annie-creates

[annie-creates]

This is how i feel after reading the first death in 7 husbands of Evelyn Hugo😭😭

[annie-creates]

angst WIPs I hope to get done soon

Just a flier

Mira Sorrengail was always a woman of principle. She played by the rules and lived by the codex, that's how she climbed the ranks only three years after her graduation. No stepping out of line, no fratenizing with the enemy. So it was a miracle how she came up with you, a gryphon flier girlfriend.

"Violet is not embarrassed to have Xaden around!? And he's a fucking marked one. Just admit it, you're ashamed to have your mother see me with you. It's not like I'm not used to it around here. You think I don't see how people look at me? With disgust and hatred? Yet I hold your hand anyway because I don't care what they think. I love you anyway."

Some things are better left unsaid

Reader x Xaden even tho Bodhi was there first. He'd give anything to be the one you choose, but it was always Xaden.

"It was always gonna be him, wasn't it?"

"Yes." No, but you didn't want to break his heart more. Didn't want to hurt him further by admiting not long ago you thought you'll choose him.

Never his first choice

You always loved Bodhi, up close or from afar. You coundn't remember a day you weren't in love with him. He had eyes for Violet, but since she got together with Xaden, you two had a chance of a good relationship. Until Xaden leaves. Because he's always looking at her with adoration he never gives you.

"You felt it. This was his chance with Violet and He was taking it, leaving you behind. Because you were never his first choice."

Which one would you be excited to read first?🙏

If you ever wanna be tagged for any of my fics, let me know!❤️

[annie-creates]

Y'all inspired me with the @empyreanevents Bodhi week to these two very sad, very emotional fics, but it's probably too late to count them in the #Bodhiweek2025 right?😅

Well I still might write them anyway.

[annie-creates]

I just realized...

If menders can heal practically anything, why can't they restore hearing loss, if it's apperently so common on the Continent? Especially with people who weren't born deaf?🤔 It's not like we see people walking around with glasses...

Is that even questioned anywhere in the books?

[annie-creates]

The greatest mistake | Part 4

Pairing: Dain Aetos x Riorson reader

Genre: fluff

Words: 2022

Note: The finale is here! Settle in for some teeth-rotting fluff. Please be aware not every detail might be completely true to the canon source material. Thank you to everyone who was reading my little series and let me know what you think!

Masterlist | Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3

It took a week for you to be able to take the bandage completely off your face and see fully again. You were excused from challenges for the time being, but that also meant you weren’t able to train. Furthermore you avoided Dain anywhere you went, because your heart was torn between the need to run away in protection of yourself and falling back into his arms because you still loved him, no matter how much you tried to convince yourself you didn’t. The only bright side was that Xaden had finally overcome his wounded pride and started slowly talking to you again, even though you didn’t make it easy for him either.

But he got off quite well in comparison to Dain, because you really loved and wanted your brother. It helped that he kept sincerely apologizing for all the hurtful things he said and assuring you that your father loved you and still would love you and be proud of you very much. Your dragon kept pestering him with annoyed remarks, but Xaden took it like a champion realizing his mistakes. The one thing you weren’t brave enough to talk to him about was your strained relationship with Dain though, you knew what kind of opinion he had about him and you weren’t suicidal enough to bring it up.

In reality you were scared to face Dain. In all your relationship he has never seen you so raw and vulnerable, with your faults and weaknesses facing out. You were scared to talk about the things he’d seen and you knew he’d ask if he had the chance. So you didn’t give it to him. But you also couldn’t stay away. You silently watched him across the dining hall, followed his steps on the mat in challenges. It’s like you were connected by an invisible thread, always guiding you back to him.

After a week of not being able to train and spending too much time in the library studying as a result, you miss the sunshine and you miss the thrill of a good soaring challenge. So you couldn’t be happier when you’re finally cleared for fighting again, your eye fully healed and leaving only a light pink scar that will hopefully go away in a few days. You walk into the gym and see Dain giving training orders to his squad, so that’s where you go after he sends them off. It was time to stop dancing around each other.

“Hey, you’ve got a minute?” You ask him with a carefree smile, gathering all your courage.

“Sure, what for?” He returns your smile, a little surprised.

“I need to breach in my training and I’ve actually never fought with you before.” You ask him to the mat.

“Are you sure you’re ready for it?” He knew better than to question you, but he still tried. “You were hurt just a week ago, nobody will mind if you have a few more days off.”

“Absolutely sure.” You dismiss his concerns, there was no convincing you otherwise when you had already decided on something. “Wait till I kick your ass.”

You rile him up, walking to the nearest mat, not wasting any more time before getting into position. The fight is actually quite good, Dain quicky realizing there’s no point holding back with you. Where you were lacking in power you compensated in stamina and speed, catching him unprepared here or there. You both succeeded getting each other on your knees or back a few times, Dain currently holding you down pinned with his legs.

“You are a menace.” Dain laughs breathlessly.

“Thank you. I try.” You laugh back, your breaths mingling.

“What the fuck are you doing?” Xaden’s gruffy voice rings out, cutting your banter short.

Dain helps you up then and you watch Xaden stepping in, followed by his squad of empty-headed ducklings. You feel Dain go rigid next to you, arms folding over his chest just like your own. Maybe your relationship was complicated right now, but you still won’t let Xaden put him down, and as it seems, Dain won’t let Xaden talk down to you either.

“What does it look like?” Dain challenges, stepping in front of you a little.

“Like you’re trying to beat my little sister up.” Xaden spits angrily.

“We’re just training.” You step between them, trying to calm them both down.

“Oh, then you chose a great opponent to do that with.” Xaden pesters you, switching his sight to Dain. “Some protector, are you?”

“Hey. It’s not like you’re training with her.” Dain doesn’t back down. “It’s not like you’re protecting her.”

“Who I train with is none of your business.” You argue with Xaden. “And if I remember correctly you said I’m not your sister anymore, so why do you care.”

“You have no business fraternizing with him.” You clearly struck a painful nerve as he finally looks at you.

“Who I fraternize with is none of your damn business.” You turn on your heel grabbing Dain’s hand and marching out of the gym as if to prove your point.

“Like hell it is. I’m not gonna let you…” Xaden yells at you but your lungs are stronger.

“Let me!? You have no grounds letting me do anything.” You remind him, he was still on thin ice.

“You’re gonna do as I say!” He orders furiously, desperate for control.

“Watch me.” You challenge as you grab Dain by his collar and pull him down into a show off kiss, just to spite your brother. “Let’s go.”

You grab his hand once more, almost running out of the gym, not wanting to see Xaden’s surely pissed reaction. Dain doesn’t argue, he may be self-confident, but he knows he’d be no match to Xaden in the state of rage he is in. Both of you are taken back by the sudden kiss you didn’t plan for, but you don’t speak and only hold hands in a shared silent understanding of urgency until you reach your room. The air is still as he sits on the edge of your bed, you lean on the rim of your desk.

For a moment, nobody speaks, he’s just looking around your room. The scattered homework. The nearly full bottle of solution you got for your scars that makes his lips quirk up in a faint smile. And you’re studying him like as if you look intensely enough, you’ll be able to read him like an open book just like Xaden does, to see if he’s really remorseful and honest with you. But you can’t read people, so you’ll have to trust him. Can you do that?

“I’m sorry… about the kiss. I didn’t really plan on that.” You break the silence timidly.

“Don’t be. I… I missed you so damn much.” He admits, afraid to meet your eyes. “I am so sorry for what I did Y/n.”

With a heavy sigh you sit on your bed facing him, no longer able to avoid the conversation. This is it. You’ll have to confront his actions and your feelings and that made you so fuckin nervous. Your muscles were so tense they could snap, and you absentmindedly pick your switchblade out of your pocket to play with it in your lap.

“I’m sorry Y/n, I should have never let you go. I’m an idiot, and I’ll never forget that.” He shakes his head, watching your skilled fingers. “I just hope one day you can forgive me. I don’t want to be the reason for a single scar more on your body.”

“It’s not only that Dain.” You admit heavily. “You picked your father over me, you dropped me the minute he didn’t approve of me, and I… I understand. Really. I’m not a great girlfriend. I’m marked. A daughter of the rebellion, of the great betrayer. But it still hurt damn much.”

“That’s not what you are.” He answers rapidly, holding your gaze this time with so much intent it almost breaks you. “I’m so sorry that’s what I made you feel like. Because that’s not at all who you are to me. You’re not a traitor, you’re not unworthy or flawy. I can’t believe I was such an idiot to let you believe that.”

“I’m sorry, it’s just… complicated.” You sigh. “Well at least you’ve had a better conversation with me than my brother did.”

“What’s the deal with him?” Dain asks. “I mean, other than normally being a dick.”

“Well, he disowned me after I went with you to the reunification day. Said I’m a disgrace to my family and my father would be disappointed in me.” You admit ashamedly after a little laugh. “And even though he keeps apologizing, I can’t help but wonder if he was right, at least a little.”

“Do you think he would be ashamed?” he asks carefully.

“How would I know. He’s dead.” You avoid his gaze now. “It’s not like I can ask him for opinions or advice, or if I’m a good enough daughter to him.”

“Y/n, I’m sure your father would be proud of you.” Dain holds your chin to make you look at him. “Look at you, you’re strong, and clever, agile, and you bonded an amazing dragon. I think he couldn’t ask for his daughter to turn out more perfectly.”

“How would you know, you didn’t know him.” You say with a watery laugh.

“Maybe I didn’t need to know him. I know you. And I know you’re pretty fuckin perfect.” He looks at you so intensely it makes your stomach dance.

“I’m not perfect.” You sigh.

“You are to me.” Dain exclaims, still holding you. “And I’ll spent every day of my stupid miserable life proving that to you.”

“You don’t have to do that.” You blush.

“Yes, I do. And it still won’t be enough. Because what I did was inexcusable, and still here I am, begging for your forgiveness on things that shouldn’t be forgiven. But I’ll be damned if I don’t spend every day apologizing and telling you how much I love you.” His words hold heaviness and vulnerability you’ve never seen before. “I was an idiot. I tried to dump my own insecurities on you, because it was easier than facing the truth.”

“You’re not…” But he doesn’t let you interrupt him.

“The truth is, I don’t care about a single damn person in this world but you. You’re my only concern Y/n. And if you ask, I’ll let the world burn for you.” His eyes are filled with urgency for you to believe his words, because they’re the truth.

“Dain…” You whisper, eyes boring into his.

After a minute of his revelation seeping into every fiber of your body, you kiss him. Slowly, your lips gliding against his, bathing in the raw emotions and desire for each other. For a moment, the world around you doesn’t exist, it’s only him and you. He holds your waist, guiding you to sit in his lap so he can be as close to you as humanly possible. He’d never wish to spend another minute separated from you.

“I’ll be damned if I waste another minute not being right next to you.” Dain breaths out.

“Wait…” You whisper before you get too lost in his smell and his smile and everything that’s so unmistakably him. “About the scars…”

“You don’t have to tell me.” He assures you, seeing as you don’t really know what to say. “Your scars are your own. You can share them when you’re ready. And if that day never comes, that’s okay too. But know that I’ll be happy to help you carry any weight I can. You’re not alone.”

“Thank you.” You whisper before curling into him, embraced by his strong arms.

Maybe your life will never be easy, but you felt it could be a tad bit more light-weighted if you had Dain by your side, sharing your burdens and fortune. And he would do anything to stand right next to you. Even if he’d take his last breath protecting you, it would be worth living his life.

Tags: @desprrssooo-espresssooooo @bellblake @lagrandeourse

[annie-creates]

Look, I'm not writing a Ridoc Gamlyn fanfic, alright? ...but if I did, this would deffinitely be the line.

RG: Good thing I fuck like a third year.

Flier reader: Maybe, but you converse like a toddler.

[annie-creates]

I don't wanna be friends

Pairing: Imogen Cardulo x reader

Genre: angst to fluff

Words: 3800

Note: Imogen seriously needs more love and fanfiction. A warning of silly pick up lines for this one. Please be aware not every detail might be completely true to the canon source material.

You were a social butterfly, it was the first thing anyone noticed after you crossed the parapet. You made friends on day one, and even the unmarked kids had trouble not to have a smile show in your proximity sometimes. It was almost undue seeing someone so carefree and full of life in a place as cruel as the riders quadrant. Xaden Riorson himself struggled to keep his calm and broody composure of ignorance in your presence from time to time, which spoke volumes.

He and his group helped train you and the other first years before threshing to give you the best chance possible to survive the war college. At any night practice in the gym you always carried a smile in, even if a little tired and sometimes bloodied from a mean punch. No matter how many defeats you endured, you always got back up, ready to try harder the next day. Noone survived their turn against Garrick or Imogen by just sailing through and hoping for the best.

