#(so hopefully they can move with us this summer wherever we go.)

[kirby-the-gorb]

[nycbaby21]

progress

I haven't post in a really long time I had a lot going on but I am back now. Hopefully you like this :)

"I really don’t like you" + "so you don’t hate me anymore? Progress"

word count: 1,915

“I really just wish the two of you could learn to get along,” Luke sighed holding open the front door of the lakehouse for me. I easily walked under his arm and turned back to look at him. “I’m sorry Lukey, I really am. It’s just he makes it so damn hard to be nice to him,” I groan rolling my eyes throwing my bags on the floor near the door. “Believe me I know how hard it can be, but he is my brother,” he started as he put up the food we had just got up while I leaned again the counter watching himr. “And you are one of my favorite people in the entire world. So if the two of you could be in the same room for more than 20 minutes without arguing, it would be great.”

I thought about the younger boys words as I followed him in dropping my bags by the door. When I was six my family moved into the house next door to the Hughes’. While I am the closest to Quinn in age, Luke is the one I am actually closest with. You could always find Quinn and Jack of practing hockey in some way, but Luke would sit and have a tea party with me or play house with me. He was the absolute sweetest. Ever since the day I met Jack he had became a pain in my ass. He is a very confident guy, which he has every right to be. He is ridiculously talented in hockey, one of the most caring and passionate people I have ever met, and as much as I hate to admit it he is insanly attractive.

The problem with all of that is that he knows all of this too. He always had attention of the girls wherever we went. He always assumes every one is gonna drop at his feet. He constantly makes flirty remarks or calls me princess, and in all honesty I would fall at his feet if his attitude was a little better. Jack reminds me of a peacock so proud to show off his colors, while I would much rather sit on the sidelines and not be noticed. “I’m sorry Luke. I know the constant bickering between the two of us is annoying. I’ll try my very hardest to not let him push me to the point of wanting to smack him,” I say wholeheartedly looking up at my curly haired best friend. He smiles and opens his arms which I quickly walk into.

“Thank you. It means a lot to me,” he says into my hair as we stand in the kitchen holding each other. “Get a room,” I hear behind us and roll my eyes smiling. The voice is unmistakable and I turn locking eyes with Trevor for the first time this summer. "Jealous Zegras,” I smirk walking over and throwing my arms around his neck. His laugh vibrates my chest as he reaches around me and picks me up. He spins us around and I throw my head back laughing. Finally he set me down and I looked up at him. “Always jealous when someone else has their arms around my girl,” he winks and i lightly hit his chest. “Your girl,” I ask raising an eyebrow at the ducks player. “Yeah if she is anyone’s girl, she is mine,” Cole laughs stepping forward and throwing an arm around my shoulders. I laugh and lean into him rest my head on his chest. “I really did miss you dorks,” I laugh looking at the other two boys who just walked into the kitchen. Alex and Jack make their way to the fridge stocking it with the drinks they brought. Afterwards Alex moves over to greet me.

“Hey Lex,” I smile hugging him. “Shortstack,” he laughs ruffling the hair on top of my head. Conversation starts to flow and I feel eyes on me. “What no welcome hug for me princess,” Jack ask blue eyes staring into mine. As I open my mouth to make a smartass remark I look over to Luke who has pleading eyes. I take a deep breath and sigh looking at the older devils player. I walk over to him and give him a side hug trying to not think about how he smells amazing or how I can feel his abs under his shirt. “Nice to see you J,” I smile and walk over to the counter where Alex was standing and hop onto it. Everyone gives me a weird look, besides Luke who mouths “thank you.”

The conversation quickly picked back up and I yawned into my arm, tired from the ride to Michigan from UCLA where I was going to school. Alex noticed and stepped closer and leaned back against me so I could rest my head on his shoulder. “Hey we are finally the same height,” he jokes turning his head as far as he could to see me. His eyes squint with his infectious smile. I stick my tongue out and flick his forehead. He turns back and resumes the debate over whether a hotdog was a sandwich or not. I zone out the conversation and let my eyes wander around the room. They stop on a pair of eyes already looking my way.

Jack is looking intensely at me like he is deep in thought. I raise an eyebrow at him and he snaps out of it and looks away. Later on that night we are all sitting by the firepit drinking or roasting marshmallows. The spot next to me was open and Jack plops down right next to me close enough for our thighs to touch. He throws an arm around the back of the couch and looks over at me. “How’s it going at school princess,” he ask voice filled with cockiness. I resist the urge to smack him for the tired nickname and smile. “It’s okay, ya know just trying to get by. Finished this semester with a decent gpa,” I respond normally and he looks so confused, almost like he wants me to fight back. “I don’t know why you are worried about your gpa when all you do is study. I swear I have to drag her out of the dorm to actually make her see the sunlight,” Alex jokes. I roll my eyes and throw a marshmallow at him. “Dude remember that night we literally had to pick her up and drag her to that party,” Trevor laughed looking at Alex. “Drag is not the word I would use to describe that. You bardged into my room and threw me over your shoulder and made me go out to that stupid party,” I laugh leaning back which meant i was now leaning on Jack’s arm. “When did you guys go to a party,” he asked looking down at me. His eyes hold so much emotion and I go to ask why but I’m cut off. “Trevor wanted to hook up with this girl who was in a sorority at the college and dragged us to the party. He ditched us pretty early on and the of us ending up sitting in the corner making fun of drunk people,” Alex laughed looking my way. “And I scored didn’t I. That doesn’t compare to the wild night Caufiled had last week,” Z laughed turning the attention to the shorter boy.

As the guys went around the circle telling stories about all the girls they hit on Jack remained silent. “ What about you Jacky? How is the night life in Jersey,” Cole asked. I feel him shrug and say,” I wound’t know,” He got up after that to go get another drink and everyone looked to Luke. “He is telling the truth. He hasn’t gone out or on a date for that matter in a while,” he responds and I start to let my mind wander. The thought of him going out and getting girls has always made me a little jealous. That is a small part of why I give him such a hard time because I know he is a hot commodity and I have the smallest thing for him. I think that is why the constant picking and nicknames gets to me so much.

I tell all the guys goodnight hours later and head up to the house. As I was getting ready for bed I hear a faint knock on the door. “It’s open,” I call out running a brush through my tangled hair. Jack peaks his head in through the partly open door and hesitantly walks in. “ What’s up J,” i ask looking at the boy. “ I didn’t realzie you and the guys hung out during the year,” his voice lacks the normal confidence that it always has. I turn and look at him sitting on the bed and smile.  “Yeah every know and then. I see Lex way more than Z but we try and atleast get dinner every once in a while. Why you jealous Jacky boy,” I joke sitting down next to him on the bed.

He looks into my eyes and sighs. “Why haven’t we hung out or had dinner,” he ask forehead crinkled. His question shocks me for a second. “Because you live on the other side of the country,” I laugh not knowing what to say. Even when you are in town visiting you and Luke always go off and do your own thing. Why don’t we,” he asks looking around the room avoiding eye contact. He reminds me of a sad kid and it breaks my heart. “Jack anytime I have stayed in Jersey with you there is never a chance for the two of us to hang out. You are always surround by the team or the dozens of girls,” I say trying not to sound jealous but failing. 

He quickly looks up at me and a smirk slowly makes it way onto his face. “Kinda sounds like you are the jealous one now princess,” he says slowly leaning closer to me and tucking a strand of hair behind my ear. “Why do you call me that,” I whisper all the sudden aware of the closeness between the two of us. He laughs and smiles really big. “When I first saw you playing dress up with Luke one day I thought you were the prettiest girl in the whole world. You were so sweet and deserved to be protected at all times like a princess,” he says meaning every word.

“All this time i thought you were doing it to get under my skin,” I say confused. “The only way I can guarantee you to talk to me is to annoy you,” he laughs looking from my eyes to my lips and back up. I laugh and roll my eyes. “You are such a boy. I swear I really don’t like you,” I laugh wondering where our relationship would be if either one of us would have spoken up. “So you don’t hate me anymore? Progress,” he jokes his laugh filling the room. I lean forward towards him and he thinks I am going in for a kiss but I grab a pillow and smack him with it. That leads to a pillow fight and the two of us spend the rest of the night finally getting along and maybe opening the door to the possibility of more.

[devox2564]

In Your Heart

Chapter 12

AN: It’s been too long away from Y/N and Jakey :) the past few months have been a bitch and I miss the little writing I had time for. Here’s a little fluffy chapter, and hopefully I’ll be more consistent. Maybe we’ll just take it month to month. Thanks for being patient with me <3 - E (this has had little to no editing)

The morning sun shines in a sliver between the curtains, casting a sharp light onto the bed. The dark sheets and downy comforter of Jake’s bed are warm with body heat. You feel him shift next to you and warm hands snake their way around your bare waist.

You yawn a “good morning” to him over your shoulder and he nuzzles his face into the curve of your neck, his lips trailing softly over your skin. It’s the last day he’ll be in town before the European leg of the tour. The two of you have spent the past three mostly confined in this very bedroom.

“You really expect me to survive the next three months without you?” you groan.

“You’ll just have to find another incredibly talented musician to warm your bed while I’m gone.” His low laugh rings out in the stillness.

Your silence is enough to let him know that the question was serious. He pecks his lips up up up to the curve of your jaw and he leans over to look at your face in the sunlight. Jake’s heavy lidded eyes study you for a moment.

“I’ll miss you very much.” He says finally.

“That’s not an answer to my question.” You reply with a placid smile.

“You’ll be working, hopefully finishing up the EP. I’ll be back before you know it. And you can come visit. Paris, Amsterdam, Venice, London, wherever you want to go.” his logic was infuriating.

You huff in response, though he knows you aren’t actually angry with him. You know how this works, and you were expecting it, but that doesn’t make it any easier. He lays back and draws his fingers lazily up and down your arm.

“What are we doing today?” You ask him.

“Exactly this.” He replies, “maybe sex, maybe food, we’ll see where the day takes us.”

“I couldn’t have planned it better myself.” You snuggle further towards him, intending to close your eyes again.

His hands move languidly across your arms, off your fingertips and down the soft curve of your upper thigh.

“More sleep Jake.” You mumble, your words muffled by your pillow.

“You’re sleeping the day away baby.” He croons as his fingertips move back up your body, barely brushing the underside of your breast.

Your skin prickles and your nipples harden at his touch, sore from the activities of the night before. He pulls you closer, pressing you into him. You feel him against you, against the small of your back. His lips and teeth really begin their work now, nipping and kissing at the delicate skin of your neck. All that you can muster is a low “mmmmm”, and he doesn’t need much encouragement to continue.

Taking your breast in his calloused hand, he plucks your nipple gently. Once, twice, three times before pinching harder, almost painfully so. But the bit of pain radiates through your body, drawing your wetness out from beneath the layer of sleep that kept it at bay.

“Hmm does she like that?” Jake purrs into your ear.

His fingertips close again around you, and pinch. Hard. A groan escapes your lips and your back arches into him further. You feel him pulse against you. This is just as much torture for him as it is for you, and that’s the way you prefer it.

Slipping his hand down, he caresses your leg and moves you, hooking it around and over his hip. Jake takes his time, running that torturous hand along the inner part of your thigh. Always close, but never close enough to touch you where you really need. Your hips buck involuntarily, silently asking him to touch you.

After what seems like an eternity, he finally obliges you. His fingers easily find your swollen clit, and swirl slow long circles around it. You moan, the morning summer sun now warming your skin. He dips into you just barely and then retreats, using your wetness to slick his fingertips. Tingling warmth radiates through you as he pleasures you slowly, as if he has all the time in the world.

…

The two of you are walking hand in hand along the sidewalk. Your stomach is almost painfully full after lunch and the early summer sun is almost hot enough for you to be worried about your exposed shoulders. Sweat beads on Jake’s brow, and the slight breeze has plastered a few strands of hair to his forehead. You free your hand to tuck the loose strands behind his ear.

“I’ve been meaning to talk to you about something.” Jake says, breaking the comfortable silence.

You look at him with a raised brow, encouraging him to go on.

“You know,” he begins mischievously “I feel positively terrible that you’re paying rent on an apartment downtown when you spend every night at my house.”

“To be fair, I stay there sometimes.” Your response is laced with the beginnings of a laugh.

“We stay there sometimes, and only when we’re too drunk to order a car back to my place.”

Your brow furrows, failing to find a good reason to argue with him. The past few weeks, you’ve grown more and more uncomfortable in the apartment. You’ve lived there for years, and only in the past six months has it felt less like home. Unease permeates the space. The hairs on the back of the neck standing on end for no apparent reason. The urge to check the front lock again and again. It makes no sense in your mind, and you usually just chalk it up to the fact that you’ve been on tour for months. Hoping that the homey feeling would return. But it hasn’t.

“What exactly is your point?” You finally fire back.

“I want you to move in-” He starts, and cuts you off as you try to interrupt him. “only after I get back from Europe. Unless you’d rather settle in while I’m gone.”

You settle back into your stumped silence. Your attachment to the apartment (despite not really wanting to be there) is associated in your mind with your mom, and the life you were forced to live without her. You have no real qualms with moving into Jake’s house, just that you aren’t sure you’re ready to let go of the place you’ve been healing in.

“Can I think about it?” You pause, the two of you reaching the steps of the porch. His brown eyes are twinkling with amusement as he watches you wrestle with his request.

“I assumed that you’d want to. When you decide, just let me know. I can have a moving truck at your house as soon as you say yes.” His grin sneaks into his face.

He knows you’ll say yes, you know you’ll say yes. He is so irritating. You roll your eyes. “You’re assuming I’ll say yes Jake.”

Jake pecks your lips and says “Because I know you, and I know you can’t resist me.”

You huff a little, crossing your arms across your chest in mock outrage. Laughing, he pulls you against him and kisses you slow. Despite your need to be difficult, you melt into him and return the kiss. All day, each kiss has been an opportunity to memorize the feel of him and store it away for later; the months that he will be gone.

Pulling away, you look into his eyes. “If I do say yes…” you pause for effect “can we get a cat?”

It’s his turn to roll his eyes, but when they return to yours and his mouth opens, he takes you by surprise. “I love you.”

His revelation takes you by surprise, but you laugh “I love you too Jake.”

…

The first two weeks with Jake gone are fairly normal. He was right of course. The four of you have been recording in the studio nearly every day from early in the morning till long after the sun goes down. It’s been hard to miss him because you’ve barely had time to eat or sleep. But you have been considering his offer. You’ve even boxed up some of your books and clothes in preparation for his return.

Tonight, you’ve returned to your apartment with takeout. Tabitha deigned to let the four of you off early tonight, citing the fact that she had a “hookup to catch”. Whatever the reason, you’re grateful for the free time. You consider calling Jake, but it’s just past 2 AM in London, and he’s either asleep (unlikely) or out with the guys (more likely) and you don’t want to bother him. You settle into your couch and click on the tv. Before you can dig into your food, your phone begins to buzz on the kitchen counter.

“Ughhh..” you groan and rise from the couch.

You cross the room, the tiles cold beneath your bare feet. Your annoyance gives way to confusion as you see a familiar name lit up across the screen. “Marianne is calling” the screen reads.

Your mom? No obviously not. It’s got to be a glitch or something. You swipe to answer and raise the phone to your ear. A shaky “Hello?” escapes your lips.

You listen, waiting for.. something, anything really. What do you hear? Nothing but the low hiss of breath on the other end of the call. You hang up, slamming your phone down on the counter and dashing into your room. A tinge of fear now crept up the back of your throat. When you reach the bedside table where your mother’s phone should be stored safely, your shaking hands pull it out and dump it unceremoniously onto the floor. You rifle through the drawer’s contents on the dense carpet. Tears begin to travel down your cheeks.

The phone isn’t there. There’s no one that could have it. You haven’t gotten it out in months, and Jake wouldn’t be able to make the call from overseas.

The hairs on the back of your neck are on end again. The feeling that you are being watched is back, and more sinister than ever.

THANK YOU FOR READING <3 You guys are the best.

Taglist: @freyjalw @edgingthedarkness @gvfmarge @sinarainbows

[fundielicious-simblr]

(Lana's pov)

Newlywed life has been glorious! We've spent loads of time together, creating a routine for ourselves and just enjoying being married. Date nights are something we were advised to prioritise by almost everyone who gave us advice, so we've been going out once a week wherever we are or having date nights at home. Sometimes we're at a fancy restaurant, a small cafe, or we have a small picnic in the park - as long as we're together.

Since moving to Newcrest I've been loving being near Parker's brother and sister-in-law, they have the most kids out of all of Allan and Casandra's kids and she gave birth to their 11th child, Jackson, a few days after our wedding! I've loved getting to know the kids over the past few months and I'm happy that I can spend more time with them now that we live close by. I've also enjoyed spending time getting to know my fellow Kyleigh, at the reception Kyleigh, Stacie, Lorilee and I took a group selfie that we labelled the Mrs.Collins club. It's been great to hear her testimony and stories from her childhood and her walk with the Lord, she grew up an only child so it was so interesting hearing her experiences since I can't relate.

Little Jackson is such a cutie, he's still learning how to exist as a little human and is finding out new things about himself almost everyday. The great thing about being over at Kyleigh and Barrett's house is because there are so many children there's always someone to talk to, they have 3 toddlers in the house who love snuggles too, which I'm always down for. Some days when I have a few hours to spare, I'll ask Kyleigh what their plans are for the day and if there's any way that I can help. Sometimes I come over and read to the toddlers while Kyleigh focuses on school with the older kids, other days I come over just to keep the toddlers occupied because it's something I enjoy.

I don't just stick to the toddlers and infants, I've recently taken advantage of the hot summer weather and taken the older kids out for various activities. It's been great getting to know them and learn about their individual personalities and their interpersonal relationships. I had 3 of the girls in my bridal party and they're still talking about how much fun they had! None of the kids know how to roller skate, so our afternoon at the rink was a bit of a steep learning curve for them - but they did say they had fun regardless. We also had a water balloon fight in the park that's next to the skating rink, which is definitely fun when you have a big group of kids with you. As we were on the way home, all the kids could talk about was doing it again, which we're definitely going to have to do whilst they're still on summer holiday. Their family usually travels to an annual camp with Parker's parents and other relatives during the summer, but with the timing of Jackson's arrival they chose to sit this year out. Hopefully the adventures with the kids continue and we can add more kids to the mix as they grow older.

[coppeliafoxworth]

February 16th 2023

The weather was so nice today!  The temperature was in the seventies!  The weather made me really happy; I can't wait for summer.

Work went by alright.  We had contractors come in to replace our old ovens and fryers.  For some reason, they didn't bring their own tools so they had to borrow my entire box.  It was so messy by the end of the day!  

After work I went to my lover's house.  We were supposed to pick up a bookshelf today, but the lady had plans so we're picking it up tomorrow.  

We cuddled and went out to Panera for dinner.  I wanted Chik-Fil-A but his father was adamant on paying for all of us so I went wherever he chose.  I got the spicy chicken sandwich, which I realized later was very high calorie.

Speaking of calories and such, I reached my first goal weight!  I weigh two-hundred and nine pounds as of this morning.  For celebration I ordered myself a new bag.  I have a list on Amazon for all my weight goals.  If I can get through this diet successfully, which I will since tomorrow is the last day of it, I'm going to buy myself a new phone case.

Tomorrow at work we have to start moving the library.  It's supposed to be packed up, but people there never want to do anything to help maintenance.  I wish I could call out, but I can't because I need to pick up that bookshelf tomorrow.  Hopefully one of the places I applied to reaches out to me.

I applied to more places today that I'll call into tomorrow.  With summer coming up I really want a job that my parents won't be pissed about me spending nights somewhere else during workdays.  It would also be nice to be able to lie about going to work and instead going out again.

I'm young and in my early twenties!  Let me make mistakes and live my life as a twenty-one-year-old!

[somewhatgreatexpectations]

Breaking Hearts (Wanda Maximoff/ Reader)

Hello, again! Post- Age of Ultron but Pre-Civil War (though it is getting close to Civil War, let’s pretend there was 2 years in between). Inspired by Sam Smith’s beautiful “Breaking Hearts” highly recommend listening. Let me know your thoughts! 

Summary: Wanda is upset with reader for getting injured during a mission to protect someone else. There is more, but I won’t say too much so I don’t give it away. Read to find out :)

“Summer haze of summer wine, reminded me of better times, but I let you in my heart. Why’d I let you in my heart?”

“What happened to this being an easy recon mission, Rogers?” You asked over the coms through gritted teeth as you tried to focus your attention on holding back the swarms of Hydra agents that surrounded you.

The sound of fists clashing against skin and groans of pain flooded your earpiece. “It was supposed to be! We must have been ambushed.” Steve grunted shortly from wherever he was located in the large base.

