#XXX DESPERATE TIMES CALL FOR DESPERATE MEASURES

[arachnoheaux]

🕸 no worries schnookums i'm sendin cherri out wit a glitter bomb as we SPEAK

ᡕᠵ᠊ᡃ࡚ࠢ࠘ ⸝່ࠡࠣ᠊߯᠆ࠣ࠘ᡁࠣ࠘᠊᠊ࠢ࠘𐡏 ─── - ̗̀♡ @dcnt-preach

@arachnoheaux IT'S SO BEIGE IN HERE I CAN FEEL MYSELF DEYASSIFYING AS WE SPEAK

[moonselune]

aaahhh hello! i don’t know if you’ve already written something like this but what about tav being taken by orin instead of one of the companions? could you do this for the bg3 girls? i know you've written lots of angst lately but you do it so well 🥺  

my talent for angst is a blessing and a curse but I cannot lie I loved doing this request call me a masochist xxx

─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: .☽ . :☆ﾟ. ───

Karlach:

The moment Karlach realized you were missing, a cold dread settled in her gut, quickly replaced by an inferno of rage. Orin. The name alone made her blood boil. She stormed through the camp, her eyes wild, her fists clenched tight enough for her palms to bleed.

"Where is she?" she roared, her voice echoing through the trees. The other companions tried to calm her, but it was like trying to contain a wildfire. Halsin and Minsc had to pin her down to keep her from charging recklessly into the city.

"Let me go!" she screamed, struggling against their hold. "I have to save her!"

"We will," Halsin said, his voice strained as he held onto her. "But not like this. We need a plan."

Hours later, they stormed Orin’s hideout, moving with grim determination. Karlach led the charge, her eyes blazing with fury. She tore through Orin’s minions with relentless force, her every move driven by the thought of you in danger. Finally, they reached the altar room, and there you were, bound and helpless.

"Get away from her!" Karlach bellowed, her voice cracking with emotion. She charged at Orin, who smirked and prepared to meet her.

The battle was fierce, but Karlach fought like a woman possessed. With a final, powerful strike, she brought Orin down, her rage giving her strength beyond measure. As soon as Orin fell, Karlach was at your side, cutting through your bindings with trembling hands.

"You're okay, you're okay," she whispered, tears streaming down her face as she pulled you into her arms. "I thought I lost you."

You tried to lighten the mood, managing a weak smile. "Hey, I'm fine. You know I can't get rid of you that easily."

But Karlach couldn’t stop crying, her body shaking with sobs as she held you close. "Don't ever scare me like that again," she murmured, refusing to let you go.

─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: .☽ . :☆ﾟ. ───

Minthara:

Minthara maintained a facade of calm and calculation when she discovered you had been kidnapped by Orin. Her movements were methodical, every decision precise. She issued orders, gathered intel, and planned meticulously. Despite this outward calm, she didn’t eat, and she didn’t sleep. Her mind was consumed by thoughts of you, and her heart ached with a worry she refused to show.

As she led the mission to rescue you, her focus was unshakeable. When the final confrontation with Orin came, Minthara’s eyes were cold and resolute. The battle was fierce, each strike a manifestation of her pent-up fury and desperation.

"You should have known better than to touch what is mine," Minthara hissed, her voice deadly calm.

Orin sneered, but Minthara’s onslaught left her no room for arrogance. Minthara’s strikes were brutal and unrelenting, driven by a determination to end this threat once and for all. She decimated Orin, leaving her broken and defeated on the ground.

Finally, Minthara turned to you, bound to the altar. Her hands shook as she cut your restraints, and she pulled you into her arms, clutching you tightly.

"Do you have any idea how much you scared me?" she whispered, her voice breaking for the first time.

You could feel her trembling, her grip almost painful in its intensity. "I'm sorry," you murmured, your voice filled with relief. "I didn’t mean to."

Minthara pulled back slightly, her eyes blazing. "You could have died," she scolded, her voice harsh with emotion. "You cannot be so reckless."

You couldn’t help but laugh, the absurdity of the situation hitting you. "I’ll try not to," you replied, your laughter mingling with tears. "But it's good to know you care."

Minthara’s stern expression didn’t soften. "This is not a joke," she insisted, but her voice wavered.

Before she could launch into another lecture, you silenced her with a kiss. She stiffened for a moment, then melted into the embrace, her arms wrapping around you even tighter.

"Thank you for coming for me," you whispered against her lips.

Minthara didn’t respond with words, just held you close, her relief and love evident in every touch.

─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: .☽ . :☆ﾟ. ───

Lae'zel:

Lae'zel's rage was a palpable thing when she learned you had been kidnapped by Orin. Her eyes blazed with fury, and her every movement was a testament to her determination. If her companions would not aid her in the rescue, she resolved to do it herself.

"We waste time!" she snapped, glaring at anyone who dared to suggest a more cautious approach. "I will not leave them in that monster's hands!"

When she finally located Orin's hideout, Lae'zel charged in with a ferocity that left the others in awe. She fought like a woman possessed, her every strike fueled by a burning need to rescue you. The enemies fell before her like wheat before a scythe, her rage making her unstoppable.

The closer she got to you, the more frantic her attacks became. When she finally reached the altar where you were bound, she barely spared a glance for Orin, her focus entirely on you. But Orin stood in her way, and Lae'zel’s eyes narrowed with deadly intent.

"You will regret this, Orin," she hissed, her voice a low growl.

The battle was intense, Orin's taunts only fueling Lae'zel's rage. She fought with an almost reckless abandon, her strikes powerful and relentless. It was a close call, but Lae'zel’s determination saw her through. She defeated Orin, leaving her bleeding and broken.

Without hesitation, she rushed to your side, cutting your bonds with swift, precise movements. She pulled you into her arms, her grip tight and possessive. "You are safe now," she murmured, her voice shaking with a mix of relief and residual anger. "I have you."

You looked up at her, your eyes filled with gratitude. "I knew you'd come for me."

Lae'zel’s grip tightened, her eyes fierce. "Of course. I would tear the world apart to get you back."

Despite the intensity of the situation, you managed a small smile. "And you nearly did."

Lae'zel’s expression softened, just a fraction. "I will always come for you," she said, her voice a promise. She refused to let you go, even as the danger passed, her fierce protectiveness a testament to her love.

─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: .☽ . :☆ﾟ. ───

Shadowheart:

Shadowheart tried to pretend everything was fine when she discovered you had been kidnapped by Orin. She maintained a stoic expression, her voice calm as she made plans with the others. But beneath the surface, her heart raced with fear and anger.

The journey to rescue you was a blur of tension and suppressed emotion. Shadowheart led the charge with a grim determination, her mind focused on getting you back safely. When they finally reached the location where you were held, Shadowheart’s calm facade began to crack.

She fought with a fierce precision, her every move driven by a desperate need to reach you. When she finally saw you, bound to the altar, something inside her snapped. She rushed to your side, cutting your restraints with shaking hands.

"Are you okay?" she asked, her voice trembling despite her efforts to stay calm.

"I'm fine," you reassured her, your voice soothing. "Thanks to you."

Shadowheart’s composure broke. Tears filled her eyes as she pulled you into her arms. "You idiot," she sobbed, her voice choked with emotion. "Why did you let them take you? Why didn’t you fight harder?"

You held her close, feeling her tears soak into your shoulder. "I’m sorry," you murmured, your heart aching at the sight of her distress. "I didn’t mean to worry you."

Shadowheart pulled back, her eyes red and puffy. "You scared me so much," she admitted, her voice barely above a whisper. "I thought I’d lost you."

You gently wiped her tears away, your touch tender. "I'm here now," you said softly. "And I’m not going anywhere."

Shadowheart clung to you, her relief palpable. "I love you," she whispered, her voice breaking. "I can’t lose you."

You kissed her forehead, holding her close. "I love you too," you replied, your voice filled with emotion. "And I’m not going anywhere. Not ever."

Shadowheart buried her face in your shoulder, her body shaking with sobs. You held her tightly, offering her the comfort and reassurance she needed, grateful to be back in her arms.

─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: .☽ . :☆ﾟ. ───

I can't lie when I come to write this little note I am always cackling because I have just reviewed what I have written and thinking what I am about unleash on the world - Seluney xoxo

[roseykat]

ROSEY’S KINKTOBER SPECIAL

GENERAL INFORMATION

Helloooo! I’m going to be running a Kinktober for the first time next month! I’m excited because I have a lot of ideas and whatnot so please find the list of dates, titles, and concepts below. As always with my content, I post R18 NSFW content so I advise anyone who is under the age of 18 to refrain from reading/engaging with my posts and future posts!

🌹OCT.1 - Car sex - Bang Chan

Same coin, different faces: Despite not being together with Chan anymore, you somehow end up in the back of his car...fogging up the windows.

🌹OCT.3 - Erotic Massage - Changbin 

These hands were made for you: Changbin innocently asks if you can give him a massage but doesn't expect to become so horny and aroused by it.

🌹OCT.5 - BDSM - Felix

Marzipan, Cherries, and Whipped Cream: A BDSM scene that takes place between you and soft dom Felix.

🌹OCT.7 - Voyeurism - Jeongin

Weeding out the Weak: After almost two weeks of Jeongin not allowing you to touch yourself, greed finally makes you cave which only leads you to be caught by him in his bed trying to get yourself off. Despite pleading to Jeongin for him to fuck you, he finds a better solution of only giving you half of what you want.

🌹OCT.9 - Threesome - Minho + Jisung

Eat, sleep, play: This one shot looks into the dynamics of an established polyamourous relationship between you and Minsung, along with an account of what Jisung likes to call ‘play time’.

🌹OCT.11 - Aftercare - OT8 blurb version 

Blanket of Safety: An OT8 blurb version of how each other members take care of you after intense and/or vanilla sex.

🌹OCT.13 - Squirting - Hyung Line Version 

Come as you please Part 1: A blurb version of how each of the Hyung line members reacts to making you squirt.

🌹OCT.15 - Squirting - Maknae Line Version 

Come as you please Part 2: A blurb version of how each of the Maknae line members reacts to making you squirt.

🌹OCT.17 - Freelance - Seungmin 

Don't Bite the Hand that Feeds You: Featuring Seungmin as your lecturer's student assistant whose personality is just as harsh as he fucks.

🌹OCT.19 - Hate fuck - Minho 

Venom Biter: The end of a relationship between you and Minho turns as sour as it could ever get. A lovers to enemies trope.

🌹OCT.21 - Top/bottom dynamic - Jisung 

Hell’s Baby: Jisung, who is not a jock but friends with many, comes across as a seemingly dominant person. It’s not until you shatter that facade of his, only to find out that he’s a switch, mainly leaning towards a bottom, wanting desperately to be put in his place.

POWER WEEK

🌹OCT.23 - Dry humping - Hyunjin

Like Throwing Petrol on a Fire: Hyunjin can't get neither his or your clothes off in time for him to fuck you. Unfortunately, he has to resort to and put up with another measure.

🌹OCT.24 - Phone sex - OT8 version

I can’t see you, but I can hear you: An OT8 blurb version of each of the members engaging in phone sex with the reader.

🌹OCT.25 - Threesome - Bang Chan + Felix

Some things are better left unknown: After suspecting your two roommates of potentially being in a relationship, there's more to just that when you discover one of them actually has a crush on you.

🌹OCT.26 - Sensory play - Jeongin

Table manners and Bible Studies: Jeongin, a churchgoer who is also a very sexual person, likes to immerse both you and himself in the realm of sensory play, among other things as well.

🌹OCT.27 - Brat Taming - Seungmin

If the collar fits: Seungmin can't stand brats. But he is more than willing to train one into submission no matter how hard it is for him.

🌹OCT.28 - Cuckolding - Bang Chan

Open Game: This one shot involves, you, Bang Chan, an invitation to an exclusive sex club, and a whole heap of memories that he’s never going to forget.

🌹OCT.31 - Halloween special

Yet to be decided… 

I can’t wait to get into next month so stay tuned for updates or any changes!

Rose xxx

[rwac96]

Prompt

OG Stud Crossover

When Ryuko went to her best friend to ask her how she could put a stop to Izuku being in NNN, she did not expect Mako to suggest she wear this. But desperate times call for desperate measures.

https://rule34.xxx/index.php?page=post&s=view&id=11442452

"F-Fuck," the delinquent tomboy muttered, as her legs shivered due to her current attire. "really? In the fucking Fall?!"

"Iron will, Ryuko!" Mako shouts with glee, giving her best friend two thumbs up.

Meanwhile, Izuku stared at Ryuko; his face red and his entire body shaking. Next to the greenette, Katsuki gives the girl an annoyed scowl.

"Why the fuck are ya dressed like that?!" Bakugo rudely asked her, "Summer's been fucking over!"

[traceyaudette]

Broken Dreams and Wild Hearts

Chapter 5 Are you With Me

Celestia was engulfed by a feeling of panic and fear as she sat in her car. These feelings were overwhelming, and she could feel her them intensify with every passing second. She could feel her heart beating fast and her breaths coming in short gasps. It was as if time had stood still, the world holding its breath; images of her daughter's innocent face flashed before Celestia's eyes Now tainted with worry and uncertainty, the mere thought of Quinn in pain sent a surge of adrenaline through her veins, urging her to take immediate action. She had to get to Quinn.

Her hand trembled as she attempted to start her car, Celestia knew that time was of the essence. She had to stay calm and focused to help her daughter, she closed her eyes for a moment, took a deep breath, and tried to steady her trembling hands. the ringing of her phone piercing he

Celestia already knew it was Sylvie calling her; her hands were shaking as she picked up the phone and heard Sylvie's urgent and desperate voice, sending shivers down Celestia's spine.

“I know…it’s Quinn…I’m on my way. Take her to the glen, find the healers, and get Shyleigh.” Celestia knew she had to get herself together to help her baby.

XXX

The M.C. filed into the great room, gathering around the table, the newer members either taking seats along the walls or standing. The laughter and jovial mood started to settle down, and then the men’s moods became serious. Adeden Kiem made his way into the grand room,

The room fell silent as all eyes turned to Adeden; took his place at the head of the table and took the gavel, slamming it down to gain attention.  The men were anxious, excited, and, most of all they were attentive, each one waiting for the Primal Phantom’s president to speak. Adeden's eyes scanned the faces, of the men in the room; it was clear that something important was about to be discussed, something that would significantly impact each of the men's lives.

The men were gathered in a dimly lit room, shrouded in an air of secrecy, and were anxious, excited, and curious. Their faces were masked with a look of stern determination. The silence was broken by the voice of one man, who spoke in a low and measured tone, causing the others to lean in closer, eager to hear what he had to say.

"Ice Castles need to disappear," he said firmly. "Not only are they selling drugs, but they are cooking them too." Taking in their expressions, body language, he was gauging their reaction.

There was a murmur of agreement among the group, but one new member, Kit, spoke up. "But being a brothel is fine?" he asked incredulously.

Drake McAllister, the Sergeant of Arms, stood up, his eyes blazing with anger. He shot Kit a withering glare and sighed exaggeratedly before sitting back down heavily in his chair. "We have always been bothered by Dedria," he said, referring to the brothel owner. "She has always been... something of a pain. Allowing her to have a brothel in our area meant we could keep an eye on her, and she was not causing any problems for us. She's done some messed up things, but what she is doing now goes beyond..."

Drake was interrupted by a clearing of throats, a subtle reminder that he was revealing too much information about the group's activities. He stopped talking abruptly.

Kellen, stood up and looked at Kit sternly. "All you need to know is when one of us says jump, you need to ask how high," he said firmly, leaving no room for further discussion.

XXX

Quinn’s mysterious episode almost put an end to Celestia. The incident appeared to come out of nowhere and was over as suddenly as it began. While Quinn appeared outwardly unaffected by the event, Celestia was left with a lingering sense of unease. Quinn began talking about a man named Kellen, whom she described as a kind and friendly person. According to Quinn, Kellen was actively searching for her and was on his way to meet her. She assured everyone that Kellen was a good guy and urged them not to worry.

As the night grew darker, Celestia sat in her cozy living room, stirring her tea with a trembling hand. The events of the day had left her feeling uneasy and on edge. The encounter with the mysterious stranger earlier in the day had made her even more anxious. The fact that the stranger knew her daughter's name and might possibly be the protector of Quinn was starting to seem more plausible. Shyleigh had always spoken of the protector with an air of mystery. And tonight, she revealed that the protector would ride an iron horse. The thought of it all made Celestia's mind race with questions and uncertainty

[missmaywemeetagain]

Hi,

for your prompt request.

💻 angst for Austin. There was a short lived rumour he'd perform at the Oscars. I had this in my head for months, that he'd perform the in memoriam section (what Lenny Kravitz did this year). Maybe with the beautiful Elvis rendition of BRIDGE OVER TROUBLED WATER .

Obviously that's a daunting thing, so maybe some praise kink that leads to more at rehearsals? With whoever your comfortable with writing this but if live to read it with Polly Bennett his movement coach.

Xxx

Ohhhh, dearest Nonnie, did you give me a challenge! It took me a minute to try and get into Austin's head because I've never written him before, so thank you for your patience! 💖

I really ended up leaning into that praise kink, and this turned out waaay filthier than I intended, but 'twas where my muse took me lol. The Bridge Over Trouble Water lyrics actually were a bit of an inspiration, so the song appears more figuratively than literally. I hope it's okay that it ended up being so much smut vs. storyline, but it is Austin and Polly! Thank you for your request and I hope you enjoy, When Tears Are In Your Eyes, darlin'! 💋

TW: This is utterly filthy. Minors BE GONE! 18+ only! Really, there is so much SEXXX, but, like, in a sweet, subby Austin way. Panic attacks. Negative self-talk. PRAISE KINK--so much praise kink... Sub space? Not as edited as usual! Hopefully this isn't too much of a mess cuz I'm a little nervous about writing about Austin (and Polly!)...I'm definitely not an Austin expert 👀

When Tears Are in Your Eyes

The first time was a fluke. The panic before he’d had to go out and really perform as Elvis for the first time, for the ’68 Special section, was utterly paralyzing and he’d needed something or someone to break him out of his mind prison, someone telling him he was going to be okay, that he was going to do a great job, that he was good enough. Desperate times had called for desperate measures.

Baz and Olivia and even Catherine had tried help him shake his nerves, but no matter the massive amount of support and encouragement from them all, he was convinced there was no way he could do Elvis justice. That he would fail completely, not only tanking his own career, but also Baz’s, and disappoint millions of Elvis’ fans across the world in the process. To say he’d worked himself into a frenzy was an understatement.

When Polly came in, his amazing and fiery movement coach, he was convinced she wouldn’t be able to stave off this horror building inside him, this pure terror that he was a complete fraud. But they’d worked so many hours together, one on one, that she could sense something in him that he could not. When she’d embraced him and told him he was going to be alright, that everything would be fine, he almost broke into pieces at his friend’s words. He’d sniffled into her blonde hair, his Elvis makeup running, clutching at her like she was a life raft.

And then it had happened. As she whispered words of encouragement into the shell of his ear, praising the commitment he had to the role and how he was already doing Elvis’ legacy proud, he’d felt it. Unfortunately, pressed up against her in that tight black leather suit, it didn’t take long for her to feel it, too.

He was totally mortified, of course, chalking it up to his anxiousness and heightened emotions, and it sent him into another kind of panic because Polly was his colleague and his friend and oh my god, he didn’t want to ruin any of that. Whimpering in her hair, he wanted to pull away and hide even more than he had before, but she just kept breathing praise into his ear. As if he wasn’t rock hard against her.

It hadn’t taken long for his body to go off the rails, his hips rolling into her ever so slightly, the friction of those damn pants coupled with what she was saying arousing him to the point of bursting. But she didn’t flinch or move away, she just kept her arms around him tight and let him grind and whimper into her.

It wasn’t enough. He was a sniveling mess, terrified of going out there and humiliating himself, and now he was insanely aroused, his mind starting to white out, and he needed release but the dry humping just wasn’t enough.

Somehow, she’d known exactly what he needed and for some unknown reason, hadn’t hesitated in the slightest in giving it to him. When she’d popped the button on the pants, unzipping him just enough to reach her tiny hand in, he’d nearly passed out from the way she’d groped his too-sensitive cock through his underwear.

“Doing such a good job for me, Aus, always doing so good for me. Always putting in your all. You’re gonna be perfect,” she’d whispered as she pumped him expertly. His mind went blank, hearing nothing but her praise, and he surrendered quickly. Shuddering violently, he crested and felt the hot spurts of his release coat the inside of his briefs.

“That’s it, let it go, Aus. Cumming so well,” she’d praised him, talking him through his orgasm, then released him with a genuine smile, pressing her forehead to his as he tried to regain his senses.

It wrecked him just enough to break him free of his anxiety. He’d gasped in both refraction and shock and Polly had just patted his cheek sweetly and handed him tissues to clean himself up, like there wasn’t something completely bonkers that happened between them. Like she hadn’t just jerked him off and successfully made him feel like he could go out there now and be Elvis. Like his confidence hadn’t been restored by the magic power of her words and her hand.

Things had happened so intensely and fast after that with filming that he’d barely had time to think on it. When he’d stripped out of the suit and his messed underwear later that night, he’d actually laughed, thinking of the story of how Elvis had orgasmed in his leather suit as well.

How very ‘method’ of me, he’d thought with a chuckle.

He’d also been confused and embarrassed, but Polly acted like nothing strange had occurred at all. No lingering glances or silly winks. No uncomfortable silences or awkward words. Business as usual.

