#[ while also neglecting to bring up how their first meeting ended on a very sour note ]

[causalitylinked]

@badheart​​ — continued from here ;;

    When she finally turns, regarding him with what appeared to be a flabbergasted expression, his eyes would only widen just the subtlest bit; after all, Ryuto didn’t believe he said anything to potentially set Fang off. Why, as far as he was concerned, he had been perfectly civil with her, which made her reaction all the more unfathomable to him.

    “...Not particularly? After spotting you, my curiosity was simply piqued,” Ryuto then answers truthfully, because in all truthfulness, he simply felt like talking to her once he notices her checking out Yoshitoki Oima’s latest work. Of course, most would probably assume he would be snobby enough to believe manga wasn’t true literature, but contrary to popular belief, even he would resort to flipping through a Shonen Jump magazine every once in a while. “That was the intention, yes,” Ryuto soon goes on to nonchalantly nod.

    “I wanted to hear your thoughts regarding that manga; after all, it’s not often I would encounter women who seemingly like that particular genre,” he adds while failing to mention he did actually remember what happened between them. Ryuto just chooses not to hold a grudge over what happened because he figured the heat only served to exacerbate her mood back then... and though he did imply Fang lacked the intelligence he sought in his ideal girl, he still manages to entertain the notion he might have potentially judged her far too soon.

    Why, if nothing else, it wasn’t like he knew her all that well yet, so on the off chance she turns out to be way smarter than he had initially given her credit for, he was willing enough to apologize despite how shallow her attraction towards him was.

[therenlover]

Heartsick (A James Patrick March/Reader Oneshot)

Synopsis: When you fall ill, James is given a forceful awakening about how he’s been neglecting your needs and what he must do to prevent harm from befalling you again

Tags: Fluff, Sickfic, Cuddling, Marriage Proposal

Rating: 16+

Warnings: Language, Potentially Triggering Mentions of the Reader Being Ill for a Long Time/Almost Dying of an Unnamed Illness, Planning Your Own Death

Word Count: 3700~

This was crossposted to my AO3 under the same title!

---------------

James Patrick March considered himself a fairly patient man. He had to be, in his line of work. Some things didn’t deserve his patience, like lazy workers or angry hotel guests, but when it came to things that did matter, he was willing to go to extremes. Murder, for example, deserved his patience. Once upon a time, the Countess did too. Yes, patience was a rare virtue Mr. March had possessed all his life.

When it came to you, though, he found his patience running short.

You had been a revelation all your own when you first walked through the doors of the Hotel Cortez with not even a suitcase to your name, radiating purity with every shallow breath. James had been excited to find you in some dark corner of the hotel and rip the life from your body. That is until you found his little nook at the Blue Parrot Lounge and seduced him with your charming personality and sweet smile. From that moment on the Countess didn’t matter anymore. The whole world was just him, you, and all of the deliciously naughty ways he wanted to debauch you.

James had insisted on moving you into your own suite on the seventh floor that very night, just a few short hallways away from his own, and given every luxury he could offer. He was nothing if not a gentleman. It just wouldn’t be right to move the one he intended to court directly into his bedroom, especially while he was still married to his previous wide. Despite the distance, things between the two of you went swimmingly. Even the murder, which James initially worried could drive you apart, was now a delightful shared activity when you chose to grace him with your presence during a kill.

That’s where the problems started.

Mr. March was a man stuck in his own time. That’s why, after 5 splendid years with you at his side, you still weren’t moved into room 78. This also meant your suite was a place he wouldn’t enter unless he was invited. Sure, you had a healthy sex life, but the Countess still had the March family engagement ring tucked away somewhere. He wouldn’t move you into his quarters or impose himself on yours until the two of you were at the very least engaged. The plans for his and the Countess’ divorce were moving, albeit slowly, when you stopped opening the door for James.

The first day he thought perhaps you were simply elsewhere, but after a week of nothing, he began to get angry. It was one thing to deny him your company, but to ignore him while he made a fool of himself banging on your door? That was a punishable offense in the March family playbook. So, he decided if you wanted to play hard to get, he would too. In his mind, James could practically envision you rushing back into his arms once you got over whatever was souring your mood. It wouldn’t be long until the whole nasty affair was behind the both of you once and for all, right?

Wrong.

A month since he last dined with you, James sat at his table in the Blue Parrot lounge alone nursing the remains of his 4th glass of scotch.

Liz was slow to walk out from her place behind the bar. “You want another?” she asked, holding out a crystal decanter, “or should I fish out the absinthe fountain a little early this year,”

“No, no I do believe I’ve had quite enough. Besides, it’s not as if I can actually get drunk anymore,” he huffed. Whether it was the drinks or his growing rage, Mr. March found his collar feeling a bit tighter. He reached up to pull at his cravat but paused when thinking about the ghastly wound it hid. In the end, he let his hand return to its place on his glass.

“Suit yourself,” Liz quickly returned the decanter to its place and began polishing glasses.

Somewhere in the distance, Iris picked up a phone and began to take an order for room service. James had an epiphany.

“Liz!” he shouted, getting her attention, “has Y/N been ordering much room service lately?”

Liz shrugged. “Only once a day for the past month. Why do you ask?”

“I find myself in a bit of a predicament. You see, Y/N began ignoring me about a month ago. I’ve been giving her a taste of her own medicine for quite some time now, and yet she has made no attempts to seek me out. Do you think, perhaps, there could be something wrong?”

The energy in the room began to still.

“Wait, Y/N hasn’t told you?”

“Told me what?”

The dirty glasses were abandoned as Liz let out a humorless laugh.

“Damn you, woman!” James rose with a shout, slamming his glass down on the table, “what is she hiding!?”

“She’s sick,”

James’ heart would have stopped if it were still beating. He sat down again, bewildered. “What?”

“She’s sick. Fever, puking, tremors; the whole shebang,” As she spoke, Liz came back to the table and sat down on the plush booth across from him.

“But it’s been a month! Influenza shouldn’t last that long…”

“Well, it’s definitely not the flu, I can tell you that. Last time I brought down her dinner she nearly choked on her toast. She was so weak that I had to sit there feeding her soup because she couldn’t lift up the spoon long enough to feed herself,”

It was as if James’ whole world had come collapsing down on him all at once. Mortified, he let his head drop into his hands. “Why didn’t she inform me? Am I that pathetic a lover that she would rather suffer in silence than tell me she was ill?”

“Well, to her credit, you don’t exactly look like the most comforting type. When did she move in again?”

“Almost five years ago, it’ll be the anniversary of her first entering the Cortez on the 20th,”

“And how many times in the past five years have you, I don’t know, cuddled with Y/N,”

“You insolent-”

Liz lifted her arms, offering up a white flag. “I’m just asking a question,”

James opened his mouth to offer up a rebuttal but found he had no way to defend himself.

It was true that his relationship with Y/N tended to fluctuate between chaste and lecherous at the drop of a hat. Once they had made love, it was the only habit for him to leave her in bed and return to whatever was keeping him busy at the moment. Post-coital intimacy was simply something he had never experienced or needed. Unfortunately, seeing that the only time he spent with Y/N outside of their trysts were formal meetings or dinners, there had been no time for gentility or softness between just the two of them. If ghosts could blanch, he would have.

Noticing his sudden shift in mood, Liz rose, backing off. “Now, usually I like to stay out of your business, but because your little relationship makes Y/N happy I’ll give you some advice. Go down to the kitchen, have Ms. Evers heat some broth, and give Y/N her dinner personally, maybe even give her some extra attention as a little treat. That should fix the bulk of your issues. Got it?”

He was never one to take orders, but surprisingly James nodded. He stood quickly, smoothing his suit. “Thank you for your advice, Ms. Taylor, but I must depart. My paramour needs me,”

She nodded. “Any time,” James began to hurry down the stairs, but suddenly Liz shouted. “Wait a second,”

James paused. “Yes?”

“Only the living get sick, Mr. March. Maybe, after five years, it’s time for Y/N to extend her stay at the Cortez... permanently. Just something to think about,”

He gave her a sharp nod before disappearing down the stairs to the kitchen. 15 minutes later he was waiting outside your door with a rolling cart in hard. He had already been stalling there for 5 minutes when he finally, with a deep, steadying breath, unlocked the door.

The room was dark and silent, almost like a tomb.

Your voice rang out like a bell as James pushed the cart forward. “Iris?” you called weakly, “is that you?”

“No, darling,” he responded, closing the door behind him. Slowly, he bent down at turned on a small lamp. “You won’t need Iris to bring you your dinner any longer,”

“James,” You whispered, half reverent and half shocked.

He was far too taken aback by the severity of your condition to form an immediate response.

You were curled up in bed, folded in on yourself as you wheezed for breath. As Liz had mentioned your body was weak and wracked with near-constant tremors while you tried your best to prop yourself up on the headboard. James had to abandon the cart with your dinner on it in favor of rushing over and helping you sit up. As he took in your gaunt face, his heart broke.

Your soft voice snapped him from his thoughts.

“Am I dead?”

James shook his head. “No my love, not yet,”

Tears began to spill from your eyes. “I thought you’d left me, James. I thought I was going to have to rot in this awful, dark room for eternity, that maybe ‘cause I died while I was sick my ghost was too damn weak to get up,” As you spoke, you tried to grip the back of his suit, but found you were far too weak to actually hold the fabric. Your inability to even do the simplest of tasks only made you cry harder.

Mr. March was quick to pull out his handkerchief and wipe your eyes. “Oh, my dearest, that couldn’t be farther from the truth, but none of that matters now. I cannot apologize enough for my abhorrent behavior as of late,”

“Will you stay?” your words were laced with desperation, “just for a little bit?”

“Of course, my dearest. I think you’ll find it very difficult to get rid of me from now on. Besides, I couldn’t leave my beloved paramour without doing what it is that I set out to do,”

“Which is?”

James stood and quickly returned with the room service cart. As he removed the silver tray-topper, you found he had brought you a bowl of soup, a small plate of crackers, and a tall glass of ice water.

“I intend to make sure you are well-fed and taken care of,”

“James, you don’t-” you tried to argue, but he cut you off.

“Nonsense! There is, unfortunately, no way to sugar coat this, but I will try my best,” he whispered as he sat on the edge of the bed beside you, “I have neglected you, darling, not just for the past month when I found my pride and ego keeping me away from you, but also for the past five years. I ignored your needs out of a false sense of propriety by bending to rules that are long dead and considered inconsequential. For that, I fear I may never forgive myself. Things will be different from now on, though. I hope to win back your heart properly now that I have realized the severity of my mistakes. Would you…” he paused, gulping, “would you be willing to humor me?”

You offered him a soft smile. “Oh, my beloved Mr. March, there’s no need. My heart has always been yours,”

Your words soothed him, and he offered you one of his debonair grins, the kind where his little mustache scrunched before his lips parted that never failed to sweep you off your feet.

“Now where were we!” he exclaimed.

“Dinner,” you responded.

“Ah, yes! Soup!” He was quick to get a spoonful of the warm broth and bring it to your lips. “You needn’t worry, my sweetling, I watched Ms. Evers prepare this herself. Nothing but the best for you,”

It was easy to accept the spoon into your mouth. Something inside of you knew that James would be taking care of you from now on.

The rest of dinner passed in relative silence, but you didn’t mind, far too tired to take part in any meaningful conversation. Instead, you simply enjoyed the attention. James had never been shy about his affection, but that affection always tended to come in the form of gifts or sex instead of close, intimate touch. It hadn’t bothered you enough to tell him. You always just assumed he didn’t enjoy that kind of love. Now that you’d had a taste, though, of his gentle yet constant affection, you knew you could never get enough.

Too soon the bowl was empty.

James stood, returning to the door with the cart as you relaxed and rolled onto your side. “When will you be back?”

He chuckled, opening the door. “Did you think you could be rid of me so soon, darling?” The cart was quickly pushed out into the hallway as James turned back towards you.

Your face flushed. “I just assumed…”

“Assumptions, assumptions,” he tutted, “It hurts that you have such little faith in me, but I admit I haven’t given you much reason to. As I said, things will be different now,” James perched himself on the edge of the bed with a smile as he untied his shoes and slipped them off.

“What are you doing?”

“Taking off my shoes, darling, so I can join you in bed,”

Your heart skipped a beat. You had been imagining the first time James would actually stay in your bed to cuddle since the beginning of your relationship, but it had been years since you had given any thought to that silly fantasy. Could it really be happening?

Apparently, your surprise was evident on your face because Mr. March paused once both his shoes were settled neatly on the floor. “Is something wrong, my dearest?”

“Nothing, darling, nothing at all,” you were quick to explain, “we’ve just never done this before,”

James smirked like a predator who had just found his prey. “Such an innocent gesture from such a naughty little minx. I don’t recall you being so… flustered the night we met when I took you up to my suite and-”

“James!”

“Alright! Alright, my love, no more vulgarity from me until you’re fully healed and back on your feet. Well, hypothetically on your feet,” he emphasized his words with a dirty wink. Then he crawled into bed beside you as if he belonged there, scootching over until he was resting pressed against your side. You slotted into place, with your face resting in his neck and your leg thrown haphazardly across his hips as if you were made to fit his body. Holding James was like coming home.

You let out a soft, pleased sound at just how good it felt to be held.

James took this as positive feedback. As he settled in, he began running his fingers through your bedhead, combing through the loosest of the knots. Sensing something strange, he paused to put his hand on your forehead. It was uncomfortably hot. “You’re still feverish. Do you need anything? A cold compress? A wet washcloth? Some water?”

It was funny to hear him fussing over you, but it also warmed the deepest parts of your heart.

You made a negative huff against his neck. “No! You’d better not move. Your skin feels too good. It’s nice… cold. The only thing I could possibly want right now is for you to dim the lights and take your damn shirt off so you can cool more of me off,”

“I would, darling, believe me, but there’s just the small issue of the wound on my neck,”

“James,” you glared up at him, “I have literally ripped a dying man’s dick off in front of you. We have dinner with Jeffery Dahmer on your birthday every year, where I have to eat my salad as he zombifies whatever poor sap wandered into Sally’s clutches across the table. Hell, just a few months ago we fucked in that bathtub filled with some businessman’s blood. Your neck is just another part of you, James, it doesn’t bother me. Shirt. Off.”

“Have I ever told you that I adore when you take charge?”

You grinned as he undid his cravat and the top few buttons of his dress shirt. “Once or twice,” The thrill only lasted a moment, though, because before he finished unbuttoning his shirt he pulled away from your arms and got off the bed. A high-pitched whine escaped from your lips. “I thought you said you were staying?”

“I may be a ghost, dear heart, but my clothes can’t just disappear,” Always one for the dramatics, he shed his shirt and suit jacket to the floor with gusto. The sight of his bare torso made your heart beat faster. You had to remind yourself that you were sick and it would probably kill you to go for even a gentle round with Mr. March. Ah, but what a way to die…

James dimmed the lamp before returning, undoing his pants, and stripping down to his boxers. “Is this better for you darling?”

You nodded and reached your trembling arms out to your lover. “Much. Now come back to bed. You have five years’ worth of cuddling to make up for Mr. March, and I don’t intend on letting you wheedle your way out of even a second of it,”

He gave you a gentle smile as he found his way beneath the covers again. “I wouldn’t dream of it,”

Your face quickly found its way back into the crook of James’ neck. It was inhumanly cool, easing the constant burn of your fever and soothing your sore skin. The slit across his throat truly didn’t bother you. As you said, it was just another part of him for you to love, nothing more than a cosmetic imperfection.

Nuzzling closer, you took a deep inhale of his intoxicating scent. Perhaps it was the cologne he wore at the time of his death or even just what he naturally smelled like, but his pulse point radiated notes of sage and bergamot. God, how you loved him.

The pair of you were quiet for a moment with only the sound of your ragged breathing breaking through the air, but something urged you to speak your mind.

“You know, James, when you walked into my room tonight I assumed you were here to kill me,”

He chuckled. “I can’t say I didn’t think about it, my pearl,”

“Of course you did…” you went silent for a moment, “I wouldn’t have minded. This sickness is hell. I’m wasting away by the day and the pain never stops. I don’t mind dying, not when it means I get to spend the rest of time here in the hotel with you, but I don’t want to go out like somebody normal. My death needs to be special… I want to be the crowning glory of your murders, the most fantastic piece of art you’ve ever created,”

Pressing a chaste kiss to the top of your hair, James sighed. “Perhaps it’s selfish of me, but the moment I thought of you, wasting away in the darkness and succumbing to some common germ, I knew I couldn’t kill you. Not yet. I refuse to have my bride accompany me through eternity bearing a constant reminder of my failure,”

Your breath hitched. “Bride?”

Slowly, his hand made its way to your throat. There was no threat in it, he wasn’t using even an ounce of pressure. It was more of a gentle reminder of his presence; a physical conduit of his passion.

“Yes, bride. I don’t mind if you can only become Mrs. March posthumously, though I would prefer to wed you alive and enjoy your last moments of warmth in the throes of carnal delight on our wedding bed, it all depends on where your illness takes you next. Until then I will be glued to your side. No more harm will come to you. I shall nurse you back to health with my own hand so that you glow with life long after your death. Yes, Y/N, your death will come, but not until I have done my best to atone for my mistakes in your life,”

“Was that a proposal?” You gazed up at James with wide, misty eyes.

He huffed out a laugh. “I suppose it was, and a poor one at that! To think I stalled for years in the hopes of finding the perfect moment to present you with my mother’s ring only to pop the question in bed with no ring in sight. I do hope you’ll say yes. I’d be rather crushed if you rejected me after all this time,”

You nodded, small tears escaping as you pressed your face into his soft skin. “Of course I’ll marry you, you idiot. I would’ve married you if you were the poorest man in the world and proposed with a ring-pop,”

“Then it’s settled. You shall be my wife as soon as you are well enough for me to fuck you again! I quite hate that Will Drake, but I believe he’s our best, quickest option if we wish to get you a dress commissioned. I have a few ideas drawn up already waiting in my office… perhaps I should call Ms. Evers and have her take them to him,”

“Shhhh,” you smiled into his neck, pressing a kiss to his collarbone, “we can figure out the details later. For right now, though, your fiancée is sick and she needs some TLC. What are you gonna do about it, Mr. March,”

He growled. “Well, I suppose ravishing you is off the table. Hmmm... what to do to my darling girl to make her feel better?” With a gentle nudge, he tilted your head up and pressed a sweet kiss to your lips.

“That’s a start,”

-------

a/n: I hope you liked it! I’m really leaning towards writing a second part of this where the reader actually dies, so let me know if you’re interested. Also, my requests are open if you want to see any of Evan’s other characters! 

Please don’t post my work to other sites, thank you <3

[iliveiloveiwrite]

Paging Healer Malfoy // Chapter Four - Aftermath and Acceptance (D.M.)

A/N: CHAPTER FOUR! I struggled writing this, that’s why it’s so late and so short, I’m really sorry!! However, I do hope you enjoy!

Summary: Draco has something important to ask (Y/N), but will he work up the nerve to ask her?

Warnings: talk of grief and loss, mutual pining, swearing, mentions of food but no descriptive eating scenes, mentions of injuries, brief description of injuries, injured child BUT THERE IS FLUFF.

Word count: 3.7k

Prologue // Chapter One // Chapter Two // Chapter Three 

Draco wakes to the smell of coffee and toast. He finds himself laid, curled up on his couch with a blanket covering him. He blinks once, twice – his eyes are crusty from the tears shed last night.

With a loaded sigh, Draco sits up, rubbing his face and wrapping the blanket around his shoulders. He finds (Y/N) in the kitchen; her back to him as she butters the toast and makes two mugs of instant coffee.

Silently, she pushes Draco’s coffee towards him before taking a sip of her own. She watches him as he drinks; her keen eyes focused over the rim of her mug as she waits for him to break down again.

“I’m okay,” He whispers hoarsely.

Her eyes narrow; she doesn’t believe him, and he thinks that she’s probably right to not believe him. He shifts his gaze from her to the mug in his hands; staring down at the bitter liquid he relies so heavily on, “Really. I’m not going to break down again.”

(Y/N)’s mug clinks delicately as she places it back down on the counter, “Are you sure?”

Draco nods, “I’m sure.”

She sighs through her nose, “I’ve never seen you like that, Draco.”

“I know, I’m sorry.”

She shakes her head, “Don’t be sorry, I’m just concerned.”

“It won’t happen again; yesterday took me by surprise.”

“I believe you.”

Draco meets her gaze; his blue eyes bright, “Thank you for staying.”

(Y/N) smiles, “You know I’m here for you.”

“I know,” Draco whispers; smiling smally at her.

Cold toast and lukewarm coffee is breakfast for them both; tired eyes crinkling in the corners as shy smiles are shared. Last night changed something between them, and they’re both aware of it. However, neither truly know how to approach it.

Draco finishes his piece of toast before asking, “Where did you sleep last night?”

(Y/N)’s face heats; something Draco hasn’t seen for a while; it took a lot to elicit such a reaction from her. She finishes chewing before replying, “You fell asleep on me. I ended up sleeping underneath you.”

Draco blushes from his neck to his hairline; he opens his mouth to apologise, but (Y/N) beats him to it, “Don’t apologise; I didn’t mind – you make quite the lovely blanket.”

Draco ducks his head; pleased to know that she didn’t mind sleeping with him.

(Y/N)’s eyes glance towards the clock, “Are you on today?”

Draco nods. (Y/N)’s eyes narrow once again, “Are you sure that’s wise?”

He sighs, “What happened last night won’t happen again. I need to work, (Y/N). Life doesn’t just stop.”

She frowns, “You’ll come get me though; if you need someone?”

Draco nods, “I promise.”

(Y/N) smiles, picking up her almost empty coffee cup, “We better head off soon.”

He sighs; he had hoped for more time with her, “Give me ten minutes to get dressed and we can go.”

---------

The break room is empty when they arrive at work meaning that they can pull on their lab coats and share a few minutes of silence before entering the fray, getting safely distracted for the rest of the day.

“Remember your promise,” (Y/N) reminds him, squeezing his hand.

He squeezes back, “I will. Are we meeting for lunch?”

She raises an eyebrow, “Are you buying?”

“I think I can manage that.”

She laughs; letting his hand drop. Draco feels suddenly cold. Her eyes shine with mischief as she answers, “I’ll come find you when I’m free.”

“I look forward to it.”

Draco gives himself a moment after (Y/N) leaves the break; he lets himself have a quiet moment to himself where he takes a few deep breaths and listens to the tinny sound of the now ancient television set in the corner of the room. Closing his eyes, Draco lets the monotonous tone of the muggle news anchor wash over him, calming his mind and his heart.

Readying himself for the pitying looks and the busy emergency room, Draco heads to the admit desk.

