#while silence wouldn't care and just want to spend time with her family

[arkiwii]

do you think saria or silence buy chocolates before valentine's day or do you think they would wait for the clearance sales the day after to buy loads more chocolate

that's to assume that saria isn't loaded with money, and i think that she would buy them the day before or during valentines directly without much thought of how she much she spent. silence however would wait but also saria doesn't seem to be a very chocolate person so a good bunch of those will go to ifrit

[ikeuverse]

MAKE OFFICIAL — l.heeseung

PAIRING: dad!heeseung x stepmom!reader  GENRES: fluff, slight angst  WC: 5.2k+

WARNINGS: a bit of discussion, mention of bruising and blood, mention of food, gently suggestive at the end.

SYNOPSIS: you and heeseung have been together for a while, sharing life and even the upbringing of little aimi. even so, he wants to make the request official to call you his girl, but a miscommunication scuppers heeseung's plan. he may not be able to make the request himself.

NOTES: honestly can't explain the amount of requests i've had for part two. i tried to put together a bit of everything... i thought of something a bit more distressing, but with a child in the story my pedagogical heart softened, so i didn't get something as distressing as that (thank goodness)!!! i hope you enjoy it.

part 1 | masterlist

"Seriously, I need to make this really official" Heeseung sighed, drinking some of his beer and placing the mug on the bar table.

Friday was the day to drink with the guys and talk as much as they could without the girls being around. And that subject was ideal for him to broach with the guys.

Looking ahead and noticing the attentive gazes of his best friends, he knew that this silence wouldn't last long, and besides, Jay was already finishing another sip of his drink so he could answer.

"Let me get this straight" the boy wiped his lips off any traces of alcohol, glancing at Jake and Sunghoon, then fixed his gaze on Heeseung who was sitting in front of him "You want to make the relationship you're having with my sister official?"

"Yes" Heeseung replied.

Jay remained silent for a while longer, choosing to take another sip of his beer.

"After more than a year you've been together?" Heeseung knew that the emphasis was ironic on Jay's part, and judging by the looks on the faces of the other two seated, he knew they were thinking the same thing too.

"I know, but it's just that there's never been a request, you know?"

"Do you want to ask y/n to be your girlfriend officially?" Sunghoon asked him. Heeseung nodded in agreement, playing with the stem of his beer mug without facing any of his friends this time.

"Dude, you made it official a long time ago" Jake laughed a little "You two live together, share the care of Aimi, and treat each other like married couples. Do you know what that is?"

Looking at it this way, Heeseung could tell that they had been official for a long time. He decided to trust what he felt from the day he kissed you for the first time in the living room of his parent's house, where you showed that you wanted to be with him and, above all, seemed to want to take care of Aimi as much as he did.

Heeseung was right. Little by little he introduced you to the little one's life, like simple things: picking her up from school, having dinner sometime at Heeseung's apartment. Aimi even cried one night when you said you'd go home and come back the next day. In conclusion, that was the first night you slept at Heeseung's apartment, wearing one of his t-shirts with Aimi's arms around you at a slumber party in the living room.

It was only a matter of time – or routine, as you both liked to think – that you picked up some clothes and left them at Heeseung's apartment. Or that you went to pick Aimi up from school because her father was leaving work late.

This brought you closer to his daughter. It brought you even closer as a couple. And neither of you could answer when the exact day was that you moved into his apartment. Neither of you could say when you started bathing Aimi and waiting for Heeseung on the sofa, to have dinner, read a story, and sleep as a family.

His friends were right, it all became even more official as he thought about the events of the last year. You never considered leaving him because he spent time with his daughter, as others had told him. You kept your promise by spending more time with her than her father did. The two of you even established things together for her upbringing, and you didn't even know how to tell Heeseung that the role of mother was filling your heart with joy.

It wasn't something to think about, nor did he think he'd have someone under his own roof playing mother to his daughter. But while you were there doing everything without a hint of effort, with a smile on your face and sometimes even tears in your eyes at the little girl's achievements, or even in moments of fever or something. He knew he had made the right choice.

"But if you want to" Jay's voice snapped him out of his reverie, making Heeseung sigh and face the boy who was now looking directly at him, "you can think about how to officially ask her."

"I need you all to help me" he said.

"We'll help" Jake smiled.

"Go to the beach tomorrow, just you and her" Sunghoon finished his drink and leaned back on the bar stool, running his hand through his hair before placing it on the table and drumming his fingers "We'll babysit our princess Aimi and you and y/n can enjoy the official proposal."

"I don't know, sometimes I think Sunghoon thinks so well" Jay whined, pretending to be thrilled.

But the reality was that the idea had been incredible.

"That's when you're not swearing at me" he retorted.

"But you deserve it!"

Jake rolled his eyes at Heeseung, leaving Jay and Sunghoon to continue the discussion while the other two thought about and came up with a weekend plan for the official proposal.

Perhaps something simple and completely romantic, as you liked and he knew very well. Jake could help you find a hotel facing the sea so that you and he could go for a walk in the evening and he could propose.

Heeseung was already getting anxious and, even though he knew you would accept, it was as if he was back in his teens. His stomach churned and his heart pounded as he smiled at Jake and thanked him for his help.

Heeseung's fingers gripped the leather of the steering wheel tightly. He was trying his best not to speed up any more than he had to, but he knew that he had already gone over the limit since he had received his call to meet him at the hospital.

He didn't even know if he had parked correctly when he stopped the car, let alone hear if anyone had said anything to him. Heeseung just ran into the building in search of the waiting room where you had informed him.

Heeseung could have sworn he was going to throw up at any moment.

Hi love, can you meet me at the hospital? Aimi and I have a little problem...

What kind of fucking problem was it? Because Heeseung's eyes were already blurring as he found the hospital room.

He stopped his hurried steps when he looked down the corridor and found you. You were talking to a doctor, with gray hair and a well-pressed lab coat. As Heeseung wandered his eyes over the two of you, he noticed Aimi lying on your shoulder.

That habit had remained from when the two of you first met. He thought it was the most adorable thing in the world that it had been his daughter's place of comfort. Almost every night, she would lie on your shoulder on the sofa and fall asleep before going to bed to listen to the story Heeseung told her before going to sleep.

One night he himself lay on your shoulder to see if it really was magic or if his daughter just liked to rest everywhere... He woke up two hours later, almost drooling and with you focused on the television, laughing softly as he got up, completely tired from the nap he had taken.

So yes, your shoulder was an extremely comfortable place to sleep.

But why was Aimi wearing a bandage on her head? Why was Heeseung running back toward the two of you? He almost screamed when he saw his little girl with that, already imagining a thousand scenarios where she'd had some suture, where that gray-haired doctor had bullied her and he was sure to end up with him and that lab coat that he now found ugly.

"Hey" he said as soon as he got close enough to the three of you.

"Hey, love" you greeted him first, turning towards Heeseung and feeling his lips on your forehead. The man bent down enough to kiss the top of Aimi's head in the process.

"So, you're the father?" the doctor asked, he just nodded.

"What happened? Is Aimi all right? Are you all right?" he could hear the tremor in your voice and felt like he was going to cry at any moment. You gave him a weak smile and then looked at the doctor.

"Usually mom is more nervous than dad," he laughed, "but I see you're the one who's calm around here, Mrs. Lee."

Mrs. Lee.

"But everything's under control now. Aimi was under observation for two and a half hours and has been released to go home."

"Two and a half hours?" Heeseung said loudly, almost scaring the little girl resting on his shoulder. He apologized to his daughter while looking at you and then at the doctor.

The man saw that he had said too much, or even knew that it wasn't a matter for him to deal with, so he just said goodbye and gave the two of you his contact details in case you needed to come back. You knew you wouldn't, so you just took Heeseung and Aimi home.

"Shall we?" you asked, cradling the little one in your arms and ready to leave the hospital.

"Two hours? What the fuck is two hours?"

"Heeseung" you warned him.

Swearing in Aimi's presence. He hissed an apology as he walked with you to the car.

"How did you get here? Two hours ago?" the irony in his voice already indicated how angry he was.

"Heejin brought us, I couldn't drive" you whispered after you reached Heeseung's car.

He carefully and calmly put his daughter in the back seat, into the car seat, and then buckled the seat belt. As soon as he closed the door, you didn't move.

"What?" he asked.

"The keys. You're not going to drive like that." He would have asked you 'like what?'. Not when you knew him so well and knew that he was shaking so badly with nerves that he could barely hold the wheel again.

So choosing to hand over the keys was the right thing to do. Heeseung going in the passenger seat and you taking the wheel to get home.

"Now can you please explain to me what's going on?"

You sighed loudly at the stoplight, looking over to find Heeseung's eyes already fixed on yours.

"Aimi fell at school and hit her head" you said. "It was absolutely nothing serious, but the nursery called me and I just thought I'd ask Heejin to bring us."

"And you didn't think to call me at the time?" he tried not to raise his voice out of nervousness, his heart completely racing at that moment.

"I knew you'd freak out more than you are now, and I think I only made things difficult because I was afraid you'd get sick."

The intention was valid and indeed true. Knowing Heeseung and how one hundred percent concerned he was, it might have been possible for the boy to faint while receiving the news of what had happened to Aimi.

There was a moment of silence while he thought about what to say. Heeseung knew you were right, but at the same time, he let his feelings go to his head, not even thinking about what was coming out of his mouth.

"What about taking care of serious matters about Aimi together?" he still looked at you, even though his attention was on the road now.

"I was just as worried about you as I was about her" your voice tried to be as soft as possible for him, both to calm him down and so as not to wake the sleepy little girl in the back seat.

"And you only let me know two hours later. Right!" he laughed humorlessly "If you were really worried about me, you would have told me what really happened and not deprived me of taking you and her to the hospital."

"Heeseung..."

"Why did you tell me at the hospital, y/n? Why didn't you wait until we got home?" he raised his voice without even realizing it.

"Heeseung" you called him again, but he didn't hear.

"Were you going to wait for me in the living room of our apartment with a heart bandage on her forehead and tell me it was a surprise?"

"Lee Heeseung!" you altered your voice a little more, stopping at another traffic light and looking at him in the process "Code orange" you finished when he looked back at you, feeling that the boy was analyzing every inch of your face.

"Dad?" Aimi called out. He turned on the spot and held her hand, seeing that his daughter had gone back to sleep.

Code Orange was a language the two of you had created so that you could use it when moments like this happened. Any argument, any disagreement around Aimi and all you had to do was say Code Orange to remind each other that she was there. And then you'd stop whatever you were saying so as not to scare her.

He didn't say anything else. He kept holding Aimi's hand until you drove home.

The routine has been the same since the three of you arrived home together. The only difference was that Heeseung kept quiet while you went to the kitchen and you walked with Aimi on your lap to the bedroom to get her things and prepare a bath.

Heeseung felt he'd blown it the moment he heard you talking about Code Orange.

He knows he crossed the line. He knows that it all hit him at once and with nerves and worry, things got completely out of hand.

Unforeseen events tend to happen in people's lives, and Heeseung knew that this triples when you become a father. He often heard from his parents, or even your parents, how things could get out of hand.

He remembers exactly the day at the amusement park when he was taking it easy with you and whatever was going to happen between the two of you. Heeseung was always on alert in case something happened to his daughter, but on the night he decided he was going to kiss you for the first time, Aimi got a fever. She felt sick and ran to meet her daughter. That unforeseen event was the first you two had experienced together.

Heeseung remembers every little event when the two of you had to change course just because things hadn't gone according to plan, and he hadn't let it get out of hand because he knew that unforeseen events happen. Becoming a father was already an unforeseen event in his life and each thing that happened made him prove his point.

He then ran a hand through his hair, frustrated by the whole thing because it wasn't that the official request had been completely sidetracked. It was because he was so worried about Aimi and ended up arguing with you just because he let his nerves get the better of him.

In our year-long relationship, he had never argued so seriously with you about anything. It wasn't the first time you'd done something with Aimi and told him hours later, but Heeseung knew it was because his heart was racing with the name of the two of you and the word little problem in the same sentence. You've never had a problem.

"What the fuck, Heeseung!" he wanted to tear his hair out as he remembered your stern eyes on him, your hands gripping the steering wheel tightly because he knew you didn't want to argue either. Whether in front of Aimi or not, neither of you wanted that.

Making amends was the only thing to do, but how? The request to make it official was already ruined and he had to come up with a plan B that he had no idea about, not least because the main plan hadn't even been his idea in the first place.

Sighing and throwing his head back, Heeseung opted to scour the app on his cell phone in search of something to eat. He wasn't in the mood to cook and didn't want to search the cupboards for something instant for the three of you, especially since he knew you'd been away from home too long and would need something substantial.

So he walked slowly to the bathroom which contained a huge bathtub, where you used to bathe Aimi every day while Heeseung prepared the food or did anything else. At your daughter's request, since she said she liked to talk to you during that time.

"I was too strong" Aimi's voice interrupted Heeseung's thoughts, as he stopped in the middle of the corridor and noticed the bathroom door open. He took a few more steps, enough to see that the bathtub was full, lots of colored foam that you only put in on days when Aimi really needed it – today was one of those days – and you were sitting on the floor, facing her.

"Of course you did, I'm so proud, actually" you said so encouragingly that Aimi clapped her hands, raising some foam and laughing along with you when one of them splashed onto your pants.

"I love you" Aimi told you.

"I love you too, my love" came your reply immediately. Heeseung sighed lovingly.

"Like my mom?"

Silence. Heeseung felt his throat go dry and didn't know why you hadn't answered Aimi's question. Whether you were thinking about something or whether it had caught you off guard as much as it had.

The truth was that yes, you loved her as your daughter. But neither you nor Heeseung rushed into things, not least because he wanted you to feel comfortable, and also because he didn't know how you felt about it. Your relationship with Aimi strengthened so naturally that outsiders thought you were mother and daughter. And when asked, no one denied it.

"Do you want me to be?" you asked after a while.

At that moment, your hands brushed some of the soap out of her hair, while Aimi played with some rubber animals floating on the water.

"I want to. I want to!" the little girl's excitement almost makes you cry if it weren't for the little arms around your neck in a tight hug. You didn't even care if you got wet or not.

And at that moment Heeseung felt his heart fill up. A few more steps he leaned against the doorframe, his eyes watering and only noticed when the scene in front of him became a little blurry. He had to blink a few times to keep the tears at bay.

"Dad! Dad!" Aimi greeted the boy, releasing herself from your embrace and making you turn quickly towards him "I want y/n to be my mother."

"Do you?" he asked.

Even though it had been in a soothing tone because of Aimi, you knew that the question had been asked as much for her as for you. Because as soon as his eyes shifted in your direction, you just nodded and turned your attention back to the little girl.

"I really want to" she sounded just as excited as the first time she'd said "Dad, did you know that mom y/n didn't let go of my hand today?"

"Really? And you want to tell me what happened at school?"

"Mom, can we let Dad in on the bath talk?"

She had��never called you mom. Neither you nor Heeseung had heard it from her in the whole year of their relationship. Your heart felt like it was going to burst out of your mouth and you only realized you were about to cry when you heard Heeseung sniffling softly behind you.

"Of course, if he wants to" you tried not to let your voice get shaky.

Heeseung didn't want to risk saying anything or he'd cry even more, and he was grateful that his daughter was excited and didn't realize that both he and you were emotional. He sat on the toilet seat while he listened to Aimi tell the story.

How she defended herself against a little boy who picked on her at school. She also told how he didn't want to let her go down the slide, so she fought with him, but when she went down she hadn't been paying attention and hit her head on the tunnel before going down.

Noticing now that the little girl no longer had the bandage on her forehead, he saw the small cut. Something completely superficial and which probably shocked the teachers and even you because he thought about the amount of blood that came out. Confirming this as soon as you said it yourself after Aimi had finished counting the parts she could.

"How about we finish this bath and order dinner?" Heeseung let out a long sigh after laughing at some of the other things his daughter had said, hearing her giggle too.

"Sushi?" Aimi's eyes lit up at that.

"Are my girls okay with sushi?" he asked.

"We are!" you and Aimi replied together, and then Heeseung got up to order dinner.

It could have been considered a long wait until he ordered through the app, waited for it to arrive, and set everything up in the room. But he did it so calmly that you had time to finish Aimi's bath, dry her off, and put her pajamas on so that you could go into the living room and have dinner as a family.

"Can we watch it?" the little girl asked, smiling when her father agreed and let the two of you sit down on the sofa to eat.

Dinner was filled with laughter and more stories from little Aimi, a few comments about the cartoon the three of you were watching, and even the repetition of food because, according to her, it was so tasty.

After another hour the little one fell asleep on Heeseung's lap, which was something new because she always preferred to stay on your lap before she fell asleep. So maybe that's why he had the biggest smile on his face.

"Do you want some help?" you asked as you turned off the television.

"All right, I'll put her to bed then," Heeseung nodded in agreement and got up.

He walked off towards the bedrooms, leaving you to tidy up for dinner while he took great care to walk with his daughter on his lap without waking her. This had been done by him countless times, but he seemed to have lost the practice after you came into their lives because Aimi always called on you to do it.

And he loved this connection between the two of you so much. That's why he was happy. Because you had done something that he had always been used to doing alone, and by returning to it, things were fitting together more and more in Heeseung's mind.

