#ugh.. at least they let me on the bus for free again today

[phagodyke]

why the hell am I so hungry all the time I ate a proper fucking breakfast and my stomach is STILL wailing that I didn't. girl calm down switch off the alarms!!!!

[the-bar-sinister]

Run Away With Me (4279 words) by thesavagesabretooth Summary: Phoenix gets the final push he needs to come ask Maya to come back with him. Maya gets the final push she needs to finally follow her heart, instead of her grim duty.

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October 2, 2028– 11:15 am

Phoenix had been going to visit Maya in Kurain every week since she'd returned to the states in June. Sometimes– often– she wouldn't have much more time than to say hello, and maybe have a cup of coffee, but he still made the hours-long bus ride there just the same, without fail. It didn't matter how much time she had for him. It just mattered that she was there.

He straightened his tie as he arrived at the small bus stop overshadowed by the great stone standing outside the main family’s manor. It hadn’t changed in years– honestly, it was likely it hadn’t even changed in decades from the old wood and the archaic design. 

Phoenix would have believed that the bus stop was exactly the same in Maya's mother's and grandmother's time as it was that very day. In fact, he was sure that was the case for most of the village.

He glanced around to see if Maya was there to meet him that day, or if he'd have to go and find her. 

The bushes by the bus stop rustled…once…twice…and out leapt a figure clad in purple and white to tackle him in a hug. “NIIIIIiiiiiick!” 

Nick yelped in surprise, but caught her in his arms and carried the energy of her tackle into a whirl with the both of them, grinning. "Maya! You took another few years off my life!"

Maya squeezed him tightly, grinning from ear to ear under her dark fringe of hair. 

“Shit, I’ll have to be careful. You’re getting on in years. You need ‘em, old man.” 

"Ouch, right in the pide," he chuckled with her, letting her down to the ground as he continued to hug her. "You're in good spirits today. I'm glad to see it."

“Don’t tell anyone, I’ll lose their respect as Village Elder.” Maya chuckled as she settled back on her feet. She shrugged her shoulders. “I’m just …ya know…”“I missed you, and believe it or not…I actually have a little free time today.” 

Phoenix felt himself light up when she said so, and it showed on his face. "You do? That's fantastic."

Maya grinned and poked his cheek. 

“Yep. I’ve got some of the old farts in the sub family handling a couple meetings I don’t gotta attend, so…” She looked over her shoulders “Until someone comes to rain on my parade, we’re golden. You want some tea?”

"I'd love some," he said, slipping one arm around her shoulder. "Unless you have enough time to run back to LA with me for a burger."

He didn't really dare to hope that she could, but he was always going to suggest it.

Maya’s smile faltered for the first time since she’d seen him.

“Ugh… I wish…I haven’t had meat in like, weeks, WEEKS Nick. I’m dyin’ for a good burger but…I mean.” She rubbed her arm “...the people need me , and I could get called back into action any second. You know? I got time, but I dunno if I have ‘hours on the bus both ways’ time.” 

He squeezed her close to him and shook his head. "I get it. Don't worry. I brought snacks, anyway. I know how you are. Let's have that tea and I can enjoy watching you tear into them."

Maya laughed into her hand as she backed away and offered her hand with a grin .“You know what I like, Nick.”

It was crazy how much she’d started to look like Mia over the years. She’d grown, considerably, to the point it was almost hard to tell when she channeled her older sister anymore on the rare occasions she tried.

It was very clear in the warm mountain sunlight, at least, with the way the robes fell on her body. 

There was an unnerving element to it, sometimes, but mostly, Phoenix just found it amazing how much time had passed between them, and how much it had marked them both.

It wasn't as if he was the same man he'd been when they met, either. He'd grown quite far apart from that man in fact, over the years, and thought for a while that he'd never see him in the mirror again. That was changing now, though, and he was still working on ways to change it even more.

"Some big news this week," he said, catching her up with the goings on at the Wright Agency as he always did, as they made their way to her place.

“Ooooh, big news huh? Did Charlie sprout legs and start pullin’ his weight?” She led him under the arch to the family garden and towards the side door. 

"I wish!" he laughed, stepping through the garden with her. "No, it's weirder than that. Trucy went to Khura'in with Klavier."”

“Wuh wuh WHAT???” Maya jolted physically, and all the veneer of ‘Master Fey’ mystique vanished in an instant at her goofy and dramatic gasp. “Trucy went to Khura’in??? With Klavier Frickin’ Gavin??? To Khura’in?????” 

He nodded, holding her arm to make sure she didn't trip. "Yeah. They're going to bring Apollo back to the states, apparently. I hope they're going to try to convince him, but they were at least joking about tying him up and smuggling him in a suitcase."

She whistled, sliding the door open with a shake of her head “some kinda bonkers rescue mission then? I guess she really missed the guy….hope they’re gonna be alright. Khura’in is goin’ through some hard times last I heard.” 

"Yeah, Apollo's been swamped," Phoenix nodded as they headed into the house. "I hear him and Sadmadhi are the only ones doing the job. And that's not even the political stuff. There's a lot of responsibility on their shoulders."

“Ghhh…” Maya grimaced as she shuffled off her shoes and stepped into her house slippers. “I’m not surprised. Ga’ran amok with a country’s legal system’ Sigatar Khura'in didn’t exactly leave things in a great state. I hope they can book it soon…it wasn’t bad there, but..”

She shook her head, and Nick saw a momentary sadness cross her face “it gets lonely when all you’ve got time for is your responsibility and work that never ends.”

It was personal, he knew that. Even Pearl and Iris had all but moved as far as they could away– which meant Maya was up here with only the occasional visits and the title of ‘Master’. 

It has been weighing on Nick's mind. It has been weighing on his mind for months. But never more than in these last few days. 

He thought about the item he'd brought in his bag, along with the snacks. 

"It sure does get lonely," he murmured. "But hey, if they bring him back, maybe you can actually meet Apollo."

She tugged him in after he switched his shoes, into the long hall surrounding the central courtyard of her Japanese styled manor home.

“You know, I’d like to? He seemed like a pretty cool guy the few times I caught like– half a sight of him.” 

"Yeah you guys didn't have much chance to get to know one another in Kuhra'in, sadly," he said, following her into the manor. 'I feel like you guys would get along."

“He always looked so serious!” She laughed as she rounded the corner past the former display area of the Urn of Ami Fey…where Phoenix had once seen Pearl playing with her ball. “You don't think I'd annoy the guy?”

"No way. You'd be surprised by how annoying he is too." Phoenix snickered– though he glanced nostalgically at the spot. Pearl was 18 now, going on 19, and enrolled in the police academy, hoping to become a detective.

Maya glanced out at the courtyard before she tugged him into one of the rooms…a large living room style space with a stove sunken into the center of the room, surrounded by old scrolls and dividers bearing the legacy of the Kurain tradition.

And of course the series of familiar mats around the stove that Maya instantly patted for him to sit atop as she got the pot.

Pearl had grown so much, and pursued a dream nobody had really expected. But this room didn’t look any different than the last time he’d arrived. Hell, it still looked the same as it did that second time she’d been accused of murder.

“No shit? Then we’ll get along like a house on fire.” 

Phoenix took a seat and started pulling snacks out of his bag and arranging them on the table for Maya. There were chips, cheese snacks, jerky, and boxes of instant noodles, and more. 

"Like a house on fire sounds about right. So I'm hoping they'll get him back just so I can get a front row seat."

Maya laughed. 

“Gonna drag him all the way out to Kurain eh? I’d ask if he liked the mountains and uh…” She looked around the room as she filled the teapot from a small spigot in a kitchenette off to the side. “A rustic atmosphere. But if he’s living in Khura’in, he’s gotta love it.” 

"I'm sure he'll be thrilled," Phoenix chuckled. He shuffled through the contents of his bag, and hesitated as he grabbed the folder inside, debating with himself.

Maya turned with a broad grin “OH SHIT!” she pointed to the table “you brought me noodles!!!” 

Phoenix left the folder where it was and grinned. "I wasn't gonna come without your goodies, Maya."

Maya trotted over and dropped the teapot on the burner with a slight splash of thankfully cool water from its spout. 

“You’re my hero, Nick! My literal, actual hero!” She picked up the jerky with a broad grin. “MEAT!” 

"Wish I could have brought you some actual burgers, but I figured it was better than nothing." He chuckled, leaning on his hand and watching her.

She flopped down, holding up the jerky like something holy. 

“I’ll eat this in memory of you, Nick.” with a giggle, she opened it up and took a big bite with her eyes closed “...It’s been nuffin’ but rice and pickles and veggies for weecksh and weecksh…”

Her mouth was full, her manners as atrocious as ever, but at least she looked happy.

It made him nostalgic, and he felt a swell of affection. "I know it's part of the whole medium thing but it always feels a little rough to me to force you to go without."

“It’s traditional.” She said after she swallowed “and if there’s one thing we love in Kurain it’s tradition!”

She looked down at the jerky in her hands with a chuckle. “There’s always tradition.” 

"There sure is," he sighed. He reached back in his bag– then took his hand out and shook his head. He looked back over at Maya. "But there's other stuff, right?"

“There’s channeling!” She said with a lopsided grin “and the mountain air. And…you know…the priestesses and the old folks. It’s nice to see ‘em smiling and happy.”

She reached slowly for a bag of chips. “And I mean..I grew up here, you know?” 

He pushed the chips toward her. "Yeah. Like Apollo grew up in Khura'in too. That's why I'm not sure they'll be able to bring him back."

Maya opened the bag of chips, listening to the water as it heated. 

“It's hard to leave your home, you know? Especially when it needs ya…you can’t just leave it to suffer without you…and it ain’t the same when you’re gone. Sometimes you just gotta accept that it’s where you belong, you know? 

"I guess in the end there's only one person who can make a call like that, huh? Trucy and Klavier might come home covered in bite marks."

“Yikes!” Maya snickered. “If they do, are ya gonna laugh in their faces with an ‘i told ya so’ or give ‘em bandages?” 

"I might," he said. "But I might be sad for them too. Any way I can help you with the tea?"

Maya rustled in the bag of chips with a shake of her head “It’s just heating up, don’t worry about that…it’ll just be another minute or two.”

She took a bite of the chip, joy sparking in her eyes for a moment before it quieted again. “I’ll be sad for ‘em too. I bet they miss the guy, huh?” 

"Trucy especially. She was his co-counsel, you know? For a while. Like you and me used to do."

Maya had a chip in her mouth when she looked up at him with a half smile. 

“those were the days, huh?” She chomped the chip with a look of satisfaction before she continued “...being someone’s co-counsel feels special, can’t blame her for being kind of heartbroken to lose him like that. Suddenly your life’s a lot quieter.” 

"Actually," Phoenix said, feeling himself start to sweat. He couldn't believe he was doing this. He shouldn't do it. But… He reached into his bag and pulled out the folder. "Speaking of those days– could I ask you to look over a legal document, for me?"

“Forget how to read legal docs during your break, Phoenix?” Maya teased him playfully as she held out her hand for it. “you’re hopeless. I’ll take a peek for ya, sure.” 

"You know I did," he chuckled. "Even a couple years back in the game, I still don't have all the skills back I had when you were around."

His fingers twitched, but he managed to hand her the document. There was a slim stack of papers inside.

They weren't particularly obtuse documents.

He'd typed them himself.

Maya opened it up to read them, starting from the top as she tucked her hair over her ear. 

They were business papers. A contract for a permanent position as the manager of Wright Agency, and a full half stake of the company.

He watched as her brow furrowed. She flipped a page– they widened– .and then she jumped as the teapot began to steam and she hurried to take it off the burner with wide eyes

“...N-Nick…this….”

There was a name typed in at the bottom, waiting to be signed.

Maya Fey.

"It's an offer," Phoenix said quietly. "And a plea, too. I know Kurain needs you, Maya, but– I need you too."

Maya pushed her hand through her hair, her breath catching as she looked between the paper and him. 

“I…Nick, I miss you too. Of course I miss ya…I need you too but…” She looked down at the paper again, her eyes lingering on the name. “but who’s gonna take care of the village while I’m managing the office? Nobody. There’s nobody else! Mom already abandoned them and died, Mia left….Morgan was a monster, Pearl esca— is following her dream. I’m the only one here who can bear the responsibility!”

She tensed “I trained for it, for years. If I just left I’d …what would happen?” 

"Maya, I'll be honest, I don't know what would happen," Phoenix said quietly. He looked down at the table. "I don't know what would happen to Kurain, or the people here without their important medium blood leader. But I know what would happen for me. I'd be happy. I'd get to have you in my life. I'd get to wake up and see you smiling, and get to take you out for burgers, and ramen. And have you by my side in court."

His fingers tensed on the edge of the table as he remembered that fateful case almost ten years ago now, when Maya hadn't been by his side. Everything had gone wrong. And he'd lost 7 years of his life to a kind of despair. "It's not the same without you, Maya. I'm not the same. I– it's not fair to put it on you, I know. But I'm a selfish man. I always have been."

Maya’s eyes started to tear up, and she reached up to push her hands through her bangs again. She stared down at the contract. 

“It’s not the same for me either, you know” “I mean…I…I’ve changed too.” She looked up at him with a shaky smile. “But you know me, you know I’d love to wake up next to you and fight it out in the courtroom, or have ramen whenever I want, or goof around and watch the Pink Princess and all that! But the people here need a leader…and if it’s me or Pearl, I’ll take the bullet before she has to. She’s got a dream now…” 

"Why? Maya?" Phoenix said, leaning across the table.He let it out. He let out what he'd been holding in– what had been building in his chest for years now. "Why do they need a leader, and why does it need to be you? Who even cares about any of this? Do you? Mia left! Pearl left! It's the 21st century– these people don't need you as a leader, they're using you, they're using your talent to bolster their way of life– and you don't even want to live that way!"

“You’re soundin’ a lot like her…” Maya grimaced as she reached for the teapot “louder and louder lately.”

Her fingers curled against the handle as she lifted it and fumbled blindly for the teacups.

Nick staggered to his feet and moved to help her, grabbing the teacups for her.

"Sounding like who? Cause they sound like they have a good head on their shoulders."

October 2, 2028– 11:35 am

Maya heard Phoenix get up, stepping beside her to take care of the cups while she took the teapot. He had a plaintive look on his face, which seemed, just for a moment, to not have aged a day since they'd first met.

She dropped her head into her hands, rubbing at her temples with her fingertips as she felt her jaw tighten “like nobody…don’t worry about it, Nick. I’m just talking to myself.”

Like Mia. She’d always heard her voice since the murder’s aftermath, on and off— and more in more the longer time went on– she wasn’t foolish enough to tell herself it wasn’t real, she was the Master of the Kurain Channeling Technique after all, even if it wasn’t the usual sort of channeling it was clear to her that the voice and presence in her head, draped throughout her like an extension of herself was none other than her departed sister.

“Does it matter? Whether they’re using me or not, this town needs me to survive.” 

"Economically, Maya," he said, taking the teapot from her as well, and pouring tea for them. "They need you to survive economically. No one's going to die if you leave. They need you the same way a farmer needs a prize cow to show at the fair, I know that seems harsh, but it's true."

It is harsh, Mia said. But he's not wrong, either.“Ghhh…” Maya closed her eyes tightly. “c-calling me a cow, huh Nick? That’s a great way to convince me to come back to LA, sure!”

She laughed it off like a joke, even as she felt her eyes sting. She knew they were profiting off her, but that’s the way it’d always been. The village was the mediums and the mediums were the village. There wasn’t one without the other. 

He set down the teapot and put his hand on her back. "Maya, you know that's not what I'm doing. But what are you getting out of being here, really? They're sucking you dry. Why should you be forced to serve them forever as their pet medium, just so they can get rich off your talent? Just so they can continue their reputation? Tell me off if you really want this, Maya– but if you don't want to be here, you don't have to. You really don't."

Maya bit her lip hard, feeling the pain as her tooth nearly cut the skin. She tried to summon the will to tell him off, but she couldn’t lie to herself…

She didn’t want to be here. Why would she wanna waste away in the mountains doing the job her mother abandoned? The job everyone else escaped from, forever and ever until the last of her talent dried up and she died for whatever offspring she managed to have to take up the burden in her place.

It was miserable. SHE was miserable being so far from every little pleasant thing she got to experience for a short and blissful time away from the village. 

Phoenix put his arms around her shoulders. 

"Maya. I'm not going to stand here and advocate for Kurain village. To me, they're a bunch of backward people who hurt you, and Pearl, and Mia, and who Pearl and Mia couldn't wait to escape from. They're a bunch of bitchy women who backstab one another and are ashamed of their husbands. I couldn't advocate for them if I tried." She felt his arms trembling around her, and his face on the back of her head. 

“I want you, Maya. I love you. I've kept my mouth shut for almost 10 years, because I don't have any right to tell you what to do. I don't own you, you're your own person. But I hate to see you dividing yourself among greedy people when I want you for myself. It hurts, Maya. It hurts because I love you, and I miss you."

Maya felt the hot patter of tears hit her hands as the teapot swam in her vision.

“I…” she hiccuped quietly. “I love you too, Nick. I know we never said it before but…but..I do.” Her fingers tightened on her lap as she looked up at him with a rough attempt at a smile. It hurt, but..the whole thing hurt. “You aren’t wrong…this place is a mess.”

Mia…I don’t know what to do. I know , I know what you’re gonna say but…

You know what I'm going to say, already, Maya. You know you do. I think that you should follow your heart. And I don't think your heart is in Kurain village any more than mine was.

Phoenix combed his fingers through Maya's hair. "I should have said it a long time before now. I didn't want to put a name on it. But I should have. I love you, Maya. Run away with me."

Maya choked, her shoulders shook and she felt the sudden wet trickle of tears hitting the backs of her hands and running onto her kimono below, leaving dark and damp spots near her folded knees. .

“I…I…” she whimpered. “I wish you said it sooner, Nick….wouldn’t have needed to run far at all. Hah. Hah.”

She gripped her kimono tighter in her fingers.

“Looks like everyone’s always runnin’...running from Kurain. Mia…wants…would want…me to go too.” 

"Mia, huh?" he said quietly in her ear. "That's what I thought. Yeah. I bet. I'm sorry I didn't say it sooner. I didn't think– after what happened, I didn't think I had any right. And then you were in Khura'in, and I— I realized how completely lost I am without you."

He squeezed her tighter, holding himself against her body.

Maya leaned against him with a choked laugh. 

“You really are helpless without me, Nick. I turn my back, you lose your badge…or start smashing your way through a country’s legal system.” The laugh didn’t stop as she half fell against him “Nick…do you got any idea how small Kurain is? It’s like the rest of the world doesn’t exist. It’s just this circle of houses and the channeling chamber…everything outside is …situational.” 

"I have some idea, Maya. It's suffocating you, isn't it?"

She nodded , looking up at him with tear stained eyes. “I used to think I could live my whole life there. But Mia, when she vanished, she kept inviting me out and showing me things in the real world. I loved it…but it meant that comin’ back felt like being put in a cage.” 

As Maya turned around in his arms to look at him, she saw his own eyes filled with tears as he looked down at her.

"I don't want you to live in a cage, Maya. Pearl doesn't want that. Iris doesn't. Mia didn't want it. Not for you, and not for her. Please, Maya— will you be my partner again? We've been through so many crazy things that turned out to be real. Can we make this real?"

Maya hiccuped again, and she nodded. 

“y-...Holy Mother, are the spirits of Aunt Morgan and the rest gonna be unhappy…but y-yes.” She closed her eyes tightly to stop the way her vision swam through her tears. “I wanna be your partner again, Nick. I w-wanna run away.” 

He leaned his chin on her head, and she felt his throat against her as he swallowed. "Maya, I don't care who else is unhappy, because I'm the happiest I've ever been. We're going to be happy, together."

Maya leaned up to kiss his chin. It wasn’t going to be easy…not emotionally. Not when the elders of the village came to ask questions…but…

I’m making the right choice, right Mia? I’ve gotta follow my heart.

It's the choice I made, Maya. I didn't even have someone begging me to go with them, and I never regretted it for a second. Even though it made my life a lot shorter. 

[ask-but-beware-the-consequences]

Note: OK, first things first, I started drawing this while traveling on a bus, in an Easternish Europian country, so the roads were very bumpy and it was hard to write, so I'm going to write here the texts too. I hope you like this short story I came up with! ^^ (I'm obsessed with putting easter eggs into everything)

1: God: Today I unite you, God: And all shall witness.

