is nod as you take his hand in your and lead him out of the office, glad to leave the place that had all his alcohol. You thought about the coffee and food you had ordered, but you knew if he wasn’t in the office, they would leave it on the table. You could deal with that tomorrow and if he went back to work in a few hours, he would have something at lease. Once back in your room, you took off your dressing gown and then moved to him. He had been known to sleep in shirts and trousers before, but you knew he didn’t like when the shirt was buttoned up. Your fingers un did all the buttons before you leaned in and pressed soft kisses along his collar bone and then up his neck. Hux wrapped his arms lazily around you as he did so. The cool and fresh air in the apartment sobering him a little more. “I do love you, you know that right?” He speaks in a low and tired voice as you pull away to look up at him. “I know. And I love you.” You smile, even after 15 years of marriage, a confession of love still meant the world to you. Pulling him to bed, he wrapped himself around you once you were both under the covered. You smiled, lazily draping your arm over his torso to run your fingertip up and down his back. “I think-“ You started, drawing his attention down to you. “-that we should have a system.” “What sort of system?” Hux couldn’t help but chuckle at your suggestion. “well, you’re only allowed to leave here 3 times a week after we go to bed. And if you only leave 2 times, your allotted time can be transferred to the next week. So you can bank time in case you have a busy week.” You look up to him for approvable but saw a soft smile on his lips as he stared lovingly down at you. “and what would this system be called?” he asked, humouring you but liking the idea. He always did work best with restrictions, so something like that might help him manage things better. “the Marital Bed System. Or MBS for short.” You giggle. “my dear, I do not deserve you.” He whispers as he presses a kiss to your forehead. “Perhaps not, but you need me.” You quip, making Hux let out a laugh. “Truer words have never been spoke.” Hux yawns as he closes his eyes, falling asleep with you in his arms as it should be.

#star wars #general hux #general hux x reader #general hux/reader #general armitage hux x reader #general armitage hux #hux #hux x reader #armitage hux #armitage hux x reader

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talesfromanuntoldstory · 6 years ago

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Chapter 2 of my untitled Drarry fic. Again, HP doesn’t show up a lot in this one, but I promise he will. Just give Draco some time to set things up ;)

Draco got into the routine of school again and did his best to keep a low profile. McGonagall made sure to check up on his well-being every now and then, even if her doing so annoyed Draco to no end. But as time passed, Draco’s suspicion that he was being constantly watched grew immensely. It seemed every move he made he was being observed by someone, but no matter how hard he looked, he couldn’t find the source of his suspicion. Eventually, he just summed it up to a case of strange and unwarranted paranoia and pushed the unnerving thought of being watched to the back of his mind. After all, he no longer had anything to hide. Everyone was now well aware of all his ‘dirty laundry,’ and if someone was watching him constantly, they were getting a very boring show.

During the evenings, Draco could find comfort in the common room when all others had gone to sleep, but during the day, he felt most comfortable hiding away in the library. Truth be told, Draco loved the smell of old books, the way the light shone in through the windows, the sound of pages turning, and the sounds of quills scratching on parchment. He loved the quietness and seclusion. The seemingly endless stacks were like a maze in a way. Every day, he would make his way to the back of the stacks and settle down there. He had transfigured a desk chair into a giant bean bag where he would relax and read underneath a window that faced the lake. It was very serene.

Anyone who came upon him would see how the light reflected off his hair, unveiling several different shades of gold and blond. They would have seen the serenity in his face, which was a great change from the tense expression it usually held when out in the public eye. They would notice his discarded outer robes and the hem of his trousers riding up to expose his ankles as he made himself comfortable in the bean bag. They’d see his eyes moving as he scanned the pages of his precious books and how he bit the corner of his bottom lip when he found something particularly interesting in his reading. They’d get to see his left eyebrow raise ever so slightly as his eyes brightened when he found something amusing. His hand would raise to his mouth and he would bite his nails (to his mother’s dismay) when he was completely and utterly fascinated. And every now and then on rare occasions, they’d get to see the corner of his mouth curl upwards when he’d gotten too enthralled in his reading and let loose a smile.

But Draco had made it a point to hide himself so far away from others that no one would ever get to see those things about him…. or so he thought.

The sound of someone clearing their throat shook Draco’s thoughts out of the world of the text he was reading and back to reality. It startled him a bit, to be honest, but to the untrained eye, his reaction was very composed. He looked up and his breath hitched as soon as he saw who’d interrupted him.

“You know, there are more comfortable places in the castle than this to read. There are even places where you can read in the company of others” a very intrigued Granger said to him, poking his beautifully transfigured bean bag with her foot. “Nice work on that, by the way.” He gave her a sharp look and calmly returned his gaze to his book, hoping she would take the hint and walk away. It was extremely bold of her to approach him in the first place.

When she didn’t leave, he found that he could no longer hold his tongue. Without looking up, he replied, “And who in their right mind would accept the company of an ex-Death Eater? No, thanks… I’ll stay here.” He turned the page, even though he had ceased reading ever since she made her presence known.

“Suit yourself,” she said as she turned and walked away. Draco thought that was the end of their little chat, but suddenly he heard a chair being dragged across the floor toward his direction. He felt his eyes roll as he closed his book, tipped his head back, and rested it against the wall, preparing himself mentally for this uncomfortable conversation that was sure to follow.

He heard the screeching noise stop and the small sound Hermione made as she sat in the chair she’d brought over. With his head still resting on the wall behind him, he said to her, “Why are you bothering me, Granger?”

She didn’t respond right away, so Draco moved his head slightly and peeked over to see that her mouth was hanging slightly open as if she’d forgotten how unfriendly he really was. She shook herself out of her thoughts seconds later. “Why aren’t you bothering anyone?” she replied curtly.

He glared at her, and she quirked an eyebrow at him in return. He shut his book and sat up, knowing that he wasn’t going to get much reading done that night, and he couldn’t get up and leave because she’d blocked his exit. Suddenly, many of the hexes he'd learned throughout the years popped back into his mind, but he refrained from using them. He didn’t need any more bad press than he’d already received in his short life. Instead, he made a gesture to get to her to continue onto her point of being there, disturbing him.

“What I meant was why do you coop yourself up in here all the time?” Her tone was much friendlier with this question.

“What’s it to you, Granger? What do you care what I do with my time?” He desperately wanted to avoid eye contact with her because he knew she was calling him out for hiding, but he held his gaze, refusing to back down from this small battle.

Thankfully, she turned her head towards the window before replying, “You’re right. I don’t care, but your gloomy aura is really getting to me. I love coming to the library, but not with you here destroying the pleasant atmosphere.” She gave him a pointed look and returned her gaze to the window.

“You’ve been watching me?... Why?” The question came out before he could stop it.

She sighed, “Look, I haven’t been doing it on purpose. I just spend a lot of time in the library, and so apparently do you.” She looked him up and down in a condescending manner and continued, “You really should get out more.”

The off-hand comment really struck a nerve with Draco. And of course, she would be the only person to venture this far back into the stacks on a regular basis. “By that standard, so should you… and I’ll do whatever I damn well please, so you can just mind your own business instead of nosing yourself into mine.” His frustration level was rising rapidly.

She threw her hands up in surrender and leaned forward as if she were about to get up, but then she paused. To Draco’s dismay, she added, “Before I go, I just thought you should know what you missed in potions today.”

