#was supposed to be fired at cone 5-6 her ass was NOT fired at cone 5-6

[spacerockband]

iced strawberry animal cookie sound of the summer!

[sevlgi]

bubblegum pop

requested: no

group: twice

pairing: sana x fem!reader

genre: fluff

contents: rich girl!sana, college!au, cashier!reader.

warnings: none

synopsis: An unfortunately hostile encounter with the school’s sweetest rich girl might just lead to more than you ever expected.

a/n: inspired by @pearicot​‘s mean girl rosie series! (by the way, i’m not trying to feed into the “dumb sana” stereotype with this; i just thought that her personality fitted the character i was trying to achieve! does anyone wanna request continuations or scenarios in this universe 👀

word count: 3.3k

Something about Mondays the week of finals always got you in a bad mood, especially when you had  to work double shifts at the same stupid ice cream shop you’d worked at for the past 2 years of college. 

So maybe, just maybe, there was reasoning behind you snapping at the love of your life during your first meeting.

Actually, there really, really wasn���t.

There were plenty of mean girls on campus who you wouldn’t regret yelling at whatsoever, but you just happened to blow up at one of the considerably nicer rich girls.

Minatozaki Sana didn’t mean anything bad when she innocently held out a hundred dollar bill to pay for a $5 ice cream. She didn’t mean to seem pretentious, nor did she mean to mock you and your minimum-wage job, but you just so happened to take it that way.

“Really? You have to rub it in my face like that?”

Sana stared at you, the money that she held out wavering in the ear. “Sorry?”

Pinching the space between your eyebrows, you huffed out an exasperated breath. Luckily, there was no one else in the shop about to witness the stupidest meltdown of your life. “You think I don’t know that I’m poor? It’s five dollars for God’s sake, no need to bring out the big guns. Oh, or are you doing this to avoid seeming more pretentious with your daddy’s black card?”

The brunette’s hand retreated quickly, the heels of her Louboutins clacking softly against the pastel-toned linoleum of the ice cream shop. Fuck, you hated that linoleum. “I... I didn’t mean any of that, I swear! Um, is there an ATM near here?”

Once again, the girl meant well, and you took it badly. You scoffed, glaring disbelievingly at her. Some part of you was screaming out that you were putting your entire job at stake, and your morals as well, but you disregarded any common sense remaining in your brain. “An ATM for 5 bucks? Dude, just don’t.” Dipping your hand into the tip jar, you scrounged out a lousy crumpled bill and threw it down on the counter, shoving the bubblegum-flavored sweet to Sana. “Okay? Now get out, I don’t want to see your privileged ass anywhere near here.”

The dense gray clouding your mind somehow missed the hurt expression on the girl’s face as the staff door swung open. Wendy’s hands, though gentle on your shoulders, shoved you behind her with surprising force. “I am so sorry, Sana, it’s finals week. Surely you can understand? The ice cream’s on the house.”

“No, of course it’s okay!” Sana sounded genuine enough, that was for sure; you caught her glancing worriedly at you a couple times, nothing malicious whatsoever in her eyes. “I can pay though, are you sure?”

“I’m sure. See you in class,” Wendy called out, smiling all the while until the girl disappeared into the Lamborghini parked by the curb. As soon as that happened, she turned back to you, concern tugging at the corner of her lips. “Y/N...”

“Yeah, I know,” you mumbled as you crossed your arms. Already, you were regretting what you said, though you were far too stubborn to actually apologize on the spot. “No arguing with customers about capitalism. Sorry, Wendy.”

The girl bit her lip, scanning the store to make sure that there wasn’t about to be an influx of customers. Usually she enjoyed working with you; you just had absolutely terrible mood swings sometimes, and those days were nothing short of hellish for her to deal with. “Just head home. Focus on your finals, and come back next week. Okay?”

You hesitated to agree, knowing that you needed the money, but the grim expression on Wendy’s face told you that you had no other option. “Okay. Sorry.”

As you snatched up your stuff and shoved the door to the street open, you missed the sight of Sana watching you through the tinted windows of her 6-figure car.

“Really? Sana?”

“I know,” you groaned, biting down on the plastic spoon in your mouth. The flavor of the month (the only one you could eat completely free) lingered unpleasantly on your tongue, the taste of it oddly salty. “She was so nice about it, too.”

Jeongyeon and Mina exchanged glances, not touching their respective cups of “Ocean Caramel” either. It was extremely kind of them to come and accompany you on the slow days, both of them even offering to suffer through the gross ice cream with you.  “If it was Park Roseanne I might understand, but Sana,” Mina winced. Jeongyeon nodded in agreement; after all, everyone on campus knew about the reputations of Roseanne and Sana.

On one end of the “rich girl” spectrum, Roseanne was quite possibly the bitchiest one of all. She and her Bugatti Veyron, the college upgrade from her old McLaren, absolutely weren’t to be messed with. People who went to high school with you often told story of the G Wagon she smashed, the locker room she lit on fire, and so many other horror tales of a spoiled girl gone wild. You were sure that had you gone off on her, even Wendy wouldn’t have stopped you.

But on the other end, Sana was notoriously kind. Sure, her family raked in an income close to that of the other girl’s, and her wardrobe was just as expensive, but she made a point to donate to charities every time she went shopping. She tipped in the hundreds, and she didn’t ever ask for her designer clothes back when she lent them to strangers. She paid any dinner bill in full when she was there, and sometimes even when she wasn’t invited.

No one was entirely sure about the relationship between the two, but Roseanne seemed to hate Sana more than she did other people. The two fought publicly occasionally, but Sana’s kind heart made it so that even Roseanne couldn’t carry a fight very long. She didn’t respond to insults, it seemed, nor did she ever seem to actually take them personally. 

Stirring her half-melted soup, Mina continued, “Hopefully she doesn’t hold it against you. She doesn’t seem like the type, but...”

Jeongyeon shook her head, opening her mouth just as the doorbell rang. You froze when you looked up to find a designer-dressed bombshell, a sweet smile outlined in Chanel Rouge Allure. She looked completely out of place amidst tired college kids spending their last paycheck on ice cream, white gauzy sleeves and blue dress shimmering under LED lights. If you were being honest, you’d say that she was the most beautiful person you’d seen in your life, but you were always well versed in lying to yourself. “Y/N, you better go.”

“Why?” you whined, pouting at your much more responsible friends. They ignored your puppy face, though; Jihyo was usually the only one you could sway, Momo sometimes if she was feeling merciful. “I’m on break.”

“Only when there’s no customers,” Mina argued, shoving you to stand. Jeongyeon smiled at you, waving you away. “Go, and don’t screw it up this time.”

You forced a smile onto your face when you reached the counter, bowing and adjusting your name tag. “Hi, what can I help you with today?”

“Hi, Y/N!” Sana grinned, bowing back. The fact that she remembered your name only made your guilt worse; if she forgot who you were, you could at least pretend that she didn’t remember the incident at all. “Ah, could I have the same thing as last time? Bubblegum Pop ice cream, on a sugar cone today. 3 scoops?”

Nodding, you moved to open the case, avoiding the girl’s gaze as you did. “Of course.” She was quiet at that, staring at the ceiling so as not to rush you. Without prompting, you blurted, “I’m... I’m really sorry about last week, by the way. I don’t know what I was thinking, blowing up at you like that.”

“Oh, no, it’s okay!” she protested, waving a manicured hand in the air. “I promise I understand you. We all have our bad days.”

