#there is a lot more to this recovery process but i tried to like make it bite sized for everyone else

[orcelito]

As for my post this morning. If anyone was worried. Me personally I'm okay (I guess) but my dad's in the hospital and things r still very up in the air. So.

[yesimwriting]

Midway

a/n a small-ish fic of someone comforting aegon bc i feel bad for him 😭

Summary: You did not choose to be Aegon's wife, and yet you seem to be the only one choosing to be there for him during his recovery.

Warnings/info: forced marriage turned to awkward, subtle pining masquerading as uneasy friendship, vague descriptions of life threatening injuries, canon compliant incest (reader is rhaenyra's daughter)

read part 2 here: A Matter of Timing

----

Hushed whispers, as stale and sterile as the fresh gauze being stretched and pulled taut against his skin. The rasp of his breathing scrapes at the air that manages to pull itself into your own lungs.

"It is..." Alicent stalls, her gaze never leaving her eldest son, "A lot, I know." Her eyes are wide, glossier than you've ever seen them. An odd sort of empathy presses itself against your chest, making a full breath feel like even more of a fantasy.

Your sympathies and courteously vague expressions of understanding and mutual hurt are things Alicent has no use for. She's tolerated you like an inherited dress that doesn't quite fit, only begrudgingly acknowledging you when surrounded by family.

These days, her barely there tolerance for you has grown even weaker, considering the reports your handmaid had delivered to you of Alicent's attempts to convince the council to lock you away after your mother's retaliation to Aegon's coronation. An imprisonment only prevented by Aegon's command.

She lets out a breath, her attention briefly dropping to the ground before settling on you. "But you are his wife."

A fact she's only come to accept because of your blood. As Rhaenyra's daughter, your marriage had been a compromise, a final attempt at merging a divided family before your grandsire's passing. If your mother had known how quickly Aegon's supporters would have pushed him towards the throne...

You nod your head slowly, dismissing thoughts of yourself. For the first time since your union, the context of your arrangement does not cloud all else. "Yes."

There had been no attempts made to gloss over the extent of Aegon's injuries. For once, the heart of the Red Keep prioritized reality over projecting strength and invulnerability. The maesters had warned you, had detailed the damages left behind by the flames and the fall. An attack strong enough to kill a dragon.

"I um...I tried to visit him earlier, when he first returned." The surprise of your own honesty is an afterthought, a barely there thing attempting to occupy the little space left in your mind. "They said he was not yet stable."

Alicent is silent, some distant quality hollowing her stare as she watches the maester. His movements are succinct, precise as he quietly instructs a maid to bring him a salve left on the table. How many times in these last few days has he gone through this process? How many more times will a maester need to dress Aegon's wounds and rebandage him?

"Stable seems relative." Alicent blinks, her attention returning to what's directly in front of her. She turns to face you. "I trust that you'll sit with him, keep him company after the maester is finished."

Aegon's thoughts on your company have shifted several times throughout the short time you've been married. He often goes through periods of indifference followed by fleeting displays of interest that feel eerily close to companionship. Not quite a friendship or a romance, but something warm and comfortable. Mutual glances shared over supper, peaceful moments in the hall, occasionally crawling into the other's beds at night like children that cannot find sleep on their own.

Some skeptical part of you wonders if Alicent's sudden interest in your wifely responsibilities has more to do with punishing you than caring for Aegon. You doubt she considers you some great source of comfort in her son's life. At least you don't mind the thought of staying here, away from prying eyes and whispers that your privileges within the Red Keep should be restricted until the realm is no longer so divided. "Of course."

She nods once. "There--there is much to be decided upon in Aegon's absence." Alicent lets out a rigid breath. Perhaps Alicent really does want to know that someone's with Aegon. "I should go."

"I will keep him company, your grace."

With that, Alicent spares Aegon a final glance before turning to leave. You remain near the entrance of Aegon's bedchambers, far enough away to not impact the maester and his work.

You watch the process openly. Aegon's burns and other injuries are meticulously cleaned, white cloth stained dark as it is dragged against his skin. Salves and balms are lathered onto his wounds, concoctions meant to promote healing and ward off infection. The final step of the process involves the freshly cleaned wound being rebandaged.

The maester works at an expert pace, treating Aegon's body in sections. Before you know it, he's stepping back to assess the results of his efforts. The maester then looks over at you.

You've never been in a position to be responsible over someone so injured. Are you meant to...dismiss him? Approve his work? Ask something? "Is he..." Well seems like a terrible overstatement. You force yourself to take a few steps forward. "How is he?"

He briefly presses his lips together. "Much more stable than he was previously, your grace. I am afraid that I cannot yet predict much about his recovery. As of now, the priority is preventing infection."

You allow your gaze to fall onto Aegon. There's something about the way he's lying there, immobile and broken and smaller than he should be. "Right. Well, thank you."

The maester nods, "It is my honor, your grace."

He begins to gather his supplies before leaving. At the maester's absence, the maid that had been assisting him turns towards you. "Is there anything you need, your grace?"

You briefly consider sending her out for water or asking her to bring you a book you left in your own apartments. A menial task would ensure her return, which would mean you'd have a temporary reprieve from being alone with Aegon like this. "No, I'm alright. You are free to go."

She nods at the dismissal, "Thank you, my queen."

Queen. The title that belongs to your mother in her own right, not as a position inherited towards marriage.

The girl leaves, her quiet footsteps nearly drowned out by Aegon's unsteady breathing. You watch her until she's disappeared through the doorway, and then for awhile longer. When you can no longer justify your silence, you step forward.

Standing so close to the foot of Aegon's bed tugs at something deep inside of you. He is so still, so without defense. Like this, he does not seem like a man desperate to cement his position, or the person you never wished to be bonded to in this way, or even the only one who you allowed to enter your apartments after news of your brother's death arrived at the Red Keep. Now, he only seems like a boy trapped midway between where he lies and death.

Though bandaged and burned, the entirety of Aegon's features have not been destroyed. The shape of his nose, the part of his lips still familiar. His hair had not been a priority, and while the maester did brush it back to work on him, the disheveled strands have fallen forward again.

You move away from his bed's edge with careful steps. Before you can overthink the act, your hand moves to his forehead. As gently as you can will yourself to, you unplaster the hair stuck to the oily salves on his forehead. Your fingers catch themselves on silvery knots. You begin to pick apart the largest tangles as best as you can without a comb.

It's not an easy task, sweat and product cementing the knots into place. "I'd hate it if no one brushed my hair." The words come out on instinct, the desire to justify your proximity the way you would if he was awake. In all honesty, you're not sure if he can hear you.

The process is slow and clumsy, nails separating strands for you to comb through. Up close like this, you can almost pretend that this is restful for him. He still doesn't look well, but from here you can focus on his shut eyes and parted lips. Your hand drifts away from his hairline, fingertips fluttering over bandages and brushing against unmarred skin.

Something awfully sentimental attempts to claw its way up your throat. "I'll go get a comb." You pull your arm away from him. "I'll--I'll be back, I promise."

You take a single step back before turning your back to him. The maester deemed him stable, which means that he will not spontaneously pass if left alone for a moment. You'll only leave to fetch a comb and maybe a book so that you have something to read aloud. He's never loved your novels, but it's the only way you can think to keep him com--

A soft sound, so gentle and brief you could almost convince yourself you imagined it if it wasn't for the distinctness of the word. Your name.

You stall. Perhaps you misheard something else, maybe a stuttering of his breathing or the room settling. You turn.

He remains unchanged--body in the same position it's been in this entire time and eyes still shut. The supposed whisper should be dismissible.

You step forward, voice fragile as you ask, "Aegon?"

For a moment, pressed between the audible strain between his breaths, a faint optimism pulses through you. Weeks of being a bride, a queen of the realm hated by all those around her, and your only form of protection has, ironically, been the man that's bound you to this place.

The hope fluttering in your stomach quickly morphs into something closer to dread. He is not awake. He is not well enough to call for you or any--a shift, a turn of his outstretched hand so small and inconsequential you likely would not have noticed if it was any less needed.

Ignoring the blurring edges of your vision, you move towards his bedside in quick strides. Without thinking, your hand finds his. "I know that this union is not one you entered willingly. I am also aware of the fact that you know I did not ask for this either." You've not often held Aegon's hand, but now you're glad for his tangibility. "But you--you have not been cruel. You've actually been surprisingly patient, even when I have given you reason not to be."

His palm is warm against yours, the familiarity of it strangely assuring. The few times you've laid together for the sake of duty, the heat of Aegon's skin had been one of the few aspects of the process that you were reluctantly drawn to.

"At times, you have been kind..." You blink in an attempt to dismiss the stinging behind your eyes. "Friendly, even." Your hold on him tightens. "And I miss that. I--I miss our friendship."

The grief in your chest is a hybrid thing, made up just as much out of your empathy and fear as it is by your hurt. It's a sensation so dizzying, you nearly pour your panic out to him. You have to bite your tongue to avoid asking him to not leave you alone here.

Tears are beginning to prick the corner of your eyes when you feel his fingers bend around yours. Aegon squeezes your hand with a barely recognizable force.

He's--he's awake. "Aegon?"

His hold on you does not falter as a faint sigh escapes his lips, a midway of his own.

- - - -

a/n not to offer a part 2 to everything i write but i have an idea for a second fic that’s connected to this so if ur interested lmk :)))

[wosospacegirl]

And they were roommates - part 10

Summary: Y/n gets injured and has to stay in recovery for 8 months. It's a good thing her friend and teammate, Kyra, is more than willing to move in with her. wink wink

Warnings: (+18) SMUT. FINALLY SOME SMUT FOR THOSE TWO!! Plus, of course, Y/n getting her cast off, Kyra coming home, and Y/n finding out about Alessia and Leah.

Word count: 9.2k

Masterlist

You can read part 1 here

Part 11 here

..

“How does it feel?” Mary asked, finishing up the last of the cast removal.

Beth and Lotte sat quietly across from Y/n. Their arms crossed as they watched her carefully from the seats in the rehabilitation room.

Y/n stared down at her leg–the bad one–as she had been calling it since it broke in half almost 3 and a half months ago. The cast had been a part of her for so long, and now, with it gone, the skin underneath it felt different…foreign.

It just didn’t look like she expected. The healing process through those three months hasn’t been easy or gentle; the damage of the injury was left behind, marked on her shin.

The skin on her leg was very dry and red, a mix of scars imprinted on it– some of them from when the injury itself occurred, others from the injury.

“So, sweetheart?” Mary asked again, more gently. This time.

Y/n hesitated, almost reluctant to speak her thoughts. “It looks–” She bit her lower lip. “Ugly.”

The room was silent as the word hung in the air.

“I’m sorry?” Mary asked again, confusion evident on her face.

Lotte and Beth looked at each other, not really sure of what to say.

“I don’t like it,” Y/n said again, more firmly. “I thought… I thought it would look like my other leg.” Her voice cracked slightly, and she hated herself for it. She looked down, avoiding Mary’s gaze.

Mary didn’t say anything, slowly turning to Lotte and Beth, and silently asking for some help. Y/n needed friendly words at the moment, not medical advice. 

“I have to go to the infirmary to get some cream for your skin, but I’ll be right back,” Mary said as she headed to the door, leaving the three girls alone.

Lotte, noticing Y/n’s frustration, carefully slid onto the bed next to her, wrapping her arms around Y/n’s shoulder.

“Your leg’s been through a lot, baby,” Lotte said softly. “It broke in half, it tore your skin, your muscles–”

“It was a very traumatic injury to your body,” Beth finished Lotte’s sentence. “Scars are good, it means your body was able to heal properly.”

“You’re gonna get used to it,” Lotte smiled.

Y/n blinked a few times at the two girls, feeling grateful that they were trying to make her feel better, but unfortunately, the overwhelming wave of disappointment and frustration was stronger. 

She imagined the day she was going to get her cats off was going to be different.

She thought the skin underneath the cast would be completely healed, but she didn’t expect the stiffness that came when she tried to move her leg; she didn’t expect the big scar that began on her ankle and grew all the way to her knee.

She’d also thought  Kyra would be here with her. She’d imagined sharing this milestone with her, Leah and Alessia. Y/n loved Beth and Lotte to pieces, and she appreciated all the things they had done for her, but it still felt like important people were missing from this moment in her life.

Beth, sensing Y/n’s discontented attitude, placed a hand on her thigh and got down on her knees in front of her, looking closer at her leg. 

“I get it, she said softly.” She touched the side of Y/n’s knee on two spots, right to the left side of the patella, on the anterior cruciate ligament– ACL. “It’s not easy seeing yourself change like this.”

“But trust me, you aren’t alone–me, Viv, Leah, and Vic, we all went through it,” Beth explained in a tender voice. “The side of  our knee is all patched up, the skin around it’s all rough, just like your shin.”

Y/n’s eyes flicked up to Beth, grateful but still feeling the sting of the reality set in. She looked down at her leg, tracing her fingers gently over the scar that ran from her ankle all the way up to her knee.

“Leah got the worst of our scars because her surgery was more complicated and took longer,” Beth noticed the way Y/n’s gaze lingered on the scar, her voice softening as she continued. “But we didn’t have to wear any casts, so we just watched our scar and our legs heal little by little.

“You, on the other hand,” Beth said, gently touching the skin of Y/n’s healed scar. “Had your leg hide from your view, so you didn’t get to see it getting better day by day. You only just took the cats off.”

Lotte, sensing Y/n’s unease, added with a gentle smile, “You’re not used to it yet. It’s a lot all at once. The cast is off, and now you can move more freely, but you’ve got these new scars to accompany you. It’s a lot of change in a short time.”

“I’m scared that–” Y/n had a hard time processing her words. “If the outside looks like that, then maybe I’m not completely healed on the inside too.”

“You don’t have to worry about that, sweetheart,” Mary said while walking into the room.

Y/n squinted her eyes at her, she was a hundred percent sure Mary was listening to their conversation all along.

“Your scar is a bit rough given the nature of your injury, but it doesn’t look swollen or have any indication that you won’t heal properly.” Mary got closer to Y/n, and Beth and Lotte went back to their previous seats.

Mary touched Y/n’s shin, pressing it and lifting it off the ground. “Does it hurt when I do that?”

“No,” Y/n shook her head. “It just feels very stiff, and it's kind of uncomfortable, but it doesn't hurt.”

“Yeah, that’s expected,” Mary said, tapping Y/m’s tights. “You’ll be back on the pitch in no time. Don’t let a little scar get in the middle of that, okay? I’ve treated a lot of athletes with broken bones, and most of them had a really good recovery.”

That gave Y/n a little hope. She smiled at Mary, watching her leg as she slowly moved it. Taking the cast off was one more step into her recovery; it might not be the scenery Y/n expected, but she was grateful for it overall.

Mary went to the cupboard on the other side of the room and came back with a grey shin brace. “You’re free from the cats, but this,” she pointed at the brace. “It’s going to be your new friend.”

Y/n groaned. “Bloody hell, I really thought I was a free woman now.”

Both Leah and Beth laughed at Y/n’s joke, feeling at ease that the girl didn’t seem so sad now.

“You can take it off to shower and bathe only, ok?”  Mary got on her knees and put the shin brace on Y/n. “It is way more flexible and light than the cast, so you can move around and walk with your crutch all you want.”

“But I can’t have you bending your knee or putting pressure on it, alright?” Mary thighed the shin brace around Y/n’s leg, making sure it wouldn’t be loose. “And, for the love of God, don’t walk on your own, we’re keeping your crutches for a reason.”

“Do I have to wear both crutches, though?” Y/n asked. “And can I stand on my own? Or do I have to use my crutches for that too? I just–I really miss cooking,” she confessed, a slight blush on her cheeks.

“You can just wear one,” Mary said, getting up and taking a final look at Y/n. “You can stand, just try not to be up for long periods of time, we don’t want too much pressure on your leg just yet.”

“Alright,” Y/n said, looking down at her leg, now with the shin brace on, she moved it side to side, tasting the water. “Yeah, it's way better than the cast.”

Mary gave her the last bits of instructions and medical advice before telling her to come back the next day for her first session of physiotherapy without the cast.

Beth was a sweetheart as always and dropped Y/n off at her place. Y/n promised to bake a cake for her as a ‘thank you’.

Y/n waved at Mrs Petunia from her front door before heading inside her house, Footy was meowing exasperatedly as soon as he heard Y/n’s keychain. 

Y/n couldn't pet him down because of the crutches, but made sure to fill his bowl with food before laying her down on the sofa and stretching her leg into a pillow.

She took her phone and quickly zoomed in on Footy before taking the picture and sending it to Kyra. ‘Son if fed’ she wrote. Kyra wouldn't reply to her until later, because, if Y/n remembered her schedule correctly, she was in a tactical meeting with her manager.

Y/n looked around the room, thinking of what she should do next. Watching TV? Too boring; reading a book? She already read all the ones she had in the house; cooking? Hmm, maybe later.

She watched her leg, moving it to the side again, making sure she still had the ability. Y/n wanted to share this moment with Kyra, but she also wanted it to be a surprise for her when she came back. Y/n still needed to tell someone about it, though… who was the chosen one? 

Leah.

Y/n looked at the clock. Leah was definitely out of training by now, most likely in her room getting ready for bed–that meant playing Sudoku.

She clicked on the FaceTime app before and stared at her face, waiting for Leah to pick up. In less than a few seconds, Leah1s face was on the screen, but she looked…anxious?

“What happened?” Leah asked, Y/n could barely see her face or where she was, the lighting was horrible, and Leah was holding the camera weirdly close to her face; Y/n couldn’t see the background. “Why are you calling?”

Okay, that was too harsh even for Leah. Something was going on.

"Uh... hi to you too," Y/n muttered. "Are you busy or something?"

"No," Leah said quickly–too quickly. "Just... What's going on? Why are you calling?"

"Wow, okay." Y/n huffed. "Nice to know you care."

Leah sighed heavily. "I'm just–” she cut herself off, glancing to the side for a second before snapping her eyes back to the screen. "–sorry, never mind. What's up?"

"I got my cast off today." Y/n frowned and said hesitantly.

"That's good," Leah said, her voice clipped.

"Yeah," Y/n agreed, feeling a little deflated. "It... doesn’t look great, though."

"What do you mean?" Leah asked, still sounding rushed.