Despite the ambush you, Steve, and Natasha had been able to complete the mission with only a slight incident. That incident being you putting yourself at risk in order to protect Natasha during a dangerous moment that resulted in you taking a bullet in your abdomen. Thankfully Steve and Natasha were able to get you back to the compound in time to tend to your wounds safely. When Wanda was filled in on what happened she wasn’t happy at all and dragged you to your room as soon as it was safe to do so. 

“How could you be so reckless, Y/n!” Wanda shouted, her hands clenched at her sides as she paced the length of your room.

You stared at her incredulously from your place on the bed, “Are you serious right now, Wanda?” An angry tone marred your words. “What was I supposed to do? Stand by and watch them shoot Natasha when I knew damn well there was something I could do to save her?”

The anger in her eyes didn’t falter, “You don’t think before you act.”  

“No, actually, that’s the problem. I do think before I act. I think too much. I thought of how if I didn’t do something Nat would have died. How are you upset with me about that?” You raised your arms helplessly. 

She shook her head in response, her jaw clenched. “You don’t get it.”

You slowly stood up and made your way over to her. “Look, if you’re upset that I got hurt… I understand, but I’m fine, Wanda.”

“We’ve had this argument so many times, Y/n. Yet, you continue being reckless.” You tried to take her hand, but she pulled it away sharply.

You sighed and dropped your hand back to your side, “I’m not being reckless, Wanda. You are all my family now. If I see an opportunity to protect any of you, I’m going to take it. I couldn’t live with myself if I didn’t.”

For a moment a look of understanding flashed across her face, but it was short lived. You thought she understood. You’d never be one to stand idly by, not after your past. A tense silence hung in the air between you for a moment as you both just stared at one another. “I need some air.” She finally said.

“I’ll go with you.” You offered hopefully. Going to the roof always eased the tension between you both. It was your spot after all, where your story began, where your love blossomed… Where you always found peace.

Wanda set her jaw and shook her head. “Alone.” She said indifferently as she walked out of the room. 

With a defeated sigh you fell onto your shared bed as you dragged a hand down your face. Wanda was right, you had had this conversation more than once, but you didn’t think you were being reckless. In situations like this you really saw no other option. If the price for saving a life was an injury, then you’d gladly pay. A knock on the door interrupted your train of thought. “Come in.” You mumbled behind your hand.

A moment later you felt the foot of the bed dip. You didn’t need to open your eyes to know who it was. “She might have a point you know.”

You removed your hand from your face to send a glare towards Natasha who just looked at you sympathetically. “Not you too, Nat. I wasn’t being reckless.” You repeated, practically shouting with frustration.

Natasha moved to kneel beside you, a comforting hand on your arm. “I wouldn’t call it reckless, Y/n, but you need to stop prioritizing everyone else’s safety over your own.”

“I couldn’t just watch them attack you.” You whispered and closed your eyes tiredly.

There was understanding in her eyes because the fact of the matter was everyone else on the team would have done the same. “And I appreciate what you did so much, just… can you try and be more careful? Maybe just tackle me next time instead of jumping in front of me?” She asked with a small smile and a playful twinkle in her eye.

You gave a weak chuckle at her words. “I guess I could have done that.”

“That’s all we ask. Now bring it in.” Natasha said gently as she opened her arms in offering which you gladly accepted as you wrapped your arms around her tightly.

For a moment Natasha just held you until you spoke up, “Do you think she’s still mad at me?” you mumbled into her shoulder.

She rubbed your back soothingly in response, “I would give her a little more time before you try to talk to her. She seemed pretty upset when I saw her.” You sighed defeatedly at her response. “How’s about this… We watch an episode of that one show you like, the one that’s in black and white, then you can go talk to her?”

You sighed again but eventually agreed to her terms even though you typically only watched the show with Wanda. “I’ve told you the name of the show so many times, Nat.” You berated playfully as you grabbed the remote and turned on the show. Unable to focus your thoughts on anything other than the woman you loved. 

As soon as the credits rolled you couldn’t have been happier to shut off the TV. You turned to face Natasha who was already looking at you. She just shook her head at you with an amused smile on her lips. “Go get ‘em, tiger. Just remember what we talked about. Being more careful. I’m sure she’ll appreciate that.”

With a nod and one final hug you rushed out of your room and towards the elevator, eagerly hitting the button to the roof. You absolutely hated fighting with Wanda and in hindsight you couldn’t blame her for being upset. You would be upset if roles we reversed too.

When you exited the elevator and stepped hesitantly onto the roof of the compound you couldn’t help the nerves that blossomed in your chest at the thought that she may still be upset with you. That she still wouldn’t want to talk to you. You didn’t see her immediately which confused you. Maybe she wasn’t on the roof after all, you thought to yourself as you wandered a little further in. 

That’s when you found her. 

The sight before you made your heart drop as a pained gasp escaped your lips. 

The gasp was enough to get Wanda’s attention as she immediately pulled back from Vision and met your heartbroken stare. You both stared at each other for a moment until you schooled your features and nodded your head numbly. The fact that she had done this in a place that had been declared ‘ours’ broke your heart even more. You glanced at her one more time before you spun on your heel to head back in the direction of the elevator.

The movement seemed to snap Wanda out of her shock as she sprang into action. “Y/n! Wait!” Wanda shouted after you, her voice cracking. You could hear the frantic sound of her footsteps following you and the sound of Vision flying away.

Clenching your jaw, you kept walking, ignoring the desperation in her voice. Before you could board the elevator, she caught you by the arm and spun you around to face her. Tears streamed freely down her cheeks and her lips trembled when you finally looked at her. You shut your eyes tightly, not wanting to look into the eyes you once believed held your world. 

“Please, let me explain.” She said, a sob escaping her lips.

Faintly you shook your head, fighting to keep your voice steady as you opened your eyes once again. “I don’t think there’s anything to explain.” You mumbled weakly as you yanked your arm out of her hold and tried to turn away again, but she simply took hold of your arm again, her grip tightening.

“I love you!” She cried frantically, desperate to get you to stay. 

Her words that used to comfort you now stirred resentment within you. “Don’t say that!” You shouted back at her as tears began to fall from your eyes. “You don’t get to say that anymore! You lost that privilege when you decided to cheat on me!” 

Suddenly all the fight drained out of you as though saying it out loud made it all the more real. You covered your face with your hands, quiet sobs falling from your lips. Words you never thought you’d ever say following. “You cheated on me…” 

Wanda collected you in her arms and for a moment you let her as you cried into her shoulder. Her own sobs shook her body as her hold around you tightened. “I’m sorry, Y/n, I’m so sorry.”

“Why’d I let you in my heart?” You whispered more to yourself than her.

The tears that fell from her eyes fell more rapidly as she buried her head into the crook of your neck, her body shaking slightly. “Please, Y/n…”

Mustering all your strength, you pushed her away. “How many times?” you asked, your eyes on the floor because you weren’t sure you even wanted to know.

 Once again, she reached out to you, but you merely stepped back. “Answer me, Wanda.”

“Twice,” She whimpered, “But it was only a kiss!” she added hastily as if she hoped that would make it better.

Your eyes clenched shut in pain. “Do you love him?” The silence that followed was all the answer you needed as you opened your eyes to meet hers once more. 

“I love you.” She whispered.

“I think we’re done here. I truly wish you happiness with him... since you were willing to set fire to what we had for him.”

Before she could react, you stepped on the elevator and shut the door, sliding down the wall as soon as she disappeared from your view. Sobs wracking your body. The shattered remnants of your heart lying on the floor with you.

Since your relationship had formed in the haze of summer on this exact same roof, it seemed only poetic that it ended there too.

Part 5! I had such a hard time with this chapter, I honestly started and re-started it at least 3 times. Don’t kill me though, it’s a journey and I’d say we’re only about half way through. You never know what will happen. As always, hope whoever is reading enjoyed! Thoughts and comments always welcome. :)

[thismaydestroyme]

Little Did I Know

Summary: In this short story Harry is famous, and he moved into a town during the summer to relax and potentially write some new songs for his upcoming album. I’m not sure if I’ll include some song lyrics, but if I do, I will take a piece of a lyric from a different song and pretend it’s his. 

Word Count: 2,272

“Sweetie, can you walk Cosmo?” Y/N hears her mom shouting from downstairs. 

“Yes, mom!” She says.  

Y/N is on her bed with her headphones on due to having a neighbor who’s living across her street who just moved in. For the past weeks there’s been a lot of moving trunks and ruckus because there’s a musician living among them. 

Y/N is a 21 year old girl who wants to be part of the music industry, but she doesn’t know shit. All she knows is that she loves music, and music is part of her. It was her dad that introduced her to music, like music that was before her time. Like Billie Holiday, Frank Sintra, The Rolling Stone, Queen, Otis Redding, Nirvana, The Knack, Elton John, The Doors, The Clash and so many more. That’s all she knew and all she wanted was to find a way to have that without having to know how to play the instruments, knowing how to sing. She simply just wants to go wherever the music takes her. 

She finally drags herself out of bed and starts putting on her sneaker and throwing on an oversized hoodie. She swaps her earbuds to her airpods and off to walk her dog. 

She walks down the stairs heavily which alerts her mother, and before she gets to the last step her mother hands her Cosmo’s leash. 

“Ugh. Couldn't you do - sorry mom.” She reaches for the leash that’s in her mom’s hand. 

“Yeah, that’s what I thought, darling.” She says giving her daughter a peck on her left cheek. 

Y/N bends over to put the leash on Cosmo’s neck, which Cosmo gives her a lick on her face. Y/N loves this dog of hers. He provides her safety and security, which she needs because let’s just say she has a breakdown every couple of days. 

Y/N stands back up and gives Cosmo a nice tug so he knows he’s ready for his next adventure. By adventure it means walking around the block she’s been doing for the past three years since Y/N got him. 

It’s around 3 o’clock which means the summer heat is hitting hard right about now. But it’s too hot to harm Cosmo in any way. Cosmo is the love of Y/N life. 

Cosmo and Y/N went on their typical route which they go past their new neighbor's house. Y/N realizes the new neighbor door is a jar, and she can smell bacon, which isn’t good for Cosmo because he’ll tend to escape and run towards the delicious smell he knows so much about. To Y/N not so surprise Cosmo started tugging on his leash that has Y/N being yanked and pulled. 

“Cosmo. Stop it right now!” Y/N shouts to Cosmo which she knows that wouldn’t help a damn thing. When he has something in mind there’s no stopping him. Cosmo has to be on something because it’s like he’s on some x game mode. Y/N starts tripping on her own feet and losing her own balance. 

They were running in the middle of streets when they received some honks and screams at fellow drivers on the road. Which Y/N give them a nice finger and simple “fuck off.” Y/N let’s go Cosmo leash because she isn’t in the mood to eat shit, so when she felt safe nothing could happen to Cosmo she let him go.

Cosmo went straight towards the slight jar front door, which I had to pick up my steps. Before Y/N could even be on the same street as the house, the new neighbor came out his house, holding Cosmo’s leash quite aggressively which had Y/N switch her mode to attack mode. 

“Hey, what the fuck? you didn’t have to pull him like that?” Y/N says aggressively while walking towards the house, when she gets in a hand reach, she pulls the leash so the neighbor doesn’t have his grubby hand on the leash. 

Oh you want to know Y/N neighbor? It happily to be Harry Styles. Forgot to include that in, sorry. 

“Are you getting mad at me? your dog happened to be in my house without any guardian. Your dog jumped on my couch, which I’m not too fond of. So anyone here who should be a little bit bitchy, it should be me.” Harry says hostile. He’s wearing a wife beater shirt that has his arms tattoos on display. For his lower part he’s wearing a nice black booty short which shows off that magnificent tiger tattoo. “Are you just going to stand there?” He snaps back. 

Y/N brought her eyes back to him which Y/N doesn’t approve of his tone. Y/N scuffs and rolls her eyes to the back of her head. “Sorry for your inconvenience. Enjoy the rest of your day.” Y/N plants a fake smile on her face. “C’mon Cosmo, let’s go, but this time I'm walking you.“ Y/N whispers to Cosmo while turning around to continue their walk with a small intermission they encountered. After a couple of steps Y/N turned her head around and when she did Harry was still standing there with annoyance on his face, which Y/N turned her head back around. 

“He’s going to be fun.” 

***

It took Y/N twenty minutes to walk her dog today. She wanted Cosmo to enjoy himself which he did because he saw a lot of squirrels today, and on top of that she didn’t want to ‘run’ into Harry again. Y/N should be excited to have a big celebrity living among them, and hopefully she could get reinspired about her future, but unfortunately that isn’t the case. Probably Harry is just having a bad day, and last year and the beginning of this year he had a lot of things going on. He’s officially a grammy winner, he filmed two movies, his latest album Fine Line has been doing phenomenally well, he was the first male to have appeared solo on Vogue magazine,  he was announced Hitmaker of the year, and so many more. So maybe he just needed to get his energy back, which Y/N understood. But man, it really had to be their first impression. 

When Y/N and Cosmo took a turn to walk to their front door, Y/N couldn’t help but to look across the street to see if Harry was there or not. Surprisingly he was, and he’s looking right at her. Y/N looked at his lips while he blew out a smoke. Fuck, he smokes?! 

Y/N doesn’t understand why he’s looking at her, but she doesn’t give a shit because the way he’s looking at her was his way of trying to figure her out. Whatever that fucking means. 

She broke eye contact and flipped her head around to her front door. She starts digging her hand in her pocket to fetch her keys out. Cosmo starts barking because the keys jiggles so he thought it was a new toy. “Oh you hash it.” She got the keys and shove it in the lock. Thank god, her mother didn’t lock the top of the door. 

The door finally releases and Cosmo immediately runs through, probably heading to his water bowl. “Thanks sweetie for walking Cosmo for me.” Y/N hears her mom in the kitchen probably smothering Cosmo. “Yep. I would say anytime, but I would be lying.” She says while walking up the stairs to head to her room. “Fuck off.” Her mother giggles. “I love you too.” That was the last thing Y/N said before she shut her door.

Y/N takes off her beat up vans and soon after plops on her unmade bed. Y/N stared at the few holes on the ceiling due to having a young Leonardo DiCaprio poster on her ceiling when she was younger. Young Leo hits different. 

Y/N couldn’t help it, but her brain went back to her small and rough interaction with Harry. She wished she met him on a  better note, but fuck it. But how could she move on from him? She’s a fan of his music and his viewpoint on the world. He’s a man of few word, but when he does talk, it’s fucking loud and impactful. He’s the main reason she took a few steps back off of social media. She’s barely on it, but when she does go on it, she isn’t on there for long like she used to. 

An hour went by and her mother started knocking on her door and then she came in. “You know mother, the purpose of knocking is to see if you're welcome to enter the space.” Y/N says nonchalantly sitting up to see her mother, but at the same time trying to hold in her laugh. 

“Well, if you want to contribute to paying the bills, I’ll happily reconsider waiting to be called on.” Her mother threw back. “Nope. You’re good.” Y/N says shaking her head. 

“Mmmmhh. Well, I’m going to hang out with the girls from work. Do you want me to make you something before I go?” That’s one thing Y/N loves about her mother, she is so selfless and she always makes sure I’m good before she wants to do something for herself. 

“I’m good. Enjoy your night.” Y/N gave her mom a smile to know she’ll be alright. “If you’re sure, then I’m off,” Her mom says all happily. “If you need anything just text me. Okay?” 

“Okay,” Y/N got up to give her mom a nice, strong hug. “love you.” Y/N whispers. “Love you more beautiful.” We pull back and she’s off to the race. 

Y/N walks to her window to pull the blind. She sometimes likes looking out her window and just stares off into space. Something about watching people live their life comforts her. She loves people watching. 

Y/N found herself mumbling some words, while people watching, but she couldn’t help but stop her little rampage. Y/N feels heavy and she’s unable to even grasp the concept, so when she starts feeling that way she tends to start saying random things. It could be something she could use in the future. To make sure she doesn’t forget she whip out her phone to go to the notes app where she has a folder filled with random words and sentences. There are things in there that could potentially be useful like, “More or less a painful experience. Only ever real if you're delirious. the summer before you,” “I think you're gonna be my biggest fan.” So on and so forth. That’s what the folder is filled with fragments and potentially some song lyrics. 

Y/N tossed her phone to her bed, and left her phone to bother Cosmo downstairs. Y/N loves that sucker. Before Y/N could even smother him with love, he’s currently sleeping on his bed in the corner of the living room. 

Fucking great. 

Y/N just wanted something to do, and her damn dog couldn’t give her that. She looks at the clock on the wall in the living room and it’s currently 6 almost to be seven. Y/N could go upstairs and ask one of her friends to hangout, but she doesn’t want that. The best alternative could be taking a walk and seeing where her feet take her. She likes that option better, so she quietly went upstairs so she doesn’t wake up Cosmo.

Y/N changes her attire to ripped oversized mom jeans, an oversized graphic tee she bought on Depop and once again her infamous black and white vans. She grabs her airpods, and her keys. She’s finally ready for the evening. 

Y/N went back downstairs to check on Cosmo and make sure he has food and water ready for him just in case he wakes up while she’s still gone. When she felt everything was in order she ended straight to the door. 

The weather feels astronomically better than before which had Y/N feel much better with her decision. Y/N isn’t sure if she should take the right or left. If she decides on taking a right she’ll pass Harry’s house, but if she does decide to take a left she wouldn’t. Y/N starts going back and forth, but she decides on going left. 

There was a nice breeze in the summer air, and she’s listening to “I’m a Slave 4 U” by the one and only Britney fucking Spears. “What's practical is logical. What the hell who cares. All I know is I'm so happy. When you're dancing there. I'm a slave 4 U.” Y/N finds herself singing to herself. She’s been walking around aimlessly and rocking out to her songs for about thirty minutes. She’s aware she’s probably creating attention to herself, but she couldn’t find herself to care. Y/N is enjoying herself. 

“I’m a SLAVE FOR YOU!” Y/N shouts out with her eyes pinch shut, when she finally opens them she finds herself in front of Harry’s house. The worst part wasn't that she was walking in a circle. It wasn’t that she belted out to her songs. It wasn’t she was flinging her body around like she was the balloon thingy at the cars dealership shop. Nope. None of those. 

The worst fucking part is, Harry Fucking Styles is currently outside watching her. Fucking watching her. Once again fucking smoking. Again.

[thran-duils]

Was Ich Liebe (P.3, Final)

Title: Was Ich Liebe (Part Three, Final) Summary: Fem!Reader x Dark!Tony Stark.  Tony becomes enamored with a stripper at a club his hedonistic friend Thor owns. A casual sexual relationship quickly becomes possessive and the reader sees more of the underground mafia life than she would like to. The cherry on top is that Tony is married and so is she. Him to a woman who has no intention of losing her throne at any cost and the reader to a deadbeat alcoholic. Feeling trapped by both her previous life and the suffocating hold Tony is trying to put on her, the reader steals away in the night, which is not going to go over well. Words: 4,647 Warnings (for whole fic, more may be added): Dub-con, smut, infidelity, stripping, vaginal fingering, public sex, possessive behavior, angst, degradation kink, violence, physical abuse, domestic violence, language, drug use, alcoholism, death Warnings for this chapter: Mention of abortion! Author’s Note: As usual, this is 18+.

Part Two || Masterpost (mobile) || Fanfic masterpost

Tony was calling. He must have gone to the apartment and found you gone by now, especially since you had not been answering him via text or by phone. You sent him to voicemail letting your music start again. You had rented a car to drive away from the city.

The jewelry he had given you came in handy to get cash that you were using for gas and hopefully a down payment on an apartment somewhere. Stripping joints were abundant, and you were sure if you found a sizable city, you would find work without an issue. You were thinking about Milwaukee. It was far enough away from NYC and there was a college there too.

Your phone beeped with another voicemail from him. Signing, against your better judgment, you reached forward to press play, it coming over the car’s speakers.

He was pissed. Unsurprisingly. He had been tight on the last one he had left, wound up that you were not answering him. But this was a whole different level. He was practically shouting.

“This better be a goddamn joke, Y/N. My patience is already up with it though. Did you think I wouldn’t notice you had snuck out? Where the fuck is all the jewelry? Huh? Your clothes? If I find out you left and you’re cheating on me, I’m gonna kill them.”

You did not doubt him when he said that. And he confirmed he was at the apartment if he noticed your stuff was gone.

“And were you planning on telling me about the pregnancy?” Your eyes widened and then you swore remembering you had not emptied the trash in the bathroom. “Or were you just gonna keep that to yourself? Listen very carefully to me, if you do something drastic, I’m not gonna be nice about it. Not in the fucking slightest. You best believe that and take that to heart! Don’t be fucking stupid! Call. Me. Back.”