[Crowley hides themselves with his wings] 2: A: It's alright, my darling. No needd to cover me. God: He is right, Crowley. You can't fight anyone's fate. God: For it has already been written. God: My sweet children, I have sent humanity for you to learn from. God: And you two were the first ones, who ever did. Crowley, my fallen archangel, Raphael, guardian demon of the tree, and aid of humanity…- A: What?! You're an archangel?

3: C: Does it matter now? A: N-no. God: Aziraphale, principality of the Eastern gate… my softest angel. Your worries may layed to rest, for from this day forward, you shan't leave one another. God: Take my gift, he will be the guardian of humanity. The fruit of your love will be Rathma. A, and C: What?! God: Demon, will you take my gift, and his hand? C: … I'd like to hear it from him first! God: Very well, angel? A: Crowley… I will.

4: C: Then, C: I will too… God: You may kiss your spouse.

5:

6: later, somewhere in London [wings flap, they are falling apart, from being untangled from their wings, finally falling back into cushions at the library] C: What- What just happened? A: I think… we just got married.

7: C: Angel. Did you really want this? C: I mean, them leaving us alone is nice and all, but… Isn't this going too fast for you? A: Crowley, dear. This was just a ceremony of spending our time together. I think we already did that for 6000 years. C: Did you not hear the part about Rathma?! A: Crowley, I will do no such thing until I know you can love me. C: Oh, so you mean to tell me, you also don't have free will. Beacuse angels can't have that.

8: C: You just heard Her. We are on our own side. C: You didn't say yes, just because you were forced, right? A: It's not as if we can't set our own pace. She didn't say any date. C: So you do lov- A: Ahah, would you like some wine? Let's get drunk! [alcohol appears]

9: C: …sure. I'd like to be summoned while I'm too drunk to care about the change of surroundings. If that happens again. [Bunch of alcohol later] C: My point is… Ducks! [A: again?] C: They have eggs. Real good parental defene… defenend… guardians! Put their heir in an egg! Kids fresh out the egg can run! See! Speak too! Snakes have eggs!

10: A: So you're suggesting we should also store them in an egg? C: I-I-I I mean, I don't suppose any of us want to carry them the way others do, right? A: Like humans? C: Imagine fish… A: Ugh… I'd rather not. A: Do we even carry them? How-… Do they?… How would we even get there? I don't think others have done it before.

11: A: How are angels born? C: Why ask me? You're the angel! A: You were an archangel! You should know more than I do! C: I-I don't know! C: God sorta just created them! In adult form. Or at least in a permanent state. C: …You don't think-. They will just show up anytime? A: She said they'll be born as the fruit of our love… A: wait. A: If we are good and evil. Then they will be good and evil. But humans are good and evil. What if they will be human? They grow so fast!!

12: C: I go for a longer nap and they might be old or dead! [Even more alcohol later…] A: I can't help it, I'm an 'Ngel! I'm made out of love. I can only love you. Even if you can't- [Drunk vision begins] C: No. Angel,

13: C: I'm sorry if you ever thought that. If you ever held back because of me. Of fear I'd hurt you. C: I can't ask you to believe me, I only earned distrust for my fall. But I have loved you since the moment we first met. Even if I hate to admit it. There's no other being I want to protect more than you. If not me, the nature of the animal I've been cursed with, can be believed.

14: A: Crowley… You just said that you love me! C: I-… I did? Aziraphale, barely can be heard: Dear, you're shaking! Are you alright? Oh don't fear, it is mutual, rea…

[Crowley's brain has stopped working] 15: [Reality check starts, drunk vision ends] C: OFC I LOVE YOU, ANGEL! PLEASE! IT'S BEEN 6000 YEARS! hic WHAT DO YOU MEAN I GO TOO FAST FOR YOU?!! HUMANS NEED LIKE ONE YEAR. Why do you think I slept so much?! "Devil don't sleep", Angel! I-… [reciting of the last words, showing they really were said]

[Time was spent, and now it's morning] 16: A: Mhm… C: Nothing's too fast for you now, is it? A: You're never going to let that go, will you? C: That's basic standard~ C: Angel. Will you marry me? A: But we're already married? C: I want it to be your decision. When you want it. When you're ready. A: Crowley~ You're the nicest being that I ever known, [C: That's a problem] A: Of course, I will!

17: [much later, in Raphael's church, with Raphael's painting showing him holding a snake. Others have been invited too.] C and A: I do. [A: Now that I think about it, it's kind of obvious]

18: It has been ages since they were on earth. [ominous humming] In their celestial star-shape. A star smelter, in the sky. A new star was believed to have occoured. And a new star was born. (A demigod).

19: And soon, delivered to Earth. Vanishing from the night sky. An Angel's egg. [later, at their cottage house] A: Crowley~ [Crowley is shown in snake form, holding a marker, indicating he drew on the egg the shades]

The end!

Thank you for reading!

[intheticklecloset]

If You Weren’t So Short (Haikyuu!!)

Primary Universe

This one’s something I wrote just because I wanted to! I loved the idea of Kageyama helping Hinata feel better about how short he is compared to the others, especially because it’s brought up so often, and it clearly bugs Hinata at least to some degree. I figured cheer-up tickles were a perfect solution! Enjoy! ^^

~

Kageyama was irritated. He marched through the halls of the school they were visiting for practice games, glaring at everything that moved. “Hinata!” he snapped at no one, calling his teammate’s name in frustration. He’d been looking for the redhead for ten minutes already. This was getting ridiculous. “Where are you, you moron?”

“I’m right here,” came a small voice.

Kageyama whirled. There, seated at the base of a wide pillar he couldn’t see around on his way by, was Hinata, with his knees pulled up to his chest. “Where the heck have you been, Hinata? Everyone else is already on the bus, and they sent me to go find your dumb butt. Get up! We’ve got to go.”

“Yeah, okay.” Hinata gathered his gym bag and stood, not making eye contact as he silently turned and started toward the bus loop.

“Dude, what’s wrong with you?” Kageyama asked, still irritated but mostly confused now. Usually the redhead had some sort of witty comeback for him when he started name-calling, but right now he was just letting it slide. Something was off. “I know we lost a lot of games today, but they were just practice games. And we’ll get better.”

“I know.”

They walked in silence for a few steps before the raven-haired boy grabbed his teammate by the shoulder and stopped him. “Seriously. What’s up with you?”

“Nothing.” But Hinata wasn’t looking at him.

“Bullcrap.”

“I’m not upset about the games.”

“Then what?”

“It doesn’t matter.” Hinata shrugged out of Kageyama’s grasp and kept walking. “You’ll just laugh at me.”

Kageyama grabbed his shoulder again and shoved him up against the closest wall, startling them both. Finally, the redhead met his eyes. “Hinata. What’s wrong?”

Hinata pressed his lips together, then let out a huff and looked away again. “The other players keep talking about how short I am.”

“Yeah? So?” Kageyama let him go, but didn’t move out of his space. “That’s nothing new. It’s never bothered you before.”

“Of course it’s bothered me before,” Hinata replied, surprising his teammate. “I just brush it off a lot easier because it’s usually only a person at a time. But here, there have been whole teams talking about me at once. I ran into three different captains outside the bathroom who were literally talking down to me about it.”

Kageyama frowned, but he didn’t know what to say. “Just ignore them. You know your height doesn’t matter to us.”

“But it’s all anyone can ever talk about!” Hinata yelled, startling the taller boy into taking a step back. “People take one look at me and they don’t see a competitor. They just see right over me. I’m never a threat to anyone until I’m out on that court! I’m so tired of everyone only seeing my disadvantages. I hate being so short!”

Silence settled over them as Kageyama scrambled to figure out what to say in response. The words simply wouldn’t come. But he swore the next time he saw someone talking down to Hinata because of his height, he’d personally punch them in the face. Hearing it all the time was one thing. Seeing how much it affected his friend even when he tried to hide it was another.

“Hinata,” he said at last, and all traces of irritation were absent from his tone. “Do you hate being short because it’s all anyone sees when they look at you? Or do you hate it because you think it messes up your chances of playing volleyball well?”

The redhead grumbled, “Both.”

“Bullcrap,” Kageyama said again. He grabbed the collar of his teammate’s shirt and forced him to make eye contact. “We’ve talked about this, you moron. Your height doesn’t mean you can’t play volleyball as well as the rest of us can. You’ve proven over and over that you’ve got everything you need to play and score points just like we do. You’ve got great speed and jump power, and you’re learning to control where you spike the ball with every game you play. You’re the perfect decoy, remember? Who gives a crap how tall you are?”

Hinata blinked at him, surprised into silence.

Kageyama let him go again, his scowl turning to a smirk. “Besides, if you weren’t so short, I’d have a much harder time doing this.” He got right up into his friend’s personal space and grabbed onto his ribs, tickling him.

“Gahk! Pfft wahahahait, nohohoho, KahahahgeyamaHAHAHA!!” Hinata squealed, bursting into uncontrollable giggles as he wriggled and squirmed against the wall. His gym bag fell off his shoulder to the floor. He tried grabbing onto Kageyama’s wrists and pushing him off. “Stahahahahahahahap!”

“See? Being shorter than me makes it easier for you get wrecked in a tickle fight,” Kageyama teased, grinning at Hinata’s unstoppable giggles.

“Why is thahahahahahat a gohohohohood thihihihihihing?!”

“Because it’s an easy way to make you laugh, obviously.”

“Lohohohohohosing tihihickle fights is no fuhuhuhuhuhun!” Hinata protested, shrieking when Kageyama focused on his lower ribs.

“Isn’t it?”

“STAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAP!!” Hinata was unleashing his laughter in screaming bursts now, which Kageyama knew from their previous tickle fight meant he was getting him good. “AGH!! KAHAHAHAGEYAHAHAHAMA!!”

“Kageyama, stop torturing our decoy.” A third voice entered the fray, making them both stop and turn. Nishinoya was standing several paces down the hall from them, grinning ear to ear. “At least get him on the bus first.”

Hurriedly, Kageyama let Hinata go and scrambled back, cheeks turning pink. “N-No, I wasn’t…we were just…!”

“Tickling. I know, I know, don’t freak out on me.” Noya jabbed a thumb over his shoulder. “Coach is getting pretty impatient, though. We seriously gotta go.”

“Right,” both of the first-years said in tandem, collecting themselves and hurrying to follow Noya to the bus loop.

As they went, Hinata glanced up at Kageyama, whose face was back to its perpetual serious look. The raven-haired boy didn’t look at him.

“So it’s fun to lose tickle fights, is it?” the redhead asked teasingly.

Kageyama growled, “Shut up. I meant it’s fun for me when you lose them, idiot.”

“Well, I didn’t lose this one, so you can wipe that smug look off your face.”

“I don’t look smug. And you did lose. You couldn’t lay a finger on me.”

“Oh yeah?” Hinata reached out to grab his side, grinning when Kageyama yelped and stumbled back.

“Knock it off!”

“This tickle fight is so not over, Kageyama.”

Kageyama growled, but said nothing more. A couple minutes later they’d reached the bus, where their coach was yelling at them to get their butts moving. They stammered their apologies and hurried to comply. Once they were seated and the bus had begun driving to take them back home, Hinata pinched Kageyama’s side again.

“You little—” Kageyama grabbed roughly onto Hinata’s ribs. “You’re just asking for it now!”

“Yohohohohou stahahahaharted it, you jeheheheherk!” Hinata reached for his friend again, but the taller boy snatched up both his wrists with one hand and pinned them to the window, then latched onto his lower ribs and drilled. Hinata jerked in his seat and instantly began laughing again. “NO, THIS ISN’T FAHAHAHAHAHAHAIR!!”

“You want a tickle fight? Fine.” Kageyama smirked at how his friend’s face contorted with joy, feeling satisfied for making him forget about why he’d been upset. “A tickle fight is exactly what you’ll get. And don’t worry.” He reached his free hand underneath Hinata’s jacket and t-shirt to scribble at his bare torso. “We’ve got plenty of time for you to lose properly. It’s a long bus ride, after all.”

“Ugh, seriously?” Tsukishima grumbled from his seat a couple of rows behind them.

“Do those guys ever not fight?” Asahi asked.

“Ah, let it go, you two,” Noya replied from his place at the ace’s side and across the aisle from Tsuki, grinning at the scene unfolding before them all. “I’m pretty sure Hinata needs a good laugh right now. I for one am looking forward to the in-flight entertainment.”

“My money’s on Kageyama,” Daichi said, just as Hinata’s laughter rose an octave, followed by hysterical pleading. The captain laughed. “Oh, yeah. Anyone want to take me on?”

“I’ll vouch for Hinata,” Suga replied. “Rile him up enough and he’s a force to be reckoned with. I imagine the same can be said for tickle fights as well as volleyball.”

With that, the rest of the Karasuno team began betting everything from popsicles at Coach’s store to dinners at the restaurant they all enjoyed to taking over clean-up duty in the gym for a week. All the while Hinata and Kageyama’s tickle fight raged on, and by the time they got home a couple of hours later, both of them were completely exhausted.

But both of them felt like winners.

[anxious2dsimp]

Everything He's Not | Iwaizumi x GN! Reader | Short Fic

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Flavour: Angst (Reader x Cheater!Oikawa) to Fluff (Reader x Iwaizumi)💔→☁️

Reader: Gender Neutral!

Format: Short Fic (alternating between two sides of the story, y/n and Iwa's)

Part: 1 out of 2 (read part 2 here)

Word Count: 2.3k

Summary: Y/N, has dated the very popular Oikawa Toru for a while, through him becoming friends with his group. However, little do they know about a certain stoic ace's feelings for his best friend's s/o. When Oikawa screws up big time, will Iwaizumi's true feelings finally show? And what will Y/N do when everything goes down?

Warnings: Cheating, cursing, breakups, basically Oikawa x Reader angst turned into Iwaizumi x Reader fluff.

A/N: I wrote this for myself a while back but I edited it into a gender-neutral reader insert on a sleep-deprived whim (sorry if there are any mistakes, feel free to let me know!) Ik it's very random, but hopefully someone likes it :)

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Your POV

Dating Oikawa Toru was definitely different from what you expected; at first you were weary about the volleyball star, but after giving him a chance you started to see the real him. Yes, he was the captain of a powerhouse’s Volleyball team and had a ton of fangirls, but really he was just a regular guy with dorky interests and an alien obsession, which was the side of him you fell for. It wasn’t all great, dealing with his fangirls was rough; luckily you were safe being from another school, but they’d take any chance they had to try and gain Oikawa’s interest, flirting with him as he did the same back, not with bad intentions, it was just his personality. It did slightly annoy you, but you knew he was clear that we were together and wouldn’t take things further, he was just keeping up his image, and he promised you that was all.

Since your Karasuno friends didn’t particularly like your relationship with the setter (though they did respect it), you two hung out with his Aoba Johsai friends; that’s how your friendship with Iwa, Makki, and Mattsun started. You all became good friends, so they all helped you keep Oikawa in line while at school (especially Iwaizumi). Since you got along so well your friendship became its own thing besides Oikawa, and before you realized it, you and Iwa were such good friends that you chatted almost daily on the phone.

You don’t know what exactly made you bond so much, maybe you were similar in the sense that you were both used to being lowkey, keeping things together behind the scenes; regardless, you both enjoyed each other’s company. That Tuesday afternoon was one of those days, Oikawa had something to do at school, so Iwaizumi invited you, Makki, and Mattsun over to his place to wait for the captain like you usually did since it was the closest to the school.

So, you just chilled like always, laughing and playing video games, talking about whatever came to mind. While you were in the middle of a Mario Kart match, you heard the front door of the apartment open, “(y/n)-chan! I’m sorry for the delay~” the brunette said in a sing-song voice.

“Hi to you too, Oikawa,” said Makki, poking fun at him, to which he just rolled his eyes and walked over to the couch. “Aren’t you gonna give me a kiss?” Oikawa asked standing in front of the screen, causing all four of you to start yelling at him to get out of the way, making him pout. “One sec, Toru-chan,” you said, biting your lip while focusing on keeping your first place intact for the last lap. The setter just giggled and got out of the way, walking around the sofa to stand behind you.

Iwaizumi’s POV

‘Eyes on the screen Iwaizumi,’ the ace told himself as he tried to focus on the game, attempting to ignore the way Oikawa kissed (y/n)’s neck while they played, trying to get their attention but failing miserably other than a giggle here and there. Iwa could tell by the way their (e/c) colored eyes pierced the screen that they wanted to win. The boy could see why his best friend liked them, unlike most people (y/n) actually treated Oikawa like a normal person, which definitely got him going. It wasn’t just that though, you all became such good friends because they’re smart, funny and beyond kind; but that’s all you were, friends. So why did it make him moody to see them be all couple-y?

After all, they were together while he was just the friend, the one who kept the fangirls off Oikawa so (y/n) didn’t have to worry because he couldn’t do it himself. Even though Toru was Iwaizumi’s best friend since they were kids, he couldn’t help but think that his friend wasn’t the greatest boyfriend. However, that was the same reason why he couldn’t say anything either, after all, they made him happy and vice versa, so he just kept telling himself to keep his damn eyes on the screen.

Luckily for him, the game was soon over so you all ordered takeout and sat around talking. “Yo, (y/n), there’s this new scary movie on Netflix, we should watch it this Friday night,” Mattsun stated, stealing one of Maki’s fries and throwing it in his mouth. “That sounds fun, but I can’t Friday! Karasuno has a friendly match against a few Tokyo schools this weekend so we leave Thursday after school,” (y/n) explained with a sweet smile, Iwaizumi’s eyes casually wondering over to Oikawa to see him looking upset.

‘Ugh, here goes,’ the spiker thought to himself. Lately, Toru had been restless and uncomfortable because according to him, his s/o was slipping away from him. Oikawa had somehow managed to convince himself that Karasuno had made it their mission to get their manager (y/n) to stop liking him and had been getting increasingly dramatic and jealous lately for no reason.

“But I thought we were going to hang out this weekend,” Oikawa whined as he pouted at his significant other, trying to seem jokingly disappointed though his best friend could tell he actually was upset. “Babe, we literally talk every day and we hung out all this past weekend, and today,” (y/n) said taking his hand.

“Plus, you have friends too, Shittykawa,” Hajime said, trying to get his friend’s mind out of that dark place since he knew he was more prone to make stupid comments when it was there. Oikawa didn’t drop it, insisting on how they were talking less as (y/n) continued to explain that school had been busy and how he also had responsibilities that took up his time. They eventually got him to shut up, but Iwaizumi couldn’t shake the concern that he was being too stupid, and it felt like he was getting closer and closer to making a mistake.

Your POV

You had to admit you did feel guilty when you told Toru you were leaving for the weekend, it was true that you had been way too busy with school and that neither of you had much free time, but you knew that your feelings for him were still strong. So, that Thursday after school you were happy and excited to hear that the trip had been postponed and you’d actually travel on Saturday morning because Sensei had a very important meeting on Friday afternoon. With the change of plans, you decided to go surprise your boyfriend, and it already being late in the afternoon, by the time you got to his place he would be home.

As you got off the bus by his place and got closer to his house, the sun beginning to set, a couple by a small park caught your eye, causing a soft smile to appear on your face. That park was always where you two would hang out when you wanted to be just the two of you. Walking closer, however, the smile quickly disappeared as you realized the “couple” was none other than Oikawa himself with one of his persistent fans he told you not to worry about. ‘Maybe they’re just hanging out as friends,’ or at least that’s what you told yourself as you squinted and kept walking.

Picking up your pace you got closer, now being able to see their faces more clearly in the dimly lit park only to watch them kiss, the girl’s arms around his neck while Oikawa’s hand slid up her thigh. You didn’t know what to do, so you just stood there in shock as silent tears began to fall down your face. Almost as if you were in a trance, you reached into your pocket and took out your phone, dialing his number as you saw the brunette react.

He looked down surprised at his phone screen as he scooted apart from the girl and picked up the call as if it was nothing. “Hey beaut-” he started to say before you cut him off, not having the strength to hear his happy tone. “How could you?!” you sobbed angrily into the phone as his face became anxious. “What’s wrong babe?” How could he try to play it off as if he had no idea?

“You lying, cheating, son of a bitch! We’re over,” you yelled angrily, hanging up right as his eyes met yours. You were close enough to see the horrified and heartbroken expression on his face, but before he could say anything you turned around and just ran. Grabbing the straps of your backpack you sprinted back down the streets, your vision blurry with tears as your (h/c) hair was pushed back by the wind. It was only when you were back at the bus station and were sure that Oikawa was nowhere to be seen that you stopped and realized; you didn’t know where to go next.