Placing Aimi on the bed, he kissed her on the top of the head and smiled at the sleeping figure of his daughter. She was sleeping so peacefully that she didn't even look like she had bumped her head during the day – and faced a little boy at school – but Heeseung pretended not to have heard. He wanted to leave it to the girls since it was a bathtime conversation.

"I love you, little one" Heeseung whispered to Aimi as soon as he had tucked her under the covers, turning on the lamp before slowly leaving the room.

Now he needed to think about how to apologize to you and how to start this conversation. Maybe saying he loved you could also be a good thing, right? Or he could use the puppy-dog eyes tactic because that worked with you sometimes.

No, it was quite serious, he couldn't joke about it.

What would Heeseung do anyway? He started to panic as soon as he got to the living room and everything was tidied up. So you were probably already in the kitchen washing the dinner dishes, and as soon as he entered the room, you realized it was true.

"Did you get it?" you asked when you saw him standing in the kitchen doorway.

"I never miss a beat" he smiled, even though your attention was on the dish you were washing.

Not even a glance in his direction, not even a smile from the corner of your lips. Nothing. Heeseung wanted to scream and run away, but he chose to approach in slow steps and stand behind you.

At first, your posture seemed intact because you didn't notice that he had come so close, but when his hands found your waist and he pressed your back against his chest, you stopped everything you were doing.

Heeseung felt your body stiffen for a few seconds and then calm down as he slid his hands down your exposed skin from your hips to your belly and hugged you from behind.

"I'm sorry" he whispered with his lips between your hair.

"What?" you understood a little garbled because he hadn't said it clearly, but you wanted to be sure of the words or if you weren't thinking too much.

Meanwhile, you wiped your hands before forcing yourself to face him with Heeseung's hands still on your waist.

"I said I'm sorry" his voice could now be heard more clearly. Heeseung looked deep into your eyes as he heard you sigh softly.

"Heeseung, I—"

"No, I need to talk first. May I?" he asked. Your nod encouraged him to speak even though he didn't even know what he was doing in the first place.

Heeseung never got to that part where he needed to fix what he'd done or saw the person in front of him willing to listen to him. He had also never felt so much love – apart from his daughter – that made him feel complete.

He looked into your eyes, seeking even more approval as he leaned down to rest his forehead against yours.

"I'm sorry I was an idiot and broke the orange code" he whispered, a breath of air from his lips going straight against your skin. The sensation was so familiar, yet it always made you shiver "I'm sorry because as well as being worried about everything that happened, I was so frustrated."

You raised one of your hands, placing your icy fingers against his skin. Heeseung shivered at the touch, not because of the temperature, but because your hand was touching him.

"Frustrated with what?" your touch wasn't enough, you had to caress his cheek so lovingly and then slide your fingers to the back of his neck that Heeseung swore, right then, that he had to kiss you.

And he did. But it was as quick as it started because he wanted to talk and needed to get it off his chest.

"Earlier today I was with the boys and I had the desire to make things official with you" the boy felt each word come out so freely as his hands rested against your waist. You continued to caress the back of his neck and this time kissed the corner of his lips when you noticed that he seemed nervous before saying the next words "I was going to take you to the beach tomorrow. The boys would stay with Aimi and... Well... I'd officially ask you..."

Your hand stopped caressing him. He didn't know if that was good or bad, so he momentarily moved his forehead away from yours so that he could look into your eyes. They were attentive to Heeseung. Every movement, every word, everything that came from him.

"I know that after we become parents, unforeseen events happen and I've heard this from my parents, from yours, from colleagues who are parents. It really does happen" he explained so seriously that you found the pout that formed on Heeseung's lips cute "And I was frustrated because, as well as knowing that we wouldn't be able to go to the beach tomorrow, Aimi got hurt and I couldn't be there for the two of you."

"But you're with us every step of the way..."

"I know, love. I know that" he brought his face close to yours again "I think one thing joined another and I only saw the shit I'd done after you warned me. So I'm sorry."

"It's okay, it wasn't your fault" you said softly, causing Heeseung's heart to calm down a little.

He knew he was lucky from the moment he met you. He just didn't feel like he deserved it at this moment when everything seemed to make him feel bad about what had happened. Even with you telling him that everything was fine, the way Heeseung found to further derail his apology about you was to kiss you.

For real this time. Then he put one hand on your waist and brought the other up to your face to push away the hair that insisted on staying there.

Taking one last look into your eyes, Heeseung smiled before joining his lips to yours. The kiss started slowly, just longing for that touch as the wet muscles slid over each other. You allowed him to press your body to his as the kiss began to intensify, seeming more needy, urgent, and with a euphoric Heeseung pulling you even closer to him.

Neither of you felt like stopping it, both of you wanting anything that was stopping you – the clothes – to be out of the way and for everything to work out the way you both wanted it to. But before anything else, the air search was clear, so he slowly stopped the kiss, leaving his mouth still pressed to yours.

"I think the officiating was done by someone else today" Heeseung said a little too breathlessly, hearing your ragged breathing against his skin as well.

"What do you mean?" you asked.

He smiled, opening his eyes and seeing the sight of you with red, wet lips right in front of him. Something he would never get sick of seeing.

"I overheard some of the conversation in the shower today" Heeseung began. His lips went straight to your forehead, leaving them resting there as he whispered, "Her calling you mom for the first time just made me sure that making what we have official doesn't need a right place or need to be done by me."

"Heeseung…"

"I love you, y/n" he said, his lips coming away from your forehead so that he could look at you one more time as he spoke "I love you and I've known that we've been official since that first kiss in your mother's living room."

"I love you, you idiot" you said, your heart racing and full of love. You hugged him and kissed the tip of his nose as you lifted your feet to reach him "And that was definitely the best official request in the world. No beach can top that."

He laughed at your comment and pressed his lips to yours again, but without kissing them this time.

"Now how about you bath me too? I've had a busy day and I think I need to relax."

"You're worthless, that's for sure" you laughed, but under no circumstances would you deny Heeseung's request.

© ikeuverse, 2024. do not copy, translate or steal my stories.

[is-the-snake-video-cute]

Hey, all. I'm so sorry about the radio silence for the past few months, and I wanted to drop by real quick to give you all a little update. I'm afraid it's going to be pretty quiet around here for a while, and I've come back to a lot of worried messages so I wanted to keep you all in the loop.

I've recently had some pretty big family things going on - my grandma has been moved into hospice care. It's obviously taking up a lot of my time as I want to spend time with her, and my venom lab has been amazing about letting me pick up as many shifts as I want so I can have a little extra income to help my family with bills. I just don't have a lot of free time right now, and it'll probably stay that way for the immediate future.

I'm okay, and the snakes are all good. We celebrated Miriam's third birthday in February! This blog has always been so much fun to run, and I'm going to try to be back as soon as I can because this has always been such an amazing stress-relief to answer your questions and talk about snakes together. For now, though, the askbox is off (I just don't want things piling up too much while I'm gone), and I wouldn't expect to hear from me for a while.

Hoping to be back soon.

[lure-of-writing]

Left in regret

Authors note: Thank you all so much on the love for this story it truly means a lot to me that you all like it so much. I didn't plan for this to have a part two but I really hope you enjoy nonetheless!

Summary: After telling Azriel and the inner circle how you truly felt about Elain and about your feelings so Azriel the inner circles world comes to a very abrupt halt.

Word count: 2.5k, Part two to never been good enough

Part one Here: Never been good Enough

Part three: Why can't we?

To say that everyone was shocked by your outburst would be an understatement but in all honesty how could they blame you when everything that you said was correct. Looking back on all the time that has passed since the inner circle welcomed the new family members, they could see just how much you were being excluded and it broke their hearts that they were the reason that you were feeling this way but it was no one's fault to blame but their own. Azriel took it the hardest. He knew that he was spending a lot of time with Elain but she made him happy and even though he knew she had a mate he honestly couldn't find it within himself to care about that. If Elain didn’t want to be with her mate then who is he to stop her. 

For the first time in a long time Azriel felt happy and it was all thanks to the person you hated most. The guilt he felt was immense but how could he not pursue what made him happy? For all of his life he never thought that he would be good enough for a mate so he accepted that it would never be one of the things he has in life but a stable relationship with Elain could be one of the rare gifts the mother blesses him with. But to break your heart with such revelations broke his own and up until the point of you practically laying your heart out to bare he never knew about your feeling for him and he has never felt like he deserved the title of spy master less then he did in that moment because how could he have never noticed how you felt about him? 

Azriel hasn’t seen you since that fateful day on top of the house of wind a week ago no one has been able to reach you not even Rhysand and it was starting to concern him. You simply took off running towards the ledge of the house before throwing yourself off and winnowed away while falling through the air. A stunt has never scared Azriel more, that was until seven whole days have passed with no one being able to find you. Between the three brothers they searched high and low for you but came up empty handed every time. It was becoming very clear that you didn’t want to be found but Azriel needed you to come home, he needed to talk to you about everything. His mind hasn’t been able to quiet down since your confession “I have been in love with Azriel since the day I met him” your words plagued his mind at all hours of the day and he knew unless he was able to speak to you it would remain that way until it practically drove him insane for he knew he would spend however long until he was able to see you again replaying every interaction he's ever had with you from top to bottom wondering how he missed the signs. But he knew better than that, you were a trained spy, a very well one at that and if you didn’t want him to know what you were thinking then he simply wouldn't. 

More days have dragged on then Azriel was comfortable with you being gone, he wanted you home more than he wanted to be around Elain and that was saying a lot for him.  

Most of the inner circle was sitting around the table at the river house when Rhysand walked in looking less than pleased, it immediately caught his attention. That's when he noticed the piece of paper pinched between Rhys fingers “What is that?” His words were the first to break the uncomfortable silence that had been suffocating the group. “Y/n sent a letter.” this was not his brother speaking this was his high lord and something about that set Azriel on edge, whatever he was about to say next was going to break his soul he just knew it. “She addressed it to the inner circle and has asked that it only be read to the inner circle.” Rhysand shied away from Feyre's eyes but he knew that she understood because without any hesitation she stood up from her seat and urged her sisters to do the same but Elain refused. “I’m not leaving. I want to hear what she has to say.” something about hearing Elains demand to know what you said when she is the reason you left set Azriels blood on fire “Leave Elain or I will do it for you.”  

Nesta was quick to anger with that statement “Threaten my sister again and I will kill you.” she statement was nothing short of a promise but Feyre was quick to grab her sisters but not quick enough for Azriels sharp words to cut deep into the middle sister's heart “If you had never come here, I wouldn’t have lost my dearest friend because of you. Now I see that y/n was right, you are a wolf in a sheep's clothing and I was too blind to see it right before my very eyes. I want nothing to do with you Elain.”  Azriel knew his words cut deep but something inside him couldn’t find it in him to care. Everyone waited until the three sisters closed the door before doing anything else and they waited once more for the sounds of retreating footsteps before Rhysand cleared his throat and began reading your letter. 

“In all my years of having the honor of being a member of the inner circle this is not how I envisioned my end. I always thought if anything I would die on the battle field or on a mission and that would be where my story ended amongst the circle but for it to end like this is something I could've never imagined. Rhysand I am so happy that you finally found your mate and honestly Feyre couldn’t be more perfect for you, but I cannot say the same for her sisters. To be frank I could have done without them but no such choice is mine to make. There are a lot of things I want to say but I’m not sure if I will ever be able to say them so for now I will settle with this. First I want to thank you all for being the most loving group of people I have ever had the pleasure of knowing. Though you may have shown it in your own ways I will forever cherish the memories we made together and for that I am thankful. There is no easy way to put this but I see now that my time amongst the inner circle was limited and it is something I will always hold dear to my heart even with this painful ending. It never bothered me that I was becoming less needed within the group but to be forgotten about while dying in a battlefield changed something in me. For as long as I can remember if one of us was unaccounted for the others would stop at nothing to find whoever was lost but the same urgency was not placed upon me until Tamlin walked in with my dying body. Azriel I heard you ask how as a group you had forgotten about me and it broke me. It became glaringly obvious that I was no longer needed as a member of the inner circle but I didn’t want to believe it so I didn’t. But watching you fall in love with Elain was something I could not do when I knew that I had been in love with you since the moment I met you. I silently loved you from afar while hoping that one day you would realize I was here right in front of you willing to give you my love but all you could see was Elain from the moment you learned about her existence. I will never blame you for loving who you love but to say it doesn’t hurt would be a lie. This letter is getting to be just a giant jumble of my thoughts so let me end with a few things. In three days I will gather my belongings from the house of wind and move from the night court, please do not ask for any other information as I will not tell you any. Now it's time for me to say my goodbyes for I know I will not be able to do so in person. Amren, thank you for being a fountain of knowledge and someone I could go to, to sit in silence and not feel alone while doing so. Mor, your friendship is like no other that I’ve ever known and I cannot thank you enough for showing me such loyalty and encouragement. I'm sure that I will never find another friendship like yours. Cassian, your ability to be strong for not only your family but for yourself is something I hope to learn one day. I have definitely learned to be strong because of you. Please know you are worth so much more than all of the hateful words thrown at you. Rhysand to serve in not only your court but inner circle has been the honor of a lifetime. You have already proven yourself to be an amazing high lord and I have no doubt that you will continue to do so in the future. But most of all thank you for showing me that being myself is ok and allowing me to grow into the person I am. I could not have done it without you. Lastly, Azriel, thank you for showing me what true love is.”

The weight of your words lay heavy on each member's heart. Everything you had said had hit them differently. “She's leaving?” Amren was the first to speak after the never ending silence. While Amren may simply tolerate most people she had a place in her heart just for you. She saw parts of herself in you and wanted to help you in any way she could, albeit was a little unconventional so to hear that you were leaving broke her heart but deep down she understood why. She saw the moment you realized that Azriel was your mate while you watched as he shielded Elain from your wrath, saw the look of heartbreak flash and disappear within your eyes, saw the mourning that replaced it instead. She knew why you were leaving, you would never make him be with you just because of the bond so instead you would act like it never existed if it meant he would be happy without you. “Y/n can’t just leave, she's family.” Morrigan was the next to speak with tears pooling along her eyes “We are a family y/n must know how much we all love and care about her?”  but nobody said anything until Cassian spoke up “No y/n is right we acted as if we no longer needed her. Rhysand has Feyre, I have Nesta, Azriel with Elain, Mor you are closer friends with Feyre then y/n and Amren has varian so who does that leave y/n with?” Cassian's question hung in the air unanswered “Exactly. It leaves her alone with no one but herself.” as much as people thought cassian was a brute he was equally if not more observant, he could see that you had been unintentionally outed from the group and to deal with his part of your leaving he got up and left without another word to work out his emotions on the top of the house of wind with a brutal workout. Cassian left everyone else to deal with their emotions on their own. 

In the three days leading up to your arrival it seemed as if everything within the inner circle had changed. Azriel avoided Elain, Mor distanced herself from Feyre, Cassian barely trained with Nesta and Rhysand tried to send letter after letter to you asking to sit and speak with him. No response came. It was as if the world had stopped on a dime for the inner circle. The silence was deafening as they waited in the common area of the house of wind while waiting for your arrival. But the silence was even louder when you were set gently on the floor after being released from the arms of an unknown man with wings. No one made a move or even said anything; they simply stared at the stranger in front of them. In that frozen moment Azriel felt something he never thought he would get to experience: the mating bond snapping into place. He felt the string that connected him to you and he could hear nothing else but the sound of his heart beating loudly in his ears. He knew Rhysand said something to you but he couldn’t hear it, maybe he was in shock. Azriel watched you with extreme precision as you moved without saying anything to Rhysand to start down the hallway with the random man in tow. Azriel wanted to ask you who he was, why you thought you had to leave, where you going to go but he found himself unable to speak. It wasn’t until you reappeared in the common room that he was able to say anything. 

“We’re mates?” He hadn’t meant it as a question but it definitely came out as one. He watched as a sigh fell from your lips before you spoke “Yes” Azriel had never heard you sound so exhausted, so beatdown while this was supposed to be one of the most exciting times of your life. This is what people begged the mother for, what he had begged the mother for with no hope that he would ever get to experience it. “You’re not excited?” tired eyes bore into his “If the bond had not just snapped would you want me? If you never found out we were mates would you have picked me? Or Elain? I have never been a person of romantic interest to you before today so does a bond even matter?” Azriel knew you had made valid points but hearing you say all the times he hadn’t picked you broke his heart. “The Answer is no Azriel you wouldn’t have so please don’t start choosing me now. I don’t want a relationship out of force from the bond, I want you to choose me because I’m the person you want. So please do not start acting like you want me now when you didn’t want me four days ago.”  And with that he watched as you placed yourself in the arms of another man and took off towards the sea. Azriel watched as you left this place behind without another word, left without letting Azriel fight for your mating bond and he has never regretted getting involved with Elain more than he did in that moment. 

Taglist: @j-pendragonx , @piceous21 , @harrystylesfan2686 , @kemillyfreitas

[torukmaktoskxawng]

Hi anla! are you comfortable writing a Tsireya x fem! Omatikaya! reader where reader is very tough and intimidating and is quiet and prefers to spend time alone. Tsireya finds her by the water one time instead of being with her family and tries to talk to her but gets blown off— she then makes it her mission to get close to reader and after a while reader lets her?? idk maybe some cute slow burn romance? thank you and ur writing is sooo good!

