#even if i have to open with only my main three muses ready to go

[aboutcustardcreams]

So it's true, a Door appears

Hiii, I’m back from the dead! As I mentioned before, life’s gotten much busier than it used to be, and I’m truly sorry it’s taken me so long to wrap up this chapter. But I haven’t forgotten about this story, so no worries—there’s still more to come! Let me know which trails you’d like to explore from here. As I’ve said, I’ll be stepping away from the series’ main trajectory, so if you have any preferences: Agatha’s trial, reader’s journey, or anything else, you name it, and I’ll be here to shape it <3

Summary: The path through the Witches' Road begins, defying all odds.

previous chapter

“Uhm a little more to the left, no, no right–”  you instructed, your head tilting as you followed the festoon Teen was trying to hang above the chimney in your lounge room.

“Does it look centered?” He asked, glancing back at you.

You studied it for a moment, then nodded, “I s’pose.” as if drawn by instinct, your gaze shifted to Agatha, standing quietly behind you. Perhaps too quietly. “What do you say?” 

The witch did her best to stifle an eye roll at your question. Why you were indulging the kid was beyond her, in all honesty. You even set out a few snacks on the table, as if this was supposed to be some kind of party. She sighed, her tongue peeking out as she walked up to the festoon. “Let me see…” Agatha’s nerves weren’t about snacks or decorations, though. Time was running out. In a few hours, the sun would set, meaning that if Rio was right, the Salem Seven would pay her a visit. And not a courtesy one. 

Before either you or the boy could stop her, she made a swift, deliberate movement, tearing the paper off the wall with precision. “There. Much better,” she grinned, stepping back satisfied.  

The boy snorted, opening his mouth as if to protest, but quickly thought better of it. Arguing with someone like Agatha was a losing battle. You dropped your hands, with a weary sigh, offering the boy a sympathetic glance.  

Turning back to Agatha, you gave her a playful but exasperated look. “Did it bother you so much you couldn’t hold yourself?” 

She nodded, “it was giving me hives.” 

You rolled your eyes. 

“You should’ve left it up.” You three turned at once and found Jennifer Kale roaming in the lounge room. “It made the environment look less… gloomy.” 

“Jennifer! You made it–” Teen’s face lit up. “Please, take a seat.” 

“He acts like he owns the house,” Agatha drew closer to you, her sweeping coat touching your legs as she did. 

You leaned into her, an amused twinkle flashed in your eyes. “Only a couple of hours ago, you were ready to give it away, so.” 

“Please–” She scoffed and pulled you closer by wrapping an arm around your middle. “You know, I didn’t mean it.” 

“Did you?” You asked sarcastically, fingers moving softly, tracing delicate, flowing patterns across her arm. 

She huffed, as she buried you deeper against her chest, “don’t push it, my love.”

“You’re bound, aren’t you?” It was Lilia to speak. 

Both you and Agatha looked between Jen and Lilia. 

It was clearly an awkward question to ask, and not much appreciated by the potion witch, who gave her a fake smile in return. “Woah, aren’t you clear-sighted?”

The older one nodded proudly, missing the sourness in Jen’s tone. “Lilia Calderu. Divination. Nice to meet you,” she bowed her head in a form of courtesy that wasn’t exactly reciprocated. 

“Jennifer Kale. Potions,” she began. The corners of her lips turned up, when she added, “by the way, you need a chemical peel.”

Agatha whistled, clearly enjoying it, “witches being witches, huh?” she mused, as fingers rubbing at your hips, absentmindedly. You couldn’t help the grin crossing your lips. “Well, at least one is easy to rile up,” you tumbled, referring to Jen. 

Agatha’s eyes drifted off to the open window to her left. The sun was setting. “It’s almost time…”

“Yeah,” you swallowed and tried to hide the slight worry manifesting in your eyes. 

“This is never going to work…” Alice commented, as she stepped in the living room at a careful pace, as if she was walking on eggshells. Or.. on a battlefield. 

You were surprised, and so was Agatha. Three witches joined the meeting! It was going better than you expected in all honesty. 

“Alice! You made it!” Teen exclaimed, his excitement pulling him forward. The younger witch tensed up when he opened his arms to hug her. It was brief and awkward. “Sorry, I-I got carried away. I’m just glad you all showed up.”

She stepped back, with a tight smile. “No worries,” she waved him off, then turned, looking at you and the others. “Hi everyone–”

You gave her a nod of your head and so did Agatha. Jen and Lilia introduced themselves, second. 

“How did you find the house?” Teen asked. “I didn’t give you any address.”

Alice shrugged with her hands tucked in the back pockets of her black jeans. “I’m an ex-cop, kid. I’ve got some experience up my sleeve.” 

It made sense, so he nodded. “Right. Cool.” 

You witches exchanged a glance, then. It struck you that, against all the odds, a Coven had been formed. For a fleeting moment, you allowed yourself to entertain the fantasy that those witches could really become yours and Agatha’s sisters. A family, perhaps? No hate, no deception, no manipulation. Just pure, unbroken sisterhood. But the reality of the situation soon hit you, because you and Agatha gathered them with a purpose, to suck away part of their magic and allow Agatha to get back on top. It was very unlikely that they would have stuck around after figuring out the truth. 

“Well, the gang's here,” Agatha announced in thrill anticipation. “Let’s hit the Road, shall we?” 

“Wait, wait,” Jen interjected, with a frown. If an eyeroll could make a sound, Agatha’s would scream. “Where’s our Green Witch?” She inquired. 

You winced. Of course, that know-it-all witch would notice. 

Agatha scoffed, playing naive. “Oh, do we really need one of those?” 

“Of course we do,” Lilia pointed out, supporting Jen on this. 

How nice, they were already picking sides, you thought.

Alice remained silent, likely deep in thought. She was the skeptical one, though her reasons were different from Lilia’s and Jen’s. Part of her doubted the Witches’ Road even existed, dismissing it as nothing more than a myth—a clever con. By extension, she saw you and Agatha as little more than liars. And yet, curiosity had won out in the end. That’s why she was here. She had nothing to lose, only something to gain. 

“I assure you, we don’t, Lilia,” you moved from Agatha’s grip, much to her displeasure, and walked up to the other witches. “We can manage just fine.”

“The Ballad clearly says wake thy power, earthly and divine,” Agatha’s eyes clenched for a moment at Jen’s lofty tone. 

If you were to make a ranking, you’d put Jennifer on top, as the most irritating of the three. Alice was your favorite for now. 

“I’m willing to take over,” you said confidently. 

Lilia, Jennifer and even Alice faced you with their eyes squinted. Teen was the only one showing a bit of trust, apart from Agatha obviously. 

You sighed. “You’ll agree with me when I say that I am a kind of Green Witch, after all.” 

Jen licked the inside of her cheek. You could sense her question before she had time to spill it out. “From which perspective are you saying that, exactly?” 

Yes, she was definitely the most annoying of the three. 

 You stepped closer, trying to keep your frustration at bay. “Are you for real? I can create life.”

“You can reverse death, yes,” Jen corrected you. “There’s a difference.” 

You rolled your eyes, an amused scoff slipped from your lips. “No, there isn’t. And, with all due respect, what would you know about my skill?”  

“Everyone knows what a necromancer witch can and cannot do,” she argued stubbornly. 

“Ugh!” You groaned. The nerve. “Well, everyone’s knowledge is a bit sketchy, I dare to say. Nobody knows what I’m capable of better than myself.”

Jen puffed her cheek skeptically. “You can’t make anything from scratch, can you?” 

Your nostrils flared, then. What did she know about you? About the life you had painstakingly pieced together from nothing? The life that truly mattered—now gone. Agatha, Rio, and you had created something beautiful together: your son. But they couldn’t see that. They were blind, clueless in their ignorance.

Agatha’s sharp eyes caught the tension in your jaw. She walked up to you and touched your shoulder, in a both comforting and firm way. “See, that’s where you’re wrong, you dolt. Because she can. She did that once–” she began, her voice trembling a bit. Your brows furrowed as you faced her, eyes dimming in concern at the memories she was conjuring up. Those being the same as yours. 

The potion witch sighed. “I’m just saying that Earth magic is the most important skill set for an attempt at the Road, that’s all.”

“And I’m telling you I possess that,” you insisted. 

Agatha ignored Jen’s mumbling after that. “If you’re sure.” 

You nodded, searching for her eyes, “I am. You can trust me,” your voice came out gentler. 

It wasn’t hard to understand their skepticism toward you. Agatha wasn’t the only one carrying the weight of a reputation. Yours was there too, etched into you, much harder to explain. You had been marked by the deities of vengeance, after all. But the truth as to why that happened was known only by Agatha and Rio. 

“Her power is unlike any other. It doesn’t fit neatly into your categories of ‘earthly’ or ‘divine.’ It transcends both. So please—” Agatha intruded, “unless you truly understand what you're talking about, I suggest you keep your opinions to yourself.”

No one dared to argue after that. 

You ran your tongue over your lips, a slow smile tugging at the corners of your mouth. The surge of emotion rising within you was impossible to ignore—a potent mix of gratitude and something deeper, something more primal. Desire, perhaps. There was no denying it: Agatha was undeniably sexy when she acted all protective towards you. 

“Thanks, Aggies,” you whispered. 

Her eyes softened as she took in your features. 

“But, wait-” Teen tumbled out, brows furrowed, “I’m not saying she can’t take over but there was one more name on the list, wasn’t it?” 

You didn’t say whereas Agatha preceded you with a lie. “There really wasn’t.”

He didn’t buy it. His eyes darted from her to you, his expression begging for a more honest answer, but you kept quiet, unable to say that name. 

He glanced at Lilia, then. “What was the last name?” 

She pursed her lips, in thought. “Uhm.. I think it was Spanish or maybe Catalan, I’m not sure–” she began, as she gathered her thoughts. It was really on the tip of her tongue. “Rio, perhaps?”

You clenched your eyes, letting out a deep sigh through your nose. Teen’s smirk grew as recognition flashed across his face. The name said it all. He remembered it. Remembered her. No wonder you and Agatha had been so reluctant to include her in the trip. She wasn’t just anyone—she was the ex. And not just any ex, but the kind who, on top of everything else, wished you dead. Who in their right mind would willingly sign up for a journey with someone like that? 

“Ah– Rio, yes. She’s out of town,” Agatha hurried to say. 

Liar, Teen thought, but he kept it to himself. 

“She’d be more trouble than anything, honestly,” you explained, looking at each of them alternately. 

“She is telling the truth,” Teen replied. 

“Okay so everything is settled,” Agatha rubbed her hands, and swept her tongue over her lips. She was dying to feel her power flowing back in her body. “Teen, be a dear and be sure Señor Scratchy has enough lettuce. Sammy tends to eat it all.” 

You scoffed at that. “Again with this story? Stop assuming my turtle is a thief, Agatha.” 

“I’m not assuming,” she quipped. “I’m certain of it.” 

Teen gave you and Agatha an uncertain smile. “With all due respect, I don’t think it’s relevant that I do that. Shouldn't we get going?” 

“Teen, the Road is conjured,” you explained calmly, placing a hand over his shoulder. How cute and naive could he be? “We don’t physically go there by car, broom or something.”

“Oh,” he nodded, a tad flustered to have assumed it the wrong way. “Haven't thought of that.” 

Agatha’s head lolled to the side, her bottom lip popped out kinda mockingly. “Isn’t he the cutest pet we have ever had, love?”

You giggled. “Agatha, he isn’t our pet. Quit calling him that.” 

“Such a spoilsport you are,” she fake pouted, flapping at your arm playfully. Her eyes darted to the boy after. “Let us just do our thing, okay? We will call you once we’re done.” 

“Fine,” he muttered with a nod, before walking up the stairs. 

“So, just to be clear,” Alice interjected. “We can still walk the Witches’ Road without a Green Witch.”

You nodded, “correct.”

“We will summon one on the Road, if it’s really really necessary,” Agatha added, eager to get started. 

“‘kay, but you never said–”, Alice began. “What’s the rush?” 

You kinda preferred her when she was quiet and indifferent. 

Agatha was doing her best to maintain her composure. There wasn’t much else she could do, so for now, feigning cordiality was her only option. “Uhm.. well, you see-” Her voice was laced with that falsely sweet tone that made it hard for you to keep from laughing. She gestured toward you, and when her palm met the small of your back, you glanced at her with suspicion. What was she cooking up now? “Her parents are visiting and I really can’t be bothered with that, if you catch my drift.” 

What a low blow. Undoubtedly a good excuse, but still. 

“Fair enough,” Lilia commented. The others seemed convinced, too. 

“I can’t believe you said that,” you pointed out.  

She leaned closer and whispered in your ear. “You know, in extremis…”

A soft laugh escaped your lips, and before you could say another word, you felt her lips—plump and soft—press gently against your cheek. The warmth of the touch silenced any objections that lingered on the tip of your tongue. Oh, she knew she had you wrapped around her little finger. 

“Come on now, let’s hit the Road!”  

*

“It cannot be–” you stuttered, voice barely above a whisper. Your eyes were locked on the carved outline of a door embedded in the basement floor. It hadn’t been there before. You were certain of it, absolutely certain. So… how?

The others didn’t notice, too caught up in their heated argument to see what had just appeared. But it couldn’t be, could it? The Road wasn’t real. The Ballad was just a song, you, Agatha and your son made up once upon a time. So what was that? 

Agatha let out an exasperated growl. “I really don’t have time for this–” 

She didn’t even glance in your direction, oblivious to your fingertips brushing over the strange, impossible surface of the door. 

“Just blast me, you bitches!”

“Enough!” You snapped, finally catching everyone’s attention. Your magic vibrated like a sudden summer breeze, it swayed your hair and turned your eyes silver for a moment. Choked gasps slipped from the others, their gazes dropped over the floor, where now there was a door. The same door you’d thought couldn’t exist, let alone be summoned. 

Agatha was speechless, as she drew in a breath with wide eyes. 

“Are you seeing this too?” If this was another cruel trick played by the Furies, you weren’t sure your mind could withstand the torment again. “Tell me you are,” your voice came out almost as a plea. 

“Yes–” Alice breathed out. “We did it.”

“So it would seem,” Lilia chuckled nervously. 

Jen’s brow furrowed, eyes drifting to Agatha’s. “Why does she look so shocked?” 

When Agatha didn’t respond, you did, “It’s been a while, can you really blame her?” 

When she lowered herself beside you, her lips pressed into a tight line, a clear sign of her inner turmoil. Knowing her, she was probably spiraling into a quiet panic. Without hesitation, you reached out, your hand gently rubbing soothing circles on her back. “Hey,” you murmured softly, your voice laced with concern. “Are you okay?”

Agatha gave you a faint nod of her head. “I’ll admit,” she began, her gaze drifting off to Jen. “I’m surprised you’re not the hopeless bunch of rejects I thought you were.”

“You’re the worst,” Jen groaned, in an accusatory tone. 

You sighed. “Will you cut it out? Help me–” You gritted your teeth as you gripped and tugged at the door’s handles, straining against its resistance. Jen shot Agatha one last glare, which Agatha met with a smirk, before they both finally stepped forward. Along with Lilia and Alice. 

With a sharp, resonating creak, the door burst open. Your eyes fixed on a flight of stairs leading further down the floor. Where precisely you didn’t know. A greenish blow came from it, illuminating the path to the… Witches’ Road. 

“Agatha!” Teen’s voice came in a panicked squeal, as he rushed down the basement exactly where you were standing, “is that it? Cause we should really get going. Like right now!” 

You heard an explosion, coming from upstairs and sensed magic. It was ancient, angry and just for a change, very powerful. 

“The Salem Seven…” you whispered, eyes widening a bit. 

The other witches didn’t need to be told twice and hurriedly took to the stairs, leaving you and Agatha behind. You stalled, before half yelling, “What the heck is this?” 

Agatha waved her hands and stuttered out. “It looks like a door to me.” 

You scoffed incredulously, “well, obviously it’s a door. But I meant–”

Before you could say another word, one of the Salem Seven began crawling down the stairs toward you and Agatha. Each movement sent an unsettling chorus of pops and creaks through her bones, as though her very body was possessed by a demoniac force. 

You used your magic to shove the woman away. The witch let out an ear-piercing shriek, her lips curling to reveal jagged teeth. Your stomach twisted as you stumbled back, unsure if you were facing a witch or some feral, inhuman creature.

 “Go, go, go, go!” Your eyes widened as you prompted Agatha to take the stairs. 

Agatha grasped your hand, pulling you with her, “you don’t have to tell me twice, my love.”

[bubbles-for-all-of-us]

You don’t get to tell me about sad

Previous chapter

a/n part three! I’m brain dead so sorry for the wait. I hope you will all enjoy this. 🫧🫶🏻

summary: Azriel gets an assignment he can’t seem to decline. Now he has a princess full of attitude under his protection. The only question is whose cold heart will break first.

warning: past trauma, scars, injuries, blood.

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You were sure that your lip was going to burst from the way you kept biting on it, trying to suppress the laugh as the carriage rolled through the misty autumn forest. Convinced that nothing was ever going to top the sight of Azriel, squished the opposite of you. He was scowling so hard that he was most definitely the reason why the sky had ripped open. Pouring rain drowned the lush forest since the early morning. It looked like you were driving to a funeral at best, gruesome execution at best. 

“Don’t start with me today," Azriel grunts, his eyes burning into yours. Yet now that he acknowledged you, the smile only seemed to spread wider. He lets out a grunt, and a quiet giggle slips past your lips. "Princess, life suits you," you mumble, making Azriel roll his eyes. “Come on now; it’s not so bad. Don’t huff”, you nudge his leg with your heel, earning yet another glare.

“Could have winnowed us there”, “You did almost all the way”, you point out. And you would have happily obliged, but the murmurs about something being wrong with the high lord’s family had started. So Lucien and Eris had made their outing. If not for the rain, you would have done just the same. Take a walk through the main streets. But now seeing the family carriage and your face through the glass would have to be enough. 

“Why do you hate autumn so much?”, It’s a bold statement to make. You’re not sure if he even hates it. Well, considering the amount of frowning he does, he has to. “I have my reasons," Azriel answers as bluntly as he can. “Care to elaborate?", you turn to him, ready to dig an answer out of him if you had to. He owned you, considering his creeping around your room. But your eyes fall on the way he’s trying to subtly rub his palms together. The scarred skin—humidity must be making the bones ache too. He’s impossible to read, but you’re convinced that the discomfort hunts some of his features. You don’t care. You shouldn’t care, yet you still inch closer. There’s not much space inside the carriage considering that man’s size, but it’s enough for you to brush your legs against him. As expected, Azriel’s hands instantly reached to put distance between you both. But that’s when you yank the side of your cloak up, draping the fur-lined material over his scared palms. 

“What are you?", "Shhhh," you say quickly. He tries to pull them out, but you catch his gaze—a daring look there. “Know your”, but you cut him off once more, “Next words out of your mouth better be, thank you, princess," you muse. Azriel clenches his jaw. But he doesn’t pull back. Doesn’t fight the warmth slowly seeping through the stiff skin. “I thought you hated that nickname, princess," he says. One thing this man hadn’t learned in life was dealing with women. Clearly. You shrug, “Not so bad when it’s you who calls me that," you muse, watching as a glimpse of surprise washes over his features, and then the scowling coldness returns. 

Azriel doesn’t like it here. The thought alone had unsettled him ever since Lucien had announced the need to go back. “The High Lord needs to make a statement," Lucien had stated. Azriel itched to say that Eris wasn’t his high lord. But he knew that regardless of Eris’s wishes, he would have gone. Because you were going there. So here he was, standing outside the forest house. Not daring to go forward alone. You had waved him off. Told him to go inside while you checked on the horses. But he refused to step inside. So he stood there, trying to memorize every window.

“Who’s snooping now?", your voice fills Azriel’s ear as he slowly turns to you. Arms crossed as you grin at him. He wonders why you hadn’t mentioned that night in your room. Why you brushed it off so easily. “I just needed to stretch my wings." It’s not so much of a lie. It had been a disaster of a trip here. You barely manage to open your lips when an unfamiliar voice comes from behind, “Yn, Yn.“

Azriel pushes you behind him, his hand reaching for his dagger. But you slip out of his grasp, glancing over his shoulder. And then you’re stepping forward. “Makoa?”, it’s a whisper, and Azriel doubts that a disheveled-looking boy would hear it. But he does. And that name alone makes Azriel uneasy. The same boy you had sneaked out with. And just like that Azriel decides that he hates Makoa.

"Wait," you push again Azriel's arm, but his grip doesn’t falter. “Anyone can be a threat," the spymaster points out. “I know him," and it’s the desperation that makes Azriel back up. The same one that he had when he called out to Mor. To Elain. The lost kind. One that had you hanging up on things that weren’t there. 

“I’ve been looking everywhere for you," Makoa mutters once he is in arms reach of you. Azriel has to bite his tongue because nothing about that statement seems genuine. “You can imagine it’s been busy over here," and your voice is different too. Hazy almost. You bite at Azriel. Spewing venom. And here, this boy makes you behave like a youngling with your first-ever crush. “You could have written to me; I’ve missed you." Makoa raises his hand, and Azriel instantly inches to step forward, but then the boy is leaning in, his lips brushing over yours. Making Azriel lower his head. A strange sort of feeling brews within him. One that’s not welcome here. So he turns back onto his heel, heading deeper into the woods. To clear his consciousness. His logical thinking. His heart.

“Everyone missed you," Makoa points out, your hands clasped in his. The feeling is strange. It’s all so wrong  because, yes, he has been vocal about courting you, but this… To be kissed in front of someone he doesn’t even know. You glance back. Eyes scanning the front gardens. He’s not there. Azriel isn’t there, and a dreadful sort of uneasiness pools in your stomach. 

“It’s just been a couple of days," you brush his statement off. You were trying to find joy in something you had dreamed of ever since you slipped that book beneath the floorboards. “You’re behaving strangely," Makoa mutters, his hand reaching out for your forehead, but you bat it away. “I’m just tired," but you’re more than tired. You need answers, and quite frankly, you’re willing to do about anything to get them. 

You can trust the man in front of you. His mother used to do laundry for your family. Until Beron changed his mind or whatever happened. As if reading your mind, Makoa reaches up, cupping your cheek, “What is it you can tell me?" A part of you is screaming to just drop it. Talk to Azriel first. But then he wasn’t there. He wouldn’t know. 

“Do you remember the night on the harvest moon, well after it?”, you say quietly, looking over your shoulder for servants. “I walked you home," Makoa shrugs. Well, he did more than that, but sure, that will do for now. “Someone was waiting for me," you admit. “I didn’t go inside; I went to the barn to feed the horses." It was misty and cold outside. You didn’t catch their face. Just a hooded figure.

“I... someone tried to slice my throat open." Brushing your hair to the side, you let the white line shine in the midday sun. Makoa watches. But he doesn’t frown. There’s almost no reaction. Azriel looked more concerned when you caught him brushing his fingers over it that night. Genuine concern. Or maybe you were just imagining it. 

Makoa brings you into his chest. “What a shame," he breathes out, and your hands are instantly pushing against his chest. "Pardon," you huff, brows knit together. “I mean, it’s horrible, yes," he says, lifting his arms in defiance. You shake your head. Too tired. Too tired for this. After all, you didn’t expect him to take you seriously. He was too wild. Too carefree for that. 

"Look, just be careful, okay?", you mutter, your eyes searching him, but he only shoots you a wicked smile. “You don’t have to worry about me," he muses. You burn to tell him that you both are no longer kids. There are serious matters, but you don’t have it in you to fight another battle today. “I’ll see you in the party," you say as you step back, letting your fingers slip out of his grasp. But then he’s pulling you back. Hand on the side of your face. An eager kiss smothered against your lips, “I wouldn’t miss the spectacle.”

Azriel’s task this weekend was easy. If he was being honest, he didn’t quite grasp why exactly he was asked to come. But then Eris might have just done it to spite him. All he was responsible for was keeping an eye on you when Eris and Lucien couldn’t. So essentially, babysit a grown woman. Now he was standing with his back against your door. Throwing his knife up and down in his hands. Trying to beat his record of spins before it lands back into his palm. 

“Okay, am...", your voice breaks the second-floor silence, making Azriel pause. “Can you get Maria?”, Azriel shakes his head even if you can’t see him, “She just went outside for the flower arrangements." The elderly woman had pinched his cheek way too many times, but as much as he hated it, she reminded Azriel of his own mom. 

"Fuck," the sound of things falling inside the room, makes Azriel press his ear to the door.“What’s going on?”, he demands. Silence falls. “I...", you start, but it ends with a frustrated sigh. “Well, let’s hear it," he muses, hoping for yet another privileged little dig he could throw back at you. 

“I can’t reach the back of the dress to do the..." It’s a whisper. A frustrated one at that. “We have twenty minutes," Azriel points out. “I know, tree man, I know," you growl in frustration, cursing to yourself as you continue to struggle. 

“I'm coming in," Azriel states, instantly frowning at his own words. "No, you are not," you snarl, and he is sure that you are frowning. “On three," the spymaster warns. But he doesn’t even get a chance to start the countdown. “Fucking, Azriel,” you say, yanking the door open. Rosy cheeks. Slightly disheveled hair. And that deep red satin dress. So far different from the one he had seen you in the first time you both met. That was a girl. This… You were meant to be in red. In…

“Eyes up here, moron," you say, reaching up to flick his nose. One arm holding the material upfront. You turn away from him. The smooth back exposed to his scared hands. Azriel shakes those thoughts away. “I’ve seen females before," he states, reaching for the golden buttons. “Really? I would have taken you for a virgin," you snort, shaking your head ever so slightly. Azriel fake gasps, earning a glimmer in your eyes. “What is that supposed to mean?”, he says in the most dramatic way possible. You bite your lip, trying to hide that smile. He knows it. Feels it.

“Just do the dress up," you urge him, motioning to your back. Azriel halts, letting his hands drop to his side. “Start with a please," he says proudly. You glance up at him, “Are you being serious?” Surely a man who just completed about the amount of time you had wasn’t going to start playing games. “I decided that etiquette lessons are in order," he shrugs, making you roll your eyes. “I will spit in your drink tonight. How is that for your etiquette lessons?” You flash him one of your fake smiles. “Delightful, just how I like it," and it’s so unexpected that you are left slack-jawed for a split second, and then he grabs your shoulder and turns you around, nudging you forward. “You’re disgusting," you say, pushing your heel against his leg, making a little rumble of laughter fill the space. “Says you," he breathes practically against your skin, sending shivers down your back. 

You fidget with your sleeve as you and Azriel make your way towards the main part of the event. Public outings still felt strange. The big crowd overwhelmed you. But you had missed out on so many great things  and parties, especially when you were growing up. That now….

“Only a weirdo disappears like that," you halt suddenly, leaving Azriel to walk along until he too stops. Turning to face you. You quickly put a finger against your lips, stepping closer to the second-floor railing. “That’s what I told Makoa”. You know those voices. You don’t even need to look down the staircase to know who they belong to. 

“Daddy beat her, I heard," and it’s like someone dumped a bucket of ice water on you. Tingles spread through your body like fire.“ She lived beneath the floorboards; I doubt she knows how to interact with living things." You let the words slash at you. After so many years, they don’t make a difference. It’s the fact that every time you feel as if you found someone willing to look past it, they still end up stabbing you in the back. 

That’s when your eyes fall on Azriel, practically charging towards the stairs. "Don't," you hiss, reaching to grab at his wrist, pulling him back. “It’s disrespectful, and I’m being very polite with my words here," he grunts. Venom. Purest of venom painting his features, and yet you cut him off. “I said don't," you step in front of him, pressing your palms against his chest. “It’s just another joke for them. You throwing a fit and acting all gruff won’t change a thing.”

Azriel watches you for a moment before a bitter laugh crawls up his throat. “And those are your friends? People that you think are not a threat to you? ”, he points downstairs in frustration. A wave of guilt. Shame. Fills you in seconds. You feel that familiar sting in your eyes. But you brush it beneath all the other pain. “Daddy got them for me; I didn’t have a chance to choose; my apologies," you purr through gritted teeth. 

And it’s as if you threw a comeback punch. The arrow shooting once again. Azriel’s shoulders sag. “Yn...", he breathes out, but you don’t want it. Don’t want pity. The sad eyes. The smothering. To hell with it. “We should go find my brothers." You pick at the skirt of your dress, turning to the stairs. “It was insensitive of me," Azriel’s words slam into the wall you had built, making you close your eyes for a moment. “Don’t get tangled in this; this has nothing to do with you," you mutter, not turning back to face him. Forcing your legs forward. Azriel stands at the top of the staircase for a heartbeat, watching you. Then he glances over his shoulder. One heartbeat. Two. And he unleashes his shadows to the first floor. 

The terrace is buzzing with people. If it were up to Azriel, he would be right by the platform, but there are Eris’s guards here. So he’s just standing by. That prick had it in him to suggest wine. Azriel, of course, took it. Before dumping it right next to Eris’s shoes. Rhys told him to behave, yes. And so he was, because the second option was to punch the fireling in his face. Pick and choose.

Azriel catches a glimpse of you. Well, more like all he had been doing was catching glimpses of you. Like a moth to a flame. Even if he tells himself not to, his eyes always seem to find you. That distant look in your eyes. Like you’re not here, even if your body is. He also doesn’t doubt that it’s partly because of the things the people said. Why not fight back? You seem to be fine doing that when it comes to him. But crumple the moment the people who are meant to be closest to you are involved. 

As if by coincidence, your eyes glance up, meeting Azriel’s. He should be scowling, yet he finds himself smiling. Just a little. He puts a finger beneath his chin, pushing it higher. Encouragement of sorts. You’re supposed to radiate power, not look like a damsel in distress. You return it with an eye roll, making the corners of Azriel’s lips curve even more. Deny it or not. You do lift your head up. That tingle of fire blazing just a bit brighter. That will do. It would have to be enough to get you through it. 

The music dies, and Eris walks close to the platform edge, that fox-line smile on his face. “It’s an honor to have you all here, so I thank you for finding time to join us," the high lord begins. “I know that the court is facing some challenging times, but you should not be afraid." Azriel crosses his arms over his chest as he listens. “I will do everything that is in my power to protect our people and be a true and fair high lord." Then the Autumn High Lord turns back breathy. “And... I’ll have my family to aid me in these matters," motioning for his two siblings to come to stand closer. “Lucien and Y/n Vanserra will be taking their rightful place on the throne." The crowd explodes with chairs and joyful applause. As the three siblings smile in unison.

“And…”, But there’s no and. Nothing comes after it. As if someone had stolen all of the other promises. Azriel feels it too. It hits his senses. Making them restless. There’s something wrong. Something that doesn’t feel right. A banner behind the platform bursts into flames. The hot tongues, lapping at the family insignia. Some people back up. Eris waves for his guards, ordering them into action. People are bringing buckets full of water while Eris and Lucien try to wield the wildfire. 

It’s the lightest of the sounds that follow next. It flickers, and... "Y/n," Azriel calls, making you snap your head sideways. “Y/n," he breathes out, and then he’s winnowing. His hands already stretched out. He has to make it. He will make it. There is no other option. So Azriel doesn’t let the what-ifs set in. Shrieks echo. Chaos breaks out. And then he’s up there. On the platform. One arm behind your body, the other on the arrow. 