The voicemail ended.

Yes. The pregnancy. You were already thinking about which office you could go to. You had left a note for Thor about quitting and you wondered how quickly your health insurance was going to stay in place. Before after leaving a job, it had stayed on until the end of the month, but you were unsure, and you were not about to call him and ask. An appointment at a clinic though, that was something you needed to deal with quickly. You were sure there was a facility you could find when you got yourself established.

<><><>

“You’re a psychopath,” Carol said to Tony, smirking.

She was watching him put up security cameras around Y/N’s apartment, hidden from the normal eye with his technology. And when he had taken the lock apart on her door to install tech he could control himself from his cell, she had shook her head.

“I prefer creative,” Tony responded, as he tested it out. It worked perfectly. “Little bitch isn’t going to be leaving without trying extra hard.”

<><><>

You found a hotel in Columbus. You made sure to put a chair underneath the door handle on top of using both locks. It was scary to be traveling alone. And especially when you did not know the area.

The next morning, you woke up to another voicemail from Tony. You had reached over to silence it while you were sleeping, knowing damn well who would be calling you at 2:30am.

He sounded sloshed.

“Do you remember me telling you I was never going to let you go? Cause I said it multiple times. That hasn’t changed, Y/N. It’s been almost 24 hours since you answered to me!” Slip up there with that ‘to’ added in. “It’s really fucking frustrating, and you know goddamn well I don’t like being frustrated. It’s…you’re being disrespectful!” There was a slight pause and you heard him take a drink. He let out a humorless laugh. “You won’t run away from me. I’m going to find you.”

He hung up.

Hearing how mad he was, your stomach was twisting. He was not a man that liked to be thwarted or feel like he was being disrespected. Not to mention that he was a fucking mafia member. If he got his hands back on you, he was not going to be kind. And the time he told you he would never hurt you would be tested, you worried.

Why did you let yourself get so far involved with such a dangerous, jealous man? Again?

Forcing yourself to get up from the bed, you went to take a shower to try to relax in the hot water. Afterward, you walked across the street to the coffee shop. You wanted to get on the road again to put some more distance between you and NYC and ultimately between you and him.

<><><>

You drove around the edge of UW-Milwaukee, stealing glances at the campus. A city like this with a college surely had good clientele for the clubs.

Pulling over and parking, you opened your phone beginning to search for an apartment and a job. There had to be an abundance of apartments available around the college since it was summer and a class had just graduated.

<><><>

He kept calling and kept calling. He was not going to stop. It had been two weeks. You had been trying to convince yourself to answer him and tell him to leave you alone and that it was over. You thought about changing your number and you would, but after the conversation you needed to have.

Piqued, you answered, “Tony, I’m busy—"

“Oh, you’re busy? So busy you couldn’t fucking answer me? Over the last two weeks, you’ve been ‘busy’. Too busy for me? That’s hilarious! You should have your own fucking stand up show.” His tone was dripping with condescension.

Sighing, you said, “I’m getting ready for work! This needs to be quick.”

“Work?” Tony chuckled darkly. “Now you care about work? You fucked Thor over by quitting on the spot. How were you even able to get a reference?”

“I danced. That was reference enough.”

“Of course you did. Of course you’re stripping. Where are you?”

“I’m not going to tell you, Tony!”

“Y/N, baby,” he started, sounding like it was taking everything in him to keep his voice even. “If you just apologize and tell me where you are or just come back, I’ll be able to let this go easier. You can come back to me, and it’ll all be okay.”

You mustered out a strong, “No! I am not going to do that.”

His leash was back off. “Why are we playing this stupid game, Y/N? I can handle you being bratty — cause I love fucking it out of you — but this is really pushing me over the edge!”

“I’m not being a brat! You were suffocating me!”

“Suffocating you? I worship you!” He was so easily able to confuse his possession with love. He continued on irritated, “I shower you with gifts! I make sure you’re well taken care of! I’ve treated you better than anyone else has! And you’re coming at me like this? What is your fucking problem, Y/N? What? Is being on the phone instead of in person giving you some fake confidence? Don’t think I’m not keeping track of this ungrateful bullshit just because you’re not standing in front of me!”

He was quickly losing his temper. You had never made him this mad, had never pushed back.

You were shaking as you tried to stand up for yourself, “I’m not the one with a problem! I didn’t force you to move anywhere or—"

Tony interrupted you furiously. “Do you understand how much that apartment cost? How much that car cost? You barely drove it!”

Frustrated he was steam rolling you as usual. you said fighting to keep tears back, “Sell it then!”

“If that was supposed to be a joke, it was an awful one. This shit isn’t fucking funny, Y/N! When I find out where you are, I’m gonna drag you back by your goddamn hair!”

“Good luck!” you spat, it slipping out before you really thought about it. Your eyes widened at what you had just done, and you quickly hung up as he started to snarl something back.

He was immediately calling you back and you sent him to voicemail again.

<><><>

Tony let out an aggravated shout, throwing his phone down on the desk when she did not answer him back.

Good luck was right.

She had stayed on the line long enough to give him time to trace her down to the general area. Milwaukee. Near the university. He would find her, and he was gonna find her quick with getting eyes on the ground to spot her leaving her place wherever that was in the area. And she was not going to like it when he came knocking to collect her.

<><><>

The bag from the closest grocery store was heavy with groceries for the week. You had returned the rental car when you signed your lease, able to use the bus system until you bought your own car.

You noticed there was a man watching you across the street and you slowed in your pace, narrowing your eyes. He did not look away and you swallowed sharply before resuming your pace. You felt like you could still feel his eyes on the back of your head. You had felt like there had been eyes on you earlier this morning too. A foreboding feeling was creeping; you wanted to get inside and quick.

Entering your apartment, you kicked the door closed and struggled to lock it immediately. The bag crunched as you walked over to the kitchen and placed it on the counter.

You put the few groceries away and walked around the counter, tearing your shirt off and tossing it on the back of one of your chairs. It was hot since you were on the third floor and you had not been able to buy an air conditioner yet.

“This place is a shithole.”

You screamed, startled at the voice, whipping around, your eyes searching wildly.

Tony was sitting in the end of your bed in your room.

He had surprisingly not called you for the last few days, not after the conversation the two of you had. Not hearing from him had set you on edge just as much as him calling you did. You knew he was not going to give up easily and the silence was a trap if you fell into it thinking that it was done.

Your eyes flicked to the door, and he chastised you in low, dangerous tones, “Y/N, you’re already in enough trouble. Don’t make this worse for yourself. Carols outside. So is Rhodey. And a handful of other people I brought along in case you were gonna cause more trouble.”

The man outside. So, you had been being watched.

Tony stood up from the bed and came out of the bedroom, and up to you. You took a few steps back and he tsked you. You stopped immediately, knowing what he wanted. He closed the rest of the space and raked his eyes up and down you.

“Why did you have to go and cause trouble in the first place? You think I was suffocating you? That’ll seem like a cakewalk compared to when you come back with me. See, we’ve lost trust. I can’t have you running around when you know as much as you do. And you running off looks like you were going to squeal.” You opened your mouth to protest but he rose his voice, shutting you up. “And I can’t have that. Not when I have other people to answer to on the team. I will not be the weak link in the chain, which means you are not going to be running off in the middle of the night. Even if it’s not what you planned to do, it looks bad.”

His hands came to rest on your biceps, squeezing in tight, causing you to flinch slightly. His eyes were hard. “You could have had the world and you threw it away.” His thumbs caressed, his tongue slipping between his lips. “But I can be a forgiving man if you make me believe that you’re sorry. Just do that for me, beg for forgiveness, and I’ll take care of you and that baby.”

You gulped at the mention of the baby, and he noticed. His eyes narrowed. He leaned in, searching your face and you looked away, but he forced you to look back at him, his hand holding your jaw tight.

“Y/N, baby… you got something to tell me?”

You were silent, your heart starting to hammer.

“Y/N, you know I don’t like repeating myself.”

His grip tightened and you felt tears pricking, apprehensive of how he was going to react.

Your voice warbled, “I…I had an abortion.”

Tony was frozen, his eyes wide and incendiary. His grip on your jaw loosened and you took a step back away from him. His jaw clicked, eyes not leaving you. You saw he was going to explode.

Raising your hand shakily, as if that was going to hold him off, you started, “Now, Tony—"

His backhand sent you stumbling. He caught you before you could do it yourself and slammed you up against the wall.

“You’re lucky I didn’t cold clock you!” He snarled, his fingers digging in painfully to your arms.

“Tony, don’t—”

“Don’t? Don’t what? Be fucking furious that I told you not to do anything drastic and then you went and did just that? Without even consulting me? I have a goddamn right to be furious! How fucking dare you!”

You were sniffling now, terrified.

He gave you a rough shake before demanding, “What’s the lease on this place?” You took too long to answer. “Answer me!”

“Month to month,” you whimpered.

“Smart. Makes this easier.” His nose was practically brushing yours. “Look, you’re gonna be good and listen to me about exactly what is going to happen—"

“You can’t—"

“Did I tell you that you could talk? No! I told you you were going to listen. Keep your fucking mouth shut!” Tony lashed out. You closed your mouth, your lip warbling. “You’re coming with me. And I haven’t decided yet if I want them all to listen to you beg for forgiveness on the plane or if I’m waiting until we are alone. Not doing it here. Don’t wanna alarm your neighbors and have to injure any of them if they try to interfere. I don’t want, nor need that type of mess.”

He shoved you as he let you go, and you wiped at your eyes.

“I can’t fucking believe you. Can’t even follow simple goddamn directions. What are you? A child?” he snorted angrily. He snapped his fingers at you and pointed at your room. “Get your shit. We are leaving and going home. The jets at the airport.”

<><><>

He had not punished you on the plane. You instead had sat, curled in as tightly as you could to yourself in the chair across from him under a blanket, looking out the window as much as possible. You felt him watching you intensely the whole two hours. You could only imagine the deranged ideas going through his head about what he was going to do to you when he got you alone.

The moment you stepped into your apartment, he ordered you, “Get yourself done up. I want you to look nice for me. I’ll be out here watching the game.”

His goons brought in your suitcases and put them next to the kitchen table before leaving at his order. Tony grabbed the remote and turned the TV on. He saw you were still standing there, and he glared.

“Y/N…” he said dangerously. “I don’t see you moving.”

You grabbed your suitcase with your clothes and trudged down the hall, feeling his hard stare at your back until you disappeared into the bedroom. You had left a lot of your clothes here but there was a dress you had brought with you, one that he liked specifically. Which shocked you a little bit because it was loose and free; still short though.

Taking the time to shower, blow dry, do your makeup, and dress, you felt the anxiety rising about what he was going to do. You thought the extra time would calm you down, but it was doing the opposite because it was giving you more time to think.

When you walked back down the hall, your black wedges announcing your arrival, Tony looked over the back of the couch. You saw the bottle on the coffee table. He had been drinking, not a surprise. He gestured you over and you walked around the couch, coming over to him. He ran his eyes up and down you, taking you in.

“Well, don’t you look just perfect?” he asked, an edge underlying his tone.

He stood up from the couch and you stayed still. He pulled his phone out and took a picture of you without giving you time to prepare. He turned his phone around and you looked dumbstruck in the photo.

But he complimented, “Look at that. Pristine. That’s what good girls look like.” A cruel smile flashed across his features, and he tossed his phone down on the couch. “But you’re not a good girl are you, baby?”

You only had a moment to react before he was forcing you down to your knees. You hissed in pain as your knees slammed against the hardwood.

“You brought this on yourself. You think I like punishing you?” Tony asked, working on his belt with one hand as the other held you by the back of the neck. Your hands came up to grip his thighs, pressing back against the hold he had on your neck. “Ah ah, stay where you are.” He stroked himself with purpose, his hand moving at a steady pace. “Look at you. A pretty little slut that needs to be taught a lesson.”

He was hard now, the head of his cock pressing against your lips.

“Open your damn mouth!” You clenched your teeth, knowing he was gonna be rough and not wanting to choke. He let go of you to slap your cheek and sneered, “Don’t make me ask you again!”

You opened your mouth reluctantly, and he grabbed you by the back of your neck again and shoved his dick in all the way, your nose brushing his pubes. You gagged before he pulled back out, running his head around your lips. He groaned at the sight, slipping back in and using your mouth.

“Tell me you love me!”

“I love you!” you got out around his width.

“Look at me!” You forced your gaze up to meet his and he thrusted faster, hitting the back of your throat. Your hands gripped tight onto his thighs, eyes begging for him to slow down. But he was not relenting, and your throat was aching. Another groan left his lips as he demanded, “Tell me you love me, you little bitch.”

It was hard to say it, you choking now, tears stinging your eyes. “I love you!”

He pulled away roughly, his hand wrapped around your hair tightly, keeping you in place. Your saliva was stringing messily between him and your lips. Your chin as well as his pubes were glistening with your drool. You gasped for air, thankful for the reprieve from your jaw aching from being open so wide.

The reprieve was short lived though and you cried out in pain as he began walking, dragging you by your hair.

“Forgive me that I don’t quite believe you. But I’m gonna make sure I do believe you. I’m gonna get a genuine one out of you before I’m through.”

Tony sat on the edge of the bed and held you tight. “Give me a show. Take that dress off and let me see you. Let me see what I’m going to take.”

Shakily, you stood up as his grip laxed and he was watching you like a hawk. You wiped at your lips, knowing there was little to do about your eye makeup since he had made tears come with how hard he had been choking you. You started to sway your hips, trying to find a rhythm amongst the excitement. You turned away from him so he could not see your face as you struggled to calm down enough to dance.

It was sloppy, unconfident. But that did not seem to bother him. He pulled you into his lip and his hands slipped up your dress and into your underwear.

“Don’t get to tell me now that I can’t touch,” he husked against your cheek, his fingers slipping into your pussy. “All mine.”

He was stroking you, getting you worked up, making you lose focus on grinding. You bit your bottom lip, a strangled moan escaping.

Tony chuckled, nuzzling your cheek. “I know you like that. Gonna get you good and wet for me, sweetheart. Spread your legs further.”

You were falling so easily into his touch, your core wanting more. You were getting wound up and he was loving it. He worked quicker, his breath heavy as he felt how aroused you were, wetting his fingers.

“Maybe you are a good girl. Look how well you are behaving for me. Is this you apologizing?” He pulled away just to lay a hard smack on your cunt. You bucked, crying out and he did it again. You whimpered as his fingers entered again, focusing on your bud. “You’re a needy little slut, aren’t you baby?” You nodded and he sucked at your neck. “You’re repenting so well… but you’ve got a long way to fucking go.”

You were so close, but he suddenly shoved you away roughly, causing you to stumble in your heels.

“Strip.”

You did as he asked, pulling the dress up and tossing it behind you, leaving you in just your underwear. He rose his brows expectantly and you turned around, bending over slowly. You pulled your underwear down, feeling how wet they were at the crotch. You heard him hum at the sight of them and your glistening pussy. They fell to your ankles, and you turned around, kicking them off.

Tony stood up and pointed at the bed. “On your stomach.” You did as he asked and heard him getting undressed. You peeked over your shoulder at him undoing his tie as he walked towards your closet. He emerged again with a scarf, his eyes fixated on you. “Did I tell you you could look at me?” You turned back around quickly, butterflies swarming.

He grabbed one of your ankles and yanked you down the bed. You felt his tie around your ankle, and you tensed as he tied you to the bed frame. He was at your opposite ankle and tied your other leg with your scarf tightly.

“Tony…” you said hoarsely.

He did not answer you and you laid there, spread wide. The bed creaked with his weight and his thick thighs straddled you, holding you even tighter in place. You felt him pressing in and your fingers dug into your quilt. Each inch filled you up more and he exhaled as he reached his base.

“That’s the gentlest thrust you’re going to get, sweetheart. Enjoy it.”

Tony was not lying; he was pounding you into the mattress and you were not being quiet about the intrusion. You were already so wet, and he was adding to the sensation the way he was working you.

“You’re gonna remember who you loves you the most,” he groaned. The bed was shaking with how hard he was driving into you. “You’re gonna remember to behave!”

Pulling out of you, he smacked you hard against your ass. “Get up on your knees. Now!”

You obeyed, maneuvering with the restraints and his fingers replaced his dick, rubbing your clit. You keened, your back arching at the intense contact. You were ashamed that as usual you fell to the arousal, letting him take you over completely even when he was being as mean as he was.

“Fuck, you little whore. Look at you. So needy for cock. Why did you leave me in the first place? You were never going to find anyone that would love you like I do. You hurt my feelings, baby. And I don’t like having my feelings hurt.”

“I’m sorry,” you gasped without any prompting.

Tony’s fingers fell from your sex, and he was up, holding you by the throat. His breath was hot on your ear. “I might just leave you here on the bed right now. Tie those delicate wrists up too. Keep you on display for me. I’ll just walk by and see you stuck here, just dependent on me to come back to release you.”

You shook your head, begging pathetically, “No, p-please.”

“You want me to finish?”

“Yes!”

“Do you deserve it? Cause I don’t think you fucking do.”

You shook your head, “No. I don’t. But, please!” He brushed your pussy lightly with his fingers, teasing and you broke down even further. “I love you! I love you! Please!”

“You’re not gonna leave me again.” It was a statement, not a question.

You shook your head furiously again, gasping, “No! No, I won’t leave you!”

He yanked you up painfully by your hair again and new tears stung your eyes.

“I’m gonna make fucking sure of it. You’re gonna be on house arrest until I see fit to let you out! Face down,” Tony snarled, pushing you roughly down by the shoulders. He was behind you again. “You’re gonna be full of my seed when I’m done.”

Your chest hit the bed as the room filled with skin slapping skin loudly as he ravaged you. It did not take long for your body to tense up and a shriek left you as your pussy clenched around him. Tony’s breath was erratic as his pace lost control, his fingers digging into your hips. Broken husks were falling from his mouth, you could not make it out over the buzz in your ears. You felt the warmth though when he filled you up, his cock buried deep. He was making sure it was up against your cervix. His groan was long and loud, his hands squeezing your ass tight.

When he pulled away, you laid out flat, feeling worn. You heard him leave the room, the hardwood in the hall creaking with his footfalls. Your body was covered in sweat, heavy pants leaving your lips. For a moment, you forgot you were tied and tried to adjust and let out a sigh of disappointment when you felt the tug of the restraint on your ankle.

Tony was back with his phone. He cooed, “Oh, sweetheart. You’re so tired. Look up at me.” You lifted your head and saw him snap a picture of you. His lips curled into a smirk at the photo, and he turned it around to show you. Your makeup was ruined, tear trails on your cheeks, mascara and eyeliner smudged. You looked like a mess.

