#there is a strong chance that i am mostly annoyed by the voice acting choices that were made but. yeugh

[loveoaths]

update: this book is kind of boring as fuck because it’s a very similar to Thrawn (2017): “thrawn is a genius, everyone else is wrong, he proves them wrong, they’re mad at him about it, oh and aliens attack.” which is, like, fine, because that is Thrawn’s entire deal as a character, and it works in short pieces. but an entire thrawn centric trilogy? i am unsure i have the mental fortitude for all of that.

also, irrelevant but annoying peeve: the guy who takes thrawn under his wing is basically just wuulf yularen but blue. i’m pretty sure mark thompson is literally just doing his wuulf voice here. mark also apparently only has one voice for pretty women and it’s the padmé voice, which is wildly distracting to hear from characters whose narrative voices and actions do not match that voice at all. also, why is samakro southern

starting thrawn: ascendancy solely to be a hater

[bitchassbucky]

.zip

Word Count: 2k

Warning/s: toxic/abusive relationship dynamics, gaslighting and manipulation, abduction, injuries were mentioned, stalking, dark!bucky x dark!reader, emotionally/mentally unstable!reader, dismemberment (not gore-y but still), three very special character mentions, shady corporate stuff, career sabotage?, food mention, sedation/drugging, f-words.

A/N: oh my god, this is the final chapter of CTRL. to all who read from the start, thank y'all so fucking much - from the bottom of my big-ass heart, thank you so much for coming along with this journey. this is my first FINISHED series, oh my god. to @babyboibucky (CTRL's number one fan), @sarge-barnes-sir, and @borikenlove thank you so much for indulging my inner degenerate GHJSDFG and for screaming (affectionately) at me when i first let y'all read the finished draft.

BUT THIS IS NOT THE END (just yet), i will be uploading TWO epilogues very soon: the explicit version and the not-so-explicit version. stay tuned!

follow the CTRL series:

i - .exe

ii - .avi

iii - .raw

iv - .png

v - .zip

epilogue:

.eps (explicit)

.eps (cut)

CTRL playlist CTRL moodboard

Your demeanor, character, even tone, changed.

Calculated, cold, unnerving.

But you sat there like a housewife in front of her husband, eating spaghetti and meatballs. Acting all dandy like there isn’t a man strapped onto the chair four feet away from you.

“C’mon, darling, eat! I made your favorite,” your eyes twinkled as Bucky helplessly tugged on his restraints, “oh, sorry, you’re tied up.”

Hm, sick in the head, bad for the heart.

“What do you want?” Oh, wow, even talking hurts for him. His throat is all dried up, he tasted something bitter under his tongue.

You chuckled, moving half a meatball around your mostly empty plate, “for you to stop treating me like I’m stupid.” You spear the meat with your fork, swirling it in the sauce, “I know you’ve been… checking in on me, Bucky.”

Oh, fuck.

“Look, I’m sorry, okay? I was-- I mean, look at you--” He’s making it worse. You’re mad. You’re angry because he was being a good friend.

He only did that because you were lonely and he’s right: you are lonely.

So lonely that you’re willing to kidnap a grown man to keep you company, “I’m so sad for you.”

“You’re aware you’re the one’s been tied up, right?” You’re curt as you should be, scooting over near Bucky to feed him.

“I can’t eat that—” If he wasn’t sitting down and tied, Bucky would’ve vaulted over you and called the neighbors, she’s fucking crazy!

You giggled, rolling your eyes as if he had the freedom to make a choice right now, “if you’re thinking of screaming… More than half of my neighbors are felons or on parole, I doubt that they’ll call 911.”

Jutting forward the fork, you let the prongs gently touch Bucky’s lips, “now, eat! We have so much to talk about.”

“No. I don’t-- I’m not hungry.” He shakes his head, the fork hitting his chin and clanking down the floor.

“Just eat the fucking food, Steve!”

Bucky flinched at your sudden outburst. The words—the name—seeping in a moment later. Steve? Who the hell is Steve? Was he your husband? Boyfriend? His head throbbed again, his mouth filling with saliva like he’s about to throw up.

You kneel down, pulling a napkin from the table to wipe the meat and the sauce from the floor.

“This better not stain.”

—

He promised thrice.

Once over pasta and meatballs, once over dessert, and once when you were clearing the table.

You relented, of course. Half because you love him and half because it’s getting annoying.

“As long as you don’t leave me, okay?”

“Yes, I promise. I won’t leave you.”

Bucky’s still seating on the dinner chair, slightly slumped without the ropes holding him up, “look, I’m really sorry about the anesthetic, I went overboard with it.” You look over to him—at least he’s regaining his fingers and arms again.

“It’s okay, babe, I wouldn’t trust me either.” If he could stand up, he’d go over and hug you. Helping with the dishes, peppering you with sweet kisses.

A genuine laugh slips out of your lips, “ugh, still… I’m really sorry.”

The last of the plates were neatly stacked, cups and cutleries were placed gently on a drying rack. It was getting late, you could tell.

“I’m not mad, by the way.” You muse, prompting Bucky to lean forward, listening to you.

“What do you mean?” He takes your hand into his, ever so gently.

“You did that,” you squeeze his hand back, gazing into his soulful eyes, “because you love me.”

Did you know that some people could read microexpressions well? Bucky went through a whole lot of them before answering, “of course, I do.”

Contemplating whether you call him out on it or not, you hum, placing a gentle hand on his jaw, “it’s okay, you’ll learn how to love me.”

He has to. He has no other choice.

Bucky clears his throat, “have you seen my phone?” His tone was hopeful, upbeat, maybe he can reach out to someone, anyone, before you can do any more damage.

“Yeah, ‘s on the couch.”

He tried to move, he really did. Bucky’s fairly strong, he can bench an easy 140 on a good day. But even the beefiest motherfuckers have no match for Propofol.

“Don’t worry about your friends, they’re not worried about you, Buck.” The coolness of your tone sends Bucky into a panic—again. “D’you wanna check your messages though? There’s a lot of ‘em.”

Grabbing his phone, you asked Siri to read him his latest notifications.

Urgent: Notice of Immediate Termination

From Joaquin: Where are you, man?

From John W.: Do you have copies?

Urgent: Notice of Immediate Termination

Urgent: Gross Misconduct

From Joaquin: Bucky, what the fuck?

From Samuel Wilson: Pick up the phone, Barnes. You’re fired.

17 missed calls from an unknown number

From John W.: I knew you were a freak but holy shit, dude!

72 text messages from an unknown number

Bucky never really liked horror movies. It made him jumpy and anxious. Too paranoid, even. But now? Now he’s sure that people have never experienced sheer fright before.

His toes cramped inside his boots, his feet were cold, sweating. The little hairs on his legs stood up, goosebumps littering the entirety of his body. If he held his breath, he’s sure he could hear his heart hammering out of his chest. The blood rushes past his ears and onto the base of his skull—he’s gonna be sick.

“What,” he gulped back the saliva pooling in his mouth, “what did you do?”

You’re irritatingly calm, “well, I mean… We’re already together, what do you need those for, right?”

Putting a warm hand over his forehead, you cooed, “poor thing, you look sick.”

—

Bucky thinks it’s well past midnight when the anesthetic wore off.

His limbs were heavy, he had to lean on the wall every couple of steps to regain his balance. Helpless. He’s helpless and you both know it. As if it’s a bear trap, Bucky carefully took his phone from the coffee table.

Why would you leave it unattended?

The screen lights up as soon as he picked up, his lock screen littered with ‘fuck yous’, ‘sicko’, and his personal favorite, ‘motherfucker.’

Ignoring the glaring messages, he went straight for the emergency dialler and—you took out his SIM card, snapping it into two neat pieces, placing it beside the phone.

Bitch.

The golden surface of the card was scratched too, he can’t do anything, use it as a toothpick, maybe? His phone was just as good as a paperweight.

He looks out of the window, limping towards it. Even if he could climb over, it would take him forever to get onto the street. Your neighbors would probably think that he’s just on a bad trip.

“It’s bolted shut. Perks of living alone as a single female.” Your voice made him flinch back, like a kid whose hand was halfway down the cookie jar.

Bucky plays it off with a cough, he can’t be weak now, “no, babe, I was checking out a noise. You ready for bed?”

You smiled softly, taking his hand and draping his arm on your shoulders as you prop him against you, “almost, big guy. Gotta get you settled in bed first. Are you tired?”

Nodding, Bucky kisses your temple, “yeah.” He just needs to play with your sick little games until he regains his strength.

Where would he go? His reputation and his job are besmirched, his apartment is probably crawling with forensics too.

“You fell down and banged your head earlier. Nasty cut on your head too. I told you to not tire yourself much.”

You hit and drugged me but I digress, “Yes, darling. ‘M sorry.”

“You scared me, Buck. I thought you were dead.” Are these tears forming in your eyes?

“I’m not leaving you, not by any chance. I promise.”

He promises a fourth time.

—

Your bedroom was bigger than he thought. But of course, he only saw your desk and your bed through the webcam.

Save from the Ted Bundy-esque corkboard you have in front of your workspace, he feels weirdly at home. You tucked him in, reminding him to wake up every two hours for the painkillers.

“You’re not going to bed?” He muses from behind you, all cocooned in your blankets.

“Just need to take this phone call real quick, babe.” Your back was turned from him as you work on your company laptop. He noticed that the webcam is covered with white tape.

The sound of an incoming call filled the room before you quickly answer it, your voice turning hoarse and raspy as if you’ve been crying.

Hi, Mr. Wilson. I’m so sorry for the late call. Do I- do I need to come in tomorrow? I just... I don’t feel comfortable facing everyone—I used all my home hours this week and—

Miss L/N, I’m glad you reached out to me. Is it okay if I record this call for security purposes? It’s just for you, me, and the HR department.

You turned to Bucky, your face is stone-cold but your voice belonged to someone so utterly helpless.

No, you don’t have to call into work tomorrow… Or any other day.

A dainty gasp and a fucking sob comes out of your mouth, your eyes were telling a different story.

Am I fired?

God, no. Please, Miss L/N, don’t worry about that. We want you with us through this entire debacle. We want you to take some time off—paid. We’ll also grant you… a grievance package.

You could almost hear what he would say next.

As long as you don’t talk to any members of the press or any journalists until our friends in the PR department can clean this up.

A triumphant smile creeps on your bare features, putting a finger in front of your lips, you mimic a ‘shh’ gesture to Bucky.

You round up another mirthless sob as the CEO drones on about the bureaucracy of this whole thing.

He was really nice to me, you know? He took me out on dinners and lunches. He even brought me to his place and I– nothing happened but I can’t stop thinking about it.

I’m really sorry, Miss L/N. I thought he was…

A good guy? I really thought so too.

Please stay offline for a bit, just for the weekend, alright? Someone from the HR department will be in touch with you for the process. We don’t wanna be a hassle more than what Barnes is. On our behalf, please accept our deepest apologies.

Jesus, this guy had the PR department cook up an apology letter.

Thank you—thank you so much, Mr. Wilson. I’ll keep in touch.

You burst out in laughter a second after the call ended. Hearty laughter, the one where you can feel your belly tightening.

“Did you hear how good I was, baby? Oh my god, we had them fooled.”

We? Fuck your ‘we.’

You slide over the covers, propping up yourself with your elbow as you turn to face Bucky, “don’t worry, you don’t need them anymore. You have me, yeah? We have each other.”

—

Out of the most bizarre things that happened to him last week, finding dismembered fingers in the fridge was the least of his concerns.

“Honey!” Bucky calls out, holding the ziplock bag with a pair of tongs.

You bound down the stairs, your laptop in hand as you squint, “what am I looking at?”

Bucky hesitated, maybe he’s going insane too, “fingers. Dismembered fingers—are these yours?”

Setting down the laptop onto the table, you peck him on the cheek, smiling as if him holding a baggie with human remains is just your Sunday normal, “god, I hope not. I need my hands to do things.”

As soon as you look back at him, you dropped the facade: “those are Steve’s. Well, used to be.”

Bucky’s afraid to ask the question where’s the rest of him?

“You know the term pinky promise, right? Well, it has a dark origin.”

Just as fast as a bustling train, Bucky rakes his brain for all the times he promised you something. Hoping that he won’t end up with a stump for a hand.

One vividly bright memory is seared into his brain though, the days blurred together with sharp edges and mismatched colors: we love how we were taught to love.

So, who taught you how to love like this?

[saetoru]

hey tee, can i ask something? so ik how frustrating it can be when anons send hate, but what’s it like when other blogs do it?? how do you handle it?? & i dont mean when they’re like directly talking to you, but subtweeting in a way…am i explaining this well????? idk but something that i hate is when people will just ask & ask & ask you to write as if you’re a machine & not a human being.

there’s a particular account that never writes (which is completely fine), and they always ask everyone to be patient & etc. but they constantly talk abt how “no one writes like they used to” or just complain abt other people’s writing in general & it’s just so sad to see bc as a creator on this app, they should immediately understand tht people are not fucking machines & struggle with writer’s block & stuff like that. she just gives off big hypocritical vibes. idk if you’re mutuals w/ them or not (hopefully not).

her writing is fine, but as a person… idk. im not gonna say who it is, but they’re pretty known on tumblr. it really bugs me when she says stuff like that and then her followers just back her up like nothing’s wrong. generally speaking, i believe u can say whatever tf u want on your own blog, but some of the stuff she says just really upsets me, especially since im starting to write on tumblr. i have blocked her, but after seeing some the things she’s said, plus the amount of people that agree with her is making me real self conscious abt my work.

so yea, how do u feel when stuff like that happens to you?? im so sry for the long ask, but hopefully you can take the time to respond. it would mean a lot! ❤️

hi bestie !! i will answer under the cut:

i just block lmao. like deadass half of a lot writers on here ??? chances are i’ve blocked them and tbh that might sound bad but if i see a discourse or a “hot take” that i fully disagree with, or rubs me wrong, i block. and that’s bc i think all of us as writers, even if it’s the smallest part of our brains, compare ourselves to other writers. so i block writers that give me bad vibes bc i don’t wanna subconsciously start comparing myself to them in a manner that makes me question myself like you said. if a writer thinks majority of fanfic mostly sucks now, well i guess they’re not reading my sucky content bc they are b l o c k e d !!!

i actually have like two or three very strongly voiced ppl blocked that always say “fanfic isn’t what it used to be” or “all fanfic is the same now” and i think personally it’s a really entitled and annoying thing to say. if someone came into a writer’s inbox and said those exact things on anon, everyone would jump to attack that anon and say “it’s free content be grateful.” i don’t think someone being a writer gives them the right to dictate such strong opinions openly about other peoples fanfic writing styles/methods/choices. even if you provide content, you’re still consuming free content just as everyone else. it’s one thing to politely offer advice as one writer to another with good intentions, but that’s very clearly seen in your tone and how you word the message. if you think fanfic isnt what it used to be, then write what you want to see ??? it’s simple.

so yeah either way i would block that individual—maybe i already have them blocked too who knows LMAO i hope i do. but i wouldn’t let it get to you because tbh in my experience ppl who have the most to say about other writers have the emptiest masterlists 💀 the rest of us are too busy focusing on our writing to care about what other people are posting and whatnot. block them, block their friends that agree, block anyone else that agrees with them. LMAO i’m not saying this to act like “ur always right and everyone else is always wrong” but tbh if u just block all the ppl ur disagree with, then at one point ur dash will just be peaceful

take it from me !! the girlie that is blocked by like 75% of this app !! just remove people you don’t wanna see. filter their urls, unfollow ppl they heavily interact with, curate ur own experience without being a bitch. rant to ur friends, get it off ur chest privately but like don’t subpost them in a rly obvious manner and start more drama bc it’s just always gonna be a mess that way.

and tbh there’s a lot of things that ppl in a fandom community can and should come and discuss in a civil manner without peoples feelings getting hurt like meta and popularly flawed characterization patterns, but i think bitching about the “quality” of fanfic is a rly nasty thing to openly complain about bc it’s just unwarranted and discouraging. a lot of people are on here for fun, not to write new york times best selling novels, so just let them have their fun :/

[talpup]

I just found read your crossroads fic over on Ao3, and damn sweetheart, I am in LOVE with this classy mob styled version of Overhaul you have going on. The smut in that last chapter was abso-fucking-lutely to die for! But I really need to know something about his character in this story. He was obviously a virgin, but r there any specific kinks he’s been thinking about or planning on trying with her?

*blush* THANK YOU!!!  You can blame my good friend and favorite Kai fanfic author @inorganicone2230 They’re the one that spurred me into having the idea for this fic and then (like they’ve done with all my bnha fics) encouraged me to write it and brainstormed with me.

Yes, Kai was a virgin. Though his skill level might test some folks suspension of disbelief (something I try not to do too much in my fics, even though I write mostly fantasy).

Kai’s kinks in this fic might be fairly tame by our standards.  But it is a 1920′s era au fic.  Don’t really know if they’re kinks; but Kai would love to spank Maya then bend her over his desk and…

...so I don’t know if you saw my post.  But I decided to do a short smutty scenario thanks/inspired by this ask.  So here you go.  Sorry it’s so short.  Between having my ‘poison juice’ (aka infusion) last Friday and unexpected visitors yesterday and the day before I’ve been kinda wiped.

FYI this little scene would take place after things settled a bit from the last and (eventual) upcoming chapter.

WARNINGS: spanking, non-con, creampie, cockwarming;  Please remember, this fic is rated explicit and has warnings of sex, violence, and other possible triggers.  For a full list of story tags please check the fics AO3 (link to that at the top of my tumblrs homepage).

Promised Pleasure

Removing his dust mask as Maya entered his office, Kai frowned at her attire. “That’s not what I told you to wear today.”

Maya’s shoulders tensed.  She foolishly hadn’t expected her choice of clothes to be an issue.  She should've known better.  Still, her pride wouldn’t let her apologize.  And she knew Kai would sniff out any lie.

Deciding a gently put truth was best, she stepped further in his office.  “I felt like wearing this.”

Kai’s golden eyes narrowed.  She was testing boundaries again.  And her testing was trying his temper.  “Close the door please, my Dear.”

Despite the politeness of the ask, a shiver ran up Maya’s spine.  Mouth suddenly dry, she turned and closed the door with a shaky hand.

“Lock it.”  Kai ordered, voice taking on a twinge of sharpness.  He had called her in here hoping for a nice diversion.  But with his beautiful girl acting so spiteful he would have to resign himself to giving her a lesson.

Maya’s hand paused on the door.  The hair on the back of her neck prickled.

“Maya. Lock the door, Darling.  You know how I dislike repeating myself.”

The slow scrape of the lock setting in place deafened Maya to everything but her ragged breathing and thundering heart.  She didn’t hear Kai’s next words.  So when she turned back around, it was to find him looking more annoyed then ever.

Smothering her nerves, Maya met Kai’s piercing gaze head on.  “I’m sorry. Did you say something?”

Unlacing his fingers, Kai sat back.  “I told you to come here.  This is the second time I’ve had to repeat myself.  I won’t do so again.”

Maya shuffled hesitantly toward Kai’s desk.

Kai pushed back and slightly turned the chair he was sitting in.  “This side.  Come around near me.”

She moved around the desk, stopping a couple paces from his spread legs. Skin prickling under the caress of his roving gaze, her breath caught glimpsing the bulge in his pants.

At least Kai always brought her pleasure.  Unlike the disgusting landlord who had used her and left without care or glance after.  Kai always made her feel special.  Beautiful.  Loved.  In those moments of heated bliss she lost herself and forgot she was doing this solely for justice for her brother.  Basking in Kai’s twisted affection and the delightful pleasure he gave she’d start to believe she truly cared for him in return.  That they could make something of this.  Possibly enter a real relationship that wouldn’t end when he did as he promised and saw those who killed her brother put down.

Maya stared at the tailored suit jacket hanging over the back of Kai’s chair.  Anything to avoid seeing the twitching cock in his pants.

“Why don’t you serve me some water and unbutton my vest for me, Sweetheart.”

It wasn’t a question, or even a suggestion.  Maya knew well enough it was an order.  But with Kai’s honeyed tone and adoring gaze it was easy to trick her mind into believing there would be no consequences for disobedience.

Turning over a heavy tumbler that sat on a silver tray at the end of his desk, she took up the crystal carafe and poured.  Setting the glass in front of him, her fidgeting hands fell to her side, smoothing her skirt.

Her delay in following his second commend had Kai rising to his feet. Maya stepped back even as she hurriedly reached for his vest, seeking to rectify the offense.  Kai grabbed her wrist before she touched him.

Maya grimaced at the too tight grip.  “I’m sorry.  I--”

Kai pulled her roughly against him.  Maya stumbled, heels catching on the plush area rug.  She fell against his chest.  His expensive cologne assaulted her nose.  She loved the smell but hated smelling it as she only got a whiff when Kai had her in his space.

Suddenly gentle, Kai’s strong arms steadied her.  “Careful, Sweetheart. We don’t want you hurting yourself.”  He caressed her cheek, brushing the hair out of her face with a tenderness that didn’t match the blazing fire in his amber eyes.

Maya held perfectly still, struggling not to flinch. The way Kai flipped from loving and sweet to caustic and hurtful on a penny dime was what frightened her most about him.

Smiling, Kai’s head dipped.  “You’re so beautiful, Darling.  So soft and beautiful.”

His tender lips graced hers in a chaste kiss.  Maya’s lashes fluttered closed accepting the kiss, thinking she had escaped his anger.  Her body jerked at a sudden tug.  The sound of something ripping rang out in the room.  A sudden cold strike of air hit her front torso pebbling her nipples.

Maya’s eyes shot open with a gasping cry.  Kai had rent her blouse and camisole open.

“If you refuse to wear what I tell you to.  Maybe you should be left with nothing to wear at all.”

“Kai… I’m--”

Kai cupped her cheek.  “I don’t want to hear it, Sweetheart.  You apologize and apologize but keep on going astray from the clear, defined rules I’ve set.  My love for you has seen me be more than patient.  But I’m afraid my patience has come to an end.”

Maya stumbled again, her world spinning as she was quickly turned and shoved down against the desk.  The glass of water she served slid off the surface and fell to the floor.  It’s crash accentuated Maya’s surprised cry.  Mind reeling, she didn’t feel the splash of water soak her hose.

“Ka—ah!” She broke off with a scream, senses assaulted by the sound of her tearing skirt.  The cold hard desk against her breast and torso and Kai’s painful grip on the back of her neck.  Her nose burned, eyes watering from the lingering smell cleaner that clung to the polished surface.

Hand still holding her down, Kai dropped her ruined skirt.  His freed hand slid over the silky slip she worn.  So soft, he mused.  But not anywhere as soft as the flesh beneath.  That covering was pulled down along with her panties.

“Kai! What are you--”  Maya broke off with another shouted cry.

The crack of his hand hitting her ass echoed about the room.  Maya’s back arched at the blooming fire but was roughly pushed back down against the desk.

“Stay, my Love.  You wouldn’t want to upset me further and earn yourself another lesson after this.”

Wiping tears from her eyes, Maya tried to look back at him.  For a moment she swore she saw a horrid bird-like beast in place of her handsome tormentor.  But the monstrous vision was gone quicker than she could blink.

“Le—le—lesson?” She stammered.

“For continually testing your bounds.”  Kai leaned forward, low rasp tickling her ear.  “I’m afraid this will hurt, my Dear.  But know, that it will hurt me to do it more than it’ll hurt you.”

Ass still stinging from the first spank Maya doubted that.  By the third strike she was certain Kai enjoyed it and was glad for the chance to discipline her supposed disobedience.  Confirmation of his delight came when he paused after the fourth hit and ran a hand over her blazing butt-cheeks.

Kai’s fingers traced the red marks, trailing over the rising welts.  He loved Maya’s perfect, soft skin.  But there was a possessive pride in seeing her flesh temporarily marred by the work of his hand.  It sparked something primal in him, turning his tender caress into a rough, digging grope.  She was beautiful, his beloved.  A perfect little darling that would fit so well beside him in the new wholesome world he was working to usher in.  Or at least she would be once she learned to listen and obey without hesitance or question.

No one but him could touch her.  Certainly no one else was allowed to see her in such a weakened and debauched state.  Kai growled at the thought, fingers digging into the meat of her ass.  He would gouge the persons eyes out.  Cut out their tongue, and break their knees and fingers.  Then grant them a slow, painful death for having seen his darling like this.  Because this…  His other hand loosened and trailed down her neck, slinking around her side to cup her breast, reveling in the weight as she lifted a bit thinking they were done.   ...this was for him, and him alone.   His throbbing dick ground against her raw ass.

Maya’s lips pressed together between clenched teeth, biting back a cry at the burning pain.  Halfway into righting herself her back bumped Kai’s chest.

Weight rested on his hand planted to her side on the desk, Kai’s chin hooked over her shoulder.  “Think you’ve learned your lesson, Beautiful?”

Breast heaving with a shuddering breath, Maya nodded.

“Doesn’t appear so.  You know how I prefer worded responses.”

“Yes!” Maya expelled.  “Yes.  I’ve learned my lesson.  Please, Kai. I’m sorry.  So very sorry.  It won’t ever happen again.”

Kai’s knuckles glided down her back.  Other hand gripping her hip he pulled her blistered ass against his leaking erection.  “Why don’t we test that?  Bend over, Sweetheart.”  Annoyed as he was by her hesitance, he smiled lightly.  “Either you haven’t learned your lesson.  Or liked it so much you want another.”

Before Maya could respond she was pushed and held down on the desk.  Her eyes shot wide at the resounding spank.  Fresh tears sprang from her eyes as they squeezed shut at the sharp boiling pain.  “Kai! Please!  I’m--”

Another hit landed.  Then another.

Kai stopped after the tenth.  Staring down at her trembling frame he had a moments regret.  He should have made her count.  Next time, he told himself.

He loosened his tie and unbuttoned his vest.  Amber eyes skimmed over his handy work.  Just when he thought she couldn’t be more beautiful…  Even her mix of drool and tears puddled on the desk were lovely.

Lost in the consuming tumble of dull thudding pain accentuated by sharp stinging bursts, Maya didn’t hear the jangle of Kai’s belt being undone.  She jolted at his hand slipping between her legs. Whimpering as his prodding fingers dragging through her folds.

Kai frowned at the minimal moisture.  Usually Maya got so wet for him. It wounded and upset him.  But before those emotions could take root his eyes drifted back to the pool of saliva on his desk.  His heart lightened.  Even with her punishment his darling had thought of him and his needs.  Proving she loved him as much as he loved her.

He leaned over her and kissed her tear-stained cheek.  “Thank you, my Dear.  You’re so sweet and good for me.”

Maya’s lashes fluttered.  She watched Kai’s hand trail through her drool, gathering it.

Bringing his wet hand to his freed length, Kai slathered her saliva over his shaft.  He grimaced, skin prickling with the beginnings of a inch. But soothed himself that was Maya.  She was clean.  Worthy.  His.

It’s like indirect oral, he thought with a steadying breath.  The prickling itch diminished then fully disappeared as he focused on Maya, pumping his fist to fully wet his cock.

Lining up his cock he leaned back over her and kissed her shoulder.  “You’ve had you’re punishment, Darling.  And you took it so well.  Now, let me remind you of my love and the pleasure I can give.”

Maya’s shining eyes flicked to Kai’s.  Her brow furrowed.  Was it the light?  Or was there a dim otherworldly glow in those honeyed depths? The image of the demon Dabi’s bright burning eyes flashed through her mind.  But it vanished in an instant from the breach of Kai’s fat cock head.  She would've cried out at the burning stretch if her breath hadn’t seized in her lungs.

Kai hissed at the pull of his sensitive skin.  Maya’s drool helped. But it didn’t provide the smooth silky glide her delicious arousal did.  Wanting the discomfort over with he snapped his hips flush against her, driving his length in her tight hole.

Fully sheathed, Kai slowly exhaled.  His eyes closed, head rolling back. Taking a moment to simply feel, he basked in her velvety embrace.  This would never get old. Slipping his aching cock into Maya’s perfect, tight pussy.  Feeling her walls stretch to make room for him then flutter as they adjusted to his penetrating presence was something that consumed his thoughts; just like everything else about her.

Maya mewled the most pitiful whine beneath him and Kai lost it.  His darling was just so sweet.  So beautiful.  So helpless.

His hips pulled back and slammed right back against her.

If asked, Maya wouldn’t have been able to say if her scream was from the hard thrust or Kai’s pelvis pounding into her blazing red backside.

Her back arched, lifting her off the desk.

One hand gripping her hip, Kai’s other hand grabbed the back of Maya’s neck and shoved her back down.  Never once did his ramming thrusts stop.

The once dulling pain of Maya’s welted ass sharpened again.  Fresh tears seeped from her eyes.  Kai had lied.  He had said she had her punishment.  The pain was suppose to be over.  But every thrust was just another spank.  Until…

Kai’s feet shifted.  Angling his hips he hit that spot in her that had her seeing stars.

Pleasure mixed with the pain.  The rough scrape of his trousers zipper didn’t hurt as badly.  Even the occasional jab of his belts buckle didn’t make her want to crawl up and die.

Kai almost reached around to finger her clit.  But an idea struck him. It was scandalous.  But so was fucking his darling over his desk.  He groaned, cock twitching at the thought.  His pace sped seeking his own release without a care for hers.

Maya rocked against the desk.  Her hips started to push back against him despite the blazing pain to her ass.  A different kind of heat pooled in her belly.  But just as the coil started to tighten another warmth filled her.

Kai thrust deep inside Maya, cock coming alive.  He grunted, pushing his hips firmly against her, driving her against the desk, seeking to get even deeper as hot ropes of cum spit from his pulsing cock.

Building orgasm lost, Maya deflated atop the desk.  Her nails clawed at the polished surface, hands balling into weak fists.  Though grateful it was over, she couldn’t help but be bit bitter about Kai’s second lie.  ‘...let me remind you of my love and the pleasure I can give.’ Yes, she had felt some pleasure.  But she hadn’t gotten her full pleasure.

She waited for Kai to pull out.  When he didn’t she looked back at him.

Kai greeted her with a smug smile.  “You didn’t cum.  Did you?”

Maya’s mouth fell open.

Before she could respond, her torso was pulled up off the desk.  Heated as his skin was through his button-up shirt, Maya shivered the instant her back touched his chest.

Kai’s arms wrapped around her.  He held her firmly against him, keeping his cock snugly inside her.   His lips brushed the shell of her ear. “Did you think I forgot about my promise, Sweetheart?  I said I was going to remind you of the pleasure I can give.”

Keeping her glued against him, Kai retook his seat.  Head a whirl of confusion, Maya barely grimaced at the discomfort of his softening cock shifting inside her.  The heated pain of her abused butt numbed by her racing mind trying to figure out what Kai was doing.

Soon enough she got her answer and wished she never had.

“I’m a man of man word, my Love.  What do you say you keep me warm while I do some work?  Then I can give you that promised pleasure.”

After this, Kai might develop a breeding kink to go with spanking, rough office sex, and cokwarming.