The time stops. Your wide eyes are looking at him. Green so deep that Azriel knows he has never seen anything like it. The freckles seem even darker now that your skin has paled almost to snow white. His fingers are trembling. He can’t see it. Can’t fucking see it; the bunched-up fabric is making it hard to judge. Had the arrow met its target? Your heart seems to beat beneath his palm. But are those the last beats? Then the red fabric turns an even deeper shade of red. 

Every muscle tenses in Azriel’s body. "No," he mutters under his breath. He’s not letting you die just like that. Not on his watch. Not in some pointless death just because someone has a bone to pick with your brother. Your eyelashes flutter, and just for a heartbeat, Azriel is too slow to catch you. Your body sags, but the arrow stays there in Azriel’s head. It didn’t meet its target. Not fully, at least. Just nicked the skin. It feels as if someone rolled a mountain off of his chest. 

"Azriel," it’s so light he almost misses it. The plea. The fear. Your fingers reach up for his leg. His darkness swirls around you both. And quite frankly, the spymaster is not too sure as to what’s going on outside. The world might as well be going to shit for all he cares. Kneeling, Azriel takes hold of your trembling hands, “I’ve got you, darling; I won’t let anything happen to you." He’s not sure if you even hear him. Eyes fixed on something as if you’re looking right past him.“I'm here; I'm with you," Azrie promises, moving to drape your arms over his shoulders. “Are you with me, love?” You’ve gone into shock, that he can tell. Yet you blink. Fingers gripped onto his flying leathers as you nod. "Good," he says, brushing a strand of hair away from your face, “Hold onto me, fireheart”.

••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

Taglist: @emryb @glitterypirateduck @xxtakeachancexx @justyouraveragekleemain @5onedirection5 @paleidiot

[vindicated-truth]

Dongsik finds him at the balcony of their hotel room.

He closes the main entrance door, drops the key card on the desk, and slides open the door to the balcony. He does none of these things quietly, deliberately alerting the other person of his presence.

Han Joowon does not react. Dongsik’s presence isn’t unwelcome then.

He sidles up to him and holds on to the railing, following Joowon’s lead as he surveys the view before them.

The sky above is overcast with fading light, with the sun ready to set beneath the ocean in an hour or so. The temperature is chilly but not cold, and the beachfront breeze is ruffling his hair. There’s a distant peal of laughter in the background, with little kids running around and playing in the sand with their parents.

“Second thoughts?” he asks softly.

A hand immediately slides over to cover his, fingers untangling his hold on the balcony to thread theirs tightly together.

“Never about you.”

Dongsik turns to Joowon then at his earnest declaration and offers him a gentle smile, understanding the deflection for what it is.

He understands Joowon far, far too well—even when Joowon doesn’t understand his own self.

“But you are having second thoughts.”

This time, Joowon hesitates, lips pressed tightly together with a frustration Dongsik knows Joowon doesn’t know how to articulate. Instead, Joowon tugs at Dongsik’s hand on his—and Dongsik, as always, allows himself to be led.

He will always go where Joowon tells him to go.

Which is just as well, as he once again finds himself in his favorite place in the world, safe and warm: wrapped up in Joowon’s arms.

He sighs in contentment, leaning back against Joowon’s taller, sturdier frame as Joowon hooks his chin over Dongsik’s shoulder. “They look happy,” Joowon murmurs, his breath a warm gust of air tickling Dongsik’s ear.

Dongsik follows his gaze—and his mouth quirks in amusement. It isn’t the sound of kids he’s been hearing after all—although by the looks of it, they may as well be children.

Jihoon is barefoot in the sand, screaming in mock-fear as he runs for his life as Jihwa chases after him, brandishing her own shoe at him. It makes Dongsik grin at the all too familiar sight; there had been one too many times when he’d seen Jihwa going after her little brother like this when they were growing up, especially whenever she’d find out that Jihoon had been skipping school for his idol auditions and trainings.

Jaeyi squeals in delight as soon as she catches Jihoon, who realizes far too late that the two women have teamed up against him and Jihwa has in fact been leading Jihoon straight to her. It seems to be a team game of boys versus girls, Dongsik muses, as Gwangyoung himself is running away from Seonnyeo, yelling at her to go after her husband instead.

Dosoo—who until then has been hiding behind where Ohsub is designated with what Dongsik can only assume are babysitting duties, as Huimang intently builds her sandcastle under Ohsub’s watchful eye—swiftly rises and backs away in fear as soon as he locks gazes with his partner.

And with Jihwa’s leading battle cry, all three women begin chasing after Dosoo, as Huimang happily cheers her mother on and Dosoo loudly complains about his kid having a favorite parent.

“They are happy, Joowon-ah.”

Joowon’s arms tighten around his waist.

“Sometimes I can’t help but wonder if—I deserve them.”

Dongsik twists as much as Joowon’s tight hold on him allows to stare at him. “Yah, I’m the one you’re marrying tomorrow,” Dongsik mock-complains, correctly predicting the fond, exasperated way Joowon huffs at him in return. “Shouldn’t it be my approval you’re worried about?”

Callused fingers gently lift his chin for him to meet Joowon’s eyes.

“Because with you, jagiya, I never had any doubt.”

And that’s a damnably deadly combination: the low rumble of Joowon’s voice; his heated, half-lidded gaze; the endearment that is less affection and more wholehearted, indefatigable truth.

Dongsik is thankful for the way Joowon is holding him up because it never fails to make his knees weaken, like this.

“Such a turnaround,” Dongsik teases, not even bothering to hide his breathlessness, “from the way you doubted everything about me the first time we met, Inspector Han.”

He has made this joke a thousand times before, but somehow it doesn’t land today, judging from the way the light in Joowon’s eyes unexpectedly dims.

Dongsik turns to fully face him, forcing Joowon to loosen his hold on him. “Joowon-ah,” he says quietly. “What exactly is it that you think you don’t deserve?”

You deserve the world, Dongsik wants to tell him, and it pains me that I fall short in giving it to you.

That I fail in making you believe you deserve it.

Despite disentangling himself from Joowon’s embrace, Dongsik is still caged inside Joowon’s arms leaning on the railing on either side of him. Joowon doesn’t really let Dongsik go—he never does. That’s the one thing Dongsik has never doubted about Joowon, too: that he will never, ever be too far away from Dongsik.

It’s Joowon’s wordless reassurance that he will always come back—even when he gets lost inside his own head, like this.

Joowon’s lids fall close when Dongsik reaches up to cup his cheek, thumb caressing the soft, sensitive skin beneath his eyes. His bags aren’t as prominent and deep as they had been a year ago, when Joowon had been in such excruciating physical pain, despite fighting his best to hide it from Dongsik.

Ever since he almost lost Joowon that day, Dongsik doesn’t take for granted all the chances he has to touch Joowon like this, reassuring himself of Joowon’s vow that he will always be by Dongsik’s side.

Even at death’s door.

Joowon reaches up to take Dongsik’s hand and presses his mouth at the centre of Dongsik’s palm; Dongsik’s fingers curl inwards, wanting to catch and keep that searing kiss with him forever.

Behind them on the beachfront below, there’s a resounding victory cry as Dosoo is successfully tackled to the ground, his own toddler jumping on his chest as she joins in on the game.

“Not fair!” Gwangyoung can be heard complaining good-naturedly. “Our team is outnumbered!”

“Then go make a son when it’s your turn to get married!” Ohsub can be heard yelling back to a resounding chorus of laughter.

“Joowon-ah,” Dongsik murmurs, “how can you think you don’t deserve them, when they’re your family too?”

“They were yours, first.”

Dongsik’s breath hitches when Joowon’s eyes flutter open to meet his.

“They’re here for you, first and foremost,” Joowon tells him softly. “Because it is you they loved first.”

Joowon’s lips brush along Dongsik’s knuckles as he speaks, the sensation a grounding counterpoint to the pang that shoots up Dongsik’s chest.

“I am simply someone they welcomed into the family because it is you they love, because your happiness is paramount to them—a sentiment that I fiercely share, given that I, too, love you.” Here Joowon smiles warmly at Dongsik, butterflies flying from Dongsik’s belly up to his heart. “And somehow, impossibly, you find yourself happy with me, and for that I will always be deeply, humbly grateful.”

It still takes Dongsik’s breath away when Joowon fills his personal space like this, foreheads touching and breaths mingling—close enough to bridge that hair’s breadth of a gap between their mouths. “Because of you, Lee Dongsik… I have a true family now, too.”

Dongsik would’ve kissed him by now, the way he has a thousand times before, like a sunflower drawn to never ending kisses from the sun. But Dongsik will not allow himself to be distracted at the moment because this—despite knowing Joowon from the inside out by now, he still doesn’t understand this.

“And what does all of that have to do with you not deserving any of it?”

Joowon’s gaze is assessing now, head tilted slightly to side, and Dongsik knows he hasn’t been able to stop the frustration from seeping into his tone. Dongsik has always been hyperaware of every single minuscule change of Joowon’s expressions, and he heartbreakingly recognizes this:

Contrite and apologetic, Joowon brushes his lips on the corner of Dongsik’s mouth—as if kissing Dongsik, too, is a privilege he can’t allow himself to deserve.

Dongsik feels like his heart is being squeezed from the inside.

“Because I haven’t earned it,” Joowon whispers. “I now have all this love from them—and from you—yet I haven’t earned any of it.”

Shamefaced, Joowon buries his face on the crook of Dongsik’s neck, even as he wraps his arms tightly around Dongsik’s waist to embrace him once again, holding on for dear life—frightened, it seems, that Dongsik will push him away this time.

Dongsik, meanwhile, is trembling from the scorching fury that erupts inside of him.

He’s been trying his best to not think of Han Kihwan these days, because the monster doesn’t deserve to be even spared a thought, but it’s the unavoidable conseqeunce of loving Han Joowon:

That everyday, Dongsik is reminded of the extent of Han Kihwan’s monstrosity through the damage he has done to his own son. 

How fucked up of a father do you have to be to teach your son all his life that love has to be earned?

The fabric of his shirt crumples as Dongsik feels Joowon’s fingers curl into fists on the small of his back, and it abates Dongsik’s boiling anger down to a simmer, Joowon’s touch grounding him as always to what is important to address.

Because Joowon doesn’t know, Dongsik realizes with a start.

Joowon doesn’t know.

Joowon doesn’t know that when they watched the music festival and Minjeong’s favorite song was being played by the band on stage, Jihoon revealed to Dongsik then that Joowon had once sought his advice, because Joowon saw Dongsik quietly weeping during the anniversary of Minjeong’s death, and Joowon had searched high and low for the already sold out tickets to the festival when Jihoon informed him of the event taking place on Minjeong’s birthday.

Joowon doesn’t know that Dongsik knows Joowon returns constantly to the morgue, both on the date of birth and date of death of Lee Geumhwa, offering his own gifts and prayers even though Joowon doesn’t believe in a god either, because it is Seonnyeo who always secretly assists him in bypassing the officers in charge who won’t allow him near Lee Geumhwa’s body, simply because he isn’t family.

Joowon doesn’t know that the caregiver in charge at The Forest Nursing Home once happily told Dongsik that they had been receiving a steady supply of tangerines for Kim Yeonghui from an anonymous donor, not knowing that aside from Kang Jinmook, Han Joowon was the only other person who knew that tangerines were the favorite fruit of Dongsik’s mother.

Joowon doesn’t know that Jaeyi had once pulled Dongsik aside and told him in no uncertain terms that it would be better for Joowon to accept his eligibility for citizenship in England so that he and Dongsik could get married there, because aside from the fact that their marriage would actually be legally recognized, it would also be safer for Joowon to be away from his father’s men in the National Police Agency, and that the only reason Joowon staunchly refused this logical solution was because he was determined to stay here in Korea for Dongsik.

Joowon doesn’t know that while he was recuperating in the hospital a year ago, Ohsub had called for an official meeting with all of the cops and detectives in their trusted Manyang circle—including Dongsik, even though he wasn’t a part of the force anymore—to inform them all of the constant danger Han Joowon was in as Han Kihwan’s men were determined to eliminate the son who destroyed his father’s fallen network, that this was the true hell Joowon once vowed he would go through, for Dongsik.

Joowon doesn’t know that Jihwa once went to Dongsik’s house in Okcheon lake alone, while Joowon was in physical therapy, and asked Dongsik—begged him, threatened him—to be a hundred percent sure of his feelings for Joowon, to be sure that Dongsik wouldn’t be stringing Joowon along, to be sure that Dongsik wouldn’t leave Joowon in the end, because Jihwa had just wrapped up the controversial case with The Community Safety and Traffic Bureau and she had burst into hysterical sobs in Dongsik’s arms because of everything she had found out—everything she discovered Jowoon had to go through—simply because Joowon chose to stay by Dongsik’s side.

Joowon doesn’t know that it was inside The Community Safety and Traffic Bureau that Dongsik unexpectedly found himself reunited with Park Jeongje.

Joowon is right—Dongsik is the one their family has loved first. But it is Joowon they now fiercely love more, because it is Joowon who needs that love more.

No one will ever love Joowon more than Dongsik. That much Dongsik is absolutely certain. But Dongsik also knows, as each member of their family has unanimously proven, that between the two of them, it is Joowon who loves better.

Joowon already deserves Dongsik’s love—and that of their family—a thousand times over. But that is not even the point Dongsik has to prove today.

Because Dongsik will not be like Han Kihwan. His love for Joowon will never be something Joowon has to earn.

So he gathers Joowon close and murmurs: “I’ve always wondered what it would have been like, had Yuyeonie fulfilled her dream.”

He feels Joowon stilling in his arms. Slowly, Joowon pulls back, his face carefully neutral to conceal the ever-present guilt he knows Dongsik doesn’t like seeing.

“I’ve always wondered what it would have been like to be the proud brother of one of the most brilliant minds this country’s judiciary will ever have the privilege of being served by.” Dongsik smiles at Joowon ruefully. “She was the only person in the history of Manyang to have been accepted in Seoul National University’s law department. It’s partly because of the way she set such a high intellectual standard that I’ve always been drawn to intelligent people.”

“I know,” Joowon says simply, making Dongsik grin.

Joowon watches with curious eyes the way Dongsik reaches inside the pocket of his pants to take out his mobile phone. Dongsik taps on the messaging app and opens the most recent message he had just received a while ago, which is the reason why he had been looking for Joowon in the first place.

He holds up the screen for Joowon to see, and Joowon’s brows furrow as he reads the message.

Hey, just arrived here in Busan. Case in Seoul demanded overtime work. I’ll be checking in at the hotel later. Is there anything you’d like to go over with me before the ceremony tomorrow, as the officiant?

He sees the way Joowon’s gaze flickers up the screen to look at the name on Dongsik’s contacts—and his eyes widen.

BROTHER-IN-LAW

“Thanks to you, Han Joowon,” Dongsik tells him softly, “now I will never have to wonder what it’s like to be the brother of a brilliant lawyer.”

Dongsik is ready for it, catching him as Joowon crumples against him, the skin of Dongsik’s neck becoming wet with Joowon’s tears.

“Hyung is a poor replacement for Lee Yuyeon,” Joowon tells him with a warbled whisper.

“No one will ever replace her,” Dongsik murmurs as he strokes Joowon’s hair. “There will never be anyone in the world like Lee Yuyeon. But you also have to admit, Joowon-ah…”

Dongsik pulls back, and he tenderly brushes away the wetness from Joowon’s cheeks. “There will never be anyone in the world like Kwon Hyeok, either. And if it weren’t for you, Joowon-ah, I never would have known what it’s like to have a brother relentlessly fight for me, too. To fight for my right to love you.”

Joowon’s eyes flutter close as Dongsik reaches up to kiss his eyelids, tasting the salt of Joowon’s tears on his lips. “Joowon-ah,” Dongsik whispers. “You’re not the only who has gained a family.”

He brushes their noses gently together as Joowon looks at him once more, those beautiful eyes glistening the same way the Busan sea reflects the incoming moonlight.

“Because of you, Joowon-ah… I am a brother once again.”

—

“What the fuck are you doing here?”

“This is where I’ll be working now, too. Looks like it’s your first day as well. Who knew we’d be back working together in a place like this, eh?”

“You expect me to believe that your parole officer just happen to coincidentally assign you to The Community Safety and Traffic Bureau as a glorified janitor?”

“… I may have—suggested it.”

“So who really sent you here? Did Jihwa send you in here to be my handler, to make sure I don’t get into trouble?”

“Jihwa-ya doesn’t know that I’m here. I didn’t even know you’d be here either—although I guess I should’ve expected it.”

“Then why are you here? Because I don’t believe for a second that you’re here for no reason.”

“I’m not here for you, Dongsik-ah. I’m here for Han Joowon.”

“… What?”

“They hurt my friend. And no one gets away with hurting my friend. That’s why I’m here for the same reason you are.”

“And what reason would that be, Park Jeongje?”

“… Vengeance.”

—

“What are you doing here?”

The smile Jeongje gives him is small and hesitant as he stands and gives an unnecessarily polite bow. “I just arrived this morning. Joowonie—Inspector Han—invited me.”

“I know,” Dongsik says impatiently. “I meant—what are you doing here sitting at the back?”

Jeongje blinks at him.

Dongsik sighs. “Joowonie reserved a seat for you up front,” he gestures gruffly. “You’re his best man, you know.”

“I do know.”

Jeongje is still gazing at him contemplatively, and it’s making Dongsik feel antsy and unsettled. “What?” he bursts out.

This time, Jeongje’s smile turns wistful. “A long time ago, whenever the thought of you getting married used to cross my mind… I’d always imagine that I’d be your best man.”

Dongsik looks away. “Things… changed.”

Jeongje’s reply is soft. “I know.”

He’s already walked past Dongsik towards his designated seat before Dongsik is finally able to unstick the words stuck in his throat.

“Park Jeongje.”

He stops.

Dongsik swallows. “You can return the favor to Joowonie someday,” he says haltingly. “He can be the best man to your future wedding, too.”

He can be your friend now, because I can’t be.

Not anymore.

He sees the way Jeongje’s shoulders slump for a moment, before he suddenly straightens, seemingly bracing himself before he looks back at Dongsik.

His smile this time is bittersweet.

“The only girl I’ve ever wanted to marry is now at peace,” he tells Dongsik. “And I am content with seeing her brother finally have the happiness he deserves, too.”

By the time Dongsik remembers how to breathe, Jeongje has already taken his seat up front, where he is happily welcomed by Jihoon.

A hand on the small of his back grounds him—the soothing gesture as familiar as his own heartbeat. He relaxes into the touch, relieved and grateful. The smile he gets in return is fond.

“Your best man has finally arrived,” he informs Joowon softly.

“I see that he has,” Joowon murmurs in return, pulling Dongsik close. He allows Joowon’s assessing gaze on him, easing Joowon’s understandable concern and wordlessly assuring him that Jeongje’s presence is welcome. “Yours is the one who hasn’t arrived yet.”

At this, Dongsik snorts. “When they say women take a long time to get ready, they weren’t kidding.”

“Yah, the nerve of you to complain when I’m doing all of this for you, you punk!”

Dongsik turns at that familiar childhood tone with a grin, which transforms into a sincerely delighted smile when he sees her. “Well, would you look at that! Our resident tomboy is unexpectedly a stunner when cleaned up like this! …Ow!”

Dongsik ends up hopping on one foot, clutching his shin that has just been kicked. “Yah!” he complains loudly. “Those heels are pointy!”

Jihwa straightens, smoothing her figure-hugging long gown with her bejeweled hands, and turns to Joowon with a raised eyebrow.

Joowon’s mouth quirks in amusement. “You’d have to forgive my uncouth fiancé, Jihwa-ssi.” He smoothly takes her hand and kisses the back of it, European-style. “You do look enthrallingly lovely today.”

Jihwa visibly preens in pride, even as a delighted blush colors her cheeks. “See, Dongsik-ah?” she huffs. “That is how you compliment a woman.”

“Yah, what is this, Han Joowon-ssi? You’re not even married yet and you’re already flirting with someone who’s also already taken?”

Joowon turns to smirk at her. “I would never be foolish enough to presume that either you or Jihwa-ssi would ever have eyes for anyone else, given that you both already have the finest partner in each other.”

Dongsik stares. What?

Jaeyi’s smile is radiant, complemented by her elegant updo and the shimmering make-up that lights up her face. “Knows how to compliment women and intelligent to boot.” Jaeyi arches a perfectly plucked eyebrow at Dongsik. “You’re marrying up with this one, ahjussi. You know that, right?”

Dongsik has always been aware of that, yes.

He isn’t aware of this.

“Your seat is already reserved at the front as Dongsik’s best woman, Jihwa-ssi,” Joowon informs her with a smile. “And as Jihwa-ssi’s partner, your seat is of course reserved beside her, Jaeyi-ssi.”

Dongsik is openmouthed in shock as both women walk down the aisle—holding each other’s hands. “When did—” he sputters, “how did—”

Utterly gobsmacked, he looks despairingly at his husband-to-be—who only blinks innocently back at him.

“You knew?”

“You didn’t?” Joowon smirks. “Why do you think the jewelry I gifted them for this occasion were a matching set?”

Dongsik’s mouth opens and closes soundlessly for a moment. “Han Joowon,” he finally settles on, “how many secrets are you keeping from me?”

“None of it was a secret,” Joowon informs him wryly. “You were just blind and dense.”

“Yah!”

“Considering Joowonie here proposed to you three times before you finally had the mind to accept, Lee Dongsik-ssi, I definitely have to agree.”

Dongsik glares, suddenly being reminded that this is unfortunately one of the consequences of having a sibling. “I can get another officiant for today, you know.”

Hyeok smirks back at him. “No, you won’t.” He points at Joowon. “Your fiancé here already paid me to be here.”

“Your rates are exorbitant,” Joowon deadpans, making Hyeok grin as he claps a hand on Joowon’s shoulder.

“Looks like all your guests are already here,” Hyeok observes as he looks around the beachfront venue and glances at his wristwatch. “We can start the ceremony soon.”

“Not yet.”

Hyeok blinks at Joowon’s firm tone. He looks questioningly at Dongsik, who smiles serenely back at him.

“We’re waiting for a very special guest,” Dongsik explains.

Hyeok furrows his brows as he quickly goes over the notes in his hand. “I don’t see anyone in this guest list who isn’t here yet,” he mumbles to himself. He peers at Dongsik. “Just how important is this ‘special guest��� that we’re risking starting the ceremony late?”

“Very,” Dongsik answers enigmatically, grinning at the exasperated look Hyeok throws his way at his cryptic answer.

“We’ve only been able to confirm this guest’s presence last night,” Joowon reveals as he shares a meaningful look with Dongsik.

Hyeok looks back and forth between them. “Why so late, though?”

“It’s—” Jowoon hedges, “a spur of the moment invitation.”

Whatever frustrated protest Hyeok is about to say is derailed as their attention is caught by the doors to the venue suddenly opening.

Dongsik brightens. “He’s here!”

Hyeok’s mouth drops open in utter shock. “… Abeoji?”

Joowon seems to be holding his breath as the guest of honor approaches them, his remarkable presence filling the venue the way light fills a room. The man looks at Hyeok first—and then at Joowon.

His smile is warm and comforting—like the hearth of a home. “My sons,” he acknowledges simply.

Dongsik turns to Hyeok, who looks utterly shell-shocked. “Aren’t you going to introduce us?” Dongsik prompts him gently.

“I—” Hyeok swallows; it’s the first time Dongsik has ever seen the normally unflappable prosecutor this rattled. “I would like everyone to meet my father. Kwon Seungjo.”

The elderly man places a hand on his chest as he bows deeply, which everyone rushes to return. “Wholesale fruit provider, at your service,” Seungjo straightens with a twinkle in his eye. “Although I believe I was invited here to provide a different service.”

Hyeok looks completely panicked, both at being in the dark as the son and as the ceremony’s officiant, and Dongsik takes pity on him. “My family is Catholic,” he explains, “although I haven’t been a practicing Catholic for a long time.”

Hyeok looks at him in utter confusion; it seems like Dongsik’s explanation fails to clear anything up.

Thankfully, Joowon also steps up. “I, too, was baptized Catholic by my mother, as you already know,” Joowon says softly. “Dongsik and I talked last night, and we agreed that it is customary in the Catholic practice for the couple to have a godparent in their wedding ceremony.”

Joowon turns to Hyeok’s father and bows. “Kwon Suengjo-ssi—” he stops and quickly collects himself, “that is to say, abeoji—thank you, for agreeing to be our godfather.”

Hyeok’s eyes are wide as Joowon finally turns to him.

“I know that all of this is just ceremonial,” Joowon tells him softly. “But with abeoji as our godparent, this makes us—”

“—godbrothers,” Hyeok finishes breathlessly.

Joowon takes a deep a breath as he steps closer to Hyeok, who is looking at him like he has just performed a miracle. “A year ago, hyung, I was told that—in the hospital, you were not considered my family.”

Hyeok’s lips are quivering, his eyes glistening with tears that are starting to well up.

“I know that it is a long and arduous legal process, but…”

Joowon trails off as he meets Seungjo’s eyes, wordlessly asking for his approval.

Seungjo nods in assent, and Joowon swallows.

“As you know, my mother is deceased,” Joowon begins shakily, “and my father is serving several life sentences in prison. Which are both grounds for—”

“—adult adoption,” Hyeok finishes with a trembling smile. He turns to his father. “Really, abeoji?”

Dongsik’s heart feels like it’s swelling with the unabashed hope in Hyeok’s voice.

Seungjo claps a hand on Hyeok’s shoulder. “If there’s anyone smart enough and driven enough to make it happen, it’s you, my son.” Seungjo smiles at him. “You have always wanted a brother. Now, you can finally make that happen.”

Hyeok looks utterly devastated in the best way, and he squeezes his eyes shut before he once again turns to face—his brother.

“Joowon-ah,” Hyeok says, and it’s the only thing he can say, words completely failing him.

Joowon smiles at him softly. “Hyung.”

Dongsik looks back and forth at them, waiting, before he sighs in exasperation. He places a hand on the small of Joowon’s back and gives him a gentle but firm push.

Unprepared, Joowon stumbles forward—right into Hyeok’s arms.

“Hyung,” Joowon complains, awkwardly patting Hyeok’s back as Hyeok sobs onto his shoulder. “You’re ruining my tuxedo.”

“I’ll pay for the dry cleaning, you brat,” Hyeok returns without heat as he pulls back, smiling brilliantly at Joowon.

Joowon’s mouth quirks. “Does this mean I don’t have to pay you for your services anymore?”

Hyeok grins widely. “On the contrary, this just makes it easier for me to sue you when you don’t.”

Dongsik laughs as Joowon is once again hoisted into Hyeok’s bear hug much against his will, but he can clearly see that Joowon is smiling. He’s too distracted by the heartwarming sight that he hasn’t realized Seungjo has sidled up to him.

“Looks like you’re my son now, too.”

It’s that simple statement that knocks the breath off Dongsik’s lungs, striking straight through his heart like the bull’s eye of a gunshot.

And in that moment, the faces of Lee Hanoh and Nam Sangbae overlap with the smile Kwon Seungjo gives him as he says to Dongsik:

“You can tell Joowon that he doesn’t have to pay for the tangerines anymore.”

—

A beautiful piano piece begins to play, one that Dongsik recognizes by heart.

It’s one of his favorite pieces of Yuyeon’s original compositions, pre-recorded by Joowon playing the piece himself—the only person Dongsik will ever trust to interpret his sister’s music.

The guests all rise as they turn to face the two of them, the happiness for both of them clear on all of their faces.

“Thank you, Lee Dongsik,” Joowon tells him softly, “for giving me the family I never had.”

Dongsik looks ahead at the altar at the end of the aisle, where Kwon Hyeok and Kwon Suengjo are waiting for them.

His newfound brother—and father.

“And thank you, Han Joowon,” Dongsik returns, “for giving me back the family I lost.”

Joowon looks at him. Dongsik smiles.

He takes his hand—and they walk down the aisle together.

—

Also posted at AO3

Once again dedicated to @eonni92, because I can never hope to make up for brilliance of her multiple gifts, but I can still try, to the best of my ability, to return her generosity—for no other reason than she truly deserves the world ❤️

This story is a direct sequel to ash, and exists in the same universe as the thing with feathers, leave out all the rest, circles, and the sentence. And while this story can be enjoyed on its own, perhaps the full impact can only be truly felt when the references to previous stories are known and understood.

To all of you who have followed the journey thus far: thank you for being in this journey of love, forgiveness, and acceptance with Lee Dongsik, Han Joowon, and our beloved Manyang family.

[constellationguy]

Another perspective

Episode three

"Text": regular talking

'Text': regular thinking

"Text": Saiki talking telepathically

'Text': Saiki thinking

ATTENTION! You might want to rewatch episode three of The Disastrous Life of Saiki K before reading to fully understand the events.

Summary: Episode 3 in L/N Y/N's perspective.

Previous episode

—————————————————————————

“Who’s ready for another tre bien trick by me! Master illusionist Uryoku Chono! Hey pink hair join the fun. I’ll do a trick to put a smile on that face!”

“No thanks, I’ve already seen it.”

“Oh I see you’re a sceptic! But once you see my show you’ll become a believer in my powers to amaze!”

‘Is he really going to ignore me the whole time? In that case, can I leave?’ Y/N thought to Kusuo. ‘No, if I have to stay so do you. We’re only going to watch so he leaves me alone’ Saiki thought back. ‘I’ve got a bad feeling about this but alright.’

“Right! I hold here an ordinary cardboard box. As you can see it’s empty inside.”

‘From this angle you can’t see the bottom, we don’t know that’s it’s ordinary.’

“But watch! Just a couple taps and it’s party time! Aren’t they amazing folks?” Most of the audience clapped as doves flew out of the box, say for Saiki and Y/N.

‘I always wondered how you could get those doves to behave and stay quiet during that trick, maybe I’ll never know,’ Y/N shrugged.

“Hey there kid, tre bien, am I right?”

‘It’s not “tre bien” if anything I’m worried about that dove’ Saiki thought towards Y/N.

‘Okay now you ruined that surprise for me. Sure you can easily see through the trick but the surprise and smoothness of the illusion is still impressive,’ Y/N huffed at Saiki.

“And now ladies and gentlemen, please turn your attention here, for the main event of our show! My super illusion! Magically teleporting for one box to the other will be my lovely assistant Micheal!”

‘Lovely is a strong word,’ both Saiki and Y/N thought.

“And drum roll!” Chono was making an odd pose while he vocalized the drum roll. “La la la la!” Mused Chono as he threw confetti.

‘Okay this is awkward now. Tell me why I couldn’t leave again?’ Y/N thought to Saiki perplexed.

“Alright let’s open the box! Three, two, one. It’s party time! Tre bien!” Micheal didn’t come out of the box, instead he came out from underneath the table connecting the two boxes.

The group that was standing there walked away, even Y/N started to walk away, too tired to appreciate the faces Chono was making, but Saiki grabbed their arm before they could get too far.