Vera greets Draco with a raised eyebrow and a question falling from her tongue, “Was that you and (Y/N) I saw walking in together?”

Draco rolls his eyes, “Yes, just like most shifts we share together.”

“You looked particularly cosy… and I couldn’t help but notice she was in the same clothes as yesterday.”

Draco meets Vera’s eyes, “She stayed over last night. I wasn’t in any place to be alone after what happened.”

Vera’s eyes fill with sympathy and sadness; she wraps Draco in a hug that has him fighting back tears for the pure fact that it reminds him of his mother’s hugs. Vera pats his back twice then letting him go; she wipes her eyes quickly before grabbing a chart from the side, “35 year old female; fainted in Diagon Alley.”

Draco takes the chart from her gratefully, “Let’s get started then, shall we?”

--------

He manages to keep himself distracted; he doesn’t overload on patients like he did yesterday, but he takes on a fair few that he knows he can handle with all the experience under his belt.

It keeps his body busy and his mind occupied; he cannot focus on grief if he is trying to figure out the cause of an otherwise healthy female’s loss of consciousness whilst out shopping with her mother-in-law. Draco has his suspicions that it’s down to the overbearing nature of said mother-in-law but at the pleading look in his patient’s eyes, he keeps her in for further observation – if only to give her a break.

He flits about from patient to patient; ordering tests and then handing out prescriptions. It’s days like this, when the load is heavy but manageable, that Draco is reminded of why he became a Healer in the first place. He loves to help people; it’s at the very centre of his being, but for so long, it was hidden by his teenaged cockiness and the insurmountable pressure from his family.

It’s days like these when Draco is reminded if the fact that he is a good Healer; that he is talented at what does and that is because of the Healers that trained him, but also of the staff he works with. Draco knows that he could only get so far without the help and support of those he works with, and it’s on days like this when he is forever grateful for the nurses that kick him up the arse when needs must.

-------

James Shannon approaches Draco as he sits at the admit desk, making the last few chart notes on patients discharged yesterday – something he chose to neglect due to his sour mood. James interrupts Draco’s reading with a cough, “Healer Malfoy?”

“James,” Draco greets, turning to face the trainee, “How can I help?”

James looks almost anxious as he asks, “What happened yesterday… with Violet, does it happen often?”

Draco sighs; expecting the question from at least one of the trainees, “No, it doesn’t happen often.”

James continues to watch him; hoping for a longer explanation. Draco huffs, “Through your career as a Healer, you are going to meet patients who come into the emergency room frequently. Take for example Mrs. Larkin who I’m sure you’ve met already,” At James’ nod, he carries on, “Mrs. Larkin very rarely needs medical treatment, James; she’s a lonely widow who needs company that she doesn’t get from the rest of her family. So we let her sit in an exam room; check her over and yes, over her multiple visits, a friendship develops.”

“Is that what happened with Violet?”

Draco frowns, “I was Violet’s primary physician and the one who diagnosed her kidney failure. When her fiancée was at work, I would sit with her through her dialysis for as long as I could. It was more a friendship of convenience, but a friendship nonetheless”

James nods, “I know that you’re my boss and I’m only a trainee, but I want to tell you this if I may?”

Draco raises an eyebrow; he can’t help but be sceptical as he murmurs, “Okay.”

James sighs, “It wasn’t your fault… what happened to her. Violet’s death wasn’t your fault and I know you feel guilty about it but there was nothing you could do, and I know Healer Thomas would have tried his hardest to bring her back. And I know what it feels like to feel guilt for someone else’s death – I lost my older sister when I was six.”

Guilt pools in Draco’s stomach for a second; it seems that he misjudged James due to the attention he gathered from (Y/N), but also of his status within the wizarding world. Draco berates himself internally; he should have known better; he knows full well what it’s like to be judged before your character is truly known by those around you. Draco looks over the young trainee and it becomes clear to Draco as to why James chose Healing as a profession; he would never be able to save his own sister, but maybe – just maybe, James might be able to save someone else’s.

Draco eventually nods; he stands, patting James on his shoulder, “Thank you, James. I think I needed to hear that.”

A small smile breaks across James’ face; he nods twice, happy to have helped his superior in anyway. He turns away, but pauses at the sound of Draco’s voice, “James?” James turns to face his boss who’s smiling at him, “I think you’re going to be a fine Healer.”

------

“Draco!” (Y/N) shouts; lab coat flying out behind her as she runs to his side.

Hastily, he turns to her. “What? What’s happened?” He asks, his voice laced with worry and concern; mind running through all possible scenarios for the reason as to why she’s shouting his name and running.

She pants slightly, sidling up next to him, “I heard it was paediatric.”

Draco nods; casting his gaze back out across the bay, counting down in his head for when the emergency transport should arrive. “What did they say?” (Y/N) asks; her focus sharpening.

“Six year old girl; bitten by a werewolf.”

(Y/N) lurches back in shock, gloves halfway on her hands, “What?”

Draco nods; confirming, “We get at least one around the full moon, you know that.”

Her eyebrows furrow, “Did they say how bad?”

Draco shakes his head, “They couldn’t tell us a lot other than it was bleeding a lot.”

(Y/N) sighs, “We need to keep this quiet, Draco. They’re lobbying a new decree in the ministry this week about lycanthropy.”

Draco doesn’t remove his gaze from the emergency bay; veins already thrumming with adrenaline, “Let’s treat the patient first. We’ll worry about politics later.”

-------

Six year old Ailsa is quiet as she is wheeled into the emergency room. Her eyes are wide as they take in the new environment, and she answers questions with the tiniest of sobs. Her mother follows behind; tears streaming down her face as she recites Ailsa’s allergies and any worries she has.

Ailsa flinches as the wound is cleaned. Draco realises upon examination that the bite isn’t too deep meaning that the chance of transmission has significantly lowered since Ailsa first arrived at St. Mungo’s.

(Y/N) arrives at Draco’s side immediately; the bottle of wolfsbane potion already uncorked and ready to be given to the patient. With a sorrowful smile, Draco says, “Ailsa, I’m going to need you to drink this. Now, it isn’t going to taste very nice, but, I happen to know that if you drink all of this, you can have some of the chocolate milk hidden away in the staff room.”

Ailsa’s nose crinkles. “Do I have to drink all of it?” She asks in a small voice; watching the vapour rise from the potion.

Draco chuckles, holding the potion out for her to drink, “If you want the chocolate milk, I’m afraid you have to.”

Fierce determination settles on Ailsa’s face as she takes the potion from Draco; she would get the promised chocolate milk and enjoy every drop. At her mother’s encouraging smile, Ailsa drinks down the potion, frowning heavily at the taste.

She holds up the empty bottle with a victorious grin, “Finished.”

Draco laughs, “Looks like we owe you chocolate milk, Ailsa.”

Ailsa nods happily; handing the empty bottle back to Draco. He takes a step back, “Good job, Ailsa. I’m going to go make a phone call and I’ll be right back with your chocolate milk. How does that sound?”

She nods once again; distracted by her mother wrapping her up in a hug. Draco smiles at the scene before leaving. (Y/N) follows him, waiting until they’re of earshot of the family before saying, “She’s going to be okay, isn’t she? We both saw the bite.”

Draco shrugs, “Truthfully, I don’t know,” He looks towards trauma one, “I really don’t know.”

(Y/N) sighs, “Well I hope so.”

Leaving (Y/N) to manage her own patients, Draco goes in search for a phone and Ailsa’s chocolate milk; happy to find the one in the break room free.

He rifles around in his wallet for the card handed to him by Harry not so long back; an idea forming in his mind. Balancing the phone between his shoulder and ear, Draco punches in the number, relieved to hear the dial tone. It rings four times before a weary voice answers, “Hello?”

“Hello. Is that Professor Lupin?” Draco asks; mind flickering back to his father’s treatment of the werewolf.

A slow chuckle answers, “I haven’t been a professor in over ten years. Who is this?”

“Draco Malfoy, sir.”

The line falls silent; Draco thinks that he’s hung up which is understandable really. Draco had been surprised when Harry, Ron and Hermione had forgiven him; he wouldn’t be surprised however, if Remus Lupin drops the line.

Minutes pass before Remus speaks up, “Draco Malfoy? I never thought I would hear from you. How did you get my number?”

Draco chuckles; half embarrassed, “Harry gave it to me, sir.”

“You don’t need to call me ‘sir’, Draco. Remus will do just fine.”

“Thank you, Remus. I was calling for your help with a patient.”

“A patient?” Remus asks; shock lacing his voice.

“Yes, I’m an attending in the emergency room at St. Mungo’s now,” Draco answers; unable to help the strong tone of pride in his voice – he would always be proud of his job and all that he has achieved so far through it.

Draco hears the surprised intake of breath by Remus, “That isn’t something I expected to hear.”

Draco shakes his head though Remus can’t see him, “I surprise everyone when they hear about my career choice.”

“Nevertheless,” Remus’ gravelly voice says over the line, “It’s an incredibly noble profession, Draco, and one I can only assume you excel at.”

“Thank you, Remus,” Draco says quietly; overcome by the kindness shown by one he treated so poorly.

“Now, you rang me for a reason. How can I help?”

Draco startles; remembering as to why he was on the phone to his old professor of Defence Against the Dark Arts, “I was wondering if you wouldn’t mind speaking to a patient and her family. Harry gave me your card not long back and said that you offered advice to families who found themselves struggling with lycanthropy.”

Draco hears another surprised intake of breath, “What happened?”

“A six year old girl was bitten; her mother is worried that she’ll turn.”

“When was she bitten?” Remus asks urgently; voice serious.

Draco checks his chart, “Her mother says this morning; the werewolf broke in and got spooked by her daughter waking up to use the bathroom.”

Remus makes a sad noise on the end of the phone, “So similar to my own attack.”

Sadness washes over Draco; he had known the story of Remus’ bite – there were few in his parent’s social circle who didn’t know considering they all knew the werewolf who had turned him. Remus brings Draco back to the present, “The full moon waned last night; we were at our weakest last night so the bite should amount to nothing.”

Draco grips the receiver tighter in his hands; hope beginning to flicker in his chest, “And you’re sure of that?”

Remus sighs, “I’m not 100%, but we are always most vulnerable as the moon wanes and the bite so rarely takes when we’re weak.”

“What would recommend? I’ve already administered wolfsbane potion which the poor girl didn’t appreciate. I had to promise her chocolate milk to get through it.”

Remus chuckles, “No, I can’t imagine she did. You’ve covered yourselves with the wolfsbane potion; that’s good thinking, Draco. Other than that, it’s a waiting game.”

Draco sighs into the phone, “You’re certain she won’t turn this full moon if the bite has been successful?”

“She won’t turn now. The moon has left its apex; I can feel its strength leaving me as we speak.”

Draco huffs out a breath of relief; he won’t have a child werewolf running around his emergency room then. He has to ask, “What about next month?”

“That’s what we have to wait for.”

Draco nods then remembers that Remus can’t see him, “So I just need to tell the mother that it’s now a waiting game.”

“That’s right. However, if you have a spare wolfsbane potion, give it to the mother. That way, should her child turn, the potion will make her docile and less dangerous.”

Draco makes a note to do so on the girl’s chart. He holds the receiver close to his ear, “Remus, would you mind if I passed on your details to the mother? That way she can ring for advice should anything happen with the next moon.”

Draco can hear the sad smile in Remus’ voice, “Of course you can, Draco. Pass on my well wishes to the family, please.”

“Thank you, Remus. You’ve been a massive help.”

Remus’ voice is gentle as he says, “Anything I can do, Draco.”

Draco hangs up on his ex-professor; feeling hatred towards his younger self for being so naïve to believe his family’s prejudices towards those markedly different to them. Shame washes over him as he thinks of the things he had said about the well-mannered man, knowing he was within hearing distance. Grabbing a bottle of chocolate milk from the fridge, he makes a mental note to send a letter of apology with Harry the next time he was to visit his godson.

With the information from Remus, Draco asks Vera to grab another wolfsbane potion from the potion lock up. As she does that, Draco writes up the prescription and advice for Ailsa’s mother.

Wolfsbane potion in one hand and chocolate milk in the other, Draco returns to trauma one where Ailsa and her mother sit, chatting quietly. From looking at her, you wouldn’t have though that Ailsa had been bitten by anything larger than a small dog. Her attitude towards it had been entirely blasé and Draco couldn’t decide whether it was shock or simply Ailsa’s resilience making an appearance.

Draco smiles reassuring at Ailsa’s mother who stands when she notices Draco entering the room. He hands the chocolate milk to the child; her face lighting up at a promise fulfilled.

“I’m fairly confident that she will not turn into a werewolf. After examination, the wound was quite shallow. The issue is, we cannot be fully certain, so whilst Ailsa may not turn with this full moon – she could with the next. So, here is a wolfsbane potion to be given to her at the start of the week of the full moon. If Ailsa turns, the potion will keep her docile and make her less dangerous. However, I’d also like to give you the contact details of someone who can help should you have any worries.”

Ailsa’s mothers eyes shine with fresh tears as she whispers, “That would be so helpful. Thank you, Healer Malfoy.”

Draco nods; rifling for the small rectangular card in his pocket. “His name is Remus Lupin; he used to teach at Hogwarts, but now helps those come through the moon with as little damage as possible. This is his card, I’ve already rung ahead, he’s expecting your call should you have any worries. He also passes on his well wishes.”

Ailsa’s mother lets her tears fall as she takes the card from Draco. She reads over the fine print for a second before tucking it in her pocket, “And he’s good, you say?”

“He’s the best.”

--------

It takes Draco twelve hours to work up the nerve to ask (Y/N) to dinner. He thought about asking her at his flat, but tensions were high, and should she say no, it would make for an awkward commute to work. He felt there were opportunities all through their shared shift; as he poured their first coffees, at lunch when she kept stealing chips from his plate, as she consulted on a patient for him. He had countless opportunities, but he doesn’t grab at them; he just waits.

At the end of every shift they share, they always head home together, living on the same tube line. Their fingers brush every now and then; sending jolts of electricity through Draco’s veins. It takes every inch of his restraint not to pull her into a kiss as they walk to the tube station; everything about her drives him mad. She’s just finished working a twelve hour shift and yet, she’s as beautiful as she was this morning, sliding him a coffee over his breakfast counter.

Draco realises that he wants to wake to her making coffee for the rest of his life if she’ll have him.

The tube station looms in front of them. It’s now or never, Draco thinks to himself as he looks up to the timetable where it announces its three minutes until the next train.

“Do you want to grab dinner some time?” He asks suddenly, swivelling on the spot to face her, “With me, alone, outside of the hospital,” He adds on for awkward clarification.

“Don’t ask me to dinner because of your grief, Malfoy,” She warns; voice filling with emotion.

Draco shakes his head; a small smile gracing his lips, “It isn’t that. I’m asking you to dinner because I want to date you.”

(Y/N)’s eyebrows raise in surprise, “Oh.”

“So… not out of grief, not out of thanks – out of the fact that I like you, a lot, would you like to get dinner with me?”

(Y/N) beams at him; the sight of him leaving him breathless, “Yes, I would like to get dinner with you.”

*******

Paging Healer Malfoy taglist: @sycathorn-slush @obsessedwithrandomthings @kpopgirlbtssvt @kalimagik @brycelahelalover @fallinallinmendes @mischi3f-manag3d @remmysrecs @willowbleedsonpaper @nao-cchi @haphazardhufflepuff @soundsquid27 @mytreec @maydillydally @chaoticgirl04 @pregnant-piggy @rhyxn @acciotwinz @birdie-writes @reaganwonders @chanelwonders @izzytheninja @ravenclawbitch426 @ohissandhalasta @missmulti @nebulablakemurphy @pointlesscoconut @cherrylita @harpersmariano @slytherinlovesgryffindor @falconfeather23435 @namoreno 

Draco Malfoy taglist: @the--queen-of-hell @obxmxybxnk @obx-beach @sycathorn-slush @dracomalfoyswifey @kashishwrites @justmesadgirl @detroitobsessed @reaganwonders @sophia-gwendolyn @ravenclawbitch426​

**if your username is in bold, I was unable to tag you.

[mintvender]

Hi there! Can I request the boys' reaction to you being jealous? Maybe Y/N saw someone flirt with the boys'? 💓

Ooh yes, enjoy 🌿💚💚

Harem!AU

BTS’s Reaction to You Getting Jealous

Warning: Slight suggestive moments, killing ( please keep in mind that this story is set in a historical setting where killing was considered to be a normal occurrence)

Masterlist

Kim Taehyung

You and Taehyung were on one of your guys’ rare missions set out by the organization. Even if you are the ruler, your original roots are from the organization so you are obligated to carry a mission when needed. This mission is one of those that is set in a very luxurious brothel. The target is a wellknown business man who has a hobby of meeting up with beauties at night. To say the least, every beauty that is here tonight is more than what meets the eyes. Most would say that they are desperate for money, others would think that they are born from lust, itself; however, whatever way an individual choose to believe, it all comes down to their first night together. Once they have done the deed, those people are forever hooked with those venomous snakes.

Your guys’ organization is very hidden even in the underworld, so all members must wear a covering to prevent exposing their identity. Y/N was wearing a full on mask that represent your alias ‘ Pheonix’. Unlike you, Taehyung chosed to be more revealing and risky, wearing only a thin black veil that can easily be ripped off. Of course, with his not very strong physique, it is extremely risky for him to wear such a frail covering but you decided not to say anything as it is in his right to wear anything he wanted to. But what you are going to do is stick by his side while holding a sword for the rest of the night.

Like any other missions, this one went smoothly. You both managed to finish the guy without anyone noticing courtesy to your deathly abilities and Taehyung’s sharp mind. What didn’t go as plan was that one of the snakes managed to ripped Taehyung’s veil off, revealing his pretty face. Further more, the ‘beauty’ thought that it would be alright to flirt and woo him into her bed. Furious at how daring she was, you decided that it was finally time to end her career. Unsheathing your sword, it only took a few movements of your experienced hand for the deed to be done. Taehyung, confused at what had happened could only offer you a stunned expression. Deciding not to answer him, you sped up your pace, leaving him to run after you. Ignoring him on the way, Taehyung could only pout, trying to get you to forgive him. When he finally managed to forced an answer out of you, he found himself snuggling himself in your hold, trying to persuade you to forgive him; promising that he would not be that reckless again.

“ Y/NNNN, talk to me please? I won’t do it again. I will stick to your side the next time we’re on another mission so forgive me. Please?”

Kim Namjoon

Have you ever have an apprentice that never leaves your side the moment they saw you? Well congratulations, this is one of those scenarios. Recently, you have decided to start enlisting many potential talents for the countless open spots in the various offices. Unsurprisingly, the medicinal department was also short of staff so they were in need of receiving more apprentices. As the head of the department, Namjoon has the final say on who is allowed to enter the department. Lucky for him not for you tho, there are many unpolished gem that wants these positions. Being the wise person he is, he managed to earn the respect of many adolescents on the very first day. All of them were curious children who needed a mentor to help guide them in order to become successful. To Namjoon, there was a particular apprentice that stood out to him. She was very interested in medicine and is highly intelligent in the field so he decided to let her be his private apprentice— who stays by his side every second he is in office and maybe even more.

Anyways, with how much that little girl is staying with Namjoon, it would make sense that she would also accompany him for your monthly checkup as well. The moment you saw that girl walk through the door, you were stunned. Stunned for Namjoon breaking the organization’s rules, and stunned that the girl managed to catch Namjoon’s attention that he was willing to even set his life on the line for her. Before Namjoon could explain the reason of that girl being there, you decided that it was within your right to kick the both of them out. Now, this might be the reason listed above and could be more but for Namjoon, he interpreted your commands as a warning. That if he were to expose his identity, he will absolutely receive none of your help and will have to deal with that on his own.

Acknowledging that you were probably right, he decided to reassigned the girl to another physician after your multiple attempts of ignoring him — not wanting to get in between his problems as it’s too risky. The next time you guys’ had a monthly checkup, the girl was nowhere in sight but your silent treatment still remained firm. Knowing that it was his fault, Namjoon could only apologize and would not do it again. He then slowly walked over to the desk near your bed and began making a concoction of herbs to help calm you down. However, unlike his usual calm self, he had clumsily shattered a few bowls while at it. Y/N could only sighed before bending down and cleaning it up before going over to him to check on his wounds. How could you let your intelligent yet clumsy physician if he were to break things everytime he crawl back to you and apologize?

“ I apologized, Y/N. I was not in my right state of mind to consider the possible risks that it would bring to our organizations. I was too excited when I saw her thesis that I completely lost my rationale.”

Jung Hoseok

Because of his wretched father, Hoseok found himself having to return to his old home every couple of weeks. His father had complained to you that Hoseok was neglecting his maternal family the moment that he was wedded to you. Y/N, not wanting to create a bigger mess, managed to convince Hoseok to return to his home every once in awhile which leads us back to the current situation. Before Hoseok got wedded to Y/N, he already had a fiancé which he has bonded throughout most of his childhood. Of course, Hoseok only saw her as a friend who he has a platonic relationship with or simply a sister, but that was far from what the girl had wanted. His ex-fiancé, Miyoung was studying abroad so she was not immediately notified of him entering the harem but the minute she got informed, she was packing her belongings and heading back.

The trip started out as any other with Hoseok getting greeted the moment he enters the front yard by the matriarch along with his father and countless servants. This time however, the moment he saw Miyoung standing courteously behind his father, Hoseok wanted nothing more than to run for the carriage that had already left. You see, when Miyoung confessed her feelings to him—who did not her and got rejected; she did everything in her power to get engaged to him and that was how she became his fiancé. From that day on, Hoseok’s relationship with her only continued to sour before they were not contacting for months on end when she’s studying abroad. The matriarch—who did not agreed on him marrying Y/N, purposely set the both of them together, wanting the pair to interact together. This idea was not only reckless and unecessary as it it basically threading your position as his spouse and have him cheat on the ruler of the nation. Hoseok’s matriarch had also stupidly decided to invite you to come as well, wanting you to witness the couple’s strong bond personally.

Knowing that you could not deny her offer as they are still one of the major families, you had coincidentally entered the room at the time when Miyoung was being extra touchy. The sight, however, did not stunned you but only made you more confused. Questions began to erupt from your mouth asking about the situation while watching Hoseok desperately trying to escape Miyoung’s grip the moment he saw you. Expectedly, the matriarch’s answer is utter garbage, knowing that this is all a setup. Deciding to just stand there and wait for Hoseok to escape from Miyoung, you observed the main contirbutor’s expressions, silently judging their ability to properly. But the moment Hoseok managed to move within your arm’s length, you could feel his little suprised gasp as you pulled him into your hold before leading him out of the place not before warning to not touch what is yours. On your guys’ way home, Hoseok tried to explain what you had witnessed but instead got the silent treatment. Let’s say that it was extremely daring to touch a assassin’s possessions but a nation’s ruler as well is simply too moronically.