You could go to your Karasuno friends, but you weren’t in the mood to hear “I told you so” and couldn’t go home to not worry your family. As you sat there and looked at the screen blankly, tears continuing to fill your eyes, a notification appeared. ‘Hey loser, how’s the trip going?’ you read as your eyes looked at Iwa’s name by the message. He was your best shot, you were close and he wouldn’t judge, so without opening your phone again and ignoring all of Oikawa’s calls you jogged over to Iwaizumi’s place.

After ringing the apartment and hiding your teary and now out of breath voice in the intercom, Iwa’s mom buzzed you in, and once you got to his floor you were greeted by Iwaizumi looking concerned, more so once he saw the state you were in. “(y/n), are you ok?” Iwaizumi asked as he walked over to you, hugging you as you hid in his arms and sobbed. “I’m sorry, I didn’t know where else to go. It’s Oikawa,” you explained as he nodded and got you inside. He made some tea and brought it with you two to his room, both of you sitting on his bed. “Ok, what did Shittykawa do now?” he asked as he looked up at you and handed over a warm mug. “D- did you know h-he was cheating on me?” you managed to stutter out between sobs, trying to sound collected but being embarrassed by your inability to do so.

“He- wHAT?!” His reaction startled you, and when you looked up from the cup and saw his horrified, furious expression it made you feel less like you were overreacting. “I- the trip got postponed to Saturday morning, so I went to surprise him to his place and saw him in our bench making out with one of his fangirls,” you explained, watching as Iwa’s face became angrier and angrier, realizing how you don’t think you’ve ever seen him like this, “I’m sorry I came to you, I know you’re best friends.”

Iwaizumi’s POV

Seeing them like this was already painful, but learning what Oikawa did was too much, Iwaizumi couldn’t believe how his friend could do this to (y/n). The spiker had never cared when he did stuff like this or worse than this to his fangirls. After all, he thought, they were the ones stupid enough to be blinded by his charm, but he never fathomed Oikawa would be able to do something like that to someone as great as you. “What? Hey, don’t even dare apologize,” he stated firmly as he took both mugs and set them by the bedside table, hugging (y/n) tightly and feeling them snuggle into him as they cried. Seeing them like this killed him. ‘Fuck Oikawa,’ he thought to himself, ‘if before I had stayed out of the way because they were good for each other that’s no longer the case.’

“I’m so sorry he did this to you; I should have stopped him. If I had known I would have, I should have been paying more attention,” the ace rambled into (y/n)’s hair as they cried softly, getting angry at himself before being interrupted by them pushing themselves away from him gently to look up at his face. “Why are you apologizing as if this was your fault? Iwa, he’s the one who’s an asshole, not you,” they stated, wiping a tear from their face.

“Because,” was he really going to say this? Screw it, here goes nothing, he told himself before continuing, “I knew you deserved better than him, but I convinced myself he would be different with you because I saw how good you were to him, and how happy you looked.” (y/n) just looked at him, mouth slightly ajar as they seemed to process what the boy had said. He couldn’t take the silence anymore so to avoid the blush he felt was beginning to appear on his cheeks he asked; “so did you dump him?” They nodded, looking down at their cup of tea as they chuckled and replied; “on the spot, over the phone.”

Iwaizumi chuckled back, releasing some of the nerves; “serves him right.” They smiled weakly at his comment and absentmindedly ran their fingers through their hair, My god were they gorgeous, Hajime thought to himself, only then realizing it was the first time it was just the two of them in his room, suddenly becoming self-conscious. Calm down, he told himself while taking a deep breath, looking over at (y/n). 'They just broke up with their boyfriend, being here with you is their last concern,' or so he thought. “Do you… want to watch (favorite movie) and eat ice cream?” the spiker suggested after thinking for a moment, he knew that was their favorite movie, and ice cream helps get over jerks, right?

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[its-me-your-bicon]

Lost wings - Yara Flor x Reader.

Summary: Girlfriends having an outdoor date, but what happens when Yara’s plans are compromised?

Word count: 3207.

Warnings: Established relationship; Swearing; Verbal fighting; Some yelling. (I swear this is fluffy)

She/her pronouns used for reader.

Author’s notes: This is such a stretch from what I originally wanted, but I enjoyed writing it. Gave me some needed serotonin.

Edit: this disclaimer ✍️

The day started perfectly fine. Yara waited for you at the bus stop she had previously told you to meet at, looking as if she had been awake for hours despite being 7:00 am. Whether she had been doing hero stuff to ensure her free schedule for the day, or brainstorming last minute ideas for today’s date was unknown to you. A little bit of both wouldn’t have been too far fetched either.

“Looking good, doll.” she greeted you with a big smile, going the extra steps to meet you halfway as soon as she saw you.

“You’re not too bad yourself.” you said, catching up with her uplift attitude. Her eyes lit up.

“Why, thanks baby, you’re getting so good at lying!” You didn’t want to laugh but she just about made you follow her lead. All in good playfulness, of course.

“You’re awful.”

“That’s more like it.” she beamed in a high-spirited fashion, letting you know she wasn’t taking any of it seriously and that you shouldn’t either. Today was about fun.

She didn’t wasted any more time and got right into crashing her lips with yours, kissing you as if no words have been exchanged, and this was her way of truly acknowledging your presence. No objections on your end...

You let the things you’ve been carrying on the floor to try and give her your full attention, wrapping your arms around her while kissing. Having to separate for a bit to do so, she eyed you curiously before going back to the matter at hand, grabbing you with all of her might.

When you parted for good, she went around mentioning what you had with you.

“I see you brought us some food.” she said pointing at your basket, previously abandoned on the floor, with the tip of her shoe.

“Yes... You weren’t very specific about what we’d be doing but I wanted to prepare stuff for both of us, since you planned just about everything” your eyes widened “Oh God, were meals part of your plan too? I’m sorry, I should’ve asked... Ugh, I just wanted to cook and do something nice for you today, botching things up wasn’t a part of it, I swear—“ her brow had raised mid rambling but it was the full blown laughter that made you (and some bystanders) stop in your tracks. She was enjoying this, for sure...

“Yara! People are staring...” that didn’t stopped her, but it made her slow down just to give you an answer.

“Then let them!” She laughed again at the frown you were giving her “Pff seriously? Making out is okay but you draw the line at laughter? Noted...” she brought you closer, still giggling but letting it die down, giving you a kiss on the cheek.

She stroked said cheek before continuing “You didn’t ruined anything, love. Don’t worry... In fact, you might have saved us some time for later!” a sincere smile was on her face, reassuring you “And look! I even brought drinks myself.” She signalled to a small cooler over her shoulder, just a little behind her.

“Of course you did.”

“Hey!” She went for your arm with a soft punch, nothing crazy that could actually hurt you “I’m not too sure if I like the implications of those words”

You smiled and stuck out your tongue to her. She went to catch it between her lips, just to get a rise out of you. It worked. Soon, you got so caught in it that only when someone cleared their throat did you separated and realized you were blocking some passengers from getting into a bus that recently parked. The embarrassment (at least on your part) was strong.

After mumbling a few apologies while gathering both of your stuff off the floor, you guys went towards the spot were your own bus would be arriving. Once it got there, and things were safely stored, you got seated, and the engines started.

The whole way was spent in silence. Yara had offered to share one of her earphones with you, just so that you could be doing something relaxing together, never mind that she had your hand in hers the whole time, or that you rested against her frame, and viceversa, along the trip.

You felt her foot tapping repeatedly against the floor on multiple occasions, but guessed she was probably getting restless at just sitting around for so long, since it took a couple of hours to get to your destination.

It was totally worth it, though.

Before you knew it, Yara had spoke over for your stop, and you were surprised to find an open field staring back at you from across the window. Upon getting out of the vehicle, you studied the place more carefully.

The spot were you stood had, of course, it’s own stop and sign, but also a small breakfast place behind you two, meant for travellers on the road (probably were Yara was planning to take you or order take out, had you not brought the food). Not much more was on sight except for what you thought might have been a small farm on the distance, on your same side of the road, but across from it though... A beautiful meadow was in place, full of green and small spots of white and yellow (thanks to the wild flowers), groups of trees in the distance, and some hills too.

It was beautiful.

“Like it?” She interrupted your thoughts.

“Love it! I... don’t really know what to say, to be honest.” you stared down, feeling shy, but noticing your intertwined hands, you found the courage to speak again “Just— Thank you... This is so thoughtful. I would’ve been okay if you just wanted to lay back in bed today, but I appreciate you planning all this, truly” you brought her hand up to kiss her knuckles.

She met the gesture with a thoughtful smile, almost like a smirk to anyone who wasn’t familiar with her, but a smile all the same. She always basked on you acknowledging her efforts, and felt good when positive reaffirmations came her way, even if she didn’t really needed them to get a job done.

“Well, you’re welcome” she gave your hand a little squeeze “but don’t go all grateful before it’s due. I have a big surprise still in store for you” she said proudly while starting to guide you across the street and towards the field, a smug expression on her face.

“What is it?” You were slightly behind, letting her grab your arm and drag you along. She turns to look at you.

“I believe the key word of that statement was ‘surprise’, as in, meant to be kept a secret until the time comes?” She said in amusement, starting to walk backwards, facing you fully.

You groaned at that, jokingly making yourself heavier in her efforts of pulling you along, as if you actually represented any sort of resistance to her. She laughs at this.

And so the trekking begins.

For the most part, it was nice. Your partner seemed to know her way around pretty well and would even hit you up with some facts about the wild life from time to time. The few morning hours that were still left were spent exploring, with Yara being very understanding of you needing breaks after certain distances. Then lunch time came around.

You two deemed the space near a small waterfall, and a few more trees around, perfect for a picnic, using all of the things you’ve brought. She seemed pleased until that moment, even throwing some compliments at you over the food, which is what left you even more confused as to why her mood soured after you went exploring again...

She was searching for something, trying to be subtle of course, but not succeeding in keeping it from you. The way she took random turns at very specific points, how she was growing progressively more quiet in conversations, and how she looked at everything around but you... It was starting to make you nervous. Were you in danger right now? Had she brought you under the false pretence of a date just to get hero duties done on her free time? You didn’t want to believe it, but couldn’t rule it out either.

The breaking point had to be when her frustrations started to built up into hostile behaviour. She started to ignore you when you spoke, and wasn’t respecting your pace either, stating that she would have to “carry you herself” if you held onto any hope of making it back in this century. That did it for you.

“Okay, that’s it! Mind telling me what’s putting you so on edge right now?” you made an abrupt stop and raised your voice to grab her attention. She scoffed and rolled her eyes, infuriating you even more.

“Would you quit it? I’m not the one serving up this attitude right now, so...”

“Are you fucking kidding me?! You’re acting all tense and mean for something you don’t even care to share with me, go around scaring and mocking me totally unprovoked, and still have the nerve to turn this on me?” You stare at her incredulously “You know what? Fine. Be like that, if you can’t put your super-duties aside for just one day, and keep me out of danger while doing so, then we’re better going our own ways from now on” the frustration made you totally lash out, not thinking about what you were saying but wanting to back it up nonetheless. You turned around to leave and go back to where you came from.

Yara’s eyes widened at your words, and she too acted on instinct, an anxious-rooted one at that.

“No, wait! Baby please, that’s not what this is about!” She grabs your arm, but applies more force that intended, making you gasp in pain at being turned around like that. She regrets it immediately, letting you go.

“Shit, that wasn’t— I didn’t meant to, (y/n). I’m so sorry” you see genuine fear and shame on her eyes, waiting for your reaction, but also a deep frustration. She thinks for a moment, rapid thoughts racing through her head, and turns her back to you, taking a breath “You know what? Screw this” you hear a particular and strange whistle come out of her mouth, piercing the air and scaring some of the birds around. It was... Bizarre, for a lack of a better word.

You were now even more confused about what the hell was going on. She wasn’t telling you, and instead you had to see her lose whatever ounce of self-control she still held until that moment when nothing happened after a few minutes of incomprehensible silence.

Yara, in her anger, kicks some of the dirt around while muttering some insults, not meant towards your person, you hoped, or anything in close proximity. It isn’t until a goddamn trunk was tossed, did she finally calmed down enough to be standing still, but her figure was one with hands on her face and a raged pace in her breathing.

Now was probably the time to say something...

You approached slowly, putting the tip of your fingers on her shoulder, letting her know you were there, but not wishing to overstep.

“Yara... What’s going on? It’s no good seeing you like this. Listen, I’m sorry, okay? I shouldn’t have said those things earlier, because some of them I didn’t meant.” You could feel she was loosing some tension, so you went in front of her and grabbed her wrists, but decided to let her lower the hands on her own time “I— gosh, I got defensive and was hurt, but that’s only because I hate seeing you hurting, and not enjoying yourself on your own time. Just wanted to know if I could’ve helped, that’s it.”

You make a move to remove your hands from where they touch hers but she stops you, finally showing her face and grabbing your wrists this time, with a far too gentle, and surprisingly hesitant, grip.

“(y/n), you got it all wrong. Yes, I’ll accept that I was at fault for such misunderstanding, but let me finish!” she jumped in to say before giving you the chance to express disbelief or judgment, making you want to crack a smile while looking at each other “But anyways, this whole thing may have something to do with the surprise I mentioned earlier...”

“The ultra secret one?”

“Yes, that one.”

“Are you trying to tell me you lost said surprise in these endless woods or something? ‘Cause you’re making it sound like that’s what you’ve been looking for this whole time.”

“That’s because it is.”

“What is?”

“What you just said. That’s exactly what happened.” she said dead serious.

“You’re messing with me...” you stare at her, but she doesn’t back down “Holy shit, you’re not!”

She almost held in a snort.

“Of course I’m not.”

“What in this god forsaken world did you brought to this place just to lose it in the first place? I honestly assumed this ‘surprise’ was just a secret spot or something. I need more context...” a sigh escapes you, followed by one of hers.

“Alright... Guess there’s no point in keeping it a secret anymore.”

“You think?”

“Stop it, I’m trying to be nice!” she says giving you a smile, you laugh in return. “Alright... The thing is, I was trying to introduce you to someone, but he’s not where he’s supposed to, and I couldn’t talk to you about it without spoiling the surprise.”

“He? Who are we talking about here?”

“Jerry, my pegasus.”

Silence... that’s all there was for who knows how long until her words sank down.

“Oh my god! You’re telling me I was in to meet up close with an actual mythological creature?!”

“That about covers it, yeah. Was planning on letting you have a ride with me even, but sure.”

“Shut up!” You disentangle your joined hands in order to point your index finger at her jokingly, full of excitement “seriously SHUT. UP! You must be pulling my hair now, I know it!”

You are smiling so brightly that she can’t help the laugh that now fills the air around. She grabs the hand you’re pointing at her with and puts it on her cheek as she gets closer.

“I promise it’s no joke. I really wanted to do this one thing for you but... Guess it wasn’t meant to be, Jerry can be the biggest jerk and now he’s just proving that he can’t show up to save a girl’s life were we actually in danger right now” she rolls her eyes, but you stare at her softly, with endearment filling your eyes.

“It’s okay, Yara... What you did today and all of your efforts were good enough. You are good enough. I don’t need a magical horse to woo me or make my day special, you make it special for me, and I just wish you could’ve know that from the start, to save us the bitter moments, at least.”

“You really mean that?”

“I do.”

“Even if I put you in danger doing what I do...?”

Your breath was held. You knew those words would get to her even as you were saying them, and now you regretted them, but you have to deal with the consequences.

“Yes, even then. I knew what I was getting into, and my conviction remains the same as that from the day we first discussed this, back when it all started. I’m sorry for making you think otherwise.”

She gives you a sad smile.

“It’s okay, we both went a bit too far today, all jokes aside.” her smile turns into a smirk as something occurs to her “Although, can I just say...? The biggest joke by far was you thinking you could’ve escaped these lands without me. Ha! Good luck!” you roll your eyes, but a smile betrays your expression.

“Oh, shut up!”

“Gladly.”

Just like that you’re on her lips again. The kiss is soft, but still exciting, giving the way she keeps hold of your face and jaw with both hands and a fiery purpose. You keep your own hand on her neck and move your arm to wrap around her waist, keeping her impossibly close to you. Much as back in the station, you block the entire world out just to focus on her and this moment...

Which is why you’re a bit frightened when met with an unfamiliar wetness making contact with your face, just a little higher to where Yara’s rough hand touches your skin, creating a distinct contrast.

The yelp that follows comes out unannounced, just like the white and black stained horse with massive wings that is now standing in front of you, meeting your gaze once you abruptly separated from your girlfriend (who seemed unbothered, almost as if she had heard it coming, unlike you).

“Is that—? Where did h—?”

“JERRY!!! YOU STUPID WINGED MEAT BRAIN CREAT— Nice of you to fucking finally show up!” Yara speaks to him angrily, while simultaneously trying to get to him. Her animal companion just moves his head and lets out a few huffs, galloping in circles around you as if making fun of her. It would be endearing if not for how distracted you were by the sight of how big and majestic he looked with every move.

They finally settled a few steps away from you. Yara sees you from the distance and motions her head towards both of them.

“Do you want to pet him? He won’t bite, I promise” she winks at you, and strokes Jerry’s head herself. You don’t say anything, but move closer.

When you’re at a respectable distance, Jerry starts to move his head up and down letting out some air, but then keeps his head down, granting you easier access to touch. It looks like he’s giving you permission, but your hand still stops mid air. Yara notices and gives you an extra push. Grabbing your hand, she guides it till you’re in direct contact with the creature in front of you. She keeps it there until you’re ready to move on your own, letting you silently know that everything’s alright, sentiment paired up with a half-grin.

You finally move your hand, giving him soft and gentle strokes along his nose and eventually his scalp. He decides that’s not good enough for him, apparently, because he moves forwards, invading your space, and only stops when you put both of your hands on him. Taking the hint, you laugh and start petting/scratching him with all you have.

Turning your head to the side, you find Yara staring at you intently, a smirk plastered on her face. Probably relieved that things turned out according to her plan in the end. Still, you could practically feel her aching, wanting to speak whatever was on her mind, so you tilted your head to the side in curiosity, bidding her to let it out.

“Oh, it’s nothing really, just...” she raises her head, tall and proud “You still up for that ride?”

[carnationcreation]

Can you do a fem reader x carrie where the reader is one of the tech people at a concert 👉👈

TITLE: Help (Carrie Wilson x reader)

✌🏻Masterlist Taglist, Requests, and Works in progress!

Please check bio to see if requests are open before sending any in!

Request: (Tumblr) Can you do a fem reader x carrie where the reader is one of the tech people at a concert 👉👈

(Wattpad @thelizziebooks) Ok so the reader is often abused by her father because her mother left at a young age. Not to mention she’s also bullied by Carrie (sorry Savannah. Love her) notices her wince one day and asks her about it. That’s all I got.

Prompt/summary: Carrie confronts the reader about her dad after the school play.

Word Count: 1,659 

Authors Note: I decided to combine these requests! <3 and woahhhh I didn’t intend for it to be this long whoops :)

***Warning*** mentions of abuse and bullying, please read with caution and if you’re experiencing anything like this please reach out for help! Stay safe y’all.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Behind the scenes of school plays always got chaotic.

I tried my best to keep everything on track, being stage manager and all. Occasionally something crazy would happen that was just completely out of my control.

Today was one of those crazy days.

"Guys please don't hang off the set pieces! Can y'all move those boards over there? Arnold what have I told you about touching props that aren't yours? Go put it back EXACTLY where it came!"

It was officially opening night, call time was at 5 and most of the cast had shown up on time except for a select few.

"Nick said he was going to be a little late, car troubles."

I huffed and turned to Sophia the lighting director, "Fine. Tell him he better be in his costume as soon as he walks in, no messing around beforehand we're going to be pushing showtime anyways."

I turned back around to the soundboard to finish mic checks with my sound assistant.

It was finally 30 minutes till showtime. Everyone was in the dressing room getting ready or in the hallway behind the auditorium doing last minute rehearsals before the curtain went up.

"Hey girls," I said popping my head in the dressing room, "Places in 15. Wait, where's Carrie?"

The girls looked at each other before shrugging at me.

I let out a frustrated groan, "Someone call her, if she's not here then Savannah you're going on."

Her understudy let out a huff and turned to grab her cellphone to call the missing diva.

As I turned to walk down the hallway a very mad Carrie came storming down.

"Where have you been?"

She turned to me with a death glare and snapped, "Car troubles."

"Ugh why is everyone saying that tonight?" I groaned.

I tried to turn away but just as I did Carrie grabbed my wrist tightly, "I could've just not shown up. You're lucky I even did."