At threshing, you mentally thanked every single one of them for the skills they drilled into you. The knowledge of working against a hidden opponent and provisionally patching up your own wounds saved your life that day, and at sundown you turned up on the flight field with a gorgeous green dragon. Bodhi shot you a proud smile, everyone expected the best from you, and an intelligent beast just like you was the perfect match to your bright personality.

Even though the challenges were suspended for the time being, you couldn’t rest on one’s laurels. There were still cadets who were after your throats, and now also the unbonded ones hoping to snag your dragons for themselves. You made it a point to train with the makeshift squad of marked ones at least three times a week, their watch interchanging. Usually it would be Xaden accompanied by Garrick or Bodhi, uncommonly the later two training you together. Imogen however made it her point to be present any time she could, taking the drills as her personal responsibility.

On Tuesday evening you find her standing by Bodhi, leaning on the wooden pillar of the gym. Both are sporting tunics without sleeves, the relics intricately swirling around their arms like angels of death, too many of irresistible biceps showing. Their watchful eyes scan the room for potential weaklings, hushed conversation flowing between them.

“Damn, I hope you know CPR. You’re taking my breath away.” You shoot them a wink on your way to the shared showers after training.

You were always fun to be around, but once you started flirting, it was impossible to break away from you. Whoever didn’t get to be the target of your advances enjoyed watching you do it, the words flying from your mouth with minimal effort or shame. And any time you pushed a pick up line into your conversation, the smile that adored your lips was brighter than the sun.

“I need you to practice that on me.” You laugh as Imogen and Xaden leave the mat after a sparring match that ended up with them intertwined on the ground.

On Saturday some cadets used the free time to train on the mat or with dummies while others occupied the smaller gym to strengthen their muscles or improve their agility. On your water break you watch Garrick and Imogen in a silent bench-pressing tournament, sweat dripping from both of them as they push themselves to their maximum weight limits.

“You can bench press me anytime.” You comment with a smirk, wiping your own sweat off your forehead. “I’ll be the only bodyweight workout you’ll need.”

You were never known as one to take random hook ups to your bed, more like the sweet and innocent girl who no one had it in their heart to corrupt. So if you were flirting so openly, you must have picked up an interest in someone, but who? That was a riddle not even your best friends could solve.

“You need to work out more Y/n, these weak thighs won’t pin anyone down.” Imogen scolds you as she helps you off the mat where she had you pinned not even a minute ago.

“Maybe you can help me work out? You know, in private?” You offer shamelessly as Xaden stands next to her.

They both shake their heads at you in amusement, the little flower started growing fangs it seems. It was hard to tell if it was your powerful dragon or the time at Basgiath that made you so bold, but they couldn’t say they didn’t enjoy watching you bloom into a confident woman. The next Monday practice is overwatched by Imogen and Garrick.

“Do you have a band-aid?” You ask innocently, limping a little in their direction after your brutal sparring session with a second year. “I scraped a knee falling for you it seems.”

“Y/n you are shameless.” Garrick laughs at you, already rummaging through his bag for a bandage.

“Thank you!” You smile at him proudly.

Your antics started to brighten everyone’s day, even more than your presence did before. You just had this happy effect on people, and you didn’t even need a signet to do it for you. That’s why Bodhi already knows this is gonna be another unforgettable day as he stands with Xaden and Imogen, overseeing the last practice before the spring round of challenges.

“I’ll need a map.” You exclaim seriously as you reach them.

“You’ve been here for over half a year, why would you need…” Xaden doesn’t get the chance to finish as you cut him off.

“I will if I keep getting lost in those gorgeous eyes.” You explain with a smile before getting to your own opponent for the evening.

On another Thursday you join the training right from the flight field exercise that left your butt sore and muscles hurting from all the effort to stay on your dragon. You’ve heard some picked up on the habit of catching their riders if they fell off, but you didn’t want to test this theory on your own one personally.

“Do you want me to spot you while you do those squads?” You call out to Imogen who already has Garrick standing right behind her. “I promise to watch very carefully.”

That was a lost cause but you tried to shoot your shot anyway, you never backed out from a challenge, even if you set it up for yourself. That’s why you’re watching Bodhi’s and Imogen’s sparring demonstration so intently, you tell yourself. It definitely wasn’t their effortless movement and her perfect butt handing him his ass.

“Excuse me? You dropped something.” You inform them as they leave the mat.

“What?” Bodhi looks at the floor expecting a paper tissue or something.

“My jaw.” You smile at them, your eyes sparkling with mischief. “Seriously, it’s not fair I have to keep picking it up after you.”

It was safe to say you were almost driving them crazy. Not that they didn’t mostly enjoy it, but not knowing your motives was driving Xaden, Garrick and Bodhi mad. No matter how thoroughly they discussed it, they still couldn’t find the reason for your flirting.

“Guys it can’t be me, Y/n isn’t the type to go after someone who’s basically taken.” Xaden ponders.

“Well maybe if you made your relationship finally a thing, she wouldn’t.” Bodhi argues.

“My money is on Bodhi, you’d fit nicely together. She’s bubbly like you.” Garrick joins the debate.

“Or, she’s into the wall of muscle and toughness you are, petite girls seem to have something going on for that kind of thing.” Xaden retorts and smirks. “Take it from someone who has one.”

“Guys why don’t we just ask her.” Bodhi offers, earning both of them looking at him like he’s crazy. “What, it’s the only way to know for sure.”

“Yeah, that’s a terrible idea. Girls don’t like that.” Garrick states.

“And how would you know?” Bodhi argues, shrugging his shoulders. “Maybe she’ll be happy we noticed her.”

“I don’t think she has any doubts about that.” Xaden muses. “But I agree asking her is the most efficient and sensible way.”

That’s why they cornered you in the courtyard on one April Friday after dinner, or rather just waited for you to show up, cause you never missed an opportunity to talk to them if you could. The three of them together were a frightening combination, so your smile involuntarily froze when you saw their much too serious expressions.

“Oh no. Did I do something?” You ask timidly.

“No, why would you think that?” Xaden starts, sharing a confused look with the other two.

“Uhm, maybe because you’re looking like someone has died or you’re gonna expel me from the club.” Leave it to you to always make a little joke out of everything.

“No, you’re not in trouble Y/n.” Garrick assures you with a smile and they all ease up.

“Oh good! I wouldn’t wanna stir any troubles with you… even though I can handle you.” You claim with mocked confidence.

“We just wanted to ask… We couldn’t not notice your flirting.” Bodhi starts like a deer in headlights.

“Well good, I’d have to question my skills if you didn’t.” You laugh.

“But who are you flirting with? I mean, who are you into? It can’t be all three of us… or can it? No shame in that, if that’s your thing…” Bodhi’s mouth is suddenly unstoppable. “Not to shame that or anything, I mean if that’s what you’re into that’s fine, we’re just not really good at sharing…”

“I wasn’t flirting like that!” You cut him off with a laugh, releasing the tension.

“You weren’t flirting..?” Xaden asks dumbfounded.

“No! I mean, I was, but not with you.” You shake your head.

“Then who were you flirting with..?” Garrick asks with a deep wrinkle between his brows as he thinks.

“Imogen.” You whisper after a moment, suddenly unable to meet their eyes.

“Oh… Oh!” Xaden exclaims, all their eyes slowly widening in realization.

“Yeah, oh. Just… don’t tell anyone, okay?” You plead with them, suddenly too conscious about the secret you now shared with them.

“Alright. Well, thank you for being honest.” Xaden praises you after a minute with a very rare genuine smile.

“Thanks! I’m glad we’re friends.” You jump around his neck in relief before finally leaving for your dorm.

The next ten days you’re almost flowing on the clouds, your mood as cheerful as always. You won a challenge, the college was exceptionally drenched in sunny weather and you aced your battle brief exam. Everyone saw the glow you had around yourself and wanted to bask in it for a little while, automatically improving their own mood. Your streak of luck however came to a halt when you asked Imogen to spar with you the next practice.

“Hey, you have a minute?” You ask with your usual friendly smile.

“For you? Absolutely not.” She barely spares you a glance.

“What? Why? I thought I was getting better..?” Your brows furrow, your smile disappearing.

“You can never be a good enough match for me Y/n.” Imogen insults you without looking back.

She avoids you for the rest of the training, always too busy or too uninterested in you. You didn’t want to hog up her time of course, but she practically raised you in training, taught you everything you knew. Most of the strategies and tactics you achieved were thanks to her. She never said no to helping you train, ever. The sudden coldness places a permanent wrinkle of bother between your eyebrows.

“Hey, is everything okay?” You ask her timidly at the end of the practice.

“Why wouldn’t it be.” Imogen states harshly.

“You never say no to training…” You try to show her your reasons but she doesn’t let you.

“I want to have nothing to do with you Y/n. You aren’t good enough match for me, not here, not on the mat and definitely not anywhere else.” She scowls at you, clearly hinting at things that make you blush. “I don’t want to have anything to do with you, you hear me?”

“Jesus fine, you don’t have to be so rude about it…” You counter.

“I don’t think you’d get it into your thick head otherwise. Leave. Me. Alone.” The stormy look she gives you before stomping out of the gym would put any storm made by general Sorrengail to shame.

With a heavy sigh you get back to your own backpack, slowly putting everything back in before heading out yourself. It was possible Imogen finally caught onto your flirting, but after weeks of not noticing it didn’t seem likely. As you open the door to see Garrick and Bodhi heading into the gym, you’re sure it must have been their fault.

“What did you do.” You pass through gritted teeth at them.

“What..?” Garrick asks foolishly.

“All of a sudden, Imogen wants to have nothing to do with me. So what did you do?” You press them, anger evident on your face.

“Ugh, I’m so sorry Y/n, it just slipped…” Bodhi tries to coax you, both their expressions terrified now. “We didn’t mean to tell her about your crush…”

“I asked you for one thing, just one! And you just had to take a walk with your mouth, didn’t you!” Your outburst of frustration genuinely scared them, no one has ever seen you this angry. “You’ve ruined everything!”

They try to come up with some weak excuses but you’re having none of it. As you storm your way back to your room, you suddenly feel emotionally exhausted, unsure if you’re supposed to be angry, sad or upset first. The tears that make their way down your face are equally angry and hurt, mourning a loss of friendship you valued over everything else.

You surely weren’t Imogen’s best friend, but she was your everything. Your mentor, your best friend, the girl you thought about when you couldn’t sleep. And suddenly all of her roles were ripped away from you, degrading her to someone you weren’t allowed to know anymore. The worst part is that you’re missing her in aspects of your life where you didn’t even notice her before. Her half-smile at breakfast. Her pestering of first years who didn’t make it to class on time. How she joked with Xaden about taking him down before each of their matches.

After all the little things missing there were only empty holes now, denting your confidence and lively enthusiasm. With each day she avoided you your inner sun shined a little less brightly. The things that excited you before, even unimportant ones, were now leaving you completely uninterested. You preferred to spend your nights in the library now, content with the calmness and emptiness. People noticed you withdrawing of course, but nobody knew what the reason was, except a few.

“Hey. You okay?” Xaden surprises you on one lonely evening.

“Never been better.” You answer him shortly, not looking up from your book.

“Look, Bodhi and Garrick really screwed up, but they didn’t mean to. They feel really shitty about it now.” He explains quietly.

“Well so do I.” You admit wish a sigh, closing your book. “Imogen hates me now, no thanks to them.”

“Well Imogen is… complicated.” Xaden tries desperately to make you feel any better but comes up empty handed.

“I know. It’s fine. It’s not like I can make her like me.” You shrug, your tired voice carrying all your sadness.

“But you still have friends Y/n. Don’t turn away from them just because you’re sad now. Other people can make you feel better, you know?” He tries to encourage your spirit.

“Hm…” Is all you answer before you pack up to leave for bed. “I was never good at pretending.”

It seems like in the following weeks, Imogen makes it her point to make a spectacular show of bringing random men to her bed. Either you never noticed it before, or she was doing it now more to spite you, either way it was not your business anymore. She could sleep with and date and love whoever she wanted to. The knowledge unfortunately didn’t take the pain in your heart away. It only made it bleed harder seeing as her doors were apparently open to anyone but you.

Even when you catch a glance of her passing in the hallway or sparing in challenges, you feel like you haven’t really seen her for months. She stopped training you or interacting with you completely. Seeing as you were still blaming Bodhi and Garrick for your situation, there weren’t many people to train you who you were at good terms with right now. The sleepless nights and overworking yourself over classes instead of going to the gym also signed at you and your form, so it’s no surprise when you lose your next challenge barely minutes after it started.