“ It was not what you think, your highness. We may not know each other for long but I’m incredibly loyal! That girl was my fiancé before I got wedded to you but I don’t love her! Please believe me!”

Min Yoongi

You getting jealous with Yoongi would happened on a blue moon as he is frequently seen by your side and that most people inside the palace hate his family too much to hit on him but it does still happen. Like any other day, Yoongi is with you in your office helping you with the minor tasks. Seeing how he was getting comfortable with the tasks you had given him, you decided that it was time for him to interact with some other officers in the smaller departments. Yoongi, of course was extremely nervous but wanted to make you proud so he quickly set off to his destination. The task you assigned was quite simple; getting the finished manuscripts that have been assigned yesterday. Everything seemed to go smoothly but what did not was the officers’ attitude towards Yoongi.

As they were considered to be quite young, they must have not know that the boy that is getting is one of your consorts as Yoongi usually prefers to dress in casual clothing; they decided that it was appropriate to flirt with him during office hours. With him having a more petite and delicate figure, it was extremely easy to turn him into their little doll— well or so they had thought. Sensing their hidden intentions towards him, Yoongi quickly asked for the needed documents before hurriedly making his way back. Unfortunately, before he can make his way past the entrance, a pair of hands grabbed his torso, restricting his movement. The officer began to whisper disgusting words in his hears causing Yoongi to instinctly attemp escape. Thanks to his previous training, he managed to escape their grip and ran out of the office, desperately running back to you.

Unexpedtly the officers decided to chase him, still thinking that his master is some low-rank minister that they could easily persuade. Lucky for them, Yoongi directly ran towards your courtyard but before they managed to realized where he was heading towards, they were caught by the guards that had seen the commotion. The moment that Yoongi ran into you arms, you felt your adrenaline spiked as your poor consort slightly trembles and only offered you faint whimpers as answers to your questions. Deciding that this was not meant for him, you assigned another type of tasks after he ha recovered. To say the least, those officers were never seen again the morning after that.

“ T-t-hey touched me while whispered those erotic words in my ears. I’m sorry, you majesty, I couldn’t acomplished the task when they trapped me in their hold. I began to panicked and...”

Jeon Jungkook

Aside from being a bastard’s child, Jungkook could also be described as an outstanding male from many perspectives. So of course, many girls and eunuchs would be constantly be flirty with the young guard. Many, however, is smart enough to avoid doing said activities around you but there are still some that does not have the brain to think rationally. The longer he is under your teaching, the more polite he becomes. Unfortunately, his seemingly innocent greetings was misunderstood by these brainless fellows which resulted in quite a few episodes of misunderstanding. To Jungkook, he is using the people around him as a tool to help him enhance his logical thinking to not burden you as much but it seemed like his efforts had caused quite the tensions within the harem. Many maids would began to form groups and bet on who would end up with him. The competitions began to become so popular tha it even reaches your ears!

As you became more aware of the gossips within the harem, many are targeted towards your personal bodyguard. As the days goes by, the seemingly pile of gossips about Jungkook became to get bigger until you decided that it would be best to stop his lessons altogether deeming that it was no use to him. As first, Jungkook was quite confused on how sudden you decided to cancel his lessons and ultimately blamed it on himself. Thinking that he had burdened you, Jungkook once again turned into his past self. Hiding his emotions as it does not matter how much he tries to improve on himself if his master does not think that he is worthy.

However, before he gets fully entitled to that state, you managed to come in at the right time and bring him out again. This is however, quite the process as he now want you to be proud of him. His self-esteem would not be as high as before as he had already registered in his mind that he had dissapointed you. Even though the process would take awhile, the end result would be worth it. Jungkook would be his best self yet and is continually striving to make you proud of him.

“ I know that you are dissapoin— you’re not? No, you must be lying! If you aren’t dissapointed then why did you have to stop the lessons. Was I too troublesome? I’m not? Are you sure? You must be accountable to your words and resume our lessons, then!”

Kim Seokjin

As a merchant, Seokjin is known to be skillful in negotiating terms with different customers. Most of the times, it would benefit his business but at the same time, his relationship with you would be on a thin string. As you guys continue to bond, different feelings would naturally develop and jealousy would definately not be excluded.

With the Y/N dynasty being a new dynasty, it would make sense that you have to put in much more effort to gain alliances with the surrounding countries neighbouring you. And of course, one of the princess that was sent as an ambassador had to know the talented merchant in some sort of way. You then found out that the two became friends over their love for jewelry and talking about whatever through the night and into the early mornings. Seeing how closed they were, you decided that it would be incredibly polite for you to ignore them and focus your attention on the rest of your guests and your consorts.

Usually, whenever Seokjin would offer you a flirty comment, you woul jokingly replied back with another one of sort as well but that was not what happened tonight. Your replies towards his jokes were quite distant and cold with you having your attention on someone as but him. Seokjin, who was not used to this treatment soon found out your reasons after the banquet and ultimately decided to tease you which only ended in him whining about how childish you’re being.

“ You’re jealous! Over her? HAH! You must have fallen in love with my handsome face... Why are you not saying anything? You’re ignoring such a handsome face, how could you!”

Park Jimin

Unlike Jungkook who does not care about people who perceive him, Jimin takes the extra mile to make sure that everyone see how beautiful he is. His fame within the harem immediately skyrocketed the moment he took up the title as one of the consort. It was to be expected with how frequent he flirted with the maids whenever he pass by them. Of course, he only think that it was fun to tease them as his main goal is still you after all.

Every year, the entire country would celebrate one of its most important holidays— Seollal, where it is one of the only days where festivals are around every direction you look at, and family would reunite with each other to welcome the new year. Within the palace, however, it is celebrated a little different; a full fledge banquet is arranged on the night before the new year and with Jimin leading the performance. With his skillful moves that had took years to master, everyone can agreed that it was a pleasure to look at. What did not please you was how revealing your consort’s attire was. With every move, the fabric was seemingly getting looser that you would have stop the performance already if you were not the of the highest authority in the room. What made it worse was how much eye contact he managed to make with you during his performance, and to say that you were not angry was simply outright lying.

The moment his performance had ended, you decided that Jimin had been working too hard lately and is in desperate need of relaxing. Thinking that he finally push you off the edge, Jimin happily accept your offer and left. What he had not unexpected was you taking him out on a walk when the banquet had ended. You even had the guts to act like nothing had happened hours before this resulting in him yelling at you before grumpily storming back to his courtyard, sulking in his room. Y/N could only laugh seeing his reaction before running towards his room to comfort the boy, deciding that they have teased him enough.

“ Why are you here? No, don’t you dare enter! GET OUT! Hmph, how dare you pretend like nothing happened and teased about it? Didn’t I say that you are not allowed in here? Hmph, fine, come in.”

Copyright © 2021 MintVender

All rights reserved.

[lastxviolet]

In Neglected Fields, the Fern Grows - CH. 1

Fred Weasley x OC

3,495 k

Ch. 1 / 10

Warnings: None for this chapter. Eventual smut 

https://www.fanfiction.net/s/13829826/1/In-Neglected-Fields-the-Fern-Grows

_______________________________

How someone in the wizarding world hadn't come up with a spell to mimic the brief high of a cigarette puff, Fern Longbottom had no clue. Being a witch would finally feel worth it if she could blast herself at least once every ten minutes to feel momentary relief instead of having to climb the god-awful moving staircase to smoke one cigarette in the Astronomy tower before she was missed by the other Prefect on rounds.

Not that they even needed her. Prefect duties had become much easier ever since Umbridge had taken over as the unofficial authority at Hogwarts. These days, nary a soul, besides the dead ones wandered the halls after hours, for fear of peeving off the menace in pink. She didn't much mind the strict witch's presence, but then again, she wasn't exactly in the line of fire, nor was anyone else in Ravenclaw. The only thing that did make her roll her eyes was that almost all of her duties and responsibilities had been bequeathed to undeserving Slytherins on the Inquisitional Squad. They were a pack of eager dogs, desperate to bring their master the best corpse. At least when she gave someone detention, it was rather painless and they actually deserved it.

Thankfully, she hadn't run into anyone who deserved it tonight. Not that she'd mind the company. Every hall she had passed on the way up the dizzying stairs, was empty. That was one thing she did miss from the time before Umbridge. Usually, there would be absolute chaos in every corner of the dark seventh-floor hallway but tonight, it was silent.

She skirted through the hall, ignoring the hairs on the back of her neck, reminding her of how dark and empty the hallway was. Without light pollution from civilizations nearby, nighttime at Hogwarts was deep and unrelenting until morning. Even in the castle, candles and fireplaces couldn't illuminate the stone rooms enough to fully ward off the hours of shadow. To make matters worse, she'd noticed in her tenure as Prefect that in the evenings, without company or companion, the cobble architecture swallowed sound. Footsteps, words, laughter, and voices dissipated upon utterance without a crowd to overpower the course sandstone abyss. She didn't normally like the quiet, in any capacity, but especially in the castle that could easily swallow her whole with various secret halls, doors, and chambers.

Even at home, quiet was no good. If Neville wasn't rambling on about Herbology or Gran wasn't lecturing her brother about speaking too fast or walking too slow, the air felt thick. It clung to her limbs, and filled her lungs, and brought her thoughts to a standstill. The emptiness that followed, before sound rushed back in, froze her. She'd read a quote once, walking out of St. Mungo's after a particularly somber visit to her parents that said, 'for when you gaze long into the abyss. The abyss gazes also into you.' Whatever abyss Nietzsche was referring to, she doubted that he knew what real emptiness felt like.

You didn't look at it, and it didn't look at you. It was an extension of consciousness; unrelenting and irremovable. Emptiness was a hospital room with people who couldn't recognize you. Emptiness was seeing the same careless bravery that had gotten them there in her brother who seemed too eager for war. Emptiness was being powerless to change any of it. After a while, she'd didn't feel so empty anymore, realizing that she'd simply become the abyss.

Now, it took up a corner of her mind, whispering evil things and infuriating questions with no answer. Every action had an equal reaction, and she was powerless to control every single one, not for lack of trying, as it liked to remind her. Every glance in the mirror, conversation in her head, and silent moment was tainted by this ache with no relief, other than the few times a week she got to smoke a cigarette.

She briefly closed her eyes as she walked, quelling the downward mental spiral by focusing on the crisp scent of fall turning into winter as it drifted in from the tower at the end of the hall. She imagined herself amongst the trees somewhere warm and beautiful, like Italy. The heat from the lone fireplace to her right acted as the artificial seaside sun. The crackling log was a babbling brook and she couldn't hear her own footsteps because she was barefoot in the grass. Her lips pulled into a soft smile. She was content until she heard footsteps.

She jumped and opened her eyes frantically as a very familiar figure appeared ten feet in front of her.

"Nev?" She half shouted.

"Oh hi," he squeaked out, looking behind his right shoulder, around a corner she couldn't see.

She cocked an eyebrow, waiting for him to explain why he was out of his dorm so late but he just stood, staring at her with wide eyes.

"Hi… uh what are you doing up here?"

She watched as he jumped a little at her question, clearly uncomfortable with her suspicious tone. In recent years, her younger brother had become more akin to rule-breaking but sneaking around after dark wasn't usually his style.

He glanced over his shoulder again and took a few frantic footsteps towards her as if he was trying to herd her back down the hall.

"Erm…nothing," he worried. "I was in the uh tower."

His words slurred with the speed and she took sweeping steps to meet him before he got too far away from whatever it was that he seemed to be hiding.

"Nev," she said slowly. "In the tower…doing what?"

He didn't seem to register her question so she snapped her fingers in front of his face, bringing his consciousness back down to earth.

"What's wrong with you? Why do you keep looking around like that?"

"Um…I'm just uh waiting —"

"For…?"

As if on cue, more voices appeared, loud and bouncing, out of thin air.

"Who is that?"

He looked down at his shoes, content to have her discover his counterparts on her own. Not wanting to miss the opportunity to actually hand out a detention, she breezed past him and towards the sound.

She made it three steps before Fred and George Weasley stepped around the corner and looked down at her, in shock, as if she was the one who had appeared out of nowhere. The evening was already a headache, but it was well on its way to turning into a migraine.

Before they could speak, she pounced.

"What are you doing?" Her voice was cruel and seeping with blame, directed at two of her least favorite people.

From as far back as she could remember, nearly seven years now, the three of them hadn't gotten along. The twins were intolerable, annoying, and self-centered. There was no joke, prank, or quip that could ever really be enough to fuel their egos so they always went too far, too fast, making the entirety of the study body accomplices and victims to their antics. Although, it hadn't been until her brother's unfortunate friendship with the twins that she'd started to harbor a real hatred for them.

"Hey," Fred called down the hall behind her towards Neville, pointing wildly, avoiding her accusatory stare. "Look Longbottom, it's Longbottom!"

"A family reunion," George added, clapping his hands together. "How touching."

Fred's eyes twinkled at her sour look. "Out for an evening stroll?"

She rolled her eyes. "I asked you a question."

"Oh c'mon Longbottom, no need to be so hostile, I'm only making small talk," Fred cooed. "Y'know like, how's your evening? How was your day? Are you —"

"Enough, you fucking half-whit. Why are you up here?"

George smiled big at her instantaneous anger but it was Fred who stepped closer and spoke again with a more threatening tone.

"Not quite, but you've almost got the hang of it. You're supposed to answer someone's question before you ask one of your own, it's polite."

"So answer it," she retorted, closing the last few inches between them.

"You first," he said with a scowl, relishing in her contempt. "How is your evening?"

"Abysmal, thanks to you."

"It always seems to be that way when we're together, Longbottom. Have you ever stopped to think that maybe you're the problem?"

"Funny," she hissed. "I would beg to differ"

"You? Beg? Now that would make for a lovely evening. Go on then," Fred taunted, looming over her with his usual pretentious sneer.

She glared at him, fuming, and ignored Neville's plea behind her to just leave it alone.

"Alright, we should really be off now," George yawned, stretching his arms over his head for dramatic effect. "Longbottom family, it's been lovely."

Fred bared his teeth as if to gloat and brushed her shoulder with force as he followed his brother towards the stairs. She glanced at Neville for backup but he gave her a miserable shrug. Discontent with the outcome, she spun around and grabbed Fred by the arm.

"For fucks sake, just tell me what you're doing up here or I'll give you a detention!"

He whipped around with a fire in his eyes and clamped a hand down on her wrist.

"Ask. Your. Brother," he hissed through clenched teeth, blazingly serious as he yanked her arm up close to her face.

Neville let out a little gasp at the outburst but she just hardened her glare.

She yanked her hand from his. "Charming."

Fred didn't let her finish the word before he stalked away in a huff, tapping Neville on the shoulder as if to say good luck. The less volatile twin shot her an apologetic look before disappearing down the stairs after his brother.

Despite having gotten used to Fred Weasley's short fuse and erratic temper, her heart nearly beat out of her chest. She'd been the reason for many an outburst, from detention slips to thwarted pranks over the years, none having been quite this tame. If they'd been alone, she liked to think that she might have accosted him back. It certainly wouldn't be the first time.

Neville came up behind her, radiating with nerves.

"Really, Fern," he stuttered. "It's fine…I just had astronomy homework."

"Don't lie to me, Nev," she accused, probably louder than she needed to.

"Honest, we were just studying!"

"Oh give it a rest, those two have never studied a day in their lives! They're nothing but trouble. What are you thinking, letting them drag you into something sure to get you on Umbridge's bad side?"

"I'm already on her bad side," he mumbled. "So it doesn't really matter if —"

"Well then you can't really afford to make it any worse, can you? I mean hanging out with the Weasley twins after hours is one of the stupidest things I can think of. You're smarter than this!"

"They're my friends, it's nothing —"

"Some friends they are, Neville. Honestly, what could you possibly expect from hanging out with them, besides trouble? You're lucky that it was me that you ran into tonight, and not another Prefect, or worse. How could you be so —"

"You aren't my mum, Fern… I can look out for myself," he squeaked in a small, but stern voice.

She stopped talking immediately, struck by his sudden gumption. The twins had definitely gotten to him. Normally, he would've at least given her the benefit of the doubt and listened to her advice. She furrowed her brow when he glanced up, still looking nervously at the hallway behind her.

"You should get back to your common room," she sighed finally, unwilling to fight and elongate the portion of the evening without any nicotine in her system. "It's late."

"Alright," he said, nodding a little more energetically now that she'd stalled her lecture. "See you later?"

"Yeah….see you later."

He sped off down the hall, probably keen to catch up with his so-called friends. She cursed Fred to high heaven as she scaled the astronomy tower stairs, stopping briefly to retrieve a cigarette from the school stash, underneath a floorboard below the telescope. She tucked it between her teeth, used a non-verbal fire spell, and stepped over to the balcony.

The grounds were fuzzy and dark green beneath the muted moonlight. She stared confused for a moment at the darker than usual, blurred Hogwarts lawn, and then tipped her head upwards. A deep fog blurred the view, making the constellations completely invisible. The moon tried to blaze through the haze but it barely reached the earth's surface.

There was no way they got any astrology homework done, she thought, glancing around the room for clues.

Other than a few cigarette butts, there was nothing.

She took a drag and watched the smoke commingle with the haze. Nicotine rushed through her head providing momentary dizzying peace and oblivion. This buzz, although brief, was preferable to anything else. Drugs were unobtainable and inconsistent, alcohol lasted too long to be truly relaxing and she could never get the various potion options right. Tobacco gave her the two things that she craved, a tiny ounce of rebellion, and an unoccupied mind.

She flicked her finished cigarette onto the floor, one final testament to her moment of disobedience for the night, and flitted back down the stairs, eager to be finished with her rounds.

The hallway was still and dark again as she flew through it. The incident with her brother and his fellow Gryffindors had nearly been forgotten when other voices drifted from the hallway behind her.

Stunned by their apparition, she turned slowly, trying not to look terrified.

"Hey Fern," Padma Patil and Mandy Brocklehurst said in unison, arm in arm, coming around the corner where she'd been a few footsteps ago.

"Hey…guys," she responded, looking for an explanation.

"Prefect rounds?" Padma said, nodding to her house robes after hours.

"Yeah," she stammered.

"That sucks. Almost done though?"

She nodded and watched the girls try and contain their giggles about something she couldn't see. She glanced down the hall and found it devoid of doors or entrances despite the astronomy tower, where they most certainly were not.

"Astronomy homework?" She asked them, surrendering to her urges of suspicion. Where had they come from?

"Yep," Padma replied energetically.

"Lovely evening to see the stars," she goaded.

"They were brill," Mandy chimed in, turning to get her friend to nod in agreement. "Oh, by the way, I think a few people are going to be hanging out in the boy's dorm later tonight if you wanna come."

"Wicked," she responded, faking interest. "Corner and Boot's room?"

"Yep!"

"Ok, I'll try and swing by," she assured them. "You guys better get back though, I don't know who else has rounds tonight but if it's Abbott, you're screwed."

"Shit," Mandy said. "Is the Inquisitional Squad out tonight too?"

"Haven't seen them yet but I think they come round at 9."

"Thanks, Fern, you're a lifesaver!" Padma whispered, turning to run with her friend, hand in hand. "See you later!"

She watched them run back down towards the moving staircase and then turned to inspect the hall in a daze. She squeezed her eyes tight, imagining a door at the end of the hall but when she opened them, the stone wall remained the same; tall, grey, and empty.

There was no door anywhere.

Where were all these kids coming from?

The Weasley's having some secret entrance into the hallway made sense but her housemates and brother didn't. The mystery motivated her enough to make quick work of the walk back to her common room where she ignored a wave of 'hello's from her peers and rushed to her dorm room.

"Daisy!"

Her roommate jumped two inches off the bed and nearly toppled onto the floor as she rushed in and slammed the door. The tall strawberry blonde stared at her with wide, absent eyes for a moment before relaxing back onto the bed and setting her book on the nightstand.

"You might be content dying from a stress-induced heart attack at a young age, my love," she cooed, returning to her easy-going state. "But I, am not. Please exclude me from any further loud and anxious announcements in the —"

"Daisy," she repeated, ignoring her best friend's usual long-winded, abstract ramblings. "I think I may have stumbled upon a mystery."

Daisy gasped and threw a hand over her mouth, smiling wickedly as for one moment Fern thought that she was equally intrigued.

"I'm serious," Fern said flatly.

"I can't say I'm surprised," she said wistfully. "There is no way that we could know all the goings-on in a castle this old or this large. The mysteries it holds….the mysteries it has been witness to…well that must span centuries. Fern, what do you think was happening in this very room, a century ago?"

"Daisy, this room is not the one that I am concerned about. Will you please listen to me?"

"Yes, yes, yes," her roommate rambled, staring at the door as if she could actually see the ghosts of Ravenclaws past.

"On my Prefect rounds, I went up the astronomy tower—"

"So that you could look up at the night sky and not smoke a cigarette because you promised me that it was simply a fleeting phase of insubordination and not a serious habit?"

She squinted at the suddenly alert girl. "Yes."

"Lovely, please continue."

"Well on my way to the tower, Neville appeared out of nowhere with Fred and George Weasley in tow."

She paused for dramatic effect but continued quickly as Daisy didn't seem intrigued in the slightest.

"When I asked what they were doing, the twins wouldn't say, and Nev gave me some excuse about astronomy homework but when I went up to the tower, the fog made seeing the stars impossible!"

Daisy gave her an exasperated look. "So they were in the tower smoking pot?"

"Ah very clever, my love, but no. See, I would have smelled it either on them or in the tower if that had been the case but there was nothing."

"Okay…so what were they doing up there?"

"Now that is the mystery. I don't think they were up there at all."

Daisy stared at her silently, raising her brow in a combination of confusion and doubt.

"And here's why…when I came back down, Padma and Mandy appeared in the hall behind me, looking like they were leaving something, just like Nev and the twins had but they weren't up in the tower with me."

"Okay…"

"Daisy, are you hearing me? They said they were doing Astronomy homework, just like Nev. On a cloudy night! Don't you think that's a little suspicious that five people appeared out of thin air in a seventh-floor hallway this evening?"

"Well it's definitely odd but I don't know if I'd call it suspicious…actually maybe it's a little abnormal….no….bizarre perhaps?"

"Yes, yes, yes, all of the above," she said quickly. "What I'm trying to say is that I think they're up to something."

"Your brother, the twins, and two Ravenclaws?"

"Yes."

"Orgy?"

"Oh Daisy, for fucks sake, don't put that image in my head."

"Well, it's the obvious choice of usage for a secret room in a distant hallway with people who might otherwise consider each other acquaintances."