So, he’d moved on. It was a fluke. A moment of weakness.

Except now, backstage during rehearsals for the Oscars, he finds himself in that same completely panicked headspace for the first time since the ’68 Special. His agent had somehow convinced him to agree to singing “Bridge Over Troubled Water” during the “In Memorial” section of the show. But that was months ago, before he was exhausted from all the award shows and press and schmoozing and the traveling across continents, all the while trying not to let his grief for Lisa Marie (and the residual grief it triggered about his mom) consume him.

He is terrified. Stomach churning and palms sweating, he shakes all over, a leftover effect of those pieces of Elvis still lingering within him. Singing in front of people was never something he’d been able to do until Elvis. But even then, he’d been playing a character. It was so much more vulnerable to get out there singing as himself. In front of a room filled with the biggest names in Hollywood, in front of his heroes, and for millions on live television, no less.

No pressure or anything.

Sure, they’d convinced him to sing briefly on SNL, but that was still under the guise of Elvis and it had been only a small part of the farewell for Cecily, the focus being on her, not just him. He’d been nervous, to be sure, but it had been different. Not this. Nothing like this.

Of course, he knows the song in his sleep, it being one of his favorites to listen to while prepping for Elvis. But as much as the critics and the world loved his performance, and as much as he tries to draw upon the superstar’s confidence, he is not Elvis Presley.

His shallow and quick breaths as he waits for his turn to rehearse makes him think that he might pass out if he keeps freaking out at this rate. Forcing himself to breath in through his nose and out through his mouth, part of the dynamic breathwork he’d learned, he manages to keep from ending up on the floor. But his mind is still whirling and his stomach is churning.

You idiot, you’re just gonna go out there and embarrass yourself in front of everyone you admire. What a failure you’ll be, his inner critic berates him. Stupid fucking fool.

He can’t do this. There’s no way in hell.

Austin feels the tears prick in his eyes. Oh, good, now I’m gonna cry, too. Perfect.

It’s then that he feels the small arms encircle his waist and he knows.

He knows it’s her.

He’s not sure how Pol managed to get backstage—the security is insane—but like a miracle, she’s here. “Come on, Aus. You’re going to be okay,” she says quietly.

Gently, she pulls him back, back, back through the wings of the stage, whispering words along the way (“You can do this, hun, and will do it well. I know you will.”) and into an empty dressing room. He follows more than willingly, letting the tears free fall down his cheeks now.

He finds himself in that strange little space again where all he hears and wants and needs is her, her reassurances and praises, and she gives them liberally.

Polly gently pushes him into the room, closing the door and engaging the lock behind her. His brain is overloaded, his body buzzing with anxiety, but her words leave him wanting and he feels his cock twitch in his pants. All rational thought is abandoned, his body beginning to take over, and he doesn’t have the strength to hold himself back.

Austin steps into her, pressing her back against the door, nuzzling his head down into her neck. She lets him, her hands running softly, comfortingly, through his hair, causing a low moan to escape his lips.

“I-I-I need…please…” he begs through hiccupping little sobs.

“I know, shh, I know.”

Then, she proceeds to murmur at him all the ways he is good and talented and true. He can’t help rolling his now-aching cock into her belly, but she does not falter.

The sensations are all too much this time, even more than the first time, and he is running his hand up her bare leg and under her skirt before his mind even registers what he’s trying to do, all the lines he is going to cross. Because he has to do something, something he knows he’s good at, something he knows he won’t fail.

And by the little squeak that turns into a mewl when he reaches the apex between her thighs, the thin cotton covering her warm little sex, he knows he’s right. Slipping his fingers under, he runs them through her already dampening folds and up to circle the sensitive nub at the top.

“T-this o-okay?” he stutters out, needing to know he’s doing right by her.

“Yes, Aus, that’s perfect, oh god,” she moans breathlessly in his ear.

The praise fully short-circuits his brain, sending him into that white space where his career expectations and fears don’t touch him like they did before.

Please, please, please…is all he thinks and he realizes eventually that he’s panting it out loud, ignoring the straining in his pants because he wants to get her off, he needs to please her, and if he does, everything will somehow be okay.

He slides his fingers down through her softness, and finding her wet and ready for him, turns her around to face the door and slides two fingers into her heat, his thumb working circles on her clit. Pumping, his fingers search for that spongy spot, the one he thinks will make her keen and pleased, and when he finds it, he curls his fingertips into it.

“That’s it…just like that,” she pants, then she bucks back, her ample ass giving him some much-needed friction. The sensation is almost too much, causing him to press her into the door, his throbbing erection making him desperate.

“Oh, my good, good boy. Oh god. Oh g-god, Aus, you’re gonna make me cum,” she chokes out and it’s music to his ears, this approval and proof of his goodness. “That’s p-perfect, you’re perfect!”

Her cry couples the fluttering of her walls and the dam breaks, arousal flooding onto his hand. But her release sends his body into overdrive, and he pulls his fingers out of her, leaving her moaning. Frantically, he pulls her soaked panties down her legs and unbuckles his pants, letting them slide down and free his cock.

“Please, I-I-I…can I?” he whimpers at her.

She nods. “Yes, yes!”

He is in shambles. It only takes a second before he’s rubbing his cock between her legs, coating himself in her slick, and they both moan at the sensation.

Going into that white space, the one he only gets to when with her, all he can think is please, please, I need, I need, and it causes him to rush a little. He pushes up into her comforting and plush folds, meeting a little resistance on the way because he’s thick and she’s small but oh god, she’s so tight around him.

Through the hazy fog of his brain, he hears her pretty little gasps as she adjusts to his girth, but when he bottoms out in her wet heat, it feels too good and a fresh panic hits him. This awareness of what he is doing to her—spearing her and splitting her in two—and the thought that he might be doing it wrong or hurting her in some way has him sobbing, “Pol,” as he clutches at her waist.

“It’s okay, you’re perfect, Aus,” she moans, encouraging him. “Now move those hips, just like I taught you.”

Relief and fresh arousal floods over him. He knows this. He can do it in his sleep. Cock twitching inside her, he starts to move, rolling those narrow hips of his smoothly, precisely, just as he’d practiced for hours and hours prepping for Elvis.

Polly lets out a low, pleased groan as he does so, and it fills him with pleasure because he’s pleasing her, he’s doing it right. With each thrust, she coos at him words of praise and he eats them up like he’s starving. The terror and the trepidation are banished into the shadows, consumed by that white space, the space where he is perfect and good and doing everything just right.

He could stay here forever, surrounded by light and warmth and comfort, buried deep in his friend.

His smooth thrusts become pointed because the more she praises his work, the hotter he becomes, like he’s burning up from the inside in the best way possible. She writhes below him, pushing back into him, the sound of his balls slapping her weepy, perfect little cunt sending every ounce of blood straight into his dick.

One hand slams next to hers on the door, using it as leverage to pound into her. Deeper, need to be deeper, oh fuck, oh Jesus. The other grips desperately at her waist, anchoring himself to her so he doesn’t fly too far away into that glorious white space.

Her voice does that, too, her breathless sighs of, “Yes, yes, you’re doing so good, giving me that perfect cock so well, Aus,” are pushing him headlong to the brink.

Reaching around under her skirt, he finds her puffy clit and works it furiously, even in his blinding fog knowing he wants her to come over the edge with him. She keens and he pistons erratically at the sound.

“Fuck, you’re gonna be a good boy and come with me now, right Aus?” she pants, taking him like she was made to do so.

“Mhm,” is all he can manage, biting his lower lip and nodding. Heat floods him, overwhelming his senses as he fucks into her, needing every inch to remind him who he is. He begins to shudder when he feels her walls clench tighter around him.

“Oh, fuck, you’re g-gonna make me cum again, Aus! Oh, YES,” she moans, fluttering around him, and he shatters into little pieces right behind her.

He’s too far gone to pull out, selfishly claiming her and painting her walls white with his seed. Relishing in her warmth, he clings to her in his climax, not realizing the tears of relief streaming down his face.

Every ounce of tension in his body releases. The only sound in the room is their heavy breathing as they recover. She lets him linger inside her, seemingly aware of how far away he’s gone.

Eventually, the white space dims and he comes back into himself, sliding his softening cock out of her. He kisses her softly at the place where her neck meets her shoulder.

“I—Thank you,” he whispers, voice low and gravely, unsure of what to say, unsure of how to make her understand that she managed to banish his self-hating demons away right when he needed her.

She turns around and pulls his head down, pressing her lips to his forehead. “Anything for you, Aus.”

His now-relaxed body fills with warmth at that.

Finding a box of tissues, he grabs a clump, then falls reverently to his knees in front of her with the intent of cleaning her up. He pulls up the hem of her dress, revealing the short thatch of hair at the top of her pussy, worked swollen and red from him.

“You don’t have to do that, Aus,” she breathes. He can sense the blush in her voice, a modesty that was absent when she was trying to help him through his panic.

“Hush.” He taps her legs open and she relents quickly, unable to deny him. Pink and slick and bare to him, he looks up at her from below and adds, “You’re beautiful.”

She flushes pink and bashfully looks away.

His initial task to clean her abandoned, he watches in a kind of awe and pride the way his spent arousal, mixed with her own, leaks from her tight, little hole. He abandons the tissues on the floor. So entranced is he that he can’t stop himself from running his fingers through her folds and the slick.

She gasps from above, which quickly turns into a punctuated sigh when he leans forward and softly kisses her oversensitive nub. Fueled by her reaction and the deliciously musky taste of her on his lips, he flicks his tongue there.

She nearly doubles over, her hands flying into his sandy locks.

His body, still recovering from their sex, hums with pleasure. He laps at her again, and again. He can’t seem to help himself because she just makes him feel so good.

She shudders over him, trying to still his head. “Aus, I can’t,” she whines. This was obviously not part of her plan to calm him.

He smiles against her clit, then pulls back to watch as he uses two long fingers to push his dripping arousal back up into her tight heat.

The sound of her loud moan resonates in the small space as she falls back against the door, eyes closing with pleasure.

He holds there for a moment before he turns his attention back to her puffy, oversexed clit. Licking, sucking, and kissing it, he teases her. He works her into a frenzied, whimpering mess above him.

He pulls away briefly. “Am I doing good?” he asks with a hopeful little smile, still needing her approval. He scissors his fingers, sliding them in and out of her soaking and nearly-wrecked pussy.

All she can seem to do is nod frantically. That thrill of praise runs through him again.

Diving back in, he relishes the taste of her, of them, adding a third digit into her stretched hole. The noises are obscene, the squelching of their combined arousal filling the room as he fucks her relentlessly with his fingers. Her mewling whimpers let him know he’s still satisfying her. He can feel himself hardening again, but it’s an afterthought to her pleasure.

“Cum for me, baby, let me make you cum. Come on now,” he urges her.

Once he curls his fingers into that soft spot inside her and sucks on her nub just so, it doesn’t take long until she goes rigid and comes undone with a panting shudder. Again.

Austin strokes her through her climax then releases her with one last soft kiss to her mound. Then he finally uses those tissues to clean her gently. She shudders with overstimulation.

“You are too good, Austin Butler,” she gasps out.

“Promise?” he says, only half joking as they both put themselves back together.

Polly grabs him by the cheeks and stares directly into his big, blue eyes. “Aus, you are one of the best, most talented men I have ever known. Anything you choose to do, you give it your all. You will do well,” she says seriously. “Now, go out there and kick some ass for me, will you?” She smiles and gives him a kiss on the cheek.

He can’t help but grin from ear to ear, his doubts banished.

And even though he is nervous and emotional the night of the awards, he thinks of that sublime and calm white space where he is always good enough. And when he sings at the show, he gives it his all, knowing that Polly is watching.

[gorgeys]

Nerves (Emilia Alo x Reader)

Part 1 -- Part 2 -- Part 3

You’ve been tasked to seduce Sebas, but you can’t keep your eyes off Emilia…

Emilia Alo x Fem!reader 1580 words

It starts a bit slow but picks up toward the end

“This party isn’t just so the school sees us play,” Jana said.  “I have a more important reason.”

Everyone was gathered in the girls' dorm, minus Luka.  There were conversations of the party that night, but Y/N wasn’t too interested.  Instead of listening in, she tackled Andi onto her bed for the last chip in the bag.  Y/N attempted to pry the chip from her hand as she practically sat on top of Andi, giggling as Andi laughed and wheezed for air simultaneously.

“The fire, the threats, the attack on Esteban: we just need him to confess,” Jana said.

“Who?” Y/N turned her head toward the rest of the group, her mouth full of Andi’s chip.

“Sebas.  Have you two dorks been listening?” Jana asked, emphasizing her annoyance.

Y/N only rolled her eyes in response.

“How will we make that happen?” Esteban asked.

“A whole lot of vodka.”

“You’re trusting that a lot of things will fall into place.  I don’t like those odds,” Esteban replied.

“Trust me, I know him,” Jana defended her plan.

“It’s too risky.  What if he doesn’t want to drink?  What if he brings friends or bodyguards?” Esteban said as Y/N released Andi from underneath her only to be tackled in retaliation with a wild scream.

“Desperate times call for desperate measures,” Jana said, ignoring the chaos behind her.  “Dixon’s with me, right?”  She hopefully smiled toward him to which he sighed.

“Well, it’s not like we have a lot of options.”

“I don’t think it’s that bad of an idea,” MJ piped in.

Y/N managed to struggle out of Andi’s grip and her cruel laughter to get a word in.

“Yeah, but there’s no way you can get him drunk.  He hates you.”

“Well,” Jana trailed off, walking toward Y/N with a sly smile.  “That’s why we need one more thing that Sebastian Langarica loves,” she said, sitting beside Y/N and placing her hands comfortingly on her shoulders.

Y/N looked confused for a moment as silence fell over the group.  But when she caught Jana’s expression, the implications of the plan suddenly made sense.

“Me?  Oh god, this truly is the worst plan yet,” Y/N complained, quickly shrugging off Jana’s hands.

“No!  Dixon heard him talking about you the other day.  Seems like Sebas has got quite a crush,” Jana’s smile grew as she elbowed Y/N’s side.

“Dixon!”

“Don’t blame me, Y/N!” Dixon raised his hands in surrender.  “It’s Jana’s plan!”

“Come on!  I know him.  He’ll fall for it,” Jana enticed.  “So?”

                                                         xxx

Y/N bit down on the side of her cup, lost somewhere in the sea of EWS students.  It seemed that the entire school had already shown up in the first fifteen minutes of the extravagant party, which only made Y/N more nervous.  

She already had mild stage fright which she had worked so hard to overcome, and now she had people screaming and bumping her left and right before she was even supposed to be performing.  It was so claustrophobic she considered walking out the doors and never returning.

But one thing she was more frightened of than social situations: letting her friends down.

Granted, her friends had abandoned her in a large group of people, knowing she was quite introverted.  So how much of her friends were they?

Unbeknownst to Y/N, she was being watched.  First from afar, then closer as Emilia made a beeline for her, pushing other guests aside.

“Hey,” Emilia said as she walked toward Y/N.  Either the music was too loud or Y/N was too deep in her thoughts because Y/N didn’t hear a word.  She continued grinding her teeth as her grip tightened around her empty cup.  “Hey, Y/N,” Emilia semi-yelled this time.

Y/N instantly spun around at the recognizable accent.  She whipped those around her with her high pigtails before facing Emilia.  For a moment, she was a deer in headlights, unable to move a muscle in her body.  Emilia softly smiled, almost blushing at Y/N’s awestruck reaction.

Emilia had been so amused with Y/N since she first step foot on campus.  She was so adorably shy and awkward, yet so insanely beautiful.  It was a combination that easily invaded Emilia’s heart.  Perhaps it was the contrast to her own personality that made Emilia relentlessly chase after Y/N even when “chasing” wasn’t typically her thing.

But she didn’t understand why Y/N was still so nervous around her given that Emilia had made so many flirtatious advances that practically everyone assumed they would be together by the week’s end.  Yet Y/N seemed to run away every time they got close to being more than flirty friends.

Yet something about their interactions was so addictive that Emilia kept coming back for more.  And Y/N would be lying if she didn’t love the way Emilia made her feel, even if she was too shy to show it.

“Hey,” Y/N said, attempting to swallow her nervousness.

“Not really your scene, huh?”

“Is it that obvious?” Y/N pouted.

“No, no,” Emilia reassured her, wrapping her free hand around Y/N’s arm, pulling her closer while rubbing circles with her thumb in the crook of Y/N’s elbow.  Emilia attempted to ease her anxiousness and nerves as she’d rather enjoy Y/N’s presence in a calm state than in a panicky one. “I just…I know you.  You just need some more of this in you,” Emilia said, waving her half-empty bottle of beer in the air.  “It’ll relax you.”

Y/N glanced down at the bottle then back up at Emilia.

“You want some?” Emilia asked.

Y/N hesitantly nodded.

“You just have to ask.  You know I’d give it to you,” Emilia said.  She smiled that big, heart-stopping smile that showed off a bit of her gums.  Y/N was a slave to that smile as it contagiously spread onto her own lips.

What she wasn’t expecting was for Emilia to step forward and lift the bottle to her lips and grab her chin.  Emilia grabbed her chin, guiding Y/N to tilt her head back and part her lips, allowing Emilia to pour the dark taste of the beer onto Y/N’s tongue.  It tasted so much better when Emilia’s hands were all over her.

Emilia allowed the image to melt into her brain where it would be held for safekeeping.  She knew, from that point on, that it would be the only thing she’d be able to think about.  But eventually, she pulled the bottle away.

As Y/N’s head fell back into place, her lips still faintly separated, Emilia quickly downed the rest of the beer.  She pushed the empty bottle into the arms of a random boy before turning back toward Y/N.  Their chests were practically pressed against each other, their noses grazing one another.

Too scared that Y/N would run away again, Emilia quickly planted her hands on Y/N’s hips.  She scratched her nails against the fabric of the nearly see-through dress Y/N had borrowed from Jana.

“You’re beautiful,” Emilia whispered, her eyes locked onto Y/N’s slightly wide ones.  Y/N was still in shock from the moments before, and now this.  It was all too much for her.  That’s why her nerves usually got the best of her and she ended up running.

But this time seemed to be the exception as the alcohol she had drank previously was impacting her judgement.

“You’re the most beautiful woman I’ve ever seen,” Y/N confessed as if it was a secret.  It was truly the worst-kept secret.  Nevertheless, Emilia smiled, watching Y/N slowly emerge from her shell.

Y/N noticed Emilia’s hips begin to sway with the music as Dixon and MJ began to sing Pensado en Ti.

“Dance with me,” Emilia said, blocking out every scene and sound that wasn’t the girl in front of her.

Her hands still hanging awkwardly at her sides, Y/N moved them to hold Emilia’s upper arms.  She looked down at her fingers delicately touching the skin, afraid of making a wrong move.  But when she looked back into Emilia’s face, they both suddenly melted into giggles.  It made everything feel a little less serious.  Just right.

Y/N began to release the tension in her muscles as she allowed her body to move with MJ’s voice.  Emilia was impressed by the fluidity of her movements.  She was so used to Y/N’s stiffness that her stomach dropped feeling Y/N’s hands rub up and down her arms in rhythm with her hips.  It was heavenly.

“Y/N!  Y/N, where are you?” Jana’s voice suddenly screamed over the ending of the song.  Y/N jumped at the mention of her name, moving a step back from Emilia who lost touch with Y/N’s body.  Y/N turned to find Jana storming toward her, causing her to drop her hands back to her sides.  “Come on!  He’s here!” Jana shouted, grabbing Y/N by the arm as she had once held Emilia, before dragging her away.

It happened so quickly that Emilia couldn’t get out another word before Y/N was too far.  Y/N peeked back at her with a look of remorse before she disappeared behind the other bodies.  Emilia groaned in disdain.  They were so close.

“Fucking Jana.”

[little-diable]

Santa Baby - Dean Winchester (smut)

A little christmasy drabble, enjoy my loves. xxx 

Summary: making a gingerbread house escalates into something rather streamy. 

(credit to gif owner)

"Mm-hm, what?" Dean repeated, lips pressed against the bottleneck of his beer, staring at (y/n) with an amused gaze.

„A gingerbread house,“ she giggled, walking towards her boyfriend, settling down in his lap, arms slung around Deans neck. He placed the bottle down, hands dancing up her sides, soft fabric of her sweater pressed against his calloused fingertips, a smile tugged on his lips, heart beating in a soft tune.

He pulled her in for a kiss, lips moving in synch, almost forgetting what (y/n) had just suggested, cumbersomely breaking their contact. “Should we do it now?” He mumbled, lips teasing her jaw, mind definitely not focused on the gingerbread house. Eagerly she nodded her head yes, rising from his lap, stumbling around the kitchen, grabbing all the ingredients they’d need.

(Y/n) would mumble all the measurements, carefully adding the different substances together, not noticing how Dean admired her with his bright eyes. A soft tune filled the kitchen, Michael Bublé's “Santa baby” fell from the speakers, bringing a smile onto (y/n)s lips, swaying to the music. “Santa baby, a 54 convertible too, light blue” Dean slung his arms around her waist, whispering the lyrics, lips attached to the back of her neck, distracting (y/n) from her task.

“Dean,“ she whined his name, trying to rip herself away from him, already losing the will to keep on baking, too focused on his soft touch, “Give me fifteen minutes, then I’m all yours.“ With a proud smile on her lips (y/n) pulled the tray out of the oven, squealing as Dean picked her up and threw her over his shoulder, grateful that Sam was out of the bunker, giving them enough privacy.