"It’s all red and stiff, and the scar is huge. I don’t know, I just thought it would look... better." Y/n paused, noticing Leah glance to the side again. "Hm, are you listening to me?"

"Yes, I’m listening," Leah snapped, her frustration bubbling over. "I just–look, your leg is fine. That’s what happens when you get injured. It’s not gonna look pretty, but you’ll be back on the pitch soon enough."

"Yeah, thanks for the heartfelt support," Y/n shot back, sarcasm heavy in her voice. "I knew I could count on you for comfort."

"I’m just being realistic," Leah said sharply. Her eyes flicked away from the screen again, and Y/n caught the shadow of movement behind her.

"Okay, what’s going on?" Y/n asked suspiciously. "You’re acting weird."

"I’m not acting weird."

"You’re literally refusing to look at me and snapping like I just insulted your mum, or something.” Y/n shot back. “You can talk to me, you know?”

"I’m just– " Leah cut herself off with an irritated groan. "Look, I'm sorry, alright? I didn’t mean to be short with you. I'm just... distracted."

"Distracted by what?" Y/n pressed.

Leah’s eyes flicked sideways again. "Nothing."

"You're a terrible liar," Y/n muttered.

"I am not!" Leah protested, her face reddening.

"You are," Y/n said smugly. "And whatever’s going on over there–it’s weird."

"It's not weird," Leah insisted.

"You're holding your phone like it's a security camera, Leah. I can’t even see half your face, mate,” Y/n said. “Look, I can call later if you want? Or maybe tomorrow?”

Just then, Y/n caught a muffled voice from behind Leah’s screen– “Tell her I have the perfect cream for the scar, baby, it’ll work wonders…”

Leah stiffened, her eyes flicking nervously to the side. 

"Oh fuck…" Leah turned the camera to the side quickly, just as Y/n leaned in closer to the screen, her brow furrowed in complete confusion.

"Wait a second," Y/n said, squinting. "Is that... Alessia?"

Leah's gaze darted to the side again, her face turning an unattractive shade of pink. "What? No! You didn’t hear anything." Her voice was quick and defensive.

"Oh, I definitely heard Lessie," Y/n said, crossing her arms. "She even mentioned my scar, which–" Y/n paused, her eyes narrowing. 

"–wait a minute. I did see that story Alessia posted the other day,” Y/n said, mouth open as she had an eureka moment.

 “I thought you guys were on a date, but then I thought I was going crazy because…how the hell would you two be dating?” Y/n continued, everything finally making sense in her head: The story, Leah’s weird attitude, the way Less and Leah were always together and bickering like an old couple.

Leah’s eyes widened, and she quickly cleared her throat, her voice low.

"You’re imagining things, Y/n. It’s just—" She cut herself off, her frustration bubbling over, and then, she gave up, one hand coming to hold the bridge of her nose as the other one held her phone.

 "I didn’t want to tell you yet, alright?” Leah continued, cranky. “Happy now?" 

Y/n raised an eyebrow, her grin widening. "So you are dating." She leaned closer to the screen, amusement in her eyes. "And you're being all weird about it because Alessia’s there…look at you, Williamson, all cute and nervous.”

Leah’s face turned an even deeper shade of red, and she bit her lip, eyes flicking away, clearly embarrassed. "It’s... not what you think," she mumbled, looking guilty.

“I think it’s exactly what I think, actually.” Y/n leaned back into the sofa, grinning now that she was fully enjoying the moment.

Leah didn’t say anything, but Y/n could see her jaw tighten, like she was already regretting answering the call.

“Don’t worry, I totally get it,” Y/n continued, tapping a thoughtful finger against her chin. “If Kyra and I were on the same national team, we’d definitely be roomies. One hundred percent. No doubt.”

“In fact,” she added, voice dripping with faux innocence, “I’m just waiting until I get better so we can have a proper sleepover—me, Kyra, you, and Less! Oh, it’ll be adorable.”

Leah rolled her eyes, but Y/n wasn’t done.

“Shut up,” Leah grumbled, but instead of arguing, she tilted the camera away from her face…revealing Alessia sitting beside her.

Alessia, who was already smiling.

Leah, who had an arm casually slung around her.

“Oh, that’s so cute!” Y/n beamed, waving at the screen. “Hi, Lessie!”

 Alessia laughed, leaning into Leah like this whole thing was hilarious. “Hey, Y/n,” she said brightly.

Leah huffed, clearly defeated, as Y/n grinned at them both.

Oh yeah. This was definitely exactly what she thought.

Y/n saw the screen shaking before, only Alessia's face was on the screen, the happiness on her face a clear contrast to Leah’s crumpy one. “I heard you got your cast taken off! I’m so happy for you!”

“Yeah, baby. Thank you,” Y/n said, picking up a pillow that had fallen on the floor and putting it behind her back. “I’m just with a shin brace now, but it’s way better than the cast.”

"You’re already looking way better! The brace is nothing compared to that cast. You’re gonna be back on the pitch in no time, baby,” Alessia smiled.

“Yeah, Mary told me–”

Alessia’s face was replaced by Leah, who had a clear frown on her face.

“Give me Lessie back,” Y/n said flatly. “Don't want you.”

Leah rolled her eyes. “You literally called me to talk about the cast removal.”

“And now I know to never call again!” Y/n shot back, half-teasing. “You’re grumpy, I’m not even as cranky as you are. Don’t know how you pulled such a sweetheart like Alessia.

“The same way you, the disciplined one, pulled the prankster of the team,” Leah smirked. 

Y/n grinned, resting her head on the pillow, eyes glinting with mischief. "I guess we all have our types."

“But seriously,” Leah said, her tone softening. “I’m very happy that you got that thing taken off. Just a few more months until we have you running again.”

Y/n nodded, a playful glint in her eyes. “Yeah, enjoy while you can. When I get back, you won’t be the fastest on the team anymore.”

Leah chuckled. “Oh, we’ll see about that.”

..

When Y/n woke up on the last day, she followed her routine, but this time, she realised her life from now on was going to be way easier because as soon as she stepped on the floor, she didn’t have to carry the weight of the cast all the way to the bathroom.

Instead, she grabbed her crutches, moving slowly but much faster than when she had been in the cast.

As she stepped into the shower, she took off her shin brace with a sigh of relief. No more fussing with that annoying plastic wrap to keep the cast dry!

If yesterday she had been disappointed by how her leg looked, today she felt like kissing her calf for how much better–and easy–it was to do life without the cast.

For the first time in weeks, Y/n was actually able to cook herself a full recipe–she chose pancakes! It wasn’t as difficult as before; she could easily balance herself while flipping the batter, feeling happy by the accomplishment.

She had to hide all of her excitement from Kyra- she still didn’t want the girl to know about it– when she facetimed her hours later.

“You look weird…” Kyra said, squinting her eyes and getting comically close to the camera. “What's wrong? Did something happen to Footy?”

Y/n rolled her eyes and turned the camera to the little black cat who was still sleeping curled on the loveseat by the window. “He’s fine, come on!”

“Then what is it?” Kyra pressed, raising an eyebrow as she brought a mug to her lips, drinking what Y/n thought to be coffee.

“Nothing!” Y/n said defensively, “What makes you think there’s something wrong?”

Kyra narrowed her eyes, clearly not buying it. “I don't know, you just keep… showing your teeth for no reason–”

“That's called a smile, bro,” Y/n shot back, looking at Kyra emotionless.

“Yeah, but you never smiled this casually.” Kyra tilted her head, clearly intrigued.

“I’m just happy!”

Kyra’s gaze softened, but did not lose its suspicion. “Yeah…why?”

Y/n hesitated for a second before shrugging. “Can’t I just be happy?”

“Not when you’re hiding something,” Kyra leaned back into her chair, folding her arms. “Which you clearly are.”

“Ky! Please,” Y/n said, trying to think about some dumb reason to lie about, something that would actually make her happy. Something Kyra would totally believe.

“I just–” Y/n looked to her side, eyes lighting as she saw the perfect reason right in front of her. “I found a really good brand of peanut butter when I went grocery shopping with Lotte yesterday…down that little corner store I told you about.”

Kyra blinked, her expression deadpan. “Peanut butter?”

“Yeah! It’s life-changing, I swear!” Y/n said, her excitement growing, as she made up the biggest lie ever. “It’s smooth, creamy–not chunky. You know I hate when they’re chunky.”

Kyra stared at her before, brows still furrowed, “Really? That’s what’s making you so happy? Peanut butter”

Honestly, both girls had said peanut butter so many times that it was losing its meaning.

“Yes,” Y/n said, confident in her voice. “And…It’s also organic!” She added dramatically.

“Organic?” Kyra raised an eyebrow. “Aren’t all peanut butter organic?”

“No, Ky,” Y/n said, shaking her head as if she was ready to lecture a class. “Not all of them! This one doesn't have all those weird additives–it's pure peanut butter–just peanuts and palm oil. The label says the oil is ‘ethically sourced’, too.

“Ethically sourced peanut butter? What does that even mean?”

“It’s like peanut butter that is made with conscience,” Y/ns said seriously, without missing a beat. “They are processed while following rigorous environmental laws.”

“And since when did peanuts–” Kyra started, but then paused before shaking her head, “You know what? I’m just happy you‘re happy.”

They chatted a bit before Kyra had to go to training. They had only one more game to play before Kyra would go home. 

If they lost to the USA, they would be placed second, and of course, the Matildas didn’t want that.

..

After a few more days, the SheBelieve cup had come to an end. The Matildas had beaten Colombia and Japan throughout the last two weeks, but they ended up losing to the United States team, which made them runners-up.

Kyra videochatted Y/n after the loss, clearly upset, but after a few hours talking with Y/n and her teammates, she calmed down and was able to smile a bit.

After two whole weeks without Kyra, she was finally coming home in less than an hour.

If Y/n could bounce on her feet, she would be doing that now, her eyes glued to the clock in the kitchen. She tried to tell herself she wasn’t nervous–but she was, and Y/n didn’t understand the reason why.

She was happy that Kyra was coming back home, thrilled even, but that feeling was mixed with something heavier–anxiety, maybe? Fear that Kyra would look at the missing cast on her legs and…not like her anymore.

Why would Kyra not like Y/n now that she didn’t have the cast on? No clue, Y/n couldn’t even think of a good reason, but that didn’t ease her nervousness. It’s been two weeks, and Y/n was scared that something was going to change between her and Kyra.

She and Kyra had only been together for the period Y/n had the cast on. Would things in her relationship change much? Would they change at all? Would their routine change? 

There were a lot of questions running through her mind at the same time, and the noise of the clock’s hand moving was making her even more anxious. 

Y/n sat on the table, smoothing down her shirt for what felt like the ninth time, her gaze flicking from the clock, to the door, to the table set in front of her.

Y/n had tried to do something different. She wasn’t very good at expressing how she felt with words, so she tried to do it with actions.

She had set the table hours ago–impatient much? Lit candles were sitting right in the middle of the table; all the lights in the dining room were turned off, and the only source of lighting came from the candles.

She had made pasta, it was easy, she didn't have to stand up for long, and it was one of Kyra's favorite dishes, so it just felt right. 

Y/n had also bought wine. She actually didn’t drink alcohol–scared that the alcohol could lower her performance in the long run somehow–but today she would allow herself that.

She stared at the bottle of ‘Priorat’ sitting right beside the candle. It was a type of red wine made out of black cherries. She had bought it from a vintner, and he had said it had a tannic flavour to it. 

Y/n wasn't sure what tannic was or what it tasted like.

She just hoped Kyra liked it.

Kyras was coming home. After two whole weeks without her, she was coming home. 

She texted Y/n 5 minutes ago letting her know she had just got into a taxi at the airport and was on her way home. It would probably take 20 minutes before Kyra arrived.

Y/n looked down at her leg and tried to flex her ankle, like she had been doing every day since she removed the cast, just to feel the freedom of movement. It didn’t hurt–not really, but the lingering stiffness was still there.

Mary had told her it would feel like that for a good whole month, even with physiotherapy. It was just the natural healing processes of the bones and muscle fiber, but still, she wanted to be able to walk around without her crutch soon.

The notification on her phone brought Y/n out of her thoughts. It was Kyra saying she was close.

Y/n quickly went to the mirror on the far side of the dining room, checking herself one last time. Her hair was in check and her outfit too: a green shirt and white t-shirt; something easy to take off–she had to think about after dinner too.

And just like that, Y/n heard the key on the door turning. 

Y/n turned around, quickly getting her crutch. She adjusted her grip. Tucking it snugly under her arms before moving toward the front door.

Kyra’s back was to her, her suitcase parked by the door as she fiddled with the lock.

Y/n didn't waste anything before she shifted her weight onto her good leg, planting her crutch firmly against the floor for balance. She leaned forward, wrapping her arms around Kyra from behind, pressing her face into the fabric of her hoodie. 

Y/n breathed in and out, feeling Kyra’s shampoo fill her nose. Suddenly, relief washed over her.

She missed Kyra, she missed her scent, her laugh, her smile, her hugs. 

Everything. But now she was here.

“Hey, pretty,” Kyra said, trying to turn around, but y/n held her tight. “I leave for a fortnight and you’re giving bear hugs now, what else? Let me guess, did your leg heal or–”

As if this was the cue Y/n was waiting for, she let loose of her hold on Kyra, letting the girl turn around. She watched Kyras' soft eyes, the way they squinted when she smiled.

Kyra didn’t notice her leg, not yet, being too occupied looking at her eyes and well, at her mouth.

Y/n quickly cupped Kyra's face and brought her to a kiss, her crush long forgotten on the floor somewhere, her only source of balance was Kyra. Y/n clutched one hand on Kyra's hoodie while the other was placed on the back of Kyra’s neck.

Kyra deepened the kiss, savouring Y/n. She noticed how Y/n was a bit unbalanced, so she held her hips and gently brought her closer.

“Hi,” Y/n said, breaking the kiss just to meet Kyra’s lips again.

She felt Kyra smiling against her mouth, that's how they should always be, together, kissing, just the two of them.

“Miss me much?” Kyra asked, kissing Y/n’s cheek, and then travelling to the girl's jaw, where she sucked the skins softly. 

Y/n couldn’t help but think about how much had changed in her world since Kyra came into it–the little things, like how there were no weird jokes to laugh at when Kyra wasn’t around, or how her nails looked far less neat because Kyra wasn’t there to paint them.

“Not much, no,” Y/n teased as she lifted her neck so Kyra could have more room, her lips warm and wet as they kissed Y/n’s skin.

“That’s not what you told me the numerous times we called,” Kyra murmured, placing a hand under Y/n’s shirt on her back, scratching the spot.

“Just kiss me, please,” Y/n murmured, looking up to Kyra.

“Just because you said please,” Kyra said, smiling, kissing her back, more slowly this time, trying to show through the kiss how much she hated being away from Y/n.

Playing for Australia was always an amazing experience, being on the field wearing her country's colour was a feeling Kyra could not put into words, especially when she was doing it with players she had known since she was basically a teen.

It felt good to play again after such a long time without an international break, but man, did she miss Y/n all the time she was in the US.

Kyra missed her grumpy remarks, missed having someone telling her she should eat more salad, missed having someone to brush and dry her wet hair for her, missed the massages Y/n used to do on her feet after a long day of training.

She was just happy to be home now.

After being away for two weeks, that’s what Kyra realised Y/n’s house was: her home, especially because Y/n and Footy were in it, waiting for her.

“I always knew you had a short attention span,” Y/n said, chuckling, taking her crutch back with one hand as she took a step back to better look at Kyra. “But this is getting ridiculous.”

“Ugh?” Kyra tilted her head, like a puppy who was still learning a new trick.

“Don’t you notice… anything different?” Y/n asked, lifting her eyebrows.

Kyra’s gaze drifted down her body, scanning her up and down, observing every inch of the girl. Her eyes lingered, brow furring, like she was piecing together a puzzle. Nothing caught her eye.

“Hmm,” Kyra said slowly, hesitating in her voice. “Your hair looks so nice… I love the new…cut?” 

Y/n facepalmed herself.

“Kyra, baby,” Y/n said, pointing to her leg. “Cast it off! I didn’t get a hair–”

Before Y/n could finish her sentence, Kyra had already wrapped her arms around her, lifting her off the ground and spinning her in a dizzying circle.

“What the fuck?” Kyra exclaimed against her shoulder, while still twirling her around. “Why didn't you tell me?”

“Wanted it to be a surprise,” Y/n said cheekily.

“Wow–Okay,” Kyra said at a loss for words. “It worked, I’m very surprised… When did you take it off?”

“Lika last week–”

“Last week?! You took your cast off last week and you didn’t tell me!”

“Yes! That’s how you plan a surprise.”

“Your cast is off,” Kyra said once again, in disbelief.

“Yep” Y/n smirked. “and if im not misteken you said we’ll have sex once my cast was off so pretty plese can we fuck?”

“You’re so romantic, oh my god!” Kyra said sarcastically, but swiftly cupped Y/n's cheek in a deep kiss.

“But–we, hm,” Y/n tried to say between the kisses, but Kyra wasn’t letting go of her mouth, so she gently pulled her body so she could speak.

Kyra looked at her, sad, with a pout.

“As I was trying to say, first we need to eat,” Y/n said.

“I do want to eat,” Kyra said, a grin on her face, “Let me? Please?”

Y/n felt her heart skip a beat. Kyra wasn’t normally the one to say dirty things, but she always got along when Y/n did it.

So she flushed at the sudden boldness.

“I-I mean it like real food,” Y/n said. 

Great, she stammered, guess that was her new personality right now.

“I made spaghetti–”

“spaghetti!?” Kyra said, losing all the devilish expression on her face, changing it to pure happiness. “I love spaghetti, baby!” 

Kyra hugged her again, but more softly this time.

“I know you do,” Y/n laughed as Kyra kissed her in the ticklish spot on her neck. “Now let’s go before it’s cold.”

Kyra and Y/n stepped into the dining room. Kyra stopped, and her eyes flickered around the room. The warm light of the candles made the atmosphere of the room seem cozy.

The faint scent of something garlicky lingered in the air, it was coming from the plates already set out on the table.

“Baby!” Kyra said softly, turning to Y/n. “You did all of this?”