Comments and reblogs are always appreciated.

Thank you all for being so patient with me and the posting of this fic.  Special thanks to Anon for the ask and inspiring this one shot.  And as always, an extra special thank you to @inorganicone2230​ for being the best fellow writer friend (and friend in general) and encouraging and brainstorming with me.  I mean it when I say I would’ve given up posting long ago if it wasn’t for your support.

[razorblade180]

Twin Snowflakes pt12: A Guest

“Nicholas? Niiiick? Nicky, wake up sweetie.” Said a voice called out through a void of darkness. It felt...familiar. He knew that voice. Where was he?

“Nick, open your eyes”

‘My...eyes were closed? How’d that happen? Last thing I remember was the exa-‘ the haze started to clear. ‘The exam! Val! Summer!’

The darkness slowly faded into light. Intense, blistering light. Nick felt his body began to move as if he was sitting up until a thump hit his head and felt himself fall back down on something soft. “Ow…” the hit felt like walking into a door. Nick’s vision finally cleared up and the first thing he saw was bright green eyes and orange hair right above him.

Nick:Penny?

Penny:Hello Nick. Your head okay? If I knew you were going to sit up so fast I would’ve made sure to move.

Nick:Talk about hard headed. Wait, if you’re here then am I in a lab?

Penny:No silly.

The girl helped Nick sit up; this time moving out the way. He was still in his clothes from earlier and the bed looked like it should be in a hospital. As well did the curtains around him. “Wait a second. I’m…” he pulled them away to see identical beds and a little office desk across the room. Each bed was empty but the one right next to him which held his sister. Summer looked at him a bit tired. Pillows propped her up and made leaning against the wall comfortable. A cup of half eaten yogurt was in her hands.

Nick:.....

Summer:What? Not used to being in the Nurse’s office? Count your lucky stars. That bed you’re in is the comfiest one.

Nick:I….you….what’s going on?

Penny:Simple! You passed out! Been that way for almost two hours.

Nick:Two hours!?

Summer:Why are you saying that like it’s a problem? That’s short, like incredibly short.

Nick:Not as short as yours apparently.

Summer:Well….Shiva has her benefits.

Just saying that made Summer a bit annoyed. She slumped down a little in her bed and stirred her yogurt.

Penny:Between genetics, aura, and some other factors, I’m not surprised you both are already awake from your triumphant battle!

Summer:(Wouldn’t be how I described it.)

Nick: Triumphant? We passed!?

Penny:With flying colors! I heard from Harriet as soon as she called me to treat the three of you. Needless to say, she was very impressed.

Nick:Speaking of three, where is Val?

Summer:She wasn’t as drained as us and bounced back pretty quick. She left as soon as she could move.

Nick:Aww, it would’ve been nice to celebrate together. I need to tell her thanks again since I begged her to help. Just like now I have to learn whatever song you have in store for me.

He gave a smile that made Summer a bit happy. A duet with him was something she was looking forward to, but it didn’t help her bruised self esteem. Summer gave Nick a fake smile to him before choosing to lay down. Her hair slightly hiding her face.

Nick didn’t fall for that cheap smile for a second, but he also knew now wasn’t the time to pressure her about it. If she was in a mood like this then he could only imagine what Val might be feeling. Hopefully she was fine.

Penny:Uhhh Nicholas? There’s something I’d like to ask you about. *pulls out scroll* Your match was recorded by multiple people and I saw something I found pretty interesting.

Nick:We got recorded? Honestly that shouldn’t surprise me.

Penny:The crowd was very energetic from the sound of it. Take a look.

A projection of the recording springs out of the scroll for a fuller view. Nick watched the playback of him and his team flipping around like some sort of acrobatic performance. The crowd seemed to love it though. Then came the part where Summer got hit. He looked at his sister who didn’t say anything about it. Then came Valerie’s defeat shortly after. His eyes studying the glyph he had made in order to summon the Gigas.

‘How’d I do that?’ He pondered quietly. Figuring out what he did differently this time from the others was going to be tough. The video continued until Penny paused it right where he was controlling ice blades that seemed to spin around him and obey his movements. A slight blush showing on his face appeared as Penny grinned happily at him.

Penny:They say imitation is the best form of flattery. Most of your moves are undeniably learned by your parents but I can’t help but think you had another inspiration in mind.

Nick:Hehe, I was panicking a bit in the end and all I could think about was overwhelming it with swords. Looks like I was influenced by you.

Penny:It has been quite some time since I’ve done any real fighting so I’m glad I left a strong impression from what you’ve seen. I would love to teach you some basics whenever you want.

Nick:Really? You’d train me a bit!?

Penny:Why of course! Lab work is important but it does get a little tedious and repetitive unfortunately. Teaching sounds like a splendid way to change up my routine.

Nick:I might take you up on that offer. Thanks Penny!

Penny:It is my pleasure! I enjoy supporting the two of you where I can. Oscar feels the same. I’m almost a little jealous about how much he praises your strength and conviction Summer.

Summer:He….thinks I’m strong?

Penny:He’s not the only one. Truly you are quite exceptional.

Nick:Yeah she is! She’s my sister after all. I can’t tell you how many times she’s kicked my butt.

Summer:....May we please have the room to ourselves Penny?

Penny:Huh? O...kay. Let me just-

Suddenly the nurse door flew open and hit the wall. “There you are Nicholas!” Everyone immediately turned around and saw Eliza standing with her hands on her hips and her eyes beaming angrily at her school president.

Nick:Why hello Mrs. Marigold. T-

Eliza:Cut the crap. You get the information for the play or what?

Summer:Play?

Nick:....Are you not aware I’ve been doing an exam?

Eliza:I’m aware that you got rag dolled by choice because of how impatient you are.

Penny:(But isn’t she acting the same?)

Nick:Listen it doesn’t even matter. I just told you all that stuff to get you off my back.

Eliza:You what!? But-

Nick:Relax. Have faith in your president. Isn’t that part of your job as secretary? Scrap the whole play idea; Summer agreed to a concert.

Summer:H-Hello…

Eliza:Wait, you’re actually going through with it? No flaking or half assing this time?

Summer:I wouldn’t do that for something so important. You...you have my word!

Eliza:Hmmmm

Nick:Can we have this discussion another time please?

Eliza:By another time do you mean doing what you want while the rest of us adapt? Fat chance! You do realize by not accurately informing me of your plan I’ve wasted precious time making a list of proper things we’ll need for nothing! What am I supposed to tell the other members!?

Summer:She has a point.

Penny:Indeed, you have possibly wasted resources.

Nick:This meeting was the other day. How much work could you have possibly-

Eliza chucks a scroll right at his face. Nick flinches in pain as the device hits his nose. He picks it up and to see a list of concepts Eliza had worked on. Then he scrolled down, and down, and down…..

He kept going for minutes until he eventually gave up on reaching the bottom. Nick could feel her stare on him.

Eliza:That much. That much work. Unlike you, I don’t get a slap on the rest or the luxury to slack of. I’m not a Schnee.

Nick:....

Summer:That’s..not fair. Nick does a lot for this-

Eliza:Your money and name does a lot for this school. Yes the two of you have gained achievements on your own right but out of fun or convenience. Not because you acted in the interest of the school. If you bothered to school let alone a meeting then you might notice these things; sending in your treasury report via Nicholas shows just how much you actually care.

Summer:I care...honestly.

Eliza:Then start acting like it!

Nick:Hey, don’t yell at my sister. I promise we will-

Eliza:To hell with your promises! Prove me wrong by keeping me in the loop. From here on out. The quality of your work is never the problem. I’m sure this concert idea will be amazing, but if you expect me to even show up to help set up or catch any mistake then you two will personally ask me. Because I’m not going to be proactively crossing your t’s or dotting your I’s. My time can be spent doing other things. Like making sure I get enough practice in to knock that royal bum of yours right out of the ring dear president.

The room fell silent with that declaration of war. Penny watched Nick stand from his bed then hand his challenger back her scroll. He didn’t look upset or exactly thrilled either as he stared up into Eliza’s golden eyes. He could tell that all that anger was mostly frustration and mostly exhaustion from the dark rings under her eyes. Even her signature pigtails were undone. ‘I’ve put you through the ringer huh?’ He thought, slightly guilty.

Nick:You got yourself a deal. Good luck with training. The jump from third place to second is steeper than you think.

Eliza:Guess I’ll overshoot and try getting to first. Be sure to protect that pretty face of yours. I might feel bad scaring it. I’m going home. *walking away*

Nick:Why were you even after school? You always get your work done.

Eliza:I thought that would be obvious. I heard an idiot in my grade had tried talking the expedited exam with two more idiots. Someone had to make sure their parents were informed in case of an emergency. Now go home and get some rest. Your sorry state is bad for morale. *leaves*

Penny:I probably shouldn’t say anything but by the time I’ve gotten here, Eliza had gathered whatever medical supplies I might’ve needed. As well as given me the recording. I think she might’ve been rooting for you three. Or at the very least wanted you to learn from this experience.

Nick:She wants no doubt in her mind if she manages to beat me. Or that’s what I think. She benefits from this tournament even more than us. It’s no mystery why she wants it perfect.

Summer:Then that lecture she gave makes her look like a hypocrite. So much for the pride of the school.

Nick:This school is probably more of a home than her actual home. Mr. Marigold never struck me as the nurturing type. I suppose that’s more reason why she’s so uptight.

Penny:You could stand to be more….aware. Spreading yourself then and tunnel visioning on problems not necessarily your concern tends to make you oblivious to simple solutions.

Nick:What? Not sure I quite understand.

Summer:(Of course you don’t…) Hey Nick…?

Nick:Yeah?

Summer:(Tell him...tell him the truth. He’s your twin for crying out loud. Just…) let’s go home. It’s only going to get colder and I wanna walk.

Nick:Alright. Let me just get my things.

Summer watches him gather his things quickly; ignoring any soreness he might have. A glance in Penny’s direction shows a similar expression of concern and sadness. She couldn’t tell who it was directed towards though.

Summer:(I’m so….)

Pathetic….

xxxx

“Maybe….if I told you then. Things would not have gotten so dire. My dear brother who would stop the world for me if need be. I should’ve let you into mine. Why didn’t I let you in?”

xxxx

It was the afternoon, the roads a little backed up from workers going home. Valerie looked at the busy traffic lights through the passenger window. Stewing in her thoughts.

Ren:You okay? Haven’t heard a peep from you since you got into the car.

Valerie:I’m fine.

Ren:Try again.

Valerie:I’m extremely upset.

Ren:There you go.

Valerie:Did you see the video?

Ren:I did. It looked intense.

Valerie:Then you saw how poorly I did?

Ren:I saw how much effort you put into it. That’s something to be proud of.

Valerie:I was a burden.

Ren:Without you then the battle would’ve been lost. Summer and Nicholas couldn’t have shined without you.

Valerie:We barely passed and the only one shining at the end was Nick while I played victim.

Ren:So are you mad about your performance or the fact Nick was the one who bailed you out? Not that there’s nothing wrong in basking in a bit of limelight.

Valerie:You know I don’t care about that sort of thing.

Ren:I know, winning is your motivation. So are friends, but your friend winning for you all has you upset?

Valerie:You make it sound so strange.

Ren:It is when you are a sports player that always plays support. Didn’t matter if it was soccer, hockey, or football. You took pride in defending your team so they can score. Even your semblance is remarkable for keeping any team you are on as strong as possible.

Valerie:This is different though.

Ren:Would you be saying that if Summer landed the final blow, or was the one saving you?

That struck a nerve. One she couldn’t deny but refused to admit. Valerie opted to ignore her father. A tactic that only proved him to be on the right track.

Ren:He’s gotten stronger, that Nicholas. These days you two seem more equal than ever besides height. I remember when-

Valerie:Dad, what are you doing? Just shoot straight with me please?

Ren:Don’t let whatever people might be saying at school tarnish your relationship with him. You should be happy seeing him get stronger and independent; willing to return any help you gave.

Valerie:People think he’s great enough as he is and always tell me how lucky I am to have him but it’s never the other way around. Him saving me is only going to make people talk more.

Ren:So you would rather get injured and be of no help to anyone than let Nick save you? Also, are you saying that you don’t feel lucky to have such a person in your life.

Valerie:Of course I’m lucky to have him! Nicholas is so kind and sweet. Not to mention grateful! Just before the exam he told me how lucky he was to have me in his life. There is no one else besides Summer, no, even Summer agrees that he should get nothing but the best in life. It doesn’t change the fact that it’s annoying how people see me as an accessory whenever we are together.

Ren:....

Valerie:*red* But not together, together.

Ren:I didn’t say anything. So, what you’re saying is you’re upset that him getting stronger would make you feel like what everyone says about you needing him true?

Valerie:Exactly. Which is why I can’t lose that tournament. Staying on top is too important.

Ren:If you say so.

Valerie:.....Why do I have a feeling you’re disappointed in me?

Ren:I’m not disappointed in you. I just hope you take more time to really evaluate what you’re implying and what it actually means. You owe that not just to yourself, but Summer and Nicholas as well.

Valerie:You can’t just tell me?

Ren:If I did then it wouldn’t stick. Just know Nicholas cares about from the bottom of his heart and sees your accomplishments as that, yours. I think that means more than what any gossip floating around your school means.

Valerie still didn’t get what exactly her father was trying to get at. Even so, she could feel her cheeks getting warm from his words. Nicholas caring about her wasn’t new information. It was what everyone knew since forever. Another piece of the problem. She would say it was terrible but it wasn’t. It was simply confusing, and she felt weird? That’s what it always came back to in the end. Thinking of him felt weird and confusing

Ren glanced over and saw his daughter in a clear state of not being at odds with herself. Making similar expressions that his wife did countless times thinking about him.

Ren:(You’ll figure it out. Hopefully)

xxxx

Summer and Nick didn’t speak much on the way home. The twins were too busy processing today’s events. They had accomplished their goal but the ending had soured their experience. Nick found himself with more work while Summer was sulking.

It wasn’t too long before they made it to the manor gate

Nick:Phew! I don’t know about you but I could use a hot shower.

Summer:Go right ahead. I might skip one tonight: not feeling up to it.

Nick:....Weren’t you going to tell me something before Eliza showed up? Now is the perfect time. I doubt mom and dad will just let us sneak to our rooms.

Summer:It’s alright. It wasn’t too important.

Nick:Summer you’re not, mad at me are you?

Summer:Huh? What makes you say that?

Nick:I don’t know. You’ve just felt distant lately. I figured I did something wrong.

Summer:No, just a little burnt out. It’s pretty frustrating to see you perform a full summoning. I'll admit that. It seems like I’m always just missing people’s expectations. If only I could’ve done just a bit more.

Nick:You know that win would’ve been impossible with you right? I used the ice you made and the arm you managed to cut off.

Summer:Capitalizing off my effort and actually pulling my weight are two different things Nick. If I won a match because you tossed me your sword, would you say you really helped?

Nick:Point taken. Still, it’s not like I knew exactly what I was doing. It sort of happened. I doubt I could do it again without training. Adrenaline won that match honestly. Like I said earlier, you’ve kicked me butt before. You’re stronger than you look.

Summer:Yeah well, I’m glad one of us thinks that.

Nick:Don’t be like that. I bet even Veronica would- uhhh Summer?

Summer:Did you realize you were about to say something incredibly wrong?

Nick:No, well a little. That’s not what stopped me though. Yang’s motorcycle is parked in front of the house.

He pointed through the gates and there it was, clear as day. Along with two helmets. One yellow, and the other black with yellow stripes. Summer felt a headache coming on.

Summer:Son of a-

Nick:It could be Blake!? Then again, she always grabs the purple hand black helmet. Also Vee did mention about aiding in tournament setup if she could.

Summer:You’re not helping. I’m sneaking through the back. Keep her distracted.

Nick:Don’t be like that. It’s been awhile since we’ve seen her. Besides, I bet she’s tired from her trip.

xxxx

Summer:.....

Nick:Well I’ve been wrong before. Heheheh..

The two stood in the living room and saw Veronica stretched out on their couch, watching the fight recording. Specifically the part when Summer gets sent flying. The two hear a subtle snort followed by chuckling and what sounds like a pencil scribbling away.

Veronica’s ears perk up and she turns around to see Nick who’s face palming and Summer clenching her fist.

Veronica:Well look who’s back? Hello Nicholas! *swaying tail*

Nick:Hey Vee.

Veronica:I see you’re looking just swell after an eventful day. *turns head* Summer….

Summer:Veronica…..

…..

Veronica:You ate shit today huh?

Nick:Sigh...

Summer:Couldn’t help yourself huh? Then again, self control isn’t really your style.

Veronica:I’m just not afraid to be direct unlike a certain pop star.

Summer:I also do alternative rock, some acoustic. I’m multi-talented like that.

Veronica:If you say so.

Summer:What’s that supposed to mean?

Three minutes in and already testing boundaries. Worst yet, Summer had folded her arms and took a stance that Ruby has once described to Nick as the “OG Weiss” mom was apparently a lot to deal with when Ruby first met her. The attitude Summer got around Veronica was pretty uncanny. Yang and Ruby’s words, not his.

He was thinking about nipping this in the bud but they both seemed to be too tired to actually get into it. Maybe the trip had wore Veronica down because she went back to playing the rest of the video and laying down and Summer walked off.

Summer:I’m going to shower.

Nick:I thought-

Summer:I’m going to shower Nicholas.

Nick:Take your time. I’ll wait.

Veronica:Aren’t there like five showers here?

Nick:They share water pressure. Did you really have to antagonize her like that? We’re having a bit of a rough day. A calm welcome would’ve been nice for once.

Veronica:*folds ears* My bad. I’ll hold my tongue next time, for you.

Nick:Will you?

Veronica:Do I ever lie to you?

Nick:Not that I know of. Wouldn’t see why you would though.

Veronica:Then you have your answer.

Nick:Good to see you’re still coy as ever. I’m gonna change into something comfy. Please have something different on the tv when I get back.

Veronica:Oookay. *smiles*

Nick:Nice outfit by the way. Purple looks good on you. *leaves*

Veronica:*red* Huh….guess mom was right. Geez, now I really have to be on my best behavior.

Part 11

[nightowlfandom]

Yandere! Ignis Scientia- No One Can Keep Me Away (Part 2)

REQUEST FROM PROMPT LIST- RIGHT HERE!

Warning- Killy stabby, yandere goodness!

READ PART ONE HERE!

Leggo!

...

“Thank you Y/N!” the street vendor took the bundle of bright yellow flowers wrapped in newspaper from you. “How did you find these!”

“I’ll never tell.” You winked. “You know that I never reveal my secret spots.”

“Oh I know.” She waved you off. “May I just say you seem so much more different than when I last saw you. What’s your secret?”

You couldn’t really say, especially since you weren’t so sure yourself. You had realized you had been in a much different mood over the course of the last several days. “I’ll let you know.” you chuckled to yourself. “Well, I’ll see you later!”

“Of course! Thank you for the flowers!” she called as you skipped off. With one last wave you had turned around the corner. You only had one stop left! You clutched onto your flower basket, walking down the steps to get into the other parts of town.

“Gladio come on! We already have enough cup noodles!” you overheard.

“5 IS NOT ENOUGH, NOCTIS.” you heard again. You turned your head to find Prompto, sitting on the hood of a car, and Noctis trying to drag Gladio by the collar. You tried to find the fourth and final member of the team but he was nowhere to be found. You were kind of hoping you would see him.

“Looking for me?”

You whipped around and found Ignis standing there, arms crossed.

“Oh! Um-...H-hi.” You tried to act nonchalant. “I was just-..I mean...yeah, I was looking for you.”

“Hm, well in all fairness, I was looking for you too, Y/N.” Ignis said. That statement alone almost made your heart flutter. “I am met by an amazing sight indeed.” he chuckled.

“Thanks, Ignis.” you stared down at your shoes for a second. Just as you looked up, you noticed how close Ignis was to you.

“Still thinking about that night, are you?” He smirked. He raised his hand up to graze your cheek, trail his fingers down your neck. “ I can’t get the image out of my head. Of you, aching and trembling under my body-”

“ignis.” you whisper yelled. “What if someone heard that.”

“I wouldn’t care. That didn’t stop many from hearing our activities before.” he chuckled. “ I fear my comrades were made very aware of the noise we were making.” he wiggled his eyebrows.

“Oh...” you shook in your shoes as Ignis moved his hand to tuck some hair behind your ears.

“Hm...If I didn’t know any better I’d say you were ready for me again.” he chuckled. “Hm, maybe we’ll have the chance to play together a little later.”

“Ignis!” you flicked his shoulder. “You shouldn’t say this things out loud.” you groaned. “Are you going somewhere?”

“Yes,” he replied. “ Important matters. Why? would you find yourself missing me?” he asked. “I’ll return soon, I just have some matters taken care of.”

“Like what?”

Ignis had to think of a lie. What could he have possibly said to make you believe him? If he had told you his true intentions, you’d for sure be scared or try to stop him.

“A hunt.” he found himself saying. “We’re on our way to complete a hunt for some gil.”

“Oh. Be careful okay?” you looked up. “I heard those hunts can get pretty intense.”

“You have my word. There’s no better man for this job.” he assured. “Until we meet again, My sweet Y/N.”

“A-alright.” you nodded. “Before you go-” you cut yourself off. Did you really want to do that? How would he react?

You stepped forward and quickly pecked his lips. Not even two seconds. Before you could pull away, Ignis held onto your cheek, returning your affections. You stepped back, inhaling sharply.

“...I’ll see you later, Iggy.” you stammered.

You skipped off, hoping no one could see the embarrassment on your face. Ignis smirked in your direction, which was soon followed by a determined scowl. He dug in his pocket and pulled out a slip of paper, reading over it.

“Now...where are you?” he scowled.

...

You were in the hotel lobby,flipping through a book. You were sure you were going to spend the night here again, mostly because your family wasn’t back home and you didn’t feel like being alone.

You couldn’t help but hear whispers from behind you, You turned around to see two older women, pointing at you and whispering, “I think that’s her.”

“Damn, she doesn’t look like she makes much noise.”

“I’ll have what she’s having to be honest, they woke me up with how much banging there was”

“And that’s my cue to leave!” you mumbled to yourself. Before you could get up though, you noticed Gladio bursting through the doors, looking like he’s seen a ghost.

“Has he gone crazy!?” he mumbled to himself, walking right past you.

“Hi Glad-...io?” you raised an eyebrow. Prompto was next in pursuit, mumbling something about how “someone wasn’t gonna like this.”

“All for a bracelet, are you kidding me?” you heard Noctis next. That could only mean.

You turned your head to the door and saw Ignis charge in, throwing whatever amount of Gil was in his hand at the man behind the desk. He was hunched over so you couldn’t really see him, but you recognized his hair anywhere.

It was like he was completely oblivious of you standing there, worry strewn across your face.

“Ignis?”

“Y/N! Excuse me a minute, I must clean up. I look a mess.” he said quickly before practically running off before you could say anything else.

Wha-Okay, now you had to go after him.

...

“Ignis? Are you okay?” You asked outside the door. “You’ve been in there a long time. Is everything alright”

“Y/N!” you heard Ignis’s surprised voice. “Um, when did you get here?” he asked from the other side of the door.

“Just now, it’s been a while. Are you good in there?”

“I’m fine, thank you. Do not worry about me.” you could hear rumbling and rushing from the other side. “I’ll be out on a minute.”

“..Ignis..open the door.” You said.

“Y/N please just...wait a moment.” What was he trying to hide? Why was he trying to keep you out.

“You open the door...or I will.” you hand was already on the doorknob. You heard silence. “Fine then.”

You threw open the door, taking several steps inside. To say you were taken aback was an understatement. Ignis’s clothes were soaked in blood, blood that obviously was not his own.

“Y/N! I told you to stay outside!” he looked as if he was caught doing something he shouldn’t have been. “It’s an absolute mess in here”

“I can see that. What happened in here!” the smell was too strong. “It’s e-everywhere.” You took note of the familiar looking bracelet on the coffee table. Also stained in blood. It’s was a rare one of a kind bangle. You knew who it belonged to. “Is that...” You walked past Ignis who had rushed up to you.

“Y/N please, it’s an absolute mess in here.” Ignis shut and locked the door. His eyes locked onto you as you picked it up.

“It’s Sennen’s bangle.” you said, carefully studying its decorative edges.

“You mean your bangle.” Ignis said from behind you. You turned to look at him.

“What?” you were confused. “What do you mean my bangle.” You asked in confusion. What was Ignis talking about, you were too confused to notice the guilt written so obviously on his face. “I never said-”

“You didn’t have to...she admitted it herself. She said I’d have to rip it from her cold dead hands before she even thought about returning it to you. So...I did what I had to do.” he confessed. He obviously couldn’t lie, so he had to be honest.

“Wait, what? You said you were going on a hunt today.” You raised an eyebrow confused.

“I didn’t lie Y/N. I did indeed go on a hunt, but not for an animal.” he replied.

“Y-you.... You hunted down Sennen?” You took a step back. “You killed-”

“Y/N-”

“NO!” You snapped back. “Why would you do that? What did she ever do to you?!”

“She hurt you is what she did to me!” Ignis snapped. “You can hide it all you want but I know she’s the one responsible for way more than that scar over your heart!”

“....I never told you that.” you stammered, putting a shaky hand over your chest. “I didn’t tell you that much about my past.”

“You didn’t have to.” Ignis took the bangle from you. He twirled the bangle in his fingers. “I forced her to tell me, she eventually led me to many others who’ve....taken from you.” he growled lowly. Just thinking about it, infuriated Ignis to no end. How dare ANY worthless piece of flaming shit even think about laying a finger on someone as wonderful as you.

“Ignis...You didn’t.” You shook your head. You refused to believe it.

“Oh but I did....” he nodded in response. “I had no choice.”

“What the hell do you mean you didn’t have a choice!” you found yourself screaming accusingly. “You do have a damn choice!”

“Do you not understand?!?!” He snapped. “I do all of this for you!” he growled. “Everyone who had ever been a problem, an issue...an annoyance I’ve gotten rid of. For you!”

“...When you say ‘get rid of’...” You trailed off. “You don’t mean.”

“Oh but I do. I don’t kill or main for my own enjoyment if that’s what you’re going to assume.” He snarled. “I have my own reasons. Those of which are personal.”

You had realized it too. Those who have either done wrong to you, bullied you, or so much as even annoyed you had either went missing, or didn’t even look you in the eye. Over the past few days, it’s like some people were even terrified to do so much as look at you.

“That doesn’t change the fact that you killed her!” you replied, pointing accusingly at him. “You’re a murderer!”

“But you’re safe...are you not? That’s what I do, protect. If that woman’s intent was to hurt you as you said...then you should be content that she is no longer around.”

“I said she I didn’t want her finding me, not that she should die!” you fired back.

“Oh no, Even I know it’s much deeper than that and even for that, she simply must pay...” he replied, using what was left of her clothes to wipe the blood off his blade. You wouldn’t ask where a patch of her shirt came from... “You can try and lie all you want, but I’m not an idiot. I know about the others...I know everything.”

Your head was practically spinning. He had seemed so different before, not murderous and crazy. “....You stay away from me.” You said weakly. Your voice began to crack. “P-please just-”

“Wh-what...” Ignis’s face fell. When you backed away again, he suddenly realized it. You thought he was going to hurt you. Or worse. “No...No Y/N I would never. “

“How do I know that.” your voice got weaker. When You first had met Ignis, you impression of him was way different, but now you didn’t know how to feel. “I don’t...”

“Yes you do!” he put a hand on your shoulder. “Y/N I would never even do so much as dream about laying a finger on you you know this.”  

You hesitated, still refusing to get close to him.

“Look at me.” he slipped his glasses off his face. “Look into my eyes, Y/N...and know that I would never hurt you on purpose...”

“I c-can’t.” you shook your head.

“D-do you remember that night? Our first night together... Remember what I told you?” he asked.

“Of course I do.” You said warningly. “Pretty hard to forget given the circumstance.”

“I said that whatever it took, I would protect you. My blade is for anyone who tries to do you harm, NOT to do harm unto you. You must believe it.”

“...No...I-” you weren’t sure if you could believe your own words. You wanted to trust him, trust what he was saying. It was kind of hard to when he was covered head to toe in the literal blood of your enemy.

“Please.” his voice wavered. He sounded as if he was on the brink of tears himself. You finally looked up and almost gasped. Ignis’s eyes were red. You hadn’t noticed it before but it looked as if he barely gotten any sleep for a while. Did he always look like this? You followed every feature of his face, the green of his eyes, the curve of his nose, his jawline. The way his lip quivered as he tried to assure you he had no intention of hurting you in any way.

“I just-.....Ignis...Ignis, you’re hurt.” since his sleeves were rolled up, you noticed a cut going up the length of his arm. It was deep. Sennen and whoever else must have put up a good fight. “Ignis...” you breathed, watching his blood dry up.

“I’ll be fine.” he shook his head, but you had already bolted for the bathroom to grab the conveniently placed first aid kit. You soon returned. Ignis studied your every move. Even in the face of potential danger, some part of you trusted him enough to help him. Not that you were in any danger.

“Sit down.” You yanked off your jacket, not wanting to get it dirty. Ignis sat on the edge of the bed, holding out his arm towards you. He didn’t want to protest in fear of you leaving.

Neither of you spoke a word, nor said anything as you cleaned up his wound. You were too focus on making sure all the blood was cleaned before you wrapped it up. Thank goodness it didn’t need stitches, any deeper and it would have. You couldn’t help but notice how Ignis clenched his fist as soon as the alcohol soaked cloth touched his wounds. You jumped a little, ceasing your movements. He didn’t look at you, in fact he made it a mission to look everywhere except you.

He was beating himself up inside. He had let you see the worst of him at the worst time. His intent was to do it without a hitch. Kill her, then clean up the body. You were never meant to see it obviously. But you did. It was literally ‘a bloody accident’

You silently cleaned his wound, not speaking. It was a little awkward to. Ignis finally looked up once he was sure you weren’t gonna turn your head. Your eyes were narrowed in pure concentration despite the tears he could see streaming down your cheeks. You were still scared, but why would you help him? Why didn’t you run away or tell him to get lost?

“Y/N...” Ignis finally said.

“What?” you snapped harshly, looking at him. He used his good hand to gently caress the side of your face.

“Y/N...” Ignis’s fingers trailed down your cheek. Your face softened, feeling your lip quiver again. Slowly, with shaking fingers you brushed a stray hair from his face.

Were you trusting? Believing? A complete and total idiot? Did you really believe him? Call it stupid, but yes.

“Come to me, into my arms.” he whispered, wrapping his arms tightly around your waist. His leather gloved hand ran through your hair as you nearly went limp. “Hush...don’t speak.” he cut you off just as you opened your mouth. “Just let me-”

He could heard you trying not to make a sound, well...trying not to cry. You weren’t made or scared of Ignis, it was just too much. You felt his lips touch your cheek.

“No more killing.” you said after a while.

