#wondering how exactly that would be. and then i realised well i Might Have An Idea.

[yanderedrabbles]

Yandere Days of the Week

Monday is your grouchy and uptight coworker. He's a stickler for the rules and not someone who confesses his feelings. He'll usually push his spectacles up his nose and frown at you whenever you try and do something new, no matter how simple.

"What did I say about filling out the spreadsheets by yourself? You've confused all the figures."

He'll push both you and your chair out of the way and settle himself at your desk like one messed up spreadsheet means the death of the whole company. If you ever try and thank him, he'll glare at you like you've insulted his whole bloodline.

"Tch. Just ask me next time."

If you pay attention, you might notice the blush that tinges his cheeks whenever you smile at him. You might notice the way he straightens his already perfect tie before coming over to harangue you about company dress code and your slightly-too-short skirts. (Why is he noticing your skirt length to begin with? Perv).

Luckily for him, you're usually too irritated or harassed to pay attention. His secret crush will be staying a secret for as long as he can manage.

Tuesday is your overly sweet neighbour. He introduced himself to you the second you moved in - offering you a tupperware of homecooked food because he knew exactly how overwhelming moving in could be. He's the guy you call when you need a shelf hung up or a stubborn jar opened. He'll raise his brows when you thank him, secretly pleased that you asked for his help.

"That's what neighbours are for, right?"

He doesn't mention that the previous tenants left him a spare key to your apartment. What if you get hurt one day while you're locked inside, with no one able to reach you in time? It's safer for you both if he keeps it a secret.

And if he occasionally let's himself into your apartment while you're at work, it's just to keep an eye on the place. It's what any good neighbour would do. So stop wondering what the white stains on your panties are, okay?

Wednesday is your unassuming classmate. They're the quiet kind, apt to fade into the background without meaning to.

At first, they were envious of you. Pretty, clever, friendly - you aren't the type people can easily ignore. They watch you whenever they can, desperate to somehow copy that elusive charm that makes you so special.

It doesn't work, obviously. When they try smiling like you it looks stiff and unnatural. When they copy your outfits they feel exposed, self conscious. When they try wearing the same perfume as you they break out in hives that last all week.

They can't be you. No one can.

But they aren't going to give up so easily. Maybe your luck doesn't come from clothes or hair or makeup. Maybe it's something deep inside of you, something that can be ripped out and kept for themselves.

They're going to learn what makes you so special, even if it means following you home with duct tape and chloroform.

Thursday is your favourite professor. He's the quietly confident type, the kind of man who doesn't have to shout to keep the lecture hall's attention. He's insightful and empathetic, his brown eyes always warm.

You trust him totally and completely. You don't notice when he starts resting his hand on your lower back whenever you stand next to him. You don't notice that your papers are always graded more harshly than your classmates. You don't realise he wants you, not even when he offers you private office hours despite his packed schedule.

You're a real cock tease, always looking at him with those doe eyes and pretty lips. He's a patient man - he'll have you eventually. It doesn't matter if it takes him two weeks or two years, he'll keep dropping your grades until you beg him for help.

You trust him. You really, really shouldn't.

Friday is the star athlete that everyone admires. Handsome, confident, clever. A man like that would usually invite envy, would get dirty looks thrown at his back and nasty surprises in his locker.

Not him though. Everyone loves Friday.

Well, everyone except for you. There's something about him that frightens you. Underneath his golden boy facade, there's something rotten and selfish.

You don't realise he's noticed your dislike until he corners you after class one day. He wraps one hand around your wrist as everyone files out of the lecture hall, too eager for the weekend to notice the slightly panicked look on your face.

"Listen, I hate to think I've done something to offend you. If I have, just tell me now and we can sort it out," he tells you, blue eyes cold and distant despite his pretty boy smile.

You tug at your wrist but his grip is unbreakable. He isn't hurting you, but his strength keeps you right where he wants you.

"We barely even know each other," you say, your eyes jumping to the door and the suddenly empty corridors. "I don't have any issue with you."

"That's a lie and we both know it. I don't want to push you, but I'm not letting you go until I know what I've done."

You finally meet his eyes. "You have it too easy in life. You get everything you want. I don't hate you. But I don't like you either."

His expression is a careful blank. "I'm not going to apologise for what I have or for what I've been given."

You tug at your wrist again and he finally let's you go.

"I don't expect you to," you mutter as you swing your bag over your shoulder and hurry out the door.

He watches you leave and inside him some selfish, possessive creature lifts its head and growls. You should have known - when a man with everything he could ever want is shown something he can't have, that just makes him want it all the more.

"Gonna make her mine," he says to the empty classroom. A promise or a threat, even he can't be sure.

Saturday is a party girl. The kind of bombshell who wears a tiny metallic bikini, a cowboy hat and absolutely nothing else to a rave.

She knows every kind of cocktail and every kind of fun time pill. She's shamelessly cocky and shamelessly outgoing. When you run into her at a concert, she'll get you all the way to the stage no matter how packed the crowds are. 

You'd think a girl like that would know all about boundaries and consent and you'd be right. The thing is, she ignores it just as easily as she ignores speed limits and DUI citations.

She'll kiss you when you're too drunk to say no. She'll give you pills that she knows you can't handle just to take you home. She'll ignore you when you try and push her away, weak and intoxicated and too woozy to form a full sentence.

And the worst part? She knows you won't report her. Girls can get drunk and touchy without it ever being called a crime.

She'll run her hands up your thighs and nip your neck and tell you she loves you. But she's always long gone by morning.

She's just a girl, your honour. And she'll use that excuse as many times as she needs to.

Sunday is your local barista. He's an artist on the side, the kind of creative soul who can't express himself without the help of charcoal and acrylic.

He's too stoic to ever work the cash register or take orders, but he somehow always ends up there when you're in line.

He usually sneaks an extra sweet treat into your order. And if he has the time, he'll usually leave a little doodle on your receipt.

He hasn't spoken to you much, but he can feel the red thread of fate tugging you closer everyday. You're soulmates, lovers meant to be, fated by heaven and all its angels.

It doesn't matter how long it takes, you'll be his eventually. He can read it in the stars.

[thewritingfairy]

↪ 07.1 Duke and (Name)

 07. An explosion of emotions trigger warnings: mentions of past abuse, cursing, shouting, medical + emotional + physical neglect, mentions of wanting to die (name), mentions of anger, spoilers for chapter 7 of nobody's child. Main m.list        ��series m.list

Duke and you have a complex relationship. When it came to school you always made sure to use your last name, but somehow he still found out you’re technically a Wayne.

He promised to keep it a secret, as long as you would be his lab partner in chemistry, a subject he didn’t need help in. You never understood his reasoning. You never understood his actions, in fact you became confused the closer you two got. At first you thought it might be that he wants to get closer to your family, but then it seemed like he wanted to be your friend. He was interested in you, interested in who you truly are. So slowly you began to trust him, you began to share information you had yet to share with your family. You explained that you never felt like you, that everyone calls you them but that you have yet to tell your family. ‘Why?’ he had asked and your answer shook him to the core.

“I don’t trust them,” you said at first, a simply statement that holds no value but then you continued, “I was attacked in my own home, and Bruce refused to let me press charges because I had to understand the attackers circumstances.”

Duke remembers falling silent, shaking as tears fill your eyes. “When I woke up from that attack I learned that my family is to not be trusted. Not when it comes to safety and health, so who says I can trust them with anything else?” He remembers a chuckle leaving your mouth. He remembers how hollow it sounded. “It doesn’t matter I will get away soon enough.”

That day he learned the truth about the bat family, but the next day he finally learned your truth as well. You had been hunched over the teacher’s toilet as he walked by, the teacher trying to get you to calm down. You were puking your guts out, the teacher spotted him staring from the hallway. “You!” she had shouted. “You are friends with (name) right?” He had nodded without thinking. “Come hold their hair back as I get the nurse!”

He did just that, and that day he learned that you were chronically ill. “Don’t worry,” you had said. “I’m not dying, it’s quite usual for the folks in my family to get chronically ill.” when you said the words ‘my family’ he knew you were talking about your mother’s side. He also knew that you thought those words would comfort him, but they did not. It made him worry, especially with the fact that your father is Batman. Not like you knew, and that made him even more worried. How did the Batman not know that his child is ill?

“Does Mr. Wayne know?” he remembers asking.

“No,” you had said with a grin. “I’m medically emancipated, knowing how to forge a signature is quite handy.”

At the time he had wondered if you were joking, but the more time he had spend with your family without you ever being mentioned the more he realised that you had made the right choice. If he tried to ask about you, they would quickly change the subject. Telling him to not mention you, that you made it clear that you aren’t one of them. But truthfully, it was them that made you an outsider. It was visible to even him, an outsider, that the fault does not lie with you. It lies with them.

The longer he knew you the more he started to resent the Wayne family, with the days that your pain clouded your judgement and you begged for death his anger rose. But when he found that the Wayne family are the bats, he knew exactly what to do.

He would accept the invitation to be adopted by Bruce, to protect you, you might hate him at first. You might believe that he used you, but it will be something he must do. He had spoken to your other friends.

Friends you were arguably closer with, they admitted to him that you were fading away in your journey for freedom. That you need an ally in that cursed manor. And he will be that ally, sure it also means that he will be able to be a vigilante. Something he wants to do with all his heart, but at this point that was just an advantage that came with his need to help you.

You are a victim. A victim of a family that has become so tuned out to trauma inside their own family that they cannot recognise what they’ve done to you.

And when he walked through the manor doors, sure that you were at your work, just to be greeted by you screaming at Jason. It froze Duke death in his steps, but when Jason touched you, something snapped in him.

“Step away from them,” he had said, trying to control his tone, but when he took in the state you were in his control flew away. “before I knock your teeth out.”

Jason had stepped back. ‘Good he can listen,’ Duke had thought, tuning everything out as he turns his full attention to you. “(Name),” he had whispered, trying to place his hands gently on yours to stop your scratching. “I am here, it’s Duke, your lab partner, what can I do for you?” He had never seen you this distressed, he had never known that your pain could do this to you. If he did he would have stepped in sooner. He would have thought of a different plan, but he’s too far in to go back now.

“I need to die,” you had whispered, your eyes snapping to his as his heart broke at your words. “can you kill me?”

You were terrified of death, that’s why you are asking him. At least subconsciously you still knew you wanted to live. “You know I can’t,” he had said as he attempted to carefully brush your hair out of your face. You hate having your hair be touched in this state, but having your hair touched also brought you comfort. And at this point Duke would have done anything if it had meant calming you down. “But I can and I will listen.”

Those words always had a big impact on you, Maria had told him so. But in that moment those words meant everything to you. You were crying, but at least you had stopped scratching your skin off.

‘A win is a win,’ Duke had thought.

“You promise?” You had asked, your voice sounded so small and fragile. Your eyes were unfocused, and Duke feared that you could pass out any second.

“I promise.”

taglist: @prettiest-thing-in-the-morgue, @bunniotomia, @devotedlyshamelessdetective, @princessbonnie-bell, @seemee3, @pix-stuff, @venomsvl, @amber-content, @stove-top96, @frank-vanderboom, @leeiasure, @1abi, @shadowytravelerlover, @chericia, @lithiumval, @lingxio, @cssammyyarts, @marsmabe, @foolishseven, @kore-of-the-underworld, @bunbunboysworld, @homeless-clown, @miashico, @alwaysholymilkshake, @1cxndy, @kittzu, @rtyuy1346, @exactlynumberonekryptonite, @hopingtoclearmedschool, @artistwithcreativeburnout, @alishii, @vanessa-boo, @holylonelyponyeatingmacaroni, @91-kya, @ryuushou, @jjsmeowthie, @justthere1956, @depressed--therapist, @xzmickeyzx, @cheappremingerfromdelululand, @plsfckmedxddy, @itsberrydreemurstuff, @trashlaternfish360, @leogf, @dirtydiavolo, @lilyalone, @welpthisisboring, @kenman00001, @nxdxsworld, @icefox8155, @ironsaladwitch, @holderoflostmemories, @asillysimp, @wisefuncherryblossom, @eyeless-kun, @marina27826, @muggleloveralways, @ironsaladwitch

[rainydayathogwarts]

reasonless hatred - george weasley x snape!reader

summary: severus snape's daughter causes him nothing but chaos, hatred where love should be in their relationship. but she is finally given a real reason to hate her father, and she decides to give him one to hate her too. wc: 2.6k+

Severus Snape’s daughter was nothing like her father.

For one, she was beautiful. For two, she sucked at potions. But the thing that made people at Hogwarts realise she wasn’t like her father from the very start? She fought with him nearly every potions lesson they’d had since first year.

It wasn’t too bad at the beginning, with little snippy comments here and there. But as the years went on, it was clear you tolerated your father invading your personal space less and less, so your attitude only worsened by the day. It wasn’t as though you were just being a rebellious, moody teenager though. No, it was the fact that Severus Snape was a terrible father. He strolled into the Slytherin common room whenever he pleased, making sure you had completed your homework and had studied for tests. He stared at you relentlessly at meal times, watching as you enjoyed your time with your friends. He kept tabs on your friends in other houses, sneering whenever he saw you around a hufflepuff student, or worse, a Weasley. He was observant, and listened for rumours through the grapevine, aware of any romantic encounters you had.

But what annoyed you the most? He picked on you during lessons.

“Who can tell me the use of a valerian root in the draught of living death?” Snape inhaled deeply, scanning the room. He frowned. You weren’t raising your hand. In fact, you seemed to busy scribbling down notes he had read out five minutes ago. “Ms. Snape.”

Your head shot up from your paper, and some students smiled at the irritated look on your face. They already knew what this would mean; they were about to have front row seats to a Snape v. Snape brawl.

“You couldn’t pick on anyone else!?”

Your father raises his eyebrows, stating monotonously “You didn’t raise your hand.”

“Exactly! Did you not see how many people did!?”

“I want to know if you know the answer.”

You dropped your quill on your desk, sending ink splatters across the page of your notebook. Slowly, you reached over to close the bottle of ink. Taking a deep breath in, you glanced back up at your vexing father. “I don’t.”

“You should. I taught you.”

“Well sorry I fucking forgot!” Laughter rippled across the room, and people looked eagerly to see what Professor Snape would do next, particularly at the sight of you packing your things up. A call of your name caused you to stiffen, eyes widening as you glared at your father. Your desk mate spluttered next to you, surprised that he had dared to use your first name in front of your peers.

“Sit down and make sure to meet me in detention at 4.”

You laughed whole-heartedly, mockingly, your hands folded over your stomach as you doubled over momentarily. “What, to spend more time with you? No thank you.” And with that you strutted out of class, ignoring the near desperate calls of your name. Snape wasn’t able to wrap up the chaos in his classroom after that, so he let his students go, sighing deeply as he wondered how his relationship with you had gone so wrong.

You didn’t speak to your father one on one until the summer holidays rolled around. You met him at the entrance hall of hogwarts, speaking with the weasley twins when he entered the room, summoning you with a single call of your name. You had rolled your eyes and hugged the twins goodbye, making them promise to keep in touch with you over the holidays. They did.

But apparently, you shouldn’t have asked them to make that promise, because after a quick drop off home, Snape was telling you to pack anything from home you might need over the summer, because you were going to be staying somewhere else.

Nº12 Grimmauld Place.

Angry with your father’s lack of notice, you entered the grim mansion with low expectations, but you immediately perked up at the sound of your favourite twins, lost deep within the house's endless rooms. Ditching your luggage at the entrance, your feet immediately took you towards the sound of their voices, stopping at the door of the kitchen, when you finally laid your eyes on them.

“Well it’s about time.” “We thought you’d never make it.”

Your eyes lit up at the sight of the tall twins, and you ignored just about everyone else in the kitchen as you squealed, arms wide open, running straight into the closest one’s arms. George laughed joyously, tightly wrapping his arms around your waist and lifting you up, just enough to spin you around in a quick circle. You were already dizzy when your feet touched the ground again, but Fred was already slamming into you with a rib-crushing hug.

When you were finally released, you had a stupid grin on your face, and you kindly greeted their mother with that same smile. “Sirius, Tonks, this is y/n, she’s Snape’s daughter. Remus, you’re already familiar.”

“Hiya Professor Lupin.”

Both jaws dropped animatedly as you greeted your old professor. They couldn’t believe it. They had just seen a normal teenage girl run in with the widest of smiles to greet her best friends, only for them to find out her father was the man they had never seen drop the frown from his face?

Snape appeared in the kitchen’s doorway with your luggage by his side, and his usual frown. “Leaving your things lying around is disrespectful.”

“Bloody hell, a girl can’t say hello to someone without being scolded.”

He sighed, turning his attention to Sirius, whose scowl had returned to his face. “Where is she staying?” But before Sirius could speak, you were talking again. “She? Like me alone? Without you?” Though you tried to maintain neutral, there was hope in your tone that couldn’t be denied.

“Alone. I’m going to be working for majority of the time, into the nights as well. Dumbledore insisted it’s not safe for you to be alone.” There was a pang in your chest at his words. Dumbledore cared more about your safety than he did. You nodded. Sirius stood up, having seen the sudden change of look on your face. “I’ll show her up.”

Your father nodded, spinning on his heels and disappearing down the hallway. The front door opened then slammed shut, without so much as a goodbye. Clearing your throat uncomfortably, you looked back at the twins, a smile tugging at your lips again.

It was going to be a good summer.

“We’ll come up with you.” They said in sync, following you and Sirius down the hallway. As you reached the bottom of the staircase, George snatched your luggage from you, instantly lifting it and beginning his trek up the stairs. You hummed, failing to notice the smile on Sirius’s face. “You’ll be in here.” Sirius mumbled, knocking on the door twice. You furrowed your eyebrows, but a familiar voice called out “Come in!” and you weren’t so worried anymore.

Hermione was sat on a large queen bed, her back leaning on the headboard. Ron was sat at the foot of the bed, his head rolled back on the wall. They seemed to be having a hushed conversation. Hermione smiled widely at the sight of you, jumping up from her place on the bed.

“You’re here!”

“I’m sorry, am I the only one who wasn’t aware I was going to be coming?” You asked as you pulled the younger girl into a hug. “It seems that way. Mrs. Weasley told us when we got here.” You hummed, making space for George to roll your luggage into the room. When he did, he swung a lazy arm over your shoulder, tugging you closer to him. “You two can have your privacy, this one’s going to be in our room until the late night hours.” You crinkled your nose at the suggestive but joking way he said it, letting him dragging you out of the room and down the hall.

“Thank you Mr. Sirius!” You called out. Sirius was flabbergasted, and he looked back into the room to the two teenagers he trusted the most in this house. “Do we like her?” Sirius asked in a stage whisper, and both Hermione and Ron nodded in sync.

“We love her. We hate her father. She does too.”

Sirius trusted the words that had come out of Hermione’s mouth, yet he couldn’t bring himself to believe you truly hated your father until he saw it for himself. Luckily for him, it was only the next night when signs of your torn relationship began showing.

You were sat in the kitchen with Fred, George and Sirius, giggling at one of their silly stories whilst you sipped at a cup of tea before bed. You really enjoyed spending time in the kitchen. It seemed to be the most lived in, and Mrs. Weasley had clearly made an impression on it, bringing her homeyness into the otherwise cold mansion. You didn’t mind it though. It had people, which was more than you could say about your own house.

Busy admiring George as he recalled bits of the story, you barely caught the pointed look Fred shot your look of appreciation. You glared at him quickly and Sirius laughed — not because of George’s story. The doorway to the kitchen was suddenly occupied, and you barely caught sight of your father brooding. You stiffened up, looking at him with a blank stare.