You wanted to apologize again, if just to assuage your guilt, but you held off on it, joking, “How do you deal with them? Yell at Gucci assistants?”

Sana looked honestly offended as she accepted the cone proffered to her, eyes widening in shock. “I’ve never done that, I swear! Besides, I don’t like Gucci much.”

A light smile quirking at the corners of your lips, you handed the receipt to her as well. She didn’t ask for it, probably not caring about the measly price or having the space for it in her tiny bag, but took it anyway. “I’m sure you don’t. Your total is $5.23, will that be cash or card?”

“Cash!” She held out a 10 dollar bill, pride shining behind that gorgeous face as you raised your eyebrows in surprise. When your hands brush together, you were reminded of how much better she was than you, how you probably weren’t worthy at all to be touching her with your shop-issued baseball cap and grimy apron. But Sana doesn’t seem to mind, still smiling that airy smile at you and not moving away. She broke your stare by offering, “I don’t want to sound rude, but keep the change.”

“Not rude at all,” you fully laughed that time, dishing out the remainder to stuff in your tip jar. You still felt terrible that she felt the need to apologize about such a normal comment, asking, “Are you sure it’s okay? You can have this one free too, if it makes up for me shouting at you...”

Sana shook her head, sugary light pink already mixing into her lipstick. She walked away, still waving with that gorgeous smile on her face. “It’s okay. I’ll see you soon, Y/N, you look really pretty today!”

Turning back to your friends, you whispered, “Damn. She’s really nice.”

You planned on spending your one day off from school and work cozied up with a good book and your favorite hot drink, but you supposed that getting into a fight with Park Roseanne wasn’t the worst way to go either.

As soon as you entered campus, book in hand and blasting music in your earbuds, you found a crowd of at least 3 dozen people right in front of the library building. It was unlike you to butt into others’ business, especially when it might lead to a ruined day, but Roseanne’s voice carried loud over the hushed whispers of everyone else. “--huh, Sana?”

It wasn’t any of your business, but for some reason, Roseanne’s tone when saying Sana’s name angered you immensely. Frowning, you shouldered your way through the crowd. The closer you got to the center, the more expensive the clothing that brushed against your own rough jean jacket was, cotton and leather becoming silk and velvet. You originally planned to just fit in with the other spectators, but with a shove at the small of your back, you were thrust into the center too.

To your shock, Sana’s eyes were red and shining with tears, the tip of her nose cherry-colored as well. Her head was almost bowed as she stared at her shoes, but she looked up to you when you almost bumped into her. You stuttered out, “H-hey. What’s going on?”

Instead of an explanation from the Japanese girl, though, your gaze was drawn to the blonde across the courtyard. “Didn’t you hear? Little Miss Perfect here got broken up with,” Roseanne scoffed, an infuriating smirk on her perfect face as she tilted her head at you. “By a future CEO, no less. I guess she isn’t a gold-digger, or maybe there’s some other reason that he didn’t want her anymore.”

Your hand shot out to protect Sana, a scowl making its way onto your own face. “Excuse me? From my standpoint, any future CEO is still way outta her league, so forgive me for doubting that he’s the one who didn’t want her. You’re the one dating someone who makes a tenth of what you do.”

Roseanne rolled her eyes, lips thinning. “Don’t talk about my girlfriend like that, Y/L/N, or you’ve got another thing coming. There aren’t many lesbians in this damn school.”

“You know me, don’t you?” Sana’s voice was wavering as she spoke, but it was strong enough to echo in the courtyard. To your surprise (and somewhat satisfaction), the blonde  girl’s eyes widened as Sana stood forward, her lips jutting forward. “That’s why I’m not dating him anymore. I like girls, too.”

Somehow, you’d never expected that Sana was attracted to girls, but it made perfect sense. An irrational part of you wanted to cheer, but instead, you forced yourself to speak.

“R-right.” You continued to glare at Roseanne, who finally seemed to be speechless. “Yeah, so how come you’re tearing Sana down? We should be supporting each other, but you’re being so rude to someone so kind, and that says all I need to know about you.”

Reaching out, you latched onto Sana’s upper arm and pulled her out of the circle, people parting to let the two of you through as Roseanne wasn’t able to conjure up something to respond with. You didn’t stop walking until there was only silence surrounding you under the shade of a swaying tree, finally stopping to let the girl sit. “Are you okay?” you asked, brow furrowed as you knelt to be mostly face-level with her.

Somehow, there was a smile on her face; a slightly snotty smile, but nonetheless the most beautiful one you’d ever seen in your life. You ignored the uncomfortable leap of your heart when you reached out to take her hands into your own, somehow forgetting about the hostility you’d felt towards her from the beginning. “You- you stood up for me.”

“Yeah. I did, I guess,” you shrugged, smiling slightly. “I’m sure that was rough, though, to come out. How’re you feeling?”

“Honestly, much better,” Sana sighed. She leaned back, fingers curling slightly around yours as the afternoon sun shone golden brown in the locks of hair spread out on her shoulders. “It was good to get it off my chest. I didn’t even know you were into girls, you know.”

Reaching up to scratch your head, you chuckled, “Well, I am, if it makes you feel any better. What happened between the two of you, by the way? She seems to hate you so much.”

The girl laughed, as bubbly and airy as her regular voice. “I may or may not have dated her girlfriend before. But it was a long time ago, and I’m still friends with her! Roseanne just can’t forgive me.”

You feigned shock, swatting at her arm. “How terrible of you! I’m so disappointed.”

You were stuck simply smiling at each other for a good minute or so before you looked away, picking at your shoelace for something to do. “So. Uh, Roseanne knew the whole time?”

“She did,” Sana confirmed, nodding. “She just never talked about it.”

“Well, it’s good to know that she isn’t the only other one in the school with me,” you sighed, sitting back on your heels.

Sana lurched back forward, hands clasping together at her chest. “Then we should celebrate! We can go shopping or something, and we can just be happy that we aren’t alone anymore.”

It suddenly struck you how quickly you could change the girl’s entire outlook, a smile coming onto her face with no effort from you whatsoever. But even more surprising, you smiled even larger than she did just looking at her. 

Laughing, you sat back on your heels and shook your head lightly. Seeming to take it as a rejection, Sana’s eyes widened. “Oh, only if you want to, of course! We can go wherever you want, we don’t even have to go shopping if you don’t want to!”

“No, we can go shopping,” you answered, reaching back over to squeeze her hand and pulling her up with you when you stood. “Come on, then. Let’s go celebrate.”

Sana wasn’t a great driver, but you didn’t expect much else. You were practically sick to your stomach by the time that you reached the mall, face green as you swayed out of the car.

“Ah, Y/N, I’m sorry!” Her hands rubbed lightly at your back as you squatted in the parking lot, fist held tight to your mouth. It wasn’t like you were actually going to throw up, but you didn’t want to risk ruining the girl’s expensive shoes. “I’ll let you drive next time.”

Next time? you wanted to ask. But you managed to stand, nodding quickly to ease Sana’s worry. “Yeah. It’s fine, I’m fine. Should we go?”

Immediately, she latched onto your hand, swinging between the two of you as she started to rush forward. “H-hey, lock your car first!”

Sana had unsurprisingly expensive tastes, but also surprisingly understated ones. She was fun to shop with, that was for sure- she loved to offer you clothes and also to offer to pay for them, but you didn’t necessarily hate a pretty girl telling you you’d look gorgeous in a certain sparkly dress.