“That was the worst form I have ever seen.” Imogen’s voice startles you, you almost forgot how it sounded… if you could ever really forget anything about her.

“Yeah you don’t really have to… remind me of what a failure I am. So… is it just something you like to do for fun?” You finally meet her eyes and the surrendered look in yours takes her by surprise.

She doesn’t have anything to say to that, how would she? She’s the one who suddenly stopped training you, the one who turned her back on you. Whether she liked to admit it or not, she was the reason you lost your spark, and that was a hard pill to swallow. She never wanted to see you give up. Your loss of excitement and cheerfulness was like a punch to her gut. Only because of her own stupid insecurities. She did this.

You weren’t blaming her of course, you were too nice for that. Nobody could command their feelings, you just wished she was a little nicer about it. Lost in your thoughts you walk over the courtyard during lunch hour, not paying too much attention until you hear some unmistakable rude teasing. It wasn’t uncommon for people to pick on first years, girls, or marked ones around here. But as you noticed, today’s victims were all three of these things.

“Hey! Pick up on someone your own size.” You step between the three girls and two bigger men.

“Who are you to talk, traitor.” One of them insults you. “We’ll pick on whoever we deem needed. Now get out of my way, before I start with you.”

“I’d like to see you try.” You smirk, your hands ghosting over your daggers.

The bigger one launches at you first, but you’re fast. You don’t let him land many punches, which obviously frustrates him. The other guy joins the fight to make sure they win against a girl seeing his friend struggling against you. The smaller one is easier to deal with, the moment you get an opening for one of your, or more specifically Imogen’s, high kicks he’s knocked out cold. The other one uses the moment to slice your thigh with his own dagger, and the bruises along your jaw you got along the way pulse painfully. You get him into a choke hold after a few minutes, refusing to let him go until your own vision goes out, the screaming of a wingleader the last thing you hear before slumping into darkness.

You wake up to bright lights and a sterile white bed, your nose immediately hit with the smell of disinfectant. You must be in the infirmary. You groan as you try to move each of your limbs, your left thigh responding with a shot of pain. Your brain slowly starts working as you overcome the fog sitting on it, coming back with memories of the fight in the courtyard.

“You shouldn’t move too fast.” A familiar voice warns you. “You took quite a beating.”

“What do you care.” You frown as you slowly sit up, hanging your legs over the edge.

“You protected a group of girls against two opponents much bigger than yourself…” Imogen avoids your question, not looking you straight in the eye. “I’m honestly impressed. But you were always incredibly brave. Or stupid.”

The end of her sentence rings out in almost a laughing tone, but you must be mistaken. Imogen never laughed, and she certainly wouldn’t be laughing with you now. You let a silence stretch between you, and after it gets almost unbearable, she finally gathers the courage to look you in the eye. Your jaw was painted in all different colors, but to her it was a beautiful symbol of your incredible bravery.

“Look Y/n…” She starts as you talk at the same time, letting you finish.

“Imogen, I understand if you don’t wanna be friends with me anymore…” You say honestly, letting the silence stretch as she ponders her answer.

“No I don’t want to be friends.” She agrees, placing her hands on your shoulders as she stands in front of you.

“O-okay…” You expected it but the pang of hurt still rode through your heart like a freshly sharpened dagger. “I understand if you don’t want to have anything to do with me…”

Your words are cut off by her hands taking your face, holding it in place to kiss you. You freeze before reciprocating, melting into her hold, as if it’s the place you were always meant to be. You place your hand over hers, grounding yourself in the reality of the moment. You half expected it to be just another of your cruel dreams that would let you wake up into a very disappointing reality.

“I’m sorry I was a chicken afraid of my own feelings and hurt you in the process.” She admits quietly, leaning her forehead on yours. “I’m so fucking sorry.”

“Don’t be.” You soothe her, your bright eyes boring into hers.

“No I am. I never want to see you sad again. Especially because of me. Not a single tear will fall off this gorgeous face because of me.” Imogen promises, and you knew she wasn’t giving promises out too easily, because she’d never break her promise.

“It’s okay. You’re here now.” You whisper to not disturb the moment.

“It is not okay. But I’ll make it, if you let me.” She moves away just far enough to look you in the face properly. “If you still want me, that is.”

“I will always want you Imogen.” You admit sheepishly.

“Good, because you aren’t getting rid of me now. That’s a promise.” She assures you.

She was always your everything and you wouldn’t have it any other way.

[annie-creates]

The greatest mistake | Part 3

Pairing: Dain Aetos x Riorson reader

Genre: angst

Words: 2915

Note: Be aware there is a detailed description of self-harm. Get ready to feel some feelings in this long part. Please be aware not every detail might be completely true to the canon source material. Let me know what you think and if you want to be reminded for the last one!

Masterlist | Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 4

A month into the summer and everyone is still ignoring you. You’ve never seen Xaden hold a grudge this long, it would honestly almost impressed you, if his wrath wasn’t directed at you. The worst part was you were starting to see his point of view, and with the way he treated you, you started feeling like he’s right. Maybe you really weren’t worth even a glance to him. Maybe you weren’t worthy of your family’s name and role. Lucky for you you still had Violet and her friends, and your squad, but even surrounded by people you felt alone. You never knew how much you needed your family until you lost them all, only because of one stupid decision.

Things between you and Dain were strained. He tried to talk to you a few times, but you were adamant in not letting him back in. He hurt you beyond imagination and you didn’t know if you could ever forgive him. It was one thing to have the whole world hate you, but for your boyfriend, the one person who warmed their way into your guarded heart and you confided your deepest secrets and insecurities in them, to turn on you and twist a knife into your heart like the rest of them, that was a new level of pain you never wished to experience.

On one particularly hard evening, when you’re not spending the time with your squad, you pick up the switch blade with Tyrrendor emblems and your family’s crest engraved in the handle your father gave to you back when he started teaching you hunting. Would he even still want you to have it, or did you really tarnish his memory? You absentmindedly trace the relic lines on your forearm with the blade that leaves thin red line behind it, the pain taking over your psychological pain for a little bit. You breathed just a little bit clearer with the sting of the blade on your skin. Until there’s a harsh knock on your door and it swings open, showing Violet barging into your room without waiting for an invitation.

“Violet!” You shouted at her, hiding your arm and blade behind your back.

“What… are you doing?” She asks dumbfounded, her original reason for coming long forgotten as she watches you squirm, too embarrassed to meet her eyes.

“None of your business. What are you doing here.” You carefully fold your arms over your chest, hiding the droplets of blood into your shirt.

“You can’t do that. Let me see.” She demands, sitting on the bed in front of you.

You give her an annoyed look but reluctantly show her your arm, the relic having almost a perfect, angry red shadow on both sides of every line. It looked almost like a page in a coloring book, intricate design of dark black and bloody red. Violet examines your forearm before slowly letting it go, looking for a first aid kit instead. You lightly trace the lines with your fingers, imagining the scars that will accompany the already existing ones over the relic. You’ve learned it’s actually easier and less painful to cut the natural skin and not the tattoo in itself, as if the mark tried to fight back and hurt you for it at the same time.

“You can’t tell anyone.” You warn Violet as she starts to carefully clean and wrap your forearm. “Promise me you won’t tell anyone.”

 “Fine, but you have to stop doing this. I thought you were feeling better.” She sighs after a minute of contently watching you without a word.

“It’s hard.” You admit quietly.

“But you have friends, and…” You talk over her not letting her finish.

“They’re your friends. And even with people around, even the whole damn quadrant, I still feel alone.” You concede.

“Xaden should know you’re feeling like this.” She tries but shuts up at your angry look.

“Xaden doesn’t care. He hates me. I could die tomorrow and he wouldn’t even bet an eye, maybe would be even glad about it. Happy he doesn’t have to bother with me anymore.” You argue, tears stinging in your eyes.

“He doesn’t hate you. He’s just…” Violet clearly realizes that what she was about to say wouldn’t make the situation better, but it was too late to take it back.

“Disappointed? Ashamed? Let down? Pissed off? Yeah, I know.” You turn your sight down. “No need to irritate him further.”

You knew, even when he hated you right now, there was always a way to disappoint him further, and this was definitely something that would achieve just that. Xaden never believed in self-blaming, not for other people at least. He would hardly be able to sympathize with you, he wouldn’t pity you. He’d see it as another sign of your own weakness.

“You need to find a real friend of yours. Just one. And I won’t tell.” Violet promises.

You think about her counter for a minute, clearly unsure of it. You weren’t that interested to be establishing any personal relationships now to be honest, but if it meant Violet would keep her mouth shut in front of your brother and anybody else, it was worth a try, right? You give her a look of uncertainty.

“It could be Rhiannon?” She offers.

“Nah, she’s your best friend. And she’s a little too nosy.” You shake your head.

“What about Ridoc?” Violet guesses next.

“He makes fun of everything. I could never talk to him, really. Not about anything serious.” You ponder.

“What about Sawyer then? He’s smart, funny but serious, and can listen very well.” Her eyes sparkle as if she just found the perfect partner to talk to for you.

You try to come up with something wrong about him to reject that offer too, but you come up empty handed. He was actually smart and nice to be around, you suppose. He was a year older than the rest of Violet’s group, which gave him a certain level of maturity above them, but he wasn’t a dry prick. Sawyer did sound like a safe friend option, all things considered.

“Fine, I’ll make Sawyer my friend.” You finally agree.

“Great!” Violet celebrates as she finishes safely wrapping your hand and then points at her work and warns you. “And no more of this.”

You can practically feel Violet watching you like a hawk for the next couple days. You also know Xaden has noticed her doing so too, if the pissed look he has on every time she doesn’t pay attention to him but watches you instead is anything to go by. So you make a show of sitting directly next to Sawyer at lunch or in your study sessions, you always ask him about topics you don’t fully understand and you even spar with him on the mat sometimes. All the effort just to show Violet that you’re trying and she doesn’t have to tell on you to your brother.

Relationships are good for you. Your dragon reminds you, as if he didn’t tell you almost daily.

Yeah, the ones with the people I considered closest worked out great. You sass back, feeling lucky you were good enough at shielding to not let him know about your bad habits.

You had a feeling your dragon would flip out at you for harming yourself, and he’d definitely complain to Sgaeyl, and Sgaeyl would tell on you to Xaden and your hard work of hiding everything would go out the window. Honestly trying to be friends with Sawyer felt less and less like a chore, he was really a bright guy who you felt a real interest from. You started enjoying the late afternoon picnics where he told you stories about his family and home, and you were willing to share some of your own for the first time by the setting sun.

The transformation into the new school year was full of expectations and quiet hum of curiosity. Everyone was less stressed over the summer, but that would change with the arrival of new cadets, classes and challenges. You tried to be present in the conversations, pay attention to the jokes and light teasing, but there was always the little voice in your head telling you you’re not worthy of the group you surround yourself with.

In the second week of challenges you get paired with a particularly harsh opponent, a third year known for sending most of those who counter him into the healers wing. You hold your own, countering his strikes and attacks, but as he swings at you and you doge, you don’t notice him pick up his dagger until it’s swinging at your face and you feel the sting of the blade cutting your face and eyelid as you try to move away, holding the side of your face with a guttural scream that has everyone in the gym stopping in their tracks.

 You kick him in the chest, both of you on the ground now. You don’t register much after that other than the primal drive to survive until the match is deemed tied and you’re stumbling back, holding half of your face in pain, until your back connects with a stone pillar. You’re hyperventilating, a panic attack rising in your chest as you clutch your eye, blood quickly dripping through your fingers. You hear Garrick, then Bodhi, and then even Xaden trying to coax you into slowing your breathing, but their touches only stress you more. Maybe a few months ago they’d be your saviors, but now they were nothing more than another deadly threat.

You don’t scream, but you’re lost in the survival drive, until Dain’s face is the only thing that appears in your limited line of vision, your one eye working hard to focus on his moving lips. It’s like your brain is shut off from all the other functions of your body, unable to connect one thing to another. You can’t focus on anything, not even being alive, and not a single thought flies through your mind. Lucky for you, your dragon’s voice is able to break through the fog.

Breathe. Listen. Focus. They’re trying to help you, my stubborn child. He orders you, forcing your focus on the face in front of you.

“Stop. Breathe. Slowly. In… and out.” Dain orders you matter of factly and it’s a stark contrast to the babying words the others tried to calm you with.

You try to follow his orders, your fast lungs and heart coming back to almost a normal pace as they mirror his own. He takes your free hand timidly, placing it over his own chest so you can feel it and match it with your own. His heart beats faster than it should, but it’s nowhere near your skyrocketing pulse. Your lungs slow down, allowing you to become aware of your surroundings.