With large steps he carried her towards their bedroom, throwing her down on the soft mattress, climbing up her body, hands wandering underneath her sweater. She tugged on his necklace, pulling him down against her lips, getting lost in the kiss, high on his taste, expertely unbuttoning his flannel. “I love you,” (y/n) panted, raising her upper half, helping Dean with tugging the sweater over her head, smirking at him as his eyes fell upon her naked chest, “You little minx.“

Instantly he attached his lips to her nipples, teeth grazing her skin, leaving a few marks on his trail down to her core. “I want you Dean,“ (y/n) didn’t want to waste any time on foreplay, she wanted to feel him buried inside of her, deliciously stretching her walls with every ferocious thrust of his. His deep chuckle rumbled through him, quickly undressing himself, pulling (y/n) soaked through panties down her legs, thumb rubbing her clit for a few moments.

“You smell so sweet.“ Dean kissed her, engulfed by the gingerbread scent, plump lips massaging hers, throbbing length sinking into her heat. “Should I call you ‘santa baby’ now?” Her chuckle made him shake his head, smirking down on her, hand cupping her cheek, “You can call me whatever you want baby.“ Her chuckle turned into a throaty moan, eyes falling shut, lips parted, back arched as he pulled out of her, thrusting into her over and over again.

The soft covers engulfed the pair, drowning in each other’s embraces, high on each other’s  taste, savoring the sweet touches. They weren’t rushing things, driven by the deep love they felt for each other, “God, you’re perfect.“ Dean sometimes struggled with accepting that she was truly his, wondering why somebody like her would stick around, but fuck, he wouldn’t change a thing, he’d go through hell and back for her.

A moan spilled from her lips, “Faster, Dean.“ She pressed her lips against his once again, desperate for his kisses, obsessed with the way he’d so perfectly mold against her. (Y/n) shuffled around underneath him, he picked up his pace, burying himself deeper into her heat with every thrust, not ever wanting to stop, she was truly perfect in his eyes. She ran her fingers up his spine, nails leaving a few marks behind, digging into his shoulders, nothing would have fitted between them, chests pressed against each other. 

Her walls fluttered around him, pulling him deeper, she’d cum any moment now, tumbling over the edge as she’d scream his name. Dean couldn’t take his eyes off her features, he loved to watch her cum, loved to watch her release swap over her, pulling him down with her. Both were groaning and moaning for each other, giving into their orgasms, riding through their highs, till Dean collapsed on top of her.

“I love you,“ he interlaced his fingers with hers, pressing a kiss to the back of her palm as he rolled off her, pulling her into his embrace, chin placed on top of her head. “Should we finish the gingerbread house?” (Y/n) mumbled against his skin, squeezing his hand, eyes still closed, “Alright misses Claus.“

[wiypt-writes]

Stark Spangled Banner

Ch 5: You Make It Easy

Summary: Steve finally takes Katie out on a date.

Pairing: Steve Rogers X OFC Katie Stark

Warnings: Language! And a whole heap of fluffy fluff fluff.

A/N: Once again, a huge thank you to @angrybirdcr​ for her lovely little edit.

Disclaimer: This is a pure work of fiction and classified as 18+. Please respect this and do not read if you are underage. I do not own any characters in this series bar Katie Stark and the other OCs. By reading beyond this point you understand and accept the terms of this disclaimer.

Chapter 4

Stark Spangled Banner Masterlist // Main Masterlist

The elation Steve had felt about actually getting a date with Katie soon evaporated the next morning when he realised he hadn’t the first CLUE about where to take her, what to do or what to wear. He wasn’t naïve, he knew dating had changed since his day but the fact he had no reference point to even start from, having never been on a date before, wasn’t helpful either.  So he sought some advice

“A nice shirt and jeans.” Peggy smiled at him, the old woman elated he had finally done it. “Nothing too flash, and pick a restaurant. It doesn’t have to be fancy, women are more impressed by a man who’s paying them attention instead of simply paying for the meal.”

“Okay, right.”

“You know her, Steve.” Peggy looked at him. “What type of food does she like?”

“Italian, Chinese, but we do that all the time.” He shrugged, before he stopped, suddenly remembering something she had said to Evans a couple of weeks back in exercise, “You know, come to think of it she has mentioned a new place in town. La Placa I think it’s called.” “See, there you go.”  Peggy patted him on his arm before she smiled at the look on the young man’s face “Just be yourself Steve, that’s who she wants. No one else.”

“Thanks Peg.”

“And make sure you kiss her goodnight…” She grinned, a twinkle in her eyes. “Us ladies do like a bit of passion every now and then you know.” He rolled his eyes at her cheekiness, running his hand through his hair which was in desperate need of a cut. He stayed with Peggy whilst he googled the restaurant number, made his reservation and then text Katie to tell her where he had booked.

Can’t wait xxx

He grinned to himself, and then pushed his phone away and turned back to find Peggy watching him, a sly grin on her face.

“I don’t think I’ve ever seen you this happy before.” she remarked, somewhat wistfully

.He smiled “Been a long time since I felt this good.”

“It suits you.” On his way home he swung into the barbers and stepped in. As he sat in the chair the man asked him what he wanted doing, and he was about to say trim when Katie’s voice stirred in his mind.

“Trying to imagine what you’d look like with shorter hair and a beard…” “Shorn back and sides please,” he said as the man asked him what he wanted, “and take it a little shorter on top.”

******

Katie woke suddenly on top of the comforter on her bed, fully clothed. She’d fallen asleep!  She sat up, thinking back to the last thing she remembered before her nap, piecing her train of thought together. Ah, yes, Steve had messaged her to tell her he’d booked a table somewhere which had prompted her to start looking for an outfit. She’d realised she had no idea what to wear so had been debating calling Pepper to ask for advice, but had decided it wasn’t a good idea because she didn’t want Tony to know she was dating yet, let alone who.

But there was someone she could call. Desperate times called for desperate measures, right?

Biting her lip she sighed and picked up her phone, scanning through to the person she was looking for and the cavalry arrived an hour and a half later in the shape of a red-haired deadly assassin.

“There has to be something in here that’s first date suitable…” Natasha mumbled, as she continued to search through the various items in Katie’s closet. Half Katie’s clothes adorned the floor of her walk-in-wardrobe and bedroom as they had discarded everything she’d tried so far. “It would help if I knew where you were going.” she sipped her beer thoughtfully.

“La Placa.” Katie told her after a pause, “Tapas place, but if you turn up I swear to God…”

“I got better things to do with my spare time.” “No you don’t. And I wouldn’t put anything past you.”

“If you don’t trust me why did you ask for my help?“ Natasha drawled, still rifling through the clothing racks. “Because Pepper is a four hour drive away…”

“Well that’s just rude.” Natasha mumbled and Katie grinned, shaking her head as Nat placed her beer down on the top of a set of drawers and moved to a rail “Ok, try this.”

She pulled out a knee length navy blue Balenciaga dress with a fitted top half, scalloped neck line and three-quarter length lace detailed sleeves. As Katie shrugged it on, Natasha hunted in the shoe rack, pulling out a pair of mid-height nude Kurt Geiger courts with a stiletto heel and matching bag.

“Not bad.” She mumbled as Katie stepped into the heels and gave her a twirl.

“Better than the grey one?” “Definitely.” Natasha nodded approvingly “I think we have a winner!”

Katie gave her a double Hi-Five and Nat picked up her beer as Katie stripped out of the dress and pulled on her T-shirt and shorts, before she glanced around the large bedroom, sighing at the mess.

“Better tidy this up in case things go well.” Nat smirked, before she pondered “Huh, actually, do you reckon Captain America puts out on the first date? Mind you, knowing Roger’s he’s probably a virgin…”

“I’m pretty sure people had casual sex back in the 40s too you know.” Katie rolled her eyes. “He was on the USO tours surrounded by dancing girls, there’s no way he didn’t do the old horizontal tango.”

“Yeah but…its Rogers.” Nat pressed giving a snort “Imagine if you are the one to pop his cherry.”

Katie groaned, shaking her head. “Shut up Widow.”

She smirked “Okay, so how long have we got?”

Katie glanced at her phone “An hour and twenty. And what do you mean we?” “You asked for my help, right?” Natasha shrugged, “Thought I could do your make-up and hair too…” Katie looked at her for a moment and smiled “Thanks.” She shrugged then drained her beer before turning Katie round and pushing her towards the en-suite “Go shower then we’ll start the transformation.”

An hour later Katie was ready. Her hair was curled in soft waves, and her makeup was done, a bit heavier than normal, but still subtle enough to avoid looking like it had been applied with a trowel.

“Perfect.” Nat gave her an appraising look. “Right, I trust you can get dressed without me?” “I think I’ll manage.” Katie said, standing up as she made her way out of the walk-in wardrobe and followed her into the hall where she picked up her jacket.

“Oh and if you need me to bail you, just give me an SOS call…” Nat made a phone sign with her finger and pinkie by her ear. “I think I’ll be ok.” Katie smiled, “but thank you, for all of this.”

“Have fun…” Nat grinned and then added with a smirk “And don’t do anything I wouldn’t”

“That doesn’t exactly leave a lot…” Katie quipped

“That’s my point.” Natasha intoned as she walked into the hall and pressed the button for the elevator.

“Nat, you won’t tell anyone will you?” Katie asked, “I mean, it isn’t that I don’t trust you, just…” Nat paused turning back to the brunette to find her chewing her lip with nerves. She shook her head “I won’t tell a soul. I know how much you two like each other, you’ve been dancing around it for months, so… just enjoy ok? Have a good time. You both deserve it.” “Thanks Nat” Katie smiled. The two girls shared a quick hug and then Nat left

***** Steve had to admit, he liked his new hair. It was much more like the style people sported now, but in a way it also reminded him of how Bucky had worn his back in the Howlies. He picked a light blue shirt, his dark navy jeans and then pondered before settling on a pair of brown boots that matched his jacket and belt. He was ready with plenty of time and found himself pacing as he thought about how the night could go. There was no doubt it was going to be way different to how he had imagined his first date to be. Back in his day it was movies, dinner and a dance. Now there were no dance halls, and they watched movies all the time. But, as Peggy had advised, for once he was going to “go with the flow” and just see where the night took them both.

Finally, after an agonising fifteen minutes during which he had pretty much paced non-stop and drained a good measure of scotch, even though it did nothing bar give him a comforting burn in his throat on the way down, he headed to the cab that was waiting and they set off to pick up his date.

Jesus Christ she looked amazing. Her hair was cascading in waves over her shoulders, the smoky brown eyeshadow she was wearing made the green in her eyes even more noticeable. And her dress…navy blue, knee length with a detailed neckline and sleeves that finished halfway down her forearms. The top half clung to her body where it flared out slightly from her hips and her heels accentuated her shapely calves to perfection. As Steve looked at her he found himself imagining various crude scenarios where said delectable dress ended up on the floor, but that wasn’t gentlemanly. Nor appropriate.

Katie felt her breath catch when she saw Steve. His light blue shirt was tight enough to accentuate his ridiculously well-built top half, and a brown belt with a gold buckle adorned his toned waist. And he’d had a haircut. Gone were his longer locks and side parting, and in its place was a short back and sides with slightly longer strands on the top, tousled into an exceptionally modern style. He looked incredible.

Steve broke the silence between the two, clearing his throat gently.

“You look beautiful.” He leaned down to give her a peck on the cheek.

“Thank you, you look pretty good yourself, you do something to your hair?” Katie teased.

“Thought it was time for a change.” he shrugged it off casually as his cheeks warmed. “Still getting used to it.” “It looks great.” she assured him.

He beat her to her jacket as she reached up to take it off the peg and held it out so she could shrug her arms into it. Once they were in the elevator, he reached out and took her hand and she laced her fingers into his. He glanced down at her, his eyes meeting hers and she flashed him a smile.

Yeah, he’d lucked out, big time.

******

The restaurant was busy but not packed. They were seated at the back in a little booth in the corner. Steve had never had tapas before, but Peggy had explained it to him before.

“So the idea is we pick, what, three or four dishes?” he asked, looking at Katie

“Yeah, they’re like small portions and you share.” Katie nodded. “Although you eat like a horse so we should probably order more.”

He grinned and looked back at his menu.

“You choose.” he placed the card back down eventually, beaten by the list of items. “I literally have no idea…”

“Alright.” Katie grinned. “But you have to try everything…”

“Deal.”

The waiter returned with their drinks and took their food orders. Katie ordered a large enough selection along with a side order of olives and different breads with dipping oils before flashing the waiter a smile and he scuttled off.

“I think this is normally the part where we ask each other questions,” Steve said as the waiter disappeared. “You know, get to know each other a bit more.”

“Yeah… think that ship already sailed though.”

“True,” Steve nodded bashfully, there wasn’t many things that they didn’t know about each other, although as he watched Katie was biting her lip, almost as if she wanted to say something, but at the same time didn’t.

“What is it?” he asked, reaching out for his drink.

“Something Nat said before…” Katie flushed, caught out. There was no way she was asking that question.

“Why does this worry me slightly?” He paused, beer raised halfway to his lips.

Katie looked at him and shook her head, the flush continuing to rise up her neck “Yeah, I’m not, it’s not first date conversation.”

He cocked his head to one side. “Now I’m extremely worried, and a little intrigued.”

“You really want to know?” Katie cocking her head to one side and when he nodded she shrugged. “Alright, you asked for this…” she straightened up in the seat as he did the same, bracing himself. “Are you a virgin?”

Steve groaned and screwed his eyes shut. “No, I’m not.” He sighed shaking his head before he looked back at her. "After I first got the serum there was suddenly all this attention on me and I didn’t really know any better…” “There was no one before?” she frowned slightly, almost as if she was surprised.

He shook his head again. “Girls weren’t exactly interested in me before hand, Bucky was the one who had the looks and the swag. He had a different girl every weekend. I guess when they finally did start looking at me that way I just, I dunno…” He stopped and took a breath. “God, this makes me sound like a right jerk. There weren’t that many”

Three to be exact. And none of them had been anything to write home about. He got the distinct impression they hadn’t particularly enjoyed themselves either, not past the fact they could boast about having bedded Captain America. Plus, he was infatuated by Peggy at that point as well and found he craved the tenderness that was supposed to be associated with the act, not merely the physical bliss. As corny as it sounded, he genuinely wanted someone to be with him intimately that wanted him, not Captain America.

As he watched, he noticed Katie was watching him intently and he swallowed a little as she simply shrugged. .

“We all have a past Steve.”

“I haven’t been with anyone since I came out of the ice.” He added softly, feeling the need to explain that he wasn’t that type of man.

“I haven’t since Grant.” she eyed him. “One night stands are overrated.”

“I wouldn’t know.” He shrugged, locking eyes with her. “That’s all I ever had.”

Katie studied him for a moment. She had no idea why, but to learn he hadn’t had a girl that way before he became some kind of war time celebrity, and knowing that the ones he had been with were probably chasing nothing but the kudos of being able to say they fucked Captain America, made her kind of sad. No wonder he was always so self-doubting.

She smiled and reached across the table, giving his hand a squeeze.

“Well, personally, I think all those girls that picked Bucky over you were dumbasses. I’ve seen the photos of you before all this happened…” she raised her free hand and held out her index finger, and gestured up and down his torso. “You were sweet”

He chuckled and took a drink of his beer. “You know I heard that a lot…you’re really sweet and all but…“

“Like I said…”she leaned back in her chair slightly, “Dumbasses” Steve was aware that her ankle was brushing against his slightly and he felt the warm flush in his cheek at her forwardness, but soon found it disappeared and was replaced instead with simply enjoying the fact she wanted to be so close to him.

As tactful as ever, Katie swiftly moved the conversation on and it took a natural turn to Tony’s renovation of the tower and then New York in general, how much Brooklyn in particular had changed since Steve had left it behind to go to war.

It was through this conversation Steve discovered that in all the time Katie had spent in New York she had never been to Coney Island.

“Maybe I could take you one day, down to the fair.” He suggested.

“I’d love that.” She smiled and his chest swelled even more.

Their food arrived and they continued to talk. And, considering they had started the date off thinking there wasn’t much more to find out about each other, both of them were surprised to see exactly how much trivial stuff there was to learn about the other. For instance, Steve knew that Katie enjoyed baseball but what he didn’t know was that whilst Tony was a Yankees fan, she actually supported the LA Dodgers, having grown up in Malibu. Suddenly her teasing about the fact they had moved made perfect sense. And in turn, Katie knew that the Dodgers relocating was a bug bear of his but, since he would rather go into the ice all over again than support the Yankees, he had started watching out for the Mets results, but apparently it just wasn’t the same and as such he hadn’t been to an actual game since he came out of the ice. Both of them found out the other preferred dogs to cats, cats making Katie sneeze and their ability to hiss and scratch you with no damned warning whatsoever made Steve not trust them as far as he could throw them. 

“I can just read the headlines now!” Katie chuckled after Steve had added that if he wanted to he could probably throw a cat quite far. “Captain America killed my Cat.” Steve let out a low chuckle, shaking his head as he picked up his beer. “Don’t cats always land on their feet?” “I dunno, depends how hard you’re intending on throwing it.” “I’m not intending on throwing any cat anywhere.” Steve shook his head “As much as I don’t like them I couldn’t deliberately harm one.” “Tony did. Well not deliberately, and he didn’t so much harm it as kill it…” “Oh you gotta tell me this story!” Steve grinned, leaning forward, topping up Katie’s wine glass from the bottle that was in the ice bucket in the middle of the table.

Katie grinned, “When we were kids, the first place we lived in was down this huge, posh road  with like 3 other houses on and we had this really eccentric neighbour, Mrs Livesy her name was. She had like 18 cats or something ridiculous and one morning, Tony was reversing the car out of the garage and he flattened 2 of them.”

Steve nearly spat his beer back into his glass. “He ran them over?” “Yeah…” Katie said, and by now she was full on laughing “But the best bit is, she comes round asking Dad if he’s seen the cats, dad’s got no idea what’s gone on right as Tony’s moved the cats and bribed me to keep quiet with the biggest ice cream you could imagine, so dad is all like ‘I’ve got no idea Mrs Livesy I’ll be sure to keep my eyes open…” Katie took a deep breath, wiping at her eyes “So then Tony comes back, Dad mentions that Mrs Livesy was looking for 2 of her cats and Tony’s like ‘huh, well you know what they say, curiosity killed the cat’ and me, being the little shit I was at the age of 4 pipes up ‘no that was you this morning, remember?’”

Steve laughed, and watched as she carried on giggling. “He never forgave me for that, Dad made him go round and apologise. And he had to attend a memorial for Mr Whiskers and Bagpuss…”

Eventually after desert and a few more drinks it was time to leave, Katie tried to split the meal bill with Steve but one stern look stopped that in its tracks. This was a date, he was paying. Thankfully she didn’t argue too much. Steve then asked her if she wanted to go for a drink, she gleefully accepted so he took her hand, gently leading her across the road, holding the bar door open for her. They both sat at the bar, Katie turning her seat so she was directly facing him, the pair of them leaning closer to one another as they talked. And the conversation just continued to flow, as did the odd but subtle display of affection, moving their chairs closer together, her hand on his shoulder. Steve was surprised to find how easy the whole thing was. He had no nerves, no awkward moments. The chemistry fizzled and there wasn’t a single moment he was stuck for anything to say. It was for that reason he was disappointed when the bar tender called time and reluctantly stood up as Katie drained the final bit of gin from her glass.

As Steve held out her jacket, his hands gently brushed her shoulders as she shrugged it on, sending a tingle down her spine and the hitch in her breathing didn’t go unnoticed. She turned to face him, all green eyes and pink lips, blinking as her eyes locked onto his and before he could stop them, his hands connected at the base of her spine as she moved closer to him, not moving her gaze from his, hand resting on his chest.

“I’d really like to kiss you again…” Steve said, shyly.

“You know you don’t have to ask.” she replied. Smiling softly he leaned down and connected his lips with hers, the kiss growing slightly deeper until Steve remembered they were in the middle of a public bar. He pulled away gently, resting his forehead against hers briefly, blushing like an absolute moron as a small smile tugged on the corners of his mouth.

“You know, for someone who said they’d never taken a woman on a date before Rogers, you’ve done amazingly well.” she blinked up at him, grinning.

“That’s because you make it easy to be around you.” He shrugged, honestly. He took her hand, curled his fingers round hers and made their way out into the street to hail a cab.

All too soon they pulled up outside her apartment block and both of them found themselves wishing the night would never end. Steve told the driver to wait whilst he hopped out and walked her into the lobby, their hands still twined together. There was a part of him that wanted to follow her in, and a part of her that almost invited him to, but they both wanted to do this right, take their time.

“I think now is the part where I’m supposed to ask you if you had a good time.” Steve turned to face her as they stopped by the elevator door.

“I did.”

“And if you’d go out with me again?” “I already said I would, Coney Island remember?” she replied cheekily, leaning closer to him.

“I meant before that.”  He rolled his eyes.

“I’d love too.” She muttered, and then his lips were on hers again and they were kissing, exactly where they had left off in the bar, only this time they were alone. Steve’s hand snaked into her soft hair, angling her head slightly and she parted her lips, their tongues tangling easily as once more the fireworks erupted deep in Steve’s belly.

“Always leave ‘em wanting more Stevie…” Bucky said, nudging him on the arm, winking as they crossed the fairground towards the girls “That’s the trick…”

Steve couldn’t stop himself from smiling he pulled back. Their night was at an end, it was a perfect place to leave it.