She didn’t do any of the typical stuck-up things you expected her to- Sana carried her own bags, and she never forced you to follow her instead of doing what you wanted to. She did like to try on outfits and show them to you, but that could be ignored when it was just another opportunity for you to stare at her.

Eventually, you ended up having ice cream at one of the stores in the mall. You balked at the price, but Sana swiped her credit card without hesitation. “I have to admit, this bubblegum doesn’t taste as good as yours,” she pouted.

Chuckling, you savored the rich flavor on your own tongue. “You should’ve picked an expensive flavor then. Vanilla and chocolate are always good in these kinds of stores.”

“You know a lot about ‘these kinds of stores’ for someone who claims to be poor,” she teased, eyes widening as soon as the words slipped out of her mouth. “Oh, I’m sorry! I didn’t mean-”

“Nah, it’s fine,” you smiled, leaning on your palm. “I’m good with it, since we’re friends now.”

Sana grinned at that, her eyes curving charmingly. “We’re friends? Most people don’t want to be friends with me, I’m really glad you’re willing to.”

“Why wouldn’t they?”

Looking down for once, the girl mumbled, “They say I’m dumb. You know that everyone says I’m nice, but they also think I’m dumb because I pay for everything. I just want to be kind, but no one takes me seriously.”

A wave of guilt rushed over you for previously feeding into the stereotype. The more time you spent with Sana, the more you realized that she was as brilliant as any other, and far more kind. “Well, that’s stupid. You are kind, Sana, and you’re amazing. I’m lucky to be your friend.”

She clasped your hand over the table, soft skin warm over yours, pink flushing in her pale cheeks. “Thank you, Y/N. You know, this is the best time I’ve had in a while. My boyfriend didn’t even listen to me this well,” she laughed.

Despite the fact that she treated it as a joke, you felt horrible. She was all too used to thinking the worst about herself and not believing that she was worth any better, and that was the worst possible thing you could imagine for a girl with a heart of gold. Jabbing your spoon into the remaining ice cream, you blurted, “Then go on a date with me. A proper one, not just a normal hangout like this.”

Sana instantly blushed, looking down as if it’d hide her face at all. But she missed the heat that rose to your cheeks too, the nervous biting of your lip as you waited for a response. “I would love nothing more,” she smiled, her eyes shining brilliantly. “And I can’t wait.”

[tigerkirby215]

5e Aphelios, the Weapon of the Faithful build (League of Legends)

(Artwork by Pan Chengwei. Made for Riot Games.)

(Shit meme by yours truly.)

Yes I hate Irelia so much I’m genuinely making an Aphelios build before her.

But I really don’t get the “Aphelios too confusing 200 years” memes. Don’t get me wrong his kit’s weird and certainly overtuned but it doesn’t take that long to figure out what his guns do. Calibrum has long range and fires a skill shot, Severum has lifesteal and attacks fast, Gravitum slows and roots, Infernum attacks in a cone for AoE damage, and Crescendum attacks very fast and creates a turret.

Just because I understand this does it mean I can play Aphelios? Fuck no. Did I learn all this from Legends of Runeterra by playing Labs with Aphelios? Yeah kinda. But all I’m saying is that if my stupid support-main ass can do midway decently as Aphelios on free-to-play rotation I really think the hype around him is overblown.

That’s enough hot takes from me. He’s the point where I list 5 goals for this build instead of 3 and make 200 years jokes.

GOALS

Calibrum - We’ll need a long-ranged weapon to harass our foes and pick them off when they try to run.

Severum - If enemies get too close or we get too low we’ll need a way to keep ourselves alive in a 1v1.

Gravitum - We’ll need to control our foes to always stay in an advantageous position.

Infernum - AoE damage is always useful to deal with crowds.

Crescendum - To take down the toughest of foes we’ll need to unleash all our firepower and even get our weapons to fir themselves.

Basically we need literally everything, all packed within 20 levels of D&D and 200 years of game design.

RACE

Aphelios is a human... but ellipsis means that another race makes more sense. Aphelios has his sister advising him wherever he goes in life, so to play two spirits in one a Kalashtar is a good choice! Your Wisdom score increases by 2 and your Charisma increases by 1. Alune’s Dual Mind grants you Advantage on Wisdom saving throws, and her Mental Discipline lets you resist Psychic damage. Alune also keeps you Severed from Dreams, meaning that you’re immune to spells that require you to dream (like the Dream spell) but not spells that require you to sleep (like Sleep.)

Aphelios doesn’t talk (unless you want him to) but Alune can make a Mind Link to speak telepathically with others! You can speak telepathically to any creature you can see that’s within a number of feet of you equal to 10 times your level. You don’t need to share a language with them, but they must be able to understand at least one language. You can also use your action to give that creature the ability to speak telepathically with you for 1 hour or until you end this effect as an action. To use this ability, the creature must be able to see you and must be within this trait’s range. You can only give this ability to only one person at a time however, as it ends when you give it to someone else. Oh and speaking of languages you know Common, Quori (which no one is going to have outside of Eberron lol), and one other language of your choice: Celestial probably makes the most sense but you can pick whatever you fancy.

ABILITY SCORES

15; CHARISMA - You’re a kpop pretty boy, because Aphelios has more guns than body types in League of Legends.

14; WISDOM - I mean you get advantage in Wisdom saves anyways: may as well make the skill good too?

13; DEXTERITY - You are a marksman but we aren’t really using DEX for combat. So in other words: something something Medium Armor.

12; CONSTITUTION - You are one of the squishiest ADCs in the game but you do have enough sustain to keep yourself alive.

10; INTELLIGENCE - You were trained spiritually, as opposed to academically. That being said Religion is an Intelligence skill for some reason.

8; STRENGTH - I mean look at Aphelios’ arms; kid’s a freaking twink.

BACKGROUND

Aphelios fights for him and his sister’s faith in the Lunari... bit unorthodox, but you’re certainly quite the devoted Acolyte. As an acolyte you get proficiency in Religion but I’d replace your proficiency in Insight with Medicine, which you’re probably used to after drinking so much poison. You also learn two languages that you won’t use because Aphelios is mute. (But yeah pick whatever you think will be useful and if you want to feel free to swap your languages for tools or something. A Herbalism Kit or Poisoner’s Kit actually works rather well given your favorite drink to keep close to your sister.)

Alune may be in the Shelter of the Faithful but you can return to the temple from time to time for solace. You and your adventuring companions can expect free healing and care at a temple, shrine, or other established location of Lunari faith (you have to provide any material components for spells though.) The Lunari will support you (but only you) at a modest lifestyle in the temples.

If you’re near your sister’s shrine you can ask the chosen Lunari priests for assistance, provided the assistance you ask for is not hazardous and you remain in good standing with your temple and your sister.

(Artwork by SixMoreVodka Studios. Made for Legends of Runeterra by Riot Games.)

THE BUILD

LEVEL 1 - SORCERER 1

Starting off as a Sorcerer for proficiency in CON saving throws lol, but also for proficiency in Arcana and the Insight skill we skipped from our background. But Sorcerers get to choose their subclass at level 1 and to get closer to the Aspects grab a touch of the Divine Soul. As a Weapon of the Faithful you are Favored by the Gods, letting you add 2d4 to a missed attack roll or saving throw once per Short or Long Rest for a touch of Alune’s guidance. I’m going to mention now that a death saving throw is technically a saving throw, and I mention it because your AC is 11 and your health is 7. Level 1 ADCs, am I right?