Pairing: Tsireya/Fem!Reader (Sully daughter, lol)

Word Count: 1,572

Warnings: Cuteness overload? Small mention of violence? Hinted courting? Not sure what else, but this was written on my phone, so it's not in my best element and is also shorter than I wanted.

Taglist: @mooniequeen @avatar-lover @taronyuhunter

A/n: I definitely played into the unspoken fact that Na'vi, or at least Forest Na'vi, are basically cats 😅

~~~~~~~~~

When you first brushed off Tsireya's friendly conversation, the chief's daughter was beside herself all night thinking she had done something wrong, wondering why anyone wouldn't want a new friend in a strange, foreign place far away from home. Tsireya knew that if she was in your place, she'd be desperate for new friends to keep herself sane so she wouldn't feel as homesick.

Needless to say it was a little hurtful and confusing when you completely ignored her attempts at befriending you. You, the sibling born between Kiri and Lo'ak, didn't appear interested in anyone or anything other than your space. Your brothers and sisters, who are way more outgoing and eager to befriend Tsireya and the other reef children, don't even appear bothered by your mannerisms. Tsireya decided to ask Lo'ak why that was.

According to your younger brother, you have always been this way. You kept to yourself and only made time for family when you absolutely had to.

"What about friends?" Tsireya had asked, bewildered.

Lo'ak simply shrugged, "She considers us her friends, too."

That baffled the reef girl to no end. How can someone not want to find friends outside of her own family? Wouldn't you get tired of them and need to talk to someone outside of your circle of relatives? Tsireya can understand having boundaries but to this extreme? It both confused and intrigued her.

No longer hurt by your behavior, her curiosity had gotten the better of Tsireya. Even though you were a little intimidating, it didn't sway her from trying to hang out with you more.

She first started by just simply staying by your side. She didn't talk or anything, just sat or walked by your side, regardless of the side glances you gave her. Despite wanting to fill any awkward silence between the two of you, she kept quiet and instead just tried to get you used to her presence, wanting you to at least trust and feel comfortable around her. Whenever you side-eyed Tsireya, she simply smiled and ignored how put-off and tough you looked.

Lo'ak had never seen a cat before in his life, but from what his father had told him, you were very much like one. Jake affectionately compared you to a stray cat all the time, even more so than Spider. To gain your trust, someone would need to have unlimited patience and kindness. No one outside of your family had ever tried and if they did, gave up too easily. Spider was the only exception. Growing up together, you silently considered him your family just as much as your siblings.

However, while watching Tsireya try to approach you with her silent tactics, Lo'ak couldn't help but agree with his father about the stray cat's comment.

Once it's safe to assume you didn't care whether or not Tsireya was hanging out with you, she moved on to small, teeny tiny talks. She does this by complimenting you.

"Your hair is really beautiful today."

"I love that bracelet Tuk made for you. It compliments your eyes."

"You're amazing at fishing!"

It was... like walking on thin ice. You didn't say anything back, but your expression made you look wary of the compliments. If your hair wasn't hiding them, Tsireya would've seen the dark blush that enveloped them. Once you are no longer entirely put off by this step of conversing with you, the chief's daughter starts letting you in on all of her village gossip.

"Don't let Rotxo know I told you this, but he's very infatuated with Kiri."

"My mother had to treat one of our deep divers who thought it was a good idea to wrestle with his own tsurak."

"Our best singer thinks she can fool everyone by always wearing a shawl, but we all know she's trying to hide her growing belly."

You never say anything in response to the gossip, but Tsireya didn't miss the way your ears twitched, letting her know that you were listening to her, regardless of how you felt about village rumors. It made her smile, knowing that you were paying attention. She hadn't realized, but Tsireya had found herself enjoying talking to you, even though you never responded. What was once an attempt to get you to like her ended up being something that she ended up liking about you. Tsireya is one who is never at a loss for words and has even been told at times -mostly by her brother- that she talks too much. So to have someone not say a word but she knows is listening to every word she says was heartwarming, to say the least.

The curiosity and drive to be your friend slowly turned into an infatuation when she got you to smile for the first time.

She had boldly decided to gift you something but knew that it wouldn't be genuine if she didn't make something that you liked. Instead of jewelry, she made a small shell ornament meant to go on the front of your ikran's harness. When she handed you the gift, she felt as though the air had been stolen from her lungs at the sight of your smile.

It was small, but it was definitely there. You had what Lo'ak and Spider would use to call a "resting bitch face" and so any other emotion you expressed was easy to place. Tsireya found herself wanting to weave your smile into her memory, to swim to the Cove of the Ancestors as fast as possible to connect to the Spirit Tree and have your smile forever remembered by Eywa.

"I don't know why you like her so much," Ao'nung comments as he and his sister do their morning chores. He visibly shivers with his usual, permanent scowl ebbed on his face, an expression he most definitely inherited from Ronal, "She looks like she could rip my throat out with her teeth."

Poor, sweet, innocent Tsireya found herself shocked as something warm and pleasant rolled in her stomach, the image of you being so ferocious sending a weak chill down her spine. Unbeknownst to Ao'nung, his sister was in a dilemma, beside herself as to why it pleased her at the mere thought of you being able to end someone just by using your teeth. Trying to hide the growing blush rising to her face, Tsireya kept her head down and purposely focused on the fishing net she was mending. 

"She's strong and fierce," the reef girl simply states, "And she's a good listener."

Ao'nung squints at her, baffled and put off by Tsireya's observation of you, but doesn't comment further.

But this strange friendship between you and his sister only baffled him further when the next time all of the reef children and Sullys were working together to build a strong canoe. You had approached the group, much to everyone's surprise, and held your hand out to the chief's daughter.

"Reya..."

All eyes quickly glance between you and Tsireya, not sure who everyone should be looking at. Rotxo and Ao'nung's jaws drop, never knowing what your voice sounded like before now. Ao'nung is even more affronted by the nickname you gave his sister. No one calls her that.

Tsireya's face visibly brightens as if you had just shown her the stars for the first time. Standing up to join you, she holds her hand out as you place something down in the center of her palm. 

Your smile had returned as she drew close, faint and perhaps a bit shy, but it was present and it made her heart skip a beat as you whispered, "A piece of the Omatikaya."

You drew your hand away and then quickly turned around, walking back down the beach from the way you came. Tsireya nearly whined when she could no longer feel the heat that naturally radiated from your skin before remembering the item now nestled in her hand. Looking down, she uncurls her fingers and gasps quietly.

It was a beautiful choker made out of red and orange beads, tied tightly together, meant to climb up her neck and make her look taller, something similar to what she'd seen Neteyam and Neytiri wear. She had never worn anything with such bright, warm colors, reminding her of the fire in your yellow, piercing eyes. Without a second thought, she removed her own necklace and replaced it with yours, her fingers shaking with excitement as she clasped it around her neck. Beaming proudly, she turned back to your siblings and the other reef children to show off your gift, and while some of them were speechless, Tuk wasn't the least bit surprised by the exchange she had witnessed and squealed.

"It looks so pretty on you! I was watching her make that for hours and couldn't wait to see how it turned out!"

The young Na'vi girl's statement had everyone finally blinking from their shock, Rotxo even going as far as complimenting Tsireya's new necklace while your siblings and even Ao'nung all looked at one another with wary suspicion. Ao'nung waited until Tsireya was caught up speaking adamantly to Tuk and Rotxo before he snapped quietly at the other Sully siblings.

"What in Eywa's name was that??"

Lo'ak's jaw tightens but he doesn't say a word, briefly remembering another fun fact about cats that his father once told him. Something about what it means when a cat likes or trusts another animal or person, they tend to start gifting things like dead rodents. 

He visibly shivers, hoping his sister won't go as far as to start bringing dead things to Tsireya.

~~~~~~~~~

MASTERLIST

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[talaok]

I NEED some protective pedro. Oh God how about them being in a relationship, had a fight and not talking to each other at that moment, attend a friend's party and pedro taking care of her and making sure she is alright while being mad at her and maybe some cute sexy ending...

Pairing: Pedro pascal x reader

Warnings: the most allusion you can allusion to smut

It wasn't one of those huge important fights that break up couples, it was just a stupid little fight.

You wanted to spend Christmas with your family, and him with his, and neither of you was gonna budge.

Silly, right?

Now the only problem was that this "little" argument, had happened right as you were getting ready to go to a party, which you were now driving to in complete silence.

Not even the radio was on, only him, you, and countless passive-aggressive comments on the tip of your tongue.

The tension in the confined space was more than palpable, and when you finally got out of the car it felt as if you'd been underwater the whole time, and for the first time in twenty minutes, you could finally get a breath of fresh air.

Which, now that you realized, it really was fresh... maybe even a little too much for the dress you chose.

"You're cold" Pedro stated, a clear tint of annoyance in his tone.

The fact that all he needed to do was look at you for a second to understand what you were thinking would have been sweet at any other moment, now it was just irritating.

"take my jacket" he urged, handing it to you without so much as a second glance.

"I don't need it, I'm not cold"

And just as you, he would have found your stubbornness cute if it had been any other time.

"The party is in the garden y/n, you're gonna freeze all night just to prove a point?"

God but did he always sound so condescending?

"fine" you grumbled, begrudgingly putting it on as he started walking to the front door, not even bothering waiting for you.

__ __ __

You spent the rest of the night purposely ignoring each other except for exactly three times (yes you had counted them), the first one was when Margareth, whom you very much despised since the only way she seemed to be able to talk to people was by judging them straight to their faces, had cornered you and forced you to listen to how much better she was then you until Pedro had appeared out of nowhere, and pretended he needed to talk to you just to get you away from her.

You didn't even have time to decide whether you wanted to thank him or not that he'd already gone his way.

The second time was when he saw you trip over a patch of grass out of the corner of his eye and as much as he wanted to ignore it, he just couldn't, so he had to excuse himself from the conversation he was having and reach you to make sure you were alright.

"I'm fine Pedro" you'd rolled your eyes

"Have you drank any water?" 

"Oh my god, I'm not drunk I just tripped" 

And that's exactly why the third time you had talked to each other he had approached with a glass of water.

"I told you I'm not drunk"

"You should still drink this"

"Who are you, my mom?" you'd exhaled dramatically "Oh no that's right, My mom is in New York and I won't get to see her this Christmas because apparently we just have to spend it with your family"

You were lucky nobody was ever around anytime you talked because... sheesh, that would have been embarrassing.

"Just drink this please" he'd insisted with a sigh, and finally, partially because you wanted him to go away and partially because you were actually kind of thirsty, you had accepted with a heavy "fine"

And now you were back at home and back at not talking... except that this damn zipper was stuck and as much as you forced it it just wouldn't go down.

"You need help with that?"

He would have been lying if he said he hadn't been enjoying the show for a while now.

"it's stuck" 

Without another word, he was up from the bed and walked behind you as you stood in front of the mirror.

He put one hand on your waist while the other undid your dress with care.

And now yes you were in the middle of an argument, but you weren't responsible for the warmth that spread inside your body at his touch.

 A soft thud reverberated through the room as your dress fell to the floor and a low "fuck" fled his mouth as he took you in from the mirror.

A long beat passed, and then, as if he'd read your mind he asked "Truce?"

And all you could do was nod

"truce"

[unabashednightmarepizza]

𝐹𝑖𝑟𝑠𝑡 𝐷𝑎𝑡𝑒 𝑆ℎ𝑒𝑛𝑎𝑛𝑖𝑔𝑎𝑛𝑠

A/N: I couldn't stop my simping ass from writing for him, sorry not sorry!

Warnings: Spoilers for the "First Date" quest, some unintentional drama(?)

Prompts used: lips barely touching, smiling while kissing, slow kisses, first kisses from this/ "Is it okay if I kiss you?" " I would like that very much." from this.

People are very noisy.

That's even more obvious to you after the accident with Snape. You didn't blame him for what happened, especially after he said "no notes" and you were caught writing something down. It was a misunderstanding, one that put you on a rough spot.

Because all your friends were trying to learn who your crush was, everything felt like you were drowning in them and you had no other way out.

Apart from your saviour in white shirt and Gryffindor tie, the only one person you could confide in, someone who wouldn't care about all the rumors.

"Hi, Bill..." you sat in front of him as the red-head lifted his head and smiled kindly to you just like always.

"Hey, Y/N. How are you holding up?"

"Good I guess." You shrugged your shoulders. "By the way, I am sure Charlie knows you were out in the Courtyard, checking up on him earlier. He was irritated I guess?"

" Good. I want him to know his big brother is watching. Truth is, my mum likes me to keep an eye out for him. She is worried about him almost all the time."

You smiled at the woman's worry, though you knew better than to be fooled by her sweet nature, especially after that one Howler she sent to Charlie.

"His hobby is monstrous, fire-breathing creatures. I think any mum would be worried. How is she doing by the way?"

Bill smiled at your question, answering with a happy she is fine, she wants you to come to the Burrow this summer actually, as you and him ate your meal in silence.

You were gratefull for the Weasleys and how welcoming they had been to you, ever since the start of the second year. Spending time with them for the last 3 summers felt like a paradise to you, even if it was mostly chaos with their younger siblings. But they were a bunch of cute and good-natured kids, didn't mean extreme harm to anyone as long as they didn't annoy them and they adored listening to your rants about your adventures with their two eldest brother.

All the while trying to surpass their smirk at their second older brother having heart eyes as you talked to them, blushing behind you with a dazed look.

Apart from you, Charlie's raging crush on you was pretty obvious to everyone. Both in school and to his family. Never, even for once, did he shut up about you at home. Always talking, always telling how amazing and badass you were, how caring you were with the magical creatures as Hagrid watched you, how you always spent time with him and was comsiderate of your friends, how cute you looked while sleeping...

"Okay, okay, we get it. Your curse-breaking girlfriend is pretty awesome." Percy would often roll his eyes at his brother, already sick of the amount of talk about you even if he... tolerated you?

Molly and Arthur would also chime in from time to time, just to push Charlie a bit to know more about his dating life. It was from her good heart of course, Molly just wanted all of her children to be happy... Possibly with a lover that would hopefully turn into their spouse.

And besides, seeing his usually dragon-maniac son who wasn't interested in dating suddenly blushing at the mention of this girl made her curious.

Who were you and how did you manage to make her smitten ike that?

So, as the sweet yet slightly controlling mother she was, she convinced Bill to take you here with himself for one summer, to see and get to know you. Bill was happy to oblige, besides he knew his mother already knew a lot about you by the endless talk both him and Charlie did, the last thing left for her was to see you.

And when she did, she decided: You were now a part of the family.

Because one, you looked like such a cute and generous girl with a golden heart and two, her son was really, trully happy whenever he was with you.

But, as much as she witnessed the obvious love her boy had for you, she was left shocked, one would say even pitying her own son for his denseness, when she talked to him and Bill... and learnt that you two weren't dating as the boys looked at her sheepishly.

"Charles Septimus Weasley! What's this supposed to mean?! What do you mean by you aren't dating her?! Are you so dense to let a girl like her go?!"

But here was the part, which was the reason why he still didn't make any moves on you: Charlie sucked at romance.

Dragons? Show him one scale and he could tell what they eat. Lessons? Pfft, pretty easy, he aced them all! Quidditch? He was the best at new strategies! But romance?

With you?

That was straight out of his nightmares. Because what if you didn't feel the same? What if he lost you for good because of some silly, yet very warm, feelings? Was it worth taking the risk? He didn't know any pick-up lines, and didn't intend to ask his friends...

So, just like that, he refused to do anything and instead savoured the time he had with you even if his heart made backflips whenever you smiled at him.

And Bill was left to deal with his dumb brother and oblivious friend as they both had feelings for each other, unknown to both sides.

" At this point, everyone knows I have crush and suddenly... they are all so interested in who he is!" He was shaken from his thoughts as you exclaimed angrily, munching on your lunch like an angry rabbit, remembering the pleading looks your friends gave to you.

"Well, you have all the reason to keep it to yourself." He said pointedly. Just the same logical boy he always was...

"Well... Except, I'm thinking of not keeping it to myself." You shyly told him as he raised a brow at you, shocked and also sad for his brother and how heartbroken he would be. It was inevitable though, as he and their mother often told him.

"Oh really? Well, good for you. Good luck with getting a decent enough person to give you advices!" You looked at him curiously as he almost seemed... nervous to continue this talk.

Is he... pretending to not understand me? Or mocking me?

You stared at Bill who was eating his sandwiches with a happy grin, trying hard to not look at you and confront you to save himself from the stress, sternly until he lifted his eyes to look at you and his mouth fell open in shock.

"Wait... You want my advice?!"

"Yeah, who else's?" You sarcastically said, pointing between you and him and showing the other empty seats. But Bill's attention wasn't on any of them, since y'know, he was freaking out, choking on his food.

Nope... Nope, nope, that was bad! He couldn't betray his little brother like that!

"Don't you remember the Emily Tyler thing? Trust me, Y/N... I'm the worst person you could have come to!"

"Bill."

"Oh... Oh, you are very serious, and you aren't going to give up, are you?"

The only answer he got was a playful rise of your brow and a smirk.

After a very long lunch with Bill, and trying to convince him that it was a good idea to ask his opinion, you felt tired.

Why would you trust my advice?

You've never led me wrong, Bill.

Do you ask because I'm older?

Trick question. You are older... and wiser!

The list of questions continued. You couldn't help but get suspicious of him and his strange behaviour. Now, it was official that Bill was the mother hen of your large friend group, being the only one who had 2 brain cells, and he tended to get worried about almost everything... Possibly a treat of having 6 younger siblings.