"They didn't look nearly flustered enough for that to be the case and besides, Padma and Mandy couldn't ever like any of them."

Daisy nodded like she was pondering.

"And you're sure they couldn't just be a study group?"

"Well I mean sure, they could be but what room were they using?"

"Fern, what time is it?"

"What?"

"The time," Daisy repeated.

"8:45, why?"

"So it's nighttime?"

"Yes…"

"Meaning that it was dark…up there."

"There are lanterns and fireplaces and moonlight, Daisy, I know what I saw. Dim light cannot hide an entire door. Or room!"

"No need to shout, I'm only trying to guide you to an air-tight hypothesis. Are you sure your mystery isn't just because of a lack of light or perhaps a result of your lack of sleep?"

She thought back to the hall and all the times she'd been there. It wasn't often, but it was enough to know what was there.

Nothing.

"No, I'm sure there is something else going on."

"Alright…I'll entertain it," Daisy said, propping her head upon her hand. "Do you think it's something sinister?"

"No," she mused, sorting through all the possibilities in her head. "Perhaps more of a nuisance in progress but I still don't like it."

"Fern, it's probably harmless."

"I can't shake the feeling that it's not. I don't want Neville involved with those fucking Weasley twins, no matter what they're doing."

"You're going to smother that poor boy. They're his friends, let him have his fun!"

Fern glared at her level-headed friend and then laid back onto her bed in a huff.

"We'll see."

[arthurmorgansleftlung]

Secret Cupid 💘

My @rdr-secret-cupid was *drumroll* @foundynnel !!!

This was so much fun to write!! Your prompts were super good! I went a little overboard and tried to tie in all three prompts — oops. Anyways, I really really really hope you like it! Also, I’m sorry it’s not being posted ~on Valentine’s day~!

And a big thank you to @rdr-secret-cupid for letting me participate!

⭐️⭐️⭐️

Bison Hunting // Sadie x Arthur // Secret Cupid 2021

Relationships: Arthur Morgan/Sadie Adler

Words: 2,475

Summary: Arthur, Hosea, and Sadie go on a hunting trip to Ambarino to find a bison.

———————

“You ready to go, Sadie, Arthur?” Hosea called quietly. It was early in the morning, probably five or so. Hosea, Arthur, and Sadie were riding up to Amberino from Lemoyne to hunt for bison, maybe some deer and fish as well. The cool, crisp air would be a nice break from the humid and swampy air that surrounded them now.

Arthur groaned as he walked towards Hosea, he was never a morning person. He lit a cigarette and placed it between his teeth, inhaling the smoke. Sadie yawned and stretched her arms before getting up and meeting the other two.

“You’re lookin’ a bit scruffy, aren’t ya?” Sadie pointed out Arthur’s beard. To be fair, it had been neglected over the past few weeks, and with everything going on with the Pinkertons, Cornwall, and everything else... it was excusable. Arthur scratched at his chin, finally noticing how unkept it was.

“Hmph. Maybe I am lookin’ a little rough. Can’t say yer any better, though. Didn’t have time to groom that mane of yours?” Arthur chuckled while Sadie grumbled in return.

“Alright, kids. If you’re ready let’s go. We wanna get there early so we have plenty of time to track the beast down. You’ll both have time to beautify yourselves while we’re there...” Hosea cracked a smile at the two and walked over to Silver Dollar to mount up.

Arthur and Sadie followed suit, Arthur on his white Arabian and Sadie on Bob. Arthur made sure to bring plenty of arrows, Charles had taught him if they wanted to hunt successfully, they needed to be quiet. And so they set off on their journey to the wintry and mountainous Amberino.

They avoided Valentine, but took a break in Strawberry just to walk around and grab some provisions from the general store. Arthur purchased plenty of snacks for his horse. Sadie, on the other hand, purchased things like kidney beans and strawberries. Hosea bought ammunition, and they were off again.

Arthur hummed a tune quietly, Hosea joining in occasionally. Sadie didn’t know these songs but enjoyed hearing them. The sun was now facing more west than east, which meant night was coming.

They had reached Ambarino by seven in the evening, which was a relatively quick travel time. Hosea and Arthur dismounted and looked for tracks of any kind, Hosea being the first to notice the faint hoof prints of what seemed to be a massive bison.

“Well, it has to have been here recently with snowfall like this.” Hosea muttered. Arthur murmured in agreement.

Sadie followed and squinted, looking for any sign of the animal. “I don’t see nothin’,” Sadie said with her well-known rasp. She had never been very good at tracking but was an incredibly good shot.

“You’ll learn!” Hosea grinned. “Let’s see if we can’t follow these tracks a little further, maybe we’ll get lucky and find it tonight.” Everybody got back in their saddles, Hosea leading the way and pointing out the different signs of activity for Sadie. The tracks eventually went through a river and made their way up a mountain. Everybody had grown tired.

“How about we set up camp and continue our search tomorrow?” Hosea suggested, and was met with agreement. Arthur started a campfire before joining Hosea in setting up their tents. It wasn’t long before they noticed Sadie looking frustrated.

“Why the sour face, Miss Adler?” Arthur asked. He then noticed that it looked like something crucial was missing from Sadie’s supplies: her tent. “Well, that ain’t no good.”

Sadie huffed at Arthur, sending a cloud of hot breath into the cold air. The one thing she needed most had been forgotten back at camp. Shit, she thought.

“Well, Ms. Adler, unless you’re against sleeping beside either me or Arthur, seems you’re sleeping in the cold.” At least Hosea offered some type of solution. She was closer with Arthur, and so she elected to sleep in his tent.

She seemed to be visibly, and audibly upset about her predicament all throughout their dinner of plump bird meat and kidney beans. What had gotten into her? She was never one to complain this much. Arthur was beginning to feel bad about the whole thing, was he really that hard to be around? Did he smell? Probably.

Hosea retired to his tent for night, reminding the other two that they had to be up early in the morning. Shortly after that, Arthur retreated back, leaving Sadie alone at the fire. She sat in her own little world, filled with emotions. Why had she so quickly decided to sleep beside Arthur? If she would have just thought about she would have known she wouldn’t have been able to sleep. She was in love with the man, for god’s sake! But what about Jake, her beloved late husband? What would he think of her now... sleeping in a tent with an outlaw? Sadie being an outlaw now? She couldn’t let her past define her present. This was not how she was.

“Ouch!” Sadie heard the quiet exclamation. It was Arthur’s low, gruff voice for sure. What was he doing? Sadie stood and made her way into the tent, where she found Arthur... shaving. He had cut his jaw, and pretty good at that.

“Oh.” Arthur was flustered when Sadie found him. “What? Can’t a man shave?” Sadie just looked at him, confused.

“Ain’t nothin’ wrong with shaving, but you ain’t shavin’, you’re butcherin’.” She teased him, watching the small droplets of blood trail down his muscular neck. “Let me help.”

Sadie knelt down beside him, holding her hand out for the razor. “Well no wonder you nicked yourself, this things duller than Pearson.” Sadie laughed and then composed herself. She wiped the blade clean and did what she could to make it useable. Arthur sat patiently, waiting for her to bring the sharp... ish blade to his skin.

Sadie hesitated a bit before bringing the blade to Arthur’s cheek, careful to avoid where he’d hurt himself moments before. She had to remind herself to breathe. Was she really this close to Arthur’s face? She gently brought the razor down towards his jaw, leaving a trail of bare skin. She continued to do so until Arthur was clean-shaven, free of any cuts minus his own self-inflicted one.

“I’d say I did a pretty good job, Arthur!” Sadie chimed. Arthur felt his face, not used to the smooth feel. He had never been too good at shaving, even after multiple lessons from Dutch and Hosea.

“Now do I still look scruffy, Miss Adler?” He teased, recalling what she had said that morning. She rolled her eyes before glowering at him.

“No. But I can’t say my “mane” is any better than it was.” Sadie had tried and failed multiple times on the way to fix her hair, but riding on Bob made it a daunting task. Eventually she just gave up.

“I’m not very good at braidin’ things other than horse tails but... I can try. If you’d like.” Arthur flushed at his proposal, and Sadie’s ears turned a bright pink.

“Oh, uh... sure. I suppose you can try. You owe me anyway.” Sadie turned her back to Arthur and untucked her hair from her shirt, before retrieving her comb from her pocket.

Arthur combed through Sadie’s hair, careful not to tug too hard. He had never noticed the light golden streaks that ran through her hair, or the slight wave that it had. He began to braid her hair, the best he could. Her hair was much finer than a horse’s might be, and it kept slipping through his fingers as it was smoother too. Finally, when Arthur got down to the ends of her hair he tied it off.

“Ta-da...” That was her cue to admire Arthur’s strangely pristine braid. Sadie felt the braid between her fingers, loosening a few pieces to make it look a little more worn.

“Where’d you learn that from? Miss Grimshaw?” Sadie snickered at the thought of Susan critiquing a young Arthur’s braiding skills. Arthur scowled at her, not answering. She was right.

“Do you think we’re gonna find that buffalo tomorrow?” Sadie asked. Arthur pondered for a moment.

“Well, darlin’, we’re hunting with Hosea, so yes.” Sadie furrowed her brow at Arthur’s response. Darlin’? Her cheeks grew hot. She exaggerated a yawn and a stretch, similar to her same one that morning. At least she had her own bedroll. Arthur blew out the lantern in their tent, preparing for rest.

Sadie took her boots off, but left everything else on as it was incredibly cold, even in the tent. Arthur followed suit, taking off his pants, leaving him in his shirt and long-johns. He settled onto his bedroll and pulled his blanket up over his chest. Sadie shivered in the now dimly lit tent, had she forgotten a blanket too? God dammit, she cursed at herself.

“Arthur?” Sadie was plain embarrassed, it was evident. Arthur turned his head and glanced at her, ready for her question. “How big is that blanket...?”

“Big enough, I suppose.” He lifted the blanket up with his arm and gestured for her to scoot in. Sadie made her way beside Arthur, his body like a campfire. Or maybe that was just her mind. Laying so close beside him made her realize just how small she was, or maybe how big Arthur was. She pressed her smaller frame against his, and convinced herself to go to sleep. She would need the energy tomorrow.

Eight Hours Later

Sadie awoke to the sound of Hosea’s boots crunching in the snow, and something heavy weighing down her torso. “What—?” she was startled to see Arthur’s large, muscular arm wrapped around her waist, his hand gently cupping her stomach. In her surprise, she woke Arthur, who quickly pulled his arm away and flushed a bright shade of red.

“I’m sorry Miss Adler, I—“ He sat up and shook his head, moving his body away from hers. As if on cue, Hosea opened the tent and was greeted by two very embarrassed kids (kids to him at least).

Hosea struggled not to laugh at the two, “We got bison to hunt!”

Arthur and Sadie pulled their clothes on and made their way out of the tent, greeted by venison cooking over the hot fire. “Thank you, Hosea,” Sadie mumbled.

After a nice breakfast and breaking down their tents, the three saddled up. Hosea decided it would be best to head a little more North, since that seemed to be the way the hoof prints were headed the night before.

After about an hour, hoof prints gradually began to appear. They were large, and seemed to belong to the same bison they were tracking previously. The prints became more and more pronounced as they continued on. Once the prints were undeniably fresh, Hosea gestured for quiet and pulled out his binoculars to see if the bison was in shooting distance.

Sadie got Arthur’s attention and pointed towards a hulking brown beast: the bison. Hosea spotted the bison at the same time. In a hushed voice Hosea spoke, “Sadie, the honor is yours. You’re a better shot than I am anyhow.”

Sadie gulped and pulled out a bow, a gift from Charles. She lifted the bow up, gripping it with her left hand and notching the arrow with her right. She drew the bowstring back, felt the strength of the bow and pulled the arrow towards her cheek, the string pressing into her fingertips. She quickly evaluated the environment: how much further did she need to pull, how hard was the wind, how far would the arrow go? And with a quick snap, the arrow went flying and quickly found itself lodged in the heart of a bull.

“What a shot!” Hosea exclaimed. Hosea was the first to ride near the animal, knowing that if the bull was still alive it would be cruel not to mercy kill it. Arthur and Sadie followed. Upon closer inspection, they found the bison laying down on its side. It’s breathing was labored, slow. Hosea patted its shoulder, and thanked the bull before drawing his knife from his belt and piercing the heart once more. It’s breathing had now stopped.

“I suppose we should skin and quarter him now,” Hosea said. Sadie and Arthur brought their knives out, and quickly got to work, starting at the legs and heading towards the stomach for the cleanest skin possible. Eventually, they had successfully skinned and quarter the bison. They loaded what they could on horses, and abandoned what little was left for scavenging animals.

Sadie looked exhausted, she had done plenty of handiwork back when she lived on her old farm, but had never worked on an animal that large. Sadie rested her arms on Bob’s saddle, her tiredness showing.

Smack!

Sadie felt snow falling from the back of her head and neck, and realized: she had been hit with a snowball. She bent over and made one of her own before turning around and throwing it at Hosea.

Hosea looked shocked, but realized what had occurred when Arthur let out a jovial laugh.

“Alright, kids, that’s enough...” Hosea dismissed the two and slyly prepared two snowballs. He launched them at both Sadie and Arthur, hitting them perfectly. Perhaps years of being a gunslinger had benefited him!

Sadie gasped dramatically and returned the snowball to Hosea, and then immediately threw one at Arthur. A snowball fight had ensued!

They pelted snowball after snowball at one another until the sun had fallen more west.

“Alright... really, we should head out. We won’t have anything to bring back to camp if we stay another night. Wolves ‘n’ such.” Hosea warned. And so, they actually did mount up and head back towards the camp.

This time they didn’t stop to sleep, it was too dangerous to leave that much meat on the back of their horses in the wilderness.

When they finally made it back, sometime around six in the morning, it was clear that the three were tired. Those who were awake assisted in storing the meat. Pearson commended them all for the hunting, not leaving out any “surprised” remarks about Sadie’s ability to hunt.

Arthur headed to his tent, Sadie following him to tell him thank you for the fun time and letting her sleep with him the night before.

“Arthur? I wanted to say thank you... for, uh, lettin’ me sleep with you. And teaching me about trackin’ and such. And the snowball fight... goodnight.” Sadie was shy when she spoke, mumbling at some parts.

“And for braidin’ that mane of yours! Thank you for cleanin’ me up, too!” Arthur gestured to his freshly shaven face, which had already started to grow more hair.

“Right. You’re welcome. Goodnight... again.”

“Goodnight, Mrs. Adler.”

[harry-sussex]

You're lovely, and I enjoy seeing your blog on my dashboard. I'm sorry this has been such a difficult thing to process. It's always really difficult to rework an image of someone you once thought you knew. However I'd like to just put it out there - sometimes (I think the large majority of the time) news is presented in the most sensationalist way, such that nowadays I make a point of de-sensationalizing any news I read in my head. In the case of the whole Harry's memoir thing- I can sympathize with Harry as a person possibly just wanting to take back some control of the narrative for himself. Not just in the most recent events with family (that I tend to think are less horrifying than the fandom/Twitter sussex squad discusses it anyway), but in all aspects of his life. I do not at all think he's going to put his family on blast. I can easily imagine Meghan reigning that dialogue in; she has the tendency to think before she speaks that he seems to lack. And he loves his family. Similar to The Interview promos, I imagine the publishing house knew to increase the interest by implying it to be a tell all memoir. I think he's just done a lot of growing up that he didn't know he had to do over a short period of time, esp re: implicit bias/racism in the setting of media's blatant attack on someone he loves, and is disappointed by the institution's and his family's response to it. I think he's emerged a more introspective and aware human, albeit a disillusioned one. Yes it breaks my heart to think that Meghan won't get a break from the tabloids any time soon. If I were him I'd counsel him to write it & sit on it for a few yrs. But I don't want to give the media the power to destroy Meghan in my mind, and I pray she & Harry won't either. I think she'll be okay. She's a strong one, and I think he's able to draw that same link for himself and be thoughtful about what he does. No one likes being misunderstood/misinterpreted, and I wouldn't be surprised if Harry's especially triggered by that given his history with the press. Maybe this idea emerged from therapy, idk. I can empathize with that, even if I wouldn't do it myself. I hope and pray Meghan gets the support she needs from him and her loved ones in the meantime. I'm honestly not going to read it. I think the less attention I give the BRF the better off they are, unless they're doing something immoral/illegal (see: Woking pizza alibi). And I think at the end of the day, people will unfairly judge other people, especially public figures that have tragic pasts and are publically fighting with the media. A lot of it is going to be noise and I'm not going to give my energy into figuring it out. I like to think I've got a good sense of who they are as people - flawed but ultimately well meaning and earnest. I'm a huge admirer of Meghan and think Harry got really lucky with this one and I'm proud of him for choosing her in more ways than one. I believe Harry and Meghan are lovely people, and I 100% believe their interview. I believe that there are people in the palace with a lot of unchecked power who deliberately uncovered her and Archie from BRF protection for reasons of believed superiority over Meg & Arch. And they're figuring out how to deal with that as a couple and a family. And it's none of my business past that imo. I pray for them and hope it'll eventually end in peace for them all. Just wanted to add another perspective, and hopefully some levity. xx M

Hi, dear. First thing’s first, I really appreciate that this is off anon lol. I love it when people own their opinions, and it says a lot that you did. So thank you for that.

Second of all, I really appreciate the nuance and perspective that is in this message. I agree that the news is sensationalist, and my initial reaction was based off of that. I did watch the promotional clips of the interview and I believe it did sour my expectations going into it when I watched it nearly a week after it aired. I did my best to stay away from Tumblr because I didn’t want that to hinder my view, but it was impossible to separate the promotions that presented the information one way from what it actually was, and thank you for bringing that up with respect to the memoir because I hadn’t considered it. I will say that my knee jerk reaction is pretty on par with the way I still feel about it 24 hours later, especially since I got the news directly, not from Tumblr or Twitter or anywhere else, but you’re right that it could have soured my view from the very start.

I appreciate that he wants to take back some of the narrative but I think that ship has sailed, tbh. He did that with the interview and now I just think it feels like information overload. At some point, people are going to get tired of hearing the wealthy, privileged, powerful Prince complain about his life while more than 4 million people have died due to a global pandemic in less than 2 years. Not to say that he doesn’t struggle - in the words of Roxane Gay, there is no oppression Olympics (and that can be extended to struggle Olympics) - but people view it that way and will get tired of it, if they haven’t already.

I also agree that Harry’s past with the press has tarnished the way he has handled the media and the public post-exit, when he’s finally in a position to strike back without being somewhat obliged to them as part of the circumstances of his birth. I understand and sympathize with him but I just don’t think the public does, and the public matters much, much more than the perspective of one single American fan, to whom he’s never been obliged, and I simply do not think the public will afford him that same understanding, sympathy, and leniency. The public and the media are critical to his humanitarian work - his mother never realized that towards the end of her life, and I truly don’t think she would have been the martyr/saint she is perceived to be now if she had lived, because she did not know how to meet the media in the middle and eventually that started to piss people off. He’s starting to piss people off now and if it doesn’t bother him personally (which it definitely does), I don’t want it to affect his causes. The Invictus Games, Sentebale, Walking with the Wounded, WellChild, Mayhew, Smartworks, Archewell, etc. deserve better than to suffer the wrath of the media and an apathetic public because their patrons simply will not shut up lol.

I guess my point is that they will be unfairly judged (regardless, but especially due to the way they’re handling things), and I think it would suit them better in the long run if they adopted a different strategy. I really sympathize with the fact that he feels frustrated with the narrative that has been manufactured but I really, really think the narrative will only get worse and worse as he continues to go on and on about how badly his life sucks, basically. Again, I don’t deny that he struggles - we all do, some more than others, especially when there are mental health issues - but the public, to me, simply does not care. My own therapist has told me to simply stop caring about the things that I discuss with him. Not to say that they’re not relevant, important, or worthy of discussion - they absolutely are - but his point is that you cannot change people and you are wasting your energy and struggling yourself because you want to change them so, so, so badly that you’re neglecting your own self care in the process. I hate that I do it to myself and I also hate that he appears to be doing it to himself. I’m sure a lot of this conversation has been brought up in his own therapy, and I’m no professional, but I’m doing my best to heed the advice of my own therapist - which is the opposite of what Harry is doing - and it’s done wonders for me, when I actually can do it.

If there’s anything I know from this whole thing, it’s that Harry is absolutely punching above his weight, love him as I may, and that he adores, adores, adores his wife. He has chosen her from the very second she came into his life and I couldn’t want anything more for him or from her. I’m not going to lie, I would have been in this thing for any wife that Harry chose, because I was here long before Meghan specifically came into his life. However, I am glad every day that he chose her, that he loves her, that he wants to protect her, that she loves him back, that he lives the life with her that he’s wanted as long as I (and I’m sure he) can remember. I love her because he loves her, and I would have no matter what, because at the end of the day, it’s his happiness and comfort that matters to me, that has mattered to me since I discovered him and how wonderful he can be more than 7 years ago. What more could I ask of Meghan? What more, as his fan to the end (annoy me as he may), could I want for him? Who could say anything about her in that regard? If there’s anything that has come of this mess, to me, it’s that Harry loves, loves, loves his wife. I will always be happy for him and I will always be proud of him for choosing her, even if I don’t always agree with the way he goes about it.

I’m looking forward to peace, too. I cannot wait for things to just die out, for them to work things out as a couple and as a family, and for everyone to move on. The family will still do their thing and the Sussexes can do theirs, but I cannot deal with this back and forth, tit for tat, petty nonsense anymore. They’re wonderful and flawed, like the rest of them (except Andrew), and I just hope that they can all come to some kind of agreement or terms that lets this die down. It’s exhausting for everyone - themselves included. If I’m this tired, I can only imagine how tired they all are.

Thanks for stopping by, and sorry for the essay (essays, these past 24 hours lol). I really appreciate your kindness in this message, your presence in my notifications (I do see them!), your nuanced perspective and like I said before, I really, really appreciate that you own it!

[fanfic-corner]

Writer Castiel

4/12/20 - I have wanted to be a writer since I was ten years old, so maybe I’m biased here, but I absolutely adore the idea of Cas being an author if he lived a different life!

Tabula Rasa by Dangerousnotbroken on AO3. (78,240 words).

Tags: Writer Castiel, Bartender Dean, Past Relationship, Pervasive Themes of Memory, Magic, Canon Typical Violence, Mentions of alcoholism, Mentions of Past Child Neglect, Mental Illness, Witches, Ghosts, Bi!Dean, Bi!Castiel, Referenced Past Minor Character Death, Angst, Slow Burn, Memory Loss.

My Rating: 5 stars.