“Look at this lovely sight,” he purred. He flipped to the last photo of you looking made up and then back again. “Look how dirty you got pleasing me compared to before. I’m going to keep these.” A malicious glint flashed in his eyes, and he said, “I’ll give you a few to recover. But baby, there’s gonna be round two and no, I’m not going to let you clean up. Let’s see how much dirtier I can get you.”

~~~

Marvel tags: @coconutqueen21 @undecidedsworld @holl2712 @agustdowney  @biiskuitx @buttercupfangirl

Fic tags: @buttercandy16

[burnedbyshoto]

the marriage contract

chapter one: [begin this journey.]

— Just because your soulmate is Bakugou Katsuki doesn’t mean that he’s the one meant for you; in fact, he’s your worst enemy. With trouble brewing across the way, and with no one able to complete this job except you and Bakugou, there’s nothing you can do except go along with the mission. But wait, what?! You’re supposed to be married?!

pairing: pro hero!bakugou katsuki x pro hero fem!reader

chapter warnings: cursing

word count: 4,093

a/n: in this enemies to lovers story, only you get to decide whether you remain enemies, or if you succeed in becoming lovers. the choice to make is at the end of the story, good luck :D also, background on your quirk (sorry, I had to give you a quirk in order for this to work the way i see fit.) I won’t lie, im really nervous about all this... hopefully this is fun and won’t come and bite me in the ass.

Quirk: Water Sprout - using water from your body, you are able to extract and then use the water (that comes from your body or has come in direct contact with your fingertips) freely. Drawbacks include constant dehydration, dizziness, headaches.

bolded choice is the answer. ~ {masterlist}

[Begin this journey.]     [Turn back now.]

relationship status: enemies.

“You’re fucking with me, right?”

Cosmic and gods, there was nothing in this world that proved these existed.

Nothing.

Nothing in this world could show the nonbeliever that there was an outside force in the world that made people suspect that there were otherworldly ties. Not the appearance of quirks, which was proven to be a genetic mutation as part of humans' evolution, and even the sudden and ancient appearance of The Contract did anything to solidify this - well, at least to some.

Quirks were easy to understand.

Powers, drawbacks, uniqueness.

Oh, it was something that was still so new to the world that people enjoyed it so, but for The Contract, oh how that was different.

The Contract was what was the name of the world wide know phenomenon more known merely as soulmates. Everyone had a fated one, and you would know who they were because every once in a while, a simple choice would appear before you.

A this or that situation.

You would pick one of the options, and somewhere out in the world, there was a person who, despite their own free will, would succumb to your choice. It was as simple as choosing to make someone double knot or single knot their shoes, or sometimes as hard as pulling the plug on a stranger, you had no idea existed. But it had been generations since it had first appeared, and people had grown to accept the inevitable. Which, in turn, brought out new problems.

Soulmates, while fundamentally and theoretically excellent and good, seemed to shock people by the work that needed to be put into them to succeed. Two souls that were perfect for each other didn’t guarantee two people were perfect for one another. The blind, false, true love these people bragged and teetered on was ridiculous and often led to horrible breaks within soulmate bonds. People did not understand that soulmates - just as any other relationship - needed time to fester and grow. It wasn’t an over the counter remedy, it was two people trying to find similarities other than the gods and the cosmics wanting this.

It was rather rough, to say the least.

Most people didn’t mind the growth, waiting for their soulmate to become the person meant for them. Others, well, you were the perfect example of it.

Your entire life, you had thought your soulmate was an asshole, well, scratch that, he IS an asshole. Every chance he got, he would always pick the worst of the two options. He chose for you to reject pursuers in your school days, to trip your siblings, to yell at your parents when you were upset. He picked for you to get up early in middle school and train, to study for tests right when you were about to go out with friends. He was obviously picking the worst things for you (not that you were any better), and so by the bitter age of fifteen when you were put into Shiketsu High School, you were glad to pledge to be someone who wouldn’t accept the soulmate shit for anything.

If he was your soulmate, so be it, but he would never be your lover.

Things in high school and your last year of middle school went reasonably well, the choices the two of you had to make were simple enough. The worst one you remember seeing late one night at the beginning of summer break during your last year of middle school, two options illuminating before you.

[Accept his offer.]     [Decline his offer.]

There was no context for your choice.

But there had been a pit in your stomach, something telling you to chose the bottom one, and you did. Nothing consequential came from that, and you forgot about it with time.

High school went on with usual choices; both of you continue to choose the lesser of two options from what you could tell. The worst thing was rejecting your senior who had asked you out on a date (something he had told you to keep a secret from the school officials), and you had really wanted to go on a date with him… but nonetheless, you survived. Fresh out of high school with your official Hero License under your belt, you had been accepted into Rising Agency, a very new agency founded by a class older than you over at Yuuei - Class 1-A.

The prominent faces being hero Deku, Ground Zero, and Shouto.

Somehow you had passed the interview selection and had been accepted, and your first day went horribly. On account of your quirk, Water Sprout, you had woken up with a mouth drier than a desert, and like you always did, you grabbed your liter bottle and went to chug.

Only two options popped before your eyes the moment you moved the water to your parched mouth.

[Spill the water.]     [Safely drink the water.]

You had tried your hardest to get your lip to the opening, but you knew better. During the time The Contract appeared, time literally froze. Your soulmate was given up to fifteen seconds to choose the answer before the first choice was automatically selected. You had tried to suppress the scream at the back of your throat when the cold, cold water came splashing down on your chest. Spraying all over your bed.

The scream you made when you were soaked to the bone no doubt made your soulmate smile wherever he was.

So you were glad when his options appeared before you a few minutes later.

[Break the sink faucet.]      [Turn off the water.]

With a sniff, you held no remorse when your hand jammed out and hit the option he deserved.

You had arrived at the agency's front door within the next hour, your most formal business clothes were worn fresh and sharp. Your hand held your case with your hero costume and nerves at your stomach. This was it, you had thought, your hands sweating profusely, your mouth so dry you felt faint, and with a quick chug of your water, you entered the facility.

The agency smelled like Pine-Sol and sweets, and you found the front desk immediately but were off-put by a man who was already there. His back hunched over, arms crossed, and placed onto the counter as he seemed to be arguing with the receptionist.

Nearer and nearer you drew, and the more you began to recognize just who the man was: Ground Zero.

Calm down, calm down, calm down.

Your heart hammered viciously in your chest as you were finally in earshot of the conversation - it seemed that he was fighting over his new time slots for his routine patrols. But you were no stranger to his… vivacious temperament, and instead of addressing him first, you figured it was in the best interest to simply ask the receptionist what your first steps should be.

But as you opened up your mouth, your internal monologue of what to say blaring on repeat so that you wouldn’t mess up, the world froze, and you panicked.

[Ace the introduction.]      [Fumble the introduction.]

The world was still for five seconds, but never did you ever once experience someone moving within The Contract. So, when Ground Zero’s hand moved and punched in an option that was mirrored right in front of your mouth, you immediately felt the blood in your cheeks from seeing him recoil back to your heart faster than you could blink.

“Hi, I’m Hero, and I’m new? I’m looking for the y/l/n room?”

Horror struck through you immediately at the realization.

Ground Zero was yours...?

He was your…?!

You saw red.

“Hah? What kind of introduction was -- WHAT THE FUCK?!”

Your fist throbbed pathetically still curled near his face, and Ground Zero’s blazing, burning red gaze matched the blood pouring from his busted nose as you panted like a corned animal.

“YOU MADE ME WET MY BED, ASSHOLE!”

So went your first interaction with your soulmate.

Your fist connecting and shattering his nose. Three of his friends holding him back, and three trying to escort you away quickly. It was indeed one for the books.

But that was three years ago, and at the age of twenty-one, you could still not handle the sight, or the presence of your soulmate, and vice versa. The both of you were like oil and water, conflicting and fighting whenever left together for too long, unable to get along. He was not meant for you, and you were not meant for him - it was evident like night and day.

Right decisions were made, however, once knowing who the other one was. The both of you taking track of each other’s patrol schedules to make sure good choices were made at that time, just in case, but as soon as the other was off, payback was a bitch. The entire agency had learned that both of you were soulmates the same day the both of you found out, and there were actual looks of sorrow given to you from his friends?!

Not to mention that his nickname for you was bedwetter now, something that both infuriated and embarrassed you to this day.

Both of you were separated at all times, never once having to work together, that is, until today. A time where we find ourselves back in the beginning.

“You’re fucking with me, right?”

A part of you wanted to roll your eyes at Bakugou’s quip, but in all consideration, you agreed with him ultimately.

“Unfortunately, I’m not,” Yaoyorozu sighed, her mouth pinched and her hands passing both you and Bakugou a small stack of documents for you to read over. You took your file after placing your water bottle down and opened it immediately as Yaoyorozu continued to speak. “Kane, Bryan is an American man who has recently been on Japan’s watchlist. He is highly dangerous, evasive, and a hard man to pin anything on… all we know is that innocent people are going missing when they enter his land, and undercover heroes end up in the sea with no memories, or worse, dead.”

That took you by surprise, and your stomach twisted at that thought.

Heroes have turned up dead?

“I don’t doubt the seriousness that this Kane man brings, but no offense, Creati, why does it have to be a mission for Ground Zero and I?” you asked, your eyes flittering from the blurred photo of the man on your page onto the slightly frowning commandeer of this agency. “We aren’t exactly… a good fighting duo? If what I think you’re asking is correct, why not send in Deku and Ground Zero? They have the best duo track record, I’m sure that they’ll be able to apprehend this man better and faster than we can.”

Yaoyorozu sighed, her teeth tugging at her bottom lip while her fingers drummed on the table, obviously not comfortable telling the full explanation.

“Well, to be honest, he stays on a remote island nearby, and it’s very exclusive.”

You owlishly blinked at Yaoyorozu, who straightened in her chair, a new air of confidence flowing through her that made you almost ask if a choice had been made for her.

“Kane owns a private island that is known for its resort, and to enter the resort, there must be two truths to this,” her eyes were holding yours for a moment, they were deep, so dark that for a second you felt fear tickle at the back of your spine before she turned her attention over to Bakugou. “One: those who may enter must be in a romantic relationship.”

What?

“Two: they must be soulmates.”

“WHAT?!”

You blinked, your head snapping over at Bakugou, who had yelled the same words as you did, obviously not impressed with what they were now enforcing. Oh god, this was not what you were thinking at all!

“Why the hell does it have to check off those two boxes? I’m not going somewhere obviously dangerous and in the middle of nowhere with bed wetter!” Bakugou growled, his feet planted onto the floor as he had his upper lip pulled into a sour face of sorts. “I’ll do it with literally anyone else, ponytail!”

“Unfortunately, that’s not an option,” she sighed, her hand pushing through her bangs with a sad shake of her head. She looked tired, and her exhaustive eyes rose to meet yours, and his, and her voice was weak and oh so pleading. “There is some way they can tell if you’re soulmates, and those we sent out who weren’t already soulmates never made it in. You two are quite literally our only option, without the two of you, we don’t stand a chance.”

“So, can we act as estranged lovers then?” you questioned, your stomach twisting in the thought of having to display any sort of romantic displays with the man sitting right next to you. “We can be a couple trying to work on our relationship?”

Yayorozu gulped.

“W-We actually made profiles for the two of you…”

“And?” came Bakugou’s near whisper.

“Y-You’ll be acting as a, well, a newly married couple. This is your honeymoon… I know you two don’t have a good history, and your on field teamwork has never been tried, but I’m pleading to you two now, please consider. You have until tomorrow to tell me if you accept.”

If there had been a choice that appeared for Bakugou to make you slam your head through the desk, you would have thanked him for choosing it.

[Carry all the bags]     [Take only his bags.]

“Thank you!” you chirped with no pity for the situation you had just placed him in, the glint of a sneer flashing across Bakugou’s face was fierce as he took the bags of luggage the two of you had been given from your agency. This was it, it was starting.

The weight of what was to come of this was now starting to hit heavily, the importance of the diamond ring on your finger - a symbol of the fake marriage contract between you and Bakugou felt like a ton. There was no hiding the discomfort the both of you held when you had to act in love, your hand itching to leave his clammy, abnormally warm hands, and you never realized how he mumbled under his breath until you were forced to sit next to him on the private plane. But as you were given two days to prepare for this mission, it didn’t hit you what was happening until you unloaded from the plane.

From the initial observation of the island, you immediately recognized just why the owner was so elusive and able to keep his agenda hidden. The island's natural barriers were bright as day, the rocky mountains seemed entirely inhabitable, and the entire resort was located where the mountains met the beach. Tropics and natural waterholes existed in those parts before slowly blending into the white sand beaches with water so blue and clean that you genuinely wished you would be having a good time.

You hated having to remind yourself that you were here for the sake of a mission and not to simply lay out, well, it was easy to forget that until Bakugou was beside you, and you fought the instinctive reaction to scowl at him. In fact, with your gaze falling onto the blond-haired hero, you didn’t notice the small woman appearing from nowhere, a bright smile on her face and white linen clothes on

“Welcome to Hibani Island!” she chirped, her eyes closing in well-practiced greetings, she spoke with an accent, and with her appearance, you assumed she was American. “My name is Jane, and I’m here to welcome you to our wonderful island! May I please have your names and the choice you had upon arrival?”

Your greeting smile disappeared at that point, your head tilting in confusion, “I’m sorry, our choice?”

“Mhm!” Jane nodded enthusiastically, the same bright smile plastered on her face. “Our wonderful island works in mysterious ways! As you both know, our beautiful resort is only for those who are soulmates; after all, we would never wish to poison her beautiful nature with impure love! Upon entry, with the help of the island, I am able to procure a choice for you and your soulmate to make! Since I posed the question to you,” her glazed over eyes focused on you, “I would appreciate it if your partner answered!”

There was a silence, and it couldn’t have lasted any more than a few seconds in all reality. But in that still, you could feel the hair on the back of your neck stand straight up, there was obviously something entirely wrong here.

“A choice about who would carry the luggage in,” Bakugou calmly, smoothly answered, his voice somehow not picking up on any suspicion. “Be -- Y/n chose that I would carry them all.”

The way your name passed his lips made your spine stiffen, it felt weird, unnatural, fake.

Well, this entire thing is fake, you reminded yourself, grateful that Jane was at the moment impressed by Bakugou’s correct statement.

“Well, wonderful! I’m so glad that our island can greet two beautiful soulmates today! Your names? So that I may check you both in?”

“Nakamura Katsuki and Y/n.”

“Amazing! Let’s get you to the main lobby, and they’ll set you two love birds up!”

Thankfully, Jane was a woman who didn’t mind talking to herself the entire way over to the resort’s main lobby, she spoke wonders of how the hot springs were especially “magically” at night, and promised that a trip during that time would lead to “the best of fantasies.” The resort itself was oddly busy. Couples were everywhere, each in their own world, yet all orbiting around one another, never once mixing.

The white sundress you wore suddenly felt too simple, especially with the stupid designer wear most people were wearing.

Jane escorted you to the front desk, and with one last overenthusiastic smile, she disappeared.

“Check us in, Joo Dee just about made me fucking lose it,” Bakugou grumbled, his patience hanging on a much thinner thread than yours apparently.

“Glad to know it takes only one super smiley person to ruin your day,” you couldn’t help but snip, the rolling of your eyes only stopped when the front desk clerk began to walk over, a bright smile on his face, and his hand waving in greeting.

You opened your mouth, ready to begin talking when his welcome rang clearly in your ears, but just as it happened all those years ago, the world froze.

[Ace the introduction.]     [Fumble the introduction.]

The prideful, arrogant smirk on his face seemed to burn into your back as he stared from behind you.

“Hi, I would like it.”

Your voice gave out, and with burning cheeks, you and the front desk clerk stared at each other, the awkward silence biting into your throat. The clerks’ smile, breaking slightly in his second-hand embarrassment and wonder as to why you stopped talking, but despite wanting to continue speaking your voice refused to work again.

Bakugou Katsuki was an asshole.

“Are you here to check in?” he asked, his eyes searching yours in hopes that was what you were here for.

With a burning face, you nodded, and the check-in proceeded.

The clerk, who introduced himself as Ryan Locke, quickly checked you and Bakugou into your rooms. He pulled out a simple paper map and circled the small house - yes, small house - that the two of you would be residing in. Just as the package the two of you purchased, both of you would be here in two months, and the entire time everything would be included. Name it, and it would be brought to the room, well, house. You nodded, trying to take everything he was throwing at you in, not at all relying on Bakugou, who was standing by the window staring at the other guests with a frown on his face.

PDA was not something either one of you were comfortable with.

“Well, that’s it from me! Should you need any assistance, please do not hesitate to call!” Ryan smiles, the crinkles by his eyes creasing, even more, washing you over with ease despite the tension in your body. You heard Bakugou approach the two of you, and with him beside you, Ryan seemed to remember something as he rubbed the back of his neck. “And, there is a couples event tonight, should you and your husband want to join! Most couples do, and by the look of it, it may help re-spark things?”

A sour rancid taste crawled at the back of your throat as you awkwardly laughed, your fronts were weaker then you thought, and shook your head, “Oh no! That’s no issue! We’re actually here on our honeymoon,” your fingers pressed to your chest, your eyes trailing to where Bakugou was standing in hopes that it somehow looked romantic. Pet names were a thing, right? But what to call him? “Uh, K-Kacchan is actually super shy with PDA!”

You froze when the only nickname you’ve ever heard used toward Bakugou fumble clumsily from your tongue.

Kacchan?!

KACCHAN?!

WERE YOU SUDDENLY DEKU?!

“Oh! Yes, I understand now!” Ryan laughed, waving off his mistake, the apples of his cheeks dusting in what you could only pray to be embarrassment. “Well, if you want to help your Kacchan here express his love for you without care of the world, tonight’s session is the place to be!”

He turned and walked away with a final smile, most likely retreating to the ringing phone in the back room.

“I swear to god, do not ever call me that shitty nickname ever again, or else I’ll explode your ass,” Bakugou hissed, his hand grabbing you by the elbow as he had you in close.

“I’ll call you whatever I damn please!” you hissed back, ripping your elbow out of his hold.

You watched as his upper lip twitched, and he moved to go grab your luggage, something The Contract still held over him. You stood with the papers that Ryan had given to you, the stack of itineraries and options of what the both of you two could do while at your stay taking far more room in your arm then you thought was acceptable. Your concentration on your fake husband - as you kept vehemently reminding yourself - broke when the door opened and in walked a woman who was alone, and headphones on her ears. You offered her a smile when eye contact was made but did nothing more.

Bakugou leaned down, his hands lifting up the luggage, most definitely annoyed with rolling the large suitcases. But with the woman’s course and the way that Bakugou’s back was towards her, having not noticed her entry at all, you could see that they were going to collide. Essential items were in that suitcase, and you had no idea if they could break if Bakugou managed to drop them after crashing with her. But again, it would be payback for the embarrassing first encounter with Ryan!

But before you could make up your mind on what to do, the world froze.

[Crash into her.]     [Avoid her.]

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(make sure to vote for the choice to be chosen!)  poll closes august 30 8am pst

[pluralismajestatis]

On inner worlds and imagination, particularly for those who struggle forming locations for themselves.

We're quite the travellers when it comes to our inner world: we move from time to time to a location that feels more suitable for the present moment. For example, in the winter we lived in a house in the city, in the spring we lived in a tent, now during the summer we live by a lake where we have a cabin and a treehouse to choose from. The creation of inner worlds, or adding areas into our existing inner world, is not an issue for the system.

An "inner world" is not system exclusive; it's a form of mindfulness, and can be a useful practice for anxiety management as well. I thought I'd write a bit about the process of creating an environment, in case it might help somebody.

First, decide where you'd like to go. We'll use our lake as an example. It's very hot here right now, and we've had little chance to cool down - therefore, creating an inner environment for this purpose, to enjoy the weather but also find solace from it, seemed ideal.

The first detail we focused on was the beachline. We thought of round stones licked by gentle waves; black, grey, and white. They're round under the foot, their texture a little like wet smooth sandpaper, and the waves roll over them for a short distance before the water turns murkier, darker, and swallows them. The beachline is made of stones like these, which on the other side turn into grass and hay and trees such as birches and pines. Can you visualise this? Imagine how the cool waves of the lake feel as you dip your feet underneath. Imagine the round shapes of the rocks.

Next part was looking up and over the water: there's mountains, covered in green forests, around it. It is a secluded place, the sky is clear, and the waters deep blue. We don't tend to focus on the surroundings a lot, only the area we'll be occupying, so next we would focus on the tree we wanted to build our treehouse in. At first it was just a tree - a pine - but two of us focused and created an A-shaped treehouse there, open towards the front with a solid back wall. We stole this design from a video game; using references can be immensely helpful in visualisation, just as in art.

Finally, we put down a small, old wooden pier. It's shaded by the hanging foliage and the planks are aged into a dark, moist grey, and the waves lap at the poles keeping it standing. We like to spend time on that pier and go swimming from there, and it creates an outer boundary for the area we inhabit.

The cabin is a separate location, so it isn't often visible from our beach. It was built by the same people who built the treehouse, but for another person to live in, and it lies a bit deeper into the forest, yet still close enough to be accessible from the beach.