But he, never even for once, hesitated to help you with something. It was almost like he was looking for an opportunity to run away from this conversation, or you in general whenever he saw you out with your friends.

You were starting to get worried you were being a nuisance to him.

But... who else were you supposed to go, when your crush was the little brother he was always looking out for? None other than, Charlie Weasley himself.

It was patheatic really, how you silently suffered because of this crush. It didn't help that he always hung out with you, or that you got to spend the summer with him and his family.

You saw him, the true him every day even more and this crush was getting our of control.

Now, you knew he was an outdoor-loving, adventurous spirit and probably, the best way to ask him... out, was in the forest. A picnic date? Maybe?

Oh Merlin, I can't believe I'm about to do this... Rejection is at the horizon, and I can always write to mum and ask her to transfer me to Beauxbatons.

Besides, Aurélie likes me. I'm sure she could-

Your train of thought were cut when Bill suddenly laughed awkwardly, looking at once again, anywhere but you..."I can't believe we are about to have this conversation... It's been a while since I gave any advices."

But ultimately failed at seeing your... saddened face.

Which made the mother alarms in his mind go off.

"Hey, hey, what's wrong? Did I do something? Did someone do something? They better pray for a higher power, because I will-" he stumbled over his words as he took a hold of your hand to comfort you, but frowned when you took it away from him.

"It's not that... Bill, you would be honest with me, right?"

"Of course, what kind of a question is that?" He frowned at you as he sat down on the bench outside Hogsmeade, a hand on your knee as he rubbed it comfortingly.

"Because... I'm starting to think that I am being a nuisance to you, by how you always try to run away from me."

Oh Merlin, this isn't going to places good...

Panic suddenly rose in Bill's chest, seeing how you trully believed in that by his actions. He failed to realize how his actions affected you, when he tried hard to not betray his brother like that.

But you didn't do anything to deserve this, and he was instead betraying you.

"Well... I'm sorry if I gave that idea but, it's not that. It's just... Everyone looks at me as if I know something they don't. I mean, I don't even have experience in that part! And now, my best friend is asking me for help, and I don't know what to do."

You looked at him softly, suddenly realizing that this was also hard for him and you were just making things up. "Bill, I really appreciate your concerns but I came to you for a reason: I trust you. I talked with Penny, Tulip, Barnaby, even Talbott! But in the end, you were the one who always helped me first..."

A cheeky grin took over your face soon, which already told enough to Bill that you were planning to tease him after a heartfelt conversation.

"Besides two years more experience is a lot when it comes to dating, isn't it old hag?" You elbowed his side and ruffled his hair playfully, which he secretly took great care of, and took of for a running while Bill scoffed at you and prepared to run after you.

"Oh, you little rascal... Come here!"

After letting out a squeal and running away from Bill while laughing freely, he finally caught up to you and offered to drink Butterbeer to cool down and finally help ypu put with your problem, your head between his arms in a headlock as you struggled to get away from him.

Even if he would be betraying his brother, he couldn't let you all alone by yourself.

"So... What's the best way of asking out my crush?" You asked to him, eyes hopefull, as Bill looked at you through the glass he was drinking and smirked at you teasingly.

"Well... Definetly, I wouldn't recommend a note. It could easily fall into wrong hands."

"Haha, Bill. So funny, I'm glad my misery is so funny to you." You giggled embrassed as he shook with laughter, his long hair falling onto his face.

"Well, all jokes aside, face to face would be the best think to do. It may be the most nerve-wracking but involving anyone or anything else complicate things."

You nodded thoughtfully as you drank your butterbeer, weighing your options and which place would be the best thing to do such thing... When Bill's silence made you look at him confused.

"Is that all? Surely the Bill Weasley has other advices to give to his cute and in dire-need-of-help underclassman who is also his best friend, right?" You cheekily exclaimed, batting your lashes at him while hoping that it would help, making him shook his head in disbelief at you.

" Yeah, my cute underclassman, I told you I'd come prepared. I promised I would help, remember? Even if I may feel silly giving them..." he cracked his back as he took his notebook and pencil out, writing his list down under your watching and curious eyes.

Sorry, Charlie... Forgive me.

"First, compliment them. Everyone likes compliments, and don't dive directly to the topic. That would scare them. Also, don't overthink, something hard in your condition." He pointedly said as you rolled your eyes at him, elbowing him to continue.

"Spending time with someone you like should be fun and relaxing. And remember: Your date might be just as nervous as you are. There is a high chance that it is both your first times dating, so relax knowing that it's also a first for him."

After minutes of talking and him advising you, you were feeling... enlightened? Your plans of taking Charlie to the forest would work, it seemed!

And he called himself bad at giving advices, what the hell? He had been even more useful than the others!

"So, any questions?" Bill clapped his hands expectingly as he stared at you, waiting for an answer. But the answer he got was one that made him blush.

Almost. You were still the girl his brother, who had been obsessed with dragons as long as he can remember, liked. He wasn't going to act like a schoolboy talking to a girl for the first time.

"And you call yourself bad at giving advices! Bill, you just saved my life and my potential date!"

"Now, I wouldn't get too excited. I didn't save anything, yet." He said, suddenly turning serious as he looked at you. "Until you ask your crush out, your date goes amazing and you leave as a girl who has a boyfriend, I don't consider anything over."

"There is... a high chance that he could reject me, you know that right?" You meekly said, your fingers clutching your clothes thightly. His confidence for your ability, or lack of, to ask someone out surprised you. Actually, everyone thought you to be very confident for some reasons.

Was it because you were dealing with the Vaults? Or Merula? Or maybe you just gave off that vibe even if you were an anxious ball of stress almost half of the time?

"And if that happens... Just think of it as an adventure. You've been on many of them."

"It's something I know of, dating though? I don't have any experience."

That girl and her pessimistic brain...

Bill sighed out irritated at your sudden lack of confidence and got a hold of your cheeks to make you look straight into his eyes as he used the ultimate weapon: The Mum Voice.

" Y/N Y/L/N, everything will be fine! I'm trying to lighten the mood here... Just because this is something new for you, something you have never done before and don't have control over, it doesn't mean it will end bad. To me, everything will turn out fine for you."

"I really hope so... This means a lot to me, y'know?" you blushed softly and Bill was stricken with a realization: You grew up from the little first year you were to a fine young woman, with steady steps.

"If you aren't gonna tell me who he is... At least tell me what he likes, maybe that could help finding a good spot for your first date?"

And also save me from finding that guy and breaking the news to Charlie?

"Hmm... That's an interesting idea, actually...." you hummed thoughtfully to yourself, confirmation from Charlie's own brother would be almost the same as his. But you were not aware of the wide eyes Bill was giving to someone behind you as you dived into your fantasies. "Uh huh, shit..."

"Hmm? What is it, who are you talking- C-Charlie? Tonks?"

There stood Charlie, shook to his core as he clutched his bag thightly in his arms, heart beating loudly at the sight before his eyes. Out of anything he expected to happen, seeing his brother with his crush wasn't on the list when he merrily woke up today with the greatest stretch of his life in the morning.

What were you two doing? Why were you alone? And what was that interesting idea anyways? Not that he was jealous, no no not at all...

Meanwhile Tonks looked between you and Charlie awkwardly as Bill signed her to help him out, to which she awkwardly cleaned her throat.

"Wotcher, Y/N! We weren't expecting to see you here, right mate?" She emphasised pointedly, elbowing Charlie so that he could stop sending daggers to his own brother before he knew what was going on.

"Yes, of course." He replied with icy cold voice, though it wasn't directed at you and he was looking rather softly and sadly at you, you wondered if something happened between the two.

Something Bill didn't mention, because they were both fine this morning, and he had been with you ever since the lunch time so he didn't spend any time with Charlie enought to set him off.

Before you could ask, he walked up to your table and stood between you and him, with a pointed look to his brother.

"I heard that my brother has an interesting idea. Please, do tell. It's very rare, after all..."

Ufff, something definetly happened. Because the Charlie Weasley you knew wasn't like that.

With a frown, you answered him, not knowing that you kind of made everything even worse. " He was helping me ask my crush out, and asked what he liked doing... But what's wrong with you? You are never... this sarcastic?"

Well, it was definetly a way to put it in Charlie's eyes. He knew he was being irrational, after all, you and him weren't a thing. You weren't dating or anything, so he didn't have a reason to stand against you hanging out with his brother.

Besides, he had been your friend almost since first year started, and maybe... If he had just gotten over his anxiety back then and talked to you, he would be the one standing next to you, supporting you through everything you went through, protecting you.

Which he was already doing, just... a little bit later than he wanted.

With a broken heart, he looked at you and sighed sadly, not saying anything as Bill landed a reassuring hand on your arm. "Don't worry, Y/N... I think my brother just picked today to show his development in humour. What luck, trully..."

Witnessing the silent battle the two brothers were having, Tonks tried to think of a way to stop this. But just as everyone here knew, she was bad at this.

"I heard uh, the accident with note, Y/N... I hope you are feeling better now."

"Note? What note?" asked Charlie curiously as he watched your expression change and you blushed.

If his heart wasn't squeezing painfully in his chest at knowing that you had a crush, he could awe at you and memorize this momet to think about it later before he slept.

"You don't know? I'm surprised actually, everyone seems to be very into knowing who I like... Thanks for your worry though, Tonks. I feel better."

"Yeah, I mean... Snape already scares people enough. Adding the fact that he, accidently or not, stumbled upon a personal thing..."

"Oh... So, that note never reached to your crush?" Charlie hoped that his hopeful voice wasn't also carried by his question, trying to seem cool to you as if your heart didn't already belong to someone else.

You, meanwhile, gulped down hard at seeing him very... interested in it. But it wasn't like your other friends', they wanted to know purely out of curiosity and wished you to be happy...

When Charlie wanted to know everything because... He was jealous? No way, your crush liking you back wasn't an option, right? Besides, why would he feel jealous? He wasn't interested in dating and you were already walking on eggshells.

But this exchange... And the talk she had with Charlie a few hours ago how he wished it was him you were into, that it was him who would take you to a date...

Tonks had a plan.

"No, not really... Why did you want to kno-"

"You know what, Y/N? We will help you plan your date!"

"What?!" You and Charlie both yelled at the same time, eyes wide in shock at what she said from two different reasons.

Charlie couldn't believe his own ears at what his best friend was telling. Helping you with your date? Was she out of her mind? Did she and him not talk about his feelings for you?

"What? I'm not into dating anyone and Charlie... well, he is your best friend! He would like to help, right?" Charlie agreed with what seemed to be sarcastic nod of his head as he started to pick at the skin near his finger out of anger, looking between his friend and brother as you laughed awkwardly and pulled Tonks to yourself.

"Tonks..." you whispered down to her silently with thight lips, looking up at her. "Why the hell are you so invested in planning my date so suddenly anyways?"

"I told you, it's because-"

"I heard it clearly but... Are you sure it's not to learn who my crush is-"

"We don't care about your crush, Y/N."

You looked at Charlie with shocked eyes as they were filled with tears slightly at the sharp tone he used and how... cold he sounded. At that moment, he wasn't the same warm-hearted boy you met, he wasn't the friendly boy who you talked about dragons all the time even though you didn't understand everything about them but did it anyways just to make him happy, and he definetly wasn't the same boy you fell asleep on as you basked in his soft touches...

But you wondered... what it was you did that made him so angry.

"Charlie, what the hell?!" Bill angrily let out as he got up to confront his brother who was also shocked and shaking at what left his mouth. That definetly wasn't the way he was raised, definetly not him at all.

I didn't mean it like that... Even if it was "I" instead of "we".

"No... Wait, Y/N! I didn't mean it like that! We care about you. Please, let me just-"

But he was already late as he watched you got out of the Three Broomstick hurriedly, Tonks following you right after as he was left with a fuming Bill.

"What the hell, Charles?! Don't you know the school talking about her and her brother, also adding the fact that her crush was revealed, that she had been stressfull? Why were you even acting like that?!" He dragged him outside to scold him, pushing him by his shoulders. His shoulders sag in sadness as he let his brother push him lightly, knowing that he deserved it after his unreasonable outburst at you.

"I... I know it's no excuse but I... I was jealous and couldn't bare it anymore. It hurts, Bill."

Bill looked at his brother's teary eyes and guilty face with a soft look, his anger having long been gone at the pitiful sight of him. He understood why he felt like that, having to hear the girl you like liking someone else and all, but still...

It wasn't enough of a reason to treat tou like this.

"I understand why, little brother but it was too much... You will go to her now and be completely honest to her, Charlie. You know she deserves it."

"I know..." he mumbled silently, his chest constracting painfully in his ribcage as his stomach was knitting itself anxiously.

"And she would never ditch you out for having feelings for her either. She didn't do it with anyone, and she will not do it with you. Now go!" He pushed Charlie towards the open area to where you ran, hoping that everything would turn out fine for both of you...

And that what Tonks said was true.

"She likes Charlie, had been for a year or so. But she is shit at showing it. All they need is a little push."

"But... I don't know where she is!" Charlie hastily yelled out as he looked at Bill over his shoulder to see him sighing irritatedly. Stupid teenagers...

"She is your bestfriend, you crush! You know her better than anyone!"

And yes, he did know where you were thanks to what Bill said, and ran to where he thought you were.

An apology and explaination already ready in his mind as he begged to Merlin that he wasn't too late to fix his mess.

If you were to ask Charlie when he started falling for you, he wouldn't be able to give you an exact time. For the most part of his friendship with you, he didn't even realize that his feelings went beyond admiration. His friends and brothers always teased him for it whenever he called you "his bestfriend that he never imagined to have", and as a result, would get a snarky comment from Bill like "What a good way to add in your confession, brother! So romantic~"

But perhaps what sealed the deal for him and opened his eyes was that one time when you were cold in the common room, reading together and he gave you his sweater with his initial on it. (He pretended not to realize how cute you looked in it and how his heart beated faster at the sight of you, suddenly feeling possessive because damn it, you were so cute and beautiful as you read your book.)

And then, as if the sight didn't already turn him into a puddle, you mumbled a sweet it smells like you and buried yourself deeper in the sweater whilst continuing to read your book, completely unaware to how red he was because woah, seeing you so cozy in his clothes and as a big part of his life really opened a new window!

In your defence, you thought it was because he was hot from sitting in front of the fireplace witg that sweater on. And besides, he always ran warm for some reasons.

And then, just like that, his "bestie" attitude would turn into hearts and stars, accompanied by the "love of my life, my shining star and the meaning of my life" type of attitude. He had started to see all the outings you two did together, or all the times you went to the Three Broomsticks together, as dates and imagined himself just sitting next to you, an arm around your shoulders as he looked at you with loving eyes.

Apart from the fact that he absolutely sucked when it came to romance and being flirty, rather loosing track of his thoughts and stutter in your presence( which made you often giggle and call him adorable before pecking his cheek and setting them aflame) even though Andre often called him "an utter catch" while listing all the reasons why.

You are friendly, quick-witted, hard working, kind, play Quidditch and "annoyingly handsome" as a good friend of him-you- said.

So, he said nothing about his new-found feelings in fear that his friends and brother would make it worse by teasing him, he didn't have to know the miserable heart eyes he was giving you whenever you were close already gave it away, and try to desperately just be your friend. He couldn't risk ruining the best thing happened to him with his feelings, so he tried to avoid you in hopes that his feelings could disappear.

Spoiler alert, it didn't...

But his behaviour only ended up with you liking someone else and then him feeling stupid because he didn't act on his feelings before and get angry at himself and everything.

Human nature, after all, tended to blame orher things rather than themselves.

But now, he had to suck it up and go up to you, possibly explain everything and even comfess so that he would be free of the restrictions they brought to him and maybe, by a tiny chance, you would return his feelings back.

"Hey..."

Hearing his timid voice behind you, you wiped your cheeks hastily and turned to him. You knew your eyes gave you away, with its redness and all, and you saw how Charlie winced at the sight, almost seeming like he was just as in pain as you were.

But why would he, you thought. He was the one who made me feel like shit, why would feel bad?

"I've come to... apologize, for my behaviour. I didn't mean to be such a prick. I'm sorry for shouting and hurting you... and made you cry." He mumbled in a sorry manner, playing with his fingers anxiously as he waited behind you to say something. Every second you were just sitting there silently, your back to him as the wind brushed through your hair and clothes, he got even more anxious.

Maybe he lost his chance? Did you really get hurt by his words that much? Of course, you did, you didn't deserve to hear any of them and-

"It's okay, I forgive you... Even though you were total jackass." He chuckled and nodded at you, not that you saw it as you pat the spot next to you and waited until he was fully seated next to you. The calm and silence was a good one, after all the hectic week you had, but even then...

You were restless, as your crush who just made you cry was sitting next to you.

And you wanted to know why he did what he did.

"Why did you say that? Back at the Three Broomsticks? Why did you act like that?" You asked softly, no hint of judgement in your voice, only confusion as you looked at Charlie with knitted brows, frowning when he stiffened at your question.

"You wouldn't understand..." he mumbled, shaking his head as if he was you and actually knew how you would react. That was one of the things that could anger you, just like it did in that moment, as your irritated eyes found his soft and pained ones, watching you with a thundering heart as his breath got faster at your angry shout.