The action made me hide my face out of habit, when I finally grounded myself I ripped my wrist out of her grip before taking off down the hallway trying to rub the pain away and shake off the panicked feeling in my chest.

The show went on without a hitch. Luckily Carrie could get into costume and wig quickly so there wasn't any delay in opening. After curtain call I quickly cleaned up my stuff, saying goodbye to our drama teacher as she left for the night leaving me to check the dressing rooms to make sure no one else was here before I left.

The boys room was a wreck, tomorrow during class I should make them clean it out. Gross.

I check the middle dressing room reserved for anyone who didn't want to be in either girls or boys only dressing room. I turned the lights off before moving on to the last one.

I barely missed her, if she wasn't wearing the bright yellow dress I wouldn't have seen her sitting on the counter.

"Carrie? What are you still doing here?"

She frowned, "I wanted to ask you something."

"What Carrie?" I huffed lightly.

"I'm just trying to be nice," she rolled her eyes.

"You're never nice to me," I said, grabbing my keys off the hook on the wall, "And it's getting late, I wanna get home. What's your question?"

"You winced."

"What?"

"Earlier when I grabbed your wrist, you winced. I didn't mean to hurt you but I didn't grab it hard enough to truly hurt you. What's going on?"

I sighed and went to turn the lights off, "Nothing Carrie. I don't see why you even care."

Carrie hopped off the counter and walked out the door I was holding open, "Can't you just tell me? For once I'm worried about you."

"Yeah, and that one time is completely random."

"(Y/n)," she said, grabbing my wrist. Out of instinct I winced and immediately tried to cover it up by pulling my arm out of her grasp but then she held on a little tighter. It didn't hurt. In fact, it was almost... gentle.

"What Carrie? I wanna go home."

"Not till you tell me what's going on," she said, her eyes seemed to glue to something on my shoulder, her free hand reached forward and pull down the collar of my shirt past my right shoulder revealing a purple bruise I had tried to keep covered for tonight.

"(Y/n)-"

"Carrie it's just from working on the set pieces-"

"Bullshit," she snapped, "It wasn't there yesterday when you were wearing that halter top. Don't lie like this (Y/n)."

I rolled my eyes, "I don't even see why you care."

Her eyes went soft as I finally pulled my arm from her grip.

I turned to walk away.

"I see you walk to the bus everyday."

I stopped and looked back at her, "What?"

"You pass by my house when you're walking to the bus everyday. And walking home. Everyday I see you linger outside like you hate going home. I noticed it a while ago, but tonight just confirmed my suspicions. (Y/n), he hits you doesn't he?"

Tears welled up in my eyes, "Carrie just stay out of this."

"(Y/n)-"

"No Carrie, I don't need pity. Especially from you."

I couldn't describe the look in her eye, "(Y/n) it's not pity it's concern. Please just let me help-"

"I don't need help. Especially after all you've ever done to me. Just leave me alone."

And with that I turned on my heel and rushed outside.

The next day I wore a chunky turtleneck sweater into class. Carrie's eyes immediately flew up when I entered the room, falling directly to the shoulder that was completely covered up. Class seemed to go by like an eternity. The school day was even longer.

Finally it was the break before my last class of the day and I walked out of the bathroom stall, looking myself over in the mirror.

"Green's a pretty color on you," Carrie said, she was standing two sinks down from me. Staring at the spot on my shoulder again.

I sighed, "Thanks."

"(Y/n) please-"

"I told you to stay out of it."

"You need to get help, it's just going to keep getting worse and you know it."

"He's in rehab," I sighed, placing my hands on the sink and leaning forward.

She sighed, taking a pause to stare at me, "(Y/n), if you need a place to stay you can always come to my house."

"I don't need anyone's help."

I flung my bag onto my shoulder before turning and practically running out of the bathroom.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I don't know why tonight was worse, but it just was. Maybe it was because I knew someone knew what was going on, or maybe it was because he pre-gamed with his friends before going out to the bar.

When he got drunk he got... rowdy. If I was in his way in the kitchen he'd shove me out of his way, sometimes making me hit the counter top. IF I didn't do the chores like I was supposed to he would give me a smack on the face. And in extreme cases he'd push me into the wall before barking at me to go to my room.

I've probably gotten a concussion before.

Tonight was different though.

It felt like he just didn't let up on me. First it was a smack over the dishes, then I didn't get him his drink fast enough resulting in being shoved into the wall. Finally the shove so hard I fell hitting my hand on the table and collapsing onto the floor left the wind knocked out of me. When I finally got my lungs working again I ran out the door. It wasn't until I got a few blocks away from my house that I realized my hand was bleeding badly.

I just walked. I didn't intend to go to her house, but here I was at the gate of the Wilson residence. I pressed the buzzer and waited.

"Who is it?"

"Hi Mr. Wilson, it's (Y/n). One of Carries friends."

Carrie finally came over the intercom, "(Y/n)?"

"Hey, um- sorry this probably isn't a good time. I can leave-"

"(Y/n) just come inside," she said, the gates finally opened and I walked up the driveway and onto the porch.

Carrie opened the door, seeing the bleeding on my right hand immediately.

"Oh my god (Y/n), what-"

The tears in my eyes must've given me away, because she quickly pulled me into a hug.

"Let's get you cleaned up," she whispered.

She lead me inside to the bathroom and sat me on the edge of the bathtub. She grabbed the first aid kit and gently cleaned the cut on my hand and put a giant bandage over it when she was done, "Hopefully you won't need stitches."

"Yeah."

She led me into her room and we both sat on the bed, she just watched me as I looked around the room to avoid her gaze.

"(Y/n), what happened?"

Tears finally started to slip as she pulled me into a hug again.

"It's okay, we don't have to talk about it right now. I'm just worried."

"It was bad Carrie, more bad than normal. I can handle it normally..."

"You shouldn't have to 'handle it'," she said softly.

I couldn't say anything because of the sobs that were racking through my body. She just held me and gently petted my hair until I finally calmed down.

"You can stay here tonight if you want to."

I smiled tightly, "Thank you."

"It's the least I could do," she said, "You really need to tell someone."

"I know... I'm just not ready."

She grabbed my left hand and gently squeezed it, "That's okay. But I'll be here with you when you are."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

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[just-another-haikyuu-blog]

How did I manage to get myself into this situation? 😩 Part 5

Tsukishima Kei × fem!reader

Tags: NSFW, public sex, vouyerism, fingering, cheating

Tw: cheating, public sex, 

Word count: 1800+

Nsfw under the cut♡

I didn’t feel like re-reading it so there might be some typos

It took you hours to go to sleep that night. You couldn't even message Keishin back after what happened. You just laid there staring at his messages as they piled up. 

“Hey did you make it back okay?”

“Sorry I couldn't walk you back..”

“Hey baby?”

“Goodnight baby”

You stared at them so long they were burned into your eyes so every time you blinked you could still see them. Even closing your eyes couldn't get you away from seeing them. It made you feel sick the way you were still left craving Tsuki’s touch. You couldn’t get it out of your mind. Whether you should tell Keishin or not was killing you because of course you should. But what would he say? How would he feel towards you knowing that someone else had you directly after him and made you feel that way? Not only that but how would he react knowing that it was Tsuki? “Ugh….” you sighed into your pillow for the billionth time, “ what the hell am I supposed to do now?” 

*DING*

A new message popped up in your phone. “Hey”

It was from a number you had unsaved in your phone. You’d called it before but who was it? And why in the middle of the night? 

“Who is this?” -you

“You never saved my number did you?” -them

“Obviously not.” -you

“I figured what we just did would have left you in a better mood. I guess not.” -them

“TSUKI?!” -you

“Who else would be messaging you at this time? Oh wait your boyfriend huh? Should I tell him about how much you loved my cock tonight? Or would you rather I keep it a secret?” -Tsuki

You sat there and typed out at least a hundred different responses but you couldn’t send a single one. You just laid there and cried. Cried because you didn’t know what to say.. or what to do about how you felt about everything that happened. You wanted so much to be angry with him for that last message but the cockiness was turning you on in a way that made you ashamed to even be alive. And the fact that you were even remotely thinking about keeping it a secret was making your stomach turn. You ran over that last question in your mind a thousand times. I mean he couldn’t really be serious about keeping it a secret.. could he?

Night turned to day as you tossed and turned unable to catch a wink. By the time your alarm was to go off you were turning it off and sitting up on the side of the bed with another enormous sigh. Thank god you didn’t have school today you thought. You never replied to either one of them. The thought of messaging Keishin had popped in your mind all night to tell him what happened but you never mustered up the courage to actually follow through. And because of that you couldn’t even find it in yourself to send him your usual good morning message. You could always find an excuse as to why you didn’t. 

“Time to get ready for my jog I suppose” you finally got up and started getting ready. Normally getting ready only took you 30 minutes tops but this particular morning it took you twice as long. Your mind was everywhere and you couldn’t concentrate on anything. Maybe I’ll take the bus for a different run somewhere else so I don’t have to run into either of them by accident you thought. By the time you realized how late of a start you were going to have this morning for your run you heaved another huge sigh and walked out the door to find none other than Tsuki standing there waiting for you. You immediately try to book it for the other way around your house but he’s already spotted you and has yanked you back by the hood on your jacket. “You should really be more considerate to someone who’s supposed to be keeping a secret for you.” He leaned down and whispered in your ear. His breath on your ear sparking a want down below for him. You jumped back with a very noticeable blush painted across your face and almost yelled at him “Who said I was going to keep it a secret?!” “Oh so, I can just message him now. Should I apologize for stealing you away? Or for pleasuring you so much last night?” he said with a very dark grin as he pulled his phone out. “NO!” you yelled lunging at him trying to grab his phone from him. Your feet tripping over one another as you fell forward onto him toppling you both to the ground. “Hmpf. Looks like after last night you can’t get your hands off me. Coach would be awfully jealous if he saw us right now. More importantly why are you dressed for school?” he said in an almost laughing tone watching you try to scramble to get off of him. Your face completely red as a beet you just turned and began walking. In your blunder this morning you didn’t even realize that you had put on the wrong thing. You couldn’t go back inside now so you just kept going. It was okay you’d just buy something to wear for your run when you got where you were going. You needed some new jogging clothes anyways.

Of course this dumbass had to follow you. He didn’t say much to you for the rest of the walk to the bus station. He knew if he did it would only end up badly. The bus was packed as you two weaseled your way on to find a railing to hold on to. To make things even more awkward the only ones that were open were wedged right next to the other. Which made you think about trying to squeeze your way into another car. Of course there were too many people so there was obviously no other option than to stand next to him. But tell me why this idiot of a guy had to stand facing you when you were so noticeably mad with him. So of course you turned your back to him not wanting to have to look at him. 

He leaned down and whispered to you, “You really think turning your back to me is a good idea when your body so obviously is calling for me?” His breath against your ear sends a tingling sensation all the way down you causing you to lose your grip on the railing in a curb sending you falling back into him. A small moan escaping your mouth as you felt his body against yours. You try to regain your composure and straighten yourself back up only to have his arm pull you back into him. “How can you expect me to let you go after that? Can’t you feel what you’ve done to me?” At this point your body is going on its own you press back into him feeling his length against you. The words fall from your lips in a pant “Tell me what to do.” Hearing those words seemed to make him grow even more in his pants. “Just let me do what I want with you. No complaints.” You shake your head vigorously as you feel his hands grab hold of your waist holding you in place as he slowly grinded himself against you. Your gasps getting louder the harder he thrust. One hand freeing itself to pull your skirt up slightly and feel its way down to your already soaked panties. His fingers rubbing against your clit through the cloth felt so good you couldn’t help but grind into his hand before feeling the bulge of his cock pressing firmly against you. “I’m only going to ask once,” he said as he pulled your panties to the side, “can I come inside you?” You didn’t know if he meant he wanted to cum inside you or if he just wanted to penetrate you but it didn’t matter either way since you answered on instinct “Yes~ Please~” you cried out trying hard to keep it at a whisper before you hit another curb pushing you back against him as his cock slammed deep inside you moaning out so loud a couple people looked back. Thankfully they didn’t notice since it just seemed he was catching you as you fell back. He held your body tight against his and whispered in your ear “What a nasty girl you are. Now grind into me until you can’t take it.” and so you obliged. Your hips almost moving on their own as he held onto you keeping you pressed firmly against him. Your body is unable to stop going and your movements were getting so erratic he had to slow you down before someone noticed. Just as you were about to climax the bus stopped. Your mind was so flooded with pleasure it made you unaware of anything but what was going on down below. You didn’t even notice until so many people packed on even when they pushed you off the railing and backwards into Tsuki almost toppling you both to the floor. 

If it wasn’t for the man who was standing with his back to him you two would have fallen for sure. The older man turned to yell at Tsuki and immediately noticed what was going on. Instead of bringing any attention to it he instead helped to steady you two by standing firmly with his back against Tsuki’s. Neither of you two even take any notice of the man's efforts to help you two out and just continue on unaware of the audience you now had. Your hips not stopping even a second as you reached up to pull him down into a kiss trying to cover your moans as you came all over his cock. His tongue pushing its way past your lips twisting around yours only for a moment before pulling back away to whisper in your ear yet again but this time you couldn’t hear him over the sound of the other passengers. But the shiver it sent down you gave him a clear indication that your ears were very sensitive. He pulled out and pressed your body against his, pushing his length in between your thighs before leaning back down suckling on your earlobe causing you to shudder even more as he thrust harder and harder. His climax getting closer with every reaction you give him and the harder he would thrust the closer you got to your second time. Looking up at him with a breathless expression “Ts-tsuki~ ahhh~ I- ahhhh~” your eyes welling up with tears as he continued his thrusts pushing you both to cum. His mouth moving to cover yours as you couldn’t hold back the moans anymore. The last thing you remember is the throbbing of his cock pushing you even further over the edge as his cum covered the insides of your thighs and of your skirt. 

The very next moments you find yourself waking up in a bed naked and seeing Tsuki come out of the bathroom in a towel. Which was enough to almost make you pass back out immediately.

[stanakaashiforclearskin]

How You First Meet Them w/ Kageyama and Hinata

Pairings: Kageyama Tobio and Hinata Shouyou (separately) x gender neutral! reader

Style: drabble

Genre: fluff, angst if you squint

Word Count: 1.1K

Warnings: slight angst for Kageyama

Kageyama Tobio

“Ugh, where is it?” 

You had been frantically searching for your homework in your overflowing book bag for the past minute as your history teacher waited, arms crossed, in front of your desk. 

“L/n, I’m sorry but I’m going to have to count it as late. Maybe if you were more organized it wouldn’t have come to this.”

As if on cue, the bell rang and class was dismissed. You had stayed up late writing your history paper that was due today, which resulted in you sleeping in and almost missing the bus. You had been rushed this morning and didn’t neatly put your homework into your bag as you normally did. And now, the paper you had spent so long working on would be counted as late. 

Tears flooded your vision as you walked out of the classroom. It was lunchtime now, and on a typical day you would have headed towards the cafeteria to eat with your friends. But instead you altered your course and began to trudge in the direction of the gyms. At least nobody would bother you out there. 

Leaning against the cold outer wall of Gym A, you slid down until you were curled into a ball on the ground. Sobs wracked your body. School had been difficult for you this year, seeing as you had been placed in Class 1-5, which was a college prep level. Somehow your teacher seemed to be getting less and less understanding, and you didn’t know how much longer you’d be able to maintain your GPA for. 

As your thoughts began their downward spiral, you felt someone trip and fall over your outstretched foot. You lifted your head and you were met with startling blue eyes. 

“I’m sorry, I was in the way-”

“No, it’s my fault,” the boy said. “I wasn’t looking where I was going.”

He began to stand up, but stopped as he noticed his carton of milk splattered all over the concrete. You heard him swear lightly under his breath. 

Wiping your red eyes, you picked up the empty carton and tossed it in the nearest trash can. The vending machine was just a few steps away, so you plodded over to it and bought two milks. 

“Thanks,” he murmured as you handed him one of them. The two of you sat in silence sipping your drinks, the cool September breeze setting goosebumps upon your skin. 

“I’m Kageyama.”

“L/n,” you replied. “Sorry about earlier.”

“Forget it,” Kageyama told you. “And, uh, it’s nice to meet you.” 

“Yeah, you too.”

A few hours later, as you laid in bed, your mind drifted back to the boy with the blue eyes. Maybe you would see him again. 

Halfway across town, the boy with blue eyes tossed and turned in his bed, unable to sleep. Grabbing his trusty bedside volleyball, he brought it into his embrace and tried once more to find rest. He dreamt of you that night.

Hinata Shouyou

“L/n could you stay after class for a minute?” 

You glanced up at your teacher as you finished packing up your bag after the last class of the day. “Of course,” you said cheerfully. 

You were in Class 1-5, and had the best grades out of all the students in it. Occasionally, you were asked to tutor students in lower classes, not only due to your high GPA but also because of your outgoing personality. Nobody felt stupid or less-than when they were around you, which was one of the reasons why you made such a great peer tutor.

“I have another assignment for you, if you don’t mind.” Your teacher began. “There is a student in Class 1-1 who needs some help raising their grades. Hopefully you can help them to do so. Here’s their information.” 

She handed you a slip of paper with a name and contact information on it.

Hinata Shouyou, Class 1-1

Phone number: xxx-xxx-xxxx

Email: hinatas@karasunohigh.org 

“Okay, I’ll contact him later today,” you told her as you left the classroom. Grabbing your cellphone from your pocket, you typed in the number and sent a text to the student.

Hi! My name is L/n Y/n, and I’ll be your peer tutor. Please let me know when and where to meet up for our first session. 

You’re about to put your phone away when it buzzes, alerting you of a text message. 

Unknown number: HELLO IM HINATA THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU I AM VERY GRATEFUL FOR YOUR HELP!!!!!!!!!! 😁😁😁😁😁😁ARE YOU FREE TODAY AT 3PM????? WE CAN MEET AT THE LIBRARY!!!!!!

A laugh escaped your lips as you reread the message. This boy seemed rather odd, but at least he was actually interested in doing the work. You responded to Hinata, letting him know that you would meet him then. School got out at 2:45pm, so you made your way over to the library and sat down at an empty table. 

Five minutes passed, then ten, then twenty. It was 3:05pm, and Hinata was late. Of course, it wasn’t by much, so you took a deep breath and tried not to stress over it. 

A little while later, you peeked at the clock hanging on the far wall. It read 3:08. You reached for your phone to check for any messages, but a sparkling voice halted your actions. 

“I’m so sorry! I got caught up with my club activities,” the voice said. “I’m Hinata Shouyou.”

Your eyes roamed over him, taking in his soft orange hair, his gleaming smile, and the messy papers falling out of his bag. 

“Don’t worry about it,” you told him. “Let's get started.”

It turned out that Hinata needed quite a lot of help in every subject. His worst class was English. Thankfully, that one was your best. 

“Hmm, I think your biggest issue is actually organization,” you told him, eyeing his disheveled textbooks and notes. 

“Oops,” he said, eyes bright with laughter.

You took your time showing him how to keep track of due dates for assignments, how to take neat, understandable notes, and how to properly study for exams. All throughout his tutoring session, Hinata listened eagerly as you spoke. He truly did seem to care for his grades; he was just busy. 

“Wow, L/n! You’re so helpful! Thank you so much!” He exclaimed after a few hours of working together. He stood abruptly and bowed deeply. 

“Oh, no problem, Hinata! I’m glad to help,” you said, somewhat surprised. “I look forward to working with you again.”

A blush settled upon his face as he righted himself. “I’ll see you tomorrow then,” Hinata squeaked, running off to practice.

You smiled to yourself, noticing the fluttering feeling in your stomach. Putting away your teaching materials, you secretly hoped that he felt the same way. 

[blackssuunn-mandoandyodito]

Tabaco y Brea

A Javier Peña fanfic

Pairing: Javier Peña x reader

Warnings: slight angst, slight fluff, sweating?, swearing, running?, somebody needs to explain this to me please.

Word count: 2.5 k

A/N: alright friends, this is the first chapter of a series I’m working on. As you can see, it’s called Tabaco y Brea. If you have any questions, hit me up. I hope you like this, enjoy!

Chapter 1: Stuffy basement

Bogotá was a sight that you had yet to stop being amazed at. Walking through its streets for the first time all those months ago almost brought tears to your eyes. Growing up in the United States and thinking that you may never get out of there gave you little to no reference in this country's culture, although your father being Mexican helped you master Spanish and he showed your way to dance. Early 1981 was not a great year to be in Colombia, but you were here as a DEA agent after all, not as a tourist. You could feel things getting bigger, and you weren't sure how you'll be able to handle it.