“Good. Now let me see.” He says more nicely, holding the hand that clutches your face but not forcing it away. He waits until you show him yourself, slowly peeling your blood-soaked hand off. His other hand gently holds your chin to angle your face so he can see better. “It’s not so bad. I need to take you to the healers.”

And before you can register the change, he’s holding you in his arms, speed walking to the other part of the college. You don’t even utter a word, still in shock but also feeling safe in the embrace you longed for for so long. You’re set on the edge of a hospital bed, a young healers student taking care of your fucked up face. She washed the blood away and rubbed a stingy antiseptic in, neither making much to settle you. You felt your eye pulsing with every breath, it’s swollen form about twice the normal size.

“It seems your eye wasn’t affected, only your eyelid. And your eye socket might be irritated. After you let it heal you should be able to see.” She tells you, a heavy stone falling off your chest. “Hopefully the scar will heal too, but we will have to wait and see about that one.”

She adds as she puts a balm over the scaring and covers your eye and face with a big cushion bandage. You can tell she’s trying to sound positive and supportive, but it’s not really picking up your mood right now. At least you won’t go blind, you suppose that would not do much for you in the riders quadrant.

No it wouldn’t. No dragon can carry a rider who can’t see for themselves. Your dragon confirms coldly, his voice snappy at you.

Jeez, thanks for reminding me, you really are a sunshine. You roll your healthy eye at him. What an indispensable support you are.

I’m not here to support you but make you stronger. And that fight wasn’t your brightest moment. Was he really being pissed at you for almost loosing right now?

“Show me your hands please?” The healer asks you politely, cutting of your silent conversation. You show your palms forward in confusion. “I’ll need to cut this off to give you inner antibiotics.”

She points at the dressing over your left arm you forgot you were even still wearing until this very moment. You clutch your arm back, holding it with the other. You weren’t willing to let anyone else see your scars, imaginative or literal, much less someone you didn’t even know. For all you knew she’d go blabbering about it to whoever later and you weren’t fond of your secrets being dragged out by other people.

“No.” You simply shake your head at her.

“You don’t want to get any infections in, do you?” She warns you sternly. “You’ll have to stay here for a few hours with it.”

You challenge her hardened gaze for a while but lose the silent fight and defeatedly let her cut the bandage off. Dain, who kept lurking around and you were so far successful in completely ignoring, audibly gulped for his breath as he saw the obvious pink scaring around your relic. Luckily the nurse doesn’t even look twice before she goes to snatch all the supplies she needs now.

“What is that?” Dain asks quietly, as if afraid if you’ll even answer.

“What does it look like?” You mumble coldly not meeting his eye.

Lucky for you the healer comes back before he can get too pushy and guides you to lay in the bed as she puts a needle in your arm. As the antibiotics drip in, she smudges a balm over your scars. You’re weirdly appreciative of the gesture, and even more that she’s not nosy about how you got them. She has an air of understanding and calmness about her.

“She’ll need to have this applied again in two hours. It’s a double working solution.” She informs Dain and turns to leave for the last time before looking at you. “You can take the rest with you.”

Dain sits in the chair by the bed, reaching out to hold your hand but flinches when you take it back. For once you were grateful the bandage on your face covered a big part of your sight and you weren’t necessarily forced to look at him. After the weeks of him trying to reach you, you still didn’t know what to tell him, or if you even wanted to speak with him.

“Why are you even still here. Last time I checked you didn’t want anything to do with me.” You challenge him, finally looking at his worried face.

“I’m so sorry Y/n. I never should have said that.” He starts apologizing.

“But you did. Saying sorry won’t fix that. It won’t fix the damage that’s already done.” Only if it was that easy to glue your broken heart back together.

“I…” His breath shakes. “I know, but I want to do everything I can, anything in my power to try and fix what I broke. I know you probably won’t believe me, but you’re my person Y/n. You’re the only one I care about, the only one I seek validation and comfort from.”

You shake your head, hiding the healthy part of your face in the pillow. You can’t look at him, you can’t think about all the things happening right now. You didn’t know what was hurting more, the deep cut on your face, the fact he left you, the fact he tried to come back with just a weak ass apology thinking it would fix things, or the fact he now knew about your deepest scars?

“That’s not what it looked like with your father.” You blame him quietly.

You didn’t realize you drifted off in his presence, but after a few hours you’re woken up by a calming cool sensation on your forearm. You open your one healthy eye to see Dain carefully applying the healing balm on your self harm scars, so focused on his task he didn’t perceive anything else. He gave you some gentle touches before, but he never touched you as tenderly as he did right now. As if you were a glass doll ready to fall apart if he grabbed you too hard. Like a delicate feather swept by the wind. Like he was afraid it’s going to carry you too far away from him and never give you back. But was there still anything to come back to?

Tags: @desprrssooo-espresssooooo @bellblake @lagrandeourse

[annie-creates]

Projections

Pairing: Bodhi Durran x reader

Genre: angst

Words: 2900

Note: Hopefully this is the good old kind of angst I'm good at, I almost cried myself writing this. Please be aware not every detail might be completely true to the canon source material.

Bodhi Durran swiped you off your feet, you didn’t even notice how. You had been friends for almost as long as you studied at Basgiath. He naturally gravitated towards you after threshing and since then you were an unbreakable duo. It was like knowing him your whole life, the way he always knew what to say to make you laugh or how to get on your nerves regarding the simplest things. But to Bodhi you weren’t just a friend, you were everything.

His advances started sometime during the Christmas of your first year at the college. By the New Year he wasn’t hiding his attachment from anyone. You didn’t even notice at first, it was normal for best friends to spend almost all their free time together, right? But his gaze lingered longer during the late-night study sessions, boring into you like he could reach your very core. His strong fingers rested on your waist in passing a minute too long, his touch clearly possessive to anyone else.

You’d be lying if you said you never thought about Bodhi in that way, but you were too scared to lose what you had if it were to not work out. Being friends was safe, familiar. Friendship you couldn’t fuck up. Relationship? Those were too damn complicated. But Bodhi saw. The way you chewed on your bottom lip when he fought without his shirt in challenges, the way you tried to avoid looking at his towel when coming fresh out of the shower.

“You’re the most ethereal person I have ever seen.” He whispered to you on the sundown of Reunification day, hidden in the tall towers of Basgiath, afraid to break the quiet spell between you.

“You’re too kind.” You rolled your eyes playfully, not leaving the grasp of his hands on your face.

“I’m only truthful.” He promised before finally kissing you.

The ground spun under you, gravity no longer tying you to earth. You hugged his waist, kissing him back with all the emotion you were too afraid to act on. Lucky for you Bodhi was courageous enough for the both of you. Before the next school year came, you two were an established thing everybody knew of. The two of you weren’t exactly capable of hiding your relationship, and you didn’t really want to either. Let the whole world know the loving Bodhi Durran was your man.

With the second year around the corner, you were faced with new challenges and classes, but you’d be lying if you said you weren’t equally excited. Xaden had graduated and you and Bodhi would have more time to spend together, away from his suspicious eyes. Honestly, Xaden Riorson scared you a little. You were happy to not live under his surveillance anymore. But the free time only existed in your theory.

Not only did you have new rounds of challenges, where you had to fight for your life, and the RSC training now. It seemed that any time you were able to take for yourself, Bodhi wasn’t there. You could count on one hand how many conversations you had with him in a week. For the first few times, you could understand. He surely had some leadership stuff to attend to. But weeks turned into months.

Any time he actually was there, and you dared to question what he had been doing, he only got defensive. You didn’t want to ruin your evenings, the little time you actually got with him, but the sudden change in the man who would have given anything to be glued to your side only mere weeks ago was evident and upsetting.

“What is it Bodhi? Where are you disappearing to all the time?” You practically begged him for answers.

“I’m just busy Y/n.” He retorts tiredly.

“Busy with what?” You pressed.

“None of your business!” Bodhi screamed, flooring you.

“Is there somebody else?” You whisper, almost too afraid to even ask.

“What, you think I’m a cheater? A traitor? Why do you keep questioning me!” And just like that you ruined the night once again for the both of you.

“I’m sorry…” Not even knowing what you’re really apologizing for you leave him alone.

You spent the night in your own bed, tossing and turning till dawn. You did not see Bodhi for the next three days. You tried to spend time with your other friends and your squad, but in the quiet empty evenings your mind still wondered to your boyfriend. And then he missed your birthday. You cried yourself to sleep that night, mentally drained and tired. You thought he’d remember the next time you met, but he didn’t. He talked to you like nothing was going on, and you just went with it, missing your usual enthusiasm, which he didn’t even notice.

“I feel like ho doesn’t listen to me anymore. Like he doesn’t even care.” You confess in Dain, your oldest friend in this place.

 “Did you talk to him about it?” He offers, ever so helpful.

“I tried, but any time I say anything, he just gets angry and it leads nowhere.” You sigh.

After the first-year’s threshing, you noticed another girl, Sloane, who picked Bodhi’s friends’ interest. Violet told you she’s Liam’s sister, and considering how close Liam was to their squad, you could understand. But you didn’t miss that the time Bodhi did spend around was all now devoted to her. Training her, teaching her, all the things he would have done with you were now given to her and it’s like no one even noticed.

On yet another lonely night you decided to use for training in the gym, you bump into Xaden in the rotunda, he must have been on his regular visit to Violet. You’d know his commanding voice anywhere. The hushed conversation that flows makes you still, the unmistakable voice of your boyfriend accompanying him. So he had time to sneak around with his friends, yet couldn’t spare a minute for you? You can’t stop the pang of hurt and jealousy in your heart.

“Maybe you’d like to know we’re not alone anymore.” Xaden’s cutting words flow before you’re pushed forward by his cold shadows.

“Y/n.” Garrick, the last person in their group, states matter-of-factly.

“Are you sneaking up on us?” Bodhi questions you, arms folding over his chest.

“What? Why would I be sneaking up on you..? Are you meeting up like this more often?” Your brows furrow.

“Wouldn’t you like to know.” Xaden suspects you with a meaningful look to the other men.

“So that you can tell on us to your dear friend Dain?” Bodhi adds.

“Why would I do that?” You fold your arms over your chest, your own anger rising.

“Don’t think I didn’t notice how cozy you are with Aetos now.” A flash of jealousy flares through Bodhi’s eyes.

“No, you don’t get to do that.” You furiously shake your head. “Not when you’ve said more words to me tonight than you have in the past month!”

“I told you I’m busy.” He spits.

“With what!?” You finally let out your built-up irritation with him. “Or should I be asking with who? Don’t think I didn’t notice how you’re fussing over Sloane now!”

“I told you I’m no cheater!” Bodhi’s voice rises even more with frustration.

“Then who are you! Because I don’t even know you anymore!” You let the painful truth out.

“You don’t know me?” He laughs coldly. “Maybe because unlike you, I’m not a traitor who’s just been with someone to get information out of them.”

“What the hell are you talking about?” Your voice shakes as the first tears drop down your face.

“You’ve been with me just to use me. So you and your precious leadership can know what the dirty marked kids are up to, haven’t you.” He states much too calmly for the weight of his accusation. “The constant questioning, how persistent you were. It all makes sense now.”

“I was asking because I’m your girlfriend! Of course I’m worried where you are!” It’s getting hard to see through the tears, so you furiously wipe them off your face.

“Well you won’t have to worry now.” He grounds you.

“I can’t believe you.” You shake your head. “You have talked to me less than ten times in the last month, and now you accuse me of… I don’t even know what exactly. Yet I’m not the one who hasn’t been around, I’m not the one who’s constantly too busy for you… I’m not the one who even missed your birthday.”

You whisper the last sentence and run away, unable to listen to him breaking up with you. What did you do to deserve this outburst? You couldn’t find a moment where you pressed him too much, or when you weren’t being supportive, even over a little apprehension. And this is what you get back? A boyfriend who accuses you of using him in the first real conversation you have with him in weeks? You wouldn’t be surprised if the whole college had heard your screaming match, but you couldn’t find the will to care.

The next few weeks fly by in a blur, challenges, flight lessons and RSC now successfully kicking your ass. You didn’t have time to mourn your relationship, you were so exhausted from training that you passed out the moment you hit your mattress every night. Before you can fully heal from the last round of torture training, you wake up on the hard cold ground of the forest in October, so far from the college you don’t even recognize the place.

Your squad is accompanied by one from second wing and two sets of infantry cadets, everyone confused by the location, time of day, or the drugs they had to give you to drag you here. Your squad leader is not here, but you always worked nicely as a group, so you’re not too worried. The clouds above you do seem unsound tho, you better get back into the safety of Basgiath’s walls before they fulfill their promise of a heavy storm.

“Welcome to land navigation exercise.” Professor Grady greets you. “We expect you to use your best skills to return to the college, and remember, no use of dragons is allowed.”