Y/n glanced at the table–the candles flickering gently, the wine glasses way too fancy for a casual dinner. Her face heated up; maybe she had overdone it, it really looked like a lot for just a ‘welcome home diner’.

Y/n shrugged one shoulder, suddenly finding the rug on the floor very interesting. “Just didn’t want you coming home to, like, cold pizza and soda or something.”

“It looks lovely,” Kyra said, cupping Y/n’s cheeks. “You are lovely.”

Y/n felt Kyra’s lips on her forehead, and for some reason, she felt embarrassed…exposed–like Kyra was seeing something she wasn’t ready to show–a part of her that was private, intimate.

Kyra grinned. “You know I would love some pizza. But this.” She pointed at the table, “This is amazing.”

“It’s just dinner,” Y/n said quickly, adjusting a candle that didn’t need adjusting,

“Sure, just dinner?” Kyra’s grin widening, leaning over Y/n, her breath warm against Y/n’s ear. “But a romantic one, maybe?”

“Stop it,” Y/n groaned, her cheeks on fire. “It’s just pasta and…wine.” Her eyes flickered back to the table, focusing on the stupid candle. Why had she lit them? It looked like a rom-com set up right in her dining room.

“I love it,” Kyra tugged Y/n closer, holding her by her waist. “And I love how you’re blushing right now–should've got that on camera.”

“I would never let you,” Y/n warned, but her voice lacked any real threat. She was too flustered, too warm and too aware of Kyras's smile pressing against her skin.

Y/n blushed as Kyra held out a chair for her. She almost refused–hating how formal Kyra was making it–but she didn’t want to ruin things with her grumpiness right when Kyra had just gotten home. She could handle thirty minutes.

Dinner passes in a blur of teasing smiles and that old, comforting and easy conversation Y/n and Kyra were used to. 

They talked about everything that they had already talked over the phone because Kyra insisted on telling the same stories all over again, although Y/n didn’t mind hearing them, not when Kyra had that soft smile on her face the whole time.

Y/n shared about her routines, about the coffee dates with Lotte and Beth, and the video chats with Leah. How well behaved Footy was and how he had definitely not taken his well-behaved nature from Kyra.

Kyra begged Y/n to recreate that Lady and the Tramp movie scene, where both characters share one noodle, but Y/n said no grumpily, murmuring something about how each of them had a plate for a reason, all while putting hers closer to her chest.

Afterward, they ended up curled on the couch, Kyra’s arm lazily wrapped over Y/n’s waist while they shared a glass of wine.

“You don’t share food, but you share drinks?” Kyra asked as Y/n held out her glass to Kyra.

“Yes,” Y/n said stoically, feeling the warmth of the wine settling in.

“Hmm, good to know,” Kyra smiled, taking a sip. “I like it. It tastes good.”

Kyra passed the glass back to Y/n’s hands, as she took another sip, savoring it but feeling a slight tension building between them, as unspoken energy in the space.

The moment Y/n was waiting for so long was finally here.

With a confident smile, Y/n put the glass down on the coffee table and turned to Kyra, her movements slow and deliberate. She placed her hand on Kyra’s thigh as she wrapped her finger in the back of Kyra's neck, bringing her closer until their lips met.

The kiss was slow at first, Y/n was the one dictating it, turning Kyra’s face just the way she wanted while playing roughly with her tongue in a slow, but intense manner. 

Her tongue brushed against Kyra’s. Tasting the lingering acidity of the wine of both of their tongues as Kyra let out a soft, almost imperceptible moan as their kiss deepened.

Y/n’s hand shifted, boldly pulling Kyra’s even closer as she pressed her body against hers. Every inch of space between them vanished in the moment.

“I’ve been waiting for this for a long time,” Y/n murmured, placing her hand under Kyra’s shirt, feeling the softness of her skin.

“Me too,” Kyra whispered, tilting her head to the side, and Y/n kissed the side of her face slowly. “So much.”

“Did you think about me?” Y/n asked, caressing her fingers through Kyra’s back, watching as the girl shivered.

Kyra hesitated, but nodded, a blush on her face.

“I’m asking you, baby,” Y/n said, her tone sternly, but the soft touches of her hands against Kyra remained the same. “Talk to me, come on.”

“I did, a lot,” Kyra purred, the fabric of her shirt bothering her; she wanted to take it off, be free of everything standing in hers and Y/n’s way.

Y/n grinned, happy with Kyra’s response.

“I touched myself every night after I took the cast off,” Y/n confessed, tugging at the hem of Kyra’s shirt, but not taking it off. “Came a hundred times on my finger thinking about you.”

Kyra’s cheek went flush, and her eyes closed. “Y/n–fuck, the things you say–” 

Y/n smiled as she watched Kyra, her mouth slightly open, her hips moving in very slow and almost imperceptible movements. 

“Are you horny, Ky?” Y/n asked, taking her own shirt off and throwing it somewhere in the living room. 

Kyra opened her eyes at Y/n’s voice, her eyes trailing Y/n’s torso, the red bra she was wearing, how they filled it perfectly. The girl placed her hands on Y/n’s ribcage, enjoying the view in front of her.

“I-I want you,” Kyra said in a low voice, too busy watching Y/n’s tits. Kyra’s thumb softly brushing on the center of the bra, feeling Y/n’s erect nipples. “Please?”

Y/n watched Kyra up and down, Kyra’s big brown eyes watching her as if she held the world in her hands.

“Here’s what we're gonna do, baby,” Y/n said as she held Kyra’s wrists and took them off her body, ignoring the way Kyra pouted. “I’m gonna take care of you now–”

“–And then we’re going to our room,” Y/n unclipped her bra, letting it fall to the sofa before she put it to the side, just like she did with her shirt. “And you’re going to fullfill your promise of fucking me as many times as I want, alright?”

“Yes, yes, of course,” Kyra said eagerly, her eyes glued on Y/n’s breasts. They were soft and hung just the way Kyra liked them.

Y/n leaned forward and turned her body to Kyra, her good leg was crossed on the sofa while her bad leg was still, hanging over the sofa. 

She had way more mobility since she had taken the cast off, but she still needed to be careful not to get carried away. The cast always reminded her of what movements she could or couldn't do, but now, without it–with only a shin brace on–it was easy to forget about her limitations.

“Good,” Y/n said hungrily before holding her one breast in her hand.  “Now suck it.”

Kyra didn’t waste any time before wrapping her lips around Y/n's nipple, twirling her tongue around it and sucking dutifully, just like Y/n asked her too.

Kyra wasn’t expecting sex when she walked through the front door, still pretty much jetlagged. She had no clue Y/n had taken her cast off; she knew she was going to take it off sometime this month, but she didn’t know when.

As soon as Y/n showed her leg, now bare of cast, with only the grey brace on her shin, she felt a mix of emotions. The most overwhelming one was happiness.

Kyra was so proud and happy for Y/n, she was slowly going back to being who she was before the injury. She hoped that taking the cast off would get Y/n more excited. She tried to sound casual about it, but Kyra knew how much it bothered her being on the sidelines.

Although Kyra’s happiness quickly turned into something else as Y/n and she shared the bottle of wine. 

She knew the moment was coming, the moment where they would finally have sex

Kyra just didn’t expect Y/n to be so intense and, well, bossy about it. She pictured their first time having sex as something sweet and slow, with Y/n and her being a bit awkward about the whole thing. 

But it was far from the truth.

What they were sharing was intense, Y/n stern voice made Kyra want to drop to her knees at any time, but the slow breathing coming in and out of her nose while she sucked Y/n’s tit grounded Kyra, it made her relax, it was also…comforting, in some strange way.

Y/n caressed her thumb on Kyra’s cheek, watching Kyra's working on her tit while Kyra’s hand came to her other breast, massaging it and pinching the nipple.

Kyra had, so thoughtfully, put a pillow underneath Y/n so she could grind against it. The angle was a bit awkward since she could move both her legs the same, but the friction of the pillow was good enough to have her moaning, 

Y/n took Kyra’s hand and placed them on her hips. Kyra understood right away what Y/n wanted, she kept on sucking on her tit while playing with the hem of Y/n’s shorts and so gently, helped rock the girl against the pillow.

Y/n pushed Kyra’s face even closer to her chest, holding her there by the back of her neck as Kyra’s grip on her hips became sharper. Y/n could feel her finger digging into the fabric of the shorts Y/n was still wearing.

She wanted to take her fucking shorts off, it felt so good against her clit, she coulnd’t stop now. 

Y/n knew she had told Kyra she was going to take care of her, but she was going to allow herself one little orgasm, just one before they could really start.

“More, Ky,” purred, eyes closed as she felt it coming.

Kyra took her mouth off Y/n’s nipple, kissing all over her chest before pressing her chin on Y/n’s sternum and looking up to her face.

“More of what, Baby?” She asked, her grip firm on Y/n’s body, moving the girl so she could rub more against the pillow. “Tell me and I’ll do it.”

“Everything,” Y/n mumbled, starting to feel the usual warm sensation on her lower body growing. “Fuck, I-I, hmm–”

Kyra, again, obeyed Y/n. She wrapped her tongue on Y/n’s nipples again and sucked on it more intensely than before, noticing how much Y/n liked it. Her right hand was on Y/n’s back as her left hand helped Y/n ride the pillow beneath her.

Kyra felt a drop of sweet falling for Y/n’s neck and dropping slowly against Y/n’s skin. Kyra licked it, feeling the salty taste of it.

Right now, all she wanted was to watch Y/n come undone.

Kyra continued helping her move with her hands, but she placed her mouth near Y/ns ear.

“Let me take it off?” Kyra asked, tugging at the shorts.

“No,” Y/n mumbled in her usual bossy tone. “I’m almost there, ple–”

Kyra kissed Y/n deeply, twirling her tongue around, but as she got closer to being the one in control, Y/n’s hands found themself once again on Kyras face, cupping her cheeks and dictating the direction and pace of the kiss.

Y/n’s movements on the pillows got faster, and her breathing hitched as she arched her back and moaned in Kyras' mouth sweetly. They shared the same breath as Y/n came down for her orgasms, her hips still buckling.

“Ky,” she whispered against Kyra’s mouth, eyes still closed, mouth hanging slightly open. “Fuck–so good,”

Kyra kissed Y/n on the lips softly, before trailing small pecks on her forehead and then nose. Y/n had stopped moving her hips, so Kyra’s grip on her body loosened; instead of hard, her grip became comforting.

“Felt good?” Kyra whispered against Y/n’s neck, her lips leaving a heated trail down toward her collarbone, the warmth of her breath sending a wave of desire through Y/n.

Y/n didn’t respond immediately, her breath catching at the feel of Kyra's lips on her skin. Instead, she nodded, her eyes darkening with a mix of need and confidence. 

Without wasting another moment, Y/n's hands slid down to Kyra's waist, pulling at her pants, a clear sign that she wasn’t going to wait for permission. 

Kyra moved her hips so Y/n could fully take pants off, her underwear making its way to the floor alongside the other piece of clothing. Y/n didn’t waste any second before also taking her shorts and underwear too.

Now the only fabric between them was Kyra’s shirt. But Y/n decided to leave it on for now, wanting to focus on something else.

Y/n leaned over and kissed Kyra, biting Kyra’s lower lip gently, not sure if Kyra would like it if she drew blood, which was like Y/n wanted to do, so she chose the safe option.

“I’m gonna touch you,” Y/n whispered against Kyra’s mouth. “And I’m gonna fuck you until you’re whimpering.”

“I want that, please,” Kyra begged, feeling as Y/n cupped her cunt, already wet in need.

“I didn’t ask if you want it or not, love,” Y/n said, almost in a taunting tone. “I can feel how much you need me already.”

Y/n first circle her thumb around Kyra’s clit, rubbing it slowly and gently, tatsing the water to see how much Kyra could handle.

“Did you use your finger while you were away?” Y/n asked, pressinger her clit a little harder than before. “Did you play with your cunt?”

“Yes,” Kyra breathed, closing her arms and slowly moving her hips against Y/n’s thumb. “I-I touched myself in the shower.”

“Yeah?” Y/n teased while she lowered her fingers and gathered some wetness from Kyra’s hole before putting her attention back on Kyra’s clit. “What were you thinking?”

“Y-you,” Kyra mumbled, hesitant of her words. “You and me fucking and– touching each o–oh fuck.”

“Keep going,” Y/n said as she played with Kyra’s nipples, brushing them under the shorts while also making circles with her thumb against Kyra’s clit. “Where did we touch each other?”

“I don’t–it’s embarrassing.” Kyra blushed and shook her head. 

“You can say it,” Y/n took her hand off of Kyra’s cunt. “Or I’ll stop, baby, what do you want?”

“No! Please!” Kyra begged, opening her eyes and looking at Y/n. “I want you.”

Y/n pitched Kyra’s nipple harder, her hand back on her clit, now making eight figures on it. “Then go on, tell me about what you thought while you were making yourself cum.”

“You, I was thinking about you and–” Kyra moaned as Y/n fastened her pace. “We were rubbing against each other while we, hm, fuck, touched eath other’s tit.”

“Would you like that, baby?” Y/n purred against Kyra’s ears as she lifted Kyra's shirt just enough for her to put her head under it.

She latched on one of Kyra’s nipples, sucking it hard, her thumb giving Kyra’s clit all the attention.

“Can-can i cum?” Kyra asked while biting at her lower lip, almost out of breath. “I-I need it baby, hmm, please?”

Y/n gave a kiss on Kyra’s nipple before taking Kyra’s neck, suckling on the skin until it was red, until it marked.

“Yes, baby,” Y/n whispered against her skin. “Do it, let go, yeah?”

Kyra was so compliant that she did just that, cumming on the exact moment Y/n allowed her too.

Her sweet noise filled the room as Y/n helped her ride her orgasm, still moving her thumb against the girl’s clit, trying to make her savor it for as much as she could. 

“Too much,” Kyra mumbled, letting her body fall to the couch, hand on her face as she tried to get her breathing in order.

Y/n quickly cleaned her hands in one of the clothes that were on the floor before lying down by Kyr’s side, right on top of her other arm.

Y/n kissed Kyra’s arm, her shoulders and collarbone. She gently took off the hand that was covering her face, putting it to the side and watching Kyra’s face.

She looked like she just has been fucked, just the way Y/n intended.

“Stop looking at me like that,” Kyra mumbled, slight redness in her cheeks.

“But you’re so pretty,” Y/n smiled, kissing the tip of her nose. “Especially after you cum.” 

Y/n very slowly made her way to Kyra’s cunt again, it was all wet and messy, still.

Kyra held her hand before she could reach further down. “Sensitive,” she said in a whisper.

 “Thought you might want more.” Y/n kissed her lips sweetly. “I’ll be gentle, yeah?”

Kyra hesitated, but nodded, and when her body relaxed, Y/n let one finger slide inside Kyra’s wall. It went in so easily, she didn’t even have to work Kyra up to it. That’s how wet and ready she was.

She felt the warmth of Kyra’s walls snuggling her finger, and she couldn't help herself but add a second. This time it didn't slide in like the first, but Kyra’s body still welcomed it overall.

Y/n put her head down on Kyra’s arm, which was still stretched down by her side. In that position, Y/n could see Kyra reacting to each of her movements.

The way her eyes rolled when Y/n took her fingers out just to thrust them again, and again and again, in a slow, but deep rhythm.

“You’re so wet,” Y/n murmured, turning her head just to kiss Kyra’s shoulder. “Wish you could feel yourself right now, such a wet cunt you have.”

Y/n felt Kyra clutch around her.  “Oh, you like when I talk to you?” Y/n asked, moving her finger faster.

“Y-yes,” Kyra said, moving her hips to meet Y/n’s finger at the same time. “I’m close again.”

“Already, baby?” Y/n said teasing. “But I’ve barely touched you.”

Her warm walls were clutching even more now, as if ready to cum soon. Who would know her girl was so easy to cum, huh?”

“I-I know, I just–”

“You’re just very needy, right?” Y/n asked as she added yet another finger, moving the three of them as she heard Kyra moaning.

Kyra nodded while making an indecipherable sound, Y/n could only guess it was a ‘yes’. She kissed Kyra again, hand on her cheek, turning the girl’s head more to the side so she could deepen the kiss.

She was very close, her hips moved swiftly on Y/n’s finger, her hands were lying on fists by Kyra’s side. 

“I wanna see you cum again, Ky,” Y/n purred, licking Kyra’s lips as the girl moaned. “Soak my fingers, go on.”

Kyra did just that, taking her hand to her own mouth and biting it hard to muffle the sounds of her orgasms, but Y/n wasn’t having it. 

She took Kyra’s hand off her face and fastened the thrust of her fingers inside Kyra’s cunt, all while sucking Kyra’s bottom lip into her mouth.

Kyra came fast, feeling her skin prick with pleasure, her hips still rutting on Y/n’s finger, trying to make her orgasm last as long as possible.

Y/n kissed her sloppy, slowly taking her fingers off of Kyra, focusing on just kissing her mouth. 

“You felt so good,” Y/n whispered, her voice low and smug, pride curling at the edges of her words. She shifted closer, pressing her body against Kyra’s side, and kissed her sweetly on the cheek, before leaving a heated trail down towards her collarbone. “I wanna do it all over again.”

Kyra turned her head to the side, still breathless and lightheaded from the two orgasms Y/n had just pulled from her– both in a ridiculously quick succession. Her limbs were still heavy and her head foggy, but she still managed to reach for Y/n, fingers slipping lazily into her hair.

“Hmm,” Kyra hummed, her eyes falling shut as she felt Y/n’s breath warm against her skin. “Of course you do…you’re like…a menace.”

“No, I’m not,” Y/n  murmured, her lips curving against Kyra’s neck. “I’m just efficient.”

Kyra chuckled as her hands traced a lazy circle along Y/n’s waist.

“You know,” Y/n said, her voice low and teasing. “You promised me all sex in the world when I got my cast off.”

Kyra let out a breathy laugh. “I didn’t promise all sex in the world in one night.”

“Hmm,” Y/n kissed her way back to Kyra’s neck, pausing at her jawline. “Yes, you did.” Y/n made her way to Kyra’s warm, nipping at Kyra’s earlobe gently.

Kyra shifted beneath her, and a groan slipped out — but not the kind Y/n was aiming for.