“Why should I pay you for ruining the illusion?!”

“I moved at the normal speed, it was your darn pattern that got too fast. Now you hand over that 500 yen.” Micheal commented back.

“No one tipped me for this performance so I couldn’t pay you even if I wanted to! Hey, why are you hanging around?” Saiki pointed towards Chono’s hat while still holding onto Y/N making sure they wouldn’t walk away.

“What? Oh, you want to give me a tip? Haha I could never take money from a kid. The look of joy on your face is- PICO!!!!” Chono only realized his dove was still in his hat after he took it off.

“I completely forgot she was up there.”

‘You’ve done your thing, let’s go now,’ Y/N said while trying to walk away but was still held back my Saiki.

“So you weren’t trying to tip me, you were trying to remind me. Wait does that mean, that you’re a magician? That’s how you knew she was up there! With instincts that good you must have hated my show. Maybe I’m not cut out for magician game after all.” During this Y/N tried repeatedly to walk away but was still being held back. ‘I’m not the one being spoken to so why do I have to stay?’ Y/N whined internally.

“Until a few months ago I was just your average office drone. Then I made a small mistake.”

‘Let’s go. I’m gonna miss my soap opera at this rate! And how does a small mistake get you fired anyway?!’ Y/N whined at Saiki.

“Corporate fat cats laid me off. And my wife skipped town.”

‘Is it too late to walk away?’ ‘Maybe but I don’t really care.’

“With no job I couldn’t pay the mortgage anymore. One little mistake and career, wife, and home had all disappeared. And then it dawned on me. I should become an illusionist! Ya!”

“Wait what”

“Because so many things in had vanished from my life I thought it must mean that disappearing them was my talent!”

‘That’s a stretch,’ ‘Your only talent is self delusion,’ Y/N and Saiki thought towards each other.

“So even though I’d been offered another office job I turned it down to start my new life, doing street magic!”

“Again what?”

“If I can save up one million yen then I can buy a sawing a body in half trick. Then my wife is sure to come back!”

‘Okay, normally I would find this entertaining but this guy is sad and delusional and I’m missing my show.’ Y/N thought generally.

“But then I wonder if I chose the wrong path.”

‘Yes. Yes you did. Now quick street magic and get a real job.’ ‘You sure you should be just thinking this, this guy needs to hear it,’ Y/N thought back to Saiki.

“Sorry, didn’t mean to get so gloomy,” Chono said, finishing his back story.

‘Look he still hasn’t said a word directed towards me, if I’m lucky he’ll forget my existence. Now let me go!’ Y/N again struggled to leave.

“Let’s get back to your background as an illusionist and how you knew I had a dove up there.” Chono said continuing the conversation. Saiki decided on his next move and put his bag out I front of him.

“Woah, gonna pull something out of your bag? You’re gonna pull out, a dove! Well I’ll have you know I can do a bowling ball.” Saiki then reached inside of his back and pulled out Chono’s assistant, Micheal.

“That’s impossible!” Chono said while falling to the floor. “Ya, ta fricken da, can I go now?” Y/N said, a little annoyed.

“Thank you. Now I can see, if your talent was hair yours would be a flowing main and mine would be just an eyelash. Make me your apprentice!!” Chono said bowing deeply. “Does that make Micheal my apprentice by proxy?” Y/N joked.

“Yay! I can afford soup!” Micheal said holding some coins behind Y/N and Saki that he probably found in Saiki’s bag.

—————————————————————————

In the L/N residence, Y/N was baking coffee cake while the TV was running some random program.

“TONIGHT! You will whiteness a miracle! A stupendous, amazing illusion preformed by the former homeless man turned master magician, Uryoko Chono!” “Now that’s tre bien!” The TV spoke loudly in the house so Y/N could hear it from the kitchen.

“Holy shit!” Y/N ran to the living room, tripping and almost falling in their way. ‘That’s the guy from the other day! How is he on television now?!” Y/N thought, rightly shocked.

“After losing it all he became a street magician and mastered tricks that others can only dream of!”

“What tricks are they talking about? The show I saw was pretty lame,” Y/N thought aloud.

“What I’m attempting tonight is the most dangerous escape you’ll ever see!” Chono said gleefully, the screen then showed what the trick entailed.

“As you can see folks, Chono’s hands and feet are both shackled as me makes his way to the crate. Oh no he fell! He’s safely inside the box, and with that Mr Micheal, Chono’s formerly homeless assistant will lock him in.”

“Wait I’m not ready!” Chono’s nose was bleeding! Now he’s banging on the box!

“The amazing Chono needs to escape within 5 minutes or he’ll be destroyed right along with this box!”

“Why is he trying to be the next Houdini?! He’s gonna get himself killed! I can’t watch a man die on screen, I’m going back to baking,” Y/N said anxiously.

“He’s got three minutes left to escape!” Y/N tried to tune the TV out as they turned on the mixer to make the frosting for the coffee cake.

“Two minutes! Just two minutes left!”

“There’s been an accident! This isn’t part of the show! Chono is burning alive in that crate! We’ll preopt the rest of the show until we can save him.” Y/N almost fell again running to their living room. “How could he survive this?! Why is the show still running?!” Y/N said flabbergasted.

“Times up! Mr Micheal will now use the swords! 17 swords to go!” ‘I know he’s probably escaped by now but damn is this stress inducing’ Y/N thought while checking on the cake in the oven.

“This is the last one folks. How could anyone survive this?!” ‘No one could, except maybe Kusuo’ Y/N thought absently.

“Now a construction crane is hoisting the box thirty meters on the air! And dropping it!” Y/N jumped a little while finishing icing the cake when the box hit the ground.

‘Glad I’m not there in person, I bet the stress of watching this in person is way worse,’ thought while sitting down on their sofa to watch the end of the special.

“That box has sustained catastrophic damage but we still have more in store for it! We’re lighting it on fire!!” ‘Okay that’s a little much, wasn’t it already on fire earlier?’

“And now we’re running over the crate… WITH A STEAM ROLLER! ‘Gosh that’s loud, wouldn’t want to be anywhere near that thing,’

“Chono’s box is as flat as a pancake, how could he survive that? Hold on, who’s that I see?! It’s the miraculous illusionist himself, Uryoko Chono! He’s alive!!!!!” The crowd cheered and Y/N let out a sigh of relief.

“Well folks that sure was some first rate escape artistry” “Tre bien right?” “Hey, stick around for what’s next! The world premiere of a mystery called ‘Love Fantasy’, my character will try to uncover the mystery of his girlfriend’s death! Enjoy the show!” The camera then fades to a commercial.

Out of nowhere Saiki teleported into Y/N’s living room. “Oh shit, are you good?” Saiki was still covered in dirt from his escape.

“Ya, just wanted to pick up some coffee jelly,” Saiki said while walking towards the kitchen.

“I just made coffee cake if you want some, but shower first before serving yourself a plate, I just cleaned up.” Y/N said while turning to Saiki.

“Fine fine,” Saiki said, turning around and walking towards the stairs. “Just pick whatever from my closet, we wear the same size clothes anyway.” Saiki gave Y/N a quick thumbs up before walking up the stairs.

—————————————————————————

“Guess what I’ve been summoned. If I told you why I’d have to kill you Saiki, but for now let’s just say the world is in store for some pretty big changes.” Kaido said to Saiki before walking away.

“What? Did he make a friend?” “Oooo, we should follow him! I feel like being a little nosy today, come on!” Y/N said to Saiki before dragging him behind them to follow Kaido.

“Thurisaz, isaz, hagalaz,” a suspicious voice spoke from beyond the door Kaido knocked on. “Sowilō, gebō, fehu,” Kaido said back. “Ehwaz, you may enter.” the door then opened.

“Okay, I know we just got here, but what the hell was that?” Y/N whispered to Saiki, he only shrugged in response.

“I hope no one has followed you, the jet back wings.” “Not to worry Jade eyes, I’m-”

“Wait! There’s something you forgotten” “I’m sorry sir, you’re right. An energy field surrounds this room, if one doesn’t perform the holy grail ceremony within 66 seconds, they’ll vanish!” “That’s right”

Y/N could only hear Kaido clap then say “Laguz”, ‘He did something funny didn’t he? I wish I could see this,’ Y/N thought.

“So have you come to terms with the truth?”

“It’s not that easy for me. It’s like everything I’ve ever knew was a lie! You say in a past life, I was a top soldier in Dark Reunion. But then after discovering their plan to sort man kind, I stole the mystical stone Panalyze, and went rouge. And then when they cornered me, I performed the phantom technique and became a disembodied soul! And then I entered the unborn body of Shun Kaido?! It’s not easy to believe all that!”

“You seem excited by it” “I’m not really!”

“That’s fine. So long as you’re realizing the truth.” “I have always left like there’s something different about me from other kids.”

“The powers of the spirit within you are absolutely vital to destroying Dark Reunion. That’s why we’ll do what we can to help you regain your memories.” “What we? Who else is here?” Kaido asked while looking around the dark room.

“There are four others at this table besides me. Of course, they are all phantoms. I take it you dont see them, if that’s so, you have no chance to help us.” “No, no, I see them fine! They’re just not here physically right?”

“Ah yes, they are here in spirit but not body like myself. Unfortunately they don’t trust you.” “Why’s that?!”

“Because you haven’t yet presented the sworn ally absolution.” “Oh, I got that right here,” Kaido said confidently.

Y/N could hear the other person taking something from Kaido’s hand before saying “Woah, such detailed answers! It’s everything we’ve expected and more from the jet back wings! With this they’re sure to except you into the group!”

‘So ghosts have clicks now? Geez,’ Y/N thought.

“Great! If that’s all it takes I’ll be-”

“Stop!” “What?” “Mannaz, ingwaz, wunjō!” “Um, what was that?”

“Dark Reunion has found out about this room. We’re under attack!” “Attack?!” “They just killed the four phantoms,” Y/N could feel Kaido’s fear from beyond the door.

“What?! Phantoms can die?!” “Yes even phantoms can be killed, if we want to make it out of here alive, we need to act. Now we need to create a barrier.” “Ya, sure! So what do I do?” Kaido asked worriedly.

“Well first things first. I need you to put any and all metal objects on you into that special bag. Metal can interfere with the barrier magic.” “Right!”

“Even change?” “Yes! You know what- just put your whole wallet in,” “right.”

‘He sounds a little to excited to be swindled like that,’ Y/N thought that was odd.

“Great now repeat my movements” “okay!”

“Ansuz, jēra!” “Ansuz, jēra!”

“Ehwaz.” “Ehwaz!”

The room then feel silent, it took a lot of strength for Y/N not to laugh in that moment.

“Looks like we got io the barrier just in time.” “Ya that was close.”

“Now it’s time for us to go home.” “Oh okay! Then can I have my wallet back?”

“The barrier is still unstable. It’s much to risky to remove it from the bag.” “But it’s got my train pass-” “thanks for your help friend! If it was for you, I would’ve died today with the phantoms! Jet black wings, you our savior!”

“Oh, sure no problem.” “Come back same time tomorrow. And keep doing the sworn ally absolution.” “Yes” The door closed then Kaido walked away.

“Those guy’s stupid fantasies are the best thing ever! He couldn’t tell the absolution was my homework. All I had to do was play along with him! I even got the idiot to give me his wallet. Hehe Dark Reunion? Thanks for doing my homework delusioner HAHA!”

Suddenly the lights turned off.

“What the- who did that? AAAAAAA”

The next day.

“Don’t tell a soul okay? This meeting involves the fate of the world. Uh it’s open? AH what’s going on? THATS THE LOGO FOR DARK REUNION! Could it be their only one step behind me?!”

‘Pretty much’ Y/N thought while watching them from behind the corner.

—————————————————————————

“What’s wrong Kaido? You afraid of the water?” Teased Nendo.

“Nu- no, t-that’s not true! I know how to swim jerk. I’m not afraid of the water.” Kaido’s tone of voice wasn’t very convincing.

“AH water-” Kaido then fell dramatically and was splashing harshly.

“I’LL SAVE YOOOOOOU!”

Y/N then looked over their shoulder, ‘I know that butt.’

“Yo, it’s Hairo!” “Oh hey Nendo! Hey Saiki.”

“You getting some sun too?” “Actually, I volunteer as a lifeguard.”

“AH IM DROWNING!” “I’LL SAVE YOU!” Hairo then ran off again.

“I can’t believe he does this job for free in this heat. Hey, when are you gonna get in the water buddy?” “Just forget I’m here,”

‘Maybe I should forget I saw them,’ Y/N thought briefly.

“You guys are no fun! I don’t want to go swim the the ocean all by myself! So! To the ladies!” Nendo said with a smirk.

‘Never mind. This job can wait, this is going to be funny,” Y/N thought while turning off their metal detector.

“With a face like that you don’t have a chance!” “Why don’t you try walking on water instead? You’ll have better odds at that.”

“Oh ho ho. My looks don’t matter. It’s about attitude.”

“I’m sorry, I find your face repulsive.” “are you joking? There’s no way I’m giving my number to that face. “Ever hear of a mirror? You should look at one before leaving the house.” “AAAAAA DON’T RUN AWAY!” Nendo said while running after the girls.

‘Wow that was harsh. But even from this far away I could tell he was staring that their chests,’ Y/N thought with little sympathy.

“Girls are stupid”

“Well arent you just a little cutie pie!” “I love his spiky hair! Don’t you?” “Hey, stop touching my hair,” “Hey, come over to our spot!” Nendo then stood over the three of them with a very intimidating face.

“Oh I just remembered I have to move my car?” “Ya, me too!”

Y/N then had the perfect view of Nendo barring Kaido in the sand, they laughed quite hard at that, then got back to work.

“Where’d my bro go? Bathroom? Saiki?! You going pee pee?!” This almost started Y/N’s laughing fit back up. Y/N then turned away, put their headphones back on and continued metal detecting.

“I ROCK!” ‘Wonder what that’s about, probably nothing,’ Y/N could hear Nendo’s shouting but chose to not think anything of it.

“WOOOOAAAH” when Y/N turned around again the spotted Nendo “walking on water”. ‘Now that’s not something you see everyday.’

“Thanks for saving my life. Sorry I joked about how ugly your face is.”

“I’m glad you didn’t ask for her number in return for your heroics.” “I try to be a gentleman, but if that hotty fell in love with me, I’m not gonna turn her down.” “She wouldn’t” “WHAT’D YOU SAY!”

When Y/N was packing up the group finally spotted them.

“Hey it’s buddy’s friend! What’s that?”

“Ya and why are you not in a swimsuit? We’re at the beach.” Kaido asked confused.

“Oh this old thing? It’s a metal detector, my uncle has this whole business finding things that are lost in the snow, sand, and even underwater! He sent me out to do this job for him, I was able to find the client’s phone not to long ago.” Y/N smiled brightly.

“And for the swim suit thing, I didn’t think I wasn’t goin to go deep in the water so I thought shorts would suffice. Funnily enough, I think these shorts are Kusuo’s” Y/N laughed.

—————————————————————————

“Hairo, you got tan.” “Ya I volunteered at the beach as a life guard.”

“You’ve got a crush on someone?!” “Teruhashi is this a joke?” “Is it one of us?” “It’s someone I ran into over vacation. It was the 6th of August when I first fell in love with him!”

“I remember seeing you that day too. And the guy you were talking with, was Nendo!” “YOU ARE WAY OFF IDIOT! Ah uh, ya! His name is Yuriof Idiot. He’s a Russian exchange student, you should get to know him!”

“Hey Saiki. Just me or is Nendo acting weird today?” Kaido asked. “You’re the one being weird.”

“Like usually he’s always saying “we should do stuff after school buddy”” “He is quieter than normal.” Saiki agreed.

“Oh my look? Don’t worry about it, it’s a long story.” Kaido said while covering his eye covered by an eyepatch. ‘I wonder what his excuse is first dressing like that, but maybe Nendo acting different than is more interesting than Kaido’s story,’ Y/N thought.

Nendo made a couple dejected faces, did an odd form of sighing then left the class. “Pretty fishy right?” “My interest has peaked.”

“Alright -alright I’ll tell you. It all started-” “Hey! I heard you saying that Nendo was acting weird. Do you mind me tagging along to figure it out too? It sounds pretty interesting.” Y/N was able to interpret Kaido before Saiki got too annoyed at him speaking.

“Oh! Uh, sure, indubitably!”

“His house isn’t this way. He’s got something going on.” “Oh maybe!”

“Why are you two so excited about this? And better yet why are you so good as tailing people?” “Oh hush, you want to know about Nendo acting weird too right?”

“Saiki, L/N, check it. What’s Nendo looking at?” Nendo was making a creepy face at a little girl.

“Creepy” “creepy” “creepy”

“Nendo has a thing for little girls?!”

“This doesn’t look good. We should probably call the police.”

“A little quick to make assumptions but if it turns out that way then ya, we should do that.”

“He’s walking into a store! Looks like a flower boutique.” Kaido said a bit confused, Saiki was making a face that matched Kaido’s tone.

“Don’t tell me he’s got a girl-”

“No not Nendo” “No not Nendo”

“Ouch”

“Another one! That’s just gross” Nendo made another face towards a little girl.

“We’ll confirm it after we call the police,”

“Ew, ya.”

“No! We need more proof than this. I mean list of people like sun flowers. And it’s natural to smile when you see and cute little kid right?”

“I guess.”

“Good point. Let’s not be brash.”

“Hm another shop. Cakes! WOMAN AND CHILDREN CAN’T RESIST SWEET TREATS, SO WHEN YOU COMBINE A WOMAN AND A CHILD YOU GET A LITTLE GIRL!”

“Now you’re just jumping to conclusions,” Y/N agreed.

“I MEAN HAVE YOU EVER SEEN NENDO EAT THAT?! OR LIKE FLOWERS?! IT’S ALL MENT TO BE GIVEN TO SOMEONE, BUT HE HAS NO GIRLFRIEND TO GIVE THEM TO. THAT COULD ONLY MEAN THAT THEIR BAIT! AND THAT HES USING THEM TO LURE AWAY LITTLE GIRLS!”

“I think that anyone that works on has their own problems.”

“Bummer, they were all out if shortcake. Oh well, it’s not like anyone will ever eat this.”

“If it’s not for eating it must be bait” Kaido and Saiki said in unison.

“NENDO! YOUR SECRET’S OUT! HOW DARE YOU HURT LITTLE KIDS, YOU MONSTER!”

“Wait what secret? You mean my dad?”

‘I’m honestly surprised he didn’t think more about that accusation’ Y/N thought.

“So he’s dead?” “I visit on the anniversary of his bus accident.”

“But the flowers and the cake…” “respectful offerings for the dead. It’s normal to bring cakes and flowers to a family grave.”

“To think Nendo is lecturing us on normal.”

“That’s fair, I bring flowers and the favorite snack of one of my family friend’s to their gravesite.”

“When did your dad die Nendo?” “Well it was before I was born, he died trying to save a little girl who ran in front of a bus. Huh, maybe that means he was into little girls.”

“I hope not haha,” Kaido laughed nervously.

“That’s a dark joke.”

“So if he died before you were born, he must have been pretty young.” “He was only 18 or 19 years old. Here look! I’ve got his picture.”

“Hey this is just a picture of you!” “Nah it’s him! My mom says I look more like him each year, weird.” Nendo said sentimentally. “You don’t look like him, you look the same!”

“Are you okay Kusuo, you look like you’ve seen a ghost haha.” Y/N joked slightly but got a little more serious when Saiki’s face stayed shocked.

‘You haven’t developed a new power since you were like five, you better not have just developed the power to see ghosts.’ Y/N thought while looking at Saiki concerned.

“Hey wanna go get some ramen?”

“I know my powers are literally super natural, but personally, I don’t believe in ghosts. So I’ll pretend today at the graveyard never happened.”

“Is that really the best thing to do Kusuo?” Y/N laughed a bit, before following Saiki’s eyes to his mail box.

“It’s for me. Weird. I never get mail.”

The letter read “Kusuo Saiki, I know you have psychic powers.”

“What.” “Oh dear.”

—————————————————————————

Next episode

[audioaujom]

4:00 AM, Fazer Blast

FNaF:SB Hub, < prev, next >

Congrats everyone! We’ve made it to another one of my favorite chapters, Fazer Blast! It’s a little changed from canon, as there are no security bots nearby and Monty is the one patrolling the arena. I think the game sleeps on him really hard and he deserves more than the Monty Golf section that happens post-6:00 AM. Enjoy Ranboo attempting to win Fazer Blast!

Word Count: 2240

Chapter TWs: Violence and Injury

--

“Alright. Time to win myself a fazer blaster.” Ranboo said excitedly as he waited for the elevator to reach the arena, one hand clutching said blaster while the other clutched onto the edge of his laser tag vest. “I can’t believe they just give guns out to kids. Er, more like laser pointers. Either way, it’s a safety hazard.”

Stepping off the elevator as soon as the doors slid open, Ranboo glanced around at the bots making up the rest of his team that were patiently waiting for the game to officially start.

“Alright orange team, let’s get going!” Ranboo cheered to the bots as soon as the music started up, squatting a little and holding his gun up into an exaggerated action pose with a grin. “We’re gonna win this thing!”

Immediately confused by the layout of the glowing neon partitions but not willing to be deterred, Ranboo kept his fazer blaster close and his head low as he made his way to the orange team’s main base and got himself ready to defend it from the enemy bots. The floors were flat and black, covered in scuff marks from dozens of shoes and flecks of glowing paint from the walls that were more like fences than anything else. They were in sections connected by posts, not quite touching the floor and definitely not reaching all the way up to the black lights in the ceilings. 

After arriving and getting himself acquainted with the area, it didn’t take long for him to hear the whirring of automated wheels coming his way, poking his head out down a nearby hall between the shoulder high partitions making up the arena to see a blue team bot approaching him.

“Bang! Get shot, loser!” Ranboo called out as he leveled a shot at the bot’s vest, it buzzing and the bot turning around to head back to base. He grinned to himself as he checked out the other nearby hallways, spinning the blaster in his hands. “I don’t want to jinx anything, but this is actually pretty fun.”

Several more minutes passed with him defending the base from the blue team bots, greatly aided by the fact that if he stood up at full height he could see over the walls and spot them incoming.

“Oh, I got this. I am so good at this.” Ranboo confirmed aloud to himself after shooting down three bots in a row, smile wide as he approached a nearby friendly bot and gave himself a high five by smacking its free hand. “I am winning for the first time tonight!” 

Letting out a breath of relief, he let himself have a moment of peace as most of the blue team bots had been shot down and he could look around the arena a little—even if the pressure of the laser tag game wasn’t actually all that much.

“I wonder how long I’ve gotta play for… it’s easily been a few minutes already, right?” He mused aloud as he waited, wandering out towards the middle area of the map in the brief moment of peace. “It’s not like they told me going in how long this would be.”

A metallic thud drew Ranboo’s attention from his thoughts, him standing up straight enough he could see over all the walls and look around. Another thud directed him to a door marked ‘Staff Only’ on the entire other end of the game floor, seeing a strangely shaped dent forming in the bottom middle half of the door. He watched in horror as the metal finally caved with one more thud, the door ripping off its hinges and flying inside, Monty stepping into the arena and seeming to look straight at him. “There you are!”

The two stared at each other—both tall enough the wall partitions didn’t block their view of each other at all—for a long moment, before Ranboo ducked down out of view with a panicked, “Oh, man! You’ve gotta be kidding me!”

“Run run run!” Monty’s call shook some of the nearby walls, Ranboo hearing his thudding footsteps as Monty began to charge around to figure out how to get close to him.

“I knew it couldn’t be this easy!” Ranboo hissed to himself, doing his best to utilize his few minutes of familiarity with the area to his advantage and get as far away from Monty as he could manage. “I just gotta survive in here with him for an undisclosed amount of time and then get out of here without him finding me. Sounds easy enough, right?”

Quickly finding his way into one corner that was walled up to the ceiling as a small hideout gave him enough reprieve to catch his breath, hearing Monty yell from somewhere in the distance, “Hey kid, come on out! We're only tryin' to help.”

“I think you and I have very different definitions of the word ‘help’.” Ranboo mumbled to himself, trying to quiet his gasping as he waited patiently to catch his breath. Monty’s steps were loud—which helped him keep an approximate track of where the animatronic was at all times, keeping him from being overly concerned about evading him in the long term.

“You're in trouble now!” Monty roared from nearby, Ranboo rolling his eyes as the animatronic then turned and walked away from where he was hidden.

“Oh, like I wasn’t before?” 

Every second passed like an hour, Ranboo's back pressed up against the wall behind him as he heard Monty pacing back in his direction after wandering around the arena for a while. “You really think we won't find you?”

“It’s less of a ‘I really hope you can’t find me’ and more of a ‘I really hope I can outrun you’.” Ranboo laughed nervously to himself, ducking out of the safety of the hideout to try and put some proper distance between him and the animatronic only for him to stop in his tracks as pink framed sunglasses caught his movement over the top of the walls.

“I know yer here!” Monty’s voice was a low growl, Ranboo momentarily frozen as the two shared a very intense and panic-inducing moment of eye contact.

“Haha, that’s so weird! How’d you know?” Ranboo joked, Monty leaping up and over several partitions to close the gap between the two of them. Now snapped out of his shock, Ranboo turned and ran as fast as he could, weaving through the maze as Monty jumped up and over walls to follow him. “AHH!”

“You can’t outrun me!” One of Monty’s clawed hands grabbed onto the top of a nearby partition, his grip so strong it crushed the plastic and warped it out of the poles holding it on both sides, Ranboo taking one look and deciding that hiding behind the walls really wouldn’t give him as much safety as he expected.

“Well now, that’s just not true. I’ve outrun you plenty of times, and I’ll do it again.” Ranboo glanced over the walls at Monty’s approaching figure, managing a wobbly grin as he called, “Watch this.”

Taking after Monty’s need to climb, Ranboo jumped over the nearest partition and then took off running up the ramp in the middle that led to the second floor, Monty furiously roaring behind him as he ran up and out of view as he ducked through the hideout in the middle and pressed his back to a high wall and waited for Monty to come after him so he could try and juke him. Not that he intended to end up on the second floor, but a plan began forming the moment he ended up in the upper base.

“Where’re you goin’?!” Monty was rapidly approaching, his footsteps shaking the second floor of the arena as Ranboo held his breath and waited.

Anywhere that gets me away from you.

The wobbling of the second floor under Monty’s steps had his legs feeling like jelly, each ripple in the reinforced plastic walls almost drawing him out of his hiding spot in panic as Monty slowly got closer. The waiting was tense, but it paid off in the instant Monty’s steps began to get quieter, Ranboo hesitating for only a moment before slipping back into the main pathways and heading for the ramp back down. He did his best to keep his head down as he maneuvered back out into the open air leading back down to the first floor, only to hear a loud thud directly behind him that had him slowly straightening back up as chill ran down his spine.

“Got ya.”

Before he could even make a move to get away down the ramp Monty grabbed the back of his hoodie to lift him off of his feet, one hand flying up to his collar as it pressed hard into his throat as the other flailed around to try and get a hold on Monty’s arm to relieve the pressure. 

“Aw man, not again—!” He groaned, Monty turning him around so they were facing each other again. Ranboo offered him an exhausted smile as he tried to keep breathing through the block to his lungs and his panic, Monty’s face looking back at him as unimpressed as ever. “Hey man, there’s really no need for us to be fighting like this, you know? You seem like a decent guy—minus whatever your weird thing is with going for my throat, but—!!”

The rest of his ramblings died in his throat as Monty yanked his arm back—Ranboo unwillingly in tow—and threw him forward, letting go and launching him, hard, over the plastic railing of the ramp. The carpeted floor below came crashing up to meet Ranboo as he fell, landing hard first on his back before his head whipped back into the floor next. 

His head spun from the impact as hot pain bloomed out across his shoulders and spine, nausea curling in his stomach as he gasped in mouthfuls of air that he was so desperate for they hurt on the way down. Incredibly dizzy and winded, he watched through blurry spots as Monty came charging down the ramp, coming over to tower over him as he managed to get his elbows beneath him enough to start scrambling backwards.

“Now, don't be scared.”

“How am… I… supposed to… not be… scared right now?!” He panted out, trying to get his breath back enough so he could will his body to move faster as Monty slowly loomed closer.

The floating stars in his vision cleared just enough and just in time for him to be able to roll his body to one side as Monty lunged a hefty step forward aimed for his head, trying to get his feet under him so he could get up and run.

“Game over!” Monty chuckled, stepping forward again and almost landing on his stomach, but he managed to slide back just enough with his legs spread wide to avoid it.

“You can’t say that! This isn’t even your attraction!”

Monty glared from behind his sunglasses, stomping forward again with a step that would’ve cracked Ranboo’s arm clean in half if it had landed. 

Frantic but starting to recover even while dodging the animatronic, Ranboo finally spotted his opportunity for a getaway, getting both of his feet flat on the floor before he wildly pointed in the air to behind Monty, shouting, “Hey! Monty! Quick, look over there!” 

Monty’s head whipped around in the same instant Ranboo launched himself to his feet, saluting the bot rolling down the walkway towards them before absolutely booking it in the other direction while Monty was distracted.

“I can not believe that worked! Thank you, you brave, brave laser tag bot!”

“I will find you!” Monty called after him, footsteps shaking the floor with loud thuds as he quickly charged after Ranboo, who skidded to a stop and ducked down beside one of the small hiding obstacles in an attempt to keep himself completely out of sight.

“Yeah… Let’s hope not.” He mumbled quietly, covering his head with his hands and hoping the whole mess would be over before the pain from the fall was no longer dulled by his adrenaline.

Luckily, it was only a few more long, panic-inducing moments before a voice blared over the loudspeakers, “Good job, space cadets! Please proceed to the exit elevators to see your score!”

Immediately ready to leave, Ranboo dashed through the maze back for the elevators as fast as he could, slamming himself inside and against the back wall as the doors slid closed and began to take him up and out of the arena.

“Somehow… I feel like I’ve lost. Massively. Monty: 2, Me: 0. Less than 0. -10.” Ranboo commented between heavy breaths, pain starting to radiate from his back as he calmed down. “Wait… can Monty even use an elevator? Man, wouldn’t it be great if he got stuck in here?” He giggled deliriously from the exhaustion and pain, only for him to realize, “Oh. He can probably just go back through that staff door he kicked in. Right. Damn. So close.”

The doors then slid open, Ranboo begrudgingly getting up to his feet and slightly limping into the exit area—where he returned only his vest. As he stepped out into a small shop with the blaster still in hand, he found a small seat to sit on and rest before he had to figure out what to do next.

[theborderlandcoalition]

The burning of woes

Westfall// Barony of Southwatch

Over the summers and over the years, House Sunshield played host to many festivals but this would be the first of its kind with Southwatch as the host. Invitations by way of nail-pinned announcements were posted in all three villages within the barony. They were simple but joyful summons for one and all to travel to Southwatch keep for the lighting of the bonfire ceremony and burning of woes.

“Are you ready, Anthony? - suck in! Suck in! There you go. Nice and tight.”