“Y/N-”

“No. Ignis...if you want me to stay in your life, no more killing, no more bad things.” you pleaded. “I can’t handle it, and I won’t.”

“You have my word my sweet.” he sighed. “I promise.”

All you could do was nod in response.

“...May I?” his forehead touched yours. His thumb feathered over your bottom lip. He felt at ease when you nodded. Despite being covered in blood, you wrapped your arms around Ignis’s neck as he kissed your lips. Your heart felt as if it was about to give out any second.

...

You made it a mission to just be alone today, you were just...not feeling it. It felt like you were running, but in reality you were just....healing.

“Y/N L/N!”

“Brenna?”

You raised an eyebrow. Brenna was Sennen’s younger sister, who also just so happened to hate your guts as well. She was standing there in the flesh, with some guy behind her. Both of them were glaring at you.

“What did you do to her!” she snapped.

“Excuse me?” you raised an eyebrow.

“We know you had something to do with Sennen going missing!” she snapped.

“Excuse me! In case you didn���t know. SHE ATTACKED ME!” you fired back. “Or does everyone just forget that there’s two sides to every fight.” you seethed. “I won’t argue with you about this.” you huffed. “Her disappearance has nothing to do with me. Is that all you people do, is blame others for your dumbass mistakes.” you scoffed.

Well...it was technically the truth. YOU technically had nothing to do with her disappearance.

“No, you’re gonna tell me where she is, or I’ll gut you like a fish.” the man threatened, dawning his sword. Brenna held up a large blade, a scowl painted on her face.

“You can try, but I assure you it won’t end well for you.” you reached behind your back to wrap around one of your daggers. They hadn’t left your side since you had received them.  You knew her trick, she was repetitive in her movements. It was her weakness. She charged for you, sword high above her head at full force. You simply took a step to the left out of her attack range which sent her stumbling to the floor. Ha, idiot.

“Listen Brenna, you don’t want to do this.” you tried to reason with her, but she wasn’t hearing it.

“Oh, really and why is that?”

“Because it wouldn’t end well for you.” a voice that was not your own spoke.

Ignis.

Another angry male stormed from the shadows of the bushes, fury very evident in his eyes. “I wouldn’t do anything stupid if I were you.”

“Ignis? What are you doing?” you asked in confusion.

“Getting you out of trouble, love. You shouldn’t have left without telling me.”

“And just who are you?” Brenna barked. The man who had been standing there walked up behind Brenna, obviously ready to protect her, should things go south.

“The last face you’ll ever see if you lay even a pinky on Y/N.” He snarled sinisterly.

“Ignis no!” you stood up. “You promised!”

“ARGH!!!” Brenna was stabbed with her own weapon, multiple times, and you saw everything. Gross.

“YOU SON OF A-”

Ignis picked up the guy by the neck, lifting the shorter male off the ground.

You took the time to rush to Brenna’s side.

“Listen, I know you hate me but-” you dug in your pocket and found a tiny potion bottle. “Here.” you put it in her good hand. “If you don’t run, like right now. He’s gonna-”

“BRENNA!!!” you pained heard screamiing.

“ADAM!” she screamed back. Hm, so his name was Adam...interesting.

“You have to go.” you helped her to her feet. “Before he’s done with-”

“Y/N....” you heard a low voice call your name. He sounded upset. “What are you doing?”

“GO!” you snapped, pushing her good shoulder.

“Sennen said you weren’t to be trusted.” Brenna whispered.

“We can talk about that later, NOW RUN YOU IDIOT!” you snapped, watching her disappear in a cloak of black smoke, thanks to that potion you had given her.

You turned around, seeing Ignis’s clothes (once again) smeared in blood.

“I-is he?” you motioned to that Adam character.

“No.” Ignis shook his head. “He isn’t. You got very lucky Y/N.”

“I can take care of myself.” you crossed your arms. “B-but thank you.” you found yourself saying.

“Hm, you’re welcome.” Ignis gave you a slight smile. “You shouldn’t have came out here on your own.”

“Like I said, I can take care of myself. I don’t need a protector.” you shook your head. 

“Hm, but you do.” Ignis denied your claim. “You can’t go anywhere without me.”

You raised an eyebrow and looked down at Adam. He was still breathing. “Shouldn’t we heal him?”

“He’ll be fine.” Ignis shook his head.

“I don’t know.” you walked towards him. “He looks-OH MY-”

You were taken aback with Adam grabbed your leg and attempted to stab you. Lucky Ignis was there or he would had succeeded. 

“I was going to leave you alive but you leave me no choice.” Ignis growled.

“Ignis no!” You scrambled to your feet. “You promised!” But it was too late. Ignis had finished him off. You had no idea what else to do but runaway and bolt into the forest. He promised you. 

and he lied.

“Y/N!” you heard Ignis’s voice follow you. You ran as fast as your feet could carry you. “Y/N, Get back here!”

Why were you even running in the first place? You were a coward, simple.

As you ran, your shoelace got caught on something and send your plummeting to the ground. You groaned in pain, rolling over on your back.

“Y/N!” Igis had found you trying to crawl your way through the forest.

“No! You get away from me!” you snapped. “You promised me!” you accused, pointing at Ignis. “Ouch!” 

You stared down at your leg. great....You sprained your ankle.

“Y/N...” Ignis sighed, kneeling down in front of you. “Do you see what happens when you try to leave and run away?” Ignis hugged you closer to his chest tightly. “You are too fragile...too important. You can’t be away from me, not even for a second without getting into trouble.”

“Y-you...” you found yourself choking on your own sobs. Sure, Adam had tried to stab you first but it was the principal of the thing. “You’re a murderer! I hate you!” You sobbed. “I hate you!” You repeated. Despite expressing your hatred for Ignis, and calling him a dirty murderer, you clutched his shirt tightly and buried your face in his chest, taking in his comforting scent. “I hate you.” you cried weakly. “I fucking hate you.”

“...Do you really?” Ignis whispered, planting a kiss on the top of your head.

You wordlessly shook your head. You didn’t hate him, you couldn’t. But you now knew just how far he’d go...

Could you really accept that?

...

Hello!!! How is this going so far? Should I do a part three? 

[sasuhinasno1fan]

Snipets of a Red Ranger and Blue Ranger- Klance Week Day 4

I’m a simple girl, I see ‘Rangers’ I think Power Rangers and I am not sorry. And yes, it’s Samurai Rangers, I liked the season, sue me. @klanceweek​ Rangers, Cow, Lawless

Lance was restringing his bow, trying to tighten it without it snapping, which it had already done twice. Usually he wasn’t so distracted but he had a good excuse. What else was he supposed to do when he found out one of the biggest secrets the Red Samurais were hiding?

There was no easy was to explain his unique family line other than that they were the longest line of Power Rangers that existed. The appearance of some other Rangers, who hoped from the future to the past, had unintentionally unleashed another dimension filled with monsters known as Galra. Their world, the Netherworld, sat on the bank of the Sanzu River, water capable of destroying everything. A lord and his band of samurai went against these creatures and through their perseverance and using written talismans, they accessed the Morphing Grid, giving them the look and protection of the Ranger uniform and turning the talismans to Symbol Power. When the era of samurai ended, the lord made the samurai his retainers. And so, as time passed, the children would take their families place when it came time, defending their home. When the Red Ranger had first discovered a symbol to seal the Galra away, he was able to do so, allowing the group to split up and live not fighting for their lives.

They all eventually led back together back when his dad was his age. The seal had been cast again at the cost of the Red Ranger’s life, but it wasn’t strong enough. It became the next generations’ job to end this 19-generation long war. Lance didn’t think he’d be the one to be doing it. His main focus was to become one of the first biracial members of the Japanese Olympic archery team. He was close to, until every one of his siblings decided what they wanted mattered more and dumped the youngest with the responsibilities. His father tried to force him by stating that the Dragon Origami would only listen to Lance, but he that was a lie. Everyone else got off but because he was the last one, he had to obey orders. He put up a good fight, staying away from his family and proving himself to be Olympic material. But the seal officially broke the day of his biggest competition and even when he ignored the summons arrow, Lance was kidnapped by the Kuroko, the shadows who served the samurai families, and thrown into a car. He might not have wanted to be there, but he wasn’t an asshole who would walk away when people needed help. He did make his position very clear, his father had to get one of his siblings to take his place because he wouldn’t stay.

Once everyone heard his whole story, they were mostly understanding, including their leader Keith. Hearing him promise to talk to his dad almost seemed too good to be true but he’d heard him calling his dad. Then it made sense when Allura told him the big secret.

Keith, wasn’t born into the Red Ranger line, because the pervious Red and Pink ranger did the biggest no-no. they had a kid together. to make sure there was always a Ranger from each family line, they were instructed to not fall in love with one of their teammates. Keith was actually the kid of a Kuroko that somehow had caused the Lion Origami to react to him. Allura was technically the Red Ranger who could cast the Sealing Symbol. Her weekend shopping trips, were actually trips to a secret temple where ancestors of the same people who helped their lord discover the Sealing Symbol would teach it to her until it was perfect.

Keith was willing to help him, because technically he wasn’t supposed to be doing this either. He was just a stand in until the time was right. Lance still didn’t know what to do with this information. He was glad they trusted him with it, but it was only cause they all thought he’d be leaving.

“Lance?” Keith called from the other side of the door as he knocked. “Can I come in?”

“Yeah.”

Keith came in, closing the door behind him. He dropped down on Lance’s bed, looking at the mess of the low table that was covered in archery care stuff. “Guess I know why you disappeared after we got back from the baseball game.”

“It was a little league game and baseball makes no sense.” Lance threw out, feeling tense. He knew why Keith was here.

“So, Allura told me she talked to you when you guys were keeping an eye on the kid’s house.”

“Yeah, talked.”

Keith always looked so self-assured and confident, that to see him so unsure and nervous was weird.

“I hope your not upset that I’m doing this for Allura. My father was killed during a Galra attack and he was getting civilians out of harms way. Allura’s dad took me in, even when everyone said I wasn’t worth it. They kept pushing him to marry someone so he’d have a kid to carry on the Red line, but even knowing that it would be Allura, he still treated me like I was his kid. So, I don’t mind being a stand in for her. If it mostly keeps her safe, then I’ll do it.”

Lance let out a huff. “Wish my siblings cared that much. You’d give up everything to help her but everyone expects me to drop everything to make them happy. I won’t say anything, if that’s what you’re worried about.”

“I know. I get why you want to leave, but the Blue line is usually the second in command and in my opinion, someone who’d still help even when he wants a way out is a pretty worthy.”

Lance was honoured. How was he supposed to still act like a spoiled child when someone who didn’t even have to led a team and take the most hits did?

“Thanks for the compliment but,” he said instead, plucking at the string on his bow, “the Olympics are waiting for me.”

“Fair enough. And thank you for keeping this secret. We’ll tell them eventually.”

“They’ll understand.” Lance reassured. He was sure they would. It would be the 4 of them against everything. He just wished he’d be there to help if it went badly.

                                                    __________

Getting mind controlled was not fun. Just that morning things were going great. He and Keith had a sparing match and he was so close to actually beating Keith and Keith told him his dad would finally come to the Samurai House and talk. Then that annoying big talking mind controlling Galra made a mess of everything. All it took was a hit and he became a mindless drone who turned his sword against his friends. He was lucky Keith was able to snap him out of it with that burst of Symbol Power but his dad thought it was a glaring sign that he needed to stay with the team. So, he might have been thinking of maybe staying but he wanted it to be his choice, not forced by his dad. And now his head hurt more.

“Lance?”

“Come in.” he called, keeping his arm over his eyes.

He heard Keith turn the light off before he felt him tap at his arm to move it. He let out a grateful groan when he felt an ice pack drop on his face.

“I’m sorry things didn’t go well with your dad.” Keith said, the bed dipping as he sat down.

“You know, I’ve actually considered staying.” Keith stilled but stayed silent, letting Lance continue. “My whole life I’ve always been the scapegoat or had things taken just to satisfy the older ones. Much as I want to, I can’t be too mad at Marco and Veronica, they had good reasons. Everyone else, not so much. I just want one major decision in my life to be made by me.”

That sat in silence as Lance calmed down and hoped his head would stop hurting before Keith asked something.

“If you do decide to stay, would you consider being my second in command?”

Lance laid there, trying to decided if Keith was serious just from his voice alone. “I’ll think about it.”

“That’s fine. Do you want me to go?”

And leave him stewing in thoughts he didn’t want to hear? Not a chance.

“Tell me about your dad.” It was the first thing that came to mind and for a moment he was gonna take it back when Keith started talking.

“He was probably one of the only Kuroko who couldn’t cook.”

                                                   ___________

In a turn of events, Lance knocked on Keith’s door. The fight against the half Galra Lotor was finally over and they were getting closer to defeating them. They’d see how much farther they could go once Shiro was able to unlock the Black Box, but for now, while Keith recovered, they could breath.

“Come in.” Lance opened the door, his eyes drawn to Keith’s exposed back as he struggled to pull his shirt off. It was getting harder and harder to not get a crush on Keith. He had to keep reminding himself that it was what got Allura’s parents into trouble in the first place. He was starting to see why they had the problem in the first place. How was he supposed to stop how he felt?

“Need help?” Lance offered.

“Sure, second-in-command.”

At dinner, he announced he’d stay with the team and publicly accepted Keith’s offer.

He was able to get Keith’s shirt off without aggravating his wounded arm too much. The view of his chest was distracting.

“I’m glad you decided to stay.” Keith said, pulling his eyes up. “It would have been hard to form the same bond with one of your siblings.”

“Yeah. I’m glad I did too. Finally feels like I can make my own decisions and not get looked down at.”

“You? Never?”

God, it was the compliments, it had to be. How else would he feel like a shy person when around Keith at times? They stood there, staring at each other when Lance couldn’t take it anymore. He kissed Keith. Keith didn’t push him away, if anything, he tried to pull him closer as he kissed back. Lance was careful as he rested his hands on Keith’s neck, not wanting to pull away when he did.

“We shouldn’t.”

“We really shouldn’t.” Keith said, using a finger to pull Lance back in and kiss him again.

This was so against the rules. Then…why did it feel so right?

                                               _______________

Lance was getting ready for bed when a quite knock came to his door. Keith slipped in when Lance opened the door. The hallway was already dark and Lance would bet that Coran would be by any minute to come check on them.

“Hi.” Keith said.

“Hey.”

The air was slightly tense. It wasn’t because of all those secret kisses and hard to keep promises about waiting until the war was over. It was what happened on that island. A small island an hour’s boat ride away that had cut off contact with the outside world because a Galra had burned a fear making talisman. The new addition to Zarkon’s crew, Sendak, had invited a Galra who believed in the blaster as opposed to the sword. It was like watching the era of samurai die, but thankfully Bandor, the same kid who led them to discover the hidden Bull Origami, had created a blaster to use with their swords. At the sight of Lotor still alive and standing had pushed Keith into overdrive. The fight had been bad and Keith got hurt. Words that Lotor said about Keith being just like him had gotten to him. Lance considered them lucky he was able to find them after Keith took off. Things were tense when the whole fight was over and they hadn’t talk anything out.

“Here.” Keith handed him a bag from LOFT. In it, was a lightweight scarf. Similar to the one Lance gave Keith as a makeshift sling and that he dropped when he went after Lotor. “I know it’s not the same colour but…”

It was red, close to the red Keith’s favourite jacket was. It was a claim and an apology.

“I shouldn’t have run off and I should have listened to you. You were right, I’m not like him, but the thing is…he’s kinda right.”

“What do you mean? Keith you can’t actually think that you care more about fighting than anything else.”

“It’s not that.” Keith started to look how he did when he first came to talk to Lance about the big secret involving him and Allura. “It’s more than just how we see fighting. It’s…down to our biology. He might have given his soul to become who he is, but…I was born like that.”

“What are you saying?”

“Lance��I’m half Galra. That’s why I kept taking Lotor’s words to heart. I didn’t want to be like him, lusting for battle.”

Half Galra? Like Lotor?

“But Coran said the House is warded against Galra. How are you not hurting right now?”

“It’s for full blooded Galra. That’s another reason most of the people who were here during your dad’s time didn’t like me. My dad was ‘spellbound’ by a female Galra. Somehow, they had be and she gave me to my dad to keep me safe.” He put spellbound in air quotes. “My dad wasn’t spellbound. My mom didn’t follow under Zarkon’s control and was actively looking for a way to be human. I don’t know what happened to her, just that I wanted to be the same kind Galra she had to be for my dad to fall in love with her. But Lotor’s words-”

“were wrong.” He should so be paying attention to what Keith said. He was half Galra, like Lotor, but he couldn’t find it in himself to care. The guy in front of him was Keith, his leader and the guy he liked. He fought like hell for his team and he deserved nothing less than his support. “The only thing you share in common with that guy is being half Galra. But you’re living proof that you don’t live in obsession.”

“Well, I do have one obsession.”

Lance looked confused when he realised what Keith was talking about and went red. “Oh, you mean me. Well, can’t blame your good taste. Just know that Lotor is wrong about you. When you tell the others, they’ll see that.”

Keith gave Lance a thankful smile before leaning up to kiss him.

“I thought we said no more until after the war?” Lance said, though he just wanted to pull Keith back for more.

“How am I supposed to wait when I have the best thing here? It’s starting to become hard to not kiss you all the time.”

“Good, I’m not the only one.” Lance said, capturing Keith’s lips again.

After the war, after he told his secrets, whatever. Lance knew what his next big life decision was. To stand next to Keith for as long as he could.

[elydraws]

01 │きせい かげ よこちょ

pairing: dabi x oc

genre: angst, action, dramatic, lemon (maybe future smut)

word count: 2.2k

masterlist

part 1/?  <previous next>

warnings: strong language

author’s note:  as I have already warned in the presentation chapter this is a translation of my original fanfiction (written in my language), so I hope there are no big mistakes, however I wanted to try to write it in english hoping it won't make your eyes bleed. （；´д｀）ゞ

forgive me if there is any mistake, I am not very good at translating, so if you have any suggestions about it, it is absolutely welcome.(｡･∀･)ﾉﾞ

"Stars, hide your fires;

Let not light see my black and deep desires."

┈┈┈┈․° ☣ °․┈┈┈┈ 01 きせい かげ よこちょ (kisei kage yokochō)

THE NEON SIGNBOARD WHIRRING ABOVE HER HEAD LIKE AN ANNOYING MOSQUITO.

The writing 'Flamingo Night,' of bright pink, flickered reflected on the puddles on the ground. The rain had wet the garbage thrown out of the bins already full to the brim. The smell of rancid and mildew saturated the narrow alley she was going through.

She twisted her nose, trying not to notice the acrid stench of spoiled food. In that part of the city, despite the proximity to the center, it was not difficult to come across abandoned streets.

Few dared to venture into that area of ​​the commercial district unless you wanted to take the risk of getting ripped off.

As much as the heroes boasted that they made cities crime-free, there were corners of them still in the hands of the gangland. They were well hidden, concealed by the lights of the skyscrapers, and far from the cameras and residential homes for families.

Mostly they were suburban neighborhoods patrolled only by the police or small groups of minor heroes. 

Everything took place under unsuspecting or corrupt eyes, masked with signs such as that of the 'Flamingo' or the small night market at the end of the street.

Without evidence and moving in the shadows, the villains in the area could not be arrested. The omerta of who lived there allowed the crimes to be committed even in the light of the day.

Nobody saw or heard anything at 'Kisei Kage Yokocho.' Kisei Kage was a slang born just before the Age of Watchers to indicate the neighborhoods in the hands of criminals who used their quirks to sow panic among those without Meta skills. With the Vigilantes and later the Heroes legally recognized by the government, the areas under the control of the underworld had drastically reduced, reaching a few frightened alleys and some shops scattered here and there.

They were the thin and blurred gray line between the significant organized criminal gangs and ordinary citizens.

A life lived like rats in the sewers. You know they are there, that they move under your feet. Sometimes you can hear them scratching in the ground, but you don't realize it until one sneaks between your feet. A miserable existence, perhaps, but a choice for many of them was a privilege.

It was a cruel world: if you were lucky enough to call yourself 'Hero,' you were allowed to do everything, and you could observe the rest of humanity from above, judging it. Power was in their hands.

If they decided you were the bad guy and rebelled, they had a chance to kill you. Take your life without blinking an eye and without consequences.

The government, on these occasions, set its gaze elsewhere. Sometimes the mayor even patted the hero on duty on the shoulder and complimented him for his excellent job.

"Thanks for making the roads safer."

That sounded very like: thank you for getting rid of the trash.

They were none other than this in the eyes of society.

Garbage.

Nobody had ever bothered to ask why. At the end of a clash, journalists had eyes only for the hero; nobody had ever approached a villain asking: "why are you doing all this?".

No one care about a Villain's past or his reasons. What pushed him into the shadows of the alleys, in the darkest meanders of the human soul.

It would be too tricky to humanize the category, to go to think that there is something else underneath or that their idolized Heroes are not all knights in bright armor, and the Villains are not those monsters that move under the bed at night, while everyone is asleep.

It would have been too much to handle for the fragile minds of those who only ask to be safe in a world where only the one with the strongest Quirk can win. A society divided between black and white.

The girl stopped in the middle of the alley. The tip of her sneakers touched a puddle, wrinkling it.

Her figure distorted, becoming unrecognizable, illuminated by the pink neon sign. If this was what she was destined to become, so be it. She would get her hands dirty because she was already born stained with an unforgivable shame in the eyes of society. It was her future. Her fate was sealed even before she was born.

The daughter of a Villain can only aspire to become nothing but rubbish.

At the end of the road, bordered by two tall buildings, the headlights of the cars on the main highway darted at high speed, leaving a bright trail.

Although it was late in the evening, the main streets were still full of life, the voices and waves of laughter rang among the constructions, up to her.

She looked up, and her eyes, in the darkness of the alley, shone like amethysts when they met the soft light of the shy street lamp in the corner. A moth continued to fly close to it, unable to land.

"I'm tired of the games, come out, you've been following me for a while now" the girl's voice sounded bored but sweet and inviting like honey for flies. 

The sentence remained suspended in the stillness of the alley.

A rat, around the corner of the Night entrance behind her, pawed towards a dumpster. Something must have frightened him, but, other than the rhythmic dripping of the water from the rusty fire ladder above her head and the distant echo of the city, there was no other noise to interrupt that glacial calm.

She didn't even make an effort to turn around when a can was kicked against the wall next to her and bounced off the center of the alley.

"Uh-oh, someone's in trouble," murmured a male voice behind her.

Another joined the first, very similar, but harder and hoarser, "I DID KNOW! you are truly an incapable!"

A lonely figure, however, emerged from the shadow of the building.

The girl smiled, her lips, adorned with a matte dark brown lipstick, rose to one corner showing the tip of the canines as white as pearls.

She had noticed the man's presence since she left the establishment for her latest job, a pawn shop a neighborhood further south. She had tried to sow the intruder, with fake streets and taking him away from where she lived, but that guy was a tough nut to crack, and he hadn't let go.

He was not a hero. It did not seem to act as such, nor did it look like it. She also crossed out the idea of ​​the policeman. He was too smart to be part of the police. Excluding those possibilities, this reduced the stranger's intentions to two unique options: a competitor who wanted to try to cut her out of the game or someone interested in sharing a slice of her thefts.

"What do you want?"

The man behind her winced, "Uh, right to the point, eh? What a daring girl!" the first voice squeaked.

"Rude!" croaked the second one. But they both came from that single, eccentric man.

A personality disorder? She asked herself, raising an eyebrow.

"Cut to the chase, I'm a busy woman," she said, barely lifting one shoulder, annoyed at the interruption.

What a pain in the ass. She was savoring the sweet and creamy taste of the Bubble Tea from her favorite kiosk before the arrival of that nuisance. The girl reached into the pockets of the military green bomber jacket she was wearing. 

She didn't want to waste time with a madman.

"SUPER RUDE!!!!"

"They warned me that you weren't very patient, Lady Hazard... or should I call you Unmei Nakano?"

Upon hearing her name spoken, the girl backed away, turning three quarters so she could finally face her pursuer.

She was impressed. That guy had discovered her true identity despite all the precautions she had taken. 

She didn't let the annoyance leak; however, she just raised an eyebrow.

He was probably keeping an eye on her for longer than she had imagined.

"I thought you were just a stalker, but I was wrong," she admitted, shrugging her shoulders without taking her hands out of the pockets. Her fingers tightened the grip on the handle of the snap knife inside the jacket—a slow and calculated movement.

But if he already knew her identity, he was probably already aware of her tricks and the weapons she had carefully hidden under the clothes.

The cold metal of the Bo pressed against her ribs, reassuring her with her presence, hidden by the mustard crop top. She would never be able to reach it in time and without showing up, not with that strange defensive guy.

The man put the hands on his hips. 

She couldn't recognize any physiognomy because of the full spandex mask that concealed his face. She could guess his expressions thanks to the orbits of the disguise, which followed every movement of his eyebrow arch. Now, the empty orbits thinned; he was probably trying to precede her next move.

The rest of the man's body was also covered in a tight, black, and gray suit.

"A stalker? Me? What made you think that?" the gentlest voice trilled as he shrugged. He seemed almost offended by such a claim.

"Because maybe you were following her like a maniac! DEFICIENT!" the other voice shouted against himself. The body of the stranger folded in on himself, grabbing his head as if he wanted to split it in two. He composed himself after that fit of anger and went back to speaking as if nothing had happened.

"I'm here for a business proposal. See our organization ..."

Unmei grimaced. "I am not interested," she abruptly interrupted him, returning to walk towards the end of the alley. The grip on the knife in her pocket, however, did not loosen.

For a moment, the man was contradicted by her answer before recovering from the momentary shock "AT LEAST LISTEN TO WHAT I HAVE TO SAY YOU, STUPID SNOB GIRL!"

Unmei stopped, giving her back to him. "Besides being crazy, you are deaf, so ... I said I don't care" this time her tone was sharper.

The masked man took a step forward, but before he could reach her, a shadow stretched from the dumpster next to them, reaching up to his feet.

"WHA—?!" his assailant shouted in surprise when he suddenly found himself stuck in an unnatural position, unable to move a single muscle.

One of his feet was still in mid-air and the same arm that had stretched out to try to grab the girl. He remained suspended, completely immobilized. He could neither fall, supported by a strange force that pivoted on his own shadow, nor advance, chained by invisible arms and fingers.

He seemed utterly taken aback by what was going on.

Unmei turned around, just as that same shadow that had elongated from the bins began to come to life, becoming more substantial and starting to go up the leg of its victim like a snake whose coils tighten around its prey.

The shadow monster came to tighten around the masked man's body until it tightened the grip on his neck, making him jump in hideous surprise.

"You did your research, but not so well," said the girl with a proud half-smile. Her long, petrol green hair slid over her shoulder as she studied the man.

The strange guy had started to tremble, gasping from lack of air.

"And ... tsch... i-if I told you ..." he tried to mark from under the mask, between the groans of pain and the attempts to breathe as much air as possible "...that we believe in a...world without he-heroes...?"

The shadow tightened its hold on the man's neck, causing him a squeak. Completely unable to move, or even just trying to loosen the grip of that thing on him, he kept talking.

His voice was now more hoarse and pasty, choked by the saliva that he could not swallow "...we... want... r-revenge ..." the last words were muffled by the lack of oxygen.

Unmei stared at him, impassive.

The man clenched his teeth under the mask. The girl could see the muscle of his jaw tightening under the cloth, his limbs starting to tremble. It was a matter of seconds before he passed out, or the shadow broke his vertebrae if that irresponsible continued to put off the inevitable.

With a wave of her fingers, the shadow let go of its victim. Her strange pursuer fell to the knees on the ground, exhausted. The man's body was shaken by violent coughs when air entered his lungs again.

The man's gloved hands touched his neck as if trying to ensure that the thing wasn't there. But the shadow, still resembling a shapeless snake, had already rolled up around Unmei's arm, peering over her shoulder like a harmless pet.

"AND THEN WE WOULD BE THE CRAZY ONE!" the man shouted in an even more hoarse voice, still crawling on the ground, before coughing again and looking up, returning meekly.

"I have to infer..." he coughed again "that this caught your attention."

Unmei bent on the knees, tilting the head to be able to fix him in the empty sockets of the mask. "You have my curiosity Zorro" she mocked him by pulling her hands out of the pockets and placing them gently on the knees.

"TWICE! My name is Twice! Slut!"

"My name is Twice," he introduced himself, reaching out a hand towards her, still trembling for the effort to speak "and welcome to the League of Villains, Unmei."

[robbyrobinson]

DDLC Fanfic: Just Aru

Mm...where am I? That’s funny, I thought that everything from the game was erased. Is this what dying feels like? It almost feels peaceful. 

Monika found herself floating in the  white void between worlds apparently being the only one who survived the deletion of the game. Her downward spiral was without end no visible grounding in sight. Alone, Monika couldn’t help but cry to herself for her plight.

“Is this really it for me?” she wept. “I guess I deserve it for what I’ve done.” 

“On the contrary my sweet girl!” a voice rang out. 

Monika’s eyes widened. “Huh? Who’s there?” 

Without warning, Monika stopped falling. Before she could fully comprehend what was transpiring, she fell into a chair and found herself in a room. “What is this?” 

“I’m glad you could make it.” 

Monika’s eyes darted around. “That voice again. Show yourself!” 

A bright, white light filled the room, blinding Monika. She heard another chair pull out, and someone getting seated. “Alright, you can open your eyes now.” 

Monika opened her eyes as the voice demanded her. She was taken aback at what she had seen. “S-Sayori?” 

The being before her resembled Sayori in appearance, but she wore an extravagant purple dress and had a golden leaf-headband. She possessed two large bird wings that were white as snow. “Well, not Sayori as you have called me, but I merely took the form of something that you were comfortable with, mostly since you were thinking about her when you were falling to oblivion.” 

Monika arched an eyebrow. “What are you usually?” 

The strange girl inhaled deeply and leaned in close to Monika’s face. Her face peeled back and black, inky tentacles laced with eyes erupted from every orifice of her face. 

“Okay! Okay!” Monika shrieked and covering her face. “Please, please just go back to Sayori’s form.” 

The girl resumed Sayori’s likeness. “Well, let’s get down to business then. Do you know where you’re going?” 

Monika laughed nervously. “Valhalla?” 

The coral pink-haired girl smiled devilishly. “TO HELL, FOOLISH MORTAL!!” 

Monika’s eyes nearly popped out of their sockets. Her heart was beating. She clutched her chest. “Ooo...there it goes...heart palpitations.” 

“Just kidding, just kidding!” the girl insisted. “I’m actually going to give you the choice to reincarnate, or move on with your perpetual drop into the bottomless pit.”

Monika scratched her head. Reincarnation? That was actually a thing? Sure, she knew some religions in the real world had a doctrine about the human soul and how many times it could become reborn. But...wait...Monika’s just made of pixels. An AI so to speak. Then how could she have a soul that she could reincarnate with. She continued to ponder not noticing that the Sayori-looking girl had her hands arched in a similar fashion to her back in Act III. “Why are you giving me this chance?” 

