#we fought hard to get here and we will fight even harder to stay

[aclawthorne22]

Things will not remain this way forever *said to warn*

Things will not remain this way forever *said to comfort*

There is a difference

[chocochozi]

The Other Woman.

Pairing : Sanemi Shinazugawa x Hashira! Reader.

Warning : Spoilers for the anime/manga, angst, second choice reader, some fighting

A/N : HIII THANKYOU FOR READINGGG IM SORRY IF ITS HORRIBLE ITS MY FIRST TIME BSNXNZKZ

From the very begining, i always knew that i was just a second choice.

It has always been her it will always be her.

Shinazugawa and me met during our final selection.

He was harsh at first but warmed up to me the next few days together in the Mount Fujikasane. Truth be told, he didn't even want me to stay, i was the one following him around because he was the only one that caught my attention i didn't know why. But something about him just makes me drawn to him.

We fought in the mountain infested with demons side by side. During those times, my then unrequited love for him developed.

Time past by and we were promoted to be Hashiras. Though, it was ashame when Kumeno; the man who helped Shinazugawa and introduced him to a proper trainer, tragically died during both of their encounter with one of the holder of Lower Rank One of the Twelve Kizuki.

There, we met her.

Kanae.

And i can't blame Sanemi for falling for her charms. Shes beautiful, kind, sweet, patient, and has an easy-going personality.

How can i ever compare to her? Im not even close.

Kanae was easy to get along with, after becoming the Ice Hashira, we've sometimes been paired up by Master Ubuyashiki for missions. Therefore, we knew each other quite well.

Seeing the way Sanemi looks at her with heart eyes shatters my heart knowing he loved her, not me. The look in his eyes says it all.

How could I hate her? She's such an angel.

She's perfect where i fail.

"Nemiii~" i whined, impatiently waiting for him to stop training and come with me to eat.

"What?" The white haired man still kept his stance not once even glancing at you.

"C'monnn, you said you'll come with me to the ramen shop near byyy"

Huffing in annoyance, he straighten his body, turning fully to you a defeated expression plastered on his face. "Fine," "Your treat." He added.

"Alright, Let's go!" I grabbed his hands dragging him out then suddenly, Kanae's crow came flying to us informing about the unfortunate event's that led to Kanae's inevitable death.

The news, of course made me upset, she was my friend after all. But Sanemi took the news harder if not, the third hardest after the other two Kocho's. Talking to him seemed impossible after Kanae's death. He avoided me, he avoided everyone. When i try to have a converstation with him, his respond is always just a short answer or a simple hum.

Master Ubuyashiki summoned us two, to inform us about a mission, where we're both paired up. The walk to the place was quiet accompanied by the occational noises of cicadas. I was tired and didn't want to waste my energy to a one sided conversation so i stayed quiet.

As we were walking i felt a presence of someone behind my back, quickly turning around, i saw that a demon was launching at me, while his clawed nails reached for me. A hand wrapped around my waist hopping backwards to get away from the demon, a groaned escaped my lips,

"You okay?" I felt Sanemi's warm breath on my ears i felt a head rushed to my cheeks as i regain my composure. 'Its so hard to focus when im working with you.' I thought.

"Y..yeah. im okay, yeah." I patted the back of my neck and looked at my hands.

Blood.

"Fuck," i tilt my head up and glanced at the demon, a smirk on his face i pulled away from Sanemi taking my sword out of its sheath and drawing it towards the enemy. I took a deep breath and released it out my mouth.

"Ice breathing, first form, Freezing Slash." I launched towards the demon rapidly and precisely strinking him and his neck. Pieces of him dropped to the ground, his detatched head rolling to the ground as it disappears into thin air.

Sanemi walked towards me. "Come here." He softly says, and i obeyed like a puppy. He patched up the wounds on the back of my neck and that day, we reconciled our friendship.

There were times where i wanted to confess to him but didn't want to take advantage of his vulnerable state. Then, that day came where i finally mustered up the courage to finally confess to him, at first he thought i was kidding but once he realize i wasn't, he became nervous. But he did gave the relationship a chance, and we began dating.

But i could never shake the feeling that i was just a replacement, a second choice for the woman he really loved.

"Sanemi! Nemi! Wait!" I yelled running after him.

"What's your place to interfere with me and my brothers problem huh?" He stopped walking and turned around to look at me, a dissapointed look on his face was visible.

"Im sorry, i though– i though it would help.."

"Help with what?!"

"I..i don't know. When you told me about that story about your mother i–" a shaky breath escapes my lips.

"I know how to handle my own brother, and you're out of it." His tone as cold as ice.

"I thought that maybe it will help you move on.."

He stepped towards me, one of his eye brows upwards with a confused look on his face. "Move on from what?"

"From every thing thats keeping you from moving on."

"Why? What do you even know about how i feel? Do you know all the things i had to go to?" His eyes shifted. "Of course not."

"So stop acting like you know my pain, and stop acting like you own it!" His voice raised on the last sentence. "And you can't just say to me when i can move on."

I stood there, in silence. My glossy orbs looking at him.

"Even Kanae who is with me in everything, who knows everything, didn't interfere with my decisions."

That was my last straw.

"Im not Kanae, so stop comparing me to her!"

"You're right, you're not Kanae, and you will never be Kanae." He pointed his finger at me. I looked at him in the eye a tear sliding down my cheeks.

"Kanae is dead. She's not coming back Nemi, but until now you're still acting as if she is here."

"Because she is! She's here!" He pointed at his chest where his heart is.

"If she's there then where am i?.. " my voice quiet but shaky. "Forget it." I walked passed him heading to the door that leads out of his estate. My hand made its way to my mouth to stop myself from crying even louder, the other slid the door open.

I wanted him to chase after me, to tell me we will be okay. But he never did.

How foolish of me to even think that you will. I wonder, if i were to be her will you chase after me?

[naviiq]

7#-> 💌: a letter has arrived from satoru gojo.

dear y/n,

pretty abrupt.. if this gets through, if you're not bawling your pretty little eyes out then i am dead. i know it's a little sudden to start this letter off but.. i don't wanna sugarcoat it because i know it’s going to hurt you more than i can even imagine. i didn’t want it to end like this, not like this, but here we are. and honestly, after everything, i think i’m okay with it.

i don’t want you to feel anger right now. i don’t want you to feel regret. this isn’t your fault. if there’s anyone to blame, it’s me. it’s always been me. i knew the risks, i knew what i was up against, but i kept pushing forward. i know this isn’t how you’d want to hear it. i know you’re going to hate me for leaving you with nothing but these words. this letter is all i have left to give you. i know it won’t make up for anything. but i’m trying, in the only way i know how. if there’s any justice in this world, you’ll get it. for me, for us. and maybe, just maybe, it’ll be enough to make things right again.

i think about what could’ve been. what we could’ve had. you and me. together. free from all of this. i’d take you away, y/n, if i could. to somewhere safe, somewhere quiet. no more curses, no more fighting, no more deaths. just us, finally living a life without the weight of the world on our shoulders. but it’s not going to happen, is it? the way things are, the way the world works, it was always a dream. too big. too much. something even i wasn’t able to achieve.

but.. y/n, it’s strange. the moment i saw my own blood, the moment i knew this was it, i realized something. for all the years i’ve spent knowing to be invincible, the one thing i never considered was the idea of you. of you being the one who’d have to pick up the pieces. of you carrying the weight of everything i couldn’t save. and i need you to know this isn’t your burden to bear.

i’m sorry. i’m so sorry. i really am, you were the most wonderful partner i could ever be with.

if i could have stayed, i would’ve. you know that. but that’s not how it ended. i want you to live. i want you to find a way to be happy again. i don’t care how long it takes, or how hard it is. i want you to find that peace, even if i’m not there to see it.

you deserve justice for everything. for the pain, for the loss, for the rage you’ll feel when you read these words and realize you won’t ever get another chance to hold me again. i don’t know if this world will ever be just. i don’t know if they’ll ever pay for what they did to us. but i trust you to do what needs to be done. you always were the better one, even if you didn’t know it. just don’t lose yourself. that’s all i ask of you.

this letter is all i have left to give you. and i know it won’t make up for anything. i wish i could say more. i wish i could say goodbye in a way that wouldn’t leave you crying. i wish i could be there to hold you, to kiss you, to tell you that i love you one more time. but this is all i have left. these words. and maybe, just maybe, they’ll be enough to make sure you know how much i loved you, though i understand that’ll be unlikely. but i hope that, one day, you’ll read this and know that i loved you. that i will always love you.

listen, i know you’re going to fight. i know that rage is going to take over you— the same rage that’s been inside me during this time. but please, please don’t let it consume you. don’t let it make you lose yourself. i don’t want you to become someone else because of me. i don’t want you to walk down the same path that i did, believing that the only way to get justice is through bloodshed. you’re better than that. you always were.

this is it. there’s a part of me that wishes i could have done more, that wishes i could have fought harder, that wishes i could have come up with some plan, some way to get us both out of this hellhole of a world. but i’m done pretending. i’m done trying to outsmart fate.

i know what’s coming, y/n. and i’ve made peace with it. maybe it’s because i’ve been facing the inevitable for so long that it’s not as terrifying as it should be. but that doesn’t mean i’m not afraid. i’m afraid of leaving you behind. i’m afraid of not being able to make things right. i’m afraid of knowing that you’ll have to live without me.

i’m sorry. i’m sorry i couldn’t be there for you. i’m sorry that this world took me from you. but i want you to keep going. for me. for us. please, y/n. keep living. for me. for us. find a way to heal. find a way to move forward. i won’t be there to help you. i won’t be there to hold your hand, but i’ll always be with you in the pieces of your heart. i’ll always be there, just like i promised.

i know how this sounds. i know how it feels to read words on a page that won’t ever bring me back, and that’s the hardest thing about this. i’m writing this to you, and it’s just a letter. it’s all i have. but i need you to understand that you have so much more than this. you have everything you need to keep going.

i’m so fucking sorry. forgive me, please. forgive me for leaving you like this, for doing this to you. i never wanted to hurt you. i never wanted to put you through any of this. but here we are. and now, this is the reality we’re facing. i know it’s not fair. nothing about this is.

i wish i could’ve seen your smile once more. it’s imprinted in my brain, like a photo i can’t shake, but no matter how hard i try, it’s never enough. every time i close my eyes, i can still picture it— that soft, cute smile that always makes everything feel okay. you have no idea how much it means to me, y/n. that smile, that light, it was the one thing i could hold onto when everything around me seemed dark. i’ve spent so much of my life chasing after something, trying to make a difference. but in the end, it was you. your smile. your warmth. that was the real answer, the thing that kept me grounded. and now, knowing i’ll never see it again, it’s like a part of me is missing. i’ll carry it with me, but it's not the same. i want to hold onto that memory forever, but i can’t shake the feeling that it’s slipping away. and that hurts more than i can put into words.

goodness, i’m tearing up, how silly. ironic.

there’s so much i love about you. it’s impossible to list it all, but if i could, i would tell you about the way your eyes light up when you laugh, how it’s like the whole world falls away and nothing else matters. i love the way you’re always thinking of others, even when you’re carrying your own weight. you never asked for the world to be this way, and yet, you still choose to fight. i love how you challenge me, how you make me want to be better, even when i thought i was already everything i could be. but more than that, i love how you loved me. even when i was too reckless, too wild, too lost. when i couldn’t even love myself fully, you made me believe that i was worth something.

you made me feel like i was home. i don’t think i’ve ever truly felt like i belonged after suguru, somewhere until i met you. with you, i could finally breathe. i could finally let my guard down. there’s something about the way you hold me, like everything’s going to be okay, even when it’s not. i’ll carry that feeling with me, y/n, even as i’m fading away. it’s the only thing that gives me peace right now.

but damn, it hurts knowing i’ll never get to hold you like that again, to hear your voice call my name, to feel your hand in mine. the world’s going to keep turning, and i won’t be there for you when you need me most. and that breaks me more than anything. but if you can, if you can find a way to move on, just know that i’ll always be in your heart. always. even if it feels like i’m gone, know that a part of me will always be with you. it’s just the part of me that loves you most.

i’m sorry for not being there. when i wasn’t there for the quiet moments, the ones that mattered most. and now, all i have is this— these words, these apologies, and a lifetime of regret i won’t get to undo. i’m sorry for the pain i caused you, for all the times i didn’t

show up when i promised i would. i’m sorry i made you feel alone in the one thing that should’ve brought us together. at least our last conversation we had wasn’t a big fight. i’m glad for that. but i’m also sad that will be our last.

but hey, i'm gonna die with a smile. not because it's easy, obviously, but because i'm okay with it, because for a second, just for a second, i had something real. something worth fighting for. we had our good moments, right? those little pieces of time where everything felt right, when it was just you and me against the world. i wouldn't trade that for anything. so yeah, i’m smiling, even now, because i got to love you. even if it’s only for a moment, it’s more than some people ever get. and that’s enough for me.

goodbye, my sweetheart. don’t forget me.

i love you.

from, satoru gojo.

p.s. i love you. more than i’ll ever be able to put into words. and in the end, that’s all i really have to give you. my love. always and forever.

[rosemariiaa]

~Lines We Drew~

part: 5

pairing- Paige x Azzi

a/n: surprise! don’t ask me how many times i teared up writing this, i do it to myself. Lovely reading babies 💌 yes this is longgg

themes: angst, pining

Enjoy!!!

The soft buzz of her phone woke Paige up. Groaning, she rolled over in her bed, one arm hanging off the side as she squinted at the screen. It was a message from Nika in the group chat, something about breakfast, but Paige barely paid attention. Her head was pounding from last night’s game and all the shots she took, and honestly, she wasn’t in the mood for any more group hangouts.

If anyone could’ve saved me… it would’ve been you.

She rubbed her eyes, staring up at the ceiling for a moment. Paige huffed, pushing herself upright, annoyed at how her thoughts always drifted back to Azzi.

It was stupid, really. Azzi wasn’t even here. She had gone back to her own dorm after the game last night, and Paige couldn’t help but feel relieved. There had been too many moments where their hands occasionally brushed, or whenever Azzi caught her looking. It was getting harder to keep her guard up, especially when Azzi was so… there.

Would’ve been you.

She hated that she still thought like this, even after everything. After Azzi left. After no goodbye, no explanation, nothing. Just gone. And now, here she was, like nothing had ever happened. Paige shook her head, trying to push those thoughts away as she got out of bed, but it was hard to ignore them, especially when they felt so unfinished.

———-

Azzi’s POV

The sun streamed through the blinds, casting warm patterns across the wall as I sat on my bed, my laptop open in front of me. I hadn’t even meant to wake up this early, but my mind wouldn’t let me sleep in. After the truth or drink game, everything just felt… heavy.