“Have you eaten?” You nodded wordlessly to answer his question, noticing how all chatter in the kitchen came to a pause. “Have you started your homework?”

“Homework?” You scoffed in amusement, furrowing your eyebrows at him to say ‘you can’t be serious’.

“You have N.E.W.Ts this year.”

“It’s the first day of summer holiday.”

“Don’t waste your time doing nothing.”

“I’m not planning on it. We’ve decided to go swimming tomorrow.” Sirius nearly chuckled at your sassy tone.

“That’s not what I meant. Focus on your studies.”

“None of my bloody teachers have set me any homework!”

“I have.” You rolled your eyes, mumbling a response under your breath as you turned your gaze to the wooden table. “What was that?” Snape snapped, and your head shot back in his direction.

“I said of course you did! That’s why none of your students like you!”

“Excuse me for wanting my students to pass.”

“Then how come so many of them are failing?” Snape huffed in the doorway, and Sirius saw the way his fingers twitched in annoyance.

“You won’t see me for a couple of days.” It was only when he apparated away that you mumbled “Good”, shoving your chin to rest on your closed fist.

“Is everything okay in here? I heard arguing?” Mrs. Weasley suddenly appeared in the exact spot your father had just disappeared from, a concerned look on your face. “Snape.” You replied in unison with the twins, and Molly wiped her hands down on the skirt of her dress, walking into the kitchen to place her caring hands on your shoulders. “Are you alright, sweetheart?” You nodded, busying yourself by tracing shapes on the dark wood.

Molly hesitated, glancing at her two sons who just shook their heads. She sighed, leaving the room. George swayed to the side, gently pushing you with the force of his body. “Oh, lighten up. Two days without him is great!”

“We will go swimming though, right?” George grinned, hand gripping the bottom of your chair to drag it closer to his. You squealed, throwing your arms up in surprise, but relaxed as his arm settled around your shoulders.

“This behaviour keeps up with his track record.” Sirius muttered, mostly to himself. “What, you mean, just the fact that he’s been a grump all his life?” Sirius shrugged at your question, adding “Well yeah, and there’s the fact that… You know.”

You exchanged looks with the twins, shaking your head. “Nope.” “The war…” Sirius hinted, squinted his eyes. At the blank stares he received, his eyes widened. You didn’t know. About your father being a death-eater. “Never mind.”

“Well, now you’ve got to tell us.”

“I shouldn’t”

“Well you brought it up, so you should.”

Sirius chuckled, your teenage girl stubbornness and logic reminding him of his old school friends. But his amusement didn’t last long. How was he supposed to tell a girl her father worked for Voldemort once upon a time?

“It’s not my place to say.”

“If it’s about my father, I deserve to know.”

He didn’t want to risk Mrs. Weasley being disappointed in him. Oh well. “He used to work for He Who Must Not Be Named. He has the mark.” The sharp intake of breath that came from you was loud, and your eyes widened in shock. “You promise?”

“I prom- I, yeah, I’ve seen it.” You pushed your chair back with a loud scrape, and looked at the ground to avoid having them see the tears gradually filling in your eyes as you put your mug in the sink. Silently, you fled the room, holding in the tears until you slammed the door to your room shut. Sitting on your bed, you sniffled loudly, only accepting the fact that tears were falling down your cheeks when you realised that Hermione wasn’t in the room.

You jumped when the door creaked open, wiping at your eyes frantically, but you softened up when you saw it was only George, an apologetic look on his face. “I’m coming in, you know.” You managed to laugh between sobs, patting the empty space next to you on the bed. George climbed up, opening his arms so you could fall into his chest, trying to ease your breathing. “I can’t believe it.” You admitted to him, not daring to look him in the eyes.

“I know. I’m sorry. Sirius is too. He didn’t mean to upset you.” “I’m glad he told me.” You hiccuped, pulling away to look at George. He was so sweet to you, and he looked so worried about you, concerned for your wellbeing. “I’ll get over it in like five minutes, don’t worry.” George chuckled, watching as you reached for your bed side table to grab a couple of tissues, blowing your nose wetly.

“At least I really have a reason to hate him now.”

“Should probably give him a real reason for him to hate you too.” You giggled at George’s words and moved to sit facing him, criss crossing your legs. “You know,” You started, an idea suddenly forming in your head. “There’s not a single student in our year group he hates to teach more than you and your brother.” “Apart from you.”

“Yeah, well, I can’t exactly kiss myself to spite him.” George straightened up at your words, his face falling into a serious expression. “Just to spite him?”

“Well, there’s other reasons I’d like to kiss you, but I’m using this one as an excuse.” You gasped as George lunged towards you to slam his lips onto yours, but the sound quickly turned into a moan of satisfaction as you gripped the soft cotton of his jumper. George’s lips moulded against yours, moving in a perfect rhythm before they were suddenly pulling away from you to take a panting breath of air.

You swallowed thickly, suddenly standing up. “Give me two minutes, I need to go thank Sirius.” And George sat in amazement as you skipped down the stairs and trudged into the kitchen. Sirius spun around from where he was washing the dishes, going completely still as you threw your arms around him and mumbled a grateful “Thank you.” Before you retraced your steps out of the kitchen and back up to stairs to take as many kisses from George as he would let you.

“What?” Sirius asked, mostly to himself, eyes glued to the doorway you had just walked out from. “Oh, I bet they kissed.”

And kissed you did. At least, until Hermione returned to the room and you had to push the boy off you.

taglist: @ravisinghs-wife, @starry-remus, @pain-in-the-ashe, @hiireadstuff, @treefairy-28, @superlegend216, @kitkatkl, @juliet-017, @fl0weryannie, @tiaajosephin

[norrisjpg]

only angel - ʟɴ⁴

the one where she begins to realise that this little 'arrangement' may be leading to something more than an intimate friendship.

part one | part two | part four | part five | part six | part seven | part eight | part nine | part ten

contains; fluff, softdom!lando, nsfw, smut; fingering, oral (f & m), praise kink; inexperienced!femoc, talks of loss of virginity, swearing.

…

…

“oh my god, can you just tell me what’s going on already?” alexandra pried as the two girls sat in a small coffee shop in monaco.

lily simply sighed in response, not sure whether to tell her or not — on one hand, she was sure alex would be delighted that she was finally getting laid, and that it was by lando. on the other hand, she wasn’t sure if the italian would be skeptical and not really approve of sex with no feelings, with the guy lily had feelings for.

but well, fuck it.

“lando is… helping me gain some experience.” lily nodded. “sexual experience.”

alexandra might as well have spat her coffee out and launched her cup across the café, because it just went everywhere — across the table, on the floor, on the wall.

ignoring the spilled coffee, alex gawked at her, eyes wide and mouth open.

“oh my god.” she replied. “tell me everything, now! wait actually let me go and get some napkins and a new coffee.”

in all honesty, there wasn’t really much to tell on the sexual side — she’d given him a hand job, and he’d fingered her — that was all.

if anything, there was more to tell on how needy and affectionate lando had turned within the past week. pushing her against the counter and kissing her until she couldn’t breathe, the praising in innocent situations (and the not-so-innocent ones), and especially the times where she’d walk past him and be pulled onto his lap and spread open to his liking.

but, she was desperate to get her mouth on him — she’d seen how needy he was with just her hand, and that alone made her ready to take him deep down her throat.

“don’t be so ridiculous!” lily laughed softly as alexandra almost wasted her new coffee down on the table.

“he likes you, lily!” alexandra exclaimed, hitting the table. “no man would do that unless he has feelings for you! trust me, charlie does that shit and i’ve got him wrapped around my finger.”

she sighed in response, alexandra couldn’t be right, right?

-

she wasn’t exactly sure how she’d managed to get here. sure, lando had been insatiable for the last few days, but this? this was new.

as soon as her apartment door had shut behind her, there were hurried footsteps coming in her direction. she’d only just managed to get her shoes off when a pair of strong hands were wrapped around her waist and she was swept off of her feet, and thrown over his shoulder with a yelp from her lips.

“have a nice time, pretty girl?” lando asked softly as he carried lily to his bedroom.

“lando, put me down!” lily protested, kicking her legs.

“answer me, darling.” he repeated.

“yeah, i had a nice time, now put me down!” lily answered, before being thrown down onto the bed. “thankyou.”

lando laughed and shook his head as he crawled on top of her, peppering kisses all over her face. soft giggles left her lips and she pulled his face directly to hers, pressing their lips together.

a minute or so later, she was completely naked, clothes strewn across the floor, with his hips rutting against her as they made out.

“let me taste you, yeah?” he mumbled into her lips, and her eyes shot open.

lando could sense her hesitance, so he pulled away and gazed down at her, wondering what the unsureness was about.

“what’s the matter, lil?” lando asked softly, blinking down at her.

“that’s not good for you though.” lily murmured, furrowing her eyebrows.

“wanna make you feel good, baby.” he nodded, tracing his finger over her jaw. “please?”

“what if it tastes bad?” she admitted quietly, a hint of insecurity to her voice.

“lily,” lando began. “don’t be so ridiculous, i see what you eat — you eat healthy, correct?”

“yeah…” she nodded slowly.

“then you won’t taste bad, i promise.” he reassured her. “and you can tell me to stop at any point, mhm?”

“okay, yeah.” she whispered softly. “mhm.”

he smiled at her, a little proud of the fact he’d managed to win her insecure side over, and pecked her lips fondly with a murmured, “that’s my girl.”

my girl. my girl.

oh, how she wanted to be his so badly. to have, to hold, to cherish, in sickness and in health — she was so in love with him it was actually outrageous.

and, she was so distracted by her feelings and thoughts, that when his tongue brushed across her slit she gasped.

he ran the tip of his thumb through her folds, collecting her wetness before sliding it into his mouth, his eyes practically rolling back into his head when the delicious liquid spread onto his tongue.

lando would admit, the next part was a result of his control snapping and desire taking over.

he delved in, thrusting a finger inside of her and pumping it in and out, while circling her clit with his tongue. she cried out, grabbing at his head and clamping her thighs around his head — but he didn’t mind.

“lando…!” lily moaned, gasping out as he fucked her tight walls with his finger.

soon enough, his lips were wrapped snugly around her clit, sucking rhythmically, and he was desperate to fit a second finger inside of her tight heat.

“fuck…” he groaned into her pussy, the vibrations making her clench around him.

he was merciless, sucking and licking and kissing her clit, while finally slipping his middle finger inside. her back arched up, quickly slammed back down into the bed by a large hand splayed across her abdomen.

carnal whimpers and needy whines left her lips, chanting his name like a prayer as she barrelled toward release.

“fuck— lando… ohmy— yes!” she almost screamed, tears threatening to well up in her eyes from the pleasure. “gonna cum—”

he knew she was so gone when incoherent babbles left her lips, she was a pathetic mess, pleading and writhing underneath the motions of his tongue.

oh how he wanted to break completely, bury his cock to the hilt inside her cunt and stay there forever, let her sit on his lap, pretty and wet and desperate, and sink himself nice and deep — he’d fill her so perfectly, they’d be so perfect together, why couldn’t she see that?

he didn’t have any more time to think about it though, because she was tipping over the edge quickly.

tears left her eyes, her needy pussy clenching around his fingers as one final harsh suck of her clit sent her spiralling. her back arched up against the strength of his hand, and her toes curled as a shaky moan ripped her apart.

his thumb replaced his tongue on her clit, wanting to look at her as she fell apart up there. it was a sight for sore eyes to say the least — eyes rolled back into her head, eyebrows arched, lower lip caught between her teeth — she was fucking art, and he loved it.

in all honesty, he was sure he loved her — but he was just terrified.

terrified of it, terrified to say it, terrified of what it meant for them — so he kept his mouth shut.

-

lily knew she needed to get her own back, return the favour in a way. she’s decided that she’d surprise him when he’s least expect it, maybe when he was on stream with max — no cameras of course, one of the times where he only had his mic on.

“max wants to play tarkov,” lando began as he looked at his phone. “i’ll only be a few hours, love.”

“s’okay.” lily reassured him. “i’ll cook some dinner.”

“you’re the best.” he smiled, pressing a kiss to her cheek, eliciting a giggle from her lips.

she left it for about an hour, deciding to let him get into the game. lily had lied, she had no intention of cooking dinner until she'd gotten what she wanted. so, in she went.

she slipped into the room quietly, noting the fact that his camera definitely wasn't on, but his mic was - and he was chatting away to max while they waited to play something called 'arena'. (she had no idea what that was.)

he was engrossed. it was quite a pretty sight actually, his eyelashes fluttering every time he blinked, gaze trained on the screen while he dryly laughed at some stupid comment max was making - he looked peaceful.

lando happened to flick his gaze to the side, feeling a presence near him, and almost jumped at the sight of the angel stood beside him. there was a look in her eyes, something dangerous, but the rest of her body language told him otherwise - innocent and delicate.

"you okay, pretty?" lando leaned away from the microphone, speaking quietly.

"mhm, carry on." she nodded softly, moving to stand in front of him and dropping to her knees.

lando lurched forward and muted his mic quickly, mumbling a needy 'fuck' as he silenced himself online. his eyes softly widened, catching his lower lip between his teeth.

"whatcha' doing?" lando asked quietly, his voice low and a little raspy.

"what does it look like?" she retorted softly, hands reaching for the ties of his joggers.

lando fell silent, mouth now slightly agape as lily tugged at his joggers, clearly wanting to pull them down. he made a small motion of a nod, his tongue darting out to wet his lips.

"good girl," he murmured, pushing his hips up so she could pull his joggers down.

her dainty fingertips hooked around the waistband of both his joggers and his boxers, pulling the thin materials off and letting them pool at his ankles.

if lando thought the handjob was good, he was in heaven now.

lily pressed a featherlight kiss to the tip of his now rock-hard cock, aching and throbbing under her simple touch. she stuck her tongue out and flattened it against the underside of his thick member, licking from the base to tip — before wrapping her pretty lips around the tip, now leaking salty pre-cum.

he shuddered as the warmth of her mouth enveloped the sensitive parts of his dick, a guttural groan leaving his lips.

it was like she’d done this millions of times, because the way her tongue swirled around the slit of his cock was heavenly. his head fell back against the headrest, adam’s apple bobbing along his thick throat as she teased the tip.

then without any warning, he was fully buried in her mouth, tip notching against the back of her throat as her hand came into the mix to help her out — it wasn’t like he was small after all.

a soft noise of a gag left her lips, but as soon as she started bobbing her head, all concern involuntarily left lando’s body.

“lils— fuuuck…” he groaned out, eyes squeezed shut.

he was floating, relishing in the way that she took him so expertly, swiping her tongue over the tip rhymically as he re-entered and exited her mouth.

lando was a mess, an incoherent and whining mess.

it was actually embarrassing how close he was already, hips bucking up toward her as his hands gripped the chair within an inch of his life.

tears streamed down lily’s face as she gagged around him again — and a normal person would have pulled off for breath, but no, not innocent little lily ainsley.

he’d of liked to think he’d pull her off, make her stop literally crying on his cock and finish the job with her hands — but then she moaned around him, the vibrations sending euphoric tingles through his very soul.

lando gently grabbed at her hair, palming it into a makeshift ponytail and softly pulled at it to keep it out of her way.

“ohmygod— lily, shit—” he panted out lowly. “gonna cum—”

it was the way that she looked up at him that killed him — teary and wide eyes, filled with a cocktail of innocence and subtle sin.

he came with a guttural groan, shaky breaths leaving his lips as hot ropes of sticky cum shot down her throat. he slowly began to soften as she sucked him through it — making sure there was no drop left untouched.

lily swallowed thickly, the taste in her mouth was surprisingly pleasant — her friends had told her that it was awful before, but i guess their boyfriends weren’t formula 1 drivers, right?

“you are fucking incredible,” lando huffed, pinching the bridge of his nose as his body fizzed down.

“thankyou baby,” she replied softly, pulling his boxers and joggers back up, and neatly tucking his cock back inside.

the girl stood up, licking her lips before pressing a quick peck to his lips.

“better get back to your stream,” lily whispered softly, referring to the chat asking where lando was. “dinner’ll be ready in an hour.”

“so cruel,” he laughed softly, leaning up to kiss her again, before she padded out of the room.

how the fuck was he supposed to do anything now?

-

“carlos, look, if i tell you this, you are not to tell a soul, understand?” lando said seriously, his fingers tapping the table nervously.

“yes, yes, i understand.” carlos nodded, “no one will know.”

the two drivers were sat in a fancy restaurant located at a golf club — after carlos had just absolutely destroyed lando’s golf-confidence on the green.

“okay, right…” lando sighed, before blurting out. “lily and i are fucking.”

“what.” the spaniard said bluntly, eyebrows raised and a blank expression in his eyes.

“so i found out that she’s a virgin, basically.” lando continued. “and then i offered to… help her out, like help her gain some experience with that stuff.”

“let me get this straight, yes?” carlos arched his eyebrow. “you’re having sex with the girl you’ve been in love with for… 5 years, and you still haven’t told her?”

lando sighed, he knew carlos wouldn’t approve of his avoidance of his feelings and new-found physical relationship.

“when you put it like that, i sound like an asshole!” lando exclaimed.

“look, all i’m going to say is, once you’ve… yeah, she’s not going to need that part of stuff anymore — and she’ll find a boyfriend that isn’t you, and then you’ll just have to do back to being friends again,” carlos explained. “and i don’t think you can do that, lando.”

the brit went to protest, but he was cut off.

carlos shook his head, “all i’m saying is, tell her sooner rather than later, otherwise this is going to hurt, lando.”

-

hello, sorry i disappeared, medical stuff and work and all. anyway, i’m on holiday this week, so fingers crossed should get a lot of writing done!!

[kyri45]

✨ShadowPeach Bio Parents Bio AU Q&A! 20/09✨

Welcome to the Q&A! A space where I can answer related or similar question about the Shadowpeach Bio Parents AU! If you submitted your ask anonimously, then you’ll have to check the whole post if it’s answered here, if it’s not, worry not! Your asks might have been used for a future comic or just in the queue~

@funnybadger868 ha chiesto:wait so if mk can hear macaques past can he hear wukongs for example the circlet and the spell

Yeah he could. It's now just a matter of if he wants to use this power ever again

@cryptic-theseus ha chiesto:you're paying for my therapy btw, the bill is on the way

Blame it on the gay monkies not me. It's bc of them that my life is ruined/hj

@ayrza ha chiesto:Hey!I have an important question, where do you get your sources for the AU👉🏻👈🏻p? I mean, I just recently entered the LMK fandom and I see that there are parts that are not mentioned much in the series and it frustrates me because I feel like I only watch the anime but I'm missing the manga 🫠I love your art and your work, it's amazing 🫰🏻✨

Hi! Well I' finishing to read Journey to the West (im at chapter 80) and if I need extra info or just check I go to the fandom wiki.

@feyqueen91 feyqueen91 ha chiesto:A question for your Shadowpeach Bio Parent AU (btw, I just saw your recent post for More Than A Successor Arc & I thought something light hearted was needed to even out the Angst), is Macaque able to summon something like what Red Son did with the Samadhi Sprite, and he teaches MK to do it too?

Wait what exactly? I haven't understood what you meant by sprite.

@og-glitch-punk ha chiesto: Honestly I expect this to be hidden but i also love your work on both comics, keep it up!! I forgot their names but dude- how would the lotus prince and our moon chef feels about wukong and Macaque being MK's parents? HELL. WHAT ABOUT THE TRIO? YELLOW TUSK, PENG AND THE LOIN (CANT REMMEBER HIS NAME EVEN IF HE IS TECHNICALLY DEAD/GONE). Hell even this chaotic snake man may even use MK to his advantage with the fact he is the child of Wukong and Macaque. So many possibilities and guesses, so many twists and turns we will never know bro

Oh he absolutely woud. Also about the others. They would probably act like protective aunt/uncles to that poor traumatised boy.