“I can’t feel my legs,” Kyra murmured.

“How?” Y/n said teasingly.  “We’ve barely done anything–you are a few years younger than me, I thought your sex drive would be better.”

“My sex drive is great”, Kyra grumbled. “When I don’t have to spend nine hours crammed in a plane seat next to Steph.”

"Yeah..." Y/n said, her fingers softening against Kyra's arm. "You must be wrecked."

“I’m fine,” Kyra said through a yawn. “Just need to close my eyes for, like, two minutes.”

“So we can have more sex after?” Y/n asked smugly, “That’s still not a no.”

“It's a ‘please, let me take a nap’.”

“Fine,” Y/n muttered, flopping dramatically onto her back. “I guess I’ll just lie here…cold…unloved…”

“Bloody hell,” Kyra laughed, pulling Y/n closer and tucking her head under her chin. “You’ve gotten so dramatic while I was away.”

“You’ll learn to love it,” Y/n grinned, pressing a kiss to Kyar’s collarbone.

“Yeah,” Kyra murmured, her voice heavy with sleep. “I already do.”

..

Part 11 here

Notes: 10 chapters!! 52k words for this series <3 Thanks to everybody who stuck around haha I think we have like... two/three more parts until this series is over! I know the smut wasn't very long, but there will be more in the next chapter <3

Notes 2//: Please let me know what you guys think!!!

Tag list in the comments

Masterlist

[draconicpetrichor]

Different Ways Fusions Can Result

(This post is specifically about fusion in CDD systems. I am open to questions, but I am not open to people shaming others' chosen recovery paths. Keep that off this post, please!)

Integration is the process of breaking down dissociative barriers between alters. The alters fuse when they accept and integrate with each other to such a degree that they function as one. This can end up several different ways! I'd love to show you some, using my own system/alters to explain & conceptualize.

#1: The "New Guy" (with traits from both)

Jayden, a 17 year old verbal protector, and Glyph, an ageless dragon soother/protector, fused to make Marcus, who became our system's primary caretaker. The alters both balanced each other out, with Jayden's "chill unless pissed" mixing neatly with Glyph's strong need to keep things in order/safe to make one responsible, organized, and laid-back alter.

#2: The "Old Guy With An Update"

Gemini, our co-host, fused with a bunch of memory-holding fragments. Nothing fundamental about Gemini changed, but he did have access to more memories and some skills.

#3: The "New Guy" (that mostly seems like an old guy)

Echo, our nonhuman shadow being of a gatekeeper, fused with Zeke, an avenger and anger holder who was also the host of his subsystem. Echo kept the name Echo and mostly seems the same at first glance, but sometimes Zeke's bluntness and habitual swearing come through. Zeke has found a lot of peace and healing by fusing with Echo, and Echo gained the perspective of "hot" emotions.

#4: The "Lava Lamp"

Finn, a happiness/energy holder, and Jukebox, a trauma holder, fused to who became Jukebox 2.0. Sometimes, this new alter is a lot more like Finn or a lot more like Jukebox or a perfect mix of the two. The ratio varies and he is ever-shifting. Consistently, he loves dinosaurs, orange juice, and gummy bears.

Overall, fusion can look different for everybody, and it can even look different in the same system! Fusion is a very diverse experience.

While fusion is a good thing, sometimes people do need to grieve it, just like any other large change. That's okay and it doesn't make you a bad person, nor does it make you "anti-recovery". Big changes can be very hard.

In my opinion, the most important thing to keep in mind about fusion, for those who seek it, is being kind to yourself throughout the whole process.

Sometimes, fusions don't work out too well. Sometimes, two alters aren't a good match yet. Sometimes, it takes a few tries. Ultimately, it's up to you and your system how or if you go about it - there's no "wrong way". Just don't rush things, trust yourself, and take it easy. It'll all settle in the end, I promise!

[novthirty]

I'm not sure if you do these kind of requests but how do you think the LIs would react to their significant other having/getting lots of lip piercings??

HOOKED ON YOU | how he’d react to you having lip piercings ੈ characters: zayne, xavier, rafayel, sylus, caleb ੈ a/n: tysm for the request anon! sorry if i got some things wrong, i’ve never gotten a piercing before so i mostly relied on research. hope you enjoy! 💕💕

ao3 | masterlist | requests are open!

ZAYNE

Once you tell him you’re thinking of getting a piercing, he makes sure to talk you through the process and all the potential risks and downsides such as infection, the swelling, the recovery period (and the foods you’ll be banned from 😔).

His graphic descriptions of the potential risks are lowkey almost enough to turn you off, but he assures you he’ll be there to help for every step of the way.

He’ll spend his free time researching the most reputable piercing studios in the area, scrolling through the pages and reviews of various places, making sure they know what they’re doing. If you ask for his opinion, he’ll give really well-thought out points about the types of piercings and jewelry you’re looking at, what would suit your personal style.

On the day of your appointment, he insists on driving you to the studio and waiting for you til’ your done, regardless of how long it takes. He also makes sure to check on the wound before the two of you leave, ready to give the piercers a stern talking-to if he sees anything wrong.

Back home, he’s prepared soft foods for dinner as to not irritate the wound.

Overall, a top-tier caretaker for your healing process 🫡 You feel safe getting more over time since he’s been so supportive with the whole process.

Although he was knowledgeable about the process of getting piercings (especially the risks— he’s seen way too many infections because of poorly done piercings in his line of work), he never expected to like it this much.

He loves the chill down his neck when his tongue brushes over the cold metal, loves pressing kisses against the various piercings you have on and around your lips.

XAVIER

He’ll be nonchalant the whole time you’re planning it; as you’re researching different piercings, the parlors you can go to, scheduling your appointment. He’s definitely very supportive, but doesn’t have a whole much to say about it.

But when he picks you up and sees the piercing for the first time, he will go absolutely FERAL. Immediately, he wants to try to kiss you and trace the metal with his tongue.

But will absolutely pull this 🥺 face when he realizes he can’t kiss or do anything with you the whole time you’re in recovery.

Sometime after the wound heals though, he definitely enables you to get more piercings (not just ones for your lips). He’s discovered he likes the feeling of the cold metal when you guys are making out, dragging his tongue against the tip of it to tease you. He also loves brushing his thumb against it, as he cradles your face before bed.

He’ll become an expert on the healing process so that he can take care of you better (and so you guys can get back to making out quicker 😔😔). This man is down bad

RAFAYEL

It isn’t a secret how much Rafayel loves your piercings; you’ve had them since you met, and he often jokes about how it’s your little fish hook, reeling him in with each kiss. He particularly loves nibbling on the piercing when you guys are making out, he loves the shivers it causes to run down your spine and the way you giggle when it tickles sometimes.

For a while, he had the thought of getting a piercing himself swirling around his head. That was until he learned about the recovery process when you planned to get another one 😭😭

Absolutely gagged when he learns you’re not allowed to go swimming with him during the healing process. He actually tries to convince you not to go through with it, and you assure him it’s only for a few weeks.

He drives you to your appointment but he’s pouting the whole way there. He makes sure to make out with you for at least ten minutes in the car since apparently that’s not allowed too ☹️

“Raf, I’m gonna be late to my appointment

“You could just… not go 🥰”

“Honey we’ve talked about this”

He sulks the whole time as he waits for you, but does think it might be worth the few weeks of no kisses when he sees how good you look with the new piercing.

He also really hates seeing you in pain. He becomes extremely paranoid about an infection and insists on bringing you to the doctor whenever it bleeds or the swelling looks a little worse than the day before. You have to assure him that it’s completely normal and you’re gonna be okay.

SYLUS

This man definitely has a thing for piercings.

He thinks it makes you look badass and has to hold himself back from feasting on your lips 24/7. Loves the goosebumps that rise on your arm when he tugs on it, but he has to remind himself to tone it down because his teeth keep clacking against the jewelry LOL

He’ll spoil you with a ton of very pretty jewelry to switch out your piercing with every once in a while.

Becomes Dr. Sylus with his Nurse Mephisto whenever you get a new piercing, although he has to resist the urge to kiss you and touch the new piercing during your healing process.

If you have signs of an infection from a poorly done piercing, he’s shutting down the studio where you got it done and suing 😭😭

He’s gonna throw hands and take you to the best piercing artist (if he, for some reason, didn’t already in the first place) to get you the best care and recovery to try and salvage the mess the last one made.

CALEB

You wanted to get one for your 18th birthday, and he probably had a whole ass crisis over it LOL He couldn’t imagine you with one, and didn’t like the idea of how you’d be in pain for a while. But he was still supportive, hiding his apprehension from you.

But when you came out of the piercing parlor, he ended up really liking it.

He’s definitely the GOAT when it comes to helping you with the healing process, making you food that’s easy to eat and won’t irritate the wound, researching ways to help lessen the swelling, switching your soap to a more gentle product.

You end up getting a few more over the years, and each time, his yearning ass ends up fantasizing how it would feel to roam his tongue over the cold metal.

He finally gets his wish once the two of you get together, and becomes an absolute fiend for your piercings.

The first time you get your lips pierced again after you finally get together, you’re like a kicked puppy for the entirety of the healing process because he’s shockingly strict about not kissing you or doing anything more than cuddling.

[queenendless]

😷🤒Sick Day(Adult!SatoSugu x Sick!Fem!Reader)🤒😷

A/N: Yep this is part of that SatoSugu Teacher AU alongside Moving Day and Nights.

Also, announcement. I have smut writing fatigue after just putting out one and I'm down with a cold right now. So that vampire AU gang bang piece is happening next month. I'm so sorry for this yall. Thanks though to everyone who commented on that and helped me decide.

But I will hopefully be posting a JJK Halloween piece to make up for it. A headcannon/ imagined scenario where the JJK cast celebrate Halloween with my ideal fave pairings in couples costumes and such in this what if AU. And yas it gonna be SatoSugu x Fem or GN reader, idk on that part yet.

All credit for JJK and its characters goes to the madman that is Gege.

* Please DON'T plagarize, translate, or repost my FANFIC content. Reblog, like, and follow instead.

I hope you enjoy!

Your throat feels raw.

Your nose feels stuffy.

And you kept coughing every few minutes.

You should have figured spotting a curse forming from a virus epidemic happening in the hotel across the street would pose a high ass risk of getting infected yourself.

But as a Window, it was your job, as life risking as it was.

The more people inside and around the building got infected, the Grade 4 grew closer to Grade 3. If it kept up, dozens upon hundreds would die.

"Ijichi-san. Disease curse. Transitioning from Grade 4 to Grade 3. Requesting sorcerer help here immediately." You struggled speaking over the phone as you kept coughing, dispatching the address to him, seeing the revolting curse grow in size as its toxic presence spilled, tripping as you tried keeping your distance.

Your head was pounding and you could barely focus as Ijichi-san panicked on his end.

"L/n-san!? L/N-SAN!"

In a moment of ailment, you dropped your phone, causing it to disconnect from the impact.

You were barely able to keep a grip on your phone or walk without faltering as you felt more drained with each passing moment. You blinked a lot as you tried staying alert, stumbling before collapsing against a parked empty vehicle on the street, sliding down to your bum just to rest your aching head against your knees, hugging your legs to your chest.

That curse's smogs began spreading down the streets, into traffic, and nearby occupied establishments.

Believing help wouldn't get here in time through the systematic process, you opted for your wild card, shakily picking up your now cracked screen device.

"Toru. Curse problem. Get here ASAP. Please." Texting the address in your feverish haste, you pressed send before curling in on yourself, welcoming sleep to rest your aching self.

In just under the next few minutes — more like moments — you felt a boom in the cursed energy atmosphere, that curse no longer being sensed. At last, it was done.

The shift from freezing metal to cozy soft fabric stirred you awake a bit. Along with the feel of solid warm arms draped around your shoulders and under your knees. Those big smooth hands squeezing your shoulder and your kneecap had you tugging weakly on the front of that top, pressing your face against your makeshift pillow, struggling to open your eyes as your hearing painted the picture for you in the meantime.

"A majority will spend weeks recuperating. The ones closest to the cause will spend months in the hospital at best. Still though, no casualties. Thank you for the help." High chances it was one of the many medics on site for post cleanup.

"You can thank the young woman here for that. She was the first responder, after all. I'll tend to her recovery myself. Sayonara." You know that voice right away, even when he was muffled, relaxing further in his hold.

"This cold isn't going away anytime soon. Too bad reversed cursed techniques don't make the common cold go away." Your half lidded eyes still had him swooning at how frail and precious you were in his arms.

You murmured, noticing him in his black long sleeved top, matching sweatpants, and face mask with the blindfold. "Blindfolded giant." That's when you realized a face mask was put on you as well, your muffled coughs hitting cloth.

You could already picture him beaming, grinning, as he laughed a bit.

"Correction. Your blindfolded giant, darling~ Now then, let's get you home."

°•○•°•○•°•○•°

Geto typing away on his computer, working on his latest reports.

Gojo straddling his lap, hugging him as he napped against his dear best friend slash hubbie.

The former smiling fondly at the motion before picking up where he left off was their situation before both men's phones began vibrating and ringing.

"Geto-san! L/n-san has reported a disease curse spotting! But she was cut off before I could get further details!"

"She just texted me the location." The sleepiness was wiped away, replaced with firm seriousness, as Gojo started getting off of him to get some shoes on.

"Ijichi-san, do not fret. Satoru will handle the curse." Geto calmly responded over the phone before speaking concerningly to his snowy-haired hubbie. "Toru, bring a face mask in case the affected area reaches where you land post teleport."

Said man smooched his hubbie in kind before slipping on the black face mask to match his current apparel. "Wait up for us, Sugu~"

Seeing you both back, teleporting into your home office, Suguru smooched Satoru the moment he took that face mask right off. Pressing the back of his palm against your forehead to double check for a fever, Suguru's dismay was warranted.

So being there when you awoke from your fever dream tucked in the middle of your guys' giant bed meant Suguru patting your now sweating forehead with a wet rag, you trembling from chills raking your skin followed by feeling warmer the next minute as you coughed into a tissue he handed to you.

"Well dearest, you've got yourself a nasty cold here." Suguru noted with a gray face mask on as well, seated by you on his side of the bed.

"Ah bah." Your raspy spat earned you a cough into your fist before you were offered a filled up water bottle by Satoru who was sitting behind you on his side; blindfold off but face mask back on.

"Welp, I exorcized the curse and brought your cute self back here. Plus I got that report to work on in your precious stead. So you're welcome." He gently ran his fingers through your hair to ease you in whatever way he could.

"Thank you Toru." You slowly sat up and were then handed some cold pills by Suguru to down some water with. "Thank you Sugu."

"Now that we've made our home Ground Zero, you are hereby confined to this room. Drink plenty of fluids. Take your medicine. Get lots of rest. Do you hear me, young lady?" Suguru's smart ass tone made you pout.

"Yes mom." You murmured raspy.

Satoru snorted behind his face mask to which Suguru whacked him in the shoulder across from him with narrowed eyes. "At least Megumi and the twins are living in the dorms now and Tsumiki was able to convince her classmate to stay at her place for a while. Meaning we three have the place to ourselves~"

"Does that mean … I have to sleep by myself?" You whimpered, cracking their resolve. "Neither the Gojo Geto bears, nor the Gojo Geto cats, not even the Gojo Geto giant round plushies can substitute for the real deal." You moped, pointing at said custom made toys lined up on the window seat on the far side of the room.

"Aww, Suguru, how can we deny our lovely sweetheart the company of her valiant handsome knights in the flesh, huh~!?" Satoru dramatized his own cries, muffled though.

Suguru sighed, consigning. "At least one of us should. Who else will be teaching the first years in the meantime?"

"Round robin, then? Last one left standing tends to that noble martyr and gets our dear sweetheart to be their own personal nurse in the end … huh …" That hum and those inquiring eyes could only bode mischief. "I volunteer Suguru to go first!"

"Not gonna happen, Satoru." He immediately denied.

"But to be fed by, bathed by and be doted on by our angel is heaven sent~!" Satoru gushed.

"Which is why you shouldn't be the only one getting that special treatment!" Suguru being jealous at possibly being left out on that.

"Hey!" Your strained shout ends in a coughing fit, curled up in bed, sniffling to which Suguru hands you a big enough tissue to blow your nose in. "I'm dying here."

"Hmm … Yu could fill in." Satoru suggested.

"He is working as a teaching aid part time. And he did say he could help out whenever we needed it." Suguru added.

"Plus Nanamin is on a business trip for the week~ He'll need something to do while waiting for his beloved's return~!" Satoru teased.

"That settles it then." Suguru was smirking behind that mask, you could just tell.

"How lucky you are, darling, to have the strongest duo be your own personal nurses~" Satoru was so smirking his ass off.

"Even though you'll literally get sick of me?" You shyly asked, squeezing your bottle, apprehensive.

"We have strong ass immune systems, Y/n. Comes with over a decade of immense training." Satoru prided on, kissing your flushed cheek.

"If we can risk ourselves in the face of death as sorcerers, this is nothing." Suguru assured, kissing your other flushed cheek. "I'll call Haibara."

"I'll start up a bath for us all. Thank you big ass bathtubs." Satoru clapped to that.

"What do I do?" Even when sick, tilting your head and batting those eyes made the duo smooch your lips at once.

"Just be a good little patient for us, alright, honey?" God that wink of Suguru's left you more hot than usual as he walked off to make that call.

"Besides, being sick with you means being granted a sick leave and getting paid for it! Ah, thank you, my darling sweetheart~!" Satoru did hug you, nuzzle his face in your hair, and left you a wheezing mess.

"Y - You're w - welcome!"

Well, on the bright side, at least you'll all be sick together.

Snuggled in bed, among discarded tissues, wrappers of cough drops, and smooshed in one big embrace of entangled limbs while binging nothing but sitcoms, movies, and anime.

You would eventually get better in a week's time then later tend to your two enamored, affectionate partners and get them back into tip top shape.

But until then, being in their cozy arms, sleeping smack dabbed in between them, that might as well be the key on your quick road to recovery.

The SatoSugu cure, indeed!

[ailelie]

Installing Linux (Mint) as a Non-Techy Person

I've wanted Linux for various reasons since college. I tried it once when I no longer had to worry about having specific programs for school, but it did not go well. It was a dedicated PC that was, I believe, poorly made. Anyway.