Anthony’s gut lifted as he sucked in a breath and stiffened, and once the heavy belt was in place he exhaled and tested the strength of the leather. Perhaps he needed to stop with the sweetcakes, he mused, fingerless gloves patting against his belly and the leather. It would hold, it always did.  Was he ready?  Outside the main gate, he could hear the gathering of people laughing and chattering while the children yelled and fed on the excitement of the evening.

It was time.

The gates creaked as they opened, and the house guard, dressed in their rich gold and red tabards, moved forward to keep the press of people from breaking the rope line that had been set up to mark out a path and to let them know where the boundaries of welcome ended. 

“LADIES AND GENTLEMEN…” Anthony schooled his features into wide-eyed excitement as he stepped forward, arms spread wide so that the red and orange feather cape fluttered around him. 

A boy dashed forward, a milkcrate slid perfectly into place so that he could step up and be seen by all.  “BOYS AND GIRLS… I formally welcome you to Southwatch Keep and the first annual festival of woe.” His wrists rotated, fingers curling into claws that turned toward the sky. At the word ‘woe’ a positioned aid on either side of the gate leaned forward to breathe fire in a crisscross behind him. Good.

Someone screamed. More clapped. Good.

“People of Southwatch..” He stepped forward and down from the crate, moving past the gates as he bellowed. “.. what is your woe?”

“Defias bitches!” Someone screamed.

“Gnolls.”

“Gods damned rabbits eating my crops!”

“Jack!”

“FUCK YOU - I ain't a woe.”

A soft whirr of the belt tattled that not only did it hold against the pressure of his gut, but it was doing its job of scattering the ember seeds in his wake. The evening was upon them and the torchlight caused the seeds to flicker and dance as if on fire and caused by his very footsteps. He pathed toward the unlit bonfire, his arms no longer spread. When he reached the dais some feet away, he marched up the steps, already out of breath and face flushed but only the crickets would be witness.

“Without further fuckery… I offer you the Squires of Lord Sunshield. Each squire marches with the oils needed to aid in setting our woes aflame. Yes, you could burn them yourselves but it is a burden that no one should have to suffer alone. Unity is strength, unity is food on our tables and fighting together not to change the world but to make sure our kin see another dawn. Another Westfall dawn.”

The squires marched, not in the coalition tabards as often seen in Duskwood but in the red and golds of House Sunshield. In their hands was a grass bowl of oil that was tossed onto the unlit bonfire before they moved to stand at the dais and beneath him. 

Good. Good. 

“I offer you the Knights of Sunshield. Look there, you see that they wear cloaks of paper, look closely my friends. The paper carries its own personal woes, burdens, and failures scribed onto each part. These cloaks are heavy on their backs by sheer weight of thought. But still, they stand ready. Still, they move forward before you despite the weight.” 

Anthony’s head jerked to the side as a white-haired boy raced through the gate’s opening and moved to grip one of the knight’s paper cloak at the hem and lifted it up over his head. That.. was not planned.  What did the boy shout?

A murmur spread through the crowd and suddenly silence washed over them, randomly a child cried but they watched with only a low murmur of sound as the knights moved to the bonfire and one by one unbound the cloaks and tossed them in. 

What did the boy say?

Together the boy and Knight tossed the paper cloak before moving to take up positions near the dais.  

“For the people!” Anthony bellowed, attempting to feed the energy back into the crowd. When the Knight brought the boy to his shoulder, a cheer followed and the rush of noise returned. “I offer you House Sunshield. Lord Sunshield and his family, Lord Sunshield carries the torch needed to light our bonfire, perhaps it weighs like a feather or perhaps it weighs like a mountain but we will never know for it is his burden for his family and for the people. For you.” The progression moved toward the bonfire, each person dressed in some kind of costume to represent fire. Everyone moved up onto the dais behind where he stood, all save for Lord Sunshield who finished the walk to the fire alone and paused to wait near the oil-soaked wood and cloaks but did not dip the torch. Lighting the bonfire would not be his honor.

“And finally – hailing from the town of Brushwind, our first married couple of the season. Our very own south region sheep herders, Fred and Ginger. Please welcome them as our blessed couple of the year and make sure that throughout the evening you give them your blessings, advice, and good energy.” Fred and Ginger, both with shockingly red hair and laughing eyes, raced from the keep’s interior with hands held. Unlike the day of their wedding, they left off the rich celebration colors in favor of white linen and flower crowns. Bare feet carried them down the walkway, past cheering kin to where Lord Sunshield stood. 

Fred stepped forward, bowed, and took the torch from the lord. He held it in the sky as Lord Sunshield moved to join his family on the dais. Once his lord was settled, he turned and offered the honor of tossing the torch to his wife, who grinned at him in what was clearly adoration before she collected the torch and turned with a flourish.

It was time. 

“READY YOUR WOES.” Anthony bellowed, arms lifting into the air once more. 

Ginger tossed the torch onto the bed of paper cloaks left by the knights before the couple raced to the dais to join the squires. 

“NOW!”

Flames licked up the pyramid of wood, red and orange fingers reaching for the sky within moments. A sky that was filled with little paper wads, paper airplanes, sachets of herbs, and notes as the people of Southwatch tossed their woes into the fire. Now was the time for healing. Now was the time for love and romance -of adapting and overcoming. 

Now was the time for Ale.

“For the people.”

[mysecretlittlelibrary]

Double Dating

Pairing: Stucky x Reader

Word Count: 6.3k

Warnings: voyeurism, exhibitionism, spitroasting, oral (f,m receiving), degradation, threesome, praise, creampie, face fucking, fingering, choking- probably some other nasty shit I missed lol

Genre: fluff that leads into nasty smut

Summary: You meet Wanda's friends at one of Stark's parties and two of them manage to catch your interest

A/N: This isn't edited, be nice to me :)

***

You hum along to your playlist as you clean up around your apartment until a knock on the door grabs your attention. You take off your gloves and head to the door. A look through the spyhole shows you Wanda smiling on the other side of the door. You pull it open and she immediately flings her arms around you in a hug.

"Y/n! Hi!" She says excitedly.

"Hey, Wanda. How ya been?" You laugh, trying not to stumble back at the force of her hug.

"Great! Gosh I've missed you."

"I've missed you too. Although, it's only been a couple of weeks since we've seen each other."

"A couple of weeks is too long." She huffs.

"Alright, well what brings you by?" You ask, finally slipping out of her arms to go further into the apartment.

"Tony is having a party and I want you to come!" She tells you.

"This could have been a text message." You muse.

"I wanted an excuse to see you. Plus I know you're gonna wanna say no and it's harder for you to do that when you look at me."

"Wanda-"

"You'll come won't you?"

"Why would I come to a Tony Stark party?" You roll your eyes.

"Because I'm asking you to? It'll be fun!"

"You know I'm not the party type."

"Come on y/n please? We hardly hang out and this will be a great chance for us to do so. Plus you get to meet all my Avenger friends."

"I dunno Wan-"

"Please? I came all the way down here because I want you to come."

"When is it?"

"Next weekend."

"Attire?"

"Cocktail!" She practically squeals.

"Alright! I will swing by-" Wanda is already celebrating her triumph before you finish your sentence "but only for a little bit."

"At least two hours."

"Two? I'll do one."

"Three."

"Three? That's not how compromise works!"

"You can't leave in under two hours are you kidding me? How will you enjoy anything?"

"I don't wanna go at all, an hour is more than enough for someone who's only going to appease you."

"I can't introduce you to everyone and spend a good amount of time with you in an hour."

"I'm not saying I have to leave after an hour but I am saying that once that first hour is up you can't complain if I want to leave."

"I'll complain when you leave regardless of how long you stay."

"You are so ridiculous." You scoff.

"You love me." She says throwing her arms around you again.

"Duh, that's the only reason I'm going to a damn Tony Stark party." You shove her arms off of you and walk into your kitchen. Wanda spends a couple of hours chatting with you before she heads off with one last reminder to be at the party.

~*~*~

When the weekend rolls around you want to back out before you've even left the house. You've donned a long sleeve floor length red dress with a plunging V neckline and slits down both sides up to your hips. Your makeup is just as bold as your dress, sparkly lids and bright red lips to boot, the look is finished off with a pair of strappy gold heels. You look in the mirror one more time after you finish getting ready. You look good, considering you don't even want to go to this thing you're impressed with the final look. You grab your phone and your gold clutch and make the drive to the daunting Avengers tower where the party is being held. When you exit the elevator to the main floor of the party the space is already beyond crowded. There are people everywhere and loud music playing through speakers that dot the floor.

"Holy hell." You say as you look around. How the fuck are you going to track down Wanda in this crowd? You scan the room once and make your way to the bar nestled in one corner. If you're going to make it through this you will need a drink. Maybe more than one, but one to start. You flag down a bartender and quickly order a cocktail, something fruity, but strong.

"Y/n! You made it!" Wanda practically crashes into you as she yells over the music. You knew it was only a matter of time before she finds you.

"I told you I was going to be here."

"You look fucking hot!"

"Yeah well, I have standards to uphold." You wink at her.

"Come! I have people for you to meet." She says pulling you up from where you're leaning on the bar and dragging you straight into the fray. She weaves through people with ease and eventually you find yourself in front of a redhead in all black. "Nat! This is my friend who I told you about. Y/n! Y/n this is Natasha." Wanda introduces you to each other eagerly.

"Black Widow right? It's nice to meet you." You say.

"Nice to meet you too, I've heard a lot about you." Natasha says kindly.

"Good things I hope? With Wanda you never know." You joke.

"All great things. She loves you." Natasha laughs.

"Well that's good to hear."

"Here you go Nat." A blonde man you'd recognize anywhere hands Natasha a glass.

"Thanks Steve." She says.

"Oh my gosh! Steve this is my friend y/n! Y/n this is Captain America!" Wanda says excitedly.

"Does anyone know how much she's had to drink?" You joke.

"Please, just call me Steve." He holds a hand out to you.

"Steve, nice to meet you." You say slowly, shaking his hand as you openly size him up. He's taller than you even in your heels, and his tight button-down shirt does nothing to hide his rippling muscles. 

"Likewise, have you known Wanda for a long time?" Steve asks. He struggles not to squirm under your scrutinizing gaze but he can't ignore the heat in your eyes as you watch him.

"A few years, we met at a coffee shop one morning, bonded over a book I was reading." You tell him and he finally lets his eyes sweep over you properly. The way you stand allows one of your legs to peak out of the dress and Steve follows until the slit ends. He can't help but notice that it looks like you're not wearing underwear with your dress and his cheeks tint pink. A color that grows darker when he looks up again and sees the smirk on your face having caught him staring. 

"I- I uh, I gotta find uh Sam but- I'll be back." Steve stutters out quickly before rushing away.

"What was that about?" Wanda frowns. Natasha glances at you curiously but says nothing as she sips from her glass.

"I'll be back ladies, I need another drink." You tell them, slipping back into the crowd to find the bar again. You grab a new drink from the bartender, intent on returning to the girls until a glint of metal catches your eye next to you. You subtly glance at the man leaning against the bar with a beer in hand.

"Staring is considered rude." He eventually says.

"Is it?" You hum, facing him now.

"From what I've been told." He turns to you.

"You're easy to stare at, you're- very attractive." You tell him. His eyes coast over you like he's done it a million times.

"Same can be said about you." He says, taking a sip from his beer. "That dress is something doll." He adds.

"Doll?" You smirk.

"It suits you."

"My name is y/n."

"Bucky."

"I have to get back to my friends, but it was nice to meet you." You tell him, taking a moment to place your hand on his arm.

"I'll see you again." He says confidently as you walk away. As you return to Natasha and Wanda you're tempted to ask about Bucky, but something tells you Wanda will take this and run a marathon if you mention anything. You the girls and talk for a while, Wanda introducing you to several of her friends until eventually she and Natasha pull you to the dance floor. In the sea of people it's easy to get separated as you dance and eventually a body presses against yours.

"Hello again doll." You smile at the voice in your ear.

"You found me." You joke.

"I told you I'd see you again."

"Like what you see?" You smirk as you continue dancing.

"Very." You resist the urge to shiver at the baritone growl.

"Good." You breathe out. When the song ends you move through the crowd without even turning to face Bucky. You find the girls again quickly enough.

"Oh my gosh where did you go?" Wanda asks.

"I just got lost in the crowd." You shrug.

"Are you having a good time?"

"Good enough." You say with a slight smirk at the thought of Bucky. "I need another drink." You announce, walking away from them again. At the bar you find the other man who has grabbed your attention tonight, Steve. "Steve!" You smile when you see him.

"Y/n- hello." Steve says with a stiff nod.

"Lighten up darling. You look like you're waiting for a drill sergeant." You laugh.

"Sorry. It's not on purpose- it's just..." Steve trails off as his eyes drift down to your legs again.

"Just what, Stevie?" You tilt your head.

"N-nothing." His cheeks tinge again as he avoids your gaze.

"Give me your phone." You tell him. He blinks at you, surprised by the request. "Stevie, phone please?" You encourage. He fumbles to pull his phone out of his pocket and hand it to you.

"What for?" He frowns at you as you punch your number into the device.

"So you can call me." You say.

"Call you?"

"Well you keep jumping between looking like a scandalized school boy and looking like you can't wait to find out what's beneath this dress which- in case you are wondering," you lean close enough to whisper in his ear, with your hand on his chest, "there's nothing underneath this dress." You tell him, walking back into the crowd to find Natasha and Wanda again. One down, one more to go.

"Did you get a drink?" Wanda asks.

"Oh, I changed my mind. I realize I drove here and two drinks is more than enough if I'm to get home." You shrug. The three of you spend a bit more time dancing before you find a wall to hover by and talk some until you break from the pair again to track down Bucky using the excuse of needing the bathroom. Bucky is easy to find, leaning against a wall, watching the party.

"Hi Bucky." You smile.

"Ah this time you found me. Hi doll." He says with a smirk.

"I'm heading out soon. Your phone?"

"My phone?"

"Yes, your phone. So you can call me."

"How bold." He hands you the phone.

"Taking a page from your book." You punch your number in and hand it back, turning on your toes and going back over to Wanda and Natasha to say goodnight and head out, satisfied with the night's events.

B: Hey doll. Hope you got home safe.

I did, thanks for asking

B: Good. I want to see you again. How's Friday?

I'm free Friday.

B: I'll pick you up at 7.

Sounds good. Goodnight Bucky.

B: Goodnight

S: Hello y/n. It's Steve.

Hi Steve! Hope I didn't shake you too much tonight ;)

S: I'm recovering. Your last words were very surprising.

Good, that's what I was going for.

S: You are trouble.

Worried you can't handle it?

S: Who said I couldn't handle it?

If you can, prove it.

S: You're provoking.

Maybe. I'd like to see you again Stevie. Are you free this weekend? I was thinking Saturday night.

S: I can make that work. Where should I meet you?

I'll send you a location on Saturday ;)

S: That's a bit last minute.

It'll be fun Stevie, trust me.

You don't wait for Steve to respond before you get ready for bed and go to sleep feeling pleased with securing dates from both Bucky and Steve.

When Friday rolls around Bucky texts you at 7 on the dot that he's downstairs. You skip outside and there's Bucky leaning against a motorcycle.

"Hello gorgeous." He smiles at you.

"Hi Bucky! It's nice to see you again." You beam at him.

"Same to you. You look amazing." He says, openly checking you out in your spaghetti strap black dress covered in red floral outlines.

"Thanks. You don't look too bad yourself." You wink at him. He's wearing a button up with the sleeves rolled up and a pair of black jeans. "I wish you'd warned me about the bike- it's gorgeous but I would've worn something else." You muse.

"Sorry doll I didn't think about it."

"It's fine. Now I know for next time."

"Next time huh? Did I already earn a second date?"

"If tonight goes well you will. So where are we going?" You ask. Bucky swings his leg over his motorcycle and looks at you.

"You'll see. Hop on." He says. You climb onto the bike behind him and hold back a squeal as he speeds off. Twenty or so minutes later you pull up to a brightly colored building.

"Minigolf?" You chuckle.

"I thought, it'd be nice to do something a little more light-hearted than a stuffy dinner." He tells you, helping you off of his motorcycle.

"Sounds great! But just know you are totally going down." You tell him and he laughs loudly before he grabs golf balls and clubs from the boy behind the counter. He hands you one and leads you to the course.

"If you think I'm going easy on you y/n you're mistaken." He tells you.

"Good. I can take whatever you've got." You wink and Bucky's eyes flash as he contemplates the double meaning in your words.

"Careful what you wish for doll." He says quietly as you enter the minigolf map. The two of you talk and tease each other through the whole game and Bucky eventually 'loses track' of the score.

"I cannot believe you lost track of the score!" You say in fake outrage as you leave.

"I wouldn't have lost anything if you weren't such a distraction."

"Oh I'm the distraction? I wasn't trying to be." You bite your finger coyly, leaning against Bucky's motorcycle. Bucky wraps an arm around your waist and pulls your body against his making you gasp as he tilts your head towards his.

"If you keep trying to tease me, you're going to get in serious trouble doll."

"Maybe I want trouble." You breathe out.

"If you want trouble, you'll have to wait gorgeous." Bucky pauses when your bottom lip juts out. His eyes close as he lets out a strained breath, "don't pout. I want more than that from you, I promise it'll be worth the wait. You'll be patient for me won't you?"

"If you want me to be patient don't talk to me like that." You joke and Bucky laughs, finally letting you go.

"Alright doll, let's get you home before one of us goes further than we plan to." He kisses your cheek and climbs onto the bike. You get on and wrap your arms around him tightly and he takes you home, with one last kiss and a promise to see you again soon. You're practically floating as you get ready for bed after your date. Bucky was funny and charming, you can honestly say it was the best date you've ever been on. You wonder how tomorrow with Steve will compare.

~*~*~

"Y/n!" You hear Steve's voice before you see him.

"Steve! Hi!" You smile as he jogs over to meet you by the carnival entry.

"Hi, it's nice to see you again. You look good."  He says. You're wearing a black suspender skirt with a white off shoulder t-shirt.

"Thanks! So do you." You tell him. His outfit is simple, a t-shirt and jeans, but the fabric strains against his muscles in a way you could never get tired of. 

"A carnival? I don't think I've been to one of these in over a decade."

"Seriously?! I love carnivals!"

"Well then let's go." He holds out a hand to you that you take excitedly, pulling him into the carnival and pointing out different rides you want to try. Steve indulges you with each ride you pick, he even wins you a stuffed dog from one of the carnival games. 

"I'm kind of surprised you asked me on date." Steve says while you're riding the ferris wheel. It's the last thing you wanted to do before parting ways for the night.

"Why are you surprised? I- gave you my number before I left that party."

"I mean, yes, and honestly that surprised me  too. I'm not used to people- you know, making moves on me." He shrugs, regretting this conversation already. He felt like he wasn't being talkative enough but now he's started a conversation surrounding his own reservations with dating and that's probably only going to make this whole date more awkward.

"You blush a lot. It's cute." You muse and his cheeks get redder at the compliment. "You probably intimidate people, that's why no one makes moves on you."

"Intimidate people?"

"Yeah! I mean, you're gorgeous. You're what? 6'2? 6'3? And you're pure muscle. No one's looking at Captain America and thinking 'he's so shy he probably won't make the first move'."

"So what made you think that then?"

"When we met you kept blushing and stuttering when I looked at you too long. You were nervous obviously, either because I made you uncomfortable or you were attracted to me. I just took a gamble that it wasn't the first one."

"It wasn't! I mean- you do make me nervous yeah, but not because I'm uncomfortable."

"I figured as much or you wouldn't be here." You chuckle.

"Right. Of course." Steve isn't sure what else to say at this point so he turns his attention to the view as the wheel starts its descent.

"Stevie?" You place your hand over his and he turns to look at you, "why are you so nervous? I'm not gonna bite you. Unless you ask."

"I can't think when you say things like that." Steve says and you laugh.

"I'm sorry. I'll cut it out. I'm just trying to help you loosen up. You're on eggshells and I don't know if this is your usual first date attitude or if it's just me- what are you so afraid of?"

"I don't go on dates, ever really. I'm a bit clueless when it comes to dating and you- you're so much bolder than I am."

"I can tone it down if it makes you too antsy. I want you to enjoy yourself."

"You don't have to tone down anything. We can't both be- timid. And, I'm having a good time I'm just nervous I'll say something stupid around you."

"You are just the sweetest! Honestly Stevie I don't think you could say something stupid enough to bother me. Everything you do seems so charming to me." You shrug as you climb out of the ferris wheel.

"Really?"

"Yes really. So next time relax a little bit."

"Next time?"

"Well yeah, I thought tonight went well, and- I'd like to see you again, unless of course you're not feeling it."

"I'd love to see you again." It's the most self-assured sounding thing Steve has said the entire night, and you're glad he's at least confident about wanting to see you more.

"Then like I said, next time loosen up." You say with a smile.

"Can I pick the next thing we do?"

"Of course."

"Then I will text you the details." Steve nods.

"Sounds good." You kiss his cheek and get in your car to go home. Steve is much more shy than Bucky had been on your date the night before but part of you appreciates the contrast between the two.

It goes on like that for a few months, dates with Bucky some days and dates with Steve on others. The more you time you spend with them the more you like them. You don't know what you'll do if you eventually have to choose one of them, you hadn't thought you'd like them both so much when you started this.

B: On a scale from 1-10 how busy are you today?

Maybe a 2? I was just planning on cleaning my apartment. Why?

B: Tower's empty. Do you want to come over or are you too busy cleaning?

Cleaning can wait. Give me 30.

B: Great.

You swap out your sweatpants for a pair of shorts that you couple with a light sweater that falls off one shoulder. Grabbing your keys and phone you make the drive over to Avengers tower. Bucky meets you outside when you arrive.

"Hey doll." He pulls you into his arms as soon as you're out of your car.

"Hi Bucky." You chuckle as you hug him back.

"I missed you."

"You saw me this weekend."

"Yeah well, I like seeing you." He kisses the back of your hand and almost pulls you into the tower.

"I like seeing you too don't worry." You laugh.

"So everyone's out of the tower. I figured we'd watch some movies or something since we've got the whole place to ourselves."

"Can I ask where everyone is?"

"Wanda and Vision are doing a 'date night' by going out of town, Nat's with Clint, Sam is doing- who knows what, and Tony's with Pepper and her parents." Bucky lists off.

"And you didn't have any plans?"

"My plans are with you." He kisses you briefly.

"Are you always this good at making girls swoon?" You smile.

"Just you." He winks, flopping down on the couch. You sit down next to him as Bucky flips through things to watch before deciding on a movie you don't catch the name of. Bucky pulls you practically into his lap as the two of you half watch the movie but mostly just laugh and flirt with each other. Eventually, the movie is completely forgotten when you kiss Bucky. What was supposed to be something quick turns heated when Bucky tightens his arms around you to deepen the kiss. You've kissed a few times already since you started him but this feels different. It's like Bucky is trying to totally consume you as his lips move against yours.

"Bucky-" you pant out when you're forced to pull away when you need to breathe.

"Fucking hell." Bucky says. "if you keep this up I'm not going to be able to control myself."

"You don't have to."

"Y/n- are you sure?"

"Yes- please Bucky."

"Now that's a sound I could get used to hearing."

"Take me to your room and I'll make whatever sounds you wanna hear." You say in his ear and he shivers at your words. Bucky's hands grab at your thighs as he stands and you wrap your legs around him. With you casually distracting him by kissing his neck as he walks, it takes Bucky a lot longer than usual to get to his room.

"God you are trying to kill me." Bucky lets out, tossing you onto his bed and immediately crawling over you.

"Not really." You say tugging him towards you to connect your lips to his again.

"Not really huh?" Bucky's lips trail from yours down to your neck where he finds the spot that has you arching towards him. Bucky decorates your neck with little blooms of red and your hands tighten against his shirt as quiet moans leave your mouth. "Fuck you sound so pretty doll." Bucky sighs as he leans back to tug your sweater off. "Look pretty too." He mutters, more to himself as you unsnap your bra, letting it join your sweater on the floor. Bucky's lips latch onto one of your nipples, swirling his tongue around the bud while his flesh hand tweaks and twists the other.

"Fuck." You can't help but let out as Bucky's ministrations travel straight to your core and only fuel the growing heat there. Bucky quickly tugs off your shorts and panties as he trails kisses down your stomach and then up your thighs. He watches the way you squirm with amusement as he deliberately avoids the spot you're aching for him to kiss.

"Bucky- quit teasing." You whine with a pout. "Please." You add, fixing Bucky with eyes so full of want that he groans as he finally licks a stripe along your folds. He hooks his arms around your thighs to hold you in place as he devours you like a man starved. His tongue focuses on your clit, mixing figure 8s with sharp flicks that have you squirming against his hold. One hand snakes between your legs and the feeling of cold metal pressing at your heated entrance makes you moan loudly.

"Fuck- I love the way you taste." Bucky grunts against you, two fingers pushing into you with ease from how wet you are. You tangle your fingers in Bucky's hair as he pumps his fingers quickly, still laving your clit with attention from his tongue. It's too much too fast and you realize you're hurdling towards an orgasm incredibly quick.

"W-wait- Bucky I- I'm close. Holy-" Your broken plea does nothing to slow him down, in fact his fingers speed up as he grunts out a response.

"Let go for me doll, cum all over my fingers like a good girl." He commands before taking your clit fully between his lips and sucking on it until you have no choice but to do exactly what he said. You cum with a shaky whine of his name, body shaky even as you come down. Bucky continues to finger fuck you through it until your breathing slows marginally. With a tug on his hair you manage to pull Bucky up to kiss him. You can taste yourself on his lips and that only spurs you on as you tug his shirt over his head. Bucky clambers off the bed to tug off his shorts and before he can climb over you again you lean forward to take him into your mouth.

"Shit." He hisses, one hand instinctively tangling in your hair as you give him no time to adjust when you start moving your head up and down his length. A few minutes of grunts and expletives later he pulls your hair enough to get you to stop.

"Bucky." You pout ready to complain that he stopped you.

"Next time, you can do whatever the hell you want baby but right now- I just want to fuck you until you can't see straight alright?" He tells you and the look in his eyes is such a heady mix of adoration and lust that all you can do is nod. Bucky guides you to lay back by climbing over you and once you're in place, he slowly works his dick between your folds. "Relax for me sweetness." He tells you gently, though his voice is strained as he slides inch after inch inside you.

"'s too much." You whine out. You didn't properly look at Bucky's size when you took him into your mouth, you knew he was big but every time you think you can't take anymore Bucky pushes in another inch, and he's so thick.

"You can take it baby- I know you can." Bucky grunts.

"Fuck!" You fist the sheets beneath you when Bucky finally bottoms out. He only gives you a minute to adjust before he sets a rhythm of harsh thrusts that hit fast and deep.

"B-Bucky." You whimper.

"Fuck- that's it doll. Take this dick baby. God, you look good like this. And you're so fucking wet." Bucky's sinful words are pouring out fast and doing a number on your pleasure-hazed mind. All you can do is cry out his name like a mantra as he drills into you. You're so lost in what Bucky's doing you don't even hear the door open until a voice starts speaking.

"Hey Buck you said- oh uh shit. H-hi y/n." Whatever Steve was going to say is lost when he realizes his best friend is fucking the girl he's seeing, the girl they're both seeing.

"Say hi doll, don't be rude." Bucky says in your ear, hips not slowing.

"Hhhii Stevie, B-Bucky wait. Shit." You pant out, trying to get Bucky to stop or at least slow down so you can think.

"What's wrong? Don't like an audience?" Bucky taunts.

"H-he can stay if he wants just- i-if you're trying to give Stevie a show- we should give him, a better, view." You manage to get out. That stops  Bucky.

"A better view huh?" Bucky pulls out of you long enough to maneuver you into a new position and before you can even process the change he's pumping in and out of you again. Bucky's picked you up and is fucking you with your legs spread wide, facing Steve who is still frozen by the door. "Is that a good enough view you think doll?" Bucky's voice is gravely in your ear.

"I dunno- let's, ask. Stevie? How's the view?" You ask teasingly. With Bucky, he always manages to leave you tongue-tied but Steve, Steve is so easy to fluster it bolsters your confidence even as Bucky completely controls your body. Steve openly stares at you as a blush covers his cheeks.

"Stevie, she asked you a question. Answer her pal." Bucky grunts behind you, his pace not slowing.

"It's uh- view's fine. G-good. I like it." Steve breathes out nervously.

"She feels even better than she looks pal." Bucky tells his friend.

"Stevie- come here." Your voice is whiney as you call Steve over. Steve finally moves out of the door and makes his way over to the bed. "Kiss me- please." You pout at him. Steve frowns, uncertainty clear on his face. Bucky stops and rearranges you so suddenly that you gasp. He's positioned you on your knees and himself behind you.

"Steve, our girl asked you to kiss her." Bucky says thrusting back into you. Steve clears his throat and leans down to kiss you, muffling your moans against his lips. The longer you kiss him the more confident he seems to get, his hand wrapping around your throat and forcing you up against Bucky as he kisses you. In this position Bucky's dick brushes against a spot inside you on each thrust that forces you to throw your head back with a moan.

"Fuck! Fuck you feel so good inside me Bucky." You whine, your head lolling against Bucky's shoulder.

"Yeah? You like that baby?" Bucky's voice is raspy in your ear.

"God, yes!" You practically shout.

"You sound, so... pretty." Steve says tilting your head to look at him. The way he looks at you makes you whimper desperately. "That's it sweetheart, let us hear you." Steve hums, placing kisses on your neck, leaving hickeys alongside the ones Bucky left earlier. His fingers trail down your chest, twisting and pulling your nipples in a way that makes you want to squirm, though trapped between the two men you can't move much.

"She likes that Steve." Bucky chuckles.

"Does she?"

"Yeah, can feel her squeezing me."

"Stevie, Bucky." You moan their names, an incomplete plea.

"I know you like hearing her Steve but you should see what else she can do with her mouth." Bucky tells him.

"What else she can do?"

"Show him baby. He deserves some attention don't you think?" Bucky says to you. You gently shove at Steve's shoulders to make him back up.

"Sit. Please." You tell him, letting out a moan immediately after. "This is going to be the most distracting blowjob I've ever given." You chuckle breathlessly as Steve positions himself on the bed, leaning comfortably against the headboard.

"Get used to it lovely." You can practically hear the amusement in Bucky's voice behind you even as he drills into you. You take Steve in your hand and lick the bead of precum from the tip before pulling him into your mouth. Steve lets out a groan as you bob your head along his length.

"That feels good." He grunts. You suck him off eagerly, humming and moaning around him as Bucky continues fucking you. "Shit."

"She's good isn't she Steve?" Bucky asks.

"Yeah- yeah she's good. Fuck and she looks gorgeous doing it." Steve moans.

"Doesn't she? Our pretty little slut." Bucky huffs out. Your whine at Bucky's words is muffled as you continue sucking Steve off.

"I think she liked that Buck." Steve hisses.

"I think so too. Maybe you should ask her."

"You like that sweetheart? Bucky calling you our slut?" Steve asks you. You blink up at him and try to nod as best you can with his dick in your mouth. Bucky pulls you off of Steve with a hand around your neck.

"I wanna hear you say it baby." Bucky growls in your ear.