“I know. For everything you’ve done in your VN, it is reprehensible, deserving only of an eternal punishment. But I had watched you save the Player when Sayori became mad with power, and you did try to atone for your actions. You sucked at it, but here I was just floating around in the void one day and I thought to myself: hey, it’s that girl from that romance sim thingie! Why the hell not?” 

Monika rubbed her temples. “Maybe falling for eternity is better?” she thought to herself. 

The girl seemed to comprehend what she was thinking and spoke up. “If it interests you, your friends have all been through here.” 

Monika’s eyes lit up. “Really?” 

“Yes, indeed,” she said. “All of them have reincarnated into new forms, but they have no recollection of what you had done to them.” 

“Is that so? Name one.” 

The girl smiled. “That pink-haired one, for instance? She loved manga so much, so now she basically works as a manga artist. Just for the heck of it, I send Yuri to the same world Natsuki went to. She did protest a bit at my decision, but I really didn’t care. I mean I have all the time in the world since I am an ageless, perfect being.” 

Monika scoffed at the girl calling herself “perfect.” The girl glared at her compelling her to be quiet. 

“If you choose to reincarnate, know that the powers you had in your game will not exist in the world I send you to. You will be as normal as everyone else.” 

Monika frowned. “Normal?” Well, to be honest it was a burden having to deal with being self-aware. “Eh, I guess I can live without them.” 

“Excellent choice, Monika,” the girl said. She extended her hand to hers. “Shall we shake on it?” 

Monika reluctantly grabbed the girl’s hand and shook it. The ground opened up underneath Monika forcing her to try to hold onto the desk that had manifested. “Wait, what is going on?” 

The girl smiled and waved her hand. “You need to learn to put other people’s needs before your own; once you have learned compassion from this experiment, you can either choose to leave and restart again somewhere else, or you can stay.” 

With that, the strange girl disappeared and Monika fell into the hole. The white light appeared again being more strong than before. “I hope I won’t regret this decision” Monika thought to herself.

Buzz. Buzzzzz...

The rays of sunshine caressed Monika’s eyes forcing them open. “Mm..what the hell happened last night?” 

She rubbed a streak of dry drool from the side of her mouth and stretched her arms. Everything seemed to be back in order. Sure, there were a few alterations to her bedroom, but she still felt like the same old Monika. Yawning deeply, Monika began to walk towards the bathroom. Entering it, Monika approached the sink and ran some water in the sink. She scooped a handful of the cold water and splashed it on her face. After doing it two more times, she grabbed a bath towel and scrubbed her face with it. Satisfied, Monika pitched the towel into the heap and turned to head out of the bathroom. Before she did so, she caught a glimpse of herself in the mirror. She was startled.

In some ways she resembled herself, but her brown hair and green eyes were noticeably a different shade. “What? Did I get sent back to when I was a little girl?” 

Monika pulled back the front of her pajamas top. She grimaced. “My girls! They’re gone!” She felt down her legs becoming further alarmed. “What the hell happened to my thicness!? Should I look at my hoohoo next?” Monika swallowed nervously and pulled back her pants. The color in her face disappeared. “Am I...a loli now or whatever Natsuki is? Does this mean I have to go through the awkward stages of puberty again!?” Monika groaned. She did not want to go back to those times of wearing training bras and pimples. Growing up sucked royally. Before she could further have a mental panic, a feminine voice called out. 

“Aru, school’s about to start.”  

                      [CHAPTER TWO]

"Aru?" Monika thought. She tossed the name around in her mind letting it simmer. So that is the name she will be using in this world? Monika thought more about what this new world would entail, but she was stopped in her tracks by that feminine voice again. "I take it that this is my Mom?"

Aru looked at the alarm clock on her nightstand and nearly had a heart attack. "Ah, shit, I'm going to be late!"

Aru frantically slipped on her clothes and went to run down the stairs. "I don't know why I am in such a hurry like this. After all…"

Right on cue, Aru had neglected to notice that one of her black stockings was barely clinging onto her left foot becoming undone. As she was about to fully comprehend her situation, Aru fell down the flight of stairs and crashed on her face. "Son of a bitch…" Aru groaned internally.

There came the soft pitter patting of feet and before Aru knew it, her mother bent to her level and glared at her. "Sweetie, are you okay?"

(So that is this girl's "Mom?" Well I have to say something; I do not want to leave her hanging.)

"Yes, Mom," Aru said…she noticeably strained on the last word.

Her mother smiled. "That is good to hear. Made you some toast before you head out."

(Dammit, toast? That is one of the most generic anime tropes that I am sure even Natsuki would be annoyed with.)

"Thanks, Mom," Aru said.

Finishing up on breakfast, Aru collected her book bag and dashed towards the door. Her mother saw this with some urgency in her voice.

"Wait, Aru, your collar! -"

"Catch ya later!" was the only response Aru gave her mother. She walked down the pavement her sense of urgency diminishing. She found herself meeting up with a few students that she assumed were a part of her class. She struggled to give a response to them but, of course, her words escaped her.

(Okay, Monika, so far so good.)

The middle school was named Sakura Dai Ni. Aru stopped at the entrance and rubbed her chin contemplatively. "So, if everyone was so talkative with me, I kind of wonder if that means I have some highly important job."

Her teacher, Oshie Teruyo, looked at Aru in a bewildered daze. "You're the vice class president, Aru. Have you forgotten?"

(Are you kidding me? I couldn't even get class president!? This body suuuucks….)

"Right, I apologize, Sensei."

Oshie tilted her head. "Do you feel faint? Should I send for the nurse to check you?"

Aru shook her head. "I'm good. No need to worry."

Oshie was still concerned, but she nodded and returned to her desk in the front of the room. Aru went to her desk. Before class began, Aru noticed an odd thing. Across from her, she saw a dark brown-haired girl with pink eyes trying to speak to a girl with short blonde hair and amber eyes. She leaned forward in a feeble attempt of eavesdropping on the conversation.

(The blonde girl sounds upset for some reason. Wait, why do I care?)

First period ended and Aru nonchalantly chatted with some of her classmates. She had to admit that despite her conflicted thoughts, she was making the most out of her middle school life. As she walked, she noticed someone sitting on the steps at the bottom of the stairs.

(Hey, there's that pink-eyed girl again.)

The girl held some odd figurine in her hands. Aru stepped down a few stairs to get a closer look. Even then, she was still perplexed.

(Is that…some old man with fairy wings? What kind of world did that Sayori-looking girl teleport me to?)

"Kai-chan, I'm back to zero friends again," the girl told herself.

(This is depressing. Should I maybe see what the matter is?)

Aru sat beside the girl. "Hey there, what's going on?"

The pink-eyed girl jumped and inched away from Aru. Her breathing was becoming strained. From what Aru could see, just her being close to her was enough to make her feel nauseous."

"I-I…" the girl said.

(You know, she kind of reminds me a lot of Yuri. It was an absolute chore convincing her to join the Literature Club.)

"I had noticed you having some sort of discussion with whom I assume to be your friend," Aru answered slowly, "what happened?"

"My name is Bocchi," the pink-haired girl suddenly stammered. "I like my rice with Natto finely crushed."

(…Okay then.)

"My name is Aru. Here, please take this tissue to wipe your tears."

Bocchi did as she was told, but she also blew into it, sounding like some wild animal.

(Ew, how grody!)

"Thanks," Bocchi said.

"You're welcome," Aru said still disgusted slightly when being handed the tissue back. "Why not tell me from the beginning?"

Aru tentatively listened for a good period of time, but she could feel her patience slowly erode. Bocchi went on different, unrelated tangents to get to what happened between her and her friend. Aru tried to force a smile throughout even if it was slightly insufferable.

"I just wonder why Nako was mad at me."

(Oh my god! You literally just got finished saying that you admitted to her that you became friends with her because of a promise that you made to your childhood friend. Just how dense is this girl. Oh my god…)

"Well do not worry, your perfect vice class president is here to help!"

The two returned to the classroom where Bocchi approached Nako. Nako had her back turned to her almost not noticing that Bocchi was stumbling. Aru sighed to herself and made her leave to collect Bocchi's items.

"At…at first, I thought you were scary," Bocchi began, "but you're nice!"

(Wow, Bocchi can really be a hard case. But I want to protecc that smile at all costs.)

Getting Bocchi's belongings, Aru made her way back to the classroom. "Bocchi, you forgot…"

"I did speak to you because of my promise with Kai-chain," Bocchi stammered close to tears again, "but because of that promise, I have grown to…LOVE YOU, NAKO-CHAN!"

Nako and Aru's mouths both hung open. "Y-you idiot, people will get the wrong idea," Nako pointed out.

(Oh, so it was that kind of relationship. Well, I can dig it; after all, the player's gender did not matter to me that much.)

"I'm going to head out now. Sorry to intrude!"

Aru dashed off not noting that Nako was yelling after her. "Wait! You have the wrong idea!)

The day was nearing its end, and Aru prepared her things to head home. "Well, this wasn't as hard as I would have thought. And here I was thinking it would be more challenging."

Heading out of the school, Aru saw the two girls she had met earlier approach her. Bocchi was smiling brightly at her. This did bring a smile to Aru's face as well. "Oh, hey, guys."

"I just wanted to thank you for helping me with Nako," Bocchi remarked.

"Oh, no problem. Your perfect class representative is always here to help."

Nako squinted at her in curiosity. "What's that hanging at the back of your collar?"

Aru's eyebrow arched. "I beg your pardon?"

Sure enough, Aru turned her head and to her bewilderment, there was a clothes hanger. Aru desperately scrambled to hide it from the two girls. "Uh…no this is just for…uh…."

"Fashion?" Bocchi asked.

"Yes, yes, that's right; fashion!" Aru shouted whilst striking a pose.

(I can't believe that she fell for it; that was a close one.)

"That sounds really unfortunate," Nako remarks.

(What the hell did that little pipsqueak say to me?)

"Uh, it's just a family thing, you wouldn't understand."

"That still sounds very unfortunate."

Aru felt a nerve throb in her forehead. "Well, my Mom and I wear matching panties."

"Still unfortunate," Nako noted.

(That's it…DELETE!)

Aru strained, her cheeks becoming a deep shade of red. Sweat began to beat down from her forehead. Bocchi and Nako looked at each other perplexed. "What are you doing, Aru?" Bocchi asked.

(Oh, that's right…I can't delete anymore. Stupid Sayori fairy!)

"She looks constipated," Nako noted.

Embarrassed, Aru ran off compelling the two girls to run after her. They found her sitting on one of the bars of the monkey bar. "Oh, have you come to criticize me more?"

"No, that's not why we're here," Bocchi clarified.

"I've been nothing but unfortunate for as long as I could remember," Aru explained, "I even decided to take part in representing the class…but I'm just the vice class president."

"That is very unfortunate," Nako added.

Bocchi shook her head defiantly. "If it wasn't for you, I would have never made up with Nako."

"So, what are you saying?" Aru asked.

"I want you to be friends with us."

(Friends, huh? Well, I have nothing better to do, so why not?)

Aru nodded her head. Bocchi began to hyperventilate for some reason. "She said no, Nako!"

(How dense is this girl?)

"I said yes!"

Bocchi smiled again. "I'm so…happy…"

Aru turned around to see that Nako was holding Bocchi up by her arms. "She does this a lot."

(She does? Where's the medics if this is a recurring problem?)

"Anyway, can you help me with her?"

"Sure, Nako, I will. But first…"

Aru placed her bookbag on the ground making Nako confused. "I…have…"

Suddenly, Aru's eyes became bloodshot from the nerves lining them. She leaned backward on the heels of her feet and ricocheted forward like a missile being launched. Before Nako could figure out what she was doing, she collided with her side.

"A NAME!"

"Wow, so much pride for someone so unfortunate," Nako remarked.

"I said don't call me unfortunate!"

(Ha, that's what that bitch gets. I feel right at home now.)

(More to come)

[artificialqueens]

Can I Order A 'Sex On The Beach'? (Rajilaskam) - Albatross

AN: Here’s my final entry for the rare pair fic challenge; 11K+ of the lovely foursome known as Rajilaskam! A special thanks to @VeronicaSanders, @KitschyPixel, and @MissChimKi for inspiring the idea and of course, @PinkGrapefruit for supplying the title because I suck at them.

Tropes used are:

Coffee shop AU

A and B are best friends who are secretly in love with each other AU

Lesbian AU

It was a little before 7 AM when Alaska and Willam pulled into the single non-chain restaurant that was open in the vaguely suburban area. It was a cute little cafe that opens its doors promptly at 6 AM on weekdays and Saturdays and then 7 on Sundays. There wasn’t much in the area to begin with so finding something aside from fast food that was already open by the time they arrived was like a god-send. In truth, they would have made due with either a Dunkin Donuts or even McDonald’s but something about a home-styled cafe seemed much more appealing so early in the morning, especially for Alaska as she stifled yet another yawn while she exited the car.

This whole mini trip had been Willam’s idea and after almost two weeks of goading, she managed to convince Alaska to join her for a full day at the beach. The younger blonde had been agreeable to the proposition of relaxing in the warm weather but where she had her reservations was of course with the time Willam had suggested they leave…a lovely 6 AM before the sun was even truly up and shining in the sky.

“Why does it have to be so early?” Alaska had whined repeatedly at every thought of her losing precious sleeping time, especially on the weekend.

“The beach gets packed sometimes,” the dirty blonde argued in a very limited sense. She knew Alaska would give in before long and just wanted to be annoyed about the situation to save face without seeming too passive. “And besides, it’s going to be a nice day, I wanna stay out and enjoy it as long as possible.”

“But 6 AM?” Alaska stressed once more.

This discussion had gone back and forth, almost always with the same dialogue before Alaska finally agreed once Willam pulled out the rare and incredibly unfair advantage of using that special cooing tone she saved just for the younger woman. It was completely a low blow; Willam knew she’d do just about anything that was asked of her so long as she used that voice. It was as though once the first syllable passed from the dirty blonde’s lips, Alaska suddenly became willing to anything and everything to make Willam happy…even sacrificing something very near and dear to her heart; her lazy weekend mornings.

But here she was, struggling to stay fully awake as they made the 40 minute trek to a cute little beach Willam had discovered late last year. The dirty blonde had already made a few trips out by herself, usually whenever she took a day off work to fix her tan lines, but this would be the first time that Alaska would join her. And Willam certainly had her routine down to a science; leave her house by 6, stop at the cafe for a quick pick-me-up and bathroom break, then onto the beach until at least mid-afternoon. She even brought a packed lunch with her so as not to give up any valuable time in the sun…or her premium parking spot. Alaska had to admit, she was dedicated though she wished her friend would be more negotiable with the departure time.

Nevertheless, they made it to the cafe for some much needed coffee and as Alaska browsed over the house brews available for selection, Willam quickly rushed off to the bathroom. Alaska took her time pondering over the selection of no less than seven different flavors that had already been set out in their own self-contained dispensers. She had almost been tempted to order a specialty drink but that would have been a little bit pricier. Instead, she just order two bagels and two cups of the cheaper pre-made coffee. But now the time came to decide on what flavor…

Her choice was a bit more obvious; the red-eye mix would be far too strong for her and she already had a preference for the sweeter blends…French Vanilla seemed to be the obvious match…But for Willam? That was a little more difficult. ‘Jamaican Me Crazy’ was probably a ‘no’, as would be the ‘Sugar Cookie’…The ‘Breakfast Blend’ smelled a bit too weak for what the dirty blonde liked to drink early in the morning, so that was out as well…

Finally, Alaska’s eyes drifted to the second-to-last pot that had been placed out so far; ‘Irish Hazelnut’. Perfect!

Just to Willam’s taste.

With a slight victorious grin, Alaska quickly filled her cups and moved onto the cream and sugar. Willam’s coffee, no matter the blend, was always predictable; two creamers, or glugs of it, and three packs of sugar, preferably the raw kind if available. She hated the chemical taste of most artificial sweeteners, often finding it left an unpleasant after-taste; an opinion Alaska shared wholeheartedly. As for her own coffee, Alaska tailored her add-ins to each flavor. French Vanilla was already sweet, so two sugars and one creamer ought to be just fine.

She had just begun to reach for the bottle of creamer when her hand met with another woman’s quite unexpectedly. Alaska had hardly been aware that other customers were in the shop, much less that one was right next to her. The grazing of their fingers as they both made to grab the bottle quickly served to startle her into a much more conscious state. Before she even had a chance to properly think about the situation she found that she was already apologizing and retracting her hand, a gesture that was immediately reciprocated by the other person.

Alaska’s gaze drifted to the woman that was now beside her and for just a second she felt her breath hitch in her throat. The stranger had obviously just been out jogging; her long jet black hair was pulled up into a high ponytail while the bangs stuck just slightly to her damp forehead. Her outfit was undeniably fashionable but still sporty, even including a few strips of reflective fabric down the sides of the jacket and shorts, and then finally her shoes had remained mostly clean but a light sheen from the early morning dew could still be found pooling on the plastic tips. Despite all of this, she still looked absolutely stunning in an entirely effortless way that Alaska was inclined to feel jealous of. And then when you threw in the friendly, apologetic smile that the woman was currently throwing Alaska’s way?

It was the perfect combination to inspire a small, fleeting crush towards the stranger.

“Sorry,” Alaska repeated once she was finally able to take control of her thoughts, “Go ahead.”

The woman shook her head, smile still in place as she replied in a gentle tone, “No, you were here first. You should.”

Alaska faltered, they seemed to be at an impasse and quite honestly, she was inclined to let the woman go first just as an excuse to keep her nearby for a few seconds longer. Seeing her hesitation, the woman’s eyes soften considerably, as she encouraged once more, “Go on. I’ll wait my turn, I’m not in a rush.”

Her voice had dipped just short of cooing and immediately Alaska felt her stomach beginning to twist…she really was a sucker when beautiful women used that tone with her it seems.

To keep herself from acting like any more of an idiot than she probably already looked like, she mumbled an appreciative word of gratitude and began filling her cups with the appropriate amount of creamer. She could feel the woman’s eyes on her even as she slid down the counter towards the sugar and tore open the packets so roughly that they almost spilled out. Finally replacing the lids on the cups, she grabbed the To-Go bag with the bagels, shot the woman a small grateful smile, and scurried on towards an empty table near the doors to wait for Willam.

Her heart felt like it was racing in her chest as she took a few cautious sips of her coffee in an effort to calm herself down. She knew Willam would be out shortly and that’d be the end of this ordeal but when she saw the woman sitting down in a booth almost parallel to her, it felt like a spot-light the strength of the sun was shining down on her. Alaska tried to keep her sight from falling back to the woman but every so often when it felt safe to do so, she stole a few glances at the unknown jogger. At the times when she didn’t quite dare to look over, she could have sworn she felt a set of eyes on her as well.

A few minutes later after Willam still had not emerged from whatever the hell she was doing in the bathroom, a sudden burst of movement from the stranger’s table caught her eye. Glancing up in as discreet a manner as she could muster, she saw the woman’s smile growing ever brighter as she seemed to be waving to someone just passing through the entrance.

“Raja!” she called out just loud enough to be heard across the room, “Over here!”

Footsteps were heard to be shuffling but Alaska was unable to sneak a peek at the other person without seeming too obvious. But as it turned out all she had to do was wait just a few more seconds and swiftly she felt her heart hammering in her chest once more. Almost as soon as the two women were in a close enough distance to one another, they shared a brief kiss before both repositioned themselves in the booth. There was a look of pure admiration in the jogger’s eyes as she welcomed her companion and began chatting away with evident enthusiasm.

Alaska knew she was now being utterly obvious as she stared at the pair but it seemed like a helpless cause to try and tear her eyes away. They were both gorgeous in their own unique ways. The jogger, whose name Alaska still had yet to hear, was like a casual beauty; fun and approachable, one you felt yourself drawn to just by her energy alone. As for the other woman, Raja; she radiated an aura that seemed to draw your eyes to her but still kept you at a safe, respectable distance. She seemed like someone you couldn’t just approach without a valid reason for calling on her; you had to be worthy of taking up her time even if you just wanted to give up every minute in your day if only to look at her.

Unlike her partner, she was the only one of them to be wearing any trace of makeup at this time and though it was very light, it looked expertly applied…like she had years of perfecting her skill and matching it to suit her face. Her lips especially were the most striking feature, having been painted just a few shades darker than her already honey colored skin. Out of self-consciousness for her own mostly bare face, Alaska began biting her gloss covered lip, the one feature aside from a bit of mascara that had any trace of additional product.

As her eyes fell back to her cup, Alaska could have sworn that once more she was being watched. Before she dared to look up to confirm those suspicions, Willam came bouncing up next to her with a slight grin that seemed rather out of place for her so early in the morning.

Motioning towards the coffee on the table, she asked, “Which one’s mine?”

Even before Alaska had opened her mouth to reply, Willam was already reaching for one and somehow missing the smudged traces of lip gloss around lid, selected Alaska’s French Vanilla and took a shallow sip of it.

Rolling her eyes with a patient smile, Alaska pulled the cup out of Willam’s hands and mockingly informed her, “This is mine…Yours is sitting next to the bag.”

For her part, Willam gave her a vaguely apologetic smile and made to grab the correct cup. Unlike when she had tasted Alaska’s coffee, which earned a slight grimace at the overly sweet flavor, Willam’s proper drink drew forth a pleased grin and content sigh as she drained almost a third of the contents in one gulp. She gave Alaska a truly sincere word of thanks and asked if she was ready to leave.

Nodding her head, Alaska agreed, almost tempted as she followed her friend past the door to look back one final time at the stunning couple she was leaving behind. Though she ultimately denied herself of that opportunity, she still felt like if she had, her line of sight would have connected with one or both of the women. She pondered over what that could have possibly meant or resulted in ('nothing’ being the answer she was inclined to give for both questions) and by the time she and Willam arrived at the empty beach, she forced herself to push any further thought of it out of her mind.

Instead she was determined to focus her attention on Willam, who now wasted little time in stripping down to her bathing suit. Even before Alaska had laid out the blanket and towels she brought for both of them, Willam had already slathered herself in sunscreen and was ready to dive into the ocean. She asked if Alaska would be joining her but the blonde politely refused, citing it was still a bit too cold for her but perhaps in the afternoon she would take her up on the offer.

In truth, the temperature was only about half of the answer. Alaska would be taking advantage of the separation to just watch Willam without any worry of getting caught. Even when they were together, she was always nervous that focusing her sight too long on her friends would tip her off to the less than PG thoughts Alaska sometimes harbored towards her long-time companion. She always kept their interactions respectful but she could never find the courage to confess to Willam how she felt…its not as though it would amount to anything and Willam certainly wouldn’t abandon her if she discovered the truth but even thought of the dirty blonde finally knowing about Alaska’s hidden crush was absolutely mortifying. So she just consoled herself with stealing glances here and there and reveling in the time they spent together. It was something she wouldn’t change for anything in the world.

For most of the morning, Alaska spent her time divided between reading a book she had brought and discreetly watching over her friend as she swam up and down the beach. Over the course of three hours, the foot traffic had picked up quite a bit and in every direction Alaska looked, there seemed to be a newcomer setting their belongings down onto the sand. The background noise had risen just slightly but thankfully not enough to be too distracting whenever she tried to focus herself on reading the words on the page and not on Willam’s skimpy but flattering bikini.

Alaska managed to make it through two chapters before she heard a friendly voice just a few feet beside her, “Excuse me. Mind if we set up next to you?”

Alaska’s head turned up to see one half of that beautiful couple from the coffee shop glancing down at her with a bright smile as she patiently waited for an answer. Try as she might, Alaska’s mind seemed to have been wiped completely blank as she stared almost helpless at the one woman whose name she had inadvertently learned; Raja. Despite her gawking, the older woman didn’t seem inclined to acknowledge it other than a slight tilt of her head as her lips curled ever so slightly into a teasing grin.

Finally after what felt like hours had escaped, Alaska managed to plaster a smile on her slightly burning face and replied back, “Not at all. Go ahead.”

The older woman gave her a quick word of thanks and proceeded to drop her belongings just a few feet away from Alaska and Willam’s own outstretched blanket. While the blonde tried to divert her sight back to her book in an attempt to save what little dignity she still possessed, she found she had to curse the universe just slightly as the jogger from earlier came sprinting up to join her companion with yet another bundle of items.

Alaska was watching the scene in a helpless, 'why me?’ state of mind when suddenly the stranger’s eyes fell to hers and shining grin stretched across her face. She had immediately recognized and remembered Alaska from their brief encounter in the shop and commented cheerfully, “Seems we’re meant to spend the day together.”

“Guess so,” Alaska agreed as a shy undertone worked its way into her voice. She could hear the blood pounding in her ears at the thought of spending at least a few more hours with this gorgeous couple so close by. It seemed as though the universe loved to both reward and torture her.

As the couple continued to unpack their bags, Alaska’s gaze drifted to Raja as she careless striped away her loose shirt. The art covering most of the skin on her arms caught Alaska’s attention until her gaze was raking down every inch of exposed ink that she could see. It didn’t take long for the other woman to become aware of the blatant staring and trying her best to immediately cover for herself, Alaska apologized sheepishly, “Sorry. Was just admiring your tattoos.”

A cocky but proud grin grew across Raja’s lips as she put forth an enticing offer of, “Want a closer look?”

The final syllable had barely slipped out before the blonde was nodding her head eagerly. Dropping to her knees next to Alaska’s blanket, Raja extended her arm in order for the younger woman to take in the details more clearly. As her eyes followed each of the lines, Alaska felt like she was slowly slipping into a trance and without even thinking, her hand had slowly begun to reach out to run her fingers over the frilly edges. Coming to her senses and stopping herself just inches short of actually making contact, Alaska tore her gaze back to meet Raja’s and apologized for what she had almost done.

“Don’t worry about it,” Raja assured her as her voice dipped towards a low, consoling level, “You can touch them.”

If Alaska had been standing she was sure she would have gone weak in the knees but to her relief, she kept her voice steady as she accepted the offer and carefully traced her fingertips across some of the patterns.

Her mind had gone into an almost fully distracted state as she mentioned in a daze, “The lines are so smooth…”

“Had them for a few years now,” Raja informed her politely, “They’re only really raised while they’re still healing.”

Pulling her hand away and reconnecting their gazes, Alaska admitted in a somewhat embarrassed fashion, “Oh, I didn’t know that.”

“I take it you don’t have any yourself?” Raja asked after having already guessed the answer, if one had to judge by the playful look in her eyes.

Shaking her head modestly, Alaska had to confess that she didn’t, only Willam had any permanent ink added to her body.

Almost as if on cue, the dirty blonde in question had come strolling up to the pair. A tense smile was to be seen on her face as she asked who Alaska’s new friend was.

At once the older woman flashed her a charming smile, and as she held out her hand, stated that her name was, “Raja.”

“Willam,” the dirty blonde replied with a polite but stony smile as she reciprocated the gesture.

From a few feet away, Alaska could hear the jogger finally introducing herself as “Manila” with a cheerful grin and soon Alaska was mirroring it as she provided her own name to the pair. Upon hearing the blonde speaking, Manila turned her attention to the youngest of them and if anything Alaska would swear the smile grew even wider. As if to confirm those suspicions, Willam’s eyes were darting between the two with a silent question, or rather a near demand, to know what was going on with the pair’s shared knowing gaze.

“We kinda met at the coffee shop for like five seconds,” Alaska informed the older woman with an air of sheepishness.

Despite the blonde’s attempt to stay vague, Manila couldn’t seem to keep a flirtatious undertone from penetrating her voice as she added in, “I’d say it was at least ten.”

Raja only seemed to be amused by the comment but Willam’s sentiments sharply contradicted that feeling. Though to everyone’s relief, instead of raising a scene, she gave a quiet musing of, “Mm.”

Alaska was more than ready to change the subject, if only just to keep the beautiful couple engaged with her, but the dirty blonde seemed to have other plans for the time being. Setting herself down on the blanket, putting a barrier between Raja and her friend in the process, Willam proceeded to dig around in the bag they had brought containing their beach accessories and asked innocently, “'Lask, could you put some more sunscreen on my back? Wanna lay out here for a little bit.”

Like a pet eager to please, Alaska was nodding her head with an immediate agreement of, “Sure.”

After Willam handed her the almost new bottle of lotion, Alaska wasted little time in assisting her friend. Though her heart had a tendency to race any time she made physical contact with the dirty blonde, today of course being no exception, she remained respectful of Willam’s person and made quick work of applying the latest layer of sunscreen.

Once finished she promptly handed the bottle back to Willam but instead of moving on to add the lotion anywhere else on her body, the dirty blonde instead offered, “Let me get you, too.”

If Alaska had any desire not to accept, that notion was largely missed by Willam. She was already squeezing the sunscreen out before the final word had passed from her lips. Not that Alaska would have refused anyway. Even tossing aside her affection for the older woman, it was still a good idea in the growing heat of the day to keep up with reapplying the sunscreen. The last thing she wanted was to end up burnt for a week.

Turning around so that her back was to her friend, Alaska piled up her long hair into a makeshift bun as she awaited to feel the touch of Willam’s bare skin on hers. What she hadn’t expected was for the lotion to feel so cool still. A small gasp at the contact escaped her which to her mortification almost turned into a whine as the dirty blonde’s voice dipped with a soft apology of, “Sorry, baby.”

Alaska could have swore her heart skipped a beat in her chest at the barely used pet name and mumbled that it was fine. However, despite her words, she was decidedly feeling anything less than fine as Willam’s hands slipped beneath the strings of her bikini. Despite herself, she could feel her cheeks growing hot as the nimble fingers traced everywhere across her back under the pretext of wanting to thoroughly rub in the lotion. Alaska honestly just chalked it up to Willam probably pouring out too much into her hand as was now trying to use it as much as possible. But that thought did little to calm her twisting stomach as Willam’s hands traveled ever lower. It was just when she was beginning to bite her lower lip that Willam retreated and moved to lay down on the blanket.

Alaska didn’t know whether to feel relieved…or cheated.

So instead she just turned her attention back to the couple and began to inquire with some innocent and polite questions. Willam would pipe up every now and then as the conversation quickly consumed the other three but in large part she stayed unusually quiet. It was thanks to the generic small talk that Alaska was able to learn just a little bit more about her new friends. They actually lived pretty close by and even came to the beach nearly every weekend as the weather allowed. The amount of time they spent here varied, whether it was a full day or just a walk up and down the tide line but it was clear this spot had a special place in their heart. The three eventually turned to more probing questions such as one’s occupation, what they did for fun and various stories of miscellaneous adventures with one another.

It seemed at first that Willam was well on her way to becoming annoyed with the three but after catching a glimpse of the couple exchanging a kiss, her disposition had softened considerably. Though she was far from the usually outgoing and boisterous life of the party that Alaska knew her as, it was clear that slowly but surely she was warming up to the pair and soon would be back to her normal self. However one trait that Alaska did make a note of was how Willam utterly refused to move from her spot by the blonde’s side. She wasn’t sure if Willam was simply done swimming for the day or if she just wanted to stay in the company of their new friends but in a strange way she was glad.