In the process of deGoogling and deWindows365'ing, I started to think about Linux again. Here is my experience.

Pre-Work: Take Stock

List out the programs you use regularly and those you need. Look up whether or not they work on Linux. For those that don't, look up alternatives.

If the alternative works on Windows/Mac, try it out first.

Make sure you have your files backed up somewhere.

Also, pick up a 5GB minimum USB drive.

Oh and make a system restore point (look it up in your Start menu) and back-up your files.

Step One: Choose a Distro

Dear god do Linux people like to talk about distros. Basically, from what all I've read, if you don't want to fuss a lot with your OS, you've got two options: Ubuntu and Linux Mint. Ubuntu is better known and run by a company called Canonical. Linux Mint is run by a small team and paid for via donations.

I chose Linux Mint. Some of the stuff I read about Ubuntu reminded me too much of my reasons for wanting to leave Windows, basically. Did I second-guess this a half-dozen times? Yes, yes I did.

The rest of this is true for Linux Mint Cinnamon only.

Step Two: Make your Flash Drive

Linux Mint has great instructions. For the most part they work.

Start here:

The trickiest part of creating the flash drive is verifying and authenticating it.

On the same page that you download the Linux .iso file there are two links. Right click+save as both of those files to your computer. I saved them and the .iso file all to my Downloads folder.

Then, once you get to the 'Verify your ISO image' page in their guide and you're on Windows like me, skip down to this link about verifying on Windows.

Once it is verified, you can go back to the Linux Mint guide. They'll direct you to download Etchr and use that to create your flash drive.

If this step is too tricky, then please reconsider Linux. Subsequent steps are both easier and trickier.

Step Three: Restart from your Flash Drive

This is the step where I nearly gave up. The guide is still great, except it doesn't mention certain security features that make installing Linux Mint impossible without extra steps.

(1) Look up your Bitlocker recovery key and have it handy.

I don't know if you'll need it like I did (I did not turn off Bitlocker at first), but better to be safe.

(2) Turn off Bitlocker.

(3) Restart. When on the title screen, press your Bios key. There might be more than one. On a Lenovo, pressing F1 several times gets you to the relevant menu. This is not the menu you'll need to install, though. Turn off "Secure Boot."

(4) Restart. This time press F12 (on a Lenovo). The HDD option, iirc, is your USB. Look it up on your phone to be sure.

Now you can return to the Linux Mint instructions.

Figuring this out via trial-and-error was not fun.

Step Four: Install Mint

Just follow the prompts. I chose to do the dual boot.

You will have to click through some scary messages about irrevocable changes. This is your last chance to change your mind.

I chose the dual boot because I may not have anticipated everything I'll need from Windows. My goal is to work primarily in Linux. Then, in a few months, if it is working, I'll look up the steps for making my machine Linux only.

Some Notes on Linux Mint

Some of the minor things I looked up ahead of time and other miscellany:

(1) HP Printers supposedly play nice with Linux. I have not tested this yet.

(2) Linux Mint can easily access your Windows files. I've read that this does not go both ways. I've not tested it yet.

(3) You can move the taskbar (panel in LM) to the left side of your screen.

(4) You are going to have to download your key programs again.

(5) The LM software manager has most programs, but not all. Some you'll have to download from websites. Follow instructions. If a file leads to a scary wall of strange text, close it and just do the Terminal instructions instead.

(6) The software manager also has fonts. I was able to get Fanwood (my favorite serif) and JetBrains (my favorite mono) easily.

In the end, be prepared for something to go wrong. Just trust that you are not the first person to ever experience the issue and look it up. If that doesn't help, you can always ask. The forums and reddit community both look active.

[wandaspup]

his loss

– pairing | wanda x kid/daughter reader

– synopsis | you're wandas kid/daughter from a previous relationship. today you can't help but wonder why you weren't enough for your father to stay. mama wanda comes to the rescue.

– warnings | depression, self harm (nothing too graphic), blood, hateful thoughts, fluff

– word count | 855

– you're not alone. if you ever need to talk, my dm's and asks are open. you're more than enough.

You know those days where you feel really good, life is great and you’re on top of the world and then suddenly it hits you that it was too good to be true and everything falls apart? This is how you’re feeling these past few weeks. Depression consumes your entire being, it hits when you least expect it.

─── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ───

You have been clean for 11 months. You had ups and downs but you stayed strong for the sake of your mom. She’s your best friend and your everything. She found out you were hurting yourself when you were only 13. She was devastated but after a lot of talk, you both decided it was best for you to go to therapy, and you have been going ever since.

Tonight your mom was out doing grocery shopping, meaning you were alone in the house just waiting for her to come back. You looked at the calendar and noticed that today, a few years back, you had seen your father for the last time. You were little, you could barely remember him at all, but deep inside you missed him, you longed for a connection with him. It hurt when you saw other kids growing up with their dads around, you wished you were in their place. Not that you didn’t love your mom, it’s the complete opposite; you just couldn’t understand why you still felt this way towards him after so many years.

You were starting to feel a little anxious, thinking why he left you. Did he ever want you? Weren’t you good enough for him? Were you a mistake? Every bad thought that could possibly exist was running through your head. You needed a relief. You knew your mom would get mad but that’s the least of your worries right now.

You went to the bathroom and started looking for the little hidden place where you keep your blade. You didn’t care about the pain or the mess you were doing; you just wanted relief. The physical pain couldn’t even compare to the mental turmoil you experience every day.

It was like time stopped. You heard a knock on your door, pulling you out of your trance and making you panic. You didn’t have the energy to even try and clean everything up, you just stayed on the floor, waiting for your mom to find you in that state. “I’m in the bathroom, mama!” You yelled, hoping she would hear it, you didn’t want to delay the inevitable.

Wanda enters the bathroom and her smile fades, you can see the tears in her eyes making you feel worse than you already are. “I-I’m sorry mama. I t-tried, I really did.” You started sobbing and Wanda didn’t hesitate to run to your aid. “Shh, I know baby. I know, it’s okay.” She whispers while pulling you into her lap, cradling you like a baby. She was talking but you were too focused on the way she was brushing your hair and the way she was rubbing your back in a soothing manner to even pay attention to the words coming out of her mouth.

“Y-You’re not mad?” You asked, you were sure she was. “Of course not, my love. You are so strong. I know you tried and that’s all that matters. Healing isn’t linear and that’s okay. We all have our days and I know how today affects you, I should have been more attentive. I’m sorry that I was gone for too long.” She kisses the top of your head and squeezes you lovingly.

“You can always count on me, okay? I want you to know that you have a friend in me. I’m your mother and your best friend for life.” She cups your face and rubs your cheeks softly. “I’m so proud of you, baby. Relapsing is part of the process of recovery, and you will have these kinds of days, but the important thing is that you understand that you’re not alone, alright? You’re the best person I have ever known my entire life. I know that you miss him, but he doesn’t deserve you at all. It’s his loss, not yours.”

You smile amidst tears, you genuinely couldn’t have asked for a better mother. She knows you inside and out and she really is your best friend. “T-Thank you mama. You really are the best mother in the world.” Wanda couldn’t help but smile as well, scrunching her nose and rubbing it on yours. “You are my everything, my sweet girl. Now, how about I help you clean yourself up, change into pj’s and maybe order some pizza to watch a movie?” You nod, just wanting to be near your mother.

“No need to thank me, sweetheart. I will always do my best to protect you and make sure that you’re safe and okay. I’m so proud of being your mom, you have no idea. We are together in this, alright? Always and forever.” She says while lifting her pinky finger up, smiling.

You smile back and link your finger with hers, mumbling. “Always and forever, mom.”

[fictioninmyblood]

Best Birthday Gift

Summary: Terry finally makes his way home just in time for his love’s birthday. Despite starting the day like any other, Y/N gets to end it with the best birthday gift ever.

A/N: I watched Rebel Ridge and it’s my birthday.

A/N: My work is NOT to be plagiarized or reposted (on any site other than this) without my explicit consent and recognition.

Warning: 18+ themes, fluff and angst(y)

Like most years Y/N had spent without Terry, Y/N looked forward to her birthday the same she did any day. She didn’t. It was always for others that she mustered up the energy to celebrate, but with Terry on active duty for the last few years and a swiftly dwindled social pool she hadn’t really had to lately. Now with Mike dead and Terry fighting through who knows what kind of white hell over in Silver Springs she hadn’t found the will to do more than pack and worry. She just kept praying that she would get another call from him soon.

Y/N had been hanging onto life by her bloody fingernails for years. When Terry crashed into her life, she had almost no craving to live. By the time he’d begun training troops, being stationed away from her for longer and longer periods, there wasn’t much she looked forward to each day. Despite finding some joy in becoming a teacher, Y/N still couldn’t help but see the world as it is. For all the serotonin those sweet babies brought her, knowing them brought just as much anxiety and despair. Terry had promised that when he was discharged he would put her on Dr. Richmond’s personal recovery plan. She would get to cook and bake and homemake as much as she wanted while he and Mike towed boats and he would come home to her every night to rub and kiss on her until all she could feel was their love. A traditional dynamic wasn’t popular these days, but with a man like Terry to ease her fears it was exactly what she was looking for.

The last 10 months of careful planning to finally build towards the growing old promises they’d made each other went out the window with one moment. Y/N had been upset to get that call from Mike in jail, the man doing exactly what she’d predicted and warned Terry about plenty of times. No matter how much they loved him, a pattern was a pattern and his kept putting their own plans on hold. He was always getting into trouble and Terry was always bending over backwards to get him out of it but this time had made her livid. She dug into him about it too, threatening that if he tried this shit in Florida he’d have to worry about her being his parole officer. Terry had worked too hard to make it out of the military with his body, mind, and heart intact, she’d be damned if Mike was the reason any part of him broke.

Too bad she couldn’t cuss him out now for doing just that. She loved Mike like family too, looking out for him in her own way while Terry was gone, but she didn’t know how to grieve. For some reason she still felt like all she had to do was wait a few weeks to pop him upside his head. The only thing Terry told her that had fully processed was the fact that he was in danger now. How could someone think about celebrating their birthday when the love of their life could potentially be strung up in the middle of some hick town to never be heard from again? How could she be happy to have her heart beating when a man she called family, no matter how much he made her mad, was dead? She could wait for him to call for a ride off of the prison lot all she wanted, it wasn’t coming ever again.

So she finished packing, ordered some takeout, took a gloriously long hot shower, lotioned, and cuddled up on her blowup bed in one of Terry’s old hoodies. Not many of his clothes still held his scent as strong as before so she only used the ones that did for emergencies or special occasions. Today counted as both.

Not wanting to think about what she spaced out on, Y/N started watching one of Terry’s favorite franchises. She was about 30 minutes into the first movie when her ring doorbell rang on her phone. Not bothering to look at the video feed, she opened the app and spoke into the phone.

“You can just leave it on the porch, thank you.”

“No can do ma’am, there’s some extra here you have to sign for.”

At the sound of his voice, Y/N finally looked at her video feed to see her baby on her porch looking dirty and exhausted but alive. She squealed, quickly kicking off her covers and ran to open the front door. Terry barely sat his backpack on the floor just inside the front door when Y/N launched herself into his arms, her own instantly locking around his neck. She felt the vibration of his soft laughter as he closed her door with his foot and walked to the island to put the food down.

As soon as the food was out of his hands, Terry grasped the underside of her ass where they met her thighs, helping her wrap them around his waist.

“Hi princess,” he said into her hair.

“You made it,” she mumbled back, still caught up in the feel of his arms around her waist and the smell of his irreplaceable scent drenching her senses.

“Wouldn’t miss it for the world.”

Terry finally pulled back, pecked the tip of her nose, and looked at his lady. He kissed her sweetly until she started to lose her breath and pulled back to look at her when he was done. He kissed her forehead and took in not only her appearance but also the room. Spotting her makeshift cocoon he sat her on the island and rushed over to his backpack, bringing it with him. Y/N let her legs swing as she watched her man pull a pint of her favorite ice cream out his bag to put directly in the freezer along with a card and mini balloon.

She hadn’t meant to but she went from smiling to full out sobs in seconds as she watched Terry walk towards her with his small offering. It scared the crap out of Terry to see his princess fighting so hard to regulate her emotions and losing.

“Please don’t cry princess, it’s not even that much.”

“But-,” she couldn’t get any of her words out, too overwhelmed with this moment. Terry always seemed to have the magic touch of getting her to live in the now again, even if it meant sobbing uncontrollably. He was her safe place to just be in every form.

Terry cupped her face and wiped at her tears as he continued, “I didn’t even get you a proper gift.”

That made her throw her head back and laugh. “You lyin’ to me Terrance.” She sniffled away the last of her tears and grasped his face back. Y/N pecked his lips until he held her a little tighter and kissed her deeper. She put her hands on his back and rubbed up and down as the moment became extremely heated.

Y/N pulled her face away to really examine Terry, keeping her hands on his back, continuing their rubdown.

“You survived the military, whatever colonizer’s hell is going on in Silver Springs, made your way back to me on that bike for most likely most of the way, and still found time, energy, and resources to get my favorite ice cream and a card for my birthday.”

“Don’t forget your mini balloon.”

“That’s right, a mini balloon too! And the most important part of my gift Terrance Richmond,” she pecked his luscious lips a few more times, “you.”

Terrance was rubbing her lower back and the top of her ass when she grasped his face, her eyes darting between his swirling Hazel blues. She almost lost him, he almost didn’t make it, and it hadn’t been from his time in the military. Faced with what it felt like to finally breathe again, to have her heart beating with every breath he took, Y/N was finally looking forward to finishing the day.

Her voice cracked a little bit, but she held it together. “I almost lost you before I could have you again. This is the best birthday ever. You could have crawled in here needing an organ donor and it still would’ve been. You hear me?”

Terry smiled, only she could end up celebrating him on her birthday. “I hear you. How you wanna spend the rest of the day?”

“Go shower and only put clean undies on please. Your suitcases of clothes are still upstairs.”

Terry smiled wide, with every word Y/N was emoting more and more. God he missed this woman.

“Then?” He asked with a raise of his brow.

“We’re gonna eat and cuddle naked, well I’ll be all the way naked, but either way skin.”

Terry laughed out loud at that one. The life was definitely returning to her eyes, bringing the woman he left back to him. No matter how much pain and grief he suffered these last few weeks, he’d do it all again to end up here, with or without Mike. Mike was family but Y/N was his world, his inspiration, his safe place, and his home. Seeing how depleted her spirit was when he arrived, it nearly killed him to think of what she’d have turned into had he not made it.

“We can make that happen.”

With a few extra kisses to hold him over, Terry made his way to the bathroom and did as told. While he got cleaned Y/N read her card and set it up on the counter before she made their plates. By the time Terry made his way back into the living room, she had a tray set up to make things easier for them to sit down together.

He made her sit on the bed before him so that he could be the one to bring the tray over. After they ate, he cleaned up the food while Y/N changed to the next movie in the series before she removed the hoodie and wiggled on her feet, waiting impatiently. When Terry finally did lay down in the bed, Y/N instantly curled into his side, her head laying on his heart and one of her legs coming up to rest on his pelvis. The opening credits had just finished when Terry looked down at his lady and thanked god that he got to spend another birthday with her. It’d been a few years since he got spend her birthday with her and even longer since he treated her properly. She never cared, so long as he was there to share the day.

Y/N had been drifting but jolted out of her sleep and sat up rubbing at her eyes.

“What is it baby? You need something?”

She shook her head no just like a sleepy toddler and mumbled out, “Thank you for the best birthday gift big daddy.” As quickly as she sat up, she was back down, cuddled in his arms and quickly slipping into her dreams.

This was all she had wanted. To be held and comforted to sleep. It wasn’t much, but Terry had given her that. With the troubles of their lives waiting for the morning, Terry settled in, letting his pride swell with the knowledge that she considered him her best birthday gift.

[girlgenius1111]

key to recovery

edit: young reader and platonic barca femeni + platonic leah

r wakes up from surgery, goes home, and is sad. she misses Leah but knows she can't come. her friends try to fix it.

The light of the room filtered through your eyelashes as you blinked your eyes open, just slightly. Everything around you was blurry, and you could just make out a few shapes sitting around you before your eyes drifted shut again. Your head felt heavy, and you weren't quite sure if you could move any part of your body. You tried anyway, shifting slightly, feeling a dull pang of pain in your arm. You got the feeling that the movement should have hurt a lot more, but the way your head was swirling, you were on some serious drugs.

Groaning slightly, incredibly confused, you worked harder to open your eyes, feeling someone release their grip on your hand. You brought what you assumed to be your good arm to rub at your eyes, but your movements were all thrown off and you ended up just wacking yourself in the face.

"Easy there, buddy," a voice came from farther away in the room, as someone else grabbed your hand, pulling it away from your face. You groaned again, and a few chuckles echoed their way through the room.

"Y/n, can you open your eyes for me?" a different voice asked, much closer than the previous voice. You opened them again, and this time they focused on the form sitting next to you. Alexia smiled when you looked at her, and she brought a cup of water up to your mouth, letting you sip from the straw.

The water did a lot to revive you, and the length of your blinks was growing shorter. Alexia took the cup and you looked around the room, seeing people scattered across many different chairs. Lucy was leaning up against the wall, next to a chair that Keira was asleep in. Mapi was asleep in a chair on the other side of the room, leaning heavily against Ingrid, who was smiling at you. All of them were still in their kits, and you were still pretty confused.

Your voice was gravelly when you tried to speak, and you cleared your throat, trying again.

"Why am I in the hospital?" you rasped, looking to Alexia.

"You don't remember?" she asked frowning slightly, and you shook your head. "You got pushed to the ground pretty hard during the game and dislocated your elbow. They had to put it back in place surgically."

You looked down at your arm, then, taking in the heavily wrapped limb. You could just barely see your fingers, and they looked swollen. It was resting on a pillow next to you, and you tried to pick it up, before crying out as a jolt of pain shot through your arm.

"No, no, don't move it, you've gotta keep it still," Lucy said, moving closer to you. She stood at the edge of the bed, crossing her arms, and she inexplicably reminded you of a dad at that moment, frowning at your arm. You nodded slowly, feeling like everything they were telling you was taking much longer than normal to process.