Anyways: Divine Souls get Divine Magic for one extra spell from the Cleric spell list: technically you’re supposed to take one of the ones they suggest to you but I’d recommend Guiding Bolt for Calibrum’s Q: a long ranged shot that lets you shoot the target more easily afterwards.

And of course being able to cast spells implies that you have Spellcasting! You can learn four cantrips from the Sorcerer or Cleric list which means you can grab Guidance for a bit more of your sister’s help. You can also grab Word of Radiance to attack everyone near you with Severum’s Q, Acid Splash for some AoE damage from Infernum (should it be doing fire damage? Yeah probably), and Light to see with your dumb Kalashtar eyes. You can also learn two leveled spells like Sanctuary to protect yourself or your allies as long as they act peacefully, and Ice Knife for a more ranged AoE blast from Infernum.

If you want you can grab Mage Armor or something because your AC and HP are kinda uhhhhhhhhhh... trash?

LEVEL 2 - WARLOCK 1

Hopefully you didn’t die as a level 1 Aphelios with 7 HP and 11 AC; we didn’t even get 200 years of damage yet! Warlocks get to choose their subclass at level 1 as well which means you can shape yourself as the Fiend the Solari see you as. Dark One’s Blessing grants you temporary hitpoints equal to your Charisma modifier plus your Warlock level whenever you slay a foe for Severum’s lifesteal and passive shield.

You also get Pact Magic, which is like regular Spellcasting but your spell slots are funny! You can learn two cantrips from the Warlock list like Eldritch Blast to blast while you eldritch, and Chill Touch for some Grievous Wounds. You can also learn two Warlock spells like Burning Hands from the Fiendlock list to blast your foes with Infernum, and Hex to mark your foe for death under the moon.

LEVEL 3 - WARLOCK 2

Second level Warlocks get access to Eldritch Invocations like Agonizing Blast to agonize your blasts, and Lance of Lethargy to slow your foes with Gravitum. You can also learn another Warlock spell like Unseen Servant for some extra sisterly help. I mean, you’re probably going to replace these all next level anyways.

LEVEL 4 - WARLOCK 3

Third level Warlocks can choose their Pact Boon and truthfully? Just about any of them work. Pact of the Blade would be the most “in-character” but your Strength and Dexterity are both kind of bad and you don’t need to use weapons. Pact of the Chain will let you personify Alune on your person and get a shitty version of Crescendum’s turret but Aphelios doesn’t have a pet. Pact of the Tome lets you get Aspect of the Moon which is funny in its own right and more cantrips are universally useful. And hell: even Pact of the Talisman is useful for your sister to lend her aid to someone else in the party. Basically this is an elaborate way for me to say that your Pact Boon doesn’t matter much for this build, as we won’t be using any of the abilities or invocations from your Pact Boon much. So pick what you think will be useful and fun and make your own Aphelios!

With that being said: you can also learn second level Warlock spells now! Shadow Blade will serve as Crescendum’s blade that you can throw at the enemy, but it is based on your DEX which is kind of... bad? Well at least you can replace Unseen Servant with Misty Step, because a summoner’s Flash is more useful than your sister’s unseen help.

LEVEL 5 - WARLOCK 4

Man isn’t it fun to wait until level 5 to not die when the enemy support breathes on you? That uneven Dexterity score was done so you could grab the Moderately Armored feat for +1 to your Dexterity and proficiency in Medium Armor and Shields. Grab both to get hit less, basically!

You can also learn another spell like Hold Person for Gravitum’s root. And another cantrip like Minor Illusion for your sister to summon some props that you can hide behind.

(Artwork by Jennifer Wuestling. Made for Riot Games.)

LEVEL 6 - WARLOCK 5

Hey that Medium Armor doesn’t really fit your outfit: how about the Mask of Many Faces invocation to put on some skins?

Third level spells are also useful! Vampiric Touch will let you heal in close range by damaging your foes with Severum.

LEVEL 7 - WARLOCK 6

6th level Fiend Warlocks get more guidance from Alune. The Solari may call it the Dark One’s Own Luck but all it lets you do is add a d10 to an ability check or saving throw once per Short or Long Rest. I mean hey: if you want a load of saving throw insurance this plus Favored by the Gods basically means you’re adding +10 to a saving throw!

You can also learn another spell but the only ones I’d want have very expensive components. Basically I want a Tasha’s summoning spell for Crescendum’s turret, but you’re going to be replacing it with...

LEVEL 8 - WARLOCK 7

4th level Warlocks can learn Summon Aberration which is a little more than just a turret! You can choose between a Beholderkin turret, Slaad tank, or Star Spawned Aspect! I’m not going to go too deep into this spell as you can read up on it for yourself but the point is you’ve got some backup now!

Alternatively if you want I think your sis could use some friends: Banishment will send them up to the temple where they’ll have to sit around and chat peacefully with Alune. Or if they’re not from the plane you’re in they’ll just be sent home.

Oh and you can also get another Eldritch Invocation like Eldritch Spear to keep your range with Calibrum.

LEVEL 9 - WARLOCK 8

8th level Warlocks get another Ability Score Improvement: you should probably increase your Charisma for more damage and accuracy with your weapons.

Speaking of weapons Dimension Door will let you head back to fountain to buy more weapons, or get out of danger and in range to use your weapons.

(Artwork by SixMoreVodka Studios. Made for Legends of Runeterra by Riot Games.)

LEVEL 10 - SORCERER 2

We’ve gotten all of out basic auto attacks: now I want some of Aphelios’ finer abilities. Second level Sorcerers get a Font of Magic for Sorcery Points which currently do nothing other than let you get more spell slots. You can melt down your Warlock slots however to get more Sorcery points, which will be useful later.

And of course you can learn more spells, but we’re going to wait for...

LEVEL 11 - SORCERER 3

Third level Sorcerers can finally learn Metamagic to empower their spells! You can take Quickened Spell for some Attack Speed, or Seeking Spell for some armor penetration to deal with higher AC enemies.

You can also learn second level spells like Icingdeath’s Frost (UA soon to be in Fizban’s hopefully) to blast foes with Infernum then Gravitum, or Dragon’s Breath to blast Infernum all throughout the fight.

LEVEL 12 - SORCERER 4

Would be good to cap off that Charisma, so go ahead and do so with your ASI.

You can also learn another spell like Spiritual Weapon for a turret you can move around a bit, and a new cantrip like Mage Hand for your sister’s help reaching the top shelf.

(Artwork made for Riot Games.)

LEVEL 13 - SORCERER 5

5th level Sorcerers can get some Magical Guidance from their sister to reroll ability checks, because she’s been reading up on Tasha’s Cauldron of Everything.

You can also learn a new spell like Fireball... I mean I really shouldn’t need to justify this. It’s Fireball. Blast them with Moonlight Vigil for a burst of Infernum’s fire!

LEVEL 14 - SORCERER 6

6th level Divine Soul Sorcerers can use their Sorcery Points for Empowered Healing... wait you have healing? Well whenever you or an ally within 5 feet of you rolls dice to heal from a spell, you can spend 1 sorcery point to reroll any number of those dice once, as long as you’re not incapacitated. This technically doesn’t work with Vampiric Touch (since that spell does damage and then heals you based on how much damage it deals) but if your support heals you or a nearby ally there’s no reason not to give them an extra pick-me-up!