With that you’re left alone again to figure out your way back yourself. Which didn’t go quite that well. You were lost in five hours, camped out by the river overnight, got soaked on the next day by heavy rain and had to go back ten kilometers just to return on the right track. The towers of Basgiath appeared on the horizon by the end of day three, all of you exhaling in relief. You were about ready to devour any food you’d be able to find, wash the disgusting dirt off and pass out in the comfort of your bed.

You’ll never complain about the comfort of your room again, anything was better than the stone floors of caves and wet grounds of the forest. The courtyard of Basgiath is strangely quiet, but it may be because curfew is already in effect. But nobody could be too mad at you for wandering around when you just showed up after technically being lost for three days, right? Yet the eerie silence doesn’t sit right with you.

A dragon lands on the stone wall, more of them following right after, yours included. You all look around in confusion, and then all hell breaks loose. Understanding fills the eyes of your companions as your loyal dragons rely on all the information of the past few days. Xaden Riorson breaking into the college, Violet Sorrengail’s torture, the cadre of Navarre’s betrayal and the departure of everyone who wanted to fight the right war to Tyrrendor. Your head swims, filled with all the new information and you’re suddenly more than awake in your mind, even though your body is slow to follow.

Your group breaks into a short discussion, opinions coming from all sides. Some thought Riorson was a filthy traitor, some believed you should follow him into the unknown because he couldn’t have deceived the dragons. After an hour of pointless arguments, you decided to split. Most of the infantry decided to stay, but your full squad wanted to desert to Aretia. You weren’t Xaden’s biggest fan, but you trusted your dragon and they wanted to go. Plus you were honestly scared what the leadership would do to you for knowing such things they tried for centuries to hide.

The sun was already setting when you finally returned to the college, but by the time you mount your dragons the light is long gone. It must be close to midnight, as you fly over Navarre, too tired to hold yourself on your dragon properly. Land navigation did nothing to help your bruises from torture training heal, and now flying on the verge of your strength didn’t make it better.

You can sleep, loyal one. I will take care of you. Your dragon promises lovingly.

I don’t want you to bother. You yawn even in your mind.

It’s no bother, I’m very proud of you. They assure you as you feel them striping you to their back with strong magic, making sure you won’t fall off.

Even though the flight takes hours, the sleep on your dragon’s back doesn’t really provide you with a lot of rest. You arrive in Aretia about an hour after the sun is already up, a few familiar dragons accompanying you to the grounds of Riorson house led by Sgayel. The moment your feet touch the ground, your body is ready to give up, but you force yourself upright. At the door you’re greeted by a Tyrrendor’s official.

“I’m lieutenant Aisereigh, welcome to Aretia.” A man not too older than you smiles down on your battered group. “You must be coming from Basgiath. Welcome to the revolution.”

He gets you settled in student dorms, briefing you in on the schedule and rules of the place. He also reiterates the whole tale of Navarre hiding the existence of venin and how the majority of Basgiath War College relocated here. You finally get a shower, breakfast and a real sleep. After a week you finally feel like a person again, not completely drained and disgusting.

The next day you join the provisional classes, meeting up with your squad discussing all the changes and heading to lunch. In the hall though you’re met with the sight of Xaden and his full squad of followers, Garrick, Imogen and least of all Bodhi. For a moment you hope they didn’t notice you, but his eyes meet with yours and their conversation dies down constantly. Before you realize he’s hugging you, whispering pleads and praises to gods into your ear.

“Oh my god, I’m so glad you’re okay.” He breaths, crushing your bones in his iron grip.

“What the hell are you talking about.” You gather all your will power to push him away.

“What..?” He reluctantly steps away, disoriented by your cold treatment.

“Where the hell did you get the audacity to talk to me like that!” You let your anger fill you. “I spent three days fighting through the forest and when I finally come home, the whole college is gone!”

“We needed to save Violet, and then we…” But you’re having none of his excuses.

“You left me! You left me there!” You blame him.

“We had to get the students to Aretia.” Bodhi opposes.

“You didn’t think of me for a minute, did you.” Your accusations aren’t exactly false. “You didn’t even remember to give a damn about me.”

“Of course I cared about you.” He argues. “I wanted to look for you if you didn’t come here…”

“Yea? Don’t even get me started on that!” You push your finger into his chest. “How long has this been going on? Why did you never tell me!?”

“We had to keep it all a secret…” Bodhi defends.

“Were you planning another revolution this whole time?” His guilty look tells you enough. “You question my loyalty, you accuse me of spying, of not loving you… and in the meantime it was you! You were just using me!”

“No, Y/n please, I love you, you have to believe me.” He pleads, eyes filled with sorrow now.

“I see now that your accusations of treason were just projections of your own doing.” You force your tone back to uninterested calmness. “Gods, I love you, but I hate you so fucking much.”

“Honey don’t say that…” He tries to catch your sight again, his hand desperately grasping yours. “I can’t lose you.”

“You’ll get over it.” You step away from him, your eyes watering with tears. “Maybe Sloane can help you with that, since everything seems to be so much more important to you.”

You run away to join your squad, willing your tears to dry up. He wasn’t worth the hurt, you wouldn’t miss someone who constantly put you on the bottom of his priorities now. If he doesn’t care enough about you anymore, neither will you. You’ll ignore the breaking of your heart until only dust is left of it. You weren’t going to remind him to care about you, if this is the path he has chosen, you’ll let him walk on it. Sometimes loving someone isn’t enough.

[annie-creates]

The greatest mistake | Part 2

Pairing: Dain Aetos x Riorson reader

Genre: angst and fluff

Words: 1962

Note: Second part is here! Not that much of Xaden in this one but some important details. I hope you'll still like it. Please be aware not every detail might be completely true to the canon source material. Let me know what you think and if you want to be reminded for the next one!

Masterlist | Part 1 | Part 3 | Part 4

Nobody talked to you. The marked ones in your squad turned their back to you any time you wanted to talk to them, Dain avoided you like the plague and any time you crossed paths with Xaden or anybody else from your shared friends they stared murder at you. Surrounded by hundreds of people you felt weirdly alone. It wasn’t the first time in your life, but it was certainly the most uncomfortable so far. In every class you shared with them and every round of spar challenges you battled their angry glances and faces hardened with hatred. You’d think after two weeks they’d get over it, but clearly not.

Luckily you had the rest of your squad to sit with in the dining hall and classes. The other kids weren’t aware of the whole showdown between you and all the other marked ones, so they still treated you friendly. Not too long ago you’d have preferred the company of Tyrrish folks, but now you were opening up to the other cadets from your squad and you were grateful to have them still treat you with kindness and dignity.

“Hey, how’s it going?” Violet asks as she and Rhiannon join your table at the end of lunch hour. “Is everything alright?”

“Well all my friends hate me, my brother disowned me and my boyfriend broke my heart. But yeah, everything’s great.” You retort with the utmost uninterest you can master.

“I’m sorry. Maybe I shouldn’t have told you to go to the ball…” Violet’s face immediately turns to pity.

“It’s fine, Violet. I asked your opinion, I acted on it, it has consequences. That’s just what happens sometimes.” You shrug your shoulders. “I don’t blame you.”

“Why are you dressed in all this when it’s almost summer, aren’t you hot?” Rhiannon asks noticing your long sleeve hoodie.

“Yeah, well, sometimes I just… don’t want to show everything.” You shrug taken aback a little.

“Can’t you put makeup on it?” She asks a little dumbly after she realizes you’re talking about your rebellion mark.

“No, makeup doesn’t work. Nothing really does. Trust me, I tried for five years.” You assure her before leaving with your half-eaten plate.

It was nice of Violet to try and talk to you when she saw your own brother wouldn’t, but some of her friends could be quite overbearing at times. But they worked nicely with the first years from your squad, so the unexpected group actually somehow worked out. Maybe it started with Violet feeling guilty, but now you were all sort of friends, and you were grateful to still have a few people who at least saw you and didn’t just look straight through you any time you bumped into each other as if you didn’t even exist. Which is more than you could say for Xaden or Dain.

Two days later you’re sitting in the riders library studying for the next dragon species class with Violet, Riannon, Sawyer and Ridoc and the unmarked half of your squad. You were actually successful in studying for the past two hours, until Ridoc and Sawey started arguing about the swordtail and daggertail differences and from there it was all just a friendly banter and laughter. Your books long forgotten on the library carpet, you share a little snippets of each other’s lives here and there, your friend Lis sharing how she ate most of the Christmas dinner before the table was even ready.

“That’s not so bad. I ate Xaden’s birthday cake once.” You admit with a fond smile of the memory. “Well actually, I ate just a small piece, but then Garrick and Bodhi came into the kitchen, and since I already took a bite, they devoured more than half the cake. And then when our mom found us, they blamed it all on me.”

“Damn, I can’t believe they’d throw you under the bus like that.” Ridoc shakes his head. “Good thing we’re better friends than they were, right?”

“No, you’re not really my friends. You’re Violet’s friends. Just like they are Xaden’s friends. They wouldn’t jump to the fire for me or vouch for me. I don’t blame them, Xaden was always quite popular and I’m just someone you know.” You shrug.

It’s back to trying to remember dragon dens after a few more minutes of banter. You really needed to get a good grade on the upcoming test and you wouldn’t get it for joking around. But naturally with this group, you didn’t make it longer than thirty minutes before there were more smartass comments than actual studying.

“Can I ask you something?” Rhiannon asks you after a while of quiet reading.

“Hm?” You look up at her from your book.

“What did you mean when you said… you were trying makeup for five years..?” She shivers in discomfort of possibly asking something too personal.

“You know, the relics differ by how important your parents were in the revolution. Most people just have one on their forearm, some over their arm if their parents were lieutenants or colonels, but my father was the leader… that’s why mine and Xaden’s are the biggest. Nothing really covers it.” You explain.

You notice Violet’s gaze shifting to you and the banter of the group slowly dies down as all of them start listening to you. But you don’t see any hate or suspicion, only interest. Not many people actually knew a lot about the apostasy, so this was their chance to understand it from someone directly linked to it, even if you were only a child, hardly a teenager when it happened.

“For a long time after the apostasy, everywhere I went people knew who I was, and they hated me. So I tried anything to hide it, even for a little while. Makeup, clothes, I even tried to cut it off…” You admit, saying the last sentence quietly in shame. “Being skinned alive seemed better than dealing with all the hate.”

You hear a few terrified breaths from the group but try to look reassuring, that wasn’t who you were anymore. You had years to deal with the hatred and rudeness, and even though some of your coping mechanisms weren’t exactly healthy, you still made it out, right? You’re still here after years and years of peer abuse.

“Xaden taught me that I didn’t have to hate who I was. That the man other people knew was somebody different from the father who loved me. That it’s okay to be still proud of who I am, even if other people try to shame me for it.” You smile, not wanting to worry anyone.

“Does he know about this?” Violet asks after a minute.

“Not all of it.” You admit, your tone clearly suggesting you want it to stay that way, Xaden didn’t have to know everything.

After that night the group clings tad more closely to you, everyone wanting to show their support and like in different ways. You didn’t comment on it, but at times you were endlessly grateful. Maybe the people Violet brought into your life would actually enrich your experience. You were definitely happy to learn some little personal things about them. That was what inevitably comes with friendships, you like and get used to each other.

Not only did they meet up with your part of squad regularly to study, but they permanently joined you in the dining hall when your schedules aligned and they would pair up with the few of you for voluntary sparring sessions, which allowed you to experience different combat techniques and styles without the deadly danger of challenges. In another study session you started talking about what you wanted to do before the riders quadrant, the battle brief studying abandoned.

“I wanted to be a scribe.” Violet says and everyone playfully snarls.

“Yes we know Violet.” Rhiannon laughs at her.

“I actually wanted to be a theatre dancer.” Lis next to you admits.

“I bet it would have suited you.” You smile at her.

“What did you want to be Y/n?” Sawyer asks.

“Well, I actually never thought about it. I was expected to be betrothed and become a wife, marry a lord or a duke, maybe even a prince if I was lucky.” You shrug, setting your own book on the table.

“What?” He retorts without thinking.

“Yeah, that’s how it goes with aristocracy. I was taught a lot of wifey duties, sewing, cooking, childcare, stuff like that.” You laugh at his slightly frightened expression.

“Uh oh, be aware, Y/n the mom is here.” Ridoc snickers, surely imagining you doing those ordinary mundane things.

“But after the rebellion we were all sent here, so, there wasn’t any space to ask or think about anything else.” You finish.

“So you can cook?” Sawyer resumes.

“Not really, I haven’t tried since I was fourteen. But I can sing pretty well.” You confess.

