#very unfortunate but now i like my hairstyle more than five minutes ago

[iidsch]

i got a haircut the other day so now i have somewhat thick and straight bangs, and i despised how they look until five minutes ago bcs i realized that between the bangs and my long straight hair i could pull stocking's hairtsyle. bad news is that with how thick and long my hair is dying it black with a few pink strands would financially ruin me

[bokutosmochi]

kinktober day one: size kink!

BAGGY PANTS ♡ GETO SUGURU

fem!reader x metalhead!geto suguru

ingredients: geto suguru's baggy pants are more than just a fashion statement

what's it: smut

allergen warning/s: size kink, hair pulling, pleasure sub!reader, oral [m!receiving]

sugar level: 1.5k

regulars: @ventdavi154 @deobiforever @sugusshi @angelshub

parlor's note: you don't have to be a metalhead to be able to self insert, but it is mentioned a couple of times that you two attend metal concerts together. i love this fic, it's really just self indulgence and i hope you guys enjoy it too!

bon appetit!

you've been friends with him since you were a student in high school, being inseparable and attached at the hip. whenever there's a metal band that's going on a world tour and is going to tokyo, he always comes knocking at your dorm's door. quite a number of nights and midnights of your teenage years were spent with him in the moshpit, and patching each other up because someone got too rowdy in said pit.

unfortunately, once you two graduated, due to a shortage of teachers in jujutsu tech tokyo's sister school located in kyoto, you had to transfer, making you and suguru drift apart for some time. of course, you always kept in touch with the man, a month wouldn't pass without either of you shooting the other a message, you'd always greet each other happy birthdays, send each other memes, and on rare occasions, you'd attend concerts together like you used to, but suffice to say, your relationship now is lackluster compared to your relationship then.

a few months ago though, you received an email from principal yaga about coming back to tokyo and being the third year's teacher. he informed you that he has already asked principal gakuganji about the matter and there was another sorcerer who could handle your students in kyoto, making the decision a no brainer.

the offer made your heart skip a beat in all right ways and in just a few more messages, you were unofficially a teacher at tokyo metropolitan jujutsu technical high school and the rest is history.

ever since reconnecting with geto, you've gotten closer and eventually started dating your best friend since high school. there were a few changes about him, but none that you minded. he was taller, broader, hair a few inches longer, and now, he wears it in a half-up hairstyle unlike back then when it was always in a bun. he's more mature now too, wiser, smarter, better at strategizing. finally, back when you were students, a hundred percent of the time, he'd opt to still hear his school uniform when going on outings, except for those concert nights where he'd wear this uniform pants and then the band's merch tee. nowadays, when you'd go on dates, he wears baggy pants, yet the chosen top is still the same -- at this point, you're sure that ninety percent of suguru's closet is just black band shirts, while the remaining one percent is composed of his uniforms.

it fit his whole aesthetic; his chosen outfits. it's all very him, and at first, you thought that was the only reason why he wore the things that he wore.

when did you change your mind? right now, as he stood before you with his pants down for the first time.

it started with him recommending you a song, the summoning by sleep token and at first, you reacted to it the way you do with any good metal music, headbanging and wondering how the band composed such wonderful sounds, but it was five minutes into the song where the mood in the room changed.

suguru's featherlight touches accompanied the sensual instrumentals and the yearning in the vocalists words and voice translated itself into the way you ran your fingers through your boyfriend's hair.

oh, and my love

did i mistake you for a sign from god?

or are you really here to cut me off?

or maybe just to turn me on

'cause these days

i would be lying if i told you that

i didn't wish that i could be your man

or maybe make a good girl bad

i've got a river running right into you

i've got a blood trail, red in the blue

something you say or something you do

the taste of the divine

you've got my body, flesh and bone

the sky above, the earth below

nothing to say and no where to go

a taste of the divine

one thing led to another, and one by one, you were both stripped of your clothing until you were nude, having nothing but the other's body heat to keep each other warm.

geto found his ego skyrocketing at the sight before him, and you found yourself salivating at the sight before you.

suguru's cock was hard, the tip - flushed red from the blood rushing downward - moist with specks of precum. it seemed to be so heavy, the muscle curved down, presumably from the weight. bulging veins decorated the shaft and it was all so pretty, as weird as it sounds to describe your boyfriend's dick with the word. perhaps using big would be more appropriate. after all, the fact that you were intimidated by the size shows in your eyes, looking like a deer in headlights.

"it's okay, baby," geto cooed, breaking you out of your how-am-i-gonna-fit-that-in-my-mouth induced trance. one of his big hands were on the side of your face, his thumb stroking your cheek in comfort. "you can take it inch by inch, kay? you'll be good for me, won't you?"

under his spell, you couldn't do anything but nod. the only thought bouncing around in your head was the want, no, the need to please the adonis of a man in front of you, and as a thank you, he graces you with a soft smile before pulling your pouty lower lip down with the pad of his thumb. your eyes wander over to his other hand, jerking his cock off and pressing the head to your kiss swollen lips.

"fuuuck, there you go, pretty." he moans out as you suck it into your mouth. his precum hits your taste buds and the salt and tang of it almost makes your eyes roll to the back of your head.

encouraged by his hand petting your hair, you fit more of him in your mouth.

you try to make it easier for yourself by relaxing your jaw as he pushes his hips forward slowly, but the ache slowly creeps in. the sides of your mouth starts stinging as he stretches it out and centimeters after, tears are pooling in your eyes. you don't make a sound, though, or make any indication that you wanted to stop.

you wanted to take all of suguru in your mouth, you just wished it wasn't so damn hard.

"hey, hey, baby, don't cry." suguru looked down to sneak a peek at your beautiful flustered face, only to be heartbroken when he met your teary eyed face. he was quick to wipe the falling tears as he feels his heartbeat quicken. still, he can't help but chuckle. "it's not even half way in yet." his hand unexpectedly clutched at your hair when you gasped at his statement. it took everything in him to not immediately thrust his hips into your warm mouth after that.

a shiver went up your spine when he gave you a warning glance and you hoped you were able to communicate your nonverbal apology with your eyes as effectively as he could.

"look," he started to pull away. "w-we can do just the tip first, 'til you get used to it."

he stopped thrusting then, even though it took all of his power to do so. he wanted you to set your own pace, take as much as him as you could, until like said, you get used to it, and he knows you'll get used to it, after all, you're his good girl, always eager to please. if he's being selfish, he'd say it was one of his favorite things about you.

he absolutely adores that determined sparkle in your eyes as you bob your head up and down his shaft. spit's starting to leak from the corners of your mouth and drip down your chin to your tits, but you don't pay it any mind. you have a singleminded ferocity that aims to pleasure suguru, and nothing is going to stop you, not the way the back of your throat aches from being poked roughly each and every time you go back down, not the way your cheeks and your mouth starts aching, and not the way the corners of your lips feel like they're being torn apart. after all, if they do end up getting cut, you know suguru would drive you to the hospital with a fake reason.

no one but you had to know the real reason why geto suguru wears baggy pants.

i get: reblog

you get: a metal band shirt

[halaboyz]

–– PHOTOGRAPH // CHANHEE.

pairing: photographer! chanhee x  fem! reader genre: fluff, bffs to lovers word count: 2k warnings // notes: profanities, cliche, cheesy things and shitty effort of making lines ;; happiest birthday to our choi chanhee!! may he be blessed for his heart full of love <3

"You're coming to my exhibit, right?" He said as he hands you one of the tickets, and you chuckling because of the name of his exhibit.

"What kind of name is this?" You stifled a laugh, "My Art Speaks Words I Want to Deliver to You,"

Chanhee watches you hold on to dear life as you burst out laughing, wiping the tears that have escaped your eyes.

"Well, if only the linguistic major here helped me pick out some words I don't even know exists," He glares at you, "Then maybe we could've picked a better name, am I right?" He rolls his eyes as you calmed down, finally taking a seat beside him on the couch.

“Okay, okay Mr. grumpy, I’m sorry,” You said between laughter. Looking at the time and date, you nod, your smile slowly fading to a frown.

“What’s wrong? You can’t come again?” He frowns with you, a pout coming out of his lips. Your heart broke by the sight, knowing that even if he had hundreds of exhibits already, you haven’t come to one because of work.

“I’m afraid I’m gonna have to miss this one too,” You tackled him into a hug. “I have a very important meeting set by last minute,” You mumbled against the crook of his neck, causing him to whine.

“I was so sure you’d go to this one though..” You hear him mumble, as a sigh came out. 

“How are you so sure?” You raised your eyebrows at him, sitting up. 

“I checked your schedule!” He exclaimed, getting the ticket from you. “I can’t help it. You always have work when I handle an exhibit and wow, are you still my best friend?” He dramatically stands up, making his way to the other couch in front of you.

“Aw,” You whined, tailing him and throwing yourself at him again making him groan. “Give me that,” You reach for the ticket, only to be pulled by Chanhee again.

“Can’t you just cancel it?” He pouts, looking desperate.

“Look, I’m not the client. I can’t just cancel whenever,” You pressed his cheeks together, wiggling his face. “But give me the ticket. If they can set meetings last minute, they might cancel things last minute too. We’ll never know,” You reached higher, grabbing the ticket.

Chanhee huffed, making you lose your footing and it all happened so fast, you instinctively put out your elbow to support your fall– well, on the floor. You didn’t know Chanhee had that goddamn fast reflexes as he pulls you close to him, making you elbow his.. danger zone.

You shrieked as chanhee silently suffers, his face saying it all. 

“Oh my fucking god..” You muttered, pressing your lips to a thin line to stop yourself from bursting in laughter. 

Chanhee lets out a small groan as you slowly remove your elbows, your face mirroring Chanhee’s pained face.

“I’m so sorry,” You mumble, letting out a small laugh.

“I’d kill you if you laugh right in front of me,” He sighs out, crouching and wriggled his body all over the couch.

You were red. Oh, no. Not because of what just happened, but because you were stopping yourself from laughing. You knew Chanhee meant every word he said.

“You should fucking go at my exhibit after busting my balls,” He mumbled against the throw pillow.

“Hey! Not my fault you pulled me!”

You were redder. Oh, no. Not because you were now suppressing your laughter, but how you remembered how close Chanhee was to you just minutes ago if it weren’t for his unfortunate luck.

He suddenly stands up, wincing.

“Are you kidding me?! If it weren’t for me, you’re injured and crying and we’re probably on the way to the hospital right now!” He sighs out, the pain finally fading second by second.

You fanned yourself, trying to focus on what your friend was saying.

“Anyways,” You shake your head. “I’ll do my best.” You smile at him apologetically before sticking out your tongue, and ending the night while getting tackled by Chanhee– as if he was possessed by Changmin.

You bounced your feet continuously, waiting for your client. You just prayed for it to be really, really short to get to Chanhee’s exhibition. 

You knew how important this was to him, and it broke your heart that as his best friend, you can’t even go to one. 

Or was it because you’re starting to see Chanhee in a whole, different light?

There are a few times that your heart thumped abnormally at the sight of Chanhee frowning, and you can’t put your finger on which emotion was it. Did it hurt you because you were his best friend and you can’t go, or did it hurt because you were still a best friend? Either way, if it were the latter, if you were his girlfriend– no, you didn’t deserve him. 

You can’t even make time for him as a best friend, how’d you do if you were his?

Starting to overthink, you were thankful by the sound of your phone rang for a second, signaling a message.

chanhee: go or this friendship is over. grr sent 3:35pm

You knew he was joking. Partly, you guess. Or maybe not. You suddenly became nervous, your feet bouncing doubled. You sip on the drink, you had twenty-five minutes left to run over his exhibit, but the client–

You jump as your phone suddenly rang, making you tremble. Your client was finally calling, after being late for fifteen minutes already.

And oh my god, your heart could have burst from the news. You hailed a taxi as fast as you can, and the smile on your face can’t stop rising.

Finally. You were finally getting to see his exhibit.

You smile more at the thought, more to expect of Chanhee’s reaction. You felt nervous, excited, and giddy. It wasn’t the first time seeing Chanhee’s works, as he’d been part of the photography club since college, but it still made you excited and proud of what he’s become.

You sighed in relief as you look outside, the big name– My Art Speaks Words I Want to Deliver to You welcoming you. 

3:50.

Ten minutes. You just need to run, no biggie. 

“Hi, I’m uh.. Chanhee’s friend.” You smile at the guard, handing him your ticket while still trying to catch your breath.

“Oh! You’re! You’re! You’re the friend!” He exclaimed, excitedly opening the door for you. “You’re just in time! Well, technically, you’re.. running a bit late but! Doesn’t matter. You’re finally here!” You just look at him confusingly, nodding your head as you roam your eyes on the big place.

Your heartbeat is twice as fast more than running. 

You felt combusting quite literally. Your eyes wandered to each picture, letting it sink in that those in the pictures..

Were you.

It was all you.

There were only a few people left, smiling as they take in every photograph that wasn’t even them.

“These are so sweet. The name of the exhibit literally says it all,” A woman in her middle 30s, you guess, said as she clung to her probably husband’s arm.

“It does. The photographer’s indeed talented. Even makes me giddy,” You chuckle as you eavesdropped, reverting your attention back to the pictures.

All was black and white.

But it didn’t matter.

What colored his world was you– it has always been you. 

A black and white picture doesn’t do justice to how much light you bring to his dull world, it was just you that he needed in order to make a simple black and white picture to be beautiful.

Your smile. It was one of the things he loved seeing, he loved taking a picture of. It made everyone around you smile too, and it made him upset that it wasn’t just him making you smile.

Your hair, how every single hairstyle suits you, how it flows across your face, and how you always brush it back when it frustratingly gets in your face. One of his favorites and loved taking a picture of it along with the pout on your face.

Your eyes, which spoke a thousand words and held millions of stars and also one of the millions of things he loved about you, and seeing it on a picture didn’t make sense as you needed to see it in person to make you feel butterflies on your stomach.

Every move you did was captured on his camera, and you didn’t even realize the tears have already gone out of your eyes.

He made you beautiful.

He made you feel beautiful,

Because you always were.

You didn’t need to be pretty in everybody’s eyes, you just needed him. 

You were already in the last picture, and oh were you certain chanhee wasn’t the one who took this. You felt thankful enough Changmin, your other friend, had quite the skills in taking pictures too because this.. was just perfect. 

You didn’t need to be pretty in everybody’s eyes, you just needed him. Because he is what completed you.

It was a picture taken afar of you sleeping in the library on one of your college days, and Chanhee was supporting his head with his palm, looking– just looking at you with heart eyes.

“Oh my fucking god,” You sighed out, crouching as you messily wiped your tears away, though it still kept on spilling.

“You’re finally here.” That sweet, familiar voice that enchanted you sighed out, from the corner of the four-walled place. He was leaning on the wall, looking as if he had finally had the burden out of his chest. “So, what do you think?”

Just like the pictures, you didn’t need words. You just throw yourself at him, nuzzling against his neck as you cried like a baby.

He sighs out again, relieved, as he buried himself more to you and engulfing each other’s warmth. His hands continued to calm you down by caressing your back, and you tried your best to stop crying.

Chanhee pulls back, taking your face to his hands and wiping your tears away.

“Hey, look at me,” He leans closer to you, lifting your face up softly. “If you didn’t get the whole point of this exhibition then.. I might just smack you in the face.” 

You let out a small defeated laugh, wiping the tears yourself.

“I love you too if that was what it meant.” You look at him straight in the eyes, slouching your shoulders. You took his face into your hands too, pressing your lips softly in his.

He smiled in the kiss, his hands making their way to your neck as he kisses you back.

More than perfect.

The moment you were both out of breath, you break the kiss but let your foreheads linger with each other, smiles on your faces.

“Just.. how many times have you tried doing this?” You whisper, taking ahold of his hand and intertwining your fingers. 

You pull him in front of the last picture you’ve seen, now clear as ever without your tears on the way.

“Oh, I think out of my hundred and fifty exhibits you missed,” You roll your eyes, the sarcasm his voice spilling. “It's my 98th try. That’s why I really needed you to come.” He looks at you, thinking it was much better seeing you in person rather than just a photograph– as if it's like the first time seeing you all over again.

“And if I didn’t come? Would you really have the guts to break this friendship?” You face him back, taking his other hand.

“No, I didn’t mean it like that. I just meant I’d take it in my own hands and just.. straight up confess.” He craned his head sideward, challenging you.

“I’d been feeling very weird these days too, I just realized how much I am so in love with you if it weren’t for your art speaks words I want to deliver to me,” You chuckle, making him throw his head back.

Perfect.

Chanhee loved everything about photography, and he loved photography because it’s able to take what’s beautiful and he can cherish it forever. He loved it because not only it can take pictures of his friends, or nature, or what he found beautiful and calming, but it has the power to turn everything into a memory he can keep. He loved photography, he loved taking a picture of you, he loved you.

[rowanaelinn]

Fire on Fire - Chapter Three

Chapter two // Chapter four

“My head’s gonna explode,” Elide Lochan sighed before she drank two big gulps of water as if she had been thirsty for days. Aelin knew the feeling. She’d been working for two hours now but it felt like ten. The bar was so hot and the music so loud, she couldn’t wait to go home and come back to the silence of her room.

Today was her first day and of course, it was a Saturday night, the busiest night of the week. The uniform, which was basically only a tight white shirt and a pair of black booty shorts, was one of the other reasons Aelin decided she hated this job but only stayed for the money. Aelin had been lucky today if you can call it that, but unfortunately, that luck didn’t extend to Elide.

Some douche-bags slapped her ass when she served him his drink, and of course, all his friends howled with laughter. As if sexual harassment was some kind of joke. The moment Elide mentioned this incident, Aelin had wanted to slam the guy's head on the table but Elide stopped her. The customer was always right and both Aelin and Elide needed this job too much.

They had decided not to tell their co-worker Manon about that, Aelin and Elide had already worked with her before and Aelin knew where Manon was, violence usually followed. It was something Aelin loved about that woman, and she also found it hot as hell. Okay, maybe she had a bit of a crush on the white-haired woman. But in Aelin’s defense, Elide did have a crush on her too. It was like a general experience.

“Do you think we’ll be fired if we don’t go back?” Aelin put her cold bottle of water against the back of her neck, in an attempt to cool her down.

“Definitely, Rofle is a dick. I mean have you seen this outfit?” The brunette turned on herself and gestured to the more than revealing clothes. Aelin agreed, if her cousin saw her in this outfit he would have a heart attack. She was suddenly glad this bar opened last week, at least Aedion didn’t know this place. Yet.

“Girls,” Nesryn interrupted them. “Break’s over. Go back to work.”

Aelin undid her ponytail, a forbidden hairstyle in this bar apparently, and went back behind the counter. She wore her best fake smile and ignored the lingering looks on her breast or her backside, winked and flirted back when clients thought they had a chance of taking her home with them. Aelin hid her disgust of these men pretty good, she was proud of herself for it.

She would quit if she wasn’t low on money lately. For hell’s sake, Aedion was paying half of her rent. It had been a very long discussion between them, Aelin would rather live on the street than depend on someone. Aelin got convinced when Aedion made it clear if she didn’t accept he would call her parents. So Aelin put her pride aside and accepted, at the only condition Aedion let her pay him back whenever she could. He had argued but accepted. The Ashryver family wasn’t very good at compromise, but at least they tried.

“Aelin, go take the order of table nine,” Manon yelled at her over the background noise. Aelin gave her a thumb up as she kept pouring alcohol in the shaker.

When Aelin was done making this cocktail she wiped her hands and walked toward table nine. She looked down to grab her little booklet and pen she left in one of the pockets of her apron as she said, “Hi, welcome to the sea dragon, what can I-” She stopped as she took in who was sitting in front of her. Lorcan Salvaterre, Fenrys, Connall Moonbeam, and of fucking course, gods-damned Rowan Whitethorn. She took a deep breath and smiled, but she knew her fake smile wasn’t as convincing as it was minutes before.

She focused on Fenrys and Connall, the only ones she could stand at that table. “What can I get you?”

Fenrys had an amused look on his face, accentuated by his smirk full of wickedness. “So this is your new job?” He asked, and if she didn’t know him the look could be considered genuine.

“You knew it, Fen. I told you hours ago.” Rowan’s head whipped to Fenrys, and Aelin’s face suddenly mirrored Fenrys’s. She didn’t know what the blonde had in mind, but if it annoyed Whitethorn, Aelin was on board. Rowan’s head turned back toward her and he narrowed his eyes. “Got something on my face, Whitethorn?” She couldn’t help it, she had to always argue with him.