"Then make me, Charlie! I'm your best friend! What did I do to deserve-"

It was your right to know it, you definetly didn't deserve to be left in the shadows but he was... scared. Scared of loosing you, scared of ruining everything. Scared of you hating him...

But he had to be brave, and accept whatever happens after what he was about to say.

"You made me fall for you, that's what you did!"

Out of all the answers you expected from the redhead, this definetly wasn't on the list.

Charlie? Weasley? The one who loves only dragons? He loved you?

You could actually dance around and scream in delight from how happy you were as a wide smile took over your face completely. You wanted to shout, jump on Charlie and kiss him breathless, later peppering his whole face on them as you stared at his freckles, then go and gush to Rowan, or Penny, scream in happiness with them too!

But before you could open your mouth after the shock of hearing your crush liking you back, Charlie continued to talk. He thought if he just kept talking and poured his heart out, you wouldn't slap him across the face and leave him there, heartbroken.

Maybe he could postpone the inevitable just a bit.

The inevitable in his eyes.

"What he have... our friendship is so perfect, I have everything I want in my life. My family, friends, you," his voice shook as he shuffled closer to you, and you wondered if your heart was loud enough for him to hear.

You looked at him sweetly, his worry of loosing you, how much he cared-no, loved- you made you melt at him. Tears of happiness strung up your eyes as you gingerly took his calloused hand and squeezed it.

"And how do you think I feel?" You whispered, making Charlie look at you confused and tilt his head.

"What do you mean by that?"

Welp, here goes nothing...

You sighed deeply, turning your whole body towards him and took both of his hands in yours. He looked at you shocked for a second, heart jumping up to his throat as his eyes first landed down on your hands holding his and then back to your own eyes.

"Charlie, the reason I was so secretive about my crush was because... Because it was you."

Now, it was Charlie's turn to be shocked. Because out of every kind of angry ways he expected this talk to go, you confessing to him wasn't one of them.

That crush being him, wasn't even close!

Taking his silence as a sign to continue, you sucked in a breath.

The word was already out anyways.

"I only tried to get more hints on what you like and dislike, so that I could ask you out properly. I mean, I know I'm your bestfriend but... I also know that you aren't into dating and have your focus on dragons-"

"I love you more than dragons." You smiled at how fast and eagerly he said that, clear genuine love pouring out of him, and nodded your head.

"I know that now..."

"I thought... You know, Barnaby was your crush and I felt so jealous. He had liked you for almost as long as I did and... I thought tou would see him more of a better match for you."

"But why would you think that?"

"I know you are kind of scared of dragons, and can't keep every information about them in your mind." You blushed at being caught. You thought tou made sure you didn't give away!

Charlie smiled at your blushing face and chuckled, raising his hand to touch your cheek but hesitating. You felt his hand get close to your face, shaking slightly. You giggled at his obvious nerves and nuzzled closer to his palm, pulling it towards your face as you gazed at him with eyes full of love.

And Charlie forgot what he had to say at the sight of your lovely self.

"A-And Barnaby and you... like the other creatures more, y-you even bonded with his Knarl and went on many, uh... alone hanging outs."

"Charlie... What I feel for Barnaby is completely platonic, he is only my friend. What I feel for you is much stronger." You smiled at him softly, lovingly with your eyes accidently drawn to his lips.

"I've been denying my feelings for you at first, I wasn't going to let my feelings get in our way, I was afraid I would loose my bestfriend but you were and are still my bestfriend. I just didn't think you would... actually feel the same."

He shuffled closer, your thighs touching each other as your faces came closer and closer."I have been dreaming about this... Longing for you to feel the same, wanting to be with you..." He whispered, close enough that you felt his hot breath as his lips hovered over yours, barely touching yours.

"We are both idiots in love, then?" You whispered to his lips and he laughed, the sound of it making your heart skip a bit and smile lovingly at him.

"I wouldn't have it the other way..."

Suddenly aware of thw situation you were in, you could have backed out and instead take it slow. But Charlie was intoxicating, he called you to him like a flame did to a moth and your lips met for the first time. The kiss was soft and slow at the beginning, a little bit clumsy as expected but it was just... perfect.

You ran your hand through his hair, pulling his hair tie back as his long hair fell down his shoulders. You had been craving to kiss him, and pull on his locks in a make-out and you exactly did that.

Your teeth might have clashed, from how wide you both were smiling as Charlie's hand travelled across the expanse of your back and settled on your waist, but you both knew that this was definetly not gonna be the first time your lips would meet.

Now that both sides had a taste of the other, both of you became each other's drug.

"But you still owe me a date. You made me cry, y'know?" You teased him while panting after breaking apart, still in each others vicinity as he looked down at your lips in a daze and nodded.

"I'll spent my life making up for it, love. And I already planned our next 50 dates."

"Is it okay if I kiss you again?" You couldn't help but ask, wanting to only drown in him and his kisses. Dates could wait, you and him had a life time for more dates anyways. He chuckled and leant down with a smirk as his lips caught yours.

"I would like that very much."

And indeed, he really made up for it.

[marinettesaltprompts]

Inspired by one of maribat-menagerie's proposals

One of the big things that happen in almost every Maribat fic is Adrien getting stripped of his Miraculous so a batboy can be the Black Cat. But you could actually play with this idea of Adrien becoming Catwoman's apprentice/accomplice:

The story starts in stereotypical Maribat fashion with Marinette feeling unappreciated for her efforts and easily falling for whatever Batboy came into town to solve all her problems. Things progress as normal: Robin uncovers Gabriel, Lila gets sent packing and Adrien gets thrown to the wolves because he didn't do what the Batboy did- left to enjoy the association of being Hawkmoth's son while losing Plagg.

Because it turns out that Ladybug does actually believe in the idea that the holders of creation and destruction are soulmates, just not with him.

Anyhow normally this is where Adrien's story in a Maribat fic would end. He's condemned to a mundane life of public disgrace and suffering while Marinette goes to Gotham to live the superhero dream.

But not this time. Sure, Marinette leave with her Box and the Ring now fits on Robin's finger, but Adrien's not quite done. Sure it seems that way and as he retreats from public life under the heat of condemnation he falls into a deep depression. He's lost everything. His friends (can't be associated with Hawkmoth's son). His family (Nathalie is probably dead, Gabriel is in prison forever and The Gorilla needs employment after all). Even his home was seized by the The State- if not for a small trust fund Nathalie had had the foresight to set up for him he'd have nowhere to live at all.

The best he can do is live in an old house far in the countryside, hoping that people won't recognize him with his dyed black hair. At this point, all Adrien has to his name of his old life are his parents rings- one last gift snuck to him by Nathalie. Holding a secret within whose revelation robbed him of even his humanity.

It seems that after everything he did to try and make a life for himself outside of his gilded cage, he's doomed to spend his life in this new one. A cage made of crumbling old walls who were his only protection from a hostile world beyond them.

At least until one day, a certain Cat shows up. Not Plagg as Adrien dreamed of seeing again, or even the Robin who appeared in his nightmares to taunt him, but the infamous antihero Catwoman.

She' was surprised that he noticed her sneaking in, but Adrien's senses were still sharp from his time as Chat Noir. But it makes no real difference, one way or the other she's leaving with what she came for: The Graham de Vanily rings.

It turns out that his dear Auntie still wanted "her heirlooms" back, so she'd contracted Catwoman to go get them. Normally she wouldn't take such contracts, but with the Bats having ready access to magical jewellery her usual picking grounds were becoming harder to play in.

This breaks something in Adrien. After everything he's lost, after everyone had abandoned him in one way or the other, after neither Felix or Amelie could be bothered to help him in his time of need they still wouldn't let him have his soul?

Catwoman seems bemused by his spluttering, but she's intrigued enough to let him elaborate. Adrien knows from one look at her that he has no chance of beating her in a fight anyway, she'd get his rings one way or the other so he might as well tell her the truth. It's not like he owed anyone his silence and no one had actually cared about his side of the story since he'd lost Plagg.

So he spills. He takes the chance to rant about his situation, how he'd tried his best to be Ladybug's partner but he'd been pushed away, sidelined without cause. how his parents had had a magical slave collar on him since his creation. How his friends had abandoned him, how Ladybug who'd promised him "them against the world" had dropped him like garbage the second she'd gotten a "better model".

Selena listens, but she also happens to know Marinette herself- at least through others and knows the story on both sides now. So she bemusedly tries to correct him- only to find herself corrected:

Catwoman: You didn't exactly try to help her that much did you though?

Adrien: Ladybug pushed me away every time I tried. But I was always there for her. Every time she needed someone to fall on his sword for a plan. Every time she needed a shield I used myself. The one time I failed to show up, she stopped calling on me and started using an entire team instead.

...

Catwoman: Were you really that great a partner though? Robin picked up the ring and did a better job than you did even though you'd had it for months, plus all the training as a holder the old Guardian gave you that Robin didn't have while he was in France.

Adrien: What training? Fu never trained me. I didn't even know he trained Ladybug. As for Robin, maybe the fact that he's been trained by Batman for years before he even came to Paris might play a factor?

You know, I had martial arts and acrobatics before I put on the ring but I'll bet training under "the dark knight" might just be a bit above that. Oh, and Ladybug actually told Robin things. I didn't even know about the Grimoire until after the last battle.

...

Selena: But what about your friends? I've done my research you know? They said you were two-faced and cowardly, you knew about Lila and did nothing. You got your friend Marinette to take the high road and do the same.

Adrien: Did nothing? As far as I knew when I gave that advice Lila was just lying for attention and the first time I tried to get her to stop she got Akumatised on the spot. Marinette was freaking out and acting crazy, the only thing she was doing was making herself look worse in front of the class and risking Lila getting Akumatised again. It was the best advice I could give her until Hawkmoth was captured, or unless someone could prove she'd done something bad enough to get her sent out of Paris.

But I did what I could.

When Lila got Marinette expelled, I was the one who stepped up and helped her. No one else. I couldn't prove anything. I'm not a Robin trained by the Greatest Detective in the world. But I knew what Lila wanted and I used myself as collateral to get her to stop.

And two-faced? That's rich from my "friends". I've had time to think and realise what they were doing all those times they left me and Marinette together. Even before they left me out to dry they treated me more like some prize for Marinette to win instead of a friend, it was all some big game to them.

Now none of them speak to me now that I'm not a rich-boy celebrity anymore. It's like they all decided that I'm responsible for their mistakes with Lila.

---

And so the conversation continues. For the first time, Adrien finally gets to tell his side of the story, even if it's to someone who came to rob him of the one thing of value he had left. And Selena... is intrigued.

She looks carefully over the boy. He's a pretty thing, but he's also clearly strong. There's still lean muscle on him despite the year trapped in this miserable little house. It suddenly strikes her ironically just how much like one of Bruce's Robin's he is- especially with his hair dyed black.

An athletic, intelligent young man made from birth to be a perfect heir to an evil father? One whose socialization had come far, far too late to be healthy? An echo of Damian.

All around her were cheap, but well-read books on an eclectic range of subjects. Tim would find plenty of common interests with this one.

The spark wasn't there now, not in this broken shell of a boy. But when Chat Noir had been in his prime even Dick would have found a cat-themed mirror for his puns and the sheer joy he took in his freedom as a superhero.

Thankfully there's precious little of Jason in him and the similarities to the rest of the bat-family faded from there. But it was undeniable how well he fit the shape of a Robin, even down to the lack of a family with Gabriel Agreste apparently having no interest in his son even before his life sentence.

But he wasn't a Robin now was he? He was a cat.

And in this place, in this dead-end of a life: he had nothing to lose.

Selena asks him for his rings.

Adrien, exhausted from his rant, simply hands them over. What would be the point in fighting?

But to his surprise: Selene doesn't leave or mock him or anything else that he expected. But rather she raises the rings to her skilled eyes to make sure she had the real things and then asks him a question;

Answer me; was anything you just said a lie?

Adrien is compelled to confirm that it was the truth.

Selena considers him once more. Considers his performance as Chat Noir again. Considers what he'd achieved without the training he should have had.

There was potential here. Potential that had been discarded and left to rot. Potential with no loyalties left to his family, friends or anything else. With a new name, a new mask: this boy could become to her what Bruce's Robins were to him.

And really, the Vanily's money couldn't really compare to what she could do with a kitten of her own. One with a bit of resentment ready to be aimed at Bruce's new foundlings that were annoying her so badly.

Selena: So Adrien, you were a bit of a rulebreaker once upon a time. Do you still have that in you?

It turns out that Adrien very much did.

Wonderful prompt! A lot of salt fic stories don't tend to focus on what would come after the story ends, it just assumes that anyone that isn't Marinette just lives miserably ever after. Having Adrien make a comeback without a even having a miraculous sounds actually dope.

[ashtheketchum]

Hey, no pressure but when can we expect the next chapter of A New Family? I really love the concept of Daryl x Single Mom Reader!

A/N: As stupid as it sounds, questions and messages like these always make me happy. I never expected so many people to like this story! I always try to publish one chapter per week by the way ;D (Picture from Pinterest!)

Part 1 / Part 2 / Part 3 / Part 4

Taglist: @lowkeyhottho

Warnings: Blood, Injuries, Typical TWD Content

Masterlist!

____________________________________________

PoV (Y/N):

After the walkers were taken care of, we decided to go to the CDC. At first Shane was against it, as were some others, but Jim then convinced them. Not because he spoke well to them, but because he was bitten. When we found this out, we headed to the CDC. However, not everyone wanted to go there. Morales and his family wanted to go their own way and we accepted it. Rick gave Moales another gun and some ammunition while the others separated from his family.

(D/N) and I kept our distance, we didn't have any real contact with Morales and his family, so we didn't say goodbye. "Okay, we're leaving!" And with those words we set off to the CDC.

Rick, Carol, Lori, Sophia and Carl rode together, Dale, Jim, Tdog, Glenn, Andrea and Jacqui rode in the RV. I actually wanted (D/N) to go with one of them, but there was no more space. We sat with Daryl in his car. It had a huge loading area on which he had placed his brother's motorcycle. We had put our bags next to it because they would have taken up too much space at the front. While Daryl drove, I sat between him and (D/N), who was sleeping. She rested her head on my arm and I stroked her hand gently.

There was silence between Daryl and me. I didn't know what it was like between us now. He insulted me, then apparently wanted to spend time with (D/N). Then he snapped at me and then saved my and (D/N)'s life. It was confusing. I briefly thought about how (D/N) sees Daryl and I had to smile slightly. I sighed briefly in amusement, which Daryl probably noticed. ,, Wha´? Why´r ya laughing?" He asked, not annoyed, but more curious. "I didn't laugh…" I then said quietly and then turned my head away.

Daryl gave a brief snort of amusement. "F´course not…" Strangely, I couldn't hear any annoyed or offended tone in his voice. Maybe he was a little calmer now and I could tell him. It wouldn't really change anything anyway. “(D/N)… said that she sees you as a new father…” I then murmured quietly. A sad smile crept onto my lips and I looked down at her. She was breathing very calmly and had now laid her head on my lap. Daryl remained silent, although I could feel him tense briefly. "Wha´? Why tha´?" If I only knew that, Dixon.

Shrugging my shoulders, I looked out the window again. The streets were quiet and we didn't see a single walker. You might think that there wouldn't be any more, but this picture is deceptive. "I don't know…" I then sighed quietly.

Before Daryl could ask anything else, we suddenly saw the RV and Rick's car stop. Daryl stopped too and Rick motioned for us to come out. Just as I was about to unbuckle myself, Daryl moved his hand in front of my face. "Stay here, I'll go…" He just murmured quietly and he walked out. I stayed quiet for a moment, actually I didn't even have to listen to him, but if Daryl gave me the order not to do anything (which had never happened before), then there was probably a reason for it. So I stayed seated and watched the other group members talk.

Lori and Andrea looked at me briefly before tilting their heads towards me and speaking. For a while, I felt very uncomfortable, what were they talking about me? Did you want to get rid of us? Daryl spoke briefly before moving back to us. He opened his door and slammed it again. “Everything okay…?” Daryl remained silent for a moment. "Yeh… Jim wan´s ´ta stay here and be dropped off… we should say bye…" Daryl then said.

His answer chastised me a bit. Jim had lasted a really long time, but I expected him to give up now. He probably suffered terribly. "What did Lori and Andrea say?" This question slipped out of my mind. I didn't really want to ask, but somehow I had a right to know if it was about me. "They asked if ya should also say bye ta´ Jim… Andrea sai´ tha´ ya and (D/N) should do tha´…" Daryl explained briefly. "I said that ya should decide for yarself."

I was grateful and pissed. Why did Andrea take the right to decide over me and my daughter. However, I really wanted to say goodbye, out of respect. "It's okay… but thanks, Daryl…" I murmured quietly. I gently lifted (D/N)'s head to get out. I didn't want her to have to say goodbye, she wasn't ready for that. Daryl got out from his side so I could climb after him.

Rick and Shane sat Jim by a tree and we said goodbye. It took a lot of people away, Jacqui even gave him a kiss before she walked away. I then knelt down next to Jim and I nodded at him gratefully. "I hope you won't be in pain anymore…" "I won't… and take good care of your daughter…" He coughed quietly. I smiled lovingly at him before standing up and distancing myself again. After everyone said goodbye, we continued driving until we hit a traffic jam. (D/N) was awake again by now and I explained the situation to her with Jim before we all got out and listened to Rick.