Draco quirked up one eyebrow at this as a silent question. He’d purposefully skipped potions that day and many others. He couldn’t take listening to that great oaf drone on about the specifics of the various magical binding-related potions they were studying. He’d mastered the binding potions during 4th year when he was intent on giving fake dark marks to Crabbe and Goyle during their sleep to scare them, so he couldn’t be bothered to listen through the redundant lectures. That prank did not age very well at all he thought, and he rubbed his real dark mark under his loosened shirt sleeve as he recalled the memory. Binding things like parchment, clothing, and various other materials together using a simple potion seemed tremendously dull in comparison.

Draco withdrew his hand from his mark when he caught Granger staring at it. Giving it a side glance and then quickly looking back to his face, she replied, “We’ve moved on from standard binding potions to mixing them with charms. As you know, this isn’t a particularly easy task.” She paused and bit her bottom lip, which spiked Draco’s curiosity because there was something she was hesitant to tell him. He sat up more and wrapped his arms around one knee still staring up at her.

“And?...” His annoyed tone awarded a sneer from the curly-haired brunette and she gripped the back of the chair tighter before responding. ‘Good. This conversation is just as uncomfortable for her as it is for me,’ he thought.

“Well, since it is quite difficult, Professor Slughorn has placed us in pairs.” She paused again and turned away from him slightly while grabbing her bottom lip with her teeth once again.”

Draco sighed deeply in frustration. “Get on with it, Granger. What is it that I need to know?”

“You’ve been partnered with Harry for the remainder of this unit...” She blurted out the statement so quickly that Draco had to replay it in his mind to comprehend. She backed away quickly as if she feared a hex was headed her way. If Draco hadn’t been so shocked, he might have set one.

After taking a moment to collect his thought, he realized this must be a big joke. No teacher in their right mind would pair the saviour of the wizarding world to an actual Death Eater. “What are you playing at, Granger? Just walk away and bother someone else with your nonsense.” He let go of his knee, picked his book back up, and looked back up at her, ready to tell her off for bothering him. But the concerned look she gave him in return proved to Draco that this wasn’t anything close to a joke. His stomach felt like it had just dropped to the floor.

“Slughorn's lost his damn mind” was all he could think to say, and he slammed his book into the bean bag behind himself and he sat up straighter. “Why didn’t anyone stop him? What could he possibly…”

“Actually… it wasn’t his fault” she cut him off and resumed her previous nervous posture.

“Excuse me? Not his fault? Then who the bloody hell’s fault is it then?” He awkwardly got up out of the bean bag, stood up, and furiously raked his fingers through his hair as he paced in front of the window. Granger had to take a step back to avoid his sharp movements.

The fact that he was acting utterly and visibly distressed-- in front of Granger none-the-less --completely slipped his mind for a moment, but he composed himself after this short lapse and gripped the windowsill to steady himself as he processed this new information. It was all too much to handle.

Granger folded her arms across her chest, looking irritated. “As it turns out, you two were paired together because you’ve both got a habit of skipping his class. When you’re not there to be paired with someone else who is there, you get paired with whoever is left.” Her snooty tone and posture irked Draco so intensely that he grabbed his belongings, shoved past her without looking her in the eye, and headed for his common room.

He turned back to look at her and make a quick retort, expecting to see a smug look on her face but was instead met by the same concerned one. Not wanting to accept her pity, he opened his mouth to say something, but when the words didn’t come, he scoffed, turned, and quickly made his way to the dungeons.

When he arrived in the common room, he drew several looks from other students who were sure to have heard the news by now because what could be more newsworthy that their famous saviour being paired up with an ex-Death Eater for a potions project? Who needs The Daily Prophet when there are a bunch of gossiping teenagers around to spread the news? He sighed angrily and went to bed, making sure to draw the bed curtains closed around himself.

#Drarry

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mattzerella-sticks · 6 years ago

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Dust-Off, a Dean/Cas fic post 14x10 (”Nihilism”)

Spiritual Sister to fic "Spelunkers" (ao3)

Michael is gone from Dean for good. After he, Sam, and Cas rid his body of the evil archangel's grace, Dean wants to scrub every trace of the being from him. But even his usual clothes bring him no comfort, as in a way Michael still wore them - used them to convince everyone that Dean was all right. So what can he wear? Maybe the little present he bought for himself a while back that he never had time to try. And what happens when a certain angel catches him in it?

Note: Yeah, the episode didn’t come out yet - I know. You gonna stop me? Also rated M for fun times ahead.

Dean stares at the box in his lap, the black cover slightly dusty from disuse. He brushes his fingers across, trailing them ever so slowly along the cursive words at the center: ‘Natasha’s’. The box was light at first, but the longer he lets it sit, the heavier it gets. Weighing down with another force to crush his legs. ‘I shoulda left it down there,’ he thinks, ‘I mean… what the hell was I even thinking – buying it in the first place?’

It was an impulsive purchase. Something he never should have bought but had to have. ‘Like the damned vibrator… I blame that. Only reason I was there in the first place…’

Natasha’s was a little store, hidden in the back corners of Kansas City. He had passed it one day with Sam when they were rushing off to another spelunking tour. They were running late – Sam lost in his sleep and Dean too preoccupied with bacon – but it still left a heavy impression on the elder brother. The soft curves of the lettering just like on the box, the almost antique looking storefront, and especially the beautifully decorated mannequins. He committed every little detail to memory before they turned the corner, filing it away for – what, he didn’t know.

Until later on in the day, when he found himself back there.

“You sure you don’t want any dinner?” Sam asked, halfway out the door of their motel room.

Dean didn’t look up. He was studying Google Maps, weighing the options of travelling by car or by foot. “Nah, I think I might take a quick walk, grab something from the vending machines.”

“If you say so…”

He didn’t know how long he’d been standing there before someone cleared their throat. A mature woman, with creases all along her face, peered up at him from behind her wide glasses. There was measuring tape draped across her neck, and a bobby pin or two messily shoved into her grey hair. “You know,” she said, “I was supposed to have closed five minutes ago.” She had a very noticeable accent, Eastern European if Dean was guessing.

“Sorry, I – uh…”

“You want to come in.”

She spun on her heel, back into the store. Dean followed, eyes bouncing around the moment he passed under the lilting chime. There wasn’t much room to move, an explosion of colorful fabrics either hung from metal rods or laid piled on wooden displays. There was a huge desk off to the right where a sewing machine sat on one of the ends. In the back, Dean counted five different dressing rooms, each hidden by black curtains.

“So,” the woman – ‘Natasha, if the store is anything to go by’ – continued, “what brings a man like you here?”

“Is it… not obvious?”

She paused, taking another long look at him. “Nothing is ever what it seems. It wouldn’t be right to assume anything. So… why am I keeping my store open?”

He didn’t have an answer. ‘I mean, I do,’ he thought, ‘But should I…’ Thinking fast, he said the first lie that popped into his mind. “I’m here for a friend!”

“…You are?”

“Yes,” he nodded, one hand absently reaching out towards some of her merchandise. He ran his finger across the satin. “They – um… needed a few things, but were kinda busy… and we aren’t here for long so I – I uh… offered to go and –“ he cleared his throat, “to go and get it…”

Natasha stayed silent for a long time. With each passing second, Dean felt himself shrink further and further into himself. By the time she spoke, he was the littlest doll in the nesting set.