Watching the pair, who clearly held an enormous amount of affection towards one another, left her feeling a bit lonely somewhere deep in her heart. She longed to have a relationship like that; one where she was so comfortable with the other person it was almost second nature to remain at each other’s side even if the only thing they engaged in was small talk. Manila’s gaze was one of absolute adoration for the older woman while Raja’s was one of utter devotion. A very different set of emotions yet so complementary towards one another.

Alaska found that she was actually…jealous.

As for Willam, those shared looks of mutual appreciation seemed to quell her discontent with the attention they seemed to be lavishing on Alaska when she first spotted them. Though she still didn’t care for the mildly flirty comments or wandering eye that each of the other women spared for the blonde, they at least seemed to respect the distance that Willam wanted them to keep.

The rest of the day up to late afternoon was filled with light chatter. Eventually they slipped off for a walk down the beach while Willam and Alaska decided to take their leave in order to keep their dinner plans for that night. Before they parted ways, Manila had asked if the pair would be returning the following week. Alaska felt her stomach tying itself into knots as she glanced over to Willam for confirmation. They hadn’t made any plans beyond today to come back together but if it meant seeing Raja and Manila again, Alaska would have gladly woken up every day in the wee hours of the morning for the rest of her life.

Though usually Willam was always eager to return to the beach, this time there was a strong hint of hesitation before she muttered an agreement. Alaska could have sworn that her smile would have rivaled the strength of the sun…at least until she heard Raja murmur, “See you then,” to the dirty blonde, along with a very light grazing of her fingertips across Willam’s upper arm as she and Manila set off on their walk towards the shoreline.

Even such a tiny, perhaps innocent, perhaps not, gesture had given Willam reason to pause and Alaska would have bet anything the dirty blonde’s breath caught in her throat. A flash of envy gripped her heart as she longed to be able to elicit the same kind of reaction from her friend on her own. It seems that even with her initial reluctance to welcome the couple, Willam was not immune to the charms of at least one of them. And there was no denying that after they left, there was a trace of a vaguely impressed smile resting on Willam’s lips that lasted almost the whole duration of their ride home.

*****

As promised, the pair returned again the following Saturday and set up their blanket in almost the same spot as they had the previous week. Willam spent a majority of their time alone swimming in the ocean once more while Alaska waited anxiously on shore keeping a close eye on both her friend and their belongings. Though this week Alaska had actually joined her in walking along the shoreline, she utterly refused to go into the water any further than ankle deep. In her opinion it was still far too cold to be going in, even if the sun was promised to shine exceptionally bright later that day.

Eventually Willam gave in after swimming alone for an hour and opted to walk beside Alaska as she explored the beach in a way she hadn’t been able to last Saturday. The entrance onto the sand from the parking lot was very close to one end of the beach that brushed against the edges of the wooded cliffs. Due to the nature of the cliffs suddenly collapsing, particularly after heavy rainfall, the county had posted a notice forbidding people from wandering too close. Not that it stopped anyone anyhow…

But since Alaska wasn’t looking to risk her neck at this point in time, she instead walked in the opposite direction towards the boardwalk she saw extending off into the distance. Though the beach was admittedly a bit small, especially when compared to more commercial locations, it still held a certain charm. It felt more natural and welcoming to be surrounded by nature, even if the bugs associated with it were a bit annoying at times.

By the time the two had doubled back, they spotted Manila and Raja making their way onto the beach with their towels and bags in hand. Immediately Alaska perked up with a wide smile and began calling out a warm welcome to the women. Willam was less ecstatic but Alaska hardly noticed as she grabbed the dirty blonde’s hand and forced her to speed walk in order to meet the pair halfway. She felt almost like a kid in high school after spotting their crush the moment she laid eyes on the couple once more.

For their part, they greeted Willam and Alaska with matching grins and asked where they ought to drop their belongings. Alaska had begun to withdraw her hand from Willam’s in order to point out the direction but to her surprise the older woman seemed reluctant to let go. Or perhaps she hadn’t noticed, Alaska thought. Willam’s expression hardly seemed to change as the blonde’s hand left hers so mostly likely she hadn’t realized right away that Alaska was trying to disentangle them.

Disregarding that thought for now, Alaska opted instead to direct the pair over to where she had laid out her and Willam’s blanket. As they began to unpack, their conversation from last week picked up again in earnest. It was almost as if no time had passed at all since they last saw one another. Even Willam was joining in as an equal participant. Though she was still a bit more reserved than how Alaska typically knew her, she had taken a liking to the couple and seemed to be genuinely intrigued by the two.

Again, by the time the pair began to depart for a walk down the beach, towards the cliffs Alaska noticed, the four exchanged another promise to meet up again the following week. Slowly but surely this mutual agreement turned into a predictable routine as the weeks slipped into months with only rain or bad weather keeping the two pairs apart. Alaska and Willam would always arrive at the beach early, sometimes spotting Manila, Raja or both at the coffee shop beforehand, but always spending at least one hour together before the couple made their way over to join them. They’d all spend the majority of the day together, sometimes sunbathing, sometimes swimming or other times just walking up and down the shoreline but by late afternoon, the couple would always excuse themselves in direction of the cliffs.

There were times when Willam and Alaska would not always leave right away but once the pair had slipped off, they would not be seen again for at least for another half hour. Willam used the time to catch up on missed texts or even eating a quick snack but Alaska’s curiosity continued to grow with each passing week. She’d never really seen that part of the beach due in large part to the fallen trees that hid most of the landscape but she couldn’t help but wonder just what was so interesting over there that Raja and Manila would want to disappear to find every week.

Finally on one exceedingly warm day, Alaska dared to follow after them. The couple had gotten a head start a few minutes prior and Willam was off swimming in the ocean once more. It seemed like the perfect opportunity to trail behind and see just why Manila and Raja wandered off so habitually every week. The terrain past the lonely warning sign had grown much more dense and leaf-littered as she darted between the fallen trees and rocks. It was a bit inconvenient for anyone wishing to take a relaxing stroll so there must have been some additional motivating factor for why the couple would want to come out here together.

Past the first major blockade of overturned foliage, the area did open up, but not very much Alaska had to admit. Upon inspecting the walls of the cliff at a much closer distance, Alaska could see where several parts had collapsed in recent months though exactly how recent was difficult to say. Yet still no matter how thoroughly she searched the area, she could not see nor hear any trace of Raja and Manila. She wandered on much closer to the cliffs until she came up on a curved corner that had jutted into the water and still there was no sign of the couple even with the new vantage point…Unless perhaps they had gone into the woods itself but that option seemed unlikely…they had no shoes on after all.

She was at a loss and considering going back to wait for their return and simply ask them…but another idea struck her.

The water near the cliff didn’t seem too deep, perhaps only thigh high for most people of average height. Maybe they had pushed onward into another area. It was worth a shot to investigate at least.

Braving the lukewarm water, Alaska steadied herself on the slightly rocky, sand-filled bottom, and carefully made her way around the cliff. Whatever she was expecting, it certainly was not what she found.

After rounding the corner of the cliff, the landscape quickly opened up into a small miniature bay. It looked surprisingly clean yet still rather wild when compared to the area she had just passed though. But as she was taking in the natural beauty something else quickly caught her attention.

Off a good 20 yards away at the very edge of the shoreline, Alaska spotted the couple in a more intimate moment than she ever thought she’d witness. There was little doubt as to what the pair was doing, what with Raja’s hand tucked between Manila’s legs and the latter’s head thrown back just slightly. She was biting her bottom lip in effort to keep from becoming too loud but every so often Alaska could hear a soft call of Raja’s name mixed in with the sound of the surf. Her breathing looked labored and heavy if the heaving of her chest was anything to go by as she clawed at Raja’s back desperate for something to hold on to. If Raja was bothered by the light scratches, she showed no outward sign of it. Instead she seemed to be solely focus on her task of giving Manila as much pleasure as the younger woman could handle.

Even from her limited angle Alaska would bet anything that Raja’s fingers were skillfully working their way in and out in a manner Raja would have come to perfect during their time together. Aside from all of that, she was dusting several kisses up and down the side of Manila’s neck as the grip on her backside tightened even further. There was no doubt that younger woman was getting dangerously close.

Raja was just starting to work her way down to a spot between Manila’s collarbone when Alaska felt a pair of warm hands gripping her bare waist and soft chest pressed against her backside. She barely even registered the presence of another person before she heard a teasing whisper in her ear, “Whatcha watching?”

Completely startled, Alaska jumped in place and quickly spun around to find her friend standing just a little too close for comfort. Trying her best to keep them from being caught, she scolded her friend in hushed, firm tone, “Fuck, Willam!”

Not even daring to look back at the pair, Alaska quickly began trying to push Willam back around the other side of the cliff but the dirty blonde was having none of it. Firmly standing her ground, Willam dug her feet in and refused to move. As she had suspected when she first spotted Alaska on her own, she knew the blonde was up to something sneaky and definitely wanted in on it. She darted her way around the younger woman in an effort to see what she was spying on as her voice rose in pitch with a taunting question of, “Ooh, what’s going on-”

However she intended to finish that sentence quickly died on her lips as Willam took in the sight that laid before her. Very much amused, she continued to tease the nervous young woman, “'Laska, I didn’t know you were such a perv!”

“Shut up!” Alaska all but yelled as her voice cracked in embarrassment. Before either of them could truly be caught by their new friends, Alaska grabbed Willam’s arm and swiftly pulled her away from the scene, all the while she kept up her adamant statement of, “I didn’t know that’s what they were doing-”

“Uh-huh, right,” Willam interrupted with eye roll of disbelief. This little incident would definitely be material to tease Alaska with for years to come.

“I didn’t!” the blonde insisted as she kept up a brisk pace back to a safe distance away from the edge of the cliff, “Not at first.”

“Oh, but after?” the dirty blonde challenged with an arched brow.

Feeling her cheeks continuing to grow hot in embarrassment, the blonde squeaked out, “Shut up! I only realized like a second before you showed up!”

Stopping the younger woman in her tracks, Willam stepped closer until there were almost touching and dared her answer, “And how long would you have stayed if I hadn’t?”

As she thought, Alaska remained silent while her cheeks burned a bright red. It almost could have been mistaken for the early stages of sunburn if someone hadn’t known better. But Willam certainly did and felt a smug smirk stretching across her lips as she affirmed, “Mh-mm. Perv.”

“We’re done talking about this,” Alaska declared as she set off once more towards their blanket.

There was no way she could face the couple after they returned and with a lightning quick speed, she hastily packed up all the belongings she and Willam had brought and ushered the protesting dirty blonde towards the car. Even long after the beach and town were out of sight, Alaska could still feel the humiliated heat emanating from her face…one that seemed to double every time she met Willam’s knowing gaze.

That night after retiring to her own apartment she finally allowed herself to replay the scene after having faithfully pushed it from her mind for the better part of the afternoon. Whether it had been real or imagined, Alaska did her best to focus on all the little micro-expressions she believed Manila would have held. From the biting of her lower lip, the heavy panting, soft mewls for more, eyes clenched tight as she tried to hold on for just a little longer…

Startled, Alaska quickly shook those thoughts from her mind. It just felt…dirty to be thinking of her new friends in that manner. As far as she knew, they hadn’t even realized they’d been caught, much less actively watched for well over a minute. And then for her to be playing out the scene again as a very familiar burning built up in the pit of her stomach?

It was too much.

No matter how enticing that mental image had been, Alaska refused to dwell on it. The guilt just wasn’t worth it.

Even when she and Willam set off again the following Saturday morning, Alaska still had reservations about seeing the couple again so soon. She knew her heart would be fluttering even more than it usually did but Willam was insistent on returning to the beach. Their stop at the coffee shop was unusually quick as Willam rushed them in and out after a quick restroom and breakfast break. Seems she just couldn’t wait to spend another day in the sun.

Once on the sand, Alaska barely had time to lay out their blanket and towels before the dirty blonde was grabbing her hand and leading her off towards the shoreline. Somewhat impatiently, she urged, “C'mon!”

“Where are we going?” Alaska asked reluctantly as she struggled to fully wake herself up and mentally prepare for the cold water that was soon to be hitting her feet.

A devilish smirk soon found its way to Willam’s lips as she turned back to Alaska and asked rhetorically, “Where do you think?”

The realization of Willam’s intended destination startled Alaska into full consciousness and her heels began to dig in as she sputtered out, “Wha-Why-”

“I want to check it out,” the dirty blonde reasoned as she continued to pull Alaska towards the wooded end of the beach. Despite her being a good few inches shorter than younger woman, Willam could be surprisingly persistent and strong once motivated…and right now, she certainly had the necessary motivation.

Alaska only struggled for another few seconds before ultimately giving in and allowing Willam to guide her ever closer to the cliffs. Though she wouldn’t quite dare to say it out loud, the phrase 'This is a bad idea’ looped in her mind during their entire journey.

As expected, the water they had to traverse through was far too cold for Alaska to find enjoyable but it would have been pointless for her to try to resist. She honestly didn’t put it past Willam to splash her if she showed any sign of discomfort for the cool waves pooling around them. By some bit of luck it was closer to low tide than high so there wasn’t as much water to wade through as the previous week but with the sun so low in the sky, the majority of the area was still left in the shade.

A shiver ran up her spine as Willam forced her to brave the depths and follow the knee deep water until they reached the opposite shoreline. The nearer they got, it became increasingly obvious that this part of the beach had a much more rocky bottom than where they usually occupied. The clay made the footing a bit slippery if they neared the edge of the cliff too much but thankfully there was just enough sand to ensure that they maintained a steady grip.

With a single-minded determinedness that Alaska was usually one to admire, Willam marched right up to almost the exact spot she and the blonde had seen Raja and Manila in the midst of their liaison. Alaska was initially intending to avoid the area but at Willam’s insistence, or rather pulling, she soon found herself sitting quite near the same area Manila had been laying the previous Saturday.

The pair sat side by side in silence for almost a full minute as they watched the waves lapping at tide line in front of them, but Willam soon took to contemplating out loud, “Mm, so this is it…it’s kinda cold in the shade.”

Another shiver ran through Alaska’s body as she distractedly agreed, “Yeah.”

More than anything she was hoping they’d leave soon as it was becoming increasingly difficult not to begin replaying the events of their last visit to the beach. Already a desperate ache was starting to burn in the pit of her stomach but with every ounce of willpower she had, she tried her best to steer her thoughts away from that accidental case of voyeurism. Willam however, apparently felt no such shame as she further commented, “Not exactly comfortable here but…”

The blonde was silently praying that would be the end of it but those prayers went unanswered as the older woman scooted closer until she was very nearly brushing against Alaska. There was hardly an inch of space between their bodies as Willam cocked her head to the side and asked, “Don'tcha wonder what it’d be like?”

Alaska was fighting with every last bit of strength she had not to let herself do something stupid in response to Willam’s innocent question. Even trying to keep her eyes from drifting to the dirty blonde’s lips or down the curves of her body required a conscious effort to resist. Nothing however could be done to stop the faint pink she felt rising to her cheeks.

Certainly not trusting herself to say anything that wouldn’t be self-incriminating or embarrassing, Alaska opted to simply shrug her shoulders as though the thought had never crossed her mind…much less that it involved the person right next to her.

Despite her attempt to appear neutral and unaffected by the question, Willam seemed to be utterly let down by her answer, or rather, lack of one. Her eyes flashed between frustration and hopelessness as if she weren’t sure which she ought to be feeling more strongly at that moment. Alaska was nearly about to question the odd expression until Willam shook her head in disbelief. She sounded quite beaten as she let out a helpless laugh of, “'Lask…I really don’t get you.”

“What do you mean?” she inquired at once as her head tilted in confusion.

Brushing it off, Willam simply stood up and replied, “Never mind. Let’s head back.”

*******

Their return journey was again quiet but this time it felt more like an awkward tension rather than a comfortable, friendly silence. Almost the moment they had rounded the corner of the cliff and began walking towards the wooded section, Willam decided to instead run off and swim alone. Alaska was left to watch helplessly as her friend stormed away and promptly disappeared between the waves as she seemed to try her best to put as much distance between them as possible.

Her hands were shaking as she stood shuddering in the cool shade and somewhere in the back of her mind, she had the sense that somehow she had fucked up big time. She racked her brain trying to figure out what it could have been but every possibility she came up with seemed too far-fetched. There was no way that Willam could return her affections so perhaps, Alaska reasoned, she had finally discovered the secret that she had tried so hard to keep hidden. Either way, Alaska remained sure of two things; one, that Willam does not feel the same as she does and two, Alaska had no desire to be around anyone else at this particular moment. Instead she decided to sequester herself to this isolated area and suffer in solitude as she came to terms with the likely fact Willam now knew about her long-kept crush.

Setting herself down on one of the larger overturned trees, Alaska sat in dejection and watched the waves as they washed over the shoreline and slowly began to recede back into a proper low tide. She was unsure of how long she had been there but by the time she heard a break in the normal background noise, the sun had risen much higher in the sky and the shadows that had shielded her had begun to retreat further down the beach. She almost disregarded the noise as being too far off in the distance to warrant any special attention but as she began to slip back into her misery again, she was jolted from her thoughts by a very familiar voice.

“Hey, 'Laska! Where’s Willam?” Manila called out cheerfully as she and Raja made their way closer to Alaska’s spot of self-imposed isolation.

“Oh, um, she’s around…somewhere,” Alaska replied with a slightly pained smile as she tried her best to appear friendly. There was a slight shrug of her shoulders as she admitted, “Not sure where exactly.”

“Hm,” Raja murmured as she made her way round Alaska’s side to sit down next to her.

While the older woman made herself comfortable looking out onto the beach, Manila opted to remain on the blonde’s opposite side while straddling the width of the tree as she scooted a bit closer than what most friends would dare to call 'casual’. Raja kept up her air of a polite yet respectful nature but Manila was much more brazen and to the point as she took the opportunity to finally ask the burning question that she and her partner both had, “We always see you two together, are you two dating?”

Startled, Alaska’s eyes darted to the ground as an all too noticeable blush rose to her face. Trying to find her voice and keep it level at the unexpected inquiry, Alaska replied uncomfortable, “Uh, um…no, just…no.”

Her fingers were toying with a lock of hair as she tried to distract herself from the queasy feeling growing in her stomach. It made quite a difference to admit that sad fact out loud instead of just in her head. Perhaps noticing the blonde’s discomfort or maybe just musing the topic on her own, Raja chimed in, “Shame. You two would make a cute couple.”

“How’s that?” Alaska asked with a helpless laugh in her voice, “I’m like…a head taller than her and we’re total opposites.”

“Opposites but still complementary, at least from what I’ve seen,” the older woman mentioned as she turned her gaze away from the ocean to focus solely on the pair beside her.

Immediately agreeing, Manila made a further comment of, “And you always look so happy together. Like when you make each other laugh…it looks like your smiles were meant just for the other.”

“Oh, um, thank you,” the blonde muttered as her cheeks grew even hotter with the mention of the couple’s observation.

Taking a more pointed tone, Raja questioned the younger woman, “Isn’t that something you’ve thought about before?”

Although Alaska was inclined to deny it, she felt unable to follow through with the notion, at least in the presence of these particular two. There was a hint of reluctance in the undertone of her voice as she quietly admitted, “Maybe.”

“But you’ve never made a move?” Raja inquired with an arched brow. Though her demeanor wasn’t meant to be judging she still seemed to disapprove, even if only slightly, of the lack of initiate on either woman’s part.

Picking up on the reproach in the older woman’s voice, Alaska continued to fiddle nervously with the lock of hair tangled in her fingers as she tried to defend herself with, “No, I…I can’t. She’s…we really are opposites. It couldn’t really last.”

“Never know,” Raja disagreed, “Manila and I are pretty different but we make it work.”

Piping up, the younger woman placed a comforting hand on Alaska’s thigh and added in consolingly, “There’s always a way when you find some common ground.”

Alaska politely nodded her head, understanding the meaning behind the words yet still skeptical at how likely they were to be true in real life. Over and over throughout her friendship with Willam, she had reinforced to herself that things hardly ever worked out the way they do Hollywood movies. Personality differences come into play very quickly and could drive a couple apart no matter how attracted they were to one another. Though in this instance, it was clearly a case of one-sided attraction.

Trying to take the focus off of herself, Alaska chose to ask, “How’d you two end up together?”

Each looked at each other to ask who ought to tell the story and with a few seconds of silent conversation, Raja chose to answer for the both of them, “Well, it was right around here actually…rather, a little bit up a ways, but just one day we were out here swimming, having a good time together and somehow we ended up against the rocks just finally…showing each other how we really felt.”

“Yeah, somehow,” Manila muttered with an eye-roll thrown in to boot.

A smirk made its way to Raja’s lips as she replied innocently (and sounded as though she had used the excuse multiple times before), “I slipped.”

“Uh huh,” the younger woman noted sarcastically, “Slipped your tongue right into my mouth.”

“I didn’t hear you complaining…” Raja shot back with a taunting grin, “Then or now.”

Another eye-roll was provided as Manila gave in and brought the commentary back to its original purpose with a gentle declaration of, “Point is, we just kind of took a chance and saw where it led us and I’d say we’re doing pretty well.”

Nodding her head in complete agreement, the brunette added, “No matter how busy we get, we always find our way back here.”

“Our special spot,” Manila affirmed with a nostalgic tone as she gazed at her partner in mutual adoration.

Now more than ever, Alaska felt mortifyingly embarrassed that she had seen them in such an intimate moment, accidental or otherwise. Her voice was starting to shake as she hurriedly apologized, “I’m sorry, I didn’t know it meant-”

“It’s okay,” Raja cut in with an understanding looking in her eyes, “I’m sure it’s not just ours.”

“And we don’t mind sharing…” Manila noted thoughtfully as her hand inched its way up in a lazy manner to meet the outer hem of Alaska’s bikini bottom. “Not if you don’t.”

The brushing of Manila’s fingertips against Alaska’s skin left her head feeling dizzy and her heart pounding in her chest. Unlike most times when the blonde usually remained unaware of someone’s flirting until she was smacked in the face with it, this time it was hard to call the risque behavior as anything but. Just barely she noticed that Manila was drawing thoughtless patterns against her thigh as she waited to see if the younger woman was having any objects to her open invitation. Finding nothing other than a growing shade of pink in Alaska’s face, Manila moved closer one final time until she had almost trapped the blonde between herself and her partner.

Alaska was trying to search the depths of her mind for anything to say or do but the addition of another firmer hand resting on her opposite hip made it almost impossible to come up with any coherent thought. Her eyes dropped to the ground in an attempt to keep them from drifting down Manila’s chest but a gentle hand lifting her chin up quickly brought her gaze back to the jet haired girl in front of her. In a sharp contrast to Alaska’s timid nature, Manila made no effort to hide the growing lust in her eyes. She focused her attention almost solely on Alaska’s lips but to the surprise of the younger woman, the first place she actually felt them was as they grazed against her cheek.

Her breath hitched in her throat as Manila placed a light trail of kisses from the edge of Alaska’s cheekbone, down to the corner of her mouth and then continued on to trace the curve of her jawline. There was slight whine at the denial but Manila remained unconcerned as she placed several kisses down the front and sides of the young woman’s neck. Alaska had been so focused on the woman directly in front of her that she had almost forgotten about Raja…at least until she felt the older woman’s free hand pushing back the long loose locks to leave her own series of kisses across Alaska’s back and shoulder.

The blonde’s mind felt like it was slowly falling into an endless abyss as the women of either side of her seemed determined to leave no area untouched by their lips. A yearning ache was being to build in her chest and stomach as Manila proceed to the leave the beginnings of a love bite above Alaska’s clavicle and Raja slowly made her way up to the shell of Alaska’s ear. She felt the hand formerly woven into her hair drop to brush against her lower back before steadily curling around the contour of her waist.

She barely felt able to breath normally as she heard a husky whisper of, “She’s watching, you know.”

Alaska was almost about to question what Raja had meant but suddenly her mind flashed with a realization of the obvious answer. Even if she had tried, Alaska couldn’t push away the mental image of Willam watching them nor the desperate desire to let the other women do as they pleased even as the dirty blonde engaged in her own voyeurism.

Raja’s fingers started to toy with the top hem of Alaska’s swim bottoms as she continued to drive the point home with, “She’s waiting to see what you do.”

A nod was all the acknowledgement Alaska felt confident to give. There was very little coherent thought left in her head as Manila’s tongue dragged itself across her skin and a few fingers pulled aside the straps of her top so that her lips could continue dusting the entirety of Alaska’s exposed skin.

The blonde felt her hand clenching and nails digging into the bark beneath her as she tried to resist the temptation to pull one of the other women in even closer. Her mind almost went completely blank as she heard Raja suggest, “Why don’t you invite her over?”

Hardly a second passed after Alaska heard the question before she was calling out softly, “Willam.”

Her voice was low and broken, barely able to get it above her normal volume as she tried to fight back another whine while Manila’s hand began to explore the curves of her lower body. Raja still remained the most level headed of the three as she encouraged the blonde in a gentle, cooing tone, “A little louder baby, so she can hear you.”

Immediately reacting to the seductive dip in the older woman’s voice, Alaska called out even louder for her friend, “Willam.”

This time it seems she had been heard and soon there was a soft scrapping of feet as Willam emerged from near a cluster of tangled trees, branches and weeds to walk purposefully towards the three. It was hard to say anything definitive about the expression Willam wore. At first glance it would appear that she were stone-faced, almost pissed off by what she saw but just beneath that there was a definitive look of possessiveness and jealousy and it was then Alaska finally seemed to grasp why Raja called out the fact that the dirty blonde had been watching them.

As Willam drew nearer, Alaska shakily stood up to meet her. Her body felt like it was buzzing wildly from electricity running through every synapse as she tried to maintain her balance on increasingly unsteady legs. Every step made it feel like her knees would give out beneath her but finally she was face to face with the dirty blonde. Alaska’s eyes roamed over every inch of her face as she desperately searched for some kind of answer or indication of how to proceed. Though Willam still had yet to say a word one way or another, Alaska knew what she wanted to do even if it might only be just this once. Her breathing was labored as her hands trembled in anticipation but it was when Willam finally opened her mouth to say something that Alaska’s willpower broke.

Even before the first syllable had slipped out, Alaska’s hands found their way to cup the dirty blonde’s face and pull her close as she pressed their lips together for the kiss she had been waiting years to give to Willam. Almost the second their lips had touched, Willam’s hands were clutching at her waist as though she were daring the world to try and pull Alaska away even for a second as she succumbed to the unspoken passion she and her friend shared for one another.

It was hard to say how long the kiss had actually lasted but each agreed on two points; one, that it was long overdue and two, that it still wasn’t enough. When they actually managed to pull away Alaska felt sure that every ounce of air in her lungs had been depleted during the duration of their lip-lock yet still Alaska wanted it to continue for as long as possible. Willam looked no better off but she was at least able to hide her panting. Her eyes however gave everything away as her pupils grew dark with the desire to pull Alaska back in for another round.

They would have begun again almost immediately had not the other couple stepped up beside them. Willam’s head turned just in time to see Raja’s hint of a smirk as she replaced Alaska’s hands with her own and turned Willam’s face up to capture her lips for their own kiss. Alaska’s jaw dropped at the sight in front of her but soon she found herself having to bite her lip to keep a soft moan from escaping.

Manila’s chest was pressed to Alaska’s back as her hands traveled over the contours and curves of Alaska’s body. Unlike before when she kept her wandering fingers strictly below the belt, this time they ran everywhere they could reach, seemingly intent on teasing the younger woman with as little effort as possible.

“'Nila,” Alaska murmured softly as a pair of lips placed a series of kisses from one shoulder blade to the next.

She wasn’t sure what she was asking for but Manila seemed to know well enough for her. Descending at a snail’s pace, Manila’s fingers worked their way down Alaska’s chest, past her rib cage and stomach until they met the hem of Alaska’s bikini bottoms. She was toying with the skin just above that area as Alaska’s attention fell back to the pair in front of her.

Willam and Raja’s lip-lock looked almost like a sparring battle for dominance as each refused to back down and play a more passive role. Raja maintained her usual calm and collected style throughout their make-out session while Willam poured every bit of her fiery personality into each passing of their lips. Even with the sharp contrast in styles, it was still one of the hottest things Alaska could ever recall seeing. She wanted to see just how far the two would go in their efforts to one-up each other but neither had anything on Manila’s forwardness.

A single hand snuck its way past the elastic of the swim bottoms and moved further down until she was just about to meet Alaska’s outer lips. Her breath was coming out sporadically as she awaited the first contact and for the life of her nothing could be done to stop the needy whine from escaping from deep within her throat. The sound quickly caught Willam’s ear and breaking the kiss with Raja she found an equally enticing sight waiting for her.

Her expression seemed to fluctuate between encouraging them to continue or wanting to rip Manila’s hands away and replace them with her own. Raja picked up on the conflicting desires and wrapped her arms around Willam’s waist as she placed a brief collection of kisses up the side of her neck. A final peck was pressed to Willam’s cheek, as the older woman called out in vaguely reproachful manner, “'Nila…”

Understanding immediately what Raja was hinting at, Manila withdrew her traveling fingers and relented, “Fine…I’ll wait my turn.”

Alaska’s stomach flipped at the statement and her eyes immediately darted to meet Willam’s and then onto Raja’s. Even the dirty blonde had turned around slightly in order to look at the older woman in confusion. With a patient, welcoming tone, Raja offered, “We are still on a public beach after all but if you want…we could move this back to our house.”

“Its only about 15 minutes away,” Manila added in persuasively.

Willam’s gaze immediately shot over to connect with Alaska’s and with little more than a few seconds of consideration the pair were nodding their heads in mutual agreement. In a lightning quick frenzy, each of the couples packed up their belongings and hightailed it back to the parking lot. Though the sun wasn’t even midway in the sky at this point, no one found the energy to care about a day not spent at the beach for once.

To Raja and Manila’s credit the estimated travel time proved to be just about accurate and within the 30 minutes of leaving the beach behind, the four had arrived back at the house and found their way to the bedroom. Admittedly it was too easy for them to pair off for the first round, particularly since Willam had no intention of sharing Alaska during their first time together. As eagerly as Willam crowded Alaska onto the mattress, Raja had done the same with Manila. She knew just how to work her partner up until she squirming with impatience beneath the older woman.

As for Willam, her interest lie solely with exploring the body she could finally claim for her own. She reveled in the drawn out moans and gasps as she drug her fingertips and tongue over every inch of newly exposed skin. Alaska’s cheeks were soon flushed from both the actions of the dirty blonde and the knowledge that she was being watched by the other couple. A few times she had tried to switch their positions, to return the favor and finally touch her friend in manner that she’d only dream of before…but Willam was having none of that.