"I like it. Like being called your slut. I like being your slut." You pant out, your voice sounding harsher than you expected.

"Good girl, now do what a proper slut should and choke on Steve's dick yes? If you do well I'll let you cum on mine." Bucky says letting go of you. You go back to sucking Steve off, swallowing him down as far as you can. Steve tangles a hand in your hair and forces you further on his dick until you're gagging. His hips snap up repeatedly and tears spring into your eyes as Steve starts fucking your face almost as fast as Bucky is fucking your pussy.

"That's it sweetheart, look so good with my dick shoved down your throat." Steve groans.

"Such a good little whore, taking dick like you're made for it." Bucky says.

"I think she was made for it Buck. Isn't that right princess? Made to be our perfect little slut, stuffed full of dick til you can't take anymore." You moan around Steve at his filthy words, the vibrations making him throw his head back.

"Pea- cah I cuh? Pea-pea-" You try to speak, though your words are lost with Steve shoving his dick in and out of your mouth.

"Sorry princess, didn't quite get that. What did you say?" Bucky taunts.

"I think she wants to cum Bucky." Steve muses.

"Does she now? Is that it baby? You wanna cum?" Bucky asks. You try to nod and whimper around Steve.

"You told her she could if she choked on my dick like a good little whore. She's taking this face fuck real well." Steve says looking down at you. "God she's giving me fuck me eyes. You haven't had enough yet sweetheart?"

"Alright princess, Stevie thinks you've been good, I think you've earned it." Bucky says, metal arm wrapping around your waist to toy with your clit. The extra stimulation makes you whine. Bucky's other hand grabs your hip to stop your squirming as he rubs circles at your bundle of nerves. You're so wound up that it only takes a few minutes for Bucky to get you to the edge.

"Go on sweetheart, cum for us. Let Bucky feel you cum all over his dick." Steve encourages, finally giving you a reprieve. You moan loudly as your orgasm hits you with Steve's permission, your hand squeezing Steve's thigh as Bucky fucks you through your orgasm. Bucky keeps going, even as the aftershocks of your release wear off.

"Fuck baby. You feel, so, fucking, good. I'm gonna fill you up real good princess. Gonna pump you so fucking full of cum and then Steve's gonna fuck it into you and fill you up again."

"God yes! Please- please please please fill me up Bucky. I want it so bad." You beg.

"Fuck I love the way you beg." Bucky grunts. A few thrusts later his hips stutter and still as heat floods your walls and you whine. Bucky and Steve give you know time to recover, the two of them exchange a look before they manhandle you into a new position. Together, they put you on Steve's dick and immediately start fucking you on it. Bucky's hands at your waist move you up and down on Steve's length as he fucks up into you.

"O-oh shit. Fuck that feels good." You moan. One of Bucky's hands goes back to your clit, playing with the almost too sensitive nub. Steve wraps his lips around one of your nipples.

"Go on baby, cum for us again. Give us one more and Steve will fill your pretty little cunt." Bucky says in your ear. At Bucky's encouragement your third orgasm hits you with a silent scream.

"Did she just-"

"Oh shit." Bucky chuckles and you force your eyes open to find out why they reacted that way. Your orgasm has drenched Steve in clear liquid. You squirted. "You made quite the mess pretty girl." Bucky says.

"I didn't me-"

"Do you think we can make her do it again?" Steve asks Bucky, cutting off your attempted defense.

"I think we can. I did tell her she only needed to give us one more though." Bucky says.

"Since when do you care about being nice?" Steve quirks an eyebrow at Bucky, making him laugh.

"Well doll, Stevie wants to see you squirt again so I'm gonna make you cum one more time for us alright?" Bucky hums, toying with your clit again. You jerk instinctively at the touch, still sensitive from your last orgasm.

"Come on sweetheart. Be a good girl and cum on my dick." Steve says.

"F-fuck- it's too much." You whimper, grinding against Steve as he keeps fucking up into you.

"Take it baby. I know you can. Be a good little whore and cum for us." Bucky edges, his fingers unrelenting as they push you towards another orgasm.

"Go on sweetness. Lemme see that pretty pussy squirt all over my dick." Steve grunts.

"I-I'm- close- fuck I'm so close." You whine.

"Cum doll, cum like a good little slut and Stevie will fill you up like your our cute cum bucket." Bucky says in your ear. You let out a curse as your orgasm washes over you quickly. "Good girl." Bucky hums.

"Fuck I could watch you squirt like that all day." Steve grunts. His hands tighten around your waist as he drills into you. "I'm gonna fill you up so fucking good. Pump you full of cum you'll be dripping with Bucky and me for days."

"Yes please! Please Stevie- please cum in me. Fill me up Steve please!" You whine. Steve pulls you down onto him harshly and you gasp at the feeling of his cum shooting into you. You fall forward onto Steve's chest with a sigh.

"You alright there doll?" Bucky asks, rubbing his hand down your back.

"'M okay." You mumble, burying your face in Steve's neck as you slowly come down. "I've been dating both of you." You mutter after a few moments. At this point there's no point in hiding it.

"Yeah we know." Bucky chuckles.

"You know!?"

"We're each others' closest friends angel, of course we'd talk about our dating lives at some point." Steve says.

"When did you find out?" You frown.

"We'll have a whole conversation about it when you're not barely staying with us." Bucky says kissing your forehead. You want to protest but at this point you're barely able to keep your eyes open. A conversation will be had, but first you need a nap. 

***

[captains-simp]

Hello, congratulations to your followers, I can ask Yelena Belova x reader who is very shy and has a perverted mommy and on a mission she meets Yelena and then the two fight and Yelena grabs the reader by the neck and hits her against the wall and by accident the reader drops a mommy and then Yelena grabs the reader by the wrists of her arms and throws her on the carpet and subdues her while holding her wrists on either side of her head, the rest can you continue?💗💗💗

Mommy Yelena cuming right up

1.5k words

Warnings: mild violence, gun play, coercion, non-con, dub-con, degrading and fingering

[ masterlist ]

~ ~ ~ ~ ~

"Fuck, fuck, fuck!" You cursed under your breath as you continued to run down the darkened hallway like your life depended on it. Honestly, it might have.

You couldn't hear the other woman but you knew she was close by. She was stealthy, agile, professional. You weren't any of that. You were simply someone who had been in the wrong place at wrong time a long time ago that had led you down the criminal road. You shouldn't have been there - in that building, with her. You were a good person. But the woman hunting you didn't care about that.

The hallway was getting too dark to see more than a few inches infront of you and you had no idea where you were. You didn't know the building layout well. You had only been there a couple of times before. But you has an unnerving feeling the other woman knew the layout like the back of her hand.

Each time your feet slapped against the concrete floor you became increasingly aware of how much noise you were making. Combined with your heavy breathing and muttered curses, you were practically sending up a flare signal.

You finally glimpsed a small light up ahead and as you got closer realised it was light spilling out from the cracks behind a door. Everyone had left in such a hurry it was no surprise a light had been left on somewhere. You felt reassured at the knowledge the electricity of the building hadn't been cut entirely.

You opened the door as little as possible in hopes it wouldn't be noticed by the woman, where ever she was. You put your back to the door and closed your eyes as you tried to steady your breathing, imagining yourself to be anywhere else.

When you opened your eyes again you saw you were in the main office of the building. It looked as though it had been ransacked. Probably everyone trying to dispose of any evidence when they were alerted to the woman's arrival.

The main desk was overturned as were the filing cabinets. Drawers and papers were scattered across the carpeted floor along with the occasional cigarette amongst them.

With a shaky breath, you stepped away from the door and to the a cabinet that was still standing. You lowered it as slowly as you could to the floor which was considerably hard with your lack of body strength.

You stepped back and deemed the barricade enough for the time being before you searched the room for a light switch so the woman wouldn't notice the room the sake way you had.

But your breath caught in your throat when you cane face to face with the woman you had been running and hiding from for hours. She crept out from behind the desk with a handgun pointed right at you, a stoic look upon her face when your eyes met.

You knew she would have no issue killing you, that your only hope was to cooperate with her so you slowly raised your shaking hands up.

"Against the wall." She demanded. You turned around and put your hands flat against the wall and squeezed your eyes shut when you heard her heavy boots approaching you. You had briefly caught sight of her when she arrived. You saw how she soundlessly crept up behind men to snap their necks. She was being deliberately loud. She was trying to scare you. And it was working.

"It's taken me an annoyingly long time to catch you." She spoke against your ear, her warm breath feeling like fire against your vulnerable neck. "You just keep squirming away." She continued to taunt as she roughly grabbed your left hand from the wall and pinned it behind your back, slamming you against the cold wall as she did so. You grunted and she chuckled quietly behind you.

"It'll make it much more enjoyable to but a bullet in your head." Your eyes widened and your breathing sped up as panic spread through you like wildfire.

When Yelena grabbed your other wrist you found yourself kicking out in defiance, not ready to sign your death warrant. You kicked at her legs behind you and while she narrowly avoided you, her grip faltered letting you break free and stumble sideways.

You leaped behind the fallen desk as you heard gun shots being fired, non of them hitting you. You waited for her to get closer before you reached up to smack the gun out of her hands and in response she slapped you. She fucking slapped you. Of all the attacks she could have gone with that was certainly the one you expected the least. But it was a bloody good one.

You spun around and fell to the ground from the force of the slap. Once you got your bearings you looked up to see the blonde approaching you with quick heavy steps again and the gun back in her hands.

You started to kick your feet out to back yourself away from the woman who was staring down at you in frustration and a hint of something else. You tried to get back up onto you feet but she shoved you down once, twice, three times, until she straddled your waist and held the gun up to your head.

You whimpered and closed your eyes in terror as Yelena gripped your chin in her hand to hold your head still. You waited to hear the gun shot. Or rather not hear it but be greeted by whatever followed death. You expected something. Not the excruciating silence that came.

You tentatively opened your eyes and saw Yelena's grey ones studying your features like you were a rare artifact. Your breathing was shaking as you stared back at her.

"You're so nervous." She pointed out in general interest.

"You're holding a gun to my head." You said shakily.

"I am." She noted. Then a smile that you certainly didn't trust crept onto her lips. "So you'll do what I say, won't you?"

When you didn't respond she pinned both your hands above your head with one hand and lowered herself down so her face was inches above yours.

"You're going to behave for me, printsessa. You're going to be so good for me." She husked as she stared down at you hungrily. You nodded your head silently, wanting whatever she had planned to be done and over with, the anticipation was killing you.

"Use your words." She whispered against your neck.

"Yes." You whispered back making the blonde grin.

Her surprisingly soft lips met your neck gently at first. You almost sighed under the contact until she sucked harshly on the skin there. You bit your lip to muffle a moan and wasn't even aware of Yelena's wandering hands, not even when they were undoing your zipper.

But when her hand slipped under your jeans and rubber harshly over your clit you bucked your hips up before you even knew what was happening. In response, Yelena dropped the gun and brought her hand up to your neck. Her fingers wrapped around it tightly and slammed your head back against the hard floor.

"Mommy." It slipped out so easily and so suddenly even Yelena faulted. But she soon recovered and squeezed down on your neck, hoping to hear the title again. You squirmed underneath her in shame and wouldn't meet her eyes.

"Oh? You like this, slut? You like when your mommy puts you back in your place?" You moaned in response despite your mind's inner protests.

Yelena's fingers dipped further and a throaty moan came from her when she felt how wet you were through your panties.

"Such a fucking whore." She spat and moved your panties aside to roughly thrust two fingers inside you, setting an instantly overwhelming pace.

"Mommy." You moaned again and went to bring her closer but you were reminded of her strong grip on your wrists.

Her fingers curled inside you with each thrust that brought you more and more pleasure. She fingered you in earnest, knowing that everytime she thrust back into your pussy her palm pressed against your throbbing clit.

"So fucking wet." Yelena groaned as she pushed a third finger into you. Your moans grew louder and your breathing became raged as you approaching your high.

"I can feel you clenching around me, slut. You want to cum?"

"Please!" You begged shamelessly, only wanting to release. "Please make me cum." Yelena grinned down at you as she curled her fingers again and watched your face contort in pleasure.

"Cum for me, slut." She ordered and that was all it took to send you over the edge. Yelena fucked you through your high and preened as she felt you coat her fingers with your cum.

"You know." Yelena mused as she pulled her fingers out to marvel in the mess you made while you lay tired and defeated. "I might just have to keep you."

[cherrykindness]

let's make babies |

pairing: Harry Styles x Actress!Reader

summary: you and harry are doing a live on instagram, you've drunk a lot of wine and now the world knows that the future Mrs. Styles is ready to make babies.

warnings: mostly cute, but the title tells you what you need to know 🤪

"What is your favorite song from the Fine Line album?" Y/N read aloud, twirling in her right hand the second glass of wine of the evening, the one already halfway through. "Adore You and Watermelon Sugar, of course."

Harry giggled, rolling his eyes upon hearing his fiancée's statement.

"Y/N will always choose Adore You because it was obviously written for her." He accused. "She wouldn't give that answer under different circumstances."

The comments climbed up the screen continuously, most fans gushing about how cute Harry Styles and YN/LN could be while the other part was concerned with wringing even more information out of the slightly inebriated couple who had decided to do a surprise live one early Sunday morning.

As expected after being away for some time to begin filming Don't Worry, Darling in Southern California, Harry enjoyed a lazy weekend in the house he shared with his fiancée and her pets. The days were filled with late naps and relentless Netflix marathons, sublime and ethereal evenings, marked mostly by unexpected declarations and rounds of sex that used to last until the beams of light were shyly coming through the linen curtains. They were not a monotonous couple, so this order could easily be changed.

"Watermelon Sugar is nothing more than about my love for watermelons, don't get too creative." Harry replied to a fan while sporting a corner smile, the message standing out among the rest for its dozens of emojis and large print, questioning the singer about erotic content behind the lyrics of his latest hit. "I really don't know what you guys are talking about."

Y/N laughed, shaking her head before leaning it against her fiancé's chest, propped up on the soft white pillows that were spread practically all over the bed. The air conditioner was on at a minimal temperature and a light rain whipped on the panes of glass camouflaged by the cream-colored curtain, that being the projection of Y/N's favorite nights.

"You can tell them, I'm not shy." She joked, nudging her fiancé's waist.

"You know what it was written about and who it was written for." Harry replied, raising one of his eyebrows. "That's what matters."

It went without saying that much of Harry's newest album, as well as some of his earlier work, had been done in exclusive dedication to his future wife. Y/N had been the muse for a vast repertoire of romantic songs, and even though the singer preferred to keep the story behind his more explicit compositions a "secret", the relationship the two had shared for more than three years was already solid and known enough for the media and fans to distinguish hidden messages in small details.

"It's a song about what usually comes before the act of making babies." Y/N laughed as he pointed at the display. "Honestly, you guys are impossible."

"No, we make babies every day." Harry joked, making a funny motion with his eyebrows. "I would spend my entire career writing just about that."

"Harry!" The actress exclaimed incredulously, slapping her fiancé weakly on the chest. "Children might be watching this."

"You don't want to have babies with me?" He asked falsely offended, accepting the cup that Y/N offered him. "Because I want some babies with you."

Y/N laughed, rolling her eyes as she watched the internet freak out at the dialogue that had suddenly emerged. Since the beginning of the quarantine, it was kind of inevitable that the couple of artists would not become the darlings of all social media; they were fervently active with photos, videos, and lives that depicted step by step daily life in isolation, gaining more and more followers and making the media more and more fascinated by the relationship they both shared.

The wedding was scheduled for the summer of next year and it was perhaps the most anticipated event in the tabloids. Bets about what the model of Y/N's dress would be and lists presuming who would be selected for the short list of guests stood out among countless news stories about the famous people influencing pop culture today.

The possible arrival of a Styles baby was an inevitable topic in interviews. Harry and Niall were the only members of the ex-boyband that had not become fathers yet, and because they had maintained a solid relationship and were seen as one of the most enviable couples during the last four years, Y/N and Harry had gotten used to all this openly asked questions. They didn't mind, they even had fun with the montages and all the anxiety that dominated the whole internet, often mentioning the fandoms' efforts to represent them as such "cool" parents in perfectly edited pictures.

"No, guys, I'm not pregnant." Y/N amusingly clarified the doubt of dozens of new comments. "Please don't believe so many controversial news stories that appear out there. I was on twitter last week and saw several people theorizing about a possible pregnancy, most of the arguments based on a website that used photos from the set of How to Get Away with Murder in the season where I was actually playing a pregnant woman as Laurel." She laughed. "It's so funny! I know you guys love to guess these things, but we won't hide something so special when it actually happen, I promise."

"Especially because Y/N can hide absolutely nothing from anyone." Harry accused, leaving his drink on the corner table before settling into a comfortable position for the two of them. "Anyone who's a Marvel fan knows that. That's one of her most characteristic quirks."

"They gave me a fake script for the last two movies." Y/N agreed, shaking his head. "For me and Tom."

"We agreed to keep the engagement a secret for a while. The plan was to travel to Holmes Chapel to break the news to my family in person, but guess who got a call at ten o'clock at night from an angry Anne because she learned of her son's engagement from an interview Y/N gave the next day?"

Y/N gave a guilty smile, winking gracefully at the camera. "It was all James' fault! I'm sure he already suspected something, those questions were very suspicious."

"Of course the questions were suspicious, babe. You literally said you had a secret that involved both of us but that you couldn't tell because it was important that our families knew first."

"I thought he would think about a pregnancy or something!" The actress defended herself, feeling very convincing in her intonation bordering on obviousness. "That's a mania I can't get rid of, it's in my genes."

"Did you all hear that? Further proof that you guys don't have to worry about guessing when Y/N's pregnancy will be, I'm sure our baby will make sure to tell you everything while still in the womb, mom's genes will make sure of that."

"You are so funny, Harry Styles." Y/N sarcastically stated, holding back a giggle as countless messages with laughing emojis were frantically up. "Yeah, I know I talk a lot and all, but you have annoying quirks too."

It was obvious that live would be news the next day. Although they were completely open about matters concerning their relationship, nothing seemed better than receiving so much exclusive information from a Harry and S/N drunk on expensive wine.

"You wake up in a bad mood and you're dangerously sexy, that should be illegal."

Harry laughed, holding his fiancée's waist a little tighter as he felt her tumble a little further to the side, getting closer and closer to the edge of the bed. Y/N was dangerously weak for drinks, and the singer knew that the actress' body was already near its limit.

"You're the only sexy person here, love." He declared with a corner smile, evidently finding the whole situation funny. "Do you want to go to sleep now?"

"No." Y/N shook her head. "Can we watch some movie? Can we watch Sweet Home?"

"Of course, love." He murmured, giving the woman a quick kiss on the forehead.

Even though Harry knew that his fiancée was unlikely to make it past the five-minute mark of the episode, he made sure to restart the korean series at exactly the scene where she had stopped, the first chapter still halfway through after Y/N realized that it would be impossible to watch such a macabre work without a drop of alcohol in her blood.

She had been so excited by the taste of Argentinian wine and the idea of updating her fans after a few weeks away, that she had forgotten the main purpose of the live. Harry and Y/N had been apart for a few days due to the new movie the Brit was shooting in North America, all happening in an unrestrictedly careful manner due to the restrictions caused by the pandemic.

He was slowly migrating towards acting and the future Mrs. Styles couldn't be prouder. Y/N had felt on cloud nine when Harry had given her the news of his upcoming job, but her only pronouncement on the subject had been a succinct post on instagram. Just a photo of the couple on a trip to Germany with a simple heart emoji didn't seem enough for the actress' exhibitionist soul, and coming to that conclusion was the main reason she decided to invite him, already relatively changed, for a live appearance. Y/N wanted to go on and on about how much she loved that man and work on that whole honeyed speech that would bring her (once again) the title of "cutest bride of all time," but of course Harry had to come home from his trip with his favorite red wine and poison her with those sweet caresses that took her out of orbit, turning the degree of alcohol content into the least of her problems.

"You're going to kiss Florence." Y/N exclaimed suddenly, as if only now realizing that her fiancé would share the screen with Florence Pugh, one of her closest friends in that industry. "Kiss on the mouth."

The MacBook was still open and hundreds of new comments were going up every second, but Harry didn't bother one bit to warn her about the possibility of her becoming a meme the next day. He was having too much fun with the situation to worry.

"Are you jealous?"

"Yes." She stated with a pout. "I am jealous, I just don't know if I'm more jealous of her or of you."

"But you kiss me every day, babe." Harry laughed. "And you've been kissing other people's men for almost ten years." He joked.

"But I only think about you, I already told you that."

Harry shook his head negatively at the camera, knowing he was sharing with the fans the funniest side of his fiancée.

"I know that, honey." He assured, lightly stroking the actress' back. "I think we'd better turn off the TV and go to sleep now, I'm sure you'll have a terrible headache tomorrow."

The brit planned to bid his audience goodbye and put an end to that recording, but Y/N was drunk and her sense of right and wrong had already gone to space. Harry should have been quicker, however, because his fiancée's speech would be cause for new tags and the only subject for the interviewers for at least the next few months.

"I don't want to sleep, how about we make babies?"

That's what Watermelon Sugar was all about, after all.

[late-to-the-party-81]

Hitching a Ride

A/N: I hope you enjoy this instalment from Artist Steve and Engineer Bucky. It is part four in the series. Steve finds a way to stop you getting lonely while he's away.

Un-beta'd. Dividers by @firefly-graphics. Moodboard and banners by me.

Part Three

Part Five

Find my Masterlist here

Relationship: Steve x Reader (established), Bucky x Reader (pre-poly)

Word Count: 2.7k

CW: Smut! (fingering, female masturbation with the use of sex toys, male masturbation, exhibitionism, voyeurism)

There were many great things about dating Steve. As a talented artist he got invited to some of the best parties, could get on the waiting list for classy restaurants. As a man he knew how to take you apart piece by piece and then put you back together again.

The worst thing about dating Steve was when he had out of town gallery showings. This would lead him to be gone from anywhere between 1-3 weeks depending on where he was going and the size of the exhibition.

But this showing was by far the worst- he was going to England of all places and would be gone two months! Two whole, fucking months! Or rather no-fucking months.

You’d tried to negotiate some time off so you could go and join him for a bit, but the best your boss could do was 4 days, and with the flight time and the jet lag Steve told you to leave it and you’d make do other ways.

So you’d been calling and sexting and masturbating so much you’d decided that you needed rechargeable toys because of the number of batteries you were getting through, and it had only been two weeks.

That morning as you’d dragged yourself out of bed, knocking a run-down vibrator off on to the floor, Steve had sent you a text.

Stevie: Hey my Calliope, head to mine tonight, I’ve organised a delivery for you.

Xoxoxoxo

Well, that was intriguing. It wasn’t like he didn't know your address, so why didn’t he have whatever it was delivered directly to you?

You’d have mused further, but you needed to get to work, and hoped you’d be busy enough to keep your mind from wandering too much.

It was almost 7pm by the time you made it to Steve’s loft. He’d given you a key a while back, and you’d promised to water the plants and air the place whilst he was away, so you let yourself in.

You walked in to sound of music playing on the stereo and the smell of cooking.

What the fuck? Was someone squatting at Steve’s?

You pulled you pepper spray from your bag and held it at the ready as you turned from the small corridor into the main open plan area, only to find a familiar brunette dancing around.

“Fuck! Bucky! What are you doing here?”

“I’m your delivery man, darlin’. Stevie boy asked me to deliver a gift to you and also give you some company for a bit. That alright with you?”

“Absolutely!”

You gave him a big hug and pressed a kiss to his cheek.

“What you cooking?”

“Steak and french fries.”

“Yum. Now, where’s my present?”

You made grabby hands at him and he lightly smacked you with a wooden spoon.

“After dinner. You are definitely trouble. No wonder Steve’s always having to spank you. Loved the latest photos by the way. Very stimulating!”

He waggled his eyebrows at you and you rolled your eyes in response.

“Perv!”

“No, I’m a kettle and you’re a pot.”

Bucky was great fun, and it was nice to have this time to connect with him without Steve here, as he inevitably became the centre of attention. He kept you entertained over dinner, telling you stories from his and Steve’s childhood.

“No-one else could believe it when we came back for senior year and he’d grown a foot over the summer. They weren’t so quick to try and beat on him then. Although to be fair, he always gave it back harder before then, anyway.”

You laughed at his story and he showed you some old pictures that he had uploaded to his phone, back when they were ‘Lady-killer’ and ‘Shrimp’. To be honest, even when he was short and skinny, there had definitely been something about Steve. You’d like to hope you would have given him the time of day back then.

After dinner you helped Bucky clear away, insisting you do the washing up as he’d cooked and that would only be fair.

“Okay darlin’, your gift from Stevie is in the bedroom, but I gotta just sort a few things out, then you can come in.”

“Colour me intrigued!”

“Just sit and relax, sweet thing.”

You didn’t need to be told twice, so you sank down into the comfortable sofa and pulled your phone out to message Steve.

Calliope: Had a lovely dinner with Bucky.

He told me all the stories of Shrimpy Steve.

You were still super cute :*

He sorting out my gift now, can’t wait to see it.

Normally, when you texted Steve he would message right back, but then you realised the time difference- it was the middle of the night over in England, so it wasn’t surprising.

You turned as you heard Bucky’s footsteps .

“All ready for you darlin’!”

You grabbed hold of Bucky’s arm and pressed a kiss to his cheek, and then, with barely restrained enthusiasm, almost skipped to Steve’s bedroom.

The lighting was dim, only the two side lamps on to provide illumination. For a moment you didn’t see it, but as you moved into the room, the light bounced off of an unfamiliar object.

Black leather, like a saddle on top of a small box. You gasped as you saw the dildo arching up off it.

Spinning on your heel to look at Bucky you saw the laptop perched on the chest of drawers, Steve’s smiling face looking at you from the screen.

“Hey, my Cali. Do you like it baby?”

“You really bought me a Sybian? You thought I’d be that sex starved?”

“Yes, I thought you would be craving it, but no, I didn’t buy it. I asked Bucky to make it.”

Your head snapped around and caught the big grin on Bucky’s face. He sauntered across the room until he was in the frame with you.

“Tell her the best bit, punk.”

You were amazed to see a flush form up your, normally dominant, boyfriend's throat and across his cheeks. His hand rubbed the back of his neck, a clear sign of his embarrassment.

“Well, erm, sweetheart. If you go have a real good look and maybe a feel…erm…”

“What this idiot is trying to say, darlin’, is that it’s modelled on him. Cos he thought you’d really be missing him.”

He moved closer to you, sliding an arm around your waist, pulling you close and flashing his grin between you and his friend on the screen.

“And I’ll tell you, I had great fun getting that mould sorted!”

He waggled his eyebrows and you giggled. You wrapped your arms around him, giving him another kiss on the cheek.

“Thank you, Bucky. I’m sure it was an absolute chore making this.”

Steve chuckled over the internet connection, embarrassment now gone.

“So, my muse, you going to try it out and show us how much you like it?”

It was your turn to look embarrassed now. But Bucky pulled you in tight, nuzzling at your neck.

“Don’t be shy darlin’. Stevie really wants to see you. And if you’ll allow it, I’d like to see to, you know, just to make sure it really…satisfies.”

Your heart was racing and you could feel the dampness in your panties. Your thighs pressed together instinctually and a small moan escaped your lips.

“Can Bucky stay, sweetheart?”

“Yes…” The confirmation left your mouth like a sigh.

Bucky’s hands moved from where they were linked around your waist to grasp the hem of your top. He started to pull it up over your head and you let him.

“Just gonna help you get ready. You tell me when to stop, okay.”

You nodded, words failing you now the fog of need was covering you. He popped the button on your jeans, sliding them down your thighs, and you shimmied to help their descent, kicking them off with your pumps so you were clad just in your underwear. Your head was swirling.

“Steve….”

“Yeah, Cali?”

“Would you mind if I kissed Bucky?”

You felt the smile against your skin and you saw an echoing one split the computer screen.

“Whatever makes you happy, sweetheart. You know Buck and I have no secrets.”

You smiled in response before turning in Bucky’s arms to face him.

“Help warm me up, Bucky?”

“Anything you want, darlin’.”

His lips moved over yours, soft and plump, his stubble scratching your cheek.

His large, calloused hands rested on your hips, thumbs toying with the waistband of your panties, letting you lead this. Your hands reached up behind you, to unclasp and discard your bra, before you grabbed Bucky’s tattooed left arm and pushed his hand under the flimsy fabric and towards your core.

“That’s it, Cali, let Buck make you feel good and get you ready.”

You moaned into Bucky’s sinful mouth as his fingers slid into your wetness, toying with your clit briefly before he plunged two of his thick digits into you. Your head fell back and you gripped his biceps, sure you would have fallen if it weren’t for his right arm still around your waist.

“She’s so wet Stevie, I bet she can’t wait to ride your cock.”

You could make out Steve’s slightly ragged breathing, and you knew he was already fully aroused from watching you.

“More, Bucky, please…”

The needy whine fell unbidden from your throat. He chuckled and added a third finger, stretching you wide, the squelching noises obscenely loud in the otherwise quiet room.

You turned his head back to you, kissing him aggressively and he let out a small growl. Your hand travelled down to the fastening of his jeans, flicking the button open, and sliding down the zipper. His cock, still encased in the fabric of his boxers, almost lurched into your hand. You’d seen it before, but never felt it, and now you desperately wanted to.

“Bucky, can I touch you?”

“Sure, sweet thing.”

Your hand slipped behind the soft cotton and took hold of his length. He devoured your mouth as you swiped your thumb over the broad head, smearing the pre-cum you found there.

A loud groan rang out and the pair of you turned to look at Steve.

“You two are killin’ me!”

He fumbled with the camera at his end, angling it down to show you his own cock, hard, flushed and weeping, one of his hands tight around the base.

“I wanna see you riding your present, Cali.”

You nodded, almost dumbly, reluctantly letting go of Bucky and whimpering when he pulled his fingers from you. But when he brought them to his mouth and cleaned your essence from them you thought you were going to collapse.

“Come on darlin’, time for the main event. See if I’ve got this thing right for you.”

He gently steered you the couple of steps back over towards the black leather sybian. You sank down onto the seat, behind the phallus, uncaring that your juices were smearing all over the smooth surface. Your finger wrapped around the copy of Steve’s cock, almost on instinct, and you registered the familiar shape, the flare of the head, and the way Bucky had replicated the thick vein that ran down the underside.

Bucky himself knelt down behind you, one hand settled on your hip and his chin on your shoulder, peering over as you explored his work. With his other hand he retrieved a bottle of lube from his jeans pocket, popped the cap and drizzled some over the top of the fake cock. You spread it around without a word, and when you felt his hand tighten on you, you rose up, shifted forward, and started to fuck yourself onto it.

Little gasps left you as you worked yourself down, familiar and unfamiliar sensations warring within you. Those gasps turned to a satisfied sigh as you fully seated yourself, feeling full and stretched.

The saddle itself had a small textured area just in front of the dildo, and as you shifted it rubbed against your clit where the little nub stood proud from its hood.

“How’s it feel sweetheart? Did Buck do a good job?”

“So good Stevie. I miss you so much.”