I sighed, leaning back against the headboard, staring blankly at the email I was supposed to be reading. But my mind kept wandering, kept going back to Paige. The way she was looking at me all last night, how close we would always stand to each other , fingers brushing, the unspoken tension between us hanging like a thick cloud.

It would’ve been you…

It’s crazy how much those words hit me, how true they felt. If anyone could’ve saved me from everything I was running from, it would’ve been her. But I was too scared to face it. I’d bailed. I didn’t give her an explanation, just left. And now I’m back, trying to act like everything’s fine, like nothing’s changed.

But it has. I’ve changed. She’s changed.

“Fuck,” I muttered under my breath, closing my laptop with a thud. Who was I kidding? There’s no going back to how things were. And the worst part? I still hadn’t apologized. For leaving.

———-

Paige clenched her jaw as she took a sip of water. That old feeling of betrayal mixed with frustration washed over her, the one she thought she had moved on from. But with Azzi back in her life now, all of those buried emotions resurfaced, sharper than ever.

If anyone could’ve saved me…

Those same five words wouldn’t leave her head, gnawing at her. She hated that a part of her still wished Azzi had stayed. Wished she had fought for them, what they could’ve been. But she didn’t. And now, Paige was stuck feeling like she was the only one who cared enough to remember what they had.

A knock on her door jolted her out of her thoughts. She walked over and cracked it open, finding Nika standing there, grinning. “Yo, breakfast? We’re all going. Even Ice,” Nika said, leaning against the doorframe. “You coming or are you gonna mope around and think about Azzi all day?”

Paige’s stomach twisted at the mention of Azzi. “I’m not moping,” she muttered, stepping back to let Nika inside. “Just tired.”

“Yeah, sure,” Nika teased, following Paige into the kitchen. “You’re always tired when it comes to her.”Paige rolled her eyes but couldn’t fight the smirk that tugged at the corner of her lips. “Let’s not start this morning.”

“Oh, come on, you can’t pretend like I don’t know what’s going on,” Nika said, hopping up onto the counter, her legs swinging. “The way you two were last night? It was painful to watch, bro. Just admit you still—”

“Nika,” Paige interrupted sharply, her tone a warning. “I don’t. Not like that.”

But even as she said it, the lie burned her throat.

———-

I pulled my hoodie tighter around me as I headed out of the dorm, heading toward the dining hall. Caroline had texted me to meet up for breakfast, but I had hesitated. Part of me didn’t want to be around everyone today. Especially not after last night.

Last night had fucked with my head more than I thought it would. Seeing Paige again, being in her space, laughing, teasing— it was almost like old times. Almost. Except now, there was this huge fucking wall between us. And I was the one who built it.

Would you forgive me for everything I haven’t apologized for?

Those words hit me hard, like they always did. The words echoing in my ears as I shoved my hands in my pockets and kicked at the sidewalk. I’d never said sorry. Not once. I just bailed. Took the easy way out, because facing Paige back then? That felt impossible. Hell, it still felt impossible. How do you apologize for something like that?

I killed a part of who I was to keep you on my side.

And the truth was, I was scared. Scared of what being around her did to me. Scared of what we could’ve been if I stayed. So I left, thinking that would fix it. That it would save me.

It didn’t.

———-

“Alright, I’m coming,” Paige finally said, grabbing her keys off the counter. Nika hopped down with a satisfied grin, clearly pleased with herself.

“Good, ‘cause the girls are already talking about how you’ve been avoiding Azzi since last night.”

Paige shot her a look. “I’m not avoiding her.”

“Mhm,” Nika hummed, not buying it. “You should’ve seen how she looked at you last night, though. That wasn’t just ‘Oh, we’re teammates’ vibes.” Paige sighed, ignoring the way her stomach flipped at the thought. “Let’s just get through breakfast.”

As they walked to the dining hall, Paige couldn’t stop replaying moments from the game last night in her head. The way Azzi’s gaze would flicker over to her every few minutes, how her laugh made something inside Paige clench, even now.

It could’ve been you…

By the time they reached the hall, she felt that familiar pit forming in her chest. She spotted Caroline, Ice, and KK already sitting at a table, chatting. And then she saw Azzi, sitting next to Caroline, her hair in her signature two braids and the rest of her curls falling down over her shoulders and her attention fully focused on whatever Caroline was saying. Paige’s heart skipped a beat despite herself.

Azzi’s eyes lifted, meeting hers across the room.

Paige looked away quickly, cursing herself.

———-

Azzi’s POV

I didn’t mean to stare, but when Paige walked in, it was like my body had a mind of its own. My eyes immediately went to her, and for a second, I forgot what Caroline had been saying.

She looked… tired. And not just physically. There was this weight in her gaze that hadn’t been there before. It hit me harder than I expected.

Caroline elbowed me gently. “You okay?” she asked, glancing between me and Paige. She must’ve caught me staring.

I nodded quickly, trying to shake it off. “Yeah, I’m good.”

If anyone could’ve changed me… it would’ve been you.

Fuck. I really wasn’t good. I’d been trying to act like everything was fine, like we could just be teammates and nothing more, but every time I saw her, I felt like I was drowning in all the things I hadn’t said. The apologies I hadn’t made.

I could feel Paige’s presence even though she was sitting at the other end of the table. It was like this invisible pull, this thing I couldn’t escape. No matter how much time had passed.

I took a deep breath, trying to focus on Caroline again. But out of the corner of my eye, I saw Paige glance my way.

And just like that, I was back to where we left off. Caught between wanting to say something and not knowing how to fix what I’d broken.

———-

Paige tried to ignore the glances Azzi kept throwing her way, but it was getting harder by the second. Everything felt like it was hanging in the air between them—unspoken words, old memories, all the shit they’d buried.

She shifted in her seat, clenching her jaw as Caroline and Ice laughed about something Azzi said. It used to be her and Azzi in those moments. Back when things were easy. Back when she didn’t have to pretend she didn’t care.

If anyone could’ve saved me… it would’ve been you.

Her phone buzzed in her lap, pulling her out of her thoughts. It was Nika, texting from across the table.

Nika: You gonna keep staring or you gonna talk to her?

Paige groaned, quickly typing back.

Paige: Shut up.

But her mind was already racing. Maybe Nika was right. Maybe she had to talk to Azzi, no matter how fucked up it felt. Because the silence between them? It was getting too loud.

Paige’s mind was a whirlwind of frustration and hurt. She kept glancing over at Azzi, who was focused intently on her food, though her tight shoulders betrayed her nerves. Nika’s message from earlier had made Paige realize she couldn’t keep avoiding the issue. If she wanted any resolution—or at least to understand where she stood with Azzi—she had to confront it head-on.

Taking a deep breath, Paige pushed her chair back and stood up. The movement caught the attention of her friends, but Paige barely registered their curious looks. She walked to the other end of the table, where Azzi sat with Caroline and Ice.

“Can we talk?” Paige asked, her voice steady but carrying an edge of desperation.

Azzi’s eyes shot up, surprise and something softer—perhaps relief—flitting across her face. She nodded, standing up and excusing herself from the table.

Paige led the way out of the dining hall, ignoring the whispers and looks from her teammates. They reached a quieter corner of the hallway, away from prying eyes and ears. The hallway was dimly lit, and the walls seemed to close in around them as they faced each other.

———-

Paige’s patience was worn thin. The conversation she’d been dreading was finally happening, but it didn’t come with the ease she’d hoped. Her voice was tight with suppressed anger. “Look, I know you’ve got a lot to say, but don’t expect me to just sit here and pretend everything’s fine. This has been eating me up Az, for too long.”

Azzi’s voice cracked as she began. “I know I messed up. I should’ve said something before I left. I thought leaving was the easiest way out. I didn’t want to hurt you more than I already had.”

Paige’s jaw tightened, her frustration bubbling to the surface. “Easiest way out? You think a half-assed apology is going to make up for disappearing without a word? No explanation, no goodbye. You left me Az.. oh my birthday too..with nothing but questions and a broken heart. And now you waltz back in like you can just fix everything with a few words?”

Azzi’s eyes widened, her face flushing. “I didn’t mean to hurt you! I thought it would be easier for both of us if I just left. I didn’t want to drag you into my mess.”

“Easier?” Paige’s voice grew louder, her anger unmistakable. “You think abandoning me was easier? You left me to deal with everything alone, to pick up the pieces of what we had. And now you show up like it’s all supposed to magically fix itself?”

Azzi stepped closer, her voice rising in frustration. “I didn’t realize it would be like this! I didn’t think it through. But don’t act like I’m the only one who fucked up. You pushed me away too. You didn’t exactly make it easy for me to come back!” Paige’s eyes flashed with fury. “Are you kidding me? I was left to hold everything together while you just vanished! I had every right to be angry and hurt. And now you show up expecting me to just forgive and forget?”

Azzi’s voice grew sharper, her tears of frustration spilling over. “Well, maybe if you’d been more honest with me, if you hadn’t kept pushing me away, things wouldn’t have turned out this way! I’m trying to make amends, but you’re just throwing it back in my face!”

Paige’s fists clenched at her sides, her frustration boiling over. “I’m not throwing anything in your face. I’m trying to make sense of the mess you left behind. And you want to argue about who’s more at fault?”

Azzi’s expression softened, but anger and guilt still simmered. “I’m not trying to make it simple. I’m trying to be honest. I’m trying to make things right, even if it’s messy. But if you can’t see that, then maybe I don’t know what else to do.”

Paige’s eyes were filled with pain and frustration. “Maybe you don’t. Because right now, all I see is someone who walked away and is now trying to come back like nothing happened.” Her voice cracked as she continued, raw and unfiltered. “And you know what else? I hate seeing you with Laila. I hate that she’s around and not me. That should’ve been me with you, but you ruined it. You left me with nothing but the feeling of being replaced and forgotten.”

Azzi’s confusion deepened, and she shook her head. “Laila? What does she have to do with this? There’s nothing going on between us.”

Paige’s voice trembled with anger and hurt. “It’s not just about what’s happening or no happening with Laila. It’s the fact that she’s here, so close to you, when it was supposed to be me. You left me. It’s like you erased me from your life.”

Tears began streaming down Paige’s cheeks, and Azzi’s expression softened, her own eyes filling with tears. The emotional weight of Paige’s words was almost too much to bear. They stepped closer to each other, their breaths mingling in the small space between them.

Paige’s heart raced as she looked at Azzi, her anger slowly melting into a deep, raw vulnerability. Azzi’s face was a mirror of her own pain, and for a moment, it felt like the space between them was closing in on something more intimate. Their eyes locked, and the world seemed to fade away.

Just as their faces were inches apart, their breaths mingling, Paige’s voice broke the silence, barely above a whisper. “I can’t do this… not right now. It’s not fair to me.”

Azzi’s eyes widened with a mixture of shock and regret. She tried to reach out, but Paige stepped back, the distance between them growing once more. Azzi was left standing in the dimly lit hallway, her tears falling freely now, feeling the full weight of Paige’s anger and the realization of what she had lost. Paige turned and walked away, her heart heavy with the pain Azzi couldn’t take away like she used to.

———-

a/n: i can’t take this bye

[livesworthlivingau]

Behind the Vale Chapter 31

ISAT/Two Hats Spoilers below! CW: Mentions of brutal death, Lots and lots of crying (both the characters and the writer as well)

"This traveler had been alone for a very long time. They had lost their family, their home, even their own name." [You continue to stare towards the floor. You won't dare make eye contact with any of them. You feel Stardust hook their arm into yours, likely in a show of solidarity.]

"Then they finally found friends, and it was the happiest they'd ever been... so happy in fact, that they made a wish. They wished that it wouldn't have to end, they wished to stay with their friends... Ironically, that very wish is how they'd end up losing every one of them..." [You feel a strain in your throat, desperately trying not to break down as your story just began. Nille grips your hand tighter. You take another deep breath, shaky as it may be.]

"They found themself trapped, stuck in time and forced to fight a hopeless battle... forced to watch their friends slain mercilessly by the King... dozens, hundreds, thousands of times... more than they could count.... It seemed hopeless, impossible. Until one loop, they finally did it. They finally defeated the king..." [You can't hold it back anymore, your throat straining to speak, tears rolling down your face.]

"When it all finally seemed over... they suddenly woke up in that same damned field where it all started... This broke them. They couldn't take it anymore. So they made a second wish, they wished for it to be over. They wished for someone, anyone to help them. They begged the universe for help, and they were answered with a star."

"So they ate it... and it destroyed them, turning them into a star themself... It's fitting really, they were already destroyed on the inside, why not lose their husk of a body as well~?" [You let out a manic little laugh, more tears flowing down your face. Stardust hugs you on your side suddenly, wrapping his arms tightly around you.]

"It's okay... take all the time you need." [You start to wipe your tears, still not daring look towards the others. You're just thankful they haven't tried to interrupt at all. You take a minute to regain your composure, then continue again.]

"So they were sent the help they asked for, by becoming it themself... or maybe there simply wasn't enough left of them to be helped... So now they were stuck guiding a copy of themself through the very thing that broke them. Forced to watch as their friends... their family... were taken by somebody else. Forced to watch as they got your happy ending, the one you fought so hard for-" [You can't conjure any more words, just sobbing leaves your throat now. You bring a hand over your face, trying to keep what little dignity you could as you break down in front of them all.]

"Vale..." [You hear the fighter's strained voice above you, shadowed by his large figure. You look up at him in surprise, not having realized he was suddenly in front of you. Tears rolled down his face as he yanked you into a tight hug.]

"I'm so sorry we couldn't help you..." [You struggle weakly in his grasp. You want to shout, you want to get him off of you, you want to break free of his burning touch. Yet you can manage no words in this moment as you just sob heavily. You soon feel Nille and Stardust join in on the hug, crying harder as you give up your struggles. You even feel the Housemaiden join in after a moment. The burning slowly fades into light warmth... They may not be your real family, but this is the closest you'd ever get to them, and right now you're far too weak to fight that. You even feel the Researcher's hand on your shoulder not long after...]

[Once the hug breaks it simultaneously feels like it was an eternity, and only a short moment that you'd beg to keep going. The Fighter clears his throat after crying so much.]

"Okay! We should all probably get some rest and process all of this... You're welcome to stay here, Vale." [He offers with a light smile through his sad expression.]

"Th-Thank you..." [You barely manage to choke out even those two words. Nille still hasn't let go of your hand this whole time, squeezing it comfortingly again.]

"Do you want some company tonight? Or do you need some time alone?" [You shake your head lightly, trying to force a little smile as you continue to only manage a word or two at a time.]

"Go."

"Okay, if you're sure. Just come knocking if you need me, alright?" [You nod to her, everyone slowly leaving the room to head to their beds for the night. Stardust tells the Fighter they'll be a second as they remain behind. They wait until everyone was gone to speak.]