@thenerdnico ha chiesto:Oh my GODS that last bio dad's chapter broke me, your expressions are always amazing. I'm going to assume that at the end of Wukong's and Macaque's fight, Wukong realised Macaque wasn't moving and ran up to him, and ended up sobbing and screaming when he realised he was dead??? If that is the case, do you think MK listened to it long enough to hear that as well?

Oh for angst reason yes. He did.

@shadowpeachera ha chiesto:AHHHH YOUR SHADOWPEACH BIO AU IS SOO GOOD!!!! I SCREAMED AT THE LAST UPDATE!!! I have a question though. You know in the series i think season 3 epsiode 5 where Wukong goes into a deep mystic monkey meditation, yeah. Well i was wondering if Mk has ever tried that but got disrupted and lost his memories or started acting strange infront of his monkey parents. It would be hilarious i can imagine him shouting, “TUDI, TUDI!”KEEP UP THE GOOD WORK, no pressure though! HAVE A GOOD DAY!

Lmaooo ok ok I don't think I'll go witha small amnesia arc in the AU but this doeß sound adorable.

@sakuralotus03 ha chiesto:It will probably be quite heavy, but I suggest that after Wukong saw the monkey like that he had a huge attack of guilt and anxiety and ended up injuring his left eye with his claws

Poor baby!! Nono don't worry his eye is fine.

@raylamoongirl ha chiesto:question for macaque: what was the hardest thing to teach Mk?Lmk bio parents Q&A

Mmmm so they tried really hard to teach him shadow teleportation, but he seems to not be able to do it.

@lmkobsessedmoth ha chiesto:For the Shadowpeach Bio Parent AU What if macaque and wukong go on a date and wukong doesn’t know it’s a date because he’s as dense as the rock he hatched out of

He truly would be. May the gods give him a clue or smt otherwise we wont end up nowhere here

Anonimo ha chiesto:Hey!I love your Shadowpeach bio Parent's AU But I Wonder,Does Wukong and Macaque already dance together before?

Danced??? I think so?? When they still were lovers friends I think (i think i m missing something)

Anonimo ha chiesto:I am on my knees, heart giving out, HOW IS BABY MK SO CUTE AND SHADOWPEACH SO ALLERGIC TO JUST KISSING ALREADY LIKE COME ON YOU TWO Anonimo ha chiesto:When I read the other part where swk and mac where talking about wanting MK to view them as parents at first I thought swk was proposing having another kid with Mac and I went “WOAH HEY- HOLD UP FOR A SECOND THERE U NEED TO GET UR SHT TOGETHER FIRST” and thank god it wasn’t that I thought swk was JUMPING AND ACCELERATING THEIR PROGRESS LMAOOOSo I’m actually glad they are taking baby steps, they need them

This slowburn is gonna be so slow-burning you all are gonna die when they actually kiss (will they kiss? Oh that's just for me to know ahah)

Anonimo ha chiesto:Since macaque is called mama by mk does that mean macaque is like a mother figure to mk in your au mama macaque is adorable and he gives off motherly in his character

Anonimo ha chiesto:Whos mom if there is considered a mom by MK or only dads? Is it Wu or Mac? My headcanons is Wukong basically the mom cuz he gives off mom and dad vibes together and Macaque just gives off dad vibes to me

He gives more motherly vibes, yes (Mamacaque and DadWukong forever)

Anonimo ha chiesto:Hi in you bio parent au for monkie kid how were monkey king and macaque as teenagers when they had a good relationship were like they a romantic couple or had secret crushes on each other and never told each other or were they just friends love this au it's amazing

Oh I think they were definitely lovers once. And that makes their past and what happened even more tragic honestly.

@ayrza ha chiesto:I don't know who is more adorable: Baby MK or Macaque and Wukong blushingPsd. I love your AU and your art 💖

Both. Both is good

@diamondwolf23 ha chiesto:THOSE TWO BETTER KISSSSSSSSSSS-I’m gonna miss Baby Mk ;-

Me too. Me too.

Anonimo ha chiesto:You could say Wukong is a...... simpian?(like simian but yknow >>)

LMAO YES

@scififeather21 ha chiesto:You can't believe how much I love your Shadowpeach AU comic series that last part made me grin so much. Mostly because my husband and I have done that exact thing when our kids were small babies and the looks and smiles were the same too. OMG it such a nice thing to see after a long day at work yesterday. :)

THAT'S THE- SWEETEST THING?????? LIKE IM SO GLAD I WAS ABLE TO MAKE IT A SIMILAR EXPERIENCE???? TO HEAR IT'S THE SAME THAT HAPPENED TO YOU IS THE SWEETEST THING EVER

@snsp6 ha chiesto:I love ur bio dads au! I wanted to ask what would happen if smth similar to the baby mk incident happened to the immortal monkeys.Like either they were de-aged to their youth or had an amnesia rules type of situation!(I am in love w the world building in this!!! And ur art is delectable!)

I don't thing the world would be ready for non-reformed Wukong#like-#not really reformed but the guy killed so many people bc of impulsiveness#until he learned that murder is not fine

Anonimo ha chiesto: This might be a stupid question, but for your bio parents, AU is MK just always in his monkey form, or is this just how he permanently looks now?

He's on his monkey form when he trains / stays at the weekends at FFM or when he friendly duels/train with Mei and Red Son.On weekdays he's constantly in his human form

@meisawkwardashecc ha chiesto:Is Wukong potentially shorter than Macaque? 👀🥺Avatar

Yes

@miraclecactus ha chiesto:Can you show us what's going on in the Freenoodles house? I'm looking forward to knowing how they manage to calm MK down :( Puedes mostrarnos que es lo que sucede en la casa de Freenoodles? Estoy ansiosa de conocer como ellos manejan el como calmar a MK :(

They used Wukong and Mac advices until he feel asleep.

Anonimo ha chiesto:I like how Wukong asks Macaque how he knows MK won't hate him after this. Like my guy, you literally killed Macaque, and he still hangs around I think he knows a thing or two

True. Although let Wukong be the dumbass he is.

alizardonfire ha chiesto:I love the idea of macaque being wukongs *rock* if that makes sense? It gives so much character to him.

Aaaahh ty! Yeah I feel like he's pretty good at understanding when he s just out of his mind and bring him back to earth.

Anonimo ha chiesto:If this isn't to much spoiler will the next lmk comic be angsty

This will be answered too late but I will always warn you in advance if there s angst coming.

Anonimo ha chiesto:I love your art! Lighthearted question since your about to bring the pain- do you think Mac and Wu fight over who gets to be little spoon/big spoon or are both of them 100% happy with Mac as big spoon and Wu as little spoon every night

So as for now, they are good with Wukong being the little spoon. Both bc Wukong is the the one who constantly craves for touch amd bc Macaque feels more comfortable in a position of "control" let's say. He can decide how much closer or not to get to Wukong.

Then in the future they would be more comfortable to switch (and the bicker about who should be the big or small)

@sallyvanna ha chiesto:HAIII FIRST OF ALL I LOVE YOUR BIO PARENT AU it makes my day every time I see a new page postedI was just wondering, why was macaque kinda nervous when he summoned rumble and savage? He was like 'ah shit I didn't want that-' 👀

It was because the kid would be afraid of them! Of course he wouldn't. But I guess Macaque still feels like his powers are a threat to him.

@redwrathroit ha chiesto:Hey, note this is something you can completely ignore but I wanted to know if you had a ref sheet for your monkey Bois, I'd love to take a try and drawing them plus I had made an Oc character of my own but I did it once and then art block hit me like a train and said; nah, never again. So it would really help me out if you have a ref, if not ignore this and have a nice day/night

Unfortunately I don't. I have a lot of panels where you can see them full body in various stances though.

Anonimo ha chiesto:Wukong being the little spoon is too cute, he spends years being the big spoon platonically to everyone that someone finally gave him what was needed, to be protected instead of being the protector

Yesss he iss!!!!!!

@froggyofdeath ha chiesto:Question abt Shadowpeach bio parents! Sooo, who kills the spiders, who screaming abt them, who the one who picks it up and try to scare the screaming one?🫠✨️✨️✨️✨️✨️✨️✨️✨️✨️✨️✨️✨️✨️✨️✨️✨️✨️✨️✨️✨️✨️✨️✨️✨️☕️☕️☕️☕️

Mk is screaming, Wukong picks it up, Macaque kills it.

Anonimo ha chiesto:Can we see exactly when they decided to prepare the courtnapping room? Like when exactly did they know oh we need to prepare that our son has apparently followed in our footsteps

Unfortunately in this AU for now I don't plan tp draw a full spicynoodle arc as well. There will be moments for the ship as well but more like extras and side stories.

Anonimo ha chiesto:Your shadowpeach bio au reminds me of something..... I remember you saying to someone that they should Read a Son of Two Dad's. Have you read the entire thing? and the sequel?

Yes I did! Also the sequel, but i think it s in hiatus.

Anonimo ha chiesto:In you newest update for the shadowpeach parent au, that one scene of Macaque looking at Wukong as MK holds his finger kind of reminds me those flashback scenes in movies of the dead lover/wife that is looking at the main character from under a flowing blanket. I have no clue why but the image popped up in my head when I read that part of the comic lmao

I bet when they are back together they will re-create this exact image eventually

Anonimo ha chiesto:I love that Macaque is initiating contact with Wukong. Hugging him, holding his hands, cuddling with him. It makes my heart melt 🥹🥰 And Wukong is giving him opportunities to do so

He is opening the door for Mac to come closer, so that it's his choice how much he can get closer. The last thing Wukong wants is to rush things or do something that would make him more uncomfortable.

Anonimo ha chiesto:Omg! I love your art especially your shadowpeach parent bio au, it's adorable! Although I'm terrified for the next page. Anyway, my question is, why won't you let the monkey trio breathe from the trauma? 😅🥹

Bc apparently chat asked for it

[scarletttries]

Wedding Bells with the Straw Hats... (One Piece Headcanons)

Pairings: Luffy x Reader, Zoro x Reader, Sanji x Reader

Author's Note: Today I am off out on a Hen Do (or bachelorette party for my american readers) so I thought I'd queue some cute little wedding/engagement headcanons for our beloved pirate crew. ❤️ (Also not proofread because I forgot and am now at a bottomless brunch 🥂)

Monkey D. Luffy

- Until the day your rag-tag group of misfit pirates accidentally crashed a wedding, Luffy wouldn't have ever even considered the subject. In theory a wedding sounded like boring adult stuff that didn't interest the ever-changeable captain. But when he witnessed it with his own eyes; the flowers, the smiles, the music, the food. The way your gaze lingered on the bride and groom stood in their best outfits, staring at one another like nothing else had ever mattered in the world, not even the pirate crew bursting in amongst their guests, well that made Luffy reconsider his position.

- As Nami dragged him by the arm away from the mortified guests and the vulnerable cake she was sure Luffy would be captivated by, he was instead fixated by the soft smile on your face. He wasn't sure he'd seen you wear that expression before, but it looked like you were deep in thought and maybe even hopeful about something.

- Letting himself stew on those feelings for the rest of the day, he'd find you out on the deck that evening, still painted with a thoughtful expression. Monkey D. Luffy wasn't exactly a typical boyfriend at the best of times, and you'd never really given any thought to a wedding of you own, but something about the way that happy couple had only had eyes for each other, well it had made you wonder if one day you and Luffy would look at each other that way. It was a strange feeling that had your heart swelling in bittersweet affection; you never had to doubt Luffy's feelings for you, he made his adoration clear every single day, but at the same time you couldn't picture him planning a proposal or wedding, and you weren't sure you could exactly file a marriage certificate as wanted fugitives. It was a sweet dream, but one that may never be able to play out in reality, a thought you accepted even if it stung a little. You wouldn't trade your sweet captain or your life on the seas for anything, so it was okay if it meant losing out on something you had never realised you actually wanted.

- That's how Luffy found you, deep in thought and pondering where your still great love story might end.

"Do you want to get married?" He asked plainly as he came to rest behind you, letting his arms wrap around you as his chest met your back, his chin coming to rest over your shoulder so he could watch your expression shift at his words. His tone was clearly not a proposal, more a theoretical question to explore exactly what his favourite person was thinking. You didn't want to lie and brush off the comment, carefully considering your words before finally settling on a response.

"Maybe, but it's not the most important thing to me." Your hand found his and squeezed as you spoke, keeping your gaze fixed on the star speckled waters in front of you.

"Okay, well if you ever decide either way just let me know first please." He replied in his usual unserious tone, letting his lips land against your cheek before giving you a moment of space.

"Why's that?" You quizzed, never trying to read into Luffy's words when he so often thought things through in a way you could never understand.

"Because if you want to get married you should definitely marry me! And if you asked anyone else I'd be pretty sad about it." He pouted at the thought so sweetly that you couldn't help but giggle at his expression, which only seemed to make him more adorably pathetic in the way he clung to you, sparking a question in your mind, "Luffy, do you want to get married?"

"In general, nah. But to you, definitely." He said it like it was the most obvious thing in the world, his arms seeming to hold you that much tighter at just the thought of it. You twisted in his grasp until you could pull him back into a hug, your face burying itself in his chest. For tonight this was more than enough, and maybe on another strange and beautiful island, you'd tell Luffy you had made up your mind on it.

Roronoa Zoro

- Zoro spent enough of his years as a travelling bounty hunter to know how the world usually works. You find someone special, you fall in love, and then you get married. Admittedly he didn't know exactly what that last part entailed, but he was sure he could figure everything out if he ever found himself in that position.

- The first surprise was that he found someone. A man that usually preferred his own quiet company, Zoro had found you, someone he could hardly bear to go a moment without. Someone that made him want to be better, and kinder, and that made him feel at the same time like he was already enough. Like he just needed to be himself and everything would be okay because if that was good enough for you, then maybe he was better than he thought.

- And then he was in love. He woke up every morning wrapped in your arms and spent every waking moment smiling at the thought of you, until it was time to curl up against you to fall asleep and hope his dreams would be full of you too. Everything he did, from training to fighting to being a part of this crew, he felt like now he was doing it not just for himself, but for you too. And somehow he knew from the way you protected his heart, and returned every soft smile, that you were in love too.

- Which only left marriage on Zoro's mind. He still didn't exactly know what people usually did about that, but honestly it didn't matter. Zoro figured that you two didn't exactly live a normal life anyway, so why should he worry about how exactly you two were supposed to get married.

- Instead one morning you'd blink open your eyes to find him already gazing intently at you, lips slightly parted as if leaving room for words he couldn't seem to find.

"Are you okay Roronoa?" You uttered his name softly, watching a smile twitch on his lips from the way it sounded from yours.

"Yeah. I am." He sighed the words in a more gentle tone than you usually heard him use, his tongue darting over his lips as he prepared to speak again. "I love you. And you love me right?" You nodded at the words, unsure where he was going with this train of thought so early in the day. "So I should be your husband?"

If you had had a thousand guesses of what Zoro would ask you, you still wouldn't have picked that as you watched him stare at you in anticipation, as if he'd just asked you the simplest question in the world. It wasn't like him to be so open with his feelings, and you didn't want to do anything that might him suddenly panic and flee, so you tried to conjure your most matter-of-fact tone to match his.

"If you want to be my husband, then yes, you should be." He nodded at the words in agreement, satisfied that the conversation had gone as hoped and with a swift kiss landed on your lips he got up to start his day. As your husband.

- Cut to the rest of the crew losing their minds the first time Zoro calls himself your husband. Nami can't understand when you found the time to get married without anyone else noticing, and Zoro doesn't understand what she means. You didn't need to *get* married, you just *are* married. And neither of you would have it any other way.

Sanji

- Since the day he first saw a wedding cake, Sanji has dreaming of his own special day. The pageantry, the romance of it all, the dedication and proud declaration of love shared in front of the world. It was the most perfect thing he could imagine. He simply knew it would be the finest day of his life.

- Finding someone to share in that dream had been a little bit harder than he'd hoped. He was quick to infatuation, and flirting, and making every woman in his life feel like a princess. But it was much harder to find someone who he truly wanted to share his life with, and who he felt he could actually be enough for.

- Finally he found you, the person he knew deep down he had been meant to find his whole life. Your kindness, your beauty, your mind. Everything about you was more suited to Sanji than he could have ever dreamed possible, and that's what made it so difficult for him to imagine you'd have any interest in a nobody like him. It was up to you to make every first move; to finally tell him you like his flirting a little more than everyone else does, to land that first sweet kiss against his lips and then hold him upright as he melted into your touch, to tell him you loved him for exactly who he is and that he was everything you needed. Every inch of sweetness you gave him, he returned tenfold with his affections, but he could never quite believe you wanted him enough to cross each boundary first.

- So when you witnessed a small wedding party rushing out of temple in a cloud of cherry blossom petals on one of the islands you visited, and you watched Sanji's eyes grow wide and glistening as he watched the happy couple and then turned to wondrously gaze at you, you knew this would be another conversation where you had to take the lead.

- That night as you lay beside him in bed, you fought the sly smile on your lips as you brought up the wedding you'd seen, and watched him turn into a lovestruck romantic as expected.

"Oh wasn't it beautiful! Truly can anyone ever be as lucky as two people so in love!" You tried to keep your tone as casual as possible as you replied to his lovesick ramble,

"I can't wait to get married one day, what about you Sanji?" You could see him visibly gulp as he tried to reign in his enthusiasm enough to avoid potentially overstepping, praying your comment was limited to marrying him, but worried it was a more general desire.

"Yes my love, I'd like to get married one day too." He searched your face desperately for a sign of if you were pleased by his answer, or if you could feel his hopeless longing for you in every syllable he uttered.

"I'm very glad to hear that." You replied with a playful edge to your words, capturing his lips before he had the chance to spiral any further. You could almost feel the second your sentiment sunk in, his kiss growing more desperate as his arms wrapped around you, tipping your back against the mattress so he could clamber on top of you and envelop you with his body. Through frantic breath and desperate kisses you could just about make out his words,

"Oh my love, you are too good for me, the next island we stop at I swear, I'll find the most beautiful ring in the world for you, it will be the perfect day, I will be the perfect husband I promise, you bring me endless joy..I love you."

[inamindfarfaraway]

An experience I tire of having on Batman comics AO3:

Fanfic Writer: Here’s a story about a character dealing with the trauma of childhood sexual abuse.

Me: Ah yes, a goldmine for angst. Who’s the character? Selina Kyle or Holly Robinson, who were forced into prostitution at a young age while homeless and desperate? Stephanie Brown, who was groomed for molestation as a kid, barely escaped and then had a creepy relationship with an older man that resulted in a teenage pregnancy?

Writer: Actually, it’s Jason Todd.

Me: Oh. Huh. Jason has never been sexually abused in comics canon.

Writer: Yes, but we don’t know that he wasn’t. He was homeless and desperate as a kid! He could have been a prostitute!

Me: Well, that’s… just Selina and Holly’s backstories, but okay. What else you got?

Writer: I have a fic about a character learning to feel secure in a home and found family after an unstable, abusive, deprived childhood.

Me: Cool! That applies to all the aforementioned female characters and Cassandra Cain, who was a homeless vagrant for ten years after fleeing the absolute hell of her upbringing. It’s part of why I enjoy their arcs so much.

Writer: I also have one where a character is acting as the protector of the poor community they grew up in, with a special focus on looking out for kids in similar situations to them, wanting to be there for them in contrast to how the adults in their own life had failed them. They reflect on their past and stuff. You know, how they have hope for this community against all odds. Even if they might have been part of the systematic problems keeping these underprivileged people down earlier in their career, but now they want to atone for that.