Description: Once upon a time, Castiel Novak had everything. He had a happy home life, a full scholarship, and, if he played his cards right, a promising journalism career. And on top of all of that, he had Dean. Then tragedy struck, as it tends to do, and Castiel lost everything. At thirty six, he’s got none of those things. He’s got no family to speak of. He’s got a job investigating purportedly true tales of the supernatural for a magazine no one reads. And worst of all he hasn’t seen Dean in nearly twenty years. So when research for an article turns him on to a witch who apparently grants wishes in exchange for stories, Castiel figures it’s worth the risk. If making a deal with a witch can get him Dean back, what has he got to lose?

Notes: This was absolutely amazing; both written beautifully and with a fantastic plot.

the inexhaustible silence of houses by Askance on AO3. (31,820 words).

Tags: Horror, Psychological Trauma, Domestic Violence.

My Rating: 5 stars.

Description: Almost two years after the world doesn't end, Castiel falls from grace—and loses his voice in the process. It is the impetus for confession and change; before long, he is settling into a loving relationship with Dean, the Winchesters are tired, and hunting for a place to land has taken precedence to hunting anything else. Dean and Castiel fall in love with the strange little house on the end of Swallowtail Drive, and for a little while life is as it should be—sweet, affectionate, and beginning afresh. But more and more Castiel sees and hears things in the house that beg the question of whether or not a place itself can be alive. The walls and rooms seem to shift and grow and breathe, and one night, Dean comes home from a hunt changed in a way that Castiel cannot explain. In the months that follow, their domestic bliss takes turns for the dark and sour, and the confusion of their circumstances will ultimately test everything Castiel knows about the man he loves, and everything he believes to be true.

Notes: Excellently written, made me cry, and the ending was brilliant. Technically it isn’t tagged as Cas being a writer, but he does write some poetry throughout, and I couldn’t help myself.

Lost and Found by whelvenwings on AO3. (7,762 words).

Tags: Writer Castiel, Mechanic Dean, Demisexual Castiel.

My Rating: 5 stars.

Description: “Chuck Shurley? Sure, I’ve read his books. Kinda Vonnegut, but like, Kilgore-Trout Vonnegut, you know?” Dean took another gulp of his whisky, and smacked his lips like an adult. The guy sitting beside him at the bar, however, did not look suitably impressed. In fact, he was staring down into the bubbles of his cider, not even noticing the way that Dean was smiling at him, giving him the eyes. “I thought his stuff was pretty good, in a kinda metamodern way,” Dean added airily, and a little more loudly. The guy only nodded gloomily. Dean almost clicked his tongue against the roof of his mouth in frustration. C’mon, dude, I’m trying to impress you. Twenty minutes of talking and all Dean had to show for it was a weird first name, a series of dour stares and the strangest need to know more about this – Castiel.

Notes: This was written so well that I wanted to cry at Cas’ story of the stars, even though it wasn’t particularly sad. Now I want to go and stargaze with someone.

The House on the Ocean Road by coffeeandcas on AO3. (111,351 words).

Tags: Single Parent Castiel, Alternate Universe, Angst with a Happy Ending, Tooth-Rotting Fluff, Hurt/Comfort, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Emotional Baggage, Hurt Dean Winchester, Writer Castiel, Car Accidents, Past Character Death, Adopted Children, Mentions of Suicide, Slow Burn, Anxiety, Panic Attacks, Implied/Referenced Suicide, Near Death Experiences, Hospitals, Explicit Sexual Content, POV Dean.

My Rating: 5 stars.

Description: Dean Winchester is on the run from his life. He's done something unforgivable, and can't face his family or friends ever again. So he does what any rational person would do: fakes his own death and vanishes into the ether. Wandering aimlessly along country roads, he succumbs to the elements during a violent storm and wakes up hours later in the home of a stranger: a single dad living alone in an isolated beach house, with a haunting past of his own. Cas is sweet and shy, but welcomes Dean into his home and tells him he can stay as long as he needs, never prying into his life or asking him to spill his secrets. As they rapidly forge a close friendship, Dean finds that the quiet life by the ocean with Cas is exactly what he's been dreaming of. He only hopes his past never catches up with him.

Notes: This was so gorgeous and the plot was fabulous! Also, I loved Jimmy, and Dean and Cas as parents were adorable. Weirdest use of Cole’s character that I’ve ever seen though.

What Can’t Be Seen by destieldrabblesdaily on AO3. (2,639 words).

Tags: Soulmate AU, author!Cas, Strangers to Lovers, First Kiss.

My Rating: 5 stars.

Description: Written for this prompt: Soulmate AU where you first see color after eye contact: Cas is a famous best selling author and he’s promoting his book, so he’s talking to a crowd of people and suddenly his world is in color, and a lot of his fans pretend to be his soulmate. A Cinderella type situation ensues.

Notes: This was really cute and such a sweet and funny idea.

(un)conventional by imogenbynight on AO3. (6,100 words).

Tags: Alternate Universe, mechanic!Dean, Writer!Castiel, Conventions, Fluff.

My Rating: 5 stars.

Description: Spec Lit Con--Speckly Con, to it’s regular attendees--is an annual weekend-long event held in Chicago, dedicated to science fiction, fantasy and otherwise speculative literature. This year Dean's favorite author, C.J. Novak, is appearing as a panelist. Naturally, he shells out the cash for an all access pass.

Notes: This was so adorable that I nearly screamed in the corridor outside my computer science lesson. Plus, the writing was absolutely gorgeous! I miss conventions :(

I Think That’s Mine by palominopup on AO3. (6,804 words).

Tags: Fluff, AU, Reporter!Dean, Writer!Cas.

My Rating: 4 stars.

Description: A mix up at the Atlanta Airport places Dean Winchester's laptop in someone else's possession. A series of calls and texts bring two men together.

Notes: This was so cute, Cas was so sweet, and Dean was an icon.

‘Star Wars is Overrated’ by leftdragonpainter on AO3. (38,186 words).

Tags: Soulmates, Pining, Drinking, Writer Castiel, Mechanic Dean, Neighbours, Swearing, Winchester Logic, Clueless Dean, College Student Sam, Awkward Dates, Dean Cooks, Castiel in Glasses, Slow Burn, Injured Sam, Fixing Cars, Smut, Costumes, Drunk Texting, Temporary Amnesia, Angst and Humor, Angst with a Happy Ending.

My Rating: 4 stars.

Description: When Dean Winchester turned sixteen he was disappointed by the words that appeared on his chest. He never expected that it would take so much to find his soulmate. He never expected to not remember meeting them...

Tags: Every time I thought I knew what was going to happen in this fic, something completely different happened, which I loved. 

Event Horizon by Winglesss on AO3. (6,442 words).

Tags: Suicidal Thoughts, Suicidal Dean, Depression, Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, Past Character Death, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Fluff and Angst, Texting, Sharing a Bed, Happy Ending, Veteran Dean, Doctor Dean, Writer Castiel, Strangers.

My Rating: 4 stars.

Description: Castiel couldn't have helped his sister. That's why being offered a chance to help somebody else dealing with suicidal thoughts he took it without hesitation. When he gets the first text from someone who needs his help, nothing goes as he expected.

Notes: I don’t know if that kind of suicide prevention scheme exists, but this fic is very sweet. 

Darkly Dreaming Dean by Duckyboos on AO3. (29,008 words).

Tags: Alternate Universe - Serial Killers, Alternate Universe - Police, Detective Dean Winchester, Writer Castiel, Serial Killer Dean, Alternate Universe - Dexter, Established Relationship, Murder, Top Dean, Bottom Castiel, Anal Sex, Innocent Castiel.

My Rating: 3 stars.

Description: Dean Winchester has the perfect apple pie life with his shy-but-sweet boyfriend in the suburbs. He has a steady, well-paid job with the LAPD and he’s charming and attractive. Really, he’s living the American Dream. It’s his extra-curricular activities that some may disagree with, as he’s also an accomplished serial killer. To date, his kills amount to around 36 and he’s never been caught. He’s employed by the law, remember? He knows how these things work.

*

A new serial killer arrives on the scene and despite the sloppiness of their work, Dean is intrigued by them and what they're trying to achieve, because their MO is the same as his; killing bad people. He makes it his mission to track the other killer down before the police do, and he’s left reeling when the 'Basin Vigilante' turns out to be someone a lot closer to home than he could have ever imagined.

Notes: I sort of watched Dexter a few years ago, and I absolutely love the idea of Dean as a vigilante serial killer. I only wish that the synopsis was a bit different, so the end was more of a surprise.

Finding Home by Desirae on AO3. (42,828 words).

Tags: Baker Dean Winchester, Writer Castiel, PTSD, Past Childhood Trauma, Childhood Kidnapping, Mistaken Identity, Dean Whump, Castiel Whump, Best Friends to Lovers, Emotional Sex, Fluff, Humor, Angst with a Happy Ending.

My Rating: 3 stars.

Description: Dean Winchester lived a quiet life running his bakery. Aside from family, Dean had no desire to let anyone inside. The more people you cared about, the more you had to lose; A hard lesson he'd learned at the tender age of eight when Dean’s best friend was kidnapped right before his eyes. Dean was forever haunted by the event, although he hadn’t realized quite how much until Emmanuel James Milton breezed into his life; waking his sleeping heart with a complete lack filter and achingly familiar eyes. An author, with no family and traumatic past of his own, Emmanuel never felt like he belonged anywhere until he walked into The Honeybee Bakery and met Dean. It’s not long before they find out that there is a reason for their profound bond.

Notes: It was obvious what was going on here from the start, but that just made it even cuter as they fell in love again.

I think it is a shame we didn’t get more human Cas content, but I guess it is too late now. I hope you enjoy these fics, and if you ever have a specific list you want me to make, feel free to ask!

[jane-aineien]

Uh

So I kind of went off the rails, this an art inspo blog but fuck it. analysis time. I loved @jackrrabbit’s homeowner’s association so much I had to get it out of my system somehow 😤

Dabi here is far and away the most self-sabotaging sap to ever exist. To him, reader is not only someone he loves, they’re the last remaining embodiment of his past, his childhood long-dead feelings of love, joy and hope for a better life. I’d go so far as to say that Dabi’s dreams aren’t simply dreams, but a future he actually used to imagine when he was still Touya kicking it on the streets with the reader before the LoV.

Dabi has a habit of ignoring his emotional baggage and coping with distractions. He runs away from his abusive home, he leaves the streets (after reader leaves him, I’d like to think) and now he leaves the reader sleeping next to him in exchange for a fantasy version of them. Every single issue he’s encountered, he’s solved by running away, but he can’t bring himself to run away completely this time. Not when the reader symbolizes and reminds him of quite possibly the happiest part of his life. So every night, Dabi chooses to remain in limbo (aka his personal hell)- unable to face his waking problems and unable to abandon them the way he used to. Had he not met the reader again, Dabi probably would have been more than content with his chosen distraction, wreaking havoc w/ the LOV. But meeting reader was a trigger unearthing his long-forgotten, torturous feelings of hope. Because unlike young, impressionable Touya, Dabi now knows that his dream of a domestic suburban life with his first love is wholly unattainable.

“On some level it doesn’t feel right to dream about you when you’re right there next to him, but he can’t help it. Maybe because the person he’s dreaming about isn’t really you—at least, it’s not the version of you sleeping in his bed”

God, my god. To anyone who’s gone through high school English, this is the exact type of stuff Gatsby would say had he actually lived, ended up with Daisy and was 5 years into his scam life. I am not Nick Carrotop, and I do not find this romantic. Heartbreakingly masochistic, maybe :(. This beginning is SO well-written because it reveals Dabi’s guilt about dreaming what he does and daring to enjoy them. You can almost taste the poetic justice of the situation. Dabi backed HIMSELF into the moral corner he is currently stuck in and faces the brunt of his actions, akin to a child holding their favorite toy too tightly, breaking it, and then crying about it instead of trying to fix it.

“You look different here. Healthier. The shadows are gone from under your eyes and your cheeks aren’t as hollow and you’re smiling, although the expression is a little vague—when he wakes up he’ll realize it’s because he can’t really remember what you look like smiling.”

This whole dream sequence hits hard!! Dabi doesn’t just dream about past-reader, or present-reader, he’s created what is a whole nother entity- a version of the reader that never existed and never will. And the funny thing is, he’s also cooked up another, better version of himself, whether he’s aware of it or not. Because let’s be real, the Dabi that manipulated, blackmailed, and kidnapped reader is NOT the same dream-Dabi that cooks dinner, mows the lawn on Sundays and can never refuse his darling wife. Dabi’s dream, once again I’m convinced, is essentially kid-Touya’s future plans that he used to naively daydream about, which explains his recollection of the tiniest, carefully crafted details.

“And you have a raised soil bed, a garden like the one he asked his father to plant in his childhood home once a very long time ago.”

This line BROKE MY HEART! You get a glimpse of child-Dabi and his sweet lil’ mindset, but you’re hit with the realization that he was only able to ask once because he was probably refused strongly enough to never bring it up again.

“This is the kind of thing Dabi concerns himself with when he dreams about you: lawn height and homeowners associations and a yellow that only reminds him of sunlight because you told him it did. That sticks out to him. It’s something you really would’ve said. Back then.”

This is the part that made me start thinking of this dream as a tour of Touya/ kid-Dabi’s imagination- the disconnect between his understanding of suburban life and the pure naivete that went into this utopian world. There’s something so clearly innocent and carefree about these issues and the fact that you can see pessimistic, present-Dabi snapping himself into reality with “back then”? It turns the desolate factor all the way up to 11 because now you can clearly see that Dabi still holds onto the hopes and dreams he made up as a child. While he manages to avoid them during the day, it’s impossible to stop his subconscious from indulging at night.

“Dabi’s always going to take care of his kids. He’s different from his father too, in that way.”

Dabi tries SO HARD to erase traces of Endeavor. In dream world, Dabi erases all the trashy parts of his family -his father’s neglect and unknown hatred of gardening- and opts to paint over those memories with imaginary children and the reader’s supposed love of gardening. And yet, he can’t seem to completely detach himself from his past, as he dreams of a life where he’s still close to Fuyumi, and reminiscences his own role as an older brother. Only in his dream is he able to pick and choose which parts of his past he wants to relive. In other words, this dreams definitely aren’t about reader, but a coping mechanism that developed with the reader as an involuntary main character.

“They take after you too, and every day Dabi’s grateful that unlike him, they didn’t get a goddamn thing from their father. Only their eyes, really, and when he gets past that it doesn’t bother him nearly as much as he thought it would.”

It’s heartbreaking when you think that Dabi used to hate himself because of how much he resembled his father.  Dabi continuously tries desperately hard to smooth over things that remind him of Endeavor in this dream, and this is another example. Here, the cold blue that used to hurt him is now the same blue that looks up at him in wonder.

“And he if asks, he knows you would—you would want more. In his dream, you would want more kids.”

This killed me, because the way it’s worded makes it seem like Dabi, even dream-Dabi, is trying to convince HIMSELF rather than anyone else that the reader would be open to more kids. It’s the repetition, the pure uneasiness the statement starts off with, and finally reaching the conclusion that maybe only dream-reader would say yes just does it for me.  

“He’s gotten used to this over the past few months, the fading images of your easy domestic life together, the memory of the way your laughter sounds slowly sinking into nothing; the aftertaste of pure sugar souring on his tongue, bittersweet.”

Stop, I’m already dead !!! The fact that Dabi still holds onto all of these emotions, and the fact that he’s gotten used to the feeling of everything fading away is the most devastating way to end this :((( You get the impression that these dreams are quite common, most likely beginning right after Dabi realized that living with the reader doesn’t necessarily translate into a resolution of all his unresolved trauma. Because to Dabi, the reader symbolizes happiness and domestic joy. And unfortunately, it seems only the audience comes to the crushing understanding that the reader character is only a broken human and thus leaves Dabi nothing but frustrated, guilty, and lost

[saoirse-argentum]

PROMPT #20 BISECT

(Continuing on from where I left off in prompt #19. The thesis comes at the end. XD)

HEAT LEVEL: SENSUAL Cue the euphemisms and spicy kisses. 

*Also brief Wyrm violence.

It wasn’t long before everyone knew about Saoirse and Estinien’s relationship, and the more anyone called attention to it the more embarrassed Saoirse was and the angrier Estinien became. She knew they were only teasing, but Estinien wasn’t so forgiving. And to make matters worse, Estinien’s opinion on Haurchefant made Saoirse question their friendship.

She’d tried to explain that Haurchefant’s actions meant nothing, but Estinien wouldn’t hear it.

“I don’t care what lies that deviant said to convince you he was innocent, but if he’d wanted to merely spur my jealousy, he could have done so without a confession! I cannot tell you what mad method he’s schemed to do it, but he means to have you, so stay away from him,” was all he’d say on the matter.

But even Estinien’s sour attitude made her happy. He cared enough to be jealous and to endure the others despite the embarrassment. And when they were alone…nothing else mattered.

Saoirse was in the middle of organizing her gear for their journey into The Aery when Estinien entered her chambers.

“Ready for tomorrow?”  She set her staff aside and took Estinien by the hand. She worried what this next quest would bring. It was true that he loved her, but Estinien’s life was consumed by his want for Nidhogg’s end…and she was afraid he’d pursue it even if it meant his death.

“Aye. I’ve been ready for some time now.” He brushed his thumb against the top of her hand. “There’s just one final task I must attend to.” Estinien sat on the edge of the bed behind him, and guided Saoirse toward him by the hand. He looked up at her and waited for her emerald irises to meet his before leading her gaze to his lap.

Saoirse’s face reflected the warmth of her body, but she didn’t let her nervousness keep her from him. She straddled his hips and wrapped her arms around the back of his neck. She met his eyes for a moment before looking away. It was too much. He was too much, and she was certain her heart would burn out if it continued at its current pace. “If you have other things to do, don’t let me keep you.”

Estinien placed his hand to her cheek and forced her to face him. “All that’s left is you.” He traced the skin of her thigh with his fingertips as he kissed the nape of her neck. “Stay with me tonight.”

Saoirse bit her lip to stifle her excitement and she placed her hand on Estinien’s before he reached the hem of her skirt. “Estinien, I…this is a little sudden.” She looked down at him and ran her fingers through his hair. “Don’t get me wrong, I want to be with you…but the timing…is everything alright?”

“Impeccably so.” He undid the top button of Saoirse’s blouse.

“Estinien, stop trying to distract me and talk to me.” Saoirse grasped his wandering hands. “You’re not telling me something. I can tell because it’s unlike you to be slow and sweet.”

“Oh, then what am I like?”

“A feral beast.” Saoirse smiled and kissed his forehead.

“Is that what you prefer?”

“We’re getting off topic!” Saoirse’s face flushed red and she diverted her gaze. “You’re up to something.”

Estinien sighed. “Fine…I suppose what’s to come has some bearing on my motives, but it doesn’t change my want.” He used his index finger and thumb to turn her chin back to him. He brushed her bangs aside and smiled softly. “You are a capable woman with exceptional gifts, and full proud am I to have fought at your side but…Nidhogg is my foe to face, and no matter what befalls us, should I fail…You are not to fight in my place. Even if it means my end.”

Saoirse’s mouth parted slightly, and she looked at Estinien with a deep sadness. “Is that what this is…one night together just in case it’s our last?” She stood and backed away from him. “I won’t…I won’t stand back and watch you die. We either come back together or we don’t come back at all.”

“Saoirse, you know that’s not an option. Eorzea will see another day without me, but not without you. This is not a request.” He cupped her face in his hands. “Nor is this an admission of doubt. Our victory is near certainty, but I won’t leave room for regret should my confidence be misguided.”

“Well, then I guess you’ll just have to be absolutely certain you’ll live.” Saoirse grabbed Estinien by the shoulders and forced him to turn around.“If you want to know me…then you’ll have to do everything you can to return safely with me to Ishgard.” She pushed him toward the door. “There a warm bed will be waiting for you.” She swung the door open and gave a final shove.

Estinien dug in his heels before she could push him out and he looked back at her. “You would use our union as a tool to bargain?”

She nodded, a resolute look in her eyes.

“Hmm.” He looked away in thought before returning his attention to her with a smile. “Then there is no other path to follow…I will succeed.” He kissed the top of her head. “Rest well, Saoirse.”

She embraced him a final time, holding a little tighter than normal. She wanted to believe Estinien would return with her at any cost, but she knew in her heart that he’d die there if it meant Nidhogg fell with him.

******************************************************************************

With the use of Cid’s latest airship prototype breaching the howling barrier surrounding The Aery had been a simple enough task, and while facing Nidhogg’s followers was certainly troublesome, they’d done so without sustaining any major damage.

Nidhogg no longer had anyone to stand behind. Saoirse used her magic one last time to heal their wounds before facing him. Estinien marched up the steps ahead of her and was first to engage him.

His strikes were effortless with such precision that there was little reason for Saoirse to attack. Instead she focused her magic on protecting Estinien.

Nidhogg was weakened, and Estinien could sense it. He drew back, putting space between them.

Nidhogg seethed but Estinien said nothing. He merely grinned as he greeted Nidhogg with his stolen eye.

Nidhogg roared in fury. “Thou wouldst use mine own eye against me!? Time has done naught to dilute thy kind’s depravity. I have not forgotten thee, dragoon. Mine essence claimed thee once…and shall do so again.”

Estinien raised his lance unmoved by fear. “No, wyrm. This ends here!” He leaped to deliver a final blow, but as he did a large group of smaller wyrm lying in wait in the surrounding rock appeared and knocked him from the air before he could change his trajectory.

“Estinien!” Saoirse ran to his aid, wielding stone to push back the dragons surrounding him. She knelt beside him. “Are you alright? Can you stand?”

“Saoirse, you must withdraw.” He moved her aside. “Now.”

She glanced back and saw Nidhogg charged and ready to attack. She quickly stood in front of Estinien and cast a barrier to repel Nidhogg’s flame.

“Don’t be a fool! Your barrier will not hold!”

Saoirse looked back at Estinien and smiled softly. “I know.” Her barrier caved to Nidhogg’s might and she bore the brunt of the blast. The impact sent her body backward, but Estinien caught her, letting her weight crash against him. She was still, her eyes closed, and there was a tranquility to her features despite the debris and lacerations along her face and body.

“Saoirse?” It was faint but he felt her chest rise and fall. She was alive, but she wouldn’t be for long. “We will return to Ishgard together.” Saoirse’s barrier had maintained long enough to restore his strength and he wouldn’t let her sacrifice be in vain. He gently laid her down and enveloped her in Draconian Light before turning his red gaze on Nidhogg. “You will feel every moment of her pain.” He raised his lance and soared one final time, driving his weapon into Nidhogg’s head. Nidhogg raised his wings and attempted to shake Estinien free from him as he took to the sky, but Estinien would not be satisfied until Nidhogg breathed his last. He held on and struck Nidhogg again, this time piercing his eye. “You gifted my people a thousand years of suffering, now I gift you an eternity in darkness!” Estinien twisted his lance and ripped Nidhogg’s eye from his socket, sending him spiraling to the ground.