An easy way to get started with visualising an inner world environment is listening to a soundscape. Ours was "Jasper Lake" from the application "Calm"; listening to it helps us return to our location without trouble, and brings back vivid memories upon which we can continue building detail, "remembering." I don't see why songs wouldn't work as well: if a song brings to your mind a vivid picture, you could use that as your foundation for an inner world location.

Scents are another powerful means of building memories and recalling them. If you struggle with recalling your world, build it to the scent of a candle, a perfume or an incense.

Lastly, you can simply claim a location. You can search for pictures or videos of places, and then begin imagining them in your mind, and interacting with them in your headspace. You can bring them to life by visualising detail and picturing sensory feedback relating to objects, shapes, temperatures and so on in your mind.

Once you've put together the very basics of an inner world - what you can see directly in front of you, what you can feel (temperature, airflow, ground firmness and texture), and what you can hear, close your eyes and picture yourself sitting right there, wherever that is. Focus on the details you've created. Don't attempt to explore before you feel your world is staying together without conscious effort. Once it does, feel free to examine it further - touch it, pick up objects to observe, find details that are presenting themselves within it, such as birds in the sky, or branches rustling in the wind.

Hopefully some of this will help someone build and maintain an inner world.

[imaeraser]

Playing With Foxfire Kin’emon x Reader (Modern AU) Ch 1

TW: power imbalance, cheating, and age gap

(2.1k words)

Kin’emon x reader x slight Sanji

Summary: You have a summer internship at the Kozuki company, and have to stay at Kin’emon’s home. You try to limit your attraction to the married man, but the flame of passion burns bright. And playing with fire can only lead to one thing— getting burnt.

AN: I originally did this for myself and my sister as a joke— since there is little to no fan fiction for Kin’emon— but decided to post it. Hopefully you enjoy and cringe at some parts.

I fumbled my way through the airport. The musk of others smudged onto my shoulders while I bumped down the path as if I were in a pinball machine. The sound of the wheels of my suitcase grounding me on Earth before all of my thoughts flew away.

   I raised my hand to shade my eyes as I stepped out into the open, while my foot jutted back from the force of the wind. I squinted down the road, but there was not an awaiting person in sight.

   I sighed, and sat down on a sun-warmed bench near a smoking man. As I grabbed the side rest, the tacky feeling of day-old gum made my arm jump in revulsion.

   “Ew, that’s so nasty,” I shook my arm as if the action would make the gum magically disappear, and then reluctantly started to pull it off with two fingers.

   “Here let me help you,” another set of arms entered my vision. The stranger pulled out a handkerchief and scraped any residue off of my arm jacket.

   “Thank you so much, you’re a lifesaver,” I turned to him, and stopped mid-thought.

   His eye was staring at me intently, but I could only appear to focus on his swirly eyebrow— his singular swirly eyebrow.

   “I think being a life saver is a bit of an over-statement, but I’ll take it.” He paused and tilted his head, yet the hair that covered one of his eyes did not budge. “Is there something wrong?”

   I paused, “No, it’s nothing. I’m just a bit air-headed sometimes.” I flushed as I rubbed the back on my neck.

   “Well, I think air-heads are cute,” he held out his hand, “Sanji.”

   “Y/N,” I said as I replied with a handshake.

   Once we retracted our arms he leaned over to his side, and proceeded to fill the atmosphere with the rottenly-sweet scent of tobacco. After a large puff, he released a light cloud into the air. The smoke got thinner and lighter as it floated up and died in the sky.

   “What brings you here Y/N?” Sanji held out an unused cigarette and raised an eyebrow.

   “I have an internship this summer,” I said as I shook my head and pushed the offering away.

   “Let me guess...” he paused, “ Kozuki?”

   “Yep,” I nodded. I threw another glance at the street, and the emptiness made my foot begin to tap the floor. “I think there was a guy that was supposed to pick me up.” I looked down at my phone- 4:57- a few more hours and I would no longer feel safe walking the streets alone.

   “If you want, I can drive you. Just give me the address and we’ll be on our way,” Sanji offered a handsome smile.

   My eyes quickly darted to his figure. He was tall and slender, but most of his form was hidden under a finely made suit. He shifted in his seat awaiting my answer, and the movement drew my attention to his abnormally built leg muscles. His demeanor was goofy, but I had only known him for a span of a few minutes.

   As much as I wanted to say yes, there were far too many episodes of true-crime documentaries watched for me to allow this stranger to drive me home.

   “No, I should be okay. I think I’ll wait a bit longer, and if he doesn’t show up I’ll call an Uber or something,” I said as I watched him lean back onto his seat.

   “Well, I’ll wait until you’re out of here safely. I can’t leave a lovely lady like yourself all alone,” Sanji smirked as he crossed his ankles.

   “Are you implying that I am incapable of handling myself?” I raised an eyebrow in  playful contention. He raised his hands as if to calm my rage.

   “Of course not, but it’s better to be safe than sorry,” he said, as I leaned back into the bench.

   Time quickly passed, and before either of us knew it we were watching the sky’s rolling clouds pull back and reveal an assortment of summer-time colors. The falling sun lit up Sanji’s flaxseed hair—spinning each strand into a gold thread. Perhaps it was a mistake to decline his proposal.

   “Don’t you have somewhere to be?” I said, glancing back at my phone.

   “I’m meant to be wherever you are, mademoiselle,” he placed a hand on his chest.

   I picked at my nails, and rolled a strand of my hair between my fingers, “Stop joking, you could do way better than me.” He gently clasped my hands.

   “You’re selling yourself short. From the time I have spent with you I can tell that you really are gorgeous,” he looked me dead in the eye. The intensity and suddenness of his icy-blue gaze made me look away.

   “I’ll take the compliment,” I said, before turning my eyes to the side. To my surprise I saw a man holding a sign with my name on it. “It’s about time,” I shook my head as I looked back over to Sanji. “Thanks for keeping me company, but the dude finally showed up. I have to get going.” I stood up, my knees clicking from being immobile for too long.

   After waving goodbye, I dragged my suitcase across the concrete to greet the man. The closer I walked to him, the taller his looming figure became. As we both stopped our pace, my eyes widened in distaste as I looked at him.

   His top-knot bobbed as he tilted his head, which provided a stark contrast to his worn out graphic tee that was half-way tucked into a pair of cargo shorts. He took a step towards me as he outstretched his hand, and I heard a resounding wooden thunk. My eyes trailed down to reveal a set of wooden clogs and knee-high socks.

   “I am deeply sorry for being late, I was just a bit busy.” He rubbed his neck with his other hand, which revealed a raspberry colored hickey. I bit the inside of my cheek, as I looked to the side in disbelief— trying not to stare at anything in particular. “Oh, you must be looking at my car. It is an antique—”

   “Y/N,” I hurriedly shook his hand. “I believe I am to stay at your house during the entirety of my internship at Kozuki?”

   His heavily lined eyes blinked a few times before he opened his mouth, “You are correct. I am Kin’emon. My wife and I will be hosting you for the few months you are to be staying.” There was a glint of light that flashed as he moved his hand—which was seen with a golden band around his ring finger.

   “Thank you very much for generously allowing me to stay in your home,” we began to walk to his car. “Oh I forgot, the email asked the interns to check the id of the person who is picking us up.” I paused before placing my hand on the sleek metal of the door handle.

   “Yes, thank you for reminding me,” he slipped his black leather wallet out of his pocket and fished for his id. Once he retrieved the card, he placed his driver’s license into my hand.

   I pulled out my phone, to look at the email telling us about our host. After comparing the information, I handed Kin’emon his drivers license back. “Okay, let’s go.” I said as I slid onto the creme colored leather of the backseat.

   My fist supported my head as I watched the scenery meld together through the window. The sky quickly turned darker. My breath formed a little patch of condensation— due to the late hour and dropping temperatures.

   The car ride was quiet, with the exception of some traditional Japanese instrumentals. But before either of us would try and fill the silence with awkward questioning, we arrived at his house.

   I stepped out of the car, and heard the sound of the trunk opening as well as plastic wheels hitting the ground. While handing me my suitcase handle, his calloused hands brushed against mine. I whispered a quiet, thank you, before following him up to his home.

   He opened the frosted glass door, which revealed a quaint home who’s floor was covered in what I perceived as bamboo mats. We both entered the house, and the scent of fried bread crumbs as well as curry swirled around us. I caught myself nearly drooling down my chin.

   The sound of pots, pans, and utensils cluttering stopped as a woman in an apron stepped out of the kitchen. “Welcome home dear,” she said before turning to me. “You must be the intern. My name is O-tsuru, it is a pleasure to meet your acquaintance.” She dusted her flour covered hands on her jeans before offering me a handshake.

   I gave a soft smile as I shook her hand, “I’m Y/N, it’s lovely to meet you as well.” O-tsuru gently grabbed Kin’emon’s hand and led him to the kitchen.

   “Food is almost finished, we would be delighted if you decided to eat with us,” her voice echoed from the kitchen.

   I looked down at my half eaten sandwich from the airport Subway. The bread was chewy like a warm kneaded eraser, and the vegetables had an almost plastic sheen to them. “I would love to eat whatever smells that delicious,” I peeled off my shoes and set them near the door.

   O-tsuru’s head popped out from the kitchen, “Just sit for a bit, and we’ll be out with food in a second.” Following her instructions, I pushed the floor sitting chair out so I could sit on my knees.

   There were no legs to the chair, but seeing as the table was so close to the ground it did not present a problem. My eyes scanned the area of the house that was visible. There were sliding doors and paintings with Japanese characters drawn in sumi ink. Out of the corner of my eye, I could see something reflect the light of the overhead fan.

   I turned to my side and saw two katana’s on display, both identical in looks. Black lacquered wood, with the image of fire painted down the middle. It looked too gaudy for it to be used as a weapon. As I glanced over the other decorations in the house, I decided to place the swords in the same category.

   “Today we are going to be eating Tonkatsu Curry,” O-tusru said, as she clattered plates about to organize the table. I reached out to help her, but she swatted my hands away playfully. “You’re our guest, I can’t put you to work so soon,” she chuckled. I placed my hands back onto my lap, and waited.

   Soon enough Kin’emon brought out the food, and the scent of curry wafted over  from the pot. There was a plate set down that was full of pork chops covered in fried bread crumbs. O-tsuru set down a glass bowl full of lettuce— you could see droplets of water on the leaves.

   “So we have some Tonkatsu here, but if you can’t eat that we also have nato,” O-tsuru sat across from me.

   “What’s nato?” I looked at my bowl of rice, and sniffed it.  

   “It’s fermented beans,” Kin’emon took his seat next to his wife. “And if you’re allergic to anything here just let us know, I’m sure we can find something in the kitchen that suits your needs.”

   As we dug in, the flavors exploded in my mouth creating a lovely blend. The dinner was mostly quiet, with the exception of some basic questions to fill up the time.

   “I’ll let Kin’emon show you to your room. I have to wash some dishes,” O-tsuru grabbed a few plates as she stood up.

   While the sound of water and the clanging of dishes ensued, Kin’emon stood up, and walked over to my luggage. The slight crispy nosies of the mats under my feet amused me.

   “So...are the floor mats made out of bamboo?” I said.

   “They are made out of rice straw, they’re called Tatami mats,” he walked down the hallway, and placed his hand on the door, and cracked it open slightly. “This is where your room is, you can call either of us if you need anything.”

   I watched his silhouette as he turned around to meet back with his wife. Although he dressed like a patchwork dad and samurai, it looked as if he could still be a model for Calvin Klein. As he walked away, his muscles rippled under his skin. His arms were also well defined, but as my eye caught his ring I stopped

[idontlikeem]

just wanted to say i love ur posts, you're such a great presence on penslb + wildlb !! been seeing some speculation on twitter (unfortunately lmao) but id love to hear ur thoughts on kaprizov and whether you think he'll stick with the wild his whole career as a franchise-face or if you think he might move at some point (especially if it's in chase of a potential cup win?) i'd really really love to see him on the wild for his career, but obvs that isn't always a guarantee, and if u think he could move, what team(s) would u most want to see him on ? (or, alternatively, wherever you'd least want him to go lol)

anon, i hope you know that this ask is incredibly evil 😂 thank you for your nice words but this is eeeeeeeeeeeeeeevil.

so the thing with kaprizov is he's contracted to the wild through the end of the 25-26 season. our buyout cap hell ends after the 24-25 season.

i don't know what the wild are gonna look like the next three seasons as far as who is actually gonna be on the team because we're so fucked with the cap, but i DO know that we have an extremely good set of prospects down in iowa on the AHL team that can come up and play on ELCs, so that might ease the pain for the next couple of years and get them good experience.

if we can get through these three lean years, and the prospects become as elite as they have the capability to (and we have some that i'm VERY excited about), by the time kirill is looking at where he goes next, our buyout crunch will be flushed out AND the cap will have been raised a few times (even if it's only minimal). we'll have young players that have (hopefully) developed into elite, integral parts of the team, and we'll have the cap space again to pay them and keep them around and continue building a winning team.

obviously i don't know anything, but if i had to guess, if the team goes the direction i think it's going to (the future is so bright), he might not feel like he needs to go elsewhere to cup-chase.

he also has a very strong relationship with the GM. nobody else has been able to get him to come over from russia before billy g, and the contract got worked out over the summer once billy actually got to talk to him in-person. keep in mind that before he even signed he got himself over to the US to get his covid vaccine so he could be ready to join training camp as quickly as possible! he wants to be here.

as far as DURING his contract...he's not getting traded. you don't trade franchise-altering superstars like that. if there are issues or problems, EVERYONE goes before the star goes. look at sid: when a coach's system didn't work for him any more, the coach left. a GM who refused to see that change was needed was fired. players are brought in specifically to cater him; they auditioned MANY wingers on sid's line in the years before the back-to-back cups before they hit on winning combos. hell, even geno was able to force a 'it's him or me' trade, and as much of a generational talent as he is, he's not the face of the franchise like sid is. that's what will happen with kirill, i'm willing to bet on it. you'll see the entire front office get turned over to keep him happy before they explore trading him. these types of players are rare, and when you get them you hang on as tight as you can and do what needs to be done to keep them satisfied.

as far as where i'd like to see him go....i only like two teams so i'm sure you can guess! haha. i literally hate every other team in the league so this is a pretty easy answer!

[littlemissaddict]

Crazy For This Girl - Bobby x Reader

She rolls the window down And she Talks over the sound Of the cars that pass us by And I don't know why But she's changed my mind

“What the hell are you doing here?” y/n exclaims as the door in front of him opens before he even has a chance to knock.

“Well that’s no way to greet a friend” he teases, laughing as she pulls him into a hug, “That’s better now come on we’re going for a ride” he says when she pulls away. She disappears into the hallway for a moment before coming back with shoes on and a jacket in her hand. She calls to let her parents know she’s going out before following him to the car.

Out of the corner of his eye he can see her watching him when turns in his seat and places a hand on the back of her seat as he reverses off of the driveway before he pulls away from her house and begins navigating the streets of LA with no particular direction in mind. Y/n, of course notices this and is quick to question him.

“So where are we going?”

A quick glance at her reveals her fiddling with the car's aircon which he knows is broken so she isn’t going to get anywhere with it and he chuckles to himself when she finally realises. She sighs leaning over and opting to open the window instead, letting in a rush of warm summer air and the sound of passing cars. When she clears her throat, it snaps him out of his thoughts and he remembers that she’s waiting for an answer.

“Somewhere? Anywhere? Nowhere?” he shrugs, seeing the questioning look that she shoots him before he adds “I just needed a break”

“Yeah I’m surprised you managed to get Luke to agree to that this close to a show, especially one as big as The Orpheum” she sounds skeptical. She’s known Luke as long as he has and knows how hyper focused Luke can get before a show, insisting that they practice in any amount of free time they get. He even once managed to convince them to skip class to rehearse which didn’t end well.

“Well it was either we got a break or I broke something” he tells her as they stop at a red light and he looks over to her to see her already watching him, “Probably Luke” he adds under his breath when he turns back to the road but she hears him and laughs at the remark.

Her laughter fills the small space of the car and he fights the temptation to look away from the road again just so that he can see her smile. He can already feel the tension leaving his body after just ten minutes with her and it leaves him wondering what a lifetime spent with her would be like.

Would you look at her She looks at me She's got me thinking about her constantly But she don't know how I feel And as she carries on without a doubt I wonder if she's figured it out I'm crazy for this girl

It’s getting late when he finally drops y/n back off at home and he knows when he gets back to the studio Luke is going to be pissed but it doesn’t make him hurry.

“Thanks for coming with me” he smiles, reaching over to grab onto her wrist to stop her from getting out of the car just yet. 

She froze for a second before slowly sitting back down and closing the car door. He watched as she turned to face him, her eyes scanning his face as if searching for something. He didn’t know what but whatever it was she either didn’t find it or choose not to as she settled her gaze onto his.

“Anytime Bobby, you know that but I really do have to go” she almost whispers as she leans across to press a kiss to his cheek, a small smile crosses her face as she climbs out of the car and walks up the driveway to the door. Looking over her shoulder she leaves him with one last wave before going inside and leaving him alone.

Boby spends the next minute or so staring at the doorway where y/n was standing until he remembers where he is and where he is supposed to be going but he’s finding it hard to leave. His cheek tingles from the feeling of her lips pressed against it and it’s hard for him to pull his mind away from her as he drives back towards the studio.

The way she held his gaze also played on his mind, it was different to how she usually looked at him, full of longing and it seemed as if she’d wanted to tell him something but he wasn’t sure if he'd just imagined it. If he’d just been projecting his own feelings onto her in hopes that she felt the same way. Either way he was back at the studio and he didn’t have time to dwell on it as Luke was onto him straight away about how long he’d been gone when they should have been rehearsing, blocking out Luke’s rant he picked up his guitar as his mind wandered back to the girl he was crazy about.

She was the one to hold me The night The sky fell down And what was I thinking when The world didn't end Why didn't I know what I know now

"Bobby what-what are you doing here? What happened to the show?" Y/n asks, confusion in her voice as she looks around as if expecting the boys to turn up. 

Her brow furrows as her eyes take in his appearance, his slumped posture and the fresh tears stains on his face. He knows he looks a mess but with everything that has happened tonight he really couldn't care less. 

"Bobby, whe-" she tries to ask but he cuts her off knowing that she's only going to ask what happened and where the boys are but he's not ready to talk yet so he decides on something short and straight to the point so that hopefully she won't ask more tonight. 

"They're gone"

Fresh tears escape his already red eyes as he steps forward to pull her into a hug, seeking comfort in her embrace and she responds quickly wrapping her arms around him. It takes a few moments for Bobby's words to sink in as she finally puts the pieces together, "Oh Bobby" she mumbles, her arms tightening around him and then she's crying too. He feels her tears as they drop onto his shoulder and he realises now that she's clinging to him just as much as he's clinging to her.

When he shivers in her hold she seems to remember that they're still on the doorstep and it takes everything in her to pull away from the boy.

"Do you want to stay here for the night?" She asks softly and he nods in reply, he doesn't want to be alone but he needs someone who understands the pain of the loss of the boys like he does.

She takes his hand and pulls him inside, closing the door behind them before they make their way up to her room. She gets him to sit on the bed as she tells him to wait and that she'd be back. He tries to protest her leaving and she sighs, standing in front of him as she reaches over to push his messy hair out of his eyes so that she can look at him.

"I just have to tell mum and dad that you're staying and then I'll be right back I promise" she tells him, hand caressing the wet skin of his cheeks before she's turning around and leaving him to the quiet of her room.

Running a hand through his hair he winces when it catches on his rings. He lets his gaze wander around the familiar surroundings of her room, the untidy desk by the window, the bookcase filled with the stories she allows herself to escape in and finally to the closet which never seems to close properly. He lets out a shaky breath as a tiny fraction of the hurt that’s weighing him down is lifted just from the comfort that the room brings him, that y/n brings him.

At the sound of her footsteps he looks up to find her standing in the doorway, "You're good to stay the night and I brought some of my brother's things for you to change into so you don't have to sleep in your clothes" she says, her voice quiet as she tries to hand him the clothes. When he doesn’t move she drops the clothes on the bed next to him, reaching a hand up to cup his face and stroking the pad of her thumb soothingly over his skin "C'mon Bobby" she pleads and he finally moves to get changed. 

Right now Face to face All my fears Pushed aside And right now I'm ready to spend the rest of my life With you

A lot had changed between that night and now. First off had been the boys funerals which had been the most difficult days for Bobby since the night they had died but y/n had been there by his side for it all. He had also taken a break from music only finding heartbreak in it as it reminded him too much of the times they’d had as a band and that it was never going to be the same again, that was until both Rose and Y/n had convinced him to start again. Rose had even helped him to write a song that he had played at an open mic night that got him noticed by a manager and they were in talks about signing him to the label.

But the most important change for him was that he had finally told y/n how he felt about her and not only did she not hate him for it she told him she felt the same which is how they had ended up moving into a small apartment together.

“Whatch’u thinking about?” she asks, turning on her side to face him as she reached up to gently thumb over the frown that she’d noticed appear on his face in the past couple of minutes.

“I just don’t think I’d be able to do it without the guys, the dream was for us to do it together but without them just feels wrong” he admits, his voice quiet.

“You all supported each other, right?” she asks and he nods in response “So you don’t think that they’re not still doing that, cheering you on from wherever they are right now, urging you to live the dream” she smiles.

“I guess”