“Omg sing something!” Ridoc challenges you.

“Absolutely not!” You laugh.

The days were practically flying by, you could hardly count the weeks as you were taking test after test in the classrooms and challenge after challenge on the mats. That not even talking about the flight lessons and obstacle courses you had to take with your dragon. As you are celebrating the win in squad games, all your squad and Violet’s squad joining your table and clicking goblets, it’s the first time you’re showing your rebellion relic freely again after months with the strap top you’re wearing. You’re laughing candidly again and the rest of the world doesn’t bother you for a while.

Until you step out of the dining hall into the courtyard dimly light by the moon and someone sneaks up scaring you. You automatically grab for the dagger at your hip as you whisk around, coming closer than you expected to a honey-eyed face, your dagger in a sure grip pointing right in the middle of his broad chest.

“You did well in the games.” Dain praises you.

“I’m aware.” You answer flatly after a minute of staring at him.

He takes a few steps towards you, backing you against the wall. It was pretty courageous considering you didn’t drop your weapon yet, and you had half a mind to actually stuck it in his heart. But you weren’t that kind of person so you put it back in your holster, finally breaking the hold his eyes have on yours.

“Look, I treated you too harshly. I’m sorry.” He admits, but after all this time it isn’t enough for you.

“What, daddy didn’t take you back even after squad games so I’m your next stop? Don’t bother.” You spit at him.

“What? No, I…” Dain stutters.

“Just because I’m marked I’m not good enough for you? I deserve respect.” You ground him. “I’m not gonna be your afterthought Dain. Or a placeholder until someone or something better comes around.”

“You’re not!” He argues back.

“Then what am I Dain!? Cause it certainly isn’t your girlfriend anymore. That much you made crystal clear.” You sidestep him, going to your room.

He was too late to come crawling back with such a stupid weak excuse. You didn’t even want to hear his excuses. He broke up with you, why would you be obligated to give him the time of your day now after weeks? He let you spend months thinking he hated you, all after he swept you off your feet almost a year ago. And now you’re supposed to take him back, to listen to what he has to say, just like that? You weren’t ready to listen to him. You didn’t want to allow him back in. So why does your heart keep yearning and breaking for him all at the same time?

Tags: @desprrssooo-espresssooooo @bellblake @lagrandeourse

[annie-creates]

Every last droplet

Pairing: Garrick Tavis x venin reader

Genre: fluff with a little smut

Words: 3700

Note: My longest one part fic so far is here! I have never written smut and this is my first try so please be kind. Please be aware not every detail might be completely true to the canon source material. Let me know what you think!

Aretia was safe, they told you. It’s protected by the mountains, the borders are far, nobody would dare to attack Aretia. And yet they did. The alarm bells rang since early morning, and before the sun rose, the city was covered in a battle, dragons, riders and soldiers filling every street, every abandoned house. You watched the chaos with doubt, the dread of fallen servicemen and screams of running residents filling your ears. So many have fallen, your friends, the enemies, even dragons. Yet after hours there was no end, no appeasement, no winning.

On the brim of your strength, you fall to your knees, nails digging into the burned soil of the field. You feel like you can’t go any more, and you know every other rider is probably in a similar state. Wounded, hurt, at the edge of their strength. Yet you keep going, because no other option can even be considered. You need to find the strength. The power to strike the final blow, the chance to end the battle. You know you can’t ask your dragon to provide that much, no dragon possessed this much power.

So you reach somewhere else. Into the ground under your fingers, through the tree roots and house foundations, under stones, river sources and mines. You reach so deep so can almost feel the heat of the earth’s core, looking for a spark, a string of power to borrow. You know this kind of power is forbidden, but in the desperation you face you don’t care. You’ll figure the consequences out when it comes to them. You search and search until you find it, the magnetic zest just waiting, calling you to use it, to just extend your finger and reach for it. It wraps around your palm, then your hand, and your whole body like a snake.

It is pain but it’s also power, it ruins you but builds you back up stronger. It burns every last vein in your body, but extends your feeling like you can touch every last stone in the city. You feel almighty, endless, like a force of pure power flow. It streams through you, reaching every last bit of your being. And then you snap. The wave washes over the city like a hurricane, takes your enemies down like mere puppets. It extinguishes the fires, leaving only smoldering smoke and the quietness of empty streets.

And then there was nothing. Nothing but you. An otherworldly power with no end and no limits. The deafening silence spreads. Nothing moves. The city is still and calm. For a moment, you’d think you’re the only human to exist. It seems like it. But then you let it leave. You don’t need the power anymore. You don’t need the help, the job is done. Your squad reaches you as the source of the power surge right in time to see the bloody red leave your eyes. You hear their gasps, see their horror-stricken looks. But you don’t care at the moment.

The city is safe. Your friends are safe. Your people are safe. And that is worth whatever cost they think you paid. Whatever consequences they’ll come up with for you. Will they be scared of you now? Hate you? Despise you? You can’t find it in yourself to care, still too high on the feeling of mighty force. You ended the battle. You won it. So why are they looking at you like you’ve just lost?

My dearest, what did you do? Your dragon speaks to you, but you don’t see the reason for their concern.

The assembly argues in the chambers, those uninvited patiently waiting in the hall. You can hear disturbed voices and screams here and there, the discussion dragging for hours. You’re all tired and battered, as are the people behind the closed doors, yet no one dares to leave. Everyone waiting with their breath hitched for your sentencing. You got off the buoyant feeling hours ago, the heaviness of your crimes fully weighting on your shoulders now.

You don’t miss how your teammates, the people you called friends just hours ago, keep their distance from you now, their alarmed looks oscillating between the door and you. The guard stands straighter, as if ready to detain you at any moment. You decide you’ve had enough. No matter what the decision is going to be, you’re sure somebody will tell you. So you leave the hall, everyone watching you surprised, and make your way to your room.

Your and Garrick’s room. He lived in this house long before you, but the day they brought you here, it was clear there was no other right place for you than his own bedroom. It honestly made relocation to the Riorson house much easier. You go about your night routine, taking the all-too-needed shower and changing into a thin nightgown. It helps to take your mind off things you don’t want to think of anymore. The door clicks about an hour later as you’re sitting on your bed, holding a book but not able to concentrate on the words, and not wanting to go to sleep without the man who was supposed to share it with you.

“So?” You encourage Garrick as he stares at you, you’d rather have the band aid torn off quickly.

“They couldn’t decide if they should let you… be here.” He admits finally, but it’s clear it meant something else. They couldn’t decide if they should let you live. “They’re scared.”

“Are you scared?” You meet his reluctant gaze and hold it with yours, so familiarly warm and amiable.

“Of you? Never.” This time he answers fast and surely.

As if to emphasize his words, he gets to bed with you, basking in your so familiar proximity. You didn’t scare him. He admired every single thing about you. How strong you were. How smart you were. How fast you’ve learned. How you never held it against him when he had to lie to you, or not say the whole truth. How you followed him blindly into the unknown, leaving Basgiath and your old life behind. How you helped everywhere you could, even if you didn’t know what it was for. How you didn’t question his decisions but always stood by him.

“I feel the pull. I hear the power calling me.” You admit quietly since his face is only a few inches away from yours. “But I don’t need it. It’s dull and uninteresting. And I don’t want it.”

That seems to settle him for now. You can hear the expecting hum of it, feel the pull it tries to grasp you in. The power would be there only if you’d reach for it. But you don’t want it. It doesn’t excite you, you’re not hungry for it. You don’t let it cloud your mind. You are enough. You and your dragon can take on anything you need. Garrick lays next to you, pulling you into the familiar embrace of strength and protection. This is what home feels like to you. Why would you reach for an endless power when all you need is right here, lying next to you in this very bed?

The next few weeks are nothing short of weird, filled with unsure glances and suspicious slander. Xaden goes hard on you, making sure you’re safe to be around, that you won’t channel forbidden powers under any circumstance. It honestly annoys you a little, but you understand why he’s doing it. He must protect his home, his people. And then, after every test he can come up with, he deems you safe. You didn’t notice you were walking on eggshells yourself until then. You could breathe much more freely and you stopped caring about what other people gossip about you.

The night you come back late from patrol, Garrick is already in bed in nothing but his sleep shorts. A carefree smile gracing his lips as he lowers the book he was entertaining himself with while waiting for you to come back. His own duties were done, and he could always use a little time to relax. But nothing beat the feeling of you coming home to him.

“Hi there, sweet thing.” He smiles at you, setting the book on his nightstand.

“You didn’t have to wait for me.” You roll your eyes on him with a playful smile.

“No, I didn’t. But then I wouldn’t be able to enjoy this.” Garrick agrees.

“Enjoy what?” You furrow your brows in confusion.

“Seeing you come home to me.” He admits, reaching for you as you already crossed the whole room.

His words soften you, reaching all the way from your heart to your very core. They touch every part of your being, the places his hands can’t roam. Damn you’d strip your own skin for this man, just so he can see you better. See all of you. Every little nerve end, because that’s how deep he’s rooted in you. As you swing your leg over his lap, pinning him to the mattress, the surprised gleam in his eyes is replaced with one of lust and anticipation.

“You are my home.” You admit before the first kiss to his lips that opens the floods of many that follow.

He grasps your hips, pulling himself up to discard your clothes piece by piece. Your hands roam his body, his muscles, his strong chest and broad shoulders. This man was like a sculpture of stone and marble, yet so incredibly sweet and soft at the same time. Your jacket falls to the floor, then your shirt, your pants and lingerie follows. You don’t waste time discarding the only piece of fabric that separates him from you, wanting to feel his touch on every part of your body.

You pepper his jaw with kisses, moving onto his throat as he massages every inch of your hips, butt, back and breasts. You moan into his apple, biting his neck and smoothing the flesh with your tongue. Your name falls off his lips, breathless and desperate as he fidgets under you, his hardening member poking you.

“You are everything I need.” You promise him with blown out eyes as you slowly sink onto him. “Everything I want.”

As you move on top of him, you lean on his shoulders for stability, as he squeezes your hips to help you bounce. You take your time at first, having nowhere to run, but with his heaving breath and beads of sweat forming all over you, you pick up your pace as if planning a cross-country race. You bend down to lay kisses from his chest all the way up to his jaw, heavy moans leaving his lips entwined with your name. The new position reaches deeper inside you, Garrick catching your ass to pound up into you, meeting your thrusts. You give him a sloppy kiss full of moans and teeth before your head finds its place in the crook of his neck.

Chants of ‘I love you’s and profanities fill the room, both of you chasing the high together. The thrusts are uncalculated but stimulating, the two of you reaching for the ecstasy closer and closer with every move. He frees one arm to circle your clit, eliciting a long moan out of you, which only spurs him further.

“Garrick I’m gonna cum.” You inform him breathlessly, gathering the energy to pick your head up and look into his eyes.

“I’m right there with you sweetheart.” He blurts out in between heavy breaths.

As you reach the high you bite his shoulder and arch into him, your sight flying to the ceiling. He burrows his face between your breasts as he pants loudly, reaching his own ecstasy in you and slowly helping you ride it out. Your vision clears from the red layer before you look down at him, his face completely calm and fucked out. Another kiss has him coming back to reality to you. He couldn’t imagine a better sight to come back to than your fucked out smile shining down at him.

“You are a piece of work.” He jokes, embracing you in his arms as he lays you next to him, enjoying the contact of your bare skin with his.

“Your piece of work.” You reiterate, snuggling into his shoulder.

After the long day you had, getting to fuck your boyfriend was the exact thing you needed to have a peaceful sleep. He hugs you to him, his strong body molding against yours, wrapping you in warmth and a sense of familiarity. You drift off to the sound of his even breaths and beating heart under your ear. In this moment there was not a single person in the world more lucky and grateful than you, no one more loved than you by the man in your bed.

The sun rays tickle your nose and you burry your face into the shoulder under your head on instinct. Your hand draped over the strong chest of your boyfriend slowly runs circles on his skin as you look up, your sight still glossed over from sleep. You’ll never get tired of waking up in his arms. He’s still deep into peaceful slumber, but your gaze catches on the bite mark you gave him last night. No, not a bite mark.

There’s something else on his shoulder. A white lip mark void of all color and pigment of his skin. The color drains from your face as you realize what you did. You must have channeled his own energy in your need to be closer to him than your skin would let you. The realization washes over you in a wave of uncertainty and fear. You made so sure there would be no calling, no temptation to give into, that you didn’t realize loving your man so much could guide you right into the place you desperately tried to avoid.

You quietly move from him getting out of the bed and slipping fresh clothes on. You couldn’t stand staying even a minute longer with what you did, facing the disappointment in yourself. Maybe you couldn’t outrun your own guilt, but you certainly could try. And you weren’t looking forward to anyone else finding out what you did, much less Garrick himself. If he didn’t before, he would certainly be afraid of you now, maybe even hate you. And you couldn’t blame him.