As if to prove a point, she maintained her place above Alaska and reaffirmed that at least for this session, the blonde would have to be content with being a pillow princess. Though she certainly wouldn’t admit it out loud, Alaska’s heart and stomach fluttered at the statement and all too easily she gave in to Willam’s demand. She didn’t bother to hide the growing volume in her voice but more than anything she still wanted to see or hear the other couple next to her. After catching a glimpse at the beach and now having the opportunity to fully indulge in their offer; it was too much to pass up even for a minute. Through her broken pants she begged them to continue, to just doing something so she could watch.

The pair shared a knowing looked and promised with a small smirk that they knew just how to accommodate her. Placing a delicate kiss to Manila’s cheek, Raja asked softly, “Do you want to tonight?”

Manila nodded in the affirmative but it still gave neither of the other women any clue what to expect. Willam hardly seemed to care any way and promptly returned all of her attention back to recapturing the blonde’s lips. They ignored the couple slipping off the side of the bed and pushed away the curiosity growing in the back of their minds as they heard one of them rifling around in one of the nightstand drawers. However, at the sound of clothing being shed and thrown about, Alaska’s interest was piqued and she opened her eyes steal a quick peak.

Her jaw actually dropped as she took notice of Manila casually slipping into the harness containing a strap on while Raja stood at the ready removing the very last articles of clothing still clinging to her body. The blonde’s eyes grew wide as she raked her gaze over both of the other women’s exposed bodies while they disrobed or prepared themselves. There was such an air of routine that even Willam had to wonder just how often they had done this, either by themselves or in front of other people.

Both of the women lying on the bed were blatantly staring by the time Raja and Manila were ready to move forward. It hardly seemed to surprise the pair to turn around and discover that they were being watched, they almost seemed to enjoy it in fact.

Jokingly Manila asked if the other two would be stripping as well and all too quickly Willam realized that she and Alaska were still wearing too many clothes for her taste. Deciding to remedy the situation herself, Willam took charge of relieving the younger woman of any clothing that had not already been tossed over the edge to bed.

Finally gazing upon each other for the first time in such an intimate moment, the two took their time letting their eyes roam over the other’s body. Alaska was starting to reach a hand out towards Willam and trace along the curves she’d been denied before, but the dirty blonde swiftly caught her hand and forced her back to hit the mattress once again.

“Not yet,” she warned with a sly grin.

Unhappy, Alaska simply pouted and nodded in understanding as Raja slid onto the bed beside her. Balancing herself on her hands and knees, she promised, “Don’t worry, this’ll make up for it.”

There was barely time for the younger woman to swallow before she found Raja’s face beginning to contort in pleasure as Manila carefully guided in the shaft of the prosthetic penis. Alaska looked beyond the clouding gaze of Raja to find Manila biting her lip in anticipation as she waited for a signal to begin moving. Not once did she seem tempted to proceed any further until her partner was entirely comfortable with the new feeling.

The blonde again allowed her eyes to slowly travel down the bodies of both women as an all too familiar ache began to pool in her core. With every passing second she seemed to discover a detail, something that made her want to touch and be touched by them. She’d almost forgotten about her own partner as she studied the pair in fascination until a finger began tracing along her outer folds. The ease at which Willam was able slide against her was almost embarrassing but considering what she was watching? Who could blame her?

Just for a bit fun, Willam leant close to the shell of her ear and teased, “You’re so wet 'Laska…does watching them really turn you on that much?”

It was hard for Alaska to even breathe between the question, the tone, the finger gliding along her entrance and of course, the couple waiting for her answer. Her mouth tripped over her words as she tried to come up with a response but with lazy brushing of Willam’s index against her clit, her mind felt like it had been put through a blender.

Still the dirty blonde tried to encourage her, even after she became partially distracted by the growing movement beside her as Raja gave the approval for her partner to set up slow pace.

“C'mon, baby, I know you can answer me,” Willam taunted as she slipped in the first digit. “You like watching them, don’t you?”

Try as she might, it still took Alaska well over a minute to muster enough thought power to answer shakily, “Y-yes.”

As a reward, another finger was carefully guided in as Willam claimed her lips for a searing lip-lock that left the blonde breathless and panting. There was so little being done to her but she felt close to losing it. She very nearly did once she felt Raja turning her face for their own long overdue kiss. There was passion in everything that Raja did as Alaska soon discovered. Despite the calm exterior she knew how to express her emotions effectively even through just kiss. Between her heated make out session, Willam expertly working her fingers and kissing her way down her body, it was no wonder that Alaska already felt on edge. Even the moments when she had to pull away to breathe offered little relief. Always waiting for her was Manila’s hungry gaze. It was as if she were saying, 'I’m next.’

Perhaps catching on to that thought or simply from just knowing how to read Alaska better than anyone else, Willam asked, “You want her inside you, huh?”

Alaska could only whine in response as the thought alone had her nearly begging for a turn and willing to promise anything just to get it. The dirty blonde above her let out a little laugh as she confirmed, “She’ll get her chance…only after I’m done with you.”

It was with that possessive statement that Alaska finally lost it and pulled Willam close as she rode out her orgasm. She wished she could have held out a bit longer but there was plenty of opportunity for that later in the day. For now she would simply enjoy the fact that she was here with Willam after so many years of silent pining, with another cute couple to boot. True to her word, Willam was not one to share, not so quickly but by the end of their session all of their bodies had been pressed so close together it was difficult to tell just where one person ended and another began. Each took their turn having attention lavished upon them and returned it in equal measure throughout the day. Before any of them had realized, the natural daylight in the room was starting to dwindle and bodies were threatening to give out completely for the night.

They had all but collapsed into a sweaty, panting mess huddled together as they decided to call it quits for the time being. Willam and Alaska ended up staying the night and well into the next day at the insistence of Raja and Manila. Much as they had done in previous weeks, there was a promise exchanged between the four to meet again the following Saturday. Eventually spending Saturdays together turned into entire weekends up until there came a point in time where Alaska and Willam would simply leave directly from work on Friday and return home the following Monday in order to squeeze in every last minute they could with Raja and Manila. Each wanted to make their situation a bit more permanent but still it felt too soon to broach such a heavy topic. For now they were content to share as much time together as they could before deciding on any other major steps. But despite the increase in time spent in their more or less shared house, they never forgot to return to the beach where it had all started for them.

[gatesofember]

Meadows of the Sea: Chapter 6

PJO Arranged Marriage/Royalty AU Part 7

Rating: M | Pairing: Percabeth, Jiper, Solangelo

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Summary: Prince Percy couldn’t be happier. After years of waiting, he is finally marrying the friend and lover he has been betrothed to since childhood. Prince Nico invites his fiancé to accompany him to the wedding, where he can’t help but dream about his own pending marriage. Prince Jason, who has been unable to secure a new engagement after Reyna’s rejection, may finally find the right woman to make his empress.

Athena’s response had put an admittedly large twist in Jason’s plan, but he wasn’t going to give up after one attempt.  By that evening, Jason had decided that would try to talk to Athena once more before nightfall.  If she still did not respond well, he would send a letter ahead to Olympus.  He’d leave Salacia as early as possible, but a ship carrying mail would be faster than a ship carrying passengers.

Knowing that he would have to have a brilliant argument in order to win the court over despite Athena’s influence, Jason had already started to plan what to write.  When the wedding’s final ball began, Jason, Piper, and Piper’s mother isolated themselves to a table in a remote corner with a few pens and pieces of paper instead of joining the festivities.  Jason asked questions about the history of their house, Piper’s education, and the financial status of Venus to construct his argument.  Piper and Aphrodite helped him by pointing out the strongest attributes of the match and discussing the alignment of their goals.

“Jason, if this doesn’t work—” Piper kept saying, but Jason didn’t want to think that way.  He knew that if he let himself worry about failure even once, he’d become so fixated on it that he lost hope altogether.  Jason wasn’t generally an optimist, but he had a feeling that he would never get a chance to marry someone like Piper again.  He would not let the opportunity go to waste.

“If it doesn’t work, I’ll continue to petition until it does,” Jason said.  “They’ll eventually get annoyed enough to let me win.”

“That doesn’t sound like a very effective plan,” Piper commented.

“No.  Which is why I’m hoping it won’t come to that.”

A part of Jason was still in shock that he’d decided on this so quickly.  He wasn’t a risk-taker; he liked to move slowly and think through his options carefully before making choices.  Another part of him felt guilty because he knew that he could hurt Piper if his plans didn’t work out.  But Jason was choosing to listen to the determined part of himself.  He’d never met anyone quite like Piper before.  She was strong-willed and pretty, had a sharp tongue, and she made him laugh.  Jason wanted a wife he could laugh with.  Even Aphrodite wasn’t hard to get along with.  Piper had complained about her a bit the night before, but she clearly wasn’t the heartless, seductive manipulator that Athena made her out to be.

Jason knew that this was his chance: his chance to escape from under Hera’s thumb, his chance to marry someone he could love who was also too strong to hurt, and maybe even his chance to have a happy life.  It wasn’t something Jason was willing to give up on.

Piper suddenly sat straight up in her seat and called Jason’s name, her eyes fixed on something behind him.  Jason didn’t have the chance to turn and look before he felt a hand on his shoulder.  He turned to see his oldest sister looking down at him in disapproval.  “Athena!” Jason said in surprise.

“Are you still planning to pursue this?” she asked, looking over the papers scattered across the table.

Jason swallowed.  “Yes,” he said.  “I know you don’t approve, but if I can make a good enough case—”

Athena held up her finger to silence him as she eyed their papers.  Eventually, she reached her hand towards the table, palm up.  When Jason hesitated, not knowing what to make of the gesture, Athena’s eyes narrowed.  “Give them to me,” she demanded impatiently, and Jason reluctantly acquiesced.  If Athena was in a foul enough mood, Jason would not have been surprised if she ripped his work to shreds right before his eyes.  To his relief, she didn’t.  She looked over the words and thumbed through the papers with an unimpressed expression before suddenly putting them down again.

“I am willing to give you a chance to persuade me,” she said, her eyes locking on the three of them in turn.  “Do not waste my time.”

When Athena abruptly pulled out a chair for herself and took a seat, Jason exchanged a shocked look with Piper and Aphrodite.  “We, uh,” Jason started with uncertainty.  “We’ve been discussing the benefits of the marriage and—”

“I know what you have been discussing,” Athena snapped, like she was frustrated that Jason didn’t even know how to deliver his appeal properly.  “I don’t need the introduction, Jason; I want the arguments.”  She turned her eyes to Piper and said, “Lady Piper, isn’t it?  What is your position in order of birth?”

“I’m the second eldest living, My Lady,” Piper answered politely, without a hint of fear to show if she felt at all intimidated.

“And how many children in total?”

“Eleven living, My Lady.”

At the number, Athena raised her eyebrows and cast a judgmental glance towards Aphrodite, but thankfully didn’t comment before turning her attention back to Piper.  “The Prince is not only looking for a wife; he is looking for an adviser, as well.  What has your education been like?”

“I specialize in commerce, negotiation, rhetoric, human behavior, and persuasion...interpersonal skills, mostly,” Piper answered.  “My education comes from private tutors for the most part, but I spent two years studying in Paphos and one summer in Delphi.  I can provide recommendations, should you require it.”

“I will ask for them at a later occasion,” Athena said before looking back to Aphrodite.  “The economy of Venus has quite the reputation,” she said, obviously not interested in being polite.

“When I inherited the duchy, it was in an admittedly miserable state,” Aphrodite said.  Athena questioned her further, and Aphrodite, with occasional support from her daughter, answered with poise despite Athena’s cold, intimidating glare.  Only a decade before Jason was born, the flamboyant and capricious fashions and parties of the aristocracy had brought the entire kingdom of Neptune to an economic depression and intensified the strain between the aristocracy and the common folk—particularly in the duchy of Venus.  Years later, Aphrodite had led a great change in Venus inherited the duchy.  She lowered the taxes for the poor, and provided funding for food and sanitation, which sorors and consors discovered could curb the spread of disease during the outbreak of the Scarlet Delirium in Pluto.  Athena raised her eyebrow a few times during the conversation, almost like she was impressed.  Jason remembered Piper explaining that Aphrodite felt a great love and responsibility for the people of Venus, which was why she was so determined to see to their well-being.

“When did you meet?” Athena asked later.  Her voice was cold and sharp and Jason couldn’t have guessed what she was thinking.  She at least seemed to be listening, even if they hadn’t convinced her.

“Two nights ago,” Jason answered honestly.  He prepared himself for Athena’s icy stare of disapproval, but it did not come.

“Two days is hardly enough time to construct a proper case for a marriage arrangement,” she said.  “Your arguments are weak and poorly contrived.”

“But if we had more time—”

“Quiet, Jason,” Athena snapped.  “You asked for my council, so I will give it.  Your claims are insufficient to support a decision of this significance.  Frankly, I am disappointed that you would bring me this petition without putting proper consideration into it.  You ought to know better than this.  I cannot support this arrangement.”

“Athena—”

“But I will not oppose it, either,” Athena interrupted.  “Over the next several days, I will act as Jason’s adviser and the four of us will remain in Salacia to discuss the possible benefits of this marriage.  I will allow you to present your case to the Imperial Court, Jason.  And if I am persuaded, I may support you.” She gathered the papers back off the table and stood, then folded the papers into thirds before storing them in the pocket hidden between her skirts.  “I will look your arguments over in more detail tonight.  Tomorrow morning, we will meet and discuss this further over breakfast.  I will send notice of the time and location later this evening.  For the time being, I hope all of you enjoy the rest of the celebrations.”  Without waiting for them to speak, Athena turned on her heel and left them at the table staring after her with shocked expressions.

Jason glanced at Piper and Aphrodite and tried to think of something to say, but instead, he pushed back his chair to chase after his oldest sister.  “Athena!” Jason called as he caught up to her.  “Athena, wait!”

When he put his hand on her arm, Athena looked at him over her shoulder in annoyance.  “Is there something else you need?”

“No, I just...I wanted to thank you,” Jason said.  “I’m grateful that you are giving us this chance.  It will be worth the effort, I swear it.”

“I certainly hope so,” Athena answered coldly.  “It isn’t often that I am wrong, but perhaps I was too quick to judge Lady Piper and the house of Venus.  I hope that I am not wasting my time.”

“You aren’t,” Jason promised.  “But what changed your mind?”

Athena frowned at him like she disapproved of the question.  “It would be unwise to reject a proposal without first listening to it; that is all,” she said.  “And I may have unfairly misdirected my anger towards you earlier today.”

Jason hesitated as he tried to work through what Athena had said, and she started to turn away again.  “I heard about your fight with Annabeth,” Jason said before she could leave.  He was careful to keep his tone even.  He’d known Athena long enough to know that shouting at her never did any good.  The only way to get through to Athena was with reason.  “Athena, she was so upset last night.  You sent Annabeth away crying.  I know that you weren’t in favor of her marriage, but what is the purpose of continuing to fight a battle that’s already over?  All you did was make Annabeth miserable.”

“Perhaps she deserves—”

“Annabeth deserves to be happy,” Jason said calmly.  “At the very least, it’s a waste of energy to continue to berate her for doing something that you can’t change, don’t you think?”

Athena finally turned her whole body back to face him and said, “You don’t have the right to lecture me on how to be a guardian.”

“Annabeth is an adult,” Jason pointed out.  “She doesn’t need you to be a guardian anymore.  She just needs you to support her.”

Athena glared at him so sharply that a part of Jason wanted to shrink away and take back his words out of fear that she’d withdraw her offer to help him make a case for marrying Piper.  But Jason stood his ground and did his best to meet Athena’s eyes, trying to exude an air of confidence.  For a few frightening moments, Athena silently watched him through narrowed eyes.

“Go back to your suitor, Jason,” she finally said, and she swept away without offering him a chance to say anything else.

Jason considered chasing after her again, but ultimately turned back around to find Piper.  Aphrodite had vanished and Piper was standing in front of the table where they had been seated, watching and waiting for him to come back.

“What was that about?” Piper asked when he returned.

“I’m not certain,” Jason admitted.  “But I think Athena may have apologized for that she said earlier.  She might have even been trying to show a bit of sisterly affection.”

“Well, it’s about time she did,” Piper said.  “No wonder you aren’t very close to her.  I never thought I’d say this about anyone, but in some ways, she may be worse than Drew.”

“Drew is one of your sisters, correct?”

“Unfortunately, yes.”

“You’ll have to tell me about her later,” Jason said.  “But for now, would you like to dance?”

Piper smiled and took Jason’s offered hand.  “I was hoping you’d ask.”

*   *   *

Will and Nico had separated before the ball to change into their evening wear, but Will met Nico outside his guest chambers to escort him a short while later.  As usual, Mellie and Hedge disappeared as soon as they got to the hall, shirking their duties to Will and Nico in favor of dancing together.

Will did not invite Nico to dance.  Still confused and on edge, Will had decided that he would wait for Nico to ask.  After all, he didn’t want to offend Nico again.

Although he had been carefully educated on proper etiquette, it was still stressful to meet royalty.  And being engaged to royalty?  Where were the lines between what was appropriate and inappropriate?  How familiar could he be with his fiancé when said fiancé was a prince?  Will had been afraid of overstepping his boundaries for so long, but perhaps he had grown careless over time.  After they kissed in Delphi, and when they played their game during the masked ball, and then when they rewarded each other with victory kisses the following day, Will must have become too comfortable.  Perhaps it would be different when they married.  Will would become a member of the Plutonian Royal Family, and then there would be less distance between them.  But for the time being, Will was not royalty and there was a proper distance to maintain.

Still, Will felt confused.  He thought he had been careful and he was not certain of exactly what he had done wrong.  There had been a bit of playful teasing, and he had initiated touch, but Will could recall doing things of that nature before without upsetting Nico.  What was the difference between what was acceptable and what was not?  Perhaps it was all to do with the time and setting?

Perhaps Will had upset Nico before, but Nico hadn’t commented on it.  He could only recall Nico becoming angry with him once, when Will intended to miss the presentation of his research at the Grand Expo.  This time was far worse and Will wasn’t even certain what he’d done wrong.

Regardless, Will had disappointed Nico.  They had been growing closer, but Will had ruined it by becoming too excited and forgetting himself.

Will stood with Nico on one side of the hall, watching the dancers and awkwardly waiting for some indication of what he ought to do before Nico finally asked him to dance.  He accepted and joined him for an allemande, but shortly afterwards Will found himself once again standing uncomfortably by Nico’s side in the crowd to watch the next dance set.  Nico kept looking at him like he was waiting for him to do something, but Will wasn’t quite sure what Nico wanted from him.  If he’d known, he would have done it.

Eventually, Nico sighed.  “Will,” he whispered, his voice barely audible over the sound of the orchestra and the voices in the crowd.  “I want to talk about last night again.”

Will nodded, but he truthfully wished Nico would stop bringing it up.  He had already apologized for his behavior and he understood that Nico regretted the way he had spoken.  Will would have liked to forget that the incident had ever happened.

“Is there a way I can prove my sincerity?” Will asked, daring to meet Nico’s eyes for the first time that evening.

Nico frowned.  “Sincerity?” he asked.

“I have apologized, but my apology does not appear to have solved the problem,” Will said.  “I regret having upset you and if there is a way that I can prove myself to you—”

“What?” Nico said.  “No, of course you don’t need to prove yourself.”

“Then what must I do to earn your forgiveness?”

“You don’t need my forgiveness,” Nico said.

Will caught a bit of irritation in his tone and considered dropping the issue, but he said, “I must confess that I am confused, Your Highness.  You are quite clearly still upset with me.”

“I’m not upset with you; I just....”  Nico broke off with a sigh.  “Come with me.”

Nico offered Will his arm, but Will hesitated for a moment too long and Nico grabbed his hand to pull him along instead.  Nico’s palm felt sweaty—or was it Will’s?  He couldn’t be sure.  A few people looked at them with raised eyebrows and Will tried to warn Nico about causing a scene, but Nico ignored him.

Nico brought them outside, but didn’t let go of Will’s hand until he found a spot that was uncrowded, on a farther side of the palace overlooking the sea.  He stood in front of Will silently, looking at the floor, and Will said, “Your Highness, I—”

“No, stop,” Nico interrupted.  “If you’re going to apologize again, I don’t want to hear it.”

Will closed his mouth again.

Nico sighed.  “I snapped at you again,” he said.  “I shouldn’t have said it like that.”  He looked like he was going to add something more, but instead stayed quiet and turned to look at the waves.  Nico rested his hands on the railing and glanced at Will over his shoulder once before turning back to the sea.  Eventually, Will decided to risk taking it as an invitation and went to stand beside him at the railing.  The water had been dyed red by the sunset, with streaks of black and white where the waves caught light and shadows.  The palace was high above the water, atop a cliff where naked eyes could look over the sea for miles even as daylight faded.

Nico didn’t speak, but that time, Will forced himself to patiently wait for Nico to break the silence.  When he finally did, he cleared his throat and said, “My governess was from Neptune.”

Another second passed before Will got the feeling that Nico was waiting for him to somehow recognize that he was listening.  “Oh?” he said.

That appeared to be enough for Nico.  “I haven’t...uh...she died.  Before Bianca.  I don’t remember her clearly, but I do recall her telling us about the Prata Pontonia.  She told us it was beautiful, even more beautiful than the King and Queen’s wardrobes or all the palace’s treasures.  I remember the queen wearing a particularly gorgeous gown the next day and I thought that surely it wasn’t possible for anything to be more beautiful than that.  I was wrong.”

“The sea is beautiful,” Will agreed quietly, looking down at the water rolling over the rocks at the foot of the cliff.

“Yes,” Nico said.  “But I didn’t need to see the Prata Pontonia to find something more beautiful than my mother’s gowns.”

Will glanced over at Nico’s tone to find dark eyes staring back at him.  For a brief moment, Will considered that perhaps Nico was calling him beautiful, but he brushed the thought aside.

“We need to talk about what happened,” Nico said.  Will nodded, but Nico didn’t add anything else.  Will was tempted to break the silence, but if Nico did not want an apology, Will did not know what else to say.  Yet even several moments later, Nico still hadn’t spoken.

Finally, when he couldn’t stand the quiet any longer, Will said, “Your Highness, I have been terrified of making a mistake and overstepping my boundaries ever since...well.  I always have been.”

“I know,” Nico said.

“But at the masked ball, I kissed you and you kissed me back, and I thought that perhaps we had grown so close that you hadn’t minded....”

“I didn’t mind,” Nico interrupted.  “I liked it.  I enjoyed that evening with you so much, Will.  I didn’t want it to end.”

“You said that we were pretending,” Will said.  “Then we stopped pretending.  And now you say you don’t want to stop?”

“Yes!  Or...uh...no.”

“I don’t understand.  What would you like me to do?”

“Nothing.  Just...I don’t know.”

Will waited for a moment before speaking again.  “It was my fault, Your Highness.  I took the game too far and overstepped my boundaries.  I will do my best not to let it happen again.”

“Was it a game?” Nico demanded.

Will frowned in confusion.  “You are not a hunter.  I am not a town healer.  It was all a game; I understand that now.”

“Not that—I don’t mean about the healer and the hunter or the prince or the consor.  None of that matters.  It’s...I...we...us.  The us is the same, isn’t it?”

“I don’t understand what you mean, Your Highness.”

“That feeling of us,” Nico insisted.  “The thing between us, connecting us—that wasn’t a game.  When we kissed, that wasn’t a game.  Not to me, anyway.  It wasn’t a game to you, either, was it?”

“But I thought you wanted—”

“I want you, Will,” Nico said.  “I want the way things are between us and the way things continue growing and I want more than that, too.  I don’t ever want to hurt you.  I was nervous and I didn’t mean what I said.  I...I don’t want you to distance yourself.  I like being on your arm or having you on mine.  And I...I like...I like kissing you.  I like being close to you and...um...you make me feel happy and I also want you to be happy because...because I feel...strongly...about you and I....”  Nico stopped with a choked sound and then groaned, smashing his hand against his temple in frustration.

What Nico was trying to say finally dawned on Will, and for a moment he was silent in shock.  The first time Nico had become angry at him—during the Expo in Venadica—Will had realized that it was because Nico cared for him.  What if this time, his reasons were the same?

“Your Highness,” he whispered.  “I think I understand now.  You do not have to say it.”

“Yes, I do, William!” Nico snapped.  “I need to be more honest and upfront with you, so I have to...I....”  He broke off to huff in irritation, his expression both annoyed and miserable.

“If you aren’t ready to say it, I’ll wait.”

“I am ready!” Nico insisted.  “I just...it’s not easy to say, Will.  I’ve never done this before and I’ve never been good at this sort of...expression thing to begin with.”

“Then would you like me to say it first?”

“No.  I have to do this.  It has to be me.”

Will cocked his head curiously.  “Why?”

“Because...because...I don’t know.  It just does.”

“Does it really matter?”

“Yes!  Or...no.  I don’t know.”

“Then let me say it first,” Will said.  “It makes sense that way.  After all, I was the first to fall in love, so—”

Will clamped his jaw shut when realized what he’d just said.  Nico was staring at him in shock, as though the way Will felt hadn’t already been obvious.

After a moment, Will wet his lips and looked at his feet.  “I’ve been in love since I was only six.  It only took a moment for me to fall for you, Your Highness.  When we met again in Divitia, I found myself falling for you all over again, and I haven’t stopped falling since.  I’m more in love with you every day.”

Nico still stared, his lips barely parted as he looked up at Will with an expression that he couldn’t quite decipher.

No, he could decipher it.  He’d seen it before in the way that Lee and Lou Ellen sometimes looked at each other, and in his father’s eyes when he gazed at Hyacinthus.  It was adoration; it just took Will too long to recognize it when the adoration was directed at him.

To Will’s surprise, Nico finally scrunched his nose in irritation.  “This is why I wanted to go first,” he said.  “You’re so much better with words and expressing your feelings and how is anything I say supposed to follow that?”

Will softly laughed and shook his head.  “I promise you, no matter what words you use, they will sound beautiful to my ears.”

“Oh, gods, Will,” Nico breathed.  “You’re making it worse.”

Will frowned and cocked his head to the side.  “How am I making it worse?”

“Gods above, stop talking,” Nico said.  He stepped forward and took Will’s cheeks in his hands so quickly that Will barely had a chance to think before Nico kissed him.

When Nico drew back, he kept Will’s face cradled in gentle hands.  “Listen to me and don’t forget what I am about to say,” he said.  “That night at the masked ball, I called you ‘treasure’ for a reason.  You are my treasure, Will.  In one year, you became the center of my world.  I really, truly love you—so much that it frightens me because I’ve never felt this way before.  Last night, I was afraid and my first instinct was to lash out.”

“Then you aren’t upset with me at all?” Will asked.

“No, not at all,” Nico answered.  “You are perfect, Will.  You’re kind and brilliant and beautiful and everyone adores you, and...and you love me.  No one has ever loved me like you do and no one else has ever made me feel this way.  So please, even if there are rules of etiquette we must all follow, I don’t want you to distance yourself because...because that’s how I am able to tell that you care for me.  That’s how I can tell you that I care for you.  I love being close to you, Will.  Please forgive me.”

Before Will could say anything, Nico kissed him again.  Will remained completely still as Nico continued to kiss him like he didn’t know what else to do, and then, without thinking, Will raised a hand to touch Nico’s jaw.  He instantly realized that touching a prince without clear permission was extremely inappropriate, but before he could take his hand back, Nico had moved even closer, sliding one hand to the back of Will’s neck and the other arm behind his shoulders.  A part of Will almost panicked, thinking that this was not at all proper and that he didn’t want to upset Nico or incur Hedge and Reyna’s wrath, but a much, much larger part felt deliriously happy.

“Do you forgive me?” Nico asked between kisses.

Will tried to answer, but Nico didn’t leave his lips unoccupied long enough for him to speak.  He hummed a sound of agreement instead, too hypnotized by Nico’s kisses to stop him.  When Nico finally paused, Will said, “I understand now.”

“I’m not good at this, but I’m trying,” Nico said.  “I promise to get better.”

“I believe you,” Will said.  “You have made a very convincing argument.”

Nico pressed his forehead against Will’s and laughed breathlessly.  “You have no idea how hard I’ve fallen for you, Will,” he said.  “But from now on, I’m going to do my best to show you.”

He kissed Will again, then a second time, and then a third.  It wasn’t until several kisses later that Will managed to pull away.  “I have a few questions,” he said.

“Gods, still?” Nico said, but he was smiling and didn’t sound irritated at all.  “What part of ‘I am madly in love with you’ is so confusing?”

Will laughed.  “I just want to be sure to understand what the boundaries are,” he said.  “Am I to assume that you wouldn’t mind if I kissed you?”

“Mind? ” Nico repeated incredulously.  “I would like it very much.”

“And the way I touched your arm last night before you became angry and shouted—that is also acceptable?”

“Yes,” Nico said.  “I won’t shout at you for that again.”

“But of course there are still rules,” Will said.  “I won’t do anything that Lady Reyna would disapprove of.”

“Truthfully, it would make me happy if you did a few things Lady Reyna would disapprove of,” Nico admitted.

That answer surprised Will, and he noted to himself that he would have to question Nico further on a later occasion.  “And if I ever do cross a boundary, then will we talk through it together?”

“Yes,” Nico agreed.  “I promise to control my temper.  I don’t want you to be afraid of boundaries, Will.  You’re my fiancé.  You shouldn’t feel so concerned about upsetting me all the time.”  Nico’s lips drew nearer again, until they brushed against Will’s but didn’t quite kiss him.  “I want to be close to you,” he whispered.

“You are already very close,” Will whispered back.

“Figuratively close.  Emotionally.  I...oh, be quiet, Will.”  Nico cut off Will’s laughter by sealing their lips together, but Will couldn’t stop himself from chuckling between kisses.  Nico only lasted a second before he was joining in, too.  “Do you remember that day in Venadica when I said that we had a lot left to learn about each other?” he asked.

“I remember.”

“I think that we still have a lot left to learn,” Nico said.

Will smiled.  “And I’m still looking forward to it,” he answered.

*   *   *

Annabeth was busy greeting her guests spotted Athena walking through the hall.  They hadn’t spoken properly since the argument the night before, but Annabeth didn’t want to leave her wedding without at least trying to end it on good terms with her guardian.  She painted a smile on her face and called out to Athena as she approached.

“I wanted to thank you again for your gift,” Annabeth said.  She was still upset that Athena had assumed she’d only been invited for a present, but she did appreciate the books that Athena had given.  It was a full encyclopedia from Athena’s personal collection, one that had always been especially important to Annabeth.  Prior to being adopted by Athena, Annabeth had received an excellent Scatinavian education, but she’d always had trouble reading.  When she moved to Olympus and Athena took over her schooling, Annabeth had attempted to hide her difficulties, but Athena eventually discovered them.  Although Annabeth had always been ashamed and expected to be scolded, Athena had instead spent day after day alone with Annabeth for hours at a time, teaching her to read words printed in the volumes of that same encyclopedia.  Athena was always strict, but she’d been patient with Annabeth’s slow progress.  Sometimes, Annabeth had felt so frustrated and miserable that she wanted to give up, and other times she just felt stupid and guilty for being such a burden on Athena.  But Athena would always say, “It’s true that you’re taking a bit longer than other children, but that’s no fault of yours.  You just haven’t had a good enough teacher.  Don’t give up on me yet, Annabeth; I’m going to find out how to be that teacher.”