(D/N) was a little sad, but she didn't cry because of the news with Jim. I didn't know if she was angry that she couldn't say goodbye or disappointed. But it didn't feel right for me to let her do something like that.

Since there were a lot of cars here, we had to somehow find resources to help us. Food, medicine, clothes, water and more. Just anything you could find. So we split up a bit and started looking. (D/N) and I went with Tdog. How the others divided up was different. "Maybe we can find new clothes or even medicine." (D/N) said, looking around too. "Let's hope so, little one." Tdog agreed with her. Tdog and I searched in the cars while (D/N) stayed outside and instead looked under them or looked around.

I found some clothes and a bottle of water. Smiling, I got out of the car again and I showed this to (D/N). She smiled brightly and reached for the fabric I had pulled out. It was a t-shirt, her size and she seemed to like it. "Can I keep this?" I acknowledged her question with a nod. “Walker!” Tdog suddenly said. Immediately we saw the huge herd coming towards us from the distance and we ran between the cars to the others.

“Mom!” (D/N) suddenly shouted. I immediately turned around and I saw (D/N) lying on the ground, blood flowing out of her leg. She had cut off a part of the rust. I immediately ran to her and I picked her up. My clothes soaked up her blood before it continued to drip to the floor. Breathing heavily, I kept running before Lori grabbed me and told me to hide under a car.

“Come on, get under the car, honey!” I said to (D/N), who slowly went under the car. I climbed after her and looked at her wound under the car. It was a deep cut, but it wasn't big. I looked deep into her eyes before tearing off some fabric from my top and wrapping it around the wound. In the background I could already hear the walkers running past us and (D/N) pressed her hands to her mouth to keep quiet. We were now trapped under the cars and (D/N) was bleeding non-stop.

Next Chapter ->

[firstfirerebel]

𝕋𝕣𝕒𝕚𝕥𝕠𝕣

Sumary: When Levi was forced to join the Survey Squad, he left someone behind, someone who had grown to hate him since then...

(Levi was forced to join the Survey Squad by Erwin, that's also why I don't like the ship Eruri [I love both, but together it's just toxic])

Pairing: Levi x fem! Reader

Warnings: Mention of abusive childhood, many traumas (bullying, mental abuse,...), angst, hurt

Years have passed since you last saw him. The guy you grew up with, and the guy who betrayed you.

Growing up was hard for both of you. You had more luck with the standard of the family, but still, your life was hard. Being the kid of two people who hated each other and only communicated by yelling and fighting wasn't exactly a good place for a child.

People around you always found something to mock and bully you. Kids your age were the worst. Except for him, you met Levi when you were forced to go to a club with your so-called father.

He never stopped drinking, so you just went to search for a silent corner to wait till this horror was over. But the only place that was at least a little bit calm was occupied with a dark-haired slim boy.

"Family problems?", you asked him.

"Something like that," he awnserd, and you silently walked towards and sat beside him.

"Wanna talk?,"

He shook his head for a 'No', which you totally got. You also wouldn't want to tell a literal stranger your deepest and darkest secrets, but on the other hand, letting it out would be better. It seemed like your whole life purpose was to hold the burdens of your family, no matter if you could take it or not.

"What's your name? I'm (Y/n). My siblings wanted that to be my name. It's ugly. I know,"

"Levi," he awnserd short and quietly.

"You know, my father is a lot here. It would be nice to have someone here I could spend my time with. Would you mind?",

He just blinked, which you got as a sign that he didn't care. But you weren't someone to give up just like that. Otherwise, you might have never managed to survive.

Breaking the ice was hard when it came to this boy, but after a few times of being there, he even told you that he actually liked your name and thought it was pretty. A little while after that, you caught him crying because some neighbor kids made fun of him (this was before his mother died, so he didn't know how to defend himself cause no Kenny). Those weren't new for you. They also constantly mocked you.

"Hey! Three against one? You're cowards!" After you managed to distract them from Levi, you tricked them into believing you went home when you really went to search for your friend.

You found him leaning onto a brick wall and sat beside him in silence.

"Thanks, but why did you do that?",

"Because it's OK if they make fun of me, but not if they make fun of my friends. I don't care what they do to me. I look out for you. And I know you look out for me. That's what friends are there for,"

Since that incident, nothing parted you guys. You even switched your birth necklaces to show that you were connected. But everything good must come to an end.

When his mother died, you didn't see him for weeks, so when you went to look for him, you met his uncle Kenny. You both pep him up again, and since your family didn't care about you, you decided to be with Levi since he needed someone after losing his mother.

Kenny taught you how to defend and provide for yourself, but that was it. He left you when you had learned it all.

"Even if he's gone now, we still have each other. Nothing really bad can happen to us as long as we have each other,"

It was you. Always you. You were the one who comforted him when he had to deal with shit. You were there for him to fix what society broke. And even after you allied with others, you two were the closest. No one could come in between.

That's what you thought.

After your team took Isabel in, you thought it would only become better. She even called Levi, her big brother, to his annoyance. It was like a sting right to your heart. But Isa didn't know what you both had gone through together, so you felt guilty of feeling this way. Besides her seeing him like her brother, didn't mean you were replaced! Your bond was stronger than that of siblings or lovers. Once you swore to never let anything part you, you'd never be separated, never.

Until one order changed everything.

You thought it was the Military Squad, but nope, it was the Survey Squad. You were the only one who managed to get away. But you watched from a distance how a soldier pushed Levi into a puddle of mud that had the consistency of water. Hell for him...

But when you went to go closer to hear what they were saying. You only heard Levis annoyed:"I'll join the Survey Squad."

A punch into your guts. He'd leave the underground. He'd leave you! Breaking the promise HE made you. And for joining a squad?!

You weren't someone who cried. When your whole body was covered in bruises because of a fight that didn't go as planned, no tear. Your family yelling and insulting you, no sob. But now your eyes became watery, and your vision blurry. It felt as if you were suffocated. Breathing was almost impossible.

As if the whole ground you believed to be steady and safe just tore open to devour you.

No, you wouldn't cry! Not because of him and especially not while still seeing him.

A few weeks after that, you luckily met Kenny again. It was more like he found you.

Since that scene, it was like you had to go through every trauma you experienced again, but this time on your own without someone at your side. Kenny told you of his new job at the Military Squad and that he could need a tough girl like you.

Training and years in hiding. That was your whole life from then on. With nothing on your mind, then to finally throw this damn birth necklace of him away. It was your kind of connection, your bond, after all.

Allying with the man that once left you and him. Just to tell humanitys strongest soldier one thing.

And finally, the day came. The Survey Squad decided to turn against the Military Squad. And that was your and Kenny's time.

Fighting your way to his side, just to slowly rip his birth necklace off your neck, look at him with disgust, and throw it into a mud puddle before his feet. With one word on your lips.

"Traitor"

[agattthaa]

Just doing laundry with you

Paring: Anna/Lane

Word count: 1.018

Rating: T

[Mentions of absent parents]

Summary: Chores were always a bother, unless Anna was with her.

Tagging: @rc-catalog

The concept of chores was not something that Lane has ever got used to. 

When she was little, she spent as much time as possible away from her house, as much time as possible away from her parents. And neither of them seemed to mind about her absence, they only cared for her to be around enough so that the neighbors wouldn't gossip too much. And when she went to Siberia to work on the book, there were cleaners on the base, and she only ate frozen meals and junk food, so she wouldn't have to waste any time on cooking and doing the dishes.

But there wasn't anyone wanting her to stay as far away as possible from her or someone paid to clean on her new base. 

The squad shared all the chores as evenly as possible. Everything, from cleaning the floors to cooking to washing the bathroom. Everything, but washing the clothes. Which was fair, since the majority of them didn't share the same clothing items.

But Lane did.

She shared with Anna. 

She shared everything with Anna.

From their snacks, to their bedroom, to their blankets, to their clothes and to the obligation of cleaning them.

And it was supposed to be a chore, that should be something boring to do and to want to be done with as soon as possible, but the entire situation brought a strange sense of peacefulness and familiarity to Lane. 

It was an obligation, but one that she didn't have to stay awake to do or to enter a dangerous place to do or to search for clues outside in the cold cold snow like her job always forced her to. 

It was an obligation where she stayed inside the deeply guarded manor, in the warm bathroom, simply washing the clothes in the lukewarm water that came from the snow that they heated themselves and used a small pastille to clean it.

It was an obligation that allowed her to stay in Anna's company the most. 

Now, even during the nights, they spend more time apart than together. Sometimes Lane was still working on the book, other times Anna was searching for any clue on the mysterious pathogen in the library that she now had access to. They had been in so many separate missions in that week that the two of them basically didn't see each other anymore, and it was happening with such frequency that Lane wondered if the general was doing it on purpose just to irritate her.

But while they were alone in that dirty bathroom washing their shared clothes, there was nothing else but them. There was no book, no pathogen, no teammates or general. Only them and the silence and the focus on finishing the task in hand. 

But the silence wasn't a bother. Nothing ever was with Anna. 

Most people were bothered by the silence, even Anna was a bit on the start. But it was understandable. Lane didn't trust any of them and it was clear that the feeling was shared. 

But instead of noticing that Lane was not very talkative and just leaving her be, Anna stayed. She noticed that Lane's silence was not out of a lack of interest, but simply who she was. That, although she listened in silence a lot, she was actually listening. And in her respect for Lane's silence, she talked, and a lot. 

And Lane listened to her. Always. She talked about her childhood, her family, and her brother. How he got into the military and how she got into microbiology. About her professors and her first girlfriend. About the apocalypse and the squad and all her missions until she met Lane. About her favorite snacks and the types of food she liked to cook. 

And Lane listened. And listening to her, she started to talk more. To Anna. About her own childhood, her parents and why she started to study immortal languages. 

Anna never interrupted her, never asked too many questions, never prying too much. Lane knew that it was because the woman feared that she would lock herself up again. 

But Lane didn't want to. Not to Anna. 

She had created something so unbelievably comfortable between them. A space that Lane felt comfortable, a space where she knew that her silence would be as much appreciated as her speech. Anna never tried to force her to say anything or to be silent or to be on her side. She just left a space open in her life and on her side to Lane at all times, not forcing the other woman to occupy it, but making it clear that her presence was desired. 

Something that it has never been before and that she never believed that would be.

Because if not even your parents wanted you to be around them, who would? 

Apparently, Anna did. 

Anna did, because she always grabbed two snacks when she was going to Lane and always made Lane's favorite tea.

Anna did, because Lane had never told her what her favorite tea was. Anna had just paid enough attention.

Anna did, because she always saved a seat for Lane on any table by her side and always leaned closer to listen to her when they were in public, because she knew that Lane didn't really like to have everyone's attention on her. 

Anna did, because she always looked at Lane with her beautiful smile as she knew something that Lane didn't, just as she was looking at her right now. 

-What?

Anna simply smiled wider, pointing out at Lane's hand.

-You've been scrubbing these pants for almost five minutes on the same spot. Are you thinking about someone? 

-Yes, about you. I like spending time with you. 

The microbiologist didn't say anything, turning her attention back to the shirt she was washing. But she could not turn away her face enough for Lane to not notice the red tarnishing her face and the small smile that adorned her lips. 

And maybe that was all the peace that Lane needed. Just to be doing laundry with Anna. 

[hotchfiles]

heaven is here.

pairing: stiles x fem!reader.

summary: sometimes getting terribly drunk at the christmas' party of people you don't actually know is actually a good thing.

content warnings: JUST FLUFF. I SWEAR. and a few mentions of throwing up, nothing graphic though. alcohol consumption.

word count: 1,2k

      Being curled up on the floor as your arms hugged Lydia’s toilet was definitely not your idea of what the perfect Christmas would be like. Then again, being at her house at all wasn't really part of your plans until two days ago when mother let you know she wouldn't be able to visit you in Virginia like she had promised to do.

      For reasons unknown to you, Stiles seemed to feel terrible about the possibility of you spending Christmas alone, always caring for his friends apparently, he convinced you to go to Beacon Hills for the holiday, meet the rest of his friends (who he honestly talked so much about you felt like you already knew each one of them).

      You thought it was a bad idea from the start, it was already hard enough to hide your gigantic crush on him while you both were studying, this was a whole higher level of acting you would have to do.

      So you began drinking the second your feet were inside the ginger's family home.

      That was not the brightest of ideas either, and now Stiles who was the only one you truly knew there had to keep you company, holding your hair while you threw up in front of him.

      You tried to deny his help when you ran to the bathroom but after tripping and being prevented to fall face to the floor by him, you had no much say in the matter.

      Was this the most embarrassed you've ever been in your whole entire life? Probably.

      Did you feel terrible because Stiles was wasting his time on you instead of being with his friends and the one and only Lydia? Definitely so.

      Were you sure he was never going to speak to you again as soon as the two of you got back to Quantico? Pretty much.

      Still, a tiny little part of you felt happy, his fingers passing through your hair to keep it from your face, his hand going up and down your back not only to soothe you but to help in case there anything more waiting to come out of your stomach.

      "Hey Mischief," you started, grinning even though you weren't looking at him, you had gotten the habit of calling him that after he told you it was the only way he knew how to say his birth name when he was little, "I'm fine, you can go back to the party. You're kinda losing precious Lydia time staying here."

      "Yeah Trouble, I'm gonna leave you here choking on your own vomit alone, that seems super reasonable." He rolled his eyes, not giving your request an ounce of thought, "Besides, i don't think Lyds gonna be mad about it."

      You fell silent, you didn't actually want him to leave so you decided not to argue too hard on it.

      Stiles took the silence as the response it was and let go of your hair, taking time to put every stubborn strand behind your ears, getting closer to you as he did so, "Wait still for a second, 'k?" You hummed in agreement and felt him getting up in a jump and whined when you felt the cold hit your back.

      Truly he didn't take long to find what he wanted: A cloth he used the bathroom skin to wet, and a scrunchie he could tie your hair with.

      He went back to his spot on the floor, sat behind you and tied your hair firmly enough it wouldn't go back to your face, but loosely enough it wouldn't hurt, and then started softly patting the wet cloth on your neck and on your cheeks, taking away the sweat droplets and giving you some feeling of freshness.

      You felt your heart drop, how were you going to move on from your crush on him when he did that type of stuff? He made it too easy to fall for him and way to difficult to let him go, especially when he turns you around to look at him and cleans your forehead and then your mouth, so softly, so caring. It made your eyes water and you looked back down trying to hide it.

      The sniffs gave you away though.

      "Don't cry about it, I didn't even send the pictures to rest of our class yet, cry then," Stiles says in the most casual tone, sure you were crying because you were embarrassed only, but when you didn't reply with a snarky come back or a threat to murder him for said pictures, he got truly worried, holding your chin with his fingers and lifting your face to look at him again. "What's wrong?"

      "You're too sweet." You feel the sobs you were trying to hold in escaping you, your hands instinctively went to your mouth, trying to muffle them. He gave you the most confused look and asked if that was a bad thing, to which you nodded. You were too drunk for this, your self control failing you in a blink of an eye, ruining what you've been working for months. "You're too sweet. And you're in love. And I can't get over you when you're like that."

      He dropped the cloth on the floor beside him and crossed his arms, looking at you intensely, "I'll bite... Who am I in love with?" You had to interrupt yourself before even trying to answer, the crying and the question making your stomach twirl and forcing you to hurl for another minute or so.

      "Lydia of course," you whispered without looking at him, taking the cloth from the floor and cleaning your mouth again, this time yourself. "I'm like dying here and you're making me say it, I could kill you right now."

      You hear him chuckle, his head shaking at how hilarious you apparently sounded, "Good thing is I'm getting top of the class because you're such an idiot."

      "No you're not, not with that mess you call your notes." You reply as if that was the actual topic in discussion, too competitive to let that go easily, "Also, what?"

      "Oh my god, woman, I brought you to my literal hometown, I'm sat here with you and this place honestly smells terrible, what more should I do?" He was exasperated, his arms flailing around as he spoke and you honestly weren't even sure if he was implying what you thought he was, he was being nice only, right? He always talked about his friends and how he and Lydia were almost an item when he left for Quantico.

      "How are those any sign of anything at all!?"

      "Yeah I just go around asking anyone to come here with me, are you that oblivious!?"

      "That's not how normal people flirt, are you insane!?"

      You both stopped arguing as the actual situation you were both in started to really set in, uncontrollable laughter following the the little spat.

      You both liked each other and were both terrible at doing anything about it that actually made sense. Stiles put both his hands on your cheeks and you let go of the weight of your head, laying into one of them.

      "I would kiss you but… You know, vomit and stuff." You laugh at his mocking tone, making a face at him, and he definitely does not kiss you, but you can feel his lips on your forehead and his arms around you in the safest of embraces, and at least until you brushed your teeth, that was enough.

[fun-k-board]

CHRISTMAS SPECIAL!

AVATAR 2009 with a Human ! S/O who adores Christmas

Characters included: Jake Sully, Neytiri, Tsu'Tey

Pronouns: They / Them

Relationship: Romantic

When text is in bold that means it's spoken in Na'vi, I have no clue if Na'vi have gender neutral language so sorry if this isn't accurate.

Jake Sully

Jake never understood about Christmas, he wasn't one of the lucky few on Earth who had a rich family nor did his family particularly show an overabundance of affection.

He and his brother weren't to close, it hurt when he died of course, but at the end of the day he wouldn't see him for years when he went to Pandora anyway.