“Besides you’re not alone, you’ve got me and Rose and we’ll be with you every step of the way just like the boys would have been, we can do this for them” she tells him, her words easing his worries as always.  As the fears recede he smiles back at her ready to face whatever the future has in store for him knowing that she’ll be by his side no matter what.

----

Taglist: @90ssunsetcurve​ @lovesanimals​ @lilostif16​

[ncisfranchise-source]

You have to imagine that for nearly two decades at CBS, suggesting that Tuesday leadoff hitter NCIS change time slots (let alone days) was akin to saying Macbeth in a theater.

And yet the 19th season of TV’s most watched drama is set to unspool Mondays at 9/8c, starting Sept. 20, where it will bridge a block of sitcoms (The Neighborhood and Bob Hearts Abishola) and the freshman spinoff NCIS: Hawai’i.

Speaking with TVLine during CBS’ day at the Television Critics Association summer press tour, CBS Entertainment president Kelly Kahl said that in moving NCIS for the first time ever, “We hope to improve the [Monday] time period significantly, and we hope that it can be a strong lead-in to help launch NCIS: Hawai’i.”

During the 2020-21 TV season, All Rise in the Mondays-at-9 time slot averaged 5.7 million total viewers and a 0.7 demo rating (with DVR playback folded in), leading out of The Neighborhood/Abishola‘s 6.7 mil/0.9 average.

NCIS, meanwhile, last season averaged 12.6 million viewers and a 1.2 rating — though there is every chance those numbers will dip due to the time slot change (it will now air opposite The Voice, Dancing With the Stars and Monday Night Football), and also as the procedural navigates one of its most significant cast transitions (detailed here).

“We realize that we can’t take [the time slot change] for granted,” Kahl said. “We have to help educate people and let them know where it’s moving to.”

But even in a best case scenario, is CBS ready for NCIS to possibly lose its long-held title as “TV’s most watched drama,” which it last and only briefly ceded to This Is Us, three years ago?

“Well, we haven’t lost it yet,” Kahl noted with a chuckle, “so we’ll hang onto it as long as we can. I will say that fans of that show are a diehard bunch, so I don’t foresee losing a lot of them with the time period change.”

(For what it’s worth, TV’s second most watched drama last season was… CBS’ own The Equalizer, and FBI placed third. So the Eye network is poised to keep the title in-house.)

TVLine also ran another of our Burning Fall TV Questions by Kahl, asking why Tough as Nails — airing Wednesdays at 9/8c this fall — is being sandwiched between a highly anticipated, delayed season of Survivor and the similarly anticipated CSI: Vegas sequel series.

Tough as Nails‘ sophomore cycle averaged 3.8 million viewers and a 0.6 rating (opposite both Fox’s The Masked Singer and NBC’s Chicago Med, mind you), whereas Survivor‘s most recent fall run drew double that. So it would seem that by not giving CSI: Vegas a direct Survivor lead-in, money is being left on the table.

Kahl said the thinking behind Wednesday’s scheduling is two-fold.

“We think that fan interest in CSI: Vegas will be such that, hopefully, they’ll come to the show wherever it is on the schedule,” he explained. Secondly, “we are certainly hoping that Tough as Nails is going to get a boost from having a Survivor lead-in,” seeing as “we’ve never really given Tough as Nails the support it probably deserved as a new show, ” he admitted. “We kind of threw it to the wolves in the middle of a pandemic, but it has performed really, really well.”

By pairing Tough as Nails with reality-TV veteran Survivor, the hope is to make the relative newcomer “into a bigger franchise for us, so that CSI: Vegas isn’t a complete self-starter at 10 o’clock,” Kahl added. “All time slots are important to us, and 10 o’clock is something we cannot slack off on, because it’s important to our local stations, and to late night as well.”

[221bshrlocked]

Follow Your Heart

Pairing: Ardeth Bay x Reader

Words: 12,609. Please do not hate me. I put markers to where you can stop and continue later

Warnings: Some pining. Little bit of angst. Definitely some fluff. And as you should know by now, smut. Unusual dirty talk in the sense that it is more romantic than dirty. Hopefully it gets you going though.

A/N: I have not written anything in so long and I apologize that this is not what you expected (aka Bucky or Steve) after the on/off hiatus. I am genuinely surprised considering this is the longest story I have written. I’m trying my hand at something completely different and since there are a few of us out there thirsting for Ardeth Bae Bay, I hope you like this. And shout out to @mss4msu for literally handing me the Middle Egyptian and Hieratic on a platter because Lord knows I still suck at this and she is a genius. Also, Happy Birthday friend, you know who you are. Lastly, refer to this for an in depth disclaimer for this fic.

~I~

It was a quiet day, one of the few since you’ve arrived with Evy on the site. You weren’t one to tag along with her or her husband, but you couldn’t pass a chance to visit a place like Luxor, not when it was your professor’s favorite city. Being one of Sir Gaston Maspero’s students, you’ve heard all about the temple, this side of the Nile even, and you’d always wanted to come to it, not just for research purposes but to enjoy the magic that was Egypt. 

You always envied Evy for living in this place for so long, even wished you were favored by the librarians and professors like her, but she was much more charming, beautiful even. You were the cousin no one paid mind to, apart from the Professor of course. He had always favored you amongst the others and you didn’t mind it, not when you were learning about the greatest civilization in the world. You had always wished to be more connected to this land but sadly, you weren’t. Your only connection was the knowledge of the languages and the culture, not a parent you could always speak of during parties and galas. 

Looking up from your notebook, you placed it aside and sipped from your afternoon tea, eyes searching the landscape in front of you, hoping the sands and waves would tell you something, anything about the place you were in. It has been years since you’ve spoken with your Professor, wishing he was here with you, telling you all the secrets whispered to him by the stones. He always had a sense of things around him, and he once told you that you had that same instinct but you brushed it off. If you did, it hasn’t made itself visible yet. You’ve been here for months now, without a new find or anything to write about back home. 

But like Evy, you weren’t one to give up so easily, constantly searching for the impossible. A breeze flew through your hair, your skin shivering for the first time in a long time. The summer was close to ending and while it was unbearably hot during the day, the night could be even deadlier. You drank the rest of your tea and were collecting your notebooks when a few papers flew away. Immediately, you ran after them before they fell in the water, managing to catch all but one. You were about to jump in the water when a hand flew and grasped your wrist, pulling you back before you stepped any further.

“Wha-”

“The waters are not safe in these parts of the country.” Your eyes shifted back and forth between the man’s own dark orbs and his hand. He finally let go, staring at you as he passed and went into the water to collect your page. You hoped it was soaked enough that he wouldn’t see what was in it, sighing in relief when he came back out with what used to be a sketch.

“You must be careful. We do not need anymore incidents around here.” He threw the wet paper in your hands before walking away from the hill, yelling something to the men working around the temple before getting on his horse and leaving. You sighed before throwing the page away, hating how you somehow always made a fool out of yourself in his presence. You had not expected to see him today. Rick and Evy weren’t around so he had no reason to be here, or so you thought. You walked back to your tent to wash up before dinner, telling the men it was time for them to go home. 

"في أي وقت تريدننا أن نأتي غدا يا انسة؟" 

Miss, is there any specific time you wish us to come tomorrow?

One of the men yelled out to you, wiping the sweat from his forehead and waiting for your response. Your Arabic was that of a child’s and although you loved practicing it with the men and the people in the village, you hated how it came out like that of a toddler’s, sometimes grammatically incorrect and other times completely wrong. But you struggled through a response anyway, smiling at them before replying to the leader of the workmen.

"يمكنكم الراحة غدا وسأخبركم لاحقًا."

You can rest tomorrow and I will let you know later when you can come in.

They put their tools near your tent and left, thanking you and bidding you a good night. You were aware of the position you were in and at times, truly disliked it. You thought of maybe giving them a week or two break but you weren’t sure how that would go with your superiors back in Oxford. Once everyone had left, you brought food and water to your guards and asked them to take the night off. Both of them turned to each other and thanked you for the opportunity but told you they would remain nearby. When you realized they would still do whatever they wanted, you thanked them and left back to your tent.

You left them chatting about some wedding coming up and went back to your tent, shutting all sides before stripping down and showering. You were thankful for the men’s expertise on setting up this tent. They left you a place near one of the palm trees, closed from all sides so you could wash up quickly if you needed to. It was your favorite part of the day, standing in the middle of the desert and surrounded by the ancient air. Finishing up quickly, you left your hair down to dry naturally, wrapping yourself in a night robe before walking out of the little room. As soon as you looked up, you almost squealed, hand clasping at your chest for air. 

“You nearly gave me a heart attack.” Your words were a mix of anger and fear, body refusing to budge from its place until the figure in front of you said something. When he continued to stare at you, you cleared your throat and moved to pour some wine for yourself. “I thought you had left.” You turned around and saw he was still staring at you, his eyes following the droplets of water falling on your shoulders. 

When he continued to remain silent, you sipped from your glass and sat opposite of him. “I’m assuming Rick and Evy are coming soon then?” 

“What makes you say that?” His response was laced with sarcasm and you hated how he sounded, how he always treated you. Perhaps it was the heat finally getting to your head or the long hours in the field, maybe even the wine, but you’ve had enough.

“Seeing as you are never around unless they are, I thought they would be coming. We both know you are not here out of interest…” Your words trailed off and you looked up, surprised to see his demeanor change, however, not for the better. Without any hesitation, his frowning expression followed you as he stood, walking towards your chair and leaning down enough for you to feel the heat radiating off of his body.

“Never ask your guards to leave.” His eyes darted to your lips but for a moment, watching the wine stain them a dark red before he pulled away and growled something in Arabic you didn’t quite catch, walking through the little opening in the tent and leaving you a mess. You downed the rest of your drink and crawled under your covers, finding it impossible to sleep now that you were so close to him. The man did things to you ever since you met him and you hated it. Somehow, you were always like a dog in heat whenever he was around. You weren’t sure what it was that was attractive about him; between his nearly black eyes and plump lips, and his dominant yet kind personality, you were sure there would never be another that would catch your attention. 

But it was just your luck that he absolutely despised you, constantly calling you out whenever Evy and Rick were around or, when they weren’t, ordering you around like you were a child who couldn’t care for herself. You wished you could know what it was that made him regularly angry with you but you opted to thinking it was because you were a complete outsider that, like her cousin, dug around in places where she didn’t belong. You chose to fall for a man that couldn’t stand you, a man that had every reason to not like you or your family, a man who could have any woman in his bed should he ask, a man whose sole purpose was to keep Egypt's secrets hidden from the curious eyes of the world. 

A man who went by the name of Ardeth Bay.

~II~

It had never occurred to you that the day would come when you could speak with a living being who belonged to an ancient tribe. While the modern Egyptians you interacted with were descendants of the ancients, whether of the Coptic or Muslim traditions, it amazed you that one of the least known tribesmen were among you to this day. In any text you read, administrative and personal, you could always find hints of the Medjay’s presence. In the royal letters, they were those who protected the deserts of Seth, the Pharaoh himself, and sometimes even the borders of the country. In the personal ones, although rarely mentioned, they were described as ones who never carried out much interaction with the population, always keeping to themselves or helping out wherever they were needed in a village before leaving. They patrolled the lands at times, making sure there were no Hittite or Akkadian spies seeking to destroy Pharaoh. 

Now, the chieftain of the Medjay was another story. He was constantly mentioned in any type of literary texts. Most of the times, he was mentioned by name and on behalf of his people. He was the most important of the Medjay for obvious purposes. You continued scribbling absentmindedly in your notebook, not paying attention to what it was you were writing down. You fell out of your haze when you heard a commotion in front of your tent. Looking at your watch, you jumped out of your bed when you realized you’ve been idle for an hour, quickly putting on your robe before exiting the tent.

“Is everything alright?” You saw the two guards arguing with a few women from the village, immediately walking up to them to see what was wrong.

“There is nothing to concern yourself with Miss.”

“Please, tell me.” You saw the two men look at each other before nodding at the women. 

"يريدونك ان تحضر حفلة زفاف صديقتهن الليلة."

They want you to attend their friend’s wedding tonight.

The women stood there in silence until you decided and although you wished to go, you weren’t sure you would be welcomed, especially if the bride and the groom did not know. You struggled with what you wanted to say and hoped you would make sense to them. 

"انا اتشرف لكن هل تعرف العروس أنكم طلبتن مني؟" 

It would be my honor, but does the bride know you came and asked me?

They smiled at your broken Arabic and nodded in unison before telling you that she was the one who asked them to come and invite you. They told you she would have come herself but she was preparing for the wedding in a few hours. You told them you would be more than happy to come and laughed when one of the younger girls jumped and hugged you before kissing both of your cheeks. The men did not look pleased at your decision but said nothing, telling you that one of them would stay on site while the other accompanied you to the wedding. And when you tried to tell them there was no reason to do so, they told you it was non-negotiable. 

So you left back to your tent to dress more properly before making the regular morning rounds, grabbing your notebook and heading to the other side of the temple where you have yet to excavate. You had asked permission from the townspeople first, and although you thought they would not grant you access since the mosque built on the site was still in use, they surprisingly agreed as long as you didn’t damage any part of the prayer house. You found a bolder near the mosque and sat on it, sketching the grounds first before going anywhere near the mosque. 

You stayed there for hours, losing all sense of time when your thoughts strayed away from the place to something, or rather, someone else. Flipping through the pages, you stopped and looked at the page you were invested in during the morning hours, shaking your head at how pathetic you were. Near the portrait you sketched of him instead of the one which fell in the Nile were hieroglyphs. You never knew that day dreaming would include writing in a dead language and you laughed a little, not because of what was on the page but because of how clever your mind was even when it was idle. 

                                                      𓇯𓂠𓍑𓇌 𓏥

“ḥry mḏꜢw.” You whispered to the monuments, tracing the lines of his features and wishing you had a better understanding of the man that was Ardeth. He was a living marvel in every sense of the word. And although you were attracted to him because of his intelligence and past, you couldn’t deny how handsome he was, probably the most beautiful of men you’d ever had the pleasure of looking at. You’ve only ever seen his face and hands, and as much as you hated to admit it, they were the fuel of your evening activities far too many times. And whenever he haunted your dreams, you always woke up heaving and sweating, knowing very well what your dreams were about. 

So busy continuing your sketch of him, you didn’t hear the footsteps approaching you until it was too late. For the third time in less than twenty four hours, Ardeth crept up on you, standing a few feet away behind you and ignoring your obvious distress before approaching you.

“You have got to stop doing that.” You said humorously but stopped smiling when you realized he was in a foul mood once more.

“Why are you going to the wedding?” He ignored your previous comment, crossing his arms and waiting for you to reply.

“I thought it would be rude to decline the invitation. I have never gone to an Egyptian wedding before and I have a feeling I will not get a second chance again.” Your tone came out more aggressive than you intended but you didn’t care. 

“And the guards? Had I not told you last night to never ask them to leave.” Ardeth took a step forward and part of you felt a twist in your stomach at his proximity, not because he would hurt you. No, he would never do that. But because you were barely over what transpired the night prior. 

“Last time I checked, I was the boss around here, not you. Now, I understand your position and hold great respect for it, but if you think you can walk around ordering me simply because I am a woman then it is best you don’t come around unless Rick or Evy are here. I don’t need to listen to you and you know this very well. If you’ll excuse me, I have to prepare for a wedding.” You stood up and took one step forward, not seeing the giant rock in front of you. You prepared to hit the ground but no such thing happened. Instead, you felt a pair of arms wrapped tightly around your waist, holding your body against a solid chest. Looking back, you felt Ardeth’s hands tighten around you as soon as you made eye contact with him. His eyes were dilated, the beautiful brown barely visible, jaws clenching when he saw your parted lips. He let go instantly, looking away and leaning down to pick up your notebook before you asked him not to.

As soon as he flipped the notebook to dust the sand off, he saw his portrait and the hieroglyphs written at the bottom, blinking confusingly a few times before handing you back the notebook and excusing himself. You wished the Nile could just flood and take you away from here. Not sure what to make of his reaction, you went back to your tent, aggressively opening the flap and throwing your things on the bed. You noticed something on the chair and picked it up, looking around to see who could have possibly come in here.

Walking outside, you saw the two guards drinking tea under a tree. Approaching them, you asked if they saw anyone go into your tent. When they told you that one of the women came back with clothes for you to wear, they accompanied her to your tent to make sure she placed it inside and took nothing. You thanked the two of them and walked back, studying the familiar gown you saw everyone wear in the village. You were glad they had given you one, not because you had nothing to wear but because you were afraid you dress might offend them. Quickly washing up, you put your hair up and put the long silky black gown on, twirling around in front of the mirror before putting your heels on and leaving. 

It was around five in the afternoon by the time you finished. You walked out and made your way to the guards to let them know you were ready. But when you got there, you saw them talking to Ardeth, bowing their heads to him when they saw you standing there and leaving. For a second, you thought he was going to argue with you and ask you to stay but as he approached you, you saw the almost reserved gaze he held. 

“Both men will stay here tonight and I will escort you to the wedding.” He said calmly and although you preferred this side of him, you couldn’t trust his sudden change of demeanor. 

“Are you serious?” Ardeth looked up at your question and you could pinpoint the moment he felt guilty but you chose to ignore it. “You do not wish to be in my company.” He said, more as a statement than a question and you hated how you denied him immediately.

“No no, that’s not what I said. Nevermind, we should probably leave. I don’t want to miss anything.” You turned around and refused to look back until you had reached the streets of the village. You realized you didn’t know where the wedding would be held but you saw some families walking towards the main church and thought to follow them. As soon as you arrived, you saw the girls from the morning standing outside. You smiled when one of them saw you and ran to welcome you in but as soon as she saw Ardeth, her eyes widened and she said something in Arabic that you did not recognize. 

And then something you’ve never seen before happened, absolutely taking your breath away and causing you to swallow the lump in your throat before approaching the other guests. Ardeth smiled at the young woman and asked her to not tell the elder of the village that he was here. You watched as he interacted with her and waved to her friends, telling her that he would rather enjoy the evening with everyone than have the attention on him. She smiled at him, telling him she will make sure no one will tell any of the administration that he was here before leaving to join her friends. 

You wished you could ask him why he said this but you thought it best to leave him alone. No need to start arguing from now. The night was young and you wanted to enjoy every moment of it. 

~III~

The ceremony was longer than you thought but you didn’t mind it. You enjoyed the hymns they sang, surprising Ardeth when you had picked up one of the books and followed along with the Coptic. You could tell he was staring at you but you ignored him, wanting to commit this to memory. When they finished and the priest announced them as man and wife, all the women began ululating and although it took you by surprise, you were glad to be a part of this. They were all so joyful, following the newly wed outside to the street as they walked to the giant tent and stage in the middle of the town. 

Not thirty minutes later, everyone was dancing and singing along with the couple. You watched as musicians played and danced around the woman and her husband, laughing when he picked her up and twirled her around. You forgot Ardeth was there and continued to watch everyone celebrate the two, but Ardeth was very much aware of your presence. 

Unbeknownst to you, he has spent months in Luxor, watching you and making sure nothing out of the ordinary took place but more importantly, making sure you were safe. He begrudgingly listened to Evy when she told him she knew his secret. He had tried to lie but Evy was clever, telling him that there was no shame in admitting the feelings he had for you. Ardeth told Evy that he could never be with you because you did not think of him the way he thought of you and up until a few hours ago, he thought Evy was lying to him when she told him that he was mistaken. 

When he saw the sketch you had of him, along with the hieroglyphs of his name and his title, he changed his mind. Maybe, just maybe, the feelings were mutual, but even then, he has been nothing but rude and condescending ever since he met you. Perhaps this was more out of curiosity than anything else, because in his mind, no woman as intelligent and beautiful as you would think of him that way. He was not from the ordinary population. This was even excluding where he came from; surely you would want to marry someone who held the same customs and traditions, perhaps even faith, as you. Why would you look at him, a man who was living proof of an ancient people, whose culture was completely different from yours, who might not give you everything you would wish for?

Ardeth was brought back to reality when he saw you standing up and leaving. He was about to follow you when he saw who it was you were approaching, sitting back down in the back along with a few others and watching as you went to the bride and the groom. 

When the young woman saw you, she tapped her husband on the shoulder to get his attention. The man thanked you for coming and told you that his wife aspired to be as kind as you one day. You were taken aback by the response, thanking the two of them and taking a small bag out of your purse. 

You told her you didn’t know what was proper to be given as a gift. She had declined it at first but when you opened it and showed it to her, both of them were surprised and asked you if you were sure. You didn’t know how to convey why you were giving it to her so you looked around to see if anyone who understood English could help you. As soon as you looked towards the back, you saw Ardeth staring right back at you. Swallowing your pride, you motioned for him to come, clasping your hands together to tell him you truly needed his help. He was next to you within moments, asking you what it was you needed.