“So,” she said, “your friend. Do they have a size?”

“Well – uh… about that?”

“Do you … not know?”

He flushed red. “…No.”

“Would you say your friend’s measurements are like your own?”

She smirked at him, then. It wasn’t cruel or judgmental. Instead, her face had softened, and Natasha offered him a way in. She opened shell after shell to find Dean, and give him a hand. He relaxed, smiling back at her. “Yeah, I’d say we’re the same there.”

“Very well,” she said, pulling at the tape, “let’s get you all sorted out. I’m pretty sure we’ll have something for your friend here.”

In the time he was remembering that story, he had removed the box’s lid. Peeling back the wax paper, Dean gawks at his earlier purchase. He lifts the sheer, pink lace by the satin straps, turning it over and over to fully take in the intricate pattern. Dean smiles, just like he did when Natasha showed it to him. “Pink is a good color,” she said, “A strong color. Not many people can pull it off. I’m sure your friend will.”

He places it next to him on the bed, digging back in for the next piece. As sheer as the bodice he picked out, but even more luxurious with the insane amount of ostrich feathers adhered to the cuffs and the train.

“Makes you feel beautiful,” Natasha whispered to him, slipping it over his shoulders, “Do you agree?”

Dean could barely take his eyes away from himself. “…Yeah.”

He drapes the robe alongside the lingerie. Thinking he had finished, Dean moves the box away. It rattles, drawing his attention back. Dean digs deeper, uncovering a satin bag as dark as the lining of the box.

Opening it, he finds two pink heels, with more ostrich feather, and little straps for his ankles. Dean blanches, remembering how Natasha brandished them for him as she was wrapping up his purchases.

“Are you sure,” she asked, “An outfit like this only works with a complete set. I’d hate for there to be any disappointment.”

Dean waved her off, laughing awkwardly. “No, no – I… my friend will be so happy with all of this. But, the shoes… it might be too much, all at once. You know?”

“Has your friend never worn such things before?”

“Nothing… nothing as good as this,” he confessed. “Maybe the odd piece here or there but… never the full picture. Maybe it would be too real and… y’know, then he’d have to deal with other things once he… once it’s…”

Natasha laid her hand across his, bringing focus on her. Her eyes were burning as she spoke. “The worst monsters are always the ones that exist here.” She pointed to her head. “But it’s only when we bring them out into the light of day, that we can beat them. Their power comes from dwelling in darkness. Never wait for them to strike, when you can have the first attack.”

‘Crazy lady,’ he thinks, ‘Probably knew more than she realized.’ He sets the shoes down, pulling at his tie. ‘We waited to long… didn’t think – no, no. Remember, it wasn’t my fault… it wasn’t any of our faults…’

Michael’s outfit was too constricting. He’s been free of the archangel’s influence for a short while now, and he still hasn’t changed. Dean couldn’t. There wasn’t anything he wanted to wear that wouldn’t remind him of his controller. Even his plaid shirts left bile burning in the back of his throat, the thought that Michael decorated himself in it to draw suspicion away circling around like a shark.

Dean needed something new. An outfit fully untouched by Michael. Where he could see his face and know it was himself staring back. Clothes that was completely unexpected for him to wear, but still his choice – that he wanted to wear.

He bunches the robe in his fists, grounding himself in its touch. ‘It can’t be this hard, Dean. We’ll take it slow… but first…’

Dean tears the tie off and flings it to some corner of the room. The hat follows, as well as the vest. He kicks his shoes off and hurls them at his wall. They fall over each other as he rips his socks off and repeats the process. A button or two fly off from his effort to completely shred the white shirt. And his trousers don’t fall fast enough. ‘At least Michael made this somewhat easier,’ he thinks, ‘Going commando. All right… now that that’s done…’

The bodice fit just as Natasha said it would. The lace hugged his body in all the right places, and felt as good on his skin as the satin did. Dean ran his fingers up and down his chest for quite some time, lost in the sensation.

When he finally came back up for air, he moved onto the next step. Dean sits, grabbing one of the shoes and fiddling with it. Unlike the bodice, Dean has never worn anything like these. The strap was hard to work with, his fingers too big and meaty to coordinate. In time, he managed to slip the first shoe on. And then the other went, much smoother than the first.

He stared down at his feet, toes poking out from behind the feather. They looked worse for wear, and didn’t fit with the illusion the heels evoked. ‘Maybe with a little polish… no – get a hold of yourself, Winchester.’ He turns his thoughts away towards the rest of the shoe. Even though he didn’t give Natasha his size, she guessed correctly. It fit perfectly, and the strap barely dug into his skin.

Although walking in them was an even worse battle. ‘Shit… women do this almost every day?’ He stumbles, leaning on his desk to right himself. ‘At least whatever Natasha picked out… the heel isn’t breaking.’ Dean wobbles back over to his bed, grabbing the last piece of his ensemble: the robe.

Like the first time he tried it on, it completely encases him. The fabric melds around his arms, fitting perfectly even as he stretches and flexes. Feathers are everywhere as he plays with the sleeves, shaking them to and fro. Dean does the same with the train, shifting back and forth in place, smiling a bit wider with each swing. Having done enough, Dean ties the satin string across his waist in a loose bow, smoothing the robe out.

‘Done,’ he thinks, ‘Now all I need is a…’ Dean looks around, searching for any reflective surface. None exist in his room, so he moves out of it. Into the ensuite bathroom, Dean finds his regular portrait-like mirror.

He wasn’t the loveliest thing at the moment. His skin pale, the freckles popping out like pebbles scattered across a snowy field. And his green eyes were tinged with red, still puffy from earlier. Dean’s hair was gelled and flat, another reminder of Michael. Frowning, Dean rakes his fingers back-and-forth, mussing it up every which way. When he’s done, the hairs sit out of place. It stands up at ends in areas, and his bangs fall across his forehead in a soft wave.

Moving on, Dean casts his gaze further down to the real purpose of his reflection. He has to take a step back to fully appreciate the outfit. His hands slowly trail down his body once more, pleasure sparking within. “I sure do look…” ‘Handsome? No, that wouldn’t work… Natasha said beautiful but – no, no the word I’m looking for is…’ “Pretty.” Dean smiles. “Yeah… pretty.”

He’s too distracted by his own image to hear the door opening. “Dean? You’ve been in here a long time… I know you might need your space, but…” Cas trails off, footsteps placing him in the center of Dean’s room.

He whirls around, facing Cas, giving him a better view of what he’s wearing. “Shit,” he says, trying to cover himself, “You – why didn’t you – wasn’t it locked?”

“You, uh… didn’t lock it.”

“Shit.” He sways into the room, slamming the door shut and locks it. His back is too it, once more facing Cas. His angel barely looked away, following Dean the entire time with his eyes. In the dim lighting of his room, they almost seem to glow. But then Dean blinks, and they’re the same blue as they always were. “You, uh… I can’t make you forget you ever saw any of this… will you?”

“Not likely, no,” he says, “I wouldn’t want to, anyway.”

“You wouldn’t?” A shadow falls over his face, and the already leaky dam bursts. A flood of bad thoughts washes through him, and he curls in on himself. “Yeah, I guess this does look pretty odd… just, if you’re going to laugh could you not do it here –“

“What?”