"... Did you really watch the King kill everyone?... Every time?" [You wince at the question, and hesitantly give a nod in response. Stardust practically tackles you with another tight hug.]

"Thank you... for sticking around, Vale... it really means a lot to me." [You slowly wrap your arms back around them to return the hug. You let them remain this way as long as they like... You even consider pulling them back in when they finally let go.]

"Get some rest, you probably need it after all that... Good night, Vale." [You watch them head upstairs, finally leaving you all alone. You lie down on the couch and stare up at the ceiling. You wait for sleep to claim you, though it never quite seems to reach you.]

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

[You're not sure how much time has passed, but you're snapped out of your sleepless daze when you hear someone coming down the stairs. You peek over the couch to spot Flare descending them. You doubt they'd want to see you after your last interaction, so you quickly lay back down, closing your eyes and pretending to be asleep.]

[You hear them stomp past you towards the kitchen, dragging a chair somewhere, opening a cabinet, then closing it and dragging the chair once more... They stomp closer over to you and stop.]

"... Hey..." [You blink your eyes open, finding them standing in front of you, holding a bowl filled with something... it smells delicious whatever it is. They hold it out to you, looking away all the while. You slowly sit up and take it from them, curiously looking at it to find a plate of... malanga fritters...]

"I made these for Frin... I heard what you told everyone, so I thought you might need them more..." [They say with a bit of a pout, their arms crossed and still avoiding looking at you.]

"I... Flare... Thank you..." [You're certain the only reason you haven't started crying again is because you've already dehydrated yourself from it all earlier.]

"I'm still mad at you for hurting Frin!... S-So don't think you're just forgiven!" [They shout softly as to avoid waking anyone up.]

"O-of course... I don't blame you..."

"Well good!... Stupidvale..." [They mumble before starting to stomp back up the stairs. You can't help but chuckle a little at their reaction.]

[You pick up a fritter and take a bite... and a tear flows down your face again.]

[starlightsreigns]

one last time | d. priest

summary: serena and damian need to call it quits. but it’s breaking both their fragile hearts.

word count: 726 (short & sweet)

warnings: none!

authors note: something i wrote at 2 am. i fear i might write a part two but idk. again, ignore the lowercase im obsessed with it. sorry for the errors x

“feel like a failure, cause i know that i failed you”

sarena held his arm tightly, too afraid of him walking out of that door. and surprisingly, damian doesn’t move away. he only looks at her in sadness - her puffy cheeks and red eyes broke his heart. sarena took a step forward and kissed his arm softly.

“don’t do this, damian.” she pled, resting her head against his forearm. “i don’t want this.”

damian shut his eyes painfully, “i love you, baby, but this is what’s good for us.”

“i promise after that i’ll let you go”

it’s hard to see three years down the drain for something that couldn’t be fixed. too many factors brought them to this moment in time. the screaming, the fighting, the lying and the cheating. time and age separated them and it became harder to make this relationship make sense anymore.

damian couldn’t trust sarena; she’s younger, livelier, and there was a disconnect when he was on the road. then, sarena couldn’t trust damian with the groupies, the space, and the sheer fact that he couldn’t believe anything she told him.

the love wasn’t enough to keep them together when they were tearing each other apart. it was killing them to be in this relationship any longer, but neither one of them wanted to be the one to give it up - that was until damian knew he needed to let sarena go. if he didn’t, they’d end up resenting each other.

“but i got nothing here without you.”

so, they sat on the edge of the bed together, a bed they’ve shared for the past two years, realizing it was the end. sarena hasn’t been able to stop the tears that we’re streaming down her face. yet, she wasn’t worried about herself, she spent her time wiping away his tears and clinging to him like her life depended on it.

“i don’t wanna be without ya”

“i don’t want to hurt you anymore,” damian whispered in the darkness of the room. he moved serena’s hair from her face. “i care too much about you.”

sarena nodded slowly, unable to accept this, unable to come up with something to say to him. she rested her chin on her knee, letting the sobs fall into her hands. this wasn’t what she wanted, but she knew it's what they needed.

“do you think we’d be able to get back together in the future?” she asked between sobs, needing something to soothe the ache in her chest. “you can’t tell me we have to be like this forever.”

damian doesn’t speak. he only stared at the ground and serena felt sick to her stomach.

a sad smile came onto her face, “you want this to be a forever thing?”

“we can’t be friends, rina.” his voice cracked. “i can’t pretend, i love you too much, but i can’t give you a timeline and disappoint you or you disappoint me if someone else comes around.”

“I have nothing without you, Damian, and I don’t want to be without you.” she shouted weakly. “there won’t be anyone else.”

“i know i don’t deserve it, but stay with me a minute”

it’s silent for a long time afterwards. serena had no tears left to cry as she stared at the ground. damian sat close beside her, their fingers interlocked, not wanting to separate for a moment and make this real.

“i know you’ll leave in the morning, and i’ll have to accept that you won’t call, or text, but can we just sleep here for the next three hours before this is all over?” serena fought the tears, turning to look at damian. “and then i’ll let you go?”

damian nodded, wrapping his arm around her as they laid back. neither of them slept, it was silent and as the sun rose, serena squeezed his arm in place, wishing that he’d change his mind and stay. but, she knew he didn’t.

he gave her two long kisses, two painful kisses and got out of the bed. she couldn’t even turn to look at him as he walked out of the door. he whispered one last i love you and she was left with the silence of the house.

how was she supposed to accept this? because…

“all i really care is you wake up in my arms.”

pov: i cried when i wrote this. until next time x

[castiels-undercoat]

(Their faces here guys 😫😭)

This scene makes me so sad at like a core level. Not just for Cas but also for Dean. Like from Cas's perspective the person he loves most in the world basically hates him now, after Cas did everything for him. Dean and Sam were all he had and Dean couldnt let go of this anger he had towards him and it drove him away. UNDERSTANDABLY SO.

And while Dean was undeniably wrong you can also pinpoint exact traumas that led up to this, and that affected this. The thing that gets me the most is something I havent seen anyone else mention before though.

A good quote that resonates with Dean for me is the whole "everything ive ever let go of has claw marks on it" (David Foster Wallace) one. Dean has literally had to beg and fight and claw for people to stay. Since he was four years old he had to keep Sam safe and make sure Sam stayed in the shitty hotel rooms while all Sam wanted to do was run away (again, understandable! Not blaming Sam)

On top of that he had to deal with his dad leaving all the time, john was never around. Dean had to call and beg his own father to show up for them when he felt like they really needed him and john still wouldnt show up for him or sam. When sam died Dean couldnt just let it go, he fought and searched for anything to bring him back, even to the point of making demon deals. Whatever it took to not have to let go! Even when Mary came back it seemed like all she wanted to do was leave, Dean begged her to stay and she still wouldnt, then she died and he lost that possibility of that closer relationship with his mom that he was fighting so hard for.

Even Cas, he has begged Cas to stay more then once. In purgatory he fights through all the monsters there for a full YEAR just to find Cas and then Cas left him. He let go of Deans hand and the memory was SO PAINFUL that Dean had to fictionalize it to himself and make it his fault because he couldnt handle the fact that not even Cas would fight harder to stay with him. The only times he let go of people without a fight was when he had to, when he was a danger to them (lisa, ben, human Cas), or when they were gone forever with no shot of coming back (and even then he would fucking try.)

But i feel like we see a shift in Dean in season 15. He was always the fighter, never afraid to fight for who he loved or for what he thought was right. But here that fight is so drained out of him. Hes tired. Hes tired of fighting and portecting and pushing along even when he wanted to die, he doesnt want to have to survive all the time anymore.

Hes just tired of begging people to stay when it seems like all anybody ever wants to do is leave him. He doesnt feel good enough to be the one thing that keeps people around because he never HAS been good enough for them to stay. He didnt want Cas to leave (no matter how mad at him he was) but he didnt want to be the guy who digs his claws in only for someone to still leave him again.

[disillusioneddanny]

The Savior, The Reaper, and The Champion

Today was a bad brain day. That was the first thing Danny had realized as he laid beside Tim and let the other man rest his head on Danny’s bicep. On the other side of the human, Conner laid down, wrapping his strong arm around the man’s waist and burying his face in between Tim’s shoulder blades. 

No one ever tells you that being a supervillain is so fucking hard. That there would be days where you struggled to even get out of bed. When they had each chosen this life, they knew it would be hard. That there would be days where they questioned if what they were doing really was for the greater good of the world–even if the Justice League didn’t see it that way. 

That was the biggest thing, Danny had mused. They weren’t really villains, not to anyone except for the Justice League and the eyes of the government. Most of the citizens in this world loved the duo.

“It’s okay, we’re here,” Danny whispered as Tim let out a sob. He ran his fingers through his hair as he and Conner held their little super genius close. Today was one of the harder days. It was the anniversary of the day Bruce Wayne had officially disowned Tim Drake. It was a bittersweet day considering how it had ended between them. On one hand, Tim had felt liberated, no longer under the thumb of Batman, the World’s Greatest Detective and Control Freak. But on the other hand, he had lost the only real father figure he had ever had. 

The day Tim had gone on his own, he had lost practically everyone. Danny wanted to hate Bruce for it, but it had also been the reason he had met Tim in the first place. It had been just five years ago now, the day that Tim had first summoned Danny. 

He pressed a kiss to Tim’s head as another sob wracked through his lithe frame and Conner’s arms tighten just a bit around Tim as the man buried his face in Danny’s chest. 

“We’re here, we love you,” Conner whispered in Tim’s ear, voice hushed, calming. 

They had met just a few days after Tim had gotten into a screaming match with Bruce–a fight that Conner and Danny still didn’t have all the details for. He had gone off on his own, determined to destroy the League of Assassins once and for all and to have Ra’s Al Ghul die by his hand. He had summoned the Ghost King to find out about the secrets of the Lazarus Waters. Upon learning about them and Ra’s, though, Danny had decided to help get rid of them for good. No one was meant to live forever, not the way Ra’s was doing it at least. It was easy to say that once Danny learned of how the assassin cult was using the corrupted ectoplasm, he was more than ready to help take them down.

Between the two of them, they had completely destroyed the League and Ra’s. Upon learning about it, Tim’s family had been horrified. Apparently they had been holding out hope that he wouldn’t go through with his plans, that he wouldn’t fall so far and fast from the pedestal he had once stood on as Red Robin. They had cut him off, decided that Tim had crossed a line and they were unwilling to forgive him for it. Surprisingly, the only one who had stayed in touch was Jason. 

“Family pariahs have to stick together,” he had said. It also hadn’t helped that Danny had managed to heal the pit rage inside of him and supplement it with a healthy ghost core. 

The others, though, had declared Tim a rogue for his actions. Dick had even gone as far as saying that Tim had hit supervillain status and was on the same level as Lex Luthor. Danny didn’t see it that way. In his opinion, all they had done was get rid of an organization that would never truly stop killing, no matter how many times Batman and co. fought them. 

“I just want to forget about it,” Tim whispered, his fingers bunched in Danny’s shirt. 

After they had destroyed the league, the couple had fallen in love, they had finally found someone who was at the same level. They were the perfect puzzle pieces for one another. And once Danny had felt close enough to Tim, he had told him his trauma, shared with him the pain he had never told another living soul. 

And Tim? Well he went out that very night and placed a few explosives in just the right spots. And they had done their jobs. The GIW and the Fentons would never harm Danny again. He had the vivisection scars to remind him of the pain that they had caused but he would never see them again. It was then that the young ghost king had decided that he would follow Tim to the ends of the earth, do whatever Tim wanted from him. 

He may have been the Ghost King but Tim was his monarch and he was prepared to worship him any time and any place, prepared to do whatever bidding he desired. And it was then that Savior and Reaper had made their names known far and wide. 

Tim had declared himself the savior, promising to destroy those that the Justice League were too cowardly to fight, and he had declared Danny his loyal right hand man, his knight to command, his reaper. 

The people saw them as heroes, finally doing what others wouldn’t. Everyone else saw them as supervllains. TIm liked to call themselves the necessary evils. Conner liked to say that they were just doing what the heroes were too cowardly to do. They were willing to darken their own souls if it meant saving others. 

They had run into Conner shortly after Reaper and Savior had killed the Joker and sent his soul to the Nightmare Realm where he would suffer for all of eternity. He had known Tim from his heroes days and knew that if anyone would help him, it would be Tim. Soon Savior, Reaper and their newest member,Champion, had made their move and Lex Luthor had become their newest target. For a man who had done so much damage, it had been laughable at how easy it was to kill him once and for all. Danny had made sure to give him a special place in the Nightmare Realms for the pain he had caused Conner.

The team had made a name for themselves, they hadn’t come up with a name but Danny had heard the whispers of stories and myths, of how others would reverently call them the world’s new furies. They had become gods of vengence. Tim had been likened to Alecto for being unceasing, Danny had been compared to Tisiphone for being avenging, and Conner had been dubbed Megaera for being grudging.

So they had taken it for themselves, the Furies of the New World they were called, or just Furies for short. 

“I know you do, baby,” Danny murmured. “But it’s a part of you, it’s who you are.”

“I miss them,” Tim said with a whimper, curling in on himself. Oh their fearless leader, Tim who had called himself Savior and swore to protect the world from injustice, who despite himself being powerless himself, kept two of the most powerful beings on tight leashes behind him, ready to unleash them into the world on his command. And yet he still was just so small, he trusted Danny and Conner so much that he allowed them to see through the facade, to force their way through the cracks and see the broken man he had become. 

Some say that you have to sell your soul to become a fighter for the people. Danny was pleased to say it wasn’t true, he saw Tim’s soul, saw his love to his bones and knew him better than anyone in the world.  

“I miss talking to Alfred, sparring with Bruce, late night Bat Burger with Dick–I miss my life. I just, was this all a mistake? Is Bruce right? Did we go too far in our mission? Did I lose my family for nothing?” Tim whispered, wracking his fingers through Danny’s hair, petting him slowly. The ghost nearly purred at his lover’s touch. 

“We can stop if you want,” Danny offered quietly. “I can get Clockwork to reset time, let us start all over, let you decide-”

“No,” Tim said sternly. “I don’t want to forget what we’ve done. We’ve helped too many people for that. I’m just being a baby,” he said softly, folding in on himself slightly. 

“We can have Danny take us to a completely different dimension,” Conner offered, his thumb rubbed along Tim’s hipbone. “We can make new lives, leave all of this behind. We’ll make you happy, Tim, happier than you can even imagine.”

“We’re still needed,” Tim said, squeezing his eyes shut tight. “We still have so much to make right, to fix. I just miss the life I had, it doesn’t mean I hate the new one. I’m sorry-”

“Don’t be,” Danny told him seriously, moving to rest his head on his hand and looked down at Tim. “We all have our days. Timmy, my parents cut me apart limb from limb and there are still days I miss them, where I miss the life I had before all of this. It’s how the world goes.”