“I really did had a great time tonight, thank you.” Katie whispered as he pressed his forehead to hers, giving her lips another quick peck before he stepped back a little and she reached into her bag for her key card, pressing it to the pad by the elevator.

“Me too.” He smiled as the elevator doors opened. She stepped inside, turning to face him and flashed him another grin.

“Night Stevie.”

“Night, Sweetheart.” He replied as the doors shut. With that, he turned round and grinning to himself he walked back to the cab. Date 1 down, and it had been a roaring success.

**** Chapter 6

**Original Posting**

[star-trekkin-across-theuniverse]

Worthy (pt6)

A/N: once again - just keep poking me until I start tagging you if you want tagged. @rampant-salamander​, @bolontiku​

...

I looked from Tony to Thor and back to Tony.

“I don’t understand your question,” I responded, and threw back the drink. To hell with being moderate. I was pretty sure I was about to lose my dream job on my second day, I may as well go out with a bang.

“Ella, there has to be something special about you to allow you to lift that hammer,” Tony spoke slowly. That was probably a bad thing. I suspected slow speech meant a really active brain. I was now a mystery that needed to be solved.

“There is nothing special about me at all,” I argued.

“You can lift Mjolnir. That is special.” Thor was like a sage who spoke in riddles.

“But being able to lift Mjolnir isn’t what makes me special enough to lift it. That’s a redundancy.” I, like Tony, was slipping into scientific method in order to try to sort things out.

“Do you have Aesir blood, Ella?” Thor asked.

“My family is from Washington. By way of Wisconsin,” I replied. Tony snorted and Thor shot him a dirty look.

“Before this Wisconsin?” He pressed. The way he said Wisconsin made it sound unfamiliar and strange.

“Norway and England.”

“Norway. That is where the Northmen resided.” Thor looked thoughtful. “In the time of the Vikings, the Aesir traveled on Midgard much more frequently than they do now.”

“Are you suggesting that some ancestor of mine got knocked up by a god?” I could feel my eyebrow rising. Tony smothered a smirk behind his hand. My tone was lost on Thor.

“We are not gods, Ella,” Thor corrected. “And I am unfamiliar with knocked up. What I suggest is that your ancestor was impregnated by an Aesir.”

“But in order to lift your hammer, wouldn’t it have to be you that got this mystery ancestor pregnant? I’d have to be your descendent?” I could feel the blood draining from my face. It would be just my luck that the hottest guy I’d ever seen would be related to me. Thor’s smile was mischievous.

“Not necessarily. I would have discovered offspring of mine on Midgard by now, and I know left none. But I think it reasonable to consider you may have Aesir blood in your veins,” he explained. “Which makes you very special indeed.”

“Can everyone in Asgard lift your hammer?” I asked. Thor shook his head.

“None but I.”

“Then I don’t buy it. I keep telling people, I’m nothing special.” I was getting frustrated with the scrutiny. I never thought I would be desperate for a cute guy to stop paying attention to me, but in that moment, I would have given anything to be able to just go hide in obscurity in the lab, building my washing machine.

“But that’s where you’re wrong, Ella,” Tony interrupted. I’d nearly forgotten he was there, Thor had such powerful bearing. I didn’t think it was possible to lose track of Tony Stark, but I guess in the presence of not-actually-gods… “You are something special. That’s why Pepper and I lept on your application like we did. How did you make it through university with such a bad self image?”

“I don’t have a bad self image. I know I’m a fucking amazing engineer. I just fail to see a correlation between my ability to understand math and build things and my purported mystical ability to lift a magic hammer,” I snapped. I turned back to Thor. “You’re sure no one else can lift it?” Thor glanced at Tony, almost as though he was looking for approval. Tony gave a slight nod.

“I believe that Captain Rogers would be able to lift it, should he have the opportunity. But that remains untested,” Thor admitted. I sighed.

“Of course. He’s a legit hero. Full of righteousness and honour and nobility.” My tone was more sarcastic than I’d intended.

“Yes, intangible and arbitrary measures of worthiness. Who is to say you don’t meet the parameters in some way?” Thor shot back. I looked into my empty glass, wishing it were still full.

“Did you not see me level that d-bag in the elevator?”

“Tis nothing I would not have done myself, and yet I am still worthy,” Thor shrugged. Pepper had walked in at some point during the conversation, and Tony turned to her expectantly. She sighed and blinked slowly.

“We’ve had a discussion about appropriate professional behaviour. He is aware that if there are any further incidents he will lose his internship.” Pepper reached out for the glass of wine Tony was offering her.

“It’s a bit of a PR nightmare if we lose a second intern in as many days, Pep,” Tony commented.

“It’s a worse nightmare if, right as we’re rolling out a gender equality program and girl’s STEM mentorship program, the media gets ahold of information about how we’re allowing someone guilty of sexual harassment to remain in a prestigious and competitive internship,” she retorted. He pursed his lips and paused. After a moment he nodded in agreement.

“What do I know? You’re the boss.” His acquiescence was met with laughter from Pepper.

“What do you know, Tony? How many times did you attend the SHIELD seminar again?” She choked on her wine. “Trust me. I want to give him the benefit of the doubt. He’s a smart guy, and I’d like to think he’ll be respectful from now on.” Tony responded with some other comment and I slumped back into my seat, watching the show. If you didn’t know they were stupidly in love with one another, you might assume they were on the verge of war. But I think Tony liked to goad Pepper, and she rose to the bait. Not because she was gullible though. At least, I didn’t think it was because she was easily duped. I think she rose to the bait because it was how they clicked together. I looked away from them and over to Thor, who was sitting back on the couch, completely relaxed. The hammer was propped up beside him, handle leaning against the bolster. It was uncanny how powerful he looked, even in jeans and a t-shirt. I relaxed a little and just enjoyed looking at him, taking in the contours of his biceps, and the definition of the veins in his hands. There was a lot of him to look at, and it was all very pleasing to the eye. At least, everything I’d seen thus far.

I didn’t realize how overt I was being until he smirked. He turned to look at me, and nodded.

“Is it not considered poor manners on Midgard to stare at others?” There was a teasing tone to his voice, but I blinked and looked away, feeling my cheeks colour.

There was really no way for me to deny that I was staring at him. The only blank wall in the entire place was right behind him. I couldn’t even beg being distracted by some of the weird art that seemed to be all over the building. 

“I, uh, well,” I stammered. “I was looking at the hammer?” It sounded like bullshit, even to me. I heard a stifled laugh from Tony and shot him a filthy look. I pushed myself to my feet and glanced at Pepper. “If you don’t need me, Pepper, I’m going to try to catch up with Angela. I have some things I need to pick up for my suite.”

“You can order anything you need from distribution,” Tony offered.

“Except, apparently, towels bigger than a postage stamp,” I retorted. My ears were burning and I was having a really hard time not looking over to see if Thor was following the conversation. He probably was as there was no one else for him to pay attention to.

“You are aware there’s varying sizes of towel?” Tony’s tone was sarcastic. I rolled my eyes.

“Not that this is really a conversation I feel I want to have with my boss, but I grabbed the biggest one. It still barely covered me.” I was ready to pray for a hole to open in the floor and swallow me.

“Well, you’re not exactly supposed to be lounging around in your tow –“

“I wasn’t!” I interrupted. “I was just getting out of the shower when Thor showed up and I didn’t have time to be getting fully dressed before I answered the door, and then the towel slipped and oh my god I cannot believe I’m telling you all this.” I took a deep breath and looked back to Pepper. “Can I go? Please?”

“Let me walk you to the elevator,” she offered and led the way. As we walked away, I heard Tony clear his throat.

“You’ve seen her naked already, you sly dog?”

“That is enough, Stark. How you have lived so many years on this realm and not noticed how modest some of your women are, I have no idea. But you embarrassed her. Like many Midgardians, she lacks comfort with the physical form.” Thor’s words were a chastisement, and I somehow felt even more embarrassed about him having seen me naked. Because now, not only was I naked in front of the freaking Norse god of thunder, but also he took more notice of what a prude I am than that I was naked. I leaned against the wall and banged my head against it.

“That’s not how you call the elevator,” Pepper teased. “I know we all collectively keep telling you to relax, but, yeah. Relax. If Tony is already giving you a hard time, he’s assimilating you into his world as a permanent fixture. This will be something you laugh about in future years.” Her eyes were warm with empathy and it was so reassuring.

“You seriously need to do something about the towel situation, Pepper.” I stepped onto the elevator and pushed the button for my floor. Once the doors shut, I texted Angela to see how far she’d got without me. I didn’t have to wait long. I was swiping my passcard to get into my room when she stepped off the elevator.

“So, towels? Maybe a beer?” She followed me into my apartment.

“Yes. To both.”

XXX

For whatever reason, I expected getting beer with Angela would be more Sex-in-the-City than it was. She pulled me into a quiet bar after we’d found appropriate towels, and we ordered wings from the kitchen and beer.

“So I did some research today while you were meeting with Markus,” she volunteered over a heap of wing bones. I made a noise that was easily interpretable as curiosity and she continued. “I might have hacked some of Tony’s files about that hammer. Thor wasn’t kidding around when he said you shouldn’t be able to lift it. It was apparently forged in the heart of a dying star, of some crazy space-metal. And the Odin enchanted it so only Thor could lift it. Which is clearly a broken enchantment because apparently you can lift it too.”

“It says right on it that if you’re worthy, you can lift it,” I corrected her with my mouth full.

“Obviously it doesn’t take table manners into consideration!” She laughed. I hung my head in mock-shame, but made sure my mouth was clear before I spoke again.

“I don’t know how it determines worthiness. Honestly, isn’t that a little creepy? Is the hammer sentient? Does it consider the merits of each individual that touches it in that split second between grabbing it and trying to lift it? Or does Odin have some sort of approval system for worthiness, and he gets interrupted from whatever it is he’s doing to approve people in that same fraction of an instant?” I pondered.

“Way to ruin magic with science,” she groaned.

“Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic. That’s Clarke’s Third Law. The other two are pretty good too,” I shrugged.

“Oh, that was a kill shot! Come on, let me have some sort of fantasy about the mystical powers of the damn hammer, Ella!” Angela threw her hands up in frustration. I smiled and nodded.

“Of course. The hammer is mystical and powerful and absolutely should not be questioned,” I acceded. Angela swatted at me and flagged the waitress over for another round. I felt myself relaxing and forgetting about the overwhelming stress of the past couple of days as we decompressed over a second beer. When Angela dropped me back at the tower, I realized she may very well live on-site as well, but I was tired and had a bit of a beer buzz and forgot to ask before stumbling through my door and crashing on the sofa.

[blizzardfluffykpop]

Blind Date

Summary: When your parents expect you to bring someone home for Christmas,... Desperate times call for desperate measures and your best friend Seungkwan has just the guy for you.

Oneshot full of Fluff

Word count: 1,236

Jeonghan X Reader (Best friend! Seungkwan)

Requested: Heyy, I wanted to request Jeonghan (Seventeen) + 11, if it's okay. Thank you in advance. 🤗

Prompt: 11. “You’ve never been kissed under the mistletoe? We’ve gotta change that--” 

Seungkwan rushes into my apartment, with a big smile on his face. He sits across from me on a barstool and I ask him what’s got him so happy. “Well, you know how you need to bring someone home?” I nod, my eyebrows furrowing wondering what trick Seungkwan has under his sleeves. “I have just the guy for you, but that depends on you of course. So, I took the pleasure of setting you guys up on a date.” I sigh, knowing I’m not getting out of this blind date. 

“What are they like?” He grins, “His name’s Jeonghan and he is your type. I don’t mean your type like you’d be fine going on a date with him. I mean he’s the type where I should be planning your wedding and not your first date with him.” I shrug and say, “Go on,...” He grins, “I’m glad you’re not turning down the idea already.” 'Even if I tried, you’d still make me go',  I hold back from saying that and let him continue. “He’s funny, likes to play pranks, and is a good listener. He’s handsome and comfortable.” “What do you mean by comfortable?” He shrugs, “He dresses nice but comfortable, you know? He’s also comforting to be around. Like you can open up to him and he would never tell a soul.” I shrug, “Alright, anything else?” “You’re gonna like him and your date is at 4:15 tomorrow.” 

Jeonghan sounds like a good person. At least my parents won’t put up a billboard saying, ‘Last dateable person till exit 37. Call, (xxx)xxx-xxxx to set up a date’. Yeah, I can’t deal with that level of embarrassment. That’s why I begged Seungkwan to help me out. He knows almost everyone in this town, so I was bound to at least end up with a Joe Schmoe. But I didn’t think he would go above and beyond that. I guess I'll see about that tomorrow. 

I receive a text on my phone as I get out of my car and head towards the restaurant. My phone dings and it’s a notification from an unknown number that says,  “Hey, this is (Y/n), right?” I text back quickly, “Yeah, is this Jeonghan?” It dings back almost immediately, “That’s me. I’m sitting at the third table next to the open window.” I text back an ‘okay’. I shake off my nerves and open the door and walk towards the third table on the left. I sit down across from, who I assume is Jeonghan. He holds out his hand to me, “I’m Jeonghan, and you must be (Y/n)?” I nod, “That’s me, what made you agree to go on a date with me?” He shrugs, “The same as you if I come home alone for the fifth Christmas. My parents are going to be the ones setting me up on blind dates,... I don’t know if I can handle that.” I laugh, “I thought mine were bad for wanting to put up a billboard that said, ‘Last dateable person till exit 37’,... But man do you have me beat.” He laughs, “Our parents would definitely get along.” I laugh when I finally take in his presence. 

He’s wearing a fuzzy brown cardigan with a black shirt. His brown hair looks fluffy with a slight wave in it. Seungkwan was not joking when he said Jeonghan was handsome. The waiter comes over handing us menus and I look through the selection. “Have you ever been here before?” He shakes his head, “No, but I wish I would have sooner. How does Seungkwan know about this place?” I shrug, “He’s adventurous,...” He grins, “You’re right about that.” 

The waiter comes back over and takes our order. “How did you meet Seungkwan?” He asks me when the waiter leaves. “Oh, that’s easy, when I was seven we moved to a new house and Seungkwan happened to be the neighbor’s kid. From then on we have been close friends. What about you guys, I’ve heard him mention you a few times.” He smiles, “You know Vernon?” I nod, “Yeah, of course, I do.” “He’s my roommate,...” I pat his shoulder, “Sometimes I’m glad that Seungkwan has always been my neighbor and not my roommate. This would be one of those times.” He groans, “I wish I could say the same.” I laugh and he grins back and I ask, “What’s your occupation?” 

“Funny enough, I work for a company that makes billboard signs.” I shake my head, “Now you mean to tell me my parents would call you--.” He nods and we both laugh, “Well, if your parents were looking for a bank accountant, here I am.” He grins and our food comes out. 

When we’re halfway through our food Jeonghan asks, “Well, tell me something no one knows about you.” I contemplate Jeonghan’s question, that’s a difficult thing. When I look up at the ceiling near the ceiling fan hangs mistletoe. That’s when it pops in my head, “I’ve never been kissed under the mistletoe before.” His jaw drops from my statement, “What? I’m not kidding,...” He looks up from his plate and at me and says, “You’ve never been kissed under the mistletoe? We’ve gotta change that--” Before I can take another bite of my pasta he grabs my hand and my fork falls into my bowl. He walks me over to the mistletoe, “Can I kiss you?” Well, he’s cute, funny, and if Seungkwan likes him, what the heck. I nod and he places his hand on my jaw and leans in and kisses me. He pulls away and I can’t help but want more, of course, I don’t do anything about it. But my red cheeks say it all, as a few whistles resound in the restaurant. 

I scoot my chair back in and I ask him in turn what’s something no one knows about him. He runs his hand through his hair. I take a few more bites when he says, “I’ve never been on a blind date before.” It’s my turn to have my jaw drop, “No way” he nods. I grin, “Well, how do you feel about your first date?” He smiles, “I wouldn’t mind if it was my last.” Now that's a coy way of flirting. I smile back at him, “I hope you mean that nicely.” He smiles and after he finishes his bite, “Yeah, I’m enjoying our date.” I grin, “I am too.”

He offers to walk me home when we finish up our dinner date. I agree, not wanting it to end. We walk through the park and I ask, “What’s your favorite gift you’ve ever received on Christmas?”  He takes a second to think about it, “Probably finding out that I would be having a baby sister.” “Aww, that’s sweet… I was going to say a VCR set of my siblings and I growing up. But yours is more sincere.” He nudges me, “Nah, I think yours is sweet as well.” I smile at him, “Your turn.” It goes on like that until we reach my apartment complex. “I don’t want the night to end.” He pouts, “Nor do I, but Seungkwan told me you have work early and not to keep you out late.” I shake my head, “He is worse than my mother,...” He laughs, “That’s what best friends are for though.” I nod, “I know, he’s one of the best.” I look down at my feet and ask him, “Can we do this again sometime?” He places a kiss on my cheek, “It’s a date.”

[carl-grimxz]

Confused Feelings- Part 7

Carl Grimes x Reader

Part 7

Summary: Finally Y/N and Carl are together. Now they are able to be happy and in love. Woohoo we love happy endings.

Word Count: 2,581

Warnings: Slight smut... ;)

A/N: I’m so sorry this has take me so long to get out!!! This is the final part though and I hope you have enjoyed this series as much as I have enjoyed writing it. This is literally the first time I have written anything but I’ve been missing Carl sooo much since he’s been gone and needed to keep him alive somehow. I’m open to requests if anyone has any ideas for any other Carl imagines!!!! Please enjoy and thank you to everyone who has been reading xxx

It took us a while before we were actually ready to go and read comics together. Unbeknownst to us the adults in our lives had other plans. Rick wanted Carl to help out with the reinforcement of our security measures. Making and putting up sharp sticks on the other side of the fences to stop the walkers coming in again was the top priority. Then there was Sasha. She wanted me to help her and a few others get the house in better shape. Make it more ‘liveable’ you know.

Anyway this put Carl and I’s plan to hang out on hold for most of the day. I was pretty pissed about it and he seemed to be feeling the same way. I overheard Rick tell him ‘Y/N isn’t going anywhere’ in a whisper, when Carl was trying to get out of helping him. 

It was cute that he was fighting to spend time with me.

Eventually we both caved and agreed to do our bit to help out, then we’d have the entire remainder of the day to do whatever.

-

“Ok! That’s about it I think.” Sasha announced after having finished gathering all the spare weapons into one makeshift armoury in the study. We had been working non-stop for like 4 hours

“About time” I replied, relieved. I am exhausted.

“I know I know”, she laughed. “You’ve got places to go, boys in sheriff hats to see”. The look on her face was as smug as I’ve ever seen it.

I sighed, but laughed along with her. “Hey you’re the one that was all for this” I raised a brow at her and put my hands on my hips.

“Ummhmm. Go on you’re free to go”

“Thanks, Sasha” I grinned, already on my way out the door.

“Have fun” She let out a laugh.

I immediately left the room and went out into the main living area, assuming that if Carl is done with his chores then that’s where he’ll be. On a quick glance around I saw Carol and Michonne sat having a chat but no Carl.

He’s probably still helping Rick so I move to the windows to see if I can spot him outside. Sure enough, there he is. He seems to be using a knife to sharpen long pieces of wood for the barrier to the fences with his dad.

I decide to go out and see how they’re doing.

They both see me coming and Carls face lights up as we lock eyes.

“Need any help?”

Rick gives me a smile and shakes his head. “Nah we’ll start packing up for the day soon” I nod my head in response. “Why don’t you two go hang out, take a look at those comics you’re dyin’ to read” he looks directly at Carl and continues, “Although I’m sure it’s not the comics that’s your main concern”.

“Dad.” Carl became embarrassed and stood up to leave. “Coming?”, he asked stopping next to me.

“Yeah” I laughed at his desperation to get away from his dad. “Thanks Rick” I added as we began to walk back towards the house.

“Yep”, he said, sounding pleased with himself.

Carl lead me up to his room and shut the door behind us.

“How was it out there?” I ask wondering if his day has dragged as much as mine has.

“Boring. You?” He muttered while taking a seat on his bed.

“Same.”

“Well… I guess now we’re free to do whatever we want.” 

I let out a content sigh while moving towards him.

“Yeah” I agreed, sitting opposite him with my legs crossed. “So… comics?” I chuckled a little.

Carl laughed too, and went across to his backpack, getting a few out and bringing them back over. He came next to me this time, laying down on his stomach. He spread the selection out in front of us.

“Which one first?”

“Ummm” I thought about it while eyeing them up. “Spiderman, for sure”

“Good choice” He smiled up at me, and opened it up.

-

We had been reading the comics together in comfortable silence for a while, both now laying on our stomachs, when I felt Carls eyes on me. He keeps glancing at me every now and then. It makes me a little nervous.

I turn my head towards him and we make eye contact for only a split second before he looks straight back at the comic. I smile to myself.

“What?” I ask curiously.

“Huh” He looks back at me.

“You were staring”.

“Was I?”

“Carl.” I said leaning up on my hands, to get a better look at him.

“I was just thinking…” He said looking at the comic still, and then back at me. “You’re really pretty.”

I looked at him blankly, kind of speechless to be honest. I’ve never been called pretty before. I mean I know he likes me but, for some reason I didn’t think he thought about that.

“You are” he uttered, after he didn’t get a response.

I smile tenderly at the boy, thinking how lucky I am to be here with him.