The sound you'd made had woken up Keira and Mapi. Now everyone was staring at you, as if waiting for you to speak. About what, you weren't sure.

A nurse entered then, asking you questions about your pain level, before asking you if you were hungry. Thinking for a few second, you nodded your head enthusiastically. She handed you a bag of animal crackers, before leaving the room. You stared at it for at least a full 60 seconds, before you began to tear up.

"What is it?" Alexia asked, leaning forward, concerned.

"I can't open it and now I don't get animal crackers," you murmured, valiantly fighting to hold back from crying. You really wanted them but you only had one arm.

Alexia laughed, and you looked up at her with wide eyes, confused. She took the bag out of your hands, and opened it before handing you the bag. A smile appeared on your face, and you began to eat the animal crackers. Everyone was still staring at you, and it was beginning to annoy you.

"Why is everyone looking at me," you grumbled, and everyone averted their eyes, almost comically.

"We were just worried about you, pequeña," Mapi said, staring out the window, but looking at you out of the corner of her eye.

For a minute, you were confused. Why were they worried about you? You couldn't remember. Then, glancing down, you did.

"Because my elbow fell off," you said knowingly, and this time the whole room erupted into laughter. They all looked back at you, only laughing harder at the perplexed expression on your face. You didn't think it was very funny that your elbow had fallen off.

"No, buddy, you dislocated your elbow, but I promise it's still attached," Lucy told you, trying to keep a straight face. She pointed at your arm, and you looked down.

"Oh. Right," you said. They must have reattached your elbow to your body. "Can I go home soon?" you asked, looking around. The girls all exchanged looks, before Lucy cleared her throat.

"You can leave the hospital pretty soon, but you can't go home by yourself. You're gonna stay with Mapi and Ingrid," she said hesitantly, not really sure how this information was going to go over.

They'd had a long debate about who you should stay with. Both Lucy and Keira were adamant that you come home with one of them, but neither of them had an extra bedroom. Alexia campaigned for custody of you too, but eventually she was overruled, as it made more sense for you to go with the couple. They had an extra bedroom, and there were 2 of them.

"That's cool," you replied, eyes suddenly starting to slide shut again. "Can I go back to sleep?"

"Si, nena, we'll wake you when it's time to go," Alexia stated.

-----

They tried to wake you. It didn't really work. Instead, they changed your half asleep form into the sweats that Ingrid had brought from your apartment, and all but carried you from the bed to the wheelchair. Mapi wheeled you to the car, until her privileges were revoked after pushing and letting go in the parking lot briefly. Alexia slapped her on the arm, and Ingrid took over pushing.

You don't really remember the car ride, or arriving at Mapi and Ingrid's. They gave you more painkillers before you left the hospital, and you were practically comatose as Ingrid gave up trying to get you to walk, carefully picking you up and carrying you into their house.

When you woke up again, you didn't feel like you were orbiting the earth anymore. Instead, your arm ached, you weren't at home, there was a black cat laying practically on your head, and you had realized you were going to be out of playing for a while. You looked around the room, not seeing your phone near you, wondering what time it was. The sun was filtering in through the window, lighting up the room with a warm glow. The bed you were in was incredibly comfortable, and you dreaded having to get up and out from under the cozy duvet.

You wanted coffee though. Unsteadily, you rose from the bed, already annoyed with the sling holding your arm close to your chest. You shuffled out into the hall and into the living room.

"Pequeña! You're awake!" Mapi called, standing up from her spot on the couch. You only frowned at her, looking around for Ingrid to make you coffee. "How are you feeling?" she asked, thinking you were grumpy because you were in pain.

"Like someone cut into my arm with a knife," you retorted, before sitting down on the couch and glaring at the coffee table. Mapi took in the look on your face for a minute, before deciding that she was not the best equipped person for grumpy y/n.

"INGRID!" she called, ignoring the look you gave her at her loud voice.

"Yes, mi amor?" Ingrid responded, walking into the room. Her face brightened at the sight of you. "Y/n! How are you feeling?"

"Can you make me coffee please?" you asked in a monotone. Ingrid and Mapi exchanged looks, and Mapi mouthed someone's grumpy at Ingrid, who made a face and nodded.

"I'm not grumpy." You grumbled. Ingrid rolled her eyes, walking into the kitchen to get you the aforementioned coffee. Mapi took a cautious seat on the couch next to you, and handed you your phone. You made no move to open it.

"Do you want to call Leah?" she suggested. An unreadable expression flashed across your face.

"No, I'll call her later," you said, and Mapi could have sworn your voice wavered slightly. Ingrid returned with your coffee, and sat down in one of the arm chairs across the room. Both girls were looking at you intently.

"When can I go home?" you asked, because your worst nightmare may have been being forced to impose upon your friends, stay at their house, and make them take care of you.

"Not for a while, nena. A couple weeks, until your stitches are out and you're out of the sling." Mapi replied. "Do you not want to stay here?

Your frosty exterior cracked slightly at that, never wanting your friends to feel like the problem was them.

"No, I just hate bothering you guys. I'd be fine on my own," you started, but Ingrid interrupted you.

"You're not bothering us, we want you here, and we want to make sure you're okay," she insisted, looking at you softly. You didn't reply.

Instead, you picked up your phone, and began scrolling through the many, many, messages you'd received from friends and teammates. Your heart panged when you saw several texts from Leah. You replied quickly, not giving her much information. The longer you thought about Leah, her cozy home in London, the room she still kept there for you, the closer you got to tears.

"Pequeña? Are you okay?" Mapi asked softly, and you turned your head to see her and Ingrid both looking at you.

"Yeah, I'm good. I think I'm gonna go take a nap though," you replied, even though you'd just gotten up. They didn't really know what to say as you rose and headed back to the guest bedroom.

You crawled under the covers, and into a little ball, as best you could with one arm in a sling, and let yourself cry into the pillow. You missed Leah. It had been a while since you'd been homesick, having settled well in Spain, and you talked to Leah so often, you didn't ever really have a chance to miss her. Now, though, you were in pain, you were sad about your stupid injury, and you just wanted Leah.

She'd been with you through it all, everything with your parents. She'd seen you at your worst, and maybe that's why you needed her so badly right now; because letting anyone else in would be too hard. You couldn't ask her to come though, not now, not while she was on the cusp of her return. You cried until you wore yourself out, eventually falling back asleep.

-----

In the living room, Mapi and Ingrid discussed your odd behavior. They'd frankly never seen you this grumpy before, and whatever you had been looking at on your phone had almost brought you to tears right in front of them. They weren't really sure what to do, as you didn't seem like you'd open up to them.

They were just deciding to call Lucy and Keira, and see if they would come try to talk to you, when they heard a cry of pain from the bedroom. They were off the couch and running down the hall in seconds, throwing the door open to find you on the bed, breathing deeply through tears, your one good fist balled tightly.

"What happened?" Mapi questioned, both girls moving closer to hover next to you.

"I rolled over in my sleep," you said through clenched teeth, waiting for the wave of pain to pass.

"I'll get you some ice, and some medicine. You're due for more anyway." Mapi said, heading out of the room. Ingrid took a seat next to you, on your good side, and wrapped her arm around your shoulder, pulling you into her. You let her, leaning in to her warmth as she rubbed your back softly. You took deep breaths, willing the pain away, resting your head on her shoulder.

"How does it feel now?" she asked, after a few minutes had passed.

"Better. I don't think I messed anything up in there." You pulled away from her suddenly, wiping at your eyes. You wanted Leah. You loved Ingrid, you really did, but you just wanted Leah.

Ingrid let her arm fall from around your shoulders, looking at you sympathetically. It was clear that something was really bothering you, more than the pain in your arm.

By the time Mapi returned, with ice, medicine, and a sandwich, you'd reverted back to the grouchy version of yourself, all evidence of tears wiped from your face. They didn't take it personally, the way you barely answered their questions, really only opening your mouth to thank them every time they did something for you, no matter how small it was. They knew it wasn't about them.

-----

Everyone was surprised when Keira and Lucy failed to get you to talk; in fact, it seemed like they'd only made you more upset. They came over later that day, and you wouldn't look at either of them. They tried for a while, getting very little in response. Lucy got fed up pretty fast.

"Kid, I don't understand. Are you upset about your arm? Does it hurt? Why are you acting like this?" she questioned, staring at you hard. She thought that perhaps being firm with you would work. She knew she'd picked the wrong path when you finally looked up, just to glare at her.

"Obviously my arm fucking hurts Lucy. I'm not upset about anything, and I'm not acting like anything. I don't understand why everyone can't just leave me alone," you spoke sharply. Lucy was rather shocked at being spoken to like that.

"Y/n, something is clearly going on. You've been in a bad mood all day. Just tell us what's up." Keira pushed, trying a softer approach.

"Nothing is up. I just want to be alone."

Neither Keira, nor Lucy were Leah. You just wanted Leah. Eventually, you knew, that feeling would pass, and being around other people would be easier. Until then, everyone just needed to leave you alone.

"Leah said you haven't called her yet..." Lucy started, only to be cut off by you.

"Please, for the love of god, just leave me alone Lucy." You interrupted. It seems they'd struck a nerve by bringing up Leah, which neither of them missed. Exchanging looks, both girls got up, each giving you as much of a hug as they could, without crushing your arm, whilst you completely ignored their movements.

They left the room, bumping right into Ingrid and Mapi, who had been shamelessly eavesdropping. They walked back into the living room, and Mapi sighed.

"We're gonna have to call in Alexia," she said, knowing that if anyone could get you to talk, it was your captain. The other girls agreed, and Lucy and Keira left, defeated, as Mapi called the blonde woman.

-----

You were in the living room when Alexia arrived, having been convinced by your hosts to come watch a movie with them. When she entered the house, they gave a random, flimsy excuse about going to get ice cream, before leaving you alone with Alexia. You stared at the TV, stony faced, even after she'd flicked it off, and taken a seat next to you on the couch.

"Nenaaaa," she said, poking your cheek. You shifted your gaze to scowl at her.

"Oye, don't look at me like that," she said sternly, and you dropped your gaze, but the frown didn't leave your lips.

"Are you going to tell me whats wrong, or am I gonna have to force it out of you?" She asked.

"Nothing is wrong, Alexia."

"Well I know that's not true. You've been snapping at everyone, you look like you want to cry constantly, and you've barely spoken. And you've refused to call Leah. So I know something's wrong, and I'm going to sit here until you tell me what it is." She said firmly, settling down into the couch for added effect.

"Fuck off Alexia," you mumbled, immediately regretting it. Alexia was staring at you, jaw dropped. You'd never spoken to her like that. She'd never heard you speak to ANYONE like that.

"Y/n, we've been patient, but we're just trying to help you, and there's no reason for you to be rude," she scolded, her tone very angry. You felt so guilty for being so rude, and you were so frustrated with yourself for being so pathetic. They were just trying to help, and because you missed Leah, you were acting like a brat. Tears, of frustration or sadness you weren't sure, began pooling in your eyes.

"I'm sorry," you murmured, your voice cracking. Alexia watched you carefully, scooting closer when you began to cry, and rubbing her hand up on down your good arm.

"Nena, please talk to me," she pleaded, "maybe I can help."

"You can't help."

"Why not?"

"You just can't," you replied bitterly. "No one can help, there's nothing anyone can do, she can't come here, she has to focus on her recovery." You were too caught up in your emotions to realize you'd given it away.

"Is this about Leah, cariño?" Alexia asked carefully. You nodded, finally letting out a loud sob. Alexia moved forward, and you buried your face in her chest, sobs wracking your whole body. "Oh, nena, why didn't you say something? You don't need to be embarrassed about missing her, she's important to you, and she's always taken care of you," Alexia soothed.

You didn't respond, continuing to cry into Alexia's sweatshirt, and she held you tightly, but gently, careful not to jostle your elbow. "It's okay, y/n, it's okay to miss her, and want her when you're hurting," she reassured you, but you weren't showing any signs of calming down, and she knew she needed to do something before you started panicking.

She grabbed your phone off the couch, without you noticing, and called Leah, holding the phone up to her ear.

"Y/n? Why've you been ignoring me!" Leah complained as she answered. Your tears slowed at the sound of her voice, and you leaned back, shakily holding your hand out. Alexia handed you the phone, and you brought it to your ear.

"Lee?" you asked, voice sounding broken.

"Hey buddy, what's going on?" Leah asked, voice much gentler than it was before.

"I really miss you," you said, your voice almost a whisper.

"Oh, y/n, I miss you too. Are you having a hard night?" she asked.

'I guess. Since I got hurt, I just want to see you. It's stupid," you replied.

"No, it's not stupid. I want to be there more than anything, I really do. Is this why you've been ignoring my calls?" She asked, heart hurting for you.

"I didn't want to make you feel bad for not being able to come."

"Y/n, you should never worry about that. I want you to talk to me when you're sad, when you miss me, even when I can't come to you."

"Okay, I'll try."

"Good. Now tell me about your day. Is everyone taking good care of you?" She asked.

You settled back against Alexia, nuzzling close, trying to express your thanks to her. She simply wrapped you back up in her arms, and texted your friends, telling them you were doing better. She expected the call to take a while, but she didn't mind staying with you through it, as it was clearly what you needed. She did wonder, however, if she could manage to get you to England during your recovery; seeing Leah would definitely speed the process along.

-----

do we want a part 4? or perhaps a prequel?

[not-quite-ran]

Let's get married

(a dreamnoblade one-shot)

"Let's get married" Dream almost laugh, no, he did laugh, because he thought he was joking, because who would propose in the middle of the artic, just outside a secret base of an anti government organization that had just finished a meeting, besides it didn't even sound as a proposal, so he just laugh.

But Techno didn't laugh with him. In fact, when Dream turn to look his way, Techno was holding a circular object that was also very shiny that happened to look exactly like an engagement ring.

"Oh"

-----

Life after prision break wasn't easy, but Techno was there. 

Techno was there when Dream was physically able to hold a sword again.

Techno was there when he succeeded in hold a pen properly, and do readable orations instead of his usual cat scratches.

Techno hold him when the night terrors were unbearable and he live sleepless for a couple of weeks.

Techno was there when he had to empty his guts in the bathroom when he had a little too much food when his stomach wasn't able to handle it yet.

Techno was there, and even better, Techno was there for him.

So when Techno offered him a place at the syndicate table, Dream was euphoric.

Not everybody was exited to meet him at the syndicate table, but a couple of years had passed and he was unbothered, besides, the syndicate wasn't really busy, so it really was just an excuse to reunite in a calm place to chat and have some of the pastry Nikki always bake for them

It was nice.

Dream could get use to this.

And he did.

--

Dream wasn't a man of formalities in his personal life, and honestly after all the "no attachments" thing in his past he was kind of lost in the topic now. So when he and Techno past from foreign touches, to cuddles, to kisses, to straight up make out sessions and ,,, other stuff, they really didn't say much, it felt natural, maybe not really talk about it wasn't ideal, but it work for them and no one really never cuestion it, so, no need.

Dream had already sense the subtle change in their routine, they were entering a very domestic routine (more domestic that it already was), Dream could feel it, and it was nice, it was peaceful, and warm, and Dream was tired. Recovery was a very tiring process, and Dream wasn't complete heal.

He didn't think he would never be.

But it was fine.

He had Techno.

And it was very obvious right now.

Techno wasn't in his knees, Dream didn't think he could stand it if Techno kneel, but he didn't need to, because Dream was already in his horse and even if Techno was a fucking giant, Dream have to look slightly downwards to look at him from his place at the top of his horse.

Techno also wasn't offering the ring per se, he was handing it over, like it was anything but a fucking engagement ring-

"Okay, rude, you could had just say no instead of laughing at my face, but okay" Techno was teasing, Dream could hear it in his voice, but he also could hear the slight wavering, like he was insecure.

Techno was never insecure.

"N-No, wait ,,, what?" Dream tried, he did, but his brain refuse to catch up with all that was happening.

"I said, we should ,,," Techno bring the ring closer to Dream's face, again, like he was presenting anything but a ring. "We should get married"

Dream blinked,

Once,,

Twice-

"That it's the most horrible proposal I ever heard, and I have heard a few." Dream couldn't help but laugh, again, and Techno was about to retreat his hand when he lean in and put his hand over Techno's. Techno smiled.

"Okey, nerd, leave me alone, this is a full player thing I have zero knowledge about this kinda stuff in players culture." Dream couldn't help but smile

"Then you should try and do it in a way you understand it." Despite everything, Dream took the ring from Techno's hand and put it in his finger, and took his time to admire it, it was truly beautiful, Techno has put a lot of thought in it. He smile, "It's really beautiful Tech." 

"I'm glad you like it" Techno took Dream's hand, and he also admire the ring in his finger, he look proud. "And now that you accept my courting, it's the first of various ornaments that I should give to you, mate." It wasn't a question,  but it also wasn't a affirmation.

"Well, I think I would like to get married to you, mate."

Dream swore he had never seen Techno smile wider.

Yeah, he will be fine.

Because he had Techno.

And Techno had him.

[creampuffqueen]

hold you til you fall asleep

Summary: After a sudden bought of illness, Yangchen is convinced she's on the road to recovery. Kavik feels a bit differently about her healing process - and what caused the illness in the first place.

Word count: 5358

Read on ao3

----

It’s been a while since Yangchen’s body has ached like this. 

Not long enough, though.

This kind of bone deep, body trembling, head pounding pain can only mean one thing, and Yangchen is loathe to open her eyes and face the reality of it. She knows she must have slept for a while, if the dryness in her mouth is any indication. Perhaps, if she keeps her eyes shut, she can get a bit more real rest before she’s forced to think about anything else. 

And yet, the light streaming behind her closed eyelids beckons her to crack her eyes open, what feels like her entire being wincing at the effort. A groan of pain escapes her lips before she can choke it back, and her arms shake when she attempts to sit herself up. 

Yangchen collapses back onto the pillows, head spinning. 

Wait, pillows -

The last thing she remembers is standing up from the dinner table and nearly folding in on herself, clutching the corner for balance as her vision blurred. She remembers shouting. She remembers arms wrapping around her, holding her upright as her legs gave way.

But she does not remember getting into a bed. Which means that someone put her here, tucked her in, and cared for her for… 

How long have I been away?!