As you kept walking, you asked yourself the same question of your everyday life. Why the fuck did you choose to live so far away from the Embassy? 

(You knew the answer, but it didn’t make mornings easier)

The heat made your clothes cling to you with sweat, your hair even in a ponytail was soaked and the headache was just getting stronger the more you walked through the avenue. 

And you were late, dammit!

Your heels could be heard as you started to run to catch the bus, gripping your purse as if life depended on it. With the amount of money they paid you, you could easily afford a car, but attracting that much attention wasn't a great idea. You still couldn't understand how the narcos hadn't managed to get your information. 

The bus was already at the bus stop when you turned the corner, and you didn't know if you could make it. 

"Ey! Ey! Esperen!" (Hey! Hey! Wait!) You started waving your hand towards it, seeing that the last person in line was hopping on. The driver, thankfully, saw you and waited. You started running faster and finally climbed the stairs. It was packed.

 Well, it seemed that you'd go standing. 

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

You seriously didn't think you could get more soaked from the heat, sweat even more than you already were.

You were wrong. 

When you got to the Embassy, the entire back of your shirt was plastered to your body. Your thighs were starting to get grazed because of your skirt and your hair was all frizzy and probably resembled a nest of birds. 

You took a deep breath, tried to fix your hair a little bit, and pushed the door. Nobody even glanced at you, and you were glad. If anybody dared to even look at you funny, you were going to lose it.

"Ey compañera. Mala mañana?" (Hey partner. Bad morning?)

Oh, just what you needed.

"¿Qué quieres Peña?" (What do you want Peña?) you rolled your eyes at him. He didn't look much better than you anyway. His pink shirt was sticking to his chest, even though he had several buttons open, letting you see his wet neck. His face was sweaty too, with rosy cheeks and his hair sticking to his forehead. 

You arched your eyebrow. "No tienes mucho mejor aspecto que yo Javier" (You don’t look much better than I do Javier)

He gave a soft laugh, the idiot. You weren't in the best of moods to handle him, so you turned around and walked to your desk, then sat down with a grump.

"Vamos nena, alégrate un poco" (Come on baby, lighten up a little) you glared at him and started reading through the papers you had to check today. It was usually yours and Javier's, that asshole didn't do any of his own paperwork and you were stuck doing both almost all the time. Carina had given you a weird stare the first time you were ranting about it to her, but you were sure you didn't want to know what she was thinking. It was nothing that you didn't know anyways.

Once he realized you were definitely not in the mood for your usual banter, he stopped and sat down in his desk,at the right from yours. Silence (or as much silence as an office can have) settled and the sounds of sheets of paper turning and Javi working with his typewriter slowly calmed you and helped you concentrate with what you were reading. The fan that barely provided you of fresh air at least served as background noise for the amount of stuff that your mind was processing, and it even cooled you down a little bit. The headache was gone and so was the bad mood. After some time had passed and you weren't sweating as much as before, you asked yourself what on Earth was Javi doing if you had his paperwork at your desk.

"Hey Javi, what are you doing? At least have the decency to offer help!" you said as he turned to look at you. He smiled, noticing your mood improvement. Pulling his chair with him, he crossed the little space between your desks and opened the folder that he had been looking at.

"There's the Bera I know" You tried to hide a smile at the nickname. "I got some intel that could help us with this bullshit"

His voice, all business know, gave you a sense of peace. Even if he was a little shit most of the time, he was the only one who had been with you since you arrived back in 1979. He didn't have much more experience than you back then, had only been in Colombia for a couple of months himself, but he knew his way around better than you. He taught you the things you didn't know, and if neither of you did then you figured them out together. 

"And what is that intel, agent Peña?" you teased him. You weren't oblivious to his ways of fishing out info, of course. He smacked you lightly in the arm and showed you the papers.

"A cottage on the outside of Cali seems to be a type of safehouse for Escobar's merca," he says while pointing at the pictures that were inside the folder "if this is true, we need to do a raid soon, but we have to make sure the intel is right before we take that risk"

The cottage was small, nobody would pay attention to it if they were walking past. It looked like an abandoned house, and you knew that was exactly what Escobar's men were hoping for. Although you were surprised they were stupid enough to have something even remotely close to a city, that didn't sound right.

You nod, "so that means...?"

He looks at you with a glint of mischief in his eyes.

"That means we need to stay for a few days in Cali, nena"

You have to grip your chair to physically restrain yourself from jumping of happiness. You loved Cali, the very few occasions you had free time you took a bus there (9 hours and all) and spent the nights in the dancing clubs. Cali gave you a sense of love and alleviated the homesick feeling that had been nagging you for years. It reminded you of your father even if this wasn't his country. 

"Are you serious? Don't play with me Javi" he nodded.

"You know I don't play with this shit", his voice sounded serious, almost offended.

He knew how much you enjoyed being there, but you also knew he took his work very seriously. In both cases, you doubted he would joke about something like that, but it was almost too good to be true to believe it that easily.

You started to plan things in your head. Where would you stay? Close to the cottage? Close to downtown Cali? Would you have any free time to enjoy the pleasures of Cali nights? You hoped so because if not you were going to explode.

"So when do we leave then?" you look him in the eyes, a grin spread big on your face. 

"It depends", your smile fell. "We have to welcome the new gringo, remember?"

Ugh, yes. You forgot about that. 

"So when does he arrive?" 

Javi shrugged. "I'm not sure, but it will be this or the next week."

You weren't sure if bringing someone else to this shitshow was a good idea. Enough lives have been lost to this war, and you didn't see the point of putting at risk another one.

"Will we take him with us?"

 “He's not very good with Spanish"

Your smile returned, this time for entirely different reasons. "So we're gonna have some fun with him?"

Javi looked at you, amusement in his eyes. He shook his head.

"I don't think that's a good idea muñeca, he's coming with his wife" (doll)

You got the message, even if he didn't say it out loud. He has a family, something to lose. You don't, not really. Besides your own lives, that is. If you want to play Russian roulette with them, it's your problem. But the new guy had someone to come back to.

So, helping the gringo it was.

"What's his name again?" you ask. You had read about him a few weeks back when they told you he was coming. But you didn't even remember he was coming, much less were you going to remember his name.

"Steve Murphy" Oh yeah, it sounded familiar now. "He did his training directly at Quantico, so he must be good"

That you remembered. He was one of those guys who spent the 18 weeks (although you knew they were only 13 if you did it there) of DEA training in Quantico, inside the U.S. Marine Corps Base and next to the FBI academy. They weren't common here, you and Javi had done it elsewhere. 

"So after we pick him up, we plan this shit out, right?"

Javi nodded. "I hope so"

He went back to his desk and you kept going through the paperwork. It was not an easy task, but that one time you made Javier do his own, he had taken so much time to do it that you passed the deadline and the boss ripped you both a new one. After that, you did a silent agreement where you did it all, Javier providing all info necessary and taking the blame if anything was wrong, even if it didn't happen frequently. He'd bring you Colombian coffee when the weather wasn't as hot as now, he knew you didn't like the one at the office and thought it "tasted like dirt", he would listen to you rant about certain reports and say whatever he thought you needed to hear in those moments.

You enjoyed spending your time with him, even if most of it you were arguing about something. 

The day passed rather quickly, with so much to do you didn't even have time to glance at your watch or even the clock hanging in the opposite wall.

Soon, it was time to leave again, but you hadn't finished your work and it was due to a couple of days. You hated doing things just before delivery time, so you decided you were going to stay and work some more. It wasn't like someone was waiting for you anyways.

Half of the work was done, so you weren't going to stay much. Just enough so you could go back and finish tomorrow.

"Ey compañera, hora de irnos" (Hey partner, time to go) Javier sounded tired, and you figured trying to find leads and speaking all day with your superiors was exhausting too. You hated doing the calls, so he took that one for both of you. 

"No me iré Javi, debo avanzar un poco con esto"  (I won’t leave Javi, I need to get ahead with this) He frowned at you, with his beige jacket already in his hands. You figured you looked tired too, all day reading was doing an impact in your eyes.

"What do you mean you're not leaving? You just spent 12 hours doing paperwork, you need to rest"

You sighed. He was right, you knew that, but you wouldn't be able to finish if you didn't stay. 

Seeing he wasn't going to get an answer because you were stubborn and ignored him if you had already made a decision, he hung up his jacket again and pulled his chair close to your desk. Then, glaring at you, he sat down and propped his elbows in the table, letting his face fall between his hands.

A few minutes passed, and you were starting to get uneasy under the power of his stare.

"Javi? What are you doing?"

He didn't answer.

"What?" you asked, defensively. "Do I have something on my face?" 

He shook his head, still not saying anything. 

"Javier!"

He started laughing at your bothered yell, finally releasing you from the pinned look he was giving you. You let out a frustrated sigh, understanding what were his intentions.

"You're gonna glare me into leaving, aren't you?"

His nod was your only answer, accompanied by a grin spread across his face.

The thing about your relationship was that even if you fought almost every day for the stupidest things, he took care of you. He made sure you got rest, ate decent food, got home safe. He protected you in the raids, even if you weren't his main focus. And you did your best to take care of him too, but he wouldn't let you.

At least not like you wanted. 

He would go almost every weekend to search for the love you were so willing to provide for him in other women, in his so-called informants. And it hurt you, more than anything else. 

You smiled at him.

"Let's go"

He smiled too, standing up. You saved your files in one of the drawers, took your coat, and rounded your desk.

Out of the office, everything was silent. The sun had already set, leaving you at the darkness of the night. You checked your watch. It was...11 PM already, damn. You didn't know it was that late.

"I'll drop you off at your home", his voice was soft.

You nodded, not trusting your voice. Everything with Javi was difficult at night. You were looser because of the tiredness, fed up with everything. You wished to be between his arms, it was the only thing you asked for. But you knew you couldn't.

Both of you climbed into his Jeep, and he drove off to your apartment. 

"Why did you choose to live far from the Embassy anyways?"

He had asked the same question a thousand times before, and it was always the same answer. He never looked at you when he said it, his attention straight out the windshield. You couldn't figure out why he kept doing it, no matter how much you tried, no matter how much time you spent thinking about it.

"I wanted to get to know Colombia, not just the stuffy low-rise bunker in the basement of the U.S. embassy."

Once you got to the apartment complex, he parked his car and stretched to open your door. 

"Good night compañera" (partner)

You smiled in response, took your purse and jumped out of the car. Feeling his stare boring into your back as you walked to the door, you got out your keys and turned around. 

Once you waved him goodbye, he bowed his head and turned on the engine leaving with a creak of tires.

"Good night Javi"

-

Tag list: @dynphomaniac

[shedreamsofstars]

our union is a secret i’m hoping, dreaming, lying to keep - chapter three

you’ve all heard of ‘pretending to be married when you’re not’, now get ready for ‘actually married but pretending you’re not’

When Tohru and Kyo accidentally find themselves married, they must keep their new union a secret from their friends and family. That’s easier said than done when you’re both newlywed dorks who just want to spend some quality time with one another whilst said friends and family are always one step away from discovering the truth.

Start from the beginning | Previous chapter |  Next chapter

The bus ride home had been uneventful, but Tohru was riding so blissfully on her cloud of happiness she doubted she'd have noticed if anything strange did happen. They'd stopped off to pick up some groceries on their way home from the bus station and were now in their little kitchen, expertly working around one another as they prepared dinner.

Tohru was watching the pots on the stove, mixing the contents occasionally as she added spices by eye, something Kyo never understood whenever she tried to explain, whilst Kyo chopped onions for their soup with short sharp movements.

Even after watching him cook several times, it still amazed her how precise he was with such a dangerous tool. Just one wrong movement could be catastrophic, but he was so controlled and practiced it was almost magnetic.

Tohru was watching him so intently that it took her a moment to realise that he was looking at her with a strange look on his face. "Uh Tohru … your phone is ringing," he said softly.

His words seemed to break some barrier, and suddenly the light music of her ringtone was blaring from behind her. "Oh," she said quietly, briefly wondering how long it had been going off for as she glanced back towards the table.

She bit her lip as she looked at the pots in front of her, stirring the soup instinctively, and then back to her phone. Out of the corner of her she saw Kyo risking a glance towards her again as he continued chopping.

"Is it Rin again? I thought you two talked earlier," he said curiously. It wasn't like her to ignore calls and he'd clearly picked up on that, but she also didn't want to go and answer it if it meant leaving him to cook alone.

With Kyo waiting for an answer, Tohru took a single hop backwards, still stirring the pot as she leaned back to read the flashing screen behind her. "It's Uo-chan," she said with a little surprise. She wasn't expecting a call from her today.

"Aren't you going to answer?" Kyo asked with concern as she still made no move to answer the phone, the music still ringing out into their small kitchen.

"I don't know," Tohru said, glancing at the phone with a torn expression. As much as she wanted to answer it and see Uo-chan, she really didn't want to leave Kyo to do the work here by himself.

"Why not? Did something happen between you two?"

"No, but … who will help you cook if I'm on the phone?"

Kyo rolled his eyes, dropping the knife in his hand as he headed for the table. He picked up her phone and handed it to her. Tohru let out an involuntary yelp as he grabbed onto her waist, backing her out of the kitchen.

"I'll be fine, don't worry. Just answer the phone, otherwise that delinquent will have to call me, and she'll be real mad about it too."

Tohru smiled at that. She knew they had no real rivalry, but it was always amusing to watch her boyfriend and best friend butt heads. No, not boyfriend. Husband, she reminded herself. Wow, this was going to take some getting used to.

"Thank you, Kyo-kun."

"You're welcome," he replied sweetly, dropping a quick kiss on the tip of her nose before ushering her further into the living room. Tohru answered the call as she headed for the sofa, glancing back to see that Kyo had disappeared back into the kitchen.

"Uo-chan! Hello," she called happily as Arisa's grinning face appeared on the screen, probably a little closer than it really needed to be.

"Tohru, finally! I feel like this thing has been ringing forever," the girl said dramatically, flopping backwards onto what looked like her kitchen floor.

"Oh, yes. I'm sorry Uo-chan, I was a little busy cooking so I couldn't answer right away, but Kyo-kun is taking care of everything now," she beamed, her heart swelling at how easily kind her husband was.

Arisa on the other hand groaned at the very mention of Kyo.

"Ugh, good. Make him do it by himself all the time. It's the least he could do since you have to put up with his face all day every day. How is living together anyway? Terrible I'll bet," she cackled.

Before Tohru could reply however, there was the sound of a muffled voice in the background of the call. She couldn't make out the words, but whatever they were, they had Arisa rolling her eyes with a dramatic sigh.

"Kureno has just informed me that I'm being unjustly mean, so I take that last part back," she said with a grumpy pout. "He can still cook by himself though. Anyway, I was hoping that … oh, hang on a second," Uo said, squinting at the camera.

"What is it?"

"Hana's calling!" Arisa said excitedly.

With a simple swipe, Saki Hanajima's stoic face appeared beside Arisa's, her dark hair ethereal as it spread out on the ground beneath her in magnificent waves.

"Hana-chan, hello!" Tohru said brightly.

"Your timing is impeccable as usual," Arisa said with a pleased grin and Tohru couldn't help but be grateful that she had both her close friends with her, if only in this small way.

"Hello you two. Yes, I too am surprised at how I decided to call at this precise moment in time," Hana mused, a knowing sparkle in her eyes. "How is your new home Tohru?"

"Wonderful. Everything is just perfect," Tohru said, glancing towards the kitchen. She could just about see a sliver of Kyo's clothing peeking through the doorway and smiled involuntarily at the sight of him.

"We knew you would love it," Hana said simply, a rare warm smile on her lips.

"We weren't happy about Carrots dragging you away from us, but so long as you're sure you're happy …" Arisa trailed off questioningly.

"I really am," she reassured them. "I miss you all so much, but I am happy here too. Besides, I'll just have to love you all more when I finally get to see you again!" Tohru said, fighting off the tell-tale sniffles that she knew would lead to her tearing up uncontrollably.

"As much as I love the idea, don't take too long coming back to Tokyo. I can only stand this place without you for so long," said Arisa, her grin slipping a little.

"I won't make you wait too long. We don't know when we'll be back yet, but as soon as Kyo-kun and I decide-"

"Hey Hana," Arisa interrupted, her brows raised in confusion. "What are you making that face for?"

Tohru hadn't noticed before, but Arisa was right. Hana had cocked her head to the side, which wasn't too unusual, but that look in her eyes was unmistakeable. She was sensing something.

"I'm not sure. Something just seems very strange today. Tohru you seem … different."

"Huh, I do?" Tohru squeaked, surprised that the attention had turned back to her.

"Yes," Hanajima said, frowning as she looked at her phone. "Your face … it just seems … different today."

"Now that you mention it Hana, you're right. Tohru does look a little different. Did you cut you bangs again?" Uo asked.

Tohru reached up to touch her bangs before brushing them out of her face. "No, my hair is the same as normal. Maybe it's something else?"

"Oh, that was shiny. Is that a ring on your finger Tohru? I wanna see it," Uotani asked, pressing her face closer to the screen to get a better view.

"Huh!?" Tohru yelped, startled that Arisa had noticed such a thing. No, of course not. That's so ridiculous Uo-chan, it's not like I have any specific reason to be wearing a ring or anything," she stammered quickly, unable to stop the nervous laugh that escaped the moment she stopped talking.

Tohru pulled her hand to her lap, attempting to prise the ring off but without her other hand, there was no way she could do it. Her face burst into flame as spoke, her cheeks burning brighter and hotter with every second the ring remained stuck on her finger.

Without stopping to consider if it was a good idea, she cut the call on her two friends, and with both hands free, she tugged the wedding band off her finger with ease. The phone rang again, but in her hurry to answer, the gold band slipped from her fingers and Tohru could only watch on helplessly as it rolled away from her and under the coffee table and her friends confused faces flashed on her screen again.

"Oh, sorry. I think my finger slipped or something, silly me," Tohru said hurriedly, her mind still contemplating whether she should dive for the ring or wait until later. "What were we talking about again?"

"The ring on your finger," Arisa said simply.

"Oh, yes. Except there's nothing on my hand. Just my fingers like usual, look" she said as she held up her hand to the phone camera. Her voice sounded pitchy and off, but she hoped that the phones natural distortion would be enough to keep it from being too obvious.

"Okay," Arisa responded, dragging out her words in a way that made Tohru suspect she didn't believe her entirely. "I suppose it was just a trick of the light or something. Strange."

"Yes, exactly. A trick of the light," Tohru agreed readily, glad for the excuse. But Hanajima was harder to convince.

"I do not believe that flash to be the result of light refracting at an improbable angle," Hanajima chimed in. "Our phones are not sensitive enough to pick up such irregularities in the world."

"Uhh … how did you fail science again?" Arisa asked in surprise.

Hana only shrugged in response.

"I have a theory about what it could have been," Hana started, and Tohru felt her stomach drop at the words. "But the waves are being especially temperamental today, so I can't say for sure."

"Well, perhaps it would be better to say nothing … until you can be sure that is," Tohru offered, her heart pounding so hard she could hear it in her ears. Surely Hana didn't know the truth, right? That was impossible.

"Yeah I agree," Arisa added. "I'd love to hear the theory when you have it, but right now I can hear Kureno yelling in the other room, so I should go. I think he just found Mr Leggy Legs."

"Um … Mr … Leggy Legs?" Tohru repeated, thoroughly confused by the name.

"It's the spider I found in the house this morning. I couldn't just kill him, so I let him wander off to wherever he was headed so long as he minded his own business. Little guy was doing great right up until now … I'll speak to you both soon."

"Bye Uo-chan!"

"We shall converse again soon Arisa. Goodbye for now."

"Bye you bunch of weirdos!" the blonde called before cutting the call.

"Well, I won't say I'm not a little disappointed. I for one would be thoroughly entertained by the sight of Mr Sohma running from a spider."

"Hana-chan, I can't tell if your being serious."

"Heh … it doesn't matter either way. You seemed a little frazzled earlier. I wonder why that could be? Have you had anything to eat yet?"

"Um, no … Kyo-kun is just finishing up with the cooking."

"Hmm, yes. I sense he is nearly done, so I shall leave you to your dinner. Do remind Kyo that if he treats you wrong, I'll make sure he regrets it instantly." Hana laughed openly at Tohru's nervous expression "Never mind dear Tohru. Look after yourself."

"Oh, I will. You too, Hana-chan. Goodbye!"

"Goodbye."