“The two of you make life so much easier,” Tim whispered, looking between his two lovers, tears collected in the corners of his eyes. Conner swiped a thumb across both, wiping them away. “I’m glad I have both of you here with me, I feel less insane, less out of control.”

“You’re not insane or out of control,” Danny murmured before he pressed forward and kissed Tim’s pouty lips softly. 

“Yeah,” Conner murmured, pushing Tim’s shirt up slowly so that he could tweak a nipple softly. “You’re our fearless leader.”

“And we’re your strong henchmen,” Danny finished, and nipped at Tim’s nose, making his precious lover giggle.

“You aren’t henchmen, we’re partners,” Tim argued, glaring at both of them. Danny and Conner just grinned at one another before they looked at Tim. 

“Nope,” Conner said. “You’re the brains and we’re the brawn.”

“We’ll follow you anywhere,” Danny said reverently. “Why do you think I call you my Northstar?”

[yourjughead]

Attack Dog pt. 4

Sweet Pea X Reader enemies to lovers

A/N: I really like this part, finally some contact going on hehehe

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

Sweet Pea POV

“Sweeeeeeet peaaaaaaa, moove overrrr I'm coming in-'' he slurred and stumbled past. What the hell is going on? He crashed onto my makeshift bed and stretched.

“-I amm having a sleeeeeep over here, the Seniors haveeen comman-commaannnder-commandereeed fuck it, they took my housee” I looked out the front door and watched some very drunk, very big men crowd into his trailer and close it. I went to object to him but he was already passed out on my sofa.

“Sweet Pea what's going on?” YN said smaly from my room. I quietly rushed to her and into my room.

“Jones kinda stole my digs after the seniors took his….do you mind if I stay in here?”

“I mean it's your room sooo I can just make my way home”

“No no stay, I don't know who's still around outside and besides it's freezing” there was little to no space between the two of us. It was difficult to fight my urge to lean into her. I forced myself to take a step back from her, taking a pillow from the bed and throwing it on the floor.

“Just sleep in the bed with me Snake Brain, your old man back will break sleeping on the floor” she shuffled back to the bed and slipped under the covers on my side of the bed. My side. I slid in next to her trying not to completely freak out that I was legitimately sleeping with the enemy. Both our eyes were locked onto the ceiling. I should really paint up there.

“What happened with you and Jughead earlier?” I couldn't help myself, I had to say something to take the weird tension away from between us.

“He told me I abandoned him and it was my fault he had to join you guys” she exhaled the words out. Fault? As if we're the worst thing in the world to happen to anyone. I have all the right to kick his ass from my sofa.

“Just leave him sleep Sweet Pea, you won't get anything out of him now” was she inside my head? I moved gently in the bed at this thought.

“You're not exactly hard for me to read Sweet Pea, relax” she laughed a little but I didn't relax. How was I so easy to read? No one has ever said that before. She rolled onto her side to face me, hands tucked up under the side of her face.

“What else did he say?”

“That I should have fought harder to come home sooner….that I might have been able to save him from you guys…basically it's my fault I'm upset” save him from us? Save him from us?! I went to move from the bed, I was gonna kick him out I don't care. I was stopped by the feeling of YNs hand wrap into mine beneath the sheets.

“Just leave it Sweet Pea, defend your honour tomorrow after you sleep-” she yawned out.

“-besides it'll be a lot more fun to shout at him when he's fighting his hangover” she gave a mischievous smile as her eyes gently closed. She's still holding my hand….I'm still holding hers….why are we still holding hands and why don't I want to let go?

I laid awake for half an hour staring at the peeling paint of the roof. The pain in my shoulder growing from my unmoving hand was getting hard to ignore as YN slept peacefully next to me. Caught between my dying nerves and the dying want to not let go I quickly rolled towards her, releasing her hand and catching it with my other. I misjudged the distance between us and clocked her straight into the head with my own as I did. She dropped my hand to place it on her forehead. Damn it.

“You're such a freak” she laughed, rubbing her forehead and then rolled in closer to me, draping an arm across my waist and gently pulling herself into me, resting her head between the pillow and my chest. Great. This is great. This is also very confusing. Again, it was like she read my thoughts, even half asleep and she sat up, leaning on an elbow to look at me.

“Sorry I… I don't know why I did that”

“It's okay YN…it was actually comfortable…I'm okay with it if you're okay with it” she gave me a smile I never wanted to see leave her. She has to know that that was difficult for me to admit. She rolled to face out towards the wall and for a moment I thought Id left myself be vulnerable to the wrong person, that she'd laugh and reject me, call me the silly snake brain I was and leave. But no. She didn't. She instead shuffled down into the bed and laid her back flat against my chest. I cautiously moved my arm to cross her waist and she caught hold of it to move it faster and then held it there with her own. Am I asleep? Is this a dream? Am I being punked?

I nestled my chin against the top of her head, pulling her closer into me, tangling our legs. So close to me…..oh shit too close she's too close. I shuffled a little to try to hide the part of me that was betraying any sense of secrecy I had about my changing feelings to YN. She just moved back to where she was, no hiding from her. I could almost feel her whole body smirking as she gently rubbed little circles with her thumb on the back of my hand. Damn it she's winning.

“You're not…hard to read Sweet Pea” yup, she's definitely smirking at me. I tried to push the embarrassment out of my voice before speaking. She's not gonna win this one.

“Well I hardly think that's surprising, I already told you what I think needs to happen for you to relax” I barely whispered, it was her body's turn to…stiffen in the bed alongside me. Point Sweet Pea. I slowly moved my mouth to hover above her neck. We were both so still, I could almost see the hairs on her neck stand on their end. My lips met her neck almost painfully gently. I began to kiss her there until she rolled her head back slightly to allow me more access. I then started to nip her neck, sucking gently as I went. Her own body betrayed her then as she gave a small moan of approval. Point Sweet Pea.

She didn't let my point advantage last very long as she began to push herself into my growing length, a low growl escaping me before I reburied myself in her neck, more feverishly this time. Her hand wrapped tighter around mine on her chest as she grinded into me, encouraging me on. Electric, I was being electrified by her. She rolled more on to her back and I was hovering above her. I didn't really think then, I just leaned down and met her lips with mine. Truly electric. I'm kissing YN. This went further than I thought it would. This is going to go further than I thought it was. She must have had the same thought separating from me. Sex is one thing, kissing someone like that and feeling how we did while kissing during sex is another thing.

“I…didn't mean to….I shouldn't have…” I didn't know what I was saying, almost begging her with my eyes to say anything.

“I-” she was cut off by the sound of Jones sneezing from the sitting room, causing us both to jump. I had completely forgotten he was out there. We were about to…I don't know what we were about to do but we were gonna do it with him out there.

“Night Sweet Pea” was all YN said, rolling away from me again to face the wall, this time not taking my arm with her. Fuck.

I didn't sleep for the rest of the night, the thought of what could have been controlling me. I don't think she was asleep either but I didn't challenge her on it. Fuck.

I got up and got dressed, heading into the kitchen for coffee as the sun hit the inside of the trailer. Jones sat up extremely groggily and groaning. Karma.

“Morning” I smiled at him, only getting a huff in return.

“Sweet Pea I'm gonna go before Jughead wa-” YN whispered as she entered the living area. Not quiet enough. Jones' head shot to hers then to mine and back again. If he wasn't green before he certainly was now. I didn't know what to think or where to look. Karma? YN just looked down briefly at her feet, surely just trying to take any break from his giant eyes. Then she looked back, directly at him.

“Morning Jughead, I gotta say, I kinda get the Serpent thing” she beamed. Oh she's evil, she's really really evil, she would make a great Serpent. She then practically bounced out of the trailer, leaving me back to face the brunt of his darkened eyes. Point YN.

Part 5

[doodling-doodle]

Dear Doodle

I believe it is time for more ABO

Well, as you wish!

---

Kyle was now six months along. Six months... It felt like not much time had passed.

But he knew it had. When his belly was so heavy and his baby girl was kicking all the time, how could he not?

He found himself lying in bed one morning, tired but unable to sleep. Alex was holding him, his arm acting as his pillow while his hand was on his belly, rubbing a line into the swell.

Were they still on the middle name debate? Yeah, but they hadn't talked about it in a while. But he was thinking of names that they could maybe compromise on...

He just felt tired. He was sore, he was tired, he was swollen, and he was honestly ready to have this be over so he could meet his baby.

"You okay?" Alex asked, voice raspy from sleep.

"I wanna sleep but I can't..." He replied, tearing up slightly. Stupid.

"I'm sorry, baby..." Alex said, sighing, "I know it's only three... I can go make breakfast? We have to get on base in a few hours- you know what, I'm going to call Price and tell him you won't be on base today, I think you need a break."

Normally he would fight it... but he couldn't disagree, he needed rest and a break.

"I'm not too hungry right now..." He said, "Maybe if I just get up and do something, I'll exhaust myself and force myself to sleep."

"Ah, ah, ah, that's not good." Alex said, sitting up, "Don't do that. Right now, you need rest, for both you and Rosa."

He sat up slowly, rubbing his belly as he did, groaning, "I don't know what else to do..."

"Why don't I... make you something warm? That might do something." Alex said, rubbing his shoulder as he held his hand on his belly.

He nodded, and Alex kissed him and his belly before turning on the bedside lamp and yawning, walking out of the room and downstairs, passing the now fully decorated nursery as he did.

He found himself looking in the living room as he waited for water to boil so he could make Kyle some ramen. He smiled softly, thinking about holding his baby girl on the couch, playing with her, feeding her, rocking her to sleep... Oh, he was so excited. He was going to cherish his little girl. Just had to help Kyle through these next few months. He knew it was getting harder on him, but he always said it was worth it. He fought a little when Price decided to take him out of training recruits and running drills and purely put him on desk duty, but ultimately took it when he realized just how hard it was for him to actually run drills. It was hard for Alex to see him in pain, whether it was from Rosalie kicking or from Braxton Hicks, he always felt so bad seeing him either curling up in pain or crying, and all he could do was hold him.

But he would always do it. That was his husband and father of his future child. He was more than happy to help them. He would always help them, he truly loved doing it.

He would love his child more than anything. He already did.

...

Kyle hummed softly as he stood from his desk, walking out of his office and to the mess hall. He did get quite a bit of paperwork that morning, mission reports, deliveries, and things he needed to write up. But he was starving, so he would take the break. Even if he didn't really like whatever was in the mess-

"Hey, mi sobrino!"

He turned to the common room, seeing Ale and Rudy in the kitchenette.

"Come here, we got our own lunch." Ale said, smiling, "You deserve better than the slop of the mess hall."

He smiled softly, walking in as Ale patted his shoulder, marching him to the couch, "But don't think for a second you're doing more work."

"Tío, I'm fine, I'm just doing paperwork."

"Doesn't matter. You are growing a whole human inside of you and that's hard work." Ale sat him down, making sure he was comfortable, "Stay there." He said as he walked back to the kitchenette.

He pouted, but stayed there and leaned back slightly, mindlessly rubbing his belly as he closed his eyes, listening to Ale and Rudy as they cooked.

He perked up when he heard his phone go off, seeing a text from Alex.

"Almost back now. How are you?"

He smiled softly, "I'm fine. Ale and Rudy are cooking and telling me to sit down, like I haven't been all day."

"You're not used to being told to relax, huh?"

"I still miss working with recruits!"

"I know, but you might be back at it after she's born."

"What if I don't wanna wait?"

"You have to :) Be back soon!"

He rolled his eyes, chuckling softly.

"Alex?" Rudy asked.

"Alex..." He sighed happily, "He's on his way back from Farah's... Something came up, she needed something."

"Field related?"

"No, something else... He should be here soon." He smiled softly, hearing Rudy chuckle.

"Shocked he took it up, considering how attentive he is to you." He said, bringing over a plate.

He chuckled, taking it from him, "I kinda volunteered him for it."

"You're not used to being so taken care of, huh?"

"Not really... Feel more bad for him than anything, he always needs to be around me. Trying to give him a break."

"So you sent him off?" Ale asked, chuckling a little.

"Yeah..."

"You don't know how to be pregnant, Kyle. You're supposed to be taken care of!"

He glared at Rudy, chuckling softly, "Maybe so... I will say, it is nice to be taken care of like that..."

"Of course it is."

He smiled softly, putting his now empty plate down as he sighed, "Fuck, I scarfed that down, Rudy... Love your cooking."

He chuckled, "Maybe I'll start cooking more when you have to stay on base... though that's increasingly rare."

He giggled softly, "Even so-" He winced slightly, feeling Rosalie kick him hard and a sharp pain in his belly, "Rosa... Please..."

"You okay?" Ale asked, sitting closer to him.

"Just kicking me..." He said, holding his belly softly as he breathed, "... And Braxton Hicks."

Ale nodded softly, holding his hands as he winced again, whimpering slightly.

"You're okay, you're okay." He whispered, holding Kyle close to him, "It'll be over soon, just breathe."

"I'll get you some water." Rudy said, standing and going back to the kitchenette.

"Al-Alex will be back soon, right?" Kyle asked, leaning against Ale softly.

"Yeah. He's almost here, don't worry, okay?"

Kyle nodded, trying to breathe through the pain and letting Ale rub his back and his belly while he rocked him softly. It helped a lot, but it, thankfully, stopped quickly, and he didn't even notice when it all stopped.

"Sometimes I hate being pregnant..." He said, huffing out a chuckle.

"I think I can see why." Rudy said, sitting beside him and handing him a glass of water, "But... it will be worth it in the end, right?"

"Of course..." He smiled softly, "But damn it, sometimes it's so annoying!"

Ale chuckled, letting go of him softly, "You're doing hard work. You're gonna do just fine as a father, I know it."

He truly hoped so... He wanted to be so bad.

...

For days, almost two weeks after Alex returned, Kyle would curl up next to him, or in his arms. As much as he wanted to give Alex a break, he really missed him. And Alex missed him too. He was happy to hold him for hours, kiss all over his stomach, and cook whatever he wanted that day.

He just finished up with the training for the recruits, telling them to go enjoy the next few hours before they would go to the shooting range.

He went to go find Kyle in his office, seeing him sitting at his desk and writing up papers on his laptop.

"You alright, baby?" He asked, making Kyle look up, smiling.

"I'm fine. Just about done with these." Kyle replied, clearly rubbing his belly as if Rosa had just kicked him, "We still going out for dinner tonight?"

"If you're up for it." He walked up to him, sitting next to him and pulling two containers out of his bag, "I got some lunch."