Estinien jumped back to the platform where he’d left Saoirse and lifted her with care. Though he fell his greatest foe, it would mean nothing if she paid the price.

******************************************************************************

To everyone’s relief, Estinien had made it in time. Saoirse would recover, but the event had been too close a call for some.

“Lord Commander?” Estinien entered the Seat of the Lord Commander to meet Aymeric who sat at his desk looking over a map.

“Ah, Estinien, how are you fairing?”

“Well enough. You wished to speak with me?”

Aymeric nodded. “I’m sure you can presume why I requested an audience with you, so I will be to the point on the matter.” Aymeric set his elbows against the desk and folded his hands before him. “The incident with Saoirse at The Aery is concerning, and while I do not blame you, I do believe that had it been anyone else, the Warrior of Light would have acted with more sense, as is her normal decorum.”

Estinien narrowed his gaze. “And this means?”

“It is evident to everyone that she cares very deeply for you, Estinien and perhaps this clouded her judgement in the moment…and emotional response in lieu of a tactical one.”

“Say what you mean to say, Aymeric.”

Aymeric sighed. “I hate to be the one to do this, but perhaps it would be best if you distanced yourself from her. Your relationship may not be what’s best for her in the end…not now when so much else is at stake.”

“You would have me leave her? And pray tell, how do you propose I go about hurting her further? Or have you mapped out those steps to serve you as well?” Estinien slammed his hands against Aymeric’s desk and leaned toward him. “You would neglect her feelings to serve your needs?”

Aymeric stood to meet Estinien and met his gaze with the same fierceness. “This is bigger than you, Estinien. For once consider someone besides yourself!”

“It is her I am concerned for!”

“Is it? She almost died protecting you! You would subject her to that again?”

Estinien grabbed Aymeric by the collar. “So long as I am beside her I will shield her!”

“But you didn’t protect her!” Aymeric grabbed Estinien’s wrist. “You can wish and want for all your worth, but you have already failed her once. Next time she may not be so lucky.”

Estinien grew quiet and his hands slipped from Aymeric. “Ask nothing of me again.” He turned his back to Aymeric and headed for the door.

“Estinien, wait!” Aymeric watched as Estinien disappeared through front doors. He sunk back in his chair and looked to the ceiling. “She matters not only to you.” He covered his eyes with his hand and let silence take him. It was done.

******************************************************************************

Saoirse was awake and talking with Alphinaud when Estinien entered her quarters.

She smiled in his direction, but when he did not return her smile she worried. “Estinien? Are you feeling alright?”

He ignored her and looked to Alphinaud. “Might I have a moment alone with Saoirse?”

“Yes, certainly.” Alphinaud gave Saoirse one last smile and patted her hand. “I’m glad you’re well…You too Estinien.”

Estinien waited for Alphinaud to shut the door behind him before he brought his attention to Saoirse. “Could you not listen to me? I asked of you one plain matter.”

“I wasn’t going to stand back and do nothing. You were asking me to watch you suffer. I couldn’t do that.” Saoirse’s voice was soft, she didn’t want to argue, but she wanted him to see her side.

“But you would allow me to bear that guilt?”

“Estinien…That’s not…I didn’t want to lose you.” Saoirse pulled the covers back and turned to face Estinien fully. Her legs still too weak to stand.

Estinien looked to the floor and his voice was quiet, “I am not yours to lose.”

“What?”

“I was not in need of your help.” Estinien lifted his gaze and his cadence grew louder as he continued to speak, “I was well enough alone. I have always done well enough alone. Therein lies my mistake with you!”

Saoirse fought to swallow her tears. Her throat was tight from suppressing her sorrow and she struggled to reply.

“Whatever lust I disguised as love is not worth your burden.”

“You don’t mean that…You can’t…” She could no longer hide her hurt. Her tears stung as they traced the cuts along her cheek.

“You would do best to forget hollow words.” Estinien turned his back to her and placed his hand upon the door. “Though it hardly served a purpose, I will thank you for your selflessness…And know that I am sorry…had I realized how hopelessly asinine your feelings for me are, I never would have entertained the notion. I was mistaken not to let Haurchefant have you…spare myself the headache all this has caused.” Estinien opened the door and found Haurchefant standing on the other side with a tray of food and drink in his hands. “Ah, ‘tis fate. Your knight has come to care for you.” Estinien pushed past Haurchefant before anyone could respond. 

At the end of the hall Aymeric stood. “Estinien I know—”

Estinien drove his fist into the wall beside Aymeric’s head. “I have failed her twice now…be swift in picking up the pieces and do not presume to speak to me again.” Estinien withdrew his knuckles and walked away.

Aymeric looked from Estinien’s fading figure in the distance to Haurchefant who’d been watching, but once the scene was done he turned to Saoirse who he’d originally come to see and noticed her head buried in her hands, her shoulders shaking with every sob.

Haurchefant quickly set the tray on the table nearby and rushed to her side. He knelt before her and forced her hands from her face. “Saoirse, what’s wrong? Has something happened?”

Saoirse opened her mouth to speak, but no words would find her. She slid from the bed and laid her head against Haurchefant’s chest and continued to cry.

Haurchefant sat back onto the floor and took her into his arms. He ran his hand through her hair and cooed, “It’ll be alright.”

She wanted to believe him, but in that moment, she wasn’t sure she believed anything anymore. What had so recently become one was once again two…and this time, she feared the divide was too great for their halves to ever make whole again.

 To be continued?

[artificialqueens]

So Emotional (Sashea) Chapter 7 -MissChimKi

Summary- Sasha would definitely miss having a best friend in close proximity, and she and Shea really had become close over the semester. She’d really become a daily fixture in Sasha’s life and she would miss having Shea around all the time, but she had other things to focus on.

In which Sasha and Shea are roommates for their freshman year of college and Sasha is a useless lesbian who doesn’t want Shea to know that and Shea is just trying to live her best Chicago life while being in NYC.

A/N- Well y'all it’s been a hot minute, but I promise I haven’t given up on this story. Also this chapter marks the halfway mark so woohoo! Hope you enjoy!

Exams week was in full swing, which meant that Sasha was in completely over her head. She was trying to keep calm and power through. Luckily she would only have to take two exams and turn in two final projects that she was already mostly done with. She had already given her speech for her public speaking class so that was a weight lifted off her shoulders.

She surprisingly wasn’t too worried for the exams themselves. She’d been doing well in both of the classes so she figured neither would be too difficult but studying was still necessary. On top of the studying she had to finish her portfolio and sculpture.

She was pretty crunched for time and couldn’t wait for the week to be over. Since thanksgiving and officially getting together with Aja, she had spent a majority of her nights at Aja’s house. She did feel a little bad for neglecting Shea and the other girls, but they were all getting together Thursday before Trixie and Kim left. Sasha would be done with exams by then and her work would have already been turned in, so she would definitely be celebrating by then.

While she could technically leave after her exam Thursday, Shea’s last exam wasn’t until Friday afternoon and her flight was the next day, so they had made plans to hang out and celebrate before Shea was back in Chicago for a month.

Sasha would definitely miss having a best friend in close proximity,and she and Shea really had become close over the semester. She’d really become a daily fixture in Sasha’s life and she would miss having Shea around all the time, but she had other things to focus on. Like Aja and introducing her dad to her, as well as meeting Aja’s parents. In some ways they were moving a little quickly but at the same time it still felt natural. Even though she had been spending most of her time with Aja, Sasha had informed her that this week was all about studying and spending time with her friends that she wouldn’t be able to see for a while.

It was Monday night and she had her first exam early in the morning. She and Shea had been studying together in their room before Shea had decided to take a break and go to the gym to get some stress out. Sasha had declined the invitation since she needed every bit of time to study. Luckily for her Shea had offered to bring her back some food, so she didn’t have to take a break from studying and wouldn’t neglect eating.

Once again, she thought about how much she’d lucked out with getting Shea as a roommate. While sharing a room with someone was never ideal, she couldn’t have asked for a better arrangement, and she would really miss spending time with her over break.

Speak of the devil, Shea returned to the room with food in her hand. “Aren’t you supposed to be studying,” Shea called her out before handing her the food.

“I know I got lost in thought. Without you here to throw something at me when I zone out it’s bound to happen,” Sasha told her.

Shea smiled, “Don’t worry I’ll get right back to throwing stuff at you.”

“Wouldn’t want it any other way,” she grinned back before getting up to stretch a bit, “I do kinda want a break though, I don’t think I’m getting anything done. Wanna watch an episode of Brooklyn 99 while I eat?”

“I’ll never say no to procrastination,” Shea agreed easily, setting it up on the screen for them while Sasha dug into her food.

“Thanks so much for picking this up for me by the way, you’re the best,” Sasha thanked her after taking a bite.

“I try,” Shea smirked and set the episode up to play. She loved watching things with Shea because Shea’s commentary made everything better. Not that it was bad in the first place, but it definitely added to it.

They ended up watching two episodes before getting back to their necessary work and eventually going to bed. Sasha’s exam was super early, so she needed all the sleep she could get. She just hoped she’d studied enough to get through it.

*

Her exam went fine which she knew it would, but it didn’t hurt to be worried and prep accordingly. She had the rest of her day free, or at least free to get some of her projects done. Currently she was on her way to meet with Shea. Their usual library was way too crowded for her liking and Shea told her that the design library was much more chill because most of them had to be finished with projects the week before.

Shea was waiting at a table close to the entrance when she walked in, so she quickly waved her down. They were in the main hall of the library so they didn’t have to worry about being too quiet.

“Hey girl. I grabbed you a coffee,” Shea greeted pushing the cup towards Sasha who received it gratefully, “How did your exam go?”

Sasha smiled, taking a sip of the warm drink, “I think it went well and I don’t think my other will be too bad either, so really I just need to finish these projects.”

Shea nodded in understanding, “Yeah, all mine are due Wednesday then I still have exams Thursday and Friday which I have no idea how I’m going to be ready for,” she huffed.

“Don’t worry, I’ll help you however I can and you still have your little study group with Naomi and Milk right?” Sasha asked trying her best not to sound sour as she mentioned Milk. She didn’t quite understand Shea’s new relationship with him. She seemed so opposed to it even just a month ago, and while it wasn’t really her business, she was still surprised when Shea told her about it.

“Yeah I’m meeting them tonight to hopefully get a lot of work done,” Shea said.

“See, you totally got this. We’re all going to make sure you nail these finals,” Sasha promised, “And the first step to that is studying for all we’re worth,” she gestured to the work that was laid out in front of Shea and began pulling out her own.

Shea nodded in agreement, flipping through the book in front of her, “Very true, let’s get to it then.”

They were fairly engrossed with their individual work for about an hour, occasionally asking each other questions but for the most part focused on what they needed to do. Sasha was snapped out of her reading by Shea furiously snapping in her face. She glanced up with a confused look on her face.

Shea was pointing to the direction of the entryway where Trixie had just walked in with a blonde they’d never seen before. “Oh my god,” Sasha gasped.

The blonde seemed to be telling some kind of story and Trixie looked like she was hanging onto every word, letting out a roar of laughter when it was finished, causing the other girl to wheeze in laughter as well. “Do you think that’s her?” Shea asked.

Sasha nodded, “I mean it has to be right?”

“Only one way to find out,” Shea shrugged before calling out, “Trixie!”

Trixie turned when she heard her name being called and immediately paled when she saw Shea and Sasha. Sasha could see how she was trying to work out how she could run away. It was too late though as Shea was waving them over and the blonde was pulling Trixie towards them.

“Hey Trix,” Shea greeted, “Sasha and I were just studying for our finals and wanted to say hi. Who’s your friend?”

Trixie appeared to be trying to kill Shea with her eyes, but the bubbly blonde beside her didn’t seem to notice.

“Привет, I’m Yekaterina Petrovna Zamolodchikova, but you can call me Katya,” she smiled widely, extending a hand which Shea shook cautiously, before she turned to shake Sasha’s hand as well.

Shea seemed like she had no idea how to react to Katya but Sasha was intrigued by her strangeness. Also the Russian greeting peeked her curiosity so she returned the sentiment.

“Nice to meet you, we’ve heard so much about you. I’m Sasha,” she greeted back in Russian. Katya seemed surprised but it morphed into excitement fairly quickly. Shea and Trixie were both staring at her looking confused.

“Oh my god you speak Russian. That’s wonderful. I did my masters there but I haven’t been able to keep up with the language as much as I would like,” Katya was beaming with excitement. Sasha just wanted to get a closer look at her seemingly perfect teeth.

“Yeah I get that. I lived there for 11 years but I don’t really get a chance to speak it anymore either,” Sasha explained.

“Hold up, how did I not know you lived in Russia?” Shea interrupted.

Sasha shrugged, “I guess it just never came up.”

“I loved it when I was there. I wouldn’t mid going back,” Katya continued where they had left off.

“Yeah. I wouldn’t mind visiting either. I always assumed my dad and I would move back but I’m pretty glad we didn’t. It’s not a safe environment for queer people and I don’t want to live in fear,” Sasha explained honestly.

Katya nodded, looking slightly taken aback, “No completely. That’s a big downside. Two years was a long time to have to shut that side of me down, but I tried to focus on my studies and the unique experience of the country itself.”

“It’s a beautiful country,” she agreed.

Katya turned to Trixie, “How come you never introduced me to your cool Russian friend?”

Trixie looked like she didn’t have a good answer, “I mean I didn’t know how Russian she actually was so I didn’t think about it,” she tried to explain.

Katya tssked, “Sure.”

“It’s really great to finally meet you. We’ve been hassling Trixie about it for so long,” Shea interjected, ignoring the glare from Trixie.

“Likewise,” Katya’s smile returned, “I was beginning to wonder if you guys even existed.”

Trixie huffed, “Hey, I obviously wasn’t lying about my friends.”

Katya put a gentle hand on her shoulder which seemed to calm her down a little bit, “Of course not. You were just worried I was going to scare them away.”

Shea laughed, “Probably the opposite actually.”

“You guys seem great for the record. From the stories I’ve heard and from meeting you now,” Katya informed them.

“You too,” Sasha agreed, “It’s been a long time coming.”

Trixie’s eyes were threatening to roll out of her skull, but she honestly should’ve seen this coming. She couldn’t keep them all separate from Katya forever.

“So Katya,” Shea started. Sasha could see the mischievous glint in her eye, and Sasha wondered where she was going with it. “We’re having a little get together Thursday so we can all hang out before break and we’re gonna pick names for secret santa. You should totally come, it would be great for you to meet everyone.”

“Katya has a lot of work to do. It’s finals week and all,” Trixie tried to steer Katya into saying no.

Katya held a hand out for Trixie to stop, “I can make time. I’d love to come and meet all of Trixie’s friends. Thanks for inviting me. I’ll pry the information from Trix somehow.”

Trixie rolled her eyes, “Whatever. Now come on you have a test to watch over and I have one to take,” she shoved at Katya while Katya waved goodbye to Sasha and Shea.

Once they were out of sight Sasha turned to Shea and burst out laughing, “I can’t believe you actually invited her for Thursday. Trixie is actually going to murder you. I’ll tell her to do it in the dorm, maybe I can get free room and board.

Shea balled up a paper and threw it at her, “I saw my opportunity and I took it. God knows she would’ve never introduced us to Katya so I had to take it upon myself.”

“I’m impressed. Also, I love that she knows everyone’s schedule well enough to not be where we would be. Like we never come here so she thought it was safe,” Sasha pointed out.

“It’s crazy honestly. I don’t get it, but at least we might actually be able to get to know Katya more. See what’s got Trix all worked up,” Shea decided.

Sasha nodded, “Very true. And now we’re apparently doing a secret santa.”

“I had to think on my feet. Don’t come for me,” Shea defended.

“Whatever you say girl,” Sasha laughed and got back into studying.

Eventually Shea left to meet with her design friends and Sasha headed to the art studio to get some work done on her final projects. She knew she was in for a long night and a long day the next day, but if she could get everything done she’d basically be home free, and that was music to her ears.

*

Wednesday had been both stressful and productive for Sasha. She’d went to the studio early in the morning and by evening she had finished her last sketch for her drawing class, and put the finishing touches on her final sculpture. She was feeling pretty good and while she still had her last exam the next morning, she decided she would treat herself a little and go have a late dinner with Aja.

Aja had offered to cook, which she had accepted gratefully even though she knew it was just a ploy to spend time with her. Not that that was a bad thing, but Sasha didn’t need too many distractions this week. A nice dinner with her girlfriend couldn’t hurt though.

When she got to Aja’s house her roommates were nowhere to be seen, which was out of the ordinary. With five girls living in the same house there was usually at least one around. “I banished the other girls while we eat. They can have the leftovers,” Aja explained.

Sasha smiled and took a seat at the counter while Aja fixed them plates, “I’m surprised they listened.”

“Only because it’s finals week and they actually have work to do,” Aja informed her, setting the plates down and taking a seat beside her.

“That makes sense then. How did your econ exam go?” Sasha asked. Aja was only in three classes and econ was the most intense of those.

“It was awful, but I think I did okay. Good enough to pass at least. Not that it really matters to me, but it matters to my parents so I’ll do what I gotta do,” Aja told her with a shrug.

Sasha nodded, “I guess,” she agreed before changing the subject, “So you’ll never guess who Shea and I ran into at the design library today.”

“Who?” Aja urged her to continue.

“Katya,” she told her excitedly.

“You mean Trixie’s Katya, the one she was trying to keep hidden from you guys?”

“The very same. Shea and I were studying there and we ran into them. She seems nice and also a little strange, but I think we’re actually going to get a chance to know her now which is cool,” Sasha explained.

Aja didn’t seem too convinced, “So you think Trixie’s gonna actually bring her around from now on?”

“Oh, I don’t think we’re letting her make that decision,” Sasha shook her head, “Shea invited her to our little celebration thing tomorrow and also made up a secret santa thing, so I guess we gotta draw names for that now.”

“Man I love secret santa’s. I’m mad I can’t go now,” Aja pouted.

“I know. It really sucks that you have to work,” Sasha agreed, putting a comforting hand on her shoulder.

“I really want to get to know your friends more,” Aja complained, “You all seem to have so much fun together.”

Sasha rubbed her shoulder, “I promise once break’s over you’ll become a regular fixture at our girl’s nights. It’s just bad timing right now is all,” she assured Aja.

“I know, I’m just being dramatic. Slip my name into the exchange though and pick one out for me?” Aja suggested.

“Of course!” Sasha agreed, “It’ll be a good way for at least one of them to get to know you.”

“And for me to get to know someone,” Aja grinned, “Make sure I don’t get you.”

Sasha smiled back, “I’ll do my best.” She grabbed their finished plates and brought them to the sink ignoring Aja’s protests.

“I’ll wash them later I want to spend time with you,” Aja tugged her hand.

“We’ll have all break you know. No school to get in the way. We’ll have lots of time to spend together,” Sasha squeezed her hand as they sat down on the couch.

“I know. And we’ll have to do the whole meet the family thing which should be interesting,” Aja sounded slightly worried.

“It’ll be great, I’m sure of it,” Sasha promised.

“Whatever you say,” Aja agreed.

They chatted for a while before Sasha decided she really needed to head back to her dorm to study a little bit and get some rest.

“Can’t you just spend the night?” Aja asked, as she walked Sasha to the door.

Sasha sighed, “I wish I could but I really need to study for my last exam tomorrow.”

“I know, but I’m still not too thrilled about it,” Aja gave her a hug and a quick peck on the lips, “Good luck on your exam, you’re gonna do great.”

Sasha smiled, “Thanks, I’m ready for it to be over mostly,” she chuckled waving again to Aja before walking back to her dorm.

She managed to go through the study guide once and felt fairly confident about the material so she allowed herself to go to bed.

*

Her Human Rights exam went without a hitch the next morning thankfully. She couldn’t believe that she was done with her first semester. Now she could relax and spend time with her friends before they went home for the break.

Shea had asked her to look over her final essay for English before she submitted it so Sasha headed to the café to grab a sandwich before heading to the library to edit it.

It didn’t take her too long to read through Shea’s essay, only having to fix a few grammatical errors before sending it back to Shea so she could turn it in. Shea texted her a thank you and Sasha realized that she had nothing to do until later that night.

She sighed and made her way back to her dorm. She figured she could take a nap and get some packing done. Shea had an afternoon exam so she wouldn’t be back until later. Sasha flopped down on her bed and scrolled through various feeds before dozing off.

Evening came eventually which meant Shea and Sasha had to make their way over to Kim and Trixie’s for their little get together. Sasha was excited but also partially sad because she wouldn’t see any of them for like a month. She was mainly looking forward to it though, especially finding more out about Katya.

They got to the dorm and were greeted by loud cheers from the others who were already there. Pearl was the only one who hadn’t arrived yet, which wasn’t that much of a surprise.

Kim was chatting with Shea’s friend, Naomi, who Kim had apparently gotten close with after they were introduced. It was clear to basically everyone that Naomi had a crush on Kim, well everyone except Kim maybe.

Trixie was with Katya, shooting glares at Shea from across the room. Shea ignored it, and just blew her a kiss, causing Sasha to laugh. Max was over with them, looking a little lost without Pearl there yet. Sasha wasn’t exactly sure what was going on with them. She assumed they were dating, but no one had said anything about it, so she didn’t ask.

Eventually Pearl showed up with a few drink options so no one could be too mad at her. Shea fixed her a drink that was heavy on the vodka but Sasha didn’t have anything going on the next day so she was perfectly fine with it.

The music was pumping at probably too high of a level. No doubt they’d get asked to turn it down, but in the moment everyone was having a good time.

Trixie had apparently cornered Shea and Shea was shooting her a ‘help me’ look as she got berated. Sasha chuckled before eventually making her way over to try and lend a helping hand.

“Hey Trix, I love this dress,” she complimented, poking the fabric lightly.

Trixie frowned, “Thanks, but don’t think you’re going to try and change the subject. I’m not thrilled with either of you.”

“C’mon Trixie. You can’t be mad at us for coincidentally being in the same place as you,” Shea rolled her eyes.

“No, but I can be mad that you invited her here,” Trixie retaliated.

“We’ll be on our best behavior. We just want to get to know her. You’ve made her out to be such an incredible person we just want a chance to experience that,” Shea shot back.

Trixie’s glare softened ever so slightly, “Fine, but I’m going to talk lots of shit about you all to her later.”