Me: This is exactly why Selina become a vigilante instead of just a thief! She did some self-reflection and realised that having made her own fortune, she’d abandoned the lower classes to indulge herself like all the complacent social elites she hates. So she vowed to protect and support the East End, her old neighbourhood (which happens to contain Crime Alley). She and Holly both later ran the Alleytown Kids, a gang of needy children that Selina had been a member of in her day. She even renamed it to the Alleytown Strays. And the idea of becoming what your childhood self needed, both for yourself and all the kids like you today, is foundational to why Stephanie ascending as Batgirl feels so right to me; she went from being a girl sitting on her roof wishing a Bat would save her to being the Bat saving and inspiring kids.

Writer: Yeah, but how does this sound? A hero’s war with depression, self-loathing, even suicidal ideation. They wonder if they can do anything but kill. They carry the pain of being violently murdered, thanks to their own long-lost mother no less, after which they were resurrected and later separately healed in a Lazarus Pit.

Me: I love it! Are you referring to Cassandra?

Writer: Um. Ooh, how about this fic? It has a gritty, tragic, tormented antihero wrestling with the moral complexity of their lethal actions, their fraught relationships with the Batfamily, and how closely they veer to embodying the very evil they seek to destroy. They’re true vengeance in a purer, sharper form than Batman, who they at once emulate and scorn. A hunter stalking Gotham’s worst souls in the night. They go on a beautiful journey to discover some degree of idealism, build stronger bonds, navigate emotional vulnerability and dare to believe that they are not damned or broken, and are still capable of healing as well as hurting. There are also themes of religion and spirituality.

Me: …What religion?

Writer: The antihero is Catholic.

Me: Oh my God. That has to be Helena Bertinelli.

Writer:

Me:

Writer:

Me: All your stories are about Jason Todd, aren’t they?

Writer: No! Some of them are about Dick Grayson or Tim Drake!

I love Jason and Dick and Tim. I adore many fics that revolve around them. But not every story needs to do that. Female characters have just as much grounds for interesting fanfiction, and often decisively more grounds for specific tropes that I often see assigned to the guys.

[iamnotoriginalphil]

A Stupid Decision (Alex Cabot x f!Reader)

Synopsis: You always make stupid decisions when beautiful women are involved and Alex Cabot is so very beautiful.

Words: 4k

Warnings: Alcohol consumption, jealousy, boss/employee relationship, some self-esteem issues, marking, possessiveness, biting, edging, swearing

Going out to the bar that night had been an inspired idea. You’d won your case, your biggest one yet. Your closing arguments had been a thing of beauty. Untouchable was the word that had been thrown around.

You’d laughed it off but it made you glow from the inside out.

Being swept out the door to celebrate had been natural. It was hard to argue when you’d been so phenomenal. So when your colleagues had said it, you hadn’t required much convincing.

Now, a few drinks down, your limbs loose and your thoughts fun, you were so glad you’d gone out. The music was loud enough that people were dancing, your lips moving along with the lyrics. You were laughing, head thrown back, feeling freer without the stress of the case weighing you down. You hadn’t realised just how much it had been effecting you.

You rolled your head away, feeling deliciously loose, but not so much that you were growing sloppy. Just the right amount of alcohol coursing through your system to loosen you up, to make you feel easier in your own body. A flash of blonde hair had you focusing.

Blue eyes, cool enough to be ice shards, were watching you. Lifting your drink, you cheered her from across the bar. It might not be the smart decision, but it was the impulse you were following. Her lips pursed, reminding you exactly why it was a bad idea to give in to your alcohol fuelled thoughts.

“Come dance.”

Warm hands grasped yours. You dragged your attention away from the woman at the other end of the bar, the woman you knew but not as well as you’d like, and found your friend grinning at you. You let her drag you onto the dance floor, the bass thumping in your veins. You held onto her as your hips swayed, singing along to the stupid pop song being pumped through the speakers.

Your head tipped back, your laugh easy and light. Your arms curled around her neck while hers landed on your waist. It was nice to let yourself go after being wound so tight. Although you could think of a wonderful way to relax.

Your head rolled back towards the blonde at the bar. She was still watching, lips pursed around a straw, cheeks hollowing as she sucked. Your mouth grew dry.

“I need another drink,” you said, leaning closer to your friend to shout in her ear.

She released you with a good natured shove, directing you back towards the bar. You tottered over to her end of the bar. Leaning forward, forearms on the bar, you shouted your order to the bartender. Then, you chose to do the thing you knew was a bad idea.

Your hip resting against the bar, you turned towards her. Alexandra Cabot. The beauty at the end of the bar. And your boss.

“You should have told us you were coming out tonight,” you said, “you could have joined us.”

“Yes, because nothing brings up the mood like the boss joining in on a boozy night out,” she said.

You shifted closer under the guise of trying to hear better. From the way her lips pulled up you weren’t sure you were selling it very well.

“We’re celebrating,” you said, “as a team.”

“You look like you’re having fun,” she said.

“I just won the biggest case of my career. I think I’m entitled to some,” you said.

“Enjoy it,” she said.

The bartender slid your drink over to you. You picked it up, tongue pulling the straw into your mouth as you smiled at Alex. You saw the way her gaze focused on your mouth before she pulled it back to your eyes. You tilted your head to the side, taking a slow drink with your straw.

Her hand shifted across the bar towards you. One leg crossed over the other, looking so unbelievably long. You would give anything to sink between them.

“You did well today,” she said.

“I learnt from the best,” you replied, “plus, I have my secret weapon.”

“Oh?” She raised an eyebrow at you.

You lent closer until your lips were brushing the shell of her ear.

“I’m wearing something to give me a bit of extra confidence,” you whispered.

“You’re playing a dangerous game.” Her voice lowered into something that shot straight between your legs.

“Am I?” You lent back to take a sip from your drink.

“I’m your boss,” she said.

“And you’re beautiful.”

The expression on her face was one you could revel in. All smouldering eyes and smirking lips. You’d caught glimpses of it before but to have it completely focused on you, full power, had you pressing your thighs together. Her smirk deepened and you knew she’d noticed.

The trouble with having such a hot boss was the way it made you feel insane. One nice compliment, one smile, one lingering look and your heart went into over time and your imagination went spiralling out in ways it shouldn’t. Alex was completely off limits, no matter how gorgeous.

You were blowing right through those limits with alcohol and joy running through your veins.

Her fingertips brushed the back of your hand, the one curled around the cool glass of your drink. Your lips parted and her gaze fell back to them. Your tongue dragged along your lower lip, watching her eyes follow it with obvious interest.

“You’re drunk,” she said.

“I’m not,” you replied.

“You must be or else you wouldn’t be trying this,” she said, “you know better.”

“I don’t. Pretty women make me stupid.” You grinned at her.

She rolled her eyes but her lips were still curling up into a smile. You shifted just a little closer, close enough to feel the warmth of her body, wondering what her skin would feel like beneath your hands. Your eyes dipped down, lingering on the shadow of the curve of her breast. Your mouth watered.

“And how stupid are you feeling tonight?” she asked.

“Enough to make a bad decision.”

You lent towards her, ready to risk it all for a kiss. Her hand on your shoulder stilled you, keeping you from carrying through with your bad decision. You froze, looking down at her, wondering if this was the moment she told you it was never going to happen, that there would be a HR meeting, that you would be cautioned at work.

“Go have fun,” she said, eyes running over your body before they met your gaze again, “one of us has to be the smart one.”

“Says who?”

You flashed her a wink before you turned back to the dance floor. Your colleagues cheered when you joined them, welcoming you back with open arms. You went easily enough.

Only as one song progressed to the next, your hips swayed in time with the beat and you kept glancing over your shoulder to see if a certain pair of blues eyes were on you. Every single time they were. It sent a thrill through you.

A pair of hands landed on your hips, a body brushing against your back. You turned, a pair of dark eyes looking down at you, full lips smirking as this woman guided you to the music. You lent back against her, letting her take the lead. When you glanced up, the blue eyes were gone.

The pang of disappointment lasted the length of one heartbeat to the next. Long fingers curled around your wrist, tugging you forward, away from the stranger. There they were, your blue eyes, flashing with anger. You grinned up at her.

“What happened to being smart?” you asked.

“Fuck that.”

Her lips descended on yours, hungry and possessive. You whimpered, pressing closer, your arms curling around her neck. She consumed you completely, kissing you like she owned you. She did.

“We’re leaving,” she growled, “now.”

“I thought you wanted me to have fun,” you said, blinking your eyes up at her, faking your innocence.

“You’ll be having fun. I promise,” she said.

Her fingers threaded through yours, dragging you off the dance floor and out of the bar. You slid into the cab beside her, her hand landing on your thigh. You shifted, legs opening enough to see her knowing smirk even as she faced forward.

Her hand climbed your thigh, inching higher and higher with every passing moment, even as the silence stretched. You squirmed, already feeling how wet you were growing. She’d barely touched you. It was embarrassing.

You followed her into an apartment building, modern and new, far more expensive than anything you could afford. In the lift, you kept your back pressed to the far wall, letting your eyes travel over her body. The tight skirt of her dress was doing wonders for her ass.

Her apartment was nice. So nice. The nicest place you’d been in a while. But all that was lost as her hands landed on your hips and her lips descended on your neck. You weren’t sure what you were expecting. Maybe a flurry of tearing clothes off and falling into bed, all desperate need and fire burning hot. Somehow, this was both better and worse.

You lent back against her, there in her living room, feeling the heat of her kisses on your skin. Your head tipped to her shoulder, letting her hold you up as one of her hands was slow to slide up your body.

“So which article of clothing was your secret weapon?” she asked, lips brushing your skin.

“Guess,” you shot back.

“This blouse?” she asked as her fingers began to undo the buttons.

“Try again,” you said, arching your back when her fingers brushed over your newly exposed skin.

“This skirt?” she guessed.

You shook your head as her fingers lowered the zip at the back. Stepping out of her hold, you slid the blouse from your shoulders. You bent, pushing the skirt over your hips and stepping out of it. Tuning, you let her look your fill at your exposed body, taking in your secret weapon.

When you’d put the lingerie on that morning, it had been to give you an extra pep to your step as you did closing arguments. A little secret no one else would know about it. Something to help you feel like you were in control as you sent the pervert to prison for the rest of his life.

Now, standing in front of her, waiting to see her response, you felt those nerves that always came when you let someone see you so vulnerable. Her eyes were dark as the swept over your body, lingering long enough for you to wonder if you looked monstrous.

“When you put this little set on, were you planning on someone seeing it?” she asked, still staring at your body.

“I was hoping,” you said.

Her eyes met yours, jaw clenching. You shifted your weight from foot to foot, unsure if the look she was giving you was a good thing or not.

“Who were you hoping would see it?” she asked.

“Do you want the full list?” Now probably wasn’t the time for jokes.

“Only the top contender,” she said.

“You.” You looked down at your feet, “I was hoping if I did well enough on this case you would…”

“Ravage you on your desk in reward?”

Your gaze shot up to her, the heat on your cheeks burning. You weren’t about to admit that yes, that was a fantasy you’d had. Not necessarily the one you’d had while dressing that morning, but certainly one you’d spent enough time on.

“You’ve been having some very naughty thoughts,” she said.

“Only about you,” you said with a small shrug.

Her hands were burning when they met your bare skin. You made such a small noise, one that was somewhere between a whimper and plea. With a soft touch, her finger ran along the waistband of your panties.

“I’m still your boss,” she said.

“And you’re still beautiful,” you replied.

She considered you a moment before she lent forward, kissing you again. Your hands clutched at her blazer, dragging her closer. Her tongue was in your mouth, tasting of the burn of whiskey and the heat of desire. Her hands slid around your body, gripping your waist tight enough to feel delicious.

When she began to walk you back, you kicked your heels off, not needing to fall on your ass while trying to be sexy. Your hands dragged her blazer off her shoulders, losing it in the hurry of being shoved backwards towards what you hoped was her bedroom. You dragged your nails down the length of her back, not sure she could feel it but needing something to ground yourself as she lit the fire in your veins.

The back of your knees hit the mattress and you fell back. She let you go, standing over you, eyes raking over you. You shivered under her dark gaze, wondering what she was seeing.

“You’ve really been wearing this all day?” she asked.

“Uh huh.”

She groaned, low in her throat.

“I was watching in court today,” she said, eyes slipping closed, “knowing you had this on under your clothes…”

“Makes you want to ravage me on my desk?”

Her raised eyebrow was implied as she looked down at you, the irony not lost on you. But she opened that door. It wasn’t your fault if she didn’t like where it might lead.

“You’re a brat, you know that?” But even as she said it her lips were curling up.

“You like it,” you said.

“Don’t assume,” she said, “even if you’re right.”

She swooped down, her lips on yours again. Your legs curled around her waist, trapping her against you. You moaned, hot and filthy, doing your best to urge her on. Her lips trailed down from your jaw to your neck. Your head fell back, giving her as much space as she wanted as she sucked what you knew would be a hickey into your skin. You’d let her mark you up all pretty as much as she wanted.

You were hers. It was time everyone else figured it out too. Even her.

Her teeth scraped over your skin. Your legs tightened around her, trying to draw her closer. You moaned her name, not caring how you sounded, just needing her. Her next suck was harsh, almost painful, but in the best way possible.

When she kissed around to the other side you let her. The thought of having mirror image marks on your body was turning you on more than you could express. Her hands were cupping your breasts, thumbs finding your hardening nipples through the lace of your bra. You whimpered, fingers pushing into her hair as you held her in place.

Her tongue dragged over your skin. You sighed, hips pressing up against her. She chuckled as she moved down to your chest, lips following the curve of your breast, pushed up in the scraps of lace covering them. Your back arched, offering yourself to her mouth.

“Fuck, this should be made illegal,” she groaned into your skin.

“What?” you asked, breathless and desperate for more.

“You in this.” Her finger snapped the shoulder strap of the bra, “you look too good in it.”

You squirmed under the intensity of her gaze. Her fingers pinched your nipple. The stuttery moan that fell from your lips was the only answer you could give her.

“I’m going to make sure no one ever sees you in this set again,” she said.

“How?” you asked, surprised you could form even a single word as she rolled your nipple between thumb and forefinger.

“By making you mine.”

Alex Cabot was going to ruin you.

She dragged the bra from your body, tossing it aside like it meant nothing. Her lips were all over you, teeth scraping over skin, suckling on your nipples in a way that had you arching into her, crying out, begging for more.

She was so warm, so hot as she touched you, lapping at your skin, turning your thoughts hazy. When you’d thought about this moment, in those dark hours of the night buried beneath your covers, fingers skimming over your own skin, it hadn’t even come close to the reality. You felt insane, clutching at her as her mouth worked wonders on you.

It wasn’t as she began to trail her mouth downwards that you even thought about how much better it could be. She might dominate in the courtroom, her mouth clever and smart, but with you, it was dirty. It was hot and all consuming and capable of things you hadn’t realised. The things you wanted to do to that mouth were not appropriate for company to hear.

“Alex,” you whimpered, hips pressing up as she reached the waistband of your panties.

“Next time you wear this,” she said, lips pressing to your inner thigh, “tell me beforehand. I want to picture you walking around the office just like this.”

“Yes,” you hissed as her teeth sunk in.

“So fucking pretty,” she groaned.

Her tongue pressed to the wet patch on your panties. You gasped, hips bucking up into her mouth. When you looked down your body, her blue eyes were trained on you already, lips pulling up in a smirk.

“Alex. Need you,” you managed to say.

“Oh no, princess. You started this little game. You can’t be mad that you’re losing,” she said.

“Doesn’t feel like losing,” you said.

She tore your panties off you.

“Then let me make myself very clear,” she said, lowering until her breath ghosted over you glistening folds, “you do what I tell you and if you impress me, I’ll make sure you won’t be able to remember your own name.”

“Doesn’t sound like losing,” you said.

Her teeth sunk into your inner thigh, deep enough for you to yelp.

“Want to try that again?” she asked.

“Yes ma’am,” you said.

“Good girl.”

Her tongue swept through your folds, the heat building. She would burn you to ash, of that you were certain. Her hands kept your hips pinned to the mattress, stopping you from encouraging her on. You sighed her name, glad to finally have her touching you where you needed her most. You were throbbing.

“You’re fucking dripping,” she said, looking up your body.

“You’re fucking gorgeous,” you replied.

She rewarded you by wrapping her lips around your clit, sucking on it in a way that had your eyes rolling back in your head. You squeezed your eyes closed, letting yourself feel everything she was giving you. Her hands were still keeping you pinned, forcing you to only take what she wanted you to, never more, never quite enough.

She took her time, exploring you, finding all the ways to turn you into a live wire of desire. Every whimper seemed to only make her more determined to draw out more from you. She took you apart and then let you stew in it before taking you apart all over again.

“Eyes on me,” she said, after the third time she’d brought you to the edge only to bring you back.

And like the perfect little employee who knew how to follow orders, you forced your eyes open to look right into hers. They were sparkling as they looked up at you. Her tongue dipped into your entrance and you found yourself whimpering her name.

She was methodical. She’d taken note of everything that made you feel alive, cataloguing them as she found more. With the kind of precision you’d witnessed in court, she applied everything she’d learnt and built you back up to the precipice so quickly it was mind boggling. Your fingers were still threaded through her hair, holding her to your heat.

It was her long fingers that were your undoing. First one, then a second pushed into you. You were trembling beneath her, legs thrown over her shoulders, clutching at her as she split you open. Her name was nothing but a moan, almost unintelligible. Her fingers curled, seeking out just a little more from you.

You broke apart underneath her, crying out her name, wondering if the heavens could hear you. It washed over you, an unstoppable force, wave after wave of pleasure crashing into your body. She eased you through it, lapping at you, drinking down everything that came from you.

She watched you through the entire thing.

You fell back, your laughter shaky as a hand passed over your face. She eased your legs back to the bed, unpinning your hips. A soft kiss was pressed to your hipbone. You looked down your body at her, finding her lips pulled up into a very pleased smile.

“Fuck, you’re amazing,” you said, turning your gaze up to the ceiling.

You felt the mattress shift under you as she lay beside you. Your turned your face towards her as her hand splayed over your stomach. You liked it, the way her touch felt like a claiming, even after what you’d just done.

“Still think this was a stupid decision?” she asked.

“Oh, probably,” you said, “but it was definitely worth it.”

“You’re not going to wake up tomorrow and regret it?”

Her expression turned serious. You rolled onto your side, gently cupping your cheek as you lent forward. The kiss was soft, a simple thing but all the reassurance you could give.

“I’ve been wanting this for long enough that I could never regret it,” you said, “unless you decide to ice me out now.”

“Not happening,” she said.

“Promise?”

Her fingers traced over the planes of your face and you shuffled closer. Those eyes of hers had always been intense, but this was different. This was more. Like she was x-raying your very soul and didn’t find you wanting the way others had.

“I’m afraid you’re stuck with me,” she said.

“Good.”

You settled against her, sliding an arm around her waist. She was so warm against you, so soft, the antithesis to how she seemed at work. There was no ice now.

“And you don’t regret it?” you asked.

“I don’t think anyone could regret you,” she replied, her fingers playing with the ends of your hair.

“But I didn’t even manage to get you out of your clothes,” you said, propping your chin on her chest to look at her properly.

“This was about you, baby. A reward for a job well done,” she said.

“And what if I want to eat something as my reward?” you asked.

“Don’t be greedy,” she laughed.

“I can’t help it,” you said, “when it comes to you I can’t get enough.”