"Aw, love..." Kyle smiled, leaning over to kiss his cheek softly, "You're the best."

"Don't I know it."

They both chuckled, and Kyle leaned back, opening the container and eyes rolling back when the smell hit him, "God, you're so good at cooking these."

Alex smirked, closing Kyle's laptop for him and turning to him as Kyle started eating. He just watched him for a minute, almost forgetting he had his own lunch as he was enamored with his husband.

He found himself staring at Kyle all the time, when he was just doing anything. Eating, sleeping, sitting down- anything. He always thought he was the most beautiful man in the world, but now, he saw their baby with him, and it was like his beauty just enhanced by one thousand.

It had been almost seven months. Seven. There were only two and a half months left before they could meet their baby girl.

"What are you looking at?" Kyle asked.

"The most beautiful people in the world."

"Oh, she's sharing that place with me now?"

He chuckled, "I have a feeling she's going to look like you. So yes."

Kyle blushed softly, rocking his chair side to side as he kept eating, "Sh-Shut up..."

"Aw, come on, you don't want her to look like you?"

"I think she'll look like you!"

"Wanna bet?"

Kyle rolled his eyes playfully, "You hope she looks like me, don't you?"

"Yes!"

"I hope she gets your smile, how about that?"

Alex laughed, shaking his head slightly.

They both knew they would love her no matter what. They already adored her.

But Alex did have hopes that she would look like Kyle. Because he was the one doing all the work. He deserved to have her look like him.

...

At seven and a half months, Kyle got his final ultrasound. Alex struggled watching Kyle decline slightly, how he needed help to walk, was a lot more tired, and was sad about Price officially putting them both on leave. But the joy was above the struggles for both of them.

Kyle thought that they would be used to it, so Alex wouldn't be hovering over him in the doctor's office, but no. He was still right there next to him, holding his hand and his other hand on his shoulder. This was common for all appointments, but, Alex would always step back when he needed to, just watch over him with such care and attention, it always made him tear up a little.

"How's she looking?" Alex asked, snapping Kyle from his thoughts.

"Looking good and healthy." The nurse replied, "Heartbeat sounds normal, looks like she's fully developed- oh, that was a kick, wasn't it?"

"Yep, it was." Kyle said, chuckling, feeling the lingering soreness. Then, he watched- and felt- her hand run against his womb softly. He swore Alex nearly broke down in tears.

"She looks great. Even a little bigger than a normal seven-month..." The nurse said, then her face shifted ever so slightly. He wasn't going to say anything, but Alex did.

"Everything okay?" It was soft, with concern barely hidden.

"Normally, babies would have at least started to turn on their heads." The nurse said, "She isn't moving. Which is not all that concerning, maybe she'll flip soon, it's not uncommon."

He squeezed Alex's hand.

"Is... there a higher chance of her being a breach birth?" Alex asked.

"Maybe slightly- not enough to truly worry about."

They both nodded.

The rest of the appointment went fine, but both of them were quiet. Alex kept holding his hand, even while driving back to the house. He didn't know what to really say.

"Are you okay?" Alex asked when they got closer to the house.

"I... Don't know." He replied quietly.

"Me neither..."

"Why hasn't she even started turning?"

"Aren't there ways to... try and help her turn?" Alex asked as he parked, "Do you want to try it?"

He nodded, smiling softly, "How do you stay so calm? Wish I had that."

Alex chuckled slightly, "I'm really not calm, but, one of us has to try to be."

He laughed, almost forgetting all about the reason he was worried in the first place as Alex opened his door, and he followed after him, holding his arm as they went inside, Iris laying over his legs as he laid on the couch, head laying on Alex's lap, feeling him play with his hair, which he, admittedly, had stopped taking as good care of. It was more frizz than curl now, and had even grown about an inch.

"You hungry?" Alex asked after a while.

"Oh, yeah I am." Kyle replied, slowly rolling over to look up at Alex, "I'll take anything you make, I'm starving."

Alex chuckled, slowly moving him to get up, "I'll make some pizza."

Oh yeah. He has the best husband ever... He loved his Alpha...

He knew that he would be a fantastic father. He already loved his daughter, he knew he would do anything for her... Alex had spent hours just sitting in the nursery, smiling and thinking.

On all the rough days, when he just wanted to curl up and try to get her to stop moving so much, there Alex was, giving him a massage, or holding him for hours, getting him anything he needed. Alex would kiss his stomach, talking softly, as if talking to Rosalie. Sometimes he would sing to her. And the best part was, he could feel Rosalie calming down and stilling once Alex started talking to her.

Alex was the best husband an Omega could ask for...

"You alright over there?" Alex asked, smiling softly.

"Yeah... Just thinking..." He replied, looking over and realizing Alex was gazing at him, damn near sparkles in his eyes.

Alex could never get tired of looking at him. He'd admit, he was going to miss seeing the baby bump once she was born.

But he was going to love seeing her grow up...

He helped Kyle up the stairs to their room after dinner, and Kyle went to sleep quickly. Which he was thankful for...

He cried. He left the room, went to the nursery, and cried. He was scared. He was scared that his child could be in danger if she didn't turn. He was scared that his husband could also be in danger. He just wanted them to be safe. He couldn't help Kyle much, if at all, with this. He just had to hope to God that she would flip over soon.

He finally calmed down. He quietly went back to their room, carefully crawling back into bed to hold onto Kyle, his scent making him feel much more relaxed.

"I love you, Kyle... I love you, Rosa..."

...

Kyle was finally eight and a half months along. They decided to get one more ultrasound, and found that Rosa had finally, slightly, started to turn, which made them both relax a lot. They were both officially put on leave when he hit eight months, as per Kyle's request, and everyone had started to visit them as much as possible. Graves had gifts from the Shadows, which kept pouring in. Alex's parents had been sending things in, and Ale and Rudy were dropping off anything and everything. Ale's sister had made matching baby and full-sized blankets for them, too, which they loved.

Kyle was a lot more tired now, a lot more frequently. He felt kicks a lot more often, and had Braxton Hicks a lot more. He even had a full false labor once last week.

Everyone was guessing what her exact birthday would be. It was really heartwarming to see everyone get so excited, getting her clothes and toys, and getting Kyle "Post-partum" clothes.

So now it was a waiting game, and Alex had all the time in the world. Every night, he would sit Kyle up and try to loosen his back. His muscles would get tight and uncomfortable, and Alex was more than happy to help. He would help Kyle bathe, help him get dressed, changed, anything. He helped Kyle calm down after finding out the labor was false, helped him through the false contractions. They were talking about her so much, thinking about her future, what she might be like, who'd she look more like. Even Iris was a lot more cuddly.

But he was so tired of being pregnant. He was looking forward to the following days now, counting them down to his due date.

Fourteen days. Then thirteen. Twelve. Eleven. Then ten. Nine. Eight. Seven...

Seven.

"Feel better?" Alex asked as he softly massaged Kyle's shoulder, sitting behind him. Kyle nodded, humming softly as he leaned back.

"Thanks, love..." Kyle said softly, sighing in relief as Alex moved down his back, feeling one of his hands move to the side of his belly, where Rosa kicked into his hand.

"She's active today, huh?" Alex asked, smiling.

"Won't stop kicking my sides... God, I am excited for next week."

"Might happen before that." He felt Alex kiss his neck, near his mating bite, before moving to be in front of him.

"Want me to get your legs? I know you're sore." Alex asked, and he nodded softly, leaning back and closing his eyes as he felt Alex's warm hands on his thighs.

"This little girl will have you wrapped around her finger." Kyle said, and he heard Alex chuckle.

"Oh yeah. But I'm happy with that. I will spoil her." Alex replied, kissing his belly softly, and he giggled.

"Don't spoil her too much. Still raising her right, Al..."

"I am allowed to spoil my daughter to death, thank you very much!"

Kyle chuckled softly, "Fine, fine... A little spoiling is fine." He yawned, and he felt Alex shifting, helping him lay down and kissing over his face softly, which actually put him to sleep pretty quickly.

Six days... Six days left.

Or... should have been.

Alex woke up at about two in the morning, and he rolled over to find that Kyle's side of the bed was empty.

"Kyle?" He said softly, voice raspy.

He sat up, running a hand down his face and reaching for his water bottle on his nightstand as he swung his legs to the floor, and he realized that the bathroom door was shut and the light was on... He heard, what sounded like, shaky breathing.

He was worried now. He put his water bottle back down, walked to the bathroom door, and knocked softly.

"Kyle? You okay?" He asked. No answer.

"Kyle." It was firmer this time. No answer.

"Are you okay?" He was worried. But there was a somewhat answer.

"The- The doors unlocked..."

He quickly opened it, seeing Kyle curled up, leaning on the ledge of the bathtub, tears running down his face as he sobbed, cradling his belly.

"Kyle..." He walked up to him, kneeling down and slowly pulling Kyle into his arms, "What's going on?"

"I-I'm..." He took in a sharp breath, "I'm in so much pain..."

"Shh..." He rocked Kyle softly, letting him nuzzle into his neck, biting down on his scent gland, which seemed to relax him a little.

"You're okay... you're okay." He pulled back slightly, still holding Kyle's hands, smiling softly. The smile dropped when Kyle's face changed, whining in pain and gripping Alex's hands tighter.

"Breathe..." He whispered, trying to keep a straight face through his worry... and the pain he was in from the vice-like grip on his hands.

After about thirty seconds, Kyle breathed in again, and Alex cradled his face softly, realizing he was drenched in sweat.

"Just keep breathing... How long?"

"U-Uh... almost an hour...?" Kyle replied, "I don't know if it's real, I-I just-" He cut himself off, gripping Alex's arms tighter as he gritted his teeth.

"It's okay... You're okay."

He watched Kyle's eyes suddenly open as he breathed heavily.

"Hey, hey..." He gently rubbed Kyle's cheek, about to reach up and get a wet washcloth, but Kyle held him down.

"Alex." He looked panicked.

"My water just broke."

[jumpywhumpywriter]

Panic Attack - Claustrophobic Whumpee

Warnings: panic attack, fear

Fear was choking him, making it harder to breath in the already cramped, confined space.

Not here, not here, please not here...

His breathing became strained and labored, and he tried to squash down the rising panic, but it was only making it worse. His anxiety was spiking through the roof, and there was nothing he could do to control it. He clutched his chest and tried to calm his hammering heart, the blood pounding painfully in his ears.

Something in him wanted to scream, to run, to do something, but he didn't know what. Fight or flight warring with each other.

He tried so hard to stay silent, but his hyperventilating only grew louder and more intense as terror seized him in its vise-like grip, like a vicious, hungry predator.

I can't breath! His mind screamed. He could feel himself growing more lightheaded with every passing second as his breaths came harder and faster, chest heaving.

Then, something grabbed him from behind, wrapping around him, and a strong hand clamped over his mouth.

He let out a strangled shriek that was muffled and started to struggle.

"Kid, what on earth is wrong with you? Why are you freaking out?" He heard a familiar voice whisper in his ear, but it did little to reassure him. His body fought instinctively to escape and run away, but Shadow's grip was unyielding, one arm wrapped securely around his midsection. He was in a full blown panic attack, desperate to be free of the overwhelming fear, no longer thinking rationally.

I have to get out of here!

"I don't care if you're panicking, just do it quietly!" Shadow hissed urgently. "The enemy will hear you! Do I have to choke you out or something?"

But he couldn't. She didn't understand, he couldn't stop.

"You seriously need to calm down! You're not in danger right now, but you will be if you keep being making noise!" Shadow's grip tightened, and Thomas could feel her front against his back. There was no escaping. His whole body trembled with adrenaline and fear, and he couldn't help the choking sobs that escaped him, even muffled as they were by her hand, which was still clamped firmly over his mouth.

"Hey, listen to my voice. Use it to center yourself," Shadow murmered into his ear. "Focus on your breathing, match it to mine."

Thomas tried, feeling the calm rise and fall of her chest behind him, her warm breath on the back of his neck. He focused on the sensation, trying to distract himself from his panic. Increment by increment, his own breathing steadied, and a strong wave of relief washed over him as the initial panic passed. He let himself relax in Shadow's grip, forcing the tension out of his shoulders.

"There you go... now, if I release you, will you scream?"

He hesitated, then shook his head slowly. The hand dissapeared from his mouth as well as the arm around his stomach. He stumbled forward a step before finding his balance, turning around and scratching the back of his head sheepishly.

"Er--Thanks..." he whispered, sudden embarrassment flushing his face with heat.

"Don't mention it. Seriously, let's never speak of this again," Shadow rumbled in answer. He caught a brief glimpse of genuine amusement dancing in her eyes for a heartbeat before her stoic mask regained control, and she averted her gaze. "Let's get what we need, and get out of here... before you lose your mind again."

Masterlist

@lumpofsand

@scoundrelwithboba

@isikedmyself878

[melanie-ohara]

The End of the Line, Chapter 1

My first official entry into Wolfwren Week 2024! This basically requires you to have read my Whumpuary pieces, but the handy link below will take you there!

THE MOON - Read it on AO3 here!

Sabine sat up slowly and looked around. The forest was calm, and warmer than she expected. Why was that? The hot fog in her head made it hard to recall anything. It had been snowing, she remembered looking into Shin's eyes with snowflakes dancing between them. Maybe that was why. The sky above her was eerily dark, without any of the stars she'd grown used to on Peridea. There had been a temple, and Ahsoka had been in pain, and then… 

Shin. Baylan. The fight. 

She scrambled to her feet in a rush just as she remembered that one of her own blaster bolts had pierced her compromised beskar and collapsed back down with a gasp of pain, her breath knocked out of her. Shin had killed Baylan, and then the mist that still filled her brain had rolled out from the door. Then what? No matter how hard she sat on the ground and fought for the memory, it stubbornly stayed buried. Sabine's fingers scraped against the leaves and the peaty ground under her, trying to ground herself the way Ahsoka had taught her in meditation. Worrying about Shin and her Master made it so much harder, but she couldn't move yet and she had to still her mind to deal with the pain. She picked up a leaf absently and turned it in her fingers with her eyes closed. She frowned. The shape was familiar, but it wasn't something she had felt in a long time. It was thin, and neatly divided into four small, rounded segments - which gave it its name. It was a spine tree leaf, which only grew on Lothal. She dropped it like it burned, and it landed on a neatly trimmed grey-green scrap from a carefully pruned Veshok tree. She scrambled backwards in a panic, but everywhere she looked there was more: detritus from foliage from Lothal, Mandalore, Atollon, Yavin IV… 

Sabine's back knocked into a rock and she stopped, forcing her breathing back under control. The trees around her were the ominous fir trees of Peridea, stretching up like needles into the empty sky, but she was lying on a bed made of places she'd lost. It was nauseating. Her head spun. She balled her fist in the dirt and crushed a handful of her own history, a galaxy away from where these leaves could have fallen.