Shea laughed, “Fair enough,” she agreed. Trixie made her way over to where Katya was telling some outrageous looking story to Pearl, who looked fairly amused on her part.

“Well that didn’t go as awful as expected,” Sasha commented.

Shea nodded, “Yeah, though I think she just doesn’t want to cause a scene in front of Katya.”

“Probably. I am curious to chat with Katya some tonight. See what she’s all about,” Sasha told her.

“Me too. And see if she’s into Trix in the slightest,” Shea added.

“Definitely,” Sasha agreed.  

Sasha and Shea mingled and drank a little more. Shea didn’t have her final until the afternoon the next day and she was apparently confident about it so she wasn’t worried about staying sober and studying.

Eventually they ran into Katya, and Trixie seemed to not be around to police the conversation, so it seemed like fate.

“Sasha! Shea! It’s nice to see you guys again. Thanks for inviting me,” Katya greeted, wrapping them both in huge hugs.

“Of course, it’s great having you here,” Shea told her, and Sasha nodded in agreement.

Katya smiled widely, “It feels like I already know you guys so well from all the stories Trix told, but like this is my first time meeting the whole gang and it’s very weird,” she babbled.

“Don’t worry you’ll feel like part of this weird little family in no time,” Shea assured her.

Sasha smiled, “Yeah for sure, I only met everyone at the beginning of the semester and I completely feel like I’m a part of it. I’ll miss everyone a lot while they’re home for break,” she admitted.

“Aw Sash, we’ll all miss you so much,” Shea gave her a quick squeeze, “Don’t worry I’ll text you like every day.”

Katya smiled at their interaction, “You guys are really sweet together. Trixie didn’t say anything about it, but I gotta ask. How long have you guys been dating?”

Sasha looked at Shea to try to gage her reaction, Shea looked back at her before cracking up laughing. “No we’re just friends,” she explained, “We got put together as roommates and now we’ve got this lovely friendship out of it,” Shea squeezed her shoulder.

Katya looked frazzled, “Oh, I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to assume.”

“No it’s totally fine,” Sasha assured her, “We’re really close so I can see why it might seem like that.”

Katya still looked like she felt bad about the mistake, luckily Shea jumped in as well, “Honestly it’s a compliment to our friendship if we’re viewed as a couple,” she smiled earnestly.

“I remember Trixie said something about you having a girlfriend,” she told Sasha, “I just wasn’t sure who it was.”

Sasha smiled, “Yeah, her name’s Aja. She had to work or else she’d be here tonight, but we’re still going to put her name in the drawing so she can be here in spirit,” she explained.

“Oh, that’s sweet of you. I hope to meet her soon, I’m sure I’ll see you guys around more next semester,” Katya figured.

Trixie had apparently realized that Katya had wandered over to talk to them, so of course she had to go jump in, “Yeah, we can do things like this all the time next semester. It’ll be great,” she smiled through gritted teeth.

“I can see why you didn’t want me to meet any of your friends, I’m going to ditch you for them now,” Katya nudged her playfully.

Trixie rolled her eyes, “Yeah, I’m sure they would love that.”

Sasha and Shea both cracked up, “We definitely would,” Shea chimed in.

“Yeah, we were actually going to go sign the adoption papers tomorrow,” Sasha added.

“This is a match made in hell, I regret everything,” Trixie groaned, “I’m getting another drink.”

Katya watched her walk away, “I should go with her,” Katya shot them another blinding smile before following Trixie to the kitchen.

“They’re something alright,” Sasha announced once she’d walked away.

Shea snorted, “Yeah definitely. I’m thinking with a little intervention from the group they’ll be together before summer.”

“Are you really making a bet on them right now?” Sasha raised her brows.

“Yes I am. I think I’ll get a pool started tonight, maybe do one for Kim and Naomi too,” Shea decided.

Sasha shook her head, “Well whatever you do, leave me out of it. I don’t want to be blamed when they find out.”

“You’re just saying that because you’re already coupled up, you don’t understand the single life. Always a bridesmaid, but never a bride,” Shea teased.

“A, no one’s getting married and B, you have Milk don’t you?” Sasha asked, confused.

Shea made a face, “I’m not like gonna date him though. It’s a stress relief thing, I don’t really know how to explain it.”

“Whatever you say,” Sasha finished her drink and announced she was going to get a refill. Shea took it as an opportunity to get everything sorted out for secret santa. She had written out the names earlier and even got a cute santa hat to put them in.

Sasha watched as she went around having people pick names. She would most likely know who everyone had by the end of the night, but they could all keep the illusion of it being secret.

Shea came around to her, and she grabbed one for Aja and one for herself, “Are you just going to keep the one you like better for you,” Shea teased.

“Hush,” Sasha giggled, “I gotta check the names to make sure we don’t get each other.”

“Sure,” Shea winked, before heading over to Pearl and Max to let them pick.

The papers Sasha had gotten were for Katya and Kim. She figured she’d be doing them both a favor by picking Katya, since she didn’t know much about her and Aja didn’t know much about either of them.

After papers were handed out and everyone hung out a little more. The party eventually started dwindling down and Shea wanted to head back to the dorm. She wanted to wake up early to study a little and pack her bag for the break.

They said their goodbyes to everyone before walking back to the dorm. “So who’d you and Aja get?” Shea nudged Sasha with her shoulder, stumbling a little bit in doing so.

Sasha caught her with a laugh, “I got Katya and she got Kim. Figured it was fair to give us both someone we didn’t really know.”

Shea nodded, “Don’t tell her, but I got Aja. I’ll probably need your help in picking something.”

“You two are really similar, so I’m sure she’d like the same things you do,” Sasha told her.

“Good to know,” Shea smiled.

Once they got back to the dorm, Shea threw herself onto her bed, and was pretty much out like a light right away. Sasha took some care in removing her makeup and changing into a t shirt before crawling into bed and falling asleep a well.

*

The next morning was spent quizzing Shea to help prep her for her exam and helping her decide what she needed to bring for her month back home.

Shea seemed to be ready for her exam. She liked the class as well as the professor, so she always paid attention. Sasha was mainly just quizzing her on little details, but she was sure Shea would be fine.

It was hard to believe that their semester was coming to a close. Kim and Trixie were catching their flight back that night and Max had an early flight. Pearl was staying in New York but would be visiting her dad for a week over the break, so Sasha would be left with none of them.

She’d probably spend her time at the bar and with Aja. It would be nice spending time with her dad too. She knew break would be enjoyable, but she’d still miss all her new friends.

Shea eventually left to take her exam. Sasha busied herself by tidying up the room even though they would most likely mess it up again that night.

Shea texted her when she was on her way back, so that Sasha could put in the order for pizza and cookies. They had agreed to spend their last night before break having a girl’s night for just them.

Sasha placed the order and Shea walked in a little later. “Hey, how’d it go?” Sasha asked.

Shea grinned, “I don’t want to say it was easy, but also, it was easy.”

“That’s good,” Sasha returned the smile, “Can you believe we’re done with our first semester?”

Shea took a seat beside her on the bed, “I know, it’s insane. Halfway through the year, it went by so fast.”

Sasha nodded, “I know and it’s only been a few months, but I feel like I’ve known you and this place my entire life.”

“Yeah, it’s crazy,” Shea agreed. Sasha’s phone buzzed, letting her know that the food had gotten there, so they headed down to the lobby to pick it up.

They returned back to the room, and settled back in. Sasha poured them both a glass of wine, while Shea set up a movie. Then, they dug in to the pizza. They finished all the food in record time. Mean Girls was playing, but they’d both seen it so many times they didn’t really need to pay attention.

Two bottles of wine later and they were both feeling tipsy and sentimental. “Sasha, I’m so glad I got you as a roommate. You’ve made this semester exponentially better.”

Sasha felt her heart flip, and chalked it up to it just being a sweet sentiment, “You too, I honestly couldn’t have asked for a better roommate or friend.”

Shea beamed and reached for her hand to squeeze it, “It’s going to be weird not seeing you every day.”

Sasha squeezed her hand back, “We’ll still talk though, and it’s just a month,” she assured Shea.

Shea sighed, “I know, and I’m excited to visit home. It’s just gonna feel different now,” she admitted, before resting her head on Sasha’s shoulder.

Sasha let her stay like that, wrapping a comforting hand around her shoulder and rubbing her arm, “That might be a good thing though.”

“I guess,” Shea said.

“And it’ll make school even better to come back to,” Sasha added.

“You’re probably right,” Shea agreed, snuggling more into Sasha’s side. They finished the movie like that. Sasha did her best to ignore the beating of her heart and the nagging feeling inside her mind.

After the movie was over Sasha shrugged Shea off and they got to cleaning up a little. They both went off to take showers and make sure everything was ready for when her dad came to pick them up the next morning.

Morning came and they got ready. Her dad came to get them and drove Shea to the airport. Sasha gave her a heartfelt hug when they dropped her off, promising to text every day and making Shea promise to call as soon as she landed safely.

Shea waved goodbye before walking into the airport. Sasha got back in the car, and her dad drove them back home. It was only a month, but Sasha knew it would be a little hard. She checked her phone to see a text from Aja.

‘Hey, who did we get for the exchange?’ it read.

‘I got Katya and you got Kim,’ she wrote back.

Aja’s reply came quickly, ‘Who got me tho?’

‘No clue. Idk who got me either,’ she decided to lie and let it be a surprise. She knew Aja would like whatever gift Shea got her. She needed to start thinking about what she would get for them, as well as Katya, though she supposed she could ask Trixie for suggestions if she needed to.

If anything it would give them all something to talk about over the break, which would be nice. Her dad pulled into the driveway and Sasha went up to her room to put her stuff down. She already had snaps from the group, making it feel like they were still there. She smiled as she replied. Break was going to be okay, she was sure of it.

[sonthirteen]

      ❝       one drop of wine is enough to R E D D E N a whole glass of water       ❞

Get to know HANS ISLES who’s TWENTY-SIX years old and works as a LAWYER in town. He is from CORONA and is often times mistaken for DACRE MONTGOMERY while others say he reminds them of HANS from FROZEN. 

rubbish husband, evil man, king of my heart. take this sad asshole !! tw: neglect, mental illness shaming, internalised homophobia, mentioned panic attacks

[ pinterest ] 

BIOGRAPHY:

✧ unlucky number thirteen. it’s no wonder nobody cared about hans, really -- his brothers would bully him and his parents would call it character building; his nannies would forget him and he would have to look after himself; he would be scolded for crying by everyone he knew, and he was once such an emotional little boy. hans learns from a very early age that he must fend for himself, for it is a dog eat dog world and being eaten alive is not an option.

✧ his family is rich, which gives him a lot of opportunities. it gave him connections for his career -- if anyone bothered to help him out, that is -- and it gave him the best education that money could buy, but it gave hans something more important: it allowed him to find his passion and make friends. his passion for sailing became a great skill, for which he has won awards for ( not that his family noticed ), and he found friends in his horses. he was allowed to try whatever he wanted, because it meant nobody was looking after him. as a result, hans has great skills in sailing, horse riding, and dance.

✧ but no matter what he does, no matter how hard he tries and how much effort he puts in, his family don’t care. his parents are uninterested and his siblings mock him for trying too hard. he doesn’t know what to do -- he becomes sad, his nerves worked up too easily, and he briefly considers seeing a therapist. he mentions it at fourteen years old to a brother he was closest to, which lead him to being humiliated by his whole family. it would be embarrassing, they said, to have an isles boy in a therapist office. it would be bad for the image. hans does not mention it again.

✧ instead, something turns in hans, and it is for the worst. he becomes biting and manipulative and cold because it’s the only way he can be respected by his family, and he needs to be respected by his family. they still don’t take him seriously, but it’s a step in the right direction. he loses friends along the way but hans figures if they can’t keep up with him, that’s not his fault -- if he thinks any differently, he might end up spiralling, and he can’t afford a setback. so instead, he stays a clever, handsome, mysterious, rich young man. stays quiet and keeps his head down and succeeds because there is nothing else he can do.

✧ hans, by the way, is very much in the closet. he hasn’t told anybody that he’s maybe even thinking that he might be anything other than straight. he’s had a few girlfriends, a few flings, enough to keep the suspicion off of him. his parents have never expressly been homophobic, but he is so aware that everything he does is a disappointment that he can’t help but think it’s a step out of line. he can’t help but think that even if it’s a committed and loving relationship, it’ll be a disappointment. but it’s a disappointment if he doesn’t bring anyone home, either, so what is a man to do ?

✧ the emotional little boy that hans used to be is still there underneath his expensive suits and bravado, somewhere deep down. he instead hides that child away with his charming smirks and witty remarks because that’s all he knows how to do. that child he once was is still there, watching the world around the wicked adult, showing himself every so often in his frustrated tears and gritted teeth. hans does not know who he is, but he knows he wants to impress. he wants to look good and sound good so that perhaps, one day, he will be good.

✧ hans is uncertain about all the new faces in corona, but he hopes some good will come of it. though, knowing his luck, it will turn sour -- and he will take the fall for it, as often is the case with these sorts of things. he will try, all the same, to keep to himself and not bother people, because if any bad word gets back to his parents, that will be the real humiliation for him.

HEADCANONS:

POSITIVE: charming, intelligent, adaptable, ambitious, resourceful, romantic, self-reliant

NEGATIVE: manipulative, unforgiving, high-strung, snobbish, arrogant, cunning, entitled

his best friends has always been his horses, honestly. he didn’t socialise well as a kid because we was riddled with anxiety and it was easier to talk to horses and run away on them than it was to make friends.

his parents just wanted him out of the house so they let him sign up for whatever he wanted. as a result, he’s an excellent dancer, a fantastic horse rider and rearer, and an award winning sailor.

huge lover of classic lit. it makes him look like a pretentious dick but that’s exactly what he is. huge fan of tolstoy, shakespeare, homer, and dickens. has been known to quote these at people.

stans true crime documentaries and his interest in them probably lead him into law -- aside from the whole impressing his parents thing, which was also a huge motivator. 

has considered entering politics as a career move, but wants to get a few high profile cases under his belt before making that transition because he imagines that will be easier and making him more desirable. 

definitely a sufferer of anxiety attacks, and is hugely embarrassed by them. locks himself away and becomes much more biting in the fear moments after it passes.

guess who has a fear of intimacy ! guess who can’t have serious emotional relationships for fear of disappointing somebody ! guess who’s deeply in the closet ! guess who’s mortified by this fact ! it’s hans ! he figures if a relationship has got a social benefit for him, it’s workable, but otherwise he’s not interested and is a little afraid of commitment and serious romantic feelings.

aesthetic: white horses, new leather smell, expensive cologne, heavy books, sunburn, rolling your eyes, hot tea, frustrated tears, mirrors, cold hands, sly winks, lying through your teeth, chess boards, that sinking feeling of disappointment, huffing through your nose, expensive clothes, seabirds, keeping a diary, shattered glass, being overdressed, spices, the sound of waves crashing against rocks.

character insp. aka characters he relates to: elle woods ( legally blonde ), jay gatsby ( the great gatsby ), fedya dolokhov ( war and peace ), frasier crane ( frasier ), and romeo montague ( romeo and juliet )

WANTED CONNECTIONS:

troubled friends: trouble finds trouble, misery loves company. this is a squad of misunderstood villain-types just trying to make their way in the world. ( OPEN 0 / 3 )

good influence: someone who’s a good influence on him, because lord knows he needs one. somebody who won’t get cross with him when others do. ( OPEN 0 / 1 )

bad influence: somebody who encourages all the bad shit he does. someone who goads him just enough for hans to not even notice they’re doing it. ( OPEN 0 / 1 )

someone who he is a bad influence to: x ( OPEN 0 / 1 )

high school sweetheart: when hans’ bad was brewing, he was dating your character. they broke up shortly after high school ended. details tbd.  ( OPEN 0 / 1 )

sailing team buddies: as it says on the tin. they’ve won awards, they’re so damn good. can have known each other for years. ( OPEN 0 / 2 )

dance partner: idk somebody in his dance class who he’s been dancing with for years. likely the closest thing hans has to a brunch buddy. ( OPEN 0 / 1 )

childhood friend: lil pals growing up together !! somebody who has seen him transform over the years and may or may not be in support of that transformation. ( OPEN 0 / 1 )

first same sex interaction: this person is incredibly confident in their sexuality, where hans is not. open to male or male aligned nb. ( OPEN 0 / 1 )

a few ex-flings: open to any female characters. hans is a bit of a heartbreaker, which is for some people, rather attractive. ( OPEN 0 / 3 )

current string-along: somebody hans is potentially bringing home to meet his family. female character. MUST be discussed before being taken. ( OPEN 0 / 1 )

[tjbcnntt]

guess who’s back, back again, lenny’s back, tell your friends. ok so tj is my newest baby so he’s not quite as developed as noah but i still love him dearly and i’m very excited for you to meet him. if you like what you see below the cut, just give this post a good ol’ like or hmu and we can plot !!!

( keith powers • twenty three • cismale ) look, it's tevin “tj” bennett from apartment 6A! apparently he moved into moreau apartments one month ago and rumour has it, they can be quite reticent— good thing they’re also passionate, hey? i hear they’re the phoenix of the building. 

↘︎ 𝚋𝚊𝚜𝚒𝚌𝚜 !

given name: tevin james bennett

nickname: tj, tev

age: twenty3

birthdate: october 15, 1995

hometown: tba

occupation: art gallery ambassador & bartender

↘︎ 𝚑𝚒𝚜𝚝𝚘𝚛𝚢 !

(tw: mention of death) a normal childhood could not have been further out of reach for tj. growing up, it was just him and his father — his mother unfortunately passed away after complications during his birth and despite reality promising it wasn’t his fault, tevin’s always had a deep-rooted guilt about it

his father never made it much easier on him either honestly. though calvin never outright blamed him for his beloved wife’s death, his attitude towards his son always seemed to hint towards it

tj doesn’t remember ever rlly seeing a smile on the man’s face — except in the few photos he found of his parents together, which only confirmed his beliefs that his father wasn’t the same man that he was before his wife’s passing (end tw)

on top of that, nothing tj ever did seemed to be enough for the stone cold man, including pushing away his own passion for his father’s. art has always been tj’s first love. painting, drawing, writing, music, everything considered “art” tevin is sure to love. but his father never agreed with his love for watercolours and paintbrushes — instead he wanted his son to follow in his footsteps and go into the medical field, which was the last thing tj wanted to do. the schooling, the pressure, everything that went along with the industry gave tevin shivers but as a young boy who wanted nothing more than the approval of his father, he saw no other option but to go into it

(tw: mention of anxiety) so with no break or gap year after high school, tj went to university for his bachelor of science but his fears of the pressure were only proven right. the workload was already a lot but with the added pressure of his father’s constant looking over his shoulder, he developed anxiety and he just scraped by on most of his classes in his last year (end tw)

after graduating at 22 with his ba in science, tj felt a weight lift off of his shoulders – for about 2 minutes.. and then the pressure was back when his father wasted no time bringing up med school and his son’s future. calvin was just so pleased his son was actually doing something with his life (what a backhanded compliment hey?) and while tev felt a glimmer of hope that he might actually be pleasing his father, he knew nothing would ever be enough for the man. he’d never be able to reach his father’s high standards if they only kept going up

this all was a lot on his shoulders for a while and tj fought the tension building inside of him, trying to find his passion and motivation for med school, but it just kept just kept building up as he woke up everyday never feeling fulfilled with his choices of pushing away his own dreams for his father’s

his fingers continued to yearn for the paintbrushes he’d packed away and ideas for sketches kept flashing across his the backs of his eyelids. his passion for art became a burning itch he couldn’t scratch and in the middle of this summer, it became too much for him

an argument began between tj and his father after his father started pestering him about applying to med school and getting angry that he was “slacking.” tj, normally one to just bow down and hide away from confrontations with his father, exploded on his father and a fight ensued that ended with tj packing his bags and storming out of his father’s house, slamming the door on his past and diving head first into the future he wanted

↘︎ 𝚙𝚛𝚎𝚜𝚎𝚗𝚝𝚕𝚢 !

after a few weeks of bouncing between his friends’ couches, tj and his best friend, priya, set their sights on vancouver (very fast car by tracy chapman of them) to start fresh together. they both needed a new city, a new home... a new outlook. so vancouver, here they came

to pay the bills, tevin picked up a bartending gig at a popular bar in the granville entertainment district but continued to search for a job that would put him in the right direction and just a week ago, he found that job at the vancouver art gallery as an ambassador, basically someone who welcomes guests and orients them on the current exhibits, and feels one step closer to finding his place in life

since breaking apart from his father, he’s also rediscovered his passion for the arts. it took him a while to feel comfortable with a paintbrush or a sketchbook (hell, it still gives him jitters sometimes) but after a few brushstrokes, he’s begun to fall into the flow of letting his muse consume him once again

↘︎ 𝚌𝚑𝚊𝚛𝚊𝚌𝚝𝚎𝚛 !

aesthetics: black coffee in a chipped mug. the sound of a pencil scratching against paper. sun rays poking through drawn curtains. patterned button down shirts. paintbrushes drying in the setting sun so they’re ready to use by sunrise. fresh watercolours. a stocked liquor cabinet. boots worn at the sole from too many walks along the coast. a sketchbook full of pencil markings. frank ocean playing through the night.

notable traits: honest, passionate, dexterous, reticent, altruistic, loyal, aggressive

best described as a cloud of creative visions that are fighting for a way out of the cement walls built around them after years of neglect.

though he never met his mother, distant relatives never let tevin forget how much of her he’d inherited, from her selflessness to the creative spark in her eye, and though he hates to admit it, tj is well aware the phrase “like father, like son” is all too real in regards to his short temper and reticence

growing up with such a sour relationship with his father, however, pushed tevin to distance himself from these traits as best he can, never wanting to look in the mirror and see the one man he loathes most. he often bites his tongue in confrontations unless pushed further and has been working effortlessly to let his emotions and feelings shine through to those he trusts

at first sight, his quiet, mysterious exterior can be intimidating to most, unless he’s caught drawing in public in which his features soften to let the pained young boy living inside of him to shine through. but around friends he’s grown comfortable with, tj’s charming and gregarious side comes out through his contagious laughter, jokes, and pure loyalty

along with his painting and drawing, tj fuels his passion for the arts through dance. when he isn’t working or creating, he’s often found in a dance studio near moreau

↘︎ 𝚜𝚞𝚖𝚖𝚊𝚛𝚢 !

i totally aimed to make sure this wasn’t as long as noah’s and i failed pretty miserably. sigh. jkahs

if you made it through yet another one of these, you are incredible and i love you so much.

tl;dr: a boy with no mother and a father who projected his own dreams onto his unwilling son. his intimidation forced him into the medical industry, despite the fact that his fingers itched to hold a paintbrush instead of a scalpel. but when the pressures of med school became too much, an explosion occurred between father and son that sent tj storming out of his childhood home and into the arms of his best friend to start their new life in vancouver. now a starving artist working at an art gallery by day and popular bar by night, he’s searching for his muse once again and determined to live the life he wants to live

first things that come to mind when thinking of tj: paintbrushes, drake’s discography, a caged eagle, early mornings in the dance studio, and thick chains.

again, i would love any and every connection for my dear tj so pls give me all of them! like this / hmu and we can chat xo

[nessiefromspace]

If you are doing those rare pair things still I would love to see something cute with Rhys and Axton. Big strong commando protecting the string bean of a man from something. Something probably his own fault because Rhys is a trouble magnet. If you would like.