“Yeah, all that make-up,” his eyes roamed over her body, it took everything in her not to move under the weight of his gaze. “What’s that outfit anyway?” His disdain was quite obvious.

“My uniform, dumbass.” She tightened her grip around her pen and notebook so much that her knuckles turned white. “Be careful, it almost sounds like you care.” It was one of the most sarcastic things she had ever said in her life, the look in his eyes was enough proof.

“Why would I care about you when you’re dressed like a stripper?” He crossed his arms and Aelin had to force herself not to stare at his muscles and at the tattoo on his arms. He was a handsome bastard and it made him quite hard to hate.

“So, no respect for sex workers, Whitethorn? Why am I not surprised?”

“No, actually I respect them a lot. You’re the only person I don’t respect.” It took everything in her not to punch him in the face right now, but that’s what he was waiting for. It was like he loved to see her lose control.

“I’m going to enjoy spitting in your drink.”

“Do that and I’ll have a nice chat with your boss, good luck to find another job, princess.” He was getting angry, Aelin loved that, it meant she was winning their little game.

“Feel free to do it, it just means you’ll have to share that splendid bathroom with me longer.” She winked at him and wiggled her brows. Rowan clenched his jaw, another sign of his anger.

“Can you two stop for a minute? I’m thirsty.” Lorcan Salvaterre interrupted them and Aelin rolled her eyes. She wasn’t exactly on friendly terms with Lorcan either, but instead of always arguing as she did with Rowan, they just ignored each other.

“Who are they?” Elide asked as Aelin prepared her roommates’ order. The four of them wanted a beer, classic.

“Two of them are the bane of my existence and the two others annoying but very pretty.”

“I want him in my bed,” Elide said as she bit her lip. Aelin whipped her head toward the guys, trying to know which one she was talking about.

“I have no idea which one you’re already planning to get naked but one of them is gay and the other three aren’t good options.”

“Great, I don’t want good and I don’t want to be good. And It’s the tall one.” Elide winked and left before Aelin could say anything. Of course, Elide would be attracted to Lorcan. Alein went back to their table, accidentally spilling a little bit of Rowan’s beer on him when she accidentally tripped. He swore at her but she decided to ignore it, instead, she pushed him so she could sit next to him to be right in front of Lorcan.

“You,” She pointed at Lorcan, with her smile full of mischief.

“Don’t look at me like that.” She shook his head and she heard the twins laugh.

“What’s your type of woman?”

“Everything you aren’t.”

“I’m gonna look past that insult because I am an amazing woman,” she was cut off by Rowan’s snort. “You shut up, you’re thirty and still single.” She looked back at Lorcan but heard Rowan correct her on his age. His highness was still twenty-nine for three months. “What about 5”2, brunette, very very scary. She’s also one of the prettiest women I’ve ever seen, but unfortunately, she doesn’t have good taste. I’m not her type but you are.” She winked at him. Rowan muttered something that sounded a lot like “We aren’t teenagers anymore” but she ignored him.

Lorcan furrowed his brow, Aelin could see him hesitate. “Where?”

“Want to see her dance?” Aelin didn’t wait for the answer and walked back to the bar.

-

Rowan was mesmerized.

The moment Aelin Ashryver Galathynius started dancing was the moment he lost his mind.

He hated her for it, hated her for being the first thing anyone looked at when they entered a room. Hated her for being the most attractive woman he had seen in a while.

She had been raised to become this. Well, not to become a barmaid in a piss-poor bar in Doranelle. But to become the type of woman everyone looked at, everyone wanted.

With Evalin Ashryver as her mother, how could Aelin become something else? Her mother was an incredible actress, and one of the most famous ones. She was also known for being cunning, ambitious, and beautiful as a sin.

And with Rhoe Galathynius as her father, Aelin knew how to captivate an audience. Rhoe was a legend of football. Whenever he played, all eyes were on him. He was smart and as cunning as his wife, a perfect match if you listened to the papers. That’s probably why he was a coach now, and that’s also why his team almost always won.

So Aelin was born with amazing genes, a talent to bewitch everyone who looked at her, and a bank account bigger than anyone should have. That’s why he didn’t understand why she would be working here and living with five guys instead of just having a big apartment in the richest part of town. But Aedion had told everyone to never mention her parents, so they all listened. Everyone was careful to do just that, maybe because Lysandra had threatened to cut their favorite body part and to make them eat it if they ever mentioned Rhoe’s or Evalin’s name. All that the day they met her when she was one month away from turning eighteen.

Now this she-devil had him under her spell. He couldn’t stop looking at the way her hips moved perfectly on beat with the music, at the way her hands wandered over her stomach, the side of her breast, and then lifted her hair in the air. Or even at how close she was to her friend, the one who is apparently interested in Lorcan. Both of them were giving a show, and when Rowan finally looked away from the blonde it was to find almost every man with their eyes on her. She knew what she was doing, he knew she did. It made him want to yell at her, even at work she couldn’t help but want attention.

Aelin turned her head, and their eyes met. Rowan sat straighter, swallowing. Her sinful mouth turned into a smirk and she accentuated her hips’ movements, aware of Rowan’s eyes on her. It was also something they did, along with arguing. They caught the other checking the other out, but wouldn’t call them on it. They would never bring it up, it was like a secret between them. He shouldn’t find the idea of sharing something with her so exciting.

She never stopped looking at him as she danced, sometimes she would bit her lip, sometimes her hands would wander on her breasts. He had to stop himself from growling as his cock hardened. Aelin was a sin.

Who did she think she was? He hated her, he made that clear. She hated him, and she had also made that clear. Why did she feel the need to tease him? She was trying to mess with him, and it was working.

The bubble broke when one of Aelin’s coworkers interrupted her, telling her and her friend she was dancing with to go back to work. Rowan couldn’t help but stare at her ass as she walked back behind the counter. He would have felt bad for it, wasn’t it for the slight sway of her hips and the look she threw at him when she started serving people again.

“I want her.” Lorcan almost grunted, and against his best wishes and even if they weren’t talking about the same girl, Rowan agreed.

-

Aelin wasn’t tired, no, tired wasn’t a strong enough word to describe what she was feeling. It was almost three in the morning and her shift ended in one hour, thank god she wasn’t supposed to close the bar today.

A customer asked for another sex on the beach, his fourth of the night. Aelin smiled as she prepared it but decided it would be his last of the night. Rofle didn’t want his barmaids to stop clients from drinking because more drinking means more money. But all the money in the world wasn’t worth the customers’ life. She would never forgive herself if someone had a car accident or became an alcoholic because of the drink she served. She gave the drink and took the man’s car keys, saying she would call a cab when he wanted to leave.

Aelin’s phone started ringing and when she saw who was calling her she sighed. If she was tired now it would be worse by the end of the night.

“Hello,” She answered as she got into a cupboard to find some quiet.

“Hi, you’re Aelin Galathynius?” A deep male voice asked. From the tone of his voice, the man must be as exhausted as Aelin was.

“Yeah, it’s me.” Aelin already regretted picking up this gods damned phone.

“I’m sorry to bother you but a guy’s at my bar. He’s tall-”

“Yeah, I know exactly who it is. Let me guess, he is drunk and absolutely refuses to call a taxi because taxis are disgusting. He also told you to call me, didn’t he?”

“You got it all right.”

“Okay.” She sighed. “Where’s your bar?” She nodded when he told her the address and told him she would be here in half an hour.

Aelin went to Elide, apologized, and asked her to cover the rest of her shift. Elide understood, it wasn’t the first time Aelin had to leave for the same reason. Elide was pissed but not because she had more work, but because she didn’t want Aelin to go.

Aelin took her car and drove, maybe a little slower than she should but it was night. Roads were dangerous, especially on a Saturday night. Aelin parked right in front of the sidewalk. She took her phone and wanted to text Aedion to tell him she would be late but her phone was dead. Amazing.

Aelin walked into the bar and realized she didn’t take time to change clothes, she was still in her uniform. She crossed her arms, trying to cover her chest as best as she could. Even if she had liked to have Rowan Whitethorn watching her tonight, she didn’t want anyone else to look at her this way.

It didn’t take long to see who had called Aelin, she walked toward him, the bartender looked relieved someone would come to pick him up. “I’m gonna take that.” She told him, and he gave her the car keys. Aelin turned her head to grey eyes watching her body, of course, he would notice her lack of clothing. “Let’s get you home,” Aelin said, trying her best not to let her anger out, it’s not going to help tonight.

“Hello, darling,” Arobynn purred.

tag list:

@sheharahu // @morganofthewildfire // @thestoriesyoutell // @fromthelibraryofemilyj // @swankii-art-teacher // @itsforeverinnocent-blog // @becarefuloflove // @imnotsogoodatthis // @rowaelinismyotp // @a-court-of-milkandhoney // @feysand-loml // @surielandiareendgame // @live-the-fangirl-life // @story-scribbler // @mx—spelled //

[silverkoushi]

blue scarf ; sugawara koushi

haikyuu!! one shot

⇢ scenario: in which you forget to bring a scarf on the way to school, but running into him suddenly makes the cold, chilly air dissipate away with your feelings for him burning in your chest instead. ⇢ feat. : suga (karasuno) x you (f!reader) ⇢ genre : fluff, meet-cute, self indulgent lbr ⇢  wc & warnings: 2.8k, none ʕ·ᴥ·ʔ lmk what you think! i’m considering a 2nd part for this :-)

Sugawara Koushi didn’t have much to look forward to during his weekday mornings going to school. He is neither an early riser nor a person who absolutely abhors waking up before noon. He usually gets up before his first alarm turns off, and readies himself for the day ahead. He’ll chug a scalding hot cup of coffee sometimes, munch on an energy bar with half-lidded eyelids or perhaps snooze away whilst leaning against the wall in the bathroom as he brushes his teeth — but that’s all routine to Suga, there isn’t much to think about things you do on a daily basis for so many years now. 

But that fateful day on a winter morning, well into his second year of high school, Koushi didn’t think there could be anything mildly interesting about his routine on the way to Karasuno.

Until he met you.

“Good morning,” he mutters, a friendly nod towards you. You quickly whip your head to the sound of his muffled voice underneath the blue scarf wrapped around his neck snugly. Half of his face was covered, probably in an attempt to keep exposed skin warm but for some reason, you can hear the smile in his tone. 

“M-morning,” you stutter, reddened cheeks the only heat your face is emitting against the cold wind hitting the air around you. You had gone out forgetting your own scarf again, only to have remembered once you’ve already turned so many streets away from your house. 

There is that logical voice in the back of your head encouraging you to return home and grab it, maybe two so you can chuck it in your locker in case this happens three more times in a row — but the early morning lecture from your mother would have been an inevitable reason of frustration for you eventually. So, you swallowed your pride and the sense of feeling anything on your face as you braved the biting winter season welcoming the streets of Miyagi. 

Unfortunately for you, Koushi had detected the shivering in your words as well as your shoulders, watching the way your hands wrap themselves around you. He knew you went to the same school given the shared colors of your uniform, but for the past year and a half he spent in it, he’s bewildered by the fact that he’s never noticed you before today. 

“Do you have something to keep you warm?” He asks, concern laced in his soft spoken manner. 

Your steps naturally slow down to match his but as his body inches closer to you, the more you feel your feet side stepping two inches away. You were still very much in a state of freezing cold at this point, but having the Sugawara Koushi walk to school with you at the same time, greet you a good morning, and realize how stuipid you must have looked walking around with nothing to defend yourself from the weather? 

Your body would probably give out first due to embarrassment rather than hypothermia. 

“N-no,” you bite your lower lip in a futile attempt to keep the chattering of your teeth to a minimum, but the sudden breeze attacking your face made you come to a halt. Hair suddenly all over the place, you sacrifice the warmth your hands were exuding off your sleeve-clad arms to fix the flyaways atop your head. In your peripheral vision, Sugawara pauses with you, eyes trained at your actions with an indistinguishable expression— thanks to his scarf. 

You panic inwardly, making haste with flattening out the pesky strands of hair without so much help as a mirror to see if you’re actually making it look better or way, way worse. 

Curse him, you think with your eyes closing tight for a second. If there was anyone in the world — or at least the 3rd year batch in Karasuno — who had the messiest, most unkempt hairstyle you’ve ever seen: it’s Sugawara. And yet, it’s what gives the guy so much charm to his appearance without even getting to know his personality yet. 

Admittedly, it was one of the first reasons why you harbor indescribable feelings towards him since you moved to his school just a few months ago. Your feelings had only deepened even more so in the bottomless pit of your heart once you have (eavesdropped) on the many anecdotes a lot of his friends from your class had said about him. (Particularly the student with a manbun named… it escapes you).

“Sorry, y-you can g-go ahead,” you let him know, shoulders shivering from the lack of heat source as little as your hands have given them. Sugawara continued to look at you with those gentle hazel eyes, studying every minute twitch of your body, and hands nervously tucking the last stray bangs out of your face. 

“I’ll probably just go back h-home to get m-my scarf and b-be late for class—” you don’t know why you’re explaining your inner defeat out loud to him, but it was soon interrupted by the very blue scarf that hugged his neck being stretched out to you. 

With your hands falling to your sides, your eyes held its nervous gaze upon kinder ones; and there is no telling how similar to a tomato your whole face had been colored by now. Sugawara urges the scarf closer to you, his tight lipped grin finally exposed for you to witness, for the world only just waking up to see for itself. . 

“I think you need it more than I do,” he chuckles lightly, and before his arm gets numb from reaching over to you, you grasp the blue scarf with utmost care. It’s soft, just like you imagined. You feel nervous putting it around you while having an audience of one for at least three minutes now, but it would be rude to make Sugawara wait. 

As you let the scarf engulf you in its small yet snug embrace, sudden notes of what smells like gingerbread cookies invite your senses to inhale it all in. To your side, you hear Sugawara laugh a little louder and longer this time, but it didn’t sound mean at all. You still look at him curiously, the lingering holiday-esque scent keeping you more wide awake than you actually were. 

“My perfume probably rubbed off on the scarf,” he explains as if reading your mind (your eyes probably told it all, though). “It was an early Christmas present from my younger brother.” 

“Oh,” you respond meekly, appreciating the tiny detail of his family life shared to you in the most unexpected of ways. “He has good taste,” you add, smiling shyly against the fabric. 

“Right? My friends say it smells childish and too sugary,” Sugawara nods his head one too many times in agreement, pouting his lips at the end. “I think Daichi and Asahi just need to feel like a kid again more often.” 

“I like gingerbread cookies, so this is right up my alley,” you comment, falling into step once more with Sugawara right next to you. If a few minutes ago your feet seemed to be magnetically pulling you away from him, this time you revel in the feeling of his arm brushing against yours every so often as you walk along the path to school.

He didn’t seem to notice— or maybe he didn’t mind? Either way, you masterfully calculated how wide your steps needed to be in order to accidentally mismatch his, and so the faux touching happens and your fast heart thudding in a never ending race.

“Ah, how could I forget to introduce myself?” He perks up in an instant, brows up in surprise while he puts a hand behind his neck for comfort. “I’m Sugawara Koushi, a third year in Karasuno.” 

And I already knew that, and have been infatuated with you way before I heard your name, you confess in your mind, careful not to let the embarrassed squirm on your lips protrude from the scarf. Sugawara waits for your name expectantly, blinking up at you. Without hesitation, you blurt out yours, adding on that you’re in the same year as him. 

“Is that so? Which class are you in?” 

“3-2. I just transferred a couple months into the year, so I’m fairly new…” 

“That explains why,” Sugawara hums to himself, grabbing hold of his chin as if to ponder over this information. You grip the handles of your backpack a little too tightly, not knowing what was there to outwardly think about you being new to the school, and the area. It’s not like it mattered too much to him, right?

“I’ve never seen anyone from my school walk the same way I do in the mornings, apparently they all live on the other side of town. Just like my friends,” Sugawara grins, and you couldn’t help yourself but to take in the endearing sight before you. 

You wish the walk was an endless path, but soon enough your eyes can make out the exterior structure of the high school building, as well as the many trees surrounding its gate. Most of them had quickly shed off their leaves the past few days, and others are dusted with soft, plush snowflakes overnight. It was truly a sight to behold, entering the winter season away from the air pollution of the city where you used to live. 

And also, the sight of Sugawara Koushi admiring the very same surroundings, his mole highlighting the beauty that his face radiated this early in the day. 

Since you’re closing in on school grounds, a couple more students enter your field of vision; in groups of three, five or those who keep to themselves. Unconsciously, you dip into the gingerbread scented scarf further, nose scrunching at the possibility of returning the source of warmth to its owner sooner than you realize. 

Having reached the gate, you begin to unwrap what has become your most favorite temporary prized possession from your neck, but the man in question (and always on your mind) physically stops your hand. His fingertips touch the back of your palm ever so slightly, sending tingles along your arm. 

You jump from the sensation, taking Sugawara aback with you but he was quicker on his reflexes and keeps the same calm, gentle expression you love to daydream about. 

“You can keep it, I’m sure the cold would be even more bothersome after school,” he urges. 

Shaking your head, you protest, “No, no. I couldn’t— how about you? You’re walking home, too…” 

“I have my volleyball jacket to keep me warm!” He chirps, sounding rather proud with the mention of his club uniform. With the scarf hanging down from your face, your smile lets itself out warmly this time. You’ve always wanted to watch him play upon hearing of his vice captain role in Karasuno’s volleyball team. There hasn’t been any official matches yet as far as you’re concerned, but going to their practices after school without any relation to the members whatsoever just deemed suspicious to you, so you kept the image of Sugawara tossing the ball and wearing his jersey and shorts and his messy hair even more out of place all to yourself. For now. 

“I insist, though, you can keep it until you buy a scarf of your own,” Sugawara snaps you out of your reverie, a teasing tone seeping through his words. It takes you a second to realize this, noticing how his smirk turns into a goofy smile in an instant. 

He’s teasing you, and you sure are wrapped around his slender, pretty finger. 

“I— I have my own scarf! I just forgot it at home,” your first reaction is to pout, crossing your arms defensively at the lighthearted accusation. “I’ll take the scarf home tonight to wash it and give it back to you!” you huff once more, watching how Sugawara chuckles at your serious demeanor. 

“Understood,” he responds with a mock salute, opening the door for you. You bow your head to thank him, awkwardly shuffling your feet to get you inside the somewhat less cold temperature in the school lobby. You proceed to change your shoes with your locker being a few steps away from Sugawara, and you contemplate whether or not it was okay to wait up for him. You share the same floor after all, but was this supposed to be the end of your interaction for today?

“Ready to go up?” Sugawara calls your name for the first time, looking back at you as he approaches the staircase. 

You blink back, the worries swirling in your head slowly disappearing just by looking at him smile at you. And he said your name. You take the stairs to the third floor, a couple of students you recognize from your year in the hallways have said their quick hellos and nods towards the volleyball player, and you see him reply back in earnest grins and high fives. 

Upon reaching your classroom first, Sugawara stands by the open door, right in front of you. 

“Thanks for the company, it was a nice change of pace for me,” he tells you, the mole on his left eye crinkling in the way he smiles. You nod your head, ears heating up at the way he focuses all of his attention towards you — it’s a nerve wracking feeling but nevertheless something you’d want to experience again. 

“Thank you for the scarf, I’ll make sure to return it in good condition,” you promise. “Have a good rest of your day, Sugawara-san.” 

He opens his mouth slightly as if to correct you, but closes it at the next second when another boy screams his name at the top of his lungs at the other end of the hallway. 

“Suga-san!!” A boy with a clean, shaven head runs up to him in a skidding halt, almost toppling over you. You flinch at this volume instinctively, wary of the fact that the situation between you and Sugawara would be misconstrued at this moment. In reality, he barely recognized your presence, wide eyes glowing at his friend instead. 

“Have you seen Kiyoko-san? I need to talk to her!” He cries out loud, hands clasped tight. 

Sugawara shakes his head no, places a hand on his friend’s shoulder to calm him down. “I haven’t, Tanaka. I just got here. What do you need her for?”

“I forgot to tell her how beautiful she looked yesterday after practice, and I feel like I had done the worst crime ever known to man,” Tanaka groans in frustration, a dramatic hand wiping at non-existent tears. As if on cue, you and Sugawara stifle a laugh, and that’s when he finally sees you. He takes a step back, points at your figure, then at Sugawara, mouth hanging open. 

You’re certain he stopped functioning, so you squeak out, “Um.. hi.” 

“Suga-senpai, you didn’t tell me you were taken! Does Daichi-san know? Asahi-san? Why are you leaving all of us behind like that— and keeping it a secret, too! I thought we were close buddies on the team!”