“Could you please tell them that, as I understand, the blue scarab brings luck and keeps the evil eye away. And I wish for their marriage to always be happy and that they never struggle in anything.” You watched as he took the golden necklace, his eyes holding your gaze before he turned to the bride and told her what you said. She was surprised and said something back, her husband agreeing with her. 

“They are telling you that you are right but they could not possibly accept this.” Ardeth smiled at the couple and translated to you, watching as your expression frown in confusion. He thought it the most adorable thing he’s ever seen.  

“Why not?”

“It is made of gold and lapis lazuli Y/N, this would be the most expensive thing they own and they couldn’t take something as precious from you as this.” You almost gasped when he called you by your name, and you stopped yourself from asking him to say it again, knowing this was not the time or place for such a confrontation. 

“I know. But I want them to have it. Please, try to tell them again.” You placed your hand on his hand to turn it their way and Ardeth couldn’t help the blush that crept on his cheeks. He asked them again, telling them you knew very well what it was and that you really wanted them to have it. The couple looked at each other and back to you before taking the necklace and thanking you for it. The young woman hugged you tightly and kissed your cheeks, thanking you once more before asking her husband to put it on for her. 

You went back to your seat and sat down, waiting until a few moments passed before thanking Ardeth for helping you.

“It was nothing.” Ardeth replied, smiling again and watching as you timidly looked away, busying yourself with something other than the handsome man next to you. In that moment, everything clicked in his mind. The bickering, the shy demeanor, the quietness whenever he was around. You didn’t do these because you disliked him but because you thought of him the way he thought of you. Maybe not completely in the same way because he thought of you in such a manner that wasn’t allowed for him. Not unless you were his own to do such things with. 

You saw some of the workmen dancing around, one of them stopping when he saw you sitting next to Ardeth. He approached you and asked you if you would join him, to which you declined insistently, telling him you would only make a fool out of yourself. When he asked again and saw the way Ardeth clenched his jaws, he stopped, knowing it was unwise to anger a Medjay. You followed his gaze and saw the way Ardeth was staring at him, your heart fluttering for a moment at the thought of him being jealous. But no, that wasn’t possible. 

“Perhaps it is best if you take a week off?” You asked the man and he looked at you strangely, asking you if he understood you correctly. 

“Yes, a week. Don’t worry, you will be paid.” You smiled when he jumped and kissed your cheek before running to the other men and telling them they had a week off. You turned to look at Ardeth but he was nowhere to be found. Looking around, you didn’t find him anywhere, mind reeling back to see if you had said anything to offend him. You waited around for another hour and when he never returned, you excused yourself, bidding the couple a good night before walking back to your tent. But you were stopped by one of the girls, telling you that it was custom in their village for everyone to sit, even for a minute, with the palm reader on weddings. You never believed in these matters but thought why not, following the girl until she brought you to the older woman. 

“Sit down my dear.” The woman took your hand and pulled you down until you sat across from her. 

“You speak English?” You hadn’t meant to sound surprised but you have never met someone her age that could speak English.

“A little. I learn quickly.” She winked at you, opening the palm of your hands and drawing patterns across the lines. She remained quiet for a long time before putting your hands down and looking at you. “You have a long life ahead of you, a bright one too.” She said nothing else and you didn’t know what came over you but you asked her anyway.

“Is there love in this life?”

“There could be.”

“What do you mean?” Before you finished your question, the woman was bringing out a small piece of paper, handing it to you to see your reaction. When you opened it, you read the few lines written in Coptic and turned to look at her once more. You knew what it was. You had seen something similar at your time in Oxford when Professor Maspero brought you his findings and although you didn’t believe in such things, you were not one to tempt your luck. “Thank you, but I think it is best if I leave.” You handed the paper back to her, watching as she smiled and nodded your way.

“To be wise at such a young age. May Allah bless you and keep you safe my child. And to answer your question, there is. And you will not need such charms to make it so, for the one you seek has always had his eyes set on you and no one else.” You didn’t have time to say anything before the woman was standing up and walking away, leaving you more confused than before. Silently leaving the festivities, you made you way back to the excavation grounds, your legs leading you to the shores of the river rather than your tent. There was no way you could sleep after hearing the old woman’s words.

~IV~

You returned to the same spot you always sat in to watch the sunset every day, looking up at the sky and marveling at the many stars and constellations so visible at night. But your mind quickly returned to the old woman’s fortune; did she mean what you thought she meant? It couldn’t have been possible that she knew your feelings, let alone Ardeth’s. But she was so sure of herself.

You dug into your purse and pulled out your notebook, returning to the familiar page once more and passing your fingers over his name.

“You know, I never thought of how my name could mean something else.” You turned around when you heard Ardeth call behind you, not bothering to tell him that he almost made you drop your notebook again. When you said nothing, he continued.

“May I join you?” He asked and you could tell he was fully expecting you to tell him off. But when you nodded and motioned for him to sit next to you, he did so quietly. 

“What do you mean?” You asked him, not bothering to hide the page from him anymore. He silently asked if he could see your notebook and pencil, and you handed them over. He traced his callous fingers over his name in hieroglyphs, reading them out loud and smiling at you.

𓄿𓂋𓌗 𓂞𓇌𓏏𓏛 𓃀𓇋𓄿𓎡𓅄𓅆

“Ꜣr dı͗t bı͗k…”

“The one who makes the driving away from the falcon.” You repeated after him, watching as his smile brightened even more so than before. Then you saw him scribbling something down right next to the last part of his name. 

𓃀𓇋𓄿𓈅𓏤𓈐

“bı͗Ꜣ? As in path?” You asked him, trying to see what his name would mean now.

“The one who makes the driving away from the path,” he whispered, then pointed to the tattoo on his forehead and his cheeks. He watched as the meaning of his name dawned on you.

“The one who makes the driving away from the path of the netherworld through maat.” You responded, smiling when he nodded at you and told you he preferred your interpretation better.

“Why?” “As I see it, it was our role to protect Pharaoh who was the manifestation of Horus on earth. It makes sense that my name parallels the old ‘job description’...to drive away Horus from his demise and being taken into the underworld.” He handed you back your notebook and looked towards the river, watching as the waters softly hit the shores.

“Do all the Medjay have those as well?” You asked, hoping he found no offense in your curiosity. 

“No, just the chieftain. But all of us hold names that correspond to an element of our past lives.” He continued, turning to look at you once again and hoping he could find it in himself to apologize for all the times he disrespected you. You met his gaze before looking away immediately. It was hard to maintain eye contact with him, his eyes making you feel as if he was staring into your soul. Then you felt his hand rest on your own in the sand, looking down and seeing his fingers clasping yours harshly. Your heart was beating against your chest and you hoped he couldn’t hear it. 

When you turned to face him again, he was already staring at your lips, and you couldn’t help it, licking them and mirroring his actions before leaning in towards him. Ardeth didn’t want to move, afraid he would break this trance between the two of you, but when he saw you moving towards him, something completely otherworldly took over. 

He let go of your hand and cupped your cheeks, pulling you towards him and taking your lips aggressively in a hungry kiss. You gasped into the sudden motions, hands fisting in his clothes to hold onto him so you didn’t fall over. Ardeth took this as a sign of submission, pushing you down on the sand and cornering you between his arms. When you moaned against him, he snuck his tongue past your lips, exploring your skin like it was a new oasis. His hands crept into your hair before rolling down your form, holding onto your waist and squeezing you against him to feel every inch of you. 

You didn’t know what to do, torn between pushing him away to ask him about the sudden change of heart and begging him to take you to your tent and have his way with you. When he felt your nails dig into his shoulders, he pulled away, his breath fanning over your cheeks and his eyes memorizing your blissed out facial expression. When you finally opened your eyes, you had already regulated your breathing, pulling your hands away and keeping them to yourself. You hoped he would understand and move away, and when he didn’t, you looked anywhere but him.

Ardeth finally understood what you were silently asking him, moving away and sitting up slowly. Before he could say anything else, you were standing up and running away to your place. He knew calling after you wouldn’t do him any good so he sat by himself for a while. When the night air turned colder, he stood up and was about to go to the other guards when he saw your notebook lying on the ground. 

Picking it up, he dusted the sand off and made his way to your tent. The Medjay saw him approaching and stood up, greeting him before returning to their posts. 

“wḏi.” The command passed his lips angrily, and the two subordinates knew not to question him. They stood up and walked back to the village, leaving Ardeth standing outside your tent. He had spent hours committing to memory the pass of your tongue against his, every smooth touch of your skin against his rough fingers. Without thinking much of it, he walked into your tent to place your notebook on the nightstand, telling himself to not look at you even for a moment. 

But his self control flew with the breeze, his eyes turning back and seeing your naked figure under the thin covers. He could tell you were naked, for your entire back was exposed to his gaze. Gently, he reached over and rolled the cover until you were shielded from his eyes. You looked so beautiful in your sleep, hair forming a halo on the pillow. He knew this was wrong but he couldn’t stop himself even if he tried. Slowly, he traced the blush on your cheeks up to your hair, brushing the few strands aside to take a closer look at you.

“A-ardeth…” His name spilling from your lips pushed him back to reality, pulling away and exiting the tent immediately out of fear of himself. He bit his tongue to distract himself from the familiar ache creeping into his groin whenever you were around. It was much worse now however, because he knew what his name sounded like when you moaned it in your sleep. Sitting near the fire, Ardeth removed his knife and picked up a large tree branch, cutting away to distract himself from the sleeping figure not twenty feet away from him. 

Unbeknownst to him, you were very much awake when he entered your tent. For a moment, you were afraid it was not him but when leaned over to cover your body, you could smell his scent, one that you were more familiar with now more than before. You knew he would not try to force himself on you and when he brushed your hair, you couldn’t stop the moan that escaped your throat in the form of his name. He was gone a moment later, leaving you a mess beneath your covers. You wished you could bring him back to your bed, tell him you ran away because you were afraid of offending him by asking him to do something that may not be acceptable in his culture and not because you were refusing him. 

You slept knowing the old woman was truthful in everything she had told you, and Ardeth laid awake through the night thinking you ran away because you did not want him. 

~V~

You woke up earlier than usual, making yourself exceptionally presentable before exiting the tent. You walked out prepared to face Ardeth and try to make small talk so he doesn’t feel awkward but he was nowhere to be found. You hated when he did that and he seemed to do that a lot around you. You saw the two guards, who you now knew were Medjay, standing around and talking. When they saw you, they bowed their heads before returning to their conversation. 

You didn’t bother to look for him, going about your day as you normally would have and hoping you could be productive instead of thinking about him. You continued recording mounds of interest in your notebook, walking around the area near the mosque and straying away from the major area to the west of the temple. You never came to this part of the grounds, knowing Professor Maspero had already discovered the Chapel of the goddess Mut. There was no way he would’ve missed anything, he was a thorough man. But in your attempt to not topple over the rocks, you skipped a step and fell on your face on top of what used to be a column in the hypostyle hall of the temple. 

“For god’s sake,” you whispered to yourself, looking for your pencil and dusting off your pants. You cursed under your breath when you saw your pants have ripped at the knee. Resting on the column, your eyes passed through a relief that seemed oddly familiar. Ignoring the pain in your legs, you tried to wipe the sand as much as possible from the relief, eyes widening in surprise when you realized what the relief was.

Frantically standing up, you picked up your notebook to mark where you were on the site before discarding it again, kneeling down and dusting off as much as you could without damaging the column. 

There, engraved in large letters, was a Coptic inscription surrounding a cross that was most likely carved over a hieroglyphs. You almost screamed at the sheer luck, marking the area before running to your tent to grab your tools. The guards saw you running around frantically and were about to ask you when they saw you jumping out of your tent with your small kit. They knew not to disturb you when you were working. 

You returned to the column and brushed away from the column before grabbing a shovel and removing the rubble from around the column. You’ve never had to do this much work in your years of excavations but you didn’t care, this was far more rewarding than anything. You looked like a wild woman by the time you cleared the column, sitting down to sketch as many of the reliefs as you could. The Coptic would have to wait, you had no energy for this today. 

When you returned to your tent, the two guards saw the state of you and asked if anything happened to you. You explained what took place and told them that dinner was on you, giving one of them money to fetch food from the village. The men thanked you and told you they would tell you when the food was here. 

You went back in to bathe, knowing you looked like an absolute mess of a woman and that you should not be in their company in such a manner. You were about to unbutton your shirt when someone walked into the tent.

“That was quick. You must’ve been truly hungry to-” The words died in your throat when you turned around and saw Ardeth standing at the entrance. You said nothing, silently kicking yourself for not returning sooner and cleaning up. The last thing you needed was to look filthy in front of him. But none of this compared to the way he was looking at you, like a predator ready to devour his prey. 

His eyes softened, however, when he saw you the state of your knees and the dried blood on the beige pants. Without thinking much of it, he stepped towards you, kneeling down to inspect your skin.

“What happened?”

“I- there was a…” You couldn’t think of a coherent sentence, the feeling of his warm hands wrapped around your legs too distracting. “I was just walking around and quite literally fell upon a new discovery. Did you know there was an old church built in this temple?” Ardeth ignored your rambling, asking you to sit down on the chair while he fetched a clean cloth and some water. You didn’t dare argue with him, silently taking a seat and rolling up your pants for him. He came back with a small amphora filled with cold water and a cloth. His blood thrummed in his ears as soon as he saw your skin. And although he tried to hide himself, you couldn’t help but smile at the blush that crept across his cheeks. 

Gently, he sat down and held your calves, cursing himself for thinking he could do this without making a fool out of himself. 

“You should be more careful Y/N.” There it was again, your name whispered so softly and causing you shake. Ardeth felt goosebumps erupting on your skin, barely holding back the smile of pride at being the cause of such a reaction. You nodded, not trusting your voice just yet. He was tender in every touch, slowly dabbing the wet cloth around the inflamed area before treating the other knee in a similar fashion. Like the previous night, something took over him and he couldn’t hold himself back, leaning down and kissing your knees, telling you to watch the wounds when you washed.

When Ardeth looked up, he saw the frenzy swimming in your eyes, and he could only smile at you when your lips parted to attempt and thank him. 

“I will wash this for you.” He raised the blood stained cloth and you tried to stop him but he insisted, telling you it was nothing. When he left your tent, you were sure your heart was close to jumping out of your chest. It was such a minor touch but it boiled your blood, knowing what his lips felt like on your skin yet again. Shaking your head, you went to the corner of the tent to wash up quickly, your heart already leaping at the thought of seeing him again. 

But then something broke your trance. God you could not never have the heart to refuse this man if he asked you to have him, but you also couldn’t bear it if you were to tempt him to do something that went against his culture, even religion. Come to think of it, your knowledge of the Medjay’s religious beliefs was minimal. You had spent a long time with them when you were with Evy and Rick, seeing many of them walking into the mosque in their village during the day to pray. But you also saw your two guards walking out of Mass on Sunday morning numerous times, singing some of their hymns as they walked back to their post. 

Either way, you could not possibly be the cause that Ardeth strayed from his beliefs. You had respected him far too much to tempt him or place him in an unpleasant situation with whatever religious leader he knew. You were very much aware of your position, not just as a stranger to the culture and religions but also as a woman that did not care for the rules revolving around physical relationships. It was one of the things that had many men and women of your social circle angry and whisper about. You only had one or two affairs with men but you still valued yourself, just not in the same way that women of your society did. You did not care for the limiting rules set upon you by the Catholic church or English culture. Thankfully, neither did your parents, always telling you to follow your heart and not care for what anyone thought of you. You were only Catholic by name after all, not by belief.  

But you couldn’t apply this advice now. You cared what Ardeth thought of you and you did not want him to think you were “easy,” neither did you want him to see you as a prude. So you reeled back all thoughts of approaching him, wanting to give the two of you some time to test the waters. You took your time in the bath, slowly washing yourself to make sure the wound did not bleed again. It was an hour later when you emerged from the water, wrapping a towel around yourself before rubbing another around your hair. 

But when you emerged from behind the wooden screen, you saw Ardeth walking in to place the urn and cloth near your bed. When he turned around, his body went tense, hands shaking at the sight of you and eyes blinking slowly. Neither of you moved for a few moments. You waited to see what he would do, chest rising and falling when you saw the way his eyes took you in. You saw his adam’s apple bob up before resting back in its place and you thought, ‘20 seconds of courage.’

Throwing the hair towel away, you walked up to him, standing a few inches away from his rigid torso. 

“You are treading on dangerous grounds Y/N.” Ardeth whispered, his nose flaring when the scent of lavender hit his senses. He was losing every ounce of control coursing through his veins and he wished you would step away before he did something he might regret. Slowly, you reached your hands towards him to cup his cheeks, watching as he shut his eyes to control himself. You saw his jaws clenched tightly, fists cracking from how harshly he was holding himself back. Leaning forward, you brushed your lips against his own before pulling back.

“Tell them to leave.” That was all Ardeth needed for confirmation, setting the animal loose and wrapping his arms around you before devouring your lips. His hands fisted in your damp hair, pulling your neck back so he could lay kisses all over your skin. You moaned loudly against him, causing him to clamp his hand on your mouth in fear of the men hearing you. Reluctantly pulling away, Ardeth told you to remain in your spot until he got rid of the two guards. You barely held yourself up when he left you to walk out of the tent. 

You could hear him ordering the two men, and telling them to not return unless they saw Horus. Both men responded their agreement and left, and you couldn’t help but feel embarrassed because they probably knew why their chieftain ordered them so aggressively to leave. 

Ardeth walked back in and tied the knots of the entrance, walking around all sides of the tent to make sure there were no visible windows or holes or even entrances for anyone to disturb the two of you. When he came back to you, he saw you looking at the ground, arms set at your sides shyly.

“You do not owe me anything Y/N, certainly not your body. I can leave now if you wish me to.” It broke his heart to tell you such things but he never wanted to force you to do anything you did not wish to do. When you looked up at him and blinked, he knew your answer. 

And before he could do anything, you were loosening the knot of the towel, letting it fall to the floor to leave you naked to his eyes. Ardeth was having a hard time, in more ways than one, maintaining his nerves. His heart skipped a beat at seeing you bare in front of him and he knew there was no holding back anymore when you looked up at him through heavy-lidded eyes.

"يا اللة."

My god.

~VI~

As soon as he whispered those two words, you were on him like the water clinging to your skin, not caring about any consequences to your actions. Ardeth embraced you with as much passion, swallowing your cries when his hands got bolder with every pass over your skin. He was a much more aggressive lover than you thought and perhaps it was due to the sexual tension between the two of you in the past few weeks. 

He pulled away and you noticed that he held a direct gaze, not a playful expression in sight. You whined at the loss of his lips and if he were any other man, Ardeth would have smiled and felt a sense of pride for having this much of an effect on you. But he wasn’t another man. He was a starved man and you were exactly what he yearned for in decades. Ardeth couldn’t remember the last time he’d felt this strongly to another woman. The last time he was in a relationship, be it physical or emotional, was so long ago that he couldn’t remember who it was. He was a young boy who thought being with a woman would make him a man but he knew soon after it was not this simple.

His lips sucked at the juncture of your neck and noticed you biting your lips to prevent any sound from escaping past them. His fingers squeezed your waist and brought you closer to him harshly, a part of him knowing he should slow down and cherish every inch of you in a perhaps gentler manner. But you were finally in his arms, and he couldn’t bring himself to hold back, not when you were so responsive to his mean and quick touches. He bit down a little harshly on your clavicle and a part of him wished it was to hear your noises and not to mark you as his, but he would dwell on that later. When you finally moaned against him, he eased the hold he had on your hips and pulled away to take you in. “Do not silence yourself Y/N, your sounds belong to me,” he gasped when you visibly shuddered against him, his hands shaking when he felt your nails dig into his arms. “Sweet music to my ears…”

You didn’t know what came over you but no sooner than his hoarse request were your moans loud enough to be heard from the river. He continued his assault on your flushed skin, nipping and licking every inch of you until you surrendered yourself to his hands. You tugged at his shoulder, fisting your fingers in his robes before reaching for his turban. Loosening the scarves away from his head, you watched as his hair fell down past his cheeks and framed his handsome features. Ardeth looked up and saw the way your eyes gazed at him and he felt relief wash over him because he was not the only one who felt this unbearable need.

You leaned forward and Ardeth thought you were going to kiss him but then you pulled his hair and exposed his neck for you, sucking on his adam’s apple and feeling his shaking hands wrap around your entire body. “My heart aches for you Y/N-” Ardeth couldn’t help the growl that flew past his vocal cords, his hands shaking violently when you continued to bite his throat time and again. He wasn’t sure if he was this sensitive because it has been decades since he was touched in such a manner or if it was because you were the one claiming his body. “It yearns for you when the sun rises each morning and- ahhh by the gods woman...and craves you when it sets past the Nile.”