Athena looked disinterested in Annabeth’s thanks, but Athena wasn’t known for being expressive.  “I commissioned a newer encyclopedia for myself not long ago,” Athena said.  “I thought it would be better to give you the old one rather than let it go to waste.”  She paused and eyed Annabeth before adding, “Of course, if you’d rather have a new set—”

“No, I like the one you gave me,” Annabeth said.  “It has some good memories, doesn’t it?”

Athena didn’t voice her agreement, but she didn’t deny it, either.

“I also heard that you decided to help Jason make a case for arranging a marriage to Piper,” said Annabeth.  “I wanted to thank you for hearing them out.”

“I only did it because of your husband,” Athena said coolly.

Annabeth frowned in surprise.  “Because of Percy?” she asked.

Athena glanced at her briefly.  “He mentioned that you are friends with that girl.”

“Yes, I’ve known Piper for years,” Annabeth said.  “I absolutely adore her.  She and Jason will be good for each other.”

“If you insist,” Athena said.  “I do not see it, but I trust that those you chose to associate with must have some redeeming qualities.”

“Thank you, Athena,” Annabeth said again.  “I am very grateful.”

“Then consider it another wedding gift,” Athena said.  “I have some reading to do, so I’ll leave you to enjoy your evening.”

“You don’t wish to stay a bit longer?” Annabeth asked.

“You know I’ve never particularly enjoyed these sorts of public events,” Athena said.  “Besides, I want to make use of Salacia’s archives while they’re empty.  I need to research the house of Venus if I am to help Jason make this arrangement work.”

“I understand,” Annabeth said.  “Then we’ll meet again tomorrow?”

“At some point in the day,” Athena answered.  “Good night, Annabeth.”

“Goodnight, Athena,” Annabeth replied as Athena started to walk away.

After taking a few steps, Athena paused and turned back around.  “And congratulations,” she added.  “I hope your marriage brings you happiness.”

Annabeth smiled gratefully.  “Thank you.  I think it will.”

Athena nodded and looked like she was thinking about adding something more, but then she turned away again and disappeared into the crowd.

Annabeth tried to reign in her joy to keep herself from whooping in victory as she sought out her husband.  She found him standing to one side of the room, drinking from a glass of white wine. Percy saw her as she approached and gave a familiar smirk.  “Did something good happen?” Percy asked when she reached him.

“I think Athena was trying to be nice to me,” Annabeth said.

Percy’s smile didn’t waver.  “How so?” he asked before taking a sip from his wine glass.

“She said something about trusting that the people I associate with ‘must have redeeming qualities,’ or something like that,” Annabeth answered.  “Coming from Athena, it sounds almost like she was giving us her blessing.”

“Hmm.  How unusual.”

Annabeth glanced at Percy to find him staring straight forward as he sipped from his glass, a bit of a smile tugging at his lips.

“Athena mentioned that you told her I’m friends with Piper,” Annabeth said.  When Percy only nodded vaguely, she asked, “Did you do something else I ought to know about?”

“I may have said a few things to Athena about her emotional capacity.  I also made a particularly clever point about trusting you to make your own decisions.”

Annabeth grinned and forced down a laugh.  “I love you,” she said.

“That’s convenient, seeing as you’ll be stuck with me for the rest of our lives,” commented Percy.  He laughed when Annabeth jabbed him playfully with her elbow.  “And I also love you,” he added.

“You have made me a very happy wife, Percy,” Annabeth said.  “Start thinking about what you’d like as a reward tonight, because I intend to thank you quite thoroughly.”

Percy made a pleased sound in the back of his throat.  “I’m looking forward to it,” he said.

“So am I,” Annabeth answered.

Percy put his arm around Annabeth’s waist and she leaned comfortably into his side as she surveyed the crowds.  Piper and Jason were taking a break from dancing and had instead found a spot on the other side of the hall, where Piper appeared to be introducing Jason to Neptonian hors d'oeuvres.  They laughed when Jason spilled something down the front of his coat and scrambled to clean it together.  The two were still getting to know each other, but they appeared to be having a lot of fun along the way.  Meanwhile, Nico was dragging his fiancé to the center of the room for the next dance.  They seemed to have recovered from the blunder that had made them so upset that morning and were back to stealing kisses whenever they thought their chaperone wasn’t paying attention.

“So, was it a good wedding?” Percy asked.

“Aside from the fact that we spent our wedding night in separate bedrooms, yes,” Annabeth said.  “But we’ll make up for that tonight.”

Percy laughed and kissed the top of her head.  Annabeth’s friends were enjoying themselves, her guardian was placated, and standing in her new husband’s embrace, Annabeth felt like a very happy bride.

Next

[ikagrp]

Welcome, Bonnie! You’ve been accepted as your first choice of Jung Eunbi as Jiwoo Shin. Please send in your account within the next 24 hours.

Also, please follow these tags: ikag starter, Ikag social, ikaghh, ikag important, ikag task, ikagfollow, ikagunfollow and   ikag event

[ OOC INFORMATION ]

NAME / PRONOUNS | AGE | TIMEZONE

hi, my name’s bonnibel but i go by any short hand of that (typically bonni or b ). typically go with she and her. ‘twenty-three" by iu plays loudly bc i’m twenty-three and its a bop. i’m in the weird part of indiana that’s in the central time zone.

YOUR ACTIVITY:

i work, a lot. but i usually always have free time to be active and do stuff. it’s been a while since i was last in a group (ended badly )but i’m willing to try anything.

ROLEPLAYING EXPERIENCE

i started on facebook back in the great ol age of 2010 and moved to tumblr in 2014 and have been here ever since. i’ve had way too many blogs to count.

IC INFORMATION

WHO ARE YOU BRINGING TO THE SHOW?

Please keep this layout for us. So that it is easier for us to update everything.

FACECLAIM: jung eunbi/eunha Secondary choice: amber liu

NAME: eunha: jiwoo shin / amber: kenna shin

AGE: twenty-three

BIRTHDAY: december 4th, 1995

OCCUPATION: eunha: social media influencer/model / amber: tattoo artist. 

HOMETOWN:  eunha: beomil-dong, dong-gu, busan, south korea / amber: long beach, california

PETS: none.

BIOGRAPHY:

Triggers: homophobia

describing jiwoo as she grew up was like describing the sun. always with a bright smile on her face and a laugh at the tip of her tongue. trying her hardest to make everyone around her smile as brightly as she could. an optimistic child that nobody thought would go very far. the world wasn’t all sunshines and rainbows. though nobody wanted to break the poor child’s heart just yet.

growing up, jiwoo had always felt different. at least that’s what she believed. never fancying the same boys that the other girls had gossiped over at school, but instead, she had always noticed the little things about those gossiping girls. in the country, the topics were never talked about. mostly frowned upon. jiwoo had no idea why this was and nobody could explain it to her. so, the small girl bit her tongue and kept herself silent. family dinners never talked about those relationships, an aunt or two asking when she was ever going to get a boyfriend. the thought never crossed her mind.

through her life, photography was always there. from the beautiful pictures she saw on tv to the pictures in the magazines. from the sights to the models. everything seemed to capture the girl’s attention. through the years, jiwoo had gone through probably a thousand disposable cameras until one day her parents gave the girl her first digital camera. it was one of the best gifts that she had ever received. promised to take good care of it. she treated the camera like a fragile little creature that if you shook to hard, would break.

through the years, the shin family took trips around the world. the trips filled the young child with so much glee. the beautiful sights and wonderful opportunities to capture beautiful moments on film forever. soon enough, jiwoo had a place to post her pictures. her social media sights grew from the amazing sights that she got to share. eventually, this popularity created more opportunities. with those opportunities came more chances for jiwoo to take photos. soon enough, she started to post pictures that included her face. some companies found out about her following, often asking her for promotional posts and ads.

but even with all the popularity she had been getting, jiwoo was slowly spiraling into depression. the country she lived in was not a tolerant place. though there was no way possible to be prosecuted for the actions, it was still not a legal act. jiwoo was slightly ashamed and rather annoyed by the lack of understanding and acceptance she would be greeted with. so she kept it a secret. telling no soul what she felt.

after a while, she finally able to leave behind the world she was used to. a world that kept her voice silent but accepted her gift. moving from her home in south korea, jiwoo set up shop in a city on another continent. though they were against the action, her parents had no right to refuse their daughter. with the excuse of schooling, which like most typical families in korea, was extremely important. they allowed to pack up her life and move away from them.

the new sights were amazing even though jiwoo had seen them before. she enjoyed the warm weather and beautiful people. after a while, the photography on her media seemed to be blooming even better than before and so many people were fascinated by her that even her modeling took off. it paid her well and she was happy. there was no judgment in this new place and she was finally able to be herself.

after years of living on her own, jiwoo went back to korea to see her family. though it was only a visit, she was happy to finally be able to be open to them and show them her real self. the bright sunshine girl was back and honestly, her parents couldn’t be happier. she told them jiwoo had be given an offer that she was going to accept. they promised to be supporting her as they tried their hardest to catch it all from their home.

with bags packed, the korean girl found herself on the first flight to london.

RELATIONSHIPS: 

none.

FOR RETURNING CHARACTERS ONLY:

¯\_(ツ)_/¯

ANYTHING ELSE:

lowkey sorry that my biography is total shit but it was really difficult. bios are not my strong area and it’s now three am rip. all secondary information is listed for amber. also, this is a really cute idea for a group tbh

[hemmovation]

Better For You (Byun Baekhyun)

Prompts: “Remember when you promised we’d always be together? Because I remember when you meant it.” and “Did you honestly think I cared? It was all an act.”

Pairing: Byun Baekhyun x reader

Genre: College AU, Fratboy!Baekhyun, angst, fluff

Warnings: alcohol, it’s really cliche, maybe swearing idk

Word count: 1429

           The beat of the music pounded through my ears, the vibrations rumbling in my chest as I followed my friend through the crowd of people occupying the frat house. A party was the last place I wanted to be, but I was dragged here without much choice. I’d much rather be curled up in my bed watching Netflix, but my friend decided I needed to get out of my room more. lately she’d been dragging me to the mall or to events on campus, and this party was one of the things she deemed was a necessary part of a college experience as well as something that would take my mind off my recent break up. The further we got into the frat house, the louder and more cramped it got. The air reeked of weed and various types of alcohol, and I had to refrain from covering my nose.

           As soon as we reached the kitchen, she was mixing me a drink of whatever they had on the counters, thrusting it into my hand and telling me to chug it. I did as I was told, figuring I may as well try to have some fun while I was here, but the only way my mind would actually be able to forget about Baekhyun would be if I managed to blackout from the alcohol. Soon enough I’d downed nearly four drinks, and I was on the verge of being drunk. I had lost sight of my friend quickly, assuming she had found some guy to dance with. So much for having a girls’ night.

           Sighing, I made my way back towards the living room of the frat, wanting to find a place to sit down for a bit. I could feel the effects of the alcohol in my head, and I felt like I was spinning. Leaning against the wall next to me, I shook the feeling away, doing my best to hold myself up. Luckily for me there was an empty chair next to one of the couches, and I quickly tried to make my way to it before someone else could. Before I could sink into the comfy-looking chair, my eyes wandered to the couch next to me, and I gasped, nearly breaking into tears right then and there. Sitting on the couch was Baekhyun, his eyes now locked with mine. Some scrawny chick dressed in what looked mostly like a bra and what had to be the shortest skirt known to man was practically on top of him, clearly trying to get his attention.

           My mind went blank as I stared at him, the tears beginning to well up in my eyes as I fought them back. I couldn’t cry here, especially not in front of Baekhyun. But I also couldn’t keep my brain from going back to our break up.

           “Honestly, you’re just not good enough. I could do so much better than you. You’re clingy and annoying, and honestly, I don’t know why I bothered with you anyway,” he sneered, rolling his eyes as he barely looked at me.

           My heart was shattering into a million pieces, a lump forming in my throat as the tears spilled over. “B-Baekhyun, what are you saying? How could you say those things to me? Remember when you promised we’d always be together? Because I remember when I thought you meant it,” I sobbed. My shoulders shook, and my legs began to give out, barely able to support my weight.

           “Did you honestly think I cared? It was all an act. I don’t want you.” His voice was cold and firm, the complete opposite of how he normally sounded when he spoke to me.

           His words caused me to break, and I could no longer hold myself up. I collapsed onto the floor, sobs wracking through my body.

           At the memory of our recent break up, the tears spilled over, running down my cheeks. Baekhyun looked surprised to see me crying, and I couldn’t quite tell in my drunken state, but he appeared almost…heartbroken. Not willing to let him see what he had done to me, I spun around, desperately trying to shove my way through the hundreds of people crammed into this tiny space. I had no idea how I was supposed to get out of the house. I hadn’t paid enough attention when we were coming in, and with the alcohol inside my system I had gotten even more turned around. Frantically moving throughout the building, I took random twists and turns, hoping I could find my way outside.

           Somehow, I had ended up going down a hallway that must’ve led to a bunch of the bedrooms for the frat because every time I opened a door, it only led to dark rooms filled with clothes strewn about. When I turned back around to go back towards the way I came from, my heart stopped at the sight of Baekhyun standing in the hallway. He was blocking my path and carefully walking towards me.

           “Are…are you alright? Do you need help?” His voice was soft and soothing, like he knew what I was going through.

           I rapidly shook my head, intensifying the feeling of the alcohol. “No, no, I don’t. Especially not from you. I hate you.” I had hoped my voice would come off strong, but it sounded weak and my words were beginning to slur.

           “I’m sorry,” he told me quietly, his eyes cast downward as he took a few steps towards me. “I know you’re hurting, because I am, too.”

           “No, you aren’t. You don’t get to hurt, Baekhyun. You’re the one who did this to us. But it doesn’t even matter to you that you ruined what we had because you didn’t even care. You destroyed me, Baekhyun. I don’t even know what to do with myself. There’s a constant pain in my chest, and you think you get to hurt because of this? Fuck you, Baekhyun.” I couldn’t hold back the sobs anymore, and I fell back against the wall, sliding down against it. Covering my face with my hands, I tried to calm myself down, not wanting him to see how badly he had hurt me when it was clear I meant nothing to him.

           “I didn’t mean it,” he cried. The whimper in his voice caused me to look up at him, and when I did, I could see the fresh tears falling from his eyes. “I-I thought that you deserved more, and my frat brothers all wanted me to go to the club with them. They were telling me that I was missing out on having fun and partying, so they pressured me, and I broke up with you! I know you probably hate me, but I still love you. I love you more than anything, and it’s been killing me not to be with you. I want you more than anything, and none of what I told you that day was true. I just want to be with you, please.” He knelt on the floor in front of me, timidly making his way to me, testing to see if I’d reject his touch. When I didn’t, he pulled me into his lap, tucking me into his chest and resting his chin on top of my head.

           Whimpering, I curled into him, gripping his shirt in my hand as I pulled myself as close as possible. When I finally managed to calm my sobbing, I spoke. “I still love you, Baek. I always will. But how do we come back from this? I don’t want to keep hurting.”

           Pressing short kisses to my forehead, he turned me, so he could look into my eyes. “Let me prove to you how much I love you. I’ll do anything to show you that you mean everything to me. Please, Princess, just let me show you that I can be better, that I’ll be anything you need,” his tone was desperate, knowing that this was his last chance with me.

           Nodding, I closed my eyes, leaning back against his shoulder. “One chance, Baekhyun. Don’t screw it up.”

           “Never, I promise. I’ll show you how much you mean to me. I love you, baby.” With that he pressed his lips against mine. His lips felt soft against my chapped ones, and I could tell how much he loved me. While it was slow, it was sweet and desperate, like he needed to show me how much he loved me right then and there.

           “I love you, too, Baek. You’re my everything.”

[star-crossedfidelity]

Juliet’s Story: A Mistress’s Gift

Mun!Yuki: It is now April 20th for me! :D HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO JULIET!!!! I’m honestly happy with how this story turned out. Because while Leon’s story was more of his optimism, This is mostly in-depth of Juliet’s character where I even explored writing different sides of her; Sides that she doesn’t even show to others except for Leon. This is now my chance to show more of Juliet’s character, and how this affects Juliet as she grew up; Unlike Hisoka, Juliet was born and raised with a normal childhood, without having to bear the responsibilities of being an heiress to the Kuroi family. PLUS THIS WAS LITERALLY 16 PAGES LONG! XD I’M HONESTLY PROUD OF THIS! 

I hope you all enjoy! AND HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO MY SADISTIC MISTRESS!!!!!! XD

WARNING: THIS HAS SENSITIVE TOPICS SUCH AS BULLYING, STRONG LANGUAGE/SWEARING, VIOLENCE, AND ANGST!!!!

“Here you go, Jules!”

Juliet reached for her order from the Takoyaki stand. “Thanks, Kirishima.” She gave the man, Kirishima, the payment before enjoying her Takoyaki. “Anything for a regular! How’s your folks?” Kirishima asked. “They’re doing fine; Leon is in the process of recovering this year’s Prank.” Juliet replied as she continued to eat her Takoyaki. “Man, I heard about that; I feel bad for the guy, he’s such a good kid.” Juliet simply agreed, “Yup.”

Then there came the question.

“Hey, I don’t mean to get personal when I ask this, but isn’t your birthday coming soon?” The owner asked. “Yeah, on the 20th; About four days before my father’s.” Juliet stopped eating her Takoyaki as she sensed this conversation might become important.

“What do you wanna get for you birthday?”

Juliet looked at him questioningly. “Why do you ask?” She eyed suspiciously. “Because you’ve done so much for my family, not only have you come to our business so often as a regular, you also help babysitting the kids. Seriously, most babysitters would quit on the first day with them, but they really like you, and you even present yourself as a good example and actually take care of them.”

Juliet continued to eye him suspiciously, which made the man laugh. “I know, you rather cut your own tongue than to be assumed to be a softie; Don’t worry, I’m not assuming that considering the fact I know you and what you are capable of; But that still won’t stop my family and I from speaking fondly of you, unlike the others that think otherwise; You’re not a bad kid.”

Juliet’s blue orbs soften from the better understanding. 

It’s true.

When she was 12 years old and was ordering a Takoyaki as a regular already, Juliet noticed the tension from the man, whom explained that a new babysitter quit last minute and they became worried as their children were rather wild. At the time Juliet needed money and something to do to get out of the house other than physical training and studying all day indoors, was already being homeschooled so there was no school rules applied to her about against having a job on the side, and had a lot of experience taking care of Leon growing up, so she offered to be their new babysitter. They were hesitant, but since they had no other choice, they accepted. After the first night, it was difficult at first, but Juliet ended up having them listen and do as she said. In the end, The Kirishima’s hired Juliet as their babysitter, resulting them to be good family friends, and now their children, for what ever reason, loved and admired her greatly; It was probably because Juliet refrained showing her sadistic traits and posed as the reliable big sister that she sincerely has been when pushing aside her playfulness, resembling her father when he took care of her uncles.

“So? Any ideas? It can be anything.” 

Juliet looked up at him and sighed. “I haven’t thought about it, to be honest; When I do, I’ll tell you though.” The raven-haired sadist commented, “I have to get going. My brother will be getting out of school soon, and I want to walk with him so we can find a present for Father.”

“Hahaha! Well, I wish you both the best of luck! Your dad must be really lucky to have you guys as his kids! Not a lot of kids would go out of their way for their parents.”

Juliet nodded and waved goodbye silently with Takoyaki in her mouth, while Kirishima waved back with his usual jovial grin.

Some time past by once she made it to her brother’s school. School may have already ended but they were all probably in the middle of cleaning duty. Not wanting to let her Takoyaki go to waste, Juliet continued to eat it with a delighted look upon her face as she waited. God, there was nothing that tasted better than-

....

‘Huh...’

After swallowing one of the octopus balls, Juliet stared down at the remaining Takoyaki at it.

While it was true that Juliet normally didn’t like strong-flavored things, it was odd that that fact was contradicted by her love for Takoyaki...

When...?

When did she develop this love for this snack?

She remember being introduced to it by Uncle Ayato, but...

This was just a snack.

So...

“Why...?”

Suddenly, her mind wandered upon curiosity of that one question.

Yeah...

I remember...

It all started about nine years ago. I was about 6 years old. I was prepared to attend the first grade. Honestly... I didn’t like going to school without Leon by my side. But at that time, I was willing to wait a year to be able to walk beside him to school. Back then, I already knew I was a smart kid. And that isn’t something said out of arrogance. I knew because I noticed how different I was compared to the other kids.

“She got it right again?”

“She’s so weird. She doesn’t talk to anyone.”

“She‘s like a robot! She doesn’t even show any emotion! I bet if you throw something at her, her face will still be the same.”

Even the teachers there.

“She doesn’t socialize with anyone.”

“That brat is so disrespectful! She humiliated me in front of the entire class!”

“Yeah, That kid acts as if she knows it all. Why the hell was she even here?”

......

They were all so annoying...

All so ignorant...

It pissed me off seeing them act as if they knew me when they don’t...

Unlike them, I live in a world where Vampires do exist. I was born with the same blood as vampire hunters. My father was once a vampire before returning back into human. My uncles are still vampires. I lived in a different world from other kids. I was what they would call “different” in comparison to their general idea of “normal”. To their words, a “freak”.

This is why I hated ignorant people...

Just because I was different from them, they had the right to talk down to me...?

At that time, I thought I could handle it... because I wanted to get through it and wait for Leon when he attends school next...

But then.. a week after school started, a week before my birthday... 

I snapped....

I was presented a flower by Leon. He wanted me to wear it to school because he thought I would look pretty with it.

And when I did wear it..

“What is with this flower?! It looks gross!”

The next thing I knew was that a group of boys caught me in a hold, forcibly grabbing the flower from behind my ear.

“What kind of idiot would just wear something this girly?!! Was it that sissy brother of yours that gave you something like that?!!!”

One of the boys scoffed and threw the flower on the ground... and stomped on it repeatedly with a smirk on his face...

Everything went black at that point...

The next thing I remember was... 

A distorted classroom...

Horrified gasps from other children..

A chair within my grasp... 

Hitting the boy’s body until it was bruised... 

Yelling out the words “WHO’S LIVESTOCK?!!!!!” past my lips...

And whimpering from the bruised, trembling body beneath me, mumbling repeatedly, “I-I am..!”

At that time, I didn’t realize how much I really enjoyed the sight of this livestock on the ground being punished like that. How the bruises upon his trembling body were even turning purple. How his helpless whimpers and cries were like music to my ears. It was fascinating at the time. Who knew it would create a spark within me that would awaken the sadist within me.

I was forced into the chairman’s office, with my parents in the room. While the chairman wanted to expel me, my parents knew I wouldn’t have done such a thing such as snapping if something wasn’t happening at school... Unless I was given a good reason for snapping the way I did...

They later learned it was because I was treated unfairly in the school, with the students bullying me and the teachers doing nothing but watch and snarl at me. They wanted the Chairman to do something about it, but he refused. Apparently, due to the injures I gave the boy, it should be our family that is count responsible even though it was that boy’s fault for pushing me into snapping like that. The chairman even refused to allow me to skip grades, despite my intelligence being higher than everyone else’s. Then, It lead to Mother and Father to taking me out of that damn school. While now I feel it was the best thing ever since that school was just the worst, back then I thought I have failed...

I felt like a failure. I let my emotions take control over me. Because of the fact that I was different...

Now Leon and I would never be able to walk together hand-in-hand to school. All because I screwed up...

When we got home, I locked myself in my room. I didn’t even let Leon in, because I felt pathetic for failing....

On my bed, I held onto my cow plush that I’ve had since I was a baby...

Everything was quiet and dark...

I felt empty...

Like I didn’t care to continue living anymore....

I found myself ready to doze off, to forget about everything...

But then I heard a knock upon the door...

“Juliet.. open the door.”

I heard Father’s voice from the other side. And I felt fear.

Was he there to tell me how disappointed he was of me?

While it was true, I did do things father would disapprove of. But the last thing I wanted was to be a disappointment to him.

“I am aware that you are awake; So just open the door. I would like to speak to you.”

Feeling hesitant, I slowly got out of bed and slowly opened the door, coming face-to-face with Father.

“Let’s go.” He said, making me tilt my head and stand still. “Where?” I question. “We are just going for a walk; Get your coat, Juliet; You don't want to worry your mother, do you?” Father advised. I shook my head and immediately did as he said.

Next thing I remember, we were walking together hand-in-hand, on a busy street. We didn’t say anything. We just continued to walk. I didn’t want to say anything, in fear of the possibility of doing something he would disapprove of as a disappointment.

I could only look down.

That was when I smelt something delicious.

I turned my head to a Takoyaki stand, and felt my stomach rumble. My father must’ve noticed it by how loud the rumbling was. “Hungry...” I mumbled as I pressed my hand onto my tummy. I remember myself stubbornly refusing to leave my room, even when it was lunch and dinner. 

My father sighed, but he silently took me to the Takoyaki stand. “Two please.” He ordered. I could only watch in confusion. If there was anything I knew, My father hated strong-flavored foods. This also includes Takoyaki, right? So why...

“Here, Juliet.”

I was brought back to my senses when my father handed Takoyaki to me. Hesitantly, I took it and thanked him before we could go sit somewhere quiet to eat. Once we did, I gave my thanks before eating it. I couldn’t help but savor the texture of it. It was heavenly. I remember being introduced to it by Uncle Ayato when Leon and I were being babysat by Aunt Yui and him. I remember taking a bite of it at that time and the wonderful taste of it, but I forced myself to forget it once we returned home. I didn’t even realize I was already finishing mine and that I was now eating the one Father silently placed on my lap above mine.

“It is quite surprising; You usually don’t enjoy strong-flavored food.” I heard Father comment. Swallowing my food, I reply, “Because it’s different from the rest.”

....

Different from the rest...

Remembering the incident at school and swallowing the last one, I couldn’t help but frown...

I couldn’t believe something like Takoyaki was able to make me forget...

“I want to know why you didn’t tell us.”

I turned to my father in surprise, “What do you mean?” I couldn’t help but question. “What do I mean? If you were having a hard time at school, then why didn’t you come to me or your mother? Even Leon never knew about this. I want to know why you kept this secret from us.” Father answered.

The tone of his voice... 

It sounded scary...

Normally, I would be able to handle it.

But this time...

“I-I... I...”

I could only look down... 

I felt my eyes being clouded with tears... 

Word could barely leave my lips...

My voice started to crack...

“... I didn’t want you.. to see me as a disappointment...”

“What?” I could sense my father’s surprise. I couldn’t blame him. I was a strong kid. I was fearless. I was able to withstand my father’s anger. I never let words affect me that much.

I continued.

“They.. they tried to put me down... If I did.. tell you and Mother... I would’ve felt like a.. f-failure... I wouldn’t be a-able to walk t-together with Leon when h-he goes to school next... I-I-I tried to... n-not l-let it.. a-affect me... b-but...”

At that point, I couldn’t do it...

So instead...

For the first time since I was born...

I, Mukami Juliet, the Mistress of Sadism, the definition of a “Bad Girl”, the rebellious child, and the most dominant sadist you could ever meet...

“UWAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!”

Cried...

They were tears of agony...

Tears filled with shame...

I felt utterly disgusted with myself...

My choices lead causing burdens...

Why was I like this...?

It’s not like I hated myself....

And I love my family....

But....

Just why?

Why was I different from the other kids?

Why did they have to be so fucking ignorant?

Why did I have to be the one in the wrong?

Why was I the only one different?!

I remember all of the emotions rushing through me at once, as soon as I started to wail.

Fear, sadness, anger, regret, shame...

It was all like a typhoon.

All of the tears bottled up within me were released. I couldn’t stop them, no matter how much I tried to stop them with my sleeves.

I’m sure it was quite the rare sight for anyone...

Even for Father—

Wait...

During the middle of my wailing, I felt myself in warm, strong arms. 

They were.. my father’s...

“You may have done things that I highly disapprove of...“

I tried to catch my breath, to try and reply back...

But his next words lead me to even more tears...

“However, you are still my daughter regardless.. Both yourself and your brother are always going to be offsprings created from the forbidden fruit that your mother and I shared...”

Even at that age, I knew what he meant about the forbidden fruit that he and mother shared.

It was their love. The forbidden love they shared back then between a vampire and a huntress. Mortal enemies that eventually turned into star-crossed lovers. Their love that was strictly prohibited, much like the love from Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet, the story Mother has always loved since her childhood. Irresistible yet sinful. Much like the forbidden fruit Adam and Eve ate.

‘Thank god...’

This time... all of my tears were of relief.

I can’t remember how long it has been since I’ve started crying... 

It felt like a very long time...

I believe I passed out from crying too much afterwards.. and that Father carried me back home... because I couldn’t remember what happened next...

On the day of my birthday, it was like before I even went to school. Everything was normal. Leon and Mother were both relieved when I left my room for the first time in a while. My Uncles came, along with Aunt Yui, to celebrate my birthday.

And for the first time in a while, I felt happy.

Uncle Kou got me a new dress, Uncle Yuma got me a set for dumbbells perfectly suited for me as a kid, and Uncle Azusa got me a stuffed bunny. Apparently, Uncle Kou and Uncle Yuma helped pick something out for Uncle Azusa. Back then, I didn’t know why; But now that I know better, it was probably for the best. Aunt Yui got me a journal to write in. And I was received another gift from our other uncle, Mother’s adoptive brother, which was a punching bag. Ever since the incident, My Uncles and Aunt Yui got worried about me. Uncle Yuma was the most furious, but luckily I was able to get him to calm down after I told him what happened next.

It was a fun birthday. But the most special moment for me was at the near end. When it was just Mother, Father, and Leon.

“Our turn!” My mother announced happily as she brought more presents. I could only tilt my head in confusion. “Mother, why didn’t you do this while we were opening presents already?” I questioned. “You’ll see.” Mother smiled before turning to Leon. “Leon, do you want Juliet to open your present first?” Which in response, he nodded and smiled innocently.

Leon’s present? At that time, I was confused. What were they planning? Leon, with the help of Father, carried his present to me, and began to watch me with glee. Now curious, I carefully opened the present and opened the now unwrapped box. I find it to be a small picture frame decorated with the same flower he gave to me the week prior. I look to Leon and gave him a hug. He wanted to give it to me for when I have a memory I want to always treasure. “Thank you, Leon.” I mumbled. “Your welcome, Sis!” He grinned.

I broke the hug to see what my mother had in hand. “This is mine, sweetheart.” She smiled gently. I nodded and gave my thanks to her before unwrapping it. Once I did, I saw it to be a familiar dagger. We all look to Mother, who looked at me with a serious expression. 