The snap of a twig made her look up, and there she was. She stood facing away from her, newly green-tinted hair still in the evening air, hands clasped loosely behind her back.

"Shin," Sabine said, and willed herself carefully to her feet. She winced, and pressed her hand to the blaster burn under her beskar. She took a careful step towards her, and Shin spoke without turning around. 

"Where is your Master?" 

Sabine shook her head. "Shin, what happened?"

"Everything is okay now," she said. "We need to find Ahsoka."

Sabine straightened up and took a step closer. "It was you, wasn't it?" she asked softly. "You opened the door somehow." Shin didn't say anything. "Did you know?" Sabine pressed. "That you're a Nightsister?" 

Shin still didn't look at her, though Sabine was now standing alongside her. She tried not to think about what she'd recognise on the ground if she looked down. 

After a long time, Shin said, "I'm not." 

"Right." Sabine nodded and swallowed. "No, of course. Do you know how we got here? I remember the door, but - " she gestured around at the seemingly unending forest around them.

"Space doesn't work the same way here." 

"How do we get out?" 

"Not without Ahsoka Tano." Sabine paused and frowned, and finally Shin turned to look at her. "You can find her, so lead the way." Shin smiled encouragingly, which wasn't like her, but Sabine felt herself straighten up at the responsibility. She took a deep breath and tried to relax her mind. Ignore the pain from her blaster wound. Ignore that she was standing in an impossible place. Ignore everything but the fragile, near invisible thread that tied her and her Master together. It was weak, but Ahsoka had used it before to find her, and that meant it was possible. Without really meaning to, Sabine turned and started walking. Shin swept after her, a blur of soft white-green hair bobbing gently in her peripheral vision. 

The forest stretched on, and if Sabine hadn't grown a lot more sure of her limited abilities, she'd worry they were walking in circles. The silence was oppressive - there were no birds and no breeze, and the firs smelled vaguely of ash - so Sabine wanted to speak just to break it.

She flicked her tongue out to moisten her dry lips and then cautiously asked, "what happened to Baylan?" 

She was half expecting Shin to just ignore the question. She had said she'd kill him if he couldn't be stopped, and that was exactly what she'd done. If Shin didn't want to talk about it, then Sabine hadn't seen her desperately apologising over his dying body, or the tears she had shed onto his robes. 

Instead she said, "he's alive." 

Sabine stopped in her tracks. Shin had sounded completely impassive. Uncaring. 

"You stabbed him," she reminded her. 

"I brought him back. I think that's what opened the door." 

Sabine casually let her hand drift to her blaster and fought to keep her thoughts as neutral as possible. Her muscles desperately wanted to coil, but she forced them to relax. Shin - at least, the real Shin - would be able to feel her readying herself. Sabine turned around, and not-Shin cocked her head. Shin's green dyed hair bobbed slightly with the motion and she looked at Sabine with those big pale eyes. 

"What did I get wrong?" she asked. 

Sabine let the mask she'd schooled her face in fall, and unholstered one blaster. "You're not Shin."

Not-Shin didn't react to the gun. She didn't even flick her eyes down to it. Sabine wished she had noticed earlier how unnaturally still she was standing. Shin hunched forwards, chin thrust out, legs wide, like she was ready to jump at anyone, but the imposter had straightened up. It was eerie. 

"Well done," someone said with Shin's voice. "Even her Master doesn't know."

Sabine fought to keep her voice even. There was panic rising in her throat, not just for her but for the real Shin, her Shin, who was alone out there. "Where is she?" she demanded, as coolly as she could.

"Oh, around," not-Shin said with a dismissive wave of a hand that didn't belong to her. She put it behind her back with the other one and stood uncomfortably straight. "Now keep going," she said. "Find your Master." 

Sabine put the barrel of the blaster to the woman's forehead. Shin's eyes crossed to look up at it, and then refocused on Sabine's face. She wasn't goading, just looking. Her eyes were glassy and unphased, the way they eyes looked when Shin wasn't listening. Her finger hovered on the trigger. 

"Do you think you could?" Shin asked.

"I've shot her before," Sabine replied, but her finger didn't move. Not-Shin stepped back, and Sabine let her go without a bolt in the face. "Karabast," she cursed quietly. She remembered the cold, serpentine feeling of possession from her time on Dathomir, her body abducted and turned against Ezra by a Nightsister ghost, and while it didn't look the same, she couldn't shake the fear that Shin was trapped somewhere in herself. "Why do you want Ahsoka?" she finally asked. The blaster stayed where it was, but they both knew it was an empty threat. 

"She has what I want."

"Baylan said the same thing. Morai."

Shin's eyebrows climbed her head a fraction of a centimetre. It was uncomfortably similar to a real expression that she felt a pang of horror that she was pointing a weapon at her head, and had to force herself not to lower her hand. 

"Morai," not-Shin repeated. 

Sabine was sure that, if this was really Shin's body in front of her, that she'd forgive her. Her hand twitched down and she fired a searing plasma bolt at her knee. Before it had even crossed the distance between them, she had turned and ran. She didn't see the bolt freeze perfectly still in the air, and then slowly lose coherence and dissipate into a rapidly cooling cloud of ionised gas. 

The confusion and fear of the confrontation had left Sabine disconnected from the trail that led to Ahsoka, and she hoped she wasn't running directly towards her still. She risked a quick glance behind, wishing she had her helmet, and saw nothing. When she turned her head back, she found Shin again. She was waiting for her, standing tall with her hands clasped behind her back, like they'd arranged to meet here. Sabine fired two more bolts at her, and this time she saw them vanish into the air before they got anywhere near Shin. Sabine stumbled to a halt a few metres shy, and lowered her blaster. The ache from where she'd been wounded had deepened from running. 

"Why?" she demanded. "Why me?"

"Baylan Skoll doesn't know where Ahsoka Tano is. And he can't find her here." 

"Find her yourself," she spat.

Shin's lips smiled, but it was thin and alien on her face. When the real Shin smiled, it was feral and sharp and a little scary. This was serene, and controlled, and scared her for different reasons. "I can't," the lips said. They were still chapped from the cold of Peridea, the way they had been when Shin had gently touched them against Sabine's own. "I know she is here, but she is lost to me." She paused. "Like this one is to you," she said, gesturing at the body she was moving around. 

Sabine's finger hammered the trigger, and two more blaster bolts faded into the air around them like smoke.

"Give her back!" she hissed.

"Would you prefer someone else?" 

Sabine blinked and took an involuntary step away as Baylan Skoll took Shin's place. There was no movement, no visible change, just a moment ago she had been speaking to Shin, and now it was Baylan. It was easier to shoot at him, though. 

"No?" Baylan's voice sighed, after dissipating more blaster bolts. "The woman herself?" 

Ahsoka. Her skin was pallid and lined with the strange green veins, the way she had last seen her, choking on the brink of something terrible on the temple floor. "Oh she doesn't seem to be well," she said, "I've been here before, so much of that power has waned." 

"Stop this," Sabine warned, and then it was Ezra looking back at her with his too-bright blue eyes. "If you think I won't shoot him…"

"Shoot, maybe. But hit me? Don't think so." 

It would have been comforting to hear him being insufferable just one more time, but his appearance in this place hurt her heart as much as seeing Shin puppetted around by this apparition did. Even so, seeing him again gave her resolve. She lowered the gun. 

"What if I stay right here?"

Ezra was replaced by Shin again. "You won't." 

Sabine raised her eyebrows. "No?" 

Her blaster slipped into the holster and she sat, crossing her legs and resting her hands on her knees. 

"Don't," Shin's voice warned her sharply. It was the closest impression yet. 

Sabine, against all her Mandalorian instincts and training, let her eyes drift closed. 

"No!" Shin's voice screeched, and Sabine felt her movement through the Force a half-second before it happened. Before she could do anything more than open her eyes, Shin had thrown herself at her. Except now it was no longer Shin. Sabine raised her arms above her head to take the sweeping blow from a set of claws on her bracers, and had a fleeting glimpse of dark fur, talons, and burning, hating eyes, before leathery wings beat the air and lifted her into the air.

[gemini-sensei]

Prompt for hawk ‘ LaRusso!reader 😤

Reader brings lunch to the dojo for her sister but runs directly into hawks cock

Oh absolutely!

Hawk Moskowitz x Chubby!LaRusso!Reader

I could write this duo forever 😍 thank you for the request.

CW: enemies to lovers, rough and unprotected sex, risky sex, semi public sex. (unedited)

"Watch where your going," a low, raspy voice huffed.

Reader glared at Hawk as she kept a tight grip on the bag in her hand, gritting her teeth before she seethed at Hawk. The last think she needed to do was get into another dumb argument with him over nothing, as seemed to be the norm between them. However, instead of taking a deep and calming breath, she shot back with fire.

"My bad, I forgot this was your dojo and not my dad's," she said, then rolled her eyes. "I'll have to remember to be more mindful when I come by, especially to avoid you."

He scoffed, shaking his head before smirking. "Like you're trying hard. I think you come around here more to see me than anyone else."

"And why would I do that?" She held up her hand to tell him to not bother answering. "Never mind that, because it's a load of bullshit. I'm here to see Sam. So if you don't mind, you're in my way."

He was standing in the doorway, blocking her from the yard. She had stopped inside the dojo to grab some cold waters, thinking about how Sam and her dad had been training harder with everyone more recently,so some fresh water wouldn't hurt. Unfortunately, it lead her to running eight into Hawk as she slid the door open and they walked into each other.

"Your sister's not here," he told her with a smirk. "She left her lunch at home, so she and your dad went to pick up something quick."

Reader frowned, deflating as she realized her little surprise was ruined. She pouted, "But I brought her lunch. I even made it fresh."

"Lucky me," he said, then swiped the bag from her hand. It was a little pink lunchbag with hearts all over it. Cute.

"Give that back!"

As he opened it and started rifling through the goods, she tried to get it back from him. He held it out of her reach, then held it over his head. She tried to push herself onto her tiptoes for it, but he kept moving and being impossible. She jumped for it and he laughed, watching her perform all the tricks she could think of before finding an even better thing to tease her for.

"If you wanted to be all over me, you could have just asked," he chided.

It was at that moment she realized she was practically rubbing herself agains him, chest to chest as if they didn't have at the room in the world. They were alone in the dojo, everyone else enjoying their lunch break outside in the sun, chatting with friends. Meanwhile, she was having a petty, grade school level fight with Hawk.

She stepped away from him, flustered. "In your dreams!"

He dropped the lunchbag, leaving it abandoned on the floor as he stepped closer to her. She backed up instinctively until her back hit the wall, unfocused and unaware of her surroundings. He came as close as they had been before, closer even, and she could smell the mint on his breath.

He smirked down at her. "I think you dream about it too."

"If you don't back up-"

"What? You'll kick my ass? We both know if you didn't want me this close to you, you would have already done that."

His deep voice sends shivers down her spine, but she stays still and glares at him. She wasn't going to let him see that she was effected by him. Hell, she didn't even want to admit to herself that her panties were getting wet.

"Why are you still talking?"

"End of discussion."

He smashed his lips against hers and grabbed her waist, pulling her close as their tongues swirled and shoved against each other. They fought with their wet, needy tongues as their hands wandered each other's bodies, Hawk's hands groping Reader's rolls as they made their way down to her ass whilst she grabbed his face and buried a hand in his hair. She tugged on a few loose strands of his mohawk and he groaned, squeezing her ass hard. He pulled her into a roll of his hips, grinding his hard on against her hip.

As they pulled out of the kiss, she bit his lip and tugged on it. He grunted, looking at her with half lidded eyes, still gripping her tight. "Fuck, you're annoying."

"Not as much as you," she countered.

"Do you want me as much as I want you?"

"I'll never admit it to another living soul, but yes."

"Where do you wanna go?"

She looked around, then slipped out of his grasp and grabbed him by the shirt. "This way."

Reader led him to the tiny bathroom of the dojo, brining him in behind her before turning to him. He shut and locked the door, then looked at her, watching as she undid the button on her shorts. He rushed her and kissed her again, shoving his tongue into her mouth and making her let out a pitched moan. He ate it up and she pressed herself against him, except he had other ideas in mind.

He quickly parted their lips and turned her around, pressing his crotch into her ass. He groaned lowly as she gasped.

"Fuck, you're big," she spat with surprise.

He chuckled, draging his lips up to her ear. He looked at her as they stood in front of a mirror and he smirked, watching her face. Then he whispered, "Waist until I'm inside you."

She shuddered again and pressed her as back into him, grinding slowly. His hands moved down her body until he met her shorts and started pushing them down. They fell down and pooled around her ankles, letting his fingers toy with her panties and plush thighs. He pulled her panties away from her body and let the elastic snap back, making her jump and gasp some more.

"You make pretty little noises," he grunted into her ear. She watched him in the mirror, hot all over as he played with her pudgy, curvy body. She was so soft, so squeezable. He quite liked it. "You're fucking loving this."

She whined and wiggled her hips against him, smirking as he groaned. However, he retaliated by showing her panties aside and running two finger through her wet folds.

"God, you're fucking soaked." She clamped her legs shut and tried to make him stop, the teasing too much. It only spurred him on and he used his other hand to pull one of her legs up and rest it on the sink in front of them, which opened her up and his fingers came to play with her hole. "So fucking wet for me."

"Hawk, please," she whimpered, meeting his eye in the mirror's reflection. "Please don't tease me."

"Need me that bad?"

She bit her lip and nodded, which made him smirk. He dipped the tip of one finger into her cunt and she moaned, clenching around it. He didn't put much more than an inch in, but she was wiggling on it and trying her best to sink down on it. Then he pulled it out and backed up, keeping a hand on her to hold her steady.

"Fine, but only because we have to make this quick," he said, a little upset that he didn't get to tease her more. However, he knew their time was limited. There were a ton of people outside, including Sensei Lawrence, and Mr. LaRusso would be back with Sam at any moment. If he and Readwr were going to do anything fun, it needed to be now. "Stay just like that, okay."

She leaned into the sink and grabbed ahold of it, using it for stability as he pulled his away away and untied the strong of his workout shorts. He shoved them down with his boxers and they fell to the floor, which he didn't bother to step out of them and shuffled forward to stand directly behind Reader and her fat, on full display cunt.

Her panties had slipped back into place, which annoyed him, so he took them into his hands and ripped the fine lace off o her, breaking the threads the held it together. Reader gasped as she listened to the tearing, but couldn't help the way her cunt gushed with arousal at the act.

Hawk made quick to gather up her juices and use them to lube up his cock, then positioned the head at her spread open pussy. He waisted no time pushing into her, but did it slow because she had little to no prep. She groaned as he sank into her his hands coming to rest on her hips and grip them tight.