“Tanaka, shut up!” Sugawara had gravitated his hand over to the loud mouthed guy’s lips, clamping it shut. He tries to blabber some more but his words become incoherent, and you wouldn’t have been able to process them anyway with your cheeks rising to the heat, and your head getting dizzy due to his assumption about you two. 

Sugawara isn’t less fazed, sweat oozing out his temples as he looks at you with an apologetic expression. “Sorry about my teammate here, he’s uh— he doesn’t have a filter, even with people he doesn’t know.” 

“It’s okay!”

“I— I’ll see you later, then, yeah? Good luck in your classes today! Fighting!” He hurriedly tells you, dragging the Tanaka boy alongside him. You watch Sugawara push him on his back, almost tumbling down the stairs with the way he kept struggling from his grasp. You concur that Tanaka would have been a second year if they had went a floor down. Thankfully, students out and about had minded their own business, so you finally rush inside the classroom and took in everything that happened ever since you realized you forgot your scarf. 

As your trembling heart beats at a normal pace, you finally become aware of the scarf you’re still using even when seated at your desk. The scent of Christmas cookies and Sugawara become one to you, and you feel utterly lucky to have been given a piece of him albeit it was out of his kindness (so you think). 

“Hey, mornin’! Nice scarf,” your friend arrives with a few minutes before class starts, and you wave at her hello. You hadn’t taken it off yet. 

“You still feelin’ cold in here? I think it’s pretty toasty actually,” she comments, placing her bag underneath her desk and making herself comfortable in the seat next to yours. You don’t respond, only bury yourself in the comfort of Suga’s scarf. She begins to share her morning festivities, and you listen with half a mind thinking about the next time you’re going to face Sugawara again. 

You wish it was already tomorrow. 

[agentwhiskeysdarlin]

A Test of Patiences

Request: Reader who’s a hairdresser broke her arm and she walks catfish through putting her hair up for a date

Pairing: Frankie “Catfish” Morales x Fem!Reader (no y/n)

Rating: NC-17

Warnings: angst (nothing too bad), reader being oblivious, smutty smut times,  & unprotected sex (wrap it before you tap it)

Word Count: 3,634 (yup it’s a long one)

Author’s Notes: After stepping away for a mini break I came back and this happened. It felt like it went better writing a little at a time over the course of a week. I may be doing a lot more that way. I find it funny the title with the story is kind of going along with my writing and me putting it out. Not only for myself but for the people who wait on my content (if there is any). I really hope you guys enjoy this because I actually really love this even though the end is a little messy. It was a long ass day but I promised it would be out tonight so here it is. Feedback in any way is welcomed just please be nice I’m fragile. Emotional support credit goes to @clint-aww-no-barton​ , @discogrrl​ & @nymphonet​ because without them I probably wouldn’t be writing. Also if the ‘keep reading’ thing doesn’t work I am so sorry to those who get annoyed with long fics not having that. I am not sure what I am doing wrong for it not to work.

ao3 link for story

How in the world was you going to manage this all by yourself? You looked in the mirror at your overly recked self. Your clothes were the same from days ago, your hair was a mess and you were pretty sure you needed to shave everywhere. The bright blue cast seemed to laugh at you as you glanced at it in the sling it still rested in. All these years wondering this earth and never once had you broken a single bone in your body. That had changed just a few days ago and boy no one seemed to tell you how much a pain in the ass it would be. It had put you out of your beautician job until you were completely healed, which would be weeks. It was incredibly hard to do anything by yourself including writing a sentence because of course it had to be your dominate arm. To top the cake off you had a date tonight. 

  You wanted to call and cancel it so bad but it had been awhile. You had been talking to this guy for weeks now and he had finally asked you out and you might have agreed way too fast. You kept starring at your reflection like you might blink and suddenly you would be showered and ready to go. Unfortunately the world did not work that way. You let out a sigh of frustration before setting to work on the day long process of getting ready. 

  You had managed everything very slowly by yourself throughout the day. You showered, carefully shaving your legs, picked out an outfit which you also had yet to figure out how to get on but right now you stood in front of the mirror starring at your unruly hair trying to decide the easiest way to style it for tonight. After several moments of a careful look through in your mind of all the different hairstyles you deemed it impossible to accomplish alone. You let out a sigh before reaching for your phone and dialing the only person you know who would drop anything to help you no matter what it was.

  “Hello?” Frankie Morales, also known as your best friend, voice greeted your ear and you smiled.

  “Hey Cat! Listen I need a massive favor.”

  “What’s going on?” He always jumped to worry.

  “Could you possibly come over and help me with a few things? This damn broken arm is more of a pain in my ass than I thought it would be,” you gave a small chuckle.

  “I will be there in five minutes,” you could hear the amusement in his voice.

  “You are a life savor Cat!”

  “I only do this shit for you,” he chuckled before speaking his goodbyes and hanging up the phone.

  True to his word, Frankie knocked on your door before entering five minutes after the two of you had spoken. You gave him a wide smile and your best puppy dog eyes.

  “What do you need help with?” He stood there, hands on his hips looking around the house like he was going to find some project to fix.

  “Well me,” you pointed at yourself and his eyes landed on you before he raised his eyebrows at you.

  “I know this is crazy and you are definitely going to think I am after I suggest this but is there anyway you could help me with my hair? It won’t be anything really difficult I promise! All you have to do is follow what I say and it will be fine!” You mumbled on.

  “I can’t believe I am about to agree to this but yes I’ll help you with your hair,” he let out a chuckle and you let out a sigh of relief.

  “I seriously owe you one after this Cat! Anything you need! As soon as I’m better I’m your gal!” 

  He shook his head before you took your good hand and pulled him to the bathroom. You sat down on a stool and he took his place behind you. You had all the tools you would need laid out and Frankie eyed them nervously. You looked up at him and gave him a thumbs up before starting to tell him what to do. A braid was the easiest thing you could come up with but of course you had to add you on flare to it and Frankie followed every instruction you gave down to the wire. He had his brows knitted in frustration, his usual hat already off, but he listened to every word that came out of your mouth and watched your helpless hand motions in the mirror. 

  “Cat it’s perfect! I may have to hire you as an assistant,” you chuckled as you turned and gave him a one arm squeeze hug.

  “I think I will pass on that. No wonder women stress so much over their hair. Shit is hard to do,” he hugged you back his face burying in your neck.

  “I have one more favor to ask of you,” you pulled away once again putting on the puppy dog eyes.

  “I am afraid to ask.”

  “I just need you to help me zip up my dress when I get it on.”

  “Oh yeah that’s simple.”

  He followed you to your room and respectfully waited outside as you struggled to slip in the little black number you had saved just for tonight. 

  “So what are you getting all dolled up for?” Frankie asked through your door.

  “I got a date. I know the most unbelievable thing ever but yes that Mark guy finally asked me out,” you were incredibly excited but thanks to the door you didn’t see Frankie’s face fall at this news.

  He had it bad for you. Anyone could tell it, anyone but you that was. Ever since Pope had introduced the two of you he had fallen for you in every single way. He didn’t want to push the issue and kept his feelings hid mostly because he was afraid to ruin the friendship the two of you shared.

  “You can come in,” you voice pulled him from his thoughts.

  Frankie walked through the door and your back was to him. He could see the smooth skin that stretched the length of the zipper and it made him gulp softly. He was careful not to accidentally touch your skin as he zipped the zipper up, knowing he would lose it if he did. You turned around and he looked you over before he let a smile pull at his lips. He prayed you wouldn’t see the sadness hidden behind it.

  “You look so beautiful,” his voice was soft and he was careful to sound happy.

  “Thank you Cat,” a blush rose to your face as you smiled at him.

  You turned to look at yourself in the mirror and taking a breathe. With one last request to Cat and a simple shake of his head and a chuckle you finished your look off with simple jewelry and you took a glance at your watch.

  “I gotta get going. Cat I seriously owe you. Thank you so so much for this. It means a lot. I promise you this weekend I will fix your favorite meal and we will sit on the couch and watch our favorite movie,” you gave him a hopeful smile after giving him your best hug.

  “You don’t have to do that. You know I would do anything for you. Just have fun tonight okay?”

  “I insist on the dinner,” you gave him your signature look that told him that was the end of that conversation.

  He laughed and gave you another look over before following you out of your room.

  “I’ll walk out with you,” you grabbed your keys and purse.

  “Oh no tell me he is not making your drive there?” Frankie stopped dead, pointing at your keys.

  “Oh yeah. It’s not that big of a deal Cat, I can drive myself still.” You gave him a pointed look.

  “How in the hell do you drive with one arm? Nope I’m dropping you off and if I have to come pick you up I will do that too. No arguments. Put your keys away and go get your ass in the truck,” Frankie gave you a dead serious look and you had only started to open your mouth when he raised his eyebrows at you.

  He had his own looks to let you know that the conversation was over too. You couldn't help but smile as you sat your keys down and the two of you walked out of your house.

  “Have fun but be safe. Hey and no matter what he says you look beautiful tonight,” Frankie gave you a smile as he dropped you off at the restaurant.

  “Yes dad and thank you Cat,” you leaned in the passenger window and gave him a smile before turning and walking up the steps.

  It was a fancy place and luckily you had called to make a reservation earlier that week. You were shown your table after agreeing to sit to wait for Mark. The waiter brought you breadsticks and took your drink order before leaving you to it. You sat there watching the couples and families around you enjoying their meals and your eyes kept gazing over to the clock on the wall.

  He wasn’t coming. An hour late? Yeah he was definitely a no show. The poor waiter came to give you your last chance with the most pitiful look on his face. He knew all to well what was going on and you gave him an apology before handing some money to pay for your drink and a tip for putting up with you. He gave you a sad nod and you exited the restaurant trying to keep yourself together. You jerked out your phone where several unread messages from Mark sat there starring and laughing at you. You rolled your eyes, tears dancing at the edge but you swallowed them back as you dialed Frankie’s number.

  “What’s wrong?” How was he so good at this?

  “He stood me up,” your voice came out with a break in it.

  “I’m going to kill him,” Frankie was pissed.

  “Later, just please come get me,” you begged softly.

  “I’m on my way.”

  You hung up and stood there looking pathetic and trying so hard to keep from crying in front of the people who were sitting outside waiting for a table. You moved off to the side and sat down on a bench as you waited for Frankie to come save you from the humiliation. You soon heard Frankie’s truck and he pulled up and you didn’t even give him time to get out and open your door before you were up and inside. The second you hit the seat and pulled the door shut you lost it. Frankie let you sit there and cry for a second as he drove you home. He knew you well enough to let you get your emotions out.

  “How am I so damn stupid? Why did I ever think a man would ever want me!? I should have just known it was all too good to be true,” the word vomit came quickly and you sniffled between words as you filled the cab with your voice.

  “First of all you are not stupid at all. He is the fucking idiot here. He is no man for doing this to a women especially you. You deserve so much better. Hell you deserve the whole damn world,” he seemed to clip his words off at his last statement.

  “Cat…” you looked over at him.

  He pulled into your driveway, put the truck in park and turned it off before just sitting there. The air was full on tension and you wasn’t sure what to say nor what his statement really meant. It had your heart racing and you almost let yourself believe for a second it meant what you wanted it to.

  “Cat what did you mean by that?” You had dried your tears on your hands.

  “I meant exactly what I said,” he got out and started for your front door and you knew this wasn’t over.

  You got out and followed him, unlocking your door before stepping in. He stepped inside taking off his hat and running his fingers nervously through his hair.

  “It sounded like there was more of a hidden meaning there Cat,” your voice was soft as you looked at him.

  He looked at you for several moments. You both just stood there starring each other down. He seemed to be looking your face over like he was trying to figure out his next move. He took a step back like he was having a war with himself. You gave him this begging look, so desperate to know what was going on inside that head of his.

  “Oh fuck it,” he threw his hat before crossing the room to you.

  “Cat…” he didn’t let you finish.

  His hands came up to cup your face on each side gently before his lips crashed against yours. Surprise took you at first before you melted into him and kissed him back. You had always had a secret thing for this man. He was someone who had always treated you so incredible but you had pushed your feelings way aside because you didn’t want to ruin what the two of you currently had. It was wonderful to have him in your life and you didn’t want to complicate that or screw it up by making it a relationship. His lips were making you dizzy and running all your thoughts together. This is what it felt like to actually be kissed. To be kissed by someone you knew loved you even if they had never said it in this way. It was Frankie’s way of confessing his feelings to you and you didn’t mind one bit. He pulled away all too soon and you looked at him after your eyes fluttered open. You searched his puppy dog eyes as he seemed to search yours.

  “I’m sorry,” his voice came out rough and a whisper as he started to pull away.

  “Cat, wait,” you grabbed at one of his wrist keeping his hand on your right cheek.

  The shock on his face was evident and you couldn't help but to smile up at him.

  “Me too,” it was simple but he knew exactly what you meant.

  The smile that stretched his face was pure joy and happiness but there was still worry playing in his eyes and you seemed to wear the same look.

  “Do we want to do this?” He stepped back closer to you taking his other hand and landing it on your hip, pulling you closer.

  “I really want to but Cat we can’t let this ruin us. I don’t know what I would do without you.”

  “I promise you that I’m not going anywhere. I will fight for you until the day I die,” his thumb started to rub smooth circles on your face under your eye.

 “I promise to do the same Cat always.”

  “Then I think it’s safe to call you mind then huh?” His face broke into a splitting smile.

  “I’m yours Cat,” you let your smile match.

  His lips then crashed to yours and the kiss became deeper, with more passion behind it. Frankie was quick to reach down and pick you up bridal style before carrying you to your room. He kicked the door open and gently laid you down upon your bed never letting his lips leave yours. 

  “Should we with my arm?” You pulled away already panting as you look up at him.

  “I’ll be gentle I promise,” there was a hunger in Frankie’s eyes you had never seen before and it went straight to your core.

  Your lips connected again and Frankie crawled over you keeping himself up enough not to have hie weight on top of you. His hand went from your cheek down your neck pausing for a second to brush his thumb over your throat before traveling further. He let his hand settle on your breast before squeezing yearning a moan from you. He let his lips follow the direction his hands had just went as his hand went to your back. He slowly pulled your zipper down until he could successfully remove your dress. He was careful with your arm and his movements but unfortunately your sleeve ended up stuck and you couldn’t help the giggle that pasted your lips.

  “I’m sorry Cat,” a full on laugh bubbled up and Frankie couldn't help but to let one of his own go at the struggle you both were in.

  Finally you pulled your sleeve free and Frankie shook his head as he threw the dress somewhere in the room. He sat up to remove his shirt and his eyes feel over you. He let them rake over your body and you couldn't help the blush that rose to your cheeks.

  “You are so beautiful.”

  His lips came back to your skin but this time he started at your collarbone and started to travel further down. He reached behind you and undid your bra as he kissed the top part of your breast. He looked at your breast for a short moment before his eyes met yours and then he dipped down and took a nipple into his mouth. He sucked and bit pulling moans from your. Your fingers found their way into his hair and pulled slightly as he moved to give the other one the same care. He then crawled back up and reconnected his lips with yours. His hand traveled down pulling your panties down as far as he could push them without moving and his fingers brushed across your clit causing your back to arch and a cry to escape from between your lips. He let his fingers dip further down gathering the juices that had already gathered there. He pulled away to watch your reaction as he slipped two fingers inside of you. You let out a moan and let your head fall back. Frankie moved his fingers quickly pulling all the right noises from you.

  “Cat wait,” you quickly said reaching down with your good hand and stopping him.

  “Are you okay?” His voice was full of concern to match his face perfectly.

  “I want to cum with you inside me,” you blushed at your words and yearned a smirk from the man hovering over you.

  He reached down and kissed you deep again before standing up to remove his jeans along with his underwear. You watched him, biting your lip when you saw his already hard cock spring up when he slid his underwear down. You couldn’t help but to lick your lips at the sight before looking up at him. The look in his eyes was something you had never seen before. He was on you again this time with so much more momentum and he was quick to line up with your entrance and slip inside. You both let groans and moans fall from your mouths at the feeling. Finally feeling all of each other. He kept himself hovered over you to stay careful of your arm. He stilled for a few moments to make sure you were use to him before you gave him a nod for him to move. He started a pace that was quick but gentle. You let your good arm wrap around his neck and lace your fingers in his messy hat hair and pulling before connecting your lips back to his. You would never get tired of kissing this man. His kiss was so hungry and it gave him plenty of go ahead to pick up his pace and become a little rougher. 

  “You won’t break me Cat I promise,” you smirked up at him.

  That was enough for him to go harder. It was gentle and rough all at one time. He was so careful with you as he still snapped his hips into you over and over pulling noises from you that you had no idea you could make. You could feel yourself growing closer and closer to your release and it only caused you to let your good hand go from his hair down his back giving him decent marks to remember this moment. 

  “Cat I’m…”

  “I know sweetheart. I got you, let go,” he growled in your ear.

  His words sent you toppling over the edge as you came hard around him. All you could feel was him everywhere and all around you. He followed soon after groaning your name in your ear as he released himself inside of you. His forehead touched yours and you both panted heavily after finally riding out the high. Frankie had slightly gone limp and you noticed the pain that was suddenly climbing your arm.

  “Um Cat my arm,” you let out a slight hiss as he moved out of you and from on top of you all at once.

  “Oh shit! I’m so sorry! I forgot. Are you okay?” He went into panic mode immediately.

  “I’m fine Cat! I’m fine, “ you couldn't help the laugh that followed his panic.

  “It’s not funny!” He tired to be defensive but just ended up laughing along with you.

  “I promise we will do this properly after I get this stupid thing off,” you rose your arm up and rolled your eyes.

  “Hey it was still perfect,” Frankie spoke softly as he turned on his side.

  He bent down and kissed your forehead and you reached up with your good arm and rubbed at his cheek.

  “Yeah it was pretty perfect.”

Tagged: @jimmythegirl​ @arcadianempress​ @discogrrl​ @immundusspiritu​ @someplace-darker​ @beskars​ @talesfromtheguild​ @thisis-theway​ @on-the-razor-crest​ @fioccodineveautunnale​ @spookyold-saintjm​

[tyrusquacks]

WikiHow To Flirt With a Guy

Previous

Tuesday (Part One)

This morning TJ wakes up intentionally early. He’d even set an alarm to make sure he’d have ample time to get ready. On his way out of his room, he pauses, one hand on the door handle and glances at the list on the same spot he’d left it last night on his desk. He’d studied it for so long that he’d memorized it. There was almost no need for it, except the satisfaction of crossing out the ones he’d already tried. Since everything had gone so wrong yesterday, he might as well get satisfaction from something.

TJ finally exits the room and shuts the door behind him as slowly as possible to avoid making any noise. It’s only 6:46 AM so his sister, Amber, is still asleep, even though classes at her high school start earlier than his. The house is very quiet and the only audible sounds are coming from downstairs where his mom must be making her breakfast before leaving for a long day of work. 

He tiptoes just as carefully to the bathroom and turns on the light. One look at his face in the mirror and he knows he’s not completely awake yet. He rubs his eyes with the back of both hands, hoping it will help. Then, he turns on the faucet and fills his hands with as much cold water as they can hold before splashing it onto his face. After a quick wipe with the nearest towel, he’s ready to get work.

When he got home yesterday, the first thing he did was figure out a way to undo the fiasco of his morning attempts at flirting, not without spending a significant amount feeling guilty about avoiding Cyrus the rest of the day. It’s for the better, he’d thought to himself. I don’t wanna make this any worse than it already is. Not that it was even physically possible.

At his desk, he’d come up with a foolproof plan with no room for disastrous improvisation. Since number 3 and number 5 on the list were both essentially about style, he figured he’d try them on the same day. Three: Play with your jewelry. Five: Try different hairstyles.

The second part seems easy enough. That’s why he currently standing in front of his bathroom mirror, trying to figure out a hairstyle that Cyrus would notice, but in a good way. Usually, his hair is styled all the way with as much gel as he can get away with without it gross. He nervously runs a hand through it, unsure of what to next. Soon enough, he pulls out his phone and makes himself comfortable on the toilet seat.

After several minutes of scouring Instagram for inspiration, TJ bitterly puts his phone away, disappointed of not having found anything even worth consideration. Deep down, he knows his usual hairstyle is the only he’d even been satisfied. He’d grown so accustomed to it that everything else just looked...wrong. 