The call ended with a simple beep and as soon as she knew she was alone, Tohru dropped her head to her lap with a sigh of relief. That had been too close. She didn't feel good about hiding the truth from her friends at all, but for now, what other choice did she have?

Lifting her head, she realised her finger was still empty and Tohru slipped to the ground on her knees. She was all ready to dive under the table to retrieve the ring when Kyo cleared his throat. Her gaze shot to the doorway where he was leaning casually against doorframe, his hair partially covering his eyes in a way that made her heart skip a beat.

"Looking for something?" he asked, a bemused smirk playing about his lips.

"Yes," Tohru admitted apologetically, ignoring that her heart was racing now for a different reason entirely. "I was trying to hide my ring from Uo-chan and Hana-chan, but I dropped it and it fell somewhere under the table."

"I think I'd be more surprised if you told me you hadn't dropped it at this point," Kyo commented, pushing himself off the frame and walking towards her. He gently rapped the top of her head as he dropped down beside her. "Here, let me get it for you."

With his unnaturally brilliant eyesight, Kyo found the glinting ring in seconds and Tohru scooted closer to him with a grateful smile. "Thank goodness. I never want to take it off again," she said as Kyo rolled it around in his palm, brows drawn together in a frown.

"So, did they see it, or …?"

"Nearly, but I managed to convince them that it was a trick of the light. I told you I could do this, didn't I?"

The frown remained on his face. "Yeah, you did. I'm sorry you had to lie to them like that though." He bit his bottom lip in thought and was silent a moment, seeming to consider something. "You know what, maybe we should just not answer our phones for a while."

"What?"

"Oh nothing, I'm just being an idiot is all. I was talking to Haru earlier and said something stupid, and now with your ring … we're both doing a pretty rubbish job at keeping this under wraps aren't we?" he said with a smile.

Tohru returned the smile, reaching to place her hand against his knee. "I think we're doing great. And it won't be too much longer, right?"

"Right. I'd like to tell Master in person if that's okay with you, and then we can tell the others too."

"Of course it is! Master-san will be so happy, I can't wait to see his face," Tohru said, leaning in towards him without fully realising until Kyo placed a hand against her cheek to keep her from toppling forwards.

"Yeah, I hope he will be" he chuckled, reaching for her hand. His calloused fingers were rough against her own as he slid the ring back onto her finger. Tohru thought he would let go of her, but she was secretly glad when he kept a loose hold of her fingers.

"But until then, you're going to have be extra careful about keeping this hidden." Kyo held up her hand a little so the ring caught the light, its smooth surface glinting just as it had when she'd accidentally shown it to Arisa and Hana.

Tohru hummed in agreement. "I will be more careful. I won't make a silly mistake again. I'll make sure no one suspects anything is different at all, I promise you Kyo-kun. From the bottom of my heart."

Maybe it was something in her tone, or even the words themselves, but Kyo looked concerned. "Tohru … I trust you more than anything, you don't need to promise something like that. Sometimes you can't control things and it's not your fault. I don't want you to feel bad if something goes wrong and we slip up."

"I know, but … being the married the way we were … I just …" Tohru stopped to take a calming breath. Kyo's eyes were still on her, soft and patient as he waited for her to find the courage to voice her thoughts.

She knew first-hand just how much one mistake could cost your respect in another's eyes. Her parent's relationship with her father's siblings was all she needed to know that she never wanted to give anyone the chance to hurt either her or Kyo like that.

"I don't want anyone to find out the wrong way and think badly of you," she said, her voice dropping to barely a whisper.

Kyo didn't say anything in response, but he did let his thumb brush gently against her cheek and that gesture was all she needed in that moment to know that he understood. That he was there to listen to and share her fears whenever she needed.

"Come on," he said, giving her hand a gentle squeeze. "You need to eat something."

He made to stand, but instead of following suit, Tohru flung herself at Kyo and wrapped her arms around him tightly as she pressed her cheek against his chest. If his exclaim of surprise wasn't enough to know she'd caught him off guard, the rapid beating of his heart confirmed it.

"Kyo?" she mumbled into the fabric of his shirt.

"Yeah?" he said, holding her against him gently.

"Please don't ever leave me," she whispered. "Say you'll always be here to put my ring back on if I need you to."

He didn't reply straight away.

They both knew she was being stubborn in asking for something he could never hold himself to. Making a promise like that was just asking for trouble, but Tohru was grateful that Kyo was indulging her with his silence, if only for a moment.

They both knew just how suddenly you could lose the people you loved.

He brushed a hand lovingly through her hair, placing a kiss against her temple. "I can't Tohru, I'm sorry. But I promise you that I will love you as long as you'll let me."

Tohru hugged him even tighter.

"That's enough."

... xxx ...

thank you so much for reading! this was supposed to be lighthearted and fun but it keeps accidentally getting heavy, send help lol.

if you fancy talking kyoru and fruits basket with other fans, join us in the kyoru discord server, we'd love to see you there! (link below)

[storydays]

Chapter 1: The Adventure Begins p1

The elven king, Xaius stands on the parapet of a great citadel overlooking a massive, smoldering battlefield. "Archers! Fire on my signal! Catapults! Hold for the next wave!" He turned to give an order, when a hideous creature, a gargoyle made of twisting shadow, swoops in toward him.  Xaius reaches for his sword,as a blast of light catches the gargoyle in the side, blowing it into nothingness. The king turned to see his second-in-command, the battle mage Ellara, approaching with a gentle smile. "It looked like you needed a hand, my love" "I had it handled. What's your status?" Xaius asked. 

"The Shadow forces are many, but they're weak. Our front lines are driving them back. " The elvlen woman smiled wearily. "I-I can't believe it..but we might actually win this th--" She gasped hearing a thunderous roar in the distance. "Gods above...it's the DreadLord! Those madmen actually summoned the DreadLord." Xaius gasped, but looked down to see Ellara's gentle but firm grip. "My love, what do we do?" She whispered.  Xaius turned to her, eyes sparkling, his face hard and stoic. "We fight. We die.  And we pray that some day, a hero will rise to avenge us..someday." 

*Two thousand years later*

In a quaint little tavern in the town of Riverbend, a grinning pair of brothers downed their drinks, as the younger continued telling one of his favorite stories."So what happened next?" chuckled a 21 year old Ezra. His white hair had now grown down to his bottom but he kept it in a braid that hung around his shoulder, bangs brushed to the left side of his face, covering his birthmark, but allowed his gold eyes to peek out. He set down his mug of wine, and locked eyes with his brother across the table.

"The Dreadlord strode down the battlefield, boom,boom BOOM! And then--" His brother was cut off by the grumpy bartender. "We've been hearing this story for years, Kade. The Dreadlord attacked and destroyed the great elven empire." He stated, wiping down a nearby table. Kade scoffed. "Well, yeah, that's the short version....but you don't have the flair for storytelling that I do." Kade crossed his arms and pouted like a child, instead of the 16 year old he was. 

Ezra leaned back in his seat, and looked around. They were sitting at their favorite table in the Dancing Pig Tavern, listening to his brother tell another story. 'It's crazy to think that 10 years ago, we were watching over Kade through his sickness...now he's here telling tall tales like those books he likes to read.'  Kade and Ezra weren't only brothers, but they were also best friends. Kade was well known through Riverbend but not everyone was as easily amused as the elf was. Kade blended in well with the humans, with his short brown hair, bright green eyes, and freckles splashed across his face, while Ezra stuck out like a sore thumb. 

Ezra tuned back into the conversation to hear: "I don't care how well you spin your tales! You still need to pay for your drink." The bartender gruffed at the smaller human. "Barkeep, you wound me." Kade huffed, his mood darkening slightly. Chuckling, Ezra paid his half of the tab and gave the younger a look. "Pay up, Kade. Mother taught us better than that." He stated seriously. "You too, Ezra? I swear, no one in this town appreciates the value of a good tale! Fine, I'll pay. But we're not coming back here!" Kade cried dramatically. 

"Yes we are." Ezra and the bartender laughed louder when Kade added at the end, "Well, not tonight at least!" Ezra downed his wine and Kade finished his soda, before paying his side of the tab, and the two left the bar for the night. Ezra looked around their humble village before letting out a long sigh. "Another night in Riverbend. Same as any other." He mumbled gloomily. "That's not true. Some nights I manage to get us free drinks." Ezra barked a laugh before shoving his brother playfully, unable to stay gloomy around his brother. 

"You know what I'm--" Ezra's sentence was cut off when he bumped into a tall human heading towards the outskirts of the village. "Hey, watch it!" "Ugh, sorry 'bout that."  Ezra stepped back, eyeing the person in front of him. He was a rugged looking man with tanned skin,wavy shoulder length brown hair, glowering brown eyes, and he had a scar on his left eyebrow. He was wearing a cream long sleeved shirt, shoulder guards, wrist gauntlets, green cargo like pants, with a dagger on his left hip. 

"Who're you?"Ezra asked, while the man retorted, " None of your business, that's who." Two people that the elf did recognize followed the handsome man. Town Constable Angus and his tough as nails apprentice Grenn. "This here's Mal Volari, from Whitetower." The elder man  explained. "He's a world-famous adventurer!" Grenn grinned. "Wait, really?" Kade asked shocked. "Well..I wouldn't say world famous, more like continent-famous really." Mal snickered to himself. 

"Well, it's nice to meet you." Ezra said, minding his manners. His poor mother would be rolling in her grave if he didn't at least pretend to be nice. "Yeah, great, nice to meet you too. Now if you don't mind, we've got some important business to get to..." Mal was interrupted by Kade, "Adventurer business? Around here?" "Mal's got a lead on a powerful ancient artifact in the elven ruins to the south! If we can get it, it'll sell for a fortune!" Grenn said excitedly. "Damn the Gods, Grenn, keep it down!" Hissed Angus, "You want everyone in this town to hear about it?" "No need to be so nasty about it." Ezra mumbled, noticing Mal's raised eyebrow at him. 

"You mean...to the north, right? There's no ruins to the south." Kade corrected.  Mal shoots Angus a glare and the man shrugs. "Y-Yes! To the north! That's what she meant!" He fumbled over his words. "Hang on...there's a powerful ancient relic somewhere around here? And you're going to get it?" Ezra spoke up, excitement coloring his voice. "I got a tip, okay? A good one. From someone willing to pay a whole lot of gold. Angus and Grenn here, they're going to help me claim it. Now if you don't mind..." Mal made to leave again when Ezra gasped the man's arm, and stated, "We'd like to come along." "E-Ezra!" Kade gaped. 

"What? It's the chance of a lifetime." Gold eyes playfully sparkle at his brother's expression. Mal eyed the elf before letting out a weary sigh. "No can do. This is dangerous ancient crypt business. I can't have some rookie along bumbling things up." The human noted how the elf stiffened, and prepare himself for an argument.

"I'm not a rookie." glared Ezra. "Really? Ever pried a jewel from the hands of a cursed skeleton, knowing one wrong move would bring the whole room down on your head?" Mal challenged, making Ezra falter. "I mean, not technically.." He deflated. "Ever stabbed a snarling croctopus through the eye on the deck of a burning ship?" Mal continued. "I don't..know what that is." admitted Ezra. "How about this? You ever killed a man? You ever been in a real fight?" Ezra hesitated. ""Yes, I have to both of those." He said darkly, sending chills down everyone's back. "That's what I thought. I like your hustle, I really do. But I don't have time for some kit who's still wet behind the ears." " 'Kit?' " wondered the elf. 

"It's a term for new adventurers..you know, like an apprentice?" Kade whispered." "See? You don't even know the terms. Which means you've got a long way ahead of you. Get out there, have some adventures of your own, learn some skills. Then come find me, we'll talk." Mal walked off towards the village gate, Angus laughing as he followed, Grenn sending her old friend a sad look. "Sorry, Ezra." "Well, that was a thing that happened." Kade laughed nervously at Ezra's silent fuming.  "He's wrong. I could've done it. I'm the one who taught Grenn to be the adventurer she is today! Angus is an old drunk ass who can barely stay on his feet half the time! 'Learn some skills' I've got plenty of skills!"

The duo began walking again, when Kade asked aloud, "Like..what?" "Well Father taught us to fight bare hand, and I've learned some things about wielding a sword from my travels with Mother. I'm not useless." Ezra ran a finger over the silver ring on his left ring finger in habit. "That Mal guy really got under your skin, didn't he?" astonished the green eyed brother. "I don't know, I suppose I'm just jealous. I want to go on grand adventures and explore." He sighed dreamily. "And get fabulously rich." Kade grinned, Ezra matching him. "That too." 

"Aw, don't be hard on Riverbend. This town's been good to us! Not every human village would take such care of a couple of kids like us." 'Or would allow an elf to stay without being treated horribly.' went unsaid between the two. "I know, Kade! And it'll always be my home. I just...want to experience something more. It's not like a great adventure is just going to drop into my lap." Ezra huffed, brushing his bangs to the side again. Green eyes watch his older brother for a moment before clapping his shoulder. "Well, don't worry, brother. We'll experience it all together. " Ezra chuckled softly. "I can always count on you, Kade."

"But for now, all we've got is Riverbend. So, where do you want to start tonight?" Ezra grinned, "Let's head to the night market." "Uh, did you miss the part about having little coin?" Kade raised a eyebrow. "And you think I'm going to let that stop me? Come now, brother, you know me better than that." 

The brothers weaved their way through the  bustling night market, listening to vendors call out what was for sale: Fruits, meats, silks from the capital, and fish from the shore. An elderly food vendor turned and shook her head at the boys with a warm smile. "Well, well. If it isn't my two favorite customers. Two copper pieces will get you the finest pears we have." "Watch this." Ezra mumbled to Kade, before confidently walking towards the vendor, with a sly grin.

"My dear vendor, we don't have any coin..but is coin what really matters in this world?" "Excuse me?" The vendor chuckled, used to the young man's antics. "Love...passion...a moment of intimacy. Why, what is coin compared to that? Surely a beauty like you can understand." The white haired elf purred, his voice smooth like silk, eyes aglow. The woman barked a laugh at Ezra. "You are an absolute rascal, you know that? Now take these and get out of here boys." Laughing, she handed him two fresh pears, as he winked his thanks. 

Ezra bit into his as Kade stared at his back with wide eyes. "How? How did that possibly work?" He raced to catch up with Ezra. "What can I say? I'm the best flirt in Riverbend." His brother laughed before finally eating his pear, walking to the town square when he spoke up again. 

"You see? Riverbend isn't so bad. They've taken good care of us." "You're right. I just wish--" "HELP! Please HELP!" A shout echoed through the air. The duo turned to see a young woman in priestess's robes ran into the town square, before grabbing into Ezra, gripping his arms to keep herself from falling,Ezra eyes her. 

She had long red hair the fell down to her armpits in ringlets, some strands falling into her face, framing her light brown eyes. She was wearing light pink robes, with a silver and violet necklace on her neck. "You need to help me! Please!" She begged. "Whoa there, what's wrong?" Ezra asked. The woman straightened herself out, standing tall. But Ezra could see behind her disciplined posture, was a hint of fear. 

"I am Nia Ellarious, a priestess of the Light. My mentor and I are on a pilgrimage...but we were attacked by an owlbear on the road! I managed to escape while he distracted the beast. But he needs help! Now!" "Have no fear, young priestess..we are brave adventures." "Really?" Kade snorted at his brother's antics. "Shh! Don't mess this up!" hissed Ezra as Nia smiled in relief. "Thank you so much! Please, hurry now. He's just down the road." She began rushing off as Ezra and Kade shared a hesitant look before running after the ginger, but not before Ezra grabbed his sword on the way, strapping it to his left hip. 

"Let's go."

@imturaxamara @bladesappreciationweek #bladesAW

https://bladesappreciationweek.tumblr.com/

[everosfics]

At last I can breath

Warning: several bad words

A/N : so this took forever🙂 Sory about that. You ever have it all written but there’s this chunk you know you need but don’t know how to put it there well that was like two parts of this chapter, so enjoy what I have come up with. See you next chapter.

Ch.2 A year of transition

Lila POV

“Finally that bitch is done, won’t even look at me, sure I lost a few battles like when I lost Agrest but no mater there’s bigger and better out there. So What, one person won’t make my tower crumble and a small crack is just a minor distraction.

So long as Dupain-Cheng only has her little blondes to back her up it’ll be fine.”

Mari POV

It’s been about a year now since Lila’s return and while she has been a pan in my side and a huge agitator, I really don’t think she has been the hardest part of my life. God just saying that makes me feel horribly stressed, like oh yeah it’s junior year college scouts, senior class study abroad program planing, Akuma fights, all on top of a pathological Liar who has it out for me. Oh well I’m so fucking tired right now it’s been such an emotional year from the struggle to get use to Lila, to realizing that there’s only a few people out there that I can really trust. Thank god for Chlo without her I don’t think I would have made it through all that’s happened this year.

“Hey Mari were all going to go work on the ideas for the fundraiser are you coming.”

“Yeah I’m coming, can’t wait to see what each class is thinking about doing.”

***

Last year in the bathroom

“ Dupain-Cheng what the fucking hell was that. Who the hell does she think she is. I swear this is ridiculous.”

“Chloe what do you want.”

“From you nothing , from that sleaze ball an explanation on who the hell she thinks she is it’s not like you have done anything to her other than question her story.”

“I’m fine Chloe there’s nothing you can do, and why are you trying to help me anyway”

“Ugh. Dupa-, Marinette I may not show it but I am extremely thankful to everything that you have done for me, my family, and my reputation here at school. You have helped me in so many small ways and actually seeing what I was like, is a punch to the stomach. So I’m sorry and I hope I can make it up to you some way.”

“Huh huh huh *gasp* Chloe, I got here as fast as I could Mrs Bustier didn’t want to let me out with so many students already out of class.” *record scratch* sees Mari on floor. “What’s going on in here?”

“Sabrina listen to me I need you to understand this, Lila is threatening anyone who is standing against her so I need you to go back to class act like you didn’t see us and hang on every word Lila says. Ok. I’ll tell you the rest later tonight when we get back to the hotel, just know that as of right now you’re a spy and I-we need you to get close to Lila.”

“Okay. It will be alright Marinette. See you tonight Chlo.”

***

“Chloe I’m worried about Adrien, have you seen him recently?”

“No I haven’t, not outside of school and even then he’s all gloomy with that leach hanging off of him.

“Hey Marinette can I talk to you?”

“Sure Kagami what is it?”

“Well I kinda wanted to do it in private it’s about Adrien.”

“Kagami whatever you have to say about him is fine to say in front of Chlo she’s worried to.”

“Ok, well you know how we have practice after school every other day”

“Yeah?”

“Well last week and again on Monday I saw him with bruises and nail marks across his body, the bruise I get sometimes in practice we can get hit to hard but there were so many I think something is happening at home, and the nail marks I know I don’t see him in class but how is it going with that Rossi problem.”

“She still clings on him but based on what you’re saying I think he probably has been pulling away and she is holding on tighter.”

“Mari, Tuskugi I’ll need your help but I think we need to inform Mr. Agrest or at least Natalie of what we believe to be happening.”

“Your right Chlo but I don’t know how we’re going to get a chance with how close Lila has gotten with Mr. Agrest and his brand.”

“If I may, my mother has been discussing my need for understanding the context of when it is appropriate to lash out and I believe we have yet to focus on abuse in all forms along with what bullying is.”

“Go on Tuskugi?”

“I believe that if my mother was to approach the school with an interest towards seminars in these subjects we could go around both Lila and interference from the elder Agrest”

———

“In the recommendation of several of our families it is a pleasure to present to you our assembly on bullying and abuse.”

(After assembly)

“Nice Tuskugi you did it”

“Chloe it’s Kagami you can use my name. Any way I’m going to be here for good mother is allowing me to continue in this school so long as I keep up with my practices.”

“Well, Kagami, it’s good to have you on board even if you won’t be in class with us.”

(Some where else in the building)

“Hey Lila, I think that you need to start giving me some space from now on,”

“Bu-bu-but why?”

“Well my father saw the nail marks you are leaving and has requested that we spend time apart so that my arm may heal”

***

In Marinette’s room

“Mari I feel funny”

“Chloe I’m working if you aren’t dying can you bother me later”

“But Dupain, Sabrina’s undercover and no one else will listen.”

“Huff, Ok what is it Chloe”

“Well it’s not horrible but eveytime were around kitty section I feel funny, but it’s only when everyone is together I feel nothing when we’re in class and everyone is there.

“Maybe your just mad because no one is really doing anything inside class so when we’re out of it your mad.”