"Oh! Oh my god," she let out, tensing up as he stretched her out over his cock. She was right, he was big, but he was also right in that he felt bigger in her tight little cunt. Her thighs shook as he bottomed out, his tip rubbing against her cervix. "So fucking deep. How are you that deep?"

He bent low to drag his lips along the shell of her ear. "I'm just that good, princess."

The nickname had her clenching around him and he chuckled, the simple event boosting his ego. He stayed still, narrow hips pressed into her soft ass, as she got used to his girth. It wasn't until her body relaxed that she gave him the all clear to continue by swiveling her hips.

He groaned and pulled out some, quickly snapping his hips back into her. The pace was rough and hard and fast from that point forward lewd and loud squelched noises filling the air with low grunts and strangled moans. She tried cantting her hips back into his thrusts, but it was haphazardous and useless, ultimately leading him to hold her hips in an iron grip and make her stay still.

"Even getting fucked, you're hard to work with," he grunted in her ear. He caught her ear lobe between his teeth and pulled on it. "I'm gonna put you in your place."

"Oh really?"

"Hell yeah."

He pulled her up so she could see herself in the reflection against. Her flustered expression was a sight to behold, surely, but he also quick to distract her. He shoved his hands up her shirt, pulled it up with her bra and made her tits fall out. Everything rested on her chest as her tits hung free, making her moan as they were bounced and jostled with his rough treatment. He watched them in the mirror's reflection for a moment before grabbing them and squeezing them hard. He tugged and pulled and played with them roughly, making her throw her head back on his shoulder.

"Fuck, these are nice. You're pussy's pretty nice too," he groaned, feeling her arousal leak down his shaft and balls. It was sliding down her thighs and making a mess of the two of them. Hell, it was likely all over the floor under them. "If only you didn't have such a smart mouth."

"Shut up," she huffed, looking up at him with a glare. "As if my mouth doesn't turn you on."

He looked at her, then her lips. "In your dreams."

Then pushed her face to turn it further and dove down to capture her lips against. They moaned into each other's mouths, the room simmering in their lust. She ran her tongue over thebroof of his mouth and it made him slam into her harder before he regained control of himself, pulling away from her and adding saliva to the list of miscellaneous fluids they were getting all over each other.

He felt his balls tighten up and he groaned loudly, trying to muffle himself against her lips. "I'm gonna come soon."

Her cunt squeezed around him as the heat in her belly was growing too hot. She was ready to snap at any moment, she just needed a little more to get her to the end. "Just come inside me."

"Are you sure."

"Yes. I don't care. Just need to feel you-"

She let out a small scream as he wrapped his arms around her hips and pulled her off the sink roughly. He started pounding into her, barely pulling out as he battered the head of his cock against her cervix. It was enough to send her over the edge and she had to slap her hands oclver her mouth to keep herself quiet. She was on her toes, legs shaking as she came on his cock, thick cream leaking out as he fucked her through the bliss. Her eyes rolled up as she chanted his name into her hands.

"Fuck, I'm gonna fill your fat little cunt up. Gonna come in this tight pussy. Fill you up to the brim," he babbled, almost incoherent as he spoke on half sentences and wants. He barely heard himself over the nasty, dirty noise of her wet cunt getting slammed into and her muffled moaning. "Gonna walk outta here with my cum deep in your cunt. Fuck fuck fuck, take it! Take my cum like the little slut you are. My slut. Hate me but you want my cum in your raw pussym oh fuck!"

He came hard, body wracked with shudders and pleasure as he let out big, hot spurts of cum into her sensitive, fucked out body. Her gummy cunt walls were milking him for every last drop as he hugged her to him so that he was balls deep, holding her hips tight.

She tilted her head back lazily, staring at him for a while before he realized she was doing so. He looked at her and she leaned into him, bringing their lips together in a lazy and exhausted make out, silently agreeing with each other that was the best fuck either of them had ever had. She reached behind her and put her hands on the back of his neck, daring not to change their position whatsoever.

"I hate you," she mumbled against his himself.

He smirked against hers. "I hate you too."

They made out a little longer, letting the dust settle before they pulled apart. He gripped her hips in each hand and pulled out slowly, then spreading her ass to watch the cum drip out of her. Only none did and he bit his lip, waiting a moment longer but still nothing.

"Are you safe?" he asked as they pulled up their shorts and fastened them again.

She didn't say anything as she fixed her clothed, then turned to him. Looking him dead in the eyes, she calmly answered, "No."

Hawk felt heat rush thought him again and he smirked. "You naughty girl. You like it risky, huh?"

He grabbed her and pulled her close her hands braced on his chest.

She looked up st him, licked then bit her lip. "I guess so... that was the first time I ever let someone do that."

His cock twitched and she felt it, taking it at her turn to smirk. She reached down and cupped his crotch, lightly palming him. He groaned and glared at her, but it wasn't with as much disdain as before.

[reputationmunson]

Lavender Wishes | Robin Buckley x reader

summary: your first sleep over with your girlfriend, robin <3

content: fluff, mentions of eating, swearing, brief mention of the upside down, no pronouns directed towards reader, no use of y/n, pet names

word count: [1.5k]

“Oh, I want m&ms too! And don’t forget the popcorn!”

“It’s gonna be hard to forget anything, robs, since you want the whole store” you joke as she rambles over the phone about all the snacks she wants.

“Not the whole store. Maybe half”

“Alright, but you’re gonna owe me a lot of kisses tonight” you bargain, knowing she’s already planning on doing that.

“Yeah, I can do that. Now hurry up and get to the store so I can hold up my end of the deal soon”

You say your goodbyes and hang up the phone and quickly head to the store. Tonight was the first night you’re staying with Robin since you started dating. The relationship was fairly new, but it’s felt like you’ve been together for years. Everything felt so natural with her and you weren’t even nervous about tonight.

Okay… the nervous part was kind of a lie. Of course Robin makes you feel comfortable, but anyone would feel at least a little bit nervous about staying the night with their partner for the first time.

-

After a trip to the supermarket and way too many snacks for one night, you finally arrive at Robin’s house.

You take a minute and give yourself a pep talk before walking up and knocking on her door.

“Oh my god, it’s about time! I almost died of boredom” Robin throws her arms around you and you try to hug her back as best as you can with your hands full.

She grabs some of the bags and drags you into the house, leading you into the kitchen to put all the snacks on the counter.

“I’ve been here for three whole minutes and still haven’t gotten a kiss. What are you gonna do about that, Buckley”

She smirks at you and cradles your face in her hands before leaning into you. You can’t help the smile that forms on your face and the giggle that escapes you as she kisses your lips.

“I’ve been waiting on that all day and now you’re laughing at me?” she says with the biggest smile on her face "Don't make me revoke your all access pass to these” she points to her lips and makes you laugh even harder. She’s 110% joking and you know that because she always claims that she’d probably die if she never got to kiss you again.

“Lemme make it up to you”

Five, ten, fifteen minutes pass as you kiss her in the kitchen, barely coming up for air unless it’s absolutely necessary.

“Wow. Now I know what that song by Berlin was talking about” She says when she pulls away from you and you look at her, puzzled.

“That one song from Top Gun. Take my breath away” She clarifies and you chuckle.

“You’re so cheesy. Also, remind Harrington he’s not allowed to pick that movie again next time for movie night”

“But that would break his heart… so yeah I’ll do it and speaking of movies, I got about a thousand of them so go pick one out and I’ll make the popcorn.” she gives you a peck and you head to the living room.

Robin really wasn’t kidding about her getting a thousand movies because there’s a stack of them about a mile high on the coffee table. You decide to go with a horror, knowing she’ll have to cuddle up to you for protection.

Your girlfriend has fought against monsters from a weird, alternate dimension, but she draws the line at a guy with chainsaw.

“What are we watchin’ first?” She asks with a big bowl of popcorn and your favorite candy in her hands.

“Texas chainsaw!” you answer, excitedly and she groans. “I knew you’d do this to me. Next time I’m only getting movies that I like and don’t give me nightmares”

“Didn’t you fight evil Russians and that mind slayer thing?”

“Mind flayer and I’d take either of those things over some weirdo who harvests peoples skin”

“Pleeeeaasse, baby, for me?” you give her your best pout and puppy dog eyes and she gives in within two seconds. “Fine, but don’t expect that to work every time” she points her finger at you. “you know you can never say no to me” she doesn’t deny it.

_

It’s not even ten minutes into the movie before Robin is laying on top of you with her face hidden in your neck. Your hand rests on top of her head and you play with her hair to comfort her.

“Do you want me to change the movie, robs?”

“No, ‘cause then you’d have to get up” she whines and you huff out a laugh. “I have to get up anyway because I have to pee”

She looks up at you and furrows her brow. “And leave me alone? I told you not to drink your soda that fast!”

“You’ll be fine. I’ll pause the movie and the door is locked.”

“A locked door isn’t going to stop a chainsaw! They are literally made to chop wood and take a wild guess what my front door is made of!”

God, you love her so much. You know it’s crazy to even think that this early into the relationship, but you were friends long before you started dating. Plus, it’s Robin. You’d be crazy not to be in love with her.

When she finally gets up to let you move, she dramatically throws herself back on the couch with a loud huff. You lovingly roll your eyes and pause the movie before going to the bathroom.

“When you’re done can you bring me some more candy?” she yells and you already know she’s going to be like a toddler on a sugar high.

You come back to the living room with m&ms in hand and Robin is pretending to be dead on the couch. “Oh no, she’s dead! Guess I have to eat these m&m’s all by myself”

She opens one eye to look at you “False alarm, I guess. Don’t worry I’ll help you eat those”

You toss the m&ms at her and go to change the movie. “Actually, I’m kinda tired. Wanna go to bed?’’ she suggests. “Robin, it’s 9 p.m.” you deadpan.

“Okay, bedtime police. I wanna change into pjs and cuddle in my bed”

“Fine, but only if you bring the candy with you”

She jumps up, grabs the candy and practically sprints towards her bedroom. You grab your bag and get ready for bed in the bathroom.

When you enter Robin’s room, she’s changed into only a sports bra and sweats. Your gaze can’t help but linger.

“Wow, perv! You’re just as bad as Steve” she jokes and you get into bed to snuggle up to her.

“I can’t help it. They’re hypnotizing” you say, referring to her boobs and she snorts.

“So, I was, um, thinking about how it’s only friday and we both have the weekend off, so maybe you could stay tomorrow night too? Of course, you don’t have to or anything I just thought that it might be-”

“I’d love to stay all weekend and conveniently enough, I brought plenty of clothes for the whole weekend” you say before she finishes her sentence.

“I knew you would. just can’t get enough of me”

you start to drift asleep as she rubs your back, but all of the sudden she gets a burst of energy.

“babe, i had too much sugar. Let’s do something fun!”

“I had a feeling this would happen. Alright, what do ya wanna do?”

“Let me paint your nails! I promise I won’t mess it up this time ”

Every time you’ve let Robin paint your nails, she’s made an absolute mess. There was one time she spilled a bottle on the carpet because she was flailing her arms around while telling a story.

“Okay, I’m in. show me what ya got”

Robin displays ten different nail polish colors and goes into detail about what she likes about each one. it’s the cutest thing you’ve ever seen.

“And this one I think would really make your eyes pop. you always look so good in this color”

“What’s the name of the color?”

“Lavender wishes. Cute, right?”

“Adorable” you hold your hand out to her and she starts her masterpiece. Her concentrated face is so fucking cute you can’t help smiling. Usually, Robin is such a chatterbox, but she’s too focused on doing this perfectly that she hasn’t said a word.

“All done. Do you like it?” she asks when she finishes

“I love it. Thank you, baby”

Robin gently blows on your fingertips until they are dry. When she’s done, she kisses both of your hands and helps you up off of the floor.

“That was some tedious work. Wanna go to sleep?” she asks and you nod. You wrap your arms around each other and tangle yourselves together under the blanket.

Both of you end up staying awake until the hours of the night when it feels like the rest of the world is asleep. You talk about anything, nothing, and everything in between.

It’s the best Friday night you’ve ever had.

[tomtenadia]

Detours to You - ch 14

Hello all, As promised, here we are with anew chapter and the resolution of the cliffhanger from the previous chapter. Please be ready for a lot of fussing and domestic fluff.

MASTERLIST

“There has been an accident.”

Rowan’s heart raced “What is it Ilias?”

“Aelin and Maya. We are with them now.”

“Where?” 

Ilias gave him the location and Rowan dressed quickly like a madman. 

He should have pushed harder. Stopped her from driving away. It was his fault. It was his bloody fault.

It did not take long for him to drive to the site, the blue sirens of a fire engine guiding him like a lighthouse.

As soon as he was on site he darted outside and saw the paramedics loading Aelin on the ambulance and another paramedic holding his daughter.

“Maya!” He screamed in desperation.

His daughter extended her arms to him and he took her in his embrace “I am here.”

“Mama hit a deer.”

Rowan stared at Ilias doing his job and pretended not to see the front of the car smashed against the wall of a house. It had been the owner who had alerted the firefighters after he heard the crash.

“It looks like she swerved to avoid the animal.” The captain pointed at the prints on the snow. “Paramedics say she is fine, just a concussion and likely some nasty bruises on her chest. The seatbelt did its job.”

Rowan nodded.

“You know the protocol, we need to take them to the hospital.” One of his paramedics took Maya back from his arms but the girl protested loudly and his heart broke.                

He tried to soothe Maya “Baby, I need you to go with the nice paramedic and your mum to the hospital. I am right behind.”

Maya held him tighter almost in panic.

The paramedic tried again to grab the girl “Come with me darling, your mum is asking for you.”

Rowan thanked silently the paramedic when Maya followed him inside.

The ambulance drove away and he turned to Ilias “Was she conscious when you got here?”

The captain nodded and scoffed “yes, that woman is stubborn. She was trying to get herself out of the car.”

“Go with them chief, I got the scene, and a tow on its way. This is an easy MVA.”

While on the road he had called Aelin’s parents and by the time he arrived at the hospital, they were just entering the A&E. He called Rhoe’s name.

“Rowan!” Evalin walked to him with terror etched on her face “What happened?”

“Aelin and Maya were coming to stay with you,” he confessed not hiding his shame. He hadn’t been hard enough in trying to convince her not to leave “We had a fight. I begged her not to leave so late in the evening and with all the snow.”

“Aelin did not listen.” Added Rhoe deadpanned, surprising him.

“A deer cut in front of her and she just swerved to avoid it and crashed.”

Evalin gasped in horror.

“They are fine. One of my captains called me at the scene, Aelin was awake and Maya is just scared. Aelin apparently fought the firefighters trying to get out of the car.”

“I am sorry, she inherited the stubbornness from me.” 