He gets up and rests both hands on either side of the sink, eyes fixed on the mirror as if his hair will magically style itself if he stares at it long enough. Suddenly, an impatient knock on the door startles him and interrupts the one-sided staring contest. His hair isn’t looking any better.

TJ’s hair: 1

TJ: 0

Before he even has time to respond, Amber starts shouting at him through the closed door.

“TJ!!! I know you’re in there and you better get out right this second.” She interrupts herself to knock again, louder this time. “You know I have to leave before you so whatever is going on between you and that tube of hair gel, you better end it now, TJ.”

TJ rolls his eyes at the last part. “Calm down, Ambs, I’ll be right out. It’s only…” He paused to check the time on his phone and instantly widens his eyes. “... 7:28!!!” he exclaims. “It’s 7:28??? How is that even possible? I was in there for like 10 minutes, I swear” he says, not as a response to Amber, but more to himself. 

Amber. He can’t afford to upset her this morning because he absolutely needs her help. So he opens the door as soon as he finishes his sentence, hoping that his older sister isn’t too annoyed yet. 

“Yes, TJ. Thank you for telling me the time. Now, excuse me, I need to get in there” she huffs, pushing him out of the way while inserting herself through the door.

“Ambs, wait” TJ manages to add before she’s fully inside. “Can you help me with something when you’re done?” He can tell that his question immediately raises suspension, but he’s thankful that Amber doesn’t dismiss him right away. “What kind of help?” she asks instead, crossing her arms.

“Uh you know... stuff. I’ll tell you when you get out but I really really need you to help me out on this one. Can you do that?” he pleads. Amber seems to think for a second; she’s definitely intrigued. “Depends. I’ll see what I can do,” she finally answers. “Thank y-” Click. And the door is closed mid-sentence. TJ shrugs. At least she didn’t say no. 

TJ heads back to his room to get dressed while he waits for his sister. He figures he’ll deal with his hair later. So much for waking up early, he thinks bitterly. But he remembers he did it for Cyrus and it’s automatically worth it. Thankfully, he has less trouble getting dressed. Staying on theme with today’s list items, he picks out one of the nicer shirts he owns. In other words, one without a basketball on it. 

He also slips into his third-best pair of jeans because it’s only Tuesday and he doesn’t wanna look like he’s trying too hard. If he learned anything from yesterday, it was that subtlety is key. And to top it all off, he picks out a pair of sneakers with green stripes to match his shirt. He doesn’t need a mirror to know that he looks good, minus the hair of course. Hopefully, Cyrus would agree.

Since Amber is still not out of the bathroom by the time he’s done, he gathers his books and homework from last night into his backpack to pass time. Sure enough, there’s a knock on the door right as he’s finishing up. He practically runs to open it, worried that Amber would change her mind if he made her wait. 

“So what’s your deal, Speedy?” she wastes no time in asking, and TJ can tell he’s piqued her curiosity. “Morning big Sis. You look rather ravishing today” he answers in a tone that’s halfway between sarcasm and flattery. “Wow, this must be serious. That was really close to actual compliment, TJ” she utters quietly, feigning concern in her voice. TJ suppresses an eye-roll, aware that it wouldn’t be helping his case. Instead, he cuts to the chase and voices his request to Amber as seriously as he can: “Ambs, I need to borrow a necklace. Preferably for the rest of the week, but if you can’t it’s okay. I just really need it for today at least.” Amber is silent for a moment. That’s probably not what she was expecting. “Do I wanna know why?” she questions. 

No way! I’m not telling you about my secret crush on Cyrus so you can go blab about it to your girlfriend. Next thing I know, it won’t be a secret anymore. 

He doesn’t say any of this, of course. TJ simply shakes his head no and tells her with a smile: “I’ll let you know if it works out.” Amber narrows her eyes at him, quickly inspecting his face in the hope of finding a hint about whatever was going on. But her brother knows the game and maintains a blank expression. Eventually, she sighs. “Fine. Let me see what I can do. I probably have one I don’t use anymore,” she admits before heading back to her room.

TJ believes her. She’s been into fashion for as far as he could remember, so he’s certain that she owns a number of accessories she no longer used. Andi would often claim her neglected possessions to use on whatever craft project she was working on: an old belt, random artificial pearls, a faded jean jacket—it didn’t matter. If Andi could use it and Amber didn’t need it, she’d take it. They’re just that perfect for each other.

Surprisingly, it doesn’t take long for Amber to come back, in direct contradiction of TJ’s expectations. She does own a lot of stuff. But to be fair, her room is way better organized than his. As agreed, she doesn’t ask any questions and simply sets the necklace before turning back around. “You can keep it,” she calls out over her shoulder. “Amber?” TJ calls back, stopping her in her tracks. “Yeah?” she answers. “Thank you. I mean it.” Her back is still facing TJ but he can tell she’s smiling. “Whatever.”

TJ looks down at the necklace in his hand. It’s a simple silver necklace with a silver ring through it. It’s perfect. He shouldn’t be so surprised, Amber never disappoints. Not when it comes to fashion anyway. Or being there for her brother in general, even if she likes to pretend she doesn’t care.

With the necklace safely hanging down his neck, TJ checks his phone to calculate how much time he has to fix his hair before he has to leave for school. When the phone powers on, the first thing that greets him is a notification for a text message sent by Cyrus four minutes ago. Cyrus who he hasn’t spoken since the morning incident.

Cyrus:

Hey, you at school yet? :)

Okay, so Cyrus isn’t mad at him, as confirmed by the smiley face. He instantly feels better.

TJ:

Nope. Are you??

TJ:

You better not be, if me being early yesterday outraged you as much as I think it did

Cyrus:

Ha. Ha. No I’m not. BUT…

TJ:

But???

Cyrus:

I was hoping you’d pick me up since you wanna wake up early anyway. A little detour won’t hurt

TJ:

Um. Pick you up. But I don’t have a car :////

Cyrus:

But you have legs. Basketball legs!!

TJ:

You’ve convinced me. Don’t move, I’m coming

Cyrus:

Uhh that’s kinda the whole point….? Not moving until you get here so we can move together

TJ:

I-

TJ:

You know what I mean

Cyrus:

I do :)

The boy smiles at the reply a moment too long. Then he remembers he’s supposed to be hurrying. Without wasting any more time, TJ pockets his phone and rushes to the bathroom to brush his teeth before he leaves. As soon as he catches a glimpse of his reflection in the mirror, he lets out an involuntary gasp. His hair. In all of the excitement, he’d forgotten about his hair. 

Unfortunately, the realization hits that there isn’t anything he can do about it now. He can’t keep Cyrus waiting; he already told him he’d be on his way so he definitely doesn’t have time to struggle with his hair this morning. Oh well. At least the rest of him looks good. In one quick motion, he runs his fingers through his hair to at least get rid of bed head. It doesn’t do much, and a few locks of hair stubbornly fall to his forehead.

And then his bag slumped over his shoulder and he’s running down the stairs. He makes a quick trip to the kitchen and hurriedly kisses his mom goodbye before grabbing an apple and taking. This isn’t normal behavior for TJ and he knows she’ll be asking him about it later. Right now though, Cyrus is his primary concern.

TJ tries to keep a steady pace as he heads towards his best friend’s house. Yet, he inevitably finds himself almost running so he can get there as fast as possible. He’s probably never been more thankful for being in good shape because of basketball. In the end, the athlete’s efforts pay off because he’s turning the corner of Cyrus’ street. And sure enough, the brown-haired boy is sat on his porch, waiting for him. 

Almost as soon as he gets into his crush’s field of vision, he stands up and throws his bag over his shoulder before starting to walk towards TJ. He knows that it’s because they’d be heading in that direction on their way to the school anyway but he can’t help but hope that maybe Cyrus wants to be around him as much as he does. The boy blushes at the thought.

“Hey Teej,” Cyrus starts when he’s close enough that TJ could hear him if he whispered, but he doesn’t go in for their usual morning hug. He immediately notices and clutches a backpack strap with one hand while nesting the other in his front pocket.

“Morning, Cy. Ready to go?” he asks with a smile. A regular smile. Not the creepy kind from last time. This seems to reassure the shorter boy who smiles back and starts walking next to him. TJ follows. They hadn’t taken ten steps when Cyrus speaks up.

“So what happened to you yesterday?” he asks in a way that’s probably meant to be nonchalant, but TJ detects a hinge of nervousness from the small crack in his voice. “You were being weird in the morning and then I barely saw you after that,” he continues. The athlete feels cornered. So that’s why he wanted to see me so early. “I’m fine, Cyrus. You don’t have to worry. I was just, um, a little stressed out, that’s all,” he explains, which isn’t completely a lie. He just can’t say what exactly was stressing him out.

The shorter boy looks up at him, trying to read his face to see if he’s telling the truth. TJ doesn’t think he’s made a verdict on the sincerity of his explanation when he asks: “Is that why you also weren’t at lunch? It kinda felt like you were avoiding me.” TJ doesn’t know what to say. Feeling the weight of his best friend’s unwavering stare is giving him an especially hard time coming up with sentences. Finally, he sighs and decides to tell him something as close to the truth as he can get without exposing his feelings. 

“Listen, Cy. I swear I’m okay. It’s just that I’m trying to figure something out right now but I can’t tell you about it until I’m ready. Before you even say it, I know that you’re my best friend and I can tell you anything. Trust me, I know. But you also have to trust that it’s best if I don’t say anything yet. But when it’s time, I promise that you’ll be the first to know.”

By the end of his speech, TJ’s heart is racing like crazy. That isn’t an unusual thing when he was with Cyrus, but if even indirectly talking about his feeling can make him so nervous, he can’t imagine what the real thing will be life. That’s basically a death sentence, he thinks. He looks over at Cyrus whose gaze hasn’t left him the whole time. At that moment, he probably realizes that he needs to say something back. “Oh. I understand. And even though you already said it, I wanna emphasize that I’m always here if you ever need to talk. You just have to ask,” he reaffirms in a voice so soft that TJ almost trips. He looks down at the boy, certain that it didn’t matter how many times he’d embarrass himself trying to convey his feelings or make himself look like a total idiot because as long as it meant he had a shot with the boy walking by his side, he’d always keep trying. “Thanks, Cy,” is his only reply.

“You don’t have to say if you don’t want to but are you dressed like this because of your… stuff?” Cyrus asks in a teasing voice, deeming the question appropriate since the tension between them had completely dissipated. “Dressed like what?” TJ feigned confusion. “You know, like that,” Cyrus answers, vaguely motioning in his general direction. “Like… nice. It’s only Tuesday. There’s no reason to look this good on a Tuesday.” Cyrus mumbles that last part but he definitely hears it if the pink on his cheeks is any evidence. He just said I look good, he thinks. This must be working.

“Yeah I mean, you do. Not that you don’t look good the other days, but today it looks intentional,” he continues. Oh wait, did I say that out loud? “Yes. And that too,” the boy chuckles. “I would ask what’s going on but I’m assuming it’s your stuff again,” he adds, thankfully. “Uh yeah sort of,” TJ replies as a kind of blanket statement to justify his appearance and the fact that he forgot how thinking works. He knows he should say more, but they’re already arriving at school, so he decides against it. “Hey, we’re still a little early. Wanna have breakfast?” he asks, completely changing the subject. “Yes! I’m actually starving,” the brown-haired boy replies slightly too quickly and he thinks he knows why.

“Underdog! Did you not eat breakfast this morning??” TJ questions in disbelief. “Maybe not,” Cyrus responds, looking at the ground as they head for the cafeteria. “I wanted to ask you in person if you were okay and you walking me to school was the quickest way. By the way,” he says while yawning, “you owe a milkshake at the Spoon. I woke up too early for this.” The athlete knows that he isn’t joking but he doesn’t mind. All he hears is that he owes Cyrus a date at the Spoon. “Sure!” he exclaims a little too enthusiastically. “We can go tomorrow after school if you want.” Cyrus looks up at him and smiles: “It’s a date.” 

TJ swears he forgets how to breathe. He’s not sure how to respond to that, so he does the next best thing and coughs obnoxiously. “Oh my God! TJ, are you okay?” Cyrus questions and rests a hand on his back. Somehow, the added physical contact doesn’t help at all and TJ nearly hyperventilates. He is used to Cyrus’ touch, of course, but he certainly isn’t used to Cyrus touching him after suggesting that their hangout at the Spoon was a date. 

Thankfully, they are entering the cafeteria, which TJ sees as a chance to go recollect. He clears his throat. “Yeah, I’m fine. I must have accidentally swallowed some spit. I’m gonna go and get some water now while you get your food. I’ll be right back,” he announces in one breath and darts towards the water fountain without waiting for Cyrus’ response. Aware that he is still within his best friend’s peripheral vision as he stands in line, TJ takes several big gulps of water. Turns out, it helps. But he knows that even if he drinks the whole fountain, he’ll have to head back because avoiding Cyrus for a whole other day is out of the question, and so he does, with a smile—a normal one—plastered on his face. This is going to be a long day, he thinks to himself, silently this time.

Tag List

@tyrusmuff1n @thedampjofangirl @mackpocalypse @vi-the-best-you-can @judgemental-llama @thesubtextmachine @green-lemonboys @tjfruitymixitup @tyrustina @90svalykrie

[baskervilleangel]

Nativity, A Lovely Night

“There they stood — against all the great goods, the unholy evils, saints, devils, Fate, and the Gods themselves, they made their own choice and they won. They chose family above all else. They chose love and affection, over hatred and bitterness. With that choice, they also helped those who didn’t have a family or people to love them. Isn’t that really the entire point of life?” — The False Angel of Mercy

The night was cold, long, and exceptionally extreme for the two women. The last few hours of the night were spent getting to know one another in the comfort and safety of Jules’ hideout. In all manner of weird ways Vierabrït continuously changed her hairstyle, varying between quirky and eccentric, she was interested in trying something new.

While Vierabrït played around, Jules took the time to shower and clear her porcelain skin of the blood and dirt that clung to it. They were safe for now and gifted with small pleasantries which alleviated some of the tension of the world, a shower was simply one of those pleasantries. It took her just short of a half hour to tidy herself. When she emerged from the bathroom her appearance was softer, less of a dismayed survivor.

There was a sleek shine to her raven-black hair. It flowed in slight waves and contrasted perfectly with her glowing, ivory reminiscent skin. Her eyes, which were framed perfectly by long lashes, seemed to have been made in Heaven. They were light, silver-green in color, and adorned with the markings that painted her eyes. They moved and locked onto Vierabrït who was continuing her activities in an absent minded daze. The witch could not help but smile — and her smile was full of dynamite.

And while she watched Vierabrït, she started to laugh a hearty laugh at every new hairstyle the Lockwood thought was beautiful or perfect. After the fourth hairstyle, Jules took it upon herself to freshen up the mysterious enigma that had started to call “friend”.

“All right, come here, V.” Jules insisted and motioned for Vierabrït to sit in between her legs.

Vierabrït wasted no time and eagerly complied with her friend. With a balletic skip, Vierabrït moved and sat on the floor right in front of Jules. Unfortunately, she had sat facing Jules and had to be turned around. In a rather delightful way, Vierabrït hummed the tune of “Holy Diver”, it was yet another song on Jules’ mix tape that Vierabrït fell in love with.

“Hey, I think it’d be better if I moved your bangs out of your face. What do you think, V?” Jules questioned.

“Mhm!” Vierabrït looked back and flashed her signature smile, it was apparent that she agreed with the witch.

The witch wasted no time once she obtained the confirmation. She grabbed a tuft of Vierabrït’s silky periwinkle hair and moved it backwards. The light that now shined upon Vierabrït’s face forced her pupils to constrict in a moderate way. The dried dirt and blood that covered her face was now more apparent than ever. It highlighted not just a deceptive savagery, but also her willingness to survive and protect her new friend.

In the midst of her hair styling Vierabrït decided that now may be a good time to read the family bestiary. She rummaged through her satchel for a bit then pulled out her very own bestiary. It had a periwinkle color to it and was adorned with sapphire like gems that sat neatly into the leather like material. Gliding her bloodstained hand across the brittle pages of the book she opened up to a random page and began reading in a quiet whisper. With small patters Vierabrït drummed against the page with her long finger, almost as if she was waiting for something, anything, to happen.

Jules, who had peaked over the girl’s shoulder, observed the pages of the book with great curiosity. The language that was written upon the crumbling pages was entirely foreign, unique in design even. Upon first glance, some of the words and letters were similar to Romanian or Moldavian; with another glance it was similar to Russian or Ukrainian.

“What Language is that?” Jules questioned yet again.

“I… I don’t know,” Vierabrït responded with a hint of sadness in her voice. “It never had a name. For the first few centuries of my life it has been the only language I have ever known.”

Once again, Jules was reminded that Vierabrït had a rather secluded life devoid of contact or any major social interactions outside that of her family, of course. Vierabrït hadn’t even known what Music was until a few hours ago. Nearly immediately, sadness dissipated and was replaced with an intense determination. Vierabrït was filled with this feeling, eagered to close the gap between the two of them.

“Its talking about me if you were curious! Maica wrote it just for me!” Vierabrït erupted in a confident demeanor.

“Its about you? Can you read it out loud? I’ve been wondering what you are…” Jules voice became low, she wanted to understand and learn.

“I ams friend! I can show you what it says too!” Vierabrït exclaimed and pulled off one of the flower petals that were bound to the page by wax. “Since Maica is traveling the otherworld, and the real one, she attached these rose petals to some of the pages of our bestiaries. They’re covered with her blood and her power so that we can hear her read them to us. Don’t worry, friend, she speaks the english. There are lots of nice pictures too!” Vierabrït continued on to say and handed her one of the rose petals.

“So this Maica… who are they?”

“My parent! I haven’t met her, but I am told she is best!”

“You have two mothers? That is pretty cool.” Jules responded, simply enjoying her time learning about Vierabrït.

It took about ten minutes for Jules to finish styling Vierabrït’s hair. Her hair was now swept back and held together by three braids which mingled perfectly with her straight hair. Jules held up a mirror which made Vierabrït smile incredibly wide.

“Thank you!!!” Vierabrït shouted intensely and hugged Jules.

“Its fine, V, really!” Jules spoke trying to separate her face from Vierabrït’s.

Vierabrït had eventually pulled away from the witch and narcissistically stared at her brand new hairstyle. While Vierabrït admired her friend’s handiwork Jules stared intently at the blood stained rose petal that was placed inbetween her two fingers. A violent and malignant energy radiated off of it, much like the feeling that Vierabrït gave off, yet far darker.

Cruelty. Unreasonable sadism. It was a sensation that could only truthfully be described as “evil”. In all honesty, it frightened Jules. She cocked an eyebrow towards Vierabrït and stared from the corner of her painted eyes.

“V,” Jules called out to Vierabrït. The Lockwood’s head snapped to Jules with an exquisite flourish of her periwinkle hair. Round lavender eyes met with Jules’ jade like eyes. “What the hell are you?” Jules continued in a rather grim tone.

Vierabrït quickly shifted her attention to the rose petal then back up to Jules’ eyes. Widely Vierabrït grinned and quickly raised her eyebrows, urging the witch.

“Eat and you will see!” She twirled, once again flourishing her new hair style.

Jules was a woman who had not trusted easily; as such, she was exceptionally hesitant. Especially with this feeling of dread that lingered from both, her new friend, and this bloodstained flower petal. But against that — against all the warning signs and red flags, she felt a sense of trust from Vierabrït. A compulsion to believe and trust her friend, and so she had.

With a sigh, and a quick motion, she ingested the Rose petal. In a single instant, shorter than the blink of an eye, darkness began to fall upon her. It was a temporary blindness that befell her, and with it came a fear that she had never known.

“Three vials of blood, manipulated by self righteous foolishness.” A menacing and feminine lilting voice spoke to Jules. It was an accent that the witch could place, yet it was different from Vierabrït’s. “Seven shillings tossed to the whims of fate. Five beasts born of blood and evil across endless millennia.”

While the voice spoke baleful visages stormed her mind and besieged her sight. She saw three vials of blood that were spilled against the ground. The seven shillings, which were marked by that very same blood, cutting through the air. Then finally, she saw them. Eyes emanating an iridescent glow from the darkness that was just out of her reach. Above those eyes, reaching into the clouds, was a woman dressed in red observing the witch beyond the napalm skies.

All of this faded in the same obscuring darkness that had initially drenched her, and once again her sight was robbed from her. Then, like before, vision returned to her; but it was not her own. She saw a place she had never been and moved about without her say so. This place, this home, was comprised of neglected wooden floors, and filled with glass bottles in odd shapes. Baubles that adorned the walls alongside tapestries and paintings of people she had never known. If she didn’t know better, she would assume them as witches things.