“I’ve noticed.”

She was smiling in a way that made your heart flutter.

“You demand my attention, you’re desperate for my praise, and you watch me when you think I don’t notice. But I do. I always notice you,” she said, voice low enough to send a shiver down your spine.

“Oh yeah? What do you notice about me?” you asked, shifting to straddle her waist, looking down at her.

Her fingers trailed up your thighs, sending heat flicking through your veins again. The patterns she drew over your skin made you breathless, even as you were still recovering from the intense orgasm she’d already given you.

“What a desperate little slut you are,” she said.

Her fingers dug into your thighs, hard enough to hurt, but you found your hips already rolling against her, seeking out some friction.

“Proving my point so beautifully,” she murmured, gaze turning towards your undulating hips.

“Gonna do something about it?” you asked.

She did something about it that stopped you running your mouth again.

[ruewrote]

𝑡𝑎𝑘𝑒 𝑦𝑜𝑢𝑟 ℎ𝑒𝑎𝑟𝑡 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑔𝑜.

PAIRING: jj maybank x fem!reader WARNINGS: jealously, arguments, no use of y/n GENRE: angst SONG INSPIRATION: is there someone else? by the weeknd WORD COUNT: 4.1k REQUESTED: yes NOTE: can you tell that me breaking no contact didn't go well?

navigation | ask | jj maybank masterlist

you were tired. not the kind of tired you could fix with a good night’s sleep or an extra cup of coffee. 

no, this was deeper. heavier. it had been weighing on you for months, maybe longer, and no matter how much you told yourself you were done.

that this time would be the last, you always found yourself right back where you started, with jj.

it wasn’t the kissing that made you feel this way, not exactly. you liked kissing him. god, you loved kissing him. the way his lips tasted faintly of weed and beer, the way he held you like you were the only thing grounding him. 

the way his stupid grin would soften just for you, his cocky bravado melting into something almost vulnerable. for a few fleeting hours, it felt like everything you wanted, everything you’d dreamed of since the first time you realised how deep your feelings for him ran.

but it was never real. not when the alcohol was buzzing in his veins, not when he whispered things he’d never say in the harsh light of day. “you know it’s always been you, right?” his voice would crack sometimes, and you’d feel your heart breaking and healing all at once. 

or there’d be the quiet, desperate promises. “one day, i’m gonna do right by you. i swear.” and for a moment, you’d believe him.

you always believed him.

but then the sun would rise, and jj would be gone. not gone in the literal sense. no, he’d still be around, cracking jokes, causing trouble, being him. but it was like the version of him you got in the middle of the night didn’t exist in the daylight. 

instead, you’d see him with someone else, his arm slung around some girl, his attention completely absorbed by her like you’d never even crossed his mind.

it wasn’t just one time. it wasn’t even a few times. it was a pattern, and it was breaking you. because as much as you wanted to hate him for it, you couldn’t. you couldn’t hate him for being who he was, for not giving you the thing you so desperately wanted but he so clearly wasn’t ready to give.

you hated the way you let him in, over and over again. the way you believed the things he said, even when he never followed through on them. you hated the way your heart sped up when he looked at you, even though you knew that look wouldn’t last. 

you hated the way your chest ached every time you saw him with someone else, the way you had to swallow the lump in your throat and force a smile like it didn’t matter.

but it did matter. it mattered too much.

so, you told yourself you were done. this time, for real. no more stolen kisses, no more whispered promises. no more jj.

moving on wasn’t easy, though. it wasn’t like you could just flip a switch and stop caring. but you tried. you told yourself it was okay to look at other guys, to flirt a little, to remind yourself that there were people out there who might actually be able to give you what jj couldn’t.

at first, it felt hollow. empty. none of the guys you talked to really clicked, and you started to wonder if you were just wasting your time. but then there was jackson.

jackson wasn’t like jj. he didn’t have that wild spark, that untamed energy that drew people in. but maybe that was a good thing. because jackson was steady. reliable. the kind of guy who made you feel safe instead of uncertain.

he wasn’t one for grand gestures or flashy moves. but he was thoughtful in ways that caught you off guard. like when he texted you first thing in the morning, asking how you slept. or when he remembered little things about you. your favorite coffee order, the song you hummed under your breath when you thought no one was listening.

and maybe the chemistry wasn’t instant. maybe there weren’t fireworks or that pull you’d always felt with jj. but there was something else. something quieter. something warmer.

still, there were moments when doubt crept in. 

late at night, when your phone buzzed and you half hoped it was him. even though you knew it wouldn’t be. or when you caught yourself comparing the two of them, wondering if you’d ever feel the same fire you felt for jj with someone else.

the doubt lingered. refusing to leave no matter how much you tried to shake it. 

the room had quieted down, the hum of conversation replaced by the soft rustling of the evening. the others had scattered. pope was buried in his notes on the porch, sarah and john b had disappeared into the twinkie for some ‘alone time,’ and kie had made herself scarce, muttering something about a late-night walk.

that left just you and jj, sprawled on opposite ends of the couch. you had tucked yourself into the corner, scrolling through your phone, a quiet giggle escaping your lips now and then. it wasn’t intentional, but each laugh seemed to draw jj’s attention, his eyes flickering toward you.

“what’s so funny over there?” he finally asked, his tone light but laced with curiosity.

you glanced up at him briefly, your lips still tugged into a soft smile. "nothing," you said casually, shrugging as you turned your attention back to your phone.

he shifted, sitting up slightly, leaning toward you, his eyebrows raised. "nah, come on. don’t give me that. who’s got you giggling like that? share with the class."

you hesitated, your fingers tightening around your phone as you debated whether or not to answer. you weren’t doing anything wrong, not really, but something about admitting you were texting jackson felt... complicated.

"it’s just jackson," you said finally, keeping your tone light. "he sent me something funny."

jj froze for a split second, so brief you might have missed it if you weren’t paying attention. but then he leaned back, his smirk slipping into place. "oh, jackson, huh?" he drawled, his voice dripping with something that wasn’t quite teasing but wasn’t far from it either. 

"what’s he got you laughing about? some dad joke or something?"

you rolled your eyes, trying to ignore the way his sudden shift made your stomach twist. "it’s not a big deal, jayj," you said, shrugging again. "just a funny meme. relax."

"relax? i’m totally relaxed," he shot back, but there was an edge to his voice now, subtle but obvious to you. he stretched out on the couch, his arm draping over the back, his eyes fixed on you. "i mean, good for you, right? jackson seems like... a solid guy."

you could feel the tension creeping into the air between you, and you hated it. you hated how jj could make something so small feel so heavy, how his words, his tone, could tangle you up inside even when you tried so hard not to let them.

"yeah, he is," you said quietly, your eyes still on your phone. "he’s nice."

"nice," jj repeated, the word rolling off his tongue like it left a bad taste in his mouth. "that’s great. real exciting."

you looked up at him then, your gaze meeting his, and for a moment, the cocky mask he wore slipped. there was something raw in his eyes, something he couldn’t quite hide no matter how hard he tried.

"why do you care?" you asked softly, the question hanging between you.

he opened his mouth to answer, then closed it again, his jaw tightening. for a moment, it looked like he might actually say something real, something honest. but then he shook his head, his smile sliding back into place.

"i don’t," he said with a shrug, his voice light and breezy. "just curious, that’s all. you know me, always gotta know what’s going on."

but you weren’t convinced, and from the way he avoided your eyes, you knew he wasn’t either.

you turned back to your phone, trying to focus on jackson’s message, but jj’s presence was impossible to ignore. the warmth of his presence, the way his leg brushed against yours when he shifted. everything about him pulled at you, even when you didn’t want it to.

the tension had been building for days, his snide comments had started small. barely noticeable jabs that you brushed off with a roll of your eyes. but they didn’t stop. every interaction seemed to carry a sharper edge, a hidden layer of something he wouldn’t address. and while he never said anything outright about what had been between you, it was there, unspoken, colouring every word that left his mouth.

by the end of the week, it had become unbearable.

you were sitting at home, sprawled on your bed with the tv on for background noise, trying to find some semblance of peace. but jj had shown up unannounced, like he always did, at first, he just hovered, pacing around your room, muttering something about john b, then pope, then kie. and when that didn’t hold his attention, he turned his focus to you.

"really?" he scoffed, nodding toward your phone. "let me guess, you’re texting jackson. again."

you froze, your grip on the phone tightening as your pulse spiked. he was baiting you. again, but this time, you weren’t in the mood to play along. "what’s your problem, jj?" you said, not looking up.

"my problem?" he said, his voice cutting as his eyes flicked over you. "i don’t have a problem. just didn’t realise you were into guys who need a manual to figure you out. guess you finally found someone slow enough to keep up."

that was it. that was the breaking point.

you stood up so fast your phone fell onto the floor, your chest heaving as you rounded on him. "what the hell is wrong with you?" you snapped, your voice louder than you’d intended. 

"you’ve been like this all week, taking cheap shots, acting like a total asshole. why? because i’m trying to move on? because i’m finally doing something for myself instead of waiting around for you to get your shit together?"

jj blinked, startled by the sudden outburst, but his defenses went up just as quickly. his jaw tightened, and he crossed his arms over his chest, leaning back slightly. "i don’t know what you’re talking about," he said, his voice colder now. "i’m just calling it like i see it."

"calling it like you see it?" you repeated, your voice shaking with anger. "no, jj. you’re being a coward. you can’t handle the fact that i’m not waiting around for you anymore, so you’re lashing out like some jealous boyfriend. grow up!"

"jealous?" he scoffed, his laugh bitter. "of jackson? please. the guy you’re settling for?”

"stop it," you snapped, your voice breaking slightly. "just stop. you don’t get to do this. you don’t get to act like this when you’re the one who’s been stringing me along for months. you don’t get to pick and choose when to care about me. you either want me, jj, or you don’t. but i can’t keep doing this with you."

for a moment, the room was silent, your words hanging heavy in the air between you. jj’s expression flickered, his mask slipping for just a second, and you saw something raw in his eyes. guilt. pain. maybe even regret. but it wasn’t enough. not this time.

"that’s what i thought," you said, your voice quieter now but still stern. "you can’t even say it, can you? you can’t admit that you don’t want me, but you can’t stand the thought of someone else making me happy either. that’s not love, jj. that’s just being selfish."

he opened his mouth to say something, but you didn’t give him the chance. you shook your head, turning away from him as tears stung the corners of your eyes. "just go," you said, your voice trembling. "i can’t do this anymore."

but he didn’t move. he stayed frozen in the same spot, staring at you, like he was waiting for something.

you whipped around to face him, your hands shaking. "why the hell are you still here?" you snapped, fury rising in your chest. "are you really just gonna stand there? if you won’t leave, then i will."

without another word, you turned and stormed down the stairs, the adrenaline making your steps faster, sharper. you grabbed the door, slamming it behind you so hard the house seemed to tremble. 

you didn’t stop. your feet pounded the pavement, the cool night air biting at your skin, but you didn’t care. in all your anger, you hadn’t even grabbed a jacket, and now the chill of the night was cutting through you. 

you found yourself heading to the beach without even thinking. the sound of the waves crashing against the shore was distant, muffled by the pounding of your pulse in your ears.

you reached the sand, and collapsed down, too exhausted to care about the discomfort. the wind howled around you, you pulled your knees to your chest, wrapping your arms around them as if you could hold yourself together that way. 

the tears that had been threatening for so long finally broke free, flooding down your cheeks as the full weight of it hit you.

you couldn’t stop the sobs, each one shaking through your body. it felt like every bit of the anger, the hurt, the confusion, and the love you had poured into jj over the months came crashing down all at once. it wasn’t fair.

none of it was. you had given him everything, trusted him, believed his empty promises, and now... you were sitting alone on the beach in the dark, freezing cold, with nothing left but the ache in your chest.

you buried your face into your knees, the salt of your tears mixing with the salt of the ocean breeze, as you let the emptiness swallow you whole.

the tears had stopped, but they clung to your skin, leaving long streaks down your cheeks. your eyes were swollen, your lips tender and raw from the sobbing, and you just sat there, numb, staring out at the dark expanse of the ocean. 

the waves crashed relentlessly, matching the rhythm of the ache inside you, but you couldn't bring yourself to care. 

you had no idea how much time had passed. minutes? hours? the world felt like it had gone quiet around you, just you and the ocean. and then, the sound of footsteps. at first, you didn’t acknowledge it. 

you figured it was just the wind or some passing stranger, but the steps grew closer. you held your breath, the space around you suddenly feeling claustrophobic, like everything in you knew who was coming, even before you saw him.

the sound of a thud broke the silence as someone sat down beside you. you turned slowly, the muscles in your neck aching, but there he was. of course, it was him.

for a moment, all you could do was stare, the disbelief hitting you. your chest tightened again, and before you could stop it, a tear slipped down your cheek. you wiped it away angrily, but it didn't matter. the damage was already done.

a bitter, humourless laugh escaped you, the sound raw and broken. "why can’t you just leave me alone?" you muttered, the words barely audible. you tried to look away, but your eyes wouldn’t shift from him. 

you hated the way your heart twisted at the sight of him, even now, even after everything.

jj didn’t say anything at first, just sitting there beside you, his presence heavy. you could feel his gaze on you, but you couldn’t bring yourself to meet it. the silence stretched between you, thick with unspoken things.

you glanced back over to him to find his own eyes were swollen, lips and nose tinged pink from what you could only guess were from his own breakdown, his hands still trembling as they rested at his sides. 

you hated how, despite all the pain he’d caused, you still found him pretty in this moment. the vulnerability in him, the way he wore his brokenness so openly, it made your chest ache. it was the last thing you wanted to feel. 

he didn’t speak. neither did you. it felt like you were both waiting for the other to break first. but it wasn’t until the sound of the waves crashing against the shore felt too deafening that he finally spoke, his voice cracked, raw.

“i… i’m sorry," he began, voice thick with something like regret. "i’ve been a fucking idiot, okay? i know i have. and i don’t know how to fix it. i don’t know what i’m doing, or what i’ve done to you… but i need you to know that it’s not because i don’t care.”

his words were stuttering, full of shame, but the way he said it, the way his hands fidgeted, his desperation was impossible to ignore.

“i–god, i fucked this up, didn’t i? i… i always do this. i push, i pull, i make you feel like shit, and then… then i can’t stand the thought of losing you. but every time you walk away, i don’t know how to make you stay. i never know what the right thing to say is, and i just... i just hurt you again and again. i’m so fucking sorry."

you were still staring out at the ocean, fighting the hurt that sat heavy in your chest, fighting the urge to listen to the softness in his voice, to hear him out. but you couldn’t. not yet.

“i’m not asking for your forgiveness,” he said, his voice breaking. “i don’t deserve it. but i need you to know how much i fucking care about you. more than i know how to say. more than i can ever show. it’s like i don’t know what to do with it, so i make everything worse. but you–you matter to me more than anything else in my stupid fucking life. and if you can find it in you to forgive me... if you can just look at me the way you used to, i’ll do anything. i swear, i’ll do whatever it takes.”

his voice was softer now, quieter, almost pleading as he inched closer to you on the sand, his face full of regret. his eyes searched yours, desperate to find any trace of warmth, any sign that you still cared.

“i’m begging you,” he said, his voice trembling. “please. i can’t lose you. i can’t. i know i fucked up, but please. give me the chance to make it right. please don’t walk away from me. not like this.”

the words hung in the air between you, his desperate plea reverberating in the cold night as you sat there, trembling from the weight of it all. your chest felt tight, the pain of everything that had happened pressing on you, threatening to suffocate you. 

his words reached you, pierced through the numbness you had been trying to build around yourself. but you weren’t ready yet, not ready to let go of the anger, the hurt. you wanted to stay mad at him, wanted to keep your distance, to protect yourself.

but you couldn’t.

you felt the floodgates open, and the dam you’d so carefully built up around your heart cracked, letting the years of suppressed feelings break free in one overwhelming rush.

the tears came first, unbidden, streaking down your cheeks as your breath caught in your throat. you wiped at your face, trying to hold it together, but the weight of everything, the heartache that had built up for so long, was impossible to ignore. you turned toward him, your voice shook as you spoke, barely a whisper at first.

“you don’t get it,” you said, the rawness in your voice making it hard to speak. “you don’t get how much i wanted this… how much i wanted you.”

your hands were trembling now, your heart hammering as the words poured out, no longer able to keep them locked inside. “i’ve been holding on to this... this stupid hope, waiting for you to realise how i feel. but i couldn’t do it anymore, jj. i couldn’t keep waiting for you to come around. for you to see me. to see us. every time i tried to let you in, you pushed me away. every time you said you cared, i believed you, and you made me feel like an idiot for it."

you paused, trying to steady your breath as your chest tightened again. 

“i kept telling myself i was done. that i was over it. that i could move on. but every time i saw you with someone else, every time you pulled away, it tore me apart. it felt like i was drowning in it, jj. and i kept asking myself why i kept putting myself through that, why i kept letting you hurt me. but the truth is, i can’t stop wanting you. i can’t stop needing you.”

you took a shaky breath, your eyes brimming with tears again, but this time, they felt different. this time, they were from the depths of everything you’d been holding back. the fear. the hurt. the longing.

“i can’t do it anymore,” you whispered. “i need you. i’ve needed you for so long, but you never, never, let me be close enough. and it’s breaking me. it has been for so long.”

"i don’t want to be this broken, desperate person anymore," you continued, the tears coming faster now. "i can’t keep waiting for you to make up your mind. but god… god, i need you to choose me. i need you to finally see me. not as some game, not as someone you can just toss aside when it's not convenient for you anymore. i need to know you’re here for me. that you want me too.”

you looked up at him then, your heart in your throat, his eyes were wide, filled with a mix of guilt, pain. “i need you, jj,” you said again, your voice barely more than a whisper now. "i don’t care if it’s messy. i don’t care if it’s hard. i just need to know you’re here… that you’re really here."

the weight of it all hung in the air between you, and you felt exposed. but for the first time in what felt like forever, you didn’t care about hiding anymore. you were done pretending you didn’t need him. done pretending you could walk away from what had been growing between you for so long.

he reached out, tentatively at first, like he was scared you’d pull away. his fingers brushed against yours, a gentle touch that seemed to break the tension in the air.

“hey… hey, look at me.” his voice was softer than you had ever heard it, like he was trying to steady himself, trying to make sure he didn’t fuck this up. he moved closer to you, his other hand resting carefully on your cheek, wiping away a tear with the pad of his thumb.

“i’m here,” he said, his voice low, but full of conviction now. “i’m right here, and i’ve always been here, in my messed up way. i know i’ve hurt you. i know i’ve been a fucking idiot. i don’t deserve you, but damn it, i’m not going anywhere. i don’t want anyone else. it’s always been you, even when i was too stupid to admit it to myself. but i’m not afraid anymore.”

he let out a shaky breath, and you could see how real he was being. it wasn’t just the guilt on his face anymore; it was something else, something pure. it was like he was finally letting himself be vulnerable with you, really showing you what he’d been hiding all this time.

“i’m so sorry for making you feel like you had to fight for me,” he whispered, his voice cracking slightly. “i should’ve chosen you from the start. i should’ve seen you. really seen you, for who you are. not just the person who’s always there when i need them. you’re more than that. you always have been.”

his forehead pressed gently against yours, and you could feel his breath mingling with yours. his hand moved to your back, pulling you closer, as if he was afraid that if he let you go, you’d slip away forever.