Avoiding him at breakfast, briefing, lunch and afternoon duties is easy, but over dinner he starts getting suspicious. It wasn’t like you to leave the bed before at least waking him up, much less to never see him during the day. That night you don’t come back to bed, Garrick having a bit of sleep only thanks to passing out of exhaustion. And the following days aren’t much better. He notices a few of your things missing or changing places, clear evidence that you found a way to come back when you knew he wouldn’t be here.

Are you sure this is the best approach of your little problem, my dearest?  Your dragon asks but you’re masterly ignoring them. You know, I’m sure the big one wouldn’t be too mad about your slip up.

And that’s why I’m not asking your opinion. So shut the fuck up. You growl at them as they growl back at your tone.

Watch your mouth. I’m not the source of your troubles Dear. They warn you before letting you be.

Garrick didn’t mind the mark on his shoulder honestly. It was a little unexpected, but it would show everyone who he belongs to and that’s a sentiment he couldn’t say no to. He knew, however, how anyone else would react to finding out what probably happened, so he hid it for your sake. Until he forgot during a sparring session with Xaden in the late afternoon, the open windows of the gym doing nothing to bring the hot temperature down.

“What’s that?” The always so observant Violet asks as he takes his shirt off.

“What?” He realized too late, trying to play it off dumb.

“On your shoulder.” Her accusatory tone brings the attention of everyone else and Garrick tries to hide it a bit, but there’s no escaping this conversation now.

“Did Y/n do that?” Xaden challenges with a frown.

“Maybe..?” Garrick tries weighing his options in avoiding a direct answer.

“Did she or did she not!” His best friend presses. “Garrick if Y/n takes energy from you she’s not safe.”

It may have sounded like a concern for his girlfriend, but Garrick knew better. He was there when everyone avoided her. He was there when the assembly argued about even letting her live. He was there when everyone treated her like the worst enemy, the girl who selflessly gave everything to protect them and their home. When she made the ultimate sacrifice for everyone else but herself. And this is what she got back for it? They were scared it wasn’t safe to be around her.

“I wouldn’t know. She’s probably so ashamed I haven’t seen her since.” Garrick argues back, his words shutting everyone up. “No thanks to you since y’all treat her like a weapon without feelings.”

The gym is so quiet all their sights switch from Garrick to the creaking door as they open, your shrunken form appearing in them. Your eyes lazily scan the room, widening in panic as you see them all staring at you. Without a word you run back out, but Garrick is already hot on your heels. Stupid idea, you made it without seeing most of them for the whole two weeks, sleeping slouched in the library chairs and camping out with your dragon, couldn’t you make it a little longer?

“Y/n wait!” Garrick shouts as he grips your shoulder, his strides longer than yours.

“What.” He turns you to him, but you keep your sight trailed on your shoes.

“Where the hell have you been?” You shrug your shoulders at that as if it wasn’t a big deal.

“I’ve been around, you know?” Your voice is full of anything but certainty.

“Why are you not coming home?” Garrick grips your chin gently, forcing you to look at him.

It’s the same warm calm eyes he knows and loves, only now are they full of fear and doubt. His heart breaks at that sight, he never wanted to see you broken, even if by your own doing. He needs to fix this, he can’t see you struggling when he could have helped it or prevent it at all. You wanted to snap back with the fact you are home, or that this isn’t a home to you at all, but you know what he means. His room, his bed. And with the look full of sorrow he gives you, you don’t have the heart for a witty remark.

“Sweetheart talk to me.” He pleads slowly.

“I don’t want to hurt you.” You admit quietly, afraid to break the moment and make him run away in fear when he finally realizes how dangerous you are.

“You said you’re not interested in the power. Did that change?” Garrick asks.

“No. Of course not.” You retort with a deep furrow of your brows, did he doubt you?

“Then why are you avoiding me?” He challenges.

“Because I can’t control myself with you.” It takes you a minute to respond but there was no denying the truth. “Clearly.”

“Yes you can. I’ve seen you control yourself for months now. And you didn’t change, not one bit.” Garrick assures you but it’s getting harder every day to believe him.

Listen to the big one, he knows what he’s talking about. Your dragon quips in.

This is not the best timing friend. You retort back.

He’s the one putting up with you, sometimes you need to trust the people around you to judge you best. They try to convince you. You are biased.

So is he. You argue back. He loves me. He could never let me go even if I was the worst venin there ever was and there was none of me left.

In that moment you realize you’re telling the truth you yourself refused to see though. Garrick loved you more than anything. He wouldn’t lie to you, he would never leave you, and were you to turn evil, he’d do everything in his power to prevent that. You needed Garrick in your corner, more than you ever needed him before. Garrick takes your clouded face in his palms.

“I love you Y/n.” He interrupts your train of thoughts. “I’m yours. I’d give myself to you even if you were to drain every last droplet of will and power I have. Even if you’d take every last string of life, I’d still be nothing but yours. Fully, truly.”

“Garrick don’t…” But your protests don’t stop him.

“I promise I’ll be there every day, at every step, every slip up you might have. Every doubt that may cloud that strong mind of yours I’ll chase away. I’ll be standing right behind you as you find your path, right beside you to fight your battles by your side, and right in front of you were anyone to try and take you away from me.” He kisses your forehead. “And were you to stumble I’ll catch you. Were you to fall, I’ll fall with you. I’ll be right there, as long as you let me, and even after that, as long as you need me. I promise you’ll never know a life without me.”

“I’ll always need you.” You confess through the tears wetting your face.

“Then I’ll always be there.” He promises without missing a beat.

You hide your face in his chest, his strong hug shielding you from the rest of the world. Even if you were to succumb to the power of darkness, even if the color of blood overtook your familiar calm eyes, even if there was nothing but a shell left of your body, Garrick would still be there. And were you to turn into darkness, he’d be your first follower. Because Garrick Tavis was nothing if not yours.

[annie-creates]

The greatest mistake | Part 1

Pairing: Dain Aetos x Riorson reader

Genre: fluff to angst

Words: 2246

Note: My first official multi part story! This was supposed to be only two parts, but it kept getting longer and longer, so it's gonna be four parts coming out once a week and then maybe some more if you like it and want them. Please be aware not every detail might be completely true to the canon source material.

Masterlist | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4

Dain Aetos was absolutely smitten by you. It started innocently enough, when he offered to train you after hours seeing as you needed a little bit of extra help compared to your squad. But soon he noticed how brilliantly fast witted, strong minded and smart you were. You didn’t let anyone mess with you. You always had a fast snap back when others teased you. You pushed yourself harder and faster every day. You were no fragile flower, but still you were beautiful. Possibly the most ethereal woman Dain has ever seen and would ever lay eyes on in this life. And maybe any life after that.

First it was just a few training sessions, then sitting together at lunch every once in a while. After that he helped you with studying for history and battle brief, late night sessions in the library slowly moving into his dorm once the weather and temperatures started to drop. With every day he felt like he has learned something new about you, even if he didn’t want to at first. Your favorite dessert. Your favorite children’s book from back when you were little. And during the nights you spent stripped in his bed, your souls as naked as your bodies, he traced the dark lines of your rebellion relic, the abstract pictures embedding in his mind.

Sometimes he felt like screaming his love for you from the rooftops, felt such a powerful wave of happiness it barreled through him like a tsunami, leaving nothing but wreckage in its way. Realistically that was unacceptable tho, so you settled for light touches at the morning formation, jokes exchanged in the dining hall and secret kisses hidden in the shadows of the courtyard’s pillars. A boy like him could never date a girl like you in a place like the Basgiath War College. And even if he could, you didn’t want to hear any more whispered gossip and rustling assumptions about warming leadership’s bed, your reputation here was already bad enough.

“Hey, nice flight today.” Dain catches you as the rest of your squad clears out the flight field.

“Thanks, we’ve been working at that maneuver for a while.” You wink at your dragon who’s lifting his chest in pride.

“Good job. Let’s go for lunch.” Dain falls into step beside you as you walk to the courtyard.

MY good job. Your dragon reminds you in your head.

You could also let me take a bit of the credit. You poke at him jokingly.

When you’re the one flying it I’ll bow to you. He argues back with sass before returning to the vale to do his own thing, not talking to you anymore for the moment.

“I’ll catch you later, alright?” Dain promises as you near the commotion of the quadrant.

“Sure.” You nod, smiling at him.

He kisses the top of your head before departing in his own direction and you join the few friends you have in your squad, most of them other marked children. People in this place were not in the habit of forgiving and forgetting what your parents did years ago, so you mostly stuck to ‘your own kind’, as most would call it. After lunch you have a physics class and then you’re free for the day, which means you’ll probably stop by the gym to train a little and hopefully will find a bit of time to work on the battle brief assignment you’ve been putting off for the past couple days. As you’re making your way across the rotunda, Dain catches you.

“Hey.” He greets you again with the damn smile of his that made you weak in the knees.

“Well hi to you again.” You laugh. “What’s up?”

“I wanted to ask, do you want to go to the Reunification Day party with me?” Dain offers, catching you off guard as you stumble over your words to answer.

“I… don’t know… I mean, it’s a little sore subject…” Your sight slides to your friends talking in the hall.

“Come on. Please?” he smiles at you sideways.

“I’ll think about it.” You promise little lost for words.

What would your brother think of you for coming to such a celebration? On the other hand, it’s just a day, right? Could you pretend it was just a day? That it wasn’t tied to the execution of your father and possibly every adult figure you knew up until that day? But maybe you could make it just a party..? The thoughts don’t leave your head even as you come to the gym a few hours later, ready to spar and train with someone, looking over the mostly usual occupants. No Dain in sight tonight, but instead you had your pick of marked cadets and a few other first or second years who were a little behind. Your brother’s girlfriend was apparently one of them, resting leaning on the wooden pillar.

“Hey, Violet, can I ask you something?” You greet her.

“Sure, what’s up?” She smiles at you, lazily drinking form her water bottle.

“Do you think it’s okay if I go to the Reunification Day celebration? Dain invited me, and I… I don’t know if it’s right.” You admit, your eyes scanning over Xaden and Bodhi working out on the other side of the gym.

“I think if you want to go, you should.” Violet answers after a minute of thinking. “It doesn’t have to be just a day of depression and sorrow if you don’t want it to be.”

“Alright, thanks… Will you help me find a dress?” You plead with a glint in your eye, clearly you didn’t need too much convincing.

“Fine, if you teach me the maneuver you do with the knife I’ll help you.” She rolls her eyes with a smile.

“Deal!” You nod eagerly, ready to get to work.

A week later you’re standing in front of your mirror, brushing out any wrinkles in your skirt. You’re wearing a strapless sweetheart neckline corset burgundy dress with a princess A-line skirt that’s almost the same color as the dragon relic on your chest. Your rebellion relic curves around your arm freely, you had no reason to be ashamed of it today. You wanted to show it with pride. Dain waits for you outside the door, linking his arm with yours after he picks his jaw off the floor.

“Ready?” He asks.

“Hope so.” The nerves evident in your voice.

“Don’t worry, you’re the most beautiful rider in the quadrant.” He assures you as you step into the great hall.

“That’s not what I’m afraid of.” You admit in a whisper.

Immediately you’re faced with two colonels who greet Dain and you smally bow to them. They hardly spared you a glance, but their stance towards you is palpable. People are equally surprised and disgusted to actually see you turn up, which is quite ironic considering the school tried to force every cadet to participate no matter their origin. Everyone around whispering about the relic wrapped around your arm.

“What an interesting choice of company.” One of them measures you with his sight, both clearly displeased with your presence.

“You want a drink?” Dain asks noticing your sudden shyness.

He walks off with you still linked on his arm all the way to the refreshments bar. He chooses a drink for the both of you, scanning the crowd of colonels, lieutenants, generals and other important personnel of Navarre. You could hardly believe so many of them chose to get together in such a place, weren’t they afraid the marked ones could try something on them? Or were they so blinded by their unreachability they gloated in it?

“Yeah… maybe this wasn’t a good idea. Maybe I shouldn’t be here.” You admit as you’re sipping from the glass he gave you.

“Nonsense. Come on, let’s dance.” He almost drags you to the dance floor before you can react.

As you twirl in the rhythm of waltz and old Navarrian dance, you smile at each other as if there’s no one else in the room. For a moment you have your own little bubble filled only with the presence of each other and the warm feelings you share. Like the first sunrise after a heavy storm. The days he was afraid of his feelings for you seem suddenly so distant, as if they happened in another life because now, all he knows is you.