Yangchen digs the heels of her palms into her eyes, as if she can bring the blank in her memory back if she adds enough pressure. All she accomplishes is making her vision spark. 

She can hear her own pulse echoing in her ears, the thrumming noise of it a hammer on the inside of her skull. The room sways with each breath she takes, a threatening force should she dare to try and get up again. 

Still, Yangchen refuses to be deterred. She knocked out at dinner last night, surely she must have slept through the night and now it’s the next morning. She can catch up on her work; she won’t be too far behind, she’ll just grab a cup of tea and that will push away the lingering pain and –

The handle of the bedroom door twists and clicks, creaking slightly as it opens with a soft push. Yangchen turns slightly to look, propping herself up on a trembling elbow. 

“Oh. You’re awake.”

Yingsu’s normally deadpan voice carries a note of surprise, making Yangchen more confused than ever.

“Don’t get too excited about it,” She mutters sarcastically. Gritting her teeth, she manages to finally pull herself up to sitting, frustrated at the effort it requires. 

Yingsu lets herself fully into the room, shutting the door behind her and walking over to the bed. “Sorry, I just wasn’t expecting you to be up. I was getting kinda used to you being out cold these last few days.”

Wait. Days?

Yangchen can feel her stomach plummeting. When she speaks again, her voice comes out in a startled croak, “What do you mean by days?” 

Yingsu’s reply is uncharacteristically gentle. “You’ve been asleep for three days, Yangchen.”

A shiver works its way up her spine, her breath catching in her chest. The blankets tucked around her suddenly feel too heavy, too tight, too restricting. She shoves them away, trying not to let the panic in her head overtake her heart. 

“Woah, woah, slow down,” Yingsu urges, “It’s all okay, we’ve been taking care of everything.”

Yangchen slides her legs off the bed, ignoring the way she sways with the motion. “A lot can happen in three days. I need to look over my correspondence -”

“You need to go back to bed,” The larger woman insists. She places two hands on Yangchen’s shoulders, holding her in place. The airbender tries to swat her away, but her smaller, weakened hands are no match. She feels like a child being punished for throwing a tantrum. 

Yingsu seems unimpressed with Yangchen’s glare. “Stay here. I’m going to let the others know that you’re up.” Slowly, she removes her hands, backing away. “Stay. I mean it.”

As though she has a choice. Her head is utterly swimming.

When the firebender shuts the door quietly behind her, Yangchen slumps back onto the pillows, attempting to take stock; of herself, of her surroundings, of the situation as a whole. 

Build the bridge. One piece at a time. Build the bridge. Build it –

Yangchen digs her fingers into her own scalp, grimacing from the pain but grateful for the sensation nonetheless. There’s too much missing. She can’t build anything in this state.

Before her thoughts can spiral any further, a gentle knock on the door signals the arrival of more newcomers. Yangchen forces herself to sit up again, to meet the eyes of everyone coming to check on her. 

They enter one at a time, cautious and slow, as though she’s some kind of animal they can’t afford to startle. Yingsu leads the way, then is followed in turn by Jujinta, Tayagum, Akuudan, and Boma. 

Boma is the first to approach her, smile warm and comforting. “Glad to see you up and about, Avatar.” Yangchen accepts the hug he offers, appreciative of the warmth it provides. Her body can’t quite seem to decide if it’s hot or cold at the moment. 

The others move in to provide their own well-wishes, but Yangchen is finding it hard to focus. Her gaze flutters between each of her companions, easily detecting the gap in their retinue. She glances up at the door, but the hallway outside is noticeably barren of the one person she really wants to see.

Boma’s hand settles on her shoulder, squeezing gently. “He’s on a supply run. He’ll be back soon.”

Her pounding heart slows down a bit. Everyone is accounted for.

“Are you hungry?” Akuudan’s deep timbre pulls her from her wandering thoughts. “You haven’t had a proper meal in days.”

The logical part of Yangchen’s brain knows that, yes, she’s hungry. Starving, practically. And yet, the rest of her consciousness rails against the thought of stopping to eat, of all things. There’s no time for that at all.

“I’m not hungry,” She replies, attempting yet again to swing her legs over the side of the bed. 

Several arms move to block her way. “If you’re not going to eat,” Tayagum reasons, “Then you should keep resting. You need time to rebuild your strength.”

“All of you stop it,” Yangchen snaps, “I’m fine, and I need to get up so I can work.”

Her team retreats, chastised but wary, watching her every move. Still scowling, Yangchen removes the many blankets layered on top of her and settles onto the wooden floor.

She barely manages to stand for a few seconds before her knees buckle beneath her, sending her sprawling forward like a newborn wolf-deer. Only Jujinta’s lightning-quick reflexes save her from concussing herself on the bedframe. 

“Back to bed with you,” Boma insists, ushering her back onto the mattress with a tone that leaves no room for argument. “You’re still feeling weak. Rest for a while longer.”

Yangchen purses her lips, trying to hold back the tears of frustration she can feel springing to her eyes. She can’t rest; she’s missed too much time as it is already. 

However, much to her own displeasure, it seems her body is inclined to disagree with her mind. The headache she’s been attempting to ignore makes its presence known with a sudden throbbing pain, sending her reeling backwards with a choked groan of agony.

“Jujinta, close the curtains please,” Boma orders quietly. One of his weathered hands strokes soothingly across Yangchen’s forehead, the touch of a concerned grandparent. “I’m going to get you a glass of water, and then we’ll all leave you be. Please try and rest.”

All Yangchen can stand to do is nod.

She watches her team file from the room out of the corner of her half-lidded eyes, biting down on her tongue to try and distract herself from all the pain elsewhere. Squirming back beneath the blankets, she wraps herself up in warmth and darkness until it’s all she can feel. 

The blankets muffle the sound around her, of Boma placing a glass of water on her nightstand, of the door clicking shut behind him, of the others talking between themselves downstairs. All she can hear is the sound of her own heartbeat in her ears, thumping in time with the throbbing in her head. 

She closes her eyes fully. Sleep overtakes her before she even has a chance to recognize it. 

~~~~

When she wakes for the second time, something is different. 

Everything in her body is about the same. Her headache has subsided a bit, but the rest of her muscles are still filled with a low hum of pain. Additionally, she must have rolled onto her side at some point, because the shoulder pinned beneath her at an awkward angle tingles with pins and needles, springing yet another grimace to her features. 

The prickling sensation dies down after a few moments, allowing her to truly assess what is different this time: the presence of another person sitting on the bed with her.

She can sense the dip in the mattress beside her, feel the faint warmth of another body close by. And distantly, through the blankets piled high around her, she can hear the faint scratching of a pencil. Smooth, steady, and unmistakable.

Yangchen slowly pulls herself from the blanket wraps, taking in the person’s figure illuminated by a single candle. Kavik is seated on the bed, hunched over a stack of papers in his lap, thoroughly and methodically circling important passages. There’s a smear of charcoal across one of his cheekbones, and his lips purse together in that familiar focused pout of his, eyes never once leaving his work.

That is, until he feels her shifting on the bed and turns to face her, pencil at last stalling its gentle scuffing. 

“You’re awake.”

His voice doesn’t hold surprise, not in the way the others’ did. Instead, his lips twitch, the start of a smile, gaze brightening just at the sight of her.

For some reason, it makes Yangchen want to crawl back beneath the blankets and hide. 

“I’m awake,” She repeats softly, carefully easing herself up to sitting. The motion doesn’t make her quite as dizzy as before, but it still feels like it takes five times the effort it should. Her body hasn’t stopped rebelling against her. 

Kavik’s mouth opens slightly, as though he wants to speak, but no words form from it. He just sits and stares, unmoving as a statue.  

Eventually, he swallows, managing to find his voice again. “How have you been?”

“Asleep for three days, apparently,” Yangchen replies dryly.

Kavik flushes. “Oh, right. Yeah, I knew that.” Shaking his head, he manages to correct himself. “I meant to ask how you’ve been feeling since you woke up. I’m sorry I wasn’t there to see you with the others.”

“That’s not your fault.” 

He shrugs. “Still. I wish I was there.”

“You’re here now,” Yangchen points out. How long has he been here, quietly working and waiting for her to wake again? Her internal clock is completely out of whack, and with the curtains drawn it’s hard to see the outside light to judge it.

Kavik glances at the papers in his lap. “I guess that’s true. Let me put all this away for now. Do you need anything?”

“I need to see those papers,” Yangchen attempts. “I need to get caught up.”

The stack of papers is quickly pulled out of reach, Kavik tucking the charcoal pencil behind his ear. “No way. You still need to recover. Don’t worry yourself with this, I’ve been handling it.”

An exasperated breath huffs between her lips. “Yes, you’ve handled it while I was ill. But I’m awake now, and I need to keep up my own correspondence.”

She reaches for the papers again, but Kavik whips them away, holding them above his head. He’s playing dirty now, and Yangchen isn’t in the mood for it.

“Give me my papers, Kavik.”

“You don’t need these. They’re just accounting reports I’ve been annotating.”

“Then get me that papers that I do need!” She hates how shrill her voice is becoming, but she can’t stand this, this treating her like a child who needs a time-out. “Letters, sales reports, world news. Those are all things I need to be keeping up with!”

“I’ve been keeping up with them,” Kavik protests, “And I’ll continue keeping up with them while you recover! You need to rest, Yangchen.”

“You don’t get to decide what I need!” She snaps.

Yangchen grabs for the papers he’s holding again, but this time Kavik launches himself off the bed and crosses his arms. His smile has faded, leaving only a concerned frown in its wake. “Fine. Prove to me that you don’t need more rest. Stand up, walk over to me, and come get the papers.”

She kicks the covers off her body and reaches for the nightstand to haul herself off the bed. There’s weakness in each and every muscle, but if she chooses her path carefully to support herself with the furniture she can –

“Unassisted,” Kavik adds, frown deepening. “No bending, either.”

“You jerk,” Yangchen hisses. But she stays put. He read her too easily.

Kavik sighs deeply, placing the stack of papers on her desk. He walks back to the bed, sitting down on the edge a few arms’ lengths away. Perhaps he thinks she’s going to throw something at him. Part of Yangchen wants to. 

“I’m sorry,” He finally says, “but Yangchen, you’ve been pushing yourself too hard. That’s why you’ve been sick.”

Their eyes meet, and her anger begins to wilt underneath his concern and sadness. Kavik moves closer, until he can take a gentle hand to her back, rubbing in slow, soothing circles. “Why didn’t you tell me things were getting so bad?”

“I didn’t think it was this bad,” She replies honestly, hating the way her bottom lip is beginning to wobble. “I thought I was handling it.”

“Collapsing at the dinner table and then running a fever for three days is hardly what I’d call ‘handling it’,” Kavik adds softly. His free hand inches forward until the very tips of his fingers are touching hers. Warmth sparks from his touch, even at the barest hint of it.

Still, Yangchen is struggling to wrap her head around it. Three days. She’s missed so much. How can she catch up if she’s still being forced to rest for who knows how much longer?

“You need to take it easier, Yangchen,” Kavik sighs. “Not just while you’re recovering. I mean easier overall.”

She jerks her hand away from his. “That’s not possible. You know that, Kavik. I can’t afford to take it easier, not when there’s people who need me.”

“You won’t be helping anybody if you drop dead at twenty from not taking care of yourself!” Kavik snaps.

Yangchen’s eyes narrow into a glare. “Don’t exaggerate.”

“I’m not,” He insists. “You really frightened all of us.”

A pause. And then, much softer, he adds, “You really frightened me.”

How can she possibly respond to that? Somewhere, deep down, the knowledge that he cares about her so much places a seed of warmth and comfort. But on the surface, her hackles are raising, defenses shoring up around her heart. 

“I’m fine,” She insists.

Kavik sighs in exasperation. “Aren’t you tired, Yangchen?”

“Of course I’m tired,” Yangchen all but spits, “I’m always tired. Of all of it. But that doesn’t mean I can stop.”

“Do you even hear yourself right now?!”

“Do you? You don’t get to tell me how to handle things, Kavik; I can take care of myself!”

“Fine then!” Kavik yanks his hand from her back as though he’s been burned, standing up and heading for the door. “Take care of yourself then! Keep on starving yourself and staying awake for days and drinking your stupid poison tea and punishing yourself for things that aren’t your fault! See if I care!”

Before Yangchen can attempt to form an answer he’s already gone, slamming the bedroom door shut behind him. The force of it rattles the bed, and Yangchen’s bones along with it. 

She’s left reeling in his wake, shaking, tears threatening to spill from the corners of her eyes. She looks up quickly, breathing deeply, doing her best to hold off from a full-on crying session. Her headache is back. 

Her efforts don’t work. When she wipes at her face her sleeve comes away wet. Another surge of frustration washes over her, causing her to grab the nearest pillow and hurl it at the door with all her might, biting her tongue to hold back her scream. 

The pillow falls short. She buries her face against the mattress, muffling the scream she lets burst forth. 

Kavik is always honest with her. Well, besides the one notable incident. Otherwise, in the years she’s known him, he’s been honest with her, more so than anyone else. Normally she appreciates it. Somehow, this is different.

Yangchen rolls back over, dragging her hands down her face and heaving a sigh. She’s fine. She can work. She can deal with… whatever just happened later.

Maybe after she cleans up, though. She hasn’t bathed in three days, and it’s becoming increasingly obvious the longer she lays here. 

She hauls herself up to sitting yet again. If nothing else, that is getting easier. Sliding gently off the bed, she makes a hobbling pace for the door to her bathing quarters, holding herself steady on the furniture as she walks. 

So what if she isn’t up to walking unassisted just yet? She doesn’t need to walk to answer letters. “What does Kavik even know?” She mutters to herself, “Who does he think he is?”

Yangchen stands at the entrance to her bathroom, clinging to the wooden doorframe as her vision steadies. The idea of a bath is a bit daunting, frankly, as she visualizes all the steps she’ll need to take. For a heartbeat, she imagines how much simpler it would be if there was someone to help.

She brushes the thought aside as quickly as it came. She’s Avatar Yangchen, for Spirits’ sake. She’ll be fine by herself. 

~~~~

Although she no longer carries the same aroma as her beloved lemurs after her bath, that seems to be the only benefit. Her headache has only gotten worse, and the steam from the water made her woozy. 

Her hair is still incredibly damp, despite having been dried with a towel. She would airbend it dry, but even the thought of it makes her weak in the knees. She just doesn’t have the energy. 

Yangchen leans against the bathroom counter to catch her breath. Normally after a bath Kavik would bend the water from her hair, his precision with the element often surpassing her own.

Tonight, it’s just her.

She takes a deep breath, rubbing the towel over her drying hair once more. It will be frizzy in the morning, but that’s an issue for Tomorrow Yangchen. For now, she needs back in her bed until her headache subsides again. 

Putting on her robes also feels like too much effort. Instead, she carefully maneuvers herself to the drawer she keeps her clothing in and pulls on a pair of flowing linen pants and a matching loose top. She wears these as sleeping garments – if she bothers to change into them to sleep. They’re looser, lighter, and far less suffocating than the many layers she normally wears.

Clothing sorted, Yangchen curls back up on the bed, knees tucked to her chest, trying to slow her pounding heart. Her body aches with every inhale. Somehow, sleep still eludes her.

She loses track of the time she spends like this, holding herself in the fetal position, too weak to even bother pulling blankets over herself to stave off the chill of the room. Her stomach begins to growl, and when she clutches at it her head throbs in response. It feels like she’s falling to pieces. 

A soft knock on the door startles her from her bed of misery, and Yangchen peels her eyes open to look at the source of the noise.

Peeking through a crack in the doorway, Boma’s gentle, wrinkled smile greets her. “I come bearing gifts, Avatar.”

“Hm?” Yangchen’s throat is scratchy, as though she’s been crying. She honestly can’t remember if she has.

“Dinner,” Boma elaborates, stepping into the room. He’s carrying a tray loaded down with dishes, and Yangchen can practically feel the way her body perks up at the scent. “You’ve hardly eaten anything for three days, you must be starving.”

Yangchen’s stomach decides to answer for her, letting out an audible growl. Her cheeks warm in embarrassment, but Boma just keeps smiling, walking over to set the tray down on her nightstand. 

“There’s churu, momos, shogo khatsa, shom-dae, lots of balep, and butter tea. Eat up, food will help you get your strength up.”

Yangchen certainly doesn’t need to be told twice. She dives in, not caring about how she’s slurping or chewing too loudly or anything else. Boma made her a traditional Air Nomad feast, and each bite tastes like home. 

“Don’t choke yourself!” Boma chuckles, noting the cough she makes after devouring an entire momo in barely two bites. Yangchen, still coughing, grabs the mug of butter tea to wash everything down. 

It’s after her cup is emptied that everything comes rushing back. Three days, missing from her memory. Her body, hardly functioning.

And Kavik…

“Boma,” Yangchen starts softly, taking small bites of rice pudding between her words, “Can I ask for some advice?”

Boma’s smile is warm and comforting, exactly like the food he must have spent hours preparing for her. “Of course you can, Avatar.”

Yangchen can’t quite meet his eyes, focusing instead on spooning as much of the cheesy churu soup into her mouth as possible. “Kavik and I had a… disagreement earlier. I don’t – I don’t know how to make things right again.”

Boma takes a sip of his own tea. “I knew you two had argued –”

Yangchen’s head snaps up. “What? Why? Did he say something about it?”

“Not with his words, no. But he was frustrated and upset after he went to see you, so it wasn’t too hard to piece together. He offered to help me cook, but he was being so rough when folding my momos I had to put him on butter-churning duty to get some of that frustration out.”

Well, at least she hasn’t been alone in feeling awful about it. 

“What was the disagreement about, if I may ask?” Boma questions.

Yangchen’s voice is nearly a whisper. “He told me I needed to accept more help.” Saying it out loud only makes her realize even more how ridiculous it was of her to fight about it. Of course she needs more help; she needs all the extra help she can get if there’s to be a possibility of her life’s work succeeding. 

“That’s all?” Boma probes with a pointed look.

“No,” Yangchen admits after a small pause. “He also kept telling me that I need to slow down and take it easier. But how could I do that, even if I wanted to? People all over the world are depending on me to make their lives better.”

“You can’t improve other lives by making your own a misery,” Boma offers sagely. “I agree with him in that regard.”