“i need you too,” he murmured, his lips brushing your ear. “i’m not perfect. i’m never gonna be perfect. but i’ll spend the rest of my life showing you how much you mean to me. because you are my choice. always. you’re all i want.”

the warmth of his words, the tenderness in his touch, broke something open in you, you allowed yourself to lean into him fully. 

all the walls you had built around your heart started to crumble, piece by piece.

comments and reblogs are appreciated ˗ˋˏ ♡ ˎˊ˗

© ruewrote 2024.

[crescenthistory]

Hey Carina congratulations on 2k!! Such a wonderful milestone for a even more wonderful writer I'm happy for you it's more than well deserved

Perhaps I can ask for an Argue? I thought of the prompt 6 from List B the Bookshop AU with Regulus and muggle reader just for the twist inside Reggie's brain baby definetly doesn't know how to act around muggles but is smitten by reader at first sight

thank you so so much my love<33 you're an angel

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i will ARGUE for prompt 6 "bookshop au" with regulus black

carina's 2k celebration

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cw: fem!reader, use of y/n, muggle!reader, references to walburga and orion's great parenting (abuse + discrimination), shy!regulus, implied overstimulation, exposure therapy

wc: 1.3k

Sirius insisted that part of deconstructing everything they had been taught growing up was emerging yourself in the muggle world.

While Regulus thought that logic was sound when they were sitting in his living room, talking everything through over a glass of wine, he most decidedly did not think so anymore. He was taking his first stroll down a strictly muggle street in Central London and though he would not admit it, he was beyond stressed and overwhelmed. 

He kept overthinking, second-guessing everything he did and whether it would give him away too much, hand constantly itching for his wand. Regulus felt naked, exposed, and was two seconds away from tucking tail and running back home to Sirius to promptly tell him exactly what he thought of this plan.

It was something he had never thought much of before as he would always just spell away any annoying sounds, but the noise level around him was deafening to the point where it genuinely hurt. Becoming increasingly desperate to get away from the sound and hide in a corner where he could apparate without being seen, Regulus began scouting for a place to hide. An alleyway, a quiet shop – anything.

When a wooden sign stood out to him in the sea of neon lights, with something scribbled about books, he knew he had found the spot. 

Sidestepping the many strangers in his path, Regulus reached for the narrow door and pushed it open, all but clambering into the space.

The bookshop was a stark contrast to the outside world, to his relief seeming more like something he might find in Diagon Alley than Oxford Street. There were small glowing orbs on grey wire strung up around the ceiling to soften the light, all the furniture was wooden and dark, and several plants decorated the space to liven it up.

At the very back, past all the beautifully decorated shelves, was a desk that he currently saw only a tuft of hair poking up from behind. On instinct, Regulus took a step closer to see what it was when the person rose back up to their full height, holding at least five books in their arms.

“Oh!” you exclaimed as you saw him, nearly losing all the books you were holding. He jumped too, clearly not having expected to see someone, despite being the one fleeing into your shop. “So sorry, darling, I didn’t hear you come in.”

Regulus tried to get his vocal chords working again. “That’s quite alright, my apologies.”

You waved him off with one hand as you rounded your little till to walk up to a semi-full shelf and begin putting the books into it. “No apologies needed around here. What can I do for you, love?”

Your voice was so melodic, almost lilting through your sentence as if you and Regulus were old friends, as if you knew him. He wondered how that was even possible, if you could be a witch in disguise using legilimency on him.

When you turned your head to look at his awestruck expression with an entertained smile, he realised that was certainly not the case — and that he had yet to answer your question.

“Sorry, no, I, uh–” Regulus had to stop himself to gather his thoughts, reaching up to pinch the bridge of his nose a bit abashedly. “No, sorry, it’s just my first time in this… neighbourhood and I got a bit overwhelmed by all the noise.” He pointed with his thumb over his shoulder to the treacherous, big and confusing world outside.

You pressed your lips together as you smiled, almost as if you were holding back an even bigger one. You nodded in complete understanding. “It’s rowdy at this time of day, even for us seasoned veterans.” You kept talking as you walked around your shop, fetching a ladder to fix something at the top of the shelf he stood by. “You are more than welcome to hide away in here with me, no pressure.”

Part of Regulus was terrified at the thought of being alone in a room with a muggle that he had to keep this huge secret from – it was different than with Ted, because at least he knew about magic by the time Regulus met him. You had no idea and the thought really messed with his head. More importantly though, part of Regulus was terrified at your offer because you were painfully pretty and he was too much of a stumbling mess to be trusted around you right now.

Yet a simple glance over his shoulder told him that there was no way he was heading back out there right away. 

With a sigh and his slumping shoulders, he resigned himself to his fate. He closed his eyes in defeat for a few second before turning them back on you, accompanied by a small and probably shy smile. “I would really like that, thank you…”

“Y/N,” you supplied at his pause. “And it’s no problem, it’s usually during rush hours that I have the most time to kill anyway. Those who head out for books are usually the ones wishing to avoid that chaos.” You gave him a knowing wink as you climbed back down the ladder and stowed it away in favour of bringing out a paper box filled with more books.

“You… this is what you do?” Regulus asked as he took in the place, almost in awe. “You get to just spend every day surrounded by books?”

You looked at him with a curious smile, almost as if he asked a very obvious question. “Yes, it’s quite neat, isn’t it? I organise the shelves and various seasonal collections, I dust and keep everything clean and I sell books to passerbys. There’s much worse gigs to land.”

“Sounds like kind of a dream, actually.” He had never seen a bookshop that wasn’t kept running mostly by magic. Watching you unload the books yourself and organise them, floating around the small shop with an inherent elegance was magical in itself. “I assume you’re a reader, then?”

Finally a topic he might be a bit more steady on. Until this, his only interactions with the muggle world had been through its literature. As he scanned the shelves while you worked around him, he saw various titles and names he recognised. He basked in the atmosphere of them, in how this was going quite well despite his previous shaking fear. 

You laughed heartily. “Of course, I think that has to be part of the application you send in. I trust you’re the same?”

You gestured vaguely to Regulus, presumably making some comment on how he was dressed. He didn’t quite have the muggle social cues to decipher it, so he just smiled nervously and nodded. “Yes, though I have mostly only read classics. You know, old philosophers and the like. I would like to expand my taste.”

Upon that comment, you stopped in your work to lean against a bookshelf and study him. A small smile was sneaking around your lips. “I never did ask you your name.”

“It’s Regulus. Regulus Black.”

Any hope that you might have been a witch disappeared when the name invoked no response in your face. Yet, Regulus was finding that so far, it really was no huge problem that you were a muggle. There was still some connection to be found, and you most certainly were not any of the words leftover from Walburga rattling in his brain.

“Well, then, Regulus,” you drawled with your gaze happily trained on him. “Care to have your taste expanded today?”

There was no hesitation in his smile. “I would love to.”

You had no idea to what degree that sentiment rang true for him.

[haikyu-mp4]

November

word count; 1033 – f!reader

Kozume Kenma did not want to be in the library right now. If he had his way, he would be asleep under a warm duvet all day now that classes had ended for the semester. Unfortunately, he had a lot to learn before exams, and there was no time to waste.

He chose a seat by the table in the back, which was only occupied by one other student, who he didn’t acknowledge at all. You eventually took notice of him, though. The cute guy with the outgrown bleach was looking down at his schoolwork with a frown, and you were very amused. You stretched your arm out to get his attention, and Kenma eventually looked up with a face that bridged between annoyed and confused. He looks like a kitten, you thought. "What did that book ever do to you?"

"It mocks my lack of will. So if you could try not to distract me, that would be great," he answered, which ended your conversation abruptly. You smirked to yourself, picked up a pen and got to work on your next drawing after taking a sip from your water bottle. Kenma calmly put on his headphones, a sign to please leave him alone.

After about half an hour, Kenma sat back in his seat to stretch. His spine cracked, and he clapped his cheeks to stay awake. You took this as your opportunity and flipped your drawing pad to show him the newest masterpiece. Kenma turned his head at the motion, and his face quickly fell in disbelief. You had drawn him how he looked today, except with ears and a nose that resembled a calico cat. He frowned when he noticed your wide and proud smile. Annoyingly enough, he was impressed by your unusual art style. When Kenma looked down at his notes again, he couldn't help the small smile that crept onto his face. A light rosy colour tinted his cheeks despite his efforts to stay cool, and your heart fluttered. Mission accomplished.

A week later, even closer to exams, Kenma made his way to the library again. To his surprise, the woman he still didn't know the name of was there too. With a quick rundown of positives and negatives in his head, he decided to take a seat across from you.

You sat like that every day for the whole school week. Kenma tried his best to cram as many facts as he could and actually started to feel like this exam might go well. He didn't quite know what the person across from him was working on, but you had several different coloured pens and even a small box of watercolours along with a brush that somehow stored the water you needed in the handle. He started wondering, and before he could stop himself, "Are you allowed to paint in here?"

Your eyes met, unconsciously having a staring contest for one too many seconds. Oh, so he wants to talk to me now? When his eyes wandered around your face and hands, he noticed that you weren’t exactly being careful with your colours either.

"No one has told me not to," you said slowly as if trying to convince him. A small smile graced his lips, and you felt greedy for more of it.

"Sounds like solid reasoning to me," Kenma agreed and leaned back in his chair. His hand lifted to point at the back of your large notepad, "What are you creating now, then?"

Abashingly, you turned it around. You had filled the whole page, and he recognised it as the library you were currently in, but with much more sunshine and colours, orange flowers growing from the books and pink cows making their way across the floor in the back. "I study visual arts. We have to create an exhibition, and my theme is perspective." His mouth fell open slightly as he nodded in understanding when you explained.

"It's cool. You're good at that." Kenma kept his voice low, and something about it was so enticing to you. He spoke so calmly and every emotion of his was a mystery. "I'm Kenma."

"I'm y/n." After settling down from your little conversation, you kept sipping from your water bottle. Kenma’s mouth dried every time he heard the sound. He did his best to clear his throat, realising he hadn’t brought anything to drink.

“Do you have an inspiration?” he asked, mostly wondering if you actually saw the words that way.

The corner of your mouth quirked. “I’ve always like games, it’s affected the way I see the world. Sorry, that probably sounds like childish imagination.”

Kenma thought back to the things he’d imagine when he ran in high school for volleyball practice. The way he’d make it into a game. “No, I… Uh, I totally get it.”

You two naturally fell into silent, individual work again. Kenma kept glancing over at your paintings, but whenever you met his gaze, he would look away. Eventually, the sun went down, and you both started clearing the table, silently packing everything into your bags. Come on, Kenma. Just smile at her and say something. However, somewhat luckily, you beat him to it.

"Hey, Kenma?" He lifted his head swiftly, eyebrows raised, happy that you started the conversation. "Do you want to get a drink?" You weren’t necessarily nervous, but undoubtedly hopeful for his answer. The corners of his mouth lifted in a kind, small smile. You had both picked up your bags and stood beside the table.

"A drink? Yeah, sure." Kenma’s voice sent a shiver down your spine again, and you straightened up with an even broader smile.

"Fun! Cool, cool, cool- The student bar?"

"I've only been there once or twice before, never saw the charm." The student bar had a certain vibe that didn't fit him when he just wanted to drink. A lot of people were there to socialise with new people, and Kenma was not interested.

"The beer is cheaper there," you said in a sing-songy voice to try and convince the handsome man. Kenma wasn't entirely convinced, but if you wanted to go there, then he wouldn't argue.

"Lead the way."

The Schoolyear Series ║ masterlist

[smokeysweater]

Masterlist It had been a good arrangement so far. You and John I mean, it had been pretty comfortable since you originally applied for the ad, it still baffled you that nobody else wanted this, 250 pounds every two weeks, to live in a nice house in the gorgeous countryside, with a roommate who is barely here. Even when John is here, he’s civil and nice. Doesn’t talk to you unless needed, using the sweetest of nicknames when he does as well. ” hey sweetheart, I’m about to run to the grocery store, ya need anything?” ”let me just squeeze right past you, doll” ” Thanks for the dinner love, it's delicious as always.” His voice, that deep, smooth British tone mixed with the most knee-dropping nicknames, it’s a wonder how you’ve survived this long with him invading your mind every time you go to bed. so it was a good thing you two had going on, he left for months on end, leaving you with the house you barely paid rent for, you’ve seen the bill, you know it’s not 250 pounds, that barely scraps it. You’ve tried confronting him about it, but he just hit you right back with a “Don’t worry about it sweetheart, just let me handle it.” …yeah you didn’t fight back against that one. honestly, before you realise it, three years have passed, 3 nice years of having a giant, beautiful house in the countryside all by yourself with a sometimes roommate and only paying dirt for rent, and you might be the luckiest person you know. it had occurred to you one day however, since it had been three years since you’ve started living with John, or as you’ve heard some people call him, Captain Price, that you two were common law.So, you thought it was at least a little funny, so you brought it up one day. You had been waiting for a week when he was home, it had been a bit since he got back, you decided now would be the moment to tell him, with you two sitting at the dining table eating a dinner John had prepared for you two The utensil’s that clattered and Clinked against the plates filled the mostly silent room, there was no tension against you two, just happy to let the quiet fill the air, so you took this as an oppuritinty to tell the older man.  “Hey John,” you spoke, prompting him to look up, baby blue eyes peering up at you, threatening to still your very being. “You know, since it’s been three years since we’ve lived together, we’re technically in a common law marriage now, funny right? I mean you're barely here but the kingdom decides we’re ‘married’” You chuckled, putting air quotations at the married part, you didn’t look Price in the eyes when you said this, focusing on the plate in front of you. so you were unable to see the way his eyes darkened, how his knuckles seemed to whiten with how tightly he gripped his knife and fork. His breathing silently froze for a moment, but the moment you looked back up again, he went back to normal, as if to hide what motions exactly ran through him like a fright train. ” that so?.. spouse we should do something to celebrate, huh doll?” Price asked, in the hushed velvety tone he always carried when talking to you. you shrugged, uncaring. “I mean, we don’t have to, I don’t think it matters, we’re not married.” You reminded Price casually, too preoccupied to see the way Price twitched at that.

”I suppose not.” He mumbled back.

That small moment set off a chain of events that would change your relationship for the better or worse.

the next morning, you felt stranger than usual, it felt.. weird, and wrong. But, naive ol’ you, shrugged it off, getting up for the day, but when you looked down at you beside the table to grab your phone, you noticed something. curiously, you picked up a ring, a pretty little thing, the red gem glinting bright in the Sun, the silver band attached to it feeling smooth and cool against your skin. next to it, was a small note. ’Hey sweetheart. Had to leave early, I’ll be back, I promise, I got you something for Our marriage, Hope you like it. Be back soon To Mx Price. Love, John Price’ what the fuck.

[salty-autistic-writer]

"Oh. You got a cat," Buck says, surprised.

"Three. I got three cats," Tommy clarifies with a weak chuckle. "This is Bella. She's the only one of the bunch brave enough to greet strangers."

"Wow," Buck says, hoping it doesn't show on his face that the stranger stings a little. He crouches to pet the black cat sniffing his shoes and looking up at him with golden eyes. "Hi, Bella."

Bella allows him to stroke her back once, and then she retreats, walking back into the house slowly, with her tail raised.

Buck straightens and clears his throat. "So ... three cats huh?"

"Yeah."

"Can I see the other two?"

Buck knows he shouldn't. He came here to give Tommy some of the stuff he left at the loft. Clothes (that smell unbearably much like Tommy). A toothbrush. A book about helicopters (that makes Buck's stomach clench whenever he looks at it). He came here to give Tommy his stuff and ... and maybe ask if Tommy has something from Buck too. And then he would leave.

But Tommy says, "Sure, come in! You want a beer? Or coffee? I have some cake in the fridge too."

Buck follows Tommy inside, closing the door. "Uh, thanks. A ... a beer would be nice."

He looks around, seeing subtle changes. Bowls with water for the cats. Toys lying around on the floor. A cat tree in the corner. Bella is lounging on a pillow on the couch, watching them with her attentive eyes.

"Her brothers are probably hiding," Tommy says, glancing at Buck. "They are shy. All three of them come from a farm and ... Well. They didn't have good experiences with humans. But ... If you stay for a while, they might come out and say hello."

Buck nods. "Okay," he says, sitting on the couch and smiling at Bella. Tommy gets them two beers and sits down as well. In a moment of silence, Buck finally dares to look at Tommy. To really look at him. Again, he sees changes. Tommy is leaner. He lost weight. His hair is longer too. And he has a beard now.

For a long moment, Buck knows exactly what he wants to say but he can't. Why didn't you text me sooner? Were you in pain too? Did you dream about me too? Did you wonder if you would ever feel whole again too?

"Sorry," Tommy says. "There's cat hair everywhere." His eyes are on Buck's jeans. And yes, they are already covered in cat hair.

"I don't mind," Buck says with a shrug. "So you .. saved them?"

"A colleague asked me if I would take them. And I said yes. To be completely honest with you, they saved me more than I saved them. They kept me sane. I had to take care of them. That distracted me from how I sometimes didn't want to take care of me," Tommy admits. And looks almost startled. As if he just realised he said too much.

Buck swallows. "I had baking to keep me sane," he says with a weak smile. "I moved from bread and cake to brownies to cookies to scones. Eddie claims there's a flour shortage because of me now."

"Wow. Interesting coping strategies," Tommy says, raising a brow and taking another sip of his beer.

Buck suddenly spots an orange cat peeking at him with wide green eyes from behind one of Tommy's plants. "Someone is watching me. In a very sceptic way," he says with a chuckle.

"Ah. That's Ron," Tommy says, his eyes brightening. "He's brave today."

Buck smiles. "Maybe he'll come and let me pet him. If I stay a little longer."

"Yeah," Tommy agrees, looking at Buck with a small smile. "Maybe."

(AO3 Link)

[unconventional-lawnchair]

Hi! I've been thinking a lot about hufflepuff!fem!reader biting more than she could chew whilst practising new spells and opening a portal to a new dimension (think of the multiverse) and ending up in Gotham where she meets Nightwing during one of his patrols, where he was helping out the rest of the Batfamily pin point the spot where an anomaly created by her was detected...thanks! xx

Falling First

AN: I am SO sorry, I realised how long it was this will likely be a two parter- but OMG I dropped everything this idea was too cute

WC: 6077

CW: Use of {Y/N}, vivid panic attack, blood, rat mishandling

“Are you going to keep reading that dumb book?” Damien’s judgmental voice called over to Nightwing from the other side of the rooftop. He was practicing his form, swinging around Nightwing’s staff as if it was one of his swords.

Dick was leaning against the concrete wall, holding a soda and reading a book propped on his lap. The title? Hogwarts: A History.

“Dumb book?” Dick scoffed playfully, leaning further back. "It's fascinating!" He raved, not taking his eyes off the pages. "Besides, who doesn't want to read about wizarding worlds and magical creatures? The.. the interesting ways in which students have harmed themselves. I wonder if there is another volume..” He began to mumble.

Damien rolled his eyes, still twirling the staff with practiced ease. "We deal with real villains and real threats every day. I don't see the point in wasting time on make-believe. And did father even say you could take that here? It's evidence.”

Dick glanced up from his book, a smirk playing on his lips. "You know, some day, you'll learn to relax. It's just a light read. Helps keep the mind sharp and the imagination alive."

With a final, flashy spin of the staff, Damien stopped and faced Nightwing, raising an eyebrow. "Imagination? You sound like Grayson. Oh wait, you are Grayson.”

Dick chuckled, shaking his head. "And you, my dear Damien, sound like a mini Bruce with a side of extra grumpiness."

Damien huffed, crossing his arms over his chest. "I just don't see the point."

"Well, in fairness, you do need a signal. Has it happened yet?” Oracle’s voice called out from their earpiece. Dick leaned back and pressed two fingers to his ear. “Not yet, it's still stable.”