“Marinette that’s not it and you know it, braced on the facts Chlo only feels nervous”

“I’m not nervous”

“When it’s the entirety of kitty section which means her reaction is caused by Luka.”

“Ooooh Chloe has a crush!”

“DO NOT”

“Yes you do”

“Yes, Chloe it is most probable you have a crush on Luka similar to back when I was discovering what it was like to similarly enjoy the presence of another”

“Oh shut up” Chloe said as she launched a pillow right at Kagami who ducked it making it hit Mari, unleashing a pillow fight that would lead to the girls having a pillow fight until both Chloe and Kagami where picked up by there rides.

***

“Bug!!!!” “M’lady” “Tentōmushi.”

It’s all I can hear as I gasp from the puncture that I now have right through my lung. All I can see are rushing shapes as Luka tries to get to his bracelet and the suddenly I can breathe again, I see Luka make a call and all of a sudden bee is there with her stinger at the ready, my heart is still racing but I don’t know why. I start running towards the akuma but Chlo”s already there with her venom out and monster frozen then I’m running as fast as I can to chat because he has the akumatized item and then that’s it the swarm is released and it’s like I know what’s happening.

“I’m running out of time, everyone go home and recharge we need to talk I’ll meet you on top of the tower in 30 minutes”

———

“Bug why are we here?”

“Well it’s been about six months since the forced reveal and public change of users. I feel as though we now need to confirm our identity with each other since before that time each of you had been serving for over a year.”

“But why now?”

“Why?! Because I almost died today we almost lost and I can’t tell anyone unless I’m in this suit. We need support and no one else can give it to us so we need to build our on support team inside and out of being suppers. So I will be going home to a safe space and any of you who are ready to know who I am and share your secret with the others can follow me. I will never hold this moment against you and I will leave my location visible if you need to take your time.”

“Chat are you coming?”

“Wherever you need me.”

———

“So now that we all know what does that mean. Where do we go now?”

“We go no where, we trust and have each other’s backs.”

“Well I personally don’t know why we did this Mari you knew who all of us were and I knew who all of you were, I even put together who Rena, and carapace were.

“Wait how did Chloe know before me M’Lady”

“Well, actually I don’t know?! Chloe how did you know”

“Well big we all know how you are and I sort of put your personality together from that and then no one in Paris is as sunshiny as Adrikins here,”

“humf”

“Don’t humf me you know it’s true. And after that well me and Luk’s started talking and there was something so calming about him and how he took care of everyone. Then of course I noticed how there was really only one more of us left, two if we count Sabrina but Gami was the only one that makes since because well look at her she’s vicious and loyal and most importantly is the only other one of us that has dark hair.”

“Well that’s fair.”

“Wait I still don’t get how you confirmed it?”

“Oh I gave pollen free will she can do whatever she wants whenever and the only downside is that I have to ask her if we can join battle.”

“WHAT!!!!!”

“What do you mean what? Of course she has free will why would I ever keep her like a servant.”

In a meek voice “I’m the guardian and even I didn’t know that they didn’t have free will, Tiki I'm so sorry I didn’t know. As guardian you now have free will Tiki. Adrian go get the Miracle box we have to free them all and no one but Tiki stayed out.”

“Kwamis’ as your guardian I wished I had known that you had no free will and as your guardian I am granting you that freedom but I wish to still have a connection with each of you, as you will work on your own in your own way I hope to keep your miraculous with me and your users so that if need arises we must only tap on them to call to you and inform you of your need, never to merge without your express permission but to work as partners not masters. Do you accept these terms?”

“YES”

“As guardian, on these terms all Kwamis’ under my care are free to do as they wish and will always have a home with each other and a family in there new found partners.

***

(Present)

“ Mari were here we’re going second pay attention Aurore just came up with an auction as a fundraiser.”

“That should work great well just need to do a bit more around the gaining items and how much of the revenue we will get to keep. Now after our pitch we will probably need at least six more ideas and committees to execute them, overall we need eight to even think about doing the trip for the whole senior class even if we get a sponsor other than whatever school we enter for those 6 weeks.”

“Bug your always thinking a head, just focus on now and we’ll deal with the rest after we come up with the finalized schedule for the bigger events.”

Tag list : @thezestywalru

[evabellasworld]

Young Soul

For Star Wars POC Week 2020

Day 5: Family

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Summary: After 8 years, Ava Lira and Eva Bella Young has reunited with their mother, Kaia Young on Chandrila and learned about their deceased father.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

“Come on, Lira,” Eva groaned as she knocked on her door, clinching both her dolls. “We don’t want to miss the first bus.”

“Hold your horses, Evie,” Lira talked back. “I’m trying to pack up.”

“Well, you should have done that yesterday when I got back from Mortis.”

“Ugh, stop nagging me. You’re annoying.”

She took a deep breath and crossed her arms as she was about to step inside her room when Lira popped out, with her backpack and her extra slingbag, which carried her gadgets and gizmos that she made out of trash. “Now I’m ready.”

“You took too long,” Eva slapped her arms. “Do you know how long it will take from the Jedi Temple to the cargo bay?”

“It takes twenty minutes, Evie,” Lira rolled her eyes as they both walked on the empty corridor, with no one up early in the morning, except for a few, who were too tired to even care about where the twins were even going in the first place. “I’ve read the map like fifty times.”

“If you read the map fifty times, then why do you have to be super slow in preparing yourself?”

“I prepare myself. I just forgot a couple of things, that’s all.”

“That could have been prevented if you prepared yourself earlier on.”

Lira let out a groan of frustration. “Whatever, you sound just like Obi-Wan sometimes.”

“Well, maybe it’s for the best.”

As they finished their conversations, the identical twins with red hair and almond-shaped eyes stepped outside the Temple, where they were greeted by Commander Tori, who only had her bottom half of her clone commander on, along with her black top. “So, where are you girls heading today?”

“Just take us to the cargo bay,” Lira answered, grabbing the backseat. “We need to fly out of Coruscant as soon as possible.”

“And why is that?” Tori raised her eyebrows. “Are you guys meeting someone important?”

“It’s our mother,” Eva spoke, with a frown. “We haven’t seen her since we were three years old and it is urgent that we have to get to Chandrila.”

Being a clone trooper, Tori doesn’t know about being separated from a parent from a young age, but one thing she understood is family and bonding. Being close to Rex, Cody, Mayyah, and Minnie, who were her siblings, not being able to see them for a long period makes her anxious and depressed, and it is what the twins are currently experiencing right now.

“Of course, girls,” she gave a nod, driving off from the Temple. “But do your masters know about this?”

“They’re at the battlefield, again,” Lira said, glancing at the dark, morning sky, with the sun not rising from the horizon and the cool wind blowing in their surroundings. 

Tori sighed. It’s been a year since the Clone Wars had begun and day by day, she noticed that the relationship between the girls and their Jedi Masters had slowly dwindled, without both of them realizing it. Lira and Eva loved their masters, obviously, but most of the time, they found themselves closer to Tori than they thought.

Arriving at the cargo bay, Tori escorted both of them inside and stepped inside the ship, sitting beside them. If the girls had to see their mother, she won’t let them go by themselves, with the danger of the outside world much worse than what they watched on cartoons every Saturday morning.

“So,” Tori breaks the awkward silence between them. “Does your mother know that you both are visiting her today?”

Eva nodded. “Yes, Tori. We managed to find her phone number in the yellow page and commed her immediately. She’s very nervous to see us both.”

“Oh, well, that’s good to hear. Now tell me, what does your mother work as?”

“She worked at The Angel Inn,” Lira informed, showing her the pages that she found the other day. “It only opens at night, so we have ample time for Evie and me to spend time with her.”

She read Kaia Young’s comm and noticed the place was listed down as a brothel on Chandrila, making her cheeks turn hot. Should I tell them the place where her mother worked, or should I just keep quiet and let their mother come clean about her job?

She heard about her brothers and sisters visiting brothels on Coruscant, and getting kicked out of the place when they realize that their service isn’t free at all. Choerry was a fine example of a clone trooper who was banned from a brothel. Tori could only grumble, but at the same time, it amuses her as well.

“Oh, that’s fascinating to hear, girls,” she smiled. “I can’t wait to meet your mother as well, even though I don’t know much about her.”

“She’ll love you, Tori,” Lira cuddled next to her. “Trust me, I told her about you and she’s excited to see you as well.”

A civilian excited to see a clone like me? Well, that’s unexpected. “Oh, I’m sure she’s a kind lady like the both of you.”

“She is.”

After a few hours on board, the ship jumped out of hyperspace and landed on the planet’s surface. The Chandrilan skies were coloured with sapphire, with the golden, glistening sun shining above the white clouds. Despite that, the natives, which was ninety-six per cent of humans, didn’t feel too hot or too cold and were enjoying the weather.

The three of them emerged from the station with their bags when they noticed a woman in her 30s, with jet black hair and almond-shaped, dark honey eyes, along with fair skin and bow-shaped lips, which shared similar facial features as the twins. Eva, who recognized her, ran up to her and wrapped her arms around her torso. “Mama!”

“Evie, is that you?” her mother spoke, recognizing her 11 years old daughter. “Look how big you’ve grown. The last time I remember you, you were so tiny.”

“Mama!” Lira called her, hugging her as well. “We miss you so much.”

“Well, I miss you both as well,” she grinned, kissing their foreheads. She stood up and noticed Tori’s presence, and offered to shake hands with her. “And you must be Tori. The girls have said nothing but good things about you.”

“They always say good things about everyone,” Tori shook her hands. “The girls have told me about you. It’s a pleasure to meet you, Mrs Young.”

Kaia let out a chortle. “Oh, no, Tori. I’m not even married at all. You can call me Kaia or miss, whatever makes you comfortable?”

The first-name basis, eh? Now I know where the girls got it from. “Alright then, Kaia. It’s great to meet you, again. Sorry, it’s quite-”

“Awkward?” Kaia finished her sentence, laughing. “Don’t worry about it, Tori. I don’t bite unless you want me to.”

Her eyes widened as her face flushed. “Actually, Kaia, I’m an ace.”

“Tori, I’m just joking with you.”

Wow, she has a sense of humour, just like Lira.

“Anyways, we should head back to my apartment,” suggested Kaia, holding the twin’s hands. “I made something special for the three of you.”

They arrived at her small but cosy apartment, which was filled with potted plants everywhere and vines growing on the grille of the window. A shoe rack was placed beside the door, with the walls painted in mint green, which gave the whole house a calming effect towards the host and their guests. 

Lira, Eva and Tori took off their boots and placed their backpacks on a tiny, wooden bench that Kaia found at the garbage disposal and repainted them to make them presentable. The identical twins sat on the brown couch, along with a few tie-dye pillows. 

Tori checked out the bookshelf that was leaning against the wall, and found herself picking a book from its place, titled ‘Tales of Handmaids.’ For Tori, it was surprising that a prostitute like Kaia would have a decent place, not too lavish nor seedy. Chandrila isn’t like Coruscant, where people like her would rot in a dangerous alley. Instead, they fared better, even though there are flaws. 

“So,” Kaia walked out of the kitchen, carrying a tray of glasses, which were filled with iced lemonades. “How long did it take you from Coruscant?”

“A few hours,” Lira told her, as she took a sip of her drink. 

“Huh, that long, eh?”

“Yup,” Tori nodded. “Do you live alone, Kaia?”

“Yeah, it’s just me and all my plants, in my boxed-sized apartment. No one is there to look after yourself, and that is the harsh reality, unfortunately.”

“Isn’t it lonely?” Eva asked. “Living all by yourself.”

“Sometimes, it does, sweetie,” Kaia sat between them, wrapping her arms around their shoulder. “But at the same time, I enjoy the silence once in a while, you know.”

“Don’t you have any friends, or maybe a lover?”

Her mother let out a snort. “I see you know a lot about love, Evie.”

“They know a lot about love and sex,” Tori spoke. “They heard about them from my troops, and even some Jedi.”

“A Jedi having sex?” her eyes widened. “Why am I not surprised? Who told you about the birds and the bees anyway?”

“A friend told us,” Lira replied. “Eva and I accidentally caught him doing the deed with a Senator, so he had to explain everything about it. It was disgusting.”

“Well, I’m sorry that you girls had to see that," mused Kaia. "But at least it's better for you girls to know, rather than being ignorant and making the same mistake that I did when I was younger."

“Oh?” Tori raised her eyebrows. “What about that?”

“Well, it’s too disturbing for the three of you so consider yourselves warned but when I was 16, I was violated by an adult man, and that adult man was a friend of my parents. Instead of believing me, they denounced me and kicked me out of their home.”

“But they’re your family. Why would a family cast out one another? Don’t you guys share the same blood?”

Kaia shook her head. “Tori, your brothers and sisters aren’t the same as mine. Your siblings care for one another and look out for each other, but my family cares only about two things, which are money and ego. My aunts and uncles, my siblings, my parents, fight like vultures when they see gold. They don’t care about your well-being at all. They only know how to back-stab you, that's all."

"That sounds like the Separatist more than a family."

"Indeed, though the Republic has its flaws as well, especially recruiting kids to lead an entire army."

"If I have to be honest," Eva raised her hands. "I don't even know why we are fighting in the first place."

"We were told by the Kaminoans that it's for peace, but I could hardly believe that statement anymore."

"It seems like the people of the Outer Rim are growing unsatisfied towards the government," Kaia sighed, finishing her drink. "Honestly, I won't be surprised if there is a rebellion against them."

Lira and Eva exchanged glances of surprise before their mother cleared her throat. "So, anyone up for a movie?"

"Yes, please," Lira bobbed her head. "Can we watch Rowling's Castle?"

"Of course, sweetie."

As night came, both Lira and Eva were cuddled next to their mother as Tori slept in the right corner of the bed, laying beside the younger twin. The stars above Chandrila were shining as bright as jewellery as the moon above the sky illuminated. “Kinda rare to see this many stars in the city,” Tori commented, counting each one of them with her fingers. “We never get this much on Coruscant.”

“People here value nature,” Kaia told her. “It’s the basis of life. Without nature, we have nothing. No food, no water, no air, just torture and pain.”

“That explains why you have so many plants around your house.”

“Greenery is good for your mental health. Makes you feel calm, especially for a soldier like you.”

Maybe I should follow Daisy’s advice and get myself a potted plant in my barrack then.

“Hey Mama,” Eva called her. “There’s something I need to ask you about and it’s really important.”

“What is it, baby?”

“The other day, my master and I stumbled upon a planet called Mortis, and when I was there, I saw a man with a Jedi robe and long hair. He spoke to me about how I shouldn’t trust too freely and be more cautious with my surroundings. I told my master about him, and he said that he knew who the man was?”

“Okay, what did your master say?”

 “He told me that he was his mentor, Qui-Gon Jinn. Do you know who Qui-Gon Jinn was, Mama?”

The name that her daughter mentioned made her heart smile and sorrow at the same time. She reached for the drawers beside her bed and grabbed a flimsi of her and Qui-Gon together, holding each other’s hand. 

“You know him, mom?” Lira gasped as she saw the flimsi.

“I knew him well,” she gleamed. “He was my lover. I met him while I was exploring the forest, searching for wild berries and mushrooms. He was meditating by the river when he noticed me with a basket and a straw hat. After we got to know each other, he would visit me every weekend and slowly, we fell in love.”

“Is Qui-Gon our father?” Eva guessed.

Kaia curved her lips upwards. “Yeah, he was your father. When I got pregnant with the both of you, he was ecstatic and he couldn’t even wait to meet you both.”

Tori’s smile disappeared. She was told that Kaia lived by herself, and she could tell that something happened to him. “There’s no happy ending, isn’t it?”

Kaia shook her head. “Three months before you girls were born, I saw him in an obituary. I was heartbroken that he was gone so soon. I never get to say goodbye to him.”

“Then what happened?” Lira raised her question. “Why did you give us away to the Jedi?”

“It was difficult for me to raise you and Eva, especially with the Child Protection Service chasing after me. I had to choose between losing my job and losing both of you. I wanted both of you to have a better life than I did, so I decided to let the Jedi adopt you both.”

The twins wanted to yell at her for leaving, but at the same time, she had a point. Had their mother continued to raise them, they would have ended up in a broken, foster home, like all the other children. 

“I understand, mom,” Eva nodded, letting out a yawn. “We should head to bed.”

“Alright then,” she kissed both Lira and Eva on the forehead. “Goodnight, my love.”

Tori fell asleep as well, knowing that the twins are safe and sound in their mother’s loving embrace.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Kaia Young:

Ava Lira and Eva Bella Young:

Commander Tori:

[connorandersons-blog]

To the Library

Rating: Explicit Word count: 3,576 Warnings: explicit content Ship: Markus/Connor AU: Human Chapter 2/5

-----------------------

Markus goes to the library a week later. He hadn't finished with his book, but Carl was. He had eagerly taken the book from Carl's hands, ignoring Carl's pointed looks.

 When he got there he expected Connor to be behind the desk, but he wasn't there. Markus felt his heart sink as he placed the book in the return pile.

 He might as well look around. Maybe he would find something intriguing to read. He took his time walking around, pulling out a few books to read their summaries before putting them back.

 He went to walk around the corner and jumped when he saw Connor sitting in a chair, reading a book. His feet were pulled up, and he had black full-rimmed glasses on. His curly hair fell into his face and wore a soft-looking cable knit black turtleneck.

 He looks simultaneously adorable and sexy as fuck like that. Oh fuck. He's totally fucked. He really hopes Connor is at least a little gay, and single, otherwise he knows he's going to hurt his heart. Apparently, he made some type of noise because Connor glances up from his book.

 "Markus! Did you need any help?" He asks, putting his legs back onto the ground. He had texted Connor but he wasn't sure what was appropriate to send, so he always kept it short.

 Connor grabbed a bookmark and put it in the book, which wow, was Les Misérables and it looked like it was the actual version in French.

 "You're… you were actually reading that?" He asks, walking over. Connor glances at the book, flipping it over in his hands.

"Oh, yeah. I hadn't gotten the time before, but yeah. Amanda, she made sure we were able to learn any language we want. I learned French, German, Spanish, Latin, and Russian. Oh! Also ASL." Holy fuck. He was sure his jaw was on the ground.

This man was smart enough to be literally anything he wanted, and he was here working at a library, reading a book most people didn't even attempt to read.

"That… wow. That's really impressive, Connor." Markus said, sitting down in a chair close to him.

He ducks his head again, and Markus is getting to the point where he wants to keep making him have that reaction. "Amanda taught us early so it was easy, nothing truly impressive."

Markus shakes his head. How could he not see how impressive that was? It didn't matter when he learned, he retained the information even after all these years. "Trust me, it's impressive."

"I… thank you, Markus." He says, looking at him through his lashes. Wow, his eyes were so stunning and now he really wanted to see him on his-nope! Nope, he is not thinking about that. Not in a library.

"Of course, I was wondering, do you have any books you'd recommend reading?" Connor quickly stood up and pulled Markus up too by his hand. He probably didn't even realize he was still holding his (ugh, probably sweaty) hand as he dragged him through the library. Well, dragged isn't the right word as he was doing his best to keep up, but gladly following along.

"Ok, so the first is technically not for adults, but the humor is amazing and generally flies right over kids." He says, pulling down a book- Artemis Fowl- still not letting Markus go. Apparently, he's getting more than one book as Connor leads him around, explaining some as he pulls them out.

Markus laughs as he's pulled and watches as the stack of books grow taller. It isn't actually that many books, but it's incredible how enthusiastic he is.

Once Connor seems to be done he leads them back to where he left his own book. He lets go of Markus to set the stack of books on a table, then picks up his own book. He sits down again, pulling his legs under him. "I know that's a lot, and you don't have to check them all out."

There are seven books in all and Markus is most definitely going to at least attempt to read all of them, even if it meant renewing them.

"No, this is wonderful; I look forward to reading all of them." He glances through all of them before picking up the shortest one. "I hope you don't mind if I read with you."

"No! Of course, feel free. The Artemis Fowl series has always been a favorite of mine." Connor said, flipping open his book. "Oh, I never asked, do you speak any languages other than English?"

Markus flips to the first page of the book, taking in the worn feeling of it. "Not really. I know a few things in French and a few in Latin, but that's just what I learned from Carl."

Connor smiled and nodded. "Du siehst umwerfend aus." Connor said, before quickly looking down at his book.

Oh, he really wanted to know what that meant. "I… that was German, right? What does it mean?"

"Oh, um it means to enjoy your book." Connor's face flushed and he puts his nose back into a book. He has a feeling that's not what he actually said, but he doesn't know any German to dispute it.