When she had reached the bathroom she realized that she was not in her own body. But someone entirely foreign, much like the dwelling she had been forced to explore. This woman stared at the mirror and back at Jules from the reflection of the mirror.

In attire this woman was highly similar to Jules. She wore a black long-sleeved henley which fit her form perfectly. The sleeves were somewhat long and covered the back of her hands. Jules could even make out the dirtied black Jeans the woman had wore. It wasn’t until the woman spoke that Jules discovered her identity.

“Vierabrït, the gentlest and kindest of my children, I hope you are well, my darling.” The woman crossed her arms and gave a smile without baring her white fangs. “I have a present for you, I’ll put it in your bestiary when I deliver it. I want you and your elder sister to put them on only in the most desperate of situations… I know I can’t be there with you and your mother right now. But, I’m going to answer a few questions; some that may have been plaguing you for quite some time. The first, and most important thing, is that you are what is called a “Tribrid”. Like me, you are part Lycian. Like your mother and I, you are Bloodborne — well, Ţânкомар to be exact. Then finally, when you come of age, you will awaken the third part of you. Maybe that part of you will be a Primera, or maybe a Sabaoth like your mother. Who knows, maybe you’ll even be a Paradigma like me. I want you to know that with your immortal life you can choose to walk the path I treaded upon, or even your mother — or you can make your own. You have so many choices and we’re no longer bound by a twisted fate. I want you to know something else…” She paused for a brief moment, and moved her hand to wipe away the tears that pooled in her eyes.

“I’ll be there soon, I promise you that. And no matter what choice you make — I will always love you. I cannot wait to see the woman you grew up to be.”

Despite the evil Jules has felt from these two, she could not help but feel sad for them. When Vierabrït’s mother, Viola, placed her two fingers upon her lips then the mirror Jules understood then. Vierabrït’s demeanor, her kindness and jubilation, was no act. She had not feigned any of this. In fact, she understood something far more important. The Lockwoods, Vierabrït’s family, were evil by nature, but chose a different path. They chose another way, and that was the most important thing.

The disheartening images dwindled back to the gloom they came from, and the world transitioned back to the one Jules had known — and loathed. Vierabrït hovered over Jules’ face, a bit to close for comfort even. Apparently, Jules had collapsed during her trip into Viola’s memories.

“Oh good! I thought I unalived you!” Vierabrït said cheerfully and lifted Jules off the ground and back onto her.

“I have more questions than answers but I think I understand you more, in some weird magical way.” Jules looked at Vierabrït for a moment, a bit tired from the psychological strain, then she did something incredibly out of character. Without warning, Jules pulled her friend into a hug and held her in a tight embrace.

“Thank you. For being my friend, and saving my life — twice.”

“Its okay, friend! You ams good friend.” Vierabrït wasn’t confused by the sudden change in Jules demeanor. In fact, she hugged the witch back as delicately as she could.

“I could just be tired, but I think I actually understood that.”

Jules yawned a bit and rubbed her eyes before she pulled away from Vierabrït. A moment later, Jules found herself lumbering back to her bass, staggering all the way. It didn’t take long for the witch to find her way back to the couch so she could relax and play her bass. When Jules yawned again five minutes later Vierabrït responded in a rather adorable way.

“You should assault the straw!” Vierabrït’s wide round eyes locked onto Jules’ as she spoke. Just as soon as Jules thought she had a decent understanding of Vierabrït’s vocabulary she quickly found herself confused once again.

“I should what?” Jules asked and glanced up at Vierabrït. The sound that emanated from her bass came to an immediate halt.

“You should assault the straw!” She repeated, believing that Jules hadn’t heard her. In all reality, Jules was asking for clarity instead of the same question. “You know? Sleep. As you mortals often do.” Vierabrït continued. When she had, Jules immediately understood what Vierabrït was trying to say.

“Hay.” Jules responded to correct the young Vierabrït’s vocabulary.

“Oh, hey!” Vierabrït responded excitedly, believing now that Jules was trying to greet her for some odd reason.

“The saying is “Hit the hay” not “Assault the straw”, V.” Jules sighed and chuckled a bit. Spending time with Vierabrït was actually something that she subtly enjoyed.

Before long, and quite unexpected, Jules had fallen asleep, a much needed reprieve from the endless adventure that awaited them just beyond the wooden doors. Vierabrït, who had not needed to sleep, stayed up and listened to Jules’ mixtape.

After an hour or two she began to wonder what sleep was like. She had never done it, but she knew she was capable of it. She had never dreamed, nor had a nightmare. So, she snuggled up next to Jules, who had instinctively embraced the Lockwood, and attempted to fall asleep.

There they laid, bidding farewell to the distorted stars, and waited for the break of dawn with new understanding of one another. For the first time ever, Vierabrït dreamed of something spectacular. A world without monsters, evil nor fear. Only her friend and her family, living their best lives.

[nottswitch]

How Long It Takes To Fall For You

Quite a while ago anon requested a story about Ben being a gentleman in Victorian England. I thought it was a very interesting idea so here we are. Also, I reckon I should thank you, anon, you pushed me to expand my history knowledge as I had to learn more about that period!

Hope you won’t be disappointed :)

Ben met you five times in his life and in between every single one of them he often caught himself thinking that he wanted to see you again. And he always got too lucky to have these times repeated one after another.

First time happened in the park. You were walking along the main road alone, your smile shining bright like a sun. Ben was sitting on a bench, enjoying warm weather and the only free day of the week he had when he saw you. He wasn’t planning to have his eyes stuck on you at all but couldn’t help it when he noticed how elegant your movements were, how soft and gentle was your look, how beautifully your hair was flattering in the light summer wind. You were the embodiment of perfection, Ben thought then. He didn’t remember you from a massive number of dinners he attended, which only meant that you were pure and not involved in all the secular stuff happening there and there.

Ben felt almost an urge to get acquainted with you. He had never seen such a person, not spoiled by a rude and messed up world around.

He began thinking through the ways to introduce himself and not scare you off — although he was pretty sure that you didn’t lack men’s attention. Just as he decided to simply greet you, for a start, he noticed you approaching the bench he was sitting on. Ben immediately looked away and tried making himself look like he wasn’t interested at all. But he wasn’t able to prevent a glance at you when you sat down and leaned on the wooden back of the bench. Neither was he able to prevent a few glances afterwards, pretending to be reading a newspaper when you turned your head and looked at him.

You obviously noticed all the looks this man gave you. You, to be honest, expected him to. Moreover, you wanted. He caught your attention straight away, but you were too shy to start talking. He might have been grumpy and mean, who knows.

But thankfully Ben wasn’t able to hold himself any more and cleared his throat, ready to start a conversation.

“A nice day it is, right?” he said, putting a standard greeting smile on his lips.

You turned your head to him and smiled back. You were really happy he decided to talk first.

“It is indeed,” you answered, “Especially compared to the previous week.”

“It was raining a lot, yes.” Ben nodded and went silent for a second. “May I be honoured enough to know your name?” he continued after a while.

You giggled, covering your mouth.

“You might have skipped the weather topic,” you told Ben. He rolled his eyes and chuckled with you.

“I didn’t want to appear rude and weather is just a basic thing to start dialogues with.”

“I’m Y/N,” you said, smiling widely. Ben returned the smile and introduced himself too.

You didn’t talk for long though. You turned out to have some duties in the evening, so now you had to go. Ben couldn’t take his eyes off you as you were walking away.

Your first meeting went quick, you didn’t have proper time to get to know each other. But Ben was suddenly afraid of something. Afraid of falling for you. It was very unfamiliar to him, never before had he felt instantly attracted to someone, to a woman he only saw once and talked to for no more than ten minutes, to be precise.

He loved the way your soft voice sounded. He adored the way you were tucking a curl of your hair over your ear. He couldn’t imagine a girl more beautiful than you.

But there was a little problem. Ben Barnes had a wife.

Second time happened at a dinner. Ben didn’t even remember who was the host of it, he was bored and wandered around, stopping to say hi to people he didn’t know names of. And suddenly, when he was ready to secretly leave, he heard a familiar voice. His face lightened up with a grin and he started to get through the crowd to reach the source of it.

You were standing here, in a gorgeous beige dress, a pearl necklace, loosely wrapped around your neck, and what especially caught his eye, was a sophisticated hairstyle. Your maid must have spent a lot of time doing this masterpiece on your head, he thought.

Just as Ben thought about the not-so-rude ways to interrupt your talk, a person you were having a conversation with, noticed him.

“Oh, Benjamin, come here!” It was, as Ben recognised, Wilmer Hanrahan, a respected, successful man, but the key to his success was nothing but cunning and ability to flatter at the right time. Ben didn’t like him at all, and especially the fact that you were talking to him.

He shivered, hearing his full name, but pulled a friendly smile and approached you and Wilmer.

“I was expecting you, Benjamin!” said Hanrahan, but Ben didn’t look at him. All his attention was on you. Wilmer seemed to notice it and decided to introduce you.

“You must not know miss Y/N Y/L/N, Benjamin,” the man said.

“I do actually,” Ben answered. “We met three days before.”

And I haven’t stopped thinking about her, he almost added.

You smiled and nodded, happy to see at least one familiar person at this place.

Soon Wilmer left you, which you were both pleased with. Ben offered to take a walk, you agreed and soon you could’ve been found outside the house.

“So, how’re you finding it here?” Ben asked.

“Honestly? I don’t like such… events at all,” you admitted. “It was my second time but I can already tell.”

Ben nodded, thinking to himself that he totally agrees.

“And you’re not new to everything?” you continued, looking up at him with great interest.

“Unfortunately,” he said, smiling sadly. “But I have to attend those just to keep my reputation, you know. Being known by everyone isn’t always good.”

You looked at Ben with pity in your eyes, but he just smiled again and offered you his arm to hold on to.

You two talked through the whole evening. You enjoyed Ben’s company a lot, he seemed like an interesting man, who was also a true gentleman. And you couldn’t explain, even to yourself, why did you feel so upset when learned he has a wife.

Third time happened at a theatre. Before that, for almost a week since your last meeting, Ben has been thinking about you non-stop. He felt guilty in front of his wife — he wasn’t a man to cheat on his loved one. The problem was, his wife wasn’t a loved one. It were just their families who put Ben and her together. She knew he didn’t love her and this fact somehow made Ben feel even worse.

And one day, to distract himself, he decided to take his wife to a theatre. Doris — her name was Doris — wasn’t arguing. The choice of the play was easy — ‘Romeo and Juliet’ was the only play on.

How surprised Ben was, when he found out that next to him was sitting no one but you. As soon as you noticed him, you grinned, but this grin of your disappeared when you saw a woman hand in hand with Ben. You assumed it was his wife he was talking about and quickly looked away, afraid that he could notice your eyes, watery all of a sudden.

She was pretty, she was funny — Ben chuckled every time she whispered something in his ear — and she loved Ben, judging by the looks she gave him. And why would you be jealous anyway? Who were you? Just a girl, who he met twice and didn’t know much about. You couldn’t be considered even a friend.

A surprised sigh interrupted your thoughts. You turned your head and saw Ben, with that wide grin of his that you had time to be fond of already. You put a smile on your lips too, in an attempt to mask tears, ready to run down your cheeks. You needed to hold them, just for Ben.

“What a pleasure to meet you here,” he exclaimed and sat down on his seat next to you.

“Same to you,” you answered.

“Let me introduce you my wife, Doris.”

A woman, also sitting down, gave you a genuine smile. You instantly felt guilty for being kinda angry at her, she was a good person, you could tell it right away.

The play began in several minutes but all that Ben was capable of doing was looking at you. You were truly into the play, your eyes sparkling with interest and joy. You were sad when the episode on the stage was tragic, you lived with the characters and Ben found it fascinating.

“Have you ever thought of becoming an actress?” he asked you afterwards, when the play finished. Doris met her friend and walked away to talk to her. You two remained alone.

“It was my dream since childhood,” you answered, smiling, but with a hint of sadness.

“And why didn’t you become one?” Ben was truly surprised.

You shrugged.

“People always tell me I’m not good enough. And I… I don’t know, I accepted it.”

“Who tells you this?”

Ben couldn’t believe his ears. Someone must be really stupid to say it. You were a gift, in his opinion.

“My parents, my grandmother, my cousins… Everyone basically.”

“It’s just strange that they really think so,” Ben said. “I think you’re amazing and would be a great actress. I strongly believe in this.”

You blushed hard. No one has ever said something like this to you.

“You reckon?” you asked shyly, looking down at your feet.

Ben just nodded, giving you a gentle smile.

He and his wife left soon. Ben couldn’t sleep this night, tossing in his bed. You completely took over his mind — and, most probably, his heart.

Fourth time happened in the park again. The setting was almost the same as the first time you met, except now you weren’t in the central part of it, but in a secluded corner. There were beautiful green trees around, dense grass, softly embracing your bare feet. You let yourself this kind of pleasure from time to time — walking through the grass without your shoes on, enjoying the feeling you got.

Ben accidentally reached this corner of the park that you considered your private place, but you didn’t really mind. When you noticed him, you simply made a welcoming gesture. He warmly smiled at you, coming up.

“Didn’t expect to see you,” you said, continuing your walk through the trees.

“Me neither,” Ben chuckled, walking by your left side. “What is this place? Never been here.”

“I’m here almost every day. It’s so pleasant, I like to think here. Or read. Sometimes,” you giggled, covering your mouth, “Sometimes I even fall asleep under a tree. There are no people here, thankfully, or I’d be in trouble.”

Ben caught himself thinking that he wouldn’t mind sleeping with you under a tree. Last night he fully admitted to himself that he was in love — in the most strange, quick and stupid love he has ever been in. He didn’t know what would happen if he confessed it to you, but was determined to do it anyway. His feelings were too much of a weight on his shoulders. He needed to share them.

Ben stopped you right on a gorgeous glade filled with sunshine. You looked at him with surprise, and his serious face didn’t make you feel less worried.

“Is something wrong?” you asked, frowning.

Instead of answering Ben gently took your hand in his. It fitted there perfectly and he couldn’t help but smiled slightly, but immediately returned to the seriousness.

“No, nothing. I just… I would like to tell you something.”

“What is it then?” you wondered, trying not to pay attention to the fact you were literally holding hands now.

“I…”

No, Ben couldn’t. He had a wife. A family of his own. You were just a friend.

“I’m in love with you,” he breathed, closing his eyes just not to see your reaction. He wished the ground would open under him and he would fall and never come back.

You parted your lips in pure shock. You expected to hear everything but those words. When Ben opened his eyes, he was met by your teary ones.

“Do you mean it?” you blurted out, not really knowing how to properly react.

“I do mean it,” Ben replied, not able to breathe.

“But… you have a wife, Ben!”

“And what then?”

“How about Doris? Don’t you… don’t you love her?” You were confused.

“No.”

“But you’re married! Doesn’t it mean that you love each other?”

Ben almost laughed at your naive words.

“It doesn’t work like this. Not at all.”

His words were so intimidating that you just couldn’t accept them.

“I don’t want to get married then,” you said, tears starting to flood down your face by now.

You ran away that day. The whole night was spent crying in the pillow.

Ben’s feelings were mutual. But they were too wrong.

Fifth time happened at a seaport. Goodbyes weren’t long. You stood in front of each other, silence established between you for some time, until Ben decided to break it.

“Are you sure?” he asked, looking straight in your eyes.

You nodded, trying to avoid any eye contact.

“I have no right to hold you then.”

The last thing you remembered was a light kiss on your lips. The last thing remained from Ben Barnes. The last thing you left in England.

Ben met you five times in his life and in between every single one of them he often caught himself thinking that he wanted to see you again. Once he just didn’t turn out lucky enough.

[doe-praeludiumofred]

Chapter 1, Section 2-Chance Meeting of a Sworn Friend; Scene 3

Praeludium of Red, page 44-52

♣ Yukina ~In the Beelzenian Empire, "Northwest Region"~

.

After I'd had lunch and left the inn the next day, Gumillia brought me to a garrison for the Beelzenian army in the northwest. I was there to meet a certain someone who was there.

Gumillia had told me she'd arrange for a carriage, but it didn't look very far until our destination, and I'd been wanting to get a look around Rucolebeni's rural landscape, so I'd hoped to walk there.

"As long as that's not a bother to you, Miss Gumillia."

"I don't mind. I don't hate walking."

The road was very cleanly maintained, so walking on it wasn't especially hard.

"The mood around you's changed quite a bit from before, so I didn't know," I mentioned to her.

The mood she gave off changing wasn't from her appearance. In terms of clothes she was wearing mostly the same robe she had five years ago, and her hairstyle was unchanged as well. If anything was different, it was those glasses; she hadn't worn them before.

But what had really changed was how her speech was much smoother than it had been, and--there was a certain something…I can't express it well in words, but it felt like she gave off a more womanly glamour than she used to.

"I see you've started wearing glasses."

"Find them odd?"

"No, they actually suit you very well."

The wind blew, and Gumillia's hair fluttered faintly. Her green hair was a characteristic of someone from the country of Elphegort--an Elphe.

I had lived in Elphegort, located to the north of Lucifenia, until I was nine years old. The mansion that I'd lived in burned down because of the war five years ago. It was a place that harbored both happy and painful memories for me, and on my journey I'd passed through without stopping to visit.

"I had thought for sure that you weren't in the Evillious region anymore. You told me that you were heading East."

Certainly, Beelzenia was situated much farther east than the country of Marlon. But from the way that she'd talked about it five years ago, I'd become convinced on my own that she was talking about a country much farther east than that.

"Truthfully I wanted to do that. But some things happened, and so I have been working as advisor to the Beelzenian Emperor for the last two and a half years."

"You, an outsider, hold important office in the Beelzenian Empire? That's amazing."

"Well, it was from Elluka's connections."

Apparently Elluka had a deep bond with the imperial family. Though Gumillia told me shortly that she didn't know what kind of relationship they had, specifically.

Was Elluka staying with Gumillia in the emperor's castle?

"Well then, how has Miss Elluka been doing?" I asked.

Gumilia, surprisingly, replied, "Don't know."

"What?"

She told me that Elluka had gone missing. She'd gone astray three years ago, and they hadn't seen each other since. Gumillia had been searching for her, but she wasn't able to enter Marlon territory because of the "Witch Hunt Order", so it was hard.

"The 'Witch Hunt Order', huh? ...Are you alright yourself, Miss Gumillia?"

"As long as I am, in this country."

Sure enough, Beelzenia, with all of its clear hostility towards Marlon, was probably the safest place in all of Evillious for her to be.

So it seemed that the criminal the country of Marlon was pursuing was her. The Marlon government sent demands to the Beelzenian emperor for Gumillia's extradition. The emperor immediately turned them down.

…Once more I became interested in the connection between Elluka and the Beelzenian imperial family.

At any rate, unfortunately my hope of perhaps seeing Elluka Clockworker didn't become a reality. But it was huge that I could meet up with the person closest to her instead. My chances of running into Elluka were far and away much higher if I accompanied Gumillia than just blindly searching.

At the far end of my vision I could see an oxcart carrying two peasants headed our way. The oxcart would pass us by, and from there advance towards town.

Come to think of it, I thought to myself, remembering something and giving a nod of gratitude to Gumillia, "It was you who sent out permission for me to enter the country, wasn't it?"

"Yes, I remembered your name. Why have you come to a place like this, anyway?"

"Why indeed…I guess you could say I'm on a journey to broaden my horizons."

I didn't touch on the vessels of deadly sin. Even if she knew anything regarding that, Elluka's favored apprentice was hardly likely to tell me about it that easily. It had been written in some book somewhere that a sorcerer never disclosed anything on the traditions relating to their power.

"Well then, ought we to make an appearance at the emperor's castle after all?" I asked, feeling a little uneasy.

"Ah, there's little need. I had just thought, that would make meeting up easier. Though you ignored it, like I imagined you would," Gumillia replied, faintly smiling. Indeed, I could tell that she'd gotten to be much more expressive than she used to be.

"Sorry about that…Oh, what's that over there?"

I pointed in front of us.

I began to see a lot enclosed by a fence at the other end of the road. Stone monuments of varying shapes like crosses, trapezoids, and humanoid figures stood lined up inside the fence.

"Is this a graveyard?"

"Yes. The garrison is just through this place. The Langley unit is there."

"It's in a pretty disturbing location, huh…?"

According to Gumillia, graveyards like this were everywhere in Beelzenia.

"Almost all of these graves are for people who died of the Gula disease."