He smiled too, looking straight into my eyes with his beautiful blue ones.

I only now notice how close he is to me. Ever so subtly glancing to and from my lips. I can feel his hot breath on them.

He leans in and closes the gap between us. His soft lips melt into mine, slowly at first and then something inside of me makes my hips roll closer to him. Almost like it’s an automatic response. At this he grips me harder, hands travelling up my back and round to my hips. We makeout much more intensely than our first couple of kisses. It’s like I can’t get enough of him. Carl turns slightly so that I’m underneath him, all while our lips still move in sync. I cup his face and his own hands move up to my chest caressing me gently.

I have never really thought about the thing that is bound to come next. Not until this very moment anyway. I want to. I want to share everything I have with him. It takes everything within me to stop myself from going all the way with him right now, but we can’t. Not right now when anyone could walk in. 

I lean away ever so slightly and Carl stops.

“Sorry” He says out of breath. Bless his sweet heart.

“No, it’s ok.” I say, not meaning to make him feel bad. I lean up on to my elbows and Carl rolls off of me looking embarrassed. 

“It’s just…” I don’t know how to say it. He might not even be ready to go all the way, but it felt like that’s where this was heading so I should say something.

Carl looks at me curiously. Clearly worrying over what I’m going to say.

“I want to… you know” It came out as a half question and when my eyes meet his own his eyebrows raise in realisation and I know that he knows what I’m referring to.

“We can’t though. Not now… anyone could come in” I explain feeling awkward.

“But you want to? I mean… you’re ready?” He holds my hand gently.

I nod my head.

“Are you?” I ask quietly.

He too nods his head at me.

I can’t help but smile shyly at him.

Carl turns his head back to the door in thought, and then back to me.

“Tonight. Once everyone is asleep. Come back then?” I’ve never seen him so decisive. It makes me want to even more.

“Ok” I bite my lip ever so slightly and kiss him once again. After a second I pull away and stand up off of the bed, grinning at him and then turning towards the door. 

The next thing I know, Carl has got up after me and whipped me round towards him again as I’m about to leave. He gives me a look of pure lust and places his lips on mine once more. I let out a giggle and peck his cheek before I open the door. 

“See you later” I smirk, and with that I’m out in the hall excited to be back in that room tonight.

-

We all ate together as usual a couple of hours later and I could definitely tell that something had shifted between Carl and I. It was a sort of tension… but the good kind. It felt like all of a sudden I saw him differently. I wanted to rip his clothes off ever since our makeup session earlier. What has come over me? 

I’ve never felt this way before, not that I’m aware of anyway. All I know is that I love this boy and that I’m ready.

-

Slowly, everyone started going up to bed and after saying my goodnights I went up too. 

I make eye contact with Carl and nudge my head towards the hallway to get him to follow me. He got the hint and once we were out the door I pulled him by his t-shirt out of sight even more. He smirked at my assertiveness.

“I’ll head up to my room…” I smiled, looking into his eyes seductively. “Once I know everyone is asleep… I’ll sneak over” 

“Ok” is all Carl said, while staring deeply down at me. That’s all he needed to say. The look on his face did all of the talking, and I can tell that he wants this as much as I do.

He placed a sweet kiss to my forehead and turned to join the last few people remaining downstairs.

I was left with goosebumps. All I want is to be with him. Always. Tonight will be a long time coming.

-

I waited patiently in my room, checking every now and then for signs that anyone was still awake.

After around an hour I decided that everyone must be asleep by now and I moved to the mirror to check that I looked ok for the last time. 

I sighed looking at my appearance. I’m nervous. But I know that I want this with Carl. I want him.

After fussing over my hair and if I’m honest, stalling I leave my room trying my hardest to stay silent and creep over to Carls room.

My hand lingers over the doorknob, trying to prepare myself.

After a moment, I gather all of my nerve and open the door, going inside.

Carl is sat on his bed, presumably reading one of the comics that we hadn’t managed to finish earlier.

He nervously stood up, placing the comic on his bedside table and made his way towards me slowly.

“Hey” I whispered nervously.

“Everyone asleep?”

“Think so” I nod, stepping closer to him and close the distance between us.

He nods slowly in thought. “You sure you want to do this?”

“I’ve never been so sure of anything Carl”

He chuckles slightly and looks directly into my eyes. 

With a look of pure lust he speaks again, “Me either”.

With that, I lean up and bring his lips down onto mine.

Very quickly Carls hands were all over me. We could barely get enough of each other. 

My hands run down his chest to the bottom of his t-shirt and I begin to tug at it, wanting it off. He breaks away from me, grabbing it himself and pulls it up and over his head, throwing off into the corner of the room. 

I’ve never seen his chest before but he actually has a very lean and toned torso, making me want him even more.

I take off my own shirt, as he takes off his jeans and Carl looks at me with wonder in his wide eyes. I’m stood in my bra and jeans and subconsciously cover my stomach with my arms nervously as he takes in my appearance.

Carl grabs my hands, pulling them down as he begins kissing me again.

“You’re so beautiful” He says and it sends chills all over my body.

He moves his hands all over, caressing me gently and rests them at the button of my jeans.

“Can I?” He asks, eager to go further.

I nod, smiling and Carl goes back to unbuttoning my jeans, while kissing me passionately. Her pulls them down and I step out of them. We’re both now left in just our underwear.

Carls arms reach behind me, bringing me closer and walks us back to the bed behind him. We fall clumsily down and I lay on top of him. My lips are still on his and my hips begin to grind down onto his noticeably going bulge. His hands stroke my back for a moment before beginning to unfasten my bra. Her does so surprisingly quickly and pulls it down my arms. 

While Carl takes in my form I take the opportunity to drag the comforter over the two of us. 

I then meet his soft lips with my own again and feel his hands come up to my breasts and he starts massaging them. It feels so good and I grind down onto him even more. 

Carl flips me over quickly and is now on top, sucking at my neck. After a few moments I tug at his long hair between my fingers, and pull his lips back up to mine. My hands fall to the waistband of his boxers, pulling them down. Carl rises up from me a little and removes them before moving his hands to my panties and slides them off. His eyes look me over with lust as he takes in the sight of me naked in front of him for the first time. He settles his hips between my thighs.

“Ready?”

I let out a shaky breath and nod.

Carl positions himself and eases himself inside me carefully. I can tell he’s nervous too.

Carl practically whimpers with pleasure as he slides himself inside me slowly, pausing so that I can adjust to the feeling. I was expecting it to hurt but it isn’t actually that bad. I move my hips up, signalling to him that I’m ok. More than ok.

I moan a little, scratching his back in bliss.

“Y/N” He moans back to me, clearly enjoying this too.

I wrap my legs around his waist, to pull him deeper and can slowly begin to feel something building up within me. Carl started thrusting a little harder and faster and before long I’m arching my back up in euphoria.

“Oh my god” He gasps, as he finishes and we ride out our highs.

He kisses me with all of the emotion in the world and slumps down beside me. We take a moment to catch our breaths.

“I love you so much Y/N” He says, his arm going underneath me in an embrace.

“I love you Carl… more than anything.”

That was better than anything I have ever experienced. In this moment I know that I am going to do anything it takes to live a long and happy life with him. This world is tough but with Carl… I feel like we can get through whatever is thrown our way. To think only a couple of days ago my feelings were as confused as they could possibly get. Now things couldn’t be clearer…

Carl Grimes always has been and will always be the love of my life.

[what-is-your-plan-today]

Stark Spangled Banner Ch5: You Make It Easy

Summary: It’s date night, and it’s its a coin toss between who is the most nervous, Steve or Katie.... 

Pairing: Steve Rogers x O/C Katie Stark

Warnings: Bad language

May 2013

The elation Steve had felt about actually getting a date with Katie soon evaporated the next morning when he realised he hadn’t the first CLUE where to take her or what to wear.

So he sought some advice

“A nice shirt and jeans.” Peggy smiled at him, the old woman elated he had finally done it. “Nothing too flash, and pick a restaurant. It doesn’t have to be fancy, women are more impressed by a man who’s paying them attention, interested in them, it isn’t’ about the flashing of cash.” “Come to think of it she has mentioned a new place in town.” Steve said, suddenly remembering that she had asked Evans one morning in Exercise if he had tried it yet. “La Placa I think it’s called.” “Well there you go.”  Peggy patted him on his arm before she smiled at the look on the young man’s face “Just be yourself Steve, that’s who she wants. No one else.”

“Thanks Peg.”

“And make sure you kiss her goodnight…” she grinned, a twinkle in her eyes “Us ladies do like a bit of passion every now and then you know.” He rolled his eyes at her cheekiness, running his hand through his hair which was in desperate need of a cut. He stayed with Peggy whilst he googled the restaurant number, made his reservation and then text Katie to tell her where he had booked.

Can't wait xxx

He grinned to himself, and then pushed his phone away and turned back to find Peggy watching him, a sly grin on her face.

“I don’t think I’ve ever seen you this happy before.” she said, somewhat wistfully

.He smiled “Been a long time since I felt this good.” he said honestly.

“It suits you.” On his way home he swung into the barbers and stepped in. As he sat in the chair the man asked him what he wanted doing, and he was about to say trim when Katie’s voice stirred in his mind.

“Trying to imagine what you’d look like with shorter hair and a beard…” Fuck it. “Shorn back and sides please” he said, “and take it a little shorter on top.”

******

Katie woke suddenly on top of the comforter on her bed, fully clothed. She’d fallen asleep!  She sat up, thinking back to the last thing she remembered before her nap, piecing her train of thought together. Ah, yes, Steve had messaged her to tell her he’d booked a table somewhere which had prompted her to start looking for an outfit. She’d realised she had no idea what to wear so had been debating calling Pepper to ask for advice. And she had decided it wasn’t a good idea because she didn’t want Tony to know she was dating yet, let alone who. This had then got her thinking about the first time they had all met when Loki had taken the Tesseract, which must had jogged that particular memory…what a fucked up place the human mind could be at times.

And then she remembered. Shit, she still didn’t have an outfit sorted! Biting her lip she sighed and picked up her phone, scanning through to the person she was looking for. Desperate times called for desperate measures, right?

The cavalry arrived an hour and a half later in the shape of a red-haired deadly assassin.

“There has to be something in here that’s first date suitable…” Natasha mumbled, as she continued to search through the various items in Katie’s closet. Half Katie’s clothes adorned the floor of her walk-in-wardrobe and bedroom as they had discarded everything she’d tried so far. “It would help if I knew where you were going.” she sipped her beer thoughtfully.

“La Placa.” Katie said after a pause, “Tapas place…but if you turn up I swear to God…”

“I got better things to do with my spare time…” Nat shrugged. “No you don’t.” Katie replied, “And I wouldn’t put anything past you.”

“If you don’t trust me why did you ask for my help?“ “Because Pepper is a 4 hour drive away…”

“Well that’s just rude…” Natasha mumbled and Katie grinned, shaking her head as Nat placed her beer down on the top of a set of drawers and moved to a rail “Ok, try this…”

She pulled out a knee length Balenciaga dress with a fitted top half, scalloped neck line and three-quarter length sleeves. As Katie shrugged it on, Natasha hunted in the shoe rack, pulling out a pair of mid-height red Kurt Geiger courts with a chunky gold heel and matching bag.

“Not bad.” She mumbled as Katie stepped into the heels and gave her a twirl.

“Better than the grey one?” “Definitely.” She said, nodding “I think we have a winner!”

Katie gave her a double Hi-Five and Nat picked up her beer as Katie stripped out of the dress and pulled on her T-shirt and shorts, before she glanced around the large bedroom, sighing at the mess.

“Better tidy this up in case things go well.” Nat smirked, before she pondered “Huh, actually, do you reckon Captain America puts out on the first date?”

“Jesus Nat…” Katie shook her head.

“Mind you, knowing Roger’s he’s probably a virgin…”

“I’m pretty sure people had casual sex back in the 40s too you know.” Katie rolled her eyes. “He was on the USO tours surrounded by dancing girls, there’s no way he didn’t do the old horizontal tango.”

“Yeah but…its Rogers.” Nat pressed giving a snort “Imagine if you are the one to pop his cherry.”

Katie groaned, shaking her head. “Shut up Widow.”

She smirked “Ok, so how long have we got?”

Katie glanced at her phone “An hour and 20 minutes. And what do you mean we?” “You asked for my help, right?” she shrugged, “Thought I could do your make-up and hair too…” Katie looked at her for a moment and smiled “Thanks.” She shrugged then drained her beer before turning Katie round and pushing her towards the en-suite “Go shower then we’ll start the transformation.”

An hour later Katie was ready. Her hair was curled in soft waves, and her makeup was done, a bit heavier than normal, but still subtle enough to avoid looking like it had been applied with a trowel.

“Perfect…” Nat said, giving her an appraising look. “Right, I trust you can get dressed without me.” “I think I’ll manage.” Katie said, standing up as she made her way out of the walk-in wardrobe/dressing room and followed her into the hall where she picked up her jacket.

“Oh and if you need me to bail you, just give me an SOS call…” Nat said, making a phone sign with her finger and pinkie by her ear. “I think I’ll be ok.” Katie smiled, “but thank you, for all of this.”

“Have fun…” she said, and then added with a smirk “And don’t do anything I wouldn’t”

“That doesn’t exactly leave a lot…” Katie quipped

“That’s my point.” Natasha intoned as she walked into the hall and pressed the button for the elevator.

“Nat, you won’t tell anyone will you?” Katie asked, “I mean, it isn’t that I don’t trust you, just…” Nat paused turning back to the brunette to find her chewing her lip with nerves. She shook her head “I won’t tell a soul. I know how much you two like each other, you’ve been dancing around it for months, so… just enjoy ok? Have a good time. You both deserve it.” “Thanks Nat” Katie smiled. The two girls shared a quick hug and then Nat left

***** Steve had to admit, he liked his new hair. It was much more like the style people sported now, but in a way it also reminded him of how Bucky had worn his back in the Howlies. He picked a light blue shirt, his dark navy jeans and then pondered before settling on a pair of brown boots that matched his jacket and belt. He was ready with plenty of time and found himself pacing as he thought about how the night could go. There was no doubt it was going to be way different to how he had imagined his first date to be. Back in his day it was movies, dinner and a dance. Now there were no dance halls, and they watched movies all the time. But, as Peggy had advised, for once he was going to “go with the flow” and just see where the night took them both.

Finally, after an agonising 15 minutes during which he had pretty much paced non-stop and drained a good measure of scotch, even though it did nothing bar give him a comforting burn in his throat on the way down, he headed to the cab that was waiting and they set off to pick up his date.

Jesus Christ she looked amazing. Her hair was cascading in waves over one shoulder, the smoky brown eyeshadow she was wearing made the green in her eyes even more noticeable. And her dress… black, knee length with a detailed neckline and sleeves that finished halfway down her forearms. The top half clung to her body where it flared out slightly from her hips and her red heels accentuated her shapely calves to perfection. As Steve looked at her he found himself imagining various crude scenarios where that dress ended up on the floor, but that wasn’t gentlemanly. Nor appropriate.

Katie felt her breath catch when she saw Steve. His light blue shirt was tight enough to accentuate his ridiculously well built top half, and a brown belt with a gold buckle adorned his toned waist. And he’d had a haircut. Gone were his longer locks and side parting, and in its place was a short back and sides with slightly longer strands on the top, tousled into an exceptionally modern style. He looked incredible.

Steve broke the silence between the two, clearing his throat gently.

“You look beautiful.” He said, leaning down to give her a peck on the cheek.

“Thank you, you look pretty good yourself, you do something to your hair?” Katie teased.

“Thought it was time for a change.” he said, shrugging it off casually as his cheeks warmed. “Still getting used to it.” “It looks great.” she assured him.

He beat her to her jacket as she reached up to take it off the peg and held it out so she could shrug her arms into it. Once they were in the elevator, he reached out and took her hand and she laced her fingers into his. He glanced down at her, his eyes meeting hers and she flashed him a smile.

Yeah, he’d lucked out, big time.

******

The restaurant was busy but not packed. They were seated at the back in a little booth in the corner. Steve had never had tapas before, but Peggy had explained it to him before.

“So the idea is we pick, what, 3 or 4 dishes?” he asked, looking at Katie

“Yeah, they’re like small portions and you share.” Katie nodded. “Although you eat like a horse so we should probably order more…”

He grinned and looked back at his menu.

“You pick,” he said, putting the menu back down eventually, beaten by the various choices. “I literally have no idea…”

“Alright…” she grinned. “But you have to try everything…”

“Deal.”

The waiter returned with their drinks and took their food orders. Katie ordered, 3 meat dishes, 3 fish, 3 veg and then a side order of olives and different breads with dipping oils before flashing the waiter a smile and he scuttled off.

“I think this is normally the part where we ask each other questions,” Steve said as the waiter disappeared. “You know, get to know each other a bit more.”

“Yeah… think that ship already sailed though.”

“True,” Steve said nodding bashfully, there wasn’t many things that they didn’t know about each other, although as he watched Katie was biting her lip, almost as if she wanted to say something, but at the same time didn’t.

“What is it?” he asked, reaching out for his drink.

“Something Nat said before…” Katie flushed, caught out. There was no way she was asking that question.

“Why does this worry me slightly?” he asked, his beer raised halfway to his lips. And it did. Romanoff was a total wind up merchant.

Katie looked at him and shook her head, the flush continuing to rise up her neck “Yeah, I’m not…it’s not first date conversation.”

He cocked his head to one side “Now I’m extremely worried.”

“You really want to know?” she asked, cocking her head to one side.

He nodded. Well, he did. And didn’t…

"Alright, you asked for this…” she straightened up in the seat as he did the same, bracing himself. “Are you a virgin?”

Steve groaned and screwed his eyes shut as she bit her lip. She really shouldn’t have asked that, but now as she watched she was intrigued as to his answer.

“No, I’m not.” He sighed shaking his head before he looked back at her "After I first got the serum there was suddenly all this attention on me and I didn’t really know any better…” “There was no one before?” she frowned slightly, almost as if she was surprised.

He shook his head again “Girls weren’t exactly interested in me before hand, Bucky was the one who had the looks and the swag. He had a different girl every weekend. I guess when they finally did I just, I dunno…” He stopped and took a breath. This made him sound like a right jerk. “There weren’t that many” he added hastily.

3 to be exact. And none of them had been anything to write home about. He got the distinct impression they hadn’t particularly enjoyed themselves either, not past the fact they could boast about having bedded Captain America. After the 3rd he’d decided simply chasing a physical bliss that lasted mere moments wasn’t for him, plus he was infatuated by Peggy at that point. He craved the tenderness of the act that Bucky had so often boasted about. As corny as it sounded he genuinely wanted someone to be with him, intimately that wanted him, not Captain America. He noticed Katie was watching him intently and he hung his head slightly, peeking up at her.

“We all have a past Steve.” she said, shrugging easily.

“I haven’t been with anyone since I came out of the ice.” He said, softly, feeling the need to explain that he wasn’t that type of man.

“I haven’t since Grant.” she eyed him. “One night stands are overrated.”

“I wouldn’t know.” He shrugged, locking eyes with her. “That’s all I ever had.”

Katie studied him for a moment. She had no idea why, but to learn he hadn’t had a girl that way before he became some kind of war time celebrity, and that the ones he had been with were probably chasing nothing but the kudos of being able to say they fucked Captain American made her kind of sad. No wonder he was always so self-doubting.

She smiled and reached across the table, giving his hand a squeeze.

“Well, personally, I think all those girls that picked Bucky over you were dumbasses. I’ve seen the photos of you before all this happened…” she raised her free hand and held out her index finger, and gestured up and down his torso “You were sweet”

He chuckled and took a drink of his beer “You know I heard that a lot…you’re really sweet and all but…“

“Like I said…”she leaned back in her chair slightly, “Dumbasses” Steve was aware that her ankle was brushing against his slightly and he felt the warm flush in his cheek at her forwardness, but soon found it disappeared and was replaced instead with simply enjoying the fact she wanted to be so close to him.

“Ok…” he said as their feet gently tangled together under the table. “So, in the spirit of this being a first date…there are a couple of things I don’t know about you…what’s your favourite film?” Katie paused “That’s a hard one. I like a lot of films but if there was one I couldn’t live without watching ever again it would be the Wizard of Oz.”

“No kidding.” he grinned.

“It’s a masterpiece” she nodded, “The music, the story, the colours…” “You read the book?” he asked.

She nodded “Several times. I used to have a copy but not sure where it went. Probably blown up in Malibu.”

“You know when that film came out it was mind blowing. Technicolour…never seen anything like it.” Steve said with a grin.

“I’ll bet…” she laughed “is it still your favourite?”

“How did you know that?” he asked.

“You told me, ages ago.” “Huh.” he said, “And yeah, even if it’s just for purely nostalgic reasons. Although I did like Gladiator when we watched that.” “Yeah that’s a great film too.” she smiled “one of my favourite quotes of all times comes from that film.” “Which is?” “Death smiles at us all, all a man can do is smile back.” she said as her ankle returned to brushing against his.

“Isn’t that a little bit morbid?” he asked, taking a drink of his beer.

“Only if you look at it that way.” she shrugged “to me it’s more of a reminder to live your life like there’s no tomorrow.”

“That’s a good way to look at it.”

The conversation took a natural turn to the renovation of the tower and then New York in general, how much Brooklyn in particular had changed since Steve had left it behind to go to war. It was through this conversation Steve discovered that in all the time Katie had spent in New York she had never been to Coney Island.