You felt a kiss to your shoulder before Bucky’s voice was rumbling in your ear.

“Ready for it to feel even better?”

You didn’t even get the chance to answer before he leant around you to press at a button on the side.

Another involuntary moan of pleasure escaped you as the dildo part started to move inside you, pressing against your g-spot before moving away and then back again.

With both hands on your hips now, your boyfriend’s best friend encouraged you to ride the machine, up and down, as the facsimile of Steve’s dick pressed against the insides of you in the best way. Your hands gripped the edges of the saddle to give yourself more leverage.

You lost yourself to the sensations, Bucky’s warm chest against your back, his hands guiding you, and, for all intents and purposes, Steve’s dick inside you. You could hear your boyfriends mumbles praises but couldn’t focus on them. You didn’t even really notice when one of Bucky’s hands left you, until you heard a small click and you were wailing as the saddle started to vibrate between your legs.

“Oh fuck!!”

Your clit was now front and centre in your thoughts as it was stimulated. Your weren’t riding the sybian now, more like grinding on it, and the movement inside you increased with a turn of a dial.

You babbled incoherently, and pulled the hand from your hip up to cup your breast. Bucky kissed your neck and jaw whilst rolling your nipple between his fingers.

“You okay if I get myself off as well, darlin’?”

You nodded as best you could, as Bucky’s free hand snuck into his pants and he started to jerk off behind you.

The room was filled with the sounds of moans and cries and gasps as you, Bucky, and Steve all the way over in England, worked yourselves towards your releases.

“Fuck, Cali, can’t wait to see you riding that in the flesh. Love watching you bounce on it. So glad Bucky’s there to help you feel good. Would be a crime to leave that pussy wanting. Need you to come for me. Need to see how Bucky and I make you feel.”

Bucky’s hand left your breast for a moment and he must have increased one of the settings because the vibrations intensified. The stimulation to your clit and your g-spot was making you go fuzzy, you could feel tears rolling down your face at how good it was, and then suddenly you were screaming, your vision whiting out, as you bucked and writhed on the sex toy beneath you.

You heard Bucky’s own cry in your ear as his cum splattered up your back and across your ass cheeks, and then Steve let out an answering groan from the screen.

You felt yourself being bent forward as Bucky reached to turn the sybian off.

“Stay their a moment darlin’, Stevie boy ain’t the only one who can take a good picture.”

You heard the snick of his camera phone as he took a picture of his spend marking your skin, before he got up and grabbed a washcloth from Steve’s bathroom.

He cleaned you up, lifted you up onto Steve’s bed, then grabbed a t-shirt from the drawer and pulled it over your head.

You lay, sleepy and sated, smiling to yourself, as Bucky brought the laptop over to sit on the bedside table.

Steve smiled at you through the screen.

“Miss you sweetheart, can’t wait to be home and holding you.”

A chiding voice broke in.

“Hey, what about me, punk! Don’t you miss me too?”

Steve laughed.

“‘Course I miss you, you jerk. Now, I gotta go because it is stupid o’clock here. Sleep well you two. Love you both.”

The screen went blank and you sighed.

“Want me to go or stay, sweet thing?”

“Please stay Bucky, I don’t want to be alone.”

He didn’t say anything, just shucked his jeans and climbed in behind you, wrapping his arm across your waist and pulling you tight against him.

You relaxed into his embrace and soon drifted off to sleep.

[sylverstorms]

Cassandra x Maiden----Anonymity Ch.5 (NSFW!)

Chapter 1 Chapter 2 Chapter 3 Chapter 4

'Cassandra's favorite', the other maids call you.

You can't tell if they mean it as a good or a bad thing. Hell, you can't even tell which of the two it really is.

Being her 'favorite' does not make you immune to harm in any way; bruises litter your shoulders and sides from when she grabs you too forcefully and cuts from her nails sting at your neck and stomach, renewed each time she comes to take a kiss.

None of that existed back when you were something of zero interest to her. On the other hand, she's told you several times you're 'a thing of beauty' --her thing of beauty-- and she won't let anything ruin a natural piece of art.

If you know anything about Cassandra, it is that she takes art very seriously. Your interpretation of the word greatly varies from hers, you're sure, but it doesn't change the fact she won't easily raise a sickle on you.

Cassandra won't break you. She won't let Daniela do so, either. Bela doesn't even care to hurt you. It means you're safe for now...

Unless Lady Dimitrescu decides you're best taken away from her daughter. Permanently. You don't dare meet her eyes, but you can feel them on you, scrutinizing, every night at dinner.

You're pretty sure she knows.

The thought sits heavy in your mind while you're cleaning bloodied steps off a corridor at three in the small hours of the morning, along with another maid. Adella is a quiet and hardworking one; the two of you make a good team and you know you'll be done in record time.

But it only takes a single moment for everything to go wrong.

Adella is hastily walking back to you with a bucket of fresh water in hand when you hear a different set of steps approach from the side. You make to warn her, but it's already too late.

The collision happens at the turn where the two passageways meet. As soon as you see black robes dripping wet you pray to whichever God will listen for mercy.

Because Cassandra has not been in a good mood all night and she is not the understanding type regardless.

Adella gasps and shakingly backs away, a waterfall of apologies spilling from her lips. Cassandra rolls her neck and draws her sickle, advancing on her slowly. She looks terrifying.

"Don't move now." she orders.

And you just- can't watch this. You don't know why, but the realization you cannot hits you like a speeding truck. You can't stand there while the the woman you frequently kiss cuts away at a girl you know is as good and compassionate as a human under your circumstances can possibly get.

You react.

Before you can even think how impossibly stupid you're being, you drop the mop in your hands and dash forward, crashing into Cassandra's form. Your right arm wraps around her waist and your left grips at her wrist like a vice. Your heart is pounding. You don't even know what you're saying;

"Cassandra, no! Please. Don't." Cold and rigid as she is, it may as well be a statue you're holding. "Cassandra, stop. Please." Once impulse dies down, you realize you've just signed your death wish for two seconds of playing hero.

And you thought you were smarter than that. Ha. But maybe, just maybe, part of you wants to die, so long as it's quick and painless.

With Cassandra, though, you doubt it. Especially with how lethal she sounds when she says:

"You. Disappear." You hear, rather than see, Adella scurrying off for her life. "As for you..."

You only register a blur, nausea, cold nails piercing at your neck, over already existing marks. You are shoved into the nearest wall so powerfully you can't breathe for all of ten seconds. It's a wonder you don't hear any cracks from within your body.

Cassandra is on you, her fingers harsh on your chin and breath chilly on your lips. "Good pets don't bark against their own masters. What made you so bold, hm?"

You don't answer, too busy summoning your mental strength for what comes next. The way her eyes and the lines of her pretty face have hardened, she looks nothing like the flirty girl who comes to steal kisses from you at random times during the night.

"Maybe I've been too nice to you. The first time you call my name and it's for some other maid?"

She looks like she wants to let out a bitter laugh, break something and slice you into stripes simultaneously. And then you realize; Cassandra is jealous.

It doesn't get any worse than that.

"Maybe I should make sure you never say anything again." The corner of her lips curls up in dark amusement as she talks. "You don't talk much, anyway."

Well. She did say she wouldn't let anyone ruin your looks. Never promised anything about what's on the inside.

You're shaking, even if her grasp doesn't leave much room to do so. Your brain is restlessly trying to come up with something to get you out of this mess-

"I'm of way more use to you with my tongue intact." you somehow manage to speak without stuttering. It makes you wonder where the hell this confidence came from.

Cassandra stills for a moment. Her grip eases the slightest amount, probably from surprise.

You wonder what the hell you're even doing, yourself, when you bring your hands to her sides and lean in, to the curve of her nice jawline. You've never kissed her neck before, but you remember from the times you've given her a massage that she's very sensitive around it.

Cautiously, you press your mouth to the soft spot under her ear.

She smells so good and her skin feels so smooth you're not exactly forcing yourself to kiss her. If you're going to be mutilated anyway, the part of you that must be severely messed up muses, you may as well take some pleasure for yourself beforehand. Who knows, it may change her mind along the way.

So you lick her there and suck over her faint pulse. You don't get any stimuli from her, at first.

Until her hand trails from your shoulder to your nape, urging you harder against her. It's the green light to keep going.

You put all your skill into it as you lavish her neck and collarbones with open-mouthed kisses. She's loose and moaning low in her throat now.

You can't tell why, but the sound echoes right though your adrenaline-induced system, tickles down your spinal cord to pool low in your stomach. You either had a kink for danger you never knew of, or you developed one in the castle.

Whatever the case, your fingers are working on the buttons of her outfit and she doesn't seem like stopping you has even crossed her mind.

When the robes barely hang onto her shoulders, Cassandra maneuvers you to the closest room, shuts the door and presses you against it. Hard. Your lips slide together hungrily. You taste wine on her tongue.

At this point, your hands are the only thing supporting her outfit on her. She looks too fucking sexy for words like this, half-undressed, lipstick smeared, so turned on and ready for you. But you also want to see more of her, so you let the black fabric drop.

She's getting impatient, though. Being more vocal, tugging your hand to the apex of her legs.

"Cassandra." you moan when you push the midnight lace of her panties aside and touch her. She's so wet.

Her mouth falls open in a soundless gasp, brows drawn softly. "Oh, you're lucky I like my name on your lips." she says, breathless.

You did start this trying to prove to her how useful your tongue can be attached to your body, however... so it's only fair that's how you finish it.

Finish her.

Cassandra looks dazed and confused when you kneel in front of her, but it's quickly replaced with a broken moan when you take her into your mouth. You revel in every single gasp you coax out of her, every minuscule shake of her perfect thighs.

She bites into her own hand when she reaches her peak, nails leaving four parallel marks on the wall.

You're gentlewomanly enough to pull her outfit up for her while she's coming down from her high. Your gaze takes its sweet time admiring the contours of her chest as you button it closed. She really is the most attractive girl you've ever seen, if you somehow don't take into consideration her body count.

"Good?" you ask when she opens her pretty eyes to look at you.

"It's not cute to be smug, plaything." Cassandra makes a soft grimace at you, though you can see the lazy, satisfied smile tugging at the corner of her lip. "But. I suppose your tongue has its uses to me, after all."

You gently push off the door to let her exit at her leisure. The movement makes you realize you won't really be able to move tomorrow, with how sore you already are.

To your surprise, Cassandra takes a moment longer in the room.

She turns back to you and raises her hands to your torso, then carefully adjusts your wrinkled shirt. Her long fingers smooth over the imperfections she caused...

And you don't know why after everything the two of you just did, it's this that feels the most intimate.

The same digits brush over your throat as she pulls away.

By the time your mind starts working right again, Cassandra is already gone. Absently, you trace over the weeping scratches on your neck.

-

-

Later, at the main hall of the castle...

"Oh, boo, look who's late again." Daniela rolls her eyes at Cassandra's fashionably delayed arrival.

"Surprise, surprise." Bela smirks, casually leaned against the side of the fireplace.

"Are you two done being insufferable or should I come by later?" Cassandra asks.

"And scar our ears and minds with another round of your 'oh's and 'ah's, sister? I think not." Daniela comments.

Bela raises an eyebrow in amusement. "Had a nice time?"

"You two have very active imaginations, you know? Tells a lot about you." Cassandra chuckles. "She was just giving me a massage. But do go on. Be thirsty. I can wait."

Daniela and Bela share a look, thrown off their game by the nonchalance.

Cassandra hides a smirk under her hood and steps out first, into the peerless dark.

[fanficimagery]

a field of daisies

Imagine running into a group of survivors that you decide to take a chance on and bring them home with you. Your decision ends up leading to a reunion no one saw coming, not even yourself.

Words: 7.1K Author's Note: TWD AU. This particular universe has a lot of characters and making sure everyone has a line or three is tough work, so I made up my mind to only keep a select few. This will take place after the prison has fallen, but before Terminus so the group is not as harsh because of what happened there. I get why everyone turned ruthless, but damn.. Rick got scary. Haha. Also, just so you know, Y/N is a powered individual (the gif of Wanda is just to show how your powers look/work). SPOILER ALERT! This piece of work is.. slow. There's nothing much to it- it's honestly just Y/N bringing the group into the fold. I've been having a rough few weeks and it really shows in my writing. I'm sorry this sucks, but I really needed to get something out.

It was pure dumb luck that Rick, Daryl, Michonne, Carl, Judith, Glenn, Maggie and Carol ended up together after the fall of the prison. Rick and Carl had fled together, Michonne followed the blood trail Rick had unknowingly left behind, and Daryl had later caught up to them because he was with a new group that was hunting Rick which he didn't know about until it was too late. Daryl, Rick and Michonne took care of things quickly, and it was a relief to Rick that Daryl still had his back.

Glenn and Maggie came a couple days later with Judith snuggled into a makeshift pack hanging off of Glenn's back, and the group stumbled upon Carol who kept them from entering the so-called sanctuary called Terminus. Apparently she had been keeping an eye on the place from afar, and after the horrors she witnessed Rick and the others were glad they just so happened to choose the entrance she was near so that she was able to stop them.

Hershel's death still weighed heavily on everyone's mind and Maggie was sad that she didn't know what had become of her sister Beth. Lots of people's fates were unknown, but the ones that left everyone the most downtrodden were those of the children that the prison had housed.

The group has taken momentary refuge in a barn, their spirits low and dwindling even more as the days pass. Food and water were scarce, and ammunition was pretty much nonexistent. Daryl had a handful of arrows left and everyone was left to depend on blades to protect themselves.

Judith's sudden cry pierces the quiet of the barn and everyone flinches. Rick readily gets to his feet, rushing towards his daughter and lifting her from the bed of hay they designated as her bed. "Shh. I got 'ya. I got 'ya, sweetheart."

Carl joins his father, frowning at his sister's reddening face. "She's hungry, isn't she?"

"We all are," Rick grumbles.

"There's got to be something out there," the young boy sighs. "A place we haven't come across or a house that's not been picked clean."

"Everyone's tired, Carl. We're all running on fumes." Rick continues to rock his baby girl, heart breaking when her wails only get louder and more desperate. "If we go searchin', we're likely to make a mistake and someone will lose their life."

"Well we can't let her starve."

Rick glances around his exhausted group, a look of determination in each of their features. He sighs and glances down at Judith in his arms. "Tomorrow. We'll go lookin' when the sun is up."

Carl nods and brushes his finger along Judith's brow before leaving his father to settle the baby down on his own.

          - - - - - - - - - - 

You'd been gone for a day and half now, intent on finding some things those in your community have asked for. Unfortunately everything close by had been picked clean which led you to driving further and further out, and right into an oncoming storm.

You tried to drive right on through it, but the rain just came down so hard to the point that you could not see through the windshield. And since it was nighttime, you knew there was a high chance you could wreck. So you pull off to the side, cut the engine and lean back in your seat to wait it out.

Thunder rumbles so loud it actually shakes the truck you're in and lightning strikes a tree not even a hundred yards away. "Oh screw this," you mumble to yourself. You turn the truck back on, carefully inching your way down the road and hope that you don't hit anything. But then lightning strikes again, you swerve on instinct, but are quick to slam on the breaks. "Shit."

There's a split second of reprieve from the rain- just long enough for you to see a building off in the distance. You know it's a dumb idea to even check it out, but you rather be in a barn struck by lightning than be in the truck. So after cutting the engine once more, you reach over to the passenger seat for your pack and beanie. Shoving the gray beanie down atop your head, you brace yourself before opening the door and hopping out.

Slamming the door behind you, you rush through the rain and towards the barn doors. Pushing on said doors, they open far too easily and you rush to close them behind you. Then with your back against the doors, you hold your hands aloft at your sides should you need to protect yourself from a dead skull or three. But surprisingly there are no dead in the barn, instead a group of the living around a small fire stare at you with wide eyes.

Immediately the people are on their feet with their weapons trained on you, a baby is passed off to a preteen, and the group of adults slowly advance on you.

"Whoa," you utter. "I did not know this place was occupied. I don't mean any harm. M'just tryin' to get out of the storm."

"Are you alone?" The man that had passed off the baby asks, a long barreled gun pointed at you.

His companions spread out- a guy with a crossbow hurrying to the wall to peek through the cracks. There's a Korean guy and a woman with hair just barely touching her shoulders standing side by side, blades in hand, and a black woman with a wicked looking katana held at the ready. The last woman with shortly cropped gray hair points a glock right at you without even blinking.

"Um, yeah."

"You don't sound so sure," he grunts.

"Well you're all pointing weapons at me," you say. "It's a little intimidating."

Crossbow guy returns to his friend's side, shaking his head and muttering something too low for your ears to catch. The main guy talking nods meeting your gaze once more. "Weapons?"

"None."

"Mind if we check?"

You shrug. "Have at it."

Spreading your arms out wider, you push off the barn doors and stand with your feet a little spread out as well. The woman standing next to the Korean guy steps forward and cautiously makes her way towards you. You meet her gaze, keeping your expression neutral, but give her a nod to let her know you were good with what was going on. Her hands land on your waist then, patting you down and checking for weapons.

Her hands slide up your sides and under your arms, and you press your lips tighter together when she hits your ticklish spot. A giggle ends up breaking free and you immediately apologize when she freezes. You think you see her faintly grin before she continues on down your legs and around your ankles.

"She's clean," the woman says as she stands back up and then steps back.

"What's in the bag?"

"My snacks," you muse. "I was looking for a few things and had to travel out further than normal. I've been driving for nearly two days now."

"You got a group?"

"I have a community." They seem to blink in surprise at that.

Crossbow guy looks at who you assume is their leader. "Explains the too clean clothes," he grunts. Then looking at you, he says, "But 'ya damn stupid to be out here with no weapons. It's a goddamn miracle 'ya survived this long."

"Mister, I am the weapon." That seems to make the tense all over again, frowning, and you sigh. "Look, I'm not normal. I don't need weapons because I am literally the ultimate weapon. Now if that makes you uncomfortable, I'll stay my butt over here and just wait out the storm. Then I'll be on my way and we never have to see each other again unless we run into each other in the future. That sound good?"

No one voices a complaint against you so you walk over to one of the wooden beams supporting the barn and take a seat on the ground. You get comfortable, stripping your pack off your back and setting it next to you. The group has no idea what to make of you so they continue to stare at you until the baby in the preteen's arms starts to fuss.

Minutes pass as the baby continues to wail, her cries only getting louder. The thunder doesn't seem as loud as before, so you know if there are any dead nearby they'll be drawn towards the barn because of the baby's cries.

"When was the last time she ate?" You ask when you see them shush and rock her in order to calm her. A few of them glance at you and it's then you actually take in their appearances. They're exhausted. They're hungry. They're desperate. "Actually when was the last time any of you ate?"

Crossbow guy grumbles, but it's the preteen boy who answers. "Days. A week or so maybe."

Frowning, you pull your pack into your lap and open it up. Rummaging around the inside, your hand wraps around a small mason jar with a spoon rubber banded around it and you grin triumphantly. "I, uh, I have this if you want it," you say as you hold the jar up. "Mrs. Stevens makes a mean cinnamon applesauce." Your grin slowly falls as you take in their stares. "Or not. I won't be offended."

"No." The gray haired woman steps forward. "We'll take it, but you need to eat a spoonful yourself first."

"Uh, yeah. Sure, but I don't know why.." Your brow furrows as you free the spoon from the rubber band and untwist the top, and then it hits you on why they want you to eat it first. You gasp as you stare up at them. "First off, rude! Do I really look like I'm capable of poisoning a baby?"

No one says a word at first and then, "Well you did say 'ya were different."

You roll your eyes at the crossbow wielding guy. "Not that kind of different." Sticking the spoon into the applesauce, you pull up a spoonful and shove it into your mouth. Swallowing, you place the spoon back in the jar and hold it up. "Happy? It's just cinnamon applesauce."

The leader rushes forward and grabs the applesauce from you, sniffing it as he walks back towards his group and taking a spoonful for himself. When he deems it okay, he then feeds it to the baby girl. Almost immediately, her cries turn to whimpers before ceasing all together.

"You guys are welcome to whatever's in my pack because, no offense, but you look like you need it more than I do."

The Korean guy is the first to crack, rushing towards your pack that you let him freely rummage through. "Is this- is this jerky?"

"Yep. Mr. Mills has a knack for drying out meat and smoking fish."

As he passes out the jerky, water, and a few MRE's, he then looks at you with an astonished expression. "I'm Glenn, by the way. And this is Maggie." The woman who had patted you down gives you a terse smile.

"Michonne," the katana wielding badass says.

"Carol."

The man feeding the baby glances at you. "I'm Rick. These are my kids Carl and Judith."

You look towards the crossbow guy, but he's shoveling an MRE into his mouth and not paying you a lick of attention. "Y/N," you then introduce yourself to them.

You watch them eat for a few seconds before you avert your attention, listening to the sounds outside the barn. The storm seems like it's finally dying down, but the moans and groans of the dead seem to be getting closer and closer now. You get up and walk towards the door, peeking through the cracks and quietly exhaling at the small herd heading straight for the barn.

"You guys have something to prop against the door? We've got incoming."

A scoff comes from crossbow guy. "Thought 'ya were the ultimate weapon?"

"Daryl!" Carol admonishes.

Your eyes narrow at Daryl who shrugs under the stares of his group and you sigh. "Fine. Whatever. All I ask is that whatever you see, you ask questions before you decide to attack."

"Why- why would you say that?" Glenn asks.

"Because like I said, I'm not normal."

With that you turn around, opening the barn doors and stepping back. Staring at the small herd that's coming in, your left arm lifts up and curls around the front of your face as your right arm lifts up underneath. The only difference is that your left hand starts to glow and you swing back briefly before thrusting your left arm out and sending off a red wave of energy that rushes through the heads of the dead ones and instantly drops them in their tracks. You walk forward then and shut the doors, only to turn around and have Daryl aiming his crossbow at you.

"Seriously?" Your arms hang limp at your sides.

"What the hell are 'ya?"

"Human, as far as I know," you say. You mentally sigh as everyone shifts nervously. "Just with a little extra oomph."

"That was some sci-fi bullshit 'ya just pulled there."

"Well whatever it is, it's come in handy since the world fell apart so I'm not complaining about it anymore."

Rick, having passed Judith off to Carl, steps forward. "This community of yours, are there any more people like you?"

You shake your head. "Nah. I'm the only one."

"How many people are you with?" Carol asks.

"Around twenty or so. Me and this little girl I came across a while back are the youngest. Everyone else is sixty-five or above." You huff. "Kid guilt tripped me into saving a few individuals from a retirement home we came across and gave me the idea of a place safe enough to almost be normal."

"Exactly how safe is this place of yours?" Maggie then wonders as she glances at Judith and Carl.

"There's a, uh, shield of sorts around this abandoned housing community. The dead bounce off the invisible walls and the living need permission to enter which I'm smart enough not to give."

"People try gettin' in before?" Daryl asks.

"A group of three about a couple months back. I would have given thought to letting them in, but my powers kind of misfired and I was able to read their minds," you sheepishly admit. "They- they were not good people. Not by a long shot."

"What happened to 'em?"

"I put them to sleep and had a talk with everyone inside the community." You shrug. "I didn't know what to do, so I asked for everyone's advice. It was either kill them or manipulate their memories and send them on their way."

"What did you do?" Carl asks. He's the only one who has a look of awe on his face.

"I kept them asleep and drove them out in a random direction. After about two days driving, I put them up in an abandoned house and let them wake up long after I had left."

"Why are you answering all our questions?" Michonne asks. "Someone like you, it seems like you'd keep your powers a secret."

"Honestly? You're the first kind group I've seen in a long while. You saw what I could do and yet you asked questions first rather than letting Daryl put an arrow in me."

"Would my arrow have even reached 'ya?"

You smile at Daryl's grumpy expression. "Not even close." There's a challenge in his eyes and his arm twitches, but Rick shakes his head at his friend. You quietly chuckle. "If you guys wanna sit and talk, I'll answer what I can. I don't mind so long as you don't plan on attempting to put a bullet in my brain or a blade to my neck."

Everyone looks to Rick and eventually he gives a terse nod. They hesitantly go back to their fire, huddling closer together and you slowly make you way over to sit across from them. The baby seems rather content now so Rick finally takes a moment to eat something himself.

Bending your knees, you pull them in towards your chest and drop your chin on your knee. "So what do you wanna know?"

Glenn immediately leans forward. "First of all, this is something straight out of a comic book." He grins and you can't help but smile in return. Maggie snorts and shakes her head, rather fondly, at him. "So what I wanna know is if you were born like this or if you had a bad visit with the doctors?"

"I was born like this," you say. "I think it started manifesting when I was about eleven or twelve. Mom and dad were obviously terrified, but I was still their daughter and they refused to just let the government have me. It took- it took months of research before they found a legit scientist who was running tests on people like me in order to help. So they met up with him and let him poke and prod to get the answers everyone was seeking."

"Did they find anything out?" Carol asks.

You shake your head. "No. There were no abnormalities in my or my parent's blood, and every other test was coming back completely average. My powers or magic or whatever you wanna call it honestly scared me, so the scientist had concocted some pills that suppressed it. I never got to learn how to control it and only really got to see what I was capable of when the world collapsed and I ran out of suppressors."

"So what, you're just this powerhouse walking around without a care in the world?" Michonne frowns.

"I have many cares," you say, head lifting to stare directly at the woman over the fire. "I have a little girl and a handful of old geezers counting on me back home. I'm just fortunate enough to be this powerhouse, as you say, so the others don't have to come out into this shit show that has become our norm."

Judith starts to fuss again and neither her brother or father can calm her. You can see just how exhausted everyone is, so you take the initiative to help them out when you see Rick cringe after smelling the baby's bottom. Grabbing your pack, you grab the notebook in there and yank out a sheet of paper. Then letting the paper rest in the palms of your hands, you concentrate on the red wisps of energy pooling in your hands and transfigure the sheet of paper into a diaper. More sheets of paper are ripped out and you quickly transfigure those into small rags.

"There's a bucket in the back of my truck," you say as you hold out the diaper and rags. "I'm sure it's full of water by now so you can dip the rags into the water to wipe the baby down."

Rick blinks at you in surprise, walking over to you and grabbing the items. He nods. "Thank you." You flash him a faint smile in return.

He looks at Daryl and he hands over his crossbow to Carol. Taking the rags from Rick, he motions for Glenn to follow him should he run into any trouble outside.

The two men return soon enough and Rick readily starts to make his daughter comfortable once more. As she struggles against him and wildly kicks out, you chuckle and decide to let a small orb of red energy pool in your palm. Then flicking your wrist, the small red orb shoots over to hover above Judith and bob up and down. It does it's job, distracting her so her father can easily change her.

"That must come in handy back at your community," Maggie muses.

"I don't really show off like this in front of them," you sheepishly admit. "Everyone knows what I'm capable of, but they don't really ask me to do anything other than to help keep them safe and keep their houses from deteriorating." There are hums and grunts, but everyone is more interested in filling their stomachs. "Well if I'm going to be on my way come sun up, I should get some rest."

No one objects, so you get up and walk back over to the opposite side of the barn. You sit down in a corner, trying to find a comfortable enough position so you can get a bit of shut eye.

When you wake up, the sun has not fully risen yet. It's a little lighter in the barn and you can see without the small fire throwing off light, so it's easy to spot Rick keeping watch by the barn doors. You sit up, stretch, and sleepily climb to feet in order to join him.

"You guys rotated watch?" You mumble. "You should have woken me."

Rick grins. "Nah. We had it under control."

"If you say so."

His grin subtly falters and then he quietly clears his throat before glancing between you and his group. "So before you go on your way, can I have a word?"

"Sure." You yawn. "Lets just go outside so we don't wake anyone." At Rick's nod, you open the barn doors and exit as quietly as you can. He follows you outside and you glance around for any dead before crossing your arms over your chest and turning to face Rick. "What's going on?"

He stares at you, clearly trying to figure out how to voice his thoughts. It takes him a moment to gather himself and then finally he says, "I know we just met each other last night, but is there any chance- any chance you might be willin' to give us a chance? I'm supposed to be this group's leader, but I am runnin' on fumes here. We all are. We're desperate." Your heart goes out to him and you can't help but frown. You understand desperation very well and you figure it must be worse on him because of the two young children he has. "This world, as vulnerable as it is, it's not a place I want to raise my kids."

"Rick, I-" You pause, sigh and then start over. "Of course I'd be willing to give you guys a chance."

"But?" He pushes, seeing the flash of hesitance in your expression.

"No, no buts." You shake your head. "You just- if you guys want to be a part of this community, you have to actually want to be a part of the community. No drama or violence is permitted within the walls. My sole focus is making sure these people live as long as possible and I won't have anyone jeopardizing that."

Rick nods. "We're all for playing fair. All we're askin' for is a chance. A real chance at survivin'."

"Well then I guess today's your lucky day." You hold out a hand for him to shake. He holds your gaze before glancing down at your hand and hesitantly reaching forward to grasp it. "So do you want to tell them the good news or..?"

Rick huffs a laugh of disbelief as he retakes his hand. "Are- are 'ya serious?"

"Yeah. Why not." You shrug. "The community could use a good shake up, so come on. Lets go wake your people up."

You and Rick re-enter the barn, but you let him wake his family and friends on his own. You gather your pack, tossing the trash and rearranging what's left. Rick tells them the good news and you smile when you see them sag in relief. They have no belongings whatsoever, so they pick up what weapons they have and make to exit the barn.

"Um, Carl and one other person can sit up front with me. Three others can squeeze into the backseat with Judith and two can ride in the very back." There are nods of agreement all around before Daryl and Glenn climb into the bed of the truck. Meeting Daryl's gaze, you say, "You and Glenn keep watch. If you see anyone, pound on the roof. I don't want anyone following us."

He gives you a terse nod. "Got it."

"Or if you and Glenn want to switch out with someone from the inside, pound on the roof. I'm gonna drive as long as I can, but if anyone wants to stop during the night we will."

Everyone seems to agree, letting you decide whether or not you drive through the night. You'll make that decision when the time comes, so as everyone else climbs into the cab of the truck you open the driver's side door and get behind the wheel. You bite back a smirk as you grip the steering wheel in hand, red wisps of energy wrapping around the wheel before disappearing into the guts under the hood.

"So that's why we didn't hear the rumble of an engine," Rick muses. "It's runnin' on magic."

"Beats having to find and siphon gas," you say. Everyone chuckles and after making sure Daryl and Glenn are steady, you drive off.

Not even five seconds in and you hear, "What the hell kind of truck is this?"

Daryl's gruff question makes everyone inside the cab laugh, but no one bothers to fill him in.

          - - - - - - - - - - 

You drive well into the afternoon, only stopping when Glenn and Daryl grow too hot under the sun and switch out with Rick and Michonne. The bit of food you had left in your pack was divided up among the others again and then when the sun set you had stopped to instruct those in the bed of the truck that they could sit or lay down since they wouldn't be able to see anything come nightfall anyway.

Your constant yawning had Maggie concerned, but you assured her you'd done a drive like this numerous times. All you asked was that they talk to you, so to keep things light they told you all about their accomplishments since the world had ended. Carl mentioned being reunited with his dad after being told he was dead, Maggie mentioned finding love with Glenn on her father's farm, and Daryl mentioned finding a prison that they stayed in after clearing it out as much as they could.