“I didn’t know you can dance like that.” He wows amazed.

“I was practically a duchess.” You remind him, finishing the dance with a twirl.

He takes your arm once again, leading you off the floor, flushed and beaming with a smile that freezes on your face the moment you realize who suddenly stopped before you and why Dain went not only to a full stop but completely rigid. He looked like even his heart and blood flow stopped as he stared into the eyes of his own father.

“Evening.” General Sorrengail greets you and you bow your head to her and colonel Aetos next to her.

“Is this who you’re taking to the Reunification celebration? Riorson’s daughter? Disgusting.” Aetos fires immediately at Dain, you clearly not even worth his sight.

“Dad…” he tries to negotiate letting go of your hand. “It’s not…”

“No. You’re not my son.” The brutality in his voice takes you back. “My child would never shame me like that.”

“Hey. That’s not necessary…” You defend Dain, slightly stepping in front of him.

“I’m not talking to you, you filthy traitor. Dishonorable just like your father.” You take a step back as if he had actually punched you.

Dain uses the space between you two to stride away, leaving you behind with the two leaders as his angry steps echo away. Clearly he was too preoccupied with what he just heard to even remember he had you with him. Now you really felt out of place, your cheeks slightly reddening. You could hold your own but it didn’t mean you appreciated being left alone in the presence of every higher up who ever wanted you dead in one room.

“Dain…” You try to call after him but he’s long gone.

“Some heroic boyfriend you got there.” General Sorrengail mocks you and you wrap your hands in fists before you turn around and practically run out of the room, echoes of laughter following you out.

You couldn’t believe the humiliation they all gave you. It’s one thing for them to treat you with no respect, but to personally attack your father? And for Dain to leave you there hanging as if he didn’t just bring you into the hungry lion’s coop? As you’re trying to breathe in some fresh air of the night in the courtyard, you’re surprised by a group of Xaden, Garrick and Bodhi in flight leathers, accompanied by Violet and Imogen coming out of the gym.

“Seriously? We have so much to worry about and this is what you do? Go to a party to celebrate our father’s death?” Xaden furiously stares at you in your dress.

Suddenly you felt a little stupid for even considering going in the first place and then actually doing it. His angry sight made you feel tiny and weak, even tho everyone was compared to Xaden. The anger and betrayal overcoming the disappointment on his face. You let him down. There weren’t many occasions in your life when he had actually let you know that.

“Xaden this is really not a good time for this…” You try to moderate but it falls on deaf ears.

“No, it’s a perfect time. What did you think you’re doing celebrating the death of our parents!?” He thunders at you.

“It was just a dance…” You try to oppose with a little voice full of uncertainty.

“I’m ashamed of you, Y/n. Our father would be disgraced by you. You’re not my family. You do not deserve our name. You’re not worth being my sister.” He levels you, angrily turning on his heel.

“Xaden!” You call after him, tears threatening to spill as Violet runs after him.

You look over your other friends, but all you see in their faces is disgust and hate. Garrick uncompromisingly shakes his head and Bodhi looks at you with the utmost disappointment, before they all leave you standing there. Your tears flow down your face as you make your way to the last person you still have to talk to and gently knock on his door. Maybe he’s not there? Maybe he’s cooling off somewhere else? But then you hear rustling of clothes and slow steps.

“Hey…” You whisper as Dain opens the door.

“What do you want.” He spits, your heart clenching.

“Seems like I’ve been now also disowned by my family so…” You don’t get the chance to say anything more.

“Like I care. Leave me the fuck alone Y/n, I want nothing to do with you. You were a mistake.” With that he slams the door in your face, almost hitting your nose.

Lost for what to do, you get to your room, sinking to the ground by your bed and crying your eyes out into the duvet. This was supposed to be just a sweet night with your boyfriend, one filled with dancing and sweetness and love, so why did it turn out so horribly? How could you lose every single person you had in the matter of just a few hours?

[annie-creates]

Okay babes but how do we go about this. First person? Second? Third? Double POV? A few chapters or many parts? So many questions I can't decide on😩

The irresistible urge to write a "she fell first but he fell harder" Garrick slowburn fic😩

[annie-creates]

The irresistible urge to write a "she fell first but he fell harder" Garrick slowburn fic😩

[annie-creates]

Halloween night tradition

Pairing: Agatha Harkness x reader

Genre: fluff

Words: 700

Note: I refuse to aknowledge anything after the fourth episode. This is a Halloween gift to you and especially everyone who is as deeply hurt and disappointed in the show's ending as I am.

The evening was growing closer as the sky darkened, first shining stars visible through the reddish clouds of the setting sun. Your wife was not yet back from her errands, something you warned her would happen, yet she didn’t take your advice into consideration. That’s after all how you got yourself into the argument this very morning. You wanted her to stay home today to help you with all the chores, but she was adamant on going out and doing god knows what, even when she saw how many tasks you had on your hands for the day.

As you dry your hands from the sink water after cleaning all the dishes, you go out into the garden to take down the fourth dried load of clothes you washed today. You can’t help but think it’s kind of selfish of Agatha to leave you here all alone to deal with all the work yourself while she run around enjoying her magic and wreaking havoc, or whatever she was doing right now. She comes through the front door just as you’re taking the heavy basket full of clothes to be folded inside, signing heavily as you stretch your overworked back. You slump into the sofa, getting the first break in the whole day, Agatha clearly much cheerier in her mood than yourself.

“Hey,” she calls to you sitting on the other side of the couch.

“Hi,” you scoff, your tone annoyed with her cheerfulness.

“Oh come on baby, what got you so pressed?” she tuts at you, not getting the hint you’re still angry with her.

“I don’t know, maybe my wife leaving me here all day alone to do all the house chores while she enjoys her day outside not even considering me?” you contemplate. “No, it couldn’t be that, no loving wife would do that.”

“Come on now, you can’t seriously still be mad at me?” she chuckles a little, now seeing the hurt in your eyes.

“I am. You left me to deal with everything and you have the audacity to…” you’re cut off by Agatha cupping your face in her hands.

“Baby I’m so sorry I didn’t help you today, but I’ve got something that will make it all worth it, I promise,” she tempts you.

“I seriously doubt that…” you stubbornly fold your hands over your chest but follow her outside none the less, curiosity taking the better of you.

“Look what I’ve got!” Agatha shows you two old tree branches of a decent size. “It’s broomsticks! For our Halloween night flight!” She clarifies noticing your confused expression.

“What’s wrong with the ones we already have..?” you shake your head.

“Come on love, you deserve something brand new, the best,” she persuades you.

“Okay, fine,” you playfully roll your eyes, slowly forgetting you were mad at her.

As you perform the ritual together, giving your makeshift brooms to each other in an act of selflessness, you can’t really be annoyed with her for long. Taking of the ground as the night falls, hidden by the clouds of darkness, you realize she probably got new brooms just to have a chance to perform the ritual with you again and it unexplainably warms your heart. It was true this was your Halloween tradition and even when your wife wasn’t perfect in many ways, she never forgot any of the little things that made you happy. Watching her eyes sparkle under the light of stars you swum in, there was no one who could ever compare to her and you felt your love for her pouring over your edges like the brightest star.

“I love you,” you exclaim flying closer to her, your shoulders almost touching.

“Well I’d hope so we’ve been married for seven years,” she playfully nips but you can see the reciprocated love in her eyes. “I love you too.”

Leaning over a little to give her a sweet kiss you feel her soft lips on yours, her adoration for you noticeable in everything she does. You both had your mistakes but there was no one who could understand them better than the woman right next to you. And she loved you over every single one.

[annie-creates]

Billy starts every trial but have we noticed Agatha always finishes it? (Maybe except her own.)

She's always the one giving the final push just big enough to make them all succeed and even if it's for selfish reasons, I think that's beautiful and shows that she shows up for them in ways they don't even realize so can hardly appreciate.

A true natural leader.🖤

[annie-creates]

I deserved it

Pairing: Agatha Harkness x reader

Genre: angst

Words: 1000

Note: This story is inspired by this amazing song so I'm very greateful to the person who used it for an Agatha edit. Please be aware there's a talk of scars in case it makes you uncomfortable.

When Agatha Harkness entered your apotheke on the outskirts of your town, you thought it must have been a mistake. She would never step into a mile radius of yours willingly. But she wasn’t alone, she had a young boy with her. A kid who was a little too excited to get on the path of death for your liking, but at the same time it intrigued you. It was clear Agatha herself didn’t really want to be here, but once he told you about the coven list, you understood she really didn’t have much of a choice. If she wanted to find the witch’s road, she needed a coven with you in it.

Against your better judgement, you came to the meeting point, other witches already gathering. Quite a weird group in your opinion, Agatha must have been desperate. You couldn’t fathom she’d choose any of them willingly. That’s how you got yourself into the shenanigans of trials and tests, each one crazier than the one before. You weren’t all exactly friendly with each other either, most of you having some old beef with Agatha. Which at least didn’t leave you alone in your reservations towards her.

In the chaos of the last trial Teen got hurt and you all rushed outside to tend to him in the calmer surroundings. Everyone seemed desperate to find something to help, but surprisingly most of all Agatha, who pushed Jen to come up with anything that would help. You stand by his side, calling to your healing powers your hands starting to glow.

„Don’t touch him!“ Agatha screams at you, the cruelty in her voice taking you back.

„Do you want him to live or not?“ You spit back after the initial shock, masking your hurt expression.

In the mean time Jennifer makes her makeshift potion, slowly healing his wound. You take a few steps back, still hurt by the refusal of your help. You watch as they take him to sleep, opting to help Lilia with setting up a campfire instead. She notices your sudden quietness but doesn’t comment on it. The day has been hard on all of you.

“He might get a scar from this one,” Alice comments as she and Jennifer return, leaving Agatha looking after the kid.

“I bet he’ll find it pretty cool,” you answer halfheartedly.

“Do you guys have any magical scars?” She asks, stirring up a friendly conversation. “You’ve already seen mine.”

“I have these from the bounds,” Jen admits showing her wrists with lines that were hardly visible now.

“Look at this,” Lilia shows the side of her neck. “It’s from a vampire… right before I knocked out his other tooth.”

That gets everyone laughing and you must chuckle a little. What a weird group, and yet you kinda did click together. Maybe the choosing wasn’t completely random after all. All covenless witches, renegades who didn’t fit into the society of the outside world. You hear Agatha’s steps before she sits down by the fire, an opportunity they can’t pass on.

“Do you have any battle scars Agatha?” Alice asks lightly.

“Check this out,” she unbuttons her sleeve rolling it up. “Knitting needle right to the elbow.”

“Wow,” Jennifer admires. “What about you Y/n?”

You slowly look up at her, being a little lost in your own thoughts to follow the conversation too closely. You debate yourself for a minute with a loud inhale and exhale, deciding to also share a little piece of your troubled past. So you open the first few buttons of your shirt. There, in the middle of your chest, lies a deep pink scar.

“Oh my god, where did you get that?” Jen asks surprised.

“Well… a long time ago, I had this… person. And I wasn’t able to protect someone very dear to them… so she promised to cut out my heart and never forgive me,” you admit, your eyes glossing over as you remember the painful memory.

“Wow that’s cruel,” Alice whispers taken back by your dark story.

“I guess I deserved it,” you shrug, suddenly feeling colder.

The other women shake their heads clearly disagreeing but it’s not their place to argue with you on your self-esteem and worth. Agatha stays quiet, remembering the day she almost cut your heart out for the loss of her son. Even now, decades later she couldn’t understand how you could fail the one time she really needed you, and it only strengthened her decision that she can’t trust anybody when it comes to important stuff.

You get up after a minute, too lost in your own mind to entertain the ladies. You walk through the forest, immediately missing the warmth of the fire. Were you a good person? Reliable? The people in your life now would surely say yes, the witches on the road didn’t know you enough to judge, and Agatha would definitely have a different opinion. So what’s the right answer? Could you even believe in yourself? If not, how could you ask others to?

Your mind travels back to earlier today when Agatha forbade you from helping, rather entrusting Teen’s life in the hands of a stranger than yours. Did she really think so little of you? That you’d hurt the kid? The answer came walking behind you, subtle rustling of leaves revealing her presence. With a spiteful feeling you think she came to make sure you didn’t poison the boy or something.

“You know, this road is like Switzerland…” Agatha waits for you to turn around and look at her. “So I won’t attack you here… If I don’t have to.”

“Oh what a relief…” you scoff, folding your hands over your chest.

“But don’t expect the same courtesy when we’re outta here,” she warns you. “I don’t want to have anything to do with you.”

“Wouldn’t imagine anything else,” you sigh.

“You were right you know?” she adds, already on her walk away from you. “You deserve much worse than just a scar.”