“Maybe I could take you one day, down to the fair.” Steve suggested.

“I’d love that.” she smiled and his chest swelled even more.

Their food arrived and they continued to talk. And, considering they had started the date off thinking there wasn’t much more to find out about each other, both of them were surprised to see exactly how much trivial stuff there was to learn about the other. For instance, Steve knew that Katie enjoyed baseball but what he didn’t know was that whilst Tony was a Yankees fan, she actually supported the LA Dodgers, having grown up in Malibu. Suddenly her teasing about the fact they had moved made perfect sense. And in turn, Katie knew that the Dodgers relocating was a bug bear of his but, since he would rather go into the ice all over again than support the Yankees, he had started watching out for the Mets results, but apparently it just wasn’t the same and as such he hadn’t been to an actual game since he came out of the ice. Both of them found out the other preferred dogs to cats, cats making Katie sneeze and their ability to hiss and scratch you with no damned warning whatsoever made Steve not trust them as far as he could throw them. 

“I can just read the headlines now!” Katie said, in between laughs after he had added that if he wanted to he could probably throw a cat quite far… “Captain America killed my Cat.” Steve let out a low chuckle, shaking his head as he picked up his beer “Don’t cats always land on their feet?” “I dunno, depends how hard you’re intending on throwing it.” “I’m not intending on throwing any cat anywhere.” Steve said, shaking his head “As much as I don’t like them I couldn’t deliberately harm one.” “Tony did.” Katie said. “Well not deliberately, and he didn’t so much harm it as kill it…” “Oh you gotta tell me this story!” Steve grinned, leaning forward, topping up her wine glass from the bottle that was in the ice bucket in the middle of the table.

Katie grinned, “When we were kids, the first place we lived in was down this huge, posh road  with like 3 other houses on and we had this really eccentric neighbour, Mrs Livesy her name was. She had like 18 cats or something ridiculous and one morning, Tony was reversing the car out of the garage and he flattened 2 of them.”

Steve nearly spat his beer back into his glass. “He ran them over?” “Yeah…” Katie said, and by now she was laughing “But the best bit is, she comes round asking Dad if he’s seen the cats, dad’s got no idea what’s gone on right as Tony’s moved the cats and bribed me to keep quiet with the biggest ice cream you could imagine, so dad is all like ‘I’ve got no idea Mrs Livesy I’ll be sure to keep my eyes open…” Katie took a deep breath, wiping at her eyes “So then Tony comes back, Dad mentions that Mrs Livesy was looking for 2 of her cats and Tony’s like ‘huh, well you know what they say, curiosity killed the cat’ and me, being the little shit I was at the age of 4 pipes up ‘no that was you this morning, remember?’”

Steve laughed, and watched as she carried on giggling “He never forgave me for that, Dad made him go round and apologise. And he had to attend a memorial for Mr Whiskers and Bagpuss…”

Eventually after desert and a few more drinks it was time to leave, Katie tried to split the meal bill with Steve but one stern look stopped that in its tracks. This was a date, he was paying. Thankfully she didn’t argue too much. Steve then asked her if she wanted to go for a drink, she gleefully accepted so he took her hand, gently leading her across the road, holding the bar door open for her. They both sat at the bar, Katie turning her seat so she was directly facing him, the pair of them leaning closer to one another as they talked. And the conversation just continued to flow, as did the odd but subtle display of affection, moving their chairs closer together, her hand on his shoulder, his falling to her knee. Steve was surprised to find how easy the whole thing was. He had no nerves, no awkward moments. The chemistry fizzled and there wasn’t a single moment he was stuck for anything to say. It was for that reason he was disappointed when the bar tender called time and reluctantly stood up as Katie drained the final bit of gin from her glass.

As Steve held out her jacket, his hands gently brushed her shoulders as she shrugged it on, sending a tingle down her spine and the hitch in her breathing didn’t go unnoticed. She turned to face him, all green eyes and pink lips, blinking as her eyes locked onto his. His hands connected at the base of her spine as she moved closer to him, not moving her gaze from his, hand resting on his chest.

“I’d really like to kiss you again…” he said, shyly.

“You know you don’t have to ask…” she replied. Smiling softly he leaned down and connected his lips with hers, the kiss growing slightly deeper until Steve remembered they were in the middle of a public bar. He pulled away gently, resting his forehead against hers briefly, blushing like an absolute moron a small smile tugging on the corners of his mouth.

“You know, for someone who said they’d never taken a woman on a date before Rogers, you’ve done amazingly well.” she said smiling at him.

“That’s because you make it easy to be around you.” He said, honestly. He took her hand, curled his fingers round hers and made their way out into the street to hail a cab.

All too soon they pulled up outside her apartment and both of them found themselves wishing the night would never end. Steve told the driver to wait whilst he hopped out and walked her into the lobby, their hands still twined together. There was a part of him that wanted to follow her in, and a part of her that almost invited him to, but they both wanted to do this right, take their time. Katie wanted Steve to understand that this was more to her than it had been to any of those other girls he had talked about, and Steve wanted Katie to understand that he had meant exactly what he said the other night because she meant the world to him.

“I think now is the part where I’m supposed to ask you if you had a good time…” Steve turned to face her as they stopped by the elevator door.

“I did…”

“And if you’d go out with me again?” “I already said I would, Coney Island remember?” she replied cheekily, leaning closer to him

“I meant before that.”  he rolled his eyes.

“I’d love too.” she muttered, and then his lips were on hers again and they were kissing, exactly where they had left off in the bar, only this time they were alone. His hand snaked into her soft hair, angling her head as his tongue brushed her lips. She parted them slightly to grant him access and as their tongues tangled easily, Steve felt as if there were fireworks in his stomach, he had never kissed anyone like this before, no one. The kiss grew even deeper, Katie giving an involuntary moan.

“Always leave ‘em wanting more Stevie…” Bucky said, nudging him on the arm, winking as they crossed the fairground towards the girls “That’s the trick…”

Steve couldn’t stop himself from smiling he pulled back. Their night was at an end, it was a perfect place to leave it.

“I really did had a great time tonight, thank you.” she said, as he reached round and called the elevator for her as she pulled her key card out of her bag. He gently ran his finger down her cheek before he pressed a soft kiss there and smiled.

“Me too.” He waited until the elevator doors had shut and once they shut he turned round and grinning to himself he walked out into the night, whilst in the elevator Katie was wearing a smile equally as big.

Date 1 down, and it had been a roaring success.

Tags

@the-omni-princess​

@momobaby227​

[creative-type]

Hey @oriigami, I was your Secret Santa for the @opsecretsanta2019. I hope you enjoy your gift, and have a Merry Christmas

Title: Deliverance  Rating: T Characters: Sabo, Koala Summary: It stood to reason that Sabo and Koala would get a cupcake for their first mission. It also stood to reason that nothing would go as planned. 

Or, the story of how Sabo got his first bounty. 

“Promise me you won’t go off script.”

“I told you already, I promise.”

Sabo fought with an ill-fitting workman’s cap, which despite his best efforts to pummel into submission did not want to sit nicely on his head. It was new and stiff, without any of the give his usual tophat had. He heard Koala give a nearly inaudible sigh. Standing on her tiptoes she swiped it out of his hands, giving him just enough time to bend down so she could force it on, pulling the bill so low it nearly covered his eyes.

And his scar.

“When did you get so damn tall?” she groused.

“I’m perfectly average, thank you very much,” Sabo said. “You’re just short.”

Koala punched his arm a little harder than was necessary, but he got her to smile. A real, honest-to-god smile, and not the strained bastardization she resorted to when she was nervous. “Seriously, Koala,” he said. “They gave us a cupcake of a mission.”

“We’re going in alone. There won’t be any backup this time around,” she pointed out.

Sabo scoffed, “Hack will be a snailphone call away, not that we’ll need him just to make a delivery. Seriously, Koala, we’ll be fine.”

“I will be fine,” Koala corrected, jabbing her finger into his chest. “It’s you they don’t trust not to run off towards the nearest explodables.”

“That was one time! How was I supposed to know that ship was transporting gunpowder?”

“I rest my case.”

She took a step back and looked Sabo with a critical eye. He considered making a quip about how cute she looked dressed up like a little peasant girl out running errands, but decided he would rather start his first solo mission without any conspicuous bruising.

It was a simple enough job, all things considered. The Revolution had gotten wind of a few nasty rumors regarding some upstart nobleman on the Isle of Doulos and sent an agent to infiltrate the household, who was now in need of some extra reconnaissance equipment that Koala and Sabo were to smuggle in to the estate.  

“I’m not going to screw this up,” Sabo promised for what felt like the dozenth time. “I don’t plan on having Hack babysit me forever so might as well show them we have what it takes, right?”

“Right.” Koala adjusted his collar before giving her final nod of approval. “Remember, we absolutely cannot blow Bunny Joe’s cover. So no hitting douchebags in the face.”

“I won’t,” Sabo promised for the thirteenth time. He paused. “I mean, unless they really deserve it.”

Sabo set sail to Doulos with a sore arm, but it was worth it to hear her laugh.

Xxx 

There had been some question on how the Revolution would smuggle supplies into the mansion of Lord Chandler, the recently turned nobleman who was promoted from the merchant class after performing some kind of service to the crown. Preliminary scouting missions reported an exceptionally thorough snailphone system that covered every inch of the nobleman’s vast estate. Stealth was technically possible, but it would be difficult to sneak around without arousing suspicion.

Further surveillance uncovered a surprisingly simple solution: Supplies from the nearby port city were often delivered by children the same age as Sabo and Koala. All they had to do was get in, drop off a few snails of their own, and get out again.

It wasn’t exciting, or brimming with danger and glory. The Revolution was still treating Sabo and Koala like children even though they’d been around longer than most of the adults, training and studying for the day they could officially join Dragon’s army.

“This is almost embarrassingly easy,” Sabo complained as he carefully loaded a cart left by other agents in the area. Beside him, Koala was readying the donkey that would lead them to their glorious future.

“Would you rather get a free pass?” Koala asked. “There’s already talk about how you get preferential treatment. Boss doesn’t give out one on one lessons to everybody, you know.”

“Talk? From who?” Sabo asked.

Koala gestured vaguely. “You know, people. Is this really the best time to be talking about this?”

“No. And I don’t want any free passes, either,” Sabo said. He took the reigns from Koala and helped boost her into the cart.

“I know that, the boss knows that. Everyone who matters knows that.” Koala’s expression softened, and she placed a calming hand on his forearm. Sabo forced himself to relax, not wanting her to feel the tension that had him all wound up and irritable.

“Yeah, well I’m going to prove it. Yee-freaking-haw.” And with a gentle snap of the reigns, they were off.  

It was a pleasant trip, the air of the spring island crisp and cool while the sun danced its way through a cloudy sky. Sabo and Koala picked their way through town and out into the countryside where Lord Chandler’s estate was nestled between rolling green hills, away from the polluted pall of the city and the dirty peasants who lived there. It was about an hour of slow, deliberate plodding on a bumpy and unpaved road, but time with Koala always seemed to fly twice as fast. Their most arduous task was trying to lead the stubborn donkey pulling their cart.

“I think he takes after you,” Koala teased.

“I’d like to see you do better.”

And so she did.

Their first roadblock came at the estate itself. Koala knew better than to lead them through the main entrance, following down a well-worn servant’s path farther back. The security guard manning the gate, a burly man who seemed to have more muscles than brains, looked down at his clipboard and frowned.

“I don’t have any deliveries scheduled for today.”

“We were only called for this morning,” Sabo said. “We probably didn’t make it on your list.”

He flashed his most winsome smile while Koala gave a small nod in agreement. The guardsman’s frown deepened, and he squinted harder at his clipboard as if it would spontaneously give him the answer he was looking for.

“Who ordered the delivery?” he asked after a long moment of thought.

Sabo shrugged. “Some guy named Joe, I guess? We were only told to bring the stuff over to the kitchens.”

He climbed to the back of the cart and showed the guard their wares: A dozen bags of flour, sugar, and other staples, plus a few rarer items imported just that day from a faraway island that they could pass off as the reason for the emergency delivery.

“I don’t know...” the guardsman said, stretching out the know so long it almost became two words.

Sabo was not about ready to have his first mission waylaid by some no-name grunt. He took a deep breath, gearing himself to launch into another argument when he was interrupted.

“What seems to be a problem here?”

Sabo turned sharply toward the new voice. All the color left the guard’s face as a newcomer slid out from the shadows of the gate, seeming to glide across the ground as if he were a glob of human-shaped oil instead of a real person. He wore an expression that could technically be described as a smile, provided whoever was doing the describing was blind, standing very far away, and had never known the pleasure of genuine human kindness.

It took a small measure of effort for Sabo not to recoil in disgust as the newcomer observed both Sabo and Koala through heavily lidded eyes. There was something eerie about his expression, magnified by a pair of the palest blue eyes Sabo had ever seen in his life, so clear as to be nearly devoid of color. His gaze flitted from Koala, to Sabo--lingering a moment his scars--before returning to Koala and staying there. His lips stretched to reveal a few more teeth, and it took every scrap of Sabo’s will not to break his promise and punch him in his big, leering face.

Koala, bless her, feigned a look of desperate pleading. “Please, sir, we just want to make our delivery and go home.”

Only Sabo heard the sarcastic edge in her servile tone. The newcomer took another gliding step, the guardsman instinctively shying away as he got too close for comfort. “Ah, yes. The extra supplies for our guests tonight. You’re early.” He made a motion like he were batting away an annoying fly. “Hurry up and let them in. You’re causing a scene.”

“Yes, sir!”

Koala and Sabo exchanged a look of surprise, but they didn’t have any time for anything else as the guardsman snapped at them, “You heard the man, get a move on! You’re causing a scene!”

The newcomer’s eyes never left them as they made their way toward the kitchens. Sabo could feel him boring a hole into his back even as they disappeared out of sight.

Xxx

For as long as Sabo could remember, he had a cat’s instincts for people. He was able to decipher tells with uncanny accuracy, the little pushes and pulls of body language that said more than words ever did. It was something that came to Sabo naturally, but he didn’t think it was Haki. Dragon had taught him some of that, too, and while the ability to Observe had its roots in the same place deep in his subconsciousness they were not the same.

Sabo was one of the only people in the world who could tell when Koala was only pretending to smile. He could read the minute changes in Dragon’s expression to know if he was pleased or upset. He could look at two strangers and dissect the power dynamics between them after only a few minutes of observation, and he didn’t need a Devil Fruit or any supernatural willpower to do it.

It got him into trouble more often than not, his instinctual gut reactions making him act without thinking, but he never regretted plowing ahead when he knew in his heart of hearts he was right. The Revolutionary Army was in the middle of a war; they didn’t have time to wait around for opportunities that would never open up of someone didn’t force the issue.

“Don’t,” Koala hissed under her breath. “I know what you’re thinking. Do not go off-script.”

“Do you see Joe anywhere?” Sabo asked serenely, the picture of perfect innocence. “I don’t want to lay this stuff out where anyone can find it. Someone should go look for him.”

Before Sabo could move, Koala’s hand was around his bicep, her grip tighter than an iron vice. “I swear to whatever god cares to listen, I will murder you in the most painful way I can imagine. For once in your life, listen to me: There’s someone already here investigating. We know there’s some bad juju here and there are measures in place to take care of it.”

“Not fast enough, by the looks of it.”

He felt rather than saw Koala’s reaction, his gaze straight ahead to the men and women scurrying around Lord Chandler’s estate at the same frenzied pace as a colony of ants whose nest had just been overturned. The servants had their heads ducked low, hurrying from one place to another like they were scared to be caught loitering. No one had the time to make small talk with one another. No one seemed to be happy at all.

“Who do you think the guests are for tonight?” Sabo asked, his voice barely carrying the distance between he and Koala. “There wasn’t anything about that in the report.”

“Maybe it was need-to-know, and we didn’t,” Koala said.

“Or maaaybe something’s going on. Joe really should have been here by now,” Sabo said. “If we stick around much longer someone’s going to kick us out.”

He kicked a pebble at his feet for emphasis. It dinged against the side of the great building Lord Chandler used as his kitchens, the heat of a dozen ovens making the air ripple and haze. He hated waiting out in the open like this. It was hard enough trying not to be conspicuous with his face half-fried. They might as well have flashing signs over their heads saying that they didn’t belong.

“Then I’ll go look for him,” Koala said. “You stay here and guard our stuff.”

“But…”

Koala silenced him with a raised finger. “Do you even know the right staff person to ask?” She allowed him a moment to answer, and when he couldn’t said, “Exactly. Of the two of us, I have the most experience with...this kind of thing.”

Her mouth twisted in a way that meant she had unwittingly dredged to the surface the horrors of her childhood. Koala shook herself slightly, like a dog would to dry off, and immediately her more familiar smile was back.

Sabo hated when she looked like that, more than he hated the possibility of flubbing his first mission. “You’re right, you’re right. I’ll be a good boy and stay put.”

Koala’s soft flit of laughter lifted the dour atmosphere of the estate, if only for a moment. “I doubt that.”

She bounded off towards the servant’s entrance, moving with a warrior’s poise and grace. She would have to work on that if they ever went deep undercover; a layman would never notice, but an experienced fighter would and might ask questions they dare not answer.

Sabo was tucking that tidbit in the back of his mind when he saw a blur of color at the edge of his vision. The scarring on his bad eye rendered him nearly blind on that side, and by the time he got turned around the weird man with the blue eyes was nearly at his cart.

“Sorry, sir, we’ll be out of your way as soon as we can,” Sabo chirped in his most simpering tone. “Just trying to find who we’re supposed to drop this off with. It’ll only be a moment more.”

The hairs on the back of Sabo’s neck prickled as he felt the Presence of three others walking up behind him. A quick glance showed that none of them were Bunny Joe, and Sabo didn’t trust the strange man’s smile any more than he had before.

He took a deep breath to calm his racing heart, remembering countless lessons with Hack and Koala and Dragon. He couldn’t lose control. Sabo felt his focus narrow as adrenaline hummed in his veins, sharpening every detail to its finest point.

The strange man stood directly in front of him, while three of the estate’s security detail formed a half-circle at Sabo’s back. Blue Eyes was empty handed, but the rest either held guns or wore them at their hips.

“Does there seem to be a problem, sir?” Sabo asked. Too late he remembered that he was supposed to be a normal city boy making a delivery, and the question came out more impertinent than fearful.

It seemed Koala wasn’t the only one who needed practice.

“Walk with me, boy,” Blue Eyes said. “I think I know where to find your friend.”

Sabo took a sharp breath. He had a split second to make his decision, and a not-so-small part of him wanted to fight. The mission was obviously compromised and Bunny Joe missing, and he’d foolishly allowed himself to be separated from his partner with no easy way to get into contact with her.

A voice that sounded suspiciously like Koala’s told him to wait. There was no turning back once he decided to turn things into a slug fest. There were still too many questions he didn’t have answers to; if there was a chance of salvaging anything out of the mission, then he should take it. For the Revolution’s sake and his own curiosity.

“Um, okay. Sure thing, boss.” Sabo jumped down from the cart, carefully palming the baby snailphone hidden under the bench as he did so. Shoving his hands in his pockets, he shuffled forward with his head ducked low and his shoulders rolled in defensively.

The Blue-Eyed man’s eyebrows crept up toward his hairline. “Hands where I can see them. I’ll not have any funny business now.”

“I’m sorry, sir, but have I done something wrong?” Sabo asked. “It’s just...you see, my sister’s the worrying type, and she’s going to wonder where I’ve gone.”

“I assure you, your sister is in the best of hands,” he said, before giggling at his own poor attempt at a joke.  

Blood thundered in Sabo’s ears, and he couldn’t stop a smile of his own, feral and just as unnerving as the one worn by the man who stood before him. Sabo got the satisfaction of seeing something that was very close to fear flash across Blue Eyes’ face, quickly covered by an imperious mask of self-importance.

Sabo was shoved forward while guardsmen came on either side, boxing him in and marching him away from the kitchens, his cart, and Koala. All of a sudden they were alone; the servants had decided it was best to batten down and wait for the storm to pass.

“Who are you?” Sabo asked. “Lord Chandler won’t be happy to see you interfering with his business.”

The man laughed a cruel and terrible laugh, high-pitched and cold like iron scraping against ice. His guardsmen aped him like a trio of trained monkeys, their low guffaws a mocking harmony. Sabo’s stomach sank when he realized his mistake. He should have known an ass of such massive proportions had to be titled.

“The better question is who are you?” Lord Chandler hissed once he regained control of his facilities. He bent close enough to Sabo that their noses were nearly touching and he was seeing double. “Who sent you? Was it El Jefe, or that upstart LeBlanc? I’ll have my answers one way or another; if you’re smart you’ll save me the trouble of beating them out of you.”

“And I told you, sir, I’m just here making a delivery,” Sabo said.

He saw the blow coming in time to turn his head with the hit, but Lord Chandler’s fist still caught enough of his nose to bloody it. Sabo dutifully let his head snap back to sell the hit. He didn’t really know how much to fake it, but erred on the side of caution. The supercilious grin that spread across Lord Chandler’s face as Sabo pretended to writhe in pain told him all he needed to know. The bastard was the kind of man that liked hurting people, and Sabo wasn’t the least bit surprised when he followed it up with a blow to his solar plexus.

This time Sabo didn’t need to fake a wheeze as all the air was forcibly excavated from his lungs.

Lord Chandler rubbed his knuckles. “The first was for your cheek. The second was for making me touch you.” He gestured for his guards. “Come along. I’ve wasted too much time already.”