If it were any other woman, Ardeth was sure she would be turned off by his words. They weren’t seductive in any way, but he knew you. He knew your preferences, your likes and dislikes, perhaps already understood what you desired after even though he has not been an hour in your bed. Somehow, however, he sensed your appreciation for the sensual and romantic words he uttered and he continued to test both his resolve and yours with every affection he emoted. And he was right to think so because within minutes, he had your body willing and ready for him. You should have expected him to have such a sinful tongue and you rubbed your thighs when Ardeth moaned shamelessly at your equally-aggressive hands. He was more vocal than any of your previous lovers and you found that you enjoyed it immensely.  

“Ardeth, please just...take these off. I need to feel your skin. I want to touch you, kiss you, look at every inch of you.” Ardeth smiled at your lack of patience, not warning you as he leaned down and carried you to the bed. He laid you down gently before standing over you, shaking his head when he saw the way you grabbed at your breasts to seduce him.

“You are a vixen, the most beautiful my eyes have seen.” Ardeth licked his lips as he looked you over, undoing his robes slowly to fill his mind’s eye with you. You arched your back and moaned when you saw his bare skin through the robes, not caring that you were being forward when you grabbed his robes and pulled him towards you. Ardeth stepped confusingly towards you, hissing when he felt your hands palm him through the black material.

“Y/N, I- I thought your hand would calm this heat I feel for you, but- oh gods, ahhh you- you have done little to quench this fire.” His words went straight to your core and you began to pull at the clothes until they pooled at his feet. Before he could step out of them, you were leaning forward and kissing his hard member, hands kneading and teasing the base until he was panting mess above you.

“Ahhh gods, my love you’re- you are truly talented.” Ardeth tries his hardest to focus on your blissed-out expression but he fails as soon as he feels the palm of your hand close around the tip of his erection. He manages to open his eyes and look down just in time to see you lick the protruding vein ending right below the head and he almost loses himself right then and there. As much as it pains him, he fists his hand in your hair and pulls you off of him before pushing you down on your bed and standing once more. He holds a dangerous and warning gaze and you understand why he silently asks you to not touch him again. You shamelessly look at him as he moves around, watching the way his muscles flex whenever he pulls an article of clothing off aggressively. 

You almost giggle at how quick he is but you hold back, afraid of making him think you are laughing at him. His mind freezes when he stands up and turns to you, unable to look away from where your fingers are. Ardeth raises a curious eyebrow, slowly kneeling down on the bed before approaching you like a lion waiting to devour his prey at the proper time. He is almost angry at the way your eyes challenge him but he chooses to think past the brave aura, gently parting your thighs wider so he could take a better look at the motion of your fingers. He growls, silently chuckling when he sees your legs shake at the sound. You stop your actions altogether and suddenly realize just how dry your mouth is.

“Do not stop on my account Y/N,” Ardeth’s voice is deeper than normal and you whine at his self-control. You had thought he would take you as soon as his guards left but he proved to be a more patient man than you thought. “Ardeth please, please-” You stop breathing when he leans down between your parted thighs, licking your navel and blowing air on the wet skin until you reach for him. Slowly descending down your body, Ardeth holds your gaze and squeezes your buttocks before whispering against your heat, “unless you want me to stop, you will be patient. Remove your hands.” You obey him instantly, letting go of his shoulders before pulling on the bed sheets violently to have some semblance of control.

He hums in approval and returns to the task at hand. A part of him wished he would be gentleman-like with you, but his mind was losing the last bit of control and he couldn’t stop himself even if he tried. Shutting his eyes, he leaned down and licked your core once, twice to open you up for him. As soon as you threw your head back in pleasure, he did what his mind dreamed of doing to you for months, years even. Not caring for how filthy it must have looked, let alone sounded, Ardeth poked your wet lips with his nose and took a long whiff of your scent, groaning when the sweet smell swept straight to his groin. Your eyes shot open and glanced down at him immediately, gasping at the obscenity of his actions. Ardeth was afraid he scared you but when he turned his attention back to your heat, he saw proof of your arousal leaking down your thighs.

He smiled and glanced back at you, maintaining eye contact as he licked you dry. You were embarrassed but for a moment, moaning his name over and over again as he pleasured you until you could no longer feel anything but him. 

“Ardeth, ahhh pl-please Ardeth I-” he didn’t let you finish, sucking on your wet core vigorously before pushing down on your lower abdomen to keep you still for him. As soon as you felt his fingers part your sensitive core, your hands fisted in his long locks and pulled on it. You had expected him to cease his actions or ask you to be patient again but the opposite occurred. Ardeth coated his fingers with your pleasure before pushing them against you, exploring your body with his quick digits while he continued to nip and lick at the protruding bundle of nerves. He was slowly driving you mad with his ministrations and you managed to keep whatever control remained because the last thing you needed was for the whole village to know what is transpiring in your tent. 

But then he curled his fingers inside you and increased pressure once, twice, three times until he felt your back arch off the bed. You couldn’t hold back anymore, clenching around his fingers as he brought you to the utmost pleasure and when you begged him to stop, he refused, wanting to coax another petite mort out of you before he pulled away. Ardeth raised himself just in time to see you let go once more, his eyes taking in your features before slowly descending down your body. Your skin was glistening with sweat, chest rising and falling rapidly with every breath you took and Ardeth almost lost his mind when he saw how perky and flushed your breasts were. When he saw how spent you looked, he pushed his fingers inside you one last time before taking them out and rubbing your thighs to soothe you. You fell back onto the bed, hair disheveled and lips parted from how hard you were breathing. As soon as you managed to look at him, Ardeth took this chance and licked his fingers dry before slowly ascending your body.

He left a trail of kisses on your skin, occasionally nipping an area he found desirable and you smiled when he came face to face with your breasts. You couldn’t hold back the scandalous moan that emanated when he leaned down and took a pert nipple between his teeth, fondling the other until you felt pleasure from the pain of his touches. 

“I- I’m sensitive there Ardeth,” your attempt at warning him did little to nothing, only edging him further in his actions until you were a mess beneath him again. “All the more reason to devour you Y/N. You torment me with your moans. Your whispers of my name...in the name of the ogdoad, forgive me. Do not reproach me for losing myself in your beauty. If you choose to deny me this, then send me away this instance for I cannot...will not hold back any longer.” You were overcome with warmth at the intensity of his words, knowing it must be hard for him to say such words given the nature of his quiet personality, let alone the position he was in. “You fill me with desire from head to foot Y/N. My love shall never be veiled again.” He continued his assault on your breasts and you continued praying his name when you felt his shaft leaking on your belly. You weren’t sure what you wanted anymore, but you were absolutely certain of one thing: Ardeth was the last man you would allow in your bed because you knew in your heart that no one else was capable of loving you as much as he does, not just physically, but emotionally. 

“I have wanted you for so long, and I- ahhh god your tongue drips of sin, and I pleasured myself at night, imagining how you would touch me, h-how your skin would feel against mine, how rough you would be when you lose control, and-” you took a deep breath, holding back what you wanted to say for fear of making him think you were ill-mannered. But he has not once held back from you this night. As a matter of fact, Ardeth has done the opposite, voicing his desires proudly before stealing orgasm after another from you. You found courage through his actions and whispered to him what you have wanted for so long. “And I dreamed of feeling you so deep inside me, giving you pleasure with avidity until you stilled my torments.” You wrapped your legs around him, not giving him a chance to contemplate on your actions before gyrating your hips into his verge until you felt him rub against your damp core. 

Ardeth shuddered in your arms, his surprise turning into firm touches as he wrapped one arm around your back while the other hand smoothed down your hips. He leaned down and captured your lips in a hungry kiss, his hand pushing your lower back into him to control the motion of your hips. He could feel himself nestled between your thighs, moaning and sucking on your tongue when he sensed how dripping wet you were for him.

“You drive me mad woman,” Ardeth smiled against your mouth before reaching up and pulling on your hair to get more access to your neck. He bit down wherever he could as he felt your desire drench his thighs. You would tell him later that you preferred nothing more than feeling his chest slide against yours, not because of how toned and muscular it was but because of how rough it was to the touch. The friction his chest hair caused was painful yet it ignited a fire within you instantaneously. 

“Please, please just-”

“What do you need Y/N, I will give you anything.” Ardeth was breathing just as harshly as you, if not more. He gazed into your eyes, watching the brewing storm erupt as he rolled his hips against you. You dug your nails into his back, the other holding onto his hair when you couldn’t take it any longer.

“I need you, Ardeth, I need you now. Please, I- I burn for you… need to embrace you,” and for good measure, you stretched your hand between your bodies, grabbing his painfully hard member and rubbing it between your parted lips. “Let me embrace you, let me quench this radiating fire.” You pronounced each word with a rough pass over your core and Ardeth prayed your name until he couldn’t take it anymore.

He grabbed your wrist aggressively, slamming it above your head and pushing you down until he felt your submission and before you could whine again, he was spitting in his hand, proud of the response he received from you at the sudden and audacious action. He stroked himself a few times before lining himself up against you, slowly pushing past your slit into your heat until he felt completely engulfed by your silky walls. You ceased to breathe as you felt the intrusion reach deeper, refusing to tell him to stop because even though he was filling you to the hilt, you still craved him. 

Ardeth could barely hold himself above you, his arms threatening to give out beneath him from the immense pleasure. He wasn’t sure if you were purposely clenching violently around him or not, but all he knew was that he has never felt such satisfaction in his life. And he silently cursed you for feeling so tight and inviting because he knew very well no other woman would compare to you. Neither in your intellect and wittiness, nor your beauty and perfection. He couldn’t help but chuckle at the thought because he never thought he would have the neural capacity to applaud your brilliance when he was this deep inside you. 

You didn’t know why he was laughing and you hoped it wasn’t because you didn’t live up to his expectations. You loosened your hold on him and he noticed, gazing down at you and seeing the inquisitive expression you held. Brushing your hair aside, he refused to look anywhere but your doe-like orbs as he soothed the slight hint of panic away from your skin.

“You have, without a doubt, utterly ruined all women for me Y/N,” Ardeth claimed shamelessly before pulling himself out, and refusing to move until he made sure you were content. When he saw you release your breath and throw your head back, he thrust back in a little vigorously than intended. Before he could apologize for his lack of patience, he heard you faintly whispering for him.

“Ardeth, d-don’t hold back. Take your pleasure, please. I- I want you to ruin me...ahh god, want you to brand my soul.” You pulled him down to you, kissing the corner of his mouth and licking his jaw, enticing him until he lost all self-control and took from you what you dreamed of giving him ever since you laid eyes on him in the desert long ago. At your request, Ardeth lost himself, moving in and out between your thighs without remorse. He hummed against the juncture of your neck, the grip he held on your hair getting tighter with every passing minute. You turned your head to the side, sighing and moaning his name as he roughly drove himself into you. 

You bit his wrist, causing him to lose his balance for a moment before growling and thrusting into you. “If- ahhh gods, if one time will not suffice to quench your fire, I shall do it again to satisfy you. You have bewitched me body and soul Y/N, m nb pt I surrender myself to you.” You felt a sudden flare of lightning strike across your abdomen as soon as he spoke in his native tongue, unintentionally clenching harder around him and causing him to scream into the night air. Even though he spoke little in his language, you couldn’t help but imagine him continue to do so as he brought you to the utmost pleasure. Ardeth noticed your responsiveness to his words and he felt pride deep in his lungs at the thought of knowing he was the cause of such a reaction. 

His pace began to falter, knowing very well he could not last any longer because of how perfect and velvety you felt around him. He set a punishing pace nonetheless, wanting to feel you fall over the edge with him. Taking hold of your chin, he turned you to face him before claiming your mouth again, not caring that he might draw some blood from his aggressive actions. The only sounds heard in the tent were your moans, and his skin slapping against your own. It drove him mad hearing your arousal seep down your thighs with every pass of his verge past your slit. 

“sttyt nṯr ꜥꜣ, come with me, please Y/N, come for me. Now!” For god knows what time that night, Ardeth bit down on your skin, somehow managing to thrust into you harder than before until you couldn’t control your own body. He felt your orgasm before you had the chance to tell him, shuddering against you as he released himself deep inside you. You arched your back against him as waves of pleasure coursed through your body, the intensity of your gratification terrifying your heart. You never realized you were capable of feeling such things and yet here you were, in the arms of the man you never thought you could get close to until a few hours ago.

As you opened your eyes, you saw dilated pupils staring right back at you. It seemed comical that you felt naked under his potent gaze and actually attempted to cover yourself. His grip on you hardened, silently telling you to never attempt such a thing again.

“What have you done to me woman? Not even I had any control over myself.” He whispered before smiling and leaning down to kiss you passionately. You wrapped your arms around his neck and pulled him closer to you, feeling the muscles of his back shift under your touch as he moved to pull himself out of you. Ardeth fell to the side, reaching for the covers before bringing you to him. You laid beneath his neck, pushing your thighs around his legs and chuckling when he warned you with a huff. Ardeth tried his hardest to think of anything but your hard nipples teasing his chest and he realized he could never be able to not think of you as long as you were in his embrace.

~VII~

“This is not the time, and perhaps I should have inquired before...this...but I wanted to apologize if I caused you to do or say anything against your ways.” There was no other manner you could state what you wanted to tell him and you hoped he wouldn’t be offended by your boldness. You sighed when you heard him chuckle for a second, turning your gaze to him to study his facial expression.

“The chieftain of the Medjay is seldom a follower of any religion besides the old one. As far as I know, he can only belong to the old traditions and it is not our custom to hold such things as taboo before marriage. If anything, it is I who should apologize for being incapable of stopping this before it escalated.” He played with your hair, and you couldn’t help but shiver at the seriousness of his voice. 

“Why?”

“You often wear a cross around your neck and I could only assume you are Christian.”

“I was raised one but never believed in any of it. There are too many similarities between the Ancient Religion and Christianity, and do not tell my family any of this, but I genuinely believe Christianity stole its stories and beliefs from your religion. If I were to ever follow a tradition, it would be the Ancient Egyptian one. Horus knows I swear by his name all the time.” You never expected to hear Ardeth laugh this loudly but he did so and you couldn’t look away from the beautiful expression he held. The sound was so pure you almost begged him to do it again. Both of you remained quiet for a few minutes, and he occasionally smiled when you continued to draw patterns on his chest. 

After a while, Ardeth broke the silence and surprised you yet again. “I have spent many nights imagining what it would feel like to have you naked and willing in my arms, and now that I am here, I cannot fathom how divine you are.” You blushed under his gaze and Ardeth knew he would do everything in his power to see that blush creep down your breasts once more.

“bı͗ꜣyt.ı͗, my heart belongs to you.” You continued to stare at him, and he sighed in relief when you graced him with a shy smile. Slowly, you sat up and cupped his cheek, tracing the hieroglyphs on his handsome features before touching each one with your lips. You could feel him smiling against your neck and sighed when his grip tightened around your waist. 

“And mine is yours, wbnnı͗.ı͗.” Ardeth couldn’t help himself, grabbing your neck and pushing you down to kiss you before wrapping his arms around you to keep you as close to him as possible. You laid your head back on his chest and shut your eyes, the feeling of tranquility slowly washing over you as you focused on the beat of his heart. Finally, since decades, Ardeth felt content, knowing he would never allow himself to embrace another woman and would fight an entire army before he lets another man touch you. You remained in each other’s arms for the duration of the night, letting the sounds of the Nile lull you into a deep sleep, knowing that everything was, at long last, as it should be. 

Tagging some people who expressed excitement at the idea of this fic:

@feelmyroarrrr @thorodinsvn @oplunket16 @vvigilantes @the-rookie-97  @blackcoffeeandgreenteaforme @buckylokihoes @redqueen1221 @kuronekotsiigan @sai-kida134 @wonderwolfstrash @commissioner23 @valeks-princess @libbymouse @taliaalghuldeservesbetter @ruby-white-rabbit​ @jamdropx35​ @dramadreamer14​ @tnupsweetpie​ @jessicahoppes @la--petit--croissant @kandomeresbitch​ @pleasantdreamqueen​

[askdani]

Tales of Dani - Chapter 2 - The Invasion (Final Part)

After escaping the Foot and Kraang Prime, the Turtles and April head back to the lair while Casey stays with an injured Leonardo in the Party Wagon, searching for his family. “Sensei!” Raphael calls out. “You in here?” April presses her fingers to her temples. “He’s not here,” she says. “I don’t sense him.”

Donatello picks up the picture of Splinter, his wife, and his daughter. “We gotta move,” he tells his brothers. “Everyone, gather one meaningful thing you want to take with you. First we find Splinter, and then we get out of town.”

The purple masked turtle walks to his lab and grabs a few things, mostly medical supplies. He then turns to a frozen mutant. “We’ll be back, Timothy,” he says. “And if we don’t make it, you should defrost in about seventy years or so. Hopefully the world is a better place by then.”

Michelangelo goes to the kitchen, opening the freezer. “I know this is your home,” he tells Ice Cream Kitty. “You know we have to leave, Ice Cream Kitty. Now come on, kitty kitty.” He tries to pull her out of the freezer, but she did not want to go. “Easy, easy.” Michelangelo manages to pull the mutant cat out, putting her in a cooler with two boxes of frozen pizza. “Just squeeze in there between the frozen pizzas.”

Raphael went to his room, removing a can out of the way. He grabs a photo of Slash that was taken some time before he was mutated. “Wherever you are, I hope you’re safe, Spike,” he says sadly.

(Meanwhile)

"I need a lot more training,” Dani admits to herself. She didn’t know how long she ran, but she kept going, worried that she won’t be able to find Slash or a place to hide. She felt guilty leaving Splinter behind while he was fighting Shredder, but she knew she had to get herself to safety before she gets hurt even more. Suddenly, she heard a voice shout, “Hey! Down here!”

Dani came to a screeching halt and turned to see a middle-aged man waving at her. She came down from the rooftop and landed in front of him. “Who are you?” she asked. “The name’s Kurtzman,” he responds. “I’m a journalist who knows a lot about the Kraang. It’s a good thing I found you, miss. This city’s in chaos! Quick! Come with me inside.”

Kurtzman opens the door and motioned Dani to go inside the warehouse. She was hesitant. He seems to have a lot of knowledge, but.. can she trust him? What would Slash do?  After a moment Dani sighed. ‘He would want you to be safe,’ she thought. She enters the warehouse, hoping that she will find a way to stop this invasion, and that Slash would be okay.

(Meanwhile)

The Turtles and April enter the Party Wagon and escape Kraang Prime. As soon as they were inside and the vehicle drove off, Donatello covered his unconscious brother with a blanket. “I’m sorry, Leo,” he says. “You were right. If we’d just left the city when you said, the Kraang would never have found the lair and started the invasion. None of this would have happened.”

April glanced around at her friends. “I have a place we can go upstate,” she says. “My old family home. We used to go there every summer. We can stay as long as we want, no one’s around for miles.” “Upstate, huh,” Casey says pulling his mask up, “Sounds good to Casey Jones.” April asks, “Did you find your dad and little sister?” “No sign of them,” Casey sadly responds, keeping his eyes focused on the road. “They probably got Kraang-atized.” The redhead rests her head on his shoulder.

"What’s gonna happen now, Raph?” Michelangelo asks. Wrapping his hand around his brother’s shoulder, Raphael shakes his head. “For the first time in my life, I have no idea, little brother,” he says. “I miss Master Splinter...”

(Meanwhile, in the sewers)

The mutant rat was washed through so many tunnels underwater. Shredder managed to defeat him and throw him down a pipe. A tail grabbed hold of him and took him to the surface. Gently setting her father down, Karai touches his face for a response. The only response she received was a shallow breath. She jumps back to the water and disappears.

(Meanwhile)

Inside the warehouse, Dani sat alone in the couch, while Kurtzman stepped outside to see if anyone needed help. She was still in shock. So much has happened. The Kraang invaded again, Leonardo is missing, she tried to help Splinter fight a man in metal armor, only for him to knock her down. She watched him and the rat plummet down the large hole. She doesn’t know if Splinter survived or not. She could only hope he did. Suddenly, a noise interrupted her thoughts.

Dani turned to see that the door opened and Kurtzman stepped inside with a smile on his face. “There’s a friend I’d like you to meet,” he tells her. “Friend?” Dani repeats, raising her eye brow. ‘Who could this friend be?’ she wonders. Kurtzman signals a shadowy figure to come inside. She could hear loud footsteps coming from it. She walks over to take a closer look, and gasped. She couldn’t believe who she saw!

Stepping inside the warehouse was Slash, who looked surprised to see her too. Dani was in shock. She was speechless. Her friend was okay, and he is finally with her. After what seemed like a moment, the mutant tortoise smiled softly at his friend. “Hey, Danielle. Long time, no see,” he greeted her.

Acting fully on impulse, Dani ran to Slash and hugged him. The tortoise carefully wrapped his arms around her (noting that she’s injured), returning the hug. Perhaps some good has happened today.

Moments later, Slash told Dani all that has happened since they last saw each other. She was surprised when he told her that he tried to find her in the apartment. She then told the tortoise about Splinter and the man she fought. Slash growled at the mention of it. He heard many things about the Shredder, but never would he have guessed that HE was responsible for Dani’s injuries. Slash swore that he will gladly give him a taste of his own medicine. But now wasn’t the time for a vengeance quest. They need to recover, they need to train, they need to find a way to take this city back, with or without the Turtles.

END OF CHAPTER