The Gula disease was an epidemic that began to spread through all of Evillious about fifteen years ago, and Beelzenia was said to be the place where it started from. A new cure was developed recently, but up until that point it was feared as an incurable illness.

From inside the graveyard I could hear a woman shouting thoughtlessly,

"Oooi! This way, this waaay!"

She was wearing a soldier's uniform, so she was likely someone from the garrison. Gumillia started walking towards her, so I followed suit.

"Thank you for coming to meet us, Commander Langley."

"Oh ho and what's this? This a guest, Master Gumillia?"

"Uh-huh. I'll introduce you--this is Yukina."

"Nice to meet you, Miss Chartette. I am Yukina Freezis."

I hesitated for a moment on calling myself by the Freezis surname, but as this wasn't land belonging to Marlon, and I'd already made it known by coming in here in the first place, at this point there was probably no need to hide it from someone in the military at least.

"…"

Chartette immediately shut her mouth. I became a touch anxious that I had done something rude without realizing it.

"…W-WOOOOOOOAH!"

Chartette suddenly started to scream. Sensing some danger to myself, I took two steps back.

"Mademoiselle Yukina! You're the super promising new author that had your name added to the report on 'Novelists That Are Hot Right Now!', aren't you!?"

"Ch-charmed…"

"Dark Crow and the Three Foxes was so great, yannow! It had such a fresh new style set in a classical element, and what a surprising ending, yannow! The scene at Dandarah Bridge where Dark Crow’s true goals came to light especially was so moving I just had to--GAAH!"

Suddenly a nearby tombstone flew into the air and charged at Chartette. The poor girl was blown back, and she tumbled to the ground at an alarming speed.

When I turned around, I saw Gumillia chanting some kind of spell while holding her left hand palm forward.

That was Gumillia's "magic" that I hadn't seen for five years.

"I did that because she was annoying me. Was this any of your concern?"

"Oh n-no…It's just that it's still such a dramatic and strange power, this 'magic'."

Even when viewing it as magic, throwing a tombstone at someone was probably an act that would be frowned on by a pious Levin adherent if they saw it. But Gumillia didn't seem to care about that at all.

I wanted to ask more about this magic if I could, but as I wasn't an apprentice myself she was unlikely to teach me her secrets.

"Anyway, is Miss Chartette alright?"

Tumbling about as she was, Chartette had crashed into the graveyard fence; she was now curled up like a worn out, ragged dust-cloth.

"She's fine. There's no problem with her. She's sturdy."

"I see, well I'm very grateful for that," I replied with a smile.

"Oops, this won't do. The introduction wasn't over. This girl in the curly pigtails crawling on the ground is the commander of the Langley division, Chartette."

Chartette stood, shaking like a newborn fawn.

"…Chartette Langley…Pleased ta meetcha…"

"It's true, she's still alive. Spectacular."

.

From there the three of us ended up heading to the garrison.

"We'll be there in a minute, yannow."

Chartette stood at the vanguard, leading all of us.

"I'm honored to meet one of the heroes of the revolution, Miss Chartette Langley," I said, Chartette looking surprised.

"You know about me?"

"Yes, my father had a hand in that revolution too. I'd looked over his documents and newspaper articles at the time."

Chartette Langley. The hero who fought in the Lucifenian revolution as one of the revolutionary soldiers and magnificently defeated one of the Three Heroes, Mariam Phatipe, in the "Battle of the Heavenly Yard".

I asked her if she could tell me a bit more about that some time.

"Collectin' data huh! Sure, I'll tell ya all about it toni...Oh, we're here."

Chartette raised her head mid-sentence. After making our way through the graveyard I could see a small settlement.

"This is the Langley Unit's Garrison."

<<prev------directory------next>>

[sector-z-knd]

Delightful Encounters: David

It wasn't easy to be part of a hive mind and concentrate alone. If he were alone and working on the same topic as the others, that would have been easier. Not easy, but easier. If he were with the other four, that would have been ideal! But Mr. Willems seemed to think otherwise, and so the boy and his siblings had been split apart between history partners. For a paper. That he could have written himself. With his siblings.

David impatiently tapped his pencil on the notebook, trying to string together the phrase he needed while feeling like a wire was being yanked in the back of his head. Which in essence, there was. David, Ashley, Bruce, Constance, and Lenny were all scattered through the library, each being forced to work on a different topic with their lab partners. If there were a greater distance between them than a few shelves, this feeling of intense multitasking would have dissipated to be replaced with dull static. As it was, the proximity led to loud static punctured with different history subjects passing through like distracting leaf boats on an otherwise still river. That was the beauty and tragedy of a hive mind: it was a bond as thin as spider silk, wide as an ocean, as strong as iron, and impossible to break without sheer force. And sheer force was sitting to his left, shoving a history book across the table with an indignant huff. "They expect me to believe the moon landing was fake?! Man, these Einsteins don't know squat!" the dark-skinned girl snorted, tilting her chair onto its back two legs so she could give the book a proper glare from under her signature red hat. Abigail Lincoln, former Kids Next Door operative, once a cool-tempered, ill-mannered child, now a cool-tempered, ill-mannered teen. Even years later, she hadn't lost that cold fire that had given the Delightful Teens problems in their youth. David almost smiled, knowing that Abigail couldn't even look back on those fights with satisfaction, as KND operatives were all decommissioned on their thirteenth birthdays, with no exception for Abigail. She blew a bubble with her gum and popped it loudly, letting her chair fall onto all fours so she could prop her chin on her hands. "If these history buffs were so smart, why don't they just go to the moon? Check and see if their fool nonsense is real fact instead of the opinions of old geezers." "Tell me about it," muttered David, though in all honesty, he didn't care about her opinion, only in her ability to do well on homework. He blew a puff of air into his bangs to make them flutter before returning his attention to his paper. Most of what he'd written made sense, but he'd give the proofreading work to- Fwip! David blinked, the sudden difference in lighting surprising. He didn't even need to turn his head to see Abigail lower herself back into her chair. "You'd see the truth better without those bangs getting in your way." The teen turned his head, looking dead into brown eyes with his own sky blue, and shook his head once. As one, all his bangs slid obediently back into place, hiding his gaze. Part of his mysterious demeanor was held solely because no one was sure what he was really looking at, and instead were left in confusion as to what he sought in his glance. A perfect intimidation tactic. Abigail let out a short laugh, amused at his defiance. "How do you even see through that mess, anyway?" "My hair is very thin," was the short reply, David not sparing her a glance in favor of his work. Two seconds later, the girl reached over and flicked his hair out of his face again, earning an irritated grunt. "What?" he growled. "What's the deal with you hiding your face all the time. Why don't you brush it back?" "I don't like it." "Here now-" "Stop-" "Try it for five minutes-" "Do you mind?!" Before he knew it, David was being bombarded by both of Abby's hands trying to swipe at his bangs, and was forced to slap stupidly at her hands and deflect her with his palms. Up, up, left, over, under, feint right and jab. He smirked; he still knew all her moves. With practiced ease from years of fighting, he fought her wrists into his hands, giving her a triumphant smirk to make her stop struggling. However, now that he'd caught her, what was he supposed to do with her? A moment was taken to assess the situation. Abigail was half out of her seat and leaning over him a little, face puckered ever so slightly in playful yet concentrated effort. She was actually eye-level with the freakishly tall boy when he sat. As always, her gaze was cool and steady, a silent dare that made his jaw clench in frustration. "Why does it matter to you so much?" He hissed, squeezing her wrists in warning. Whatever her insipid reasoning could be, nothing she said would persuade him to change his hairstyle. It was one of the few things that were truly under his control. "Because," came the reply, "you have some nice eyes." "Well, I-! Uh," His scathing remark died in his throat as he digested her words. Was that actually a compliment? Instead of the harsh, vitriolic banter that had plagued their childhoods and had continued into their teen years, she had actually given him a compliment. Some things must change after decommissioning, he figured. Nevertheless, his willpower was stronger than sweet words. "Tough," he sneered, releasing her wrists and pressing his bangs back over his face. The man was nothing if not proud, and he was no push-over. With that sneer still on his lips, he turned away again, intent on finishing this paper before the end of study hall. She pushed his bangs back. Both of David's hands slapped onto the table, complete irritation making his whole body curdle. "You. NEED. To. Stop." "You know I'm just going to keep doing it until you ease up." David's hands turned to fists. How dare she? How dare she look at him with that expectant, smug expression? How dare she try to force him to do something against his will? How dare she think she had any right to dictate how he should look, when she had the freedom to express herself however she wanted? Like dressing up as some sort of skinny red and blue flagpole? ...look. A sly smile slid onto the brunette's lips, making Abigail narrow her eyes in suspicion. There was obviously something new going through the boy's mind, his air of confidence returning as he turned his whole body to her, previous fists smoothed flat. "Fine, I'll move my bangs back. But I get to wear your hat." Abigail's surprised snort turned derisive mid-grunt. "Yeah right, don't nobody wear Abby's hat. Private property." She pinched the rim defensively, pulling it down until only the lower half of her face was seen. How ironic. "Then no deal," grinned the other, expression now as smug as the one Abigail had worn not thirty seconds ago. "If you can't take the heat, then don't dish it out. No hat, no bangs!" Oh, how the tables had been turned, and David again had the coveted upper hand. Now she would finally stop pestering him, and he could move on with his work in peace. That's what he thought until a red hat appeared in his vision. Surprised eyes trailed up the brown arm to the slender face that was sour with a scowl. Without her hat, she looked so much more vulnerable, very un-Abigail-like, but her curled lip let him know that if he even dared to try something, he would pay for it ten fold. "Five minutes," she growled, jabbing the hat at him. David's heart plummeted all the way down into his feet, and he tried to backpedal, leaning away from the hat like it was covered in lice. "Ah, no, I meant, but..." His panic rippled out over the spider thread in the back of his mind, crashing into the shores of his siblings, each of whom sent back waves of confusion and concern. Across the library, four separate chairs squeaked as four people pushed back in welling dread. Again, Abigail thrust the hat at him, open face now dangerous enough to turn boiling coffee into an iced mocha. Another urgent squeak as chairs were moved even further. The line in the back of David's head tightened as the distance between the group shortened. His desire to again be whole was straining against Abby's wilting stare; he couldn't meet her gaze, couldn't look at her at all with the threads twisting tighter. His eyes darted around for an excuse, a solution, and fell on his notebook. They... were supposed to be writing a paper. History. Class work. The Delightful Teens were always impeccable in their class work. If they were all in one spot, they wouldn't be working with their partners. They would surely fail the assignment if they didn't work on it with their partners. The cold realization filtered through years of osmosis before finally reaching the other four, each of whom slowly sank back down in their seats. The feeling of belonging ebbed into the cracks of responsibility. David was again alone in his mind, except for the static buzzing with concern, just soft enough to be noticeable. All this happened within three seconds of David seeing his notebook, but the ordeal made him feel hundreds of years old. When he looked up through his seemingly ancient eyes, a red hat was still held out and a dark-skinned girl was still glaring at him. He almost wilted under that gaze, but reminded himself of what was at stake. Inhaling sharply through his nose, he snatched up the cap and stuffed the thing on his head. Fine. This was still a victory for The Delightful Teens. Lose the battle, win the war. Unfortunately, the hat was too large for his oblong head, and slid almost all the way in front of his face. Abigail must have a really big head. Readjusting the strap didn't help either. He finally settled for putting the hat on with the brim in the back, the thing tipping precariously on his head, some of his hair peeking out from the hole over the strap. "Ahem," snorted Abigail, catching his attention again. She had her arms crossed and was leaning back in her chair, shoulders hunched like she was trying to make herself smaller. A wave of triumph swept through David as he knew she was feeling the same sense of loss as she had been trying to foist on him. However, once catching his eye, Abigail reached over and pushed his bangs out of his face, slipping the hair under the strap. "There! Now aren't you a handsome boy!" She chuckled in a saccharine sweet voice that made him want to gag. "Whatever," he droned, rolling his eyes widely to prove that none of this would be the picnic she'd hoped for. Attention dropped flatly to his notebook, and he started writing the phrase that had escaped him earlier. Nothing was going to distract David from his work now, not even the soft, almost affectionate chuckle to his left, the dark hair flipping into his peripherals as she brought her braid over her shoulder, or the creak as she leaned closer, no doubt watching him from the corner of those brown eyes. ...nevertheless, it was all very distracting.

[keldae]

For Xaja & Theron - ♡: Accidentally falling asleep together

This one was fun to do! Thanks for the prompt. ^.^

Why can things never go according to plan? Theron inwardly wondered as he leaned against the wall, frowning at the small crack in the otherwise-boarded-up window. Outside, Tatooine’s twin suns scorched the tiny, abandoned moisture farm that was just visible through the crack. At least the air inside the old hovel was sheltered from the sun, even if the airflow wasn’t that great.

He would have opened the window to try and get a crossbreeze going, but that would have just announced his and Xaja’s position to the large and well-armed pack of Sand People travelling past the farm. These ones, fortunately, seemed to be migratory and not inclined to settle down in the ruined buildings.

Unfortunately, they were moving at what Theron was convinced was the slowest possible pace. “I’ve seen Hutts move faster than this,” he quietly grumbled.

“To be entirely fair, it’s mid-afternoon. Maybe they’ll pick up their pace when it gets a little cooler.” Xaja slumped down in an entirely undignified heap beside the wall and took a sip from one of her water canteens. At least she and Theron hadn’t come unprepared to meet up with Choza to plan their takedown of the Star Fortress looming overhead, just out of Theron’s field of vision. “Are they still moving, at least?”

Theron glanced back out. “Yeah, and not towards us. But they’re still too close, we’ll be seen and chased down if we try to move now. I don’t know about you, but I’m not keen on fighting a group that size.”

“It’s too hot to fight anything,” Xaja complained. She’d shed her lightly armoured jacket, and now was down to a tank top that clung to her in just the right ways to make Theron feel a rush of heat that had nothing to do with Tatooine’s suns. “We’re in for a long wait, then?”

“Looks like it.” Theron forced his stare away from Xaja’s petite frame to take a final look out the window. “We’ve probably got an hour, at least. Assuming they don’t stop.”

“May as well take the opportunity for a rest, right?” Xaja raised one of the canteens and gave it a pointed shake in Theron’s direction as he turned back around. “Drink something. I don’t know how to save you if you die of dehydration out here.”

“What, aren’t you amazing at everything?” Theron teased as he mimicked her example, shrugging off his jacket and sitting down beside her. The red leather may have offered some protection from stray blaster bolts and sharp objects, but it was a relief to expose his bare arms to the air.

“Remember what happened the last time I was given medical equipment more complicated than a kolto gel pack?” Xaja shook her head and smiled wistfully as she handed Theron the canteen. “I think Doc nearly had an aneurism.”

It wasn’t any matter that their first touches had been over five years ago, or that Theron was a regular fixture in Xaja’s bed- the brush of their fingers on the canteen still sent a pleasurable jolt through him. “And here I’d thought he was just stressed out because you’d gone tearing through the Revanite camp to find me without a plan after ‘find me’,” he said with a chuckle.

“No- well, okay, maybe that, with only an Imperial agent for backup who Doc didn’t trust yet. But apparently my attempts to put kolto on you were a crime to medicine.” Xaja smiled, but Theron still caught a glimpse of the sadness in her eyes that talking about her old crew still brought up.

“I don’t remember a hell of a lot from between you hauling me out of that base and coming to in the village to hear him grumbling,” he quickly said to distract Xaja from the painful memories, “but I’m still here, so you can’t have done that terrible a job. For what it’s worth, my semi-conscious self then probably appreciated your efforts.” He paused and grinned. “And if past-Theron didn’t properly thank his rescuer and would-be medic then for saving his ass, I’d like to make up for that now.”

Xaja softly laughed, the grief in her eyes fading to amusement. “I can’t actually remember if past-Theron thanked past-Xaja for that, mostly because I spent most of that speeder ride terrified you were going to die on me anyway. But present-Xaja fully accepts those thanks, and would like to add that saving your ass was totally worth it.”

Theron grinned and leaned in to kiss Xaja’s cheek. “Mmm, still feel like I need to fully emphasize how much I appreciate all your heroism with saving my hide all those times…” he murmured as his lips travelled down to her jawline and neck, her pulse racing under her sweat-dampened skin.

“This is hardly the-” Xaja softly gasped as Theron found one tender area of her neck to nibble at. “… the time or place, Theron!” But her hands had still come up to touch him, slim fingers tangling into his hair to keep him right where he was on her neck.

“We do have time,” Theron whispered against her skin. “It’ll be a while before the tribe is pas-” Xaja suddenly froze, making the spy look up worriedly. “What’s wrong?”

“Shhh!” Xaja’s eyes darted to the crumbling staircase the pair had climbed up not much earlier. “We’ve got company.”

Theron frowned as he lifted his head, reaching for a blaster as he strained his ears and tried to forget how turned on he’d been seconds ago. “What do you feel?” he whispered.

Xaja’s eyes narrowed in concentration. “Two below us,” she breathed out, barely audible. “A few more scouting nearby.”

Blast it! The kriffers had the worst possible timing. Theron shifted as he raised the blaster, making sure to keep his body between the staircase and Xaja. The Sand People were very stealthy, but he was pretty sure he could hear the rustling of robes on the ground below- and then, a grunt in the aliens’ language that he couldn’t understand. He glanced back at Xaja and mouthed ‘Fight?’ at her.

Xaja thought for a second, then shook her head. ‘Too many’, she mouthed back, gesturing to the window and the rest of the tribe outside.

Theron frowned, then sharply looked to the staircase. That was the distinct sound of a footstep on a stair that he’d heard. Apparently Xaja wasn’t going to get her wish to remain hidden and out of combat. If I hit it with a toxin dart, it’ll be quiet until its buddies come looking for it, but maybe it’ll buy us time to find a way out of here-

A slim hand landed on his wrist and lowered his arm despite the ascending enemy. “Trust me,” Xaja breathed into Theron’s ear, barely loud enough for him to hear her, close proximity notwithstanding.

Theron gave Xaja an incredulous look, then looked back as the Sand Person’s helmeted head came into view. The hand on his wrist tightened to firmly push his blaster down despite his instincts. Xaja’s other hand waved through the air as the Sand Person turned to look directly in their direction in the traditional style of a Jedi mind trick.

The alien paused and shook its head in confusion, but didn’t start shouting an alarm to its fellow tribe members. It took a step forward, but Xaja waved her hand again, and it froze, seeming to think for a moment before it turned and headed back down the stairs. Theron heard the mumbles and growls of the nomads’ language, then footsteps and silence.

On silent feet, Xaja got up and crept over to the window. “They’re gone for now,” she whispered, “but there’s still half the tribe exploring outside. I think I’ve tricked the one into thinking up here is empty and too dangerous to explore, but it’s hard to do a mind trick that influences the mind of someone who doesn’t speak the same language.”

“Those don’t wear off fast, do they?” Theron whispered as he glanced suspiciously at the staircase.

“Not usually. I caught it off-guard so it should take well.” Xaja crept back over and slid down beside Theron again. “But we’ll have to be careful. Not sure how many I can mindtrick all at once.”

Theron nodded and settled in to wait out the tribe’s exploration of the area, his fingers drifting down to weave into Xaja’s hand comfortably. They had to pick the hottest time of the day to trap us in here, he inwardly grumbled. At least sitting in the shaded, if somewhat stuffy, attic of an abandoned hovel was better than picking their way through the canyon in the blazing sunlight. Although to be entirely fair, moving would have kept him from thinking about the long nights he’d pulled recently to prepare for this new meetup. Some desert cultures treated the hottest part of the afternoon as a naptime, and right now, he could understand why.

But no, he had to stay awake to keep watch. That heaviness in his eyes was just sand that he’d picked up during their gallivanting around Tatooine. He softly sighed and squirmed a bit until his aching back found a bit of respite in his position.

“You okay?” Xaja softly whispered as she took another sip from her canteen.

“Yeah,” Theron murmured. “Back’s just sore. Floor’s not exactly luxury seating.” He grinned and rested his cheek against her shoulder.

Xaja smiled and teasingly raked her fingers through Theron’s hair. She was the only person in the galaxy allowed to muss up Theron’s hairstyle. “Sorry,” she whispered. “Anything I can do to help?”

“I’ve found a comfy human pillow, and it’s pretty, too.” Theron winked up at her and snuggled in to make a point. “Much better already.”

Xaja had to press her fingers against her lips to not laugh. “I live to serve,” she murmured, her fingers continuing to stroke through his hair.