Sabo drug his feet, making them work for every inch. Somewhere along the way ill-fitting hat fell off of his head and floated gently to the ground, accompanying the trail of blood that would lead Koala to wherever these idiots were taking him.

A curtain of hair fell over Sabo’s eyes and obscured his mad grin. This wasn’t over. Not by a longshot.

Xxx

Sabo had to applaud Lord Chandler’s ingenuity. He kept his prisoners in a slaughterhouse.

He smelled it before he saw it, the metallic stink of warm blood that never went away no matter how often the floors were scrubbed clean. The building itself was unassuming and plain, windowless, made of concrete with a roof of corrugated tin. Sabo was grateful for the island’s mild climate, but once he was forced inside there was no circulation to help keep cool. The air was stale and suffocating, and while the deadly machinery had been removed the long, narrow corridors remained. A true death row.

Sabo could hear other prisoners through the thin walls. He expanded his senses and thought he felt the Presence of fifteen, maybe twenty people in total. Did Lord Chandler have that many enemies, or was he snuffing out competition? His noble title was still sparkling new, after all. Maybe he was afraid of losing it.    

“If there’s one thing I’ve learned in my years of business, it’s the importance of taking a hands-on approach,” Lord Chandler said in a conversational tone. He rolled up his sleeves past his elbows with deliberate slowness, savoring each moment. “That’s the problem with nobles these days, they’re afraid to get their hands dirty. But I’ve made an effort not to forget my roots.”

Sabo braced himself, not for any sort of blow, but the pain of the pretentious monologue he was certain was coming his way. He was considering saying something rude in hopes of making Lord Chandler shut up and hit him, but was saved the effort by the unexpected ring of the snailphone.

The snailphone that was currently in his pocket.

The snailphone that Lord Chandler did not know he was carrying.

Blue eyes narrowed into slits. “Search him!”

“Left pocket,” Sabo said with a longsuffering sigh.

One of the thugs growled in a way he probably thought was intimidating and forced one of his meaty paws into Sabo’s pants pocket. He looked at the baby snail as if he’d never seen a phone before in his life, causing Lord Chandler to bark, “Well, answer it, you buffoon!”

The guard did as he was told. He listened to the voice on the other end, thick eyebrows growing closer and closer together, and after a moment said, “Boss, it’s for you.”

Lord Chandler snatched the phone out of his hands and shouted into the receiver, “Who is this?!”

Sabo would have loved to hear what was said on the other end, but after a moment Lord Chandler’s face went ghost-white. He thrust the snail into one of his men’s hands without saying a word and rushed out of the slaughterhouse.

“Uh, boss…?”

“See, that’s the problem with doing everything yourself,” Sabo said. “A leader has to trust their underlings to do their job when they’re not around. Unfortunately, you’re just not up to the task.”

Sabo was moving before they had time to even process what he said. He broke out of their hold effortlessly, not even bothering with covering his fist with haki before ramming it into the nearest face. He had a brief moment of yearning for his metal pipe before thrusting the palm of his hand beneath the jaw of another. The third tripped over his own feet trying to run away, and Sabo decided to help him down, palming the back of his head and smashing his face into the concrete floor.

He took a step back, surveying his handiwork. They were all alive and twitching, so he took advantage of the abattoir aesthetic, wrapping them in the chains hanging from the ceiling. The hooks once used when draining blood of freshly slaughtered animals long-since repurposed with iron shackles.

Iron shackles. The idiot didn’t even invest in proper sea stone cuffs.

“Amateur,” Sabo muttered to himself. He wiped the blood from his nose with the back of his hand and went in search of Bunny Joe.

He found him in the locker, standing over an uneasy group of prisoners. There weren’t enough rooms for individual cells or even chains to bind them all, so they were kept together in one huddled mass.

For a moment Sabo was irritated that Joe hadn’t freed himself of such a pathetic prison. The man himself was talking quietly to a young woman, wide-eyed and trembling like a frightened doe, and Sabo forced his annoyance down. There were some things that were more important.

“Hiya, Joe!” Sabo said cheerfully. “Lovely place you’ve got here.”

Joe whirled around. Confusion flashed across his face, before his eyes lit up with recognition. “Oh, hey. You’re the boss’s brat. What are you doing here?”

“Trying to find you,” Sabo said. “What’s going on?  Chandler’s goons jumped me ‘n Koala before we had a chance to explain ourselves.”

Joe muttered a string of expletives and drew a hand over his forehead. “He got me early this morning. Must have seen me snooping someplace I shouldn’t and decided to tag you too. I’m so sorry, kid. I’ll get you out of this mess here in a bit.” A pause. “Wait, you said there was someone else with you? Where are they?”

“With a little bit of luck, out causing chaos and mayhem,” Sabo said.

“That’s no good. I need to get you guys out of here before the auction tonight.”

At the word auction the woman beside him burst into tears. Sabo saw her wobble like jelly, before the strength left her legs entirely and she collapsed into a sobbing mess on the ground. Bunny Joe knelt beside her and started rubbing her back in slow, steady circles.

“I’m going to get you all out of here, I promise. I need you to stay strong for me for just a little bit longer. Okay?”

She nodded, and Joe helped her stand with tears still streaming down her face. Taking her by the elbow, he led her back to the other prisoners. “I need to, uh, confer with my colleague for a moment. We’ll sort things out and get you home.”

“This was my home,” she whispered hoarsely.

Her expression crumpled into a look of wretched misery, and she buried her head in her hands. Joe handed her off to another one of the women, an older, matronly-type, his motions stiff and awkward. He returned to Sabo rubbing the back of his neck, uncomfortable and out of place.

“I’m no good at this sort of thing,” he admitted. “But I couldn’t just leave them here.”

“Lord Chandler’s hosting an auction?” Sabo said. It took enormous effort not to start shouting, the spark of his previous indignation ignited into a roaring fire of fury and rage.

“An art auction, yeah. It’s his third in the last two months.”

“I don’t get it.”

Bunny Joe sighed, scratched temple and tried to explain. “Chandler was a smuggler, yeah? And a damn good one at that. He opened up all sorts of illegal trade on this part of the Grand Line under the name Mr. Mooneyes.”

“That’s the stupidest thing I’ve ever heard in my life,” Sabo said.

“Yeah, well, the king turned a blind eye so long as he got his piece of the pie. That was how Chandler earned his title, and now that he’s got it he’s decided to expand his business.”

He looked back at the people behind him. “Auctions are the perfect way to get dirty money clean, and art is easy because the value of any given piece is so subjective. You know, the eye of the beholder, that sort of thing. I was digging through old records, and nearly every piece sold was going for about B500,000. I thought that was a little suspicious, so I tried to find out who was buying, but Chandler runs a tight ship. Everything’s anonymous, supposedly to protect the buyer and their new investment.”

“So you tried to find out who the buyers were.”

“And apparently got caught doing it,” Joe said wearily. “Sorry, I didn’t think he’d go as far as gathering up you guys. I’ll make sure you get home safe.”

“I don’t need your protection. What I need to know is what’s your plan to blow this out of the water, and what can I do to help. Lord Chandler isn’t going to stay away for long, and my guess is he’s going to bring backup. We need to be ready when he does.”

Joe peered down at Sabo, as if he were seeing him for the first time. “You’re serious about this, aren’t you?”

“Deadly.” Sabo said. “And here’s our backup now.”

Sabo felt Koala’s Presence before he saw her dance into the locker. She faltered for the briefest moment at the sight of the room before quickly finding Sabo and Joe. She didn’t appear seriously hurt, but it was impossible for Sabo not to see the blood on her knuckles. He wondered who it belonged to.

“I assume that was your work at the entrance? You were always good at tying people up.” Koala said.

“And I assume you were the one who called me?”

“I was surprised when you didn’t answer, but I think it worked out better this way,” Koala said, a look of pure wickedness on her face. “I wish I could have seen Chandler’s expression when I told him someone had knocked out his surveillance system.”

“And Hack?”

“I convinced him to hold off just a little bit longer. He’s at the harbor now snooping around the ships coming into port. Hopefully he can identify a few of the people on Chandler’s guestlist for tonight.”

She brushed a stray hair out of her face and scanned the room, noting each detail with a methodicalness that Sabo was sometimes jealous of. “But that’s enough about me. What’s all this?”

“A slave market,” Sabo said. “Seems like that’s how Lord Chandler is making money these days, with the approval of the crown.”

Her eyes hardened, the bright blue of her irises frosting over with an icy coldness. Her lips pursed together into a nearly invisible line, every muscle in her small body tensing. It was so rare to see her truly angry Sabo had almost forgotten how scary she could be. Bunny Joe took an involuntary step back as fury radiated off her in waves.

“The auction is this afternoon. I don’t think Chandler can afford to cancel. Not with so many VIPs coming in from all over the Grand Line,” Joe said. “But he’ll be ready. How bad did you mess up his snails?”

“It won’t be back up anytime soon,” Koala said tersely. “And I’ve brought you all a present.”

Without waiting for their response Koala turned sharply on one heel and walked back to the corridor near the entrance. Sitting next to the three guardsmen strung up from the ceiling was a man who’d been stripped down to his skivvies and hogtied, his clothes folded neatly beside him. Sabo almost laughed. “Who is he?”

“A visiting prince from the Moorlands,” Koala said. “I assume he came for the festivities later today.”

At the sight of them, the prince tried to yell into his gag. Sabo knelt down and picked up the man’s waistcoat with his thumb and forefinger, holding it away from his body as if it were diseased. “Is there a reason you decided to strip him?”

“He looked to be your size. Had this in his pocket.”

Koala handed him a card written on thick stock paper, the words TICKET OF INVITATION written in fancy script. Sabo took it from her skeptically. “His Lordship knows what I look like.”

“Doesn’t matter,” Joe said. “Everything is done anonymously. They wear masks.”

“It’s in there somewhere, just keep digging,” Koala said.

Sabo found a porcelain carnival mask, white a black domino pattern around the eyes, trimmed in gold. “Oh my god, it’s hideous.” He grinned up at her. “I’ll take it.”

Xxx

The clothes didn’t feel all that different from what he usually wore, albeit in black instead of his usual blue. Koala had even found him a cravat. But Sabo felt stiff, like he was wearing someone else’s skin.

He had to remember to walk like he had a stick up his ass, to look down at everyone else like they were bits of mud to be scrapped off of his polished boots. He stood in the spacious halls of Lord Chandler’s mansion, taking in the marble columns and the shiny crystal chandeliers, the smell of sandalwood in the air.

Even with his invitation he was afraid of someone seeing his disheveled hair, or that a guard would somehow see through the mask to see the imposter that lay beneath. The scars on his face and shoulder itched every time someone so much as glanced at him.

Security had been tripled, both inside and out of the mansion, but was thickest around the ballroom where the auction would take place. After a moment of consideration Sabo bypassed it. He was distinctly aware that they were running out of time, seconds ticking off the clock in the back of his mind. Following the directions left by Bunny Joe, he walked up a winding wrought-iron staircase to the second level of the mansion. A servant gave him a questioning look that Sabo dismissed with an aristocratic flick of the wrist. He ignored the stammared apology, stomach curling with guilt.

He hated acting like this. Hated more how good he was at it.

Sabo’s foul mood had nearly reached a boiling point by the time he reached the upper foyer. Two guards in white masks stood at attention by rich mahogany doors. At the sight of him they shifted their rifles, ready to raise them at a moment’s notice.

“No guests on the second floor,” one barked.

“But I have an invitation,” Sabo protested.

“No guests on the second floor.”

“I don’t think you know who you’re dealing with,” Sabo said softly. Dangerously.

He was moving before they had time to a look of confusion, twisting a hand into a dragon’s claw. Haki coating his hand black, he struck the middle of the rifle. Wood snapped into splinters under his hand, metal warping and bending with the force of the blow. The guardsman was thrown backward, head cracking against the doorpost. Pivoting sharply, Sabo grabbed a fistful of the second guardsman’s uniform. WIth a roar of fury he hurled him into the door with as much force as he could muster.

The door didn’t break, but the guard did. Shaking his head, Sabo stepped over him and jiggled the handle. Locked. Grinning behind his mask Sabo cracked his knuckles, surveying the door while he rolled his shoulders to loosen them.

One hit to break the lock. Another to blow the door off of its hinges. Mr. Mooneyes himself stood at a table at the center of the room in abject shock, the remnants clattering at his feet. His security was a little better, but Sabo hadn’t spent the past two years training with Dragon to be beaten by a handful of scrubs.

The last man fell before Lord Chandler could make his escape. Sabo grabbed him by the back of the waistcoat and whirled him around, pinning him up against the wall. Somewhere in the scrum the mask had fallen off of his face, and Lord Chandler’s eyes widened in recognition.

“Ha...You won’t get away with this,” Lord Chandler said, gasping for air. He looked down at Sabo with those clear, soulless eyes, a terrible grin twisting his face into something that was more monster than man.

“I think I will,” Sabo said.

“Marines are coming,” Lord Chandler said. “They’ll get you and the girl. No one will come to rescue you when you’re locked in Impel Down. I bet they have her already. I hope they make the little bitch suff--achgh!”

Somewhere along the line Sabo’s hand had found his neck and began squeezing. “I think you’ll find that girl doesn’t need rescued. Now tell me, who are your buyers? Who’s letting the slave trade expand this far from Mariejois?!”

“Hypocrite” Lord Chandler sneered. “Hubris like yours stinks of the Revolution. Where do you think Dragon gets his weapons? His supplies? Men like me...like my benefactor...are the grease that turns the wheel of society. My father always said you need a little bit of shit to make the garden grow, so don’t pretend you’re innocent. What sort of monster sends children out to do his dirty work?”

“What sort of monster puts free men and women in chains for profit?” Sabo spat through gritted teeth. “I’m not going to ask again, who’s the one letting you get away with it?!”

Lord Chandler laughed a dry, wheezy laugh. “Someone bigger and scarier than you. I’ll not breathe a word, boy, to you or your Revolution, so you might as well end this charade and kill me now.”

Before Sabo could answer, the snailphone in his pocket started to ring.

At the sound of it, Lord Chandler cackled like a madman.

“You’re too late, little Revolutionary. You should have known better than to challenge me when the World Government is on my side.”

Sabo kept one hand wrapped around Lord Chandler’s neck as he answered the phone. “What is it? I’m a little busy here.”

“We need to get out of here now,” Koala said. “Hack and I have the ship ready and Joe’s just about got the last of the slaves on board, but there’s half a dozen marine ships coming in hard. We’ll hold them off as long as we can, but they outgun us by...a lot.”

“I’ll divert their attention here,” Sabo said.

Hack’s voice cut in past Koala’s protests. “Sabo, you’ve done enough. It’s time to cut our losses and--”

“I’m going to burn it to the ground.”

Sabo hung up the phone. He looked at Lord Chandler like he were a newly discovered insect he was about to pin onto a specimen board. “I’ll admit, you’re clever. Joe said you have a code during your auctions, a whole system for bidding so that an outsider looking in would have no idea what was really going on. What was it, oil paintings if they were women, acrylics for men, that sort of thing? I have to wonder why even bother with all the subterfuge if the World Government is really on your side.”

Lord Chandler opened his mouth to answer, but Sabo stopped him with a little bit of pressure against his windpipe. “I didn’t say you could speak. See, I’d say you were scared of the Revolution, but you didn’t even suspect us to start with. You’ve got enough goons here and the approval of your king, which makes me think it’s not the local competition you’re worried about. You’ve got too many resources for them to ever be a true threat.”

Sabo leaned closer. “The slave market’s pretty much a one man show these days. You were a smuggler once, right? I’m sure you’ve heard who’s in charge.”

A spasm passed over Lord Chandler, all-but-confirming Sabo’s gut instinct.

“I’m going to give you one last shot,” Sabo said. “Either you come with me and tell us everything you know, or I leave you here for Joker to take care of. You have thirty seconds to decide.”

Sabo dropped Lord Chandler with an unceremonious thud. He kept half an eye on him while making a quick sweep of the room, gathering up any sort of documentation that looked to be important and stuffing it down the front of his shirt.

Everything else he gathered into a pile. Sabo found the nearest candle and carefully lowered the wicking flame. The paper caught, curling to black ash and smoke.

He would have to help it along if he wanted to make good on his promise to Koala, but Sabo figured he could make it work. He turned back to where Lord Chandler sat whimpering in a corner.

“Time’s up, your Lordship. What do you decide?”

Xxx

“Wanted for kidnapping, assault, and impersonating a noble.”

Koala slipped Sabo’s newly-minted bounty from between the pages for closer inspection before handing him the rest of the paper. “I thought you would be happy. Why are you not happy?”

“I don’t know,” Sabo admitted. He propped his head on his hand and scanned the news, trying to read between the lines of lies to find the truth that lay underneath. “It was all...vaguely unsatisfying.”

“You burned down a mansion.”

“I burn down things all the time. I wanted something...more. Something meaningful.”

Koala quirked an eyebrow. “Saving eighteen people from slavery isn’t meaningful?”

“You know what I mean.”

“I’m not sure I do.

Sabo set down the paper and looked at her helplessly. A bandage covered one cheek from an errant bullet, a result of her staving off the marines long enough for everyone to escape.

He felt himself getting angry all over again, but it was an impotent anger. They’d completed their mission, but it wasn’t enough.

It would never be enough.

“Lord Chandler’s one man. One. He’s not even that important in the grand scheme of things. How many others are out there just like him, trying to get their piece of the pie because the Government says it’s okay to sell people like chattel? He’s a symptom, not the disease.”

He tried to go back to his paper, but after a few seconds feeling Koala’s eyes boring into his side gave up and tossed it aside. He leaned his chair back on two legs and groaned. “I want to do more. Go higher. Punch more dochebags in the face.”

“And you will.”

Both Koala and Sabo whirled around where Dragon’s massive body filled the doorway. How he managed to be so sneaky in a base full of Observation Haki users Sabo would never know.

“I’ve gone over Bunny Joe’s report. You commended yourselves well, both of you.”

Koala bowed her head. “Thank you, sir.”

“When’s our next mission?” Sabo asked at the same time.

Dragon’s lips quirked in one of his almost-smiles. “Now. It turns out Mr. Mooneyes made sure to get dirt on each of his clients as a means of protecting himself. With this information, we’ll be able to climb a little bit closer to our goals. Now go pack your bags, you leave tonight with the tide.”

Sabo let out a whoop of joy and jumped to his feet, but before he could make a mad dash to his room Dragon placed a hand on his shoulder.

“Patience. A lion may stalk for hours waiting for the perfect time to strike. Our work will not be in vain. The Celestial Dragons will fall.”

Sabo nodded once, sharply. “And I’ll make sure to be there when it happens.”

[razorblade180]

Twin Snowflakes pt6: A slow morning

Summer:.......

Shiva:*smiling* Aren’t you going to invite me in?

Summer:How is this happening?

Shiva:Come on, your are weak but not stupid. I’m sure you already have a few ideas. *skipping to the bed*

Summer:.....I’m still sleeping aren’t I?

Shiva:Bingoooo!!! *flops on bed* Gods I forgot how soft this bed was! It’s been ages since I layed here; reminds me of the real deal. Can’t wait to lay in it again.

Summer:*glares* Fat chance....

Shiva:Oh wipe that ridiculous look off your face and take a breather. No way I’m fighting you in this place. I just wanna talk.

The young woman layed back up and crossed her legs elegantly as she stared down Summer who was still in the door way. The smug smile that she wore was nothing new to her condescending attitude but it held a certain light hearted feature to it. Summer could tell that Shiva was telling the truth, so why did that only make her more anxious?

Shiva:There’s enough room in this bed for two you know?

Summer:I’m perfectly fine standing here. *tensing up*

Shiva:Whatever makes you less scared. Just when I thought you were getting more assertive. I guess it’s just desperation that made you steal those vials.

Summer:How....I was warm with that happened.

Shiva:Yeah but you’ve been thinking about it nonstop and obviously you’re cold enough for all this to happen. It’s only natural I find out; does natural even apply to us. Huh, something to ponder for later. Right now I’m way more interested in what exactly do you hope to accomplish. I tried digging deeper in that pretty head of yours but I can only get so deep, or maybe you’re winging it. *stands up*

Summer:Like I’d tell you. Just know your days are numbered.

Shiva:Funny, took the words right out my mouth. If anyone knows just how big the difference is from creating plan and executing it properly, it’s you. How many times has it been I wonder, since I left you freezing to death in your own mind? By now your friends and family have to be really tired of dealing with you.

Summer: Their problem is with you, not me!

Shiva:Now now Summer, do you really want to yell at me?

A chill ripped through her suddenly as her feet were frozen in place. The air itself started to get cooler to her discomfort. Despite her efforts, Summer started to shiver a little as Shiva walked closer. A piece of Summer really wanted to scream but refused to. The urge slowly growing though as her captors hand reached out to her. Nimble fingers on her left cheek caused the poor girl to nearly jump out her skin. Something told her that speaking wasn’t a good idea at the moment.

Shiva:That’s better, I really like this room the way it is. As I was saying, you’re nothing but a burden. The one’s you love wouldn’t be tired of me if you were strong enough to get rid of my from the start. Maybe then mommy dearest wouldn’t have a cute little scar that runs across the first one at the bottom. Man can she dodge like nobodies business. I wanted to leave a much bigger reminder of our meeting. If memory serves me well then it was diamond dust that caused the reaction and the whole apartment. History re-

Summer:*grabs wrist* That’s never happening again. You’re not catching anyone off gaurd by a long shot. We’ve learned many things in six years and you’ll feel like nothing but a bad dream in six more. My family will be just fine.