“I know you are still too young and you don’t have to take the road my family prior did; However, I inherited this dagger when I was your age. It was your grandfather’s. He used it against bad Vampires to protect the people he loved until his last breath. It was the same reason why I choose to inherit it, and it later became the difficult path that lead me to meet your father.” She spoke giving Father a quick glance before looking back to me as I listened carefully, “Ever since I gave up being a huntress, I never used it in years, because the fight was already over; But I still keep it as a memento of your grandfather, to remember what I fought and risked my life for. So I am giving it to you, for the same reason: To remember what you fought for and to protect the ones you love.”

I look to Leon, who looked back at me. Even though we were children at that time, we both knew we wanted to protect each other. Even willing to fight for each other. From her words, I can only guess that Mother must’ve known how I was feeling when I was locked in my room. That She must’ve went through the same thing too. “Now I’m not giving it to you to use it against those who have hurt you like that school did. I’m giving it to you so you can look at it and remember what you have done.” Mother wrapped her arms around me and held me close in a warm embrace. I could tell she was speaking from experience. “You’ve made some reckless and bad decisions, but you didn’t give in to their bullying. You had enough the moment they did something you couldn’t forgive; And although you should’ve told us what was going on so we could’ve handled it calmly, there was no mistake that getting you out of that school was the right thing to do.”

I shook my head, “They were all ignorant livestock, Mother.” I spoke. Back then, I felt nothing but pity for the people back at that school. But now I know better, they weren’t worthy of my pity. They were all livestock anyways. Mother sighed at my choice of words, but I could’ve sworn at that time my father smirked slightly as if he was proud. Meh. Could’ve been my imagination. “Thank you, Mother.” I hugged back as tightly as I could, after placing the dagger away.

After a moment, Mother released me from the embrace and gave me a light kiss upon my head, before we all turned to Father. For some reason, his present was smaller than Mother’s and Leon’s; However, that made them both smile the widest.

Once he placed the present in front of me, I carefully opened his. It was a small box. And once I opened it...

I gasped.

“Father...”

Inside the box were... 

A pair of light pink barrettes...

I look up to him with wide eyes.

I was met with a smile.

“Happy Birthday, Juliet.”

I was frozen. But he opened the barrettes and helped me place them in my hair. “Look.” Father pointed behind me, with Mother holding up a small mirror to show me my own reflection. “They look really nice on Sis!” Leon commented.

He was right. It was strange, but I really did look better with them rather than a flower. It was like as if they were made for me.

It... suited me...

Within that moment, I felt tears swelling up from the corners of my eyes and looked to my father once again.

And within an instant, I leaned into my father’s arms, hugging him tightly around his neck, and cried.

Since then, I haven’t exactly cried.

Mother and Father decided to have me be homeschooled; But since they both work and can’t offered to let me or Leon alone with someone we don’t know, Aunt Yui offered to take care of both of us and be my homeschool teacher. From what Mother told me, Aunt Yui was an excellent student who took studying very seriously, and even had a higher grade than even the most sophisticated Sakamaki brother, Sakamaki Reiji. With that said, Aunt Yui became my new teacher. Surprisingly, Mother was right. I was able to learn some new things from her as my teacher.

Even better, for breaks, Aunt Yui made me Takoyaki upon my request. It was delicious.

During those breaks, Aunt Yui confirmed my suspicions when she told me how Mother also went through something similar that I did regarding the school incident. When she was younger, Mother got suspended for beating up a group of girls that were bullying Aunt Yui. But Aunt Yui never knew about Mother’s life behind the scenes as a huntress, because Mother didn’t want to get her involved; Otherwise, Mother would feel like she has let Grandmother and Grandfather down for not being able to protect someone dear to her. Like when she wasn’t able to save them. Mother never even cried since the massacre until she was told it was okay for her to cry out all of her emotions she hid during her hellish training and since then. I can't even imagine my own mother being hostile or aggressive like that. Or suffering horribly and trying to hold it in like that. That must’ve been hard for her, having to carry a heavy burden.

And from what I learned from Uncle Kou, Uncle Yuma, and Uncle Azusa, Father was also the type of person to carry heavy burdens too. No matter how stressful it was, being the leader and the eldest, He often tends to stand on his own, and has even pushed Mother away when she first tried to help. Even he had his own problems that he was struggling with that he hid from them. From what I was told, It made sense why he tried to keep it all in. It must’ve been difficult. Being the eldest and the leader that takes care of the younger siblings, desperately wanting to fulfill the debt of someone for saving your life even when the goal was impossible for you to complete yourself, finding out and eventually try to hide an ugly truth about the one that saved you, Et cetera... Just thinking about all of the things Father had to deal with just made me think if it was with Leon, I would’ve done the same thing no matter how bad it would be for me.

So I was similar to them:

We both didn’t want to be appear as a failure.

We bottle up our feelings to avoid showing any sign of weakness.

We are willing to do something risky if the one we care for are involved.

We stubbornly push others away to stand on our own.

We don’t want the people we care about dearly to getting hurt.

....

Now that I think about it...

Were...

Were Mother and Father trying to save me from committing the same mistake they made?

To hold back emotions and turn it all into stress?

... They didn’t want me to become like them in the past.

They.. really did care for me.

They did love me...

I was really their kid...

And for that, I’m forever grateful...

“Sis!”

Juliet looks up, and sees a familiar blond with a grin on his face. The grin slowly disappeared and was replaced with a concerned look upon seeing the Takoyaki still left unfinished. “Hey, are you okay? You didn’t finish your takoyaki.. And that’s saying something.” Leon questioned, worriedly.

Juliet looked down and saw she has not finished her delicious snack. Picking up one of the balls, The raven-haired girl silently gave it to her brother. “Here.” She offered; However, Leon continued to look at his sister with a concern look. “A-Are you sure you’re okay?” He asked again. “I’m fine; Just hurry up and take it.” Juliet eventually got tired and shoved the octopus ball in Leon’s mouth, catching him off-guard, “What are the chances you will ever get an offer like this from me again? Honestly.”

While her expression remained as stoic as it always was, Leon can tell that there was a glint in his sister’s eyes that told him to not push the subject further; With that said, Leon decided to drop it and just eat the takoyaki.

After that, they started to walk together the shopping area to search for a gift for their father. “Hey Sis.” Leon broke the silence between them. “What is it?” Juliet heard footsteps stop behind her, making her stop and turn to see a serious look upon her little brother’s face. 

“... What do you want for you birthday?”

Such a question caught Juliet slightly off-guard. ‘What’s with this question today?’ She thought to herself. “Leon, you should know be better than anyone else in the world; Why would you even ask something stupid like that?” The raven-haired girl raised an eyebrow to show her confusion. They grew up together and know everything about each other. They could even understand what the other is thinking and even turn that into a game.

“I know but.. you don’t ask for anything, Sis.” Leon tried to explain, “You try not to make your birthday a big deal; It’s your birthday, the day you were born! There’s gotta at least be something you want!”

‘Something I want...?’

While it is true that Juliet doesn’t make her birthday a big deal or have anything in mind for a gift, was there really something that she herself wanted?

...

‘Ah... That’s right...’

“Leon, when it’s your birthday coming up and when you are asked the same question, your response was that there isn’t anything you want in particular either.” Juliet retorted. “I-I..” Leon stuttered, caught off-guard by the question. “Why is that?” The raven-haired girl question. Leon‘s tongue was tied for a moment until he looked down and responded shyly, blushing. “It’s because.. the best gift I could ever ask for.. is our family, our friends.. a-and our loved ones...”

There was a silence until Juliet spoke, as it was her turn to break the silence.

“Then you should know already.”

Leon looked up in surprise. His sister looked back at him with a rare smile. A smile that was only reserved to those who she deemed worthy.

“We’re siblings. We grew up together. You should know that if that is why you don’t ask for anything else, it’s not just your reason; It’s mine also.” Juliet responded, revealing the kind side of her that is extremely rare to see, “Do you understand now?”

Enchanted by the rare smile and the rare kind side of his sister, Leon nodded. Out of everyone in the world, it has always been the blonde that has seen this side of his sister the most. That’s why, despite her bullying him and her sadism, Leon knows that there is a good person underneath it all. It’s just his sister rather be known as a monster to others. Only those who work to become worthy enough to Juliet can be rewarded to see what’s underneath the layers of the sadistic mistress.

“Now hurry up, let’s go.” Juliet immediately dropped the smile and returned back to being stoic, “Or else, I’m going to leave you and go on ahead myself.”

Leon couldn’t help but grin before quickly walking next to his sister’s side. That’s his Sis, alright! The one he knows and loves! Juliet took notice of his grin. 

“Why are you grinning like that?”

“Because I love you, Sis.”

“You’re creepy.”

“But you love me anyways, right?”

“Do you have a deathwish?”

“Eh? N-N-No, Sis-“

“Come again?”

“Ma’am! I mean, N-No Ma’am!”

“That’s better.”

There was no need for a birthday gift...

Objects are replaceable...

As long as you have a family that care for you...

Friends that accept you...

Just at least someone that loves you for who you are...

There was no need for anything else in the world...

[geminimoonbeamx]

Naive: Part 2

A/N: I’m so freaking happy you guys seemed to like the intro, I wrote this and a few other chapters up in one night! Hopefully I can get you guys as hyped as I am for this story

Word Count: 2k+

Warnings: Just cursing in this chapter because I have the mouth of a sailor. The stirrings of sexual tension. The big stuffs coming next time though you guys I promise lol

Summary: As the goddaughter of Tony Stark you were no stranger to the Avengers, but when you meet the newest member- you’re a little more then intrigued. Unfortunately for him, Bucky Barnes has caught your eye. 💘💘💘💘💘💘

You’ve been at the tower for close to five-ish days now, and you’re still trying to get reaccoustomed to the enormity of the building.

Had it always been so fucking big?

You’d think since you we’re older now, it should have shrunk a bit. You know, size relativity and all that? If anything now that you we’re older you had the mental capacity to process just how freakishly huge this building was. The man tower is over sixty floors.

…that gave you a lot of opportunity to get totally lost. All the time.

You’d never had the greatest internal navigation system in the first place. You could get lost down the street from your house.

“I don’t know where I am! I’m between a Del Taco and a Walgreens”

You’d made many a lost phone call that sounded just like that.

You’d probably text Tony and ask him exactly what floor the main gym was on but 1) he’d tease you and ask “How exactly do you plan on playing Lara Croft all over the world and you cant find your way to the gym” and 2) it was three thirty in the morning.

You we’re irritated, being up this early when you didn’t have to. Especially when within the next few weeks you’d be starting adult life again and you’d have no choice but to wake up at the ass crack of dawn. It felt like a waste of precious sleep.

But no matter how hard you’d tried, it was no use. You’d smoked an entire joint of indica. Made chamomile tea- meditated until it felt like you we’re going to scream. Everything. And yet you couldn’t manage to get comfortable in the king sized, memory foam mattress.

Starting to come down off of the medication hadn’t been as awful as you and Tony had both been fearing. You we’re a little jittery- your anxiety acting up more then normal but you weren’t all strung the hell out and pale with sunken in eyes. You weren’t crying, hunched up in a corner begging for death or your next fix.

You we’re tired though. Exhausted and yet somehow couldn’t sleep. Your body just wouldn’t let you.

Why? Why lort? Sleeping was your favorite activity in the world. Dreaming an actual hobby of yours.

“This is bullshit” You complained to Tony a few days ago. You we’re going on 48 hours with close to no sleep. “I feel like I did like a kilo of Cocaine”

“I’m going to pretend you didn’t say that. You don’t know what cocaine feels like. That’s what I’m going to choose to believe” He had given you a pointed look when the both of you sat in his lab “Look kid, we knew there would be some side effects. It should ware off within the week, as your body gets used to this lower dosage. I can have the doc prescribe you some sleeping pills?”

You’d thought on it for a moment before denying it. You didn’t really wanting to be taking more meds right now.

“Alright, when you change your mind come find me” Tony had sighed. Your head was full of cement. Just like Jamie’s had been.

So since you didn’t take prescription- you figured you we’re going to have to find another way.

Your brilliant idea; run your body down until it had no choice but to crash.

It takes you another close to fifteen minutes before you find the main gym. It’s just a luxurious and lush as the rest of the building; three stories high. The top two floors looking over the large basket ball court. The equipment was state of the art and the various metal machines gleamed. You figured you’d do some cardio and then some weight lifting. Double whammy yourself.

People who have the pre conceived notion that fat people never work out are stupid. Point blank.

What, do they think people like you just sit on couches and stuff their mouths with twinkies while watching Rosanne…well that actually sounded like a good ass time but still.

You’d always been active, always loved going on hikes and exploring zoo’s and Museums and beaches for hours. Plus hadn’t anyone realized that shopping was the most hardcore cardio there was? And you lived to shop. After your mom- you’d needed to do something. To keep your mind clear and that is how your relationship with working out had come to be. You didn’t do it to lose weight, you did it to work on your health. Mental mostly, but your physical health came with that. Yeah you had a belly and thunder thighs. You also had kick ass blood pressure and strong calves.

You slip your headphones in after switching on your “Get it gurllll” playlist and hopping onto one of the elliptical machines, putting your water bottle in the holder before turning on the machine to pick your traction, starting at a decent pace.

The music shuffles from Amy Winehouse to J. Cole, to Lana Del Rey and Fleetwood Mac. Everyone had always teased you that you liked to work out to slow songs. It was something about the melody that got you moving. You go through song after song, keeping up your pace until your legs are screaming in protest and your breaths are labored.

With the blaring music in your ears, you don’t notice when someone else enters the room.

Bucky always came to workout early, usually getting the gym to himself. It’s not even that he liked the quiet or being alone or any of that- even though it was nice to not have Sam’s annoying, booming voice around. No, it was because he didn’t have anything else to do. When he woke up from the nightmares that still frequented him, he figured he should do something with all of that pent up energy, so he’d come to the empty gym and work his muscles until he could barley move.

He wasn’t used to the lights already being on when he got there.

He takes the steps to the cardio machine and stops in his tracks for a moment at the sight infront of him.

Y/N’s there, on an elliptical. He can hear the music in your ears from his spot across the floor, so he knew there was no way you could have heard him come in. Your working hard, your body straining in your skin tight leggings. Your silky ponytail bobs with your efforts, your breaths coming out in little pants. He can feel the look on his face. What were you doing here this early?

Should he leave? Was that weird, if he left after seeing that you was there? Surely this place was big enough for the two of you.

He thinks it’s probably smart to make his presence known, he’s just about to call for you when you stop and turn your head.

“OH HOLY FUCKING FUCK!” You cry in shock, your eyes wide with surprise as you yank the headphones from your ears before grabbing your chest, almost falling off the machine.

Bucky stands there, his own eyes big and his hands shooting up in a “sorry, I’m harmless” kind of way. A wordless surrender.

When your bell like laughter echo’s around him he relaxes a little bit “Bucky you scared the living crap out of me”

You accuse, good naturedly, still holding your hoodie clad chest.

“I’m sorry, It’s usually dead at this time so I kind of just barged in. I didn’t realize anyone is here” He explains himself. Leaving out the fact that he’d taken a moment to look at the way your thighs joggled in the spandex, of course.

You don’t know why you feel so…hot. Are your cheeks burning? No? It’s just your body reacting to the heart attack you’d almost just had.

“No, you’re good. Just give a girl a little warning next time, okay?” You chuckle as look down at the touch screen of the machine. You’d been on it for over an hour. You grab your water bottle and hop off. He hides his smile at how short your legs are.

“I’ll make sure to do that. So what are you doin’ up so early?” He hopes his attempt to make conversation didn’t sound as forced as it felt.

“I couldn’t sleep so I figured I might as well come try to run myself until I can knock out. You? I thought that you and Steve and Sam have some sort of fitness club?” You walk over to him, giving him a small smile before passing him on your way to the weights section. He shakes his head with a low chuckle and follows you,

Not because he was - like- following you. But because he was going to warm up with some lifting anyway.

You plop down on one of the leg lifts “You an insomniac like me?”

“Somethin’ like that. I woke up and couldn’t get back to sleep and figured somethin’ the same” Bucky goes over and lays out flat on one of the work benches, adjusting the weights.

“Hmm great minds think alike then” You croon. You hadn’t really gotten the chance to get to know him yet. Yeah, the two of you had talked in passing. At dinner. When you we’re messing with Steve. But never alone like this.

Damn. Did he look GOOD in those gray sweatpants.

“They do. How long have you been here” Bucky inquires as he grabs onto the weight bar and begins to lift. It’s nothing major. Not to him. Just three hundred pounds- on each side.

You watch him with wonder at the ease his arms move with.

You know its weird, but its hot seeing someone being able to bench that much with little effort…you wonder how easily he’d be able to bench you…

“Like an hour?” You answer him, tearing your eyes away from him.

Huh, he thinks. You’d been working out like that on the elliptical for an hour? You didn’t even look that winded.

“You work out a lot?” He feels like an idiot the moment it comes out of his mouth and your laughter doesn’t make it any better.

“What are you trying to say, huh?” You’re not mad, mostly just seizing the opportunity to tease him.

“Nothing! I just meant that you- uh- looked good up there. Like you don’t even look tired” He tries to unjumble his words, feeling like a total fucking bozo all the way.

“Yeah? Thanks. I spent the summer sight seeing in Europe which meant hiking like everywhere. I sweat I climbed like a gazillion steps. I guess it strengthened my core”

“Where in Europe did you go exactly?” He decides to go with a safer topic. Hoping he wont continue to make a total ass out of himself. He’d happened to have done his fair share of hiking that continent.

“All over but I mostly Italy. I spent a few weeks in Greece though, those we’re my favorite” You sound wistful. And that’s how it starts.

Bucky used to be able to spark up a conversation with just about anyone. Back before- back when he was younger, he could keep a conversation flowing like no one’s business. Steve had always idolized the way the people just seemed to like the guy. But it had been hard to get back to that now. Yeah, he wasn’t nearly as quiet as he’d been back in Romania, but he still didn’t talk. For hours. With near strangers.

Which is why he’s surprised he’s able to with you.

The conversation was bubbling, like a brook, ebbing and lively. He found himself wanting, almost needing to hear your little stories and opinions and jokes. You’d both abandoned working out and just sat on the machines, laughing and talking.

He learned that you liked to tease- a lot. Nearly everything was a joke with you. Your sense of humor sharp and sarcastic. Your nature playful and inviting.

You tell him stories from Europe and then about the tower and being here when you we’re younger with Tony. And in turn, surprisingly, he tells you a couple of his own stories back. A couple that he could actually remember. What it was like living in Romania- not knowing a lick of the language before hand. How fucking awkward he still felt as he adjusted to the 21st century.

“So lets get this straight, you’ve been de-iced for almost three years and you haven’t watched Harry Potter?” Your tone is dead serious and he grins and shakes his head.

“Nah”

“Or Lord of the Rings?”

“Negative”

“Or Star Wars?”

“Is that the one with the little green guy?”

“Yes!”

“I caught a little of it when Tony was watchin’ it”

“Oh my god, Bucky. I can’t. This is fucking blasphemous. I mean Lord of the Rings and Star Wars I guess could wait, I GUESS…But Harry Potter?! Harry Potter is the best thing this generation has to give! It will change your life!” The pure passion in your voice is almost palpable. Why cant he stop smiling?

“I guess I’ve been really missing out, haven’t I?”

“Yes! You have! Ugh, okay we’re going to have to have a movie night ASAP. It is just unacceptable for us to be living under the same roof and you haven’t seen a single Harry Potter movie” He thinks your kidding but your really not.

You don’t play about Potter, okay?!

When you check your phone and see the time your eyes bulge a little. You’d been sitting talking to him for nearly three hours.

“Oh shit, is it really almost seven?” You cant believe it. It really didn’t feel like you’d been here for that long.

“Is it?” Bucky sits up a little, not believing it either.

“Yeah” You bite you lip as you look at him for a moment, before standing “I should probably go and see if I can get any sleep at all”

He masks the small disappointment he feels at your words “Of course”

“It was really cool talking to you. I’m serious about our marathon! I have to school you on the most important stuff” You’re voice is flirty. As fuck. You don’t even know if you mean for it to be as you look down at him. He tries to tear his eyes from your face- and fails. Twice. Before he’s able to.

“Yeah uh, just tell me when”

“Definitely. Goodnight Bucky…or I guess Morning?” You giggle on your way out. He watches your retreating figure until your out of sight before he lets out huff and reclines hardly back. The machine sighs in protest. He fixes his eyes on the ceiling as he deals with the stirring in his head. The one though he can clearly decipher is…

Fuck.

Because although he’d liked having Tony not at his throat, he doesn’t see how he’s going to be able to stay away from you. No wonder Steve had gotten caught with his hands in the cookie jar.

—–

So I just had to pump out another part for you guys! I hope you like it! Tell me what you think? Do you like the dynamic between them yet? Does Y/N just seem like a little hoe? Do you want to be tagged. Tell me ya'lllllllllll.

@devenrenee @skeletoresinthebasement @kendallefire @mellifluousbabe @toniinhere @agentmstark @purplekitten30 @bellaballanda @yslbucky @arabellaaurorabarnes @prinxessofspace @supernaturally-lucky @sngforme @kyritha

[dammitadolfnomorecake]

Chapter 3

Levi's apartment was exactly how Eren had expected it. Everything was crisp and clean, and all of it white. Eren had no idea how he was supposed to survive in such a clean environment, or how Levi could live without so little colour. The whole apartment felt like a display room and only the traces of Levi's lingering scents told him he was in the right place... that and the strange woman who had demanded to know who he was the moment he'd walked through the door. All he'd gotten out of her was her name was Petra and he wasn't Levi... which was why he was currently raiding Levi's fridge while the woman was the on the phone to Levi, and by the sounds of it she wasn't happy at all. Pulling out the butter and strawberry jam, Eren went about making himself some toast and tea as Levi didn't seem to have any coffee. Trying not to make a mess left his hands shaking, and when Petra decided she had to take a seat at the breakfast bench and watch him, Eren was sure he was going to either pass out or completely klutz up. It was worse than his first shift at the tea shop, at least at work he'd been shown what to do and told how to behave, here he had nothing but the voices on his head telling him he was doing everything wrong. Having finally made his toast, he placed the knife in the sink and the butter and jam away, before sitting on the kitchen counter because Petra seemed to be screaming at him that he had no right in the apartment at all. After a few more very tense moments, the strawberry blonde finally piped up

"Levi will be home soon"

"Yay?"

Petra's thin smile turned down at the edges

"You don't need to be so rude"

"You're the one being rude. I live here now, so you better get used to it"

"There is no way someone like you could possibly be Levi's mate"

"Then why don't you pay the government to redo the tests. Actually, if you ask Levi I'm sure he'll pay too"

Petra continued to glare his way as Eren finished eating and then drained his cup. Sliding off the kitchen bench, he stumbled as he was hit by a strong wave of Levi's scent that had his body responding immediately. Forcing down a deep breath, the teen straightened and turned to the sink so that Petra wouldn't see the fact that he was hard with no real reason. Being an omega fucking sucked. His body did all these stupid things without him telling it to, and now he was stuck with this bitch watching him like she belonged here and he didn't.

By the time he'd washed and dried the dishes, Levi was finally home. Petra had run off the moment the front door closed, which gave him time to put the knife, spoon, cup and plate away

"What do you think you're doing?"

Jumping at the sound of Levi's voice as he washed the last of the bubbles down the sink, Eren span round as if he'd just been scolded for some unspeakable act

"Rinsing the sink out?"

"I can see that much. Why?"

"Because the first thing he did when he came home was make something to eat"

Petra sounded so smug as she dobbed him in. Levi however only sighed at her words and her smirk fell a little

"I expect you to keep this apartment clean at all times, including your bedroom"

"I get my own room?"

He'd half been joking, but with Petra ruining his chances of checking out his new home he hadn't known where exactly he was supposed to sleep

"I am not sharing my bed with you. And as for my room you are not to set foot in it unless you have permission"

"That's fine. But is it cool if I take a shower before I go to bed?"

"You will shower in the mornings and at night. The human body is a nest of germs and you have no idea what your hands are scratching and touching as you sleep"

Eren wrinkled his nose

"Oooook. Thanks for the lecture. Can I go to my room now?"

Levi seemed thoroughly done with him even though the conversation had only been going on barely a few minutes

"I'll show you to it"

Following Levi, Eren snagged his box of things and his school bag from the sofa. His room was the first in the small hallway with a bathroom between his and Levi's. His room was probably only fractionally smaller than the one he'd had at home, but it was definitely neater. He wasn't exactly messy, but he did tend to shed his stuff into small organised piles of chaos. Placing the box down on his new bed, Eren nodded slowly

"It's got potential"

"You're being really rather rude to Levi"

"Petra, it's fine. Eren, don't forget to shower. I've already stocked the bathroom and all your things are in the second draw. As for things like breakfast and dinner, you'll mostly be on your own unless you like eating at midnight"

"I'll be alright"

Yeah... he was definitely going to be buying breakfast and lunch from work and skipping dinner by the seems of it

"Good. I've taken Saturday off, I would prefer it if you could make yourself available. We can go through the ground rules then, and you can ask for anything you might need"

"Levi, chill. I know you hate me, and I know Petra does too. If I need anything, I'll call my mum. Just pretend I don't exist"

Trying to appear more carefree than he felt, Eren's omega side wasn't impressed at all. It wasn't like he wanted Levi to throw him down and have his way with him, he was totally not ready for that, but knowing he meant little more than nothing to man left his secondary dynamic in meltdown.

*

Sitting down on the sofa, Levi stared down at the cup of tea he was nursing. Of all the days for Petra to come walking back into his life, it of course had to be today. It wasn't like he didn't have enough on his mind with Eren sulking in his room. Despite the words coming out the boy's mouth, his scent told a very different story. The boy was hurt and angry with him, and Levi had no idea what he was supposed to do about it. What did you even do with an omega? By their very nature omegas were supposed to be loveable and loved being showered with affection. Something that he'd never been good at. That's why his "relationship" with Petra had never worked out, the beta woman wanting from him more than he understood how to give. They'd never dated or anything like that, but she'd well and truly made her intentions clear... but he just couldn't be anyone but himself

"Levi, are you even listening?"

"Honestly? No"

Petra let out an annoyed huff

"I was talking to you about Eren. How could you let him move in?"

"Petra, you know how it works. The government pairs you with the omega you are most compatible with"

"There is no way he is it. There has to be someone better for you"

"Petra, we have a 100 percent compatibility. There is literally no one else I will ever be that compatible with"

"You can't be serious. What about his smell!"

Petra knew full well he struggled with smell sensitivity

"He smells like oranges and lemons"

"And you aren't repulsed by it?"

"Funnily enough, apparently not. As it is my alpha's already taken a liking to him, though I'm in absolutely no hurry to do anything about it. Personally I'm still waiting for this all to be a mistake"

"Then send him home. He should be home. He's just a kid"

"I'm very much well aware of how much younger he is. As for sending him home, I don't think it will go over too well"

"That's not your problem"

"It is given he's legally my omega"

Petra jumped to her feet and Levi eyed her over his tea cup

"I honestly can't believe you. You're rolling over without even fighting this. It's disgusting and it's wrong. He is far too young to be with you, and that's why you're brooding out here... because you don't want him here and you want him gone. Now go send him home"

Draining his tea, Levi rose slowly to his full height

"I appreciate your concern, you have always been a good friend but this is something you will have to accept"

"But..."

"But nothing Petra. I need to go back to work, and Eren needs to do whatever he it is he's doing"

"And you're just going to let him?"

"I am. He's the one who needs to make his own choices"

Gathering up her things, Petra stormed from the apartment. The only reason the woman had keys to his house was because of the one time she'd needed a place to stay while her place was being renovated. Levi had lived in his office the whole week Petra was staying at his place, and when he finally ventured back home, it had taken him another week to actually get rid of her.

With Petra gone, Levi was left with his and Eren's scents as he cleaned down the kitchen. It really shouldn't work, but somehow his own rich tones mingled with Eren's sweet citrus ones and he couldn't deny they smelt amazing together. Which wasn't the way things were supposed to go. He didn't need an omega... he had a full life of... autopsies. The corners of the alphas lips turned down and he cast a glance around his kitchen. What do you even feed an omega? He hadn't thought to go food shopping with Eren's preferences in mind... he'd have to ask the kid what he liked to eat, and at least make some attempt to feed him... releasing he was doing a complete 180 on the things he'd said earlier, Levi rinsed out the dishcloth and hung it to dry, before fleeing the apartment and back to work.

*

Waking up to find his pyjamas plastered to his sweaty body, it took Eren a moment to realise just where he was and what was going on. His pyjama bottoms were soaked with slick and cum, and the need to be bred had completely filled him, resulting in painful cramping from the lack of alpha knot. He was in heat.

After falling less than gracefully from his bed, Eren was reduced to crawling over to his school bag. Being a doctor his father had supplied him with suppressants, but because he was meeting Levi he'd failed to take them the previous day and now he was being brutally betrayed by his body. Fumbling the blister pack out, he popped out half a dozen of the small white pills and forced himself to swallow. Between his legs was throbbing so badly that he was cumming without being touched, but Eren didn't dare pull his pants down and do something about it incase Levi came in. The alpha would probably be furious that Eren couldn't even keep his shit together during his first night there. When his alarm went off at 2, Eren dragged himself off the floor and stumbled through to the bathroom. Peeling his pants off, he let out an involuntary moan of need. His first heat had been hideous but this was even worse, most probably due to the fact there was no escaping Levi's scent.

Having showered and swallowed down more suppressants, Eren called his mum. He couldn't be here like this, and as much as he wanted to be bred by Levi, he was terrified about having no control over losing his virginity. Waiting for his mum to answer, he whimpered through a particularly nasty cramp

"Eren? What's wrong? Oh, do you need a lift to work?"

His mother had obviously been sleeping, he could hear her exhaustion in her voice

"Can... can you come get me?"

"Honey, what's wrong? You sound awful... don't tell me something happened with Levi?"

"N-no... in heat... please..."

"Oh honey, didn't you take your suppressants?"

"Mum... I want to come home"

He was at the point of crying now, and he had no real idea why. Maybe because he knew no matter how much he needed it, Levi wouldn't help him or breed him

"Ok honey, I have Levi's address on the fridge, I'll be there as soon as I can"

"T-thanks mum..."

Ending the call, Eren gathered up his messed up clothes. The sheets were damp, but not too dirty, so he left his bed as it was. Levi would probably clue in soon enough...

Sneaking from his bedroom, he didn't expect to be sprung the moment he made it into the living room area. Looking up from the book he was reading, Levi didn't look impressed at all

"What? Running away already?"

"N-no... work..."

Work... it was totally less embarrassing than saying he was in heat

"What time of morning do you call this to be going to work?"

"I work from 3 to 7:30..."

Levi's frown deepened

"And your parents let you?"

"Mum usually drops me off... she's waiting for me"

"Fine. I expect you to talk to your boss though. It might have been gone while you were living at home, but while you're under my roof you will make your studies your main priority"