So, your sadness over not being able to celebrate it was confusing, but Jake cared for you and tried to comfort you despite this.

"You don't look so good." Jake mumbled and sat down next to you, his eyes stared into you intently as he waited for a response.

"I just miss my family, we use to celebrate Christmas and..." You trailed off, your ears down and tail curling on your thigh. A whimper escaped you as tears began welling in your eyes.

"Oh." He paused, sucking in a large breath "I'm sorry. Maybe we could make last minute presents for each other?" Jake quietly suggested, pulling a shy smile that showed off his sharp teeth.

"That'd be nice..." You quietly whispered, smiling back softly at him while you tried wiping away your tears as calming your breaths.

And so you made whatever you thought would be best for Jake, I could imagine him getting you a weapon or maybe some type of neckwear that would give you a sense of pride.

He doesn't really try to expand it to Neytiri given the cultural differences, but I see Norm getting into the holiday spirit, maybe Grace if her present is a cigarette.

Neytiri

Neytiri taught you and Jake the ways of the Na'vi, to which you both listened, adapted and overcame the differences in your cultures.

However, you still missed your old life. As horrible, polluted and poor Earth became, you still missed family. Apart of family was Christmas, giving to others even outside of who you considered family just to see their smiles, it was something you hadn't experienced in years. You missed that. And you'd never get it back.

"There is something on your mind." Neytiri plainly stated, her words catching you off guard, looking you up and down as she handed food to Jake on her right.

"It's a time of year at home." He replied, looking to me in pity. "Where you can participate in a tradition on Earth, I'll let them explain the details if they want." Jake awkwardly looked away, munching on an unnaturally large amount of teylu. Neytiri turned to me expectantly.

"It's one about family and giving, cherishing those you love, those and even the things around you." You nodded as you spoke even if there was no reason to, awkwardly smiling while Neytiri smiled sweetly.

"It sounds like a wonderful tradition. What is it called?" Her stare bore into your eyes, her own were soft.

"Christmas." You sighed, continuing only because the silence would be unbearable. "We hurt our great mother and caused a lot of pain, it became harder and harder to celebrate as time continued. Now almost nobody truly celebrates it as it was intented, instead a shallow reminder of what it originally was." Neytiri held your hand and nodded.

"I am understanding of your pain, I hope all sky people learn to see as you and Jake have."

She doesn't go out of her way to celebrate it, but notes the general time it happens around and maybe gives you little trinkets that would be meaningless to most.

I can definetly imagine Neytiri showing you in depth Na'vi culture, as she already does, but with more pride as she realises how important you can take cultural and traditional events. But, most of all I imagine you'd be spending time with each other, even if she personally doesn't believe in Christmas, she believes in you. Neytiri sees you.

Tsu'Tey

He mainly made fun of you and Jake for being 'demons', so getting to know you was a lengthy process and required patience on both ends.

Given you were already learning of Na'vi culture from Neytiri, he didn't find the need to teach you anything other than fighting and flying, so when you asked him about something the explanation was very short and simple.

Tsu'tey couldn't say he was too interested in sky people or their traditions, but he noticed you weren't doing too well for the past few weeks. Your sour mood showed in your training and pushed you back, so it was garunteed he would speak on it eventually.

"Why are you sitting here? The ikrans are-" He was momentarily stopped in his words by your tear stained face. Not only was your face uncanny for him with your features unlike natural Na'vi, but beyond that, you were hurt.

"What... What is bothering you?" You noticed his switch to English as hesitantly placed a hand on your shoulder, lowering into a kneel as he stared deep into your eyes.

"Us human- uh, sky people, have a tradition." You began, Tsu'tey was interested in your words and the curious look he had told you to continue "This time we begin giving gifts, we spend more time with family, friends and... Significant others." You coughed shyly, unsure of the word in Na'vi before remembering "Mates." You clarified.

"It sounds like a prosperous time for your people." He nodded respectfully, holding your hand and looking comfortingly into your eyes. "I see your pain, and I am sorry brother/sister."

He, like Neytiri, doesn't go out of his way to celebrate. Mainly taking part in spending time and showing how much he loves you. Sometimes it can be awkward and stiff, but Tsu'tsy is quite literally an alien who viewed all humans as demons. Unless you explain to him how you view Christmas, he's unsure of how important it is to you and doesn't want to come off as offensive.

In turn, I can imagine him pointing out things similar to his own culture, feeling like a part of him was always with you even before you met.

[barcalover86]

Just friends-Pablo Gavi

Masterlist

Summary: You and Gavi are best friends, but you both feel something for eachother.

"Why don't you tell her that you like her, hermano? Take your chance, she's definitely into you, who wouldn't?"

Pedri was encouraging his friend to tell his feelings towards his friend, y/n.

They met a few months ago when Pedri brought her to one of their match and since then, Gavi felt something for her.

Pedri knew when he saw the look the two of them were giving to each other, so he tried to convince them both to confess.

Of course, they didn't believe him at all. Y/n was saying that a boy like Pablo Gavi couldn't ever like a girl that simple as her, and on the other side, the boy was saying that she is too good for him and is afraid of ruining the one thing that they have, their friendship.

They weren't talking much, being really awkward next to each other, but were definitely more happy when they were spending time together.

Y/n loves his personality a lot. Gavi is a sweet guy who cares a lot about his family and friends. His passion for football is strong, but that never meant that he wouldn't spend time with his loved ones.

He all the time was talking to his sister on his phone, but what y/n didn't know was that Gavi was constantly talking about her.

How he loves her little laugh and how she smiles when she sees a dog. He was talking about their little moments that meant a lot to him, like touching his hand accidently, or when you were hugging him goodbye.

Gavi never felt that way towards anyone. He had some girls like every other 18 year old boy does. He never wanted anything serious because of football, but when he met her, his mind changed.

Y/n never had a relationship, and she was 2 years younger than him. She also fell in love after a few times when she'd seen him.

Now, it was the last night before Gavi had to go to the national team. Everyone was happy and proud of him, but he was sad that the leaving meant that he wouldn't have time anymore to see his family, friends and her.

Don't get me wrong, he is so happy that he was called for the national team with Ansu, but it also meant a lot of hard training and another diet to make him more energic than he already is, if that is however possible.

Gavi, Aurora, Pedri, Y/n, and Fer were staying at a restaurant, enjoying the late night together. They were laughing a lot until the question Pedri asked made a huge silence.

"So y/n and Gavi, do you think it's time to speak your hearts ? "

"Que?" y/n asked him while kinda blushing.

Aurora, Gavi's sister, chuckled a little and encouraged them both to answer Pedri's question.

"I don't have anything to confess, Pedri, nor does y/n, right?"

She was silent for a second.

"That's right," she eventually answered, but it was clearly in her voice that she was sad.

"Oh, c'mon! Y/n, Gavi told me that he likes you and Gavi, Y/n told me that she also likes you, so why don't you just get together!? You won't ruin your friendship, hermanito, and y/n, yes, he is attracted to you"

"Let's leave them alone, Pedri "

When the two of them left, the "in love people" stayed. No one said anything until a while, so when she counted to 100, she decided to speak.

"Is it true..?"

He smiled.

"I wanna ask you the same thing"

"I'm a shy girl, you know. Maybe you wanna show me?" y/n said with real bravery in her blood.

He smiled and blushed before he connected his lips to her. The kiss was soft and full of love and admiration, something that they both never felt.

When they pull apart, the smiles never left.

"Oh, I'm so sad that I didn't do this before," he moaned in frustration before she laughed.

"At least we did it now" she tried to make the atmosphere more positive.

He smiled again and blushed at the thought. He kissed her again, and it was y/n's turn to smile into the kiss. They were happier than ever and were sure that after the days in Madrid, they were going to have the best time together.

[moriartyluver]

FALSE LOVERS CHAPTER XXVII

"IVE ALWAYS WONDERED if this day would ever come. I'm sure that some of you have already heard of this.." Albert turned his head from the dark window to face the others, attempting to speak over the thunder outside "The situation has become extremely worrisome..this crisis is the first of its kind that the moriarty family has ever had to face."

Crack

Lightning had hit a tree outside, burning it to ashes dramatically. Rain poured down in typical British fashion, the windows foggy, covering the gloomy sky. 

"Let's work together in order to build strength." The brunette clenched his fist tightly, brows furrowed with determination as they all huddled together, hands upon hands. "we'll overcome this no matter what the cost..! Is everyone ready? All for one and One for All! Let's go!" 

The door creaked open mysteriously, pulling the attention of the men to the entrance. 

"Sorry we're late..what the hell..?!" Bonde had opened the door with (name) and Josephine stood behind him, bags in hands after they had just returned from a shopping trip 

"What on earth is going on?" (Name) asked, her eyebrow raised in suspicion. 

"Tea party...?" 

"That's right Bonde. As you know," Albert informed the trio who were stood in front of him "families hold tea parties on a rotational basis. Tea parties are often held in the day time, opposed to night parties. I've tried my best to hold it off but the other day, Earl Rockwell finally called me out.."

"It was about time," (Name) commented, sitting down with a sigh, legs folded over each other. "Frankly, I think we've been avoiding them for a while now." 

"I was reluctant, but I agreed to host the party at our manor this weekend." Albert added 

Josephine nodded "If the party is to be held on Sunday, we don't have much time to spare. We should get started on preparations as soon as possible, provided there aren't any obstacles in our way." 

"I have business to attend to on Sunday," (Name) said abruptly. 

"Care to elaborate?" Louis asked 

"I..erm.." she hesitated, looking for an excuse to not go to the tea party "I have a research project due in a few weeks for the university." 

"No you don't," William said, debunking her excuse. "I recall you saying you wished to spend Sunday reading-" 

There was a moments silence, all eyes on (Name) who suddenly found her shoes rather intriguing. She lifted her head with a groan "Fine, I don't want to host the tea party. Why on earth would I? All I'd do is have disturbing older men explain concepts of various natures which I am clearly more educated in, or worse, they'll flirt with me and treat me like they do a common harlot." 

"If she's not doing it then neither am I!" Moran exclaimed quickly. 

"(Name), you're attending the tea party just like the rest of us," Louis said sternly, turning to Moran. "We all are." 

"I don't want to," she folded her arms over her chest with a childish frown "You can't make me!" 

Albert sighed, glancing at William as if asking for help. He should've known having his brother marry a spoilt noblewoman wouldn't be easy, regardless of how in love with her he may have been. 

William nodded, scoring over to (Name) and leaning in to whisper into her ear as she listened attentively before sighing, speaking up reluctantly. 

"Fine, I'll do it." 

Albert blinked in surprise, curious as to what he said to make (Name) agree so easily. 

"Despite the whole fake marriage ordeal, many ladies still have been attempting to gain access to Will using various excuses." Albert spoke, continuing after the small issue.  "Such women will use the party as an excuse to approach him which means that you..!" He pointed to the (hair colour)-ette dramatically "Will have to keep them off, alright (name)?" 

"Roger that." She said, much more cooperative than before. 

William chuckled. "In that sense, you're also in danger Albert." 

"Of course I know how to deal with the ladies but when they gather in large groups..they gossip and become impossible to read.." all the men in the room shifted their eyes over to (name), who was still despairing over the thought of socialising against her will. 

"Huh...?" She murmured 

"You're the only one of us who'll be able to outsmart the ladies, (nickname), considering both the brat and moneypenny will be acting as maids." Sebastian said to the confused woman "So we'll need you to keep a close eye on them" 

"Shut your mouth," Josephine frowned in annoyance at Moran "I'm far more capable than you are..you'll probably just go drinking whilst the rest of us are working hard.." 

"Surely you wouldn't place such a grand burden upon only me," (name) said, returning to the point "you all know how difficult it is for me to socialise. I can't even read basic social cues half the time." 

"You'll be fine, (Name)." William placed a hand on hers reassuringly "We wouldn't choose you if we didn't think you were able." 

"The only reason you chose me for anything was because I'm handy with a knife." She said, revoking her hand "But if you insist, I suppose I could always try.." 

"Okay..let's go over our responsibilities one last time." Jack said, pulling out a small folded piece of paper from his breast pocket. He unfolded it, reading aloud from the list "As soon as young Al's toast is over, I will attend to the guests at the main venue."

"I mainly manage the party's progress" said Louis with a nod 

"And as head maid, Josephine and I will take charge of the maids to serve you." Moneypenny stated, adjusting her head piece. 

"I'll be in the garden, talking to a few of the guests while keeping a close eye on the more curious ladies." (Name) sighed. She wasn't a fan of tea parties. Ball room parties were usually much more entertaining, possibly because someone would usually somehow die during them but also because she was able to stand aside without any need to talk to anyone. Even at her own wedding, she refused to speak to any guests who weren't her family or close friends because she had gotten so fed up. 

"Our position is in the garden, William." Albert reminded the blond. 

William nodded, "Yes, brother. Let's monitor the situation and help each other in need." 

"I'm mainly here to protect you two." Spoke a butler-ified Moran. 

"I'll be in the rose garden and entertaining the guests there." Fred murmured, fidgeting with his gloves. 

"And I'm in charge of the guests in all areas of the manor." Bond grinned, too enthusiastically for (Name)'s liking. 

"That's right," Jack nodded "Bond is our so called 'Fighter', because a 'battle field' needs personnel who can respond quickly to unexpected situations." 

"Battle field..?" Fred repeated nervously. 

"It won't be that bad," Josephine reassured him, placing a hand on his shoulder "Believe me, I've had a lot worse with (Name)..once she got carried away and murdered a man in one of the Marquis (Last Name)'s villas during a party, but in my lady's defence, he had deeply offended her with his remarks." 

"what did he say?" asked Fred in a mousey voice

Josephine chuckled nervously "let's just say, you can't insult the female sex without provoking (Name)."

"By the way," James said, changing the topic promptly "What's Herder doing?" 

"Ah, he's already in position," Moran explained. Herder was stuck in the basement, doing puzzles whilst listening out for guests who might find the weaponry. 

The instructor glaced around "Everyone is ready." He confirmed "It's time..!"

Not even a second later, the street outside the manor's gates were filled with carriages, full of noblewomen, their giggles echoing as they stepped out of their carriages  

(Name) flinched upon hearing all the loud noises coming from the ladies leaving their carriages. She noticed there were a few males amongst them but not nearly enough as the noblewomen. A ratio of about 1:8, she had observed, and all her comrades would be counting on her to navigate this all in the appropriate manner.

"Now that we're all here.." Albert started his little toast once all the fawning ladies had surrounded him whilst the young noblmen who were waiting for the toast to be over so they could instantly made a bee-line to the poor overwhelemed (Name)  "It's thanks to Lord Rockwell that we were all able to welcome you here today. As you can see there are many shy people in our family," he side eyed his sister-in-law, resembling her deceased brother for a moment "even standing up here is making me a bit nervous. Please take this as an opportunity to look at our rose garden. It has been blooming very well." 

Albert picked up a glass of champagne carefully and raised it as he ended his toast

"Last but not least, there are refreshments laid out for everyone to enjoy. Please take as much time as you'd like to talk to us," He lifted his glass higher "Well then..cheers!" 

Within seconds of the toast ending, both William and Albert were surrounded by multiple noblewomen. Of course, (name) hadn't had it any easier and was soon approached by multiple noblemen who were exited to converse with her. During her time in University, multiple peers were interested in her but disliked the idea of getting closer to her in fear that she, a woman with an education, would go against their ideals for such a lady, or rather their stereotypes.

How abhorent! A woman with the ability to think for herself!

She had a mysterious charm to some. Usually she would be seen with a blank look on her face, whilst other times, she concealed her ture nature with a polite yet deceiving smile. Although she was 'married' in the eyes of the law, it wouldn't hurt anyone if they merely converse with such an elegant lady.

"I had looked forward to talking to all of you, but I can't talk to any of you if you all are speaking at once.." Albert said, snapping (Name) out of her thoughts. "and I don't think a tea party is supposed to be like this. I was hoping we'd be more elegant and austere..." He trailed off, gently grabbing a lady, who stood beside him, by her chin, guding her gaze to his emerald eyes.

The noblewomen and noblemen had caught onto what Albert had meant and slowly dispersed, allowing others to take their time. Some had headed for the greenhouse, full of flowers that had been cultivated by none other than Fred, whilst others stuck around with the two brothers, batting their eyes and attempting to gain their attention. 

(Name) could only furrow a brow and sigh as she watched, quickly distracted by a young man whwo haad caught her attention with a question once it had all died down, far more unique than the ususal questions about her life in England, even if she had been living there for 8 years, or older men attempting to make her feel like an idiot. 

"My apologies if I am out of line, but what are your opinions on the recent Jack the Ripper case," a man with dark hair hair asked her. He seemed around her age, maybe a little younger, and had a polite smile which made his eyes crinkle slightly in the corners "You seem so knowledge on all subjects of conversation, not just superficial ones like most men may assume.." 

"Well, I as a sophisticated lady of polite society, could never be exposed to such tragedies, I have no knowledge of such a case," She jested, a smile on her lips "Although, I'd say the Yard are trying to cover it up with their recent list of suspects, surely nobody would believe that.." she said under her breath

"Yes, well," He took a glass of wine from a servant, swirling the drink in his glass, "I have a theory that the entire thing was a hoax to promote that Conan Doyle's next story."