Shiva:Ah, there’s that little fire in your eyes. Always ready to come out whenever someone threatens mommy, daddy, or big brother. It’s the only time you are actually interesting. I wonder if it’ll keep you warm against me, or you’ll burn yourself by clinging to it?

..............

Shiva:Hmph, well I think I’ve had enough fun for the moment. I suppose I should let you rest while you still can; it’s only fair.

Summer:*lets go* Gee how thoughtful....

Shiva:Goodbye little one. I’m gonna enjoy this bed. *puts cover on the floor*

Summer:What are you-

Beep! Beep! Beep!

Her body jolts violently as her eyes open. The right side of her body aches and feels like it’s on something way less soft than she is used to. Slowly her senses come back and notices that she’s currently on floor next to a knocked over heater. Shiva’s surprise appearance started to make sense; just another precaution to add to the list. The dim light hit Summer’s face from the bedroom window told her it was still early. As much as she wanted to move back to her bed, all the strength she had was put into placing the heater back up right. Then she pulled the cover down to the floor with her and went back sleep.

xxx

Year round, Atlas always looked like a work out art at a museum in Nicholas eyes. Freshly fallen snow in the beginning of Winter though, that’s when Atlas becomes the center piece of it all. Crisp air tickles his nose as he walks down the quiet streets with two coffees in hand. Behind him the sound of snow crunching in his previous foot steps gets louder. He raises the coffee in his left hand for it to be promptly grabbed.

Valerie:Five sugars!?

Nick:With a small amount of cream for good measure.

Valerie:Man if there’s one thing I miss about school mornings, it’s this baby right here.

Nick:*chuckles* You do realize you could’ve gotten one of those at anytime you wanted right?

Valerie:Nah, they’re reserved for this moment every time or it feels less special. Coffee on the way to school is our thing; don’t want to abuse that.

Nick:If you say so. What happens when we eventually graduate then.

Valerie:I’ll get it once in a blue moon and remember all the good times of combat school.

Nick:Do good times and combat school even fit together like that?

Valerie:Now you sound like your sister. Speaking of which......

Nick:Doubt she’ll show up today.

Valerie:Such a shame. One of these days a teacher is gonna blow a fuse. I don’t even think the Prince of Atlas could stop them from expelling her.

Nick:They will as long as I make the school look good and please don’t call me that. “A prince is nothing compared to knight that chooses to defend him.”’ I’d rather be the knight.

Valerie:I don’t see why you can’t be both. Your parents might as well be kickass King and Queen but I digress. Can’t really blame Summer for wanting to skip the P.E. physical.

Nick:*eyes widened* Gods I’m stupid,m. Of course that’s why she’s not here. It skipped my mind the two of you have that today.

Valerie:Not surprising, you don’t wittiness the crap that goes down. One of these days I might just fight half the girls in that locker room.

Nick:That bad huh?

Valerie:It’s not like they’re even saying much either, but the way all of them stare. Silently judging and forming opinions about her scars makes me wanna drop kick all of them. *aggressively sips coffee*

He couldn’t help but smile at his oldest friend’s remark. Valerie definitely was never one to put someone in their place. She was typically open and blunt just like her mother. Frankly it was hard to tell if any of Ren’s mannerisms or genes; especially with her hair being short. He sort of missed seeing it long if he was honest with himself. She’s kept it short since the day she decided to start “exploring.” Nicholas took a long sip of his drink to avoid making a frown. Both of them would do anything for Summer; that’s his sister and Valerie is her closest friend as well, but he knows that friendship probably isn’t what compels her to help. He’d have to be naive to believe it was.

Valerie:Hmmm? What’s wrong Nicholas?

Nicholas:Nothing, just thinking about the test is all.

Valerie:Nice try, that’s not a “I’m afraid of a test look.” You’re way to smart and study hard. I bet that expression doesn’t even exist. Something else is up.

Nick:Well maybe this is the first time I’m worried about a test so you finally see the expression? *sips loudly*

Valerie:*pouts* I hope you know that you can tell me anything right? We’re best friends remember. *nudges him*

Nick:Yeah I know?(That’s the problem....)

Valerie:*smiles* So be straight with me instead of giving me the run around.

Nick:I just really want you to lo.........

Valerie:To....?

Nick:To....keep an extra good eye on Summer for the upcoming weeks. Classes are starting again, tournament preparation, the usual bullies, etc. It be a bit overwhelming for her in the beginning. Look after her if she needs any help.

Valerie:Of course! I’ll always be there for Summer!

Nick:Trust me, I know you will.

Valerie:That goes the same for y-

Nick:VAL!!!!. *grabs her arm*

He yanks her left arm to pull her in close to him The sudden movement causes her tense up as they see a car swerve onto the sidewalk at high speed before taking off moments from where she just stood. Her head is still processing the events that unfolded as her body is being held tightly against Nicholas’s shorter and slightly smaller frame. His body shaking with adrenaline. He began shouting at the car angrily.

Nick:LEARN HOW TO DRIVE IN THE SNOW DUMB ASS!!!!

Valerie:Wow, that was.....close.

Nick:*lets her go* Are you okay!? Nothing clipped you?

Valerie:......

Nick:Valerie!?

Valerie:*shakes head* Sorry, I’m alright. That was just ummmm, wow that was close. Lucky you were here. I guess it’s officially that time of the year again.

Nick:The only down side of all the ice and snow. Tsk, I gotta a deal with a whole season of this again. You sure you’re okay?

Valerie:*rotating shoulder* Yeah I’m good. Wasn’t expecting that yank but it’s better than a tire on my chest.

Nick:Oh, sorry about that. Guess I went full force.

A bluish bruise was left where he grabbed her arm. While he frowned at it, Valerie was actually a bit surprised and a bit impressed. Seeing Nicholas that serious outside of a match is a rare sight. Forever he’s cool, collected, and isn’t one to show up that much. She could count the number of times that he’s actually caught an attitude with somebody. Soon her aura kicked in and erased the bruise all together.

Valerie:Look, all better in no time at all. Also no need to apologize for saving my skin. *smirking* Been awhile since I’ve seen that level of pissed off from you.

Nick:*red* Well can you blame me!? Almost had a tragedy today.

Valerie:Oh but we still do...*points to the snow*

Both of them watch the white snow become dyed brown and melting from their spilled morning brew. Sadly they pick up the trash and continue to walk.

Valerie:Better the drinks than me but still a shame.

Nick:Sigh, Maybe I should’ve stayed in bed today too. Tomorrow let’s just ride the bus.

Valerie:*giggles* You’re the boss!

The two of them walked twice as fast to school until they ended up in front of the school. Nothing amazing about the building really. Just the regular combat/high school. Half the size of Beacon or Atlas maybe which makes since considering there’s no dorms. Just plenty of class rooms, a huge cafeteria, and a massive space in the back filled with multiple area’s designed for different sports. All in all the back had to be a least a couple of acres give or take but it’s mostly for the track and plenty of open space. They’ve arrived before most students even though they walked. Winter break must be making everyone a bit sluggish. Thes shiny white and gray hallways should have tons of people struggling to remember their locker combinations right now.

Valerie:Looks like most people are following your sister’s lead about school. Oh well, that just means science might be quiet for a change. Only one way to find out. *walking away* If I see you in between classes I’ll give you the inside scoop on the test.

Nick:I’d rather you just make sure you pass so all that studying wasn’t for nothing.

Valerie:Deal! Consider it my way of thanking you from earlier.

Nick:......

Nick:I don’t wanna be that guy but that gift doesn’t sound worth it.

Valerie:Hehehe, I guess you’re right. Give me some time to think about it. Love ya! *runs off*

Nick:.....Sigh, not the way I wish you would.

Valerie:(Hmmm for second I thought he had something in mind. Oh what to do? Maybe Summer can give me a couple ideas later; possibly even make a whole day out of it!) *grinning* Pfft wouldn’t that be nice?

Nick:*opening Locker* (Okay, Take notes in history for two, Ace a science test, lunch, free period, and then help organize the tournament. Should be a calm day.)

P.A. System:Would all members of the student council please meet in the auditorium during first period? Thank you...”

Nick:Okay, no notes I guess. I can always use free period. Still a calm day. *closes locker*

He turns around to see a middle aged black man dressed in a stylish black suit with a cyan tie and a black fedora with a ribbon around it that matches the tie. The man smiles at Nicholas who displays a neutral face that slowly turns into one of exhaustion, even though the day just started.

Nick:Hello Mr. Coal.

Flynt:Hello Nicholas, shall we talk in the courtyard or my office.

Nick:The principal’s office always has candy so I think you know my answer.

Flynt:Let’s mosy on then.

Nick:Sigh, I wish I still had my coffee.

Part 5

[redrobin-detective]

Be Soft

So @captainkirkk had a birthday the other day and I promised a fic in her honor. I chose Fire Lord Zuko and one of my favorite quotes to guide me. I am so happy to know you friend, thank you for your writing and for being my mutual. May your day and all others be warm and blessed.

Be Soft. Do not let the world make you hard. Do not let pain make you hate. Do not let bitterness steal your sweetness. Take pride that even though the rest of the world may disagree, you still believe it to be a beautiful place. ~ Iain Thomas

XxX

“Prince Zuko,” Father spoke in that slow, clipped tone he used when he was displeased. “Why did you leave your firebending lesson early?”

“I saw something,” Zuko muttered, overcome with shame and embarrassment.

“And what did you see that was so important that you felt the need to disrespect the teacher I pay good money to tutor you?” Father continued with a sneer.

“A-Azula left early too, even earlier than I did,” he defended, pointing at his sister who gave an indifferent shrug. Everyone knew who the favorite was, who would come out on top.

“Azula is a prodigy and does not need the lessons you so desperately need to even call yourself a bender much less my son,” Zuko squeezed his eyes shut and bowed his head so his father couldn’t see the tars stinging in the corners of his eyes at the cruel words. It would only make his dad angrier.

“So tell me, Prince Zuko, what did you see?” Father asked again, this time almost managing to sound genuine but Zuko knew he was at the end of the man’s patience.

“I uh saw one of the recently hatched turtleducks being followed by the garden master’s cathawk and I was worried that it would get eaten. So I um,” He saw his father frown in disapproval. “I uh chased off the cathawk and carried the turtleduck back to the pond. It’s mother snapped at me but the baby was safe at least.” He all but murmured the last part. Beside him, Azula laughed quietly into her hand.

“So you abandoned your lesson to chase away an animal from doing what nature intended it to do,” Father huffed and smoke billowed out of his nose. He stood up abruptly and grabbed Zuko by the front of his tunic before he could move. “This is why you so inadequate as a prince. No one cares about tiny mewling creatures in a pond, all that matters is the power you hold and how you use it. You may have stopped that cathawk today but what about tomorrow? Either it will feed on your precious turtleducks or it will die. You need to learn to do the same or a similar fate may befall you.” He let go and walked past Zuko without another look and out of the room.

“I told ya Dad would be mad,” Azula gloated from next to him.

“Shut up,” Zuko mumbled from the ground.

“Both of you, stop that,” Mom said, bustling into the room with a pinched look on her face she stooped down to his level and it melted into concern. “Are you okay Zuko?” Azula rolled her eyes at the display and stalked out of the room with her head held high. But Zuko didn’t notice, didn’t care, with his mother’s arms now around him.

“Yeah,” he said into the sleeve of her robes, trying to wipe his tears away as discreetly as possible but Mom probably noticed anyway. “Am I, am I a bad prince because I didn’t want the baby turtleduck to get eaten?”

“Oh Zuko,” she said into his hair, “no, baby. You’re a good prince and you know why?” She pulled back and wiped her thumb across some wetness staining his cheeks. “It’s because you care about living things, even when it’s hard. You’re hardworking and brilliant and you use it all for the sake of others. I would want to live in a nation knowing my Fire Lord did everything he could to protect me and my family. That is the mark of a true leader, using your power for the betterment of the world.”

“Do you think I could be that kind of a person?” Zuko asked meekly.

“Oh my love,” she said with a kiss, “of course you will. You’ll be the kindest Fire Lord the world has ever known.”

XxX

“Oh Agni which one of these do I answer first,” Zuko asked himself picking one of the literal dozens of scrolls littered on his desk. He’d felt on top of the world a week ago when the Fire Sages had crowned him Fire Lord but now he wonders if he’ll really be able to fix his broken nation, this broken world. The scrolls contained everything from demands of reparations from the Earth Kingdom and Water Tribes, generals at the front demanding orders, Fire Nation dignitaries disagreeing with his ideas for a new, brighter Fire Nation. Basically everyone wanted a piece of him and he just didn’t know if he was enough.

He stalked over to the wall on the other side of room and stared at a painting Sokka had given him before they’d left. It depicted Zuko with his swords doing some sort of firebending, or at least that was how Sokka described it. It pretty hard to tell but it had been made for him by his friend, a fact that still takes him off guard. Who would have thought he’d ever be nostalgic for the War? Simpler times now that he thinks on it, stop the Fire Lord and save the world but now he’s Fire Lord and he doesn’t know how to fix things. He doesn’t know if anyone could. He was tired from too many late nights, worn down by the physical and emotional stress of the last few weeks and aching from the inside out at the thought of being exactly what his father said he was: nothing.

He growled, pulling away from the wall and going back to his desk where the scrolls are still lying, just as accusing and disbelieving and unanswered as they were a moment ago. There’s a quiet little knock at the door and a hesitant little “My Lord?”

“What!” Zuko snapped, spilling some scrolls from the desk in his anger. As quickly as his frustrating bubbled it fizzled out and he chased after the frightened servant who had staggered back out into the hallway. “I’m sorry, I’m so sorry, you startled me and I’m just so frustrated and I didn’t mean to scare you, really.” He was about ready to get down on his knees when the servant, an older woman he remembers seeing on the periphery of his childhood, kind of stopped and stared at him as if she didn’t know what to make of him.

“Are you alright, my Lord?” She said finally as he kind of awkwardly staggered to his feet deciding he probably looked ridiculous going for a bow with this woman. He swayed a little bit, pushing some of the hair out of his face.

“Yes, obviously, do I not look alright?” He asked and she pointedly took an extra telling few moments before nodding her head. “Yeah, I thought so.” He sighed leaning against the wall. “I’m sorry again for earlier, that was inappropriate of me. Can I make you some tea to make up for it?”

“I,” she said before shaking her head as if to clear it. “No I was coming to ask if you wanted tea.”

“I do but I’d like to make it, need to do something with my hands. Here, come inside, we can talk for a moment,” he said, leading the woman into the room and setting her on the plush royal stool. “What’s your name? Is green tea alright? It’s all I have in here.” He babbled as concentrated on measuring the tea out just so while he lit a flame for the ever present pot of water.

“I am Maki,” she said softly, “and yes, my Lord. Is this what plagues you?” She asked gesturing to the scrolls sill covered his desk and now the floor. He grunted, playing with the water’s flame.

“I don’t know how to answer them in a way that will make them listen to me, I need them to respect me, to take a chance with me on peace but I don’t know how,” he sighed watching the leaves steep in the water.

“If I may my Lord,” she began hesitantly. “I would be honest; you have done more than most to end the war. They cannot doubt your motives, explain yourself as you have to me and I believe they will listen. Mistakes are made freely but so few are willing to extend the hand out in repentance and understanding.”

“Huh,” He said mulling over the words before pouring the tea for the two of them. “That just might work.”

XxX

Zuko had faced many monsters in his life both in spiritual and human form but it never got any easier. The trails punishing the war crimes of those from all four nations during the war went on years after Ozai was taken down. As Fire Lord, he was responsible for those charged within the Fire Nation and it anguished him to see how many of his people were guilty of crimes against humanity.

He knelt down in front of a row of liberated prisoners from a camp, mostly deserters or war criminals or rebels who couldn’t keep their mouths shut. They were clearly underfed, overworked, their bodies strained and exhausted beyond measure. Their suffering was imbedded in every lines along their skin and their fear lighting in their eyes like candle flames. It made him want to turn away in disgust and anger but instead he held out a hand.

“Your cases will be reviewed, some of you may still face prison time but it won’t be like this,” he said, emphatically, trying to put as much honesty into his words as he could. If his voice broke a little at the end and his hand shook a bit then all the better to convince them. “The rest of you will be allowed to return to your lives and your families, all we ask in return is that you give our peace a chance. Are these terms acceptable?”

“You would really let a go?” A young woman, probably around Azula’s age asked with a sneer. His father’s years on the throne showed very little sympathy towards disagreement, no one was free from punishment. No wonder she didn’t believe him.

“Guard, release their manacles. While the records are reviewed they don’t need to be chained, once they’re off, get rid of them. They’ll never be put on anyone ever again,” Zuko ordered.

“B-but my Lord!” One guard stuttered, “the prisoners will riot, they need to be contained.”

“Unless they want to risk their chance of going home, I believe they deserve the chance to feel like humans again,” Zuko side-eyed the guard. “Unless things were happening in this camp that you fear retaliation for.” Several guards looked away and Zuko knew he’d be investigating their records, as well as speaking to the prisoners themselves, as well.

“Sir, I must protest. It’s not safe for you and, to be honest, it is beneath a man of your status to kneel before peasants and miscreants. Every one of them is here because of crimes they knowingly committed against the state. Everything that happened here, to them, was justified.” The head guard said with a face that looked as if he had never smiled before. A few of the prisoners bowed their heads or shrunk away from the man’s very presence. He’s sure he’ll find that every heinous act in this camp was committed or authorized by this man. It’s times like these he most understands his father, how easy and good it would feel to lash out this man with both his fire and his privilege. But he stays his hand, if only for the people behind him. He needs to show them that he means what he says, that he believes in pretty words like peace and justice. They were worth something, a long time ago, he hope to bring those words to life again.

“Justified,” he hisses, “or not, I want them set free. And we will decide what or what not is beneath me when I’m reviewing the records of everyone at this facility.” He stood tall, putting as much confidence as could into his posture. He would save these people and he would do it the right way. “Let’s begin, shall we?”

XxX

Forty Eight was still too young, he decides wearily. He’d been Fire Lord for three decades, fought and lost many battles, won a few in-between, and put his heart and soul into restoring the Fire Nation. And yet here he knelt, feeling as fragile and helpless as a child. Forty Eight was far too young to lose a father.

“Uncle,” he croaked, “can I get you some more tea?”

“Not now,” Uncle said with great effort. “Your tea making has much improved nephew but I fear my stomach cannot handle it.” Zuko looked down at his worn hands and wrestled with them anxiously. There were people outside waiting for him, his wife and daughter, his friends, his nation, all grieving the impending loss of one of its finest heroes. But in this moment, nothing existed but him and his uncle.

“What troubles you, my Lord?” Uncle whispered, almost a sigh.

“You know,” Zuko said back just as quietly.

“Death is another part of life,” that weathered, weary hand reached for his own and Zuko held on as tightly as he could allow. “I have lived a spectacular life, made mistakes, redeemed myself, raised a boy into a man,” Zuko suppressed a sob, “helped save the world, ran a shop. I have done what I was meant to do and now it is time for me to depart. My body is failing and my spirit longs for peace.”

“I know,” Zuko admitted, thinking of the slow progression the years had worn on the man who had always seemed larger than life. “And I thank you for staying with me for as long as you could, for being my family when I had none. I,” he bowed his head and brought Uncle hand up to his forehead. “As your Lord, I give you permission to have your rest. You have served your nation honorably General Iroh, you go with honor and-and with love.” He said with as much composition as he could muster, shoving the pain he felt letting his uncle go in favor of relieving the pain his uncle felt at being forced to stay for his sake.

“Zuko, my Zuko,” Uncle said warmly removing his hand from Zuko’s forehead to rest it along his cheek. He hand was cold and thin but Zuko cupped it anyway. “I know this is difficult but your words me so much to me. The blessing is nice, but the true blessing is watching you bloom like a cherry blossom, beautiful and kind, is the greatest gift of all.”

“I tried Uncle,” Zuko said, some of his grief abating in the face of Uncle’s proverbs. “I’ve done my best to be a be a good leader, to not be like my father. It’s been hard Uncle, it’s been so hard,” he nuzzled his Uncle’s hand. “Sometimes I get so frustrated and angry and it hurts but I tried to be what this nation needed.”

“My Prince, my Lord, my dear Nephew,” Uncle said, “you are. It is precisely because it has been so hard that makes your accomplishments shine even more brightly. Watching you grow, seeing your light, it has been the pleasure of my life, Zuko.” Zuko smiled into his uncle palm, still feeling small and afraid and so terribly sad. But his Uncle is ready and Zuko thinks he’s finally ready too.

“Go in peace,” He said, gently resting Uncle’s hand on his harshly rattling chest, “go with my love.”

“I must share it with every living creature,” Uncle said, “and I am all the more glad for it.” Uncle closed his eyes and Zuko knew that everything they had to say had passed. This time is for his Uncle and him alone. He leaned down and kissed his brow one last time before sweeping out of the room. He wanted to stay but the man had wanted his privacy and Zuko could not deny him. Still, he thought, standing outside with the others, leaning heavily on Aang’s shoulder as the inevitable comes and passes.  It was hard to be gentle, to let the softest part of him out for everyone to see. But he was raised with both cruelty and kindness and he knew which he wanted for his country, for his family. For his Uncle’s memory and for all the people he hoped to save, he could only go forward and hope it was enough.