“It’s okay, I was dumb to ever think –“

“No no no no, Dean,” Cas rushes to him, hand cupping his face, pulling his face back up. “Dean, look at me. I would never laugh at you. What I – what I meant was that this – you, dressed as you are – is…”

Dean watches Cas’s face flicker with an internal argument. His touch sears his already heated skin, but he can’t push it away. He wants to hear what Cas says next, whatever it may be a deciding factor in how he acts for the rest of the night.

Cas licks his lips, scanning Dean once more. “You are… divine.”

Dean shrugs. “I used pretty.”

“Pretty works, too.”

“Yeah, but yours makes me all… tingly.”

Cas chuckles. “So,” he says, “is there any reason you’re wearing… this?”

Dean sneaks a quick peek of his own outfit again. “Do I have to have one?”

“Not particularly, no… you’re allowed to do things you enjoy. You… are enjoying this, are you?”

“I was… still am, a little differently though.” He shifts his hips, pressing a hand against his growing erection.

“Then you don’t need a reason. Although… I have to believe there is some inciting incident to this given… earlier events. Isn’t there?” Dean bites his lip, glancing away. Cas doesn’t shy away as easily. “Dean?” he asks again, voice an octave lower than before. It sends a cascade of chills up his body.

“I… wanted to do something,” he explains, “out of the ordinary… shake things up a bit. Prove to myself that I’m back in control. I don’t think Mi… he would ever put this on.”

“I’d have to agree.”

“It helps that I’ve been meaning to wear this for awhile. Except with everything going on…”

“Things can get put off.” Cas nods, “I understand.” He tilts his head, squinting. “Is there… anything else you might want to do? That only you would?”

“Well…” Dean smirks, trailing one hand up Cas’s chest while the other still presses up against his thick cock. “There is one thing…”

“I’d be… happy to help, if you need assistance.”

“Oh Cas,” Dean laughs, “I’d hate to do it alone. And…”

“And what?”

“You’re the only one I’d want to do it with, anyway.” Dean spurs into action. He pushes, guiding Cas back up to his bed. His angel stops, his legs hitting against the frame. Dean tells him to sit with a gentle nudge on his shoulder.

When Cas settles himself down, Dean steels his nerves. He crawls onto Cas’s lap, arms wrapping around his angel’s neck. The ostrich feathers catch on Cas’s stubble, and he blows one away from his mouth. Dean fights back a grin. “This okay?” he asks.

“It’s good,” he murmurs, hands settling on Dean’s waist, “…could be better…”

“Really? How?”

“We could stop talking…” Cas leans up, then, catching Dean’s lips in a kiss. He doesn’t fight. Dean kisses back with as much fervor. They’re like twin volcanoes, erupting at the same time. A field in a storm where lightning strikes the surface at every second. They’re the sea and the moon, pulling and pushing each other in an eternal dance. It’s everything Dean imagined and still nothing he was prepared for. The more they kiss; the overall sensation of goodness fills his brain. Casting away any lingering traces of Michael. ‘Bastard could never get this right…’ he thinks, ‘How many times did he try and sell me on those fake Cas’s… I knew the real deal would be worth the wait.’

Dean grinds down on Cas’s crotch, delighted to meet a similar hardness. “Someone’s excited,” he whispers into another kiss, scraping against Cas’s scalp.

“Who wouldn’t be,” Cas says, marking up Dean’s neck in their next breath, “Seeing you in that. I nearly lost it the moment I laid eyes on you.”

“I’m already yours, Cas,” Dean tells him, groaning as Cas bites into his collarbone, “You don’t have to sweet talk me anymore.”

“I mean it, Dean, truly.”

“All right, all right…”

Cas pauses, pulling away to look at Dean. “Do you not believe me?” He looks somewhat hurt, but behind that, Dean can see another emotion. Hidden within the black whorls of his pupils, he thinks Cas might… enjoy it. That maybe his sarcasm and big mouth thrills him in other ways. This thought makes his outfit even more uncomfortable.

“Dean,” Cas continues, “I will never tire showering you in compliments. You deserve each and everyone of them.” He tightens his grip on Dean’s waist as he drops his back to the bed. Then, in one swift motion, he flips them.

“Cas!” Dean yelps, “If you rip this –“

“I’m being careful,” he says, hovering above, “I’ll always be careful with you… unless you tell me otherwise.”

“Cas…”

“Dean,” his angel says, the word dipped in solid gold love, striking every nerve to make Dean’s heart sing. “Dean,” he repeats, “Tell me you want this. Let me know how I can please you.”

He nearly bursts into tears right there. But he switches course, and instead a giggle bursts out. Dean laughs, knocking his head into Cas’s shoulder. “I’ve always wanted this, Cas,” Dean tells him, “Wanted you. I didn’t realize, at first, just how but… some days it’s all I can think about.”

“You happen to be in my thoughts often, as well.”

“…I can’t believe we’ve waited so long –“

“No,” Cas shushes him, “Let’s not do that. We’re here, now. That’s what matters. That and… what you want me to do with you?”

‘With? Man, he knows what to say to push my buttons…’ “Cas, be honest… do you like my mouth?”

“I do,” Cas says, “It’s perfectly shaped, and have great experience. Your tongue…”

“No, I mean, do you like when I… say things?”

“What kind of things?”

“Um… I don’t know? Sarcastic things, naughty things – words only a little shit would say?” There’s barely a slip of blue left in Cas’s eye. “You do, don’t you?”

“Do I even need to say anything else?”

“No,” Dean shrugs, “Although… if you really wanna hear me say some filthy things… you could always use your mouth.” His little nod south doesn’t go unnoticed. Cas grins, pressing kisses up against his lace-covered abdomen, taking his time getting to Dean’s crotch. His hands slide over to some clasps, the only thing keeping Dean’s leaking cock from breaking out of the sheer, see-through fabric. Cas snaps them open, pulling the panties down and away. He’s about to fully take Dean into his mouth, until Dean tugs on his hair to stop him. He glances up at him, Dean smirking all the while. “Who said I wanted your mouth there?”

Cas fully loses it as he flips Dean over, growling at the sight of Dean’s ass. “I am going to have so much fun with you…”

“Couldn’t have said it better myself, Ca – aah, aah, ass! Oh, yeah baby – yeah! Right there!”

Sam, adrift in the Internet, barely notices Cas re-enter the room. When he does, he stands, mouth opening and closing with every passing beat. There are so many questions he wants to ask: “Is Dean okay?” “Why was he in there for so long?” “Why were you?” “What happened to your tie?” Instead, he asks, “Dean?”

“He’s okay,” Cas tells him, sitting across from where Sam was, “The process… tired him out more than he thought. Said he can barely move from bed, and even if he could he wouldn’t want to.”

“Well that… does sound like Dean.” Sam collapses back onto his seat. “I was scared, there, after Michael that he might relapse back into somewhere… darker.”

“Your brother is strong, Sam,” Cas tells him, “Stronger with the two of us here supporting him, and with Michael cast out far and away.”

“That’s the truth,” Sam sighs, “I wish the slippery bastard didn’t disappear like that. Would’ve loved to have trapped him and drop kicked him back to his world.”

“A little tame for my tastes but okay.” Cas points to his open laptop. “Is that what you were doing? Looking for Michael?”

Sam blushes, barely meeting Cas’s gaze. “Uh… I should have, right? But, that’s not what I –“

“What were you doing?”