Damien huffed and walked over, sitting down on the concrete wall and snatching the bag of open puffs. “We'll be here all night. What's the point?”

“To find more anomalies, Robin.” Barbara sighed and leaned back in her seat, spinning a bit from the large computer screen and sliding over towards a glass display, showing off several random items that had been appearing on the roof top for months now.

Scrolls, weathered and tampered. Random blue crystals, which Dick’s newest favorite book called ‘moonstones,’ quills, and even what seemed to be a wand carved from hazel wood. All of which had appeared on that rooftop with a spark of terrifying energy.

"Right, anomalies.” Dick smirked, sitting up a bit straighter and closing his book. "We can't have mysterious artifacts just popping up all over Gotham. That would be bad for business."

Damien gave a reluctant nod, munching on the puffs he had taken from Dick’s bag. "Still, I don’t see how reading that book helps us."

"Knowledge is power, Damien." Dick cheeked, taking a sip of his soda. "Even if it's from a 'dumb book'. Besides, it might give us some insight into what we're dealing with. These items don’t exactly scream ‘normal’."

Barbara’s voice crackled over the earpiece again. "He's right, Damien. Understanding the lore and history behind these artifacts could be crucial. It might help us figure out where they're coming from and possibly even how they are getting here.”

“Yeah yeah..” He mumbled.

“Besides,” Dick smirked. “Who's to say we can't have a little fun on the-”

Before he could continue, lifting the book, it began to spark and flicker in his hands. As if its very file was corrupted but somehow managed to manifest physical energy. The book glowed with an eerie yellow and pink light, and the pages began to flip rapidly on their own.

"Uh, guys?" Dick called out, his playful demeanor shifting to one of concern. "I think we might have another anomaly on our hands."

Damien immediately leaped up and snapped his attention around them, pulling his katana from his sheath and getting ready.

Dick got up next, taking his staff and looking around cautiously.

“We are getting it here too!” Barbara ’s voice was hardly audible, the lights around the city began to flicker and wave, as if he was staring at a terrible simulation on the break on destruction.

Barbara stood watching the other artifacts from the batcave, seeing them flicker and spark with life as they began to glitch from place to place.

Suddenly, there was a loud crackle from above Dick and Damien, and then a loud squeak.

“Shit.” Dick hissed and shot him, using his staff to propel him and catch whatever was falling before it hit the ground.

He found in his hand, a fat brown and white rat.

Just like that, the glitching stopped. The lights around them returned to normal, and they were left with a new friend.

Dick got to his feet, holding the rat much like you would a can of soda. Staring at it curiously as it squeaked and wiggled about in distress.

"Well, this is new," Dick remarked, raising an eyebrow at the squirming rodent. "Meet our latest anomaly." He showed Damien the squirming thing.

Damien sheathed his katana, looking unimpressed. "A rat? Seriously? This is what all that chaos was about?" He wandered over and held his hand out for it, Dick smirked and pushed his head away, stepping back with a chuckle as Damien tried to steal the rodent from him.

Barbara's voice came through the earpiece, much clearer now. "Dick, Damien, are you both okay? The readings just spiked and then dropped off the charts."

"Yeah, we're fine," Dick snickered and held the rat higher, still holding Damien off. "But it looks like our anomaly this time is a... rat."

“You're not holding it properly!” Damien hissed, muffled against Dick’s palm as he tried to get to the distressed animal.

"A rat?" Barbara repeated, puzzled. "That's odd. Any idea if it has any special properties?"

"Well, it did appear out of thin air." Dick noted playfully before he looked up at it, holding it flat on its stomach now. “Speak!”

It only seemed to huff in response and Dick shrugged. “Looks like a common city rat.”

“That's not a city rat!” Damien snapped. “Look at its patterns! It's domestic.”

“A pet rat?” Barbara muttered before she crossed her arms, confused. “So we started with random items and now a living creature?”

“Sounds like experiment progression to me.” Dick cooed at the rat before he lowered his arms. “Ima call him Mr. Squeakerson.”

Before he could stop him, Damien finally stole the rat from him, shielding the creature against his chest. "He's not a toy, Grayson," Damien snapped, glaring at Dick. "This is serious."

"Alright, alright," Dick relented, raising his hands in mock surrender. "Just trying to lighten the mood."

Barbara's voice came through the earpiece again. "Damien's right. If this rat is part of the anomalies, it could be important. We need to figure out where it came from and why it's here."

Damien nodded, cradling the rat gently, running two fingers down its back. "I'll take him back to the Batcave and run some tests. Maybe there's something special about this rat that we haven't identified yet."

"Good idea.” Dick agreed, his expression turning serious. "I'll keep an eye out for any more anomalies up here."

Barbara hummed. "I'll continue monitoring the readings. If anything happens, ring me, yeah?”

“Yeah.” Both Dick and Damien called into their ear pieces.

~~~

“No!” You sobbed out as the portal disappeared, staring at the middle of the shrieking shack in distress.

“We can always try again next full moon.” Luna Lovegood’s airy voice called over to you. You gave another groan, walking over to one of the discarded desks and sitting down.

“It's not working! I just don't get it.” You huffed, looking over the tomes and scrolls you both had splayed out on the floor and tables, ones you had pinned and scraped together, littered with muggle sticky notes and ink that traveled between the pages as if to etch out a map.

Tomes of old magic with modern magic, the deep theory of apparition. And even some old muggle studies of what they would call inter dimensional travel. You began to scatter over the pages, stepping over the moonstones you had gathered, the fine line of black sand that had now crystallized with the energy of the portal, making it almost glass.

“What a waste of Diricawl feathers.” You whined and let your head hit the desk, Luna reaching over to rub your head to try and comfort you.

It had been months, months of you trying to create a portable form of Floo Flames, something safer than apparition and more accessible to the masses. You were turning 19 soon, you were so close to having to leave Hogwarts behind, and thus all the free materials needed to continue your experiments.

Luna continued to pat your head gently, her presence a small comfort to fight off your frustration. "You got closer this time." She breathed.

You sighed deeply, lifting your head just enough to glance at the scattered notes and artifacts. Lazily lifting your hand to grab one of your quills. "I know, Luna. It's just... I was so sure this time. We've been working on this for months, and it feels like we're no closer than when we started."

Luna gave you a dreamy smile. "Progress isn't always visible. Sometimes, it's in the small things. Like today, we didn't lose anything to the portal.”

You slowly smiled, lifting your head. “I guess so.” You mumbled. “And it was bigger this time. I could almost put my hand through.”

“That's the spirit.” Luna hummed and stood up, waving her wand as she began to set the items to collect themselves from the floor. You pouted a bit and Luna turned to smile at you.

“Still miss your wand?”

“Deeply.” You huffed and sat up, fixing your tie. “And that history of Hogwarts book is going to set me back a few galleons to replace.”

Luna tilted her head, her eyes twinkling with curiosity. "Oh, I did forgot to mention. My father still has his old copy. He said he'd love to have you for tea, lend it to you. I can ask him if this coming holiday works."

You smiled at her, feeling your heart throb at her thoughtfulness. How could anyone hate this girl? "Thanks, Luna. You're always so helpful. I just hope we can figure this out before I have to leave Hogwarts."

Luna nodded, her brows furrowing. "We'll get there."

Just as she finished speaking, a soft glow appeared on the desk beside you. A small, shimmering portal flickered into existence for a brief moment before winking out. Both of you stared at the spot in surprise.

"Did you see that?" You whispered, as if speaking too loud would wake you up from a dream, your smile growing tenfold as Luna’s brows only furrowed deeper.

“It materialized! On its own!” You lit up and quickly got to your feet, scrambling for your journal.

“Oh that can't be good.” She muttered.

You paused, looking back at her with confusion. "What do you mean, can't be good? This is a breakthrough!"

Luna's expression remained serious, her eyes scanning the spot where the portal had flickered. "If it materialized on its own, it means the magic is becoming unstable. It might be reacting to something we don't understand yet."

Your excitement dimmed slightly as you considered her words. "Luna, it's a marvel!” You insisted. Luna hesitated, seeing her mother’s fire in your eyes. She took a steady breath and frowned a bit, turning into a pout, as you slowly relaxed your shoulders.

“It's a breakthrough.” You insisted. “And it happened after 3am, is that it? Did we have the witching hour wrong?”

As you began to scatter around the room, Luna watched with a worried look, before she could speak up about her concerns, you reached out your hand to your table. “Templeton! Quill!” You called out. But when the quill didn't hit your palm, you looked around confused. Where had your rat gone?

There was a moment of pause before you looked back at Luna. “Looloo? Where did Templeton go?”

Luna looked around the room before she slowly eyed the circle in the middle of the room. You felt your heart drop.

~~~

The majority of the day you had been moping. You missed your rat.

It was all you could think of, through every class, you couldn't shake the worry gnawing at the back of your mind. You had grown quite attached to Templeton, and the thought of him being lost somewhere unknown was unbearable. Was he alive? Was he eating? Was what he was eating safe? Was he safe?

Luna tried to cheer you up during lunch, but even her whimsical stories and odd facts couldn't lift your spirits. "We'll find him.” She tried to reassure you. "Maybe he's on an adventure of his own."

"An adventure?" You muttered, poking at your food. You had already started pushing the peas out of your food for Templeton. "I just hope he's safe."

As the day went on, you found yourself increasingly anxious. What if the portal had sent Templeton somewhere you couldn't reach? What if he was scared and alone? Cold and wet? What if he was missing you as much as you were missing him? The questions swirled in your mind, making it hard to focus on anything else.

---

Back in Gotham, Damien was busy running tests on the rat in the Batcave. He had set up a small, comfortable enclosure for the creature, complete with food and water. As the automated scanners did their work, Damien couldn't help but notice how the rat seemed oddly calm, almost as if it was used with all the testing.

"Any luck?" Dick asked, strolling into the lab area with a curious look. He was out of his costume, just in sweats and a black shirt.

"Nothing yet.” Damien mumbled, keeping his eyes on the monitors. "But there's definitely something different about this rat. It's too comfortable around all this testing. And his heart is on the wrong side.”

Dick nodded, looking at the rat with interest. "Any signs of where it might have come from?"

Damien shook his head, glancing at the rat. "Not yet. But the fact that its heart is on the wrong side suggests it might not be from around here. It's an anomaly in itself."

Dick frowned, leaning in closer to the rat. "So, it's not just any rat. That makes things more interesting. We need to figure out where it came from and what it means."

As the rat continued to explore its new enclosure, Damien's eyes narrowed. "... it's really friendly. Doesn't seem to like it kibble, keeps trying to eat what Alfred brings me."

Dick nodded. "I've been cross-referencing the data from the anomalies with our existing records over the years- wait, have you been letting it out of its cage?”

Damien flustered, stammering for a moment. “It's a small enclosure!”

Dick chuckled, shaking his head at Damien's defensiveness. "Seems like Mr. Squeakerson is already growing on you. What? Don't have enough strays?"

Damien scowled, but there was a hint of a smile tugging at the corners of his mouth.

"Don't get too attached. We still need to figure out where he came from and how he got here." Barbara's voice came from behind them. She pushed herself down the strip walk way in her wheelchair, getting back to her monitors with a yawn. Looking over to the cage and smiling as the rat seemed to get excited at her return. “He's smart. Very friendly.”

"Yeah, a bit too friendly for a rat that just appeared out of nowhere." Dick noted, watching the rat scurry around its enclosure with curiosity. "What do you think, Babs? Any theories?"

Barbara adjusted her glasses and leaned closer to the monitors, tapping a few keys to bring up the data. "It's definitely unusual. The heart on the wrong side, the comfort around humans, and now it's showing signs of higher intelligence. This isn't just any ordinary rat. That has only been seen once before.”

“... you mean when Lex Luther-”

“Exactly.” Barbarainterrupted and gestured to the display. “A wand. Stones, papers and tomes, even quills? All of them tie back to your book.”

Dick furrowed his brow at her and she then gestured to the rat. “What was it your book said? You could bring pets?”

“A rat, an owl, or a frog.” Dick mumbled before Damien seemed to catch one.

“Are they…”

“From another universe.” Dick concluded with a slack jaw.

“One where their organs mirror our own.”

Damien's eyes widened with realization. "So, you're telling me this rat might actually be from a parallel universe? One where magic is that common?"

Barbara nodded, her expression serious. "It's starting to look that way. The items we've found, the anomalies- they might all be connected to this other world. And if this rat is any indication, living creatures can cross over as well."

Dick looked thoughtfully at the rat, now affectionately named Mr. Squeakerson. "If that's true, then we need to figure out how these portals are opening and why. There might be more at stake here than just a few random artifacts."

Damien nodded and Barbara sighed.

“I think we need to call in the others. Tell Bruce what we know.” Barbara mused and gestured to the rat.

Dick walked over to the cage and opened it, a bit surprised when the rat ran up his arm and straight to his shoulder. Like it knew exactly what he wanted.

“Huh.”

“I'll call the others.” Damian nodded, turning before Barbara called over. “Don't forget Jason!”

She could hear his groan echo off the walls.

~~~

You were stressed, you were tired. You hadn't slept since Templeton fell through the portal. You went straight back to the shack after curfew, setting everything up once more.

Luna, ever the supportive friend, had accompanied you despite the late hour. She watched quietly as you frantically arranged the moonstones and black sand, her expression a mix of concern and curiosity.

"You need to rest.” She said softly, placing a gentle hand on your shoulder. "You'll think more clearly after some sleep."

You shook your head, determined. "I can't rest, Luna. Templeton is out there somewhere, and I need to find him. What if he's in danger?"

Luna sighed but didn't argue further. Instead, she waved her wand, casting a charm that made the various components float into place more efficiently. "At least let me help you. Two minds are better than one."

As you both worked, the night crept into day. Luna pushed more firm this time, asking you to at least rest before you attempt anything.

You agreed to a nap, though reluctantly, knowing that your exhaustion could lead to mistakes. Luna conjured a small, comfortable cot in the corner of the shack, and you lay down with a sigh, the weight of your worry making it hard to fully relax.

Luna sat beside you, humming a soft, soothing tune. "Just a quick nap, and then we can get back to work. Templeton will be alright. I have a feeling about it."

You nodded, your eyes drifting shut as Luna's gentle voice lulled you.

As you drifted into a fitful sleep, Luna kept watch, her wand ready and her eyes scanning the room for any signs of magical disturbances. She hoped that a brief rest would replenish your energy and clear your mind for the tasks ahead.

---

Back in Gotham, the Batcave was bustling with activity. Bruce Wayne, Jason Todd, and Tim Drake had joined the investigation, each bringing their unique skills to the table. And, unfortunately, their unique attitudes as well.

"So, this rat just appeared out of nowhere?" Bruce questioned, his voice calm but with an edge of curiosity.

"Exactly," Damien replied, holding the rat gently. "And he’s not just any rat. His heart is on the wrong side, and he shows signs of higher intelligence. We believe he might be from a parallel universe."

Bruce raised an eyebrow, glancing at Barbara and Dick. "Any theories on how these portals are opening?"

Barbara nodded, pulling up a holographic display and gesturing out to each spike of energy. “We think it's intentional. Like they are testing portals.”

"Testing portals?" Bruce echoed, narrowing his eyes at the display. "That would explain the increasing frequency and the variety of objects appearing. But why?"

"Could be a number of reasons." Tim suggested, stepping forward with a thoughtful expression. "They might be trying to establish stable connections between universes, or perhaps they're searching for something specific. Like a person?”

Jason, leaning casually against a console, chimed in with a smirk. "Or someone pissed off the wrong wizard and now we're dealing with magical fallout."

Damien shot Jason a glare but didn't respond. Instead, he turned back to Bruce. “Whatever it is, we think it's on purpose.”

Bruce nodded thoughtfully, absorbing the information. "We'll need to be prepared for anything. If someone- or something- is intentionally testing these portals, it could be a prelude to something much larger."

Dick looked at Mr. Squeakerson, who was now comfortably perched on his shoulder. "And this little guy might be our best clue to figuring out what’s going on. We need to keep him safe and see what we can learn from him."

Barbara interjected, "I'll continue monitoring the energy spikes and anomalies. We need to pinpoint the exact locations and timings of these events. Maybe we can predict when the next one will happen. There may even be more than one at a time.”

Tim hummed and nodded. "I'll look into the possibility of any magical artifacts or entities that could be responsible for the portals. There might be something in our archives that matches the energy signatures we're seeing."

Jason shrugged, pushing off the console. "Guess I'll be on anomaly patrol then. Wouldn't want anything else to just drop out of the sky unannounced."

Bruce nodded in agreement. "Good. We need to cover all the ground we can. Dick-”

“I'll patrol with Damien.” He interrupted and Bruce narrowed his eyes for only a moment before he nodded. “Everyone's dismissed.”

~~~

You woke up to flashing lights around you. As you opened your eyes, you were greeted with a bright yellow light, more flashing, then, suddenly, you felt like you were falling.

There was a sharp surge of pain that rocked you when your back hit the rooftop. You gasped, the wind knocked out of you as you struggled to regain your bearings. Blinking against the harsh lights and trying to make sense of your surroundings, you slowly sat up, wincing at the ache in your back. The smell of the city- smoke, asphalt, and something distinctly metallic; all hit your nose at once.

You raised your hand as you felt something warm drip from your nose, only to feel another painful shock run through you. You gave a wail of pain as your body began to glitch, as if you were some kind of faulty Sunday cartoon.

It was unbearable, and you let out a throat tearing sob as the pain rocked through you. No one was around, no one near you anyway, and the glitching seemed to get worse. The lights of the city seemed to flicker in response to your pain, and after what felt like hours, you were able to lift yourself.

Your face was covered in blood, your uniform stained with the red fluid, and your head was light.

As your blurry eyes began to focus, you took in the city around you. It was nothing like you had ever seen before; the buildings were towering structures of steel and glass, illuminated by a myriad of neon lights and billboards- some brighter than the sun itself. The noise of the city was a constant hum, a combination of distant traffic, sirens, and the occasional shout from the streets below.

You staggered to your feet, clutching your head as another wave of dizziness hit you. "Where... am I?" you whispered to yourself, trying to make sense of the alien environment.

Were you in a muggle city? Where were your things? Where was Templeton?

Your breathing grew quicker as you realized, not only did you have no clue if you popped out where everything else had but that portal that brought you here was clearly unstable. You didn't summon it, nor did you think Luna did.

She was right, she always was.

You ran your fingers through your hair with a choked sob. Growing more and more frustrated with your own stupidity- you didn't have a wand, you hardly knew any nonverbal spells, you were in the middle of nowhere, and the backdrop of screaming and rowdy life of the city didn't bring any comfort.

Your breath started coming in short, rapid gasps, each one feeling more shallow than the last. Trying to calm your sobs, only worsening it with hiccups. Your heart pounded in your chest, a wild, erratic beat that echoed in your ears. The world around you seemed to blur, the neon lights and towering buildings warping and bending in your vision.

"I... I can't... breathe.” You choked out, your voice barely a whisper. Your hands trembled uncontrollably as you clutched at your chest, trying to will your lungs to take in air. Each inhale felt like you were trying to breathe through a straw, thin and insufficient.

You stumbled, falling back down to your knees and curling up against the concrete wall. Clenching your robe as the horrible and painful glitches returned, the lights and sounds of the city mocking you as the power flickered around with you.

Your mind raced with a thousand thoughts at once, each one more frantic than the last. Where am I? How did I get here? What if I can't get back? What if Templeton is gone forever? The questions swirled and collided, creating a cacophony of panic that drowned out any attempt at rational thought.