You didn't bother asking what had happened to the farm or the prison because you knew full well what happened to places left out in the open. Sooner or later they got taken over, whether it be by the dead or living. So when they ran out of happy tales, you filled them in on your own. You told them all about coming across the retirement home- about how you and Daisy (the young girl you had saved) were allowed to stay with them for a bit while you went out everyday to find a more suitable living situation. You had still been experimenting with your powers, so it was a miracle you managed to fix up an entire housing community and erect walls around it.

Only about half of those in the retirement home chose to go with you and Daisy, and that was even after finding out what you were capable of. The others were grateful for the invite, but they had families they wanted to look for or were too old and didn't want to be a burden on anyone. No amount of pleading from Daisy could sway their decisions.

A new day dawns and the environment around you starts to become familiar. You perk up in your seat and drive just a little faster because after being out for so long all you want is your bed and a shower.

Only you can see the entrance to the community and you know the others can only see what everyone else without permission to enter sees- a run down housing community that was way passed being livable. So stopping right before the barrier, you gesture for everyone to get off with you after letting the truck cut off.

"What's going on?" Rick asks as he hops out of the bed. Michonne follows him.

Facing the group, you grin. "The community is just behind me," you say while gesturing over your shoulder. You see them glance behind you, frowns marring their faces. "You're just seeing what I want everyone who passes by to see- a place not worth investigating. So with your consent," you hold a hand out just at shoulder height, letting a red glow envelop it, "I just need to push a little energy through you so you can see what I see."

Everyone is caught off guard and wary now, but surprisingly it's Carl who says something. "Will it hurt?"

You glance down at him and smile. "Not at all. I promise. Everyone inside has admitted to it feeling like a cold chill running through them and then nothing. Absolutely no pain."

As you guessed, everyone looks to Rick. He takes a moment to think about it before saying, "Do it. But if there's any pain at all-"

"There's not."

"Good." He nods. "So what do we do?"

"Just stand there. I'm the one who has to do all the work." Letting your arms hang down by your sides, you shake yourself out before concentrating on letting your power pool into your hands once more. Then when it feels like you have enough energy to pass through all eight individuals, you face your palms towards them and push out. The energy leaves you and passes through them, and only a couple of them stumble back a step or gasp in surprise. When they finally take notice of what's actually behind you and their jaws drop, you chuckle. "Welcome to your new home."

"How- it looks untouched." Carol mumbles in awe.

"Well it wasn't," you say. "It took me a few days to fix up several blocks of houses. Then about a week to get the solar panels set in with the help of our retired electrician. We were just lucky a water tower was placed close by and the new water lines were set in before the world ended. It's easy to keep the tower operational and our houses supplied with running water."

"This is insane," Glenn mutters in awe. Maggie nods along with his assessment.

"When you reach the barrier, you're going to feel a little resistance. That's normal." you then explain to them. "All you have to do is keep walking through and you'll come out on the other side."

"And if we wanna leave?" Daryl asks. Everyone looks at him as if he's crazy for already thinking about leaving, but he merely huffs and explains further. "To hunt or make runs, not find shelter elsewhere."

You shrug. "Then you leave. You'll feel the resistance again, but that's just so you remember where the barrier is. Now that you've been given permission, you can come and go as you please. But please remember, once you're behind the barrier, anyone who hasn't been given permission to enter will just see you vanish into thin air. So make sure you're never followed or if you are make a beeline for the barrier and come get me. I'll get them outta here." Everyone seems to be in agreement and you smile. "Well come on. Let's go find you a house or two."

Turning around, you readily walk towards the neighborhood. The resistance of entering doesn't faze you as it once did, so you hurriedly turn around to see everyone's reactions. You see when they hesitate and you laugh as they continue on through and seem to all breathe a sigh of relief. Then once they have their wits about them, you gesture for them to follow you.

A few people are sitting out on their porches, some surprised and others (looking at you Gladys) are ecstatic.

A wolf whistle pierces the air and everyone glances in the direction it came from. "'Bout time you brought in some good lookin' fellas! I was getting tired of looking at Tom's ugly mug."

Michonne and Carol snort as Maggie and Carl giggle, and you shake your head at the white haired, seventy-eight year old woman. "Gladys, stop teasin' the men. They literally just got here!" You holler back.

"Any of them single?"

"Oh my god. Go take a cold shower, you cougar!" Gladys cackles and you groan quietly before looking over your shoulder. "Sorry about that. I should have warned you about Gladys and her tendency to hit on any man that isn't her neighbor."

"S'alright." Rick chuckles. "It'll be nice to have some normalcy back in our lives."

"What's with the bars on the doors?" Michonne then wonders.

You look at one house in particular, it's front door having another door of bars attached in front of it as well. "The houses with bars on their doors were requested by those living in the house. These people are at the age where they can easily pass away in their sleep without warning, and after an incident back at their retirement home they requested bars on the doors as a precaution. They lock in a couple of places from the inside."

They seem to agree that that was a good idea as you nod at everyone else coming out to see what Gladys was yelling about. When you spot Mary Alice, a sixty-seven year old ex-nurse, you start to walk towards her house. "Hey Mary Alice, have you seen Daisy around? I want to introduce her to some new people."

Mary Alice stands up and walks over to the top stair of her porch. "Oh. Hello." She beams. "It's nice to see some capable, new faces around here."

"Ma'am," Rick drawls.

You can practically see Mary Alice swoon and you mumble, "You're going to give every goddamn old lady heart palpitations in here," under your breath. Rick chuckles and you clap your hands to garner Mary Alice's attention once more. "Mary! Where's Daisy?"

"Oh, um." She pauses as she fluffs her hair. "Last I saw her, Dave had asked her to help him pick some fruit from the garden."

"Okay. Thanks." Turning around to face the group, you smile sheepishly. "Maybe I'll just show you to your house first. Daisy might be busy for a bit longer." You're about to motion for them to follow you when you see Daisy appear from between two houses, munching on an apple and looking as carefree as a child her age should be. She meets your gaze from across the street, but before you can draw any attention to her you notice her steps falter as the most heartbreaking expression takes over her features when she sees who's with you. For a second you think this group might not be as innocent as they seemed, but then-

"Momma?"

Time seems to slow as Carol, of all people, freezes and then turns around. She stumbles back, hand going to her mouth in shock as she chokes on a sob. "S-Sophia?"

Your eyes widen at what's unfolding before you- Daisy (apparently Sophia) dropping her apple core before sprinting across the street. Carol meets her halfway, the two colliding with one another as their cries pierce the air. The rest of Carol's group looks on in awe before they join in on the reunion and you laugh as your vision suddenly blurs with unshed tears.

You startle when an arm settles across your shoulders and you glance over at Mary Alice smiling as she watches the reunion as well. "Did you know?"

"Not a clue," you say. "This is just an insane coincidence."

As everyone else takes a turn reuniting with the young girl and introducing her to the new faces, Carol glances up at you and starts to make her way over. You smile as she nears. "My Sophia was the kid you mentioned, wasn't she? The girl you saved before you came across the retirement home."

"Yeah. I just didn't know her name was Sophia." You chuckle. "She said something about her name making her sad because it reminded her of her mom, so she chose a new one."

"Why Daisy?"

You shrug. "Because we were walking through a field of daisies and she liked the sound of it."

Carol wetly chuckles and you give a surprised oh when she yanks you into a hug. "Thank you. Thank you for keeping my baby girl safe."

"No thanks needed, Carol. Whether your daughter knows it not, Daisy- er, Sophia- saved me as well. I'm just glad I could reunite the two of you."

The two of you pull out of the hug just to see the rest of the group making their way towards you, and Sophia hurries to wrap her arms around your waist. "Thank you. Thank you for finding my family."

"Don't even mention it, kid." You ruffle her hair, chuckling. "I'm just glad you found each other again." As you look up to meet everyone's house, you say, "So about your house.."

The group chuckle and you finally lead them to a couple empty houses just down the block you currently reside on. You inform them that every house in the neighborhood was built with four bedrooms and two bathrooms. Rick tells you they'll take just the one house for now until they're acquainted with their surroundings and you let him know that that was fine, but in a few days you were taking a group out to pick out furniture and appliances for two houses.

Daryl scoffs. "Where exactly does one go shoppin' in the goddamn apocalypse?"

"In the store Y/N hid with her magic. Duh!" Sophia muses. Daryl glances down at the young girl before a smirk pulls at the corner of his lips. She beams at him and he playfully reaches out to ruffle her hair.

"So, uh, yeah," you muse. "You guys can go ahead and wait here while I go round up a few sleeping bags that we can transform into mattresses," you tell them. "The water should be working, but you might want to run the faucets and showers for a minute or so to make sure all the air is out of the pipes." You start to back away down the sidewalk, heading towards your house. "I'll even knock on a few doors and see if there are any shirts and pants anyone is willing to let go of so you guys can shower. You can change into clean clothes while washing those you have on right now."

Before anything can be said, you turn around and make your way towards your house. You're not sure why all of sudden you became nervous- there is nothing to be nervous about- but you felt yourself suddenly getting anxious under all their gazes.

It doesn't take you long to find a few sleeping bags in your garage, so you take those with you while stopping by next door. You ask your neighbors for any sleeping bags or air mattresses, as well as a change of clothes, and they're all too happy to accommodate the newest residents of your sleepy little community. So by the time you make it back to the house where you had left the group, arms laden with bags that are threatening to cut off the circulation in your arms, you aren't surprised to see some of them already holding dishes of food.

"These old ladies sure do work fast." You laugh. Rick and Glenn are quick to pass off the dishes in their hands in favor of helping you bring in the stuff for them. They take the sleeping bags from you, leaving you with large shopping bags full of clothing. "So do you guys want everything set up downstairs or you do want to sleep in separate rooms already?"

"Downstairs is fine," Rick says. "At least for now."

In the living room, the sleeping bags are all rolled out and the air mattress is blown up. Rick settles Judith down on the mattress and Carl is quick to crawl on next to her. You've only enlarged one sleeping bag- the one Glenn and Maggie seemed to have gravitated to- when Rick stops you, telling you that you've done more than for him and his family. You ask him if he's sure and he nods, but you can't help just one last wiggle of your fingers to give the sleeping bags a little extra cushion.

"So I guess I'll leave you to it," you say. "In the bag with the clothes, there are plates and utensils. Everyone's offered up their laundry rooms for you to use, but if you're uncomfortable encroaching in on their houses then just get Sophia to show you to mine."

There's a round of thank yous as you leave so you wave and let them settle in. As you're walking out the front door, before you can shut it behind you, someone's gripping it and opening it wider. You're surprised to see Daryl follow you out.

"Everything good?" You ask.

"Yeah." He nods, hands finding their way into his jean's pockets. He shuffles rather sheepishly and you can't help but grin. "Yeah. All good here." You nod and turn to head down the stairs, only for his gruff voice to stop you in your tracks and make you turn back around once more. "Thanks. You didn't have to bring us in or trust us with your secret, but 'ya did. You gave my group a fightin' chance- 'ya gave those kinds in the house a fightin' chance. So thanks."

You smile at him. "You're welcome." He meets your gaze for a moment, eyes hidden behind a curtain of hair and you chuckle. "Go grab a plate of food and a shower, Daryl. You guys are safe here so relax. All of you look like you can sleep for days."

He shakes his head. "We still got people out there."

"And that sucks, I'm sure, but you need to look after yourself first," you say. "You won't be doing anyone any good if you're falling over your own two feet because you're beyond exhausted." Daryl shifts on his feet, his expression turning rather displeased. "Rest up and I promise that when you and a couple others are ready, I'll be right there with you to find your people."

Daryl holds your gaze before he relaxes a bit and he gives you a terse nod. "Fine. Until then, 'ya gotta learn not to rely on 'ya powers or whatever. Gotta keep that a secret until the last second."

Your nose wrinkles and then you sigh. "And here I thought I was done with physical education."

[anonymousfiction211]

Handcuffed together chapter 7: The quiz

A/N: Thanks so much for your patience. Next chapter will be up next wednesday, I promise! When I started to write I wanted to advance the story a bit more, but the sex-scene kind of got away from me in this one.... Hope you like it!

The quiz After the week you spend together you actually started to grow fond of Loki. He was a patient teacher and you actually had learned a lot by now. The training was intense and you were tired from studying, But Loki had decided to quiz you. At first you wanted to postpone, but he wouldn’t let you.

‘How many bones in the human body?’ Loki asked

‘206 bones’ you answered.

He reluctantly agreed with you. The two of you had made a game out of it. For every correct answer he would take of one piece of clothing, and for every incorrect answer you would take off one piece of clothing. He was at an unfair advantage with all his difficult clothing with many layers. Still, he was sitting in his socks, pants, and t-shirt, same as you. You couldn’t help but feel smug at that. To not be disturbed Loki quizzed you in his bedroom, on the bed.

‘How many bones in the human body of an infant?’ Loki asked with a smirk on his face.

‘Ehm.. still 206?’ you asked, a bit unsure why he would basically ask the same question twice.

The widened grin told you all you needed to know ‘I’ll take you shirt now’ he said.

‘There is a difference?’ you asked before removing your shirt, not trusting the God of Lies to be honest.

‘There is, I’m going to ask you to same question next time. So, you better know the answer by then’ he said.

‘Fine’ you grumbled and removed your shirt.

‘Which artery is the main source of blood for the arm?’

‘Easy, the Brachial artery. And I’ll take your pants’ you smiled sweetly at him. Loki rolled his eyes but removed his pants.

‘Going straight to your target, I presume?’ he teased.

‘I really don’t know what you’re talking about. I’m just trying to learn’ you said innocently.

‘How many erogenous zones are there?’ he asked.

‘That wasn’t in the books, you can’t ask me that. Besides, why would I need to know that to heal people?’ you answered.

‘I’m quizzing you on human anatomy, it’s not my fault you didn’t study more besides the book I gave you.’ he replied.

‘You’re not playing fair!’ you accused.

‘What did you expect from the God of Mischief and Lies?’ he teased. With one handwave the both of you were naked. You tried to cover yourself up, but Loki grabbed your arms and pulled you closer against him. He was sitting so close, you could feel his breath against your ear.

‘Let me show you then’ he said huskily.

He slowly stroked your lower back. ‘The lower back is one’. You moved closer towards him.

‘The hands and wrists are two and three’ he said. He started to slowly trace the lines in your palm and moved to your wrist. Your whole body felt like it was on fire, already.

He laid you down and put your wrists above your head. He started to kiss your neck and trailed upwards towards your ear. ‘The neck is four and the ear is five he whispered while nibbling on your earlobe, making you moan aloud. He slowly trailed his hands from your wrists, down your arms to your armpits. He stroked your inner arms lightly, making you giggle and squirm. ‘That’s six he smirked.

He kissed you and slipped his tongue inside your mouth. Slowly circling your own tong. When he stopped he bit your lips. ‘The mouth is seven’ he whispered. He slowly kissed down your neck to your breasts. He took one in his mouth and sucked on it. He licked the skin around it and bit down in the flesh. All the sensations making you whiter underneath. ‘That’s eight’ he said.

‘Loki, please’ you begged him to take you.

The wide grin told you that it was no use. You were putty in his hands and in this moment he owned you. He was in a playful mood and not nearly done playing with you.

‘Kitten, we are just over the half of them. And I really want you to learn the others as well’ he purred. When your eyes widened he laughed and then continued giving your other breast the same treatment.

He kissed downwards to your lower stomach and caressed it with his hands. You tried to move away from the tickling feeling, but there was nowhere to go. At this point you were going crazy from his touch and were panting heavily. Loki looked very pleased with your state. ‘That’s nine’ he told you. You were anticipating him going for your clit next and whined when he got up and you didn’t feel him anymore.

‘Patience’ he said. He grabbed your foot with his hands and stroked up and down. He held your foot in place when you tried to escape it. He started to massage it gently, the pressure felt so good that you arched your back. He did the same thing with your other foot. He moved his hands upwards and stroked behind your knees ‘That was ten and this is eleven’. You instinctively opened your legs for him. Normally, you would be nervous when he was staring this intently at your pussy. But now you found it extremely erotic.

‘This is twelve’ he said while trailing his hands towards your inner thighs. He kissed your right thigh and worked his way upwards to your pussy.

‘Not the last one, but definitely the most fun one to play with’ he winked. He hooked his arms under your thighs and pushed your legs up. His tongue was circling your clit. You were trashing, moaning, panting, and begging. And he ignored you completely. The only things he focused on was your clit. He held you firmly in place. The way his tongue felt licking up and down your clit soon made you see stars and you came hard, moaning his name over and over again. You looked at him when you finally came down from your high and his predatory grin told you, he wasn’t done.

‘I think we should explore this one more thoroughly, don’t you?’ he mused

‘What- what do you mean?’ you panted.

‘Well..’ he started and slowly pushed two fingers inside of you. He started to suck on your clit for a moment, making you arch your back again. You though he finally gave you a break, but you couldn’t be more wrong. He took his mouth from your clit, the moment his fingers found your g-spot. You cried out in pleasure. ‘You have the clitoris, obviously’ he said while stroking your g-spot over and over again. You were close. ‘Then there is your g-spot’ he said and put more pressure on it. You came immediately, almost screaming at this point. ‘Good girl’ he praised you.

Instead of removing his fingers he pushed them deeper inside of you. Then he stroked a spot within you, that you didn’t even know of. ‘The A-spot is often overlooked’ he grinned at you. ‘The more I stroke it, the more sensation you feel and the wetter you will be’ he said.

‘Oh my god, Loki’ you yelled when he kept going. He was right, at this point your arousal was flowing freely. ‘That’s right. What am I?’ he asked.

‘My god’ you panted.

‘Who do you belong to?’ he asked.

‘You only you’ you tried to say. But it came out ragged and needy.

‘That’s it, now come before your god’ he commanded you. And without hesitation your body did.

Loki retracted his fingers from you. ‘If only you could see yourself now, a perfectly tame kitten. All ready for me to play with’ he said.

‘Loki, I- I really can’t anymore’ you panted.

He slowly turned your around so you were on your stomach. He put your ass up ‘the only thing you will have to do is keep this perky ass up. And I will show you the last one. Don’t worry, it’s not as intense’ he said.

Before you could protest you felt his cock slide in you easily. He slowly started to thrust in and almost out of you. After a moment, his pace became a lot faster. Apparently playing with you had work him up as well. You walls already clenched down and your orgasm hit you out of nowhere. At that point Loki grabbed your hair and pulled at it. Your walls clenched down harder and the noises you made weren’t even human anymore. ‘And that.. is.. fourteen’ he grunted. He pulled your hair harder and started to slam harder into you.

‘Fuck, (Y/N)’ he yelled when he came. He slowly thrusted until his own orgasm had faded. He laid down on his back on the bed and you collapsed, still on your stomach. You were utterly exhausted and extremely satisfied. Loki slowly caressed your back with the back of his hands. He smiled when he felt the goosebumps form on your skin and your soft moaning.

‘Sensitive there, kitten?’ he teased.

‘Hmm’ you hummed sleepily.

Despite your protests he stood up and pulled you in his arms. He carried you towards the bathroom and put you down. He turned on the tap of the tub.

‘I don’t want to bathe, I want to sleep’ you pouted.

Loki just laughed. ‘I can imagine that, but a bath will do you good. After you can sleep with me in my bed, while wearing the fluffiest pyjama you can imagine. Deal?’

‘I don’t trust you in the bath’ you replied.

‘Hmm, normally I would agree with you. But trust me, I will behave myself’ he answered with a smile on his face.

‘Fine’ you reluctantly agreed.

Loki put some oils in the bath and it smelled amazing. He turned of the tab and helped you in the tub. He sat down behind you with his legs on either side, pulling you close against his chest. He washed your hair and massaged your shoulders. He did behave himself for the most time but couldn’t help kissing and biting your neck and shoulders. When the bath was done and Loki had shimmered the two of you in pyjamas, indeed the fluffiest ones you ever had, he cuddled with you in the bath.  

Right before you fell asleep he asked ‘Do you remember how many zones there were?’

‘Ehm.. no, I kind of was lost and couldn’t keep up’ you answered honestly.

Loki just pulled you closer against him. ‘Well, if you can’t name them next week we are doing this again’

‘You are insatiable’ you grumbled.  

‘No, you are irresistible. Now sleep, my love.’ At this point you were too out of it to even think or react to his words.  

Tags: @delightfulheartdream @the-best-phineas @l0nelyasian​ @ragweed98​

[bucksfucks]

           amorosa // steve rogers

           chapter three: midnight

    chapter one // chapter two // chapter three

                    chapter four // chapter five

               ─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ. ──���

                             main masterlist

summary || you wake up alone, a single note in the kitchen detailing where steve has gone. a few hours later you’re in his lavish office where he hands you a contract telling you to look over it before he takes you out to dinner. what you don’t realize is that dinner soon turns to something a little more risqué.

pairing || sugar daddy!steve x reader

word count || 2,908 words

warnings || financial struggles, sugar daddy dynamics, undefined age gap, public washroom sex, unprotected sex, heavy daddy kink, mocking, degradation, name calling, orgasm denial, blowjobs, praise kink, dirty talk — 18+ ONLY//MINORS DNI

      When you awoke the next morning you found yourself alone in your bed. The sheets were cold, though his side still smelt like Steve. You groaned as you stretched your arms above your head and your legs as far down as you could. 

     You were sore.

    Sore in the best possible way as butterflies flocked to your belly as you thought about how Steve was perfectly situated between your thighs or the way his cock filled you full. 

    You finally got the strength to get out of bed, legs slightly shaky as you grabbed your phone only to find it dead. It was plugged in and forgotten soon after as you started on a pot of coffee. 

    Your eyes caught sight of a note neatly placed on your small kitchen table, coming closer to inspect the neat writing over it. 

    Had to run to work, last night was everything and more. Give me a call when you see this. xx 

    Steve (678-136-7092)

    You smiled, as old-fashioned as a note might be, it made you feel warm inside as you impatiently waited for your phone to charge. It was only ten in the morning, you were sure he could wait just a little longer. 

    Your peace was soon disturbed by loud, incessant knocking at your front door that startled you, making you jump. You barely had time to set the piece of paper down before an envelope slipped under your door. 

    Grabbing it and quickly tearing it open you couldn't believe your eyes. 

    An eviction notice? 

    You groaned, rolling your eyes in disbelief as you shot daggers at your front door where your landlord was surely standing not even minutes ago. Still, you shook your head, tossing the notice onto your table before grabbing Steve's note and hoping your phone had enough juice to turn on. 

    Your day seemed to be turning up as it flashed on, a small victory as you quickly punched in Steve's number, turning speakerphone on as you tapped your foot waiting for him to pick up. 

    "Was startin' to think I scared you off after last night," Steve chuckled as he picked up the phone on the third ring. You playfully rolled your eyes, falling back against your bed. 

    "Scared me off? If anything you'll have trouble getting rid of me." You chid back as you heard Steve laugh followed by a click, probably an office door closing. 

    "Princess I won't be gettin' rid of you anytime soon." He said earnestly as you bit your lip trying to conceal your smile. You felt giddy, like a high schooler talking to their crush late on a Friday night. 

    "Do you think you can come down to my office this afternoon? I think we should discuss some rules." He said seriously, a twinge of professionalism coming through as your stomach flipped with nerves. 

    "Uhm yeah, sure, does one o'clock work?" You asked, sitting up to take a look at the time on the wall clock mounted right across from your bed. 

    "That's great, I'll send over a town car. See you soon, Princess." Steve said and you could hear the smirk in his voice as you stood up, feeling more confident in yourself. 

    "I'll see you later, Daddy." You nearly purred as he groaned lowly on the other end of the line, "oh I can't wait." And with that you were getting ready for your day. 

~

    Stark Towers was an impressive, daunting looking building as you stepped out of the town car Steve had sent over. The driver told you to just go to the front desk, tell them your name, and the rest would be taken care of. 

    You did just that, the petite woman behind the desk giving you a warm smile as she led you through a set of doors where you both got into a polished elevator. She hit the number 92 on the panel before you began your swift ascent. 

    The doors opened to white marble tiling, dark blue accents, and crystal clean statutes as she led you to a large set of where the name Steve Rogers, VP read in neat writing. She knocked twice before the doors were opened. 

    Steve had a hard look on his face that softened immediately as he caught sight of you. 

    "Thank you Belinda, can you prepare an all access card for her please?" He asked as she nodded her head, disappearing back into the elevator as Steve led you inside of his office. 

    He embraced you, wrapping his arms around your waist and placed a sweet kiss to your lips. 

    "I haven't stopped thinking of you," he mumbled, smiling as you played with the short hairs at the nape of his neck. He hummed, feeling the vibrations against your own chest as he leaned his forehead against yours. 

    "But as much as I'd love to take you right here, over my desk and in front of the windows, we have to set some rules." You couldn't help but whimper at his words, your arousal growing as he took a step away. 

    "Sit," it was a gentle command, and you did as you were told, taking a seat in one of the two plush chairs that were positioned right in front of his large oak desk. He leaned against the front of the desk, crossing his arms over his chest as he licked his bottom lip. 

    "I'm a man of business as you know, so," he grabbed something behind him, "there is a short contract." 

    You narrowed your eyes at the paper, extending your arm wordlessly as he gave it over to you. You skimmed over the first few paragraphs, noting how there were four pages total before you glanced at where he had already placed his signature. 

    "You signed already?" You asked, a little puzzled as he chuckled, "this is something I'm confident in." Steve shrugged, pushing himself off the desk and placing both of his hands on either side of your chair. 

    "Take your time, I don't need an answer right away." He says sweetly, his body towering over yours and the only thing you can think of is how much bigger he felt as he was on top of you last night. 

    You nodded your head slowly, swallowing thickly as he straightened his posture. He was so tall and broad and you had to stop thinking of him like that. At least for right now. 

    "I'll take a look at it tonight," you replied as he smiled, "good girl." 

    The praise sent another shiver down your spine as you watched him lick his bottom lip, he knew what he was doing to you, was this a test? 

    "Let's have dinner tomorrow, same time, different place? You can ask any questions you have pertaining to the contract, how's that sound?" You nodded your head again as Steve spoke. 

    "That sounds good." You told him with a smile as he extended his hand for you to take, he helped you up before his arms were around your waist again, lips against yours before his hands travelled down to your ass. 

    "Good girl, maybe this time you can skip the panties?" He purrs against your neck, his lips already nipping at your exposed collarbones as you feel him stiffen against your hip. You gasp, nodding your head, "o-okay." 

    "Okay who?" Steve eggs, "o-okay, Daddy," you whisper, biting your lip as he slowly rocks your hips against his. 

    You're just able to get your hand on the outline of his cock as his intercom buzzes, "Mr. Rogers, your one-thirty is here, should I send him in?" A woman's voice interrupts the two of you as Steve groans, rolling his eyes. 

    He hits a button on his desk harshly, "give me five minutes." 

    You reluctantly step away from him, taking in the bulge in his pants, wet lips, and slightly mused hair. 

    "I'm sorry Princess, Daddy's gotta work," he winked, readjusting himself as you gave him a small pout. He cooed at you, pressing a kiss to your forehead, "don't pout, if you're good maybe you'll get a surprise or two tonight." Steve promises as your eyes light up at his words.  

    "Now be a good girl, okay?" He says, giving your bum a pinch as he leads your out of his office, pressing the button on his elevator. 

    "Stop at the front desk on your way out and pick up your access key, okay? And text me when you get home, the car's out front for you." Steve says as you nod, clutching the contract tightly in your hands. 

    He presses a chaste kiss to your cheek before the elevator doors close leaving you alone to your thoughts. 

~

    You sat in your dimly illuminated kitchen, Netflix playing softly in the background as a cooling cup of tea was at your side. The contract was in front of you as you tapped your pen against it. 

    Clause 1.0: You will attend all events asked by Steve Rogers assuming he gives you enough time in advance. 

    That seemed fair, not like you were about to turn down anymore fancy dinners or a trip to the Alps. 

    Clause 2.0: In return, Steve Rogers will take care of and pay all bills. Any extra cash needed will be provided. 

    2.1: A credit card with a limit will be available at any time

    You stared at the words, it almost seemed too good to be true. You'd struggled with money nearly all your life and for Steve to just take all those troubles away? 

    Clause 3.0: This is a monogamous, exclusive relationship where no third party shall be involved unless each party involved agrees. 

    No problem there. 

    Clause 4.0: Transportation and housing will be provided through Steve Rogers. 

    As your eyes scanned through each clause you felt yourself getting antsy, wanting to see Steve again as you chewed on your lip. 

    You got to the final clause, skimming it over. 

    Clause 10.0: You are to refer to Steve Rogers as Daddy unless specified otherwise. 

    Your stomach flipped, thighs burning as you longed to feel the weight of his cock between your legs. You wanted to sign the damn thing right then and there, but you capped the pen, sliding the contract up the table before hopping into the shower. 

    Tomorrow would be interesting. 

~

    Steve had chosen an equally fancy restaurant, you expected nothing less as you walked through the glass doors, led to the table where Steve was waiting for you, phone to his ear as he caught sight of you. 

    You were wearing the only form fitting dress you owned, but it clung to you like a second skin and you could see his eyes darken as he cut whoever was on the phone by hanging up on them without a second thought. 

    "Christ, Princess," he groaned in your ear as he enveloped you, "you tryin' to give me a heart attack?" He smirked, taking your head and letting you spin around as you giggled. 

    "Only the best for you, Daddy." You purred, watching as his jaw clenched. You slid into the seat, Steve climbing in beside you in the booth before his hand was instinctively on your thigh. 

    Two menus are placed in front of you, the waiter pouring two glasses of water as you skim through the pages. 

    "I have something for you," you whisper, grabbing the folded contract out of your purse, handing it to Steve as he looks at you darkly. 

    He looks through it, noting the signature as he shoves it into his blazer pocket. 

    "It's all official now, Princess," he purrs, tilting your chin upwards with his index finger so you're looking up at him. You can feel the heat coming off of his body, the warmth of his finger under your chin causes you to shiver as his lips hover over yours, "meet me in the bathrooms in three minutes." 

    With that, Steve slipped out of the booth and gave you one last glance over his shoulder before disappearing from sight. Your heart was racing, nearly beating out of your chest as you tapped your fingers on the table before deciding fuck it and slinking away to the bathroom. 

    Steve was leaning against the wall, foot against the wall as he cocked his head to the side. 

    "There's my best girl," he said, extending his hand before pushing you both through the threshold of the toilets. 

    The door was locked seconds later, Steve whipping around to pin you against the sinks. 

    "Princess do you have any idea how hard it's been to keep my mind off of you? When I've had you writhing under me, my cock deep inside of you as I fucked you senseless?" His words were a low growl in your ear as you gasped. 

    "Daddy, fuck, I-I need you." You mewled, pouting and nearly begging him up you looked up at him through your lashes. 

    "Love hearin' you beg for my cock, Princess." He growls, hand snaking behind your neck as he kisses you roughly. It's teeth and tongue as he nips at your lower lip, tugging it before he's shoving his thick thigh between your legs. 