“It’s… it’s a little silly, but…” He turns it around, showing Cas his open tabs and search bar. “I thought Dean might want to do something to get his mind off of all that happened, a quick day-off, nothing too extreme. And he really seemed to like this spelunking trip we did –“

“Spelunking? What’s that?”

“Oh! It’s this activity where people go and explore caves. I’m surprised you’ve never heard of it?”

Cas smirks. “My apologies, but I know of it in a… slightly different tongue.”

“So you’ve explored caves before?”

“Only recently. I never had the desire or chance in the first few millennia of my existence.”

“You should totally come with us then, next time!” Sam smiles, looking back to his screen. “Or maybe we can do something else? Laser tag sounded fun… and so did these escape rooms… do you have any thoughts?”

Cas taps at his chin, expression stuck as it was. “Well… let’s just say whatever you plan for us…”

“Yeah?”

“Make sure it’s low-endurance. I’m afraid Dean doesn’t have a lot of stamina for… multiple rounds.”

#Supernatural #Spn #Spn fanfic #Supernatural fanfic #Dean Winchester #Castiel #Destiel #Destiel fanfic #14x10 #Supernatural Coda #Spn Coda

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harleyquilt · 7 years ago

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The Sin of Greed (4/??)

Summary: After waking up in Kaneki’s manor, she finds him asking her out for a special day of getting to know to one another better. However, things get escalated real quick on this simple outing…

Words: 5,778

Notes: I can’t say I’m too confident with this chapter at all, so feedback would be greatly appreciated! Besides that, thank you all for the wonderful feedback so far, it means so much and I really hope I don’t ruin this series for everyone. I hope you enjoy~

Touka awoke to someone poking her cheek, grunting in her sleep as she tried to swat away the person besides her. When her now opened eyes focused on the giggling figure besides her, she noticed it was Hinami. She leaned against the bed and rested her head on her arms, cocking her head to one side with a bright smile.

Damn, she was so innocent it hurt.

“Good morning, Touka!” Hinami said cheerfully whilst the maids came into the room and opened the curtains, Touka wincing at the bright sunlight that flooded into the room. “You seemed to have been exhausted. You slept for ages and you even missed breakfast! Though big brother strictly told us not to wake you.”

Touka sat up and rubbed her head, a dull throbbing headache pulsating from the bruise on her head. Grimacing, she leaned back into her pillows, watching Hinami take a silver tray from the bedside table and placed it carefully onto Touka’s lap.

“I did you the courtesy of bringing some food to you.” Hinami gestured towards the different plates of food set out besides her, Touka’s eyes widening at the various dishes on display. “Eat what you can, you don’t need to eat it all.”

It stunned Touka to see so much luxurious food, from smoked salmon to a buttered croissant, other options of granola and fruit with slices of toasts next to different types of spreads she could use. There was an iced drink of orange juice at one corner besides two small pills and a small vase with an orchid in the other.

“W-Wow.” Touka blinked hard, somehow not exactly believing she could ever see such a meal before her on a literal silver platter. “This is…overwhelming.”

“I’m not surprised.” Hinami laughed, walking around the bed to her other side, pointing at the pills near the drink. “That’s for the headache. That bruise looks awful, but we can get out medic to help-”

Her attention then caught the small rabbit plush next to her, her voice trailing off and her smile fell. She picked it up and smoothed her thumb over the soft material, an almost sad look replacing the cheerful one she wore before. Just like last night…

“Ah, excuse me.” Hinami coughed and forced out a smile. “I’ll let you eat. Let me know if you need anything, Touka.”

And just like that, she was gone with the maid, leaving Touka alone with all this unnecessary amount of food. She wished she could share it with the other children and Ayato back at home, but it wasn’t like she could carry it with her. With her stomach rumbling, she began to ate as much as she could, but no matter how much she tried to finish it all off out of guilt of wasting food, she was still left with at least a plate full of food.

“This is impossible.” Touka groaned, patting her full stomach. “How do they even eat all this…”

It was then she took a moment to just sit back and relax, taking in the silence around her and she thought back to everything that occurred in such a short amount of time. It was almost ridiculous how much had happened and yet here she was, still alive and breathing but also in the same place as she was in that day she made that deal with Kaneki. It made her question if she would be able to even escape her fate at this point.

“I wonder what I’m going to have to do next.” Touka pondered to herself. “Perhaps I don’t even want to know.”

Shaking her head, she got up and pulled on a dressing gown that was hung up behind the bathroom door, glancing towards the clock to see it was already nearly eleven in the morning. It was then her phone began to rang and she quickly dug into her bag and picked it up.

“Where the fuck are you?” Ayato yelled into the speaker, Touka holding the phone away a little. “You didn’t come back last night and you didn’t even think to call.”

“I’m sorry, ok?” She sat down onto the edge of the bed, tightening her robe around her. “I lost track of time, but there’s nothing to worry about. I’m fine.”

“Fine?” Ayato scoffed. “Ever since this whole thing started, being ‘fine’ hasn’t even been an option.” She couldn’t deny his words, but she remained silent as he took a moment to calm down. “So, how did it go? He didn’t give you any trouble, did he?”

“Who? The One Eyed King?” As she mentioned him, images of last night appeared in mind again - the way he kissed her hand, the feeling of his hungry gaze taking her in, his arm wrapped around her waist. “No…trouble, I guess.”

“That doesn’t sound reassuring.”

“That’s because you’re always paranoid.” She was glad he wasn’t here to see the blush formed on her cheeks. “I’ll probably be back later, but if not, I promise I’ll let you know.”

“I don’t like this, Touka.” He admitted, his voice now quieter but filled with knowing dread. “I don’t want you to get hurt.”

Her hand wandered back to her bruise and she grimaced at his words, shutting her eyes momentarily to try to shut out the deep sadness she felt; Her and Ayato have never been apart, not once, ever since their mother and father were murdered and now they’re facing this awkward situation where they are forced away from one another. God knows how she would’ve felt if Ayato were to be in her place. She doesn’t want to know.

“I won’t, you baby.” Touka teased, her spare hand twisting around the sash from her gown. “I’m going to see if I can leave now, but if not, I will try again later.”

“You’re like a prisoner there.” He grumbled. “I’m going to go over to that bastard’s place and give him-”

“No! For once restrain yourself.”

“But-”

“No.” Touka sighed, though she knew he wasn’t serious…or was he? “I’m going to go now. See you later, Ayato.”

Instead of a response, he simply hung up, Touka glaring at her phone at the sheer rudeness of her brother. It doesn’t matter.

Tossing aside her phone, she got up again and decided to reenter the marvellous spectacle that was her wardrobe. She picked out a sundress that was a light, baby blue with a thick, brown belt around her waist. Pulling on a short white cardigan, she slipped on some sandals and walked out of the room whilst brushing her hair back into a small ponytail at the back.

Outside her room, as she closed her door, she noticed the door opposite was opened ajar, Touka curiously taking a peek inside until she realised she had seen this room before. After all, it was the room she found herself in on the night she had planned to steal from this place she now stayed in.

“That bastard.” Touka hissed under her breath. “He did this on purpose.”

“You’re not planning to steal from there again, are you?” Miza stood a small distance away, her arms crossed and a smug smile across her face. “I came to check up on you, but it seems you’re fine on your own.”

“I am an adult.” Touka straightened, Miza shrugging and headed back down the hallway, calling for Touka to follow. “The King has requested an…outing of sorts with you today.”

“Another mission?”