Theron did try to stay awake, honestly, and every so often jolted his eyes towards the staircase when he thought he heard something from downstairs. But between the heat, the fatigue, and his comfortable human pillow with her constant playing with his hair, it was an embarrassingly short time before his eyes finally closed and his breathing evened out. Those other desert cultures with their afternoon naps in the heat had a smart idea…

Xaja had drifted into meditation after several minutes of silence between her and Theron, using the Force to track the points of life that were the Sand People. They’d finally moved away from the hovel, but were still far too close to risk moving yet.

That suited their situation just fine. She felt Theron’s Force-presence fade into sleep despite his best efforts, and wasn’t sure whether she should smile fondly or groan in exasperation. Staying awake in the heat and immobility was difficult enough without a peacefully-resting man resting on her like he was, all comfortably snuggled into her neck. She was tempted to nudge him awake, but she could see the lines of fatigue running through his Force-signature. He needs rest. And he feels so comfortable and at peace- it would be cruel to wake him up.

The fact that she hadn’t stopped stroking his hair, even in her meditative state, had exactly nothing to do with that.

The petite Jedi carefully shifted so she could rest her head against his without disturbing him, casting out again with the Force. Yes, the Sand People were still moving past the hovel with no further interest in the supposedly-empty buildings, but they’d be a while in moving to a safe enough location for the two hiding humans to escape. Plenty of time to meditate and let Theron get a well-deserved nap in. And the fact that Theron’s slow, even breathing was setting the pace for her own breaths and his arm had fallen across her waist to cuddle her despite the heat had absolutely nothing to do with how difficult her thoughts were becoming to order and align properly.

Jedi mental discipline only goes so far when confronted with heat and a comfortable snuggling companion, and it wasn’t long before Xaja’s meditation turned into a nap of her own, cheek pillowed in his hair. What better way to spend a couple of hours in the heat and silence of a hiding place?

[ask-puppojiminnie]

The Daily Misadventures of Jimin and Taehyung

I’m back with another misadventure! I swear I didn’t mean for this to end up being 3,254 words…it just sorta happened ^^;

But I hope you enjoy! I apologize ahead of time in case there are any mistakes. (Also, Day 1 is titled Studio Break-In, but I forgot to add that last time)

Day 2

Mall Mishap

Jimin was napping peacefully on the couch when the door opened and two figures walked in. But he quickly woke up when a familiar voice rang out and echoed through the house. “Jiminie~!”

He sat up, his ears perked. “I’m in my playroom!” His tail wagged as he heard footsteps getting nearer. As soon as Taehyung saw Jimin, he morphed into a blur that bowled into Jimin, knocking him back onto the couch.

“Jiminie!” Tae’s tail wagged happily as he sat back. “I hope you’re ready, ‘cause we’re going on an adventure!”

“An adventure?” Jimin looked quizzically at Jungkook who was still standing in the doorway and shrugged his shoulders in response. “But don’t you remember last time we went on an “adventure”? We broke Yoongi-hyung’s keyboard!”

Taehyung waved his hand dismissively, “He had an extra one! It wasn’t that big of a deal.”

Jimin sighed, but he didn’t press the matter any further. Instead he asked, “So where are we going on today’s adventure?”

“The mall!”

Jungkook spoke up. “The mall? Tae, I thought you said on the way here that you wanted to go to the park?”

Tae shrugged. “Yeah, but I changed my mind and besides, that was like an hour ago.”

“It was literally five minutes ago.”

“Oh well. We’re going to the mall today!” Taehyung jumped to his feet, pulling Jimin up with him.

“Yoongi-hyung says I’m not allowed to the mall without my leash though.” Jimin said, chewing on his lower lip.

“I’m sure it’ll be fine if you don’t have your leash one time. What could go wrong?” Tae grinned reassuringly, “Come on, Jiminie. It’ll be fun!”

~

Jimin shouldn’t have listened to Tae. Because if he hadn’t listened and had stayed home, this wouldn’t be happening. Which means, Jimin got too excited and wandered off, losing Tae and Jungkook in the process. And to make matters worse, he just had to have forgotten his phone at home. He rubbed at his stinging eyes, wiping away the tears before they could fall.

Calm down, Jimin. It’s not that bad. Just…just think. If I were Tae, where would I go?

~

Jimin stood just outside of the toy store, looking very extremely and obviously lost. He scanned the crowd, hoping desperately to see Taehyung’s head bobbing above most everyone else. He didn’t see Tae, but his heart lifted when he saw white bunny ears attached to a familiar coconut hairstyle. Jimin’s ears perked and he rushed forward to tackle Jungkook in a hug.

“Kookie!” Jimin pressed his face into Jungkook’s chest, tail wagging. “I lost you! And Tae!” He looked up.  “Where’s Tae?”

“Taehyung? I’d hoped he was with you, hyung.” Jungkook’s bunny ears drooped slightly. “I looked at a single advertisement in a store window and when I look back, you were gone and I barely caught a glimpse of Tae turning a corner. But by the time I got to where I saw him last, he was gone.”

Jimin felt panic wash over him and tears welled up in his eyes again. “Jungkook, where would he be? If he’s not here in the toy store?” His voice was slowly rising in pitch.

“Hey. Hyung.” Jungkook tried to get Jimin’s attention, but the hybrid was nearing panic-mode, his face still buried in the bunny hybrid’s chest. “Jimin-hyung!” He didn’t yell. “Calm down, it’s okay. We’ve only checked one store that Tae likes. I’m sure he’s fine. I bet he’s sitting outside of a store, wondering” Jimin calmed down enough to look up at Jungkook, a few escaped tears wetting his cheeks.

“Y-yeah…” Jimin took a deep breath. “You’re right.”

Jungkook relaxed as Jimin sat back, only to tense up as he realized. Jimin had knocked him over when he hugged him. And they were still sitting on the floor in the middle of the mall. He became painfully aware of all the passing stares they were getting. “Uh, Hyung? Are you good to stand up? We should probably find Tae before he gets in trouble.”

“Oh, yeah, okay.” Jimin and Jungkook stood up, Jimin oblivious to the stares due to thinking hard about where Tae had gone. He suddenly looked up at Jungkook, eyes a bit brighter. “I think I know where he might be!”

~

Jimin and Jungkook hurried through the mall, as quickly as two could hurry through a crowded mall, Jimin hanging onto Jungkook’s shirt so as to avoid being separated again. As they neared the candy store, Jimin let go of Jungkook’s shirt and rushed ahead, Jungkook following. Jimin stopped just inside the store straining to see Taehyung.

“Hyung, the store is really big. How about you take that side,” Jungkook pointed to the right, “and I’ll take this side.” He then pointed to the left. “Then, we can meet in the back of the store.”

“Okay.” Jimin nodded, before starting towards the back of the store, his head swiveling back and forth. His ears drooped more the further into the store he went. There were no floppy Jack Russell ears or boxy smiles that he could see. He reached the back of the store before Jungkook and hoped that when the bunny hybrid arrived, he would have Taehyung with him.

But when Jungkook arrived at his side a few minutes later, startling Jimin half to death with his sudden appearance, he was unfortunately without Tae. They just looked at each other dejectedly before heading out of the store, tears welling up in Jimin’s eyes and slowly sliding down his face. When they reached the entrance of the candy store, Jungkook spoke.

“Maybe we should go talk to mall security, Jimin-hyung. Maybe they’ll do that announcement-“

Jimin looked up when Jungkook stopped and cut off his sentence. The boy was staring at something, so Jimin followed his gaze. And there, sitting on a bench and surrounded by multiple bags sporting the same logo as the store they had just left, was Taehyung.

Jimin shot forward, Jungkook right behind him, dodging shoppers until he stumbled to a halt in front of the bench. “Jiminie!” Taehyung looked up at his best friend with a big grin and slightly dilated pupils. “Where’ve you been? I was wondering-” He cut off when he spotted Jungkook and leapt of the bench with a cry of, “Kookie!”

Jungkook caught the excited hybrid and somehow avoided falling over backwards. While Tae was distracted with chattering to Jungkook, his tail wagging so fast it was a blur, Jimin rubbed away his tears and noticed all the bags that were supposed to be full of candy. There was only one problem. Almost all of the bags were empty save for an unopened package of Skittles and a bag from Bath and Body Works.

“Tae Tae?” Jimin turned back to his friend, “Did you already eat all of the candy you bought?”

Taehyung turned around and Jimin finally noticed his dilated eyes. “Huh? Oh, yeah. You and Jungkookie were taking so long that I ended up eating most of my candy. But don’t worry, I didn’t have any chocolate!” Jimin exchanged a panicked look with Jungkook. Tae had eaten three bags worth of sweets. But before either of them could say a word, Taehyung got distracted by the package of Skittles. His hand flashed out, grabbed the package, and seemed to vanish. The two left behind took a single second to blink before their eyes widened and they spun around, searching for the Jack Russell on a sugar-high. Thankfully they didn’t end up having to look very long. All they had to do was follow the yells of, “Taste the Rainbow!” Jimin glanced at the bench and quickly grabbed the Bath and Body Works bag before running to catch up to Jungkook.

Though when they found him, Jimin and Jungkook just stood there shocked as they watched Tae run up to random people yelling “Taste the Rainbow!” and throwing Skittles at the innocent bystanders. Jungkook broke out of his shock first and marched up to Tae, grabbing him around the waist, throwing him over his shoulder, and carrying him away. Jimin followed closely, bowing and apologizing to the people they passed, whether they were victims of Taehyung’s or not.

~

They were currently in an expensive clothing store in an attempt to get Tae to channel his sugar-induced energy into his love of shopping and fashion. As an unknown station played random songs overhead, Jimin watched as Tae darted around the store, grabbing shirts, checking sizes, and rushing into the fitting room to try on his finds. Jimin had gotten tired just by watching him. He sat in a chair outside of the fitting rooms, looking through the Bath and Body Works bag that was apparently full of bath bombs, as his best friend dragged Jungkook through the store, currently trying to piece together an ensemble that he declared perfect. Jimin’s brows furrowed and he reached in to grab a bath bomb with a small dent in it that was surrounded by teeth marks. It looked like someone had tried…to take a bite out of it. Jimin dropped the bomb back into the bag.

Currently, Taehyung was having Jungkook turn around so that he could measure the length of the shirt to Jungkook’s height. As Jimin watched, Tae’s ears suddenly perked and he tilted his head to the side, like he was listening for something. As Jimin stands up, the melody of a very familiar song becomes clearer.

Yeah I know that I let you down

Is it too late to say I’m sorry now?

Jimin looked over to Tae and Jungkook only to see that Tae was gone. Jungkook must have realized the lack of energetic presence behind him, because he turned around as Jimin ran up to him. They didn’t even say anything this time, just looked at each other before Jungkook dropped the clothes that Taehyung had stuffed into his arms unceremoniously onto nearby table. Yet before they could even take a step in any direction, a very familiar voice loudly overpowered almost all sounds in the store.

“Yeah, is it too late now to say sorry?” Jungkook and Jimin took off toward the source.

“ ‘Cause I’m missing more than just your body” They find Taehyung just in time to see him jump up onto a table with a mannequin.

“Is it too late to sorry?” Tae notices his two friends and waves excitedly, ignoring the sales lady trying to tell him to get down.

“Yeah I know that I let you down” Taehyung decided that dancing with the mannequin was an amazing idea and accidentally knocked of its head. The sales lady calls for security while Jimin and Jungkook try to convince Tae to get down, please, before we get kicked out.

“Is it too late to say I’m sorry now?” The hyper hybrid finally lets go of the mannequin, which falls to the floor, and jumps off the table, grinning.

As the final chorus faded into the background, the three hybrids got cornered by some very irritated sales people. And they were kept there until security showed up to escort the boys out of the store. Surprisingly, Taehyung was mostly solemn faced as they were walked out and stared after as they walked away from the store. As soon as they turned the corner, though, Tae’s serious façade broke as he burst into laughter. Jimin stared at him before getting caught up in his infectious laughter and started giggling. It didn’t take Jungkook even a full second before he joined in. The hybrids got strange looks from other shoppers as they laughed until they doubled over and were out of breath.

Once they stopped laughing due to lack of air in their lungs, the three straightened up. Unsurprisingly, their short respite for the activities of a Jack Russell on a sugar-high did not last long. And that is because Taehyung finally noticed the bag from Bath and Body Works that Jimin had somehow managed to remember to keep. His eyes immediately lit up with an idea that is probably a very bad idea.

~

“Tae Tae, where are we going?” Jimin asked as he dutifully followed his best friend, Jungkook just behind them. Briefly he wondered why they were still here going along with whatever Taehyung’s got planned, but he was quickly dragged out of his thoughts when he bumped into Tae’s back.

“We’re here!” Taehyung spun around and threw his arms out, making a big gesture to show off the fountain behind him. Which, of course, drew even more stares.

Jungkook looked as lost as Jimin felt. “That’s…a nice fountain, Tae, but..why are we here?”

Taehyung ignored him as he dug around the Bath and Body works bag he now carried, walking closer towards the fountain. The other two just watched, curious as to what he was doing. The last thing they expected him to do was suddenly take a package of bath bombs, rip open the plastic with his teeth, and toss the bath bombs into fountain. They rushed forward, but by the time they reached his side, Tae had already thrown in a total of four bath bombs and he was tearing the plastic off of a fifth one when Jungkook reached out and grabbed the Bath and Body Works bag. He tried grabbing the fifth bath bomb from Taehyung, but the hybrid had already thrown the bath bomb.

Jimin got curious and walked forward to look into the fountain. The bath bombs Tae had tossed in were all different colors and the colors were swirling together. Suddenly he felt a push to his back and he toppled forward into the water. He sat up and heard hysterical giggling.

“Tae!” Jimin glared at his friend, who found the situation absolutely hilarious. Jungkook reached out to help Jimin out of the fountain.

“Cannonball!” Tae jumped into the fountain and Jungkook jumped back to avoid being splashed.

“Hyung!” Jungkook glared at the now soaked hybrid. “Come on, you need to get out.” Jungkook waved his arm in a gesture of come on.

“Help me out, Kookie?” Tae reached out innocently. Jungkook sighed, but he reached out to grab him anyways.  Taehyung quickly latched onto Jungkook’s arms, planted his feet against the wall of the fountain, and pulled Jungkook into the water. He laughed uproariously at the frustrated look on the bunny hybrid’s face. Jungkook’s ears were completely drooped against the sides of his head and Jimin had to admit that it was pretty comical looking. He covered his mouth as he tried to stifle the giggle that was rising in his throat. The bath bombs were all but dissolved now, and that captured Taehyung’s attention.

“Kookie, Jiminie, quick! Help me look for our prizes!” Taehyung started swishing the water, trying to clear the foam and the color from the bath bombs.

“What are you talking about Tae Tae?” Jimin asked.

“The bath bombs! I bought a couple of them that had presents inside.” Tae gave up on trying to clear the water and grabbed a bath bomb to see if there was a prize stuck in the remains. “Whatever prize you find, you get to keep!” There seemed to be a small current underwater and it took Jimin a moment to realize that it was Tae’s tail wagging under water from his excitement.

The two looked at each other and just shrugged before deciding to help Taehyung look for the prizes. But after a few moments of searching, Jungkook gave up and asked, “Are you sure you even threw in the prize bath bombs, Tae?”

“No, but I can check the bag!” Tae crawled over to where the bag was sitting on the edge of the fountain. He dug through it for a few moments, ignoring all the looks, just like they had been for the last few minutes. “Aha! I found them!” Taehyung turned around and triumphantly held up some bath bombs in one hand and the bag in the other hand. But Jimin and Jungkook didn’t respond. Instead their eyes widened as they saw three burly mall security guards march up behind Tae. “What? What is it?” Tae tilted his head.

Jimin couldn’t say anything, so he just pointed while Jungkook sighed and said, “Look behind you, Tae.”

~

Thirty minutes later, three damp hybrids stood shivering outside of the mall that had just given them notice of a fine and three months banishment from the premises. Taehyung had finally come down from his sugar-high and was leaning against Jungkook’s side, fighting off a sugar coma. The mall guards that were always posted outside of the mall doors watched them closely as though they were going to try to charge back into the mall at any second.

“Well, this certainly isn’t how I thought today would go.” Jungkook muttered as he crouched so Taehyung could climb up on his back. He stood and started towards home, Jimin following. Jimin could just nod in agreement, too tired to say anything.

~

About a month later, Yoongi and Jimin were taking a walk and the mall incident was far from Jimin’s mind. That is, until he realized where Yoongi was headed. “Um, Yoongi? Where are we going?”

“The mall?” Yoongi looked at the hybrid, confused, “Remember? I told you that Namjoon said there were some headphones that I should check out at the mall.”

“I remember, but I didn’t think that you meant you were going to check them out today.” Jimin bit his lip, distinctly remembering every single chance that he had had to tell Yoongi that he had been banned from the mall.

“What’s wrong, Jimin?” Yoongi asked as they neared the front doors. It was too late though. Jimin didn’t have a chance to answer before a big, intimidating security guard was standing in front of them, blocking the way. Jimin whined and stepped partially behind Yoongi.

Yoongi stopped and glared up at the man, but before he could say anything, the guard spoke. “He can’t come in here.”

“What?” Yoongi stared at him.

“The hybrid.” The man nodded his head towards Jimin “He’s-“

Yoongi cut off the man before he could finish, “What do you mean ‘the hybrid’ can’t enter the mall?” Yoongi glared, “Are you discriminating against hybrids now? You got a problem with them or something?” The man held up his hands, trying to stop Yoongi before he could get angrier.

“It’s nothing like that, sir. That hybrid, along with two others, was temporarily banned from the premises of the mall.”

“Banned?” Yoongi frowned and glanced at Jimin, who whimpered softly and stared at his feet sheepishly, ears drooping. “I wasn’t aware; I apologize for jumping to conclusions.” Yoongi bowed. Then he turned to head back home. As they walked away from the mall, Yoongi was silent until they turned the corner.

“When did this happen, Jimin?” Yoongi stopped and turned to the hybrid.

“About a month ago…”

“Why didn’t you tell me?”

“I was kind of hoping that maybe three months would pass before we went to that specific mall again…” Jimin had a small, sheepish grin on his face.

“Who did you get banned with?”

“Taehyung and Jungkook…”

“And how exactly did you get banned?” Yoongi had an unamused look on his face.

“There were Skittles and singing and bath bombs-” Jimin cut off at a pointed look from Yoongi. He sighed, “Taehyung was on a sugar high…”

Yoongi just shook his head. “Of course it was Taehyung.”

[kujo1597]

Actually, That Was a Good Thing

A lot of time has passed since the beginning of Peridot’s tale. There have been a lot of ups and some downs. But overall things were going fairly well.

Too bad there was a six-foot five shadow hanging over Peridot’s shoulder.

There was no word on that however.

What Peridot needed was a nice date and Amethyst is always more than happy to give her that.

You can also read this on Archive of Our Own.

Chapter 9

A few weeks later and no update on Jaune. A normal person would conclude that there was nothing to worry about but stress was a part of Peridot’s life that will never leave.

She concluded that the only way this sense of dread would go away is if all the residents of Beach City chased her mother out of town with pitchforks and torches.

The mental image made Peridot smile.

If only...

Peridot check her phone and saw that Amethyst sent her a text just a few minutes ago.

Ams: Yo, call me when you get a chance.

Normally Amethyst would simply phone Peridot.

And why’s Amethyst up so early? She’s off work.

Peridot decided to get ready for the day before making her phone call.

A groggy Peridot is never great at making conversation.

Feeling nice and refreshed and ready to make a phone call, Peridot phoned Amethyst.

“Mornin’ Peri!” Amethyst sounded very chipper for somebody who isn’t a morning person.

“Good morning,” Peridot giggled. “Someone’s in a good mood.”

“Of course! Next week’s our six-month anniversary!”

“It is?” Guilt flooded Peridot. “I’m so sorry. I didn’t realize it’s been that long already.”

“Hey don’t sweat it, you’ve had a lot on your mind.”

This made Peridot feel a bit better. “Okay.”

“So anyway, I was thinking that we could eat somewhere nice together.”

Peridot started going over her budget.

This pause told Amethyst a lot. “Don’t worry about the money, I saved up for this.”

“You’re too good to me.”

“Oh no, don’t start that up again. You’re plenty good to me, let me treat you.”

“Alright. So, when are we going?”

“I was thinking Wednesday or Thursday, I waited to make the reservation in case you had plans.”

“Nope, no plans, well, not before now,” Peridot winked, Amethyst obviously couldn’t see it but it felt so natural.