The ground seemed to tilt beneath you, making it difficult to keep your balance. You reached out, grasping at nothing, desperate for something solid to hold onto.

Your vision started to narrow, darkening at the edges as the pain rattled you into nothing but a trembling lump.

As your vision continued to darken and your breaths came in ragged gasps, you heard a voice, distant at first but gradually becoming clearer.

"Hey, are you okay?" The voice was filled with concern, cutting through the chaos in your mind. You tried to focus on it, using it as an anchor to the present.

A figure knelt down beside you, you couldn't make him out but he felt safe. He gently placed a hand on your shoulder. "Just breathe, okay? In and out, nice and slow." The voice was calm and steady, a stark contrast to the panic you felt inside. You tried to will away the tears that prickled your eyes.

You tried to follow the instructions, but your body was still wracked with tremors and your mind was a whirlwind of fear. The figure gently rubbed your back, trying to soothe you.

"It's okay, you're safe now.” His voice reminded you of something. Something soft, something gentle.

As you focused on the voice, you felt a small sense of calm start to push through the overwhelming panic. It was like a lifeline, something to hold onto in the midst of the storm inside your mind.

"That's it, just breathe.” The voice continued, steady and reassuring. "You're going to be okay. I'm right here with you."

You took a shaky breath, trying to match the rhythm the voice was setting. In and out, in and out. Slowly, very slowly, the world around you started to come back into focus. The neon lights were still bright, the city noise still loud, but they felt a little less overwhelming with each breath you managed to take.

As your vision cleared, you saw the face of the figure kneeling beside you. It was a large man. Well, certainly larger than you. He was in a blue and black uniform of sorts, and a symbol on his chest you couldn't make out with your hands in the way. You didn't realize that in your panic to find anything solid, you had reached out and grabbed him. Not that he seemed to mind, looking at you from behind his domino mask with such gentleness.

"Hey.” He said softly, his covered eyes tracing your face. He had such a sweet smile. "You're okay. I'm Nightwing, and you're safe now."

You nodded weakly, now gripping his arm for support. The tremors in your body were starting to subside, your breaths becoming steadier. Nightwing's presence was grounding, his calm helping to pull you out of the spiral of panic with so much ease you wondered if he had done it before.

"Can you tell me your name?" He prodded gently, not wanting to overwhelm you.

You swallowed hard, trying to find your voice, wincing as you tasted that copper flavor, your nose was still bleeding. "{Y/N}.” You managed to say, your voice barely above a whisper. "My name is {Y/N}."

Nightwing gave you a reassuring smile. "It's nice to meet you, {Y/N}. Pretty name for a pretty girl. Can you tell me what happened? How you got here?"

You took another deep breath, trying to gather your thoughts. "I... I don't know. There was a portal, and then I was here. I don't know where here is."

Nightwing nodded, his expression serious but understanding, his smile slowly falling. In your sensitive state, you felt your heart clench as you clearly disappointed this definite guardian. "You're in Gotham City. We'll figure out the rest. Can you stand?”

“I-I don't know.” You whispered, your voice shaking and he nodded.

“That's alright, you're alright. Can I touch you?”

“Seems only fair.” You whispered and began to move your hands from his arms.

Nightwing chuckled softly at your remark, glad to see a bit of humor returning to your voice. "Alright, I'm going to help you up. Nice and easy."

He gently placed one arm around your back and another under your knees, lifting you with surprising ease. You felt a bit of a jolt, but his steady confidence helped keep you grounded. As he stood up with you in his arms, you leaned against him, feeling an odd sense of safety despite the chaos around you.

As he carefully carried you towards the edge of the rooftop, you noticed another figure standing there, watching with a mix of curiosity and concern. It was Damien, still holding the staff, his eyes narrowing as he took in the scene.

"Another anomaly?" Damien asked, his tone skeptical.

Nightwing nodded, carefully setting you down on a nearby crate, making sure you were steady before letting go. "Looks like it. This is {Y/N}. She came through a portal, just like the other items."

Damien approached, his expression softening slightly as he looked at you. "Are you alright?" He asked, his voice carrying a hint of genuine concern despite his usual demeanor. You didn't notice Nightwing raising his eyebrows in surprise.

You nodded, still feeling a bit uneasy. Nightwing pulled out a cloth and held it out to you.

Raising it to your nose you started to stop the bleeding, watching as he put two fingers to his ear. “Oracle, we found something. Send a car.”

“Car?” You whispered and Damien narrowed his eyes at you.

“You must of hit your head pretty hard, huh?” He prodded and you turned to him with furrowed brows.

“Cars? Like the muggle death traps?” You pushed and the younger boy gave you the same confused look you were sending him.

“Muggles? The hell are muggles?” He pushed and your stomach sank.

Nightwing and Damien exchanged a glance, both clearly puzzled by your words. Nightwing crouched down to your level, his expression softening even more as he tried to understand.

"Muggles?" Nightwing asked gently. "You mean non-magical people, right? Like in the book I was reading?"

You nodded slowly, feeling a bit relieved that at least one of them seemed to understand. Then, your jaw dropped. “You read my book?” You pushed and he slowly nodded.

“I guess that was yours? You have a lot of explaining to do.” He slowly smirked at you and you couldn't help how your stomach fluttered at his look.

“Explaining?” You whispered.

“Those portals have been opening up everywhere. It's messing with our entire power grid.”

“What's a power grid?” You pushed again and his jaw clenched a bit.

Damien gave a huff. “This will be a fun one to explain.”

The second the car pulled up you fell quiet. Looking down the several story drop. You looked between the two boys curiously before Dick smiled at you and easily wrapped his arm around your back. “Go ahead and wrap your arms around me, yeah?”

You gave a small yelp at the sudden contact, making him chuckle, which made you pout, furrowing your brow at him. Still, you listened, and wrapped your arms around his neck. Pulling closer to him much like a cat would. He sent Damien a wink and the young boy groaned, rolling his eyes.

You peaked just past Dick’s shoulder and watched as he pulled out a bat shaped trinket, only for him to shoot it out and latch onto the side of the building. “Tighten that grip, I won't choke.”

“Keep teasing me and I'll actually do it.” You huffed before you gave a small gasp at you own tone, Dick just barked out a laugh in absolute delight at your snark.

Then he jumped.

And you prayed to Merlin for a proper savior.

You watched as the hook began to slow your fall, staring curiously around you with an awe strucken face. Nightwing helped you down again and let you in, instructing the younger boy to go home on foot, it seems there were only two seats.

The ride there was filled with mindless chatter. It was mostly one sided, as Nightwing spoke to a small device in his ear.

You sat in the car, your mind racing to catch up with everything that had happened. The city outside the window was a blur of lights and movement, a stark contrast to the more familiar and magical world you had come from. Nightwing's calm voice was a soothing background as he communicated with his team.

"Yeah, we're on our way to the Batcave." Nightwing said into his earpiece. "We have a guest who might be able to help us with the anomalies. We'll need everyone there."

You glanced at him, your curiosity piqued. You kept your voice low so as to not interrupt what was happening. "Batcave? Is that like your headquarters?"

Nightwing nodded, giving you a reassuring smile. "Clever girl. Yeah, go ahead and lean back, we don't know what happened to you.”

You nodded and compiled easily. You found yourself wondering how easy you would be to kidnap, just send you to a foreign place and send in a hot guy who called you pet names and you were done for.

Nightwing continued his conversation through the earpiece, his tone professional yet reassuring. "Oracle, make sure the med bay is ready. We need to check for any injuries or anomalies. And get Bats and the others up to speed."

You felt yourself slowly slipping, the exhaustion form it all catching up with you. As the car sped through the city streets, the combination of Nightwing's soothing voice and the gentle hum of the engine began to lull you into a sense of calm. The adrenaline from your earlier panic attack was wearing off, leaving you feeling drained and exhausted.

"Just hang in there a little longer." Nightwing pushed gently, noticing your drooping eyelids. "We'll be at the Batcave soon, and then we can get you checked out and figure out how to help you."

You nodded weakly, feeling comforted by his presence. The car finally came to a long tunnel, one you couldn't see a thing in. Finally, a light broke through the darkness showing a massive cave. Nightwing helped you out of the vehicle, his grip was firm and the last thing you remembered was seeing the symbol on his chest, much more clearly.

It was a bat- of course it was.

[tyunniebbang]

oh so flirty : boyfriend enha

—💌 let's sugar talk !

content: boyfriend headcanons with ot7

no content warnings, all fluff!

little pecks, a soft head pat — heeseung would be a quiet lover. despite being well known for his extremely flirty stage persona, he realises that he likes to show his love with small actions. that way, he knows how to clearly separate enhypen's Lee Heeseung and The Lee Heeseung, himself. he loves it when you look at him knowingly, a silent conversation, telling him you absolutely love his attention. going to work? have a kiss, baby.

"do you want some dinner, love?" — jay would be such a caring lover. mothering you every other minute, you might be convinced that he's mama duck and he just loves his little duckling (you). coming home feels so comfortable, seeing jay nursing his kimchi stew meant for your delicious dinner. he scoops your portion of rice and pats your butt to tell you to hurry up. nothing swells up his heart more to see you so happy while munching down on his food.

a gift, a bouquet of flowers, a peck to welcome you home — jake is an absolute romantic. flirty is his middle name, he never stops to amaze you with his advances. it's awkward, but your cute little romantic would wait for you outside the door everyday, refusing to stay inside. it's like coming home to a puppy with a large wagging tail everyday. his eyes sparkles when he sees your silhouette nearing and calls out your name.

"aye~ i know all about you!"— park sunghoon is really an enigma. he squabbles, fights, teases you till no end. yet somehow that's exactly how he shows his love. when park sunghoon bickers with you, you know ultimately he's right. goodness me, how does he know everything about you? he's down to every detail and knows every strand of hair that makes you perfect, your personality that he loves.

yapper one and two — nothing beats a date at a quaint little cafe, sitting at the corner table with sunoo. chit chatting your woes away, sharing about the crazy things you've seen this past week at your university. maybe you don't notice, but sunoo likes to gaze at you when you go on about your long rant about... something that he forgot. none of that matters when he wants to appreciate your beauty.

fluffy this, fluffy that — everytime jungwon goes out, he has to commit himself to buy one plushie that looks like you. and cue the 30 minute yap about how he thinks you are equally as adorable as a spiky komodo dragon. everything reminds him of you, he misses you so much it's borderline attachment issues. it's probably time to tell jungwon that you don't take up majority of the space on your bed anymore. maybe he needs to find something new to get you.

"what- no, i don't like you!" — niki is a 100% tsundere. at first, you thought he was just an immature little kitten, but his feelings have seemed to slowly develop for you. he's going to explode if he doesn't do something. you wonder, why is this tall threatening emo boy suddenly bringing you coffee milk and a delicious strawberry cake? his pale cheeks turn pink whenever he sees you. does he... like you?

[misstycloud]

Yan.fiancé x royal GN.reader x yan.royal advisor

[Mc’s GN but will still be referred to as King/have traditionally male title]

——

Imagine a yandere prince who’s set to marry the king of a neighbouring kingdom, finding out his future spouse may not have an ounce of space for him in their heart. Especially when it appears like the their faithful, royal advisor might’ve beaten him to it.

This was it, Karim told himself. He was finally going to muster up the courage to ask you out. While you two were already engaged and had a set date for the wedding, he wished to catch your interest the old-fashioned way; the proper way, that is.

He straightened out his shirt and combed through his dark locks one last time before knocking on the professionally made oak door. A voice from inside-which was undoubtedly yours- said ‘enter’ in a monotone pitch.

You were sitting at a large desk(probably for all the paperwork and clutter to have a home), writing in documents that he had no idea what they were for. Your were not alone in the room, though. A tall man stood beside you, seemingly waiting for your every beck and call. His long red hair was tied into a low ponytail that draped over his right shoulder. The man was none other than the royal advisor and the childhood playmate of Kingdom X’s proud monarch, Caecilius. Karim felt a drop of sweat roll down his neck as Caecilius stared at him with such an irritation that he felt wrong for even breathing in the same room. He tried ignoring it and gulped. He guessed the silence was suppose to be an indicator for him to speak first.

“Excuse me, Your Majesty, “ he bowed “I don’t mean to disturb you, but-“

“Then don’t.” You said gruffly, glancing up from your paperwork. Noticing him flinch slightly, you realised it might’ve come out too harshly. You closed your eyes and sighed, silently counting to five in your head before saying, “sorry, I didn’t mean to sound so bitter.” Pinching your eyebrows, you waved with your arm, signalling your fiancé to continue.

He fixed himself(straightening out any wrinkles on his clothes and dragging his fingers through his hair, again) the moment he got your full attention. “Ah, yes, well I was simply wondering if Your Majesty would be interested in joining me in the gardens this afternoon?’ He looked up at you with a glint of hope his eyes, still ignoring Caecilius.

“For what purpose, exactly?” You inquired while resuming working and going over the pile of documents on your desk.

“Oh, um, tea- and other things, of course! I had the cooks prepare muffins and cookies.”

“No.” You said without doubt. If you actually had been looking your fiancé in the eye, you would have seen his shoulders slump in a manner that would have his mother scold him. She’d definitively go on about how many recorses went into raising him and she refused to let him disgrace them by being mopey.

“O-oh, that’s alright. I apologise for disturbing you.” Karim muttered, sounding weak and ashamed by the end.

It might not have been intentional, but you kind of felt like he was trying to guilt trip you. “Karim.”

Said man glanced up at the sound of his name.

“It’s not because I do not enjoy your company. The reason is that I have a lot of work that needs to be done. So please, don’t be disheartened.” You encouraged him with an assuring voice. “We will have tea and snacks together another day, alright?”

Blushing, he responded, “Yes, certainly, Your Majesty.” Karim smiled, and it would’ve all ended well there if it wasn’t for the third person in the room.

“There is no reason to lie, Your Majesty.” Caecilius’ smug tone was like nails on a chalk board to your fiancé. The royal advisor put his hand on your shoulder before facing Karim. “Their Majesty actually doesn’t like tea, and sweets are something they can’t have too much of lest they feel ill. Although, this is something you should have knowledge of considering your position?” The red-haired man let the insult hang in the air.

Karim’s smile had instantly wiped off and he stood there in complete silence, trying to control his emotions while thinking of what to say back.

You were no fool and easily sensed the hostility between the two men who were supposed to be your closest companions for the rest of your lives. Not wanting things to blow out of proportion, you sent a warning look towards your advisor.

“Cecil.”

You were far from in love with Karim, but he was still your future spouse, and that meant he wouldn’t be treated however. At the end of the day, cavil was simply an advisor- albeit a royal one.

“My apologies, Your Majesty.” He stepped back and neutralised his expression, understanding he went too far this time.

You sighed and shook your head in both frustration and disappointment. Your fiancé appeared to have pulled himself together, he slowly excused himself from the scene. “Thank you for your time. I will wait for a day when your are less busy.”

You gave him a nod, an acknowledgement to his departure. The tan young man spun around and left, closing the door softly behind him. And as he did, he thought he saw a slight smirk on the advisor’s face.

——-

It was later in the evening that Karim returned to his chamber. He flung himself on the lavish sheets of his bed and laid there spread out, pretending to be a starfish living in the vast ocean. At least a starfish wouldn’t have to deal with unrequited love, he thought. He would only have to worry about..whatever starfish did.

Grabbing a pillow, he screamed into it. What was he gonna do now? He’d already been living in your kingdom for months now, and the already scarce moment he managed to see you were becoming even fewer. Now two whole weeks could pass without him seeing as much as a glimpse of you. The closest he’d ever get to you was the whisperers of your name from the servants.

In the beginning, when he had first head of his upcoming marriage to you, he was honestly disgusted. That was because he had the impression you’d be a greedy, old man, giggling in his seat to take advantage of a young man. It was totally wrong! That impression was no where near who you actually were. You were neither old nor greedy.

During his stay, Karim had made it his mission to find out just exactly who you were before the wedding, and what better way to gather info than from the servants working in the palace. They work in the inner circle, they know everything! If anyone would know of the king’s bad habits, it’s them. Surprisingly, though, every servant he asked said nothing but positive things about you. While they obviously didn’t know you on an individual level, they couldn’t deny that you were a good person. To summarise all their thoughts : you were a fair and hardworking ruler.

A knock sounded at his door. Karim lifted his head to stare at the door. His personal servant bowed as a show of respect and then properly entered the chamber.

“Your Highness has not eaten dinner. Should I ask the chefs to send a meal up to your room?” She asked.

“No, I’m not hungry.” After thinking breifly he asked the maid, “Is there something in particular that Their Majesty likes?”

The maid was not prepared for this bold question. A little perplexed, she thought to ask to make sure she was correct in her assumption, “I’m not sure I understand completely, Your Highness. Are you referring to Their Majesty’s likes and dislikes?”

Karim nodded and repeated the question.

Feeling somewhat put on the spot, the maid ransacked her brain in what to say, thinking on the things Their Majesty says to enjoy. “Well, they are often engrossed in reading- from what I’ve heard. They go for strolls in the garden, as well.” She tried coming up with something more but found nothing. The maid apologised, “Unfortunatly that is all I can think of. Their Majesty works most of the time and does not have a lot to spare for hobbies.”

Karim held back a sigh, not wanting to make her feel bad for not carrying the answers he wished for. “It’s alright, thank you.”

“May I ask why His Highness ask? Perhaps if I knew the reason I might be of more help.”

Now he felt a bit embarrassed. “Oh..” he scratched his cheek, “Today, I went to request Their Majesty join me in the garden but they declined. The royal advisor even said they don’t like consuming too many sweets, so that may be why. Maybe they simply don’t like me?” Karim wanted to cry at the possibility. Sure, he and Their Majesty might not be getting married because they’re romantic sweethearts, but Karim had a hard time believing he was anywhere near repulsive. He shot uo from his position. “Quick, tell me their preferences in partners!”

“Ehm..”

“You must know something, tell me.” He urged.

The maid gulped and bit her lip. Should she tell him? She did know something; though it was only a rumour, it must hold some truth. She was a mere maid, nothing like the elegant, blue blooded people she in her surroundings. Telling him would surely be a violation.

“Wait!” Karim exclaimed and surprised the maid with his sudden outburst. “Or is it that Their Majesty has never expressed an interest in anyone previously?” It was certanly rare for royals not to have had any lovers, but not impossible. He had to admit, the though made him quite giddy. Imagine if he was Their Majsety’s first.

“Unfortunately, that is not the case, Your Highness.” She said timidly, and upon noticing his dejected expression, added, “Although, they are only rumours so they might not be true at all.”

“What rumours?”

She wondered again whether she was crossing a line but decided to tell Karim anyway. “There have been rumours circling around for a very long time about the king having a lover here at the palace- someone close to them.”

“And how long have these rumours been spreading?” Karim questioned to why he hadn’t heard anything about it and why no one ever bothered to inform him about them. He didn’t know how long was a ‘very long time’ but was keen to find out.

She took a second to answer, “For three years.” She answered finally.

Three years?! He’d be a bit more understanding if it’d just been a few months, three years however, that was way too long. Wincing, Karim contntinued firing questions. “Well, who is it? There has to be an idea of who the kings lover is, right? Tell me.”

Suddenly the maid seemed even more uncomfortable than ever. “You…you have probably already met. He’s always lingering behind Their Majesty- I don’t really think he has a life beyond these walls. And-“

The young man tuned out the maids speech. He was thinking deeply.

“Someone close to them”

‘‘He’s always lingering behind Their Majesty.”

“You have probably already met”

It was obvious who it was. Who else could it be? The clues in her speech pointed to one person. Karim’s mind filled with long, red hair, and those calculative grey eyes.

Caecilius.