“No quite. From what he said, he wanted to get to know you a little more.” Miza turned her head slightly, a wide grin on her face. “You’ve certainly caught his interest.”

“I don’t care.” Touka shook her head and gnawed at the bottom on her lip. “I have no interest in joining the, what I presume to be, long line of women that he’s wooed in the past. I’m not that kind of girl.”

“You say so,” Miza turned to face Touka this time, her brows raised. “But I’ve never seen him so infatuated with someone as he is with you. You should’ve seen him the first night you decided to visit.”

“Infatuated? I wouldn’t say that’s the most accurate word.” Touka mumbled, her curiosity peaked upon hearing Miza’s words. “W-What was he…”

“What was he like the night you first met?” Miza chuckled when Touka nodded slightly, her head turned away. “Well, why don’t you ask him yourself?”

They stopped abruptly by the banister connected to the stairs, Touka leaning over to see the front door open with Kaneki, Nishiki, Naki and Tsukiyama all walk in along with a few other members. However, it was Kaneki’s appearance that really caught Touka’s attention - he was dressed in a long black trench coat, a dark shirt and black waistcoat underneath with pinstripe trousers and red, leather gloves. His hair, surprisingly enough, was down with his bangs casted over his round glasses. Touka felt a chill when she took in this new look on him, a more sadistic and sinister aura surrounding him.

After he gave the order for his lackeys to leave, he looked up and caught Touka’s eyes, offering the usual cocky smile he always wore, but her stomach churned when she saw a smear of blood across his cheek. Touka quickly looked away, clenching her stomach and started to walk away from everyone.

“Wait, little bunny!” Kaneki called, Touka pausing with an agitated grunt.

“I don’t want to even look at you.” Touka yelled back, forcing herself to face him again. “I’m leaving.”

“Now, now, Touka.” Kaneki chuckled as he pulled off one of his gloves. “There’s this particular café I want to show you.”

“Like I care.”

“Ouch.” Miza laughed. “Give him a chance at least.”

“Mademoiselle.” Tsukiyama’s brow twitched and he placed a hand on Kaneki’s shoulder, who only shrugged him off in return. “Our King has offered you a generous offer of his company.”

“It’s not like you have a choice.” Nishiki added with a smirk. “You’re under his control now-”

Kaneki raised a hand and everyone fell into silence and he slowly took off his other glove as he started to head up the stairs. Touka crossed her arms and felt the compulsive need to walk away, but remained in place, despite what she said only moments ago.

“I won’t force you if you really don’t want to.” Kaneki spoke softly. “But it would be my great pleasure to treat you after the hard work from last night.”

He stood inches away, Touka biting the inside of her cheek as she continued to stare at the ground, shaking her head. With a small pout, he stepped even closer and lifted her face gently, Touka holding in her breath with his eyes locked on hers.

“Don’t be afraid to look at me.” Kaneki smiled, his thumb rubbing small circles against her cheek.

His voice…was this really just a game to him? He sounded so sincere, but it wasn’t like he could be trusted. Then again, after everything he had done already and the words Miza spoke not too long ago, it left Touka questioning her own thoughts on him. However, her eyes then wandered to the dried blood on his face and reality came crashing back down to her.

“I’m not.” Touka pulled herself away and walked past him, hugging herself. “Wipe the blood off your face. It’s disgusting.”

“Is that a yes then?” Touka hesitated before she responded with a quick nod.

“It better be worth it.”

“Good.” He rests his hands on her shoulders, his lips pressed against her ear and her eyes fluttered closed. “I have some business to attend to, but I won’t be long.”

“W-Whatever.” She shrugged him off. “Hurry up. I want to go home soon.”

He hurried back down the steps and the others followed behind, including Miza, and Touka was left alone in the entry hall. She stood there awkwardly, her hand rested over her rapidly beating heart as she tried to calm herself. She hated feeling this way around a man like him, but at the same time, her own racing thoughts told her a different story.

Checking the time, she decided there was some time to spare and chose to do what she could do best - poke around the house for a while. She goes down the the first hallway next to the stairs, making her way past a large dining hall, kitchen, living area and finally found herself at a different room near the end.

Peeking inside, she found that the room was surprisingly bare, the furniture covered in white sheets and the pictures that she assumed would’ve hung on the walls were taken down and leaned against the wall. One of these many pictures was placed onto the bed at the far end of the room and when Touka neared it, she saw that it was of two people, a tall man besides a shorter woman, both of their faces scratched out with a black marker of sorts.

“If you keep snooping into other people’s business, you’re going to find something you’ll regret.” The sound of Tsukiyama’s voice startled Touka and she jumped a little whilst he walked into the room.

“Who’s room was this?” Touka asked, her eyes taking in the rest of the room. Despite the dim lighting and thick layer of dust that covered everything, it seemed to be quite a luxurious room.

“Didn’t you just hear what I said?” Tsukiyama shook his head and neared Touka. “Some secrets are better to be kept hidden.”

“It wouldn’t hurt to know a little more about the man I’m working with.”

“Ah, but curiosity killed the cat.” He leaned over her, a smug grin across his face. “Or should I say bunny?”

Touka narrowed her eyes and shoved past him, but he caught her arm, holding her back. Despite her struggle, he held a firm grip around her arm, her other hand clenching into a fist.

“If you hurt my King,” he whispered into her ear, his hushed voice filled with hostility and the promise of danger. “I’ll hunt you down and make you suffer-”

“Just try.” Touka snapped, snarling at the man before her. “Don’t underestimate me, pretty boy.”

He was about to speak again, the anger now clear on his usually smiling face, but the door opened and they both turned to a camera flashing. A little girl, probably a child, lowered the camera from her face with a curious look and Touka heard Tsukiyama tut behind her before he let go.

“Tsukiyama, Kaneki warned you about hurting guests.” The little girl scolded, but she didn’t seem all that concerned.

“Miss Chie, I’m only reminding our little guest of her place.”

Chie? As in the hacker, Chie Hori, Nishiki spoke of yesterday. This…kid?

“Nice to meet you, Touka.” Hori nodded. “Now, Tsukiyama, I can’t reach a branch outside. Help.”

“Get one of the servants.”

“No.”

“Miss Chie-”

“I’ll show him the picture.” Tsukiyama cursed beneath his breath and then sighed, nodding to Hori. “Good. Come on now.”

Touka watched with some satisfaction Tsukiyama leave reluctantly and remained in place, looking back down to the ruined painting. Despite his threats, Tsukiyama may have been right on how some secrets should stay buried.

“Sorry if he’s a bother.” Kaneki stood in the doorway with a sympathetic smile. “Come now, Touka. We don’t want to be late for lunch.”

He offered her a hand, but she walked past, avoiding his eyes and he followed behind until they reached the front entrance. Kaneki had changed to a simple white shirt, black jacket and jeans. It was surprising to see him so casual after all his well made, expensive clothes from before. They walked towards a different car and he sat down in the driver’s seat, Touka giving him a weird look when she slipped into the passenger seat.

“What’s wrong?” Kaneki asked as he started the car.

“I just…don’t you usually have some driver in a limo or something?”

“I thought it’d be better if it were just the two of us.” Kaneki beamed, turning the car towards the gates that opened automatically. “Allow us to get to know eachother better.”