"You read the Sherlock Holmes series?" (Name) laughed at his theory"That's interesting, I've actually made his aquaintance, we met on the Noahtic.. and a train to London, both times a murder had occured. He just seems to be riddled with bad luck, it must be something to do with his hair." 

"Is that why he covers it up with that dreadful cap?" the man asked with an amused tone 

(Name) shrugged her shoulders as she bit into a small cake, "Personally, I think he looks better in darker tones, and that cloak does him no justice whatsoever." She paused, realising she was actually having fun "I don't believe we've been formally introduced, dear stranger. Perhaps you could change that?" 

He took her left hand, kissing her knuckles over the silk glove she wore. "Lord Oliver Hastings, first grandson of the Duke of Hastings it's a pleasure to make your aquaintance, Lady Moriarty."

"I really shouldn't be surprised you already are familiar with my name," She smiled, a genuine smile at that 

"Well why wouldn't I? You are rather famous amongst the ton, after all, although, I first saw your name in a research paper you had published in your Almer Mater, Oxford ring any bells?" Oliver reciprocated the smile 

"I'm surprised anyone would read that, I was half asleep whilst I wrote it. Do you still study there?" She asked, her eyes drifting over to William, who stood in front of a group of ladies 

Oliver shook his head with a laugh "God no, do i really seem that naive? I graduated last year, personally, I was more fond of subjects which frequire critical thought rather than just making up numbers to solve, so I studied Literature and Philosophy mostly, but I made an exception for what you had to say in that little thesis of yours, and I must say, I've been dying to talk to you since." 

"Well consider yourself saved from such a tragic fate." She chuckled, glancing again at William who seemed to be struggling with a flirtatious young, no scrath that, she was definitley considered a spinster, woman. 

"Is something bothering you? You keep looking over there." 

"Oh no, I'm fine. It's my husband I'm worried about." She turned back to face him, her (eye colour) eyes on his blue ones "He's even more socially inept than I am." 

"And that's why you're seen so frequently in polite society?" He asked 

She frowned in faux annoyance "Doesn't mean I enjoy it." He laughed once more in response whilst (Name) sighed looking back at William, the damsel in distress needed saving "I'm sorry, I'm going to have to cut the conversation short...I don't think I'm a fan of bigamy." She half joked  before walking away, seeing the look of relief on William's face as he noticed her presence.

"What's this, darling?" A sweet voice, almost unrecognisable, called out to poor William, still embarrassed after that 'subtle' confession. If he had taken any more steps further back, he would have tripped and broken his skull in half. 

"(N-Name)." William, face somewhat flushed, managed to utter. 

He didn't often stutter, rather his speech was always elegant and sophisticated, the 'confidence' he exuded was never not noticeable in his speech and yet, that voice...that siren like voice had The Lord of Crime trembling and nervous. William could feel his heart speeding up, eventually pounding in his chest even though his wife was a good few feet away from him, but of course even the mere mention of Lady (Name) could make his brain numb with overwhelming thoughts. 

(Name) walked through the other noble ladies, admittedly rather jealous now that she had finally come to terms with these feelings she had. She gave a polite smile, whispering a few 'pardon me's and 'good afternoon's 

"Now that I recall," She said, pushing past the woman who had attempted to make advances on William "We really bonded over one particular consultation, didn't we?" 

"We did indeed.." William said, still flustered. His cheeks grew a deeper shade of red as (name) cling to his arm, her frame pressed against his as her fingers caressed his bicep. 

"I really am lucky to have such an intelligent, and not to mention handsome husband," (Name) complimented, using her palm to cup his chin and bring him to face her. She turned to the other ladies, flashing a glare at the woman who seemed to have made her husband uncomfortable and then returned back to her lovey dovey expression, smile from ear to ear. 

"My apologies ladies but it appears you must seek consultation another time. I have something my dearest William and I need to discuss in private." She said with a wink, dragging a stunned William towards the nearest entrance to the manor.

Once they had entered, climbing upstairs, away from the guests, (name) dropped his hand promptly with a groan. 

"A 'thank you' would be nice." (Name) said as they walked down the quiet halls. "I had to practically fight off all the men, no thanks to you involving me in this boring tea party..although I must say, I expected a lot less gentlemen within our age range, I typically would attract the older, perverted sort, rather than the nice ones we had this afternoon." 

William clenched his jaw, fighting back his jealous feelings "You found them attractive?" He managed to say. 

"Well, there were a few handsome ones, I suppose." She put a finger to her chin, lips pressed together in thought. 

Was she aware of the effect that she had on him? William was always so rational and calm and he hadn't ever felt so envious of anyone, not in his entire life. Of course he could be occasionally jealous when he was but a child, often looking towards those more fortunate and wondering 'why not me?'  

The last time he had felt like this was when (Name)'s first lover wasn't 6 feet underground and torn to pieces, whenever he would see her smiling with the older boy or laughing at some very clearly not amusing joke (he often thought he was much more entertaining than that dull man, his personality was like that of a lemon which had been squeezed dry). Once he had even seen him kiss her, not very skilfully and much too rough for someone like (Name), he would be so much better for her.

It was in between some shelves in the library when he was trying to find a book on probabilities of all things. He had to resist the urge to throw it right in his hideous face, at the very least (or murder him but (Name) beat him to something for once). William actually remembered asking himself what the probability that she would rid herself of that fool and turn her attention to him. 

"Actually there was one particular man, dark hair, rather beautiful, very funny...what was his name again..? Oh yes, Oliver..." She was almost giggling like a teenager, hands clasped behind her back in an innocent manner. The description seemed rather familiar. Was she really attracted to 'amusing' dark haired men? 

God, she was aggravating. 

But so beautiful too, and witty of course. And her eyes were so captivating, so enthralling. William had known this since forever. Nobody knew it more than him.He'd often gaze into her eyes, especially if she was enthusiastic or explaining a mathematical concept to him. 

"Is that so?" He choked out, eyes lingering on her as she brushed her gloved hand against the textured wallpaper. 

She hummed with a nod "I was convinced he fancied me, but of course, you being you, you had women practically throwing themselves at you and I had to come to your rescue." 

"Women do not throw themselves at me." He stated curtly. 

"Oh yes they do, professor." (Name) teased "You aren't exactly an eyesore, are you? A nice physique, a pretty face, and a tolerable personality. You're considered desirable amongst the women of the upper class." 

But was he desirable to her? 

He had to take a deep breath. She was doing this on purpose, she had to be. She must have caught onto his attraction for her and now he was being tormented by a higher power for his desperations. 

"More so than this Oliver?" He blurted out. He had meant to say something completely different, but it was as if his brain was no longer thinking for him, rather his heart was. 

Had Freud been well established in 1879, one may call such a mistake a 'Freudian Slip', but of course, he wasn't. He had to wait till the 1900s for that. For now, though, dear reader, we could call this a "Liam-being-a-desperate-man-whore-slip." 

(Name) had to fight back the smirk on her lips, wrestling with her desire to laugh at him for now feeling the same way he had made her felt, although William wasn't flirting with anyone in an attempt to make (Name) jealous, he was just existing and trying to give advice to women who couldn't help but adore him. 

She leaned against the wall, inches away from her bedroom door. "Is someone jealous?" She asked, voice sickeningly sweet. William could never truly hate her, well he did at one point, but it wasn't hate so much as it was irritation at her antics, yet she was only a child, a mere teenager. He couldn't blame her. But God, the way she smirked up at him made him want to wipe that expression off her face, it was so unlike him. 

"Jealous?" He repeated slowly, processing and analysing his own feelings. He had long known how he felt for (Name), that was certain, but he hadn't expected it to become more than simply admiring from afar..and yet here they were. 

"The mere mention of another man seems to be making your blood boil.." she said smugly, eyes shining in the sunlight "I never knew your affections for me were so grand." 

"It's not that," William spoke, trying to articulate his speech when all he truly wanted was to press his lips against hers, his voice slowly raising as he grew more tense. "It's improper in polite society for a married woman to act flirtatiously with other men." 

"I didn't take you as one for polite society, William." She retorted, fingers ghosting over his shoulder "I thought that was something you aimed to destroy, sweetheart."

"You know what I mean." He said, red eyes piercing through her (eye colour) eyes. "What would everyone think knowing you've had extra marital affairs?" 

"Now this really isn't like you," (Name) laughed, hand slowly drifting down to his arm "I thought none of that bothered you? We don't exactly have any commitments to one another-" 

"It was implied." He cut her off, almost aggressively. How dare she bring up the initial regulations for this contract marriage when she knew the lines were blurred so heavily at the point, ever since they had slept together, no, ever since they had even kissed! His palms rested against the wall, just short of (Name)'s ears while she tried to stand straight, unwilling to allow him the upper hand. "During our past two years of marriage, you haven't expressed any interest in any men, and there is no need to change that now."  

There was a short silence. The only thing (Name) could hear was her own rapid heart beat and the sound of William's soft breathing as he lowered his face away from her gaze. The position she was in was truly unfortunate, but not exactly unwelcome. He had both arms caged around her while she leaned against the wall, her knees feeling slightly weak as they bent slightly, making her feel much smaller than she was. She had retracted her hand from him, holding to wall to keep herself steady as she attempted to anticipate his next move. It was like chess, except with just the king and queen. Actually, maybe it wasn't that similar. 

"And it does bother me," William eventually spoke, voice ragged and breathless "Ceaselessly. I hated seeing you with that womaniser. And when I had finally thought he was gone and you would turn your attention elsewhere, more only followed..but once we had both left university, I had to witness you sneaking off at balls, usually with that Lord Henry and-" 

"So you did know who Theodore was?" She asked, irritated by his confession "And you felt the need to pretend you didn't, as if you weren't spying on me the whole time! God you are insufferable!" 

"Not nearly as insufferable as you are!" He glared down at her. 

"You know that they didn't mean anything to me, I don't see why this is even a point of discussion," (Name) defended herself, leaning her head against the wall "Why should I be held responsible?" 

William unconsciously clenched his teeth, eyebrows furrowed together. "Must I make it any clearer to you? Are you really that foolish, that naive?" 

"Perhaps I am, I'm just a stupid whore to you, aren't I?" She spat, a raised eyebrow as she waited for him to speak. "But I think I know jealousy when I see it." 

"It's not that I'm jealous, it's just that.." he almost stammered before snapping, much to (Name)'s surprise.  "You're mine, (Name). My wife, not Oliver's, not Lord Henry's, and certainly not Theodore Arden's." 

Since when was he so possessive..? And why was it undeniably attractive? 

His words hung heavy in the air, realisations to his rudeness hitting him suddenly. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to say that.." he apologised, pulling away in embarrassment, averting his gaze.  "I shouldn't have.."

(Name)'s fingers looped through his belt, grasping onto his arm as she  pulled him back in for a fiery kiss. He was quick to return the gesture, his hands making theirway to her back and pulling her closer, seeking more of her. 

"You're so irritating.." She murmured against his lips "I despise you with every breath."

He chuckled bitterly at her words, his lips parting and coliding with hers "And you aren't? Nobody has been on my mind more than you..you're a distraction, an obstacle. I can't believe I was foolish enough to marry you." 

"Believe me, it hasn't been easy for me either," (Name) groaned against his lips, pulling his hair. "Can't you do anything right? Kiss me properly...I hadn't waited that long just for you to learn nothing from our previous encounter, or maybe you've forgotten." 

"I promise, (Name), I haven't..I think about it constantly, to the point it haunts my dreams." He moaned as she bit his lip, twisting the doorknob to her bedroom and opening the door with a creek "But if I didn't, I'd trust you to help me recall." 

She cupped his cheeks in her palms, walking into the room with him as he shut the door behind them, allowing them some privacy. "So I'm better than you at something for once, and you have no feelings of hatred? How underwhelming."

"I hate you." He said as he pressed her against her bedroom wall, the wallpaper contrasting beautifully with her skin. "I hate you so passionately I don't know what to do with myself half the time. I wish I could say I regret meeting you but then I wouldn't be here with you.." 

"Mm.." (Name) hummed, her hand making its way to his hair again, her fingers tangling in those blond locks she adored "I hate you more..if you hadn't bribed me to attend this party, we wouldn't be doing this right now." 

"Then thank God I did," he smirked against her lips, breathless from kissing her so long with barely enough room to breathe. His mind was hazy now, and he was just going to exert himself even further, but he didn't mind. Anything for (Name).

"Yo Patterson," Moran called out to the man in glasses "You- this was a difficult win.." 

"I understand..it seems everyone had a hard time today," He pushed up his spectacles with his pinky

"What about everyone else? And the old man?" 

"Albert and the old man already went to their rooms...William and (Name) left early, and I haven't seen them since, but they're around...and moneypenny's gone home." Moran explained

"Really? I brought some alcohol." Patterson smiled, holding up the bottle 

"Sorry," The colonel smirked 

"It seems Bond is already asleep..and I've come all this way..at least you can join me for a drink, Moran."  Patterson said through the snores of Bond, Fred and Josephine who were curled up on the couch together. 

"By the way Moran," He continued, gazing out of the window "I hope you didn't put your hands on any of the ladies during the tea party." 

"I didn't have time for that! None of us did, we were all doing our jobs." He protested, already starting to get tipsy. 

"Hm? I thought you said William and (Name).." the detective paused, shrugging his shoulders "I see you've finely seen the joy of hard work." 

"You don't think they..?" 

"You never know."

A/N: first false lovers chapter in months lol. The wait was worth it I promise. We’re getting closer to the final problem arc tho and that’s depressing ☹️ Anyways, I have finals soon but during the summer, I’ll be posting a lot more, I promiseee. Let me know if I guys liked this chapter because I made a few slight changes from my normal style soo. Okay bye byeee ‼️

[torchwood-99]

In-Law Headcanons

Eowyn and Denethor have a fractious relationship. They can barely be in each other's company for five minutes without getting into a snark fest, which makes their bi-weekly family dinners something of a trial. To outlookers, their relationship is strained and unloving. In truth, Denethor and Eowyn get a kick at having someone to snark at and let their sharp tongues loose on.

People express sympathy for Faramir but actually it suits him well, because it means they can direct that bluntness at each other and he doesn't have to get involved (unless he suspects one of them is going to say something they're going to regret). That Denethor actually approves of Eowyn, and they all act as buffers for each other, goes a long way to improving his and Denethor's relationship (especially as Eowyn is so quick to tell Denethor when she thinks he's not doing right by Faramir.)

By way of comparison, Faramir's relationship with Theoden never moves past polite civility. While the distance between them contributes to this, even when they spend extended periods of time together, any concern or loyalty Faramir feels towards Theoden is for Eowyn's sake, and for Eowyn's sake he can never really warm to Theoden.

When they're together, neither Theoden nor Eowyn can really help but slip back into old habits, which Faramir finds deeply frustrating, and it takes a fair deal of self-control for Faramir to supress his quiet but simmering rage at Theoden's instinctive expectation that Eowyn would just pick up where she left off and wait on him, and to gently divert the burden of service away from Eowyn (Eowyn's gratitude for this is unspoken but deeply felt.)

The main difference is that for all their squabbling, Eowyn and Denethor get each other. Both know what it is to crumble under the burden of having to be the one to keep everything together, both of them have had their deepest fears and insecurities used against them by a thing/person speaking with the voice of Sauron. Both of them have reached a moment when it seemed nothing was worse living for anymore, except to have a death that defied everything demanded of them in life.

Even Denethor's attempted murder-suicide with Faramir, Eowyn came to understand as being an act of love from someone who had just been pushed to the brink, and wanted to spare Faramir a "shameful" death at the hands of the enemy.

This is in now way how Eowyn feels about Denethor at the beginning of their relationship, at the beginning Eowyn outright despises Denethor for his treatment of Faramir, and Denethor's pride puts him at odds with her own, but over time, and after Denethor and Faramir's own relationship warms and Denethor himself heals from the ordeal he had been through, neither one can deny the similarities between themselves, and Denethor especially comes to love Eowyn, for loving Faramir so much, and giving him the affection and happiness Faramir deserves, (which even after healing, Denethor doubts he is capable of giving him.)

With Theoden and Faramir, however, Faramir just cannot understand Theoden at all. For years Theoden had had Eowyn in his house, raised her, knew her nearly all her life. He had been cared by her and tended by her since she was little more than a teenager, and his entire court respects her and holds her in high regard, yet he never seems to appreciate Eowyn as anything more than his "obedient little niece who (for the most part) does her uncle's bidding in respectful silence."

Sometimes Faramir just wants to take Theoden by the shoulders and shake him, and scream some sense into him (not that dissimilar to how Eowyn dealt with Denethor in early days, to be honest) but he knows Eowyn wouldn't thank him for that, especially as her uncle isn't around long enough for them to work through any arguments or fall outs, so he forces himself to be civil, but damn it, it requires a lot of force.

A less critical headcanon of Theoden is that he gets a similar speech from Gandalf that Eomer gets, and that combined with Eowyn's great deed on the Pelennor, it does wake him up a bit and knocks into his head what sort of person his niece is. He recognises his own faults as a "father figure" and can sense that Faramir recognises them as well and beneath his civil manner, judges him for it hard, and while their relationship doesn't begin on as sour a note as Denethor and Eowyn's, perhaps rather less so, they don't have enough in common, nor do they spend enough time together, for them to build up a rapport between them, and that sense of Faramir's judgement always lies between them, unspoken but felt nonetheless.