You can also learn another spell but I’m going to hop back to second level real quick for Mirror Image. It perhaps doesn’t fit as well (which is why I didn’t take it until now) but it’s very good to keep yourself alive, and as a squishy Lunari boy it’ll be very helpful to make it harder for the enemy to hit you.

LEVEL 15 - SORCERER 7

7th level Sorcerers can learn 4th level spells like Guardian of Faith for a turret that actually stands still! It shoots at anyone who comes close, and when it runs out of ammo it disappears. But what’s cool about this spell is that it lasts for 8 hours, which is plenty of time to rest through the night while your sister watches over you.

LEVEL 16 - SORCERER 8

8th level Sorcerers get another Ability Score Improvement or Feat: seeing as you’re mostly casting War Caster would be a good pickup to keep your Concentration with your bad Constitution and also hit those who come too close with magic. Or you could just get better Constitution maybe since it’s a bit late for War Caster tbh...

You can also learn another spell like Death Ward, for a Guardian Angel that you’re probably going to need seeing as you still have less than a hundred health.

(Artwork by Francis Tneh and West Studios. Made for Riot Games.)

LEVEL 17 - SORCERER 9

9th level Sorcerers can learn 5th level spells like Teleportation Circle to recall back to base or to your sister’s temple. If you know the sequence of sigils to go back to a teleportation circle you can use this spell to link yourself back to it. You can also create a new circle over the course of a year. (And by spending a lot of gold.)

Basically this is my way of saying that we got all we wanted after level 16 tbh and I’m kinda just going through the motions of grabbing your last few levels.

LEVEL 18 - SORCERER 10

10th level Sorcerers get their third Metamagic option! Hurrah! By this point you have enough spells that force saving throws that Heightened Spell is a good option to make it a lot harder for your opponents to resist 200 years of magic!

You can also learn another 5th level spell like Hold Monster for Gravitum’s root against a ganking Fiddlesticks. And another cantrip: I somehow didn’t take Prestidigitation until now, so grab it for all sorts of basic Lunari magic.

LEVEL 19 - SORCERER 11

11th level Sorcerers can learn a 6th level spell! This is going to be your final, highest level spell; your ultimate ability! And I’d consider an ultimate from a fed Aphelios to be a Circle of Death. It’s a huge AoE that does a lot of damage: a simple nuke for a simple ADC that isn’t remotely confusing.

LEVEL 20 - SORCERER 12

12th level Sorcerers get one last Ability Score Improvement or Feat... I’m going to be honest: this doesn’t fit Aphelios but you likely have around 100 HP. Do yourself a favor and grab the Tough feat for 40 extra health.

FINAL BUILD

PROS

For every phase, a weapon - Wow who would’ve guessed building for versatility makes you versatile? You have a huge variety of spells for just about any occasion: AoEs to deal with crowds, single-target spells to take down big foes, crowd control to keep enemies in place, summons to keep enemies targeting them instead of your allies, and of course more than enough damage to shake a stick at.

In your hand; from my heart - Sorcery points also give you plenty of flexibility, notably in your ability to greatly increase damage output thanks to Quickened Spell on Eldritch Blasts and Seeking Spell to reroll missed Eldritch Blasts. But being able to turn your Warlock slots into ammo for your more useful guns is extremely useful and allows you to better adapt to various situations.

I am with you... shining above - Medium armor goes quite a long way! A Breastplate and Shield gives you a solid 18 AC, and if you’re willing to have Stealth Disadvantage upgrading to Half Plate gives you a respectable 19 AC!

CONS

You make yourself a weapon, so you do not have to feel - Skill proficiencies are reserved for those who don’t spend 200 years on damage. You have two skills from your background and two from your class and none of them are particularly great. Sure your Insight and Medicine skills are fine enough but you’re going to be beaten in Arcana by a Wizard and Religion by a Cleric also a Wizard, because Religion is an Intelligence skill for some reason.

Your life upon the altar, brother... - Even with the Tough feat your health is extremely poor. d6 hit die hurt and anyone with Power Word Kill can easily execute you. While I did give you good Wisdom for roleplay’s sake you could (and probably should) opt for Constitution instead.

An omen in your grasp - Your low health is kind of a problem when a lot of your spells force you into close range. There are ways to use spells like Burning Hands, Dragon’s Breath, Shadow Blade, and Vampiric Touch without getting too close (those methods being the Distant Spell Metamagic which we didn’t take; you could totally replace Seeking Spell if you wanted though) but Severum and Infernum are balanced around their low range. There’s no reason you can’t throw balance out the window to take spells that will likely be more useful.

But you are a weapon, sworn to carry your faith and show the world the light in the darkness. Your task is to slay those that deny the right of your people before they even know you are there... Sure confusing them as to what you are even doing is also effective, and I guess it doesn’t matter if your abilities make sense if they’re all dead. They’ll have 200 years to figure out how you killed them: I’m sure that’s plenty of time to read your ability descriptions.

(Artwork by @NAOMM29 on Twitter.)

[calpalirwin]

Front Row of Last Resorts

Summary: Calum never got a reason why his girlfriend left him. So when they run into each other six months after the fact, he’s determined to both get an answer and the girl.

A/N: Got angsty vibes when I came across the line “but do you miss the way those lies tasted” thanks to @cxddlyash​. And here we are.

Content: Smoking, alleged infidelity, hitting, pissed off female reader, smug Calum

Word count: 1.2k

And away, and away we go!

__

“Fuck you!” Her scream bounced off the buildings as she kept walking away from me.

Even though she was halfway through calling me every name in the book, my hands reached out to steady her as the heel of her shoe caught on an uneven part of the sidewalk and she stumbled backwards. “Whoa, easy there.”

“Don’t you fuckin’ touch me!” she snarled, snatching her arms back before I could even touch her.

I held up my hands in fake surrender. “Fine. Fall on your ass. See if I care.”

“You!” She took a step forward, a finger pointing dangerously in my face. “You fuckin’ disgust me! I never wanna see your face again, you hear me?!”

I dug into the pocket of my jacket for my cigarettes and lighter. If I was gonna listen to her continue to berate me, I was at least gonna have a smoke. “This some new sort o’ game you’re playin’, sweetheart?” I drawled as I lit up, taking a long drag.

“The only one playing games here is you!”

“Am I at least winning?”

“Fuck you, Calum,” she spat one more time before turning her back on me.

It took me snuffing my smoked cigarette into the concrete with the tip of my shoe to realize she wasn’t coming back.

~6 Months Later~

“What’re you doin’?” My lips moved around the cigarette in my mouth as I eyed Ashton in suspicion.

The other man giggled as he grabbed a nearby traffic cone and placed it on my head like a hat. “Makin’ sure you don’t get run over!” He flashed a grin.

“Piss off,” I chuckled good naturedly, lightly kicking his leg with my foot as he started to take a picture.

The sidedoor beside us opened, and we snapped our heads to it, expecting to see Luke and Michael walking out in search of us. When we saw it was a gaggle of girls, we averted our attention. “You’re a shit photographer, mate. Don’t quit your day job.”

“Am I the shit photographer, or are you the shit model?” Ashton quipped.

“Wouldn’t be the only thing Cal’s shit at,” one of the women snorted.

“Hey, Ash, remind me to look up ‘never’ in the dictionary. I wonder if there’s a second definition where it says ‘is actually 183 days.’” I took the cone off my head and took one last pull of my cigarette before digging the snub into the ground and rising to my feet. “How’s it goin’, sweetheart?”