They drive for some time in complete silence, Touka staring out to the passing streets as an attempt to distract herself from the fact that she was actually sitting besides a mafia boss and about to have lunch with him. He confused her so much; whilst on one side of him, he held so much violence and anger, the other was more lighthearted and gentle. His whole persona was shrouded in mystery and yet she couldn’t help but be drawn towards him. She hated him and yet she remained near him. This dissonance within her never seemed to end.

They soon arrived at their destination, parking in front of a row of different restaurants, souvenir shops and cafes. The area seemed small but peaceful, a tranquil aura that surrounded the pretty scenery. Kaneki took her to one particular cafe with the name ‘Re’ and when they entered the shop, Touka immediately smelled the sweet fragrance of coffee that brought back a sense of bittersweet nostalgia within her.

The cafe itself was a cosy area, with bookshelves across the walls above the tables, a large chalkboard behind the wooden counter with different orders scrawled across it. Beside the chalkboard were more shelves filled with different coffee beans and other ornaments that gave the place a more homely image. They took a seat on one of the tables in the corner of the cafe besides the window that looked out to the streets outside and were given their menus.

“This place is…” Touka said, still admiring her surroundings. “Breathtaking.”

“It is.” Kaneki agreed, placing his menu aside. “It reminds me of my more younger years. I once visited a café much like this some years ago. They brewed the best coffee.”

“This place does give me some nostalgia.” Touka thought for a moment and it almost did seem like she had visited a place similar to this one.

“Anteiku, it was called.” Touka froze and lifted her head to stare at Kaneki, whose eyes were still set on her. “What’s wrong?”

“I…remember that name.” Touka narrowed her eyes in concentration.

“Perhaps you also visited that place.”

“I can’t remember.”

“No worries.” Kaneki smiled. “Do you want to order?”

Touka ordered only for the coffee and homemade cheesecake, considering she was still pretty full from her breakfast, whilst Kaneki asked for coffee.

“Tell me, Touka.” Kaneki took a sip of the coffee, his eyes examining her. “How long have you been a thief?”

“Nearly five years now, after my parents died when I was sixteen.” Touka poked the cheesecake, her brows furrowed at the memories of her old life. “It was the only life I could turn to, after all.”

“I’m sorry to hear that.” He turned away, staring out the window. “That must’ve been hard for both you and your brother.”

“It was. Though I doubt you would actually care - someone as sadistic as you enjoys taking lives away.” Touka scoffed, rolling her eyes. “Funnily enough, it was the mafia that took away the lives of my parents in the first place.”

“That was a long time ago with different people controlling the mafia and besides, I personally do not kill without reason.” He stared off to the distance and lifted his hand, cracking a finger and Touka felt a sudden chill run through her. “I’ll only pluck those that threaten the lives of those close to me.”

There was something within his tone that suggested to Touka that there was more to his past than meets the eye, but she wasn’t exactly sure if she wanted to pry.

“What about you?” Touka decided to change the subject. “How long have you been a part of the mafia?”

“Almost nine years now, but I’ve been a leader for only three.”

“And your old leader?”

“Dead.” He said simply, taking another drink of his coffee. “Don’t think I don’t know what it is to lose people, Touka. Even I feel pain.”

She didn’t respond and instead remained silent as she finished her cake, but despite her silence, she wanted to ask more - she wanted to know who this man was, even if he hid himself within his own shadows.

“What’s with that look, my little bunny?” Kaneki chuckled and he pushed his mug aside, leaning forward. “You seem deep in thought.”

“I’m just curious about you. I want to know how you became the way you did. Something suggests to me that you weren’t always this…cold.”

He offered a sad smile of sorts and placed his hand over hers and though she felt her cheeks heat up, she didn’t reject him as she usually did. His hands were warm against hers, his touch light and it sent shivers through her. It felt…nice.

“Perhaps what you say is true.” Kaneki said quietly, his eyes locked onto hers. “I wouldn’t mind sharing if it’s with you.”

“Why?”

“Because…there’s something about you I’m drawn to.” He squeezed her hand and raised his over to brush away her hair. “Every time you’re near, I feel like I can relax and smile, even if just a little. You make me happy.”

“We’ve barely just met.” Touka leaned back and looked away, but Kaneki instead cupped her face and made her face him, her lips parted and eyes wide.

“Don’t lie and tell me you don’t feel something too. You don’t need to try to hide yourself from me.” She placed her hands on top of his and he rubbed his thumb over her cheeks. “You’re so beautiful like this, Touka.”

“S-Shut up.” She stuttered and pulled herself away from his grasp, much to his disappointment. “This is crazy…”

“Maybe that’s not exactly a bad thing.” He grinned. “You mean a lot to me, Touka.”

She would’ve asked the reason behind his words if she wasn’t so certain that his answer would be less than vague. How was she even meant to feel about any of this?

Once Kaneki paid for the meal, they left the café and started to walk down the street, side by side. She noticed him glance at her every so often and their hands almost touch more than a few times, Touka trying hard to avoid her own temptations and kept some distance.

They go through a nearby park, an area filled with a burst of colourful flowers that surrounded the crystal blue lake in the centre, a white gazebo nearby with willows that hung over the water’s surface. A few children played near the lake, feeding the swans and ducks that swam around.

“I wanted to know.” Touka began, fidgeting with her hands. “Why did you join the mafia? I mean, growing up, I despised them, especially after learning that both my parents were murdered by them. In my eyes, they’re nothing but monsters, so what would make you want to become a part of such a world?”

He stopped in his steps and Touka waited for his answer. He looked up for a moment, sighing as he took a moment to think of what to say.

“Someone asked me to.” He finally confessed, facing Touka once again. “Yes, I think that was the reason.”

“Someone?”

“A woman.” He winced a little, shoving his hands back into his pockets. “But I must admit, looking back, I wish I had decided against it that day I agreed to her proposition. It’s brought me nothing but pain since then.”

Touka stood awkwardly in place, taking in his words in silence - a woman…someone who, in his younger years, probably loved enough to do such a thing. And yet, there was pain in his voice as he spoke, a deep a regret neither of them could deny. He may be the leader of Goat, but if she were to take a guess, this wasn’t a life he actually asked for. In the end, he was just like her - pushed into a life that forced them to change to survive.

“I was naive then.” Kaneki laughed nervously, rubbing the back of his neck. “But it can’t be helped now. What’s done is-”

Touka took a step closer and brushed his hair back, Kaneki tensing at the feeling of her touch whilst he gazed into her curious eyes. Her hand moved down to caress his cheek and he leaned into her touch, breathing heavily with his lips quivering.

“Are you sure about that?” Touka asked quietly. “You carry nothing but regret and pain with you. You hate being a part of all this, don’t you?”

He didn’t answer and instead pressed his lips together, but Touka leaned up and kissed his cheek, Kaneki flinching a little before his hands grabbed her hips, stopping her from moving away.

“Don’t go.” He whispered, his hands moving to wrap around her waist and she gripped his shoulders, eyes half lidded. “Please don’t go.”

“Kaneki…”

He lowered his head and his lips brushed lightly against hers, her eyes falling shut as she gave him a gentle kiss. They parted briefly before Kaneki pressed his lips firmly against hers, his hold on her tightening and her arms moved to wrap around his neck, their kisses turning quick and desperate.

“Don’t leave me, Touka.” He said between kisses, trailing them across her jaw and down her throat. “If you did- I wouldn’t-”

“It’s ok.” Touka pulled back, bringing his face back up and giving him another long kiss. “I’m not going anywhere.”