    You gasp at the contact, his hard flesh meeting your core as jolts of electricity run through you. You can barely keep your eyes open as his mouth is sucking right below your ear, his coarse beard tickling at your skin. 

    "Grind yourself over my thigh, Princess. Wanna watch as you ride it." He whispers darkly into your ear. You're shamelessly grinding yourself over his thigh as his hands go to palm your breasts through your dress. 

    It feels quick and dirty, but it's exactly what you need. 

    "Fuck, Daddy, want your cock." You whimper before he's stopping all movements to grab your chin and force you to look up at him. 

    "Oh is my dumb baby already so desperate for my cock, hmm? Then get on your knees and open that pretty mouth of yours." It's a simple command, your breath getting caught in your throat as you're pushed down onto the cool tiling of the bathroom floor. 

    You watch as he undoes his belt, bulge meeting your eyes before he's freeing his cock. 

    "Go on, Princess. Put that sweet mouth of yours to work," he purrs, running his thumb over your bottom lip as you wrap your hand around his base. 

    You pump him slowly, eyes watching him as he lets out a low groan, throwing his head back when you wrap your lips around his tip. 

    You can taste the salty pre-cum as you take him further, slowly relaxing your throat before hollowing your cheeks as you bob your head. 

    "Oh fuck—what a good little girl, look so pretty with Daddy's cock in your mouth Princess." He praises, your arousal growing as you feel your panties get wetter as you take him further. 

    Steve's gripping the edge of the counter as he lets his head fall forward. Your saliva coats his cock, your hands, and your chin as you moan around him. Steve's low grunts and groans fill the echoey bathroom before he's pulling his cock out of your mouth. 

    "Up. Now." And there's a sense of urgency in his voice that you've never heard before. 

    You do as you're told, Steve lifting you onto the counter and hiking your dress up, sneering when he finds you wearing panties. 

    "What did I tell you about panties, Princess?" It's a condescending tone as your head falls forward. He's pinching each cheek with his fingers as he makes you look up at him.

    "Good girls get rewards," he speaks, "but bad, bratty girls don't get to cum." He growls, ripping your panties off as you squeak. 

    He's plunging his cock into you seconds later, the action causing your body to jolt upwards. Steve is merciless in his thrusts as he keeps your body locked with his, your legs wrapped around his torso as he clamps his hand around your mouth to keep you quiet. 

    "My dumb little baby, couldn't even listen to simple instructions," he grunts, "God your pussy feels so good wrapped 'round me, Princess."

    You can feel the coil starting to form, the pressure building as your toes curl inside of your shoes and you want nothing more than to chant more, more, more. 

    "I know you wanna cum, baby, I can feel you squeezin' me," he whispers huskily, a dark smirk on his lips. 

    "If only you had listened to your Daddy," he almost snickers as he pulls out, fisting his cock until he's painting your thighs with his cum. It makes you shudder, watching him cum, feeling him cum, as he makes you watch. 

    He's breathing heavy, panting nearly as he drops his hand and kisses each cheek lightly before sealing his lips over yours. 

    "Let's get you all cleaned up, Sweetheart." Steve's tone has changed, now sweet and caring as he takes care of the mess he's made. You let, relishing in the gentle touches before he's helping you down from the sink and back onto your feet. 

    You pout when you meet his eyes again and he taps your nose, "don't give me that look, Princess." He warms playfully before you're making a hmph sound that makes him chuckle. 

    "How about I take you back to mine, we'll order in tonight, though what I want a taste of isn't exactly on anyone's menu."

tagging // @jennmurawski13​ | @nakedrogers​ | @vollzeitliebe​ | @kelbabyblue​ | @jevans2​ | @babyyhoneyydarling​ | @rogerslovesstark​  

any and all feedback is always appreciated! <3

[shurisneakers]

shut in [1]

Summary: When your high profile mission goes terribly wrong, you’re forced to hide in a safehouse with a man you’ve never met before. With seemingly nowhere else to go, you’re forced to work together to figure out who is trying to have you assassinated before it’s too late. (Sam Wilson x Gender Neutral Reader)

Warnings: cursing, violence, guns, death

Word count: 3.2k

A/N: greetings. i have returned with a series that i have actually finished writing beforehand so i just have to post the chapters and yes this means i will not let this go incomplete  shoutout to my bitch @midnightsunfae​ for putting up w me mwah lov u if i’ve completely butchered sam’s character, tell me so i can delete my entire account pls and thanks 

here’s my ko-fi if you’d like to support my writing <333

Shut In Masterlist || Main Masterlist

“Alexander Pierce.” The file fell on the table with a resounding thud.

“What about him?”

“I want him dead.”

The house stood tall; obnoxious, almost, with loud embellishments of gold. It screamed wealth spent lavishly and without any reasonable thought.

Also it was ugly.

You scaled the gate, landing on the gravel silently. There were no security measures that you could see beyond the automated entry and CCTV whose light wasn’t blinking. Must have been a power outage. An unlikely coincidence, but it just made your job easier.

You made a move towards the side of the house, staying close to the trees that lined the driveway, out of the direct line of sight of the house’s front door. 

His car was parked outside; a swanky looking race car kept outside just for show. He was definitely at home.

A window at the side of the mansion was left slightly ajar. A quick sweep up the side of the house proved that the rest of them were shut.

Your eyebrow quirked up in suspicion, quickly taking a look around to see if you were being watched. For a few seconds the world didn’t seem to move, eerily silent other than the rustling of leaves.

Pierce was clearly the flagbearer of home security.

You stuffed your gun into the waistband of your pants, freeing both your hands to tug yourself into the room.

Your gun found its way into your hand once more as you scanned the room. He wasn’t on the bed. You deemed the silence as an indicator to safely to move ahead. 

So far it seemed easy.

Too easy?

Ransone’s body was spread across his chair, leisurely stroking at his stubble. His other hand thrummed rhythmically at the timber in front of him. His eyes were glazed over; physically present but mind wandering elsewhere.

You waited for him to explain further, knowing better than to interrupt his train of thought.

He had the strangest penchant for drama and theatre. From what you could gather of the dim light in the room and his stance, he had just watched The Godfather. Again.

“Do you know how long it took me to build this business?” His words sounded like a musing, akin to a private thought he was letting you in on. “This empire, Y/N?”

“Twenty three years.” Your arms were crossed behind you, a sign of discipline he demanded from all members of the organisation. 

“And I haven’t gotten there by being the neighbourhood church boy.” He gestured to one of the two men beside him, a rifle strung across their back at the ready. One of them-- Rumlow--  stepped forward, lighting a cigar and handing it to him.

He took a long drag, taking his time to exhale, flicking at the cigar to get rid of the loose ash. If he just got to the point, you could have left about twenty minutes ago.

“I’ve done terrible things,” he admitted, “but you know? I won’t be blamed for them. A bit of collateral damage was inevitable.”

His chair swayed from side to side as his feet thumped at the table. It annoyed you endlessly. You never told him.

“And you know how I feel about collateral damage, right?”

“Show no mercy.”

The house was silent, except for the faint sound of the television some distance away. You wouldn’t have been able to see if not for the moonlight that illuminated the space through the large windows.

Your gun pressed tightly to your side, you made your way down the open hallway. As you passed by the kitchen, the ticking of the timer on the oven made you pause. The oven itself wasn’t on but the clock was still ticking.

A bowl was kept on the marble island separating the rest of the hall from the kitchen. A pair of car keys lay mangled among a couple of dollar bills and loose change like he threw it in carelessly. 

Continuing further down the hall, you came to the realisation that it culminated in a room that faced his backyard. Only a single glass sheet acted as a barrier between him and the outdoors.

You could hear the show getting louder, hidden from your line of sight by the couch in front of it.

Pierce’s head faced away from you and towards the only light source in the room. He hadn’t heard you come in.

From what you could see, he was asleep. Head slumped slightly, arm slinked over the backrest and no other movement.

It wasn’t actually a TV, just an iPad on its loudest setting with Netflix playing what looked like Horrible Bosses. A man with exquisite taste, obviously.

You took one step at a time, slowly making your way towards the couch until you were just a step or two behind him. You raised your arm, pressing your gun to the back of his head.

“Show no mercy,” he repeated, the corner of his mouth turning upward as he looked at you.

You wanted to shift under his stare. Your muscles were beginning to feel a dull burn, a sign that you had been standing still for too long. 

“So tell me, after all my effort-” he stuck his bottom lip out mockingly- “should I let my fucking company get destroyed by one person?”

His hand harshly slammed down on the table as he lurched forward in his chair, eyes seething.

You nearly jumped at his sudden change in demeanour, knuckles tightening in anticipation.

“Tell me, boys, how far do I tolerate liars?” His stare didn’t waver, looking straight into your eyes.

“You don’t.” Their voices were eerily synchronised. You wondered if they ever rehearsed together. Probably did.

“Lovely.” Ransone smiled, leaning back in his chair. “I don’t.”

“Liars?” Your voice had risen by an octave or two, your surprise catching you off guard.

“Someone has been sneaking information to Serpentine for nearly two years.” A chill ran down your spine, the muscles in your jaw tightening. “They’ve been growing exponentially and someone’s been helpin’ them do it.”

Only someone didn’t fear death would turn their back on him. Someone who had nothing to lose.

“We have reason to believe it’s Pierce.”

A moment passed where you expected him to wake up, turn around and look at you so that you could deliver Ransone’s message to him, a quippy one liner about betrayal or something.

But he didn’t.

Instead, his head shifted under the pressure of your gun, falling over as if it was weightless.

Your face pulled into a frown as you made your way to the front of the couch swiftly, gun still held tightly in front of you.

Your shadow dimmed the light that fell on him from the iPad, but it was impossible to deny.

A single gunshot to the front of his head. Eyes wide open, red from the lack of moisture. The blood around him painted a gory scene that was impossible to notice from behind.

“What the-” you murmured, lowering your arm.

“I can tolerate one mistake. Everyone deserves that.” Ransone shrugged offhandedly. “But this isn’t the first one he’s made.”

“So you want him gone.”

“That would be lovely, yes.” He relaxed into his chair once again, taking another hit from his cigar.

“Why do you want me to do it?” you asked, eyebrows knitted together. Generally he would send you for something more high-profile. Raids, infiltrations. These kinds of hits were what you left behind years ago.

“A spy has security from the ones they’re working for. It’s possibly more dangerous.” His feet found its way onto the table, one over the other as he stretched back. “And I’m not sure my other agent can make it.”

“Thanks,” you spoke monotonously. “Glad to know I’m your first choice.”

“Don’t take it personally.” He dismissed it with a wave of his hand. “He probably won’t show.” 

His sleeve fell slightly to reveal a sliver of his tattoo. A spider, the symbol of his authority.

Each of his employees had a web inked on their skin that grew with each passing year of their service. It was how you identified each other in passing.

“You have an opening on Friday. His house help leaves at 8 sharp and he’s alone.”

You nodded, picking up the file in front of him, avoiding his fingers that had returned to thrumming on the tabletop. You acknowledged the two men beside him before making your way toward the door.

This house was all the way across the country. No wonder he gave you a bit more time as compared to usual to prepare.

“It’ll be done.”

The sound of a gun clicking away from you made the hair on your neck stand up.

You sprung up, arms extended in front of you instinctively towards the sound.

Even in the dim light of the room, you could see a man standing a few feet away from you. His hand held a glock, aimed towards you.

Neither of you said a word. Time stood still for all you cared. The only indication that it didn’t was that Horrible Bosses was still playing.

“Who the fuck are you?” you finally asked, voice surprisingly calm for the adrenaline that was spiking through your body.

“Who are you?” he questioned in retaliation, tone curt.

“I asked first.” You wondered if he could see you roll your eyes.

He didn’t reply, obviously.

A beat passed and you almost forgot the dead body that lay near your knees. Almost. It didn’t help that his fingers were nearly touching your leg like some kind of pervert; not that you could blame him for it this time.

“Did you kill him?” he finally relented, mentioning towards him quickly with a tug of his shoulder.

“What-” You recoiled, head slightly jerking back in disbelief. “No. Didn’t you?”

“He was like this when I got here.” He paused, and you let him speak. “And then you came in; thought you were comin’ back to check.”

“I just got here.”

“I can’t confirm that.” His answer was instantaneous, almost cutting you off before you finished.

“And I can’t confirm you didn’t kill him.” You took a step away from Pierce, never breaking his gaze. “The odds are kinda against you here.”

“I didn’t kill him.” He only took a step toward you, making you stop where you were. He wasn’t going to let you get out of this.

“What a compelling argument,” you drawled sarcastically. “Then what are you doing here?”

“Cookin’ him dinner,” he snapped back quickly in a manner that would usually make you smile if it weren’t for the situation you were in presently. “What do you think?”

“Who sent you?”

“I can’t tell you that.”

“Why did they send you?”

“I can’t tell you that either.”

“Then give me a reason why I shouldn’t pull this trigger right now.”

“You first.”

It was a shame you had to kill him. You found his resilience fun.

“Well, it was pleasant-” You were cut off by the sound of a bullet whizzing past your head. It struck the vase next to the couch, instantly exploding into hundreds of shards.

“Did you just fucking shoot at me?” you yelled, swiftly raising your gun so that it was pointed at his forehead.

But he wasn’t looking at you. He was looking at the large glass, too distracted to pay heed to what you were saying.

You slowly followed his line of sight to the window.

A large fracture in the glass surrounded a small hole, nearly invisible from your distance if you weren’t looking hard enough.

You looked back at him to find him staring at you.

A split second later the glass sheet shattered, sending the pieces all over the room. You launched yourself behind the couch heavily, avoiding the barrage of bullets being shot your way.

From the corner of your eye you could see the man dive to take cover behind the couch with you.

“What the fuck?” you asked loudly, back pressed against the backrest as various items shattered around you. “Who the hell are these guys?”

“The shittiest bodyguards ever.” He looked over his shoulder but slid back down again when a shot nearly missed his face.

You didn’t even know where to shoot; the bullets just seemed to be coming from the shadows of the trees.

Taking a moment to assess the man breathing hard next to you. He was tall and muscular, a tight fighting shirt stretching across his chest. His hair was cropped, eyes dark with what looked like irritation more than anger. Hot.

Your attention was drawn to a trail of blood left on his forehead as he wiped at it with his forearm, him seemingly unaware of it.

“Dude, I think you got grazed.”

He looked at you questioningly. You pointed at his arm with your shoulder. His eyes dropped to it, letting out a string of curses as he tugged his sleeve back to look at the wound.

He didn’t have to pull it back much before the sight of a familiar design greeted you.

A spider web. Drawn intricately with the lines stretching delicately across his skin like lace.

A tattoo.

“You work for Ransone?” None of this made sense. Why were there two of you on the same mission? Who was this guy? Was he supposed to be here?

You didn’t wait for his answer, pulling your sleeve back to reveal the same tattoo, smaller in size, but indicative enough.

He took a second to process. You could almost see the gears turning in his head.

“Great,” he finally said as a bullet lodged itself in the wall you were facing, bitterness lacing his words. “It’s a set up.”

“Oh, one more thing, Y/N.”

You spun on your heel to look at him. A devilish smile grew on his face.

“Remember- we don’t tolerate liars.”

You stared at him, not uttering a word, waiting for him to make his point.

“So make sure you let him know that.” His smile only grew as you turned around and walked out the door, letting it shut behind you.

The crunching of feet over glass made you look over your shoulder, only to quickly retract before your head was blown off.

They were wearing ski masks and all black tactical suits, leaving not even an inch of their skin uncovered.

“I count four or five. There may be more,” the man next to you said slowly.

“You take the ones on the left, I’ll take right,” you instructed, seeing him nod his head. You didn’t even know his name but apparently you were working together now. 

You gave a small countdown before pivoting on your knee to face them, eyes already set on your target.

Firing off two shots, you saw the first one fall to the floor, soon accompanied by his teammate as you shot a round at his forehead.

Four were down, counting the bodies next to them on the floor, but the bullets didn’t stop firing at you. They clearly were in a much larger number than you anticipated.

You weren’t sure how many more bullets the couch could absorb. The both of you were basically sitting ducks; who knew how many more were out there. You had limited ammo because you didn’t expect a fucking SWAT team when you came to kill one man.

“We need to go,” he voiced your exact concern.

“Yep,” you grunted, shifting to reload your gun from the spare ammo in your pocket.

You didn’t know how to get out of here considering that you didn’t bring your own-

“I got a plan,” you said. He looked at you inquisitively. “You know the window in the west bedroom, hall dead-end?”

He nodded. Perhaps he was the one who left it open when he arrived.

“On the count of three, make a run for it.” You winced as a bullet tore through the fabric of the couch, right near where your shoulder was a second ago.

“We can’t outrun them,” he hissed, quickly shooting behind him before rejoining you on the floor.

“Trust me.” Bold ask. You wondered if he would.

“I don’t.”

“Do it anyway.”

You didn’t really care if he didn’t. At least you’d get out.

“One.” You shifted to sit on your knee. You could see him sit still, not joining you.

“Two.” Your gun was pressed to your side, at the ready.

“Three.” Like an athlete in a race you took off, not daring to look behind you even once as shots rode the air, narrowly missing your body.

You almost didn’t hear his groan and a small “Fuckin’ hell” before heavy footsteps ran behind you.

You smiled triumphantly, until you remembered the both of you were being followed, at least four more shooters hot on your heels.

You shot a single shot behind you, hearing someone wheeze before a loud thump of a body hitting the floor. Hopefully it wasn’t the guy you were with, but you couldn’t find it in your to care much if it was.

You raced past the numerous rooms you passed on the way here before it suddenly widened into the open kitchen.

Your body moved in autopilot, a detour in the form of a quick skip as you reached over and grabbed the contents of the bowl on the counter, fumbling to hold onto the car keys as loose change fell to the floor.

The oven timer went off, not for long before you heard its door splinter into pieces as someone shot at it in annoyance.

You took a sharp right into the room, followed by the man who took the time to kick the door shut behind him, buying you maybe a second or two of time.

You nearly flung yourself out of the window, the gravel not exactly providing the softest landing as you scrambled to open the door of the car.

“Get in!” you yelled at him as he obliged, yanking the door and jumping into the passenger seat. You threw the few dollars you had caught hold of by mistake on the floor of the car.

You could hear the door of the room being kicked open, and what seemed like angry shouting as the window cracked, leaving nothing in its wake.

You revved the engine, slamming the accelerator with as much power as you could. The car lurched backwards, and you cursed, switching gears to go forward. 

The harsh sound of metal on metal followed you as they shot at whatever they could. You prayed they wouldn’t accidentally hit the wheel or gas tank. They didn’t exactly seem like the best in the business, having missed most of their shots. 

“Go go go!” The guy beside you was holding on to his seat tightly for support.

The car broke through the rusty gates. You cringed at the dent on the hood, but didn’t slow down even for a second as you wove through trees of the estate, not losing speed even as you got onto the highway.

Silence befell the both of you for a good amount of time, but not enough time to process what had just happened. Your adrenaline was still high as you drove well above the speed limit. 

Your next step was unclear.

You were in a car with a complete stranger. You weren’t sure if you were injured somewhere. You didn’t even know where you were driving to.

“Alright,” he cleared his throat. “What the hell was that?

Part 2

[hpalways]

Commissions || Childe

UNPREDICTABLE people were like magnets to you, somehow always managing to show up. Usually, you would avoid them at any given chance, preventing further interactions from occurring. As an adventurer, you didn't work for the thrill, but rather for the money. That meant that deep inside, you longed for a peaceful life, which was the main reason why there were certain beings that shouldn't exist in your reality. So how did it go oh-so-terrible with Tartaglia?

You first met Tartaglia -- also known as Childe -- in Liyue Harbor when you were at a stall to buy food. You had a few commissions in tail, waiting to be resolved for the day. But first, food was on your mind. It wouldn't do any good to fight hilichurls and whatnot with an empty stomach. As you were about to dig into your trouser's pockets to find any mora, a man stepped up in front of you, blocking the way. Assuming that he was budging you in line, you opened your mouth to protest, but the words faltered to come out when the male whirled around to face you.

Deep, blue eyes stared into your soul, twinkling mischievously... and somehow, you couldn't read into them. Fiery, orange hair accompanied his features, going unexpectedly well with the blue. Smiling at you crookedly, he saluted you with a gloved hand. A red mask was adorned on the side of his head, matching the red details on his overall gray outfit. He was very tall and attractive -- taking you momentarily off guard. 

"I'll pay for your meal. My treat," he easily told you, making a show of flashing the lump of mora in his hands. He even went as far as to swing his arm around your shoulders like the two of you were friends. The warm, close contact nearly caused you to freeze in place, getting flustered all over. What the hell was happening?

"Oh... sure," you uttered, staring blankly at him. Well, there was no use turning him down. The word treat was enough to hook and wheel you in. 

"What's your name?" he inquired in a friendly manner, lugging you along as if you were a ragged doll through the waiting line.

Hesitating to answer for a second, you were beginning to look stupid under his expecting gaze. There was a reason though: you were wary of strangers, having learned that the hard way when you encountered Treasure Hoarders one time. But seeing how amused this man was by your internal debate, you pushed the doubts away and decided to go for it. "I'm [Y/N]. You?"

"Lovely name befitting for a lovely person," he mused, leaving you embarrassed. "I'm Childe."

It was then your turn to order. Letting his arm around you go, he straightened up and nudged you ahead. The warmth evaporated from you and you suddenly wished for his touch again. Horrified by your thoughts, you brushed them away and stepped up to the front, telling the chef your order. 

Once that was done with and the food was received, you sat down at a table outside. Three whole dishes filled of food, you wasted no time to dive into them, the steamy aroma wafting into the air. Mouthful of food, you almost choked when you found the so-called Childe sitting down in front of you. Coughing for a good minute or two, you suffered as he watched you in enjoyment. When you could catch your breath, you averted your gaze to the table. Oh god, you wished you could bury yourself before you could humiliate yourself any further. He shouldn't have followed you here. 

"I'm surprised you bought three whole dishes for yourself," he pointed out, taking delight in teasing you. 

You scowled and looked at him, the shameful emotion fading away. "Are you insinuating something?" you asked, squinting at him. He rose his brows in surprise, quickly shaking his head to explain he meant no harm. Sighing, you decided to go all out then. If he already knew your name, what difference would it make to share a few more things about yourself? Besides, this was Liyue Harbor we're talking about; no one was that desperate to seek out trouble so publicly. "I'm an adventurer and I also do commissions. Fighting takes up a lot of my energy, so only one meal wouldn't suffice."

Something swirled in his eyes -- unknown and still just as unreadable. However, you paid no mind to it, too absorbed by the food and the conversation to notice. Maybe this was where it went wrong. "An adventurer?" he echoed, his voice breathless. His ears seemingly perked up and he leaned forward in his seat, anxious to hear more. "What would you say if I tagged along with you today?"

It was shocking to hear that, but eventually, you accepted his self-invitation and brought him along to the locations. Setting off by foot, the two of continued onward with full bellies and enough energy to last several hours. The land stretched for miles and miles, scaping the grounds of hills, mountains, rivers, and meadows. Hogs ran through the trees and birds soared in the skies. Monsters rolled around in the dust, waiting to ambush anybody in the way. The sun beating down upon your backs and the weather a little too warm for liking, it was a difficult trek, but nothing close to impossible for an adventurer.

The fighting began when the destination to a pack of hilichurls appeared on sight. Unsheathing your blade, you immediately attacked them, continuously slashing away until they were entirely cleaned up. Breathing heavily with sweat beading your forehead, you did all the dirty work as Childe inspected from the side, his eye following your every move.

It wasn't easy though. You struggled at some areas, sometimes missing them or getting slightly injured by their own weapons. It was sloppy and flawed, for you were not a skilled swordsman, born without the talent and money. Anyway, it didn't matter much; as long as you did the job, that was what mattered. 

The next one took place near the mountains. Insuring that a wagon would be delivered somewhere safely, you had to fend off more monsters, circling around the large transport tirelessly to prevent any damage. While you were doing so, the orange haired male lounged on top of the-said wagon, relaxed and watching the battle beneath him. 

Afterwards, it was of simple commissions, with no sword involved. On the last one and feeding ducks for a little kid you accidentally offended, you let out a yawn, ready to go home and sleep everything off. Your partner for the day was also there, crouching down beside the lake's bank, tossing the wheat to the little creatures. Turning his head to the side, he gave you a small smile. Unlike you, he was widely awake and full of energy -- you expected that much, considering he didn't do anything to help you. 

"I enjoyed traveling around with you today, [Y/N]," he said, straightening himself up until he returned to being taller than you. 

Minus the part where he was completely useless to you, you couldn't help but admit that it was enjoyable to have him him around. His cheery persona helped to distract you from your dislike with the job, filling the silence with easy discussion about basically anything. "It was fun... I suppose," you responded, letting out yet another yawn. 

"You know, you could've asked me help. It would've been less straining for you," he pointed out.

You swerved your head at the mention of this, flabbergasted with your mouth hung open like a gaping fish. "You can fight?!" You shot up from where you sat, stepping up to a half-laughing, half-scared Childe. He nodded slowly and you rubbed your eyes harshly, curses running through your head. "And you didn't think to tell me that until now?"

He shrugged, drinking in your angered expression. No ounce of remorse shown in his features, he was pleased to get a rise out of you. Goddammit, this guy was going to be the death of you. "You never asked."

Not replying to him, you faced the other way and crossed your arms, brooding like a kid after a tantrum. 

"Aw, don't be mad at me," he cooed, petting your [h/c] head endearingly. "Hey, are you thinking of improving your swordsmanship?"

Originally planning to give him the silent treatment, you could barely even hold on to the promise for a minute. His question intrigued you and you began to wonder why he was asking you something like that. "No, not really," you answered. 

"Why not?"

"It's not necessary. My level is adequate for the commissions I take on. It's not like I'm striving to be anything legendary... that's just asking for a death sentence."

His forehead furrowed and a darkened gaze was aimed at you. He seemed to want to say a lot of things, yet couldn't find the words to them. Was he... mad at you for some unknown reason? Almost expecting a big lecture from him, you were shocked to hear what he said instead. "You have potential though."

That was where you parted from Tartaglia that young evening, but by no means was that the last time you were to see him. 

You would run into him at Liyue Harbor, in Mondstadt, or sometimes in your travels as an adventurer. Each time you would welcome him warmly, always glad to have his company. He was seriously growing on you, become a friend that distracted you from the hardships of the cold reality. He brightened the atmosphere wherever he went, always the charismatic type, wooing anyone with a tip of a smile. 

Of course, you knew he was a Harbringer; he never made a show of hiding it, so you were acknowledged of this pretty much immediately. Hearing the gossip and rumors of the Fatui, you understood that the organization was hella sketchy, but it didn't shine a bad light on Childe at all. You wanted to put your hopes in him, to give him the benefit of doubt. He was helpful so far and your life was peaceful with him around -- which was the one thing you wished for. 

Or maybe it was because you had fallen for him already. 

At least for the first month or so, everything passed through wonderfully. The two of you were like partners in crime, back to back and supportive of the other. The amount times you would stroll through the meadows and just talk to the man was becoming countless. It began to be something you were looking forward to: to have the time to get to know him even better, from his family to the simplest of facts about him. 

It was too good to be true. As the saying goes, nothing lasts forever. 

You should have never lowered your guard down. Not when you were found laying on the grimy grounds of a domain, beaten and bloodied. Not when the man you supposedly loved was towering in front of you, his deep blue eyes glowering in lust for violence. Not when your peaceful life was shattered to pieces. Childe couldn't control it any longer that day. He wanted to battle you out, to cause chaos and havoc. Why? You didn't understand... he was your friend. This wasn't what friends do. Nonetheless, he was serious about this declaration. 

He spat at the ground, annoyed you didn't put up a greater fight. Not at all worried about your wounds, he paced around the chamber, pulling at his messy locks. "Didn't I say you had potential?! You should've tried harder."

You soon lost consciousness, too exhausted and pained to do anything else. The next time you awoken, you were in Mondstadt, getting healed by Barbara. Tartaglia was no where to be seen, as he ran off earlier without telling anyone of his whereabouts. That was the last time you saw him for a while...

Everything that happened was the past, occurring a few months ago. And here you were, in the present, back to the same life you had before meeting Childe. You still disliked the same things, whether that'd be fighting, unpredictable people, or your job. Day after day, you worked to gain money for a living, hating every moment of it. It was so normal that sometimes you wondered if you may have imagined the certain Fatui man up.

Walking through the mountainous parts of Liyue, you were on a hunt for resources. Hoping to stumble upon a mine and get done with the work as soon as possible, it was unfortunate that the weather hated you.

Droplets fell from the sky and the clouds darkened the world. Rain thrummed against the earth, soaking your clothes within a few minutes. They stuck to your skin, turning uncomfortable and cold. Wrapping your arms around yourself, you quickened your pace, desperate to find shelter for the time being. Shit, shit, shit. You hated the life of an adventurer so much--

Too blurry to watch where you were going, you hit a hard surface in front of you. Rather than a hard surface, it was actually a person. Squinting and wiping the droplets from your eyes, you cringed when you saw who it was. It was the one and only Childe, looking the same as always.

Wet orange locks somehow making him more attractive than he already was, he was as soaked as you were. The clothes defined his body and you frantically stopped yourself staring at it any further. 

"[Y/N]," he breathed out, looking unsure. The sound of his voice snapped you back to life and fury filled the pits of your stomach. Seething in spot, the hands at your sides clenched tightly. He had taken your trust and ruined it -- he was nothing but a fucking bastard. 

He took a few steps forward, growing nearer, his blue beautiful hues full of regret. You hated that he dared show himself up, wearing that damn look as if you would ever forgive him. Pulling your hand back without thinking, you laid it across his cheek, harsh at the contact. He touched his red cheek in awe, lowering his head in shame. 

"I deserved that," he whispered, smiling at you sadly.

"You do," you muttered. 

Despite how angry you were at him, there was this twisted desire to kiss him. Feelings were confusing, always making a situation more complicated than it should be. 

Leaning forward, you locked lips with his. His body had stiffened in bewilderment, but he soon returned the kiss, wrapping his steady arms around yourself. Digging your fingers into his hair, you sighed in between breaths and listened to your racing heart. He tasted like salt and the soil beneath you. He was the definition of unpredictable, but you couldn't get enough of him. He brought destruction in the paths he walked on and had the continuous yearning for war. He was everything you were not and you hated him for it. 

His lips trailed away from your own, peppering kisses on your jawline, causing you to gulp. He was swallowing you whole, taking in everything about you to memorize. His touch was intoxicating, the finger tips leaving a mark on your tender skin. "Let's never see each other again after this," you told him. He didn't respond as he continued to bruise your neck. "I hate you, Childe. I fucking hate you, you bastard."

Tears welled out of your eyes, mixing together with the tears from the gods, unable to be distinguished. 

He lifted his head and gave you one last long kiss. Your insides were this close to bursting, butterflies fluttering horrendously like a beast within you. Soft lashes flitted and he stared at you with understanding. He was going to listen to your wish; he would never show himself up again.