“Eat shit,” she told me.

“Oh, so we’re still playin’ that game.” I tapped at my lips in thought as I walked over closer to her, leaning a hand against the wall. “We ever figure out who won?”

She let out a small scream of frustration before her hand cracked against my cheek.

I rubbed where she had struck me, my entire cheek on fire, brushing off Ashton who took a step forward, ready to intervene on my behalf. “Now that you got that out of your system, you ready to talk to me like a big girl? Or you wanna cuss me out some more? Let’s see… you already told me to eat shit, so look’s like we’re right about where you say I disgust you, and that you never wanna see my face again.”

“Fuck you!” Her hand shoved hard against my shoulder but I barely budged. She turned around, ready to walk off just like last time. Jesus, it was like clockwork with her.

I opened my mouth to call out after her, but Ashton cut me off with a hissed, “Mate!” his eyes wide as they pleaded with me to just let her go. 

“No, fuck this,” I dismissed him, before whistling loudly to get her attention. “Go ahead, and walk away again, sweetheart. I’ll see ya in another six months. Lovely catchin’ up!” I waggled my fingers and smiled sweetly at her.

“You stupid, smug, son of a bitch!” she fired, stalking back over to me.

I grabbed her wrist before she could hit me again. “Well, there’s no reason to drag my mum into this…” She growled and I grabbed her other wrist, holding both of them in one of my hands. “Now, that’s not very nice, sweetheart. What happened to all those words you had last time?”

“You’re not worth the air.”

“Alright. You wanna do what you didn’t do last time, and actually tell me just why the fuck you’re so hellbent on ripping my head off? Maybe, I dunno, change the outcome?”

“Why don’t you ask the girl you fucked what happened?!”

“I am!”

“Oh, so you weren’t fucking some other girl when you were with me? So, you’re not even an honest cheat? You’re a fuckin’ lyin’ one!”

“A cheater?! You think I cheated on you?!”

“I don’t think you cheated. I know you cheated! And you’re gonna stand there, and continue to deny it?!”

“I’m not denying shit, Y/N! I didn’t do anything! The only person I was crazy enough to fuck when I was with you was you!”

“Then explain this!” She quickly pulled up a picture on her phone before flashing it in my face.

I took one look and howled with laughter. I laughed so hard my sides ached and I felt tears rolling down my cheeks. I slumped against the wall, bracing a hand on my knee and pointing at Ashton with the other. “She thinks I fucked your girl!” I wheezed. “Oh, my, God! That’s fuckin’ great! Here I am, counting the days and kicking myself in the ass over Y/N when apparently I’ve supposed to been fuckin’ my best mate’s girl the whole time. Shit, I wish someone would've told me. This celibacy shit blows...”

While I fought to regain my composure, and she sputtered, “I- I- I,” at me, Ashton pulled up the unedited version of the picture on his phone. The photo that had him in it, his girlfriend’s hand on his jaw as he kissed her cheek the same way she was kissing mine.

“Believe me now?” I asked as she looked back and forth between the picture, Ashton, and me, her cheeks scarlet with embarrassment.

“Cal, I’m-”

“Save it,” I cut her off with a shake of my head. “I can’t believe you thought I would cheat on you. I can’t believe you read so much out of a fuckin’ picture so quickly that you drew you a conclusion about what happened without even having the decency to talk to me about it first before going off. I fuckin’ loved you. You know that this is the first time in 183 days that I’ve been able to stomach going out? Do you know that you had me so fucked up, that I actually know it’s been 183 days? Do you know how pathetic that is? To have literally counted the fuckin’ days?”

“Calum…” her voice shook.

“Yeah, doesn’t feel so good to not get a word in, huh?” I shot her a wink before I broke out in a held back grin.

She opened her mouth in shock. “Oh! You little shit!” She swatted lightly at my chest.

“Oh, c’mon, you deserved that, and you know it,” I laughed, grabbing her hand and pulling her to me.

“So you didn’t cheat?” Her voice was small and muffled as she buried her face in my shirt, inhaling my scent the same way I was doing with her.

“God, no. I fuckin’ love you, you crazy ass woman.”

“Good. Cuz I’ve really fuckin’ missed you.”

“Well, next time don’t leave me.”

__

Tag List

@frontmanash​​ @goeatsomelife​​ @flameraine​​ @creator-appreciator​​ @cxddlyash​​ @1-irwin-94​​ @sparkling-calm​​ @tea4sykes​​ @youngblood199456​​ @5-seconds-of-obsession​​ @gosh-im-short​​ @aquarius-hood1996​​ @talkfastromance4​​ @itjustkindahappenedreally​​ @philthepegacorn​​ @boomerash​​ @teenwolfss24​​ @karajaynetoday​ @myfavfanficsever​ @stormrider505​ @cashtonisruiningmylife​

[wickedwitch1997]

Katara, of the Fire Nation - Chapter 18

Chapter 1, Chapter 2, Chapter 3, Chapter 4, Chapter 5, Chapter 6, Chapter 7, Chapter 8, Chapter 9, Chapter 10, Chapter 11, Chapter 12, Chapter 13, Chapter 14, Chapter 15, Chapter 16, Chapter 17

The meeting with the Earth King goes well. Though it started quite roughly, with the earth king weary of the new Fire Lord, but thanks to Katara, Zuko has the promise of an ambassador arriving in the Fire Nation within the month. 

The earth kingdom smells sweet as the pair exit the palace to find that the skies have opened up and started to rain.

“There’s a nice ice-cream parlour around here,” Zuko says, not quite wanting to return to the group just yet, “Care to join me?”

Katara smiles and takes Zuko’s offered arm, as they step out into the rain, Katara bends the water above them, making a little shelter that they can walk under and keep themselves dry.

“Show off,” Zuko smiles as he looks up to Katara’s small dome over his head.

The pair walks to the ice cream parlour, though to anyone else, their ‘walk’ seems more like a stroll two lovers would take.  *;)*

Zuko holds the door open for Katara and she walks into the cold shop.

“It’s beautiful,” she breathes, looking around the shop.

“You sit,” Zuko orders with a smile, “I’ll get the ice cream.”

Katara does as she’s told, she sits at a table for two and crosses her legs, watching as the Fire Lord buys her ice cream.  

“Choc mint?” Zuko says, returning to the table and holding out the cone for Katara.

“You remembered,” Katara laughs, taking the cone.

When the two of them were kids, Zuko would sneak Katara ice cream every now and then, all different flavours, and chocolate mint was always her favourite.

“Of course I remembered,” Zuko smiles, as he licks his own cone.

Katara smiles and lets the flavour explode on her tongue.

“Can I ask you a personal question?” Zuko asks after a moment.

“Hmm?” Katara answers as she licks a dribble of ice cream off her hand.

“What’s the deal with you and the avatar?” Zuko asks before taking a bite from his cone.

Katara looks up to Zuko and purses her lips.

“He likes me,” Katara says, crossing her legs, “I know that he does, but I don’t like him, not in that way, anyway.” Katara pauses to take a bite of her ice cream, “He kissed me once, on the day of black sun, before the invasion, he kissed me and I felt nothing.”

Zuko watches Katara, forgetting about his ice cream and letting the cold desert drip onto his hands. Katara’s lips quirk into a small smile as she bends the ice cream back onto the cone and chills it so it won’t drip.