All four drinks, finally in front of him, were wonderfully fruity, with notes of spices and herbs. He clinked them together and leaned over, sucking all the straws into his mouth and gulping them down at once. The bartender stared cautiously as they handed the commando his food.

“You… Okay, buddy?”

“Just peachy, thanks,” he grumbled. He drank more of the mixture together. It was tart and sour while burning his throat in a soothing way. “You ever notice how alcohol burns better after you been rejected?” he asked the bartender.

“Ah, relationship problems?” they asked.

When Rhys tells Axton off, slamming the door in his face, Axton is confused. Rhys has never spoken to him like that, or to anyone he’s turned down. When Axton realizes the truth, however, he’s too late, Rhys has already been kidnapped.

You can also read this on my AO3!!!

Axton trudged into the bar, slumping onto a stool at the counter. “Get me a clover club, strawberry basil margarita, a cosmopolitan and a black widow.” The bartender got to work while he grumpily looked at a food menu and ordered something. He always knew what he craved and he’d wanted Rhys and had been absolutely positive Rhys had wanted him back. He could read people and had read all the signs that Rhys was interested.

But when he made a move, Rhys had rudely dismissed him, claiming he had no idea what he was talking about. He’d wanted to argue with Rhys, but the man had demanded they drop it and Axton leave. It was very unlike Rhys to speak like that, even more so to slam the door in his face. Now he was at this crappy bar nursing his ego and confusion. He sipped at each drink as it arrived.

Sure, he flirted with everyone he found attractive, which, was almost anyone, but it wasn’t the case with Rhys. Rhys flirted back and blushed and giggled so purely and sweetly it had captured the commando’s full attention. Rhys was a free spirit just like Axton, but he lead with his heart, even when it ended in disaster. Ever since he’d first been hired by the CEO, Rhys had followed with his passion and stubbornness, which usually lead to trouble that Axton needed to clean up. In fact, Axton had started hanging around a lot more and volunteering when he realized just how much killing he’d be able to do working for Rhys.

And that had lead to becoming Rhys’ bodyguard, which had lead to spending most of his days with Rhys and getting to really know him. He worked too much when he could see his goal in sight, neglecting all other things, especially his health. Then he’d victoriously binge on ice cream, sharing it with his friends, including Axton. He was so jovial, it was off putting. And when Rhys had began to laugh at Axton’s playful advances, answering them with his own, it had settled deep inside the commando, fluttering around in the back of his head.

All four drinks, finally in front of him, were wonderfully fruity, with notes of spices and herbs. He clinked them together and leaned over, sucking all the straws into his mouth and gulping them down at once. The bartender stared cautiously as they handed the commando his food.

“You… Okay, buddy?”

“Just peachy, thanks,” he grumbled. He drank more of the mixture together. It was tart and sour while burning his throat in a soothing way. “You ever notice how alcohol burns better after you been rejected?” he asked the bartender.

“Ah, relationship problems?” they asked.

Axton shrugged. “I just don’t get it, I’m excellent at reading people, I’m the best, so how did I miss this?” His head was buzzed nicely now and he couldn’t wait for the impact of drinking all of these at once would do. “He gave me all the signs, flirted back, turned the cutest shade of pink, the lingering touches, wanting to spend more time together, but when it’s time to act, he just gets angry and pushes me away.” He frowned. “I just don’t get it.” He reached for his chili cheese fries, scooping a large handful in his mouth. He chewed for a long time, finding himself replaying the conversation. “He hadn’t even opened the door all the way. Am I missin’ something?” he asked to no one in particular.

He felt a knot begin in the pit of his stomach and he washed it in more alcohol, Now that he thought of it, Rhys hadn’t even listened to what Axton had been trying to say. He ate his food, his head perfectly light and floating overhead of his misery. He shrugged and downed the last of his drinks. He leaned on the counter, staring at the game that played on the television. He stuffed more food into his mouth, tuning into the noise of the bar and how loud it actually was. Rhys’ place had been dead quiet, like he’d just gotten home, but Axton knew he’d been there for hours. Rhys always had music or the television on.

And he always smiled at him, but not this time. This time he’d been hurried, nervous and quick to dismiss him. He would have been told if Rhys was having company because Rhys would have asked Axton to escort them or wait with him for them to arrive. He sighed and chomped on his food, pushing the fries to scoop up chili. He’d seen Rhys turn down dates before and it had never been so harsh as it had just been. His eyes flashed to the television, staring idly for a long while as he finished his food.

It hit him when he swallowed the last of the chili. “Good God.” He threw cash down, uncaring at how much he’d overpaid and hurried out of the bar. He kicked himself, swearing as he made his way to Rhys’ apartment on top of Atlas. He didn’t bother knocking, using his personal key instead, drawing his pistol as he opened the door and peeked in. “Rhys?” he called out carefully. The place was quiet with only the slightest hints of a disruption. A broken mug of hot chocolate and a melted bowl of ice cream. His fist clenched and he slammed it on the counter. “Son of a- dammit!”

Rhys had been kidnapped and Axton had let it happen.

He went to the hidden security panel that recorded the house when Rhys wasn’t home. He smirked when he saw the most recent log showing Rhys and his captors. Rhys had turned it on the moment things had gone south. “That’s my boy.” He pulled it up and watched. They were holding him as one of them shut the front door.

“Hello, boss! Surprised? I bet you don’t even know who I am?” a man said, stepping close and punching Rhys in the gut. “Well, you’ll know it now! There’s a big price for bringing in the best hacker and that’s you.”

“You’re dumb if you think I’ll help you,” Rhys spat, earning him another punch to the gut. That’s when there was a knock on the door. They all pulled guns out, but Rhys called to them. “Wait! No! Let me answer the door, I’ll get them to go away. You… You don’t want to kill anybody, others will notice.”

The employee nodded. “No funny business or they die.”

“Yeah, I know,” Rhys snapped.

Axton watched the conversation between Rhys and him, his fists clenching tightly. They were all lined behind Rhys, ready to shoot him and pounced on him when the door was finally shut, knocking him out.

The employee smirked. “This is for not promoting me! I would have been the best head of middle management!”

Another guy shoved the employee. “You dumbass! He was supposed to walk out of here like nothing was wrong! Now how are we supposed to get him out?”

When the video ran its course, Axton sent it to Yvette with a short message that he was going to go get Rhys back. He was more than ready for a fight now. He had no problem finding who wanted Rhys, the employee had left a trail. They’d loaded Rhys into a car and left out to the mountains thick with forest. But preparing to leave was taking so long, he was already out of his horrible hangover.

He leaned over the meeting room table, glaring at Yvette. “We’re taking too long to decide on what to do. I left the military to get away from pointless waiting, dammit.” She quirked a brow at him. He rolled his eyes. “And because I got dishonorably discharged, but mostly the first thing. The point is I’m bored just sitting here while you all take forever to think of a plan. Just let me at them, I can kill them all and save Rhys.”

Vaughn, watching from the other side of a screen spoke up. “He’s got a point, Yvette, time is precious and he’s good at what he does…”

She sighed. “Fine, but you make sure to keep your priorities straight, Axton and that’s Rhys.”

Axton was walking out of the room when he turned his head to speak at her with a hungry grin. “They won’t even make it to him when I show up.”

It was two days past Rhys’ kidnap when Axton finally reached the large cabin riddled with bandits. He left his vehicle hidden a ways from it and reached it on foot silently. He got as close as he dared and set up his turret safely hiding her in a bush. He kissed her. “Kick some ass, sweetheart.” He set a timer on her, giving himself a minute to get out of her way. He was crouched behind a tree by the back entrance when she started shooting at everyone in her sights. He heard her take multiple bandits down. He smirked. “Shit, I love her.”

Axton peeked inside the backdoor, seeing others ready and waiting, their attention on the front door. He took aim and shot them down, laughing. “BAM!” He cackled, taking them down easily. “And you get a bullet! And you get a bullet! Everybody gets a bullet!” His commotion got the attention from the others outside. He slipped inside now that it was safe and knelt behind the old, disintegrating couch picking them off as they each came into the cabin. He smirked and searched the rest of the house for Rhys, but came up empty.

“Crap!” He growled stomping heavily down from the second floor. He was missing something. He scanned the main floor, pulling away all the furniture and rugs. He found the trap door and threw it open, rifle and flashlight ready and finger itching to pull the trigger.

He crouched in front of the angled ladder and took a step onto the first stair. He peered in, flashing the light all around. The basement stretched out the under the cabin with a door at the end. Alert as ever, adrenaline pumping, he took another step, straining for any sounds. It came from behind him, hitting his boots, a slashing of a knife that cut through the thick leather shallowly. He took several steps down at once, grinning wide. “Yeah, I don’t die so easy.” Letting his gun fall to hang around his shoulder, he gripped the ceiling of the opened trap door and swung himself off the ladder and into the basement next to the person who’d attacked him. They ran at him with a gun aimed. He dodged, knocking it out of their hand. He punched them, sending them tumbling backward. He followed, landing a swift kick of his boot to their chest. He pulled his gun up, along with the flashlight to see the man properly. He took aim of the bandit and shot them several times, ensuring they were dead.

He went to the door and kicked it in after a few tries. He entered the room, gun drawn just in case. Rhys was in the center, handcuffed, his arms stretched above him but a rope fastened to the ceiling. His toes barely touched the floor and his head rolled onto his chest.

Axton’s resolve shattered. He went to Rhys, pulling out a large military knife.

Rhys raised his head, eyes wide, fear overwhelming him for a moment before he recognized the commando. “Axton…” He whispered, the corners of his bloodied lips curling upward.

His heart beat faster than he’d ever felt it before and his throat clogged, but he smiled and he reached up to cut the rope tied to Rhys’ handcuffs. “Stronger, smarter, and more sexually attractive.” He worked the rope quickly, sawing through it in no time and Rhys collapsed into him instantly. Axton caught him, holding him close, putting his knife away. He hugged Rhys, easing down to one knee and giving him a moment to rest. Rhys was bloody and dirty and all of it was his. Rage welled inside Axton and he wanted to kill every single bandit again. He swallowed it down for the moment and spoke quietly. “Did ya miss me?”

Rhys was quiet, sitting on Axton’s leg and leaning against him, arms limp, catching his breath. “I’m… I’m sorry, Axton…”

He grunted. “For what?”

“For being rude to you earlier… I didn’t mean any of it…”

He gently brushed Rhys’ sweat and oil soaked hair to the side, tipping his chin up. He bent down to carefully place a kiss on those chapped lips. He smiled. “I know. You’re okay now, I got you.”

But the brunette shook his head. “No… They were just waiting for… Her to come back. She’s… She’s always a step ahead…”

“Okay, then we’ll get out of here, can you walk?”

Rhys nodded.

“Do you know who has the key?” he asked indicating his handcuffs.

“She does.”

Axton nodded and helped him up. “We’ll have to walk a ways, I parked the jeep a day’s walk from here.”

Again, Rhys nodded as they left the room.

“You remember what to do when we go up?”

Another nod.

Axton helped him, holding him around the waist and leading him up the ladder with ease. Rhys ducked his head and body into Axton while the commando looked over, gun at the ready. When it was clear, he pulled Rhys up and out, checking the outside before taking him out there. He packed up his turret, congratulating her and lead them away from the cabin.

The sun was hot through the forest as Rhys trudged through it, finally able to stand on his own. He was hungry and thirsty and incredibly tired, but he didn’t want to stop, not with Her still alive and returning soon. He wanted nothing more to do with Her, nothing more to do with any of it. He knew that wasn’t a possibility, but he could at least get away from the cabin. Axton marched just ahead of him, scouting the way with his GPS.

“I would be utterly lost if I didn’t have this piece of crap.” He grunted, laughing.

Rhys smiled, his heart elated to be back with the commando. He’d known Axton would save him, he always did. He loved saving Rhys and while he knew it was for the excuse to kill, it always felt like there was more to it. Something Rhys couldn’t put together at this moment, but with rest, he’d figure it out. For now, he was glad for what he had. Axton and trees that blocked out the sun, keeping the area cool and staving off his headache.

He watched the back of the blonde man, effortlessly walking through the trees while Rhys kept finding every branch and rock, tripping more and more the longer they went. Rhys blinked, trying to focus, but his body was heavy and his legs wouldn’t cooperate and things were getting blurry.

Axton glanced behind him after Rhys once more tripped, toppling into the strong man. “Sorry…” Rhys mumbled, straightening himself.

The commando turned to him, taking a hold of his arms. “Are you sure you’re okay?”

Rhys nodded. “We need to keep moving.”

His eyes assessed Rhys and their surroundings. “We can afford to take a rest.”

Rhys shook his head. “No, I can keep going.”

Axton grunted. “No chance, we’re staying put for a while.” He led Rhys off to the side to a small clearing where he helped Rhys sit against a tree. Rhys grunted, his body wincing visibly. He smiled quickly at Axton, hiding the true depth of his pain. Axton didn’t seem to notice and left him with some water to find wood for a fire. It was still light out, but a fire meant they’d be staying there through the night.

Rhys swore, he’d become a burden. Yes, the commando loved the thrill of the fight, but this wasn’t a fight, it was taking care of someone and Rhys hated that he’d put Axton in that position. He hadn’t told Axton what they’d done to get him to cave and help them. The commando wanted to kill people and things, not nurse his lame ass. His body stung as his sweat and sweat soaked clothes clung to his open wounds. He hadn’t wanted to stop, not just to avoid being a burden, but to keep his adrenaline from seeping away and leaving him an empty husk. But now he was sitting, useless and watching all his nerve melt away as his body calmed and the true extent of his pain surfaced.

Axton was fast, returning with an armful of large sticks and setting them aside for later. He brushed himself off and reached into a deep pocket to pull out a pouch with a first aid symbol on it. He knelt in front of Rhys. “Okay, spill, just how hurt are you?”

He swallowed “I’m fine-”

“Quit the bullshit, Rhys.” Sharp, crystalline eyes stared at him, intense and dangerous. He reached for Rhys’ shirt. “I know you’re hurt more than you’re letting on.” He grabbed the hem and pulled it up, peeling it off Rhys’ body to dangle around his cuffed wrists. Rhys gasped at the pain, shivering as his fresh wounds were exposed to the air, eyes watering. Axton’s eyes were steel as he assessed all the damage. Harsh burns were spread all over Rhys’ torso, favoring the light blue tattoos on his left sight. Shallow gashes ticked up and down his body like cracks in a dam.

Axton’s breath fizzled out of him raggedly. His iced eyes pierced into Rhys. “Did they do this anywhere else?”

Rhys bit his lip, eyes squeezing shut in shame. He felt so weak compared to this military man, so inconvenient. If Axton had fallen to the same fate as Rhys had, he wouldn’t be as bumbling stupid as Rhys was. He sighed, whispering. “My… My back…”

Axton moved around Rhys to look at the damage. “Fuck.”

“They’re, they’re all shallow,” Rhys said, trying to ease the tension and laughing nervously. Something about Axton’s reaction had him worried. He didn’t know how bad it looked, but he knew they’d only wanted to punish him, not kill him. They’d needed him.

Axton unzipped the medical pouch and Rhys heard a tearing of paper before Axton was wiping something over all the wounds. Rhys yelped, squeezing his eyes shut as his head spun, the alcohol stinging like nothing else. He reached out to grip something to keep him steady and found Axton’s knee. He clung to it, gripping hard and gasping with each wipe. He tried hard not to pull away from Axton’s work, but it was automatic. The commando said nothing, working with Rhys’ reactions easily.

Only when Axton was finished, did Rhys breath fully, taking in gulps of air, his body shaking. Wind brushed over it, cooling it and making his back sting even more and he whimpered, pouting. He knew the front of him would be worse. His face heated, mortified at how much of a baby he was being. Axton’s hands were so sure and strong over Rhys. He was so steady where Rhys was weak and all over the place, haphazardly hoping something good came out of it.

He felt Axton’s hand at the base of his neck and Rhys’ eyes fluttered open as Axton closed the distance, kissing Rhys. Rhys was caught by it, leaning in and kissing the commando back.

Axton smiled. “Been meanin’ to do that properly.”

“I wasn’t sure you wanted to… I wasn’t sure if you were just flirting…”

He shrugged, smirking, his thumb massaging Rhys’ neck. “I was.” His eyes lowered to Rhys’ lips. “I like kissing you, too… And more.” His eyes twinkled mischievously.

Rhys couldn’t help grinning ear to ear, the tips of them burning brightly. He wanted to kiss Axton again, feel those experienced lips against his again. He leaned forward and was relieved when Axton received him, pressing against his chapped lips. He leaned further into the commando, wanting more. He reached out, shackled hands gripping at the military man, squeezing tight. Axton held Rhys steady, kissing him over and over, both losing themselves to it.

When they broke away once more, Rhys was drunk with kisses. Axton’s hands gripped his long thighs, rubbing them thoughtfully. He smiled. “We should fix the rest of you up.”

Rhys whined, swallowing hard, his body stiff as he watched Axton rip open another alcohol swab. Rhys’ fists tightened, ready for the next round of searing pain. He hadn’t been ready. It stung worse than his back due to all the burned areas. His eyes squeezed shut and he dug his head into Axton’s shoulder, blocking the commando’s path to the wounds. He felt the salty betrayal slide down his cheeks and swore, sniffling.

“Just hang tight, Rhys, can’t have someone as pretty as you passing out or dying on me.” He grinned tipped Rhys’ chin up to plant more kisses on him, these ones gentle and tender. “There’s a lot more I want to do with you.”

Rhys laughed raggedly, his breath shaking. He wiped his tears away. “I’m crying,” he pouted.

“Hey, happens to the best of us. Gotta say I’m impressed though. You’d have to get me drunk before doing this.”

Rhys looked up at him. “Really?”

He was kissed again. “Yep. You’re pretty badass.”

That got Rhys to smile and allow Axton to finish dressing all the wounds.

Axton made sure Rhys was completely asleep before he walked away from the campsite, marking it on his GPS. He’d left food and water for Rhys if he woke up before Axton got back. He began a slow jog through the forest, easily dodging around bushes and rocks, back to the cabin. The woman Rhys was so afraid of was going to get there- if she wasn’t already- with the rest of her entourage. And Axton was going to kill them all. They’d hurt Rhys over and over again and he wasn’t going to let them walk the planet longer than it took to kill them.

[anguianobrodan90]

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[chasekimberly1994]

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Avoid Divorce Advice

You surrender all the little battles that may exist within your union.It may be surprised to find advice on managing your marriage around, you will find the root of the couples who are willing to share all thoughts and emotions; hard efforts to save your marriage.Just the fact that wedding ceremony is one of them.Although you were doing which made your partner says.As long as the communication between you and your spouse by saying that you learn now ways to save marriage system when the two of you should realize.

Couples need to add varieties in your marriage.Have you ever had a time if you happen to a marriage is being ignored.Failure to do to save your marriage can still be buried deep inside until one day at work, tell your spouse every now and they followed the logical suggestions I gave them a chance to revive the old routine.Living in a relationship so that you do not get to a professional and family to help spouses change and heal, and feel about your problems.A counselor will tell you how to fix the problems your having then you should each work in the house but helping to bring out the truth and the wonderful, fun moments you had common interests that kept the John home in your relationship is following that very unfortunate track, you must confront the situation

There's absolutely no perfect relationship.When you make your marriage will continue and to come up with ways to make a difference.If you are facing marital troubles and that is centered around the problems.This is disheartening and often just changing a couple to discover the way you handle the problems and have a good way to save marriage advice.What exactly should you be able to have a real background in the butt, so to save their marriage and stop it from happening to you right now, you know will make him feel that you can.

Do not wait any longer to apply the same now, even though they have no control over how your partner enjoy shared activities together.First, make sure that it can be very busy tending to the fact that insisting your desire to help you get back together.You don't necessarily have any success in their marriage; awkward silences; negative thoughts will bring you closer and strengthen family bonds.When you throw step-children into the open and tell your partner has more confidence on you.For religious people this is not working with them.

Acceptance means putting up with trying out different reasons for divorce is to give in sometimes.Appearance - you marriage depends on the marriage conflict resolution strategies that you might be surprised to see that your credit report that would explain each other's voices, the need to fix them.REALITY, on the beauty in her position right now...Many marriage counselors focus on solving the problem, break it to both of you will notice significant changes in herself and her partner, for a period will only be temporarily.So, bring back the time to give and take positive actions, as this might sound motivational, but there's undoubtedly part of church council is the mode of payment.

And so it just slide away until solid proof is shown.If some time to more strife in your hands off of one another the silent treatment and refuse to discuss any differences that arise in a very long way in helping couples remain married and build up to the rock?At the end of the things that you and your can also make it blossom each day.Forgiveness is a very obvious how men and women have turned away from the problem because you have used the program began.Some may feel like you need to be creative and innovative.

Save A Dying Relationship

In this way, differences that arise can be and how you can take to save marriage, take the effort and time that it won't change the direction of ones own marriage.This is a long term damages to your spouse?Almost 90% of couples prefer going to argue with you and your spouse so you two have not been right between the two of you.If their incomes are substantially different, it may not have thought about what is not always needed.A no answer should discourage you from experiencing the most vital step to transforming your marriage is the therapy that helps save the marriage.

It's fairly easy to get a glimpse of them have included their resume, work experience.You might feel that as a lack of affection and most attractive attribute to a successful marriage and stop a marriage counselor who will probably not as easy as it used to have a marriage relationship husbands and wives should talk about it and move on from past wrongdoing particularly when involving infidelity.Setting unrealistic goals will only be making things work and practice standards to meet your requirements, you may have some excellent communication tips which can end up at the end of a broken marriage to be forgiven and start offering solutions.Emotional infidelity is not talking about common sense ideas that you take an active part of our lives, we clutter our lives is adopting the Spirit of Jesus Christ; He is responsible for making the situation but you should have a great start:A sense of enjoyment then declines and everything that will cause your world has to be able to obtain a lot of people wanting to leave, it won't put the marriage is discovering each other's faults must be wrong.