“Rhoe!” Added Evalin shocked at her husband jokes.

“Ev, Aelin has been pigheaded since the day she was born.”

Rowan smiled and then walked to the nurses station “Hi Sorscha, any news on Aelin and Maya?”

The woman checked “Med bay 5, the doctor is with her. Maya has been taken to paediatrics for a check up.”

He let Rhoe and Evalin go and talk with Aelin’s doctor while he rushed to Maya. The hospital was a maze and it took him a good ten minutes to reach the ward.

“Maya Galathynius?” he asked with apprehension.

“Any relation?”

“I am the father.”

The nurse let him go and in the distance he saw her on a bed holding elf in her arms. A nurse was sitting with her and was offering her a juice box.

“Dad!” She screamed as soon as she spotted him. In two quick steps Rowan was at her side and enveloped her in his arms. He then looked at the nurse.

“She is fine. We did a lot of checks but she is absolutely fine. Aren’t you Maya?”

Maya snuggled closer to her father “Is mama okay?”

He kissed her head tenderly “as soon as the doctor gives me your discharge papers I will take you to see her. Mum is fine.”

“And the deer?”

“Okay too.”

Ten minutes later a doctor came in the room and explained the checks they had done and all was was clear. Rowan grabbed the papers and lifted Maya back in his arms.

In the A&E, the Galathynius were still with Aelin. 

At the open door he walked in and then to the bed “See Maya? Mum is fine.”

Aelin extended her arms and her daughter climbed from parent to parent.

He stood behind, following the scene from his corner until Evalin pulled him closer “Go to her, Rhoe and I will take Maya for a bit. You two need space.”

Rowan stared at Evalin in shock and the woman nodded to him almost in encouragement.

Slowly he moved to the bed and as he got closer he scanned Aelin for any sign of grave injury, but all he found was a plaster on her forehead. She was sitting in bed and as soon as she spotted him, Aelin extended her hand to him.

Rowan sat at her side and accepted her hand “I am sorry,” she whispered.

Rowan was about to protest but she stopped him “no, I need to get this out,” she added quickly “I am sorry. I was mad at you for all the wrong reasons,” she confessed “What I said to you was horrible. I have been so used to be just the two of us. I made all the decisions, I provided for her and when you told me about the classes I felt as if all of a sudden I was not capable anymore to look after her.” Rowan was again ready to talk but Aelin placed a finger on his lips “And I have been so damn wrong to be jealous of you. I had a look at the courses but I could not find anything that I liked. You did and I wished it had been me.” Her hand caressed his face in a gentle touch “Rowan, in a very short time you have proved to be a great dad for her. She loves you so much,” tears started to flow on her cheeks “And I am so bloody stubborn that I put us in danger. And I am sorry,” another caress “I am sorry that I doubted you or made things hard for you. Having you back after all this time, it caught me off guard. I was so scared, Rowan.”

He moved closer, his arms sneaked behind her back and pulled Aelin to his chest “When you left tonight I felt like a failure. I was so eager to be a father that I just went ahead like a bulldozer and did not consult you.” He closed his eyes and his cheek leaned on the top of her head “I want to be worthy of being her dad and of you. I want to be so damn worthy of you both, Aelin.”

They looked at each other and their foreheads touched. Aelin’s hand cupped his cheek and something moved in her chest. Something old. A thread she thought had snapped was now floating in front of her begging to be reconnected to its other half “You are, and Maya and I are so lucky to have you.”

“How is she?”

Rowan chuckled “She already charmed the nurses and managed to get a juice box from them. Docs says she is all okay.”

Aelin shifted and leaned her head on his shoulder while he kept holding her “Can Maya and I come back home?”

“Are you sure?”

She looked up at him and nodded.

Rowan stared in her blue eyes and slowly felt as if all the messy feelings he had been experiencing lately had started to shuffle back in order. Some of the old feelings had started to resurface, but he had to keep them at bay. They had to work first on making sure Maya was okay. They had done enough damage. Their daughter had priority over their feelings.

“We love your house.”

“Okay but,” Aelin tried to protest but this time it was his turn to shush her “Tomorrow you stay at home. The concussion was very light, but you will be sore from the seat belts. Maya is home from school for the holidays and if you need help I am sure your mum will be delighted to look after you both.”

“Yes, chief.”

“I should have never let you go out.”

She kissed his cheek “You tried. I am stubborn, remember?” She then hid her face in his chest “I destroyed your car. I will find a way to pay you back.”

“Nonsense. I am glad you at least took mine. It has a very reinforced front. It’s meant for off track and other extreme road conditions. Nothing a good garage cannot fix and I also have something called insurance.” He thought about what could have happened if she had gone with her car. He kissed her head “Stay with me and that’s your way to pay me back.”

“I think I can do that.”

Aelin looked up and moved closer. So much that they were sharing their breaths. She was about to brush her lips on his when the scream of her name pulled her back.

Evalin and Rhoe entered the room with an excited Maya holding a lollipop.

“Mama!!”

Rowan helped Maya climb on the bed and gave them some space while he went to the grandparents.

Rhoe passed him some papers “Aelin’s discharge papers. I assume you are taking your two girls home?”

He nodded “Good,” added Rhoe, patting his shoulder. Rhoe went back to Aelin and Maya and Rowan remained with Evalin.

“Fight for them Rowan. Do not let an argument ruin everything. They are your family and they love you.” She gave him a hug “Rhoe and I are rooting for the three of you.”

Twenty minutes later he was walking out of the hospital with a still an achey Aelin and Maya in his hand. He was afraid that Maya might refuse to get in the car but the girl allowed him to strap her in. He passed Elf and hoped she was fine until home. 

On the passenger seat Aelin was struggling to fasten her seat belt. She was sore and movements were hard. Rowan went to her and fastened the belt “Will you be okay?”

She nodded “You are a really good driver and can deal with these roads better than me.”

He left the car park “Who wants ice cream?”

Both women screamed excited so when he was closer to home he made a stop at his local shop down in the village and bought a few types of ice cream.

Back at home Aelin made to grab her duffel bag but Rowan stopped her. “Wait on the porch while I free the hurricane.”

Aelin sat on the chair outside and stared at her daughter following happily her dad. Taking Maya away even if for just two days would have been a grave mistake and fate had punished her for that. Seeing her daughter happy with her dad was all she needed.

“Let’s go in.”

Rowan pushed Aelin on the bench inside the lobby and she protested when he kneeled to remove her shoes “If you can bend to take them off, be my guest.”

Aelin tried and gritted her teeth but gave up when her body screamed and let Rowan take her boots off.

“Dada, my shoes are off.”

He helped Aelin up “Ok, upstairs, pyjama and ice cream.”

Aelin leaned on him as they climbed to the upper floor and Maya followed. She then disappeared in her room while Rowan accompanied Aelin in hers.

“Do you have a pyjama?”

She shook her head “I have been using your t-shirts, they are cozy.”

Rowan chuckled “Oh so you are the thief.” He went to his room and came back with a big TFD 

t-shirt “This should be okay too.”

She tried to remove her clothes but every movement was causing her blinding pain “Can I?”

Aelin blushed. They had seen naked plenty of times but now it was different between them.

Between curses she managed to pull away her hoodie and then the t-shirt and that’s when Rowan gasped. Her chest sported a nasty purple bruise from left to right and a really nasty scratch on her neck that the doctors had covered with a bandage.

“Is your neck okay?”

“Stiff.”

“Okay, we need to keep an eyes for signs of whiplash.”

Maya burst in the room not long after. Elf pyjama on, and soft toys under each arms “I am ready for ice cream!”

Rowan lifted her in bed “Stay here one second while I help you mum get changed.” The girl crawled under the blankets with her friends and waited.

Once ready, Aelin shuffled under the blankets with her daughter and both waited for ice cream.

Rowan came back twenty minutes later all changed too and with a tray with the cups full of ice cream. The really chocolaty ones were for his two girls whereas he had opted for the fruity ones.

“Ae, take these, the doctor prescribed them, should help with pain.”

Obediently Aelin took her meds and then Rowan allowed them to have ice cream in bed.

He sat in the chair he had carried from Maya’s room and while they ate he told them stories of princesses and knights until they both fell asleep.

Rowan tucked both of them in bed and then sent a silent prayer to Mala to always look after them. 

taglist

@rowaelinismyotp @swankii-art-teacher @whimsicallyreading @elentiyawhitethorn @aelin-bitch-queen @bruiseonthefaceofhumanity  @mis-lil-red @thegreyj @sailorsassley @leiawritesstories @clairec79 @morganofthewildfire @sv0430 @heartless--aromantic @autumnbabylon @rowanaelinn @backtobl4ck @susumaus98  @gracie-rosee @mybloodrunsblue @tanvee1231 @avenrebekah @whoever-you-choose-to-love  @theywillnotsingforme @universallytreepost @black-daisy-water @goddess-aelin @whispers-in-the-darkest-heart @lovely-dove-zee @athena127

[macravishedbymactavish]

Riptide (TF141 x M!Reader)

TW: Angst, terrified thoughts about the future following traumatic events

| Blog HQ | Riptide Series Masterlist | Previous Chapter |

Chapter 05

You were pacing back and forth in the hallway; everything from the waist down becoming numb from sitting on the floor for so long.

"You're going to need a new pair of shoes right soon if you keep that up" Price commented, leaning against the wall. True to his word, he stayed with you this entire time. Not leaving to use the washroom, to eat, or even have a smoke.

I'm not going anywhere until I know our boy is okay.

"It's been hours without anything. Can you blame me?" You sighed, walking to stand directly beside him. Mind racing with all sorts of worst case scenarios. Readying yourself for bad news.

"Perfection takes time, he deserves no less" you nodded, fighting the urge to spiral deeper into your head. Knowing you needed to be as strong as you could for your son. Repairing the physical damage was the easy part, mending the mental and emotional wounds would be an uphill battle for you both.

You heard your name get called, eyes shooting up to the surgeon walking out toward you.

"Normally we meet families in the waiting room" she smiled warmly, before explaining that everything went off without a hitch and what to expect during his recovery.

He'd be admitted for a few nights for observation with a splint. They'll swap this out for a cast before he gets discharged, once some of the swelling from the operation comes down. Then some information about follow up after that you didn't catch. Hell, you didn't catch much more after she told you he was okay.

"If you'd like to see him, we can bring you in" you eagerly nodded, fighting back tears. "Would you want to come too?" She asked, gesturing to where Price stood beside you.

Would he want me there? Do you want me there? His gaze implied.

"Come on Gramps. Let's go see our boy" you chuckled softly, waving him to follow along. Feeling yourself start to shake the closer you got to the room.

"Here he is, you did amazing buddy" the surgeon greeted your son, who gave her a sleepy smile in return. "He'll likely be drowsy well into the night, but should be back to his normal self tomorrow"

You were at his side in a minute, stroking some hair out of his face as you felt tears fall. I haven't cried this much since the day you were born.

"Hi daddy. Hi gundpa" he mumbled sleepily, gazing up at you happily, before reaching his arm out in Price's direction. Who slowly walked over from his spot at the wall.

"Hi Bug" you whispered, pressing a kiss to his hair before wiping tears out of your eyes. "How you feeling?"

"Tired" he rubbed at his face, grimacing when the splint rubbed his cheek the wrong way. "Don't like it"

"It's only until your arm heals up, mate" Price commented in a soft voice, clearly shocked and honored that your son was automatically trusting of him. Something neither of you expected. "It'll be off before you know it"

"Hope so" the boy whispered, blinking hard as he fought to stay awake. "When can we go home?"

"In a few days. They want to make sure you're all better, and put a cast on your arm before we go" You explained, watching his nose scrunch up in confusion. "It's like what you have now, but harder and makes sure the bone heals straight" you clarified.

"Do they make them look cool?" Your son mumbled, slowly drifting into sleep.

"No, not really. But we can make it look really cool with markers and stuff" you smiled, watching as sleep finally overtook your son. Pressing another loving kiss to his hair, you whispered how you loved him and would be here when he woke up. While Price opted for a soft squeeze of his shoulder.

"Go home, grab some things and have a shower while he sleeps" you froze, everything inside of you arguing that you would not be leaving him alone ever again.

"You'll be gone an hour at most. I'll be here, Kate is on her way. He won't be alone" The tone left no room for ifs, ands or buts. You were going to have a shower and collect some things. "Get one of the guys to drive you, then they'll know where to go so we can watch your house"

Nodding slowly, you glanced down at your sleeping son's figure one more time. Heart aching at the thought of leaving him, despite knowing he was in hands you trusted with your own life.

"He's back now, you can breathe again" You nodded, feeling a soft shove as Price urged you out of the room.

--

As much as you hated to admit it, the feeling of the shower was almost intoxicating. The warm water beating down, working to relax the once stiff muscles. Wash the dirt, sorrow and grime off.

Hands pressed against the tile in front of you, you let your head hang forward as the water came down. Letting every emotion go, feeling your fingers curl into fists against the cool tile. You mourned the loss of his innocence. Damned every higher power and fate for letting something so horrendous happen to such a kind little boy; but thanked them for bringing him home safe in the same breath.

You began thinking of the future, the hospital would surely connect him with a therapist. Someone to help him work through the scars you wouldn't be able to see.

How long until he would feel comfortable going to the shops with you again?

When would he be comfortable with visitors in the house? Not that this particularly mattered. You would wait forever if that's what he needed.

Would he be able to attend a normal school one day?

What would you do for childcare.....would you stay in the force after this? After what happened when you weren't around to protect him?

The sound of the bathroom door closing caused you to shoot up out of the water. Now on high alert. Peeking out past the shower curtain you noticed a towel and a change of clothes (sweatpants and a plain tshirt) on the counter. Necessities you forgot to bring in with you.

Shutting the water off, you began to dry yourself. Smiling at the added warmth of the towel, wondering if they threw this in the dryer before giving it to you.

First time in my house and they all made themselves very at home. You laughed softly to yourself.

--

"Do the stars even glow anymore?" Johnny wondered out loud, leaning against the doorway to your sons room. Staring up at the stick on stars across his ceiling; making a point not to pass the threshold.

"I don't think so. Proves me right for buying the cheap ones" you laughed, explaining how from infancy your son seemed to sleep better under a sky of stars. Especially loving the nights when you sat out on the deck, him curled into your chest at night. Listening to you promise every star in the sky if that's what he wanted.

"Need to invest in more then" Kyle chuckled, walking up behind you. "So what do we need to check on while you and mini you are at the hospital?" You quickly ran through the basics of your home, before packing 2 bags. One for yourself, and the other for your son.

While you were busy packing, you missed the look your two teammates shared with smiles on their faces.

Taglist: @bloodonmyhands-1221 @v1naco @bowtruckleninja @thatonesimpyknow @reiya-djarin