“I don’t know,” Katara sighs, “I’m sure he wants us to be more than friends, but… I don’t know. I felt nothing when he kissed me, not like when…”

Katara looks to the Fire Lord across from her and her cheeks redden as she clears her throat.

“He kissed me the second time,” she finishes, covering herself from embarrassment, “Then I was just, pure anger.”

Zuko huffs and they finish their ice creams and leave, walking back into the rain.

“So,” Katara sighs, bumping her shoulder with Zuko’s, “What’s the deal between you and Mai?”

Zuko just sighs as a response as the tea shop comes into view. Mai is waiting for him and as he changes his clothes again, she watches him and talks at him the whole time.

Meanwhile, Aang confronts Katara out on the balcony.

“I thought you’d be going back to the water tribe,” Aang says, as he approaches Katara, she shrugs her shoulders in response and then she hears him suck in a breath, “So what now?”

“I’m Zuko’s advisor,” Katara says, rubbing her arms, “I’m going back to the fire nation.”

“What about us?” Aang asks, the hair on the back of Katara’s neck stands on end as Aang moves closer to her.

“There is no us,” Katara responds, uncomfortable with the small distance between her and the avatar.

“What about the day of black sun?” Aang asks, his eyes not hiding the pain behind them.

“It was a kiss, in the heat of the moment,” Katara says, moving out of Aang’s reach, “I’m sorry, but I don’t feel for you as you do for me.”

Aang is upset, he tries to take Katara’s hand but she pulls out of Aang’s reach again.

“Don’t do this,” Aang says, “We can be happy together.”

Katara shakes her head at Aang.

“I wouldn’t be happy with you,” Katara says, walking away from the conversation.

The next afternoon, Katara returns to the Fire Nation with Zuko, Mai and Kiki. Iroh stays behind, wishing to stay with his tea shop, where he feels the most at peace.

Katara farewells her brother and Suki, both of whom plan to return to the southern water tribe.

“I will see you again,” Katara says, hugging her brother with tears brimming her eyes.

“Kick ass, little sis,” he says, kissing her cheek.

Aang leaves on Appa, not even bothering to say goodbye, he takes off into the sky and is swallowed by the clouds.

“Are you ready?” Zuko asks, waiting for Katara by his airship.

Katara nods her head, she hugs her brother one last time before following Zuko onto the ship with her head held high.

As soon as they land back in the fire nation, things begin to progress quickly, Katara and Zuko are pulled all over the palace, attending meetings after meetings.

Katara is moved into the room down the hall from Zuko, the only thing separating them is an office which they share. The office has doors leading to both rooms for convenience, though the doors are hard to find at first and blend in with the walls, Katara assumes it’s how past fire lords would sneak their affairs into their rooms without being caught.

Katara barely has time for herself and that’s how she likes it, because before she knows it, six months have passed since the war and the nation is still going strong.

Katara can keep up with the fast pace, it’s in her blood, but Zuko has a harder maintaining his schedule.

On one particular morning, Zuko doesn’t get out of bed, no matter how many times Mai pokes and pushes him.

“Zuko isn’t getting out of bed,” Mai announces, striding into the throne room where the council gathers, “I will speak for him today.”

Katara looks to the other councillors and then back to Mai.

“Did he tell you to speak for him?” Katara asks.

“No,” Mai says through gritted teeth, her glare is enough to unsettle the other councillors in the room.

But Katara isn’t afraid of Mai, she clears her throat and then shrugs her shoulders.

“Well then, meaning no disrespect,” she lies, “you aren’t part of the council and you aren’t the Fire Lady, so unless Fire Lord Zuko specifically anoints you as his speaker, you have no right to speak for him, and no right to even sit with the council.”

Mai’s face turns red as the rest of the council agree with Katara.

“I will go and try to wake the Fire Lord,” Katara says, standing to her feet and nodding to the council, “I’m sure he won’t be long.”

Katara takes a guard along with her, should Zuko say anything on Mai speaking for him, she will need a witness to testify.

Katara knocks softly on Zuko’s door, calling his name before opening the door.

“Zuko, the council is waiting,” Katara says, walking further into the room.

“I already told Mai,” Zuko grumbles, rolling over and burying himself in his blankets.

“Told her what?” Katara asks, frowning as she looks at the guard.

Zuko just grumbles and reaches behind him, he grabs a piece of paper and holds it out to Katara.

Katara takes the paper and reads Zuko’s messy scrawl of writing, once she reads it she passes it to the guard and he reads it over too.

“He’s anointing you regent?” the guard gapes as Katara looks over the Fire Lord.

Katara cannot see much of Zuko, he is wrapped in his blankets with only the mess of his hair peeking out the top, Katara wishes she could see his chest, to check on the blister, but she doesn’t wish to disturb Zuko so she turns and leaves with the guard, taking the paper from him as she goes.

“You’re still here?” Katara says when she notices Mai still lingering in the council room, “Why?”

Mai just huffs and storms out as Katara places the paper in front of the other councillors.

“He’s anointed his advisor as regent,” one of the men says, reading from the note.

Katara nods her head and then sits back in her place.

“Shall we begin?” she asks, the men all look at her and then at each other, “What?”

“When a regent is in play, they sit on the throne,” one of the councillors says, his eyes flicking up to the Fire Lords seat.

Katara looks to the sheltered throne, she then looks back to the councillors and the ambassadors in the room before standing and making her way up onto the dais.

Once she takes a seat on the throne, the meeting begins.

Zuko doesn’t get out of bed all day, so it is up to Katara to fill his shoes. After the last meeting, Katara is exhausted, she pinches the bridge of her nose as she stands and finally leaves the throne room.

“He’s asking for you,” Mai says, waiting for Katara in the hall, her arms are crossed and there is a tight scowl on her face, which Katara ignores as she heads to Zuko’s room.

“I don’t know who you think you are, but Zuko loves me,” Mai says, “I see how you look at him.”

Katara ignores Mai as she walks into the Fire Lord’s chambers, his door already open.

“Zuko,” Katara whispers, approaching the bed, “Are you alright?”

Zuko is still tucked deep under his blankets, but at the sound of Katara’s voice, he rolls over and looks up at her.

Not much of the Fire Lord’s chest is exposed, but Katara can see irritated skin poking out.

“Shit,” Katara curses, she pulls down the blanket and finds Zuko’s blister red and raw, Katara looks to Mai, who is standing in the doorway, “How long has it been like this?” Katara asks.

Mai makes a vague ‘I don’t know’ sound and shrugs her shoulders before leaving.

Katara hasn’t checked Zuko’s wound for at least six months, he’s never complained about it so Katara assumed it was all fine.

“This was supposed to be healed by now,” Katara breathes, bending water to her hands.

Zuko isn’t fully conscious, but he groans out as Katara touches the blister gently.

“Oh, Zuko,” Katara sighs, she places the water to Zuko’s chest and he whimpers her name as the water begins to glow.

“Kat,” he breathes, he grips onto Katara’s arms, keeping her healing water on his chest for longer.

“It’s alright,” Katara soothes, not flinching at Zuko’s hands.

The pain Zuko has been feeling has probably been keeping him up all this time, never letting him have a peaceful sleep for six months.

When the water loses its glow, Zuko’s grip relaxes on Katara’s arms.

“Kat?” Zuko rasps, finally opening his eyes.

“Hey,” Katara smiles, she puts the water back into her pouch, “Hey.”