“But I – I’m not making my life a misery!” Yangchen protests. 

“Clearly your companion thinks differently.”

“Why does he get to decide if my life a misery?”

“He doesn’t, not really,” Boma agrees, “But I am inclined to agree with his assessment. He certainly has better judgement in that regard compared to anyone else.”

Yanghcen’s brow knits in confusion. “What do you mean?”

Boma takes another sip of tea. “You didn’t see the way he cared for you while you were ill.”

“I thought you all cared for me together.”

“We did at first,” Boma confirms, “But it became clear rather quickly that your waterbending companion was… better equipped for the job.”

Understanding crashes over her in a wave. “My gift.”

Boma sighs heavily. “There was plenty of time where you were just… well, just ill, I suppose. But there were also many appearances from your past lives. Times you were up speaking nonsense half the night.”

The pieces of Boma’s point are falling into place one by one. “Kavik helped with the episodes?”

Another nod from her guardian. “He did. Better than I ever have, honestly. And besides that he just cared for you. Brought you water, made sure you were comfortable, stayed by your side. All of that, on top of keeping up with both your work and his own.”

And I just pushed him away.

Yangchen stuffs more potatoes into her mouth so she doesn’t have to keep speaking. 

Boma carefully meets her eyes. “He cares for you, Yangchen. If he thinks you should ease up, let others take on some more of your burden…”

Yangchen places her spoon on the tray, no longer hungry. “You agree with him.”

Boma sets his mug of tea in his lap to join their gazes, expression serious. “No Avatar before you has shouldered their burden alone. Why force yourself to walk this path when you have people who want to help you?”

“I’m not alone,” Yangchen insists, “I have an entire team, I have you, Boma. That’s the opposite of alone.”

“Exactly. You’re not alone,” Boma agrees, nodding. Finishing his tea, he stands from the bed, pressing a gentle kiss to the crown of Yangchen’s head. “Stop pretending like you have to be.”

~~~~

If he hadn’t stubbed his toe on the desk chair, Yangchen might not have known he was there. Kavik is good at sneaking, and he’s memorized the creaky spots on her floorboards. However, all the espionage skills in the world can’t prevent his misstep against the desk, and the pained hissing and cursing that follows that wakes her up from her nap. 

“Kavik?”

He turns to her with a wince, face shadowed in the half-dark of her room. “Did I wake you up? Sorry, I just needed to grab a few things that I left in here.”

“What are you getting?”

He glances guiltily at the desk. “Some letters that arrived this morning. I was going to sort through which ones needed a response of some kind.”

“Okay,” Yangchen agrees, “But you don’t have to leave if you don’t want to. You can stay and work in here.”

“I wouldn’t want to interrupt your rest.”

“You won’t,” Yangchen promises. She’s always found the sound of him writing to be soothing. If anything, she might fall asleep easier.

Kavik still looks unsure.

“You won’t,” Yangchen repeats, “I promise. Stay here and work. We can… talk for a bit.”

Carefully, each movement measured, Kavik pulls the chair from the desk and takes a seat. He spends a few seconds sorting through stacks of papers until he finds what he needs. Then he glances back over his shoulder, blue eyes somber.

“I’m sorry for what I said earlier.”

Yangchen lifts her eyes to meet his, heartbeat thundering in her ears. She holds his gaze, opening up every vulnerable part of her for him to see. “I’m sorry too.”

The apologies lift some of the weight from her chest, but now it feels as though they’re at a standstill. Kavik turns back to his papers, shoulders hunched. 

“You’re right,” Yangchen blurts before she can talk herself out of it. That makes him pause. “And I’m sorry for making you worry so much.”

“I only worry about you because I care,” Kavik replies softly. He isn’t looking at her, instead fishing around in one of the drawers for a pencil. 

“I know you care.”

Finally, Kavik turns around again, this time fully facing her. He tucks the pencil behind his ear. “I know you’re not used to having people care about you. And I mean you, Yangchen, not the Avatar.”

“Nobody has done for me what you’ve been doing since I lost my sister,” Yangchen affirms in a whisper. 

“I’m happy to do it for you. I want to do it for you, care about you.” Kavik takes a deep breath. “But I can’t help you if you won’t let me.”

“It’s hard to accept help when you’ve had to do things alone in the past.”

“But you’re not alone now,” Kavik adds, in a nearly identical way to what Boma told her earlier. “Let us help. Let me help.”

Yangchen slips off the side of the bed, slowly making her way over to where Kavik is working. She’s steadier on her feet than she was earlier. The food must have helped even more than she realized. 

Tentatively, she places her hand on his shoulder. His skin is warm, even through his shirt. It makes her want to get closer.

“I want to let you help more. Can you just… be patient with me? Please?”

Kavik places his own hand on top of hers, a tiniest hint of a smile curling the edge of his lips. “We can ease into it. Together. I don’t want this to keep happening, Yangchen, I want you to be okay.”

She squeezes his hand, feeling a smile of her own starting to break over her face. “I want that too.”

Something unspoken passes between them as they lean in at the same time, eyes closed, noses just barely touching. Yangchen can feel the warmth of Kavik’s breath for a split second before she closes the distance and kisses him. 

His lips are gentle against hers, kissing her back with just the right amount of pressure. Yangchen breaks from it first, already out of breath. Kavik moves his hand to her cheek, tugging her closer with the softest motion to lay another kiss against it. 

“You should probably get some sleep,” Kavik whispers, kissing her cheek again.

“I don’t want to sleep,” Yangchen laughs breathlessly. But as soon as she finishes her sentence, a massive yawn parts her jaws wide. She and Kavik lock eyes when it finishes, neither of them able to keep from laughing. 

“I think your body might be disagreeing with you.”

Yangchen has to cover her mouth as she yawns again, this one longer than the last. “Fine, I’ll rest.” After a moment of thought, she adds, “You’ll stay, right?”

Kavik takes her hand and squeezes it, fully smiling now. “Of course I will.”

She hardly realizes she’s doing it, but in a swift movement Yangchen settles herself into Kavik’s lap on the chair, sitting with her legs across him and tucking her head against his shoulder. His breath hitches in surprise, but he just as quickly encircles her with his arms, rubbing a hand gently over her back. 

“You can still work, if you want,” Yangchen offers quietly.

“Is this some kind of ploy to sneak peeks at your letters?” Kavik asks, though his tone is joking.

Yangchen shakes her head, nuzzling further into the crook of his neck. “It isn’t. I just like listening to you.”

Sitting like this, she can feel each time his chest rises and falls with his breath, every thump of his heartbeat behind his ribcage. Every part of him that’s alive, and real, and holding her close like she’s something precious. 

Her eyes fall closed when he starts to write. One of his hands keeps circling over her back, spreading warmth with every movement. The other holds his pencil steady, scratching over the paper in perfect, precise marks. She could listen to him all night. 

She’s too tired for that though, truly. When her own breathing begins to slow she doesn’t fight it, and when the darkness behind her eyes beckons her closer she lets it draw near. The last thing she remembers before sleep finally overtakes her is this – the sound of Kavik writing, and the feeling of being safer and warmer than she has in a long, long while. 

[autisticlenaluthor]

Speaking of Jackienat (always) and I’ve seen a lot of headcanons and scenarios of nat being protective of Jackie (which is get I mean look at the sad Bambi eyes) but what do you think Jackie would do during the chase scene in season 2? Them turning and hunting nat would be triggering obviously but given doomcoming how do you think Jackie would react then?

okay so before getting into jackie's reaction itself - some important context that i think a lot of people seem to forget is when jackie loses her ear, it wouldn't just affect her hearing. it would throw off her entire vestibular system. she would struggle with walking, balancing, and other gross (and possibly fine) motor skills during her initial recovery

while nat being hunted doesn't happen immediately after doomcoming - jackie's lack of access to real medical care/physical therapy would significantly slow down her recovery process. jackie wouldn't be even close to 100% by the time the hunt happens.

anyways, now that my autistic medical accuracy spiel is out of the way - jackie would still try to run after them

she wouldn't get very far. she might not even make it to the rest of the girls - wether it's because she keeps falling, or just can't keep up. but she would try her damn hardest, refusing to leave nat to the the same fate she once came so close to.

afterwards, especially in the beginning, jackie would become extremely protective of nat. it would be very similar to what happened after doomcoming - jackie would continuously call them out for how fucked up the whole thing was and she would be so disturbed by what they do to javi.

(as a side note: i'm honestly not sure if jackie would partake in eating him. and if she didn't eat him - i wonder if that would cause natalie not to eat him either. or if somehow, natalie would convince jackie that it was a necessary evil for their survival.)

i could see her even start to antagonize the others. they've already tried to kill her once and now they've tried to kill nat too. jackie might feel like they're going to die anyways, so doesn't she has anything left to lose. at least this way, she's going to die standing her ground and defending nat the way she tried to defend herself.

simulatneously, jackie would isolate herself (and by extension natalie) even further. not in an abusive "i want you all to myself" way. but she (for good reason) perceives the other girls as dangerous to natalie. and i think for a while nat would be kinda fucking terrified of them. so when jackie wants to spend all her time in the attic, away from the others, nat is right there with her.

when they're alone, jackie is apologizing to her constantly - telling her she's so sorry they did that to her, that it was all kinds of messed up and she never deserved it. it's the first time nat has ever been cared for after a major trauma and the first time someone apologizes for hurting her - even if jackie wasn't the one to do the hurting.

and for as comforting as it is, and for as much as nat wants to lean into it, jackie's words would be hard for her to accept/feel safe in. not just because of the abuse she'd faced back home, but because these are all the same things she'd said to jackie after shauna froze her out. and when nat sees so clearly the cycle they're trapped in of death at each others hands - she'd feel even more unsettled than before

[0vergrowngraveyard]

Can we PLEASE know more about the period of time Sonic benched Tails? was he conscious right after the explosion or did he get to faint through the pain? how was his recovery process? how did Sonic survive seeing his baby bro like that? did they both talk about Tails staying out of battles or did Sonic just forbid him from it? many tears and hugs involved?

one infodump coming right up!!

so tails was absolutely unconscious after the explosion and was out for about two days. no one was 100% sure he was gonna make it, but he pulled through and lived to see another day. due to the obvious reason i’ll get to in a bit, his recovery process wasn’t as good as it should’ve been. he was stressed and tried to push himself to heal faster so he could get back out there, but of course that just made his condition worse

as for how sonic stayed in one piece after seeing his baby brother in such a state? after seeing his mangled arm? after learning that there was a chance he’d never be able to fly again or hear properly or would never really be able use right side of his body at all? the answer is by a fucking thread. the thinnest thread you’ve ever seen but he held onto that thing with both hands. he had to hold onto the hope that his little brother would be okay, that he’d wake up soon

thankfully, by some miracle granted from chip the light gaia himself, tails was able to use both his right leg and tail. his hearing in that ear was definitely shot and the limbs were a lot weaker than they used to be, but a win is a win

then, of course, the dreaded decision. everything about it was messy. the thought process leading up to it, the conversation between the brothers, and the aftermath. though it was less of a conversation and more so sonic telling tails that he’s benched, no room for negotiations

in sonic’s defense, he was fucking terrified. seeing the broken body of your twelve year old little brother isn’t something you just brush off, that shit sticks with you forever. sonic was never one to set strict rules for his bro, but he never wanted to see tails like that ever again

anyway tails took it as poorly as you’d imagine. there was a massive argument between them, tails kicked sonic out of his recovery room until further notice, and his mental health tanked hard. up until the explosion, he’d been doing pretty well in that department. his confidence was rising and his poor self image was turning itself around, but all of that was thrown out the window when sonic said he wasn’t allowed to fight beside him anymore

he pretty much closed himself off from everyone for a few months, and even after that he remained pretty distant for years. he still gathered information for the restoration or sonic himself, but he was never actually on the battlefield fighting alongside his friends. he was just stuck in his lab, doing what he does best

of course, the whole benching thing didn’t last as long as sonic would’ve liked what with the whole tails going behind his back thing and the brothers did eventually make up, but there’s a smallest bit of tension between them that they don’t really talk about

but ye that’s what i have rn. very happy that people are interested in this!

[avonne-writes]

The End of John and Gale’s Journey (HS AU)

‼️ Expanding on what I previously discussed with @butdaddyilovehim99 since a few people requested it. Warning for discussions of death in old age and grief ‼️

After a very long, happy life, Bucky's health starts seriously deteriotating. Following a series of hospital visits and treatment failures, it becomes evident that this is the end of the road.

Gale knows that Bucky's dying before anyone else. After a lifetime spent together, he can tell that there will be no recovery this time.

When it's just the two of them, he and Bucky don't try to pretend it's not happening. They know each other too well and have a bond too open to pretend. To their family, they do try to say that there's still a chance of recovery. Abby is a medical doctor, so she knows what’s going on, but she refuses to believe it and accept it. She still hopes.

For John and Gale, that last period is all about trying to comfort each other. Bucky tries to make Gale smile even as he himself lies in a hospital bed terminally ill. He can’t do much anymore but Gale talks to him continuously and he can read Bucky's face, his reactions. Bucky tries to leave him with the certainty that he will love Gale even from the other side.

Gale holds Bucky's hand the whole time, scared to leave him even for a moment, scared to sleep. He tries to reassure Bucky that he’s there, he’ll always be there, that they won’t be separated for long. The last words of his that Bucky hears are "I'm here."

Bucky’s death breaks Gale. His grief is intolerable, and everyone knows that he’s unlikely to make it much longer. Matty and Abby try to convince him to move in with one of them to keep him more connected to the living, but he’s a stubborn old man, and he won't leave the place where he and Bucky spent all those happy years together, where the memories are etched into the doorframe.

Gale's mind can’t process Bucky's death. He starts talking out loud to him as if he was still there, even making up Bucky's part of the conversations and replying to questions never asked. He keeps sleeping only on his side of the bed, he sets the table for two, he buys bubblegum toothpaste. He wears Bucky's wedding ring around his neck. He gives his kids and grandkids presents with tags saying "From Daddy/Grandpa John and I."

He counts the days that passed since Bucky's death. Since Bucky was older than him by 110 days, he becomes obsessed with the idea of dying at day 110 (if not earlier). Because then, he and Bucky will have lived the exact same amount of time together and apart.

Matty tells his sister that their dad has gone crazy, and Abby says, "wouldn’t you?" They have lots of tough discussions trying to find ways to help Gale. They also handle almost everything about the funeral, with Gale's consent.

Gale is completely checked out mentally during the funeral. His kids take turns holding his hand and guiding him through it. There's no farewell video because Gale tells them that he wouldn’t be able to take it. He cries a lot when he's alone, but it's like his soul isn't even there when other people are around.

Abby begs him repeatedly to move in with her family but he refuses. Still, both of his kids, but especially Abby, visit him almost every day.

Abby figures out that if she makes plans with her dad, he will be there for those no matter what. So she keeps doing it, always making plans with Gale short-term, and Gale can’t help but want to be there for her, with her. It's because of this that, through deep mental struggle, he abandons his suicidal ideas and tries to stay around a bit longer for his family.

Nevertheless, the weight of Gale's heartbreak is too heavy to carry for long. Less than a year after Bucky's death, he follows him. At last, they're together again.

On Gale’s funeral, they play a video montage of his and Bucky's shared life, growing up and blossoming together, all those decades of happy memories and adventures. Matty gives Gale's eulogy on his and Abby's behalf because Abby knows she'd break down and wouldn’t be able to finish it.

When Gale died, Abby kept his and Bucky's rings safe for the funeral. It was the first time she got to see and read the engravings on the inside - the date of John and Gale’s wedding and "Forever yours" on Bucky’s and "I love you" on Gale’s. She lays the rings inside John and Gale's shared grave, where they're buried with her parents.

[joyful-soul-collector]

Thinking about Jayce and Viktor recovering from Top Surgery.

It took them both a while to actually be able to pay for top surgery as academia doesn't pay a whole lot, but Jayce was insistent that Viktor get his first, and insistent that he help Viktor pay for it since he didn't have other medications or anything to pay for. Viktor does this back with Jayce, who feels awful about it at first because he worries that Viktor is sacrificing too much for him.

Both of them are restless as hell and can't actually let themselves fully rest to recover. Jayce unfortunately is worse because he gets the itch to work in his forge while Viktor can more or less sit down and experiment the same way he always has

Jayce definitely ends up with super stretched scars because of this, might've even popped a stitch at one point because he tried to reach something too high. He doesn't mind it honestly, the popped stitch was nerve wracking but the irregularity in his scars reminds him of the shape of the hex core.

Neither of them got nipple grafts because that makes the healing process last for longer and they wanted to get back to work ASAP. I think Jayce would get realistic nipple tattoos afterwards, but Viktor wouldn't see the point and just leave his chest blank (like me!!).

Viktor's recovery would of course take significantly longer due to his health, it was probably 2-3 months before he could walk down the halls of the lab without getting winded.

Viktor's least favorite part of recovery was how long it took, while Jayce's was the drains. They were itchy, and it made him nauseous to empty them and measure the fluid, so Viktor likely did it for him. He did be sure to tell him "now you know how wearing my back brace feels" lol

While Viktor was recovering Jayce brought the majority of the stuff in the lab to Viktor's house and they ended up working there most of the time so Viktor wouldn't have to move too much. Anything that they HAD to do in the lab Jayce would be so so careful bringing Viktor over there and made sure he just about never had to leave his stool lol. It was a little annoying but also endearing to Viktor.

Neither of them cried on the first reveal of their chest like people do in the tik toks and videos. It was mostly a deep sense of relief, though Jayce cried about two months later when Viktor laid his head on his chest and he didn't give him the dysphoria it used to before.

When they get those sharp pains that happen when nerves reconnect over time, Jayce will get so startled he always yelps and drops whatever he's holding. He tried to get rid of it by scratching at first, but the skin was numb, so it didn't work, and he went with the next best thing, punching his chest. Viktor tells him to quit that every time. He does not.

When it happens to Viktor he'll tense up and hiss, but is a lot more gentle and rubs at the feeling until it goes away.

They got a shower chair to help with weakness while showering and Viktor loved it so much that he started using it all the time even after he finished recovering

In the end both of them honestly love each other's scars, and love their own too. They give them kisses and touch them with kindness