“Smoooooth Peri,” the sarcasm was obvious. “I’ll update you when I reserve a table.”

“Sounds good.”

“‘Kay, talk to you then! Love you, bye.”

“I love you too, bye.”

Peridot hung up and felt a slew of emotions.

First, excitement. This would be my first time eating someplace nice with Amethyst.

Second, happiness. Amethyst kept track of how long we’ve been dating.

Third, concern. There wasn’t enough time to make something nice as a present, and the budget won’t allow for an expensive purchase.

Fourth, regret. Why did I have to buy that awesome model kit?

Fifth, calmness. Amethyst doesn’t expect me to buy her nice things.

Six, some guilt. Of course Amethyst doesn’t expect anything. She’s dating someone in massive amounts of debt. She deserves to be treated too.

And finally, determination. Amethyst deserves that present, darn it. 

Peridot picked out some purple yarn and got to work.

It’d take some all-nighters but Peridot wanted to crochet the best present she could.

Peridot deeply inhaled after she she got out of her car. She adjusted her dark-green three-piece suit, it rode up a bit while she was driving.

She ran her fingers through her hair. After staring in the mirror for an hour she decided to not style it and kept it in its somewhat feminine long bob-cut.

Part of that hour of staring was trying to decide which plugs to wear.

Despite the fact that she only had the two pairs.

She eventually settled on her solid black ones, in her opinion they go better with formal clothes than the tunnels she usually wears.

Peridot’s heart sank, she almost forgot the present!

She fetched the large box from the car, the gift was wrapped in green paper and had a deep purple ribbon on the top.

Peridot’s never been the religious sort but that didn’t stop her from praying that she wouldn’t need her cane on this date. Her knee was sore but still in good enough shape to just need a brace.

Her legs shook as the walked to the restaurant door.

Logically, there was no reason to be so nervous. It was a date with Amethyst, they’ve dated plenty of times before.

But this was the first date where Peridot was carrying a huge box into an eating establishment. 

A silly voice in her head said, “is it really much more conspicuous than your usual hairstyle?”

A giggle left Peridot’s mouth without her realizing it.

Okay, maybe the box wasn’t that bad.

The heavy door of the restaurant opened and wow, Amethyst wasn’t kidding about it being fancy.

Speaking, or rather, thinking of Amethyst, she wasn’t there yet.

“Good evening miss,” the host greeted Peridot. “Do you have a reservation?”

Peridot smiled awkwardly. “Sort of? My girlfriend made it. It should be under Amethyst -” it was then that Peridot realized that she never asked Amethyst’s last name, “-oh dear, this is embarrassing, I’m afraid I don’t know her full name...” Peridot’s face turned red, he voice squeaked. “I’ll just sit down-and... and wait for her.”

“Okay, we haven’t had an ‘Amethyst’ arrive yet so you haven’t missed her.”

“Oh good,” Peridot sighed, her cheeks were still red, she leaned back on the bench. “I’m such a nervous mess.”

“Is this your first date?”

“No, we’ve been dating for six months,” Peridot laughed bitterly. “So it’s kind of pathetic that I’m so nervous. We’ve just never eaten somewhere nice before.”

“It’ll be fine,” the host reassure Peridot. “And if it helps, you can imagine that you’re at a fast food restaurant.”

Peridot smiled. “One where it’s too dark to see your food.”

“If you ask me, it’d be an improvement.”

This made Peridot laugh. “Thank you, you really helped.”

“You’re welcome.”

The ten minute wait passed by pretty quickly thanks to getting so sucked into a game.

“Hey Peri, sorry I’m late,” Amethyst sounded a bit out of breath.

The sight of Amethyst stunned Peridot.

She was gorgeous.

Amethyst wore a light-purple mock-neck sweater, it hung nicely on her shapely body.

And Amethyst didn’t typically wear skirts but decided to make an exception for this date by wearing a black skirt that stopped just above her knee.

Her hair... it looked so beautiful in a bun. Amethyst’s left eye was covered by her hair as it usually was, her right eye and her piercings glittered with what little light was in the restaurant.

She was so picturesque.

And Peridot was so tongue-tied. “That's, uh, okay. You made it,” Peridot kicked herself for not immediately complimenting her date. “You’re pretty.”

Whyyyyyyy was that all that came out?

Amethyst didn’t seem offended, in fact, she looked very amused. She leaned into Peridot. “You’re handsome.” With a wink Amethyst gave Peridot a kiss. “Kidding, we all get tongue-tied. Well, I wasn’t kidding about you being handsome. That suits looks great on you.”

“Thank you.”

Amethyst went up to the host and a waitress came to lead her and Peridot to their table.

“Oh, miss,” the host noticed a box on the bench. “You forgot your package.”

“Thanks,” Peridot ran and grabbed it then rejoined Amethyst. She started to feel bashful when Amethyst stared at the large gift. “Um, now that I think about it; perhaps I should have left this in the car.”

“Nah, it’s cool, I reserved a booth for us,” Amethyst held Peridot’s hand. “It’s more intimate. And it gives me a place to put my purse.”

“Practical and personable, my two favourite ‘p’s.”

“Nerd,” Amethyst kissed Peridot on the cheek.

They arrived at the table and opened their menus.

Amethyst gave Peridot a firm look. “Promise me something. Don’t you dare look at the prices. I know you, you’ll order the cheapest thing they have. Just pick what sounds good to you.”

“You’re dead-set on treating me,” Peridot smiled crookedly. “Unfortunately I’ve already seen the prices. But don’t worry, I won’t concern myself with them.” Peridot’s mouth twisted. “Well, no steak and lobster, ordering something that pricey is just plain rude.”

Amethyst softly chuckled. “Alright.” She frowned in thought. “I’m debating ordering wine, it’s kind of a big night. Ugh, but I haven’t drank in years.”

“If you don’t mind my asking, why did you give up alcohol?”

“I just don’t like what it does to me, I made a lot of mistakes while drunk,” Amethyst answered with a shrug. “So uh, how ‘bout you?”

“I simply don’t like the way it tastes, and it burns my throat a bit. It’s unpleasant.”

“You get used to that.”

Peridot wrinkled her nose. “That’s another reason, drinking something that I have to become numb to doesn’t appeal to me.”

“Fair enough,” Amethyst thought some more. “Nah, I don’t need it.”

After placing their drink orders Peridot and Amethyst mulled over the menu some more.

“You know, I started saying ‘cola’ to avoid being asked if I prefer one over the other but I keep getting blank stares.”

“Not everybody’s an old lady like you are,” Amethyst winked and stuck her tongue out.

Peridot blushed. “So what are you ordering?”

“Probably a chicken breast, you?”

“Steak. I hardly get to eat beef because Lapis doesn’t and I’m not about to cook two meals.”

Irritation flashed on Amethyst’s face for a split-second. “Cool, steak. We also gotta get appetizers. I mean, this is a fancy joint and all.”

Peridot made an excited noise. “This shrimp appetizer sounds really good!”

“Good to see you so excited about this, I have a couple things picked out too.”

After agreeing on what appetizers to get, Peridot and Amethyst placed their orders. While waiting for the food to arrive they talked about work, TV shows, and other mundane things.

“Ugh, I’m not too happy about my Ninja Keith NOTP becoming canon,” the appetizers arriving cut off Peridot’s rant. “Thank you.”

“Thanks,” Amethyst didn’t hesitate before digging in.

“I mean, I’d be okay with it if they at least had some chemistry or if there was some buildup, but there wasn’t,” Peridot finished her passionate complaining before digging into her shrimp.

“Yeah, I totally get your frustration, and like, Keith’s in his seventies and Mei-Lin’s how old, like, twenty, tops.”

“I wonder if people are so okay with it because he stopped aging in his twenties. Although that presents a whole host of other problems.”

Amethyst thought of something as she popped some calamari into her mouth. “Y’know, maybe this romance’ll convince Keith to not change the past.”

“I think so too,” Peridot enthusiastically agreed. “I mean, I’d rather~”

They somehow managed to talk about Ninja Keith theories until the main course arrived.

“That steak looks so good,” an envious look was in Amethyst’s eye.

Peridot looked up and snickered. “Alright, I’ll give you a bite.”

“Wha, I wasn’t asking for any.”

“You’re looking at my steak like Max looks at chicken,” Peridot was clearly amused, she cut off a piece and pierced it with her fork. Her first instinct was to feed it to Amethyst but she hesitated when she saw the other patrons. “Would it be weird to feed you over the table in this environment?”

“No weirder than talking about cartoon characters having sex,” Amethyst said with a snort. Peridot still looked unsure. “Look, don’t worry about everyone else, they’re doing their thing, no reason we can’t do ours.”

“Okay,” Peridot looked relieved, she held the steak out to Amethyst who cheekily pulled it from the fork. “It’s good, isn’t it?”

“Yeah, it is, I picked a good place,” Amethyst cut off a piece of her chicken breast. “Here, try mine.”

As soon as Peridot bit down on the chicken their waitress arrived. “So, how is your meal?”

Peridot blushed and sat back down chewing the chicken, Amethyst replied saying that the food is great. The waitress walked away.

“I swear, wait-staff is trained to ask that at the worst time,” Peridot grumbled. “The chicken’s good by the way.”

Amethyst chuckled. “You got us, that’s the first thing the boss covers.”

Peridot giggled. 

“That reminds me of Kayla, this girl I work with,” Amethyst spoke between bites. “So she asks this guy how his food was as he was stuffing his face. Well he gets all pissy and was like, ‘how come all you waitresses do that, can’t you see I’m eating?’ Now, Kayla’s from the Bronx, you don’t mess with New Yorkers. She can’t do anything too bad to a customer ‘cause you’d get in shit with your boss. But no reason she can’t make note of him. So now we all go out of our way to ask him questions as he’s eating or drinking.”

Peridot burst out laughing. “Seriously? That’s great!”

“Yep, it’s a fun little game we play now,” Amethyst hastily added, “But don’t tell my boss, we’re not actually supposed to be doing that.”

“My lips are sealed,” Peridot thought of something mid-bite, she quickly swallowed. “Oh actually, I have a funny work story too.”

“So, this guy hired me and didn’t know exactly what he wanted, fine, annoying, but fine, I’m getting paid. Anyway, he’d make changes with no notice, I’d finish what he wanted, he’d change his mind and I’d redo it. Well, he wasn’t very polite and I got sick of it. We argued and I eventually got it done. He decided that I was overcharging and refused to pay what I was asking. We went back-and-forth on it for a while, I had the program so I had the leverage and eventually got what I asked.”

Peridot took a sip before continuing.

“Before sending it to him I gave him the little ‘I’m dyslexic, I need to do another once-over to make sure it’s working’ it was, I just needed the excuse. I put into the code a very rude message, something like ‘I’m a clod who doesn’t know a thing about coding. I can’t even decide what pants to wear, and I don’t know how much hard work is worth’ and probably some more too. I set it to pop up when a certain combination of keys is put in and it’s not one a person normally uses.”

“Did he ever see it?” Amethyst asked with a smile.

Peridot shrugged. “No clue, I kind of hope not. Word of mouth and a good reputation are how I get business. I was inexperienced and didn’t know any better, it’s still funny, but I wouldn’t do that again,” Peridot smirked. “Instead I just bury my rants where only another programmer can find it.”

Amethyst snickered. “So I guess the lesson is to not piss off a programmer.”

“Oh, no, what I do is nothing compared to what wait-staff does. My messages are hidden so the lousy customer can never see it.”

“Sometimes the satisfaction of knowing it’s there is the best feeling.”

“I hear that.”

They finished their main course while talking about silly topics.

“Before we eat dessert, I was thinking that we could open presents. I’m dying to know what’s in the huge box.” Sure enough, Amethyst would not take her eye off of it.

With an amused expression Peridot passed her gift to Amethyst who pulled a small box out of her purse and gave it to her partner.

This gift was the size of a jewelry box. “Um, I didn’t get you anything pricey. I actually made your gift.”

“Don’t sweat it, I wasn’t expecting a present, and homemade’s great. I mean, it’s one-of-a-kind, that’s awesome,” Amethyst started opening the large box. “And by the way, I didn’t spend a ton of money either.”

As soon as the box was opened Amethyst’s eyes went wide and her shoulders shook with suppressed chuckles. She pulled out a large crocheted puma.

“You made me a puma, it’s big, really cool,” Amethyst took a close look at its face. “Man, look at those eyes!”

“Yeah,” Peridot rubbed the back of her neck, “it ended up so big because the only purple yarn I had was blanket yarn.”

“So did you stitch the eyes yourself? They’re really detailed.”

“I did stitch them,” Peridot replied, full of pride. “It’s tiny intricate work, three layers of thread and attaching them was tricky too.”

“This is awesome, thanks,” Amethyst put the puma next to her with a smile. “So, you gonna open yours?”

Peridot felt a lump in her throat, it really looked like it could be jewelry, not only does she not wear jewelry, it’s also expensive.

She opened the box and saw a pair of dark-green plugs with a star-shaped cutout in them. 

“Ah, so that’s why you asked the gauge of my ears.”

The tepid reaction concerned Amethyst, were Greg and Vidalia wrong about it being a good idea? “Yep, like, couples usually give each other jewelry but I know you’re not into it.”

“The stars are neat, did you pick them because I like aliens?”

Oh, so Peridot seemed to just be bad at receiving gifts. 

“I didn’t even think of that. Nah, I picked the stars to kinda say that you’re y’know... part of the family. Not like, in a creepy incest way,” Amethyst’s face was red. “That turned out wrong! Okay, so Rose loved stars and when she died we all started to keep a star somewhere on our bodies,” Amethyst hid her face behind her hands. “Oh no, when I say it out loud it sounds less sweet and more cult-ish.”

Peridot laughed. “No, it’s fine. It’s a really nice gesture. But are you sure it’s okay for me to wear them? Especially around Pearl, weren’t her and Rose...” Peridot put two of her fingers together, “...girlfriends?”

“Yeah, they were for years. But it’ll be fine.”

“Alright then, I’ll be sure to wear them, thank you.” A thought occurred to Peridot as she looked through the dessert menu, she didn’t have much of sweet tooth so finding something was proving difficult. “So where’s your star? I’ve seen Pearl’s earrings, and Garnet’s sleeve, but I’ve never seen yours.”

“I can’t show it to you right now,” Amethyst replied, she broke out in a chuckle-fit when she saw Peridot’s dropped jaw. “Nah, nowhere like that. It’s behind my ear, I was so young when Rose died and knew Pearl would freak out if I came home with a tattoo so I got it someplace she wouldn’t see.”

“Correct me if I’m wrong, but doesn’t a minor need a guardian’s permission to get a tattoo? Or is that different in the states?”

Amethyst laughed. “Oh god, yeah, you’re right. But when you go to as many parties as I did you meet people. Well, one of my friends’ brother made this janky-ass tattoo gun, y’know, like they have in prison. You don’t need permission to get one with that.”

Peridot was astonished. ‘Wait, really? You actually got a tattoo like that?”

“Young and dumb Peri, young and dumb.”

“Did it turn out well?”

“Sort of, there’s no shading or colour or nothing but the lines are straight at least. A part of me wants to get it touched-up by a professional but at the same time, Rose knew me when I was a teen so in a way it’s fitting the way it is.”

Amethyst thought of something as she tried to decide between chocolate, cheesecake, chocolate mousse, and a slice of fifteen layer chocolate cake. What, she was in the mood for chocolate. “So have you ever gotten a tattoo?”

“Have I ever... that’s an interesting way of phrasing it,” as the waitress took their orders Peridot processed the question. “Ah, right, the burns. No, I’ve never gotten a tattoo. It’s so permanent, you know.”

“And your mods aren’t?” Amethyst smirked.

“Technically no, a plastic surgeon can fix my ears and it’d be painful but I can get my tongue fused, although that wouldn’t be worth it. Meanwhile, tattoo removal technology hasn’t been perfected yet. It may interest you, however, that I used to have nipple piercings.”

This did interest Amethyst. “You get bored of them and take ‘em out?”

“No, when,” Peridot put her hand over the left side of her chest, “that happened I took the one I had left out.” She giggled. “It’s a bit silly, the asymmetry was bothering me. I don’t know why though, my whole body’s asymmetrical now.”

“Makes sense to me, you want your piercings to match. I’m the opposite, I made mine not match on purpose.”

“That’s true, I’ve been thinking about that piercing some more. You know, the barbell one. I might get it on one side, both may look a bit silly.”

“So which side?” Amethyst was actually hoping Peridot would go through with it.

“I’m undecided. I’m leaning towards the left but, well... that’s where my burns are and a part of me doesn’t want to draw more attention to them.”

“Think of it this way, drawing more attention to ‘em also looks like you’re embracing your burns and sorta rocking them. I mean, I can’t talk since I have nothing like that ‘cept maybe my chest but uh, if I did I’d wanna show it off. Like, let everyone know that I survived and still going strong, y’know?”

Amethyst would’ve leaned forward to emphasize her point but dessert had arrived.

Peridot thanked the waitress then continued the conversation. “You’re really good at getting me to look at things in a different light.” Peridot composed her thoughts, “I’m not embarrassed or ashamed, if I were I’d have my hair like this more often. But at the same time, I never want too much attention drawn to it, or myself for that matter.” She sighed heavily. “I think I’m just still getting used to it. Which is funny since it’s already been three years.”

“Think about it Per, three years is nothing compared to twenty-something.”

“That’s true,” Peridot said with a giggle. “It probably doesn’t help that I was bald for a while.”

“You were? So did it all... burn off?”

“Oh no, you just can’t have hair in the way of skin grafts so they had to shave some of mine off. When it grew back my hair looked so patchy and awful since they didn’t shave my whole head. It bothered me so I hopped over to the barber’s shop and had him shave it all off.”

Amethyst chuckled. “You’re a girl of extremes, aren’t ya?”

“I have no idea what you’re talking about,” Peridot rubbed one of her earlobes.

They shared a laugh and finished dessert.

When it came time to pay the bill Peridot absolutely insisted that she covered the tip at the very least.

Amethyst eventually let her because Peridot’s face clearly said, “I will never give in, I will argue this until the restaurant closes.”

Peridot walked Amethyst to her car after the bill was settled.

“I had a wonderful evening,” Peridot said as Amethyst fit her new Puma in the back seat. “Thank you.”

Amethyst stood up and gently pulled Peridot towards her. “You’re welcome Peri.”

They gazed into each other’s eyes then leaned in for a kiss.

It started off gentle and reserved and eventually let into something deeper. Over the months Peridot’s kisses became more confident and stronger. But Amethyst was bolder and initiated the tongue-kiss. She explored the divide in Peridot’s tongue causing her partner to melt in her arms.

“Stars Amethyst,” Peridot spoke when they separated for air, her cheeks were flush.

Amethyst chuckled. “Got a little carried away there.”

“Oh I’m not complaining,” Peridot looked around and saw nobody. “I kind of want to continue.”

With a smile Amethyst ran her hands along the top of Peridot’s hips feeling her seldom-seen figure through her suit. And Peridot put her hand on the crook of Amethyst’s back getting a feel of that wonderful body fat.

Amethyst deeply kissed Peridot’s neck making sure to avoid the scarred side, she learned early on that Peridot could only really feel pressure and dampness which isn’t nearly as pleasurable as feeling the subtle movements.

She moved her hands up Peridot’s back then ran her fingers through Peridot’s hair enjoying the rare opportunity.

Peridot giggled and the vibrations made Amethyst break down into giggles too.

“God damn it Peri,” Amethyst wasn’t actually mad, she found Peridot’s giggle-fits endearing. “It’s hard to kiss when laughing.”

Peridot was the first to calm down. “You know I can’t help it.” She kissed Amethyst’s round jaw and slowly trailed down her neck.

“You’re getting good with that tongue of yours,” for once Amethyst was blushing.

“I’ve had a lot of practice,” Peridot said slyly.

They put their foreheads together getting ready for another round of kisses but unfortunately they heard a loud conversation getting even louder.

“Damn,” Peridot thought the same thing. “Guess that’s all for tonight.”

The interruption clearly irritated Peridot. “Well, you could always come to my place.”

“Can’t, I work tomorrow.”

“That’s a shame.”

“Not like we’ll never see each other again, right.”

“True. So then, until next time,” Peridot kissed Amethyst on the cheek.

“Yep, next time,” Amethyst kissed Peridot back.

“Until then. I love you, bye.”

“Love you too, ‘night Peri.”

They hugged and Peridot walked to her car with a warm feeling coursing through her body.