Zuko sighs and then opens his eyes fully.

“Why didn’t you tell me you were in pain?” Katara asks, sighing as she sits on the edge of the bed, “This should have been healed by now.”

“Sorry,” Zuko groans, sitting himself up with a grunt, “I just, lost time.”

Katara sighs and then looks over Zuko’s chest, moving closer to get a better look at the wound.

“This is going to scar really badly,” she notes, but before she can say another word, she feels Zuko’s hand reach out and caress her cheek, “What are you doing?” she asks, her eyes flicking up to meet his.

For a moment, Zuko doesn’t say a word, he pushes Katara’s hair out of her face and tucks it behind her ears, his eyes taking in every aspect of Katara’s face.

“Beautiful,” Zuko says, his voice soft as a whisper as his fingers brush against Katara’s cheeks.

Katara’s heart skips a beat as Zuko’s thumb brushes against her lip, a whole new swell of feelings enter her chest, making her heart race with excitement.

“Zuko.” It is the only word Katara can manage to get out, it slips past her lips in a silent breath as her chest tightens.

Zuko’s eyes are staring right at Katara’s lips, his breathing is steady and strong, just like his hand, which caresses higher until his fingers tangle in Katara’s soft, brown curls. Katara’s nose fills with the smell of sandalwood and wood smoke, Zuko, her nose fills with the smell of Zuko.

“Stay,” he says, his voice still a hushed whisper as he looks back into Katara’s eyes, “Stay.”

Katara’s heart is breathing so fast, she fears she may have a heart attack.

“I… I can’t,” Katara says, her voice equally soft, she pulls back and Zuko lets her hair slip from his fingers, “I’ll send for Mai.”

Katara bows her head to Zuko and then leaves, but she pauses by the door to look back at her Fire Lord.

“I’ll come check on you in the morning,” she promises, she nods her head again and then adds, “Good night, Zuko.”

Katara leaves, she rushes to her own room and closes the door behind her, pressing her back on the wood as her heart thunders in her ears, begging her to return to Zuko’s side. Katara shakes away her thoughts and then undresses.

When she wears nothing but her skin, Katara finds herself caressing her cheek, her fingers dancing over the place where Zuko’s once was, her skin still tingles at the thought.

Katara touches her lips tenderly as she walks over to her mirror that sits over her desk, she stands in front of the mirror, watching how her fingers dance over her skin, imagining that they are someone else’s.

Slowly Katara’s fingers trace lower, tracing invisible lines over her neck before curving down over her collarbones. Her fingers trace back up, she rolls her head to the side and her fingers hold around her neck.

Katara’s eyes flick to her reflection, through her hooded eyes, she imagines the fire lord, standing behind her with his lips to her cheek, and his arms wrapped around her body, one arm around her waist, the other across her chest, with his hand around her throat, holding her with a mild amount of pressure.

Katara snaps out of her imagination, Zuko’s reflection disappears from behind her and Katara’s hands cover her mouth.

“What are you doing, Katara?” she asks, looking at herself in the mirror.

Katara turns away from the mirror and tries to convince herself that her feelings aren’t real, that the wetness between her legs is not because of her Fire Lord.

Katara crawls under her covers and ties to get some sleep, hoping that tomorrow will be better. Unfortunately, Katara’s mind keeps drifting to another subject, thinking of things other than sleep, on more than one occasion, Katara has to stop herself from grinding against the pillow that is hugged to her chest.

“Fine,” Katara huffs, rolling onto her back as midnight approaches.

Katara closes her eyes and her hands trace over her skin, dancing lower and lower until they pass through the soft hair between her thighs.

She tries to think of someone else, anyone else, other than the Fire Lord two rooms over. Katara slowly start circling her clit with a finger, her breath starting to hitch at the contact, but it doesn’t feel right, not when she is thinking about someone else.

“You can’t escape me,” Zuko’s voice seems to echo in her mind and Katara can’t help but imagine that his hands are between her legs, slowly teasing her clitoris with one finger.

Katara’s breathing becomes shallow as she applies a little more pressure, her eyebrows knit together as she imagines Zuko laying against her.

“More,” Katara breathes, her voice so sultry that she hardly recognises it.

She imagines Zuko chuckling and then she adds another finger.

“Fuck,” she whimpers, toying with herself not yet finding her sweet spot.

“You can’t deny me,” Zuko’s voice echoes in her mind again and she can see his face in her mind’s eye, she can see every detail of his face, from his ink-like hair to his pinkish scar.

Katara’s breathing becomes more ragged as she draws her knees up and dips a finger inside of herself, slowly and gently as she imagines Zuko would.

Katara lets out a rough breath as she imagines him, his face lowering between her thighs and his tongue dipping into her, tasting her.

Katara hums to herself as her fingers withdraw and return to her clit, Katara starts to slowly rub herself, she pulls water out of the bowl by her bed and turns it into a fast pulsing jet.

“What’s my name?” Zuko’s voice whispers into her brain, his phantom hand's grip at her thighs as her back arches off the bed and her other hand runs through her hair, “Who is it that you want?”

The name is right on her lips, pulsing between her legs increases and the name falls out of her in a silent whisper. Katara’s head tips back, her neck becoming exposed as her climax builds, a soft grunt follows the name and then the pulsing quickens.

“Fuck,” Katara hisses, her orgasm rips through her, her body convulses as Katara keeps the pressure for only a moment longer.

Katara lays back, she takes the pressure off and then her knees draw together as the wave of passion rolls over her once more before leaving her in the afterglow.

Mai came to bed as soon as Katara left, she walked into the room and crawled into bed without a word to Zuko.

Zuko remained awake, sitting against the headboard, his chest tingling, and this time it wasn’t in pain. Zuko can’t sleep, so he decides to go into his office and shuffle through papers.

As midnight approaches, a groan from the other room startles Zuko from his work, he looks over to where the door to Katara’s room hides, Zuko stands and moves over to the door.

On the other side of the door, he can hear Katara, her breathing is shallow and fast, Zuko fears she may be having a nightmare, but before he can think to open the door and sneak inside, another sound comes. This sound is different, it’s soft, almost like a purr, the sound is enough to stop Zuko in his tracks.

‘Is she with someone?’ he thinks to himself as Katara’s moans could only be described as lustful.

Zuko listens as Katara’s breath hitches and she moans out quietly.

‘She’s trying to be quiet,’ Zuko notes, his palms press against the door, and he presses his forehead against the wood. He can’t hear anyone else in Katara’s room, no noise that she makes indicates that there is another with her. He lets out a soft sigh of what seems to be relief.

‘Am I jealous?’ he asks himself, but he cannot think more on the question as Katara’s moans out again, this time her breathing is quicker and rougher.

Zuko’s cheeks flush and he takes his palms off the door, he shouldn’t be listening to this, he shouldn’t be invading her privacy.

“Zuko.”

He becomes frozen in place, his back tenses as her soft voice simpers out his name.

‘Does she know I’m here?’ he wonders, unable to move.

But Katara doesn’t say his name again, instead, she grinds out a sweetly foul word and her breathing quickens yet again. From the other side of the door, Zuko can hear Katara moan again, it’s loud and sultry, and he swears it’s the best sound that he has ever heard.

Zuko presses his palms against the door again, wishing he could see through it, to see what Katara looks like at this moment, after completion and continuing to whimper softly.

Zuko lets out a silent breath and then hangs his head, looking down at his stiff problem that strains beneath his pants.

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