"Thank you, I'm sure I will." He starts reading the first page. He has to admit, it's incredibly easy to follow. The humor is dry and makes him crackle. The first time he does it, he glances up and sees Connor staring at him. They both quickly look back to their books.

He gets lost in the book and reads almost half of it before his phone rings. He jumps practically out of his skin. He fumbles for a bit before pulling his phone out. He sighs when he sees it's a message from Carl. He isn't upset that Carl messaged him, but he is that he'll have to leave.

"Ah, I need to get home, well to Carl's." He definitely considered Carl's place home more than anywhere else had been. They both stand and Markus grabs his stack of books.

"I'm not technically working, but I can still check you out," Connor says, taking the books when they get to the desk. He scrunches up his face as he types something into the computer then scans the books. "I gave you the six weeks employees get but don't tell," he fake whispers.

Markus snorts and puts a finger up to his lips. "Your secret is safe with me." He took the books and waved at Connor before leaving.

______________________________________________________________

"Markus!" Connor panted, arching his back. Markus reached out and covered Connor's mouth with his hand.

"Shh, you gotta be quiet baby, or we'll be caught." He whispered but didn't let up at all. He set a steady, but quick pace with his hips, matching the same with his hand stroking Connor's length.

They were in the back part of the library, where they hopefully wouldn't get caught. Connor was wearing the same thing from when he gave him all those books, but his glasses were skewed and his hair was completely tousled. He looked fucking amazing like this.

Connor whined into his hand, pushing back into him. He wanted to hear him so badly, but maybe once they were alone.

The sound of skin hitting skin was obscene in such a quiet place. He could smell the old books, but he couldn't focus on anything but Connor.

He leaned forward and kissed the back of Connor's neck, nipping at the sensitive skin. He wanted to absolutely wreck him; he wanted him to not be able to walk straight for a week.

"Connor, you're so beautiful. So beautiful, and all for me." He mumbled. Connor's eyes watered from so much stimulation. He could feel how close they both were. So, so fucking close.

Markus jerked awake, sitting up. His eyes were wide as he looked around his dark room, panting. He groaned and flopped back onto his bed. This wasn't the first time he had that particular dream, but each time ended the same.

He reached down and didn't bother opening his eyes as he stroked himself. He wouldn't be able to go back to sleep until he came so it was better to get it over with.

He imagined Connor on his knees, looking up at him with those stunning brown eyes. "Fuck," he groaned, spilling into his hand.

Markus was supposed to go to the library today to bring back Carl's book, but this would make it so much harder (no pun intended). He didn't know how he could face Connor after thinking about him like that.

He rolls over and digs through his drawers finding his wipes. He cleans himself up, and checks his phone, squinting when the brightness is too high.

To Connor: 

I'll be there tomorrow

     [Read, 9:19 pm] 

                                                                                                        To Markus:

                                                                                                     I can't wait! ☺️

                                                                                                 [Read, 9:20 pm]

 Ugh, how could he be so cute? Even his typing was cute! It was completely unfair. What had he done to deserve this kind of torture?

He had a feeling he was at least somewhat gay, especially since Carl seemed to be trying to get them together. He probably knew more about Connor than Markus did, though he wouldn't tell him.

He checked the time and groaned again, dropping his phone on his chest. It was way too early to get up, but he doubted he'd be able to sleep again. He should at least try, though.

Before he knows it his alarm is going off and he honestly feels like crying. He hadn't gotten any more sleep, and he couldn't stop thinking about Connor.

He slowly sat up and got ready for the day. He lived with Carl so it wasn't like he had to drive to work, so he got more time in bed than he would have otherwise.

He gave Carl his medicine and breakfast before the man waved him off. Markus huffed and grabbed the book before taking the bus to the library.

It was a much warmer day than it had been in a while, and Markus basked in the sunlight. He loved raining days but there was something so comforting about the sun coming out after days of rain. It was like he could feel how alive the world was, and it just made him livelier.

He walks in and before he can even say hello Connor is up and beside him. He's wearing a sweater vest again with a white button-up, but the sleeves are rolled up, and Markus is sure he's dying. He's not wearing his glasses but his hair is mostly pushed back out of his face, except for a few curls that seemed to do whatever they want.

"Markus! How are you?" He asks, smiling widely. Markus leans over and drops the book in the return bin, but feels his heart stop when doing so brings him close to Connor. His mind flashes to the dream and he quickly leans back.

"Not too bad, didn't get much sleep last night, you?" They start their walk around the library. At some point, he'd get the next book Carl wanted, but for now, he just enjoyed Connor's company.

Connor gave a sympathetic hum, "neither did I. Today has been lovely, though. The weather is much better than before. I'm planning on taking Sumo for a walk later."

"Sumo?"

Connor's eyes light up and he bounces more as he walks. Overall he looks even more adorable. "He's Hank's dog. When I was a detective Hank was my partner, and he's basically a father to me now. Amanda never let us have pets, and I really like dogs so I go over to Hank's a lot." Ah, that did sound like Stern. She could be an exceedingly uptight woman from what he's heard.

"Sumo is Saint Bernard! He's basically a giant teddy bear, though he likes to lay completely on me." Connor says, sighing happily.

Markus chuckled and shook his head, imagining a big dog lying on Connor while he was splayed out on the ground. "He sounds adorable." So do you, he wanted to add but bit his tongue.

Connor quickly nods. "He is! I like dogs. Well, all animals honestly. I've got a fish at home, Trichogaster Laliu, or most commonly known, a Dwarf Gourami." Leave it to Connor to know the scientific name for it.

"Carl has parakeets, but I never got to have pets growing up." Well, that wasn't completely true, he did but it never lasted long.

"Oh? Were your parents strict too?" Connor asks, swaying his arms and accidentally brushing against Markus's.

Markus is so tempted to just take his hand but decides against it. He was a very tactile person, so holding hands between friends weren't uncommon for him. However, he didn't know if Connor was open to that.

"Ah, not always? I… I grew up in the foster system. Eleven foster families in all, but I aged out." He remembered the day and how much it hurt, knowing he wasn't wanted. "Carl, he found me and took me in. He paid for my college and now I take care of him." He smiled. He honestly owed his life to Carl.

Connor's eyes go wide. "Oh, I'm sorry. Caelum and I got adopted pretty quickly, but I remember how hard it had been." He wondered if they ever would have met if Connor hadn't been adopted.

Markus shrugs. Sure it had been hard but now he has the life he always dreamed about. He had someone who cared about where he was, or if he ate enough. He had his friends, and now he had a very huge crush on a very adorable man.

"It's fine, I'm happy now. Are you?" He honestly didn't mean to ask something so deep, but it just slipped out.

Connor hummed and thought for a moment. "I think I am. I loved being a detective, but I also love this," he motions around to the library. "Sometimes if Hank can't figure a case out he'll ask me. There's always room for improvement, but that's just life."

He couldn't agree more. To him, the purpose of life was to grow. If you became stagnant then the ability to become happy disappeared.

"I hope this isn't offensive… but from what I've heard about Stern, she doesn't seem the type to think being a librarian is an actual job." She was a strict woman but he knew she always just wanted the best for those she cared about.

Connor chuckles. "Yeah, but I still consult for the dpd and even sometimes the FBI if they need me. At first, she thought this wasn't acceptable at all, but I guess she saw how at peace I am. I get the best of both worlds doing this."

Holy fuck. He worked with the FBI and said it like it was nothing. "How old are you?" Wow, that came out wrong. Thankfully Connor just laughed.

"I'm twenty-five, but technically I'm six." Apparently, Markus's confusion shows on his face. "Leap-year baby."

"Leap-year baby and a twin, what are the odds of that?" He really didn't think Connor would have an answer.

"There's a one in 1,461 chance of having a leap day birthday. The odds of twins are one in 67 times the odds of being born on February 29, which comes out to one in 97,887." His jaw was definitely on the ground.

"Though, because we are identical the odds go up to one in 365,250. So, I am exceedingly rare in that case." Connor shrugged.

"That and you're a genius." Markus points out. Connor blushed and ducks his head. He grins and bumps their shoulders together. Connor's eyes widen and he actually brings a hand up to cover his face. Hm, interesting but also adorable.

"Oh, I was wondering if you have Odes by John Keats. Carl wants to read it." Connor sighs, he's probably glad for the subject change.

He stood for a moment and glances around before nodding to himself. "If we do, it'll be this way." Connor reaches out and gently touches Markus's arm, but he doesn't hold onto him like before. He really wished he would.

Connor finds the area and looks around. Oh goodness, they are definitely in the back of the library and it's almost the exact same as his dream.

Connor crouches down, and runs his fingers against the books, squinting at them a bit. He obviously still works out and Markus would very much like to feel those thighs. They practically stretch his pants to their limit and it's driving him insane.

Then, of course, Connor makes it worse. He doesn't know why, but Connor turns to him without standing and looks up at him, smiling softly. He really, really needed him to stand back up soon, or he was going to have a very obvious problem.

Thankfully Connor doesn't stare at him for long (even though it feels like an eternity). He finds the book and stands up in one fluid motion. That did make him wonder, how had he been injured badly enough to have to retire so early? He had stated that he loved being a detective, so it wasn't for want to stop, and he just took the chance.

This time he doesn't hand Markus the book, he just holds onto it. "Do you want to get coffee?" Connor blurts out. "I-I mean, they have a small coffee shop upstairs. We can get some if you want. Or, if you have the time. Sorry." Connor cringed at himself, keeping his eyes trained on the ground.

"Ah, I'd love to, but I should be getting back to Carl. I'll treat you to one another time. Or, well… there's this new Cafe opening, we could go there if you'd like." He's ready to apologize too but Connor quickly glances up and nods.

His grin is so bright it's blinding, but Markus can't seem to look away. "I'd love to! I heard about that but didn't have a reason to go."

"How about," he paused, mentally going over his schedule, "Thursday at two? We can do it earlier if you want."

By then they were at the desk again and Connor scanned the book. "Two works, it's a date!" He smiled handing him the book and card back.

Markus fumbled but tried to play it off with a chuckle. He probably didn't mean it like that, but fuck he hoped he did.

He is almost jogging away, mostly to stop himself from saying something stupid. He considers just walking home but decides to take the bus. He didn't need to have to take another shower today.

He's definitely more calmed down by the time he gets home, but his mind was still racing. Connor definitely hadn't meant it like that. No, he couldn't. It was just coffee. Just two guys, who are friends, getting coffee. Totally nothing else. Nope, nada.

He feeds the parakeets and looks around for Carl. He notices the lights are on in the studio, so he goes there. It wasn't odd for either one of them to spend most of the day there.

Carl is working on the huge painting that he'd been painting for over three weeks now. Even now, it was incredibly striking, unfinished. Carl looked down at him and then back to the painting. Markus stands back, taking it all in. He was always stunned at Carl's work, even when he couldn't quite get it.

The moment Carl could he had given Markus a paintbrush. At first, Markus had just painted the world around him as it was. Carl had taught him to paint what he saw, yes, but what he felt about it.

He definitely wasn't the best, even after all this time, but he still enjoyed painting, especially with Carl. Though, it seemed Carl was already one step ahead of him.

An easel was set up, along with a blank canvas for him. He knew what he wanted to paint before even picking up his pencil to sketch it out.

He loved the sound of the pencil against the canvas, though he often had to take a step back, look it over and fix the problems. Some people could just paint, but Markus preferred to be able to actually see it first before he put any paint on the canvas.

He hadn't even realized Carl had stopped painting until he heard him from behind. "Oh my god."

Markus let his hand drop as he looked at the sketch. It was definitely his best work so far and he hadn't even started painting yet.

It wasn't even that exquisite, definitely not as good as Carl's, but even still. It had so much emotion in it that you could overlook any mistakes.

"I… I probably should have asked him if I could paint him first." Markus mumbles, scratching the back of his neck.

Carl quickly shakes his head, "no, this is amazing." Carl rolls closer eyes wide. Markus can't help but agree. Drawing Connor was the easiest thing he'd ever drawn, and he didn't know why. Well… that wasn't completely true but he wasn't going to think about it.

He was definitely not thinking about that as he picked up a paintbrush, and he wasn't thinking about it as he started to paint. 

[coralstories]

Assignment: Supergirl

CW Supergirl x OC Aurelia Castillo, eventual Winn Schott x OC Aurelia Castillo

A/N: Will probably do a part 2 of this. Maybe. Probably. Maybe.

Word count: 1614

Aurelia Castillo sometimes regretted moving to National City. It was fine before Kara Danvers became Supergirl, but after that, it was like the city became a hotspot for weird. And don’t get it wrong, she was pretty weird herself. But usually, her weird didn’t lead to people being admitted to the hospital in droves, like after Supergirl battled a colorful human-hating alien. 

Oh, you caught that? Yes, Aurelia Castillo knew Supergirl’s true identity. No, she wasn’t an alien herself, or some sort of evil mastermind; she worked as a photojournalist under James Olsen at Catco Worldwide Media. Kara Danvers, Jimmy Olsen, and Winn Schott weren’t exactly subtle when they talked about Supergirl. 

“Hey, Aurelia, can you bring these new spreads up to James?”��

“Sure. I’ll head up now.”

Aurelia took the stairs one floor up, then turned the corner onto the busy floor. Phones were always ringing here, Kara Danvers was always running to and fro and people were always coming and going in and out of the elevators. Aurelia personally liked it better downstairs, but she always got a laugh when she saw Kara, Winn, Cat, and James. 

She made her way past the pink lion statue and started towards James’ office. She glanced in Ms. Grant’s office on her way and saw the blonde shark sitting at her desk. 

“Kira!” she called. 

Aurelia quickened her pace towards the art department, pushing the door open to find James talking to Lucy.

“Oh, sorry, am I interrupting?” Aurelia said.

“No, it’s fine,” Lucy said. “I was just saying hi. I see that you’re busy, so I’ll let you get back to work.”

“See you, Luce,” James said. “Did you need something, Lia?”

“Nope. Just dropping off my team’s new layout.” She placed them on his desk with a smile.

“Aren’t you supposed to be on a plane to Japan?”

“Nah, they needed my help, so I postponed that until next week.” She leaned on a cabinet and looked out over the city.

“Well, we always love having you here when you’re not flying around the world,” he said.

Aurelia laughed. She saw a red and blue blur streak by the window. Speaking of flying around the world, she thought.

“Oh, come on, James, you know I love it. Don’t be jealous, honey.” She winked at him.

“Alright, well, in any case, I’m glad you’re on our team,” he said, laughing.

“Me too.”

She closed the door behind her and made her way to Winn’s desk. He was too focused on whatever he was doing on his computer to realize she was coming up behind him. She crossed her arms and shifted her weight to one leg as she waited for him to notice her. She saw that he was looking at radiation signatures for different elements. Finally, he saw her silhouette in the reflection on his screen. He looked up.

“Oh, Lia!” he exclaimed. “You almost gave me a heart attack, I thought for a second you were Ms. Grant.”

“Nope, just me. Took you long enough to notice me, though.” Aurelia laughed.

She took out the packet of French dragees from her back pocket and handed them to Winn. He gasped excitedly and took them with a silent thank you.

“For helping me last month,” Aurelia said. “You saved my trip. Cat would have killed me if I couldn’t bring her those photos before the deadline.”

“Hey, anything for a friend,” Winn said with false modesty.

“Well, there’s more where that came from if you stop by my desk later.”

“Really?”

“Yup. You’ve always helped me out, ever since my first day here. The least I can do is be your drug supplier, right?”

“Mmm, you do know I need my sugar kick to function at my best. Thanks.”

“No problem, Winn.”

She patted his shoulder and made her way back to the stairs. She noticed Kara was still not at her desk. Aurelia figured she’d probably hear what she was doing later on the news. She went back to her desk, which was decidedly superhero-free. 

Her lunch hour was brightened by a meeting with her best friend in all of National City: Ingram Capello. Aurelia and Ingram were basically complete opposites. Whereas Aurelia was tall with light brown hair, dark olive skin, a strong build, and a shapely figure, Ingram was of average height with pale, almost sickly-looking skin and black hair, and she was almost as thin as a stick. Added to that, Aurelia was the outgoing and friendly daughter of an Air Force pilot, while Ingram was the reserved (and often misread as condescending) daughter of two powerhouse business leaders. Aurelia laughed and smiled a lot, while Ingram’s smiles were rare. There was one thing they both had in common though: they both had supernatural abilities. Aurelia had a regenerative healing ability and could heal others at will. Ingram was a witch with the power to alter the fabric of reality itself. Neither of them used their powers often for fear of being exposed and persecuted, but it was becoming harder and harder for them to ignore the sense of responsibility that came with these powers. 

“So how was that wedding in Paris?” Ingram asked as she sipped the last of her drink. 

“It was a wreck,” Aurelia groaned. “I mean, the wedding was great, I got some great shots and everything, so that part was fine. But, oh my Lord, if I never have to see any of those people again it will be too soon.”

“Uh oh. What happened?” 

Aurelia waited to respond until Ingram finished crunching on one of the ice cubes at the bottom of her cup. 

“The women in attendance were all bubbleheads and the men were all gross, entitled snobs.” Aurelia shivered. 

“Did they touch you?” Ingram asked in a dangerously calm voice. 

“Yes, but it’s okay, I handled it.”

“But still, you wouldn’t mind giving me the names of a few of these sticky-handed men, would you?” Ingram’s gaze was innocent. 

“Yes, I would. Besides, if you ever read Catco magazine, you would see them there.” Aurelia smiled. 

“Ugh, you’re no fun.”

“Listen, I just don’t want to see you go to jail for killing someone whose only crime was to call me a bitch.”

“It’s a punishable offense.”

“So is murder.”

Ingram crunched an ice cube. They sat quietly for a minute after they finished eating, digesting their meals. 

“How was it seeing everyone again?” Ingram asked. 

“Like I’d never left. What’s the golden girl been up to?” 

“Well, today, I saw her thwart some bank robbers.”

“Oh, is that what she was doing earlier? I thought I saw her zip out of the building.”

“Yes, the bank was across from my dry cleaners. J’onn let me go to lunch early so I stopped there first.”

“How unfortunate for you.”

“She actually kept it pretty contained this time. The only thing that left the building was the criminals.”

Aurelia snorted. 

Aurelia dropped Ingram off at the bus station before returning to Catco. Winn greeted her at the elevator upon her return. 

“Lia!”

“Winn? What’s going on?”

“Ms. Grant was looking for you!”

The color drained from Aurelia’s face. She dragged Winn to the stairway before saying anything further.

“Why is Cat Grant looking for me?” she demanded.

“I don’t-I don’t know, but you should probably go to her office right now. James already told her you were on your lunch break,” Winn said nervously.

Aurelia took a deep breath. She spun away from Winn and marched up the stairs, heading to Cat Grant’s office. She knocked on the glass door before entering. The blond media mogul glanced up. 

“Ah, Miss Castillo,” Cat said. “Come in.”

Aurelia cringed at the way she pronounced her last name. She stood a foot away from Cat’s desk. 

“Did you enjoy your lunch?” Cat asked, still writing. 

“I did, thank you for asking. I just went down to that diner on the corner to meet my friend and catch up. I told her about the assignment I was on.”

“Ah, yes, the super wedding in Paris. It doesn’t seem so super now that we have our own Supergirl, now does it?”

Aurelia chuckled nervously. 

“But I looked at your articles. You had some good prose in there and good points. The pictures were beautifully done.”

“Thank you.”

“You did so well on that, I’m going to have to ground you,” Cat said. 

Aurelia blinked owlishly, stunned. 

“Excuse me?” Was all she could say. 

“From now on, you’re not going to be jetting around the world. I have a special assignment for you here at home,” Cat said. 

She finally stood and walked around the table. Cat smiled victoriously, one hand on her hip as the other supported her weight on the desk. It made Aurelia curious and slightly nervous. 

“What’s the assignment?” Aurelia asked. 

“I want you to photograph and write articles about… Supergirl.”

Aurelia burst into laughter. As Cat’s expression fell and her brows drew together, she quickly recovered. 

“I’m sorry, but… how do you expect me to photograph Supergirl? She flies at the speed of the wind,” Aurelia said reasonably. 

“Not when she’s apprehending criminals or helping babies stuck in cars,” Cat countered.  

Aurelia’s mind was racing. It’s not that she was wholly opposed to the assignment. She had been traveling so much for work lately, staying in one place, and not living out of a suitcase, would be a nice change. However, the problem lied with the fact that she knew Supergirl’s secret identity. She didn’t know if she could write articles about the hero without accidentally revealing something. 

“You start tomorrow,” Cat continued.