It was then he smiled this beautiful smile, his eyes lit up with newfound joy and his smile holding nothing but a searing love that riveted through them both. Even with the things he does, deep down, he was still a lonely child. Her thoughts on him still remained conflicted, but for now, all she could think of was the beautiful expression he wore for her. For her.

“Come, let’s go back to the mansion.” Kaneki started to lead her away, holding her hand tightly in his. “It’s getting chilly here.”

They went back to the car and as they neared it, Touka felt the uncomfortable feeling of eyes on her. She turned around, her eyes carefully watching the other people that walked past her, but wasn’t able to notice anything suspicious. Kaneki called her over and Touka looked around once more before cautiously turning back.

Then, right in front of her, she saw a man with raven hair towering over her. He had an almost crazed look as he lifted a gun and Touka froze in place, her mind going blank. However, she quickly came back to her senses and leaped away just when he pulled the trigger. The crowd of people started to scream and began to ran away from the gunfire, shoving Touka as they ran pass. She fell to the ground and the man pressed his foot against her head, raising his gun again for the next shot.

Another shot fired, but it wasn’t from the stranger’s gun.

Touka’s eyes widened when she saw Kaneki stood beside his car, his own gun raised and a furious look of rage that clouded his eyes. She managed to scramble away from her position and dashed towards Kaneki, glancing back to see the man was wounded - blood streamed down his shoulder and he dropped his gun, his eyes now replaced with fear. He started to run off and Kaneki continued to shoot, but Touka forced his hand down before he continued.

“No, Kaneki.” Touka gasped as he tried to push her aside. “Leave it.”

“How could I?!” He yelled, his angry gaze now directed at her. “He was going to kill you. I’ll make him pay. I’ll make him suffer and bleed to death-”

“Kaneki!” She cupped his face and forced him to face her. “Don’t do this.”

He was panting, his body shaking but as he continued to watch her nervous expression, he started to relax, his anger easing up. He brushed the back of his fingers against her now dirtied cheek, a sorrowful look replacing the rage-filled one he wore moments ago.

“I’m sorry.” He pressed his head against hers. “I’ll make him pay.”

“No, Kaneki. Let’s just go home.”

After another moment of hesitation, he nods and gives in to her words. They drive away quickly and Touka noticed that they were going down a different direction than the one they took before. Eventually, she found herself in a more darker, gloomy area, the narrow streets surrounded with tall buildings with flashing neon signs that loomed over the crowds of hookers, dealers and gangs below.

“Where are we going, Kaneki?” Touka asked, pressing her shaking hands into her lap.

“It seemed that we were followed back near the café so as a precaution,” Kaneki’s hands tightened around the wheel. “We’ll just be staying around an associate’s place until I call for backup.”

They eventually stopped next to a building that Touka first assumed were apartments until she saw a group of skimpy dressed women with faces caked with makeup near the entrance, wooing the men that passed by.

They both got out of the car, the women immediately calling over for Kaneki as he waited for Touka to come up besides him, taking her hand into his. He ignored the women in tight short skirts and low cut dresses and moved to the alleyway besides the building, knocking twice at the backdoor before someone opened it for him. Touka clung to Kaneki’s arm when they stepped into the building.

Inside was stuffy and humid, the room smelling of sickeningly sweet perfume, different dressers with makeup and jewellery that messily covered the table, corsets and other garments thrown across the seats.

Across the room stood a woman with long, purple hair tied up into a messy bun, her face attractive with dark shades of makeup to add to the already lust filled expression she wore. Her outfit was of a dark violet, silk kimono wrapped around her loosely, the trail decorated with different patterns of blossoms across it. Her cleavage and long slender legs were what really caught Touka, and probably everyone else’s, attention though.

“Kaneki!” The woman beamed and sauntered over to him, wrapping her arms around him and planted a kiss onto his cheek. “You never visit me anymore.”

Touka tensed up, watching Kaneki grow flustered as he awkwardly tried to push her away, the woman’s hands moving down his arms before she laced her fingers through his. She side-glanced Touka and grinned, pressing her body against Kaneki’s as he bashfully smiled at the woman that hung off him.

“To what pleasures do I owe you?” The woman asked and Kaneki finally removed himself from her, but when he reached for Touka, she stepped away, giving Kaneki a hard look.

“We need to stay here for the night. Some trouble with some guys and I don’t want to risk leading them back to the mansion.” His eyes never left Touka, even if she refused to look back at him. “I hope that’s no issue, Rize.”

“And leading them here is fine?” Rize gasped with false concern. “I guess you can always return the favour on a later date-”

“Good.” Touka’s nails dug into her palm, her voice low. “Where will we be sleeping?”

They are shown into a spare room, the room filled with a sweet aroma, despite the appearance of a dingy looking bed, peeling wallpaper and stained carpets. It can’t be helped.

Once Kaneki shut the door, he went towards Touka who stood near the window, but she brushed him off coldly and stepped away. His face fell into a wounded look as if he was the one being hurt by all this. Touka rubbed her tired eyes and kept them to the ground.

“How dare you.” Touka’s voice quivered. “How dare you use me like that.”

“I didn’t use you-”

“Don’t you even try to lie to me.” Touka snapped. “I saw that lovelorn look you gave her. And to think I was someone special.” She snorted, turning her back to him once again. “I’m just another pretty girl to you, aren’t I?”

“It’s not like that.” Kaneki protested, placing his hands on her shoulder but she shoved him away and against the wall, her arm against his throat.

“I guess I really am an idiot. After all that grooming and flattery, I became blind to the truth.” Touka glared at his almost hurtful eyes. “Once we’re back at the mansion, I’m leaving and I don’t want to see you again.”

She stepped back and Kaneki reached out weakly towards her. He opened his mouth to speak but it shut almost immediately. There was nothing else to be said.

“Touka, please.” He kept his distance whilst she started to remove her cardigan. “It’s not as it seems.”

Instead of responding, Touka simply shook her head with some sad laughter. Even now he was trying to justify himself.

“She’s just…an old friend.”

“That’s what they all say.”

“This is different.” He turned her around and kept a firm grip on her, despite her struggles. “Since I’ve met you, I’ve had eyes for no other woman than you. Rize and I just have some history.”

Touka didn’t want to look at him, but even now, his touch sent her heart fluttering. She hated herself for falling for such a man, she hated herself for believing she was someone different in his life, she hated herself for feeling such things towards a bastard like him. Even now, she can’t seem to escape him, despite all her struggles.

“Just leave me alone.” Touka hissed. “Fuck off back to your bitch and leave me alone!”

With every word she spoke, Kaneki’s grip loosened and he let go of her with a defeated expression, watching her walk away from him as he sat down onto the bed. Frustrated, he kicked the ground and buried his face into his hands. Touka watched with some dread before she lay down onto one side of the bed with her back turned to him.

This was just all fucked up - how could this day go so wrong? It started with so much bliss and honesty and ended with hurtful lies and danger. It almost felt like a lifetime has passed with nothing but darkness looming ahead. For now, though, all Touka wanted, what she needed, was to sleep.

To sleep and forget everything.

#tokyo ghoul #touken #kanetou #fanfic #my writing #series #mafia au #the sin of greed #touka kirishima #kaneki ken #tsukiyama shuu #rize kamishiro #chie